Echokit opened her eyes, stretched her sore muscles, the product of sleeping in a hunched up position as she took in her surroundings. Her mother must've moved her from the floor of the Nursery and into their nest after the fight with the badger. She stood up and winced slightly as her muscles screamed protest, before sneaking away from her sleeping mother and stalked behind the medicine cats' den. The sun was slowly climbing over the horizon and she couldn't see why she shouldn't be allowed outside for some fresh air.

"Echokit!" she heard a voice call her name and she whipped her head around to the origin of the sound. She breathed a quiet sigh of relief when she saw that it was none other than her littermate, Honeykit.

"What are you doing out here?" she asked, stretching her limbs and giving a wide-mouthed yawn.

"I'm only overseeing the camp, as it is one's duty to make sure that everyone is well-fed," Echokit told Honeykit in her authoritative tone, standing up straighter, flattening the fur that has raised involuntarily on her back and tilted her chin upwards.

Honeykit frowned slightly and replied,

"But...isn't that Mother's job? We're supposed-"

"To be kits and have fun and enjoy our live and all that mouse-dung," Echokit mocked in Honeykit's voice before her tone dropped to a sharp, icy growl.

"There's nothing called relaxation. Not having a care in the world guarantees you to be a failure. Don't ever mention the word, 'fun', in front of me ever again, otherwise,"Echokit barrelled her litter ate down on the ground and slammed her paw down on Honeykit's windpipe,

"Some bad things could happen to you," she finished in her sweet, saccharine voice, smiling a little before walking away, leaving her sister gasping for breath on the ground.

Echokit sauntered out from behind the den and came face to face with the massive apprentice, Brookpaw.

"Look here," Brookpaw hissed, "Just because you're Amberstar's kit doesn't mean you can go harass other kits like that. I can't believe you would do that to your own littermate!"

Echokit laughed slightly and decided that Brookpaw's sense of virtue would make him a fun one to mess around with,

"So exactly what are you going to do about that, hm?"

Brookpaw snarled and lunged forwards, snagging Echokit easily between his paws. Echokit tried to bite his paw, but ended up tearing one of his claws out. She spat it aside and tried to kick or strike back with full force, but her feeble attempts were easily blocked by the more experienced apprentice. When Echokit saw black edging the rims and darting across her vision, she knew she had to give in, but wouldn't yield in such an embarrassing way.

When she heard the rustles coming from inside the Nursery, she knew that some cat must be awake. Echokit gave her best in pained, helpless kitten mew, hoping that someone would come to her rescue.

As she continued her crying, and saw the smile on Brookpaw's face stretching wider and wider. A flurry of paws sounded beside her and she twisted her head slightly, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw a horrified Amberstar standing beside them.

"Brookpaw!" Amberstar yowled at the top of her lungs, hauling the hefty apprentice off her, "what are you doing?!"

Brookpaw shook himself as he opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Echokit's mother,

"Don't try to explain yourself, you murderer. Trying to kill my own kit in plain sight!"

As the commotion slowly but steadily grew, Echokit wanted to stir it up even further, hoping to push to the point where Brookpaw would be sent to exile or execution.

A glint caught the corner of her eye, saw the bloody claw of Brookpaw and quietly walked over to it.

An idea formed in her mind as she took the apprentice's torn-off claw and pressed it onto her stomach. With a quick, deft move, she drew it all the way down to her tail tip. It was a shallow wound, but the blood made the cut seem much more grave and serious than what it actually was. Echokit then pretended to collapse and lay there in her own blood.

When Echokit saw Amberstar turn in her direction, she breathed into the blood on the ground, creating small bubbles. A traumatized cry made Echokit smile slightly, but she was sure to hide her expression in the blood that pooled around her neck and face.

"Look at what that...that cold-hearted murderer has done to my precious kit! Oh my brave, poor darling!" Amberstar shrieked before curling around Echokit, murmuring comforting words to her.

After a while, Minnowsoar and Marshpaw arrived at the scene, each carrying a small bundle of herbs.

Amberstar gingerly gave Echokit to Minnowsoar for a check-up.

"She seems fine," Minnowsoar spoke after examining her. "The wound's not deep, it'll just need a bit of patching up and she'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Amberstar frantically, licking Echokit like there would be no tomorrow and that Echokit would surely die.

"Yes," sighed Minnowsoar tiredly. "Marshpaw, could you please go and get some water-soaked moss? I'd like to clear out Echokit's wound, to see how deep it really is."

Marshpaw nodded and sprinted off to the stream outside of camp. A few seconds later, he returned with a dripping ball of moss.

"Amberstar, please make sure Echokit doesn't move. We need her to be on her back so that we can see how serious the wound is and to clean it," Minnowsoar ordered softly.

Echokit saw Amberstar nod, and decided to go along with it.

"Mama?" she pretended to act confused and scared.

"Shh, my darling, everything's going to be okay," Amberstar reassured her, but her voice suggested otherwise.

Echokit felt a cold trickle bite at her stomach and flinched slightly. She looked down at her stomach and saw pale pink

"Don't move," Minnowsoar ordered as Marshpaw squeezed the moss dry of its contents, washing the blood from Echokit's fur.

"See!" Minnowsoar triumphantly purred, "Not deep at all!"

Amberstar gave an audible sigh of relief and Marshpaw butted in,

"So, we put on the poultice next?"

[TIMESKIP]

In the safety of the Nursery, Echokit watched her mother bound up onto the High-Cliff and heard her mother's voice ring out,

"May all cats old enough to catch their own prey, please gather under the High-Cliff for a meeting!"

Amberstar barely paused for her clan to gather before calling out again,

"Today, we have our first execution in 50 moons. I know Birchstar promoted peace and harmony, however, we cannot let such a cold-hearted murderer go unscathed."

Echokit lay her head on her paws, fur covering her elated expression as she continued to watch,

"Brookpaw," she heard Amberstar's cold, calculated hiss. "Come up and stand here."

The white and brown apprentice shook slightly, but held his head high as he clambered up the High-Cliff.

"You have attempted to murder my kit, Echokit. Your punishment will be death. This is to let you know, let everyone in the clan know that no one will get away with harming my kin."

Amberstar's lip curled upwards as she forced Brookpaw's mouth open, pulled his tongue out, slowly and in a deliberately sloppy way, sliced it off. Echokit's eyes shone with enjoyment as she heard the wretched screams and calls of pain that emerged from Brookpaw.

She leaned forwards and tore out his throat before tossing him off the High-Cliff.

Echokit watched as the apprentice slowly sagged, drowning in his own blood, pale red bubbles forming around his neck.

"His body shall be left here. The crows can peck at it. The Field of the Dead is only for honourable warriors, not sly, conniving snakes like him," Amberstar snarled at Fawnpaw who was advancing to try and carry what was formerly her brother to the Field of the Dead.

Echokit curled up in the medicine cats' den and looked at Marshpaw.

"Marshpaw," she mewed softly at the apprentice.

"Yes?" he asked, jumping slightly, before turning to look at Echokit.

"Why must there be executions? Can't we just...exile him for a moon before he can return?" she asked, wearing an innocent, pure façade.

Marshpaw's eyes softened as he sighed,

"You wouldn't understand, little one. He's done something unforgivable-"

"I forgive him," she pouted. "I know he tried to kill me, but I'm sure he had a reason behind it. Maybe he was avenging someone. Maybe he'd just lost it and gave up on holding onto sanity as it brought him nothing."

Marshpaw blinked in surprised and paused for a few seconds, regaining his compare before answering to the kit,

"You know, Echokit. If your words are any indication as to what you'll become in the future, you'll make a great leader."