[Ziera]

// @Arie

Sparkpaw grinned when Doetuft laughed at the depiction of Talonstone—equal parts pleased that her references were understood and appreciative of the warrior’s reaction to them. Doetuft’s response got Sparkpaw snickering too. Doe wasn’t afraid of teasing Talon for his quirks, even though he was her mate, and that was enjoyably amusing. "I sense some teaming up in our future," Spark said, no small amount of foxlike mischief brightening her blue eyes.

You know what—Spark liked this cat! Usually, she only needed to spend a couple minutes talking with someone to know whether they were good company. Doetuft was passing so far. Her mentor was a gifted observer too; maybe it wasn’t surprising that Talonstone chose Doetuft. Just—how in StarClan’s name did it work out for him? For all his unnerving staring, he must have gotten lucky in the romance department. Sparkpaw filed that question away to ask her later.

Doetuft’s analysis of Talonstone aligned with Sparkpaw’s impression of him. Yes, it was true—his actions did speak louder than words. Even after only a moon or so of training with him, Spark knew to watch what he did so she could guess how he felt. The apprentice wasn’t perfect at it yet, but she was getting better. It was both irritating and challenging in a fun way, having a mentor who could read her so much more easily than she could read him. It spurred the Bengal she-cat on to hone her observation skills.

Smugness caused her lips to twitch. Knowing this little tidbit of information would— wait. Sparkpaw blinked in surprise when Doetuft said they weren’t mates. That… wasn’t expected. She eyed the moss beneath Doe, nestled in a corner of the ShadowClan warrior’s den, undeniably belonging to her mentor in equal right. Spark’s tone was laced with hints of disappointment when she asked: “What do you mean, not mates? Why not? I—you’re already sharing nests.”

Not only that, but Sparkpaw observed Doetuft closely while she talked about Talon. She was clearly smitten with the fluffy white tom—unseeing eyes gleaming with affection while she spoke. Spark thought of herself as an expert on this stuff. There was no way for her to be wrong. Sure, there was a missing piece to all this, though. It was Talon. While waiting for Doetuft to respond, Spark plotted to confront him on this topic next time they trained together.

“And yeah, uh, he’s my mentor,” the cream she-cat added as an afterthought.