[taillow]

Bravebird - WindClan Warrior
She/her | 45 moons | Beefed Up T3, One with the Warren

It was hard to not blink in disbelief as the former leader questioned that she knew his name. Didn't every cat in WindClan know? Sure Bravebird hadn't been alive but she still knew of Blazingstar. She knew of what a courageous and admired leader he had been, had heard stories of valor and honor surround his name. She knew of him enough to respect him and everything he had done for the Clan she loved so much.

But there was no time give to answer his question before he continued speaking - and at the sheer volume Brave flinched. It rolled like thunder across the sky and shook the ground. Her ears went flat in fright and her tail bushed out to twice its size. Even if she could speak out against him, she wasn't even sure what she could say. Because he was right. She had been inactive as of late. Sure she had started to pick things up, but that had never been good enough for her - and now she knew it hadn't been good enough for the stars, either.

"I-I..." she stammered, unable to find enough footing to offer any counter points. For once, the she-cat known for her sharp tongue and biting comebacks was silent, crouching fearfully in front of Blazingstar. Around her the wind seemed to pick up, howling in the distance. Flames danced dangerously in his eyes as he stepped towards her. Heart hammering in her chest, Brave found that she took a step back also, subconsciously.

He was right. Fallownose's death... it had consumed her. The grief had rocketed her off course and sent her spiraling into this deep, dark pit of despair. She had worked so hard to come back to her beloved home, only to not be even half the cat she once was.

Tears formed in her eyes against her will as a low growl started in her throat - before it puttered out to a mere whimper. Fallownose. She was dragging Fallownose's good name through the mud. WindClan, too. Twilightstar. Stars above... "No I haven't!" Her yowl came out louder than expected as she lashed her tail. The tears fell now, but they were not of sadness. Anger exploded in her eyes, doused here and there by the waters of sorrow. "I never expected... I came back and I... StarClan wiped my memories, a-and..." Each excuse she came up with was more pitiful than the last. None of them meant anything

This was all. On. Her.

"...I'm sorry!"

Something heavy sounded nearby - Bravebird couldn't tell if it was thunder, or the wind, or something else entirely. Blue eyes stared back at Blazingstar as the storm continued on around them. "I know I haven't been the warrior my Clan needs me to be. There are more patrols I could've done, more training. I could've helped Lightningstorm after Cowtuft was exiled, I could've visited Twilightstar more often, maybe asked for her company in a hunt or helped her and Crowtooth with ideas on how to make better use of our tunnels! ...I could've noticed something was wrong with Fallownose and approached him sooner, a-and... and..." Fallownose. It hurt, stars it hurt more than anything. It reminded her of losing her brother to those vile ShadowClan rats.

But she had become stronger after her brother's death. Fallownose's? Not so much.

Her sides were heaving as she fought for breath. "I'll do better! I swear! I will be..." Her voice trailed off as she gasped, unable to regulate the erratic heartbeat in her chest. It made her body stiffen. "I'll be the warrior WindClan deserves. I will." There was a newfound determination in her voice as she tried to stand to her full height as she faced Blazingstar. Swallowing the rest of her initial fear, she continued. "I will not drag Fallownose's name down!"

[ Blazingstar - @SuspiciousMindz ]