A Day No Hawks Would Die

[{Lunarstar}]

With dark's pulsing glow,
Treading ever so,
We slink undetected into the night,
To find those of our harsh spite.
~Lunarstar

OOC: Nevermind! I don't wanna get rid of Luny! I like her too mcuh!

Lunarstar, keeping her yellow eyes half closed, trotted on ahead. Her black pelt melted into the shadows, only the yellow slits of her eyes visible in the night. She glanced behind her at her most trusted warrior, Ringtail. She was worried the white on his pelt would stick out too well, but thankfully the moon was covered and he was almost invisible. Lunarstar began to pick up her pace a little, realizing how close to their destination she was. Their plan was to get in, kill, get out.

"Ringtail, remember, I get Hawkstripe. You can have whoever." Lunarstar murmered to her warrior, not waiting for his response. Then, on impulse, she decided to leave him for last. Let him watch the death of his fellow clanmates, let him suffer. Then she added to Ringtail, "kill the girl, Hawkstripe's mate."

Nostrils flaring, Lunarstar lifted her black head to the black night. SHe could smell the horrible scent of NightClan, mingled with a faint StreamClan scent. They were close. Padding just a little bit further, she saw the Camp entrance and crawled in. All was silent in the camp, but she turned to Ringtail and hissed quietly, "check the dirtplace tunnel, make sure no cat's there." Than, with Hawkstar's scent fresh in her nose, she followed it to a den. Hawkstar's den. With the silence and agility of a snake, she entered the den and posied anunsheathed paw above the leader's neck.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

OOC:: That's good

Little did the black cat know, but the dark tabby beneath her paw was wide awake. Hawkstar had caught wind of the harsh fish-scent and lay awake, with her pale eyes closed. Now, with Lunarstar in her den, those orbs opened wide. A harsh growl exploded into the silence of the den and the dark tabby flew to her paws, right into the StreamClan cat's belly.

"Trespasser!" she screeched. Her yowl echoed around the entire NightClan camp, hopefully waking Hawkstripe and Whitefire. "How dare you! This is not noble. Why have you left the safety of your camp, fish-breath?" Before Lunarstar could even respond, Hawkstar clawed across her ears. "Respond!" she ordered.

[{Lunarstar}]

"I answer no cat's command, mangy crowfood-eater!" Lunarstar spat back, using her thin, sleek body to slip away from Hawkstar. She then leaped, knocking both her and the other leader to the ground, landing in a swarming mass of brown and black. "Tonight the world will be safe from Tigerstar and Hawkfrost forever! And from traitors like Hawkstripe!" Lunarstar screeched loudly enough for Ringtail to hear. That was the signal for Ringtail to lure Whitefire away and kill her. Then, as she bled to death, show her body to Hawkstripe. Then he was to tell Lunarstar andget his ass out of there.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

Hawkfrost? Tigerstar? What? "There is no longer a Hawkfrost or Tigerstar! And Hawkstripe didn't just betray you!" she added hotly. "My Warrior was too much of an idiot, and fell for him. We've all had out share of treachery." Hawkstar kicked out strongly with her hind legs, nailing Lunarstar in the belly and flinging her off.

Sitting up in her time to recover, the dark tabby leader growled, "We've all been and we are all going to be betrayed! You've been betrayed by your Warrior, I've" -her voice cracked with the remembrance- "been betrayed, we all have! You're just too selfish to realize everybody else could even have it worse than you!"

Yes, Hawkstar was speaking of her old home. How her mate had gained her trust and made her believe that he was so good. But then he changed, and told her how greedy for power he was... That was why she needed to end it...

[{Lunarstar}]

"You don't know anything, do you?" Lunarstar spat at the other leader, sitting up. "Hawkstripe is the decendant of Hawkfrost and Tigerstar! Now that Whitefire's expecting kits, they'll have the evil blood. FOr all any cat knows you have that tainted blood, too! All Hawks and Tigers must die!" Lunarstar ended her tirade with a screech, flinging her strong, sleek body at the other leader. She dug her claws into the other leader's side, ripping away fur and flesh, a stream of blood pouring from the wound.

"And you think you've been betrayed?" Lunarstar screeched. "I've been betrayed by so many cats in my life, my feeling's are numb! First my mother, calling me an ignorant kit who will be nothing more than a lowly Warrior, than my first mate, going off with another she-cat, now my Clan!" Lunarstar's eyes flashed with the face of each cat who had betrayed her. Most were loners, loners she had gottent oo close to. Ifyoulooked closely, you could probably see each cat's face reflected in her burning yellow eyes.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

Hawkstar screamed in pain as her side was torn open, tears forming at the edges of her eyes. "I have no blood from those two!" she yowled. "I'm not even from these lands! I didn't know them until I came here!" She hauled herself away and retreated to the back of her den, goading the other cat to fight her in the darkness.

