❦ story ❦

mottledpaw's feet scuffled on the ground as she sized rushpaw up. the black and white tom was her size; he was to be made a full warrior today if he passed his assessment. mottledpaw was ten moons old, but due to her sickness had begun her apprenticeship two moons later than she should've- along with havenpaw, who had insisted on waiting for her recovery.

mothdazzle had explained that mottledpaw only needed to evade rushpaw's attacks- "of course, you can attack if you wish, but with your small size and his confrontational fighting style, i think it would be better if you focused on evasion."

but still... mottledpaw wondered why they didn't just have petrelpaw and rushpaw fight instead; both of them were being assessed, anyway.

"on your mark." upon jaguarflame's command, rushpaw dropped into a ready crouch, grinning with confidence. mottledpaw slid into a fighting position herself, packing some of her weight into her haunches, and the two cats circled around each other, taking only one step every two seconds or so, waiting to see who made the first move.

finally, rushpaw sprang. swiftly turning, he launched himself in mottledpaw's direction. with a small gasp, mottledpaw jumped away, and the larger apprentice crashed onto the ground. without stopping to think, mottledpaw sprang forward, tapping her paw to rushpaw's flank- no claws in a practice battle, mottledpaw remembered- and when rushpaw turned to face her, her forepaw flew up to meet his chin. rushpaw stepped back, shaking his head.

"you're doing well, mottledpaw," mothdazzle murmured. jaguarflame, however, was silent, only staring with his luminous golden eyes.

rushpaw let out a snarl and glared with a narrowed gaze at mottledpaw. "is that all you have, midget?"

mottledpaw returned the snarl. i've already landed two blows, and you haven't even touched me.

"your blows were nothing!" rushpaw lowered himself to the ground and slithered closer. "and i've only just begun to fight!" on the word fight, rushpaw sprang forwards. mottledpaw tried to dodge again, but this time, rushpaw anticipated the trick. as mottledpaw jumped to the side, rushpaw shot out a forepaw and knocked her to the ground. mottledpaw rolled on the ground, dazed, and within a moment rushpaw was upon her, pinning her stomach-down against the dusty forest floor.

pummel after pummel struck mottledpaw's back as rushpaw's hind legs churned, and with every strike, mottledpaw's frustration grew. with a start, mottledpaw realized she could feel claws piercing through her thick fur. thrusting out a foreleg, mottledpaw sank her claws into the earth, and with a powerful kick from her hind legs, pulled herself out from underneath rushpaw. she twirled herself upon one forepaw and faced rushpaw once again with a growl in her throat.

"is that all you can do?" rushpaw crowed. "launch weak attacks and run away from things?" a sly grin traced his lips, and his tail lashed back and forth as he crouched down again.

mottledpaw stared him down, hackles raised, back arched, gaze reduced to needle-thin slits. rushpaw was still grinning when he made his next move, rushing forward and rearing up, paw raised and poised to strike. his claws glinted clear as day in his shaggy white paw.

"rushpaw, no claws during practice fights!" but jaguarflame's brisk order fell on deaf ears; rushpaw didn't seem to care, and neither did mottledpaw. in the split second before rushpaw crashed down, mottledpaw darted in and, with claws still sheathed, ran her paw down his stomach; in a real battle, rushpaw's stomach would have been seriously wounded by the blow. but before she could get away, rushpaw crashed down on her, shoving his raised forepaw onto mottledpaw's chest, pinning her down.

"see? you can't beat me." rushpaw thrust his muzzle into mottledpaw's. "you know, i think it's cute that you try. if only you'd accepted my proposal to start early..." rushpaw stood up straight and pressed his weight down on mottledpaw's ribcage. mottledpaw twisted, trying to shake him off...

"but you're weaker than the rest of us. you're not like the other warriors," rushpaw crooned. "maybe a kittypet life would be better suited for you!"

mottledpaw heard a snarling roar: a low, beastly noise that erupted from the core of livid anger, crossed between a snake's hiss and the roar of a lion from nursery tales. but the sound didn't come from rushpaw.

