[b]BEFORE VIOLETPAW COULD[/b] SPEAK, Roach and Raven slammed their claws into her scruff.
      Pain and red exploded. A hot wash of tears blurred everything. Her head slammed down. [i]Uuugh! Gah—[/i]
      Her paws scrabbled against the dusty earth.
      “Get off me!” Violetpaw shrieked. “What’s [i]gotten into[/i] you?”
      Darktail lowered his muzzle, his breath warm. “Do you have anything you’d like to tell me?”
      His narrowed blue eyes sent fear. The black sky beyond, and the coldness in the air, made her belly drop.
      “Le—Le—Like what?”
      He [i]drew[/i] his head back, then stood tall. His left paw curled and uncurled to nudge the pile of black and gray grains forward. “Like what your plan was, exactly, with this little trick.”
      Hopelessness. Terror. [i]How? [/i]How did he know!_
      Violetpaw looked into Darktail’s eyes. “ . . .I’m not sure what those are.”
      “Oh, very funny,” he said. “I wasn’t sure, either, so I asked Puddleshine.”
      “You. . .you asked him?”
      “He was [i]so[/i] helpful. He explained that these are poppy seeds, and powerful enough to put a cat to sleep.”
      Violetpaw pushed up against her captors, but they held firm. “Aggh!”
      “—It’s interesting. Several of them were in the pieces of prey you brought for me and my closest Kin.”
      Violetpaw shook her head. Tears clouded Darktail’s shape, the dark green leaves, the gray stones. “I’m not sure. . . I didn’t. . .”
      “Don’t waste!” Darktail shouted. “Our [i]time[/i] pretending you didn’t [i]do[/i] it!”
      He kicked the seeds away. They scattered across the dirt.
      “It’s almost impressive,” Darktail said at normal volume. "How good you are at this. Lying, pretending to be a friend when in fact you’re an enemy. . .
      “I thought you were like [i]me[/i]—”
      [i]“I[/i] am[i]—really!”[/i]
      “—I don’t [i]believe[/i] that anymore.”
      Darktail blinked. His blue slits flicked to the left. “Raven, bring both of them. We’re going for a [i]walk.[/i]”
      Violetpaw screamed. “Wait—[i]no!”[/i]
      She kicked and struggled and squirmed. Their claws raked across her pelt. Her flesh tore. Blood came from the scratches, but Roach and Raven were strong, and they lifted her from the earth.
      “No! [i]Stop[/i] this! I’ll do anything!” She looked at Darktail. “Please—please—please, I promise I’m loyal! [i]You can trust me[/i]!”
      They swung her between them. Darktail led the way into a clump of trees. [i]To where!?[/i]
      Humiliation ran across her meager frame. Her legs hung useless, the tips of her claws dragging through dirt, but it hurt her worse than they knew.
      [i]I was so close to helping Needletail![/i] So [i]close[/i]!
      Her heart sank as they carried her through a stretch of dark woods, toward a light at the end of a long row of tree trunks.
      “Darktail—stop, [i]please[/i]—!”
      The cats who held her did not slow. The pain of their claws and teeth kept her from thinking straight, and her head swirled.
      The light got brighter and the trees cleared, until she realized they’d come out by the lake shore. Violetpaw gasped, and felt her paws go loose.
      It was a scene she’d seen before. A long, flat stretch of darkness, with the reflection of a million stars and the moon in its surface.
      The water was still, save for small, soft ripples lapped at the edge, and it seemed to go on forever.
      “All right,” said Darktail. “This is good enough. Put her down.”
      The cats dropped Violetpaw to the reeds with a splash. Water soaked into her pelt, and it [i]hurt[/i], it [i]ached[/i], it stung against her scratches.
      “What are we doing here?” Violetpaw squealed. “I—”
      “—Violetpaw!? [i]Violetpaw[/i], is that [i]you!?[/i]”
      A voice. . . a voice that she [i]knew[/i]. . .
      “Needletail!” Violetpaw gasped. She twisted around, and caught sight of her friend’s gray pelt in the water.
