Alright friends, it's been awhile since I've done any sort of roleplay or fanfic so here goes.
This takes place at the lakeside territories in ShadowClan, partially because ShadowClan is regularly perceived to be the "evil" Clan and I wanted to write a different take on it, and also because I kind of like the pine woods setting better.
I also decided to have my leader be Jaystar, in honor of Jayfeather, who is quite obviously not blind in this story. He may be a little out of character but I've always respected Jayfeather so I think he'd make a good, sensible leader, and I'll try my best to write him properly.
I will be updating the "Cats of the Clans" bit as time goes on. It will be updated to Chapter 10, so if you don't want spoilers based off of warrior names or other stuff, you might wanna skip over that bit. The cats you need to know about for the first few chapters are Hidingkit, Sparrowkit, Fawnspring, Emberfall, and Jaystar. They have brief descriptions in the text so you don't necessarily need to look at the Cats Of The Clans, unless if you want to.
It's hard to think of so many cats (and names! I don't know how Erin Hunter does it!) so if you have a character you'd like to make an appearance in any of the clans (especially WindClan or ThunderClan for the sequel) let me know in the comments section!
Image credit goes to Apofiss of deviantart. Their artwork is amazing so please check it out!
Cats of the Clans
ShadowClan
Leader-
Jaystar- A grey tabby tom with striking blue eyes
Deputy-
Webpelt- A white tom with uneven black stripes
Medicine Cat-
Halfmoon- White she-cat with green eyes
Warriors-
Eagletail- A tom with thick black fur, a long, white tail, and yellow eyes
Runningleaf- Silver tabby she-cat with blue eyes
Emberfall-Long haired black tom cat with fur that fades to a deep brown closer to his tail
Fawnspring- brown and white tabby she-cat with ginger splotches
Quicktuft- A light brown tabby tom with blue eyes
Blizzardburst- Grey-blue tom with blue eyes, white tipped muzzle and paws
Dawnfeather-A gentle, peach colored she-cat with brown eyes
Breezeheart- a long haired tom cat with creamy brown fur and amber eyes
Heathershade- Brown, fluffy she-cat with green eyes
Littlemoon- Small white she-cat with bright green eyes
Nettlefire- Light grey tom with long pointed, disheveled fur
Grassdaze- Black she-cat with striking green eyes
Queens-
Raydawn- golden she-cat with green eyes, white paws, and a white muzzle. (Mother of Sunnykit, a golden colored she-kit with green eyes, white paws; Butterflykit, Grey-blue she-kit with silver tipped ears and paws, and light brown eyes; Wildkit, dark grey tom with green eyes with white tipped ears, belly, muzzle, and paws.)
Apprentices-
Sparrowpaw- White tom with tabby spots (Apprentice to Heathershade)
Hidingpaw- Tortoiseshell she-cat with a peach colored hind leg and a crooked, stubby tail (Apprentice to Webpelt)
Ravenpaw- Black tabby she-cat with a lighter tipped nose and markings around her face (Apprentice to Fawnspring)
Rainpaw- Dark grey tabby she-cat (Apprentice to Quicktuft)
Elders-
Yellowtail- Yellow colored tom cat
Cedarblaze- She-cat with short ginger fur and hazel eyes
RiverClan
Leader-
Otterstar- Dark brown she-cat with amber eyes
Deputy-
Whorlmist- Grey and white she-cat with distinctive stripes
Medicine Cat-
Cricketleap- brown tabby she-cat
Warriors-
Marshstripe- She cat with thick black fur, a white stripe on her belly, and blue eyes
Snailfoot- Ginger tabby tom with green eyes
Ripplefall- White and tabby she-cat
Kits-
Fidgetkit
Hopekit
Smokekit
ThunderClan
Leader-
Robinstar- Dark colored tom cat with reddish brown belly
Deputy-
Pondfeather- She-cat with long silver fur and blue eyes
Warriors-
Flashfang- Short, dark tabby tom with amber eyes
Sagefrost- White she-cat with one blue eye and one brown eye; deaf on the side of the blue eye.
Apprentices-
Whisperpaw- black tom cat with green eyes
Cedarpaw- White and black she-cat with yellow eyes
WindClan
Leader-
Driftstar- Grey, fluffy she-cat with white belly, muzzle, and paws.
Deputy-
Briareyes- Cream tabby tom with amber eyes
Warriors-
Finchberry- She-cat with short cream-brown fur
Weaselfog- Silver tabby tom with amber eyes
Apprentices-
Maplepaw- light tabby tom cat
Stonepaw- blue-grey she-cat
Cats Outside The Clans
Loners-
Bubble- Silver she-cat with copper eyes and blue-grey spots. Is smaller than usual. Claims to have a connection to the moon.
