CotS #1: The Dark Path (currently being rewritten)

Duskypelt stared back for a few seconds more. Then he shrugged and threw himself at the thornbush. I caught him and dumped him back on the ground.

"Stop it," I told him. "One day, you'll find love. Or you'll mean something. Would you seriously kill yourself now?"

"Do you know what went unannounced at the gathering?" Duskypelt whispered hoarsely.

I shook my head. If it was unannounced, obviously I wouldn't know.

"Deaths," Duskypelt whispered. "Deaths from the rogue raids. We've already lost Firespring, Shadowheart, Spidertail, Sunnyheart, Mistfur, Iceflight and Darkwind."

Firespring and Shadowheart, his parents. Spidertail ... Sunbright would be devastated. They'd lost almost all their kits at one point, but now Littlecloud was back, but Minnowpelt was still gone. Sunnyheart and Mistfur, Duskypelt's sisters. Poor him. No wonder life wasn't appealing anymore. Iceflight ... the rogues had killed a medicine cat? Iceflight ... Iceland. She was the one who had trained Songbird – Singapore. She was one of those CountryClan cats. Had she come here, only to get a weird name and die?

Duskypelt motioned for me to go. "I need to be alone now," he murmured. "And ... maybe you weren't the cat for me, even if I loved you for a long time."

"I don't think I was, either," I whispered back. "I never loved you. I'm so sorry, but I really, really never loved you."

"Okay..." whispered Duskypelt sadly.

I left him there. I went to fight some more, because I wasn't in the mood to stop there. I was a fighter.

Leafshine challenged me. Apparently, queens were practicing to fight too, even though Leafshine was still nursing. Her three kits – what were their names again I think it was Stormkit, Barbkit and Shardkit – they watched at the side, if only with their squirrel-brained pathetic warrior father.

Leafshine eyed me. "Shall we begin?" she asked testily.

"We may begin," I said with a grim smile, "whenever you feel ready."

A determined line set on Leafshine's jaw. "Well, obviously," she said, "that's now."

To be truthful, she did make the first move. But to be even more truthful, I was faster. I dodged her like a bullet and snaked my way behind her, smacking her hard in the back. Leafshine gasped, winded even from that, and I flung her backwards into the same pile of moss. Skystrike, who had just returned with new moss, rolled her eyes and brought her moss pile away from the fighting area. I honestly couldn't blame her. Anyway, she was doing moss with her sister, Fluffypaw. I'd never get tired of calling former Fluffytail Fluffypaw again.

I edged around Leafshine's fallen form. She wasn't moving, but that was a trick. So, I had to trick her more. I pretended to relax, and Leafshine sprung. Obviously, I was ready for her and caught her paw. I swung her around and threw her into the moss again. Leafshine rolled over, groaning, but she was in no shape to fight me again.

"Do you forfeit?" I asked her crisply, like a fair opponent.

Leafshine nodded weakly.

Cloudysky took their kits back to the nursery first, and Leafshine leaned over to me. "Do you still love him?" she asked me quietly, her voice pained. "He still loves you." She looked over to where her mate was quietly watching with their kits. "He never, ever forgot you. Your death broke him. Is that all? Now you come back? Is he yours again?"