#squirreljessy

“Run away with me, Squirrelflight.” 

Jessy’s meow was level, calm, as if the words she had just uttered were completely ordinary and not life-changing in the slightest.

Squirrelflight sputtered, choking on the mouse she had just settled down to eat. 

“W-what?” 

The deputy was now acutely aware of the deafening silence all around her, occasionally broken by the occasional squawk of a bird or creak of a branch. 

Unnerved, Squirrelflight suddenly wished for the comforting babble of her clanmates to fill the air, draining the tension from the too-quiet woods. But she knew none would come, the area they were in was a little more than a 10-minute walk from camp after all.

 It was just the two of them. 

The dark ginger molly suddenly shifted uncomfortably as the air seemed to get heavier, the little patch of forest they were in seemingly more enclosed and less spacious by the minute. It was as if the whole territory was as shocked by Jessy’s words as Squirrelflight was. 

The deputy’s partner had wheedled Squirrelflight for a moment alone all day, much to Bramblestar's chagrin. Squirrelflight’s former mate kept making up excuses for her to ignore Jessy’s request, sending Squirrelflight on errand after errand as if she were nothing but a misbehaving apprentice!

It made Squirrelflight’s claws itch and pelt prickle with frustration and she so longed to fire back at the brown tabby tom’s nonsensical demands, but she held her tongue, just this once. She wanted to meet with Jessy without being interrupted or hounded about undone checklists, thank you very much. 

So she trudged along the obstacle course Bramblestar had purposefully set for her, completing task after task (which included elder den management, tick-removal, border re-marking, herb stockpiling, and fresh-kill charting) until she was finally finished with a good enough portion to be excused for personal time. 

 Squirrelflight had quietly slipped away with a mouse in maw to meet her mate at their favorite spot in the territory: an old crooked oak tree with gnarled roots and a gaping hole beneath it big enough to house two full-grown cats. Squirrelflight had squeezed in, waiting for Jessy to meet her there. 

She momentarily relived the burst of affection she’d felt when she’d seen the brown she-cat pad closer to her location.

Whatever Squirrelflight has been expecting Jessy to say, it had certainly not been this. 

“You heard me.” The brown kittypet snapped, leaning in closer to meet Squirrelflight’s bewildered green gaze. 

“We can’t be happy here, love. Not with him around. Run away with me, Squirrelflight.” 

Squirrelflight gulped down the rest of her mouse, the prey dropping into her belly like a cold stone. 

“I- he… I know Bramblestar can be a bit… difficult.” 

“A bit is an understatement.” Jessy unsheathed her claws with a growl. 

“The guy’s a total asshole, Squirrelflight. We both know it.” 

Squirrelflight flattened her ears. 

Damn. She’s right. 

“I know, Jessy.” Squirrelflight sighed. “I know that better than any cat. But…” 

Jessy frowned. 

“But what? You’ve dealt with enough of his bullshit for a lifetime! I’ve only been here for a season and he’s already driving me crazy! I don’t know how you put up with it for so long.”

Jessy lashed her tail, her claws kneading at the ground impatiently. Squirrelflight placed her white paw on the she-cat’s shoulder, gazing at her with a silent plea. The molly’s amber gaze softened for a heartbeat, melting into the warm honeyed kindness that Squirrelflight had fallen for, before hardening back into the stern amber the deputy also admired. 

“Please try to understand, Jessy. I can’t just pick up and leave my clan out of the blue. I have responsibilities here.” 

An image of a lithe brown and white tabby flashed in Squirrelflight’s head, along with an elderly pale ginger molly and two younger toms. 

Leafpool, Sandstorm, Lionblaze, Jayfeather. 

Another vision crowded Squirrelflight’s mind, one of ThunderClan cats, big and small, hunting, patrolling, sharing tongues, and laughing as a group. 

My family and my clanmates are both so precious to me. Oh how could I be so cruel as to leave them? 

Squirrelflight closed her eyes, trying to choke back her rising distress at the thought of abandoning them all for her own desires. 

