Spirit

CHAPTER TEN

Ivory and Robin walked with a few other cats around the borders. Three cats were in front of them, talking.

"I don't get why Hawthorn is making us scout the borders of the camps," one of them, a brown and white cat, said. "The Rogues attacked once in Snow-Season, so what? They won't do it again; it's too cold for fighting."

"I heard that cats get more paranoid the older they get," another cat, a ginger tabby, replied. "That's why we only have younger leaders. Who knows how old Hawthorn is. I know for sure that he's getting too paranoid for our safety."

"You said it," the last cat, pitch black with white spots, snorted. "But soon he'll have to fight for himself."

"What are they talking about?" Ivory hissed to Robin. "Fight for himself?"

Robin growled quietly. "If they're planning to kick him out, it'll be the death of us all, those brainless flies."

"They can banish him?"

"Only if they drive him out." The golden tom sighed. "That would be too bad, since he was possibly the best leader the Feather-Lifters have."

So it would be possible, the beige and ginger tabby decided. That's wonderful.

~~~

Ivory ate her prey in silence back at the den. She was still haunted that the group could banish their leader themselves, even though that was almost a day ago. "Would they really do that?"

"They will do anything if it means they'll get what they want." Robin seemed to have overheard her. "Most of the cats here are selfish, and they don't realise that they're taking everything for granted." He started to flex his claws; and hissed under his breath, "I can show them if they want."

Pawsteps started pressing against the snow, and Ivory leaped up, ready for anything.

"Robin and Ivory?" It was Shadow, the chosen Spirit-Wanderer for the tests. "Could you come with me?"

Robin was surprisingly the first to walk out of the den, and Ivory followed shortly after. There was a long silence of travelling before Ivory spoke up. "Why—um—where are we going?"

"Someone wants to see you," the black she-cat answered, though her orange eyes said something different. Somewhere dangerous. You won't be able to escape once you step into it.

They stepped out into a clearing—even though it seemed too large to be a clearing, they still thought so—and found a cat sitting far in front of them. She lifted her head, and Shadow disappeared.

It was not until she turned did they realise who she was. "Singe!" Ivory squawked.

Singe ignored the beige she-cats exclamation, and started to pace in front of them. "What a surprise it is to see you," she said in her same slithery hissy voice. "I'd thought you would scent me and turn away."

"What do you want?" Robin snapped. "We barely have anything to start with, and we're not giving what we need away." There was a hint of distress in his voice. . . and fear.

"I want this war to end," the gray and white she-cat replied. "But I need help. So that's why I chose Ivory." She flicked her tail towards the Feather-Lifter she-cat.

"Why didn't you kill Robin, then?" Ivory retorted.

"So that's his name!" Singe exclaimed with sinister joy. She started to pace back and forth in front of them. "You two seem quite close, so I thought I could use him to get you." Ivory didn't notice that Singe snuck behind them until she leaped at Robin, leading them to roll right in front of her.

Singe had one of her paws in the side of his face, pinning him. Her claws were unsheathed, and one of them was uncomfortably close to one of his eyes. "Now I'll tell you," she projected. "You'll need to join the Rogues—just this one time—and he'll be free. But. . . if you try to act like an impostor, or refuse, he's dead." She clutched his head tighter. "Isn't that right, kit?"

Robin struggled, but quickly stopped under the Rogue's glare. "What do you say?"

"No," Ivory snapped. "You're going to kill him anyways, so why bother trying to stop it?" She was trying to act like she didn't care what happened to the tom, so possibly, just possibly, she'll let him go. It was not a very good plan, but it was worth some try.

"I don't see you get it." Singe was starting to show confusion on her face. "You'll be a hero if you join, you could stop the war."

"I said—" Thunder crashed above them, and snow started pattering down again like rain. A flash in the air showed that the weather wasn't normal.

"Oh, look," the blue eyed she-cat mocked. "It seems that the Spirits are trying to teach you a lesson: don't betray your own."

"It's telling me that you're an evil pile of foxdung and deserve to die!" Ivory argued.

Another flash of lightning lit up the sky, and a stray tree from the forest crashed down right in between her, and Singe and Robin. She was blocked.

"The Spirits have spoken again!" Singe called. "Join me and this can all be over!"

"NEV—"

"NO!" Ivory was interrupted by a fierce cry from Robin. "I'LL JOIN! Just leave her alone—" He trailed off into a whimper.

"This is interesting," the gray and white she-cat mused. "But it was my choice to keep you alive. Come along."

Ivory hopped onto the dying tree just to catch her friend and the Rogue leader striding off into the forest, then back to the Loud-Place. She stepped off into the snow, and fell limp, sighing.