Light and Dark
Howling Hailstorms
Prologue
There was a Clan raised in isolation from the others, by a few members; remnants of the old clans that were separated. The elders that volunteered to be left behind by the other clans once they left on the great journey shared much of their wisdom with rogues and loners looking for a better life. And this time, they were taken with them, for those rogues and loners, assembled into a clan, did not want to leave the elders behind. They left the old territories, which were being ravaged by Twolegs and their great monsters that ploughed the land and felled trees, in search of a better home.
The clan was in unity for some time. Everything was shared. But there was a rift. Although both clans obeyed the Warrior Code strictly, there were cats that were noble and preferred being upfront with things. There were also cats that preferred to strike from behind, using their stealth to their advantage. They prowled the night to defend, while others patrolled the daytime. They were divided. The cats that preferred the light scorned those who utilized their stealth, while the cats that stalked the night called the others too noble for their own good.
There was a great war, one that would decide the fate of the clan. But afterwards, the clan stayed divided. They split the territory according to the river and the lake, and every full moon, as was traditional; the clans discarded their dislike of each other in the name of a truce. They met up by the light of the full moon by the great oak near the lake, which was situated next to the river and split in two parts, so that each clan got an equal half of the river.
They styled their names after which side they were on. LightClan members walked the light, with a forest that was much airier than DarkClan's. DarkClan was stealthy, and were hardly ever spotted by the LightClan patrol. They lived in peace, separate from each other, except for the occasional skirmish.
ALLEGIANCES
...
LightClan
Leader
Scorchstar – long-furred tom with golden tabby pelt and piercing amber eyes
Deputy
Flamefeather – wiry she-cat with short tortoiseshell fur and pale green eyes
Medicine Cat
Rainfall – gray she-cat with long fur and blue eyes
(Apprentice: Graypaw – gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes)
Warriors
Tanglethorn – muscular tom with thick, russet fur and amber eyes (Shortpaw)
Robinflight – pretty brown tabby she-cat with green eyes
Rabbitleap – young, pale brown tom with green eyes
Birchstripe – pale gray tabby tom with black stripes and pale green eyes
Sharpgaze – black tom with yellow eyes
Brindlefur – brindled gray she-cat with green eyes
Cloudstep – pure white, pretty she-cat with blue eyes and thick fur (Palepaw)
Needlefang – handsome russet tabby tom with golden eyes
Pinefall – thick-furred she-cat with brown pelt and green eyes (Bramblepaw)
Badgermask – black tom with white patches and underbelly and pale green eyes
Apprentices
Palepaw – pale gray she-cat with pale blue eyes
Shortpaw – small white tom with black splotches and green eyes
Bramblepaw – brown tabby tom with amber eyes
Queens
Dappleface – pretty tortoiseshell she-cat with one green eye, one yellow eye (mothering Scorchstar's kits: Swiftkit – tortoiseshell tom with one green eye, one yellow eye, Littlekit – small gray tabby tom)
Mousepelt – wiry she-cat with short Siamese fur and blue eyes (mothering Needlefang's kits: Runningkit – reddish-brown tom with gold eyes, Sootkit – cream she-cat with darker muzzle and blue eyes, Scarletkit – russet she-cat with gold eyes)
Elders
Longwhisker – she-cat with thick, beige fur, unusually long whiskers and cloudy green eyes
Lizardtooth – skinny tom with short, dusky brown fur and blue eyes
Sedgeleaf – brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes
...
DarkClan
Leader
Nightstar – wiry black she-cat with icy blue eyes
Deputy
Blurredstrike – gray tabby tom with thick fur and pale green eyes
Medicine Cat
Dustwhisker – lean, sandy-coloured tom with golden eyes
(Apprentice: Maplepaw - tortoiseshell she-cat with yellow eyes)
Warriors
Cinderstrike – gray, thick-furred tom with yellow eyes
Owlfeather – pale beige cat with darker spots and pale green eyes
Shadefang – thick-furred black tom with green eyes (Emberpaw)
Foxtail – red-furred she-cat with amber eyes and a fluffy tail
Mistcloud – fluffy gray she-cat with pale blue eyes
Viperfang – Slender, beige-furred tom with yellow eyes
Sabletail – dark silver-brown she-cat with blue eyes
Kestrelfeather – dusky brown she-cat with paler spots and pale green eyes (Duskpaw)
Crowfoot – sleek black tom with yellow eyes
Stoatleap – marbled gray tom with thick fur and gold eyes
Apprentices
Emberpaw – russet-furred she-cat with amber eyes
Duskpaw – dark brown tabby tom with yellow eyes
Queens
Ravenfeather – black she cat with white spots and blue eyes (mothering Shadefang's kits: Blackkit – sleek black she-kit with green eyes, Specklekit – black she-kit with white spots and green eyes)
Ashtail – pale gray she-cat with blue eyes (mothering Viperfang's kits: Streakkit – pale brown tom kit with blue eyes, Brackenkit – gray tom kit with yellow eyes, Willowkit – pale gray she-kit with yellow eyes)
Elders
Oakfur – ginger tom with green eyes and ripped ears
Goldengaze – gray tabby she-cat with gold eyes
A dark, speckled queen padded around the woods around DarkClan territory, carrying a vole, her belly swollen with unborn kits. She was due soon. The forest that the she-cat lived in with her clanmates was considerably darker and more bunched than that of their lighter counterpart. The river that separated the two territories lay beside the she-cat, gurgling happily. Sometimes, it flooded, but not often. The lake that lay further down the river, bordering both territories, often froze over in leaf-bare.
