The truth hurts because it's real. It hurts because it mattered. And that's an important thing to acknowledge to yourself.

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"Watch it, stupid!" Moonkit spat when Maplepaw nudged past the she-cat. The white-and-cream she-cat had been in the medicine cat's den for the past couple of days when she had fallen mildly ill to green-cough.

"Maybe you should be careful, huh? Or have your days of green-cough blunted your senses of direction so badly you can't tell the difference between me and the wall of the Nursery?" Maplepaw snapped. Today, she didn't have time for the she-cat. Tinycloud was waiting for her and she was going to be battle-training today. She was only here to say hello to Heatherstalk, who was going to become a full-time warrior in a few days.

Maplepaw rushed out of the Nursery before picking up a sparrow and wolfing it down before hurrying to the edge of the camp where her mentor was waiting for her.

"Hello, Maplepaw. Today we will be battle training. Come on. Let's get there. Shadepaw and Waspsting will be joining us," Tinycloud said in his quiet voice.

Maplepaw's ear flicked with ire. If she lost a battle with her former brother, her father would continue to reprimand her. However, if she won a battle, her father would accuse her of cheating and then Shadepaw would tell the entire clan.

When Maplepaw reached the training arena, she could see Waspsting and Shadepaw already practising and rolled her eyes. Of course they were going to be there.

"Great start to your training, Maplepaw! Can't even make it here on time! Father and I have been training here in the arena for who knows how long already!" Shadepaw smirked.

Maplepaw glared at Shadepaw and was about to stretch her paw out and rake her claws across his muzzle but she felt Tinycloud's tail gently brush across her shoulders as he meowed,

"Don't let him anger you. You will need to learn to hold in your anger. If you keep on venting it out on others, it won't be good for you."

Maplepaw took a deep breath before exhaling slowly. Tinycloud, although she hated to admit it, was right.

"Come on Maplepaw. Let's start training. I will demonstrate how to do the front paw swipe. And we will work on that today," Maplepaw's mentor continued once she had calmed herself down.

"Only the front paw swipe, Tinycloud? Why aren't we learning more things?" Maplepaw whined, unenthusiastic about today. She didn't like being stuck on things for too long and with Shadepaw watching, she knew that he would be taunting her nonstop.

"Practice makes perfect. After a long time of practicing, our work will become natural, skilful, swift and steady," Tinycloud answered simply.

Tinycloud led her into the centre of the training arena and said,

"This is how you do it. Watch closely Maplepaw."

Maplepaw looked at Tinycloud, who weakly raised his paw and brang it down on Maplepaw's head. He used so much force the Maplepaw tottered back a few steps before regaining her equilibrium.

Maplepaw heard her brother sneer,

"Can't even stand straight, can you? My, I hope you pass your warrior assessment in at least three tries!"

Maplepaw flashed her teeth at him before Tinycloud quietly meowed,

"Now you try it."

Maplepaw tried to imitate Tinycloud's front paw swipe but when she attacked her mentor, he had leaped away gracefully. Maplepaw growled under her breath. If her mentor was to tease her the entire day, she swore that she would storm out as fast as she could.

"Look at Maplepaw! She can't even hit Tinycloud of all cats," a hiss sounded from the edge of the arena.

Maplepaw turned her head slightly, just enough to see who had made that comment and rolled her eyes. Of course it was Honeypaw. The complete opposite of her name, Honeypaw loved to take a stab at anyone who was exposed.

Maplepaw heard snickers from Cloudpaw and Willowpaw but she turned around and faced Tinycloud, whose eyes were glittering with ecstasy as he meowed,

"I never said it would be easy. I only said it would be worth it."

Maplepaw sniffed, annoyed. But a small part of her admired Tinycloud's tenacity. How he could still hold on to life without giving up even though it constantly opposed him was such a wonder to Maplepaw.

"If you fall behind, run faster. Never give up. Never surrender. And rise up against the odds," Tinycloud mewed simply as if he could read her mind.

Maplepaw shook herself before she unsheathed and sheathed her claws. If anything, she was going to attack Tinycloud, even if it took her the entire day to do so.

Darling... the wind purred as it rushed past her, whipping her whiskers around.

Maplepaw's neck fur bristled. She was pretty sure the wind couldn't talk but...what else could've made that noise?

