What if Mapleshade's kits lived

Chapter 18

Mapleshade had given up, letting the exhausted kit sleep in her paws. Still, in the shelter of the bush, she wondered if she travelled far enough to escape Riverclan.  She'd hid her scent, but those slippery cats might find another way to track her down. Her paranoid were proven to be true - A sudden rustling sounds from between the trees, somewhere off into the distance. Pricking her ears, Mapleshade made out a faint creaking as something heavy was being dragged along the floor, crunching the leaves below it.

 Two unmistakable scents meet her nose, the musty scent of some kittypet or loner and the grassy scent of the fresh oak forest of a Thunderclan cat, a signal one. Alone. What was a Thunderclan cat doing out here alone? Unless it was that one. About time he showed up.

Cutting their conversation short, Mapleshade hurriedly shoved Shykit into nearby ferns, withered and brown with decay. "What's happening?", the kit gasped, the roots twisting around her paws. Mapleshade's jaw went up against her ear, splitting into it, "There are bad cats around.", she warned harshly, "So don't move a mouse-length from those ferns or I'll have your fur!". Worryingly, Shykit didn't seem to understand a word of what she was saying, staring up at her with a dumbstruck expression. She began to open her mouth to speak, but Mapleshade slapped her tail over it, "Shut up!", Mapleshade growled, "Don't move. You hear that? Don't move!", she repeated.

With that out the way, Mapleshade left Shykit behind, just silently praying she'd do as she was told. For both hers and Mapleshade's safety. Falling into a crouch, she carefully picked her way towards the source of the sound, avoiding any sharp two-leg objects. As Mapleshade crept through the dry undergrowth, there was a large dip in the earth, forming a shallow pit.

Peering through the jungle of stalks and branches, Mapleshade's heart lunged as she spotted the sleek cream and brown tom at the bottom of the slope, neatly perched on a log, his back to her. The other cat she'd scented earlier nowhere in sight. But she didn't care. Her head now bursting with emotions of excitement and fear, like an apprentice going into the dangers of the battle for the first time.

Keeping her paws and breathing light, she left the shelter of the thicket into the clearing beyond, gradually edging towards Bloomheart, using every scrap of skill and experience to get this right. Now in the open, her only hope was that he didn't turn around- "I know you're there.", Bloomheart called out to her, with a silky smooth voice, strangely calm. Foxdung! Going for broke, Mapleshade lunged into the air, outstretching her paws as she aimed for Bloomheart's throat. Seeing it coming, Bloomheart effortlessly darted to the side in a flash of brown, leaving Mapleshade nothing to land on but hard rotting wood, winding her.

"I've been waiting for you.", he suddenly mewed from behind her. How did he get there so quick?! Whirling round, Mapleshade gripped the log, using it to propel herself forward. Yet again, almost lazily, Bloomheart stepped backwards, causing Mapleshade to stumble, eating dirt on her way down. Furious, Mapleshade scrambled off her side, sending waves of paws swipes in his direction. Through, they never met their target, Bloomheart constantly moving, his throat just always out of reach. Eventually, Mapleshade's body couldn't take it, crumbling to the floor, desperately gushing for air. How was he so fast? Or- why was she so slow?

A fox-length away, Bloomheart patiently waited, casually washing his front paw. Fighting her own body, Mapleshade forced it to stand again, stumbling towards Bloomheart, hissing. Finally, Bloomheart took notice of her, tucking his paws in as he sat, "Don't be a fool, Mapleshade. Even an apprentice could kill you with the condition you're in.".

Her fury was boiling to the surface. What was this cat playing at? After she'd killed his mate, he hadn't gone after any of her kits just laying around. And here she was, ready for slaughter and he still refused to take the perfect opportunity right in his face. "What are you waiting for?", she snapped, "Kill me!". Before going after him, jaws snapping. Bloomheart stayed where he was, "I was going to-", he mumbled, leaping away as Mapleshade got too close, "But if I did that, that mate of yours might go after me or even my kin. So why give him the excuse?", he mewed somewhere behind her.