What if Pinestar Killed Tigerkit

'Tigerkit has a shadow over his destiny.'

Pinestar woke up, his breathing laboured as his dream echoed in his mind. It was the same dream that haunted him every night.

Every night, he found himself walking into the empty ThunderClan camp. When he looked at his feet, he saw that they were stained red. The red from his paws spread like a fire across camp, until the entire camp was bathed in crimson. At the centre of the camp sat his son, Tigerkit, staring at Pinestar with fire in his amber eyes.

Before Pinestar could ask him anything, he woke up.

Doestar had told Pinestar of his son's fate a few sunrises ago in a dream, and Pinestar still couldn't bring himself to do what was asked of him. He knew that Tigerkit had the potential to destroy the Clans, and would grow up with a hatred in his heart. While Doestar gave Pinestar hope that he could save Tigerkit's future by teaching him compassion and other important values, Pinestar could hardly look at the kit, let alone teach him the values of a virtuous leader.

Every day that Pinestar struggled with his decision, Tigerkit's future grew darker. There would come a point where Pinestar wouldn't be able to save him anymore.

And then, the only option would be to kill his only son.

Despite his resentment towards the kit, Pinestar didn't think he could bring himself to murder an innocent kit, even if it was the only was to secure the fate of ThunderClan.

Pinestar stood, giving his chest a couple rough licks to smooth it down. He'd end up having a pelt as messy as Goosefeather's if he kept having these restless nights.

The ThunderClan leader padded out of his den and into the ThunderClan camp. It was lightly raining, but there were still a few cats in the clearing, huddled together as they shared prey. Pinestar nodded to the cats as he padded towards thee forest. Maybe getting out of his stuffy den would give him some insight.

In the forest, the trees provided some shelter against the rain. The soft forest floor was slightly damp, and the fresh scent of rainfall brightened his spirits. Even after just a few moments of breathing in the fresh air and Pinestar was already starting to feel better about the situation.

Maybe Doestar was wrong? It was ridiculous to think that a tiny kit could grow up to destroy the Clans!

StarClan had guided Pinestar through many challenges, but they could not know everything. There were some things that not even they could predict.

Feeling slightly better, Pinestar picked up his pace as he walked aimlessly throughout the forest. He debated heading to the Two-leg place but figured his kittypet friend, Jake, would not want to sit out in the rain to talk. Instead, he walked towards the Snakerocks to see if any mice were hiding between the rocks. Any snakes were surely hiding from the drizzling rain and would not be a threat.

Despite his pelt getting more damp with every step, Pinestar felt his mood improve. He kept telling himself that StarClan could not predict the future and that he would find a way to save Tigerkit. He could do it.

Pinestar stopped abruptly when he saw a cat ahead. It was a black and white tom, probably old enough to be a young warrior. He was standing at the opening of the den at Snakerocks, staring inside. The tom wasn't moving at all, even when Pinestar called out.

"What are you doing on ThunderClan territory?" Pinestar asked. Maybe it was a lost kittypet?

Pinestar cautiously padded forward. "Answer me," he demanded. Still, the tom did not move. "Hello?"

Deep in his gut, Pinestar knew something was wrong. There was something off about this cat.

Pinestar padded forward, circling around so he could see the tom's face. When he saw the tom's amber eyes, a shiver ran down Pinestar's spine.

The tom's eyes were wide, and his jaw was parted like he was about to let out a scream. His ears were flattened against his head, and the fur along his back was just barely starting to rise. Whatever the tom was looking at must have been horrifying.

Pinestar turned to the den but saw nothing in the dark cave. Whatever had scared the tom so much was long gone.

"What are you looking…"

As he spoke, Pinestar turned back to face the tom. His question died in his throat when he had turned though; the tom had disappeared. Not even his footprints were left in the mud.

Another omen.

"No, no, no," Pinestar whispered as he backed away. He turned and ran, sprinting away from Snakerocks. Even though he didn't know who the cat was or what he was staring at, he knew what the vision meant. The tom he had seen was one that would die at the paws of Tigerkit.

Pinestar sprinted through the forest, dodging trees and shrubs easily. He had to get away from that place. Far, far away.

He came to a halt at the side of the Thunderpath. His chest was heaving and his paws were shaking. The fear etched on the tom's face was still clear in Pinestar's memory; he did not think he'd ever be able to forget it.

"It wasn't real," Pinestar reminded himself. "Only a vision."

The shaky words did little to comfort him.

