"Tell me what happened, Ravenpaw," Bluestar demanded, staring intently at the young apprentice.
"W-we were at Sunningrocks, fighting RiverClan. Soon most of the patrol had to leave because of injury, and it was a clear victory on RiverClan's part. But Tigerclaw, he wouldn't give up. He-he attacked Oakheart…" Ravenpaw gasped, his limbs crumpling under him, and collapsed. Spottedleaf quickly ran over to assist.
"He's losing too much blood. Someone help me carry him into my den," she mewed, sniffing at the gaping wound in Ravenpaw.
Frostfur, a snow-furred queen, ducked her head to support Ravenpaw's rear-side. Before the two even reached the den, the sound of heavy pawsteps and snapping twigs could be heard from the gorse tunnel. A large, thick-furred, dark brown tabby tom shoved his broadened shoulders through the camp entrance. Crimson steadily dripped from a cut on his muzzle, and his pelt was smeared and spiked with the blood of his and others. In his jaws was the scruff of a dappled tom, possessing a very prominent auburn tail. Redtail.
"Redtail!"
The distressed cry of Spottedleaf shook Bluestar from her daze. The medicine cat left Frostfur to tend to Ravenpaw, rushing over to Tigerclaw. The warrior let Spottedleaf take her brother's corpse from him. Bluestar looked on sadly as she dragged Redtail's body to the center of camp, burying her face into his bloodied neck fur.
It took Bluestar a while to speak. Redtail had been her first deputy. Although it hadn't been for long, she had still gotten quite close to him and knew much of the clan felt the same.
"Tigerclaw. Tell me what happened," Bluestar spoke, clenching her teeth together hard to prevent any tears from escaping her eyes. She recalled the words Whitestorm had spoken just moments before. The clan needs a strong leader if it is to survive. She decided she would let that thought drive her actions today.
"After the battle at Sunningrocks, RiverClan was gloating their victory. Redtail and I were the only two ThunderClan left, as the others had left because of their wounds. RiverClan started crossing the river back into their territory, so we decided to leave as well. But Oakheart, he stayed behind. He ambushed us from behind, killing Redtail. I avenged his death, in your honor, Bluestar," Tigerclaw explained, ducking his head.
Bluestar sharply sucked in a breath of air. Oakheart was dead. But, what disturbed her more was what had led to his death. Was he trying to get revenge on her? Why in StarClan would he kill someone she was close to? No, it couldn't be true. She knew Oakheart. She knew he would never deliberately kill anyone, unless absolutely necessary.
"You're lying," she growled, curling her lip.
Tigerclaw's amber eyes widened in surprise. The fur along his spine rose.
"What are you talking about Bluestar? You have no reason not to believe me. That's really what happened!" Tigerclaw was pulsing with stress, and it was clearly visible through his fearful expression and twitching paws.
Bluestar narrowed her eyes, lashing her tail.
"You left something out," she snarled. "You said you and Redtail were the only cats present at Sunningrocks after the battle. But what about Ravenpaw?"
A few unstifled gasps erupted from the watching crowd.
"I-I told him to go back to camp! I didn't know he was watching, I swear!" Tigerclaw scrambled.
"Watching what?" Bluestar countered.
"I can tell you what really happened!" Ravenpaw stepped up to Bluestar. His shoulder was now properly dressed, and he was looking a lot more alert than he did before.
Bluestar looked at him expectantly.
"While RiverClan was leaving Redtail held Oakheart back to speak with him, I'm not entirely sure what about. Tigerclaw was the one who ambushed Oakheart. Redtail tried to get them to stop, but there was a rockslide, and Oakheart was crushed," he began to explain. "Then Tigerclaw attacked Redtail. And-and he killed him!"
Bluestar's claws sheathed and unsheathed impulsively as hot rage boiled inside her. Struggling to control her voice she said, "Spottedleaf, examine the body."
The tortoiseshell medicine cat had hot tears bubbling down her cheeks but silently nodded.
"Well, the inflicted wound that caused Redtail's death is located on the throat. I-if Oakheart had ambushed from behind, the killing blow would have most likely been dealt to the back of the neck," she observed.
Bluestar narrowed her ice-blue eyes, letting them pierce Tigerclaw like thorn-sharp claws. He flinched under her gaze.
"Go on," she murmured.
"His claws. They're torn, indicating some sort of struggle," Spottedleaf whispered, inching her face closer to the corpse's bloody paws. She backed away suddenly, covering her mouth with a paw in shock.
"You killed him!" she cried, reeling to face Tigerclaw. "Your fur is in his claws! You did this to him! You killed my brother!"
Bluestar froze, staring at the ground with widened eyes. Redtail's death had been caused by one of her own warriors. A traitor. It all settled in at once. She shook her head in disbelief, closing her eyes tight. Trying to wake up from this terrible nightmare. But she never did.
"You traitor!"
Bluestar was shook from her thoughts by a caterwaul. It was Spottedleaf. Her eyes, once filled with grief, were now aflame with anger. Several bystanders uttered the same word. Traitor. Sandpaw, Redtail's daughter, spat angrily in Tigerclaw's direction, standing protectively in front of her mother, Brindleface. She wasn't able to stop what happened next.
With a yowl, Spottedleaf leapt at Tigerclaw. He let out a muffled screech as his face was shoved into the dirt. The medicine cat dug her claws hard into his shoulders, holding him to the ground. He struggled under her grasp.
"You're going to pay for what you've done. I'll make you suffer the same pain he did," she growled menacingly against his ear.
No one moved to stop her. No one could process what was happening. Bluestar stood by, her paws stuck to the ground, her mouth agape in shock.
Spottedleaf closed her jaws around the back of Tigerclaw's neck, slowly compressing his vertebrae. She pressed his throat into the hard earth, letting him suffocate. Blood began to wet his thick fur, spilling onto the ground. She suddenly jerked his neck to the side, snapping it with a blood-curdling crack.