"rushpaw, that's enough!" a large, dark mass grew from behind rushpaw's shoulders, and suddenly jaguarflame was pulling back on his apprentice's body, not even bothering to keep his pointed fangs from biting into rushpaw's scruff. mottledpaw could see her own anger reflected in his blazing golden eyes... but why? mottledpaw doubted that the senior warrior knew her at all, especially since her own mentor, mothdazzle, was so much younger than him. or was it possible that he had never seen this side of rushpaw? it made sense; after all, rushpaw only ever bullied her, the smaller one, the one he considered inferior.

rushpaw fought jaguarflame's grip, but the broad black smoke tom was too strong for him. nethertheless, the black and white apprentice struggled against jaguarflame's hold, his fangs bared in a taunting smile. "come on, prove it! prove that you can fight instead of avoiding everything the way you do- the way you have since you were a kit!"

jaguarflame's growl rumbled louder in his throat, and he bit down- actually bit down on rushpaw's scruff before yanking his head towards him and letting him go to scold him. "what is wrong with you? you say one more word, and i'll line my nest with your pelt." jaguarflame's claws slid out of their sheaths, and he raised a forepaw in rushpaw's face to show him his curved, vicious-looking claws. "and don't think that i won't actually do it." jaguarflame fixed his apprentice with a look of such potent contempt that mottledpaw began to wonder whether or not the mentor actually cared for his apprentice- but she couldn't help but feel that, no, rushpaw deserved this hatred for tormenting her for so many moons... and she couldn't help but notice that mothdazzle did nothing to stop jaguarflame. instead, the tortoiseshell she-cat glared at rushpaw with silent disgust.

"tch!" rushpaw turned away from jaguarflame and focused once more on mottledpaw. his grin was gone; instead, an ugly snarl was plastered on his face. his muzzle was wrinkled and his lips were pulled so far back on his face, mottledpaw thought she could see every one of his ivory fangs. mottledpaw gave him a snarl filled to the brim with malice.

"still won't say a word to deny it? well, at least you know that you're-"

but mottledpaw was sick of rushpaw's goading. the word from her own mind tumbled around her mind: he deserves it. the intensity of mottledpaw's hatred was indescribable. she'd taken enough.

mottledpaw's vision grew hazy, and in a flash she was completely blinded by fury. the mottled gray tabby she-cat bunched up her haunches and pushed off the ground with her forepaws, launching herself forwards. a crazed screech ripped loose from her throat, and the she-cat drew back a forepaw, hooked claws extended to their fullest length, and flung her paw across rushpaw's face.

rushpaw shrieked, throwing back his head. one of his eyes had slammed shut, and blood ran down his cheek. his head swung from left to right and back, his right eye half-closed and slitted so that it could have been wholly walnut brown.

there were a lot of things that should've happened then. mottledpaw should've felt guilty then; mothdazzle should've been furious, and jaguarflame, for attacking his apprentice. but they didn't.

jaguarflame was furious, but not with mottledpaw, it seemed. instead, he was still glaring at rushpaw, muscles tensed, holding back from attacking rushpaw again with all his willpower. "serves you right, you despicable excuse of a cat." he spat the words in rushpaw's face and turned his back on the black and white apprentice. and mothdazzle didn't even glance at mottledpaw. her vibrant copper-brown gaze was fixed on rushpaw as well, but her expression was not so intense. her disgust seemed to have deflated, if only by a little bit, as she approached rushpaw and examined his wounds.

"jaguarflame, help me get him back to camp." mothdazzle's mew was tight and controlled; even she had pent-up anger inside of her, mottledpaw could tell, but she was trying her best not to let it spill over as she braced her shoulder against rushpaw's. "peonylinger needs to have a look at him."

