Greyshard gazed at the glimmering scenery around her. The dew was shining in iridescent colours of fuchsia and aquamarine, the dawn light bouncing off every soaked leaf. She, Owlstar, Scarclaw and Foxnose were padding down the Eastern border again, starting the dawn patrol. Greyshard knew the only reason that she was on the patrol, is that Owlstar wanted her and Scarclaw to warm up to each other again.

But that wouldn't work, because Greyshard was planning to sneak off again, to check on 'her' kits. She bounded after the other cats as their tails disappeared around a large patch of ferns. "Owlstar," she began, "Can I go ahead and check if the coast is clear?"

Owlstar turned around, frowning, "But I wanted to-"

Scarclaw cut her off, waving his tail and nodding, "Feel free to go anywhere you want."

Owlstar flicked him over his ear and hissed, "Scarclaw!"

"It's alright, Owlstar. I'll just check up the border line and come back before you can say 'eagle'." Greyshard mewed, holding back a laugh at Scarclaw's expression.

"Well... Alright then... Off you go but come back quickly." Owlstar called hesitantly.

Greyshard nodded and, smiling, raced off past the patrol and into the spindly trees. She rounded pine after pine, before she came to the now familiar expanse of grassland dotted with trees. She looked over her shoulder, laid a quick scent-marker on a patch of bracken, and trotted over to the half-burnt tree.

She doubled back and quickly caught a young rabbit, that had foolishly bounced out of a hollow nearby. She pulled it over to the tree and called, "Kits!"

Coco and Taffy stumbled sleepily out of the hollow in the trunk. Coco yawned and looked up. When she saw Greyshard, the little she-kit yowled happily, "Grey! Yippee! Can we play now? We been sleeping all mornin'."
Taffy nodded and mewed, "Yeah! Come an' play with us!"

Greyshard sighed and pushed the rabbit towards them, "I'm sorry, my sweets. But I need to go back soon. I'll stay with you for a few minutes, and we can play a few rounds of moss-ball. OK?"

The kits' ears drooped but pricked up at 'moss-ball'. Coco bundled back into the den and came out a few seconds later with Patch. He gazed around him, then focused on the rabbit. He padded up to it, glanced at Greyshard, and took a bite. His brown ears twitched, and he started purring. Greyshard looked on proudly as each of the kits took a few bites. After they had eaten their fill, Greyshard stood on her hind legs against the tree. In a small dip in the bark, a fox-length above the ground, a small growth of moss poked out.

She jumped off the ground, digging her back claws into the upper roots of the tree. Greyshard pushed herself up until she made it past the moss and onto the lowest branch. From there, she leaned down and clawed off a piece of the dull greenish-brown plant. Crouching on the branch, she rolled it into a ball and threw it a couple of tail-lengths away from the tree.

At once, all three kits flew towards the ball. Taffy led the first few rabbit-hops, but then Coco overtook him. Suddenly, Patch tripped over and splayed out in the scrubby grass. Coco and Taffy stumbled to a halt and ran back towards Patch. He raised himself off the ground, trembling. Greyshard was about to leap off the tree and go up to him, when he charged between his siblings, knocking them over. He scooped up the moss-ball, jumped over Taffy, and stopped beneath the tree.

Patch was smiling widely, trying to hold back purrs of laughter. Greyshard clambered down the tree and stood in front of him. She tried to put on an angry face, but she started laughing and licked Patch's ears. She called to the other two, who were shuffling over with disgruntled looks, "Hey! Don't be sore losers! Let's have another round."

Coco and Taffy looked happier at this and scrambled up to them quickly.
Suddenly, Greyshard heard a faint screech coming from the border line far behind her. She turned to see a flock of larks rise up from a few tree-lengths away. Whipping back around to face the kits, she mewed apologetically, "I have to go. Stay in the den and do not come out. Do you understand?"

