Yes, they are still cats. Yes, there will be voting. No, I don't own Warriors.
Lionblaze yawned stretched in the little space he had in the back of the twoleg's… "truck"? Yes, a strange name, but it was their only mean of transportation to the StarClan Awards. The wind felt quite nice in his fur and there was a better view of the sunset from there. All he could see all the way 'round was the brown and green blur of the plantation of the forest.
Anxiety gnawed at Lionblaze's stomach as he sat back down. The StarClan Awards! It would be the first serious live recording he'd be in. It wasn't like the Warriors scenes and interviews, where they could always retake a mistake he'd made, or like the paparazzi's quick questions, of which he could always just ignore. This time, there were absolutely no mistakes. Of course, he'd memorized his speeches by heart, but he still couldn't suppress a stroke of nervousness. Anything could happen, good or not.
Lionblaze turned back to the cats piled onto the truck with him. He and his siblings, Hollyleaf and Jayfeather, had enjoyed the experiences of working on the set together. It was comforting during the beginning of their shooting that they at least had each other to lean on, since their actual parents were far away in OakClan. Of course, they still kept in touch, but it was quite hard with all the work to be done- balancing filming, warrior training and basically everything else.
Most cats they'd met on the set were nice enough… Leafpool was like a second mother to them, Crowfeather, a second father… but Dovewing was a nuisance. They'd expected her to grow out of her self-centered attitude she'd come on the set as a kit with, but by now, those hopes were completely shattered. She still wouldn't give a whisker for another cat unless she benefited from doing so.
Cinderheart was nice, as was her mother Cinderpelt… but the she-cat Lionblaze was really interested in was Heathertail. It might have just been a petty crush back then, when they were filming Dark River, but he couldn't deny that every time he'd shot a scene with her, his heart skipped a beat. Would he even acknowledge him at the awards? Or would she just go to… Lionblaze held back a growl. Kestrelflight. He was too shy to utter a sentence!
Lionblaze quickly veered his mind off the subject. He couldn't get angry now- not when they were so close to the cameras…
Some cats on set had been acting for the same series their entire life, like Firestar, Dustpelt, Sandstorm… Of course, they'd been working on other projects in the meanwhile, but Lionblaze didn't think anything was worth dedicating your entire life to. What happened to a happy kithood? He and his littermates had had a few moons of that before joining the cast. Hollyleaf and Jayfeather agreed with him that some cat's determination was incredible.
Speaking of Jayfeather, Jayfeather seemed to be getting a lot of she-cats to moon over him… like Briarlight, Icecloud, and Dawnpelt… More cats than the hairs on his pelt, really. Well, Lionblaze thought, he is a flirt, but what about me? None of the she-cats on set gave him a second glance… and Jayfeather seemed to have quite large fandoms compared to him. Lionblaze let jealousy swell up inside him. He was so much better than his brother, yet Jayfeather got all the attention! He was sincere and thoughtful, while Jayfeather just went around carelessly giving out smiles and taking things for granted. What did cats see in him?
Hollyleaf sighed loudly, snapping Lionblaze out of his quiet seething. "It's kind of crammed in here, huh?" They'd had to fit the entire cast of ThunderClan, from the living and major characters from the "dead", in one truck to save time. As a result, the cats were in such close conditions that every part of their pelt was squeezed against another's. They weren't exactly rich in the twoleg currency, so they couldn't rent anything, but the twolegs would have probably been too surprised to do anything if a few dozen cats had tried to pay for a rental.
Firestar shrugged and changed the subject. "After all this blows over, I'm just going to return to SunClan with Graystripe… I don't remember much about home, but I miss the sand." He glanced around. "How about you guys?"
Yellowfang smoothed her clean and sleek fur. The messy look was only for the camera. "I'd like to travel around with my mate… if I can find one." She sighed bitterly. "Otherwise, my brother will insist on staying with an acting career. He just doesn't understand how old we're getting."
The cats jolted as they hit a bump in the road.
Bramblestar looked a bit sick, but he held whatever complaints he had in. "That's what most of us plan on doing after this, isn't it?" he forced out. "Acting? There's a reason why we're on this cast, you know."
Yellowfang nