Lynxtuft's Battle

Lynxtuft's Battle
- "A heart can't break. It can only bend." -
Prologue
Slow movement shuddered in a small hole at the edge of the valley that formed a sort of cave. Dirt slowly crumbled down from the walls as the short claws of a kit scraped against them. A she-cat curled her tail closer over her three kits as she sent a particularly harsh hiss in the direction of the smallest kit— the runt— who had sent the dirt sailing down onto her cream coat. It quickly stopped, settling itself back down into the nest. The she-cat laid her head down, nudging the runt away in the process. She didn’t make any moves to bring it back. 
A large, striped ginger cat— a tom— entered the cave with a duck between its jaws. He laid it down by the nest before giving the she-cat a perfunctory lick on the cheek. Her eyes were trained on the duck, however, and she took almost no time at all to begin hungrily chewing into it. The tom sat back and licked a large paw, dragging it over his ears. “How are the kits?” he asked. “Fine.” centre the reply. 
She pulled two of the kits closer before laying on her side, allowing the pair to knead her belly for milk. The tom looked on with distaste. “You have to stop this, Susie.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “Stop what?” she hissed. “Acting like our son doesn’t exist.” She looked away from him to gently nudge the two kits away from her towards the edge of the nest where the third kit lay. “I have one son.” she said simply, flicking her tail towards one of the tomkits. “That runt,” she said with a quick glare at the second tomkit, “means nothing to me.” The tom wrinkled his nose, watching as she attempted to turn away. He lashed his tail. “I see there’s no convincing you.” he growled, clearly agitated. 
Susie smiled cruelly before turning back to him. “Glad that you’ve seen to reason, Link. In fact, if you’re so favoring of the runt, how about he sleeps in your nest?” She nosed the tomkit out of her nest, ignoring its mewls of protest. “About time he gained some independence.” she said as she laid back down in her nest, curling her tail over the remaining tomkit and she-kit. 
Link looked down at the kit, his eyes filling with sympathy. With a rumbling growl that Susie merely flicked her ear at, Link picked the kit up by its scruff, settling it gently in his nest. It kept mewling in confusion, looking for its mother, but stopped when Link laid down next to it and pulled it close to him. Recognizing the much larger cat as its father, the kit settled down and yawned before falling asleep, enveloped in warm, cozy fur. 
“Goodnight, Lynx.” 
~/~ 
  
