Murder in the Woods: A Warrior Cat Mafia

Round 2, Part 2

Crowbelly watched with horror as the cats voted, almost all of them voting guilty. This couldn't be happening! "Please, stop! I'm sorry for being lazy, but that doesn't make me a murderer!"

"It's over, Crowbelly. We won't kill you, but you must get off our territory. If you're seen on it again, we will treat you as any other intruder," Doestep warned. The cats glared at him, and he knew that he wouldn't be welcomed back. Shamefully, the black and white tom padded out of camp, never to return.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Crowbelly padded alongside the Thunderpath, unsure about what to do. He was all alone, his mate dead and his son kept by the clan. He wasn't a good hunter, and there was no way he could defend himself from attack. Suddenly, he felt something go over his head, and he couldn't move.

"Stop! What are you doing!" he yowled, thrashing against the material. A twoleg lifted him up, stopping him from moving. What was happening? The twoleg said something in an unidentifiable language, then put him in the back of a monster. No! He wouldn't get eaten! As he struggled against the shiny barrier, the monster started moving.

Crowbelly had calmed down by the time the monster stopped. He had discovered that there was no point in struggling against the barrier. What were they going to do to him?

"Please, just let me go. I won't bother you again," he pleaded, as he was carried inside of a twoleg den. The sound of cats meowing hit his ears, as he was transferred to another one of the shiny dens.

"Hey! Look, a newcomer! Are you one of those clan cats?" a tom mewed from beside him. Crowbelly looked through the gaps in the den, only to see a dark brown tabby about his age.

"Yes! Well, I was, anyway. My name is Crowbelly. Maybe if we work together, we can escape," he replied quietly. The tom snorted, shaking his head.

"My name's Oscar. You're new around here, I get it. But this is where the twolegs come to pick out kittypets. We don't want to try to escape," the tabby told him.

"You mean, I'm supposed to be a . . . kittypet?" Crowbelly asked, thinking. It wouldn't be that bad, he supposed. Free food, free shelter, and the freedom to go anywhere as long as he came back eventually.

"Yeah, you have pretty good chances. If you act nice to the twolegs, they'll put you up front with the tame cats. You're large for a clan cat, but you look well fed to a twoleg. Plus, the white coat with black spots makes you stand out," Oscar told him. The brown tom glanced to the side, where the twolegs were talking. "They said they're going to call you Sylvester. I would respond to it if you want to get out of here sooner".

"It's not like I had that great of a name anyways . . . Sylvester it is," the black and white tom agreed. Eventually, he and Oscar would be adopted by the same twolegs, a family with two kits. He would get a bit thinner, and have a long life.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Okay, now that Crowbelly is gone, we need to hold vigil for Owlfeather. She may not have been the best warrior, but she was still a part of the clan," Darkblaze announced. The cats murmured their agreement, all sitting down around the she-cat. The forest went completely silent, as their watch began.

The murderer crept up behind Lynxtail, who had left the vigil relatively later than the rest. The only ones left were Blizzardpaw, Larktuft, Brightfall, and Foxwish. They felt some sort of responsibility or guilt for Owlfeather's death, so they were determined to stay for the whole night. It also meant that the murderer's partner wasn't able to kill the next target. Good thing there were two of them.

"Hello, Lynxtail," they greeted darkly, unsheathing their claws. The tom turned around, eyes widening when he saw them. It couldn't be . . .

"It's you? But you weren't in camp during Owlfeather's murder, it's not possible," he meowed, shocked. The murderer tackled him to the ground, holding him down. Despite his struggling, he was unable to escape.

"Don't be ridiculous. There are two of us," they sneered, as they placed a paw on his neck. "Don't worry about your family. They'll follow you soon enough". Then they pressed down, until they heard a loud crack. Lynxtail's head lolled to the side, as the murderer let go and padded away.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Lynxtail!" Mosspaw cried, as he found his father's body lying in the dirtplace. He ran over to the tom, burying his face in his fur. "Please wake up, please wake up, please wake up". Having heard the small apprentice's cry, Kestrelstorm, Doestep, Mistpaw, and Leafheart ran into the dirtplace.

"No! Why are they doing this to us?! Lynxtail!" Kestrelstorm wailed, joining Mosspaw by her mate's side. Mistpaw went over as well, head hung low with sadness.

"The previous suspects were all at vigil, they couldn't have done this," Doestep whispered to Leafheart, eyes wide. "Do you know what this means?"

"There are two of them," Leafheart finished, watching the family mourning. The first murderer was in the group of four cats. The second was in the other group.

"It could be any of us," Doestep mewed, starting to head over to Lynxtail. She focused on Kestrelstorm this time, a bit louder. "Let me and Leafheart carry him back, Kestrelstorm. He shouldn't be left here". The tortoiseshell she-cat moved aside, pulling her kits in close. Doestep and Leafheart lifted the tom onto their shoulders, and headed out into the center of camp.

"Not another victim . . ." Hollysong mewed quietly, head lowering with sadness. The rest of the cats followed, as Lynxtail was set down next to Owlfeather.

"There are two murderers," Doestep announced, looking at the rest of the clan. She focused on Larktuft, Brightfall, Foxwish, and Blizzardpaw. "One of you four is a murderer. The other one is part of the bigger group".

"They also have white fur!" Sparrowpaw yowled, pointing to the white clumps in Lynxtail's claws. The cats moved closer, taking a look.

"The only cats in the second group without white fur are me, Doestep, Thrushpaw, Sparrowpaw, and Mistpaw," Stormwhisker pointed out.

"Then you need to run this search," Kestrelstorm ordered, voice full of angry despair. "You're the only cats we can trust".

"I don't want to run anything!" Mistpaw exclaimed, shaking his head dramatically. This shouldn't fall to a group of apprentices and two adults!

"Okay, since we're running this . . . Blizzardpaw needs a new mentor. Does anyone volunteer?" Doestep asked, looking at the few cats without apprentices.

"I will!" Brightfall replied, a bit eagerly. She had never had an apprentice before, so she was excited, even though Blizzardpaw was lazy.

"Okay, now accusations, I guess. Does anyone have any?" Thrushpaw asked, a bit uncertainly. Even though he was almost a warrior, he wasn't used to being looked to for advice.

"Mosspaw found Lynxtail . . . " Blizzardpaw replied, not finishing the sentence. Mosspaw looked at him, shocked, but the older apprentice refused to meet his gaze.

"Then I guess we're voting on Mosspaw," Sparrowpaw announced, looking around at the group. "All in favor?"

Murdered: Lynxtail
Healed: Blizzardpaw
Accused: Mosspaw
Returned: No one
Revived: No one
Murderers Left: 2