Pinestar sat, trying to slow his breathing. He needed time to think but the vision reminded him that he had to make a choice soon. If he did not make a decision soon, Tigerkit would grow up before his very eyes and it would be too late to stop him.

Even though Pinestar knew what had to be done, he still didn't think he could bring himself to do it.

After a few moments, Pinestar had calmed down enough to stand. Being out in the forest was doing nothing to calm his nerves and he wanted to get as far from Snakerocks as possible.

Pinestar was about to walk back to the ThunderClan camp when something caught his eye. A gray lump lay on the Thunderpath. A cat killed by a monster, perhaps?

The tom briefly debated whether he should go to the cat; he was still shaken after what he'd just witnessed at Snakerocks and wasn't keen on repeating it. In good conscience he could not just go back to camp without making sure that the cat was okay.

He slowly walked forward; his body was close to the ground so he could easily spring away at any moment. As he grew closer, he could make out the features of the cat.

She was small, smoky gray she-cat. Her eyes were barely open, but they seemed fixated on something; she was alive, even if she was not moving. Her hind leg was splayed behind her and twisted at an awkward angle. It was clearly broken, and she'd be lucky if she ever walked on it again.

Pinestar leaned down to grab her scruff so he could carry her to ThunderClan. If she was a ShadowClan apprentice, he'd send Sunfall out to tell them what had happened.

Pinestar closed his jaws around the she-cat's scruff. When he expected to be met with a mouthful of fur and flesh, he felt nothing. Pinestar yanked his head back, nearly tripping back. The she-cat was gone.

"Oh StarClan, this can't be happening!" Pinestar wailed. He turned and fled.

As he ran, he passed strange cats. All motionless, with expressions of shock or fear engraved on their faces. Almost all of them were littered in brutal scars, telling him that they died horrific deaths. They were all cats that Tigerkit would eventually kill.

Pinestar finally slowly down when he reached the ThunderClan camp. He paused at the entrance, not wanting to walk in looking flustered. He did not want to worry his Clan.

He focused on his breathing, forcing it to slow. As he did, he kept glancing over his shoulder to see if any of the ghost cats had followed him. They were no where to be seen, but he knew that they were watching. They were waiting for him to make his decision.

Oh, how he wished he could just run away to live with Jake, but he knew that was no longer an option. The ghosts of Tigerkit's future would haunt him for the rest of his life. It would put him over the edge. Even if he tried being the best father, he would constantly have their faces in his mind, telling him that Tigerkit would grow to be evil. He wouldn't know until Tigerkit killed his first victim that Pinestar had failed as a father.

"I have to kill him," Pinestar decided. He peered inside the ThunderClan camp, where Tigerkit was playing with a ball of moss. "Tonight, while he's sleeping, I'll do it. I'll kill him."

Looking down at the kit, it was hard to imagine what StarClan was telling him to be true. Tigerkit was curled up into a tight ball, his nose tucked until his tail. He could barely hear soft snores coming from the tiny kit. He was so peaceful... so innocent. Pinestar stepped back, looking away from the kit.

He couldn't do it.

He couldn't kill his only son. His only living kit. Even if he had never wanted to be a father, he didn't think he could do such an evil thing and then go on living. He would never be able to look at Leopardfoot again.

Pinestar turned away, deciding then and there that he couldn't murder Tigerkit, even if that meant he turned out evil. Pinestar would just raise him right; he'd teach him how to be a loyal and ethical cat.

But when he came face to face with Bluefur, he stopped dead in his tracks.

The she-cat looked older, with the scars of a seasoned warrior. Her blue eye's didn't hold the same youthful hope that the once did; she looked drained. But the most noticeable feature was her blue pelt. It was soaked as if she'd taken a swim in the river. She opened her mouth and water spilled out.

This wasn't the Bluefur that Pinestar knew; this was Bluefur's fate.

She was destined to drown.

Pinestar looked down at Tigerkit and back at the Bluefur. Tigerkit, or the warrior he'd grow to be, was going to drown Bluefur.

Pinestar turned back to the kit and stepped forward. The ghosts of Tigerkit's future wouldn't rest until he was dead. And Pinestar was the one who had to do it.

Pinestar gently leaned down to the kit, gently nuzzling the kit one last time. Tigerkit unconsciously leaned into his face, rubbing against Pinestar's forehead. Pulling away, the ThunderClan leader pressed one paw down on the kits throat.

He closed his eyes and looked away, unable to watch the kit struggle. Only when the job was done did Pinestar open his eyes.

And when he did, he was met with Leopardfoot's confused gaze.

