𝖋𝖆𝖜𝖓𝖑𝖊𝖆𝖕'𝖘 𝖋𝖆𝖎𝖙𝖍 | 𝙬𝙘 𝙛𝙖𝙣-𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙚𝙧 𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣

iii

Fawnleap watched in an everlasting horror as Vipernose fell limp. She felt as if she couldn't move, as if she was buried in quick sand. It was all my fault.

"Let's go!" Freckleface cried, her fur standing. "But— but Vipernose! His body!" Chestnutspots protested, his voice cracking as he spoke.

Bear looked up from the lifeless black tom, its black, soulless and empty eyes piercing into Fawnleap's. She felt her knees grow weak and her heart skip a beat.

"Go!" The she-cat cried through the muffling of feathers, sprinting past the two arguing cats, not looking back. Her paws skirted across the floor, the wind knocked her fur back to sleekness; and eventually Fawnleap felt the chilling stones underneath her paw-pads once again. Despite being close to camp, she didn't slow down. Her adrenaline raced through the roof, Bear could take down one of the most experienced warriors so quickly. Just three swipes. He was down. And now she was running like a forward.

Suddenly, Fawnleap felt her paws stumble and with a thump, the she-cat tumbled down the stony hill, slumping to the bottom with a singing pain surged in the back of her leg. "StarClan," She hissed, dropping the ragged hawk as she panted.

Fawnleap turned her head to look where she had fallen. It was only a few fox-tails of a drop, to her luck. She swiftly saw a cream head poke over the rocks.

Freckleface! Fawnleap thought, her heart skipping a beat.

"Fawnleap?" Freckleface called, her voice shaking. Fawnleap couldn't blame her, what the two had witnessed was something Fawnleap could never, ever unsee.

"Yeah?" She mewed back weakly. Freckleface's neck craned before she slid down, gliding over the stone with her neatly groomed pads.

"Are you alright?" The she-cat asked, her stark eyes gleaming. "Barely." Fawnleap panted, her paws gripping the earth before hauling herself back on all fours. "You sure?" Freckleface assured gently.

"I'm sure." Fawnleap spoke, close-mouthed. She winced as she stepped forward, a sting buzzing in her leg. "I can carry it..., the hawk, I mean."

"You sure? It's heavy." Fawnleap meowed anxiously. "I'm sure." Freckleface laughed, her lip curling as she tugged the hawk in her maw. "Where's Chestnutspots?" Fawnleap asked. "Hm ran mack hoo camp." ("He ran back too camp.") Freckleface responded, her words muffled by the hawk's giant feathers.

Fawnleap limped alongside Freckleface as they began marching their way back to camp alongside the ravine; hiking their way up the rocks.

A silence filled the air for a while, but not an awkward silence. Fawnleap found it rather comforting. There's silence in the forest, that means nothing unfortunate is haunting it. The warrior continuously told herself.

Eventually, the two she-cats made their way back into the opening maw of camp. Head turned, eyes piercing into what felt like Fawnleap's soul.

"Chestnutspots told us about unfortunate Vipernose." Snailstar firmly spoke, her voice low, however her head was held high as if she experienced some sort of triumph.

"He died trying to save you." Snailstar's muzzle pointed directly at Fawnleap, her eyes narrowed. Fawnleap felt her flank grow heavy and anxiety pierce through her heart, creating a belly-whirling stomach ache.

"I didn't..., I didn't know this was going to happen, I swear. I was just- I was just following orders." She defended quickly, tail lashing. Freckleface dropped the hawk, quickly toiling up the icy rocks, trying her hardest not to meet Fawnleap's gaze, causing the she-cat to feel awfully betrayed.

An everlasting ache caused Fawnleap's heart to sore as eyes from all across the camp pierced through her skull.

A snow white, pretty she-cat stepped forward. "Fawnleap...," Pearlwhisker began, forcing her voice to sound sympathetic. "It's not her fault." Cougarclaw quickly protested before Fawnleap's sister could finish her sentence.

"She didn't know this was going to happen.. going to the bear's nest was reasonably flea-brained, anyway." Chestnutspots randomly interrupted, earning a gratefully glance from Fawnleap.

"Don't call Snailstar's ideas 'flea-brained', fox-tongue!" Falconstrike hissed defensively, his brows furrowing as the deputy shouldered the longhair tom. "Enough!" Snailstar yowled, her tone full of disgust.

Halfleaf, trekked besides Fawnleap, her tail wrapping around the she-cat comfortingly. "Come to my den." The medicine cat's soothing voice drowned out the rest of the dramatic argument that rang amongst the Clan. Fawnleap briskly nodded, picking herself up as she followed the brown cat back to her den.

After Fawnleap brushed past the large leaves that doored the den, it widened into a rocky hole with a long hill of smoothened dirt, with each herbs equally sorted. It thickened back into a separate room with four empty beddings, two on each side.

"Tell me what happened, as far as what you're comfortable with telling me." Halfleaf purred gently, stopping to face Fawnleap. With a deep breath, the she-cat began to explain every detail, the ruffling of the leaves ringing in her ears, the bear's roar, Vipernose's gored fur. Everything.

By the time Fawnleap was able to catch her breath, she felt Halfleaf's understanding, yet horror of an expression flash an image in Fawnleap's mind that she would never forget.

"I'm so sorry." Halfleaf cooed, bringing herself to a stand. "Are you hurt?"

"No." Fawnleap knew that her paw-pads were scorched from the heavy skirting across the ground, and her leg was welling with a stinging pain from the fall; but she couldn't bring herself for Halfleaf to waste her herbs, especially this close to the rigorous Leaf-Bare.

"Are you sure Vipernose is—" Halfleaf hesitated for a moment, hard swallowing. "Dead?"

Fawnleap couldn't bring herself to respond with her words, feeling her mouth run dry.

"I'm sure."