TAINTED LINE

Author's Note: Just as a pat on the back to myself, this chapter was written entirely in two days time because I felt sudden motivation. It's slightly shorter than the last, but it felt right to end it where I did. We're in the final stretch, with only a few more chapters left to go, so the length may continue to change depending on what needs to be said. As always, I appreciate those who read, favorite, and/or review!

Chapter Twenty-Three

It wasn't a shock to find Foxpaw hiding out in the apprentices' den, but Skypaw almost hoped that the she-cat would know well enough to stay away. She had to know she was coming—maybe she'd even been anticipating her, by the way the ginger she-cat stood calmly in her nest, staring at her with green eyes that reflected her own. It could have made Skypaw envious, to be able to stand still with all of her treachery and not even blink, but to think of herself of envious of a traitor… that was sinking to a new low.

A long silence stretched between them, both simply staring at one another with no real push to say anything. It may have been uncomfortable, had embers not been burning between the two of them for so long. So long had she just waited.

The low tone in which Skypaw spoke wasn't one that was entirely threatening, but it was certainly demanding enough to say she needed an answer. "Do you want to say it, or do I have to drag it out of you?"

Foxpaw blinked, looking almost surprised. Skypaw only spared a small thought as to why before the she-cat responded, "That I know about Ivystar?" she eventually pressed, voice thin but without resistance. "…Yes, I know. I know you saw her, and I know my time is up."

"Your time?" Skypaw echoed, letting a soft, breathless laugh. She looked around the den, seeing the same cracks and dents that have always been there, yet now they looked completely foreign. Was this really happening? She couldn't be sure. Eventually, her laugh turned into a shrill choke. "So, you were leading us on the whole time. You meant to get whatever advantage you could here so that you could help her. You were never loyal to us." It felt like something she knew all along. The small part she buried deep knew she hadn't wanted to believe it, but that was then. Now, Foxpaw didn't even try to look away.

"No," she responded, voice softening for the first time Skypaw had ever known. "I knew what Ivystar wanted of me—I knew the rogues were due to her. But I did not know why she did the things she did." She paused, only for a quiet moment, before repeating, "…I didn't know."

The fury that had previously built up so deeply inside of her felt cold, and Skypaw grasped desperately, trying to feel it again, but it was as though the embers that had raced through her veins were now suddenly reduced to a pile of coals. Why she should be so desperate as to hold onto that anger was anyone's guess, but the hold it had on her for so long was not something she would ignore. She had proven herself right—had proven it in earnest, yet she couldn't help but feel empty. It was worse than anything else.

"I should kill you," she said suddenly, as though it was a small afterthought. It was stated so casually that Skypaw couldn't be sure that it came out of her own mouth. "I should—after what you did to us."

"You won't," Foxpaw said just as quickly, moving to stand as her plumy tail swept the ground. The steps she took forward were slow and cautious, as though sneaking around a rabid wolf, but her eyes remained locked ahead. She didn't seem afraid in the slightest, even when she had almost everything to lose. It irked Skypaw enough for her to flex her claws. "I know you won't—you hold onto the Warrior Code as your safeguard. You hold onto your family even when you should not."

The she-cat's head suddenly tilted, and then moved back into place. "You forgave Blotchfire, didn't you?" His name caused her to freeze, and Skypaw peered eerily at her. "Even after what he had done, you forgave him without much to convince you. Why would you do that, Skypaw?" Skypaw rushed to respond, but Foxpaw beat her to it; "It's because you are so desperate to connect—you want your perfect family, and having one piece not fit goes against everything you know. Everything needs to fit into your world, or not exist at all. You are a cat of extremes, and that is why you are here, in this den, with me."

This cat could see—she could see everything that had happened right in front of her, and come up with her own conclusions, even without knowing for sure. She took what she saw, and looked so deep that Skypaw couldn't begin to understand just how deep she could go. Unnerved, she took a step back, but Foxpaw followed her just as quickly.

"You are here when no one else is. You drive yourself mad, and anyone can see it if they looked hard enough. You make others suffer without even seeing it for yourself." Foxpaw stopped suddenly, pulling back as her mouth shut quickly. She looked as though she had been burned—like Skypaw's presence had taken something from her.

Skypaw twitched, glancing back as though she may have heard something, but nothing had drawn the other cat's attention. Rather, Foxpaw's gaze shifted oh so subtly back to her, and she spoke again: "I did what my leader asked of me, and I remained loyal despite cats connecting with me… Despite me connecting with them. I showed more loyalty than you are capable of. I stayed loyal to you—never did I try to hurt you."

"Never?" She scoffed, but it came out less forceful than she wanted. "I think that's a lie."

"It's not," Foxpaw argued. "I wanted to be with family. I watched out for you like a clanmate would—I respected you as well, because you did the same to every other cat, especially your friends. But you weren't ready to do that for me."

"You lied the entire time," Skypaw broke in. "How would that gain respect? How would you ever become one of my friends?"