"go on ahead, mothdazzle." jaguarflame was still facing away from the other cats. "i wish to have a word with mottledpaw here." he hesitated, then added, "i had no idea that rushpaw would treat her like this. he may be my apprentice, but he showed no signs of..." jaguarflame stopped, considering his choice of words. "... of malevolence." the huge black smoke tom turned halfway to meet mothdazzle's gaze. "i promise, i would have prevented it if i knew."

"... of course." mothdazzle gave jaguarflame a curt nod. "mottledpaw," she added, glancing at her own apprentice, " we can agree that rushpaw was out of line. i'm sorry that this had to happen, but... what happens next is up to hornetstar. rest assured, i will try my best to defend you."

mottledpaw heard a low meow of "follow my lead" from mothdazzle, and she and rushpaw loped into the trees. with every step mothdazzle took, a pit of anxiety pulsed in mottledpaw's stomach. she was alone with jaguarflame now, the cold and very intimidating senior warrior.

"mottledpaw." the spotted gray she-cat jumped at the sound of her name. whirling around, she saw jaguarflame staring at her with an imploring gaze.

"tell me. did you do anything to provoke rushpaw recently?"

mottledpaw shook her head.

"did you say anyt-" jaguarflame cut himself off. "no, that's a stupid question. when's the last time that you and rushpaw have... spent time together?"

what is this, an interrogation? mottledpaw pawed at the ground and stared at jaguarflame's chest fur, unwilling to meet his gaze. the last time she had spoken to rushpaw seriously? that was a long way back...

"i only ever see you standing a tail-length or two away from rushpaw and petrelpaw," jaguarflame continued, "but don't think that i've not heard him insult you more than once. until today, i thought he was only teasing." jaguarflame's claws shot in and out as a flare of anger overtook him. "i was blind. i should've seen this earlier and disciplined him."

"it's

okay."

the halting, whisperous meow startled both mottledpaw and jaguarflame as the words escaped mottledpaw's mouth. jaguarflame got over his shock quickly enough, though.

"what are you saying? no, it's not!"

"he's been picking on me since kithood. he thinks i'm weak." mottledpaw tilted her head up, finally meeting jaguarflame's gaze, which now shone with outrage and shock. "but i proved him wrong, didn't i?"

"wh- mottledpaw, you should've told me earlier!" mottledpaw almost shied away as jaguarflame's fury suddenly turned upon her. but she just stood still as her former nervousness morphed into a cold... cool? no, this was cold fury, matching jaguarflame's, ultimately directed at the same cat, no matter what mottledpaw saw now.

"i beat him. i proved him wrong," mottledpaw repeated. "he has no right to ever speak to me about weakness again."

"mottledpaw, no one deserves to be treated that way. we should've stopped it sooner." jaguarflame's plumy tail swept over the ground, and, with a start, mottledpaw detected a flash of pity on his face.

a rush of rage filled mottledpaw for a second, and she let it show, backing away from jaguarflame and snarling. "i don't need your pity."

jaguarflame scoffed, but it didn't sound angry. he lumbered towards the same path that mothdazzle and rushpaw had taken, but stopped next to mottledpaw. "don't think you were the only cat to ever be bullied for being different." mottledpaw looked up. jaguarflame's gaze pierced through her, and to mottledpaw's confusion, a new kind of bitterness glistened in those golden depths.

"sure, you think you can handle him, or that you have." jaguarflame raised his head, staring past mottledpaw, and started to walk away. "but the damage he dealt won't disappear just because you bested him once."

mottledpaw fell wordless again, pausing for a moment before following jaguarflame.

"this conversation never happened." jaguarflame didn't look down when mottledpaw caught up to him. mottledpaw nodded in silence, and jaguarflame led the way back to camp.

***

"there, that should help a little."

peonylinger grasped a stem of celandine in her jaws and dripped a little of the juice into rushpaw's eye. rushpaw himself was lying in a mossy nest, both eyes nearly closed; he had considerably sobered and now lay unconscious in the medicine den's spare nest.

