What am I thinking? Shadepaw suddenly thought, his own voice surprising himself. 'Applekit, in three moons you are going to be an apprentice, I want you to watch how Redfang's acting in camp. Once you become an apprentice, follow him out of camp too'. His order echoed in his mind.

Mouse-brain, frog-gutted, ignorant little- Shadepaw clenched his teeth, refusing his face to give away any emotions. He was being a mouse-brained fool to set a young kit to watch such a deadly cat. Especially if he was her father. But then again, she had an important destiny and if he wanted to protect her, he may as well also protect the Clan she was in.

"You must be going back to camp now." Shadepaw said curtly. A spark of sympathy ran through his veins, but it was the reason why he was acting so... Different. Applekit tilted her head in confusion. Then mumbled an 'okay.' She turned away from Shadepaw, her red pelt glittering in the sun.

He glanced up, it was soon going to be dusk. Shadepaw's yellow gaze examined the position of the clouds. And it's soon going to be the time that StarClan judges me. Part of his skeptical and pessimistic mind teased him. Shadepaw switched his gaze to his paws, noticing that he had unawarely stopped padding and was fiddling with the dirt and grass on the ground, making it into big clumps.

He looked back to the spot where Applekit left. Wait. Applekit... Left!? His eyes widened in horror. She was a kit! And he made her find the camp alone, when it was soon going to be dusk! "Idiot!" He hissed. He swiftly padded to the last spot she saw her. Only now did he pick up the fear scent too. He opened his jaw to get a better 'look' at the path.

He jumped into action sprinting in the direction the scent trail went. The only thing he let slow him down was the knowledge of knowing he had to be quiet. Only Applekit could know about the ominous 'StarClan' cat. A pang of regret hit his heart, why did he even say he was StarClan? Why couldn't he have just said who he really was. In the legends the Dark Forest told, all they had to do was make the cat believe she was doing the right thing!

In mid-leap, he felt a stinging pain on the side of his body, knocking him off balance and making him collapse on the ground. Shadepaw's instincts took over. He rolled away from his attack the moment he hit the ground and let out a hiss of pain when the attacker removed his claws from his back.

"Who are you?" Shadepaw snarled. Baring his teeth and letting his claws grip to the soft soil.

"Shadepaw, you don't remember me?" A she-cat's voice cooed. From another direction, he heard the bare rustle of the leaves, he pressed his belly to the ground and saw the she-cat leaping, but just when she was above him he lifted his forpaws off the ground and dug his claws into her belly before pushing with all his kit to redirect the hefty she-cat.

Just as he did so, he caught a glimpse of the odd she-cat's pelt a blood stained tortoiseshell and white. But she was very faded. Almost impossible to see. Shadepaw's instincts already had told him that this cat must've been from the Dark Forest, but he couldn't pinpoint who exactly it was.

"You have betrayed the Dark Forest, Shadepaw..." The she-cat taunted smoothly. This she-cat was hitting his nerves. Even Shadepaw could tell. Shadepaw let out a Yowls he charged at the she-cat. At last moment she dodged swiftly and delivered a sickening bit towards Shadepaw's neck.

Shadepaw felt a whole blaze of agony slowly creep up him, and he felt his warm red blood oozing out of the wound.

"Can the little traitor not fight anymore?" The she-cat laughed coldly. Dizzy, Shadepaw met her in mid-air when she leapt again, he raked his claws against her face, slitting her nose. But in the end the she-cat had pinned him down, she had a greater weight and much more time to practice her skills.

The wound on Shadepaw's necked felt like it was burning up, causing the rest of his body to slowly numb too. He felt his eyesight blur as the she-cat smiled from on top of him, "Are you still going to fight?" She chuckled, but Shadepaw knew the answer. He couldn't, he was at the she-cat's mercy.

And just as he vision began blurring, and he laid his head back. Just as his eyes began to roll to the back of his head, he spotted the glimpse of an apple-red pelt in the bushes. The tortoiseshell brought her muzzle to his ear, "Sleep tight, Shadepaw."

Lifting a claw with sheathed paws she brought it upon his head. And all went dark.