They need me. It would be selfish to just walk out when I’ve dedicated my whole life to them. 

“Are you thinking about your kin?” Jessy’s voice softened, her usual fire dimming. 

Squirrelflight nodded, blinking. “And my clanmates. Oh, Jessy, I can’t. I couldn’t. How could I leave them all?” 

Jessy looked away, her gaze darkening. 

“Squirrel…” Jesse’s maw slowly closed. 

Squirrelflight felt a rush of panic.

“It’s not that I don’t love you, it’s just-“

“Your duty. I know, I know.“ Jessy leaned over and brushed her muzzle against the deputy’s cheek.

“I just wish it could be easy.” 

 “I know Jessy, me too.” Squirrelflight sucked in a breath. “No matter what I think of Bramblestar, my clan always comes first.”

“But what about you?” Jessy burst out, bristling. 

“Why should you continue dealing with that whiny bastard just for the sake of another cat’s wellbeing? Gah- what about your own?” 

Jessy’s teeth grinded and she let out an irritated hiss. Squirrelflight was pressed against her side in an instant, curling her bushy tail over her companion’s back as an attempt to soothe her nerves. 

Jessy took a deep breath through her nose and let it out through her maw, the tension in her frame slowly softening. The brown molly sagged against the deputy’s side, her face pressing against Squirrelflight’s thick-furred shoulder. 

“Feel better?” Squirrelflight offered, giving one of Jessy’s ears a quick lick. 

“Mmrgh… no.” Jessy grunted, lifting her head, her expression twisting into a deep frown. 

“I love you so much, Squirrelflight. You know that right? So it’s absolutely infuriating to watch that rotten pile of manure treat you like a kitten who’s wet behind the ears and not the capable pillar of ThunderClan I know you are.” 

Squirrelflight felt a deep purr rumble in her chest, words unable to express how thankful she was for her companions' support. 

“Oh Jessy, I love you too. I’ll have to consider it for a bit though. I hope you understand.” 

“Of course.” Jessy meowed, padding forward to affectionately bump foreheads with her. 

“Hey, I know I said a lot of shit alright, but this is your decision. I won’t force you to do anything, and whatever you decide, I’ll be fine. Don’t pay any mind to my emotional blubbering, this is about you and what you're comfortable with. I can handle that fuzz-brained idiot myself, I was just concerned about how he affects you. I know it’s a huge thing to consider, with you having folks here and all and it’s reasonable to have doubts. Just know I’ll be with you through thick and thin, Squirrelflight.” 

Jessy pulled away, a twinkle in her amber eyes.

“No matter what.” 

“Thank you Jessy.” Squirrelflight grinned, suddenly feeling a rush of energy she hadn’t felt since she was a young cat. 

This AU was created as a result of all the awesome sapphic squilf ships that have been floating around since squirrelflight’s hope. One of my favourite personal ships is Squirrelflight x Jessy x Leafstar,so I decided to extend my polyamorous lesbian squilf to all of the squirrelflight ships I could think of.

In no particular order:

Squirrelflight x Jessy

Squirrelflight x Leafstar

Squirrelflight x Moonlight

Squirrelflight x Daisy

Squirrelflight x Ferncloud

Squirrelflight x Whitetail

Squirrelflight x Sorreltail

Squirrelflight x Tawnypelt

Squirrelflight x Nightcloud

Squirrelflight x Feathertail

Now, a few headcanons as to the interrelationships in Squirrelflight’s polycule.

Feathertail and Tawnypelt are kissing

Daisy and Nightcloud are kissing

Daisy and Ferncloud are kissing

Daisy and Sorreltail are kissing

Feathertail and Ferncloud are kissing

Jessy and Leafstar are kissing

Moonlight and Jessy are great friends

Moonlight, Ferncloud, and Daisy are great friends

Nightcloud and Whitetail are great friends

Ferncloud and Sorreltail are great friends

I like to imagine they gather and bitch out Bramblestar and other various toms that have wronged them. Feathertail also teaches them to swim. I am so sorry if any of these are related or the age gap is too big please tell me and I’ll remove or modify them.