"will he recover?" jaguarflame's face was blank as he asked the question, and his voice was carefully unemotive.

"... i'm not sure." peonylinger lowered her voice. the siamese she-cat faced jaguarflame. "the wound is pretty deep. he could become half blind for life. poor thing, he's not even a warrior yet... but i'm sure mottledpaw didn't mean for this to happen."

"it was rushpaw who provoked the attack." jaguarflame nodded at the sleeping apprentice. his expression was stony, and he met peonylinger's pale turquoise gaze. "rushpaw was just begging for mottledpaw to attack him; taunting, goading, the likes. any cat would have wanted to do likewise."

"but she actually did." peonylinger stared at rushpaw. her expression tightened with worry. "it's not-"

"it's not unjustified," jaguarflame insisted. "rushpaw's been antagonising her since they were kits." jaguarflame's voice rose as he continued to defend mottledpaw. "how would you feel if somebody decided to pick on you for something that's out of your control? but of course you wouldn't know." jaguarflame's yowl broke into a snarl. "you look exactly like him. of course magpiefire loved you!"

peonylinger flinched. "jaguarflame..."

a low growl rattled in jaguarflame's throat. "rushpaw's not so different from her. i have no sympathy for him."

"jaguarflame." peonylinger's mew was breathy and trembling badly. "please, father didn't even know until you were grown, and when he- when i told him, he separated with mo- with magpiefire. don't become bitter towards him."

"exactly... he didn't know! drizzleburst didn't even notice how his mate was treating their kit. and you expect me to-?" jaguarflame's forepaws churned on the ground, talons exposed and clawing at the dust. "... we're getting off topic. did hornetstar tell you what she's going to do about rushpaw and mottledpaw?"

"... she did." peonylinger shivered, and her pansy shook so much that it almost threatened to fall. "you and mothdazzle discussed the situation with her first, correct? she was livid by the time she came in to check on rushpaw." peonylinger let out a shaky breath. "i mean, she was mad at both mottledpaw and rushpaw, which is understandable. rushpaw was awake then, and... hornetstar basically told him that she wasn't going to let him become a warrior until he learned some respect for every one of his clanmates."

"he deserves it. if i were in charge, i'd probably have kicked him out by now. if he thinks he can get away with belittling a clanmate like that, he shouldn't call himself a warrior."

"and that's why you're not in charge." peonylinger sighed. "just wait for him to mature. he's not even a warrior."

"but he would have been made one today," jaguarflame pointed out. "and what about petrelpaw?"

"she passed her assessment," peonylinger replied. "she's talking to hornetstar right now. if you want, you can tell blackthorn what happened to rushpaw; i doubt he knows yet."

jaguarflame didn't say anything for a moment, only gazing woodenly at rushpaw. eventually, he did leave, murmuring to himself, not noticing the small gray she-cat sitting outside the medicine den's entrance.

mottledpaw sat frozen as she tried to process the conversation she had just eavesdropped on, the eel in her jaws long forgotten. she had only come to bring peonylinger food... she hadn't meant to intrude on a conversation like that.

but her curiosity had been triggered, despite the fact that she knew that she shouldn't dwell on it. she could guess that drizzleburst and magpiefire, though mottledpaw had never heard of either cat, were jaguarflame's and peonylinger's parents... but beyond that, pieces of the story were missing.

mottledpaw slipped into the den, gaze flitting around the gray stone cavern. the walls were dotted with strange, irregular indents, inside of which were assorted herbs. seemed peonylinger was quite organized, but it was hard to imagine any cat being able to remember what went in each hole.

mottledpaw let out a muffled meow and dropped the ell onto the ground. "peonylinger, i've brought you something to eat."

"huh?" peonylinger turned away from her patient and looked mottledpaw up and down, then at the eel at her paws. "oh, thank you, dear." but peonylinger seemed distracted, and she turned to her herbs. "i need two sprigs of marigold..." peonylinger's head swept across her numerous stone shelves. "... to prevent an infection in rushpaw's eye..."