      “Oh my StarClan, it [i]is[/i] you,” Needletail said.
      “What’s going on?”
      Both she-cats ran up to one another and embraced. Their fur was wet, and their pelts matted, but neither sister cared.
      “—You’re [i]okay[/i], you’re [i]alright[/i]. I’ll never, [i]ever[/i] leave your side—” said Needletail.
      “I thought I’d never see you again—!”
      Darktail stood a few steps from the shore, his silhouette dark against the moon’s light. “Yes, yes, it’s very sweet and touching, I know.”
      Violetpaw swirled, and pressed her flank against Needletail’s. They hissed together at the tom. Their spine arched and their tails curled up in defense.
      “But this isn’t about feelings, this is about [i]justice.[/i]” Darktail stepped forward. “This is about traitors.”
      “I’ll stay,” Needletail whispered. “I will fight. With you.”
      [i]I’ll stay here through the darkest nights—[/i]
      Violetpaw took a step backward. The lake lapped up to her hindlegs and stomach.
      “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I tried to put him to sleep. It wasn’t enough. He [i]knew![/i]”
      “It’s alright,” said Needletail, her head high and defiant. “We both know he’s insane. This isn’t your fault.”
      Violetpaw nodded and gritted her teeth.
      Darktail stopped where the lake’s water touched the land. “ . . .You’re [i]traitors.[/i]” He glared, eyes like the sky at dawn, the color of a wave. “And for traitors, [i]get in the water[/i].”
      “Wait!” Needletail growled.
      “Get in the water.”
      “Stop this!” Violetpaw meowed. “[i]Please[/i]. . .”
      “Don’t mistake my threats for bluff,” he snarled. “You have lived more than enough, [i]get in the water![/i]”
      They looked at each other, their pelts soaked and cold. Violetpaw felt her friend shivering beside her.
      She blinked. [i]. . .There are more cats now! Sleekwhisker, Flame, and, and—[/i]
      The other cats padded forward. Darktail nodded to them.
      “I’ll make tidal waves so profound, both of you will drown,” Darktail said.
      “[i]No![/i],” Needletail gasped.
      The water splashed and lapped around every cat, the chase began.
      “’Cause you can run but you can’t hide!” Sleekwhisker shouted.
      Flame, an orange she-cat, swam to catch Violetpaw’s tail.
      She swirled. “[i]Let go![/i]”
      Needletail swiped at the orange cat. Flame screeched in pain, but Sleekwhisker swam to her aid.
      “You’re not getting [i]anywhere![/i]” she snarled at them.
      “I can see you!” shouted Roach. “It’s over! Give [i]up![/i]”
      Needletail splashed and spluttered. The lake water splashed and sloshed, and Violetpaw found it harder and harder to swim.
      Her head bobbed down and her lungs filled up. Her head bobbed down and her legs sank. She tried to call for help, but couldn’t get enough air in to speak.
      “[i]Violetpaw[/i],” said Needletail, her mew a desperate choke, and Violetpaw felt the older she-cat drag her toward the shore. “[i]I will stay!”[/i]
      Violetpaw’s head felt light, and she couldn’t think. Her vision swam. Needletail’s face came closer, before everything went black.

[center]· ·  🐾  · ·[center]

[b]SHE OPENED HER[/b] EYES.
      She felt as if her legs had turned to stone. She tried to move them. They wouldn’t. Afraid to stand up, or sit up. So she didn’t.
      Violetpaw lay there, her head pressed into her paws, and tried to remember how to breathe.
      [i]What’s. . . What’s that noise?[/i] She lifted her head, and her eyes went wide. She could see her own breath in front of her.
      Darktail pressed his belly against Needletail’s back, and thrust his hindlegs forward. The she-cat buckled under his weight. Her tongue panted and she squealed in agony.
      “NO! Get [i]OFF!”[/i] she screeched. But Neddletail couldn’t shake the tom.
      Violetpaw rose onto her haunches and tried to get her footing, but a cat slammed her down, and Violetpaw found her muzzle underneath the water for a moment.
