Chapter 11
"Stop this nonsense!"
Duskfang snarled at Hawkpaw, wings splayed wide as she backed away slowly. They're gone! I'll never see them again! Frenzied thoughts flashed through Hawkpaw's mind as she glowered up at Duskfang, eyes narrowed to slits.
Bunching her muscles in a leap, she prepared to spring at him. Suddenly, something knocked the breath out of her. Whirling around, Hawkpaw saw Smokepaw barreling into her side. She snarled and tried to retaliate.
"Hawkpaw, stop!"
Winged beasts! Hawkpaw bunched her muscles for a fresh attack. She would show these cats what happened when they attacked her family. She would claw them to shreds.
"Hawkpaw!"
Hawkpaw rounded on Smokepaw, and was about to slash at her ear. Suddenly, her growl of aggression got caught in her throat. Smokepaw was curled up in a tight ball, whimpering. As Hawkpaw examined her more closely, she realised that Smokepaw was crying.
The mad shot of adrenaline that had filled her muscles began to disparate. Hawkpaw looked around with newfound terror as she saw Duskfang watching her from narrowed eyes, chest and feathers puffed defensively.
The feathers and blood and fur all around Hawkpaw made her shiver once more, though rage didn't boil in her blood this time. The moon and stars shone down coldly, illuminating the rusty blood sprayed around the den. The frigid air retained the scent of fear, pain, and blood.
Then, Hawkpaw turned back to Smokepaw. To her surprise, the she-cat got to her paws, shuddering. She pressed herself against Hawkpaw, and embraced her. It was strange, the feeling of another cat so close to her. Hawkpaw felt initially very tense, but then Smokepaw spoke softly.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered. "I-I thought we were better than this."
Hawkpaw stared at the mess of blood around the clearing, and the drifts of blowing snow that had covered the evidence of what her family had done next. They could all be dead, for all she knew. Her throat went dry at any words she could say to Smokepaw. Eventually she sighed.
"You didn't do it, though." But someone in that clan did...
Smokepaw opened her wings, and pressed them against Hawkpaw's shoulders in an act to comfort her. Hawkpaw exhaled slowly, feeling exhaustion begin to fill all her muscles. Eventually, Smokepaw let go, and Hawkpaw turned to face Duskfang's wrath.
He opened his jaws, but no words came out. Ration came in to Hawk's head once more. He must not have known about the attack either; he had let them so close to the den without thinking.
Then, Duskfang eyed her. "I'll fly home and report this at once," he announced briskly. "Whoever did this should not go unpunished. It was clearly behind Talonstar's back." He lifted his wings into the sky. "Smokepaw," he meowed. "I trust you to get Hawkpaw home safely."
Then, he leaped in the sky, and powerful wing beats led him farther and farther away from Hawkpaw and Smokepaw. As soon as he was gone, Smokepaw sagged to the ground, eyes glittering.
Her sunrise-coloured wings dropped to her side dejectedly. She slumped down, eyeing the mess of feathers of all shapes and colours.
"I really thought us FalconClan cats were the good guys," she meowed, dragging one paw through the snow. "The rogues are the evil ones."
Have you seen I'm not evil? Hawkpaw thought indignantly. Then, guilt at nearly clawing Smokepaw set in. She had been more volatile than the cool-faced clan cats.
As Hawkpaw sat down beside Smokepaw, the smoky she-cat let out a heavy sigh. "I should tell you why us clan cats hate rogues so much," she meowed at length.
Hawkpaw stared into the distant horizon, where the sun was beginning to rise, as Smokepaw spoke. The first dawn rays illuminated her face, and the marks on it where tears had run down.
"There was once a cat in FalconClan named Eagleswoop." She spoke each word slowly. "She was kind, brave, a bit ferocious, and our clan deputy," Smokepaw went on. "She kept FalconClan strong and noble. We didn't lose very much land or life."
Smokepaw stared into the distant horizon sadly. "That was about three moons ago," she meowed. "I was an older kit at the time. Then," Smokepaw's voice caught in her throat. "I'll always remember this day because-"
"You don't have to tell me," Hawkpaw meowed, resting a tail on Smokepaw's quivering flanks. Whatever this story was, it was causing her a lot of stress.
Smokepaw shook her head wordlessly and went on. "I was playing with my brother Coalkit, laughing and swiping playfully at him. Suddenly, Dawnclaw and Frostwing burst into the camp, the reek of blood swamping them." Hawkpaw leaned against Smokepaw to keep her from crumpling to the ground. "On top of them," Smokepaw whispered. "Was Eagleswoop's dead body."
"She was covered in scratches," Smokepaw went on. "She hadn't gone down without a fight. Frostwing had scratches too." I remember padding up to them, desperately nosing them to see her, when he kicked me out of the way. 'She's dead,' he'd growled."
