I do not own warriors.

Okay! A moon later! This contains some violence...

Chapter Three

Forestleap's POV

I bound through the trees, Thrushwave bounding after me. I reach the Sky Oak and leave a claw mark in the bark.

"I won!" I yowl triumphantly. My silver mentor pads over, looking defeated. He licks my ear.

"Always the fastest." He confirms. "You should try racing Fleetfoot!"

"Only to show him that his name is pointless!" I brag, like an excited kit.

It had been a moon since that bad, rainy day. The day Smokefog said he loved me. But our friendship was still strong- he didn't know I heard. Everything can go on being normal.

But Thrushwave had started playing with me a lot too. It was fun to be like a kit again, no cares in the world.

The big silver tom wove around me. I take a few steps backwards.

"Thrushwave-?" I ask, eyes wide. He stops immediately and scuffs his paw in the dirt.

"Sorry, Forestleap. I guess I just was kind of happy. Forget about that."

"It's okay, Thrushwave." I console him. "You're my mentor. We'll always be very good friends."

After that, he pads away. I sigh in frustration. Soon every tom I've ever known will be trying to be my mate! Either that or hate me forever.

I begin to pad back to camp, paws heavy.

I've only been a warrior for three moons. Having a mate and a family can wait. I console myself. But it wasn't working.

The sight of the hollow worries me and relieves me. I pad down the slope and over to Smokefog. He was washing his pelt vigorously, and didn't notice me for a moment. When he looks up, worry swirls in his yellow eyes.

"Are you alright? You seem kind of- distressed. Did you lose to Thrushwave?" He says with a hint of humor. I smile.

"No, I beat him. And it's nothing, I'm fine." I tell him, trying to avoid speaking about Thrushwave's actions.

Smokefog sighs. "I can't make you tell me what's going on, because I know something is wrong. You would never tell me. I'm going to go take a nap." He looks ahead and pads towards the warriors den.

I shrug and pad out to the forest. The trees stretched far above me, and everywhere I looked, the forest was full of life. I pad towards the Windclan border. There was always plenty of prey there.

Once I reached the border, something didn't seem right. I hear a stick crack behind me. I spin around, my senses alert, fur spiked. Suddenly I feel claws push me down to the ground. I try to look at my attacker, but they have my head against the ground.

"Eat these." One voice hisses. Two poppy seeds are placed by my mouth. Too frightened to respond, I swallow the seeds and immediately swirl into dark sleep.

Cold stone presses up against my side. I open my eyes wearily and stare around at a dark cave. A little river ran through the middle of the space, and above it there was an opening in the rock to reveal sunlight. I lift my head and look for an exit. There were several, in fact- but big cats stood in front of them. I swallow nervously.

Where am I?

"Look, she's awake." A dark brown tabby she-cat hisses at a black tom. The black tom approaches me. I shiver.

"Who are you?" I ask, terrified. "Where am I?"

The black tom smiles wickedly. "I, little one, am Serpent. Where you are, I cannot tell you."

I cough. "Why am I here?"

"We are... how should I put this... oh, I'll just give it to you straight. You deserve that much." He pauses and unsheathes his claws. I shrink backwards.

"You are here to be a test subject. I will give you one test- a battle practice target. There are others, but they are only if you survive. And I assure you, based on how you reacted to that silver tom, that you will not like it."

I scoot away from Serpent.

"Please don't hurt me! Let me go!" I beg in a whimper. But he just grins.

"Now, we will do the battle training. If you live to tomorrow, we will continue with the other tests, while you are under poppy seeds, and the next day we'll let you go. Now, my friends. Attack!" Serpent shoves me to my feet.

I stare in horror as five cats charge towards me and begins slicing, biting, and pummeling me. I yowl so loud that even my clan could hear me, where ever they were. I try to brace for when they stop.

I open my eyes. My body had only tufts of fur left. Dried blood speckles my pelt. My left hind leg lay at an awkward angle.

It was two days after the battle training. I did survive. I don't know what they did to me for their 'other' tests, but they had left. I heave myself to my paws and growl loudly at the pain.

I limp to the nearest tunnel and sniff. It smelled like fresh air. I continued up it until I reached ground. I looked around, and to immense relief, I was in Thunderclan territory.

I hobbled, in agony, towards camp. I stumble into the hollow and collapse on the ground, sides heaving at the effort.

"Send out three cats to stop the search patrols!" Sharpstar's voice yowls. Fear scent wafts around the clearing. Some cat drags me to the medicine cat den, and I am fed poppy seeds. I drift away for the fifth time in the last three days.

The scent of herbs hangs in the air. I open my eyes weakly.

"She's awake, Lilacbreeze." Swirlpaw's hushed voice chirps.

"Forestleap!" Lilacbreeze pads over to me and sits down. "I know you must want to rest, but what happened to you?"

I shiver in fear. I tell her about it all, how they kidnapped me, about the tests, where I was held, how I escaped. Lilacbreeze sighed.

"That's horrible. I have dressed all of your wounds, but you will be... mentally scarred. I have to do a followup about these... tests. I can't be sure, we would have to wait a moon to check, but it is possible that you could be... expecting kits. I am so sorry, Forestleap."

No!

"Why?" I whisper. "Why me?"

"You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, dear. Now you must rest." She feeds me two poppy seeds, and as I drift off, I think:

How can I ever sleep again?

OOH! Drama bomb! Thanks for reading!