      She choked. “Bbbbbglllgh!”
      “[i]I’ve[/i] been waiting for this day for [i]so long[/i], I hope you know that,” said Roach. “This is where [i]you[/i] belong. Beneath me. In the dirt.”
      Violetpaw felt his paw on the back of her neck.
      He pushed harder. Her nose pressed to the mucky ground. “Can’t wait to hear you scream.”
      “[i]S-stop!”[/i]
      Roach snarled and sunk his teeth into Violetpaw’s scruff. That rendered her paralyzed, and she couldn’t even struggle. [i]This isn’t fair. He knows I can’t fight back![/i]
      The muscular tom’s underside rubbed against her flank, and she felt his member slide out of his sheath.
      Violetpaw froze. The cat’s member slid into her folds.
      He pushed into her. Violetpaw whimpered as she was penetrated. “Gagggh—!”
      She felt it inside. The pressure, and the warmth. She could feel her blood flowing out of her walls. [i]AGGHHH—! IT HURTS—[/i]
      Her forepaws stepped on top of each other. She scrambled. Her frantic mind sent a million impulses through her limbs. “STOP! PLEASE—[i]AAUUGGHH—[/i]”
      Roach’s teeth held firm. Violetpaw’s neck ached. “—Oh [i]StarClan[/i], [i]please—STOP—!”[/i]
      “—[i]Violetpaw[/i]!”
      She couldn’t see anything but Needletail’s darkened figure.
      [center][i][b]Slop. Slop. Slopp. Slopp.[/b][/i][/center]
      Darktail pounded her friend into the lake shore. Needletail looked at Violetpaw, and she saw her own terror reflected in her eyes. [i]No! This is all wrong! This can’t be happening![/i]
      The cats on either side of Darktail watched. They looked satisfied.
      [i]Why aren’t they HELPING US!?[/i]
      The cat behind Violetpaw shifted. Roach’s barbed tip tore her apart from the inside. But at the same time, she could feel her body responding, getting hot, and wet, and—
      “Roach,” Violetpaw gasped, “—please, this—this—!”
      [center][i][b]Thump-thump, thump-thump.[/b][/i][/center]
      Violetpaw’s moods spiraled. Her heart beat faster than her thoughts could process. [i]What’s HAPPENING—!?[/i]
      Roach thrust into Violetpaw hard. The force pushed her paws through the sand. The longer his length stayed in, the more her mind became hazy. The more she wanted to feel this pain.
      [center][i][b]Slip. Slip. Slippp. Slipp. Slopppp.[/b][/i][/center]
      He pulled her back onto his cock. Violetpaw felt it fill her, stretch her, break her, heal her. [i]It’s horrible. I love it?[/i]
      [i]I’m blinded by the—[/i]
      “Violetpaw! [i]Violetpaw[/i], hold on, [i]stay with me![/i]” Her friend’s words snapped her back into the real world, away from the fog in her brain. “—I’m going to—KarrrrgggHHH!”
      Needletail squealed. Darktail held her by her neck.
      “Am I boring you!?” he shouted.
      [center][i][b]SLAPP![/b][/i][/center]
      He hit Needletail across the jaw, leaving it hanging open. “Look at me, traitor!”
      She did.
      “I’ll kill you!” he snarled. “I’ll break you!”
      He thrust her jaw into the sand, and the she-cat coughed. He leaned back. His member pulled from her entrance. A string of white hung between them for a moment. He looked into her eyes. “—And then, when I’m finished, I’ll kill your little [i]friend[/i] too.”
      [i]I should’ve felt anger. I should’ve been scared, and fought, and screamed.[/i]
      But Roach had already filled Violetpaw up. She couldn’t focus. She couldn’t focus at all. The cat thrust his thick member in and out, in and out.
      Darktail’s claws tore Needletail’s scruff to ribbons. Violetpaw heard her scream and gasp. She could only imagine how much blood she’d lost. “Auuuuuuuuuggghhh!”
      [center][i][b]SLAPP! SLAP. THWAP! SLAPP. THWACK![/b][/i][/center]
      Roach’s belly slapped against Violetpaw’s flanks.
