He crouched down, ears shoved forward and spine prickling. The shadows that arced overhead left dark stripes in his vision. Crud. The last thing he needed was another blind spot, but there was absolutely no way to help it.
He waited. Any of the tiny sound he was hearing, small cracks and rustles no louder than a whisper, could have been his attacker, making a slow, quiet approach.
Snap.
His head swiveled to the source of the sound. There- he could see a small burst of cream fur amid the undergrowth. He waited for her to strike, now that she was found out, but no attack came.
it hit him with all the force of a charging dog: She didn't know he knew she was here.
An advantage.
His mentor's words flitted through his mind:
"Any advantage, from a slightly misplaced paw to a single second's head start gives you a chance of besting your opponent. Not using these opportunities is shameful."
Instantly he returned his head to his previous posture. She thought she had the element of surprise, still, but in reality he had the advantage now.
He let out a sigh, louder that he would even if he was really alone. Make her think he was careless. Give her a sense of security…
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a slight movement from where he knew she was.
Now as the difficult decision: Wait for her to attack, or surprise her, right now.
He didn't need his mentors' exact words to know what choice to make. Knowing them as he did, he knew that they'd say never defend when you could be making the attack.
No point in wasting time, every second that fell away was a second he could lose his advantage.
He tensed and sprung in the same moment. His nose wrinkled in distaste when the undergrowth roared under him, but silence was pointless, no. The only way she wouldn't know he was coming is if she went blind and deaf.
She gasped at his front paws made contact with her shoulders. She toppled, and he had to fight to keep his claws sheathed. There'd be time for him to be vicious, but this wasn't it.
He forced all his weight forward, trying to keep her pinned. Pain surged up his leg, he had landed painfully wrong.
His moment of inattention gave Ivory time to thrust her back paws into his stomach, sending him stumbling backwards. She leaped, and soon they were in a position almost the opposite of their former.
Dirt. He'd all but lost his advantage.
Ivory pulled her head back far enough so he could see her face.
"Give up?" She sneered.
"Never!" he yowled back.
He prepared to strike at her legs, but a much louder, authoritative mew sounded out.
"Stop! There are more important things to do! Hurry up and come with me!"
Ivory rolled off of him, and he shook out his fur as he stood off. He was a little embarrassed that Jack had seen him losing, but he would have been far more humiliated if it was Susan.
"What's more important than training, Jack?" Ivory asked. Rumble nodded along, though he was glad he could rest, the mentors seemed to think training was more important than sleep..
`"You'll get to use the skills you've been practicing, isn't that more important?" Jack whirled, starting back towards the den.
All of his weariness faded instantly. He and Ivory had been learning battle training for moons now, but Susan and Jack had barely even hinted at what they would be using the skills for, other than that it was important to them and Drift.
He hadn't been able to ask Drift at her last brief visit, and the ideas he and ivory came up with were outrageous fantasies.
Finally, they'd get some answers.
He nudged his companion's flank as they walked, trying to catch her eye. She turned, flashing him a look that probably mirrored his own, a mixture of excitement and nerves.
Jack was the only one who wasn't shaking when they reached the fence.
It used to be that he had to drag himself up, half shimmying and half climbing up the boards, but now he was stronger. He followed Jack up, springing directly to the top and right back down. As soon as Ivory's paws touched the ground, Susan padded out from behind a bush.
"You!" She turned to Ivory. "Tell me what you've learned about the clans."
Ivory immediately began. In the past several moons, they'd both learned to follow instructions immediately and without questions. He was especially proud of Ivory for not questioning now, because this was a strange request. Susan had taught the everything they knew about the clans.
"Long ago, the land around the lake was peaceful and empty. Every cat could come and go as they pleased. Everything changed when the clans arrived. The wild cats took over the land, chasing out those who already lived there and killing those who lingered in their land. The sought out peaceful cats, even Jack and Susan, and attacked them. They are brutal, and they want us dead."
Ivoy took a deep breath, and swallowed. Susan nodded in approval.
"You've done surprisingly well to memorize that lesson. But there is something we never told you about the clas, something so terrible I feared to allow it to burden your innocent minds," Susan walked up to where Rumble and Ivory sat, giving them a strong look of pity. Rumble's stomach tightened with fear. Those terrible cats were loathsome enough, how could this possibly be worse?
"Rumble, Drift birthed you on the clan's territory, you and your littermates,"
Rumble's eyes shot open. He had siblings? No one, no one at all had ever indicated that he had siblings.
"What… What happened to them?"
Jack bristled, and Susan nuzzled him. He almost drew back in shock, Susa was never affectionate.
