Sleep had been getting easier, somehow his nest had made it to be beside Echofrost's, and the odd friendship they had helped soothe the worst of his nightmares. The sudden absence of the she-cat who had somehow managed to see him at his worst and didn't judge him for it, it cut through him more than he cared to admit. Jaggedpeak would never admit that he was sulking in his nest, ears pinned back and a glare shot at anyone who got too close. When Raggedstar had become Raggedtooth, and Echofrost had become Echostar he felt a strange bitterness and maybe grief. She had much better things to do than spend her time with the clan outcast.

Except when he exited the warrior's den, grumbling to himself about stupid cats and whatever else he could grumble about, he noticed the leader herself, alone and crouched by her new den. Drawing to a halt he eyed her, seeing subtle things that only those who knew Echostar enough would see. When had he become one of those cats? Pinning his ears back he dug his claws into the ground before huffing and making his way toward's the she-cat.

Anyone else would have thought his march and facial expression was about to start a fight, and cats swerved away from him and his destination out of irritation or fear of his legendary fits. Stopping in front of Echostar he raised an eyebrow, ears twitching back and forth, some odd smile marring his face. "Not sure what I expected when you came back with a new name, maybe some oh so powerful aura or whatever. But honestly you look like the same cat, just with more mousedung to deal with."

The tom snorted at her dry reply, smile cutting across his face more as he eyed her, then shot a glare at a younger cat who was too curious for their own good. Returning his attention back to Echostar, he smirked, "What? Not enjoying all the gawking and admiration for being one of the grand leaders?" He heard a few cats nearby gasp at his words, and internally it amused him to no end that they couldn't see the teasing tone behind the biting words. Turning he gestured with his tail for her to lead the way. All the stares of his own clan-mates made his pelt prickle and his mood was sure to be soured further by the gawking and gossiping.

Once the unpleasant stares of the camp were left behind he relaxed, ears twitching after the flick Echostar had given them. A comfortable silence settled between them as they walked, his eyes flickering towards the she-cat, seeing the difference between when she had to put on a face as the leader and when she was just herself. “Must be weird sleeping in Raggedtooth’s den now. Your old nest is still empty. Seems everyone is too afraid to sleep next to me.”

Jaggedpeak snorted, “What with your snoring? Much quieter.” He teased, he couldn’t admit out loud that her not being next to him had brought back all his nightmares in force. He couldn’t put that weight on her now. She had bigger things ahead of her. “We both know I don’t have to do much to scare off everyone around me. All I gotta do is sneer and they all turn tail.” He let out a short laugh, flicking her side with his tail.

A toothy smirk appeared on his face, "Keeps all the idiots away. Only the intelligent get to be graced by me, the great master of anger." He felt her flick her tail behind his shoulders, his eyes catching hers as amusement danced in his gaze. Paws following paths he had walked a thousand and one times, letting him move on instinct. "Not too many of them dare to try and match me word for word."

His own laugh answered hers, smile spreading at her words, their banter bouncing back and forth easily. A uncharacteristic hum rumbled from him at her next words, his gaze softening just so as he glanced toward her again. "No name change and extra lives is gonna change the fact that I live to annoy the fur off you. You give back to me just as much as I throw at you. It's something I appreciate about you, and nothing is gonna change that."

He chuckled, rolling his eyes, "Ain't got too many pegs to stand on as it is, but I'll take what I can get." Jaggedpeak bumped his shoulder to hers lightly, content with their walking and talking. It had been a while since he had been able to just talk with Echostar, her duties as deputy and then leader had kept her busy. "Guess who better to keep me in my place than the leader though." He winked.

He followed her gaze towards the butterfly, before he let himself refocus back on her, noting the looseness in her shoulders, the content air around her. It was better than the tension he had seen before, he preferred this side of her. "You're a strong cat, I don't see why you wouldn't be able to keep me in my place." Jaggedpeak replied, amusement in his gaze.

The sudden change in the atmosphere when they stopped didn't go unnoticed, and his ears flicked back as he frowned. He didn't get a chance to ask what was wrong before her words spilled out and the heavy secret hung in the air between them. Shock coursed through him, and for a moment he couldn't speak, instead he watched her, seeing the nervous way she watched him. It was something that he knew any other cat would use against her, would hate her for. But he knew her, had seen her beyond her walls. She loved deeply, especially her kits. Whatever she had with Shrikestar must have been long dead, and maybe that explained the tension between the two leaders when she had first brought her kits to the gathering when they were just warriors themselves.


"Your kits are AspenClan. You love them deeply. This..." He paused, trying to find the words he needed, "This secret doesn't change my image of you. I've seen who you are Echostar, and you wouldn't let just anyone close. Shrikestar must have said something special to get that close, and I'm sorry that he made the mistake of screwing it up." Jaggedpeak was just assuming that the dusty tom had done something stupid, he had seen the venom behind saying Shrikestar's name. He took a deep breath, shaking his head slowly, "I won't tell anyone. For both the sake of your kits and you. I respect you and what you've been through. "

There was a moment where he paused, seeming to mull something over, something like fear crossing his gaze before he looked back at her again, meeting her gaze evenly. "When I was a kit, just after my mother died, my father, he abused me and my brother. I always got it worse, for being small, for being slower, not as smart, whatever he could pick on. I have a scar on my belly from where he slapped me once, he snuck me and my brother from camp to visit my mother's grave. I don't remember exactly what happened to make him angry, it never took much, but I nearly died. He brought be back to camp, said an owl had nearly taken me, told me to keep my mouth shut or he'd take me out of this world like I took my mother out of it. It's how I got a lot of my scars as a kit, just played it off that I was clumsy."

A breath shuddered out of him, it was something only he, his brother, and his father had ever known, and now he was sharing it with another car. One who hadn't judged him before, and he hoped that she wouldn't now. That she wouldn't see what his father had seen and turn her back on him. "It was worse when he left, I could hear his voice in my head all the time, anytime I messed up even slightly, anytime I tried to make friends. All I could hear was him telling me that I am worthless, that no one could love me. Not even my mother, that she died just to get away from me. It's better now-n-days, but on the days where I don't sleep enough it's bad, on the days where I'm afraid, I can't block him out." He thought back to when he had run from her, run and hid in a tree nearly falling out because of exhaustion and the voice that would never shut up.

"You told me your secret, and now you know mine."