Sunlight blinded Hawkfur as he awoke, letting his eyes adjust he could see Raggedfern and Nettleflame still sleeping while Mistlefang left the den.
"Hawkfur, fetch Pinepaw and Sparrowpaw won't you? Morning patrol." Cherrystar mewed, peering inside the den.
"Of course, I'll do it in a second, still not awake." Hawkfur meowed. Cherrystar tilted her head and looked at him with intensity in her eyes.
"Okay." She muttered after what seemed to be an eternity. Hawkfur got to his paws and left the den to find the two apprentices. "Remember, you're deputy! I shouldn't be planning everything." Cherrystar meowed sternly.
"Yes, sorry Cherrystar." Hawkfur muttered, rage building up inside of him. He padded over to the apprentices den, looking inside he saw Pinepaw and Starlingpaw curled up beside each other while Sparrowpaw slept further away.
"Patrol, Pinepaw and Sparrowpaw." He called. Sparrowpaw shot up at once and bounded over to Hawkfur, Pinepaw clumsily got to his paws and drowsily followed Hawkfur out of the den.
"Can Snowfall come? It's so unfair that she got to be a warrior and we were held back!" Pinepaw complained. Hawkfur shot him a warning glance, without speaking Pinepaw followed, embarrassed.
"Well, you cheated on your assessment." Sparrowpaw meowed at last.
"Did not!"
"Did too!"
"Both of you, stop! You're not kits!" Hawkfur snapped. "Now go fetch Marigoldfur." Sparrowpaw swiftly ran across the clearing to Marigoldfur and beckoned her to join her. The four cats headed out of camp, patrolling the GorseClan boundary.
"Hey look! A Minnowcat!" A voice taunted from the shadows. Hawkfur and Marigoldfur glanced at eachother, then nodded.
"Pinepaw, get help." Hawkfur whispered. Six cats emerged from the shadows, preparing to pounce.
"Hollowheart." Marigoldfur gasped. "You were exiled from our clan!"
"Yes. I am of GorseClan now mange-pelt!" Hollowheart yowled, pouncing on Marigoldfur.
"No!" Hawkfur screeched, trying to help his mate. Sparrowpaw was fighting two GorseClan she-cats, swiftly ducking under them and raking their belly's sending them yowling back.
"Amazing, Sparrowpaw!" Hawkfur praised his apprentice. Hawkfur managed to haul Hollowheart off of Marigoldfur and pin him to the ground.
"Too late." Hollowheart sneered. "She's dead." Hawkfur whipped his head around to see Marigoldfur laying in the grass, a pool of blood surrounding her lifeless body. While Hawkfur wasn't concentrated, Hollowheart slipped away and regained balance.
"What have you done?" Hawkfur wailed. Hollowheart snorted and jumped for Sparrowpaw. Adrenaline flooded into his body and he bouldered into Hollowheart, savagely clawing at the brown tom until he was nothing but dead weight.
"He's dead!" One of the GorseClan warriors wailed, fleeing. The rest of the cats followed, leaving Hawkfur and Sparrowpaw alone with Marigoldfur.
"My mother!" Sparrowpaw shrieked.
"My mate..." Hawkfur whimpered.
"Father why did this happen? Why?!" Sparrowpaw wailed, staring at her mother.
"It is certainly a tragedy..." Cherrystar meowed, appearing behind them with Pinepaw, Snowfall and Ashlight flanking her.
"She's dead!" Hawkfur screeched. Snowfall bent down to touch noses with the young she-cat.
"She was a great foster mother. But she hunts with StarClan now and may she forever hunt in peace." She murmured.
"Pinepaw, run back and tell Yarrowfern not to come." Cherrystar commanded, padding up to pay her respects. Pinepaw obeyed and fled through the trees.

The elders left the camp, delicately dragging Marigoldfur into the forest, her body lay still and lifeless.
"I can't believe this..." Yarrowfern muttered, obviously devastated by the loss of her sister.
"Yeah..." Hawkfur mewed. "She has been avenged though... I-I killed Hollowheart." Shocked gasps came from the clearing, but soon died down to a few murmurs.
"He deserved it!" Sparrowpaw snorted. "You did us a favour."
"Thanks." Hawkfur murmured.
"Okay, we need to get back to fixing the nursery." Cherrystar meowed. Rage surged in Hawkfur at how uninterested Cherrystar looked. That monster! He thought, unsheathing his claws and digging them deep into the soil. The time had come, Cherrystar had five lives left and Hawkfur was determined to kill her. He had set up a layer of thin dirt and grass, leading out to the depths of the water and as long as he could convince her to walk onto it and have it crack, she'd drown over and over again.
"Cherrystar, may we go for a walk, we must discuss something." Hawkfur meowed, feeling his stomach go into knots.
"Sure, Hawkfur." She mewed, following him out of camp. Once the reached the set up, he sat at the edge of the fake soil, Cherrystar beside him. Hawkfur sat on edge, anticipating the fall, readying himself to jump back at the first crack of a tree branch.
"So, it's about Sparrowpaw." Hawkfur meowed, realizing why she was out her again. "She's very motivated, determined you could say."
"Yes, she is." Cherrystar mewed.
"I think she should be a warrior." He explained.
"Well, I'm not sure if she's had enough-" She was broke off by the crumble of dirt, and it all began.
"Cherrystar" Hawkfur gasped, trying to act like he was surprised.
"Hawkfur, help me!" She wailed, falling into the icy water, paws flailing trying to stay afloat. Anxiety flooded over Hawkfur and he almost felt a pang of regret, but he knew what he had to do.
"Cherrystar, grab on to this!" He yowled, throwing a stick down while holding the other end in his teeth. Cherrystar reached out but couldn't grasp it, sinking into the black icy water.
"No!" He screeched, feeling regret and guilt tear him apart. Hawkfur dove into the depths trying to spot his leader. She was a young noble cat! She didn't deserve to die! He saw a flash of ginger fur in front of him, he swam closer and grabbed her by the scruff, hauling her up determined to not let her die. He reached the surface, laying Cherrystar down on the grass.
"Hawkfur!" Cherrystar gasped, choking on water. "You tried to murder me, then saved me?" Hawkfur stared at his leader, feeling too many emotions to even begin to explain.
"..." There was a long silence before Cherrystar spoke again.
"You are a young cat, overwhelmed by ambition..." She began. "But even so, your loyalties have been proven to be with the clan."
"No, my loyalties are with you, Cherrystar." Hawkfur muttered, suddenly feeling warmth again.
"Oh Hawkfur..." Cherrystar muttered. "You're a fine deputy, you only felt pressured."
"Cherrystar..." Hawkfur muttered, hooking her scruff with his teeth and pretending to fall in the water.
"Hawkfur no!" She yowled. The water was ice cold, darkness flooded over him but he could still feel Cherrystar sinking below him. After everything, Hawkfur still knew what he had come here to do.
"I'm sorry, Cherrystar." He murmured, letting go and swimming to the surface. He knew that Cherrystar was too weak to fight it, he would be promoted leader...