Chapter 13~ Test of the Heart
I burst through the mass of cats, struggling to get to Nightheart and my father. I saw Nightheart standing over him, a triumphant look in his eyes. Snowstar looked up at him defiently, even though he was helpless and defeated. "You've lost, Snowstar!" Nightheart sneered. Snowstar gave him a cold and fearless look. "I may have lost, but Lightningclan has not lost until every last cat has been killed." Nightheart hissed in rage and slashed his claws across Snowstar's throat. I yowled in dismay and tried even harder to get to them, but I was cut off from them. I saw Snowstar's body jerk before a cat stepped in front of me, and I knew he was losing a life. How many more does he have left? I wondered. I shook my head and pushed away the thought. I couldn't think about that right now, my clan needed me. I was deputy now, after all. I dodged through the fighting cats, determined to reach my father. When I did, I saw Snowstar's bloodstained body lying on the ground, motionless. Either the life I saw him lose was his last or Nightheart had taken the rest while I was struggling to get through to them. Either way I was too late. I felt tears and red rage blinding me and rushed forward at Nightheart. He tried to push me aside, but I was stronger than ever before, my strength coming from my anger. I pinned him down and ran my claws down his belly again and again. I heard his breathing become shallower but I didn't stop. I wanted him to die! I wanted to know the forest was free from his evil! "Crystalfrost!" a voice said. "Stop, the battle has been won." A cat pulled me off of Nightheart and held me down gently but firmly. I blinked, trying to clear my blurred seeing. The Nightclan cats were gone. Only Lightningclan warriors stood in the clearing now. Wolfclaw was holding me down to keep me from attacking Nightheart again. Then my eyes traveled to Nightheart. He was lying on the ground, ragged and bleeding. His breathing was slow and painful. I felt a guilty pang in my heart. Warriors never kill unless they have to, and I had almost killed him. I took a deep breath to calm myself, then looked up at Wolfclaw. "I'm fine, you can let me up now." He nodded silently and took his paw off of my shoulders. I stood up slowly and looked down at Nightheart. Two warriors held him down, even though it probably wasn't necessary. Songbreeze and Eagletalon came and stood next to me. "What are your orders, Crystalstar?" Songbreeze asked, sounding weak. I gave Nightheart a cold look. I could kill him if I wanted, My clan would probably gladly despose of him. But I couldn't bring myself to do it. "Nightheart, you are now banished from the forest. Leave, and never return. Or we will kill you." I nodded to the warriors holding him and they released him. He staggered to his feet. He looked up at me, his eyes shining with anger and disbelief that he had lost. I felt myself being lost in his eyes, as I had done when he first came to Lightningclan. I closed my eyes and looked away. Nightheart meant nothing to me now. "Go," I said commandingly. I heard him hissed and then his pawsteps faded into the distance. As the clan regrouped to head back to camp, Eagletalon joined me. "You did the right thing, you know," he told me. "I know," I whispered. But maybe I hadn't done it for the reasons he thought. Maybe, somewhere deep inside me, I did still care about Nightheart.