**OLD** Valley Cats: Of Sky and Stone 1- Daughters and Darkness

Chapter Thirteen

 Twisterpaw unsheathed her claws, digging them into Mousepaw's exposed underbelly.  The large tom gave a squeak of surprise and leaped off of her. "Hey! No claws, remember?" he protested, arching his back and hissing.

 The black-and-white she-cat stood up hesitantly. "Oh. Sorry. I didn't hurt you, did I?"

 "I told you to stop relying on your weight and size! That isn't going to save you from someone's teeth and claws!" his mentor Sprucefall critiqued from the edge of the sandy hollow. "You need to pull together your combat skills before your assessment. You'll be fighting Pinebristle, remember? How is throwing around your weight going to save you from him?"

 "Sorry, Sprucefall. I'll work on it." Mousepaw hung his head, apparently ashamed.

 "Don't be sorry. Fix it. Go fight with your sister." Sprucefall ordered bluntly. "Then you'll see how important your balance is."

 His apprentice nodded obediently. "Of course, sir. Right away." he promised.

 Twisterpaw offered him a small smile before turning to her two siblings, who were also instructed to at least watch a fighting lesson.

 "That's right! You send them running, Twisterpaw!" Brightpaw cheered enthusiastically. Twisterpaw shrugged him off, rolling her eyes. Her brother was, truly, too much.

 "I wish I could do that. Can't I fight, Mother?" Magpiepaw craned her neck back to look up at Snowspirit, who was hovering over her shoulder.

 "No, Magpiepaw. You aren't strong enough." Snowspirit said gently, yet her blue eyes were filled with worry as she eyed Twisterpaw. "Fighting is too rough for you. At least, while you're this young," she added, noticing the look Parsleyshade was giving her.

 "It wasn't honorable, but technically you defeated him." Crowpelt's voice was cold, but Twisterpaw beamed at her mentor anyways.

 "That was short. Maybe she should go up against another apprentice. We didn't get to see much... you know. Combat." Parsleyshade suggested.

 Twisterpaw turned around in the half-frozen sand, watching as Mousepaw and Squirrelpaw fought under the eyes of their mentors watching them. They yelled out suggestions from a fallen log at the opposite end of the hollow.

 "Stop pausing! Don't let her know your next move!" Sprucefall bellowed.

 "Faster! Use all four of your paws!" Robinsong commanded.

 "Get on the ground!"

 "Don't let him pin you! Spin around!"

 "What are you doing? Just pounce already!"

 The two chased each other around for a moment, but Squirrelpaw quickly tripped her brother with her long tail. The large tom clumsily crashed to the ground, pinned by the dusky ginger she-cat. "That was quick, Mousepaw! Have you finally accepted that you'll never beat me?" she snarled victoriously.

 "All right, you've made your point. Now get off me!" the pale tabby whined, kicking out at his sister with his back legs. Squirrelpaw slowly stepped off, reveling in her brother's humiliation. 

 "How lonely you'll be tonight- sleeping in the apprentices' den once again, licking your wounds! I'll visit you, though. I'm sure you'll want to hear all about how fun it is to defeat Sandyfur in a fight!" she barked. Mousepaw sat up and licked his tail, ignoring her cruel remarks. 

 The ginger she-cat's face twisted into a scowl, further confirming the fruitlessness of her comments. "Stupid, lazy worm. Did you even hear what I just said?" she stamped a front paw into the wet sand for emphasis.