"... peonylinger?"

"yes, dear?"

"... wh... what did..." mottledpaw gulped in some air. "um... i was outside... just now, before jaguarflame left-"

mottledpaw froze as peonylinger looked sharply at her. "..."

"how much of our conversation did you hear...?"

"n- i'm- i didn't mean to..." mottledpaw stammered. "i just- just wanted to know... why jaguarflame's so b-bitter about this... this magpiefire?"

at the mention of the name, peonylinger took a short gasp. "..." the siamese she-cat sighed with resignation. "mottledpaw, dear, consider yourself lucky that you didn't ask jaguarflame this."

"don't tell him i told you any of this, but the truth is, magpiefire was... less than an ideal mother figure to jaguarflame, and jaguarflame in particular. i, his sister... and even rainadder..." peonylinger blinked. "oh, but of course you wouldn't know who rainadder was. he was our other brother, and he... let's just say he learned his mannerisms from his mother. he wasn't much better than she was when it came to the other apprentices our age."

"the point is... magpiefire hated jaguarflame because she thought he looked more like a soft, pampered kittypet than a real warrior. i, in kithood, had always pretended not to notice, but i can still remember her snarling at him, insult after insult, even after she had just finished comforting me."

peonylinger stared past mottledpaw into the camp clearing. "magpiefire always used her toxic words against jaguarflame, over and over, yet rainadder and i never suffered her abuse. it wasn't right." peonylinger gazed back at mottledpaw. "i'm sorry, i know that the way rushpaw treated you wasn't right, either; jaguarflame was right when he said he was asking for what he got." peonylinger looked over her shoulder at the huddled black and white shape. "but as a medicine cat, i can't help but look after him with all the care i would any other clanmate."

peonylinger somehow looked tired as she finished her monologue, and mottledpaw just realized how old peonylinger must've been. she silently wondered when the medicine cat would be able to find a suitable apprentice, but had the good sense not to ask this question aloud. instead, she merely nodded and left the medicine den.

daylight touched mottledpaw's fur as she stepped into the sun. the leader's den was directly opposite of the medicine cat's; with a pang of guilt, mottledpaw wondered if she should go to hornetstar herself and apologize for the accident. she made her way to the flat-topped rock... she could hear voices from inside?

"... already passed...... rushpaw?" mottledpaw could only hear faint snippets of conversation. she could tell it was petrelpaw speaking, but not much else. trying not to make any noise, she settled down outside the den. the clan would probably just assume she was waiting for hornetstar if she didn't look like she didn't belong there. just try and make yourself look inconspicuous.

"petrelpaw." mottledpaw recognized hornetstar's meow. "your brother will not be made a full warrior, at the very least until his eye heals properly, at best. at worst, he will have to wait until jaguarflame and i agree that he has finally learned respect for his clanmates. let us assume that he will be made a warrior at the same time as blackthorn and mothdazzle's apprentices."

"respect for- you mean mottledpaw?" mottledpaw felt a chill go down her spine as she heard petrelpaw's voice say her name. "what did he do this time?" petrelpaw's usually honey-like voice was dangerously edged.

"nothing from the norm, as jaguarflame tells me." hornetstar paused. "whatever 'the norm' may be, however..."

"pfft. rushpaw's just been picking on poor mottledpaw again, calling her 'midget' and 'weak' and such, i'm sure. yeah, that's normal. no big deal there." mottledpaw so wanted to tell petrelpaw not to be so impertinent and sarcastic to her leader... but if hornetstar minded, she didn't let it show.

"what i summoned you here to ask, petrelpaw, is whether or not you wish to be made a warrior at the same time as your brother."

"wait, what?"