      Darktail pounded into Needletail.
      Violetpaw whined.
      [i]I stare, I stare screamin’ help. . . oh well. . .[/i]
      Violetpaw’s paws shook and trembled. Her spine tingled. She felt it build up inside her.
      “Roach—” she said. Her mouth hung open.
      Roach said nothing, but she felt his claws on her pelt.
      “I think—I—think I’m going to—!”
      She arched her spine, and felt her muscles clamp around him. “—Ghhahhgh—”
      He thrust his length into her and filled her up. Her body shuddered. Violetpaw felt warmth spread from her legs to the rest of her body. Slosh of liquid ran down her hindlegs and onto the shore. “Ggg—gggaaahhhh. . . !”
      Roach pulled his member from her folds. He let go of her scruff. “Uggh!”
      [center][i][b]Thud.[/b][/i][/center]
      She felt his seed spill from her opening. She turned her head and watched the muscular tom stumble back.
      Violetpaw’s heart pounded in her chest. She didn’t know what to think.
      [center][i][b]THUD![/b][/i][/center]
      Violetpaw jumped.
      She looked. Needletail’s body lay sprawled across the sand, her legs spread apart, her chest heaved up and down. Darktail’s member dripped white, and he had a crazed, wild look to him.
      “You’ve both been [i]bad[/i] cats,” Darktail snarled.
      Sleekwhisker and Flame circled them. The she-cats looked pleased. [i]Like they’d been watching a fight![/i]
      Violetpaw stared at her friend’s form. “No, no, no—”
      Needletail coughed up water, but her face stayed still. Her neck was torn open, her blood stained the shore red.
      “NO! No—no—no!” Violetpaw stumbled forward and pressed against her.
      “—Needletail? [i]Please[/i] answer me.” Tears welled up in her eyes.
      Her friend’s mouth moved. Her fang showed through.
      “Run,” Needletail whispered.
      She didn’t know how to respond.
      The pleasure, the adrenaline, the [i]exhilaration[/i], left Violetpaw. Needletail’s gray pelt stained with red. It became cold to the touch, and it did not respond to Violetpaw’s warmth.
      Her fur fell flat against the water. Her face lay still.
      A shadow fell on top of them.
      “You’ll join her,” Darktail growled, “if you try to get away again.”
      Violetpaw looked back, and met Darktail’s eyes. Her tears blurred the world, but she saw him for what he was, and what she’d always known.
      A monster. An evil monster.
      “—I know you’re [i]lying![/i] You’ve never cared for me at all!” she shrieked. “You’ll just hurt me until I’m dead!”
      She ran.
      But Darktail ran too. His paw slammed her tail to the earth. “Get BACK HERE!” He dragged Violetpaw backwards by it.
      Violetpaw screeched. She twisted and thrashed. “LET GO! HELP!”
      He threw her to the sand.
      “I gave you [i]chance after chance,[/i]” said Darktail. “—I can’t let this [i]insubordination[/i] slide!”
      Violetpaw’s legs splayed out. Her tail throbbed.
      He towered over her belly. The stars above him, and his dark shape a black silhouette. He leaned down, and opened his jaws wide.
      His fangs flashed white.
      [i]What are you doing—!?[/i]
      “—STOP, STOP, NO—!”
      “—AHAH!” he gasped. “I wonder what it’ll take before your ribs give in. . .”
      He bit down.
      She screamed. “GHHHAUUUGGHH!”
      Her bones snapped, cracked, and popped.
      The world went black. But her heart still pounded in her chest, and Violetpaw could [i]still[/i] hear his laughter. “Hahahaha! It’s just like you. Weak!”
      “Please!” Violetpaw screamed. “Stop—stop—stop!”
      Darktail let go.
      Violetpaw curled her legs inwards and shivered. Her chest ached. She could not breathe. The air would not come.
      He stepped on top of her, his member hung above her. His forepaws slammed down beside her head. “—I’ve got a [i]lot[/i] of rage,” Darktail whispered.
