Hollyleaf's Madness

Hollyleaf ramble deep in the dark, mixed forest. She is very long thinking. Sudden, growl played in her throat, and her fur stands on end. Cat remembered again a moment, revealing the truth of her origin.

***

During the fire in ThunderClan.

The thorns protecting the entrance to the camp burst into flames due to lightning striking them. Cats, staying in the camp, were trapped. However, they were lucky, that they had an emergency exit. Trinity, namely Jayfeather, Hollyleaf, and Lionblaze rushed there with their mother, Squirrelflight. They howled in fear: a blinding, white flash of lightning struck the ground, a few tails away from the cats themselves. Followed by a deafeningly loud clap of thunder. The bushes, surrounding the cats suddenly burst into flames. The trio, with the exception of Squirrelflight, were trapped. Huddled together, the three cats looked around in horror: Their camp was burning. Squirrelflight quickly returned to its place, dragging a large and heavy branch in its mouth. — I'm here! I'll try to help you: I'll stretch out a branch, and you need to run along it as quickly as possible before it catches fire, — The cat spoke confidently, but with a little fear. It was obvious from Belka that she was already exhausted, but the she did not stop dragging the heavy branch. She will do anything to save her chindren. Suddenly, another feline figure appeared from the flames. Among the Trinity, only Hollyleaf saw this cat. Taking a closer look, she recognized him as the cat of her tribe: Ashfur. Hollyleaf began to hope for a quick rescue. The young warrior approached the cats. Squirrelflight, seeing Ashfur, threw the branch to the ground with a heavy sigh. — Help me push this branch into the fire! Please! — Squirrelflight shouted. Ashfur grabbed the branch with his teeth and threw it to the side where Trinity stood. The path was open, however, Hollyleaf did not feel any joy. She was alarmed by the strange look of Coal, whose eyes seemed to be burning… with a desire for revenge?! The thrown branch formed a strong bridge over the fire, but Coal suddenly stood on the end of the branch, blocking the path to salvation. — Ashfur, step aside, — Squirrelflight asked in a slightly drooping voice. — Let them pass! But he didn't leave. He looked at Squirrelflight threateningly. — Didn’t you understand anything? You made me suffer by choosing not me, but Brambleclaw, — the cat hissed angrily. — This is the only way to make you suffer the way I suffered! Let your children burn in fire! The trio watched them quietly, trembling with fear. The fire was already very close. To such an extent that occasionally, the fur of Hollyleaf and Lionblaze, standing on Jayfeather's sides, would burn a little. Squirrelflight was silent for a while, but soon raised her head and looked into the evil eyes of Ashfur. — You can kill them, — she said calmly. — I don't care. If you wanted to hurt me, you could have come up with something better, — Squirrel growled. — Because they are not my children, — she hissed after waiting a little. — Did you see the birth? No. Did you see how I raised them?! Did I really live with them in the nursery before they became squires?! No!