"you remember that, when mottledpaw was... sick..." mottledpaw imagined hornetstar giving a knowing look to petrelpaw. "... havenpaw requested for his own apprentice ceremony to be delayed until she was better. now, i offer you the same choice. if you accept, blackthorn will continue to be your mentor until rushpaw... is suitable for a full name."

a shout burst out from the den, and mottledpaw jumped, startled.

"no, i-... sorry, but... no, i don't want to wait for him. i'll have my warrior ceremony today." to her shock, mottledpaw thought she detected a trace of a quiver in petrelpaw's voice. "i mean... starclan, i must sound like some cold snake-heart, but i- even if i am, rushpaw's worse. i've stuck with him during all his antics; i don't owe him anything." silence for a moment. "frankly, i don't want to be-... i want nothing to do with him anymore; he's a complete fox-heart. i don't care if he's my brother, that's just the truth."

"very well. then your warrior ceremony will be held today, after i confer with blackthorn."

"... yes." pestrelpaw hesitated. "thank you, hornetstar."

"my pleasure. you can leave now. get yourself a piece of fresh-kill, you have a long night ahead of you. oh, and can you send blackthorn here for me?"

"yes, hornetstar."

petrelpaw emerged from the leader's den. she looked distracted.

"petrelpaw!"

"wh- oh, mottledpaw!" petrelpaw was already a few steps in front of mottledpaw before mottledpaw had called her back. mottledpaw stood and looked up at petrelpaw as the older apprentice approached; like rushpaw, the blotched brown tabby still stood a head taller than mottledpaw. "what are you doing here?"

"i was... hornetstar, about this morning... but she's expecting blackthorn now, right?"

"y-you were listening? how much did you hear?" petrelpaw's forepaws shuffled uncomfortably.

"um... hornetstar was telling you that rushpaw's warrior ceremony's been delayed?"

"ah, jeez. mottledpaw, listen..." petrelpaw turned her head away awkwardly, and her fur stood up on her shoulders. "i owe you an apology." petrelpaw's meow was a mere whisper; her words were meant only for mottledpaw's ears. "for never calling rushpaw out, i mean. i was always obliged to stick with rushpaw because he's my brother, you know?"

mottledpaw nodded, understanding what she meant. mottledpaw had a sibling too in havenpaw, and she couldn't imagine turning her back on... mottledpaw hesitated as her train of thought stalled, realizing guiltily that she didn't know whether havenpaw was a she-cat or a tom today.

"i never could stand up to him." petrelpaw looked up at she sky as she went on. "i tease him, but that's not even close to really defying him. partly, it's because we're siblings, but... i just didn't want him to turn on me. as long as i stayed with him, i was safe."

"you feared him." mottledpaw blinked slowly. "but it's over, isn't it?"

"i hope so. i'm done with rushpaw." petrelpaw glanced at mottledpaw, an unspoken emotion in her eyes, before turning away again. "i should go fetch blackthorn."

"go ahead." a smile traced mottledpaw's lips. "and, you know, thanks for caring."

a hot flush of embarrassment erupted from petrelpaw, and the brown tabby she-cat just turned and stalked away, not saying anything to mottledpaw in return. but mottledpaw knew she understood.

***

(fuck this is getting long)

after that, mottledpaw started hanging out with petrelcall more. she was still sarcastic and bold, but she seemed much more humourous without rushpaw in her fur.

and mottledpaw started to spend more time having fun, mostly with petrelcall, and havenpaw's best friend, martenpaw. she didn't talk that much with martenpaw- they never really seemed to talk much with anyone except havenpaw, either- but they seemed happy with the arrangement. what mottledpaw couldn't help noticing, however, was that they and havenpaw seemed to spend less time with each other, so whatever time she spent with them was apart... and sometimes, martencry would unexpectedly freeze up and start mumbling about kingfisherpaw, their sister who died only two moons into her apprenticeship. mottledpaw was never that close to kingfisherpaw, but she stayed with martenpaw when this happened, unable to comfort them with words, but simply standing there or pressing herself to them, and they would thank her for it after they recovered.

for the last two moons of her apprenticeship, mottledpaw was happy with her new friends.

