Despite Longtail having a head start, Sandstrike easily reached the top of the ravine and overtook him, leading the way to Snakerocks. Longtail was still fast, and reached the rock-dotted clearing only a moment after. The two cats stood in the rare Leaffall sunlight, gasping for breath.
"I…. beat… you," Sandstrike panted when she was able to speak again.
"You're… such… a showoff!" Longtail retorted.
"I'm still faster," Sandstrike purred.
"Whatever. Let's see who catches that rabbit first," Longtail smirked, disappearing into the forest. Sandstrike took off in a similar direction, scenting the air. Unfortunately, she only detected a mouse, and heard a nearby bird foraging for seeds.
I'll show that arrogant furball who's a better hunter, Sandstrike thought stubbornly, continuing on. Her luck turned for the better when she found a rabbit burrow in the ground, though the ground around it only had a stale scent. She also smelled that Longtail was nearby.
Argh, I can't wait for a rabbit to come out, Sandstrike growled softly. She left the burrow and followed a prey track regularly traveled by rabbits.
She continued to find no trace of her desired prey, and nearly jumped out of her fur when she saw movement to her left, only to find it was Longtail, not an enemy cat. She saw Longtail's ears perk forward, and he froze. Sandstrike scented the air, and found that there was a rabbit nearby. Sandstrike crept to Longtail's side.
"Let's remember who's fastest here," Sandstrike breathed. "Watch and learn."
"Nice try, apprentice!" Longtail leaped to his paws and ran in the direction of the rabbit. Sandstrike hissed and swiftly followed. As she crashed through the undergrowth, she spotted the fluffy white tail of the rabbit zigzagging through the forest, closely followed by the pale tabby. Sandstrike pushed harder against the hard forest ground, but she knew she couldn't catch it in time.
At least it'll be a nice meal, that rabbit's huge! Sandstrike thought. She watched Longtail leap for the rabbit, grasping it between his forepaws and tumbling to a stop. As Sandstrike approached, she saw the rabbit was struggling fiercely, making Longtail unable to deliver the killing bite. To her surprise, she saw the rabbit lash out at Longtail's face as he tried to kill it once more. Sandstrike's heart leaped with fear when she saw the rabbit's tiny claws come dangerously close to Longtail's yellow-green eyes. Longtail jerked his head back just in time so the rabbit's claws only grazed his muzzle. His surprise allowed the rabbit to escape. Sandstrike took off after it, but the rabbit got lucky and disappeared down a hole.
"Fox-dung!" Sandstrike cursed when she skidded to a halt. A moment later Longtail was at her side, his pale brown muzzle spotted with crimson. His eyes were wide with shock.
"Well… that was interesting," Longtail gave a shaky laugh.
"Are you okay?" Sandstrike asked.
"Well, I almost lost my eyes, but I'm fine," Longtail was making an obvious effort to hide his unease at the rabbit. Sandstrike sat down beside him, and the two were silent for a moment. Sandstrike saw the narrow scratch on Longtail's muzzle was still bleeding. She leaned forward and began to lick it clean. After a moment Longtail ducked his head away, avoiding Sandstrike's gaze.
After a bit of awkward silence Longtail spoke again. "I swear to Starclan if you tell anyone I was attacked by a rabbit-"
"I solemnly swear that your secret is safe with me," Sandstrike said in a mockingly serious voice.
"Well, sorry you don't get a meal," Longtail said.
"We can't catch all the prey, I guess," Sandstrike shrugged. "Want me to catch you a sparrow?" It was Longtail's favorite food.
"I can catch my own prey," Longtail smirked at her. "We still need to figure out who's the best hunter."
"Game on!" Sandstrike vanished into the ferns, and returned a heartbeat later with two mice.
"No fair!" Longtail whined.
"The best hunter is always looking for prey," Sandstrike tossed one of the mice at his paws. "Come on, eat quick so we can patrol the border."
The two cats scarfed down their meal and headed to the Thunderpath. They were heading away from the Thunderpath, following the border towards Fourtrees, when Longtail spoke again.
"Are you doing okay, with Fireheart's death?" He asked.
"I don't know…" Sandstrike muttered. "It's sad for sure, and horrible that it was done by a clanmate, but I'm not quite sure what I feel about it. We were enemies for a long time, but when his time came… I felt sad about it."
"Would you have become close?" Longtail pressed.
"Possibly," Sandstrike shrugged.
"Was Fireheart's death a coincidence?" Longtail said out of nowhere.
"What do you mean?" Sandstrike asked sharply.
"I may not support Tigerclaw's… rather dark methods of gaining power, but I know that Fireheart knew something. Was his death really unrelated to Tigerclaw, or was it orchestrated by him? Was Whitestorm really guilty?"