Kittypets-
Pretty Girl- Elegant calico she-cat with a pink collar
Prologue
Relentless sound filled her ears, so much different from the quiet buzzing or whispered voices she was used to in her house. Pelting water echoed outside of her hiding place, and she shivered uncontrollably, both unable and unwilling to move, wishing more than anything she was safe in her den. Why had her person brought her outside?
She had clung, terrified, to her mother, after fighting aggressively against leaving the house. Now, she just wanted to be safe in her mother's arms, sitting on the comfortable cushion next to her person's lap. She was not used to this outside world. It was unsafe.
Why had her mother brought her outside?
In the past, she had been brought outside for little to no reason, clung tight inside her person's warm pelt while a landscape of white painted even inches in front of her shivering nose. Other times, she had been brought to a roaring monster, but at least she had hiding places in there; at least it was cushioned and sheltered and warm. The monster had brought her to another house, where she was poked and prodded by a familiar scented person, but this person never brought her any harm and was a familiar face. But everytime she left, she was brought back home, where her friend Pretty Girl would greet her and begin grooming her fur.
She had panicked while clutching her mother this time. A load roar and crack startled her, and she had scrambled to her mother's shoulders. One more roar shortly after, and she leapt down, making a run for it. She had run until her sides heaved and her paws ached, desperately looking for her home. When she'd first dashed away, she'd heard echoes of her mother calling for her. Now, huddled underneath a fallen log, the only sound was the roar of the sky and the patter of the water on the ground.
How she wished her mother would find her here! Unwittingly, she let out a pitiful meow, which, so often echoed inside her house, was left unanswered here. She let out another unhappy wail, which she cut short at the sound of crunching in the undergrowth nearby. This place isn't safe. Not like my house. With that thought, she shuffled backwards further against the fallen log, trying to hide her tortoishell pelt in the shadows.
"Speckledkit? Is that you?" A meow echoed nearby. The she-kit shivered, trying to make herself as small as possible, fur on her spine beginning to bristle. The only other cat she'd met was her sister, Pretty Girl. She had only practiced fighting with her sister while playing, and they had always used sheathed claws. She had no idea what to expect with another cat.
A mostly white tabby face came into sight, and the hiding she-cat let out a tiny, almost imperceptible hiss. Her short, stubby and crooked tail puffed out to nearly three times its size, though it was tucked between her hind legs in fear.
"Speckledkit! I knew it was you!" Relief swamped the tabby and white she-cat's gaze, and with a tiny mewl of protest, the small kitten was dragged my the scruff out from under the log. Once freed from underneath the log, the older she cat began to lick the kitten vigorously, which was protested to with tiny, interrupted chirps.
There was something comforting about the grateful grooming the she-cat gave her. Feeling a tiny more at ease for the first time in hours, the kitten found her eyes beginning to droop.
She was shocked out of her near sleep when the older she-cat abruptly pulled away from licking her, almost as quickly as she had started. Amber eyes looked deep into the kitten's own leaf-green ones, and once again the kitten felt the fur on her pelt begin to bristle.
Realization, unimaginable grief, and compassion washed across the older she-cat's gaze before the kitten could react. She seemed to realize now that this kitten was not the cat she had been mistaken for. In a softer voice now, the older she-cat mewed, "Oh, you poor thing. You must be freezing. What are you doing so far out here in the forest?"
Shivering, the kitten was unable to respond, and she just scooted backward, keeping low to the ground and her shortened tail between her legs, to hide once again under the log, as if that could undo having been discovered.
"No, no, it won't do you any good to stay the night there, you'll freeze to death," The she-cat mewed softly, extending her tail to stop the kitten from going any further under the log. "Don't be scared little one, I won't hurt you. My name is Fawnspring. Do you have a name?" Fawnspring began licking the kitten's pelt again, more gently this time.
The tortoiseshell's fur began to relax as Fawnspring continued in the rhythm she'd started, and once again she found her eyes closing sleepily. She had run a long way, and this she-cat seemed friendly enough. She certainly didn't seem to want to hurt her, anyways.
A gentle nudge stirred the kitten once more, and though she continued washing her, Fawnspring was looking at the tortoiseshell expectantly.
The kitten struggled to remember what she was called. After such a long, frightening day, it was hard to keep her thoughts straight, and her mother had called her several names, like baby and sweet. However, there was one name that her mother had seemed to favor above the rest.
"H-Heidi..." The kitten chirped quietly, feeling the muscles in her legs tense. She was again reminded of how far from home she truly was.