***

"it's dawn." havenecho's relief seeped through his voice as he gazed at the sky. the formerly black blanket was steadily changing from its plum-like shade to a lighter cherry-and-amber blend. the three new warriors were silhouetted against the sky

martencry stared at the lightening sky, a wistful look in their eyes. havenecho glanced at them, knowing full well what martencry was thinking, and his expression changed to worry, but it again morphed into a more neutral face; the desire to comfort martencry and to preserve their already weakening friendship were warring inside of havenecho.

"... we should go back inside. come on, guys," havenecho finally said. the cream ticked tabby stretched and unhinged his jaw in a yawn. his legs must have been stiff from sitting down all night. havenecho's two companions got up with him, and they turned around to face the verdant barrier between the camp and the outside world. the three had only stationed themselves a few badger-lengths away from the camp; the location of the vigil was most up to the warriors undertaking it, so long as they didn't go any farther than a quarter of the distance between the camp and the gorge.

as they watched, a tall shape slid out from the branch tunnel in the barrier. their fur colour was barely visible in the dim morning light, but it was clearly a bicoloured pelt, with white on the underside, forelegs, and a white splash on their face. as their bushy tail swept, a white tail tip flashed from behind the long-furred pelt. the cat on havenecho's left recoiled in disgust as she recognized the cat.

"hey, mottledsap!"

at the sound of that meow, havenecho and martencry identified the other cat. "rushpaw? what are you doing here?"

havenecho narrowed his eyes at the tom. rushpaw was older than every one of the new warriors- by two moons for havenecho and mottledsap, and by four moons for martencry- but hornetstar and jaguarflame still had not granted him his warriorship under the premises that he hadn't learned to treat all his clanmates with equal respect. rushpaw had only ever cared for the strong; mottledsap wasn't even sure if he honoured ashenspirit, seablossom and coralwish, but she was fairly sure that she showed them more respect than he did her.

"what do you want?" mottledsap's mew was soft and rough from moons of disuse, but those four words already sounded so venomous as they were.

"just a word." rushpaw's mew sounded nonchalant, but mottledsap had no trust in the black and white tom.

"if that word has a whisker of disrespect in it, i'll report you to hornetstar." mottledsap slid her claws out. "remember, i'm a warrior now, and you aren't. i have authority over you."

"oh, don't worry." rushpaw sat down and licked a white forepaw, drawing it over his left ear, closing his eyes in a casual manner. "i came to congratulate you."

"thanks, but i don't need to hear anything from you. no one does, not even petrelcall."

rushpaw opened his eyes just as the sunlight brightened. with the illumination, mottledsap could clearly see rushpaw's right eye, the pen that she had unintentionally blinded. the eye was a ghostly, clouded white covering the now cinnamon brown interior. mottled sap searched the eye for a scar, but the eye bore none; however, rushpaw's cheek still boasted two thin, furless lines from the battle.

"tch. i only came here to tell you that you earned my respect, when you finally showed your claws." rushpaw turned his head to show off his blind eye. "seems even a mite like you can fight for herself."

mottledsap sneered and curled her lip. "no offense, but respect from you means almost nothing. you only respect the cats who can do the most damage to their enemies." mottledsap stepped forwards, her hooked claws still shining dangerously. "but if you want, i can take out your other eye for you. you're just begging for it right now."

rushpaw hesitated, then laughed. "ha! look at you, finally learning how to use your fangs. you've truly grown, mottledsap."

"you're the last cat i want to hear that from. now turn around and take your sorry tail back into camp, and stop blocking our way."

rushpaw was still grinning when he turned, his tail waving like a reed in the breeze.

❦ winners ❦

first place: _creamtea_ with mottledsap

second place: winterdawnzephyr with mottledthistle

third place: Varulven15 with mottledash