The sound of paw-steps rung clear in the shadows of the heavily wooded forest; a dark tail lashed in the air, and agitation was clear in the tense muscles of the silky feline. His claws sheathed and unsheathed relentlessly, tearing at the damp ground with every step he took. Sharp golden-and-brown irises glared darkly ahead. The thickly wooded forest nearly hid the black tom, and if it were his intention, he could've concealed himself quite well. As it was, however, the tom did not want to hide, nor did he feel a need to. After all, He was walking in his territory, and he shouldn't have any reason to feel cautious. He was attempting to calm himself by taking a mid-sun high walk, though it didn't seem to be working.
For a while, it seemed as though the tom was going in circles; everything seemed the same, and he swore he passed that same rock before. The large cat only got more aggravated at the fact. There were a few toads croaking in the distance, and the tall, looming evergreens stayed dark an unchanging, giving no sign of giving way. However, just as the tom was starting to lose what little patience he had left, the dark trees started to get thinner and more open, and eventually, the trees all but ended. This seemed to calm the tom, who also stopped, eyes narrow as he came face-to-face with a wooden structure that opened into a bright, shimmering lake. The tom's eyes narrowed even further as he sat down right before the wood twoleg path, vibes of indignation and irritation coming off of him in waves. His head dipped as he focused on the rippling water below and the occasional fish that shimmered by. Sun rays dappled the clear water, causing bright colors to dance around in the lake below. Yellow smoothed out to a pale green that whirled into a dark blue as it got further from the sun.
The tom found himself relaxing, his shoulders drooping slightly and his tense muscles softening as the last rays of sun fell heavily on his back. The tom's narrowed and cloudy eyes started to clear, and when he looked up, he realized that the sun was sinking into the horizon, causing bright colors to dance in the sky. Blue seeped into a calming orange, which darkened into blood red. The lake started to turn darker, red and orange dappling the water beautifully. The tom, so caught in the moment, did not notice the cat slinking from behind, one dainty paws step in front of the next. He didn't notice the twisted smile on the other cat's maw, or the sharp gleam in their eyes as they spoke: "It's marvelous, isn't it?" The tom jumped and whirled around to face the other cat. He blinked in surprise, then his eyes narrowed. "You," He snarled, tensing even further. The other cat just tilted its head to the side, all traces of its previous, twisted expression gone. Instead, it had a deadpan look on its face, eyes blank. "Please, don't sound so thrilled." The black tomcat still glared. The other cat sighed, sitting opposite the angry tom daintily with its tail curling around itself. "I only came to talk," the cat explained with an exasperated and put-upon look on its face. The tom eyed the cat opposite him, then nodded stiffly. "Alright," he replied, sitting down again but not relaxing his rigid position.
"So," the other cat started with nonchalance, gaze flickering around the surrounding area, "what are you doing at the RiverClan border so near sundown?"
"What does it matter to you?" the tom shot back. The other cat tilted their head in compliance. "Well, it doesn't, really. Just seems- oh, I dunno, suspicious." At the tom's narrow glare the cat grinned crookedly and continued, "What, are you having a secret aff-"
"I thought you were here to talk." The tomcat interrupted rudely, clearly not in the mood for jokes.. The cat opposite the tom rolled its eyes. "That's what we're doing now, isn't it?"
The black tom growled darkly, patience quickly withering. "I'm leaving," he snarled. "This is mouse-brained."
The tom sat up to go, but the other cat stood as well and blocked his way, looking at him earnestly. "No... wait. I'm sorry. Come on, Pineshadow. I'm only kidding."
Pineshadow paused, then let out a heavy sigh. "Alright, fine." he ground out. Sitting down again and eyes flashing with impatience at the other cat, Pineshadow beckoned for the cat to continued, who sighed in relief. "Look... about... you know." Pineshadow waited for the cat - who's voice and expression were surprisingly begging- to continue.
"It's just... don't tell. Please. I mean, I-I really, really need to stay in the clan, you know? I'd be lost out there! A-And besides, it was only a one- a one time thing." Pineshadow narrowed his eyes, all shreds of patience lost.
"You listen to me," he snapped irritably. "this one time thing cost you. You may not be aware, but cats were hurt. I can't just... let it slide because it was a one time thing and you asked me politely. You were responsible for your own actions. I had nothing to do with it, and I owe you nothing. So don't bother asking. I'm leaving. Don't follow me- in fact, do yourself a favor and don't come back at all. The clan is better off without you." With those scalding words, Pineshadow stood once more and started to leave, brushing past the other cat with a grim satisfaction heavy in his stomach. However, before he could go forward four steps, an angry yowl startled him. He didn't have time to turn around to face his attacker, and he felt claws connect with his neck, running down his back and spine. For a minute, all Pineshadow could see was white. Then the white faded, and instead, his sight returned... but so did the onslaught of pain: in his neck, in his back, in his spine. It hurt. It hurt, it hurt, it hurt it hurt it hurt ithurt ithurt ithurtithurtithurtithurt. The tom tried to scream, but metalic blood filled his lungs, so instead he made an awful sort of gurgling sound. He was aware of collapsing and writhing on the damp ground, blood pooling from his body and dripping into the lake. His eyes whirled around in their sockets, searching frantically for his assailant. He locked onto the eyes of assaulter, cold and full of hate, hunger, satisfaction and- was that amusement? Pineshadow tried to glare at the cat, if only for a last act of defiance. "You..." he gurgled out around the thick blood in his throat.
His attacker's head was tilted to the side, spectating the scene before them. Then, the cat spoke. It was chilling, how normal it sounded- as if it were genuinely surprised at themselves. "Oh- oh no! Was that- was that me? I'm so sorry! I'll go get a medicine cat right away!" There was a sick, bubbling laugh in the other cat's words near the end that sent shivers down Pineshadow's spine.
He twitched, splotches of black covering his eyes. "You know," his attacker spoke, nonchalantly licking the blood off of their paw, "itis such a shame. I thought you would be more... reasonable... hmm. Well, at least the kill was satisfying. You always were such a fox-hearted tom, loyal to StarClan first and the clan second." The cat paused, looking at their now-clean paw contemplatively before they said, "I really am sorry. This'll cause an even bigger diversity in the clan but... oh, well." The cat smirked at Pineshadow, whose eyes were starting to glaze. The other cat stood up with a twitch of its ear and padded over to the tom. "Oh, and Pineshadow?" the cat purred, leaning close to the tom's ear. "Don't tell anyone. Please." With that last, mocking simper, the cat straightened and padded daintily away, tail in the air as though nothing had happened. A chuckle worked its way up in the retreating cat's throat, and it slowly bubbled forth. The chuckle broke into a louder laugh, and fairly soon the murderer was laughing hysterically.
Pineshadow never had heard those last words his attacker had told him. He was dead, in his own pool of red.
AN: Hey, that rhymed! :D
Well, there you have it. My first story ^.^ Anyone up to beta-ing it? For some reason, I'm not entirely pleased about the pacing of this chapter... I'll try to do better next chapter, where we'll meet our protagonists. Hope you enjoyed ... and, uh, by the way-
Disclaimer: I do not, and never will, own Warriors. However, in the same universe that I'm a two-headed golden unicorn with butterfly wings and a lizard tail with powers of the elements, I have complete ownership over Warriors.