      He lowered his hips onto Violetpaw’s stomach.
      She looked into his eyes. “Why. . . ? What’s wrong with you?”
      “You [i]lied[/i] to me.”
      “I was scared.” She choked on her own blood. “You’re [i]not sane.[/i] I thought you’d hurt me. [i]Like you’re doing right now.[/i]”
      He thrust his length inside her. It plunged deeper than she could handle. Violetpaw screamed. She felt the barbs scratch against her. His knot stretched her. She could not think.
      [center][i][b]Palp, plap! Plapp! Plopp! Palpp![/b][/i][/center]
      Violetpaw felt his tongue lick across her muzzle.
      [i]Ohhh, I’ve lost. . .[/i]
      “Your little ‘plan’ was [i]pathetic![/i]”
      He slammed himself into her with every word.
      Violetpaw gasped. [i]Oh my[/i]—She squirmed. [i]There’s so much—[/i]
      Their mouths met.
      His breath was warm, and his tongue licked against her. Darktail’s blue eyes filled her sight.
      Violetpaw moaned into his mouth. “—Hgggh. . .”
      Her forepaws warped around his neck, and her hindlegs around his haunches. His fur felt hot, and her body responded to every thrust. [i]Ohhhh[/i]. . .
      She couldn’t see anything but the stars reflected in his eyes. The world was spinning.
      Darktail pulled his length out, then slammed it in again.
      Violetpaw’s spine shuddered.
      “—[i]AAAAAaaaaugh[/i]. . .” she cried.
      [center][i][b]PLAPP! PLAP! PLAPP! PLAPP![/b][/i][/center]
      His tongue slid into her mouth. It was slick. It rubbed against her teeth. She tried to close her eyes, but she couldn’t stop staring into his [i]blue[/i]. He looked right back at her. Darktail didn’t look away, not even once. Violetpaw’s thoughts swirled, her mind went hazy.
      [i]I’m. . .I’m. . .[/i]
      [i]—His. . .[/i]
      Darktail pulled his maw out from Violetpaw’s. Their lips dripped, their tongues wet with spit, their eyes wide and unblinking. “I can see your loyalty now, Violetpaw.”
      He lowered his muzzle to rest beside her ear, and licked the fur of her neck. “It’s a beautiful thing.”
      She gazed into the stary night above. Darktail’s head rested on her right shoulder.
      [center][i][b]Plapp, plopp![/b][/i][/center]
      “Yessssssss. . .” Violetpaw hissed. [i]I feel it, I feel his—[/i]
      [center][i][b]Schlpp! Schlopppp! Schlup! Schloppp![/b][/i][/center]
      Violetpaw pressed her hips to his.
      Her walls contracted, squeezed him. Her legs wrapped tighter.
      “—Why did you killed Needletail!?”
      “I don’t like [i]traitors[/i].”
      “You [i]killed her![/i]” she hissed. “[i]And I[/i] know you [i]hated her[/i]. . .”
      [center][i][b]Slap, slap, slap—[/b][/i][/center]
      Darktail licked her neck. His forepaws wrapped around her shoulders and squeezed her to him.
      “I do hate her,” he whispered, “and all she’s done. All her lies, her treachery, her [i]incompetence[/i]. But I hate [i]your lies[/i] more than [i]anything[/i].”
      [i]OOOoooohhh. . .[/i]
      [center][i][b]Shluuuup![/b][/i][/center]
      Violetpaw gasped. Her waters broke. She could feel it shot deep within her. The tom’s seed filled her womb, the pressure inside built, built, built.
      Violetpaw moaned, “—I—I’m. . .I’m. . .”
      Her muscles spasmed, her head felt light.
      “AAAAAUUUGGGHHHH!” Violetpaw cried out, her head thrown back against the mud.
      Darktail sunk his teeth into Violetpaw’s neck.
      “Ghhhh!” Violetpaw gasped.
      Warmth spread from her belly to her paws. The sharp pain of Darktail’s bite, the heat, the pressure of his seed within her. Her heart fluttered, her vision swirled.
