Life 1:10

Things were starting to fall back into some semblance of normality. Firepaw was training again, only this time under Bluestar's tutelage. With them was commonly Runningwind and Snakepaw. It brought Firepaw some amount of joy to be training with his odd friend again. Snakepaw was certainly a strange one when it came to interactions. He'd recently hit a major growth spirt and was now taller than Firepaw.

Bluestar knew of Snakepaw's duty, so she assigned collaborative training whenever she could. Snakepaw would spar with and hunt with Firepaw. She knew Snakepaw knew methods long forgotten that still were effective. Firepaw would pick them up as Snakepaw used them. It was in spars that things got weird. Snakepaw was near impossible to predict. He could swap styles in an instant. On top of that, he was far more experienced than Firepaw. While Firepaw was no slouch, Snakepaw always forced him to fight with all his might and knowledge, constantly pushing him. It wasn't tested, but due to this training, Firepaw was becoming one of the best fighters in the clan, able to read intent and predict attacks. Firepaw developed quite a skillset from sparring against an opponent that had lifetimes of training beyond what all the clans could provide.

Of course, Snakepaw was nowhere near perfect. He was still the easily distractable sort that opted on optimism far too often. Firepaw had to drag Snakepaww out of a bush or hole many times since Snakepaw got too confident or tripped or some other such happenstance. While Firepaw just found it somewhat annoying, Bluestar and Snakepaw knew what it really meant. He'd be gone soon.

While Snakepaw was unsure of when he'd go, he decided to double down on his efforts to teach Firepaw. His kittish demeaner were slipping as he rushed to accomplish his goal. Firepaw needed all the knowledge he could get on how to survive out here, and Snakepaw sensed there was a lot of hardship to come for his friend.

Snakepaw remained in camp when the Gathering arrived. The fact that Brokenstar killed him in his last life was argument enough for Bluestar to allow him to stay. Despite this, Snakepaw knew his fate was coming soon. He just wondered how. What would kill him this time? Snakepaw stretched under the moonlight, feeling the familiar ache he always felt when a cycle was ending naturally. His knees had a constant slight pain and his back always felt like it was stretched a bit too far. If Snakepaw were to compare this pain to anything else, it'd be early growing pains. It was always around this time that Snakepaw would experience sudden clumsiness like tripping over his own paws, miscalculating a jump, and so forth.

Snakepaw let out a somewhat annoyed sigh. He always hated leaving, but it was all too common. Every life he lived was special to him, even if they were brief, nightmarish, or filled with unpleasantries. Every time, he lost someone. No matter the life, he always found someone to befriend, to care about their life, to wish to see happy. Even with that one day he knew Badgerpaw, he knew that kit would be his friend for that lifetime. It was such a shame that it was cut short so quickly. The cats here though, they'd outlive him. He'd be forced to move on again as they remained. By the time he came back around, there'd be no telling if they were even alive anymore. Even if they were, they wouldn't be the same. Firepaw would be grown the next time he saw him, possibly even having kits of his own. Meanwhile, Snakepaw would remain unchanged, stagnant… Snakepaw shook those thoughts out of his head. It wouldn't do to ponder them. He'd long ago given up on trying to resist the cycle. He always tried to avoid these thoughts, but every once and a while they'd creep in.

Suddenly, Firepaw burst through the camp barrier, headed towards the medicine den. Snakepaw made to follow. There, he found Firepaw trying to urge Yellowfang to leave before something could happen. Firepaw noticed Snakepaw's entrance soon after.

"Snakepaw! You don't believe Yellowfang would kill kits, do you?" Firepaw urgently mewed.

Snakepaw shook his head as he answered. "If it's the two I'm thinking of, then I can guarantee Yellowfang didn't kill them."

Yellowfang pierced him with a stare. She was beginning to understand Snakepaw's nature, but it put her on edge. "And what would you know of that?" She tested.

"One of them was Badgerpaw, right? If so, then I even know who the real killer is." Snakepaw answered firmly.

"How would you know that?" Yellowfang demanded, getting face to face with Snakepaw.

"It'd be very hard for me to forget my own murderer's face." He answered in a disturbing calm, causing Yellowfang to reel back.

"You… You were…" She stuttered.

"The kit you couldn't identify. It happens. You are one of the few who wouldn't instantly know who I am, and you are one of the few who wouldn't instantly forget me upon my death. I'm sure all the cats knew I was a fresh apprentice of some sort, but they just couldn't remember my name. It happens every time. It's not worth worrying about. Not like I want myself avenged anyways. I gave as good as I got." Snakepaw answered in that same eerie calm.

"Then we've got to tell Bluestar!" Firepaw urgently mewed, making ready to burst out again.

"Hold it! You need to trust Bluestar right now. She's not the type to be played for a fool. We can tell Bluestar later, but right now you need to wait. Bluestar won't do anything rash. She's the type that needs proof. She won't go on just the word of anyone, even a clan leader. Tell you what. If Bluestar decided to try and exile Yellowfang, I'll stop her. Is that enough to calm you?" Snakepaw mewed.

"You'd really try to defend a cat you hardly know?" Yellowfang queried towards the cat that intrigued her in a horrifying way.

"I always opt on the side of optimism. Living in fear is something I know well. I once dreaded even opening my eyes, hoping for it all to end. Now, I keep my pace steady. I still have my same fears, but they aren't worth conceding to. What's the worst that can happen to me? I die? Not like that'll keep me down long. So yes, I'll leave myself exposed to you, knowing fully well you can betray me. I've had plenty who took the opportunity and plenty that didn't. So, make your choice." Snakepaw mewed, turning away and padding out into the clearing to await Bluestar's return.