The queen dropped her prey. She was black and sleek-furred, with white-flecked paws and lucid blue eyes. The kits in her womb gave a squirm and a wriggle. She paused to give her stomach a few comforting licks, and the ripples that spread over her soft underfur quietened. She was due soon. Very soon. She picked up the vole again and headed back. Her mate would be displeased with her if he thought she was 'risking' herself. She was Ravenfeather, mated to Shadefang, and she carried kits who would grow up to fight and hunt for their clan. She felt endless love for her offspring, and quickened her pace as she felt another kick.
"Ravenfeather!" A lean black tom bounds towards the expectant queen and starts licking her forehead. "What are you doing out of the nursery? You know you shouldn't be wandering around." Sharp green eyes rounded with worry as he fussed over her like an old mother himself.
Ravenfeather flicks her ear at him. "It's fine," she responds, annoyance tinging her mew. "I'm not going to just start screeching in the forest." Her gaze, which had hardened at her mate's overbearing nature, softened slightly. "Besides, the kits are tough if they're anything like you." She brushed past him, flicking her tail as she went. Shadefang hesitated, and followed her as she went to drop the vole onto the fresh-kill pile. She suddenly paused, clenching her teeth. "Wait," she flicked her tail at him again, then made to stagger to the nursery.
"You spoke too soon," Shadefang growls, but it is more of a worried growl as he nudges her and gently pushes her flank in the direction of the nursery. "Lay down, I'll fetch some water." He also goes to fetch Dustwhisker, the medicine cat, as he will also be needed.
"I just drank!" Ravenfeather protests, but another convulsion racks her body just as Shadefang leaves, hurrying away in a rushed manner. Her legs buckle beneath her and she lays in a nest. Her belly pulses, and Ravenfeather lets out a low moan. "They're coming," she croaks. Dustwhisker, as if on cue, hurries into the nursery to find Ravenfeather thrashing around, jaws parted and panting. "They're coming, what do I do?!"
"Slow down," Dustwhisker commands. "We need to get you some air." Ravenfeather lets out a wail this time, and Dustwhisker hears the voice of the other queen in the nursery, shooing her curious kits outside. Dustwhisker gently grabs Ravenfeather's scruff in his mouth and tugs her to the entrance of the den for more fresh air while she kitted. The smell of blood was then noticed, and Dustwhisker cursed. The queen was too vigorous, and while Dustwhisker agreed with the fact that expectant queens could go out and get air, he agreed with Shadefang more; that queens this close to kitting should stay inside. It was safer that way; for both the kits and the mother.
"Streakkit! Willowkit! Out!" Dustwhisker hears the sharp mew of Ashtail. He hears the whiny mewls of the other kits as they are herded out by their brother. "Go play! This isn't something kits should be seeing!"
"Awh!"
"Push, Ravenfeather!" The dark, speckled queen gives a loud shriek as the agony of kit-birth hit her over and over again. Dustwhisker whips around to face his apprentice Maplepaw, a small, tortoiseshell she-cat. "Fetch a stick!" he orders her, lashing his tail. "Make sure it's sturdy and hard to break!" His apprentice stutters an affirmative and turns tail, sprinting out of the nursery. Three other little kits huddle around their mother Ashtail, a pretty, gray queen. Ashtail's blue eyes are round with worry, and she jerks out of her reverie as a lean, black tom barges into the nursery, carrying a lump of moss soaked with water. Shadefang is almost terrified.
The tortoiseshell apprentice Maplepaw trails after him, carrying a large stick. She sets it down beside Ravenfeather. "T-take hold of this!" she mews anxiously, eyeing Ravenfeather's convulsing stomach. One of the kits slides out, damp and mewling. Shadefang sets down the water-soaked moss next to his mate's head and nudges the kit, a little black she-kit, next to her mother's belly. The screeching had long-since stopped as Ravenfeather bit down hard on the stick. Maplepaw prayed it would not splinter under the force of the dark queen's bite.