Chapter 1 
“Mrrow!” 
Tiger leapt at Leopard and planted his fluffy paws on her shoulders, sending both of them rolling out into the sunlight. They laughed and giggled, batting at each other. Lynx watched from the cave’s entryway, bouncing on his heels. “C’mon, Lynx!” Leopard called as she jumped away from another one of Tiger’s attacks. A wide smile spread across his face as he bounded towards them screaming, “Look out for me!” He leapt into the battle, taking up Tiger’s side as he swatted at Leopard’s face. The two toms burst out laughing while they attacked while Leopard, pouting, put up as good a defense as she could. “No fair! You’re little-er than he is, you should be helping me.” she whined. “Not as little-er...est as you!” Tiger cheered before jumping on top of Leopard and pinning her down. They both laughed as Tiger jumped back down and paraded around with Lynx triumphantly. “Bros! Bros! Bros!” 
Lynx sat back down and panted. He got tired pretty easily given how much bigger they were compared to him. They were all aware of it, but Tiger and Leopard didn’t treat him any differently for it. He considered it a blessing honestly, even though it meant feeling winded most days. When they called him little or small, he didn’t feel little or small. It was how they showed their sibling love for him in a funny little way. When others called him that, though-- 
“Tiger! Leopard! What are you doing? You know he’s too small for games.” 
that’s when it made him feel little or small. 
Susie padded up to the three. Tiger and Leopard looked at their mother blankly, while Lynx barely wanted to meet her eyes. He preferred it when she wasn’t looking at him, anyway. Every stare seemed to just spiral from a cold look into an analyzation of his flaws. Leopard shook out her pelt. “We were just playing, Mom. He’s fine.” Tiger’s eyes narrowed as he looked at her. Lynx noticed with a pang of envy that he was nearly the same height as her. “Yeah. He can stick up for himself pretty well.” he mewed approvingly as he cuffed Lynx’s ear. Susie rolled her eyes. “Speaking of which, it’s about time you two stopped playing these kit games and started training.” she said with a stern look at Tiger and Leopard. “You’re getting older. You need to learn how to hunt and fight for yourselves.” She glanced at Lynx, who was slinking away towards a flowerbed. He knew that soon he and his siblings would have to leave the familiarity of their valley home to make a new home for themselves, facing adulthood head-on. But what was “a runt like him” (his mother had reminded him of this fact more than once, as if he didn’t already know what he was) supposed to do? He could get training from his father, sure, but he knew that it might not be enough to get him through life. He’d never admit it, but he was scared. Scared of what lay ahead, of what he’d need to do, of the growing possibility of his own death. Upon reaching the flowers, he huffed frustratedly and laid down. His eyes squeezed shut for a few seconds before opening back up and looking over the valley in front of him with the sun dipping below the hills, spreading pink light across the sky. As it continued to sink down and transformed yet another day into yet another night, he couldn’t help but hate it. He didn’t find any beauty in it. All he saw was a giant, burning reminder of his own battle with time. 
“You missed mealtime, bud.” 
Lynx looked up in surprise. Link was standing by his side lowering a mouse to him. He picked it up, mewing his thanks. The flowers reached his chin as he laid down, but when Link laid next to him, he wanted to growl at how they barely even went past his chest. He hungrily chowed down like he hadn’t eaten in days. His mother was quick to give his siblings food before him now that they didn’t have to suckle, and when he did get his share of the day’s catch, it was always smaller than theirs’. “Come for the sunset?” Link asked with a smile as he looked down at him. Lynx shook his head stiffly. His smile faded, but he bumped Lynx’s side happily. “Chin up, kid. Things ain’t so bad. You got me, and you got your brother and sister.” Lynx shifted his paws. “Mom said she’s gonna start training soon with them.” Link frowned, his eyes narrowing as he stared ahead before giving the same small smile again. “Then I’ll just have to train you, but way cooler.” He left it at that, brushing his fluffy tail along Lynx’s flank. He looked up at him, his light cream coat ruffling up in the breeze. Even though his father’s fur was more orange than cream, he always mentioned how much he looked like him. He sounded proud whenever he said it. Even if Lynx doubted how similar they really looked, every time he said it made him feel accomplished that he’d made him proud. He was actually okay without having long, deep talks with Link about how he felt. He preferred the knowing, simple way they discussed things. “Let’s go inside, it’s cold.” he said as he got up. 
He started for the cave, laughing as Lynx raced ahead of him and promptly slipped on some mud, landing on the ground with his legs sprawled out and his face pink with embarrassment. “Okay, lesson one: don’t try to one-up your old man. It won’t end well.” He righted him with a brush of his nose, then set him back down on the ground. Lynx gave him a sheepish smile before turning back and continuing into the cave. “Right. Haha.” He quietly shuffled into his nest where it sat next to Link’s. Susie, Tiger, and Leopard were all asleep already in their nests. He curled up, comforted by Link’s warmth next to him. “Goodnight, Dad.” he yawned. He blinked and looked over in the dark when there wasn’t a response. “Dad!” he whisper-shouted, jabbing him in his exposed belly with a paw. He snorted and blinked his eyes open. “Huh? What?” He looked at Lynx, slight concern visible in his orange eyes. “I was saying goodnight!” he said as he jabbed him again. He chuckled softly, warding off the flurry of small paws coming his way. “Okay, okay. Goodnight, son.” Finally at peace, Lynx stuck his tongue out at him before lying back down and falling asleep. 
~/~ 
  
