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| - "Rainbow! Cut that out!" Rainbow's mother gave her a sharp stare and she stopped tapping on her mouse's bones. It surprisingly made a musical sound. And Mother must've be thinking how dignified she-cats don't make music out of corpses. Especially future princesses. Which would not happen. Rainbow would not be mates with the Clan leader's son. Ew. Gross. She was not marrying a snob she'd never met. "I wonder if Prince Seraph likes music," Rainbow conjectured. "Maybe," Her mother said, taking a neat bite of her finch. "But that doesn't give you an excuse for playing with your prey instead of eating it." Rainbow ate quietly for the rest of the meal before excusing herself to go on a walk in the SkyClan's main forest, the Nightriver Forest. She thought about about how every single she-cat in the Clan wanted to be the Prince's mate so how was she much competition? Plus, she did not want to be pampered with feasts and royalty. She wanted to be drafted into the SkyClan army more than anything. But the idea of a she-cat being a warrior was horrifying for her mother, 'No, females are paragons of beauty, and the perfect ones are the royal ones.' She shook out her glassy-gray fur, trying to get her stern mother's voice out of her head. Rainbow jumped above the Nightriver Rock and padded swiftly into the mossy Nightriver forest. She blinked, her ice-blue eyes adjusting to the bright, lively colors. She would come here every evening to breath the cool, crisp air, to calm her mind before her strict father came back from the daily Senior Warrior Council meeting. Rainbow jumped across the forest grounds and leapt on top of a cherry tree, and she took a bite of one of them. Oolgh. Too sour. After parading around, eating various fruits and catching a squirrel, Rainbow ran out of the forest and to her family den. She saw her father entering the den just then, and she hurried up to the den. As she entered, Rainbow saw her parents speaking. They turned to face her as she came inside the den, her mother looking overjoyed and her father had his approving face on. "Rainbow, you won't believe it!" Her mother gushed, lashing her ginger tail in excitement. "What? What am I not going to believe?" Rainbow asked. Her father cleared his throat. "Sit." The family of three went into a part of the den and sat down, two eager, one confused. "Now," Her father began. "As part of the Senior Warrior Council, our family holds a great part of the SkyClan high priority." Rainbow leaned closer, interested. "So as the great Prince Seraph is coming to age, he must find a mate to assist him in his leadership. His parents, their majesties, have decided to limit Seraph's choices to the High Priorities' daughters for his mate." The dark gray tom paused and chuckled. "All of the other Seniors either have already-mated daughters or no daughters at all. So our family is the only family with a young maiden daughter." Rainbow felt as frozen as an ice statue. "What?" She whispered hoarsely. "Rainbow, I am the only Senior with a daughter eligible for the paws of the Prince. Do you know what this means? You have a chance at the throne!" Her father cried joyfully. "Well there are other families with eligible she-cats but very few. We have a chance!" Her mother joined in. Rainbow stared at the hopeful expressions on her parents' faces. She felt like a hard stone being exposed to sunlight. "We are to bring you before the royals next moon," Her father said. "Until then, we will cancel your schooling and put you in a top SkyClan beauty school." "What?" Rainbow cried. "Beauty school?" "Yes," Her mother frowned. "What is so horrifying about it?" "Everything! And I need school, the mentors there teach battle training and..." She trailed off at the new intensity in her parents' eyes. "What ever do you need battle training for?" Her father asked. "The King and Queen will keep you safe at the Royal Palace-" "She wants to be in the army!" Her mother hissed. "A weak, dying warrior meant to take part in bloodbath battles. She'll be dead in the first fight." "Is this true?" Her father asked, his blue eyes wide. "Rainbow, wars are for toms. She-cats are meant to specialize in hunting. Only the best ones get to be royal. I cannot imagine why you would prefer the life of a slave over a wealthy one." "It's not that bad," Rainbow meowed, a panicked edge to her voice. "And battles are not for just toms. She-cats do just as well at fighting. Kate and Paisley enrolled into the war a moon ago-" "Paisley and Kate come from a poor family!" Rainbow's mother said, bristling. "They have no choice. You do. And you'd better take that opportunity-" "What if I don't?!" Rainbow shouted. "Enough!" Rainbow's father yowled. He glowered down at Rainbow. "Go to your room and stay there until we call you. You've gone far enough and by now, at 16 moons, you should know that we do is for the best of you. Come back when you learn your manners unless that will take you the next ten moons." Rainbow lashed her tail and wordlessly stormed off to her room, tears trailing from her eyes. She knew this wasn't for her. A royal's family would get to move next to the palace and would get a higher rank. No wonder why her parents were so excited. Excited to rob her dreams for their riches. As she entered her room, she could still hear the strange vertigo of her father shouting, You have a chance at the throne! She shuddered. The throne.
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