"What are you doing?" she whispered. She couldn't comprehend what she just witnessed. "What are you doing to our kit?"

She rushed forward, gently nudging Tigerkit. He wasn't breathing and his tiny body was already starting to get cold. "Tigerkit?"

"I'm sorry, I had to," Pinestar whispered. He leaned down to lick his mate's forehead, hoping that she's understand.

Claws swiped against his cheek as an angry scream broke the silence. "You killed my son!" she shrieked. Leopardfoot lunged, which Pinestar easily sidestepped. He ducked out of the nursery and ran into the ThunderClan clearing.

Leopardfoot chased him, clumsily lunging at the tom in her anger. There were a few cats in the clearing when Leopardfoot and Pinestar exploded out of the nursery. They watched, not registering the scene that was unfolding.

Leopardfoot pounced, this time knocking the ThunderClan leader back. Pinestar fell, his head cracking against a rock and the world tilting. The heartbroken queen stood over him, her chest heaving with heavy breaths. She reared back and her hind legs and battered at his stomach with unsheathed claws. The group of cats in the clearing stood, all unsure of what to do. Adderfang was the first to react, springing forward.

He knocked Leopardfoot away, pinning her to the ground. Pinestar sprang to his feet and backed away. He saw double of everything and could barely make out Adderfang's hiss: "Traitor! You attack your leader?"

"He killed my kit! He killed Tigerkit!" Leopardfoot screeched. Her face suddenly fell as the words registered. Tigerkit was dead. "My kit… my kit is dead. He killed him!"

"She… she's telling the truth." Swiftbreeze appeared at the entrance to the nursery, Tigerkit's limp body in her jaws. She gently placed the kit on the ground. "Pinestar's scent is all over him. It's like Tigerkit was suffocated."

Leopardfoot's head fell back and her body went limp and a miserable wail erupted from her throat. Adderfang had to look away; he could only imagine the pain of losing an entire litter of kits. First to natural causes, and then the lone survivor to her own mate.

Her crying died down and a new fire burned in the queen's eyes. She glared at Pinestar. "You… you did this."

Leopardfoot slammed her body into Adderfang, taking him by surprise and knocking him away. The grieving queen lunged toward the ThunderClan leader again, bowling hm over. Pinestar was still dazed from his head hitting the rock and could hardly acknowledge the sharp claws coming to his face.

First his nose. Then his ear. His cheek. And finally, his throat.

Screams erupted as ThunderClan warriors raced over to save their leader. Leopardfoot was knocked to the side and pinned down by a group of warriors. Featherwhisker pushed through the crowd, a clump of cobwebds in his mouth. He firmly pressed the cobwebs to the wound, but they were soaked with blood within seconds.

Pinestar coughed, blood splattering onto the she-cat's face. "It's okay… It's over."

"But… but why? Why would you kill the kit?" Featherwhisker asked softly. His eyes held nothing but confusion towards the leader he had once looked up to.

"Tigerkit would…" Another blood splattered cough. "destroy the Clans…"

Pinestar let out one more pitiful cough before his entire body tensed up. Blood swelled in his mouth before spilling over and splattering on the ground, mixing with the puddles and staining them red. His body relaxed, his head rolling to one side.

The clearing faded away and Pinestar found himself at Fourtrees. He was sitting in front of the Great Rock, staring up at a single cat standing at the top. The cat was a muscular ginger tom, with fierce green eyes. With the moon angled at him, it was like his fur was burning with an overpowering fire.

Beneath him stood a group of cats, all ranging in age and which Clan they were from. Among them stood the tom from Snakerocks, and the she-cat from the Thunderpath. At the front of the group was Bluefur; her pelt was no longer soaked through.

The youngest of them all, a small, brown tom who smelled of WindClan, stepped forward. He dipped his head at the ThunderClan leader. "You've saved us."

Slowly, the group of cats faded away and, in their place, stood Sweetbriar, his mother. A soft smile sat on her face, her eyes filled with nothing but love.

"You've done well son. Now, it's time for you to come to StarClan."

Pinestar nodded and stood, following his mother into the forest. Unaware of the future he'd saved by killing his son.

A/N: Hey everyone! I'm just popping in to let you know that this is the start of a one-shot booklet based on "What If" scenarios that venture into other possible outcomes of those events. I have a whole list of scenarios I'm looking forward to writing like the classic "what if _ lived" among others. But if you have any ideas, I'm all ears! Also, just a side note that they won't all be as dark as this one.