"I've had it just as bad, Lunarstar!" she snapped hotly. "My mate betrayed me! Then, my best friend who I thought would always be there for me, claimed that I killed him! And, you know what happened after that? No you don't, so sit back and let me tell you." The dark tabby sprang forward and tackled down the black she-cat. Her fangs found one of her front paws and she bit into the foreleg. Once she felt blood pour into her mouth, she let go and sprang away, knowing that Lunarstar would be weaker without a leg.

"My whole family, my whole Clan, chased me out! They had no proof, yet I was forced down the Path of Exile! I had until they had counted to ten to run, or they would have killed me in cold blood. I ran for days and begged my way into NightClan as an innocent and weak she-cat that was afraid of every creak and groan of the woods!" Hawkstar's eyes were now letting those tears go. She had never told any cat about her past in her fury. No, she would normally act by just attacking them.

"You are a selfish cat, Lunarstar. What if Hawkstripe doesn't want to be like Tigerstar or Hawkfrost? What if he is an independent cat and want to live his own life? I would expect more from you, Lunarstar. He was brought up around you, wasn't he? Don't you have any faith in your own Warriors?"

[{Lunarstar}]

Lunarstar grabbed the other she-cat's scruff (with some difficulty) and hauled her outside. Lunarstar alwasy did better in the open. "Of course I had faith in Hawkstripe! For StarClan's sake I had a crush on the tom! But then he betrayed me and StreamClan! And I heard him talking to his "mate"! He's beginning to have dreams from Hawkfrost! Just wait until he turns on you next!" Lunarstar, furiated now, launched herself at the other leader, and held her now using her good paw. Than she decided to make things even. Yellow eyes ablaze, fur sticking out, and a madness that proved this was a cat who could get away with murder, she ripped a long, deep gash in the other cat's paw, ripping out a claw while she was at it. Than she lunged for the dark tabby throat.

***

Amidst the debris of leaves and ferns walks a sullen male tom He is a large orange tom, with black tabby markings and hauntingly eerie blue eyes. He walks quickly, with purpose, among the dark. He shivers, for he doesn't like this dark place of no shadows, it scares him to have no warning. The quiet scares him. This cat is waiting-no expecting- something...or someone. He wears no expression other than deep forboding. This is a cat he doesn't want to meet, but must, for Hawkfrost has called him.

"Hello young Hawkstripe." comes the silky, comfident purr of Hawkfrost. Tigerstar's son. Second most evil cat of all. The tom, a large brown tabby with identicle eyes as Hawkstripe, steps out from the Dark Forest, his eyes narrowing, for he enjoys seeing his decendant so scared.

"Hello Hawkfrost. What do you want?" Hawkstripe demands irttiably, glaring at the cat.

"To warn you." Hawkfrost's sneer suddenly becomes a far-away look, and he gazes past Hawkstripe at something only he can see. "This is your chance to move to higher ranks in your Clan. Your leader, Hawkstar, and soon your mate,"-at this Hawkstripe gasps-"are in terrible danger. Lunarstar and her warrior are invading your Clan. Defend them, drive them out, and don't get killed." Hawkfrost mewed, disapearing as quickly as he'd come. And as his brown tabby pelt disappears, Hawkstripe is whisked from his dream.

Hawkstripe woke in his den, head spinning, trying to gather his thoughts, until he heard the fight.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

Hawkstar screamed in protest as she was brutally attacked. "You think getting me out here will help you? Did you forget what I just told you? I was accused for murder." That meant that Hawkstar did have capabilities of killing another cat. Keeping her now bleeding paw off of the ground, the she-cat somehow leaped up at Lunarstar, dodging the strike to her neck. The dark tabby found Lunarstar's shoulder and gripped it viciously in her fangs. That was the tabby's death hold.

She wouldn't let go until mercy was being begged for.

Narrowing her eyes, the leader cat flipped on her side, forcing Lunarstar down with her. She turned in odd angles that the other cat's body couldn't follow, tearing flesh and fur until the black cat was stained with red liquid. She flipped over and over again.

Hawk! You monster! What have you done?

Hawkstar sprang away, leaving the StreamClanner to bleed. Her paws were unsteady and her legs quivered. Rose's words had just echoed through her head. She would kill Lunarstar if she let the lust get the best of her.

