ColdClan: Sky Of Blood [2]

15. Skyleap

Sisters sharing blood should never spite each other as Skyleap had done. But, she thought, what if that blood had turned to rust? She gritted her teeth as a lead taste rose into her mouth. Maybe it was a sign from StarClan that in the future, she should keep her thoughts to herself.

 They'd only just passed into HeatClan territory, and the journey had felt even longer thanks to the silence that dwelled between her and her sister Sunstorm. Her mind couldn't help but backtrack to the fight they'd had, with the she-cat replaying over and over what she'd said in the heat of the moment.

"I never thought I'd see the day where you put a tom over your family. What would Larkwing think?"

The problem was, Skyleap still believed those words to be true. Larkwing had been so level-headed, there was no way the she-cat would have held all these emotions in. Neither would she have wanted her precious apprentice too. Surely Sunstorm remembered her teaching from her mentor? Larkwing had known that keeping the storm bottled inside was a dangerous game, and would only cause her to push those she loved away. Just as Sunstorm had been doing!

Except for some reason, her sister hadn't pushed one cat away -- Spidertail. Yes, the pair had grown up with him and his brothers. Yes, she knew Spidertail cared for Sunstorm (it became more and more obvious each day). But there was always something about him, something she couldn't quite put her paw on... were his friendly intentions really so pure? 

Anyway, if he hurt Sunstorm, she'd kill him herself.

The sudden presence of cats that she'd missed the scent of knocked her back into reality, and she instinctively closed the gap between her and Sunstorm. She recognised all three of the cats that approached -- there was the huge Bearleap, the green-eyed Vinepuddle and the young Reedfang (a ferocious, ambitious she-cat that Skyleap recognised some of her own qualities in). Skyleap's eyes settled angrily on Vinepuddle, for he had been the one to initiate the attack against ColdClan. His baseless claims had been the thing to kill Owlfoot... not her sister.

Surprisingly, it was the latter that spoke, though the first sentence seemed difficult for the she-cat to say though her voice was nonetheless commanding.

"We're... glad you're here. Cloudstar awaits you. Please, follow us."

The two large toms filtered in behind them as Reedfang led the way, her lithe body moving quickly through the dunes to HeatClan's sheltered camp. Sharing a confused look, the sisters moved in silence. Why were they not sending flying accusations like they had done at Coldfrost's murder scene? Why were they being welcomed as if they were... guests?

Shown straight to the leader's den, the pair were left alone by the warriors. As they wandered deeper into the hole dug specifically for their father, a familiar black and white pelt was facing away from them.

"Cloudstar?" Skyleap called out.

He said nothing, not even turning around. Confused, the she-cats moved a little closer. There was no way he hadn't heard her, they'd seen his ears twitch towards them.

"Cloudstar, we came to tell you that--"

"He's gone. Last night."

His coarse voice ricocheted across those dirt walls, resounding in the hearts of his daughters. They were slightly afraid of the tone he used. It sounded so cold, so unforgiving.

"Who's gone, father?" It had been a long time since she'd heard her sister call him that, and Skyleap shot her a glance.

Rounding to face them, they were shocked by the Cloudstar that stared back. His fur was matted and dirty, as if it hadn't been washed in a while. Tufts of it were missing, mainly from his legs, where Skyleap could only guess he'd been clawing at them from nerves. And more than anything, the most shocking thing were his eyes. Dull and sunken with no life in, the golden orbs had turned a dirty yellow and were manically flickering about like he'd gone insane.