Fawnspring paused in her washing, and stared at Heidi with a distant look in her eyes. "Hiding...?" After a long silence, Fawnspring licked the top of Heidi's head, and returned her green gaze with warmth. "It suits you."
Heidi didn't think the name Fawnspring had said was quite right, but it sounded so similar it was hard for even her to tell. Maybe her name really was Hiding, anyways. Or maybe Hide-y. She had never given it much thought before.
Before she could say anything else, Fawnspring nosed Heidi under the shelter of the log, and curled beside her, continuing to groom the shivering kitten. "I'll take care of you, Hiding. Everything will be okay."
Warm at last, and comforted again by the rhythmic laps of Fawnspring's tongue, Heidi found herself finally growing comfortable enough to drift into a secure sleep.
Chapter One
The camp was in a hectic buzz as dawn crept across the sky. Voices sharp with concern and worry echoed over the darkened gazes of the silent cats. Few cats were still asleep in the chaos. Green eyes peered from behind the stone of a nest at the edge of the clearing.
At last a voice rose above the rest. A magnificent black tom with a brown, fluffy tail addressed a looking grey tom with deep blue eyes. "We can't just sit and wait, Jaystar! Fawnspring could be hurt out there! She's suffered so much, she's not in her right mind to be out on her own like that!"
The small cat watching from the shadows worked his paws into the soil. He longed to jump to his father's side in agreement, but he had been ordered to stay in the nursery.
The grey tabby dipped his head in acknowledgement, and at the gesture, the black tom went silent. "I know you're worried about her, Emberfall, but you must remember that Fawnspring isn't the only cat who has suffered this season. You two both lost Hazelkit and Harekit to greencough, and saw Speckledkit carried away by that hawk," Jaystar reminded him.
At the reminder, Emberfall dipped his head in grief, and his lithe shoulders slumped. "I know I suffer much grief as well, Jaystar, and that my judgement is clouded. But it has been almost a full day since Fawnspring went charging after that hawk. I-" His voice broke. "I can't lose her too."
"Fawnspring is a strong, healthy she-cat. She knows her way around these woods better than many of our young warriors. I understand she is grieving, but I believe she will return, of her own accord, when she is ready." Jaystar's response was firm, but gentle. "She needs time to come to terms with the loss of her kit. She's always been very independent. Maybe a night to herself will do her healing that we cannot provide for her."
"I understand, Jaystar, but-" before the long haired tom could go on, a rustle in the bracken by the camp entrance got their attention. Having been intently focused on the conversation between the two toms, the Clan hadn't noticed Fawnspring enter until the rustling of leaves at her feet gave her away.
She carried a small, dark burden, and at the sight of the two, Emberfall nearly fell over himself with surprise. He bounded over to his mate, purring with relief, and licked her behind her ears. "Fawnspring! You're okay! And Speckledkit, you found h-" Nosing the tortoiseshell kitten in Fawnspring's jaws, Emberfall felt his muscles tense from head to toe as his response was cut short. He leapt back, bristling, as if she had instead brought a snake.
At the site of the newcomers, the small, mostly white tom kitten with tabby spots along his back, left ear, and tail bounded out of the nest in the bracken. "Fawnspring! You found Speckledkit! I knew you would find her, I knew it!" His small voice was overwhelmingly hopeful, and Emberfall made a move to stop the young kit before he got too close.
"Sparrowkit!" Emberfall hissed, trying to swipe at the kitten before he greeted his mother, but he was too late. Sparrowkit leapt excitedly at the tortoiseshell bundle in Fawnspring's jaws, causing the quiet kit to swing violently and let out a squeak of alarm.
Fawnspring stepped back, setting her burden down and smoothing the fur over the young kit's head. Sparrowkit, like his father, had frozen and backed away, nostrils flaring. Confusion and grief clouded his gaze.
Holding her head defiantly, Fawnspring curled her tail protectively around the frightened, shivering kit beneath her paws. It was Jaystar who spoke first. "Fawnspring," Jaystar began, taking a step towards the two she-cats, eyeing the kitten. "What is the meaning of this?"
"This is my kit." Fawnspring said boldly.
Gasps from her clanmates echoed around the camp, and Sparrowkit seemed to be shaken out of his spell. "That's not Speckledkit!" He hissed, eyes flashing with more fury than any cat thought possible of such a small kit. Emberfall's wariness was replaced with a look of horror.
"No," Fawnspring agreed, dipping her head in silence for a moment, as if grieving. Then, she met the green gaze of the kit beneath her paws, and the pain in her eyes melted to warmth. "This is Hidingkit."
At the mention of her name, the small kitten beneath Fawnspring tensed, looking around the cats with fright. She shrank underneath Fawnspring, curling her stubbed tail between her legs.
