Taking a Break (Open)

[*Midnightsoul*]

Silverheart let out a deep sigh of relief. She'd finally finished sorting out patrols, at least for now, and managed to slide out of the camp, even if it was only for a little while. After all, the RiverClan deputy would have to be back at camp within a little while to get the reports on how the borders are and prey brought back, which she'd then most likely tell Mintstar.

Deputyship wasn't anywhere near what Silverheart imagined it to be, and even farther from that, anything Silverheart imagined she would be. It was Dovegaze's, her mother's, dream to become leader, and Silverheart didn't know that until Dovegaze uttered her last words.

If any of Dovegaze's rather... unwanted... kits were best suited to be leader, then it was Oakpelt, but Dovegaze liked him least, that was obvious, and he was dead, which certainly won't gain a cat leadership. Tinyfish? Far too shy, timid, and quiet overall to be a leader. Silverheart? The last option, even if Dovegaze never really got along with her.

Why, though? How had everything gone 'perfectly'? Dovegaze got her wish almost completed: Silverheart was deputy, not leader, but maybe someday she would gain leadership. Of all the cats to be chosen, why did I get chosen? Silverheart wondered continuously.

This wasn't the time to wonder, however, and Silverheart finally came to that realization when she noticed that she'd walked to the river that bordered RiverClan and ThunderClan's territories, standing on and among the wide variety of shapes, colors, and sizes of pebbles and shells that rest on the shores of the river on both sides.

Silverheart padded forward and sat at the edge of the water, looking at her reflection for a few moments before swiftly lashing her paw into the water and out again, a fish panicking between her claws. The she-cat quickly nipped the prey and set it behind her.

Looking back into the water, Silverheart leaped and yelped in surprise as she saw another cat's reflection beside her own. "Who's there?" The she-cat asked, whipping around.

[Levudazed]

Ravenriver didn't even flinch when Silverheart leaped, yelped, and whipped around, Ravenriver just sat down looking at her. "Its just me, thought it would be nice to come see my little angle." Ravenriver loved being around Silverheart, even when she did seem a bit crazy.

[*Midnightsoul*]

(Already mates, then? Okay.)

Silverheart purred, her fur lying flat in relief. She sat down and licked her paw before swiping over her face, embarrassment washing over her. "I.. I can't believe that I'm the deputy now." Silverheart hadn't been given the chance to speak to Ravenriver about her doubts and everything else as the whole thing had only happened within a day before, and the silver tabby she-cat was incredibly busy. "I mean, I guess I want to be deputy, but I'm just so shocked.." Did she want to be deputy, though? "Er, well, maybe I don't want to be deputy. I don't know what I want!" Silverheart meowed, her eyes dilating as she looked at Ravenriver.

[Levudazed]

(Is that ok?)

Ravenriver watched over Silverheart as she began to talk. He couldn't believe that his mate had become deputy, he was happy for her and believed she would do good. "We all saw this day coming, you have everything you need to be deputy, you just have to get used to doing things." Ravenriver stood and moved closer to his mate, he lucked her cheek gently as he sat down closer to her. "Calm down, get used to being a deputy, and if you still don't think you can do it, just tell Mintstar." Ravenriver didn't know of any cat that backed down from being deputy, but he could see why some cat would want to. "No one will think less of you if you decide to back down from being deputy, being deputy isn't something all cats can do." Ravenriver believed that Silverheart could do it, she just needed to get used to it.

[*Midnightsoul*]

(Fine by me. ^^)

"Y-you did? I couldn't have been put into this 'we'.." Silverheart mewed nervously, kneading the ground, "I mean, I certainly didn't see it coming. This is what Dovegaze wanted. She wanted.." The silver tabby choked up, but continued as best she could, "She wanted to be leader, but then she had Oakpelt, Tinyfish, and I, and everything went downhill for her from there. She never wanted us, and she ruined her chances of leadership by having us, especially since our father wasn't in RiverClan." Silverheart, in fear of what her mate would think, had decided against ever telling Ravenriver that she wasn't pure RiverClan blood, but since they were officially mates, Silverheart knew that she had to tell him sometime. It was only fair.

Silverheart's eyes filled with determination and fierceness suddenly, "I'm not backing down. I may feel weak and helpless at times in this, but there's absolutely no way I'm backing down from the spot at leadership! I guess.. I guess I'm ambitious in my own way, even if I am timid often enough. I just.. I can't decide what I want. If I were to have kits, they wouldn't be able to have my full attention and care when they became apprentices, and I want kits..." There Silverheart went again. Indecisiveness. Doubtful. It was what she was in a weird nutshell. Might the she-cat someday grow out of it? It was a good thing Silverheart was deputy for a while at least, because if she wasn't, she wouldn't be able to handle running RiverClan. Being deputy gave her time to grow.