Maplepaw shook her head before she glared at her mentor. She circled him slowly, tail swishing around. Maplepaw was close to Tinycloud in size, and much more stocky, even though she was considered one of the skinniest cats in her clan.

Maplepaw slithered slowly towards her mentor and quickly lashed out and to her surprise, toppled Tinycloud.

"Maple's hit something at last! I thought she would never be able to hit anything over until her warrior assessment!" sneered Willowpaw, an eager follower of Honeypaw.

After Tinycloud stood back up and took a few deep breaths, he suggested,

"Why don't we all spar, even though there is an odd number of us? Maplepaw, do you want to sit-"

"I'll spar with her," Honeypaw mewed in her most angelic voice, "Cloudpaw would love to sit out this time. He's very...tired. Last night's training wore him down a lot."

Tinycloud blinked in surprise but said nothing more.

Honeypaw gracefully walked into the training arena and faced her. Maplepaw growled quietly.

I haven't seen you in such a long time...you're so beautiful. So...grown up, the voice admired, crooning softly to her.

Maplepaw stiffened as she watched Honeypaw circle her, but mostly because of the voice. Was it the wind? Was it because she was lacking sleep? Or was it because she truly was delusional and deformed?

"Are we going to stay here all day? Honeypaw, where did your skills go? You've been training as an apprentice for two moons now! Show me what you are capable of! Do you think this is a form of leisure? Should we break for a naptime? Fight each other!" bellowed Waspsting from the edge of the arena.

Honeypaw's eyes suddenly darkened like approaching storm clouds and advanced slowly towards Maplepaw.

Maplepaw backed up slightly, her breath hitched in her throat, she continued to tell herself that she shouldn't be afraid, but knowing Honeypaw, Maplepaw could expect some injuries from this battle.

Honeypaw hissed and reared up, before heavily bringing her forepaws down, heavily onto Maplepaw's back.

Maplepaw fell onto the ground, her muzzle aching from the impact.

Honeypaw giggled and mewed,

"Finished yet? I'll make this battle quicker if you beg."

Maplepaw spat out some sand before yowling back with ferocity,

"Never!"

Honeypaw roared and reached out a paw to swipe at her eyes. Maplepaw was frozen in shock, but she felt her paws lunged forwards and they connected with Honeypaw's face and she fell over. Maplepaw felt herself soaring towards the she-cat before her paws connected once again with Honeypaw's flank. Maplepaw saw Honeypaw's mouth open and heard a wordless sound emerge.

"MAPLEPAW! STOP!" a panicked meow screeched before she was heavily dragged off Honeypaw.

Maplepaw saw Tinycloud with a distraught expression on his face. Maplepaw wondered what happened until her mentor pointed at Honeypaw.

Maplepaw gasped. Bloody bite marks were scattered all across Honeypaw's body, turning her into a crimson cat instead of the golden she-cat she was familiar to.

"You're a murderer," gasped Cloudpaw, quickly shoving past her to tend to Honeypaw, and he continued to murmur,

"You'll be fine. We're getting Ashpool. Just hold on for a few more moments. Help will arrive soon."

Maplepaw scoffed quietly, but not even she could suppress her feeling of dread that was rising quickly in her stomach.

"You are deformed, Maplepaw! Don't you know that this is only a spar, not an actual battle?" Maplepaw's father growled in her face, but she could see that he was afraid to touch her, in case the same thing happened to him.

Maplepaw rushed out of the training arena and into camp. There was only one cat that could comfort her now. And as much as she hated Silentpaw's innocence, it would help her now.

"It's not your fault," her sister mewed, placing her nose onto Maplepaw's head, "if someone mistakes your strength for madness - that's their fault, not yours. It's okay to be a decent cat in life."

Maplepaw buried her face in her paws, before choking out,

"But, what if Cinderstar makes me a kit again? Or exiles me? I'm so stupid! I shouldn't have gotten that carried away!"

Silentpaw sighed before she lay next to Maplepaw,

"Then, I suppose, Heatherstalk will march up to Cinderstar and demand you to be made an apprentice again."

Maplepaw could feel an unwelcome smile creeping onto her face before Silentpaw said,

"No need to thank me. That's what sisters are for."

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We've all got power in our hands to kill, but most people are afraid to use it. The ones who aren't afraid control life itself.