"Coalpaw was beside me, desperate to see what was going on. Then, Frostwing slid the body off his back, and I saw Eagleswoop's lifeless frame. He told us all a tale of how four evil scarred rogues had attacked them in the forest, and had killed her."
Smokepaw leaned all her weight against Hawkpaw's side, breathing heavily. Hawkpaw expected her to stop, but Smokepaw managed out four more words through gasping breaths and tears.
"She was my mother."
So that's why they despise me so much, Hawkpaw thought. Through me, they see someone evil enough to take another's life.
Hawkpaw ran her tail along Smokepaw's back, knowing that there was nothing more she could say. She thought of Adder and her group. They only killed out of self defence. Kill or be killed.
Gradually, Smokepaw's rapid breathing deepened, and she turned to Hawkpaw with a calmer expression.
"That's the story," she meowed at sadly. "And I've hated rogues ever since."
"You don't have to hate all of us," Hawkpaw meowed bracingly. "There are plenty of good rogues out there. Like me."
Smokepaw stared at her sadly. Hawkpaw expected her to back up her conviction, to say that she wasn't a rogue, but then, Smokepaw said something unexpected.
"You're right."
Nobody's ever said that to me before. Hawkpaw blinked as Smokepaw got to her paws. She swayed slightly, and Hawkpaw supported her weight. Then, the two of them looked back at the mess of blood and feathers.
Smokepaw bounded towards them, and began examining all of the feathers closely.
"What are you doing?" Hawkpaw meowed sharply.
Smokepaw glanced over her shoulder, gesturing at Hawkpaw to join her. "I'm looking for clues," she explained.
Hesitantly, Hawkpaw padded towards Smokepaw. She narrowed her eyes as she scanned the ground for any sort of clues. Then, she turned to Smokepaw, an idea flashing through her head.
"Can you tell which cats have these specific coloured feather?!" She asked Smokepaw. "Then, Talonstar would know exactly who to punish."
Smokepaw stared at the ground.
"I don't know if that'll work," she mumbled.
"Can you at least tell me who these feathers belong to?" Hawkpaw asked. "Please, Smokepaw."
Smokepaw hesitated once more. She took a deep breath, and piled all the feathers together. There were six in total, though some looked as though they could be from the same cat.
"Let's see," Smokepaw meowed softly. "These two," she gestured to two pale pink wings. "They belong to Roseflight." She scrunched her muzzle in confusion. "But Roseflight's the most empathetic and gentle cat in the clan, I don't understand."
Hawkpaw's heart pounded in her chest as she listened to Smokepaw talk about the cats suspected of eliminating her family. "And these two?" She gestured to two dark grey wings.
"Talonstar?" Smokepaw's eyes were wide in confusion as she stared not at Talonstar's two feathers, but at the two beside her.
She pointed to the white one. "That's Snowpaw's," she meowed slowly. What?! Then realisation dawned on Hawkpaw as Smokepaw nodded to the last one. "And that's mine."
I was meant to see this. Sudden realisation made Hawkpaw's stomach churn. Maybe not yet, but I was meant to come here, and see the feathers of these cats. Somebody expected me to go feral and...
"Hawkpaw?"
Smokepaw was beside Hawkpaw. As Hawkpaw turned slowly to face her, Smokepaw shivered.
"I-I didn't do it!" She meowed. "You can tell, right?"
"Of course I can," Hawkpaw snarled as she swiped at the feathers. They dispersed before settling again on the bloody clearing. Then, Hawkpaw turned back to Smokepaw. "You know what this means, right?"
Smokepaw shook her head, but Hawkpaw could see that deep down, she had some idea.
"I don't quite understand yet," Hawkpaw meowed slowly. "But some cat wants all of the cats whose feathers are here gone."
"Me?!" Smokepaw yelped, sudden fear flashing like wildfire in her eyes.
"Maybe it's because you and Snowpaw were friendly to me," Hawkpaw meowed. Smokepaw hadn't been all that friendly to start off though... "I think this cat wants me to be a mindless feral who will do their own dirty work in FalconClan," Hawkpaw meowed. "I don't know anything about Roseflight, but Talonstar..." she eyed Smokepaw sharply. "Some cat inside FalconClan wants control of the clan."
Smokepaw shivered in horror, but Hawkpaw pressed reassuringly against her.
"Come on," she meowed. "Let's go home. Then maybe we can figure this all out."
As the two she-cats made their way back towards FalconClan camp, Hawkpaw glanced once more over her now winged shoulder. They're all gone, she thought. Then, Hawkpaw thought she saw a flash of bright ginger fur, exactly the colour of Blaze's.
Hawkpaw shook herself to clear her head. It couldn't have been. Turning back to Smokepaw, she let the cat lean heavily against her. It was still a long tedious journey back home.