Hey! this is a One-Shot for SecretClan's challenge: Taken

Too Late

Main Character(POV) Clan= RiverClan

Waterleaf- Lithe, silver and black mottled she-cat with dark amber eyes.

Personality and Skills- Clever, excellent memory, and excellent tracking skills

Others.

Liontail- Muscular, handsome, sleek, bright golden tom with a thick tail and sparkling golden eyes.

Personality and skills- Perfectionist, excellent at hunting and fighting, and very snobbish

Pikeclaw- Lanky, pale brown tom with darker brown flecks twisted claws and pale yellow eyes.

Personality and skills- Kind, smart, loyal, good at hunting, okay at fighting, unusually fast for a RiverClan cat.

Many Moons Before The Rule of Bluestar, During Green-Leaf…

Waterleaf splashed through the water, enjoying the cool freshness wash over her with her mouth full of the fish she had just caught. She was a new RiverClan warrior, her warrior ceremony only being half a moon before, and already desperately in love with one cat.

Liontail, the handsome golden tom made her breathing fast and her heart feel like it was fluttering out of her chest. There he is now! Shaking the water from her fur, she trotted over to him, feeling her fur bristle in excitement.

"Hello Liontail," she mewed through her fish. The golden tom briefly glanced down at her, "hey," he mewed, then padded off along the river. Feeling slightly hurt, she dropped her head and padded slowly back to camp.

On entering the camp, she was met by Pikeclaw, her closest friend. They had been kits together, been made apprentices together, and been made warriors together. "So, how did you're hunt go?" Pikeclaw mewed casually.

"Oh, it was just fine," Waterleaf answered. While Pikeclaw looked her over, "you have that look again," he mewed, sounding slightly exasperated.

"I can't help it!" she defended herself, "he just does it to me," she added with a sigh. Pikeclaw nodded, his eyes understanding, but had almost a look of longing. "Well, here he comes now," Pikeclaw mewed with a small sigh.

The brown tom nodded to her and padded away, Waterleaf hardly heard him, all her senses were on Liontail. She watched in admiration as he shook his wet golden fur elegantly, shaking off water drops that caught the rays of the setting sun and sparkled.

Sidling up to him she mewed softly, "Liontail, would you like to share some prey with me?" Liontail looked at her with his glowing golden eyes, "no, I'm busy," he mewed curtly, then turned away with a disdainful sniff and padded over to some senior warriors and sat down to chat with them.

Feeling like he had clawed her, she dropped her head and tail and padded to her den, curling up in her nest, she felt Pikeclaw's pelt press against her. Falling asleep, her dreams were full of flashes of Liontail's golden pelt, sparkling eyes, and warm purr.

Many Moons Later, In Leaf-Bare…

Waterleaf shook snow of her dappled fur, she was spying on Liontail again. Even though she had made no more progress on him from that green-leaf day, she kept up the hope he would finally notice her and love her.

She watched the golden tom as he stalked a squirrel through the snow, she held her breath as he bunched his muscles, ready to leap. She stared in admiration as he leaped gracefully forward, covering two fox-lengths in one leap.

He landed squarely landed on the squirrel and sat up with it in his jaws. She gazed in his golden eyes which sparkled with triumph as he buried his prey and moved majestically forward, looking for more prey.

Waterleaf followed him quietly, making sure he didn't know she was right behind him. She scented the air quickly, picking up the scent of mouse. She spotted it a few moments later, as did Liontail. She watched as he crouched down, ready to pounce.

She realized she had stepped out into the open, not wanting to ruin his catch, she hastily stepped backward. She stiffened in horror as she stepped on a brittle twig, she held her breath at it snapped loudly, echoing through the still air like thunder.

She stared at Liontail as he hurled himself after the startled mouse, but she knew she had given it to much warning. Sure enough, Liontail appeared a moment later without the mouse and a scowl on his face.

Stalking up to her he snarled, "look what you just did you pathetic excuse for a cat! You scared away my prey! You go around following me and staring at me like a dopey kit instead of hunting for your clan. You're just a useless cat with no mind of her own, I will never love you! So get over it, or go die in a hole!"

She stared at him, sadness overwhelmed her and grief swelled her throat like she had just lost some cat she loved dearly. In a way, I did. Dropping her eyes she tried to answer, but her mouth felt dry, "I-I just…" she broke off.

"You just what? Just realized that I'm too good for a stupid cat like you?" Liontail snarled at her. His golden eyes she could have gazed at forever burned with hatred… for her.

She couldn't take it anymore. With a small cry, she whirled around and ran blindly through the snow with her head and tail down. She cried out in sadness, but the cold world was deaf to her cries.

Collapsing in the snow, she laid stretched out in the snow. Feeling the cold snow melt against her warm body until it was so cold that it didn't melt anymore. She felt the cold breeze ruffle her ear tips and felt snow fall on her back until she was covered. Closing her eyes, she fell asleep.

...