      [i]I’m his. . .I’m. . .I’m. . .[/i]
      The last thing Violetpaw saw was Darktail, above her, with the stars all around him.
      [i]I’m his. . .[/i] Violetpaw’s head sank to the muck.
      He was the last thing she saw, before the darkness came. “—And you will never betray me again.”
      The words she’d always known. Always felt, but never knew to say. Her body shuddered. She accepted them.
      “ . . .Y-y-yes. . .” Violetpaw whimpered.
      Then the darkness took her.
      Her entrance leaked his seed, but the rest filled her womb.

[center]· ·  🐾  · ·[center]

[b]SHE WOKE.[/b]
      Violetpaw ached from the tips of her ears to her paws, and every part in-between. She couldn’t move her body, her legs felt stiff. And her head—[i]it throbbed![/i] The light of day hurt her eyes.
      “—She’s awake!” A cat yowled. Alderpaw. [i]It was Alderpaw[/i]. “She’s awake!”
      [i]That means I was asleep.[/i]
      “Oh thank StarClan, you’re awake!” Mothwing’s gold, fluffy head leaned into view.
      Violetpaw blinked.
      [i]Black and yellow[/i] spots flashed across her vision.
      Her head pounded and she couldn’t remember anything, except for—
      [i]Needle. Need. Needle. Needletail. . . ?[/i]
      “Wha. . .whas. . .” Violetpaw mumbled. [i]Needletail, where is she![/i]
      “Easy now. It’s alright,” Alderpaw said.
      Her eyes felt dry. “N-Need. . .tai. . .”
      “I think she needs more time to recover.” Mothwing moved her muzzle close. “Don’t try to speak.”
      The scent of blood hit her nose.
      [i]Where am I? Why am I in the open?[/i] Violetpaw tried to lift her head, and failed.
      The blue sky stretched out in front of her. Clouds drifted through the sky. The ground she lay on felt warm from the sunlight. [i]I’m lying on the grass, I can tell. . . But I can’t move. Nothing moves. Not my head. Or my tail.[/i]
      A shadow fell over her body. “I’m glad to see she’s alive.”
      [i]Her. . .[/i]Violetpaw’s face brightened. [i]Her voice. I’d recognize her anywhere. I know her, I love her. She’s safe! She’s here! She came for me![/i]
      Twigpaw leaned over her, and Violetpaw looked up at her sister’s green eyes. She felt like a kit again, lost in the drain. Except she wasn’t lost. Not now.
      “Hi, Twig,” Violetpaw gasped.

[center]· ·  🐾  · ·[center]

[b]SEASONS PASSED, BUT[/b] NOTHING could take the memories from Violetshine.
      The Kin destroyed, Darktail and Needletail died in that night.
      And yet, the pain never faded.
      The memory of that horrible day burned within Violetshine, no matter the time, no matter the place.
      [i]He took advantage of my weakness.[/i]
      Violetshine knew he would never leave her mind. The tom followed her everywhere. At the corner of her sight, he appeared in every stranger, in the movement of leaves, and the flash of eyes.
      “ . . .Darktail. . . ?”
      She turned her head.
      But nothing.
      [i]It’s not possible.[/i]
      [i]There’s nothing there.[/i]
      “Violetshine? Is something wrong?” Hawkwing, her father, stared at her.
      Violetshine stared back into the darkness. “Nothing. Just my thoughts. Let’s keep moving.”
      . . . Twigbranch left her to live in ThunderClan. Alderheart was too busy, and too close to the Clans, to pay her much mind.
      When her kits were born, Violetshine named the one who looked like Darktail, “Darkkit.”
      The Clans all hated the name, but Violetshine did not care. They could not stop her. The name was a reminder, a warning to never forget. Darktail would not control her. She was a warrior of SkyClan, a queen, and a cat with the strength to survive.
      Even in his absence, she felt his breath against her scruff.
      Violetshine looked into Darkkit’s blue eyes and remembered. Remembered his father.
      Darktail, the monster who’d haunted her dreams.
      The monster who’d destroyed everything she’d loved.
      She remembered.