The second kit also slid out, black as well but with white flecks just like her mother. Ravenfeather sighs, exhausted, and the kits mewl and bury into her fur. She licks them lovingly. She then turns her attention to the soaked clump of moss Shadefang had brought earlier, lapping at it before nestling the kits closer. Dustwhisker surveys the black queen. "That's all the kits," he says softly. The faint smell of blood still lingers in the air. As if coming to his senses, Dustwhisker stalks around the nursery. "Out! Out! She needs rest and time with her kits."
Shadefang pauses, as if preparing to argue, but licks his mate's heart lovingly and nuzzles the two kits briefly before exiting the den. Ashtail leads her kits away from the nursery, shooing them away with her tail. "Go play!" she urges them. Brackenkit, the first-born of the trio, shrugs and trots off, Willowkit trailing in her brother's steps anxiously. Streakkit, the middle kit, charged after them.
"I bet they'll never be as big as us," he boasted. "Tiny little scraps of fur; I don't think even we were that small!"
Willowkit snorted. "Who cares? I'm sure they'll become better hunters than you are, with your big galumphing paws!"
Streakkit took a swipe at his sister, growling in mock anger. Ashtail looked upon her kits, eyes full of love, while inside the nursery, Ravenfeather cuddled her kits close as they suckled greedily. She still hadn't named them yet, but would later, when Dustwhisker quit bustling around like a mother hen, ordering Maplepaw to clean up the wrecked nests Ravenfeather had caused while flailing around. Ravenfeather licked both her kits on the head lovingly, and the white-flecked one mewled and burrowed deeper into her fur.
After Dustwhisker announces that the nursery is good to enter now, Shadefang once again barges in. The fully-black kit lets out a thin wail and snuggles closer to Ravenfeather's belly, mewling greedily for more milk. Ravenfeather purrs, still exhausted, but not as much as before. She nudges the other kit, straying away, back into the curve of her body as she curls around them.
"Any naming suggestions?" Shadefang asks. Ravenfeather regards the kits. Her whiskers twitch thoughtfully.
"I'll name one," she decided, "and you'll name the other." Shadefang nods, looking back down at the kits, eyes full of love.
"Go on, then."
"Blackkit." Ravenfeather noses the pure black kit. "A little plain, but she'll be outstanding if she's anything like you. Your turn."
"Specklekit." Shadefang purrs. "She'l turn out to be every bit as pretty as you are." The newly-named Blackkit and Specklekit just wriggle.
Ashtail pads back into the nursery, her three kits trailing after her, staring at the damp scraps of fur. Ashtail flicks her tail at them, telling them that staring is rude.
Willowkit lets out a short purr. The pale gray she-kit holds her tail in the air happily. "I can't wait to play with them!" she meows excitedly.
Brackenkit tilts his head. "They're still damp and too small."
"I bet they can't play moss-ball as well as us."
Brackenkit snorts. "Of course not. They've just been born."
Willowkit lets out a yawn. "We're three moons older, and we'll definitely beat them."
Ashtail curls up in a nest. "Come to sleep, little ones," she calls out to them. "Don't disturb them further." The three kits oblige and nestle against their mother. Soon, the nursery is quiet as the kits gently snore.
...
Maplepaw sighs, flicking her tail in the late afternoon. The young medicine cat apprentice was prone to bumbling around and accidentally tripping over things, so Dustwhisker had sent her outside so he could clean up the mess. Maplepaw sure hoped she'd lose her clumsiness, or StarClan might not allow her to be a full medicine cat! If she was honest with herself, it was one of her greatest fears about her future. She paused and shuffled her paws. Her ears flicked and a strong smell hit her nose. She gagged. Crowfood! She ambled away, muzzle wrinkled in disgust. Had she not tripped over a dead, stiff mouse, she would have missed it completely.
The mouse was ravaged. Half its face was torn off, and its teeth were bared reminiscent of a cat. Maplepaw shuddered, but something clicked into place in her brain. She spun around. The mouse had fallen over a dark blade of grass and a lighter-coloured one, joining them beneath its cold, dead body. Maplepaw suddenly understood.
The two-faced cat will unite the clans.
Upon receiving the sign, she turned tail and fled, running back to the camp.
A/N: So how'd it go? This was my first Warriors fic and the next chapters are all neatly planned out! The story starts out slow, but it is just one part in, hopefully, six stories. It will turn out cheesy in the middle.. but that is for a reason ;)
Please drop a review to let me know how I went!