She opened her eyes as she woke up, instead of a sheet of white like she had expected and stiff cold muscles. She saw a thick, brown flecked pelt and she was warmer then a kit snuggled up beside its mother.

Looking up, she recognized Pikeclaw curled around her in the snow. He had scraped the snow off of her and curled his long body around her smaller one. She saw his yellow eyes open, they weren't that beautiful golden color, but they were kind and gentle, something she had never seen in golden eyes.

"I'm sorry, I know you loved him," Pikeclaw murmured. Waterleaf felt like there was a hole where her heart was supposed to be. But as she snuggled up against Pikeclaw, she felt part of it return.

"There's something I've wanted to tell you for a long time," Pikeclaw whispered. Waterleaf tilted her head questioningly. "What?" she whispered.

Pikeclaw leaned close to her ear and whispered, "I love you, I always have."

Moons Later, In New-Leaf…

Waterleaf giggled as Pikeclaw tickled her nose with his tail. Chasing him swiftly, she pounced on him. He tumbled over and she went with him, into the river. Swimming upward for breath, she gasped in air and looked around for Pikeclaw.

Not seeing him, she got worried. After all, she was expecting his kits in a moon or so. Then she felt a tug on her tail, with a yowl of surprise she was plunged below the water.

Looking around through the water she saw Pikeclaw's laughing yellow eyes a fish-length from her own. Swatting his ears with her paw, she pushed upward. Breaking the surface, she saw Pikeclaw right in front of her.

"How do you do that?!" she exclaimed. "It's a secret…" he mewed in a wavering voice. "Oh, stop it," she purred. "Okay, I'll stop doing it, for now…" he mewed in the same voice.

Tossing her head, she kicked out for the shore. Closing her eyes, she flopped down on a warm rock and rolled over, stretching. "You're so beautiful, you know that right?" Pikeclaw murmured. Opening her eyes, she saw he had laid down on his belly beside her.

Purring, she answered, "yeah, and I have a grumpy old cat as a mate," she joked. Pikeclaw pretended to be offended, "who are you calling old? I'm only a few days older then you," he scoffed.

"You're still older then me," she purred, getting to her paws she raced back toward camp with Pikeclaw right behind her. Finally, the lanky tom overtook her. Putting on a burst of speed, she tried to catch up to the flecked tom.

She rounded a curve and came to a sudden stop, suddenly cold.

Liontail stood in front of her, Pikeclaw underneath him, blood was welling up on her mate from Liontail's claws. "Liontail! What are you doing?" she cried in horror.

"Waterleaf, you passed my test, when I refused you, I wanted to see how you handled it. You did very well, you didn't break, but were strong and moved on. I just didn't expect you to take a mate, but now we can be together, forever," Liontail mewed smoothly.

Waterleaf stared at him, she detected the lie in his voice and hissed, "what? I will never want to be you're mate again! Besides, I'm expecting his kits!"

Liontail stared at her, his golden eyes, which she had once loved to look at, glimmered with surprise. "If you do not agree to be my mate, I'll kill him, right now!" Liontail mewed superiorly.

Waterleaf stared at him, she remembered when she had been a young warrior and had loved him and had tried to make him love her. And she had failed, now he was trying to force her to be his mate. Last green-leaf I would have jumped at the chance, now I hate him for it. But if I don't, the cat I love will be killed!

"Fine, I'll… be your mate," she whispered, still staring at Pikeclaw who was now unconscious. "Good," Liontail mewed, hopping off the unconscious tom and heading toward her, a glimmer of satisfaction in his eyes.

"And we can just tell the clan that you're kits are my kits, as you haven't told any cat that you're expecting yet," Liontail continued. Waterleaf stared at him, anger swelled up in her and she realized what she had to do.

I don't want to do this, but I have to, for Pikeclaw, for my kits, for myself. Padding over to him she whispered. "I loved you once, more then you could imagine, you told me you hated me, now I love Pikeclaw, you are too late."

Lashing out a paw, she sliced Liontail's throat, he fell to the ground and tried to yowl, but only a gurgling sound came as blood gushed out of his throat. Waterleaf stared at him in horrified numbness, she saw Pikeclaw get to his paws and stumble over to her.

"I'm sorry you had to do that," he whispered in her ear, she glanced briefly at him, and saw with surprise that his eyes gleamed with regret. Then he nudged her, "come on, we need to get back to camp and tell the clan what happened," Pikeclaw murmured.

Waterleaf nodded numbly, still staring at Liontail's gasping body, "I'll follow you in a moment, when he's dead," she whispered. Pikeclaw nodded, then stumbled back toward camp.

Waterleaf started shaking as Liontail rasped, "why did you not want to be my mate?" his eyes were puzzled. His voice which had once been as silky as honey, sounded like splintering wood.

Waterleaf looked at him with sadness as he gave his last breath and she answered his question. "Because I gave you a chance, I gave you more then a chance, and you turned me away. Now you are too late."

Uh, in my opinion. It was a little rushed, but...

Review!