Oh, fun.

I kicked at the grass beneath my sneakers as the PE coach, Coach Brambleclaw, blew the whistle. The dark-haired coach was standing right next to me, so I wished that I wasn't there, at the moment.

PE was my favorite subject, but for now, I was just worried about Hollyleaf. She said she hadn't done well on that history test, and I don't just care for the competition between the four groups; I care for her. She's my sister, after all.

"Give me the running stance!" Coach Brambleclaw yelled. Honestly, that might even be his normal voice. He's loud, and I guessed that it came in handy a lot. Silently, I fell back, into the line that the students had formed. I lowered myself into a crouch, but even I could tell that it was wobbly and unbalanced. Coach Brambleclaw walked down the line, stopping to check almost every person.

When he came to me, he frowned. "Honestly, Lionblaze, I thought you could do better. Lift up your shoulders a bit, and don't lean so much forward. You look like you're about to fall over."

I tried to do what Coach Brambleclaw had said, but I could tell it wasn't working. He stared at me, frowned, then walked past me. Great.

"And... two laps... go!" As he spoke, the coach blew his whistle again, and I sprinted ahead of most of the class, running along in long, rhythmic strides. And then, Coach Brambleclaw was next to me, blocking my path.

I glared at him. "What happened?"

"I need to talk to you, Lionblaze." If he had heard any of the annoyance in my voice, he gave no sign that he had comprehended it.

"I'm here. Go on."

The coach sighed, looking slightly indecisive. Then, a look of concern passed through his amber eyes, and he spoke. "Lionblaze, you're one of the best sports players in all of my classes." He paused, thinking. "In fact, probably, the best. Now, I want to know what's bothering you."

My eyes widened, but I shook my head. "Nothing."

Coach Brambleclaw pats my shoulder. "Really. I know that you wouldn't let go of PE if nothing was bothering you." I looked into the coach's amber eyes, and something inside told me that I could trust him, and that he would listen to anything if he had to.

"It's just... Hollyleaf," I stated. "She's convinced she flunked the history test last period, and she's really upset about it. I... I think it's hard, how, well, everyone relies on her to bring the Thunder Group's grades up for the competition."

"Lionblaze," Coach Brambleclaw said, and, to my surprise, his voice was warm. "I know how you worry about Hollyleaf. I worried about Tawnypelt, too, before she joined the Shadow Group. But then, I realized that she was capable of taking care of herself." His eyes met mine. "And so is Hollyleaf."

"Okay."

"And Lionblaze, it'll be fine. Tell Hollyleaf that it's not the outcome of the competition; it's the work you put into it." Brambleclaw smiled at me again, and then, almost like a transformation, he became the PE coach again, in his voice and manner. "Now, give me one lap. I don't want to slow everything down."

I sprinted after Heathertail, a light-haired girl who was probably the fastest girl in all of the groups. But though I was from the Thunder Group, not the Wind Group, I was probably the fastest person.

It's true that I used to like Heathertail... as in, more than a friend. But I'm over that, now. I really hate her, ever since she betrayed the Thunder Group's weakness to the Wind Group, her group, when we were playing against each other in a team sport. She said it wasn't her fault, but I knew, in my heart, that I would never trust her again. I raced past the Wind Group girl, and skidded to a halt as I crossed the cones that signify the end of every lap, panting. With one hand, I wiped the sweat from my face, and stared at Heathertail as she finished. The two of us glare at each other for a long moment; then Breezepelt, a dark-haired Wind Group student, pulled Heathertail away, whispering into her ear.

Wow. I rolled my was obvious that the two had fallen for each other, from the way they always hung out, to the way they interacted.

"Nice job, Lionblaze." Coach Brambleclaw walked over to me, smiling meaningfully. "It looks like what I told you worked." He winked, and I flashed him a grin, running a hand through my golden-blonde hair. From behind, Breezepelt shot me a venomous glare, as though he wanted to know the secret behind this, but he didn't say anything. Hollyleaf stopped behind me, still gasping for breath. She swiped her long black braid behind her, where it fell to her thighs.

"Hey, Hollyleaf," I said. She looked up at me, and I swallow nervously. "Are you still worried about that test?"

"You know me too well," she murmured.

Are you okay? I bit back the words before they could come out, recalling Coach Brambleclaw's words to me. She was capable of taking care of herself... and so is Hollyleaf. "Uh... you know, Hollyleaf... the Thunder Group won't blame you if you try your best. It's the effort you put in that counts," I said.