"Whitestorm, my own mentor, is not the cat I once knew," Sandstrike hissed. "Fireheart became my friend, I convinced Tigerclaw to keep him safe. Fireheart was important to Thunderclan's fate, and despite my efforts, he died. Now my brother has to bear Fireheart's responsibilities as a subject of Starclan's prophecies."
"I'm sorry," Longtail dipped his head. "What is Tigerclaw planning now?"
"Why would I trust you?" Sandstrike asked slowly.
"Please, I won't tell Bluestar," Longtail huffed. "Tigerclaw would just as soon kill me as he would Lionheart if I showed any sign of turning."
"Well, that's exactly what he's planning. He wants to kill Lionheart and take his place," Sandstrike explained. Longtail sighed.
"Who is killing him?"
"I don't know," Sandstrike growled. "Knowing Tigerclaw and his precious reputation, he'll make me do it."
"If you don't want to, then don't!" Longtail exclaimed. "You're your own cat! Doing Tigerclaw's bidding won't help your Clan, it'll destroy it! That cat is no good, Sandstrike. One day Tigerclaw will pay for his crimes, and I fear Thunderclan will pay as well."
"Longtail," Sandstrike sat down, her guilt crashing down on her. "I don't know if I can." Sandstrike was unable to explain, but with the burden of her clan's safety and her guilt of Fireheart's murder, she felt like she was dying when she unleashed it all. She just wanted to keep her Clan safe, but she was too deep in her own mess to back out now.
"Longtail-" Sandstrike began to sob. "I was such a fool! I was angry, I was grieving, and I let Tigerclaw manipulate me. It's all my fault, I planted these ideas in Tigerclaw's sinister head. I-"
"Sandstrike," Longtail interrupted. He crouched down in front of her, his yellow-green eyes round and full of pity, but the emotion in them captured Sandstrike's gaze. "This isn't your fault. You made some mistakes, but no cat is perfect. Regardless of what path you chose as an apprentice, Tigerclaw would have done horrible things either way. You were angry because of the kittypet, you were grieving because of your father, and you had no one to comfort you, no one understood you. You can't change what you've done to help Tigerclaw, but you can turn your paws on the right path for the future. You can't undo what's been done, but you can prevent Tigerclaw from doing terrible things later."
"Longtail…" Sandstrike hesitated, her eyes leaf-green pools of guilt. "I did kill Fireheart. I'm sorry."
"You didn't trust me," Longtail guessed. "You were trying to protect yourself."
"I feel terrible," Sandstrike choked. "I betrayed my mentor, he never did anything wrong, and now he's lost his place in the Clan."
"We can find him. We can bring him back to Thunderclan," Longtail assured her.
"Don't you understand? Didn't you see him when he left? He isn't mentally stable, he thinks the Clan is his enemy now," Sandstrike said bitterly. "I've ruined him."
"But when we tell the Clan, they'll realize Whitestorm is innocent! It was them condemning him that drove him mad, so when he hears-"
"And what do you want to tell the Clan?" Sandstrike snarled, tears dripping from her whiskers.
"What do you mean?" Longtail asked.
"How do we tell them Whitestorm is innocent after we fought so hard to convince them he was guilty? Who do we place the blame on? Are you going to turn me in to bring Whitestorm back?" Sandstrike asked in a deadly, quiet voice.
"Who has been behind this all? Tigerclaw." Longtail growled, his eyes dark with hate for the brown tabby tom. "Who benefits from this? Tigerclaw. Who deserves to pay? Ti-"
"You and me," Sandstrike interrupted. "You killed Ravenleap-" Longtail flinched. "And I killed Fireheart."
"We've been punishing ourselves with our guilt," Longtail murmured. "Tigerclaw must pay for his treachery. He has wanted us to kill our own clanmates, he's taken advantage of us to do it for him. We will make him dispose of Lionheart, but we'll catch him in the act. Tigerclaw will pay with his life, and the Clan will be well again."
"You make it sound so easy," Sandstrike said sadly.
"Sandstrike, Tigerclaw doesn't trust me," Longtail's eyes were apprehensive. "You have to act as a double agent until the time comes. You must play a paw in Lionheart's 'murder' so that you know when we catch Tigerclaw."
"I'll do better," Sandstrike insisted. "I'll go with Tigerclaw to do it. You just have to bring Bluestar and as many of our clanmates as you can."
"You're sure? It'll be dangerous," Longtail warned.
Sandstrike's gaze was full of a dull determination. With a dry mouth, she said, "After the danger I've put my Clan in, I deserve nothing less."