Chapter 2 
 
Lynx clawed a large branch into the air, pretending it was his enemy. He’d only been training for a few moons, but he was a fast learner. He pounced on it before biting down onto one end and shaking his head wildly, bending it from side to side, then releasing his teeth from it. With a final rake of his claws on the weakened middle part, it cracked in half. He stood to his paws, a wide smile spreading onto his face. I… I did it! Yes! he thought happily. He looked around. The cave was empty, and Tiger and Leopard were out play-fighting by some rocks. He flicked an ear. Dad must be out hunting. He’ll be so proud of me when I show him this! He raised his head a little higher, feeling good about his skill for once. Maybe he’d finally have the upper-paw in this battle. 
“Tiger, come here for a moment, will you?” 
The smooth voice approaching behind him made his neck fur stand. He knew it was his mother before he glanced behind himself and saw her pale cream fur. Tiger looked up and made his way over. His coat was light like his own, but he still had the orange stripes of their father. It made Lynx well up with envy. Susie flicked her tail back and forth as he walked in front of them. “What is it, Mom?” he asked, his orange eyes narrowed slightly from being taken away from playing. Leopard was staring from across the field, too. “I think you’re ready for a match-- a real one.” She paused again, waiting to see his reaction. Both his and Lynx’s eyes were alight with confusion, but Lynx realized that Tiger’s held something else, too: excitement. “Oh. Cool! Um, with who, though?” Susie’s thin-lipped smile grew wide. “Lynx. I know how he’s been training so hard with Link, so I figured it’d be good for you-- both of you!” she said, her voice sickly sweet with excitement. 
Lynx’s whiskers trembled. Tiger looked back at him, his excitement fading. “But I don’t want--”
“Hush!” she hissed suddenly. “Hush, my dear,” she said warily, quickly backtracking, “I mean, you’re just anxious. It’ll be fine.” The smile was clear on her face, but the pointed look she was giving Tiger was enough to ward off any sense of security. She sat down, nodding at Tiger to begin. He lowered his head, staring directly at Lynx, who attempted to push down his fear and remember what his father told him. 
Tiger jumped forward, but Susie lashed her tail. He skidded to a halt on the stretch of grass just before Lynx’s front paws. They both looked up at her, and for a moment it was hard to see who was more relieved. They both knew that they could handle the other in a fight, but the question remained whether or not they’d want to, the question that made the fight all the more panic-inducing. She’s rethinking it? Lynx hoped silently. His whiskers trembled again. “Use your claws. This is a real match, after all.” she said annoyedly. They looked back at each other with uncertainty, but she remained silent. 
Lynx was the first to unsheathe his claws. He heard the sound of Tiger’s paws landing on his face before he felt them, like a whip cracking in the air. His claws connected with his long cheek fur which was bristling to appear more intimidating, like he could actually do something here. The difference in their sizes was laughable. Lynx wriggled a paw free from underneath Tiger’s muscular forearms, just in time to bring his claws up the side of his face. He grunted and turned away, giving him enough time to claw his vulnerable neck, and break free of his grasp. He lowered his head and crouched into the battle stance Link had showed him, letting out a rumbling growl that rivaled the need for survival in Tiger’s battle cry. Tiger lunged forward, roughly slamming his shoulder into Lynx’s chest, knocking the breath out of him. He wheezed and reeled back in an attempt to distance himself and get air. Tiger backed up, his eyes sympathetic and concerned. “Lynx, are you—“
He would’ve hissed something short and curt back (I’m FINE! he wanted to screech.) if his mother didn’t beat him to the punch. “What are you doing?” she snapped. “Stop pausing like a dumb kit and attack him!” Tiger obeyed, visibly inhaling before charging back towards the barely recovered Lynx. He bit down on his front leg, then jerked his head to the side in a sudden motion, slamming him down onto his side. He tried to snap back up, but the feeling of Tiger’s sharp claws against his neck made him cry out and lie back against the ground. He looked up at his brother who was equally as shaken as he was. 
He quickly sheathed his claws, looking angrily at Susie. “Okay, we’re done.” he huffed. “‘Done’?” she scoffed. “You’re not done until you leave marks of a fighter. Claw him.” Fear seemed to cross Tiger’s face for a moment, or maybe it was just Lynx’s imagination as he raised his paw, the world slowing down in its wake. Everything around him was deathly silent save for the blood rushing in his ears. For a few split-seconds, he tried to think of something-- Kick him. Defend yourself. Do something.-- but all he could do was lie there as his claws got closer and closer to his face. He was losing the battle, and now there was nothing he could do about it. 
He registered the wet blood in three thin lines on his face before he felt the burning sting, and realized the grunt of both pain and surprise had come from his own mouth. They both could only stare at each other, with Lynx looking up into his brother’s open-mouthed face, and Tiger looking down at the three bloody scratches he’d left with one swipe of his claws. “L-Lynx, I’m so sorry.” he choked out, his voice small. Before he could reply, their mother’s voice sounded again as she approached. “Well done, Tiger. You--” 
The sound of two heavy thumps on the soft earth made them all turn. The sound had been caused by two rabbits falling down from Link’s jaws, who’d just returned from hunting. At first, his face was light with confusion, but it quickly darkened. His eyes filled with rage as he bared his sharp teeth and charged forward. 
~/~ 
  
