Traitor // A Warriors Mafia Minigame

Round Six, Scene One

It was supposed to be a regular, peaceful time in the Clan. One warrior was determined to change that.

"Let's see which of my Clanmates I'll thirst on tonight." The murderer licked their lips in anticipation. They lay in wait, watching the sleeping warriors, until they were sure that none would be awakened by her victim's screams. Then, they selected a target.

"Ivygorse, wake up."

The black and white tom didn't move.

"Ivygorse," the cat repeated impatiently, prodding him with a paw, "I have something for you."

"Wh-What?" Ivygorse moaned and turned over in his nest, sleepy and dazed. "What do you have for me?"

The killer bared their fangs and hissed. "Oh, something wonderful. I'm giving you an immediate passage to StarClan!" They pounced on Ivygorse, who yelped in surprise at the sudden attack.

"Why do you want me dead?" Ivygorse was trying to sound intimidating, but his voice quavered with fear.

The killer pushed their muzzle into Ivygorse's ear and started to purr- a broken, maniacal purr that made Ivygorse's blood turn cold. "A cat has to have a good meal, right? Well, the scent of fear and the taste of blood is perfect for me." With that, they sank their fangs into Ivygorse's throat and yanked backwards, tearing it open. The victim let out a strangled gasp and began writhing on the ground. In a few moments, he was dead.

The cat wasted no time lapping up the blood that was pouring from the wound, relishing every drop of the crimson liquid. "Oh, yes... this is the life."

The cat picked up Ivygorse's body in their jaws, purring in satisfaction as their fangs pierced his skin and more flavour flooded their mouth. They dragged his body into the clearing for the other warriors and for Sleekstar to see when they woke up. "Let them see what they will become," they laughed. "Let them see how they will become my prey."

***

"Is it just me, or do I smell..." Birchtuft, who had just woken up, sniffed the air tentatively. "The scent of death?" He shook his head and tasted the air again dubiously, but the scent was definitely there.

"Don't be ridiculous, Birchtuft. There have been no recent battles and no cats are sick! Why would a cat suddenly die?" Flaredapple's light tease didn't being any comfort to Birchtuft; he was sure of what he'd sensed.

Beside them, Bubblewish stiffened. "No, Flaredapple. Birchtuft is right, some cat is dead." He hastily got to his feet and rushed outside, following the scent. Afraid of what they might find, Flaredapple and Birchtuft followed.

Outside the den, Ivygorse's body lay sprawled out in the clearing, his olive eyes glassy and misted with death. His throat had been torn open, and the wound had been licked clean. The warriors stared in horror at the body. Flaredapple, her normally happy disposition gone, cried out, "Ivygorse is dead!"

The rest of the warriors came out of the den, all noting Ivygorse's body with apprehension and disgust, until Sleekstar finally emerged from his den. He padded forward and the warriors parted to let their leader pass. He sniffed at Ivygorse's body. "A warrior did this," he growled. "I can smell Clan scent, but the stench of death masks everything else." He raised his head to address his Clan. "We shouldn't take action until more evidence is uncovered."

"But we need to accuse someone." Brindlespring looked around. "It could be anyone here who killed Ivygorse. Who's to say they'll stop the killing now?"

"Brindlespring is right." Poppyfoot swept her suspecting amber gaze over the other warriors. "We need to take action. Whoever killed Ivygorse won't be afraid to kill the rest of us."

Both she-cats looked expectantly at Sleekstar, who, after a long hesitation, dipped his head. "Very well. Let me have a word with my deputy before making any accusations." He flicked his tail in a signal to follow and retreated into his den. A moment later, he came out and announced, "Perchberry has been accused."

"What?" Perchberry looked shocked and angry. "I've never done anything suspicious, not recently, not ever!" The silver she-cat glared at her Clanmates, one by one, daring them to challenge her. "I've always followed the Warrior Code and listened to what other cats say. How dare you accuse me of treachery?"

"How do we know it's not just an act?" Tigersong countered, his tail lashing furiously. Every cat turned to look at him; Tigersong was usually so relaxed, never worked up like this. "You claim you're loyal to the Warrior Code. But what if you're only pretending to be in daylight? You could do whatever you wanted at night and no cat would know."

The warriors started to separate themselves into two opposing groups: one defending Perchberry and one against her, until Sleekstar gave a loud, commanding yowl. "Stop! Enough arguing." He pushed himself through the scrum of warriors, breaking them apart. "All you have to do is tell me whether or not you think Perchberry is guilty of killing Ivygorse. But you must choose wisely, because if more of you vote 'guilty', she'll be exiled and will never be allowed to return, even if her name is cleared."

Do you think Perchberry killed Ivygorse? Leave your vote in the comments!

A/N If you're wondering, the two groups were as follows:

Defending Perchberry: Herself, Pebblestrike, Bubblewish, Birchtuft, Dovefern, Flaredapple, Lichenleaf

Opposing Perchberry: Tigersong, Brindlespring, Poppyfoot, Starlingtalon, Dawndust, Swiftshine

Also, accidental Debate Scrum, much? I wrote this a year ago, long before getting into Danganronpa :P

~Bubble