"They were taken. When the wild cats found your mother and her litter, they attacked her. She had to run, and she could only take you. She went back to look, but they were gone. They were kidnapped, forced to live among those who tried to kill their mother."
Rumble's breath shook in his chest. Vaguely, he could feel Ivory's tail stoking his back, see Susan looking at him in concern, Jack's fur spiking.
He couldn't focus on it. He had littermates. He had siblings, other cats his age who had been stolen from him.
"Why? Why would you tell me this?" His voice shook a bit, so he straightened his back. He must always appear strong, even when his world was crashing around him.
"So, Rumble you can get your revenge on them at last."
"I get to help, right?" Ivory. His best, only, friend was going to help him. Thank goodness.
"Of course. You two will leave at nightfall, and get revenge."
"How will we get revenge?" The word tasted wonderful. They had stolen something from him, something vital. All of his training, everything he had worked for, would be fulfilled. He was finally strong enough.
"You will steal a kit, and you will kill it."
His stomach dropped as his ears shot forward. It was perfect. He had been given the perfect opportunity…
But why did he suddenly feel sick?
"I don't know if I can kill a kit. I mean, it never did anything to me…" Ivory mewed. She seemed to have all the doubt and none of the excitement he had.
"Of course you can, it's just like hunting. You've killed birds, right?" Jack chimed in.
He tried not to hear Ivory's response. If Susan and Jack thought this was right, it couldn't be that bad. If thinking about it made him reluctant, he just wouldn't think.
"How will we get the kit?"
Susan purred. "Sit down. I'll tell you everything you need to know."
He led the way, streaking silently as possible through the pine needles. Ivory followed behind him, nudging him whenever he started to head the wrong way.
The kits were just as important to the wild cats as good cats, surprisingly. To get one would take stealth, and it could only happen today, while all the wild cats gathered somewhere far away and the moon was high.
Eventually, they reached their destination. His back ached from holding his posture too tightly, and his neck twinged from the anxiety. So close to the few wild cats who stayed in their beds, a single wrong step would reveal them.
Ivory looked at him, and he nodded. Her bright pelt would give her away in the camp. This part was all on his shoulders.
Just as Susan had said, all the cats were asleep. He padded through the small hole in the brambles, barely making it through. Any cat larger wouldn't have done it.
All the "dens" looked the same, but he did as Jack had told him and followed the scent of milk to a strong looking bramble bush..
There was a kit at the mouth of the den, asleep. Thank goodness. He wouldn't have been able to go in the den, and stay silent.
The kit stayed quiet as he went back through the hole. Ivory looked at him as he reappeared, and they headed to the clearing Susan told them about. It would be the last place the kit would ever be.
He sat it down, and it started to mewl weakly.
It was too silent. He wanted thunder, growling cars and rustling branches to mask the sound of his heart beating in his ears.
He stared at the kit, and it stared back. It started to wriggle towards his legs. He jerked his paw up like it had been licked by fire.
"Ivory, you do it."
He wasn't sure where the words came from, but they were a huge relief. Ivory would take care of this for him. Blood on her claws, they'd go back home and sleep like it didn't happen.
"Why should I? If you can't what wakes you think I can?
The kit began to wail, the sound out of place in the quiet.
"Maybe… Maybe we should leave it there. It's cold, it doesn't have milk, It'll die on it's own," he whispered. Ivory murmured he agreement, and turned to go home. Wordlessly, he followed.
Susan walked with grace and certainty. There was something wrong with how the little brats had came back, clean and shaking.
She knew in her heart they had failed. Now she just had to check.
Sure enough, when she arrived in the clearing she didn't find a bloody mess of fur and bone, but a feebly mewling mess of live kitten.
A few swipes of her claws fixed that.
In the morning, the clans would find their precious kit, slaughtered. Sad, but they would get over it.
Unless…
She delicately carried the thing over the border. She'd always thought the clans were ridiculous, stinking up the ground like this. Now it was helpful.
She made sure all the smells and sights pointed to the other clan, the one who had helped Shadowclan raid her home, killing the kit.
The she left.
AN/ What's this? A long chapter? ON TIME?
But bwahhaha, things are happening! I'm going on vacation soon, so it may be a while until the next chap.
BUT… I will have time to work on outlining/character making on the eight hour car ride there, so go vote on the poll so I know what to focus on!
OH YEAh! If anyone has any OC's, rouges or clan cats they'd like to have in the story or a future stories of mine (see poll), Send them in! I can't guarantee they'll be used, or even where they'll be used, but unless I get one from everyone who reads this story, they'll probably all get some love :)
NOTE: If you notice mistakes, It's because I sliced my finger on a razor and had to edit one FFNet appears to not like indents, so sorry if that affected your reading.
