Thundering Darkness

Chapter 33

Pebblepaw's heart pounded in her chest as she saw Darkthunder begin to bound away.

"Wait!" She called out plainfully, chest puffing for air.

The pure black she-cat turned back, eyes flashing with fear and anger. Her tail was curled up into a tight ball, and her eyes were round as though she had just seen a cat die.

"What do you want?" She hissed, then her eyes widened as she met Pebblepaw's desperate expression. "Pebblepaw?"

Pebblepaw could taste the ThunderClan scent, and her heart flipped over painfully in her chest, visions of the ThunderClan attack reeling in her mind. They had beaten the Paws United to RiverClan. Through the pounding of blood in her ears, Pebblepaw raised her chin defiantly to glare at Darkthunder.

"Why didn't you wait for the rest of us? Or even tell us about the fight?" Pebblepaw couldn't help letting the anger into her mew. "Is it really all for nothing? After everything, you still turn your back on us. After everything, you hardly even interact with your former friends."

Are they all dead already?!

Darkthunder was backing away, her tail flicking to and fro, eyes scanning the ground as though there was something interesting. "It's not like that," she muttered warily.

"Oh really?" Moons of love, moons of, moons of gradual growth, moons of living in a clan that really cared for her all shattered by one cat. Darkthunder.

After all the silence, all the putting everything into a box, or putting all the guilt onto herself, now she finally let fury towards her former clanmate seep in like vile black liquid. At that moment, she even forgot about the battle at paw, blinded by a desperate sort of rage which permeated her body.

Darkthunder saw something click in her eyes, a change in her expression. "Haven't I helped you?" she muttered under her breath. "Giving Thornpaw and Batpaw little helpful tidbits about ThunderClan's strategy and course of action. Sure, we haven't seen each other since... you rescued me and Boulderpaw, but I thou-"

Pebblepaw silenced her with an irritated lash of her tail. "I can't believe it," she hissed. "I've been trying so hard. And I feel like it's all going to waste..."

Darkthunder took a step forward. Her green eyes glinted in the gloom, eerie in the blue and black hues of the night.

"I understa-" Darkthunder began, but Pebblepaw cut her off.

Pebblepaw felt her legs trembling, and her breath coming out in ragged gasps as she faced Darkthunder. "You don't," she mewed harshly. "I try to be upbeat and positive for everycat but inside... inside I feel like a wreck. I'm so furious, and yet so sad all at the same time."

Pebblepaw felt as vulnerable as a leaf in the wind. She found herself falling forward, and in a flash of black fur, Darkthunder caught her. They hadn't been this close since...

"You have a right to feel all those things," Darkthunder meowed fiercely, holding Pebblepaw up. "Honestly, I get it, well sort of. You're an empath, so you feel things others ignore. You have anxiety, depression, and a drive for success that is suffocating."

Pebblepaw let herself rest in the black fur, and felt Darkthunder's thick muscle underneath. Her former clanmate had grown, fierce and powerful. Yet, Pebblepaw was astonished by how Darkthunder could see things in her that she couldn't see in herself.

"It's hard being alone," Pebblepaw admitted.

There was a loud chuff from Darkthunder, and Pebblepaw saw the black she-cat turn her head around and fix Pebblepaw with a rueful glance. "You're not alone now," she said.