beauty of life

~~~

Venom turned around, features drawn in confusion. "Yes?"

"Can I..." The ginger she-cat paused, choosing her words carefully. "Where did you learn those skills? To fight off the dogs?"

The black she-cat's pelt ruffled. "Oh." She didn't like talking about WarClan very much, so she made up a little white lie. "Learned them myself."

"That's so cool!" 

The ginger cat's green eyes were shining with respect and adoration, even. Venom had just saved life, after all. And the black she-cat couldn't help but feel a prick of pride at the look in the ginger she-cat's eyes. She craved it. Wanted more. It was the look that she'd missed from her parents, a look that she oh so wanted.

"I could teach it to you, if you'd like," Venom offered.

"Oh, sure, that'd be great!" The ginger she-cat nodded quickly. "My name's Rose, by the way."

"I'm Venom." The black she-cat paused in thought. Could Coral mind...? No, she wouldn't. The cream-colored she-cat was so kind to everybody. No way she'd be upset if Venom invited another cat to live with them. In fact, along their journey, Coral herself had asked a couple cats here and there to join them. 

Plus, the more friends, the better.

"Are you... Are you staying anywhere specific?"

Rose shook her head. "No, I pretty much just wander around."

"Well... In that case, would you like to stay with my friend and I?"

And just like that, Rose was following Venom back to the camp she and Coral had founded. Coral was pacing around the clearing, eyes flashing with anxiety, when the two entered.

"There you are!" The cream-colored she-cat spun around, lashing her tail, as she stalked to Venom. "Do you have any idea how worried I was? I thought you got mauled by a dog or a fox! Or kidnapped by a Twoleg, even. I tried looking for you, but-" She broke off, spotting Rose. "Oh, who's this?"

"This is Rose," Venom introduced, amber eyes glimmering with amusement, "and you were right, Coral, we did get mauled by a dog. Anyway, do you mind if Rose lives with us? She wants me to teach her some fighting moves."

"Of course not!" Coral passed Rose a smile. "Come on, I've caught plenty for all of us to share."

And just like that, the three gathered around in the clearing, digging into the prey, engaging in conversation and sharing laughter. Venom didn't know if she'd ever felt happier. In that moment, she realized that she did indeed enjoy living in a big group of cats, just not the one she'd been in as a kit. Perhaps she could create her own, and invite cats like Rose to join...

A smile was etched onto Venom's face the entire night as the three talked, bellies full and purrs bubbling.

Now this is truly beautiful.

~~~

Now this is truly beautiful.

Venom couldn't stop the maniacal grin that spread on her face. But that was okay. No cat was able to see her. And that was just as she planned, crouched within her tree, gazing at her cats, smile only growing wider and wider.

All of the PeaceClan cats carried some sort of fresh wound, a scratch here and there. But Venom's personal favorites would have to be those of her Highclaws. Rose had a torn ear and scratched flank. Tufts of Frost's fur was missing here and there. And Cobra, Cobra's was probably the best. A wound on his cheek, a narrowly missed blow that otherwise would've taken sight from his right eye.

And how they might've acquired these injuries, one might ask. Well, the answer was simple: Storm.

Storm, the former shy kit who was the farthest thing from confrontational had brought such wounds onto the PeaceClan cats. Off Venom's advice, of course. Make them fear you. Make sure they'll never cross you. And that's what Storm did.

It worked, didn't it? Now, not a single cat spoke out against Storm's orders. Instead, they now looked at her with rounded eyes of fear.

That's what they were doing right this moment, Storm passing out the patrol orders, looking as though she had no idea what she was doing. Which, granted, she didn't. Perhaps it'd be better if she had a deputy to deal with these things. Venom could handle a deputy along with Storm. But the position of deputy was, and will remain, long gone. Ever since Coral.

There. The name Venom hadn't allowed herself to think, much less speak, now flashed through her mind. The name that drove all sorts of emotions through her, grief, anger, sadness. The name that reminded her she was, and will forever remain, alone.

And that was how she liked it.

Now, watching as Storm flicked her tail and the PeaceClan cats instantly dispersed, the gray she-cat herself instantly letting herself sag from exhaustion, one might question Venom's reasoning. Why would she push something like this onto Storm?

Well, first and foremost, Venom, of course, wanted the best opportunities for Storm. She wanted the gray she-cat whom she viewed as a daughter to experience the joys of being a leader.

Or at least that's what she told herself.

Venom wasn't dumb. She'd watched her father for years upon years growing up. She remembered the hatred and anger she felt towards them, a feeling that she was certain was shared with other cats of WarClan. Why was that? Well, simply put, Rattlesnake, for the most part, was himself too much. And his real self was a nasty, nasty character.

So, Venom decided to be nastier. Hide that character. She'd been trying to run away from it for so long, and had it worked? For a while, when PeaceClan was first founded, she thought so. But as soon as she let herself relax into a good life, that character had come and bitten her in the leg. She can't run forever. Might as well embrace it. Use it.

Let every cat of PeaceClan think of her as a friend, of someone they'd happily give their lives to save, of someone they would trust with their own life. Never let them know how wrong they are.

And that was a good life. But, as Venom previously stated, she'd watched Rattlesnake. She knew that if she took a step too far she'd mess up. Become like her father. Become hated. Loose everything she'd worked so hard to keep.

So, pass it on to Storm. Let Storm be the front, while Venom sits back and tells her what to do. Let Storm be her puppet. Let Storm bear the responsibilities should anything go wrong. And let Venom go as far as she wanted.

Might as well. What else was Storm good for? This was why the black she-cat took Storm in the first place, anyway. As far as Venom was concerned, Storm had achieved her destiny.

~~~

hello! the lack of updates are actually quite an issue. i last posted in what, march? it's just one of those things where life got in the way, i guess. but, it's summer, and i'm really hoping to work on this book more, maybe even finish it!

we're almost at the end, anyway ;)

so, let me know what you think! i totally forgot if i stated venom's true intentions + why she took storm in as a kit in a previous chapter, hehe, so deep apologizes if that was repeated! (fairly) certain it's new, though!

alright, i'll wrap it up here! thank you for reading, and have an amazing day!!

~ lily