Starwritten

Chapter 17: Exiled

Dropstar storms out of his den with an angry expression on his face. He stomps past me and whispers in my perked up ears. "Come with me." He growls, lowly. I nod and follow him as he said to do. My stomach turns. I haven't done anything wrong. Maybe this is about that cat I saw earlier in front of the camp entrance, dead. He stops in the deserted part of camp and sits down.

"Now tell me Sapphireeyes, what did you see earlier." He says, curling his tail over his paws. I shift on my paws a little, the scene coming back to me.
Firesoul runs in the other direction, blood following his tracks. Dropstar snaps me back to reality. "I asked you a question, Sapphireeyes now you answer it." He growls. I shake my head. "Sorry I was just, thinking." I say dryly. His expression is filling with annoyance. I flick my tail. "Sandytail and I went "hunting" and when we came back, there was the dead cat on the ground and Firesoul running in the other direction, blood following his paws." I say. He nods, registering everything I just said into his mind. He nods and flicks his tail. "Thank you, Sapphireeyes." He meows. He stands up and starts to head off when I stop him. "Wait." I say. "Do you know who that is? I mean, the cat who was killed." He turns to me, his yellow eyes glinting. "His name was Rockshade, a warrior." He says dryly. Rockshade. It takes a moment for me to get it. "You mean Firesoul murdered one of his own clan mates?" I ask. He nods and turns his head. "What are you going to do, Dropstar?" I ask. He flicks his tail. "You'll find out."

That conversation is left to linger in my head. I wonder what will happen to Firesoul. You never know what the odds are in these woods.

I take a moment to calm down. Seeing Rockshade laying there like that is enough to make a cat go mad. Ya, I did see Darkgaze die right in front of me but, she wasn't as bloody or bad looking as he was. It was so terrible what happened to Rockshade. It was obvious he was murdered. I'm pretty sure Firesoul is the culprit, I mean we have so much evidence. I wonder if Dropstar will either kill him, exile him or chase him out of the forest for good, or maybe just send him to another clan as a prisoner. I also wonder what made Firesoul do it. You never know.

***

Dropstar's voice booms throughout camp. "I would like every cat old enough to hunt to join me under the BigRock for a clan meeting." He calls. Most of the clan cats stop bathing and turns to him. I head to the BigRock just as he commanded, worry filling my ears. Creampaw and Sandytail both have the same expressions on their faces.

"Some of you may know that there was a murder of one of our clan mates yesterday at sun high. Rockshade. I have figured out who has done it thanks to the help of Sapphireeyes. Everyone turns their heads to me. I look at them all and turn away. "You all might be devastated to know that that killer has been born and raised in your very own clan." The cats all murmur to one another. I can't look away from Dropstar. Firesoul. He did it. "Do you know who did it, Sapphireeyes?" Sandytail asks. I nod but don't answer. I don't notice that my claws are digging into the dusty ground. Come on, say it. Make him pay for what he did.

"The killer who murdered Rockshade is Firesoul." Dropstar growls. Firesoul has that look in his eyes, the look of approval. I glare at him, hard. He just smiles at me and turns back to Dropstar. As soon as the words left his lips, the cats boom out with howls and growls. Creampaw is the loudest of them all. I heard that he was her brother, born from the same mother and father. I can't imagine what it must feel like to think of her brother as a murderer. A ping of sympathy fills my fur, washing over me like a river. I can't take my eyes off of Firesoul even though he is looking straight ahead. My sapphire eyes glow with pure hatred. Why did he do it? Why? He had no reason, did he?

"As punishment for going against the warrior code and killing one of your clan mates, I now exile you from this clan. You are not allowed to come back for as long as you live, Firesoul. You will be a rouge for the rest of your life. We won't miss you." Dropstar snarls at Firesoul. All of Flameclan snarls in unison. Including me.

Firesoul's eyes fill with regret and hatred as they glare right back at Dtopstar's. He shoulders past him and walks quietly out of Flameclan, growling at any cat he catches staring at him. Who knows how many lives he has taken from other cats. Maybe it was just Rockshade. Maybe it was others. He stops by me and whispers. "This is your fault." I bring my ears down low. "Get away from me. Leave Firesoul." I snarl at him. He chuckles and heads towards the entrance.

I follow Firesoul with my eyes until his tail vanishes into the brush beyond. I can't believe he would do such a thing. What a shame.

***

"Clovertail, do you know why Firesoul killed Rockshade?" I ask, laying down on my stomach. She strokes her kits' heads with her tail. I hear her take a long, deep breath. It takes her a while to answer. "Well, Rockshade was Firesoul and Creampaw's father. Their mother was Redfur but she died many moons ago. Rockshade and Redfur were inseparable. Always together, hunting, Gatherings. Even when they became apprentices and warriors. They got their names together. Rockshade was thrilled when Redfur told him she was going to have kits. After they were born, Redfur passed a moon later. She could barely get around in her last days. Mudpelt said she was struggling, grasping the few strings that were left of her life. She couldn't bare it anymore. Redfur finally let go of her life forever. Firesoul probably blamed his father for her death and that's what caused him to kill Rockshade." Clovertail meows. I blink. His father? A growl rises from my chest. "But, Rockshade couldn't do anything to help her! All he really could do was encourage her to keep holding on." I meow. She shrugs. "Firesoul was always a hot head. That's how he got his name you know." She meows. "Ya, I know that but I never thought he would kill his own Father." I say quietly.