She had never seen anything quite like it. DrizzeClan had always been laid-back when it came to training: mentors would take their apprentice out whenever they felt the right time of day, sometimes with other apprentices and mentors and go easy and work them until they were at their limit.

This was nothing like that.

Sparring cats fought in pairs, an occasional screech of pain. Claws were unsheathed. But it was oddly organized. If a cat wasn't sparring, it was running laps or climbing twoleg boxes.

Overnight, the make-shift dens had been pushed to the sides except for the recruit box tower den that was being used for climbing practice.

"Come on, Spark! You're already a little late; Cecil'll have your tail if he doesn't see you soon!" Daisy dragged the golden tabby she-cat out of the recruit den.

"I'm coming... Where is he?" She looked around for the stone gray tabby.

"He's on the top of one of the recruit den pillars. Probably watching us." Daisy's voice was soft. Spark tried to forget what Rust had said about her giving up her kits, but every time she saw her soft ginger face, she had to turn away.

She had never had to face such terrible things like that in DrizzleClan.

"Move it, you pelican." She was shoved aside by a passing creamy and pale golden tabby patched she-cat, who glared back to Spark.

"Some pelicans could eat a kit whole, so I accept your insult." Sparkfur sniffed sassily, tipping her chin up. The patched she-cat curled her lip and padded closer to Spark.

"You think your some smarty? I bet I could claw you so hard you're next of kin could feel it!" She growled.

"Please calm down, Olice..!" Daisy soothed, softly stepping in between the two fiery females. The patched tabby flicked her thin tail.

"Whatever. She was in my way, and I have places to be!" She spinned around and padded off in the direction of two unknown sparring cats.

"Someone's got anger issues..." Sparkfur growled, blinking up to Daisy. The pale ginger tabby looked down at her paws.

"I heard they killed her mother to get her to join." Daisy murmured. Sparkfur opened her mouth, ready to say something sharp, but closed her mouth. She looked to her paws and gave a small nod, and looked back up to see Cecil's yellowy amber eyes looking down on them.

Spark narrowed her own emerald eyes and clawed her way up the nearest pillar of boxes. Growing up in the dense foresty clan of DrizzleClan she was always racing up and down huge oaks.

"I'm here," she said boldly, one box shorter than the large gray tabby.

"I can see that." He stood up from his sitting position, scaling down the boxes. She followed in suit, annoyed and wanting to start. She had to get out, she had to go to the meeting spot, and she had to track down the leader, and she had to do something regrettable to them. That was what was going to fill that hole ripped in her heart. It had to be.

She skidded to a stop as she hit the cold strange ground: solid like stone but smooth unlike the ridged rocks in the forest.

"Well?" She glared at him, slim shoulders square. He gave an annoyed sigh.

"Olio, or whatever your name is, get over here." He half shouted. The creamy golden tabby patched she-cat came over, her yellowy green eyes burning holes in Sparkfur.

"It's Olice."

"Yeah, whatever. Spar with this sad excuse for a cat." Sparkfur's back fur stood on end, and the opposing cat grinned, unsheathing her claws.

"Sure." She darted toward Spark. It only took half a moment for the trained warrior to recognize how untrained her opponent was: the only tactic was a fire of hate. Probably hate building up from death. Spark could relate, and said cat twisted to the side with graceless long legs, rebounding with a pounce and landing on top of Olice.

It was an easy tussle, giving the warrior a memory of training sessions with Frostheart. She pinned the larger but not as skilled cat to the ground.

"How do you always get the upper-hand?" Frostleaf struggled away from Sparkfur's loosened grip, raindrops falling from the sky.

"You have to push all your weight down on your opponent" the tabby warrior explained, dropping into a sort of crouch. Frostleaf nodded slowly, inadvertently mirroring Sparkfur's fighting stance. "Right."

"Wow, Spark! That was cool!" Daisy purred, her tail tip twitching with excitement. Sparkfur glanced up with a slight cocky grin, Cecil watching her with something of a... smile...?

Olice growled and swiped a freed paw at Sparkfur's ear, clipping the cartilage and spilling blood. Spark bounced away, a bit shocked. She had won, she had pinned her, why was the cat still trying to hurt her?

Of course.

"Don't get too comfortable. They aren't safe, and they aren't your friends." Berryfoot had sighed, looking her up and down.

"It's okay. I can look out for myself."

Spark breathed quickly, trying to sort through her speeding thoughts. Ear bleeding. Olice is getting up. Cecil is yelling at me to finish her off already. The creamy patched tabby was coming right at Spark, to which she reacted quickly.

She sidestepped with quick paws, ducking and swiftly referring back to her warrior training. Claws sheathed, only her own blood needed to be spilled.

As close as she could get in the heat of the moment, she brought her front right paw down as hard as she could onto the poor cat's head. Olice dropped like a sack of potatoes onto the ground.

There was cheering from Bray and Daisy, the only crowd of watching cats, and the winner's fur grew hot. It was a pretty hard hit, and she wondered if it was too hard. She began to get hotter as Bray danced around her. She had never killed a cat, and while Olice was a prat, she was an innocent prat.

Cecil padded over, standing in front of Spark as she tried not to check on the patched cat. Keep your eyes focused on him. He'll think you actually care about her health if you look to her. She remembered that there was a time she wouldn't have cared. Then Ryeheart had come along.

"That wasn't too bad. You're better than I expected, but she is just a lowly recruit like yourself.. What's you name, again?"

"Spark."

"Right. I'm going to stick you on a patrol so you aren't wasting away here." He flicked his tail, and a thick calico tom who had been overseeing a spar between Rust and a heavily built gray flecked tom padded over. "Fang, take a patrol out to the city border with Rust, Zephyr, Belle, and this runt...Spark" the head of training turned and padded to watch the recruits in an ominous shadow. Spark wondered if it was required for him to act like he had a million secrets all the time.

"Come on then, Sparkie. I's only sunhigh an' we still hav' to get all the way to the border."

"It's Spark." She said as three other cats joined them: Rust, a pale fluffy pale gray she-cat, and a grey patched she-cat.

"Yeah tha's what I said, smart-mouth. Les' move, we're losin' daylight!" His voice rung through the camp as he led them in a run out of the warehouse. Recruits watched with jealousy smothered across their faces: some had probably never left the warehouse since they got there. Spark looked back just before she left out the small exit. Olice was standing up shakily, snapping and glaring at Daisy as the poor motherly cat tried to help her.

"Come on, deer-legs!" Shouted the fluffy pale gray she-cat. Spark nodded slightly, racing after the patrol into the stone path, foul smelling city.

----

AN:

I couldn't decide where to stop! I made an allegiances or a cast list or whatever of EVERY SINGLE CAT who has appeared with a description and name (with the exception of Ryeheart's murderer.) Honestly, Fallowheart probably has my favorite design <3 she's so cute omg. It's also the Prologue to Chapter 11 (this is Chapter 12) so Olice, Zephyr, and Belle won't be in it. I also JUST realized I didn't do full coloring on Amberleaf's eyes. KFJSJSHSJDNND THAT SLIPPERY WEASEL. FRICK.