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[color=f7941d][h2]Stormstrike.[/h2][/color]

Stormstrike had been working on the burrs in his tail as the leader showed up with the apprentice Berrypaw at his lead and it was obvious he was on high alert. Though he could understand with half a clan lazing in the territory and getting fat off Thunderclan prey. He couldn't help but be so furious at this group of lazy scavengers, they could only be bringing trouble with them and he wished to chase them off without a second thought. He didn't understand why Silverstorm had to be so constantly accepting and silver tongued, he didn't understand why she hadn't just signaled them to chase off the warriors. He would have had these cats off their border in no time at all, he wouldn't have even thought about it. He definitely wouldn't have fed them and shared tongues as if they were his kin, it made him want to cuff Silverstorm over the ears like a mouse brained apprentice--[i]not that he knew what having one of those was like.[/i]

They smelled of great weakness, maybe that was enough for her to try to show them compassion but he didn't understand compassion. Compassion got cats killed, mercy could end with a bloody ear. Mercy could end with a rage hollowed in his chest and a guilt that made his paws heavy. He could still remember the way Talonpaw had gone limp beneath him during their tussle in the wild garlic and he could remember preparing to leave it at another argument to remain unsolved. It was a stupid fight anyway and a mistake he would never make after being a warrior. Stealing prey wasn't honorable but it had been his assessment and he couldn't find so much of a bird feather in their territory that day. He had never meant for his brother to follow him, he had never meant to attack his brother. 

He could remember how the pale gray and white tom had stared up at him before his blue eyes had hardened and he had rocked forward with so much force that it had made Stormstrike fall backwards. He could remember the teeth sinking into his ear and he could remember the screech from his own jaws as pain flooded through him. He remembered the hot blood streaming down his cheek and the red that had veiled his vision as he'd been taken by some driving force to fight until Talonpaw readily gave up. His hatred was a livid thing that fueled his battering paws as he tumbled through the foul smelling plant and he felt claws tear into his muzzle with enough force to draw more blood. He had barely gotten a hit on Talonpaw and shame was making him all the more frantic as they fought.

He twisted too sharply and Talonpaw's teeth sunk into his leg and he twisted sharply again, blinded by a sudden lash into his flank by Talonpaw's swift blows. He was battered and confused, it was as if every time he went for a blow of his own, Talonpaw beat him to it with a sharpness that made him feel slower than an injured badger. Relying solely on brute strength, he slammed into him and lashed out without paying enough attention. In retrospect, he should have paid attention because that was when Talonpaw had began to bleed. The blood had spurted sharply before it started to soak into the white fur of his chest and the glossy blue eyes of his brother were staring at him in horror. They never had stopped staring. Sometimes he saw them in his dreams.

Sometimes he heard his brother's accusing voice echoing in his ears and sometimes his dreams became a feverish collection of his death. It flashed through his mind most nights and woke him from his trembling, bristling slumbers. He could still see it all so clearly and he could still remember his burning pride at beating the larger tom, even if it had lasted for only the breath of a mouse. He could still remember the panic that had gripped him once he was in camp and the fear that had found him at ever being discovered, he couldn't lose this clan over a murder, he realized he'd have to lie and so he did. It had been surprisingly easy because the overwhelming scent of garlic had made it nearly impossible to pick up his smell on the bloody corpse.

He had been lucky and he'd didn't ever think he'd get that lucky again if he messed up. He wasn't about to cause a scene now, no matter how much the Shadowclan warriors got under his pelt like a determined flea and he didn't start paying attention until he swore he could hear Ravencoat's name. Looking up in confusion at the mention of the deputy, he gauged Hawkstar's reaction and could see surprise as clean as the stripes in his dark fur and he flicked his ears back as he tried to decipher what the deputy had done to Shadowclan that was so horrible. He never paid any extra attention to the deputy though it was mostly out of jealousy but he couldn't think of anything the tom could have done. Mostly this confused him as he waited for some louder details, he wasn't too into gossip but knowing things about the deputy could prove amusing enough.

[color=f9ad81][h2]Mossfur.[/h2][/color]

Blinking in amazement, his apprentice suddenly took off at full speed and he could see her paws practically flying over the ground. It was all he could not to bolt after her but he guessed that she had her reasoning and he spotted it fairly soon after. A good sized squirrel with a long bushy tail, it would make for a handsome meal if she could catch it. Her white and calico spotted form was almost a blur along the ground, just a pawstep behind the squirrel with each stride that she took before it scrabbled up a tree and he was sure she'd lost it. It was more than a surprise when she went up the tree after it and he stepped forward in concern, his gold eyes following her anxiously as she moved after the squirrel. This was beyond his paws now, quite literally, he couldn't very well go up there and intervene with her catch.

He wondered if she [i]could[/i] manage to catch it and he knew he would be very proud if she [i]did.[/i] It was definitely a squirrel to brag about to her denmates and one he could be proud she had caught under his watchful eye.

"[color=f9ad81]Try to skirt along the branches! Be very careful, Runningpaw! This could be a tough catch and [i]oh[/i], for Starclan's sake, don't fall![/color]

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