"Do you feel okay enough to walk?"
"A little. Thanks."
"Lean on me. Let's get back to camp."
It was dark. Although he was awake, all he could see was an empty blackness. Nothing to see, of course, since his eyes still weren't open. Not yet, at least.
What really confused him though was the dream he had earlier. He heard… words. Words he shouldn't be able to understand. But he understood them, and they felt familiar. Have I heard them before?
Slowly, his eyes opened. Light flooded his vision, and he squinted a little. As he grew used to the brightness, he began to pick out things. Cats, leaves and more light. He gazed around curiously at everything, amazed at what he was seeing.
"Oh, Mintkit. You're awake." The sound made him turn around. It was his mother, her scent comforting and warm. Mintkit was nestled in the curve of her belly.
She smiled at him. "Welcome to RiverClan, dear. I'm your mother, Sparklecall."
Mintkit tried emulating her meow. "Sparklecall…"
"That was great," Sparklecall purred gently, giving him a good lick between the ears. Mintkit felt her purr resonating throughout her entire body, feeling warmth and comfort from it. He could have slept if only he had not just woken up.
"This is your sister, Splashkit." She pointed him at another little kit, who was right next to him. She was small, with gray flecked fur. "She still isn't awake. We're going to have to wait."
"The two cats over there are Willowtail and Narrowstep," she continued, using her tail to point him around. "They are queens like me, since they have little kits to take care of too. See? There are three around Narrowstep. Willowtail's kits are old enough to talk well and explore, so they're outside."
"Did you say something?" The cat she referred to as Willowtail meowed.
"I'm sorry. Did I wake you up?" Sparklecall asked.
Willowtail shook her head. "No, not really. I was waking up when I heard you." She rose to her paws and stretched luxuriously. Her eyes widened once she saw Mintkit. "Oh, Mintkit! You're awake!"
The loud meow startled him, and he hid behind Sparklecall.
"A little flighty, isn't he?" Willowtail observed the little gray kit.
Sparklecall shrugged. "He just doesn't like loud noises and things like that. Let's try again. Make your voice a little softer." She ushered the small kit forward. "It's okay. She won't hurt you."
"I'm sorry, Mintkit." Willowtail apologized, and Mintkit took it well, nodding a little. He was still a little wary though, keeping watchful eyes on the queen.
Willowtail huffed in amusement. "I'm sure my two kits will be very happy to know about this. They keep complaining that they're bored."
"Well, I guess I can understand. Imagine playing mossball with the same cat for two moons." Sparkletail jested, smirking. "I'd probably go insane."
"At least Mintkit's awake now," Willowtail agreed. "That's what's important." Her ears perked, swivelling towards the nursery entrance. "That must be them."
Two kits suddenly burst in, one tripping over its paws. "We heard!" one of them exclaimed, and the sound was so loud, it made Mintkit freeze up and quickly bury his face into his mother's fur. Even Narrowstep's kits woke up, each one mewing loudly. Narrowstep was suddenly awake, her eyes fluttering open upon hearing her kits.
"Troutkit, don't be so loud! Look, you woke Narrowstep up!" Willowtail chided.
"Come on, Troutkit." The other kit mewed, looking up embarrassedly. "You're going to get us into trouble again."
Mintkit observed the two kits with curiosity as they continued.
"No, I'm not! I was just excited to see Mintkit!" Troutkit retorted, huffing. "Besides, you don't mind, right, Narrowstep?"
Narrowstep still looked a little dazed as she replied, "Uh… yes. Sure."
Troutkit turned around proudly, raising her head. "See?"
"And thus ends the incredibly short rest of poor Narrowstep." Sparklecall shook her head as she sighed.
Willowtail rolled her eyes. "That was her first bit of sleep in a few days. Those three kits of hers can't seem to give her enough time to catch her breath!"
"Can I see him? Can I see him?" Troutkit pressed.
Sparklecall narrowed her eyes. She placed a tail on Troutkit's shoulders. "Lavenderkit goes first, since she behaved herself." Sparklecall smiled at Lavenderkit. "Go ahead and talk."
Mintkit watched as she stepped forward and smiled. "Hello!" she greeted him.
"Hi," he mewed. The lilac-colored she-kit looked happy to see him, with her tail up and her ears towards him. Mintkit had a feeling that she was a very nice cat. He turned away slightly, just so he she couldn't see into his eyes.
"Awwww," cooed Willowtail, "Mintkit's shy."
"My turn!" Troutkit was not able to wait any longer. She jumped over her littermate, landing on the ground just in front of Mintkit.
"Hey!" exclaimed Lavenderkit, taken aback. Mintkit's eyes widened in surprise.
The first thing he noticed about Troutkit was her tail, which was flicking side to side. She looked like her sister in some ways, but one of her ears was tilted lopsidedly, giving her a mischievous look. She flashed the younger kit a grin.
"I'm Troutkit. Can we be friends?"
Mintkit blinked at the cinnamon spotted kit, seeing her eyes shining with life. Unlike Lavenderkit, he wasn't sure what to think of Troutkit.
"Well, Troutkit, thank you for waiting your turn." Willowtail said sarcastically, using her tail to guide Troutkit closer to herself.
"He didn't answer me yet!" Troutkit protested.
"I'm sure he'd be very happy to be friends with both of you." Sparklecall assured her. "Right, Mintkit?" She looked down at her kit with expecting eyes.
Mintkit nodded briefly with a little smile, which seemed to make everyone happy. Lavenderkit was pleased, and she waved her paw at him affably. Troutkit smiled back, with that same sly glint in her eye.
