Brambleclaw's Fury

Part 7

"I'm gonna be the fiercest warrior ever!" piped Berrykit.

"No! I'm gonna be the bestest ever!" argued Hazelkit, shoving into him. Brambleclaw growled and rolled his eyes. Mouse-brained kits and their imaginations.

"Where exactly are we going?" asked Mousekit, giving a stern look to his littermates.

"To train."

"Hey I got an idea- you can be the ShadowClan warrior and I'll be defending the camp!" exclaimed one of the pests, and he once again began to ignore them. Which move should he teach them first?

"Did you see Ashfur? He was so strong--" Brambleclaw swung back towards the kits.

"Shut up! All of you!" His gaze raked across all of them, and they shrank in his shadow. He took a threatening step forward. They should know not to speak of that fox-hearted tom. "Ashfur is a fool! He's a snake. A fox-heart. Haven't you seen what he did to Squirrelflight?" The kits looked at him, puzzled.

"You're too young," he muttered and padded to a sandy clearing, much like the sandy hollow back in the old forest. 

"I'm going to teach you five moves today."

"Five?!" exclaimed Mousekit.

"We'll be real warriors!" exclaimed Hazelkit and Berrykit perked up.

"First, the belly rake."

"Oooooooh what's that?" asked Hazelkit. Brambleclaw scoffed. These kits were so eager to learn, and yet they didn't know the basic moves. Wasn't this what they did when they pestered the apprentices? Asked for them to teach them fighting moves?

"Perhaps we should start with something simpler, then." He demonstrated the back kick and then showed them step-by-step how to do it. 

"Now for you to try. Berrykit, sit down. Hazelkit, go up to him from behind." Berrykit sat, while Hazelkit bared her teeth in a growl behind him, prepared to spring. He performed the move clumsily and slashed at her face, but missed her by several inches.

"No," he growled, and they both froze, staring at him. Mousekit observed everything with wide eyes from his perch on a rock a couple of tail-lengths away. He walked forward, shoving Hazelkit aside roughly with his front paw. He found an old tree and positioned himself correctly, took all the weight on his front legs, lashed out with his hindlegs, and found that he had hit his mark. Crisp and flaky bark showered down on the three kits as he raked his unsheathed claws down the tree.

"Whoa," Hazelkit breathed, and Berrykit bounced up and down on his paws eagerly.

"Can I try again?!" he pleaded.

"Later," Brableclaw growled. "And you will be practicing it until I see fit. For now, let me teach you the other four. And this time, we'll be unsheathing our claws."

"Isn't that dangerous?" asked Mousekit as at the same time Berrykit and Hazelkit both exclaimed, "Cool!" Brambleclaw glared at the little white and gray kit and stalked toward him. To his credit, he didn't flinch, but he did shrink a bit under his gaze. He bent his head down until they were nose to nose.

"What I say, you do. Never question the words of a deputy." He jerked his head back, and he flicked with his tail for the other two kits to come forward.

"We need this to be as realistic as possible so that you runts are prepared for a battle." Brambleclaw cast a look back at Mousekit.

"As for you, you'll have a punishment when we get back to camp. And none of the other kits are going allowed to help you." Mousekit looked like he was going to protest, but the small fire that had ignited in his eyes died and he bowed his head.