Dawnstar's Legacy
Prologue:
The sun leaned over the horizon in ThunderClan's lake side territory. The orange light lined every tree and rock, making them glow a rich, golden color. The cats who lived there resided in an abandoned quarry, carved out by twolegs long ago. This was ThunderClan's home. The clan's activity started to slow, as night approached. But a group kits on the other hand, had all the energy in the world burn off. The kits scrambled out of the nursery, mewing words of adventure and far of realities along the way.
"Roooaaarrrr! I'm Tigerstar and I'm going to get you!" A blue-grey tom kit yowled. He chased after the group of other kits, getting closer and closer with every stride.
"Oh no you won't," A tortoise shell she kit yowled back, skidding on the earthen floor of the camp, "I'm Firestar and I'm going to stop you!" She turned around with an astonishing grace and launched herself at the blue-grey kit.
"Mrroowww! I'm being killed!" The blue-grey kit meowed as the tortoise shell kit, "Streamkit, help me!"
"I'm coming, Stonekit!" Streamkit said, rushing to her playmate's aid with a smile. Her white fur blazed in the fading daylight. Stonekit knocked his attacker off, sending the little tortoise shell kit to the ground. She let out a yelp of surprise and got up to face Streamkit as well.
"You won't win the time, Stonekit!" The she cat growled playfully, a glint of mischief in her amber eyes.
"I think I will. It's my turn to shine, Dapplekit. I won't let you take the glory this time." Stonekit jumped at Dapplekit with a playful hiss and began pummeling her with his front paws. Dapplekit pushed her attacker off and fought back with much more strength.
"I am going to win!" Dapplekit yowled to the rest of her playmates. Streamkit threw herself in the fray, laughing as she did so. Another kit, a tom named Cloudkit, who was white furred like his sister Streamkit leapt into the game too. The kits laughed and mewed, enjoying the escaping warmth of the day. They took no notice of another kit, which slinked off towards the elder's den passed the fallen tree that sliced through the camp. He ducked under the brambles that surrounded the den, careful not to rub his pelt on them. The air was warm and sweet smelling. Lingering memories touched the walls of the den, whispering tales of glory, shame and wonder. There was only one cat in the den at the time. All the rest of the elders were outside sharing prey or gossiping with their clanmates. The lone elder who sat hunched over in the elder's den was named Breezestorm. Breezestorm was a silver tabby with black streaks lining her fur. Her crystal, blue eyes shone in the low light, never losing the youth that she had lost long ago. The kit padded up closer to Breezestorm. His light, brown fur shook with fear. He'd never met Breezestorm before. He had no idea what she was like, or if she had a sharp temper like Birdwing, another elder did. Suddenly, Breezestorm broke the tense silence that hung over the elder's den.
"Hello, Sandkit," Her rich and crackled voice echoed in the near empty den. Sandkit's green eyes flashed with fear as soon as he realized he was being addressed by a cat he didn't know. "Why aren't you playing with your denmates, dearie?" Breezestorm asked gently, trying not to scare the little kit.
"I-I-I, I didn't want to play Battle with Bloodclan anymore, Breezestorm." Sandkit's voice shook with fear. He was too afraid of the silvery elder to even move, or say anything else for that matter. Breezestorm smiled, it was rare for any kit to refuse to play a game. Never in her life had Breezestorm met such a kit until now. She looked back at Sandkit, his fear beginning to come off in waves of scent, making his emotion obvious to anyone who inhaled the air around him. Noticing his distress, Breezestorm tried to calm the little, sand colored kit down.
"Now now, Sandkit, I won't hurt you." Her voiced was kept smooth, trying to seem as harmless as possible. "I'm nothing like Birdwing."
"Y-you're not?" Sandkit said, cocking his head to one side. He was puzzled. Normally cats claimed the elders were grumpy, mean old cats. Breezestorm didn't seem to fit the stereotype.
"No, dear. I'm afraid to say, that she's the meanest cat in all of ThunderClan's history." Breezestorm chuckled a little, hoping to lighten up Sandkit's mood. The little kit stayed quiet. He was less afraid now, but none the less, still afraid. "You don't have to stand all day, Sandkit. Sit down," Sandkit did what Breezestorm said. He did so quickly. Breezestorm could detect more fear coming off the little kit. "Why don't I tell you a story, little one?" Breezestorm offered. Sandkit looked interested. ThunderClan had a very rich history, making for excellent stories. ThunderClan cats had practically mastered the art of storytelling throughout the years.
"Can you tell me about The Great Journey, or the Power of the Three cats, or how Firestar revived SkyClan?" Sandkit peppered Breezestorm with questions. Since he asked, she decided not to tell him one of those stories. They were too common; he probably heard them from his mother a million times already.
"No, little one, I will not tell you any of those stories," Breezestorm mewed gently. She could see the disappointment on Sandkit's face. "But I will tell you another story. The story of a RiverClan leader called Dawnstar." Sandkit looked confused. He probably had never heard of Dawnstar in his life.
"Why not tell me a ThunderClan story?" Sandkit asked. Curiosity lined his voice. Breezestorm smiled.
"Dawnstar is very important. The things she did in her life affected all the clans. So her story is told in all the clans," Breezestorm gazed down at the kit. His little green eyes stared at her in wonder. She continued. "I even met Dawnstar once. She told me the missing details of her story, her personal experiences of her life. Like to call myself an expert on her," Breezestorm paused for a moment. Sandkit was obviously intrigued. He would very much enjoy the story, Breezestorm knew.
"If you were to meet Dawnstar, she would seem like an ordinary warrior. But she wasn't. She was special in so many ways," Breezestorm closed her eyes, taking in the memories. "Dawnstar resides in StarClan now, but here is her story."