"How about from me keeping your clanmate out of harm's way?" Foxpaw hissed, and Skypaw took another step back. Foxpaw's cool and calm demeanor broke in that moment, replaced by a cat who was breaking apart from the role she had originally been assigned. It was a transition so fast that Skypaw was left winded. "You and Whitepaw weren't supposed to be there—but you were, and I knew what would happen if Ivystar found out. I led her away, and kept her safe. StarClan knows what would have happened if I let her go after you."

The knowledge of what had happened at that camp was given sparingly when she had returned to the camp, but just enough information was given to warn the Clan of the danger. She had spoken about being helped by some rogues, while witnessing more as they invaded their camp. Foxpaw had to know more about it than she was letting on, but it almost seemed too trivial for her. She held so much power, and was not going to share, and that alone made her a threat that could not be disposed of. She claimed to care, yet she did not see it important enough that she should speak of it.

"And Scorchpelt?" she asked briefly, remembering the incident with their patrol in which the tom had been attacked. He not reappeared since.

Foxpaw's change of expression was unexpected, and the following silence was out of place. Skypaw was ready to press her again—to demand that she answer, but just as quickly, she grasped that Foxpaw's lack of response told her all she needed to know. She sucked in a sharp breath. No one had known for sure, and now she had just confirmed what everyone hoped to be untrue. He hadn't just been critically injured, or taken as a prisoner by a group of outsiders—he was dead.

"I didn't want to hurt you all," Foxpaw said suddenly, looking up from where her eyes were locked on her paws. "I am loyal to my Clan. I will always be loyal to my Clan. But I wanted to be loyal to you, too."

"To me?" Skypaw repeated, her eyes shifting back and forth, somehow hoping she might find an answer if she just looked hard enough.

"You're my sister," Foxpaw said, as if it was the simplest thing in the world. But it wasn't, and Foxpaw was a fool if she couldn't see why that was such a problem. Skypaw felt the cold bite at her limbs, even though the air was still. It represented just how she felt at that very moment. It all sounded so very simple, so straight-forward, that Skypaw fought the urge to lash out in sheer frustration. Nothing made any sense anymore, and Foxpaw seemed almost determined to keep it that way.

"Foxpaw," a voice suddenly called out, and while Skypaw whipped her head around at the intrusion, Foxpaw only calmly turned her head to face the cat. Scarletstream entered the den with her head held high, no sign of compassion on her face. It was nothing abnormal, but Skypaw could feel the impatience rolling off of her in waves. Scarletstream wasn't just here to order a patrol or ask for assistance within the camp. She was here because it was her duty. "Silentstar has called a meeting."

Skypaw couldn't have known if the news of the meeting had spread by word of mouth, or if Silentstar had actively called out for them. She had been so focused on Foxpaw that her senses were cut off to almost everything else, and shifting her ears, she could now hear cats beginning to gather outside, brought on by their leader. Snapping her head back, she watched as Foxpaw gave a soft, deep sigh. Now, she refused to even look at her.

Dragging herself away was probably one of the most difficult things she had to do, knowing that her claws—sharp and digging into the dirt—would do nothing to change what had just transpired. She couldn't fix it by force alone, nor by her own knowledge. Knowing what she knew was only half of the battle, and without other cats to see it, everything else would continue to crumble.

Everything needs to fit into your world, or not exist at all.

It echoed through her mind even as she approached the Highstone, standing on the left of Foxpaw while Scarletstream escorted her on the right. She felt the cats within the clearing staring, and not for the first time she thought that maybe they couldn't see what was right in front of them. The truth was right there, staring them in the face, yet they still continued to wonder just how things could have gone so wrong.

It was something she asked herself every day, and now it felt like she had finally gotten her answer.

Her pawsteps felt heavy, dragging in the dirt as she looked across at the gathered crowd. Bristlefur met her gaze steadily, eyes uncharacteristically cold as he stared back. He looked almost personally offended by her sheer presence, but she gave him an equally icy look before she turned to look ahead once more, Silentstar flicking his tail to draw his Clan closer to him. It was only when they finally stopped that the Clan's attention returned to him alone.

"The gathering did not go as smoothly as I would have hoped," he began calmly, but his tone shifted so quickly that Skypaw knew his patience was about on the same level as Scarletstream's. "Accusations were thrown at us—accusations that went beyond the simple facts that we all knew. We took in kits that needed help, and now we are under threat after being told that they were stolen."

"Stolen?" Skypaw heard someone murmur, but she couldn't be sure who. Even explaining seemed almost pointless; any cat that wasn't at the gathering had surely heard, and those who hadn't would catch up with rumors quickly enough. No cat would be in the dark after tonight, and Silentstar looked ready to deliver all of the information himself, nothing held back.

"Stolen," the tom confirmed. "Now, had it been a cat unaware of the situation, perhaps it would be justified. But how would a cat like Ivystar come to such a conclusion? And why would Brindlestar's decision to let us help his Clan even reach as far as RavenClan?"

She felt a chill like an ice-melt run down her spine, and she knew this was it. They weren't blind anymore. They could see just as well as she could. All of the evidence painted the grass like blood, and in the moment, it truly felt like a wound that had finally been exposed.

"Foxpaw," he nearly growled. "I remember the story you told in the beginning—that you wished to meet your father. Now I know that was certainly not the whole story, was it?"

For a moment, Foxpaw looked taken aback, as though she couldn't even begin to believe that she would be uncovered. So ready to speak to her, Skypaw couldn't even entertain the thought that beyond that, Foxpaw could go on as she had. The ginger she-cat twisted her head, possibly looking for some outlet, but Skypaw met her just as quickly, watching as she struggled to swallow.

"Speak carefully," Silentstar warned, leaning over the edge of the Highstone before Foxpaw could utter a word. "I want you to tell me that you had no idea of Ivystar's plans—that she is a she-cat who has got it in her head that she can take advantage of others. That she managed to manipulate another cat in order to further her own goals, and you are simply a victim. I want you to tell me that, and I want it to be the truth."

He is giving her an out, Skypaw realized. She could either speak, or she could not. The outcome would be the same, but how they reached it would be on her.

The ice down her spine left her limbs frozen, her ears up, and her gaze set. But her mouth moved freely, and she would give no more chances.

"She betrayed us," Skypaw said, relishing in the feeling of all eyes being on her. Before, it felt like a curse, but now she counted her blessings and thanked StarClan that she could speak. Scraping her claws against the earth, she pulled away from Foxpaw to face her instead, blue eyes against green. She paused, wondering if her leader might continue, but he remained silent, looking upon her with barely any more of an expression than Bristlefur.

"She's been working with Ivystar this whole time. The rogues that attacked us were all from her." Which "her" she was referring to, she realized, would be a mystery to some of these cats, but it didn't really matter in the end. Right now, Ivystar and Foxpaw could be the same cat, and it wouldn't have made a single bit of difference. "Everything was from what she was telling her leader. She told me her loyalty was to her. She has no place here!"

Her chest heaved, and the Clan looked appalled. How a cat could so easily betray them, they had to know. How could a cat, who already held ties to another Clan, be tempted to take the information she had received and return to the group that held her loyalty? It was amusing, the mouse-brained mindset of the Clan who covered their eyes and their ears, refusing to see the light or hear the traitorous words. It was so baffling, that Skypaw felt herself seeking out her mother, settled only a rabbit-length away from Bristlefur. Unlike the looks of every other cat in the clearing, Hailcry only met her eyes for a heartbeat before looking away.

She could almost pretend she didn't see it, but the turn of her lip and the shift in her demeanor was too clear. Pity. Her mother felt pity.

It may have been for Foxpaw, but Skypaw knew better: it was for her. Her rivalry with the traitor was no secret, and now she was reaping the rewards of finally being told she was right. It went far against the wholesome, humble attitude that warriors were taught to uphold, but Skypaw couldn't push the feeling away. She wouldn't, for all the prey in the forest. This was her moment, her victory, and to take that away from her would be a claw sliced through her chest.

"I see only truth here," Silentstar concluded swiftly, leaping down to stand beside Skypaw, who now stood tall as her height nearly matched his own. She didn't feel like an apprentice then—not even a warrior. She felt better, stronger, and she knew that the only way she could relish in this more was if she was Silentstar himself.

Still, he stepped forward, and spoke calmly: "Do you have any words to say in your defense?"

The crowd hushed so suddenly that Skypaw thought Silentstar may have spoken out of turn, but the way in which everyone tensed told her that it wasn't his words that had quieted them, but the rustling near the camp entrance that could not have come from any clanmate. The stranger that stood at the entrance to their camp was dark, out of place, and surely knew he didn't belong. But flanked by two cats, the one tom standing in the middle looked far too familiar for any of it to be an accident.

"You," Silentstar spoke, pushing Skypaw and Foxpaw aside as he moved to stand in the middle of the clearing. His tail moved, almost a show of hostility, but again Skypaw saw that he was calling his Clan to his side at the same time he was protecting them. But Skypaw was not afraid. How could she be, when StarClan was providing all of the truths, and purging all of the lies before them?

"Blotchfire," Skypaw breathed, moving slowly to meet him as though it was simply an old friend. But she did not smile, nor did she touch noses to him in a normal greeting. She only looked at him, searching for something, anything, but he gave her nothing.

"Axel," he corrected, and Skypaw shifted. "My name is Axel."

Silentstar didn't even twitch, nor did he acknowledge the tom in any way past the dark way in which he looked at him.

"You look at Ivystar as a threat—rightfully so," Blotchfire spoke, not only to Silentstar, but to the whole Clan. "But you underestimate the lengths she will go to take down your Clan." Your Clan. Not his, not even his former home. Skypaw noted her mother did not even attempt to come greet Blotchfire, and he did not even look at her. He was not here for them; he was here for all of them.

"And why are you here, then?" Silentstar pressed, as though reading her thoughts. "Your word is worth nothing more than the traitor standing beside me."

Blotchfire looked briefly at Foxpaw, and then Skypaw felt him settle on her. She could only watch as he turned steadily back to the leader, shoulders back, head straight, as he replied, "Because I am here, standing before you as a warrior despite everything. That alone… is worth everything."