Tadpoledrift's Mistakes

Chapter Three

The camp had been oddly silent the whole night, the leader had slipped out at sunup with her sister to take a walk while her son and deputy snuck out at sunset. Tadpoledrift wasn't used to it and could barely sleep, the familiar swirling fish and starry stream faded in and out as she dreamt.

Then, when sunup had come once again, a cacophony of sounds came from the entrance. The familiar voice of her mate and the deputy, Muddyvenom, had announced something that, at first, she couldn't fully make out. Then she saw the path of blood that led to the leader in the center of camp. Next to Evergreenstar lay the also dead Raggedthorn, with her son laying on top of her sobbing.

"W-What happened?!" A pale blue-tabby, Blueberrybounce, cried out loudly among the fearful warriors that started to flood into the main cave.

"Snowflakeflurry happened!" Muddyvenom hopped onto the Wet Rock.

Tadpoledrift suddenly wanted to scream at the top of her lungs, she had known Snowflakeflurry since she was a kit, playing with him alongside her littermates and his sister. She remembered when he came back from Sundrownplace crying and fearful because of the death of his sister. She knew that he'd never, even if he wanted to, lay a claw onto his aunt or mother.

"While Evergreenstar and Raggedthorn were out walking yesterday at sunup, they came upon a fox den. Evergreenstar tried to rush back to camp to gather a patrol to attack it but Raggedthorn forced her to stay and attack the fox themselves." Muddyvenom stopped for a second to breathe. "They were both trapped out for many hours, Evergreenstar lost half of her lives, but eventually it seemed like they were winning." He looked to his cousin, who was still sobbing over his mother's body. "Until Snowflakeflurry showed up near sunset, he came in and attacked Evergreenstar while she wasn't looking and took her last life. I was simply lucky to get there before he killed his own mother."

She stepped more out of her den, then started to the center of camp and pushed past all the other warriors. Tadpoledrift rested her paw onto the large white tom's back, Snowflakeflurry shrugged her paw off and began to sit up.

"What you tell...are lies.." He talked through his tears. "I would never harm Evergreenstar, no matter how much or whatever she has done. Raggedthorn and I are the only ones who know, or knew, the dark truth about why this clan's camp isn't suffocating from too many warriors." Snowflakeflurry looked back at his mother, quietly sniffling.

She looked back up at her mate, her eyes filled with so much shock and fear that she was sure Muddyvenom could see.

"Snowflakeflurry shall be exiled for killing a leader and slander, if he is ever seen in any clan territory ever again he will be killed." Muddyvenom's voice raised to a yowl as he glared around the camp.

The silver and white medicine cat couldn't take it anymore, she felt sick to her stomach and like she was going to throw up. She turned around in the crowd of cats and quickly ran out of camp, her stomach churning and churning with uneasiness and anger, but also of something else.

She ran out of camp and down the creek, her paws leading her through the thin snow and down to the lakeside, leaning over uncomfortably but not being able to do anything.

Tadpoledrift sat up and in the distance, she could see her starry pelted brother, pity in his eyes but also want to protect her. She was all alone now, no mother to protect her, no siblings to fight for her, no father to comfort her. All alone beside the frozen lake as her stomach churned.