"Hidingkit!" A light tabby apprentice, Nettlepaw, spat incredulously, but a sharp look from Jaystar silenced him. He raised his deep blue gaze from Hidingkit to Fawnspring, which the she-cat met, unwaveringly. "Fawnspring, is this what you really want?" The question seemed to have a hidden message that only the two could understand.
"This is my kit, Jaystar," Fawnspring stated levelly, never breaking the grey leader's gaze. After a long silence, the clan leader merely dipped his head and padded away. Sparrowkit and most other cats of the clan looked on incredulously.
Emberfall's eyes met Fawnspring's, filled with such heavy grief that his whole frame seemed to drag. After a long hesitation, he padded over to Fawnspring and nuzzled her fur, ignoring the kitten beside her. "I'm glad you're okay, Fawnspring," He whispered. A quiet purr erupted from the she-cat. "I'm going to be okay now." She looked down with love at Hidingkit. "We all are."
What about Speckledkit?! He wanted to wail, What about Hazelkit and Harekit? What about me?! Two fox-length's away, Sparrowkit stared in dismay from Fawnspring to Emberfall, who both seemed to ignore their last living kit, eventually settling with fury on the small kitten between them.
The tumbling of small rocks interrupted the reunion as Jaystar climbed atop the ledge by his den. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here for a meeting!" The words were barely out of the leader's mouth before the Clan cats had gathered expectantly, clearly eager to hear what the clan leader would do about the new kitten in the Clan.
Sparrowkit bristled. He can't just let her stay! Fawnspring's trying to replace Speckledkit! He despaired to himself. Sure, both she-kits were tortoiseshell, but the differences ended there. Speckledkit had just as much peach and brown color in her pelt as she did grey and black, and a long, fluffy tail; this kit was mostly black with dappled specks of peach throughout her fur, a single peach colored hind paw, and a crooked, shortened tail that wagged back and forth like a dog's.
Speckledkit has so much more on this dumb flea-bag! Sparrowkit thought with satisfaction. She's brave and kind. Nothing scares her! Pausing, Sparrowkit shook himself. She was. He reminded himself, grief piercing his chest like a sharp thorn. He licked his fur beneath his chest, as if trying to dislodge the pain of his lost littermates. That kit can barely pull her tail from between her hind legs, he thought smugly.
"As many of you may have noticed, Fawnspring has decided to mother another kit after the regretful loss of Speckledkit, Hazelkit, and Harekit." At the mention of his dead littermates, Sparrowkit flinched, and Emberfall looked on with dull eyes. Fawnspring closed her eyes briefly, holding back the pain, but then opened them again to hold her head high.
"I say these words before Starclan, that the spirits of our warrior ancestors may hear and welcome this beginning of something good in the wake of loss. Hidingkit, whatever your past may be, we welcome you as a member of ShadowClan, and look forward to watching you grow into a loyal warrior."
The stunned kit remained tucked underneath Fawnspring, looking dazed and out of place. "That kit has no idea what's going on!" A warrior muttered. "How do we know she will be loyal? She could be from another Clan for all we know!"
Sparrowkit looked over gratefully at the cat who had spoken, seeing that it was Quicktuft, a lithe light brown tabby tom. Nettlepaw murmured in agreement, though he knew better than to openly challenge his leader's words.
Someone had to make their leader see sense! But to Sparrowkit's dismay, Jaystar merely flicked his ears and announced, "This meeting is over." The tone of finality made it clear that this decision was not one to be argued with, and the clan members knew their leader well enough to keep their mouth's shut when Jaystar made a decision.
As the cats began to disperse back to their regular duties, Fawnspring picked up the frightened she-kit and padded over to the nursery, while Emberfall eased over to Sparrowkit. He shared a look of sympathy and grief with his son, and lightly touched the bristling kit's back with his tail.
"She's replacing Speckledkit!" Sparrowkit wailed, whirling to face his father. "She's just trying to pretend it never happened!"
Emberfall closed his eyes, shuddering as if a wave of pain had swept over him. "She's not replacing Speckledkit," He began at last. "She's lost most of her kits this last leaf-bare. If taking in an orphaned kit is what helps her cope with that loss, we must respect her decision." Sparrowkit opened his mouth to protest as Emberfall quietly added, "Especially since Jaystar himself has accepted her decision."
Sparrowkit closed his mouth, fury flashing in his gaze. "Well, I don't have to accept it! I won't! That stranger won't replace my sister!" He yowled, dashing off into the trees. Emberfall looked on wearily, and Dawnfeather, a peach colored she-cat, shot him a sympathetic look before trotting after the kit.