From the expression on Greyshard's face and the birds swirling in the sky, Patch must have known what was going on. His ears drooped and he let the moss-ball fall to the ground. Coco slumped to the dusty ground, grumbling.

Taffy groaned, "What? But Grey-!"

"No 'buts'! I'm really sorry, but I have to go. I'll come back later, alright?" Greyshard nuzzled the kits in turn. She spun around and bounded back into AirClan territory.

Dodging the thickest undergrowth and the widest trees, Greyshard sprinted along her scent trail. Her long fur fluffed up behind her, bile rising in her throat. She knew what screech. Or at least recognised the cat it belonged to. Every leap she took, more and more screeches met her ears, becoming louder and more fast-paced with every passing heartbeat.

She slowed when she reached the edge of a clearing, bordered by thick walls of giant ferns. Many scents came to her through the growth. Greyshard could smell Owlstar, along with Foxnose and Scarclaw. But there was one unfamiliar scent. It stunk faintly of Twolegs and monsters, and there was the ever-lasting hint of fresh blood and rotting prey to it.

Hesitantly, Greyshard parted the ferns and crouched as low to the ground as she could. She slid through the brittle stems and peered out when she reached the edge, trying to stay in their shadows.

She tried to hold back a gasp, but it came out, nevertheless.

Owlstar, Foxnose and Scarclaw were in the middle of a fight. Their fur was soaked scarlet, and their pelts lined with deep slashes. Owlstar was laying on the ground against a rock, blood seeping from, it seemed, every part of her body. She was sprawled out on her side, sides heaving, eyes narrowed in agony. Scarclaw was crouching in front of her, teeth bared and eyes gleaming. His legs were trembling and each of his scars had been reopened, spilling out fresh blood. Foxnose was, apparently, recovering from hitting his head on a rock. The back of his head glistening a bright red in the sunlight.

A dark tortoiseshell stood in front of Scarclaw, her front legs dripping with blood, but no wounds were there. She was gazing into Scarclaw's orange-copper eyes. Her blue ones weren't filled with exhaustion or danger. They were shining with a death threat and positively spilled out glee. In a single heartbeat, the tortoiseshell leaped at Scarclaw. She grabbed his head with her front claws and slammed it into the ground. Not giving him a second to recover, she jumped onto his back and turned the nick in his left ear to a giant tear. She just dodged his snapping jaws and landed on the ground a tail-length away, with a surprising amount of grace.

As Foxnose barrelled shakily towards her, the tortoiseshell stood up on her hind legs. She slashed both of her unsheathed forepaws across his muzzle. The moment he landed on the ground, she was on top of him, digging her back claws into his flank and belly. She pushed off of him and bounced off Scarclaw. She looked like a blackbird, the way she moved, jumping swiftly from each cat, as if she was flying branch to branch on her ebony wings.

To her extreme displeasure, Greyshard felt a bubble of envy growing in her heart. She tried to ignore it, but it kept expanding. Greyshard felt in awe at how smoothly the she-cat attacked. Using every second to her advantage, not letting the enemy even land a single scratch on her. What enemy?! Greyshard scolded herself quietly, They're my Clanmates! But she felt reluctant to join the fight. Not only did Coco, Taffy and Patch need her, but all of these cats were some of her least favourite in the Clan. She wanted to keep watching, even if it meant breaking the Warrior Code.

Then, what the dark tortoiseshell did next, chilled Greyshard to the deepest parts of her bones, shaking away the jealousy and wonder. While Foxnose was still recovering and Scarclaw was trying to stand up, the unfamiliar she-cat had swiftly leaped onto Owlstar, who seemed to not realise what was happening. The tortoiseshell dug her claws into Owlstar, one paw on her throat, another on her stomach, the third balanced on the ground, and the last hanging in the air.