"Maybe.." Silverheart mewed quietly, "We should just fish or take a walk. I don't want to think about it anymore, really." The RiverClan deputy looked back at the water again and sighed.

[Levudazed]

Ravenriver never knew that his mate, Silverheart wasn't pure Riverclan. He thought it over for a while looking over his mate as he thought, "If we ever had kits...they wouldn't be pure Riverclan..." Ravenriver shock his head to get out all of the bad thoughts, Silverheart is his mate and he would never think less of her, even if she isn't pure Riverclan. "I'm sure even if your mother was not expecting you, she still loved you with all of her heart. And becoming deputy would make your mother proud."

Ravenriver was glad to hear that his mate was not going to back down. He believed she could do it, and he would be by her side every paw-step of the way. "It's good to hear your not giving up."

Ravenriver nodded. "I understand, how about we fish now?"

[*Midnightsoul*]

Silverheart snorted, "You didn't know Dovegaze, did you? She resented us three, but Oakpelt the most. She was almost.. happy when he died, saying that he wouldn't be able to 'interrupt' me or whatever anymore. You could see it in her eyes whenever the 'issue' of my father was brought up; she didn't want us." Her whiskers twitched in amusement; cats often said practically the same as what Ravenriver had just said. They were wrong, though Silverheart didn't always feel like explaining that.

"Well, I'm glad you feel that way, because even if you weren't happy with that, I probably wouldn't give it up. You're everything to me, you know that, but... I just wouldn't give up my position."

"Yeah.." Silverheart mewed finally, swiping up her second fish. "I bet I can catch more!" The silver tabby said, her tail lashing playfully, casting a challenging glance at her mate.

[Levudazed]

Ravenriver thought about it, he didn't really know her mates mother, Dovegaze that good. "I'm sure some where in her heart she loved y'all, she just couldn't show it because she wanted to be leader so bad."

Listening to his mate made him smile. "I'm glad to hear that."

Ravenriver snorted. "I may not be the best at fishing, but I'm better then you'll ever be." Ravenriver have his mate, Silverhear a small push before st airing down into the river and soon swiping up a fish of his own. He didn't take his eyes off the river hopping another fish would come soon so that he would get another fish and be tied with his mate Silverheart.

[*Midnightsoul*]

(If you can't read the color that I play Silverheart in, please tell me. ^^)

Silverheart listened to her mate. "Maybe you're right.. She just didn't try to show it, if that's true. What's the point in dwelling, though? I mean, after all, I'll probably see her in StarClan someday, anyway." Dovegaze may have been ambitious, but ambitious didn't mean evil, and if one put aside the fact that she had a mate outside the Clans, then Silverheart figured the she-cat would've been admitted into StarClan.

"Oh? You think you're better than me at my own forte?" Silverheart asked, seemingly bewildered, "You're just full of yourself, Ravenriver! Just look at you! You're no hunter!" The she-cat teased.

When Ravenriver pushed Silverheart, Silverheart knew it was competition time, and she crouched, fully prepared to lash out her paw at the next fish that she saw.

And so the deputy of RiverClan did, getting her third fish. "Hey, when you lose, we can do some fighting next. That way, you'll win. Unless, of course, you want me to let you win this and I'll let you win in a fight."

[Levudazed]

(Its all good)

Ravenriver knew he wont better at fishing then his mate, Silverheart. He had just got his second fish and his mate already had three, Ravenriver snored, "I'll win this with you trying your very best!" Ravenriver looked over the river it didn't seem rough today so Ravenriver tried to pushed his mate, Silverheart into the river.

[*Midnightsoul*]

Silverheart's whiskers merely twitched in condescending amusement. Ever since becoming a warrior, really, the she-cat couldn't have fun competitions with other cats like this. It was great to have free time and be able to have some leisure time, like when she was an apprentice...

Remembering back, Silverheart, Tinyfish, and Oakpelt, as apprentices, had sat by the river like this, all trying to catch as many fish as they could. Oakpelt lost almost every time, leaving Silverheart and Tinyfish at each others' throats. At that point, it was almost tied in score between the two, but Tinyfish won a few times more than Silverheart, as out of the three, Tinyfish was the best hunter. However, when it came to battling, even if teamed up, Silverheart and Tinyfish failed at taking their brother, Oakpelt, down. Of course, that was with claws unsheathed, and the she-cats often used the excuse of Tinyfish being very small, though Oakpelt still bragged on and on...

Oh, how Silverheart missed those days, and not only that, but her brother, too. He may have been a troublemaker at times, he may have caused his sisters to get punished for going on "adventures", but overall, he was a great tom, and it wasn't fair for him to die so young. He had his whole life ahead of him, but that battle ripped it away from him.

Silverheart shuddered, being brought back into reality, and caught two more fish, not bothering to look at how many Ravenriver had caught. It's over. I've probably lost. The gray tabby RiverClanner thought, though she continued to catch fish, managing one more.