Criminal Claws [UnitedWarriors]

Fourth Exile

Laurelgaze's golden eyes focused on a mouse a few feet away, which was busy munching on some seeds. The mouse seemed content and was oblivious to the presense behind it. Laurelgaze padded slowly closer, her belly fur brushing the ground, putting one paw in front of the other until she finally jumped. She landed square on the target, holding it down and swiftly biting the rodent's neck.

The warrior gazed down at her prey, a smirk appearing on her face. It had been no problem to kill this prey. The mouse hadn't even had a chance to squeal before its neck was snapped.

If only it were this easy to do for cats.

She began to bury the mouse, her claws scratching at the ground. She was just about finished when she felt a shadow stand over her. Laurelgaze whirled around, hissing, her claws unsheathed and dirty.

A white tom with black patches stood there, his amber eyes staring right at her. Laurelgaze was about to attack him when she realized who he was.

Palefern. The cat who'd been exiled only a few days ago.

"Greetings, Palefern," she meowed, her eyes narrowing. Palefern dipped his head, sitting down and wrapping his tail around his forepaws.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, although she relaxed a bit.

Palefern didn't answer right away. Instead he glanced down at the ground, where Laurelgaze's mouse was buried. She looked at the ground too, following his gaze.

"That was a good catch," he complimented her, still staring at the buried prey.

"It was quite easy," Laurelgaze said, sheathing her claws. Palefern was no threat. They'd worked together before, and Palefern's hiss was worse than his bite.

"So who's the latest kill?" Palefern asked suddenly, which surprised Laurelgaze. When they had met with the others to discuss who was next, he never spoke up. Now that he wasn't able to met up with them anymore, perhaps he felt uninformed.

"We killed Longclaw last night," she informed him, sitting down too.

Palefern nodded, and his whiskers twitched. He grinned, as if he was imagining Longclaw being ripped to shreds.

"Did everything go well? Did any cat get in the way?" He questioned her, leaning forward.

"Pretty well. I did get a few scratches from Longclaw, but Iriswhisper fought me and attacked the same spot, so my wounds were covered," Laurelgaze said, remembering the pain in her shoulder.

Palefern purred; he seemed pleased that Laurelgaze had thought of such a good plan.

"You'd better leave. Graystar organized a patrol, it should be coming around here at any moment," Laurelgaze warned him, glancing around for any sign that they were already on their way.

Palefern stood up, and with a final smirk turned tail and ran away.

Laurelgaze gazed after him for a moment, then looked down at the ground. She unburied the mouse, retrieved it, and began to head back towards camp.

~†~

Graystar glanced around at her clan from by the freshkill pile, feeling both worried and determined. She'd studied the clan carefully, and counseled with Morningrose and Dawnpetal, and together they had concluded that this cat was a traitor.

The golden-eyed she cat would be leaving the camp this very night. She was certain this cat was the one.

Morningrose walked up to where Graystar was sitting and gazed around with her.

"We've picked the right cat," Morningrose reassured her, peering sideways at the leader. "Our clan will be safer now."

Graystar nodded, knowing that the deputy was trying to comfort her, but she still felt worried. Laurelgaze wasn't the last traitor. Longclaw had been attacked by multiple warriors -- meaning there were more murderous cats hiding in the bushes, waiting for the opportunity to strike.

Graystar sighed and made her way to the Highrock. She climbed to the top in a single bound, then cleared her throat.

"My clan," Graystar called, and almost immediately all the nearby cats stepped forward and sat near the rock. Cats were whispering and gossiping; Graystar noticed they weren't as close to each other as they had been in times past. She swallowed and stood up taller.

"Longclaw was murdered last night." Graystar said, cutting right to the chase. Her clan seemed so used to it, even though it had only been four days. "I have, with the help of Morningrose and Dawnpetal, concluded who the traitor is," Graystar told the gathered cats. "They will be exiled from our clan."

Before announcing who would go, Graystar watched her clan, curious to see how they reacted.

Laurelgaze and Iriswhisper were on the opposite sides of the group, as Graystar had ordered. Iriswhisper had her head down, staring at her paws, so Graystar couldn't see her expression. Laurelgaze was watching the leader with a calm demeanor, but her tail-tip was twitching, betraying her anxiety.

Echolight and Tigersplash were whispering to each other and glaring at Smallcloud, who looked worried and was sitting close next to Icespark, nearly leaning into her fur. The latter she-cat was stubbornly ignoring him and staring straight ahead at Graystar with narrowed eyes.

Rosepool was yawning and struggling to keep her eyes open.

The apprentices were grouped together, except for Viperpaw, who was a little ways away from the others, but they were all gazing around at their fellow clanmates suspiciously. Blackpaw was still missing.

Honeyrose's hunting patrol had returned a while ago, and was dispersed among the other warriors, exchanging glances with each other and muttering in low tones while they waited for Graystar's decree.

Whisperdrizzle was at the back of camp, sitting alone.

Graystar took a deep breath before saying the one word that would condemn a single cat to exile. Just one name.

"Laurelgaze."

The light gray tabby looked up, surprised, and then her golden eyes widened with fear.

"Morningrose, Dawnpetal, and I have discussed together, and we have decided that you are guilty of killing Longclaw, along with aiding with the deaths of Pinestep, Mallowheart, and Cascadefall."

Laurelgaze was silent for a long moment. The whole clan sat in silence, waiting to hear what the accused she-cat would say.

Laurelgaze stood. Her expression had calmed, and she no longer looked afraid. "I didn't kill her, Graystar," she meowed slowly, but strongly. "I helped to free her, by releasing her from these chains that you call a clan. She is no longer bound to your code. And neither am I."

Graystar's breath caught, and she struggled to regain it before continuing. "Laurelgaze, you are hereby exiled from this clan. If any of my cats spot you inside our territory after tonight, then they have my permission to kill you."

Laurelgaze bowed her head, accepting Graystar's words, then began to walk toward the exit. All eyes followed her, and just when she was about to leave, she turned back around.

"I did not work alone," she said, lifting her chin. "More cats are going to die. Good luck, Graystar."

Laurelgaze was a traitor.

4 traitors left.

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