"You!" Hollyleaf spat at Lionblaze. Lionblaze the traitor, Lionblaze the liar, and now, Lionblaze the killer. Wasn't it enough that he'd betrayed his clan, without murdering Heatherfoot as well? She glanced in pity at the broken, blood-soaked body at her brother's feet, before returning her eyes to her killer.
"Why, Lionblaze?" Jayfeather asked, padding up to stand beside his sister as he gazed at his brother. "She was your friend, you loved her. Why kill her?"
"She betrayed me!" he snarled, all the hate of a long vendetta blazing in his eyes. "She told WindClan about the tunnels, she let them in, and she deserved to die!"
"No," Jayfeather said quietly, "she didn't."
"Lionblaze crouched swiftly, preparing for a fight. Of course he would want to fight them, Hollyleaf thought despairingly. He'd murdered his childhood friend for a mistake she'd made moons ago, of course he would want to fight his siblings. And sure enough, Lionblaze said, "Since you won't let me, I'll fight you, and I'll kill you too." It should have sounded childish, but it didn't. He was dead serious, and what hope did they have of beating him?
"I'll fight him, Hollyleaf," Jayfeather murmured to her. "ThunderClan needs you far more than me."
"No, Jayfeather!" she cried. Not him too. Lionblaze was lost to them, she couldn't lose him too. "you ca-you're-"
"I'm what?" he challenged, sightless eyes flashing. "Blind? And that means I can't fight? You're dead wrong, Hollyleaf. I can fight, and I will." His gaze dared her to deny it, and she did the only thing she could – she bowed her head, defeated.
Jawfeather strode forward, meeting Lionblaze's eyes squarely. "You can't be hoping to beat me, can you?" Lionblaze said derisively. "A blind little worm like you? Ha!" Hollyleaf shook with the longing to claw off his fur for that, but she held still, reminding herself of her wordless promise to Jayfeather to let him do this.
And then the fight began.
Jayfeather was right – he could fight. He never gave an inch of ground, no matter how deeply Lionblaze wounded him, and he landed blows of his own – marking their brother's once unscarred pelt with torn fur and blood.
Jayfeather was forcing Lionblaze back towards her. Unbelievably, impossibly, he was winning, and Lionblaze knew it. He was just looking for an escape, but Hollyleaf prevented him from leaving. She should have seen it coming, but she didn't, and so she froze for one second too long when Lionblaze turned and his claws flashed at her throat. After that, there wasn't enough time to react. She simply hoped Jayfeather was fast enough to kill him before he escaped.
As it turned out, he didn't have to be.
Jayfeather forced his way between his siblings, taking the blow meant for Hollyleaf. There was nothing worse for Hollyleaf than watching her brother fall, and knowing that it could have been her, should have been her.
"Jayfeather," she said, her voice breaking. "Jayfeather, no, don't die, please don't die," Oh Starclan, he was the only sibling she had left, how could they take him away from her? "Don't leave me…"
"Don't worry, Hollyleaf," Jayfeather responded, before stopping to cough. A trickle of blood stained the fur around his mouth. "Only thing I'm…afraid of now…is not being good enough for Starclan…" He was afraid of not being good enough for Starclan. "I tried to kill my own brother…what's worse than that?" he said, correctly interpreting her emotions.
Hollyleaf bent her head and licked his ear gently and sadly. "If I'm half as worthy as you, I'll see you in Starclan," she whispered.
"Who knows? I might be able to see up there…" he whispered back, before his eyes flickered shut.
Hollyleaf threw back her head and let out a wail of grief and loss. This was the pinnacle of all the pain she'd endured over the moons. She'd lost her clanmates, and her brother, but she had been strong. But now she was alone. Alone with the prophecy, alone with the burden.
Slowly, her cry took on a harsher undertone. Fury and pain mixed, until all that was left was a bone-chilling scream of rage that made even Lionblaze hesitate. She spun around. He was right behind her, facing her. She had no idea what he was doing there – sneaking up on her, enjoying the sight of her grief – but she didn't care. One paw lashed out, colliding with his head, leaving long, deep gashes as he slammed into the ground and slid. He lifted his head, dazed, and once again she caught him by surprise, leaving matching marks on the other side of his face as he flipped over and his other shoulder hit the hard ground. She stepped forward, laying her paw on his face. She could take his life now, and no one would blame her. But would she?
"Will you really kill me?" he asked. Hollyleaf eyed him coldly. He was a coward when he was beaten, she could see that now. The great, invincible Lionblaze, a coward. Too bad for him that he could be caught by surprise.
"No," she told him. "But I will not allow you to kill again. I will not lower myself to your level, but your crimes are at an end." She allowed the confusion to remain in his eyes for a moment longer, before her claws ripped downward, and in one painful cut, he understood, as his own sister left him blind.
"Who's the blind worm now, Lionblaze?" she whispered in her brother's ear. "Just remember who fought bravely tonight – and who took the cowards way, time and time again."
And with that, she left him, picking up jayfeather's body gently and dragging it back to camp.
She was alone now.