Hollyleaf flashed me a weak smile. "But I myself don't want to fail, either!"

"Just try, Hollyleaf," I encouraged, placing an arm on her shoulder. "Try, and do your best. If you still don't get a good grade, well... you have no control over that, and it's not your fault." Without another word, I walked over to where Coach Brambleclaw was waiting for us.

"Assemble into your flag football teams, please. This will be your last day this year with football." We had chosen these last week. I turned away, mingling amongst the group I was in as we scrambled to get our blue flags fastened around our middles: Foxleap, Heathertail, Honeyfern - Oh, great. - Berrynose - Again, oh, great. - Crowfrost, and Olivenose. I shot a quick glance at my sister, but her gaze was on her shoes.

She, Breezepelt, Sunstrike, Tigerheart, Rosepetal, Reedwhisker, and Ratscar were on the same team, and they faced us, and our gazes met, challengingly and determinedly. Coach Brambleclaw gave us a quick nod. "Last time, Crowfrost's team got the first punt. Now, it's Sunstrike's team. You punt." He dropped the football at Sunstrike's feet, and she picked it up, nodding her thanks to him as he stepped away, off the field. I watched curiously as Sunstrike gathered her team and spoke to the members in a hushed whisper. And then, someone prodded me sharply.

I whirled around, to find that it was Honeyfern. "Well, are you joining us or not?" she snapped. Lowering my head, I joined the rest of my team in our hudde, under Honeyfern's stern gaze. I directed my attention to Crowfrost, our team captain.

"...if it comes to it, we'll hand-off. Any volunteers?"

I exchanged a hesitant glance with Foxleap, then stepped forward. "I'll do it."

"Good idea." Crowfrost smiled at me, and for a moment, I forgot that we were in different groups. He was in the Shadow Group, while I was in the Thunder Group. "Now, just grab the ball when they punt, and-"

Coach Brambleclaw's voice cut him off. "Five..."

This was the regular countdown, until the game began, and we had to get into our positions. Crowfrost's grayish eyes widened slightly, and he spoke faster. "For now, just grab the ball and run-"

"Four..."

"-towards the touchdown. Everyone ready?" I nodded, and I saw others doing the same. Crowfrost lowered his head approvingly. "Get into your positions, near the 10-yard mark, near the end of the field."

"Three..."

I jogged after the rest of my team, slowing as I reached the yellow 10-yard marking. I turned to face the other team, who were still speaking amongst themselves. I was too far to hear what they were saying, but I glimpsed some of the members nodding from time to time, and Sunstrike's mouth moving as she spoke. I heard Coach Brambleclaw's call. "Two..."

At this point, Sunstrike's team scrambled into position. Tigerheart, a tall student with brown-black hair, stood in the center, holding the football ahead of him, in both his hands. He pulled away one of his hands to raise it upwards, a signal for us to see. In return, we raised our hands.

And the ball was released completely, from Tigerheart's hands, and it soared into the air. He's good, I realized, then rushed forward along with the rest of my team. Olivenose reached it first, then picked it up. She hesitated, looking straight into my amber eyes.

"Go on!" I shouted, rushing to her side, as the other team formed a sort of defense barrier ahead of us. Olivenose's legs were noticeably shaky as she ran forward, almost directly into the other team. I slapped my head, mentally, then threw myself against the person right ahead of Olivenose, who happened to be Reedwhisker. I heard his gasp as I pushed him to the side, leaving a clear opening for Olivenose to pass. She ran ahead, but Sunstrike was faster, and the dark-haired girl dove forward; I heard the tear of velcro as she ripped Olivenose's flag from her belt.

"Good try, Olivenose." Even Crowfrost couldn't mask his disappointment. "Okay, now, we need a center. Berrynose, are you willing?" The light-haired boy nodded, and Crowfrost kicked his shoe at the dirt. "Okay. I'll be quarterback. Heathertail, Lionblaze, Foxleap, you are the runners. I'll throw the ball to one of you. Everyone else, make sure the other team doesn't get to them. Now, go."

He handed the football to Berrynose, who dropped into the hiking stance. "And... hike!"

"Touchdown!" I yelled, throwing the football down beside me. I was panting, and my legs were exhausted from running the full length of the field, but this touchdown had been worth it. I was tired, but satisfied.

"Well done!" I heard Coach Brambleclaw cheer. He was striding over to us. "Next class, we'll be doing basketball. Our lesson's over, for today. I'll see you next class." And then, I saw Hollyleaf send me a content smile.