[*Beechstar*]

Ringtail followed his leader through the forest without saying a word. He listened to her directions but didn't respond. He entered the strange NightClan camp after his leader, but went in a different den then she did. He used his sences to find where Whitefire, NightClans queen, was sleeping. He found the den and entered. He spotted her sleeping in a pile of moss. She was alone. So this must be the nursery, he thought. He exited the den, putting his plan to work. He sat right outside the den, but so he couldn't be seen. He called, "Whitefire...Whitefire...," in a soothing yet creepy voice when he heard Lunarstars call. He hoped to luer the queen out of the den and then attack her. . Whitefire: A sleeping cat lay on her pile of moss in the nursery. She was in a dreamless slumber though. A sudden calling of her name awoke her. She jolted up to a standing position. She heard it again and starte walking out of the cave. "W-who is it," she called, slightly frightened. She exited the cave and saw Ringtail, from StreamClan. She was about to cry out and warn the others when he knocked her over. The air in her lungs was thrust out of her chest and she found it suddenly hard to breathe. The Tom put a paw over her mouth. She could still breathe, but couldn't call out. Then she had an idea. Her eyes fluttered closed and she pretended to be knocked out. Ringtail let out a satisfied grunt. Suddenly, Whitefire threw him off of her and yowled, "HAWKSTRIPE!!!!!!!!"

[{Lunarstar}]

Hawkstripe immediately heard his mates, yowl, just outside of the Queen's den. With a loud, very dog-like growl, Hawkstripe threw himself out of his den. He saw Ringtail and WHitefire and locked his eyes squarely on his target.With another growl, he flew at top speed, using a shoulder to send the StreamClan cat flying a few tail lengths. He caught up and bared his fangs, snarling into the other cat's face: "You should have stayed at home..." Then, he grabbed the other cat's side in his powerful jaws and torn some fur and skin off.

Lunarstar laughed harshly, standing up and shaking blood from her pelt. "You think I haven't been accused? I killed my own deputy and leader for StarClan's sake! You think one more death on my paws is going to bother me? Not really! I can, and have, gotten away with murder!" And with those words she flung her lithe black body at the other leader, teeth quickly snagging the flesh of her throat. She ripped it open and backed off, waiting for the other cat's move. Now, both bleeding in steady streams, they were completely even...and dying.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

Hawkstar yowled in pain as Lunarstar's teeth met her neck. Blood bubbled ever so slightly in the depths of her throat. "That's it!" she screeched, hurling her much more muscular body at Lunarstar. She tackled her down and bit into her scruff. She shook her haad back and forth like a dog playing with a toy, tearing the skin with her thorn-sharp teeth. She turned her head in odd angles to cause more of a blood flow.

This time, no matter what, she was not letting go.

[{Lunarstar}]

With a furious yowl Lunarstar twisted her sleek body so her head and claws faced the other cat's throat. She dug her claws into the throat and bit down hard, speeding up the blood flow, then she clamp her fangs deep into the flesh of the throat and waited, scratching the other cat's front. SHe was not letting go until Hawkstar did. Hawk... Hawkstripe...

With a loud ripping sound, Lunarstar ripped herself from Hawkstar's grasp, leaving behind a bunch of fur and blood, and some skin. She needed to stay alive to kill Hawkstripe. So she raced into the forest, not calling a retreat, all she needed was some quick cobwebs and water. The black she-cat, almost invisible in the night, leaped into a stream, sighing in relief as the cool water erased the sting of her wounds. She waded as the pain slowly ebbed away, leaving a small, lingering sting. Then, getting out and shaking herself, she ran to a nearby tree stump and got a wad of cobwebs on a paw. She Pressed them against her worst wound she could reach, a large gash on her shoulder, trailing down to her throat.

[.:*Hawkstar*:.]

OOC:: Okay, she's still on NightClan territory, right? That's how I'm seeing it...

Hawkstar writhed on the ground for a moment or two, but was soon on her feet and racing after Lunarstar. She didn't need anything but scent to find her way about. She soon stumbled across the leader.

She was healing herself.

"First, you come and attack my Clan," Hawkstar growled, her dark fur hiding her from view, but her eyes, glowing green, gave her away. "Now, you steal what we need to heal ourselves. Have you no dignity?" Releasing a growl loud enough to wake a monster, the dark creature launched herself forward, down the slope she was on to ram into the black she-cat. She was tired of playing.

Extending her claws as far as they would go, Hawkstar tore through Lunarstar's back flanks, drawing blood in an instant. She went over the wounds another time before springing away. She wasn't away long, though. Just a heartbeat after she had darted out, she was back in, tearing at the cobwebs on Lunarstar's body. She could smell the acrid scent of their blood mixing, coating one another. Her fang were bared, but she wasn't yet ready to go for her.