"Can we play with him?" she asked, bouncing on her paws.
"Maybe tomorrow," said Sparklecall.
Both Troutkit and Lavenderkit looked dismayed, tails drooping.
"Why not?" cried Troutkit.
"Because he just opened his eyes, remember?" Sparklecall explained calmly, "We need to give him a little time to adjust. But tomorrow, you can most certainly start playing."
"Go outside and have some fish." Willowtail mewed as she piloted her kits out of the nursery. Both kits were a little reluctant to leave, but in the end, they exited. When they left, Willowtail sighed. "I'm thirsty. I think I'll be by the river, if you don't mind."
Sparkletail nodded. "No problem."
Willowtail looked up, deep in thought. "Maybe I'll swim too. That should get me going today."
"You deserve it. If only Splashkit's eyes were open, I'd love a nice dip in the river right about now." She pointed with her nose to the den entrance, compelling her to go. Willowtail excused herself, and in a matter of heartbeats, the end of her tail vanished from sight as she left.
"Call Wavepelt for me!" Sparklecall shouted after her. She turned to Mintkit. "You don't speak a lot, don't you?"
"I was a little shy," Mintkit admitted.
Sparklecall gave him a rough lick. "Don't be like that. How are you going to make friends if you don't speak to them?" She smirked, cuffing Mintkit gently, almost playfully, with her paw. "Besides, your meow sounds so cute."
"Go ahead and try walking around the nursery a little," she urged. "Stretch your legs."
Mintkit pulled himself up to his paws, and took a tentative step forward. He was a little wobbly at first, but after a couple more paces around, he felt like he was beginning to get it. In heartbeats, he was comfortably trotting about. Sparklecall gazed at him with a doting look in her eyes.
"Good!" Sparklecall seemed relieved.
"Why did you say that all of a sudden?" Narrowstep asked, now fully awake as her kits suckled.
"Nothing, really. I'm just so glad. I wish Wavepelt was here."
"Oh, he'll be coming." Narrowstep meowed. Meanwhile, one of her kits was straying away, and she used her teeth to grab the kit before it got too far.
Sparklecall watched as Mintkit found a small mossball and started passing it from one paw to another. "So, what did you think of Lavenderkit and Troutkit?"
Mintkit already had his back to the ground, the mossball held to his chest tightly. "Lavenderkit was nice. She was friendly, and she had a nice scent."
Sparklecall chuckled. "What about Troutkit?"
"A kit too energetic for her own good," Narrowstep replied, a hint of annoyance in her tone. "She looks like her mother, but Willowtail was never that boisterous back when she was a kit."
"Maybe she has twice as much energy as Willowtail." Sparklecall replied. "Mintkit?" She raised her eyebrows at him.
Mintkit stopped to think for a moment, dropping the mossball as he tried remembering. Troutkit seemed… energetic. Eager to see him, that was for sure. But maybe, most of all, she kept speaking. She spoke a lot, the meows coming out of her mouth like a river. It confused Mintkit somehow.
"She's also nice." Mintkit replied, not saying what he felt in fear that it might offend someone.
"That's all you can say?" Sparklecall asked, and Mintkit nodded.
Another thing Mintkit remembered was when she asked him to be her friend. She said it so forcefully, that he actually might have replied if Willowtail had not spoken up first.
Energetic. Eager. Talkative.
Those were Mintkit's first impressions of her.
But it made him wonder.
Allegiances
RiverClan
Leader – Stripestar – dark brown tabby tom
Deputy - Cinderwind – tom with gray pelt flecked with darker spots
Medicine Cat - Sharpleaf – sleek apricot she-cat
Warriors – Sleetfall – agile gray tom
Wavepelt – pale blue tabby tom
Breezejump – gray tom with black stripes
Fireleaf – thick-pelted calico she-cat
Gingerdew – slender fawn she-cat
Reedstream – cream tom with orange tabby patches
Icegaze – large white tom with black ears
Ripplefur – dark orange tabby she-cat
Streamglide – dark blue she-cat with white-tipped ears
Seedheart – calico she-cat
Currentrun – dark brown she-cat with chocolate tabby swirls
Apprentices – Onepaw – tall cream tabby tom
Flightpaw – orange she-cat with fawn spots
Queens – Sparklecall – furry white she cat with brown tabby tail and paws
Willowtail – cinnamon spotted she-cat
Narrowstep – small orange tabby she-cat
Kits – Mintkit – silver tabby tom with white tipped tail and ears
Splashkit – small white she-cat
Troutkit – cinnamon spotted she-cat with a tilted ear
Lavenderkit – she-cat with violet-tinged fur
Rustlekit – dark orange tabby she-cat with a long tail
Thumpkit – white tom with brown tabby patches
Echokit – gray tabby tom with a white chest and paws
Elders – Slipstep – gray tabby tom
Shrewclaw – white tom
ThunderClan
Leader – Lilystar – light brown tabby she-cat
Deputy – Oakspots – brown tom with dark spots
Medicine Cat – Speckledfoot – dark-furred tom
WindClan
Leader – Duskstar – dark bluish-gray she-cat
Deputy – Stormeye – fawn she-cat with brown paws and tail
Medicine Cat – Brownclaw – brown tom
ShadowClan
Leader – Needlestar – fawn she-cat
Deputy – Treefall – gray tabby she-cat
Medicine Cat – Coldflight – white tom with black tipped ears
AN: That kicks off my second try at a fanfic. Hope you guys like it. :D
So, based on first impressions, what do you think of Mintkit? Troutkit?