Resident Evil [O]

Auburnpaw had found the first few grasshoppers of the approaching newleaf. They had been surprisingly easy to catch too, given that the temperatures were only just warm enough for them to come out. No doubt they'd have another cold snap soon, but for the time being, the bugs were out and Auburnpaw was determined to enjoy them... in her own unique way.

Rip.

A grasshopper's leg was between her teeth while she pinned the small creature underpaw. She spat it out, then let the grasshopper go, curious to watch it still able to hop with only one back leg. Satisfied, she smushed another underfoot. Her tail tip twitching, she removed both of the back legs from this one.

Rip. Rip.

She turned it loose, watching it crawl uselessly away. That one was likely as good as bird food. They had to eat too, after all. Now bored, she began to search the moor for something else to play with. Her eyes watched a bee fly by, the first one she'd ever seen. She prowled after it, but stopped and watched as it collected pollen from a flower. Why? What was so interesting about the yellow powder? She swatted a flower nearby, watching the golden cloud of pollen escape from it. She couldn't smell anything. She licked at it, but it tasted flavorless and felt grainy.

"Flowers are boring. Tigerstar better not name me after a flower..." She muttered bitterly. Suddenly getting an idea, Auburnpaw began to swat at the few spots of color poking through the ground. It was much more fun to watch the petals roll away into the wind, never to be seen again.

Mistypaw was taking another usual walk. It was way more fun than hunting and feeding her clan, hm? She saw Auburnpaw sitting on a patch of grass, tearing off grasshopper legs and watching them struggle to walk away. Was this what apprentices enjoyed doing? Killing grasshoppers? She wanted to be in the nursery again, especially since most of the other apprentices were bigger than her. She was just scrawny scraps of fur. Did she even deserve to be apprenticed to a mentor? Did she even want to be mentored? Those questions whirred in her head for days and days. Kits were supposed to be eager to be apprenticed, but not her. She felt more comfort in walking across the WindClan fields, exploring and picking things that interested her. Yet, at the same time, she showed all the kindness she could. "Hm, so apprentices enjoy killing grasshoppers, do they?" Mistypaw meowed after she watched Auburnpaw take off the petals of flowers. All Auburnpaw seemed to want to do was to tear stuff.

Auburnpaw's head snapped in the direction of the new voice. Mistypaw... She regarded the other she-cat with an unamused look for a moment, before she went back to destroying flowers. "Only the best ones pull legs off of grasshoppers. Once you become a warrior, you have to do it to rabbits." She wasn't serious, but the thought was still appealing. "Did you need something, Mistypaw?" Auburnpaw asked, stamping down a bright yellow flower and holding it under her paw like a prisoner.

She didn’t see that an apprentice would get any benefits in watching grasshoppers die, nor did she find any fun in eating them, though some cats would. And why did Auburnpaw enjoy destroying flowers? The flower fields would probably look gorgeous in newleaf, but if Auburnpaw was there, Mistypaw bet it wouldn’t look one bit pretty.

"I don’t really need anything," she meowed calmly, "but don’t you think it’s a little violent to rip legs off bugs?"

Why was she saying this when she hunted multiple times? But at least fresh-kill tasted good. Watching grasshoppers squirm for their life was a bit weird in her eyes.

Rapidpaw skip hopped happily over to her two fellow appretnices, she was almost always happy and in a good mood. She purred in greeting.


"hi Auburnpaw, Hi mistypaw. what are you doing??" she asked smiling.

Her smile quickly faded as Auburnpaw clawed up a flower and pulled legs off of grasshoppers.

"Why are you being mean to the flowers and bugs Auburnpaw?" she asked confused and clearly upset by all this.

"We kill rabbits sure... but we actually eat them. You are just being mean to be mean." she meowed shaking her head wanting her friend to stop it.

Auburnpaw rolled her eyes at Mistypaw and sighed loudly. Obnoxiously. "Don't be a coward Mistypaw. They don't have feelings." Her eyes landed on Rapidpaw as she approached. Out of her mouth came more nonsense and bleeding heart stupidity and weakness. Auburnpaw had a thought then what it might be like to be leader. She'd order the immediate execution of anyone who dared show such softness in Windclan as these two.

"Is it mean, Rapidpaw? Is it? By who's standards? Yours? Are you the moral authority of what is right and wrong in the forest? Perhaps you should inform Starclan that they're out of a job. I see nothing in the warrior code that protects bugs or flowers, so why don't you go choke on a mouse and keep your worthless feelings to yourself. You as well Mistypaw. No one cares what you think." Auburnpaw hissed. Out of spite, she lashed out with her paw at a nearby butterfly, severing it's wings but leaving the body intact.

And just like that, it was a caterpillar again, never to have the hope of ever floating on the breeze again. Auburnpaw did what she wanted. She enjoyed the ability to make something suffer for the rest of it's life simply because in that moment she felt like doing it. Anyone who didn't understand and use that power were fools and deserved to be brought low for eternity... like the legless grasshoppers, the petal-less flowers and the wingless butterfly.

If they wanted to do something about it, she would welcome it.