Mapleshade trudged through the plains. Behind her she could faintly hear Splashkit, Willowkit, and Larkkit- no Splashpaw, Willowpaw, and Larkpaw- walking behind her. The calico she-cat flattened her ears as she neared the familiar barn of Mylar. She passed by without a thought, amber eyes intent on the reed marshes she could see just beyond her.
"Hello!"
Mapleshade sighed at the voice and turned to see a smiling black and white tom heading towards her, green eyes happy.
"Hello, Myler," she mewed, her voice monotone as she stopped and let to tom come to her.
"I see you've got some young ones! I hope you aren't taking them to the Clans' territories! Those cats are vicious!" Myler replied, his voice cheerful despite the grimness within the words.
"They insisted on coming, but I have something to attend to," Mapleshade responded dismissively, flicking her tail.
She didn't allow Myler time to reply as she continued onward. She slipped into the reeds, feeling her heart speed in anger and longing as she remembered Appledusk's loving green eyes, but it changed. She could almost see him clearly, standing in front of her and glaring at her with disgust and hate on his features.
"You lost nothing I lost everything! You do not deserve to wear that face to me!" She growled to the figure, gaining murmurs from the six-moon-old cats with her.
She thought back to the last time she'd seen Reedshine. The she-cat must have had her kits by now. Would they be apprentices already? How many looked like Appledusk? How many were there? Mapleshade shoved the thoughts away. No matter how many there were, they all needed to die to pay for her kits' deaths.

~~~

Mapleshade peered over the edge to look down at the cats around in the little space she knew as RiverClan's camp. Her amber eyes narrowed as the spotted the dark ginger she-cat. Her blue eyes were happy as she talked to a tom beside her.
'Reedshine.'
She could see three young cats- a few moons over the apprentice age- play-fighting at the edge of the camp. One she could see was a dark ginger cat like its mother, one was a a dark brown tabby tom, and one-
Mapelshade froze, her claws unsheathing. One was pale brown, and though she could barely see them, she could already tell the green eyes. It looked exactly like Appledusk!
"Hey! It's that nice tom who saved me from the river! Except... smaller."
Mapleshade was even more startled as she turned to look at Splashpaw, whose eyes had widened.
"When?" She asked.
"I don't know how long ago now..." Splashpaw mewed, "But you should know, you were there."
Mapleshade could only see the splashing waves as Patchkit's damp fur had been dragged away from her, but she could remember before that when Appledusk and his patrol had found him resting after he had swam.
"Yeah, but he wasn't there when ThunderClan turned us away." Mapleshade couldn't help but notice how much Willowpaw looked similar to the pale brown tom.
"That's because he was RiverClan!" Larkpaw added.
'RiverClan? ThunderClan? Appledusk? How do they know all this!' Mapleshade's amber eyes clouded with confusion, her tail swishing behind her as she stared at the three cats, lost in her mind.
"Hey!" A sharp hiss made Mapleshade jump.
She turned, seeing in the camp that most of the cats were looking at her, but the tom who looked like Appledusk was staring straight at her, eyes blazing.
"You aren't allowed on this territory!"
"Is that-?"
"Mapleshade!"
The murmurs came from all around Mapelshade, but all she could see was Appledusk, standing and glaring at her, blaming her for their kits' deaths. A growl rumbled in her throat and she leaped at the pale brown tom, blinded by fury. She heard the familiar voice of Reedshine, pleased to hear it in a screech if fear.
The brown tom was bawled over, a surprised look in his eyes. Mapleshade lashed out across his muzzle relentlessly.
"Die! Die die! You don't deserve to live while my kits die!" Her claws sliced over the brilliant green eyes of the pale brown apprentice with a wail from the tom.
"But we're not dead mamma!" Splashpaw's mew was quickly followed by a firm jaw in her scruff as Larkpaw's scent wafted over her, dragging her off.
"You're my adopted kits! Not my real ones!" In her anger, Mapelshade turned and lashed her claws out over Larkpaw's muzzle.
The three cats looked stung and surprised. Mapelshade huffed, hearing indistinct muttering behind her. She lifted her amber gaze to yowl a curse to the sky before whipping around to face the RiverClan cats, who were all crowded around the pale brown tom.
"My eyes! My eyes!" He yowled, jogging Mapleshade's memory to Frecklewish.
Her calico pelt didn't smooth, still fluffed up as she gazed over the crowd until she spotted the dark ginger she-cat. She sprinted, unseen by the cats due to her speed and their eyes being trained on the apprentice, at Reedshine.
'It is your time to pay!'
Mapleshade leaped at the she-cat, bawling her over and revisiting a squeak of alarm from the she-cat. She didn't give the stunned cat time to think, slashing her claws down her belly.
"I told you! You and your kin will die," Mapelshade hissed to Reedshine as she frothed at the mount and convulsed before laying still.
Mapelshade turned, surprised to see her adopted kits were nowhere to be seen. She heard hisses erupt behind her and she ran off. Pawsteps sounded beyond the calico rouge, and a familiar scent wafted from it. Mapelshade stopped, turning on her paws to see who this cat was. She met claws over her muzzle form a thickfurred gray tom.
"Perchpaw!" She recognized Appledusk's apprentice. A grin spread over her face, ducking to avoid another blow and unbalancing the tom. "Trying to avenge your mentor? You're just as pathetic!"
"It's Perchdusk. Neither me nor Appledusk are pathetic!" The tom growled, meeting the ground and rolling.
"We'll see about that."
Mapleshade rammed into Perchdusk's side as he tried to get up, forcing him down again. She slashed her claws after the fallen tom's side. She leaped back as he lashed a paw out to catch her eye. Mapleshade sidestepped as Perchdusk leaped forwards and turned her head to hit down on the tom's shoulder and stop him with a jolt.
The calico could tell she'd winded Perchdusk with her attack as he crumpled to the ground, gasping for breath. Mapleshade shoved her paw down hard on his head, unsheathinn her claws.
"Perhaps I should let you join Appledusk?" She mewed, her tail twitching in indecision. She stepped off the tom and turned to run, calling over her shoulder, "Nah. You're miserable enough! Killing you would be a treat."