The dark tabby cat knocked the black cat over, and pinned down all of her legs with her own. "Enough," she panted. "This fight is useless. This was not a noble fight. You should be ashamed of yourself. I have no Hawk blood in me, it's just my name. And Hawkstripe... you know damn straight that he's one of the most loyal cats. If he ever takes after his kin, you will not be the one to deal with him. I am his leader now, weather you like it or not." She took many deep breaths, almost enjoying the chance to take a break. Her green eyes illuminated her facial features, and also her exhaustion. Both of the leaders were worn out. The fight was getting them nowhere.

[*Beechstar*]

Ringtail yowled with pain as Hawkstripe ripped some of his fur off. He pulled away from the male, and glared at him, fury burning in his eyes. Then he remembered Prariestep. He remembered wanting kits and a mate. He knew that if he had a mate and kits, that he wouldn't want some cat to kill them. He backed off, all trace of fury and anger gone from him. He looked at Whitefire. "I'm sorry." He then turned to Hawkstripe. "I'm also sorry to you. I know that if I had a mate and kits, I wouldn't want them to be killed and I understand if you hate me. I just want to apologize." Without waiting for an acceptance of his apology, he ran off into the forest. He could hear Hawkstar and Lunarstar, but avoided them. Lunarstar would be very mad at him for retreating without killing Whitefire. He ran through NightClan territory, all the way to the border without stopping. When he was in StreamClan territory, he slowed down but didn't stop. When he reached camp, he went straight to the warriors den. He found Prariestep sleeping, but didn't disturb her. He walked over to his nest quietly, and curled up. He closed his eyes and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

Whitefire was surprised at Ringtail. She turned to Hawkstripe. "That was a bit strange don't you think," she asked him with a smile. She then heard Lunarstar and Hawkstar. "Come on," she meowed to Hawkstripe, "lets go see."

[{Lunarstar}]

Lunarstar glared at the other leader for along time, then the word 'kin' kicked in. Somewhere, deap in her mind, was her life, and it was coming out again, whether she liked it or not.

It started with Lunarkit opening her eyes to see Prairiekit and Blossomkit already fighting with kits twice their size, yellow eyes opened long before her's. That made her angry. Very angry. So she killed Blossomkit, her sister that had lived only three fortnights. That was just the beginning. As a kit she began triaining herself, what looked like a friendly game of moss-ball, was really a meticulous battle strategy.

As Lunarpaw, she began to seek apprenticeships from Loners. The loners taught her many things. How to love only oneself, how to never betray anything in mind or eyes, how to fight, and how to kill. She began hanging out with a nice young tom, Rainpaw. He was so handsome, and so like her father, light gray body with lighter silver flecks. His eyes were the signature yellow, the only cats Lunarstar was allowed to mate. Her family wanted to keep the yellow-eyed tradition going. She taught him some of her battle moves, introduced her to her favorite loner, a wise elderly cat named Bone. After showing him her world, he began to show her his. He showed her a spot in the territory he had found, it was beautiful. A small waterfall cascaded into a sparkling blue pool, the prey was abundant, and the rocks were great for sunning oneself. She began to love him.

After Lunarpaw's, Rainpaw's, and Prairiepaw's apprentice ceremony, she and Raintail immediately became mates and mated. She soon had three amazing kits, each with the signature yellow eyes. Dappled kit, a beautiful black she-cat with a dappled silver pelt; Moonkit, a handsome young tom black as his mother with a silver spot over one eye; and Silverkit, a perky she-cat completely silver. She loved those kits, until she told Bone about them. He was immediately angry, yelling that if she wanted to be deputy, she could not have kits or a mate. He told her, with a dark glint in his cold blue eyes, to kill them. So, she did. That night she took Raintail for a midnight walk, and killed him, making it look like a fox attack. Then she suffocated her kits, saying that they had just stopped breathing. She returned to Bone.

"Good!" he purred, grinning at her. "Now, become friends with the leader. If it's a male, make him love you, but not enough to ask you to be his mate. Make him trust you. Then, kill your deputy. Wait, you've had an apprentice, right?" Lunarstar only nodded. Then went out to find Sunstar.

She began to eat meals with him, share tounges with him, hunt with him. Then she took him to Raintail's special place. She and him began to grow a very large bond, and one night he asked to mate with her. She said she'd think about it and asked Bone. He told her he knew an ancient chant to keep a she-cat form getting pregnant for one moon. He used the chant.

Lunarflight and Sunstar mated, then she killed Speckledfoot, the deputy. Without a momment's hesitation, Sunstar selected her as deputy. She, once again, returned to Bone. He told her to kill Sunstar, and she'd be victorious, but first to kill her mother and father. "Love is weak, so kill those you love."

She did so, then Sunstar. Then became Lunarstar.

Lunarstar, overwhelmed by the sudden flashback, let out a gut-wrenching sob, followed by many more. The sobs tore from her thorat, shaking her whole body until she fell into a sodden black and bloodied ball. She knew Bone would be angry with her.