Rolling Thunder [c]

To say she had expected what had happened at the gathering would have been a blatant lie. A lie so deep, it would have instantly cursed her to the depths of the Dark Forest. She had always known that there were two sides to every rock, one bright and sunny, the other cool and distant. But her mother, she had cursed her mother silently for ages for never seeming to have one. Never having something that she kept away, something that made her like everyone else. She always seemed like the perfect, kind, warm-hearted tortoiseshell that always smiled to all.

Until that gathering.

That moment upon the rock.

As much as she had desperately wished for her mother to be normal in that regard, to truly be confronted with it now seemed to shatter her entire world view. Perhaps not nearly as much as her sister's, who always had that deep flame that stayed within the calico-patterned molly, but hers burned outwardly. Much more vibrantly, so much so that it seemed inbued within her very pelt. It made it rather easy to track as she stormed away from Fourtrees, those sacred grounds feeling much less sacred with each passing moon.

Dangerous thoughts of her own swirled deep within the tall feline's mind. The way she easily slipped from shadow to shadow, silently stepping across the forest. Was this her training and familiarity with the way the forest could easily reveal a foe, or perhaps was she the result of what Mottlestar had done? Was her mother currently expecting another litter of kits at this very moment, and they were the forbidden progeny of the two leaders?

Those questions didn't matter. She was here for her sister. They would bring out their vengeance together, but she already knew that her sister would be a flame that would burn down the entire forest in a hateful blaze if she did nothing other than stand idly by. Her sister, whose very first act was to bite down upon her flank. It had stuck with the Thunderclan warrior, having unintentionally caused an eternal slight stiffness in that particular leg. Just a simple injury to maneuver around.

Had her sister not been so mindless at covering her scent, the sound of the bark shattering and splintering from claws would have given her away just as easily. Muscles tensed in some instinctive knowledge that it was dangerous to approach, and yet, the molly pushed her way through anyways.

Until the claws collided with her own face.

She felt her fur and skin splitting under the force of the claws that found purchase, a sharp, distinctly feminine hiss of the unexpected pain releasing from her frame. She hadn't fully been prepared to immediately be ambushed the moment she came through the brush, and that was fully on her, but to be attacked with full claws? Perhaps she had underestimated the rage that truly burned within her kin.

The heat and stickiness of her own blood running down her face provided to be just enough of a shock that the calico was soon able to think through the other slam that had come upon her head, and she shook her head. It sent stings through it that told her just how much damage had been done - but the adrenaline now coursing through her veins took over. She should have kept her claws sheathed. She should be trying to reason with her sister, but right now, all that was coursing through her was the feral instinct to defend. Her own teeth lashed out, going straight for the pelt of the flaming molly who had deemed her a threat.

Murkyripple used Random Recall and overcame the stun, then used Snap! It dealt 8 damage and used 12 stamina.

Firefly
42 / 50 HP (-8)
103 / 120 SP

Murkyripple
39 / 50 HP
108 / 120 SP (-12)

Should Murkyripple have known better? Oh, absolutely. She knew her sister well enough that she could have prevented this by simply voicing her presence. But it was too late. A wince of her own came as she easily avoided her sister's attack at her soft underbelly - but the way the fiery molly collided with the tree still made her flinch. Even if they were fighting like enemies, this was her sister. Deep down, she still cared.

That, however, didn't mean this was a fight about to end. Murkyripple still had her pride, and simply stepping away wasn't about to happen now. Just as they were sisters, they were still kin, and thus unintentionally mimicked each other in their fighting styles. Though, it could easily be argued that the calico-flecked warrior tried to be a bit more sly in her movements, calculated as opposed to Firefly's much more hopefully-reckless style.

Taking notes from how her sister had ambushed her just moments before, Murkyripple brought her paws down on Firefly's head in an attempt to subdue the already prone warrior. However, instead of her claws aiming right for the russet molly's already-scarred face, they aimed for her shoulders instead. It was much more in a move to keep her still, but in the back of her mind, she already could hear the lashing that she would be getting for fighting with claws out. It didn't matter. The battle-hungry beast that clawed deep down inside of her had been unleashed, and this wasn't ending until there was a clear victor. Whoever that was. Perhaps even she had some burning anger in this case about what had happened at the gathering.

Murkyripple used Front Paw Blow and Thunderous Stomp, dealing 11 total damage and costing 17 stamina. Firefly is stunned for one turn.
Firefly
26 / 50 HP (-11)
78 / 120 SP

Murkyripple
39 / 50 HP
91 / 120 SP (-17)