bite down till the bleeding stops [c]

Heatherfrost had wanted to be proud of the fact that the entire gathering had learned her name, that Tigerstar had declared her as one of Windclan's newest warriors. The moment had etched itself into the back of her mind on account of how hallow it had made her feel. Sitting next to Crakeburn had only further caused the tightening in her chest. No matter how hard she worked, or how much she grew, the fact would always remain that her littlermate had been seen as a more successful warrior than her. Regardless of how much she churned the thought in her mind, it perpetually came back to the same thought... that it was Tigerstar's fault.

Every so often she'd consider Sootstorm as well and hear his voice echo like it had when she was a kit begging for apprenticehood. Your time will come. Wait. Your time will come. By why was it Crakeburn's time first? Because she had stumbled into battle like a reckless apprentice on their first trip out of camp? Maybe the stars themselves had ordained it. Her vibrant blue gaze always fell on the leader's pelt as they made it back to camp. She deserved an answer and she was determined to get one. Waiting until cats had begun to settle back into their nests was painful but she kept her paws in place, saying good night to clanmates, and biding her time until right before Tigerstar planned to slip away for the night.

It was then her low, pointed words cut through the air, just loud enough for his ears, "Nice of you to mention me as a warrior before the clans. It took you long enough to recognize it." Heatherfrost's tone was even but filled with intent. Normally, she would never challenge her leader, even now. But after all this time, she needed to know, why had Crakeburn had a ceremony before her? Her claws kneaded the earth as she stared after him, waiting for an answer.

Tigerstar was sitting just outside of his den, watching as his clan slowly settled for the night. The gathering was something.. He didn't know what to think of it, or the issues between Riverclan, Thunderclan and Skyclan. Just that he should watch his paws around all three of them for now. The striped tom noted the thinning crowd, knowing that it would be just a matter of minutes before the rest disappeared, and he could soon get some rest himself. At least that was until one of those that had lingered approached him.

Green eyes fell on Heatherfrost with curiosity, until her words cut through the quiet air. Ears folded back for a moment as confusion filled the leader. He wasn't quite sure what she meant, so he only replied "Excuse me?" There was a touch of irritation in his tone, just enough to reflect the intent that Heatherfrost was speaking with.

His tone matched hers but the confusion was evident. Heatherfrost had to force herself to not roll her eyes, to not snap back. Was the leader really so ignorant? Icy blue eyes met his gaze and for a moment she said nothing, tail simply lashing back and forth. She didn't know the striped leader well but had looked up to him most of her life. That was until the bitterness of Crakeburn's quick rise through the ranks had left her feeling discarded and underminded. There wasn't much she could say beyond being direct, it seemed. Maybe then he would get it. As she spoke, the words were laced with moons of frustration despite the honeyed cadence of her voice, "I worked hard for moons to become a warrior and you callously named Crakeburm first because she stumbled into a fight. I'm shocked you remembered to make me a warrior at all, Tigerstar."

Tigerstar couldn't help but snort at the she-cats reply. "Stumble into a fight? She fought a warrior, a cat with moons more experience than she had and could have died, and yet you are here complaining to me she was made a warrior first?" The audacity. Instead of being proud of her own sibling and her accomplishments, she could only focus on why she wasn't first? "You want to know why you weren't first? This behavior right here is why. You are being selfish, focused purely on yourself."

The striped tom straightened up, tail tip flicking in his agitation. "This is a clan, we work together, live together and accomplish things together. If you turn this into a competition then you will find you have no place among your clanmates because they will end up despising your very presence." Green eyes narrowed on the she-cat. "Take pride in your sister for defending your home, take pride in the fact you got your name even if you weren't first, because if you don't I can take that name away just as fast as I gave it to you."

She didn't pull away but the stinging words caused her curled ears to flatten against her skull. Tigerstar didn't understand, he only doubled down on his decision. Heatherfrost could have easily dispatched an enemy warrior in the same way if given a chance. Her feathery tail lashed back and forth as she stared with wide, icy blue eyes at her leader. How could he think that she didn't care about Crakeburn? It was her trust in her sister's prowess and the fact she'd returned that eased any worries. Yet, it did not soothe the burning jealousy in her heart, a longing to have stood in her littermate's paws. Forever, Crakeburn would be made a warrior ahead of her. Always a pawstep ahead.

For several moment she said nothing, merely looked ahead with a tightened jaw. Cloudypetal had believed in her, seen her, when the clan's leadership hadn't. Finally, the elegant, pale-furred molly spoke as her tail lashed in a wide arc, "Everything I do is for the clan, Tigerstar. It always has been, since kithood. I only control my own paws and have worked them till they were sore for the sake of Windclan. I hoped you would have seen that sooner. That Sootstorm would have seen that sooner." Her father's name felt dry on her tongue, a painful thing to admit. All the drive in the world seemed to meet nothing unless it was met with enemy claws. The past couldn't be changed, regardless.