Sage-eye's Story

Chapter 29- A Fight

-The Day After Chapter 28-

Sunclaw walked through the sun-high lot trees as a cool breeze touched her. Her light orange fur felt hot as her green eyes looked for fresh, new plants to use. Behind her, ready to help her carry anything, was her brother Badger-rose, with the exact same looks as her. Still no activity from Darktail yet. What does she plan on doing?  Well I do know that we some marigold. Time to head to the Marshclan stream border.

Rushing water filled her ears as the stream came closer to them. The usual sandy shore was there, the place where she had found Ravenpaw. After some sniffing and looking around, Sunclaw spotted a patch of bright, yellow marigold flowes. She started carefully picking them. Stops infection, stop s bleeding, and used for inflammation or stiff joints. Very good on real war, and the war one must have to get the elders to stop complaining.

"You can talk to me , you know." Badger-rose spoke up from behind her, "I'm right here, you know. You really got to stop being really reclusive. You have isolated yourself from the clan."

Sunclaw turned to talk to her brother. "I have not grown isolated, brother. There isn't merely not much to talk about to Honeypelt or Goldemheart. We talk some now and then. Besides, the clan is bring these days."

Badger-rose snook is head. "Even so sister, you are isolated. You spend all of your free time gazing into space, thinking, thinking, thinking, not telling anyone of your problems that cause you your stress. You have grown isolated and lonely. Tell me what your problems are."

"I cannot tell you!" Sunclaw snapped defensively.  "Don't you understand? How many times must I tell you? I simply can't tell you, and I can't even tell you the reasons why. Know that I do it to protect you our parents, and for clan. I do my duty to my clan, so leave me alone about it."

"Then you do admit to having isolated yourself." Badger-rose said. "I told you a long time ago to stop thinking of how to restore you kithood friendship with Sage-eye."

"I haven given up on that. There is clearly something wrong with her head." Sunclaw argued. "But are still other things that I must fix to save our clan. She is a problem that is in the way. Don't you want Valleyclan's ways."

"I do." Badger-rose agreed. "But I know and love her, and I see no problem with her. Whatever reason she has to hate you, I do not know. We will be mates someday once. I find the right time to tell her. If you tell me why, I can know her better."

"I have secrets to hold that have been forced to hold!" Sunclaw growled. "I keep them for the sake of my family. I do it for my own protection. I do it for the clan."

"If I am your family, then why do you not trust me to keep a secret or two?" Badger-rose countered. "If you are to protect us, then why not tell us, so we can watch out for ourselves as you are doing for us?"

Why does he keep on mothering me like this? He is my family. He should understand me! "Why can't you just understand me reasons and go back to padding after Burnscar?"

"Because I value my life as much as I do." Badger-rose said. "And her name is Sage-eye, not that nasty name of Burnscar. She may not be your friend, but you can still be nice about her when she is not around."

Then a whiff of a rogue cat hit their noses, and Badger-rose faced the direction of the smell. They both tried to prepare, but the attack was too soon. The large, white she-cat sprung as she ran into view and bit into Badger-rose. She tried to knock him over, but instead Badger-rose held his ground and ran back. The rogue's brown eyes were filled with a cruel joy.

Sunclaw picked the marigold back up with her jaws to transport it to a safe place, as she had dropped it at the scent of the rogue. She closed up her claws. Hurrying away,  she spotted a tree with a nook in its root. Carefully. the marigold fell into it. Sunclaw prodded it with her paw to make sure that was tucked in. Then she unsheathed her claws again.

It seemed as if she had just been gone mere heartbeats, but when Sunclaw came back, her brother was already pinned done, struggling to escape? He was cut in quite a few places and was bleeding, but the white she-cat was barely scathed. Obviously, she had had more experience and had the advantage of strength.

Seeing her brother about to possibly die, Sunclaw felt a great rage explode inside of her. A new strength of mind and body combined flowed through her in an instant. She shall not kill my brother!

The next moments of in a passed in a flash. She ran to the white she-cat ina  fury. The rogue's eyes showed surprise. Badger-rose tried to stand but his injured paw's pain made him unable to stand. The white she-cat fought valiantly against a ferocious Sunclaw, but after some time into the battle, but began to falter. Sunclaw struck out her claws. Moments later, the she-cat was as dead, a heaving, battered Sunclaw stood over her with a bloody foot.

Only then did Sunclaw come out of her mental trance of rage and instinct. Her mind shattered. Fear gripped her. I.....I killed a cat when I didn't haven't to! What have I done? This goes against everything I believe. It is fine to protect those who you love. But to kill for them? This is wrong, it is not right! Now my ancestors shall send me to where Brightwing resides!

Then she turned her attention to her brother as her mind rumbled in turmoil. Badger-rose was lying down. He assured that he was fine, but would need help getting back to camp. Which she did. Soon they were not their way to camp. Badger-rose winced in pain each time he stepped on his front right paw.

"It is not your fault that you killed her." Badger-rose reassured her. "Your instinct drove you to kill, to protect me. You had no control over yourself."

"I had control." Sunclaw mumbled, "I killed when I could have not done so. I am a Mender, sworn to never kill unless my life was in danger. I have sworn to kill as little as possible, and yet I did despite not having to. I have failed my mission to my ancestors."

Sunclaw did not hear what her brother said, for she was too shocked at her actions. The sounds of the world drowned out. Once they reached the Valleyclan camp, Birchleaf took over for lher and told her to go rest. Sunclaw saw as Honeypelt and Goldenheart went over to check on Badger-rose,  but not her.

Sunclaw slowly walked over to the empty Learner's den and lied down in a nest. Badger-rose is right. No one cares about me anymore. I come in with him by my side, both of us injured, and yet no one bothers to check to see if I am okay. They do not care for me because I have stopped caring for them, all because I think too much about how to stop Syarktail to no avail. 

Everyone still thinks that it was just some random rogues who started the fire. As much as they fear Starktail, they fear her too much to even connect the dots. I cannot tell of the false prophecy, as if I say that it is faked my life will crumble as I get stripped of my Mender role. I cannot tell anyone of my spying for Starktail. I cannot tell of what Birchstar said or else being exiled. 

Now I have killed a cat when I shouldn't have. Now only Badger-rose is my family. The clan is now cold to me. It is now only him who I protect with my secrets, other then myself and the clan as a whole. Burnscar, also not known as Sage-eye, plots to make us all suffer, and I do not know what to do. Do I even belong in Valleyclan anymore? It seems as if only my role as a Mender ties me here. Without it, who am I?

Who am I anymore? No family, no clan, breaking morals, and keeping too many secrets just for the sake of myself. Lonely and isolated. I have taken the results of what I have given. Everything I now know has been flipped over because of Brightwing and Starktail. Now I only exist to stop them.

Sunclaw, her mind in turmoil and grief, shut down as she sadly put herself away to sleep, feeling hollow and without a sense of purpose.