Greyshard had just made up her mind to leap in and help when the dark tortoiseshell's ears twitched. Her paw froze in mid-swing, most of her foot hidden by a dripping cover of vivid blood. Her blue eyes stared ahead for another moment, before turning to the forest beyond the ferns. She hesitated, glancing at Owlstar's feeble defences, before she sprinted through the undergrowth and disappeared. Greyshard rose to her paws and ran towards Owlstar.

"Owlstar! Owlstar! Are you OK?" Greyshard asked, licking her leaders wounds as quickly and efficiently as she could.

The fawn she-cat groaned squeakily, the blood bubbling eerily in her wounds. Scarclaw limped over to them, wincing as every one of his movements spilled more blood.

"Lay down. You'll only make it worse!" Greyshard ordered. Forgetting the mild hate she had felt towards the tom moments ago, she nudged him to the ground.

Scarclaw lay there, panting, not even trying to argue. His flanks were almost bare of fur. His wounds, though much less severe than Owlstar's, were still horrible. Greyshard started to lick his wounds, but he feebly batted her away. The pain radiated off of him, just like the blistering rays of the Greenleaf sun. Greyshard stared back at Owlstar who had stopped moving. She turned back to see if Foxnose was OK, only to whip back as she realised that stillness was not alright.

She bounded up to Owlstar. The she-cat had her eyes closed and her flanks were still. Greyshard screeched over her shoulder to Foxnose, "How many lives does Owlstar have left?"

"What just- Why do you need to-" the ginger tom, who had risen to his paws, looked up at Greyshard. His dark green gaze fell on Owlstar's immobile body. He gasped and stumbled over to them, leaving faint pawprints of blood in his wake.

Together, they gazed down at Owlstar's body. a few moments passed. Suddenly, Owlstar heaved a deep, loud breath. Her hawk-like eyes shot open, and she tried to get to her paws.

"Stay still." Greyshard murmured, gently pushing Owlstar back down.

"Where is she...? What happened...?" Owlstar asked, the words unsteady and ragged.

"It's alright. She ran away." Foxnose licked Owlstar's ears, "Greyshard chased her off."

It took Greyshard a few seconds to process Foxnose's words. Then guilt consumed her. She wanted to be a hero, but her conscience was shaken. She took a few steadying breaths and answered quietly, "Yes... Yes, I did. She's gone. You're safe."

To her surprise, Owlstar knocked Greyshard's paw away. The fawn she-cat asked, half-snarling, "What about Scarclaw? I can't lose him again. Where is he?"

Foxnose pointed his muzzle over to the brown tabby heap of fur, a fox-length away. Owlstar pushed past Greyshard and rushed over to Scarclaw's side.

She started licking his wounds and face, murmuring words of gentle encouragement and hissed promises of revenge. Foxnose began cleaning his wounds. Even though he had the least of all of them, except Greyshard, he still had plenty to count as dangerous. Greyshard counted them: he had a shredded flank, covered in ripped fur and splatters of blood; his pads were grazed with sharp pebbles; his limbs lined with slashes, varying in length, depth and bloodiness.

Out of the corner of her eye, Greyshard saw Scarclaw raise his head. He leaned up to lick Owlstar's cheek and they touched noses.

Another pang of jealousy hit Greyshard. It wasn't a bitter, half-fuelled desire. It was full-fledged resentment and greed. She wanted to have some cat to love so badly. But she would never. She couldn't have a mate who loved her, for who would love someone like her. She couldn't have the pleasure of seeing her kits grow up because she just couldn't. She couldn't spend time with family, for they were all living perfect, easy lives with Twolegs. The only family member she did see, spent all day cooped up in the medicine den, and ignoring her when they came out.
Greyshard tried to hide her growls and her feelings. She took a deep breath and stood up.

Then, a rustle sounded in the bushes behind her. three cats rushed into the clearing, fur bristling and teeth bared.

Word Count: 2185

Oof sorry it took so long!
I had a lot of school work to do and I went on a trip.
I enjoyed writing the end part of this. Hope you liked reading it!
Next updates will probably also be slow. Quicker than this I hope, but still slow.