***

Hollyleaf came out of her memories and began to think again: «But it’s true. The Squirrelflight didn't raise us. She didn’t live with us in the nursery. But how dare she, along with Leafpool, lie to many ThunderClan cats?! How could Leafpool break the Warrior code?! Plus, she's a healer! How, after this, does she even have the right to live?!» With these thoughts, the young warrior went to her camp. Hollyleaf was already approaching her camp. She was overwhelmed with thoughts about Leafpool: About the fact that this impudent cat dared to break the Warrior code! Plunging into these thoughts, Hollyleaf seemed to go crazy, hating this cat, even though she was her mother. Hollyleaf came to camp. The cat began to look for the leader, — Firestar. Luckily for her, he was lying in a small clearing, dozing a little in the sun. Hollyleaf began to approach the leader. The cat heard footsteps approaching him and opened his eyes, asking a question at the same time. — Hollyleaf? Do you need something? — Firestar looked with interest at the cat that disturbed his sleep. —Yes, Firestar… — Hollyleaf hesitated a little. — Um… Could you please gather the whole tribe at the Stone Cornice? I have some news to tell our tribe! — The cat looked anxiously into Firestar’s eyes, hoping that he would not start asking «unnecessary» questions. — And what kind of news is this? — The cat narrowed his eyes slightly. — First tell it to me, I need to know what to report to the tribe. — Oh, Firestar… I think I can handle it on my own, trust me, — Hollyleaf staggered nervously. — I just need you to collect all the cats. — Well… Okay. For now, gather your thoughts, and when you are ready… — Firestar, I’m ready! — The cat exclaimed, not allowing the cat to finish. — Excellent, — Firestar nodded to the cat and ran to the ledge. — Let all the cats, who are able to hunt on their own gather under the Stone Cornice! — The leader exclaimed. Most of the tribe was already in the clearing. The cats came closer, expecting Firestar's speech. The group of cats looked at Hollyleaf, who was walking straight towards Firestar, in surprise and did not understand what was happening, but they did not ask about it out loud. — Hollyleaf has news for us, — the leader began. — Let's listen to her! — The cat stepped to the side, giving way to the cat. Hollyleaf slowly walked to the spot Firestar had given her. She, finding Leafpool among the crowd, threw her embittered and cunning gaze at her. Leafpool backed away excitedly… Hollyleaf slowly walked to the spot Firestar had given her. She, passing Leafpool among the crowd, threw her embittered and cunning glance at her. Leafpool backed away excitedly… Hollyleaf was a little nervous, but her hatred of Leafpool helped overcome her fear. The cat appeared, and still decided to speak. — ThunderClan cats! You all know, that Leafpool is the healer of our tribe. But does everyone know that she, being a healer, secretly violated the Warrior code, when she date with a cat, and even from other tribes?! — She looked with obvious hatred at Leafpool, who instantly cowered in fear. — How does she live among us with a clear conscience?! This is outrageous! — After these words, Hollyleaf began to slowly slow down from the ledge. The cats were fussing. However, no one showed strong aggression towards the healer, even after Hollyleaf's statement. But Firestar did not understand this her hatred for her mother. — Hollyleaf? What does this all mean? What's happening?! — The cat nervously looked towards Hollyleaf, whose fur stood on end. She approached Leafpool. Hollyleaf just grinned sarcastically. When she was already very close, she began to growl at her mother. — So… Leafpool! Your last words! Leafpool didn't understand that Hollyleaf was going to attack her. — What…? — The healer exclaimed in fright. — What you… But she didn’t have time to finish. Hollyleaf grabbed her soft, warm throat tightly, and bit down hard enough that the healer lost consciousness and began to bleed. The bite sprayed heavily with bloody drops, leaving marks both on Leafpool's fur and on Hollyleaf, who had most of her muzzle covered in her mother's blood. The cat spat out the mother's fur from its mouth. Leafpool's body collapsed with a thud, limp on the grass. All the cats, except Hollyleaf, were very terrified. They couldn't say anything at all. But then Hollyleaf herself broke the silence. — This is all for the good of the tribe… — she whispered. Firestar came out of his daze. He silently approached the body of his dead daughter, and several tears began to flow out. He then looked decisively at Hollyleaf. — Hollyleaf! You've been kicked out of the tribe! Forever! Don’t you dare come back to us, — the leader hissed sternly and with a little anger. He then turned to the young healer. — Jayfeather… Can Leafpool be saved…? — The cat looked at the healer with hope. — Unfortunately, no… Hollyleaf… Inflicted a fatal bite… — Jayfeather said this with pauses. He could not believe that his own sister killed their mother, who was also a mentor to a blind cat. Hollyleaf was glad that her plan worked, but at the same time she felt sorry for her brother. He remained the only healer of ThunderClan, without at least some support in healing, as Leafpool had done before. Hollyleaf, unable to withstand the tension, ran away from the camp. When she started running, many cats screamed and screamed after her, but the cat did not pay attention to it. Having run into the forest, she began to look for a place to live.