Chapter 3 
 
Lynx quickly got up to his paws as Tiger jumped away from him. Both of their eyes were trained on their scowling father. He stared Tiger down, causing him to visibly flinch back, even though there was no place to hide. He turned sharply on his paws, his unfamiliar scowl now trained on Susie. “What the hell are you doing? Why is our son bleeding?” he growled. She squinted, but quickly closed her eyes and resumed an uncaring stance, like she were thinking over her next words. “Our son,” she said with mock-pity, “tried to take on Tiger and failed.” Lynx’s eyes narrowed as he growled. “That-That’s not true!” he hissed. “You made him fight me to prove he was a ‘r-real fighter’!” Link turned back to Susie, whose slitted eyes were blazing into Lynx. “You made Tiger fight Lynx?” He stepped closer towards her, his fur bristling. “He clawed him!” Susie bared her teeth and stood her ground. Lynx almost flinched at the way he was yelling. Even Leopard had come over to see what the commotion was. “I showed him how to be ready for what he’s going to live with in the world. It’s not my fault if a runt couldn’t handle it.” she hissed. Link let out a warning growl. “Don’t talk about our son like that!” She scoffed, lashing her plumed tail. “My son is Tiger.” she mrrowed firmly. 
On top of the sting on his cheek, Lynx could feel tears stinging his eyes. He’d always known how little she thought of him, but he always assumed that she at the very least considered him her kin. He tried to growl, but it came out a cracked sort of whimper. Link’s fury reached its boiling point. He let out a loud snarl before leaping at Susie, shoving her back with massive forepaws. She shrieked in anger and unsheathed her claws, despite Link’s sheathed ones, and raked them across his nose. “Stop it!” Lynx shouted. Leopard cried out as Tiger screamed at them. Suddenly, Lynx’s eyes blurred, rage filling him from the tips of his ears to his clammy paw pads. He ran forward, his paws slamming against the grass like a horse’s hooves, right between his mother and father, who had parted in between Link slamming his paw onto her face to deter her and Susie clawing him in return. Lynx wasn’t sure what to do. But he did know two things: 
He was filled with this rage, and he wanted it out. 
He unsheathed his claws and began screaming and clawing until his heart beating wildly in his chest drowned out the voices around him. He could barely see, only really registering his claws slicing through fur and somehow managing to break skin. His head pounded as his anger grew like a shadow on the wall until he finally threw himself forward, biting into the first cat that he collided with, who let out a hiss. He didn’t stop, though; his muddled mind wanted to hear them begging, struggling, kicking, screaming. He sank his teeth into the flesh until he was thrown off by a large set of paws. His heartbeat seemed to slow just enough for him to hear the blood-curdling scream that calmed into a series of pained grunts. Finally, the sounds stopped. He could see their bloody paws lying limply on the ground as their eyes closed. They were dead, this he knew. His battle had reached the point of no return. 
Lynx looked up, his eyes cold and pitiless. His mother was standing in front of him, hissing and swiping at him with halfhearted movements. His ears swiveled until he caught on to what she was saying, mixed in with his sister’s cries. “You monster! What have you done?! I’ll turn you into crowfood!” Susie screamed. Lynx looked back down. His father was lying dead in front of him. He’d killed Link. No… It wasn’t supposed to be him! “No… NO!” he cried. Lynx turned tail, running towards the hills he’d seen his father leave through when he went hunting. “I’ll kill you!” Susie screamed after him. “I’ll kill you!” 
~/~ 
 
