ωαяяισя ¢αтѕ // Mintpool's Venom

Chapter 37

Mintpool's body took over her actions. Spinning around, the gray tabby raced out of the den. She ignored the guards by the entrance, sprinting out of the rogues' camp, her paws skimming the ground as she raced away.

Holly berries.

Her heart was pounding.

Holly.

There was no doubt about it. It was the golden she-cat who was behind all this. But why? That was an answer Mintpool was unable to piece together. But she was going to go get answers. And she was certain where to find them.

The moon beamed brightly in the sky as the gray tabby bounded through the forest. Before long, she'd reached the training clearing that Holly had brought her to when she'd first arrived. The clearing that the two spent countless hours in, training and laughing.

Why would Holly do something like this? Pain stabbed through Mintpool as she padded lightly into the dip, gazing around at the trees surrounding it. No sign of the golden tabby. But Mintpool knew she was here. She could feel Holly's eyes burning through her pelt.

"Finally." The familiar voice echoed through the clearing. "You've collected enough brains to work this out."

Has Holly's voice always been so cold? Mintpool lashed her tail. "Stop hiding in the bushes like a coward!"

The branches above her head creaked. Before the gray tabby knew it, golden fur flashed before her eyes and Holly was standing before her, nose-to-nose.

Mintpool's legs were shaky. If Holly wanted to kill me then, she could. But she enjoys this. The realization sent beams of fear through the gray tabby's body. What kind of sick cat is she? To some extent, Mintpool could relate - but only with those that had wronged her before. Had she done something to Holly? She couldn't recall if she did.

Holly tilted her head. "You're scared." She noted this, her voice soft. Manipulative. "Why is that? We're friends, remember?"

Mintpool snarled, taking a step backwards. "We're not friends! We never were, apparently," she spat. "You lied to me and the entire group!"

Holly let out a mad crackle. "Lied? Oh no, no, let's not go throwing that word around. That's awfully rude, and it hurts me feelings." A wild grin spread on her face as she took a step away, beginning to circle Mintpool. The gray tabby suddenly got a vivid feeling of what prey felt like. "I've never told you a single lie."

"Oh really?" Mintpool bared her teeth. "You told me that you used to be a kittypet, and when your Housefolk left, you joined this group!"

Holly hummed lightly. "Not a lie. I was a former kittypet. But that didn't mean I wasn't anything else." When Mintpool blinked at her with a face full of confusion, the golden tabby let out another crackle. "Great Spirits, you're stupid! You seriously haven't pieced it together yet?"

No reply from the gray tabby as she worked furiously to try and come up with an answer. Holly grinned at her struggle.

"I used to be in Mamba's old group."

Shock bristled through Mintpool. "Wha-"

Holly took a step forward, her green eyes wild. The understanding of Python's constant mumbling shocked through the gray tabby. Eyes like these were hard to forget.

"I used to be a kittypet. Mamba's old group was in a rundown Twolegplace. I was a kittypet. Honestly, after Cobrastrike told you Mamba's backstory I thought you'd at least have a little sense of what's happening, especially since all your patients were also former members of the group. But alas, I was mistaken." Holly faked a sigh. "Oh well, it's much more fun for me!"

"But you-" Mintpool frowned, confusion wafting through her.

"I what? Yes, I was a kittypet the same time I was in the group. Is that so hard to understand? I spent my days in the group and nights in a safe and warm Twoleg den. Very clever, aren't I?"

Holly paused, as if she were praising herself in her mind, before continuing her story.

"I worked my way up quite easily. All those other cats were pathetic, you know. The leader took a liking to me. He made me his deputy; I suppose that's what you'd call it. Then when the right time came, I killed him."

"Killed him?" Mintpool echoed. "But Mamba said he was an awful cat!"

"Awful?" Holly pondered this. "I wouldn't call him that. Strong, sure, but too proud. Too easy to trick. Fell into my trap with ease. Just as you did, I suppose. Anyway, after I killed him, I left. I left that group with a power vacuum, cats fighting each other relentlessly to try and become the leader."

"Why?"

"Why?" Holly grinned. "To cause chaos, of course! There's nothing better than chaos, especially when I'm in control of it. Who injured Cobrastrike, but didn't kill, just for the purpose of stirring fear? Who traumatized all those cats, to make others uneasy? Anyway, I suppose that you should thank me. Otherwise, this group wouldn't have nearly as much of its great fighters, since so many fled here."

"Wait, Mamba started this group." Mintpool frowned. "Wouldn't she know you? Why would she let you join?"

"Idiot," Holly muttered. "Yes, she does know me. She's afraid of me. Haven't you picked up on that? Mamba's a coward."

Mintpool's mind flooded with memories, of all the interactions between her, Mamba, and Holly. The time Mamba had glared at them when she'd first arrived, when she'd sped up towards them and almost "attacked" them. Mintpool had jumped right back into Holly - Holly was the one behind her. Mamba had been aiming for Holly before backing down. And all those glares she shot - they'd all been for Holly.

"Mamba would gladly stay quiet if it meant no threat from me. So would any other cat that has met the past me."

A scene flashed through Mintpool's head: Holly claiming she'd been with Poison during the attack of Cobrastrike and Poison giving a hurried nod. How much power did the golden tabby have over these cats?

"Well, except for Ivy."

Mintpool's head snapped up at that, lashing her tail. "That means Ivy was right about you, then!"

Holly chuckled. "Oh indeed. And you did a wonderful job of defending me. For that, I thank you."

As Mintpool's pelt bristled, Holly continued.

"Ivy's a lovely actor, you know. A pretty little she-cat who looks as kind as can be, with darker motives. She's brilliant, don't you think? Got every cat on her side. You saw how easily she turned the whole Clan against me with only using the logical reasoning 'green eyes'. But guess who she learned it from?" Holly's crazy smile spread wider. "Me. Oh, but she isn't nearly as good. She'll need to work on that in the future. Too bad I'm going to kill her after this. Hmm. Bad timing, I suppose.

"Now." Holly's gaze pinned onto Mintpool. "Enough talk."

With that, she leaped at the gray tabby, quick as lightning.

დ

Word Count // 1133

Not Edited

Hi!! So sorry I haven't updated this book in a while - for some reason, this chapter was pretty difficult for me to write. It was hard getting everything to flow with Holly's whole backstory. If you have any unanswered questions about it, feel free to let me know - although, I'll have a deeper version of it posted in the Novellas!

I really hope that the foreshadowing did somewhat make sense, so this idea doesn't seem like one I pulled out of nowhere! A picture of the training clearing is at the top. Bye!!