This was my first time writing a fight scene, so sorry if it seems stilted! I tried to make it as realistic as possible, but the only experience I have seeing cats fight is what my cats do when they're annoyed, and it's not very scripted. I kind of followed the general idea of the Warriors books, with the fighting. Tikipaw might seem extra skilled, too, but that's just her instincts and some stuff that Taikapaw taught her taking over.

Okay, without further ado, enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 6

Tikipaw stared, terrified as one of the three SwardClan cats, a cream and ginger cat, looked over at their group before waving with their tail, leading the three cats towards them. She shivered, hiding behind her brother.

"Taikapaw! What am I going to do?" Tikipaw whisper-screamed. "I have no clue how to fight, and now they're coming over and we're going to be flattened!"

"Tikipaw, calm down," Taikapaw said reassuringly, though the waver in his voice betrayed his anxiety. "All… all you have to do is take out your claws and scratch your opponent. Their throats and bellies are the best places to scratch."

Tikipaw gritted her teeth. "Why did I let you convince me this was a good idea?"

"I dunno," Taikapaw shrugged. "I didn't have to do much, really."

"Shut up," Tikipaw snarled, whacking him in the head with her tail. He yelped in pain.

"Ouch, Tikipaw," he pouted. "Save that for them."

And then the SwardClan cats were there. The cream and ginger cat Tikipaw had seen earlier, revealing herself as a she-cat, led the group of skinny cats. They were lean, though, and a mottled brown tom in the back was heavily muscled. Tikipaw couldn't help but cower.

"Opalgleam," Skyfeather hissed. Tikipaw looked at the normally even-tempered she-cat in surprise. That was pure fury she saw in her light blue gaze. "What are you SwardClan scum doing on TreeClan territory?"

"TreeClan territory?" Opalgleam sneered, disdain marring her pretty features. "These are SwardClan's hunting grounds. Always have been, always will be."

"We disagree, then," Skyfeather snarled. She flexed her claws, digging them into the soft grass.

The pale she-cat turned her glare onto Tikipaw and Taikapaw. Tikipaw shook, while Taikapaw returned her glare. Opalgleam chuckled derisively. "Oh, who are these cats? Don't tell me you're taking in kittypets now," she sneered.

"So what if we are?" Stonewing challenged, voice rising as his bushy tail spiked out even more. "It wouldn't be any of your business, anyway, airheads."

The vibrant orange she-cat pushed forward aggressively, standing nose-to-nose with Stoenwing, blue eyes flashing. "Who you callin' an airhead, fluffbutt?"

"Firestrike, Bushpelt," Opalgleam snarled, a wicked gleam in her eyes. "Let's rage."

And then the SwardClan cats were rushing them, and Skyfeather was leaping onto the back of Opalgleam, and Tikipaw lost Taikapaw in the caterwauling. Firestrike leaped towards her, claws out, a grin on her face and wild eyes. Tikipaw, panicking, ducked under her, adopting a defensive posture and bushing out the fur on her spine.

"Ah, I'm going to enjoy this," said Firestrike, clearly relishing the power she held over the former housecat. Tikipaw arched her back further and hissed, trying to remember the few lessons Taikapaw had taught her years back. "What, no one teach you to respect your superiors, kittypet?"

Tikipaw's green eyes flashed dangerously, black tail bushing out. Her claws flexed, scraping the ground. Dust was being kicked up by the fighting cats, and it wafted over her, making her ear twitch. "Superiors? Who's that? 'Cause all that's in front of me is an inexperienced kitten."

Firestrike snarled, blue eyes glinting with fury. "No more games, kittypet. I'm gonna destroy you."

She never had the chance, though, because Tikipaw was racing towards her, claws out, and then there was blood rushing down Firestrike's face from her left eye. She let out a wild screech, and Tikipaw breathed heavily as the ginger she-cat stumbled backwards.

Tikipaw dashed to Firestrike's left side, raking her claws along the she-cat's fluffy pelt and spinning on her toes to sink her teeth into her bushy tail. She powered into the other she-cat, knocking her over to pin her down. Firestrike writhed under her, spitting and howling. Tikipaw winced as one of Firestrike's flailing paws slammed her in the chest, pushing the breath out of her and raking scratch marks down her chest.

Tikipaw raked her claws down Firestrike's soft belly, drawing a screech from the she-cat. Suddenly, Tikipaw was on her side, wind knocked out of her, as the ginger cat raced away across the parking lot. She stood up and stared after her in amazement. I just won a fight.

The big muscled tom stumbled into her, slamming her to the ground, and Tikipaw's thoughts left her head. She stared up in fear at the malicious face of Bushpelt, who was grinning. She whimpered and shut her eyes, but they shot back open upon hearing a ferocious snarl and the weight vanished from atop her.

There was Taikapaw, darting around the massive brown tom, claws flashing everywhere. Tikipaw watched in amazement as Bushpelt spun around, attempting to catch the small brown flash causing blood to welt up on the tom's sleek pelt. Eventually, he gave a screech of pain and frustration, and dashed away after Firestrike. Taikapaw gave her a grin and then went to help Skyfeather and Stonewing.

Opalgleam was still holding her own against the two seasoned warriors, but once Taikapaw and then Tikipaw had joined the fight, she didn't stand a chance. With a snarl of frustration, she glared at Skyfeather, saying, "This isn't over," before running off after her Clanmates.

Skyfeather gave a happy cheer, despite the blood leaking out of a cut on her brow. She shook her pelt off, and then turned to give a concerned look to the apprentices. "Are you guys alright? I know that was intense."

Tikipaw nodded. "I'm alright. I got a couple scratches, but I'm okay." She afforded a half-glance at her brother, who looked no worse for wear, if a little ragged.

Skyfeather sighed, relieved. "Oh, thank StarClan. I'm sorry about those Swardies; as mentioned, this is a conflict area."

Stonewing nodded. The burly tom had two scratches on his shoulders, and he winced, giving them a lick. "Let's do what we came here for and get out."

"What we came here for?" Taikapaw questioned. Skyfeather chuckled.

"Oh yeah. There's a reason why this piece of territory is so highly desired. Come on," she said, tilting her head towards the other side of the parking lot. Tikipaw and Taikapaw followed the two warriors across the pavement, and they ducked into an alcove, hidden by stands full of potted plants.

"Isn't this a supermarket?" Tikipaw asked, glancing at her mentor. "What're we doing here?"

"Yep, Fresh Market. And we're hunting," Stonewing said. He exchanged a smirk with Skyfeather. "First rule: don't get caught. Last time one of us was spotted, Cloudsky was picking glass shards out of her pads for weeks. Rule number two: follow our lead. Rule number three: don't get greedy. Got it?"

Taikapaw nodded, excited, but Tikipaw was left gaping. "We're going inside the store?"

"Yeah. They have supplies in there we desperately need. Be careful, though," Skyfeather warned, "don't take something too big for you to carry. We need to be in and out. If we need something large, two of us work together. We'll tell you what to grab."

"How is it possible that the entire pack of 'em is insane?" Tikipaw muttered incredulously as she swiftly followed Taikapaw's tail through the sliding doors. "Seriously. What are the odds of that?"