Chapter 4 
 
Lynx didn’t stop until his paw pads were scratched and his eyelids were heavy like stones. The moon had already dipped below the horizon, turning the sky light blue as rays of sun began to peek out. He stopped in a glade surrounded by tall, thin pine trees, far away from the valley he knew. He sighed deeply, deep tear tracks already on his face. He could barely think over the sound of his father screaming filling his ears. 
But then, there was a new sound. It was tiny, but it still made his fur bristle and his claws unsheathe- probably a side-effect of committing murder, he realized- as he whipped around to face what had made the sound. Who, he corrected himself as a tuxedo she-cat stepped out into the glade, tailed by three other cats. They all towered over him, but he wasn’t afraid. No, he was long past fear now. “Who are you?” the tuxedo asked, examining him with light yellow eyes. She was almost welcoming, which made him feel undeserving in a way. He remained silent, but his still angry eyes were telling. She arched a white eyespot at him before glancing down, noticing the red stain around his jaws and neck. “Were you attacked?” one of the three behind her piped up as he moved forward to get a better look. After pausing, he shook his head firmly. “He’s probably a loner.” another one pointed out while he sniffed a few times. “Who are you?” the tuxedo asked. “I’m a monster.” he hissed, raising a paw off the ground. “A monster that nobody wants.” he added, more to himself as he looked away, his eyes full of sorrow. The four exchanged glances with each other. “You look like an apprentice.” the last one said. “Where did you come from?” Lynx’s eyes narrowed as he thought of the valley. “Why do you care?” The tom who'd asked was about to step forward, when the tuxedo flicked her tail, and he fell back. 
“We care,” she cut in, “because this forest is dangerous. You could get hurt if you stay out here.” He looked up at her, silently willing her to get to the point of why she’d left him alive. “You can try joining us-- ShadowClan. If our Clanmates accept you, then you can stay.” she said. Her tone was cautious, but more or less warm. Lynx weighed his options. The cave was only warm because there were four other cats sleeping inside of it. The world outside was cold and harsh, not to mention the other inhabitants of the land. If this forest really was dangerous, then he didn’t know how long he could actually last. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, he could use some help. “Alright. I’ll go with you.” he murmured, his voice hoarse and dry from screaming. She nodded, motioning to the three others with her. “My name is Shadestar. This is Sailstorm, Wisdomseeker, and Pearshine. Can you tell us your name?” It came out as more of an order than a question, making him assume she was probably a leader of some kind. “L-Lynx.” he stammered, cursing his shaky voice in his head. With that, she slow-blinked and turned tail, padding south down a slightly paw-beaten trail as they all followed. 
 
----
  
“Our camp is here, just up ahead.” Shadestar mewed. Lynx’s jaw dropped as he gazed out at the camp, visible as they crossed through some tall grass. Tall elm trees grew on both sides of the entrance, leading into a clearing with large bramble and moss dens placed around it. He carefully padded inside, his chin tipped up as other cats dotted among the land caught his strange scent and looked his way. There were lots of them, all different colors and sizes going about their business, moving through the seemingly endless camp with ease. He looked back forward as Shadestar jumped up onto a large, flat rock. She nodded at another cat, this one large and brown with black stripes. He jumped up beside her, letting out a sharp yowl. “Clan meeting!” They both sat down on the flat rock as the other cats all stopped and moved to sit below it, including the other three he’d come in with. Shadestar beckoned him forward. Warily, he walked past the other cats to stand in front of the two leaders. 
“Cats of ShadowClan,” she began, “I present to you today a cat- Lynx- who I believe is fit to join our ranks. Do you accept him?” she asked, her voice that had just been soft and warm now authoritative and carrying over the clearing. She looked at the brown tom first, then to the two she-cats sitting on directly next to the rock, and finally to the gathered cats. He faced them, his eyes bright with pride. Some gazes were distrusting, while others were approving. After a few tense moments, the approving cats raised their voices in soft mews. The brown tom nodded at Shadestar. “Very well. Lynx, step forward.” She looked down at him with friendly yellow eyes. He realized as he approached that the rock wasn’t that big, and he reached her shoulders from where he stood. “From this day on, until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Lynxpaw. May you be as confident in your training as you have been in your words.” She leaned down, touching her nose to his shoulder. It was a strange feeling, being welcomed into a completely new and unfamiliar place, but a good one. Unfamiliar was good. He turned back to face the crowd, swiveling his tufted ears as they began to cheer his new name. He couldn’t grin, even though he felt somewhat proud, but his whiskers trembled with anticipation nonetheless. His mother was wrong. The mark of a real fighter wasn’t destroying your enemies, or even winning the battle. 
The mark of a real fighter was enduring it. And he didn’t just plan on enduring- he planned on thriving. 
~/~ 
  
Credits go to Neptoones for the OC and xxfrozenscar for the art! 
 
 
 
Category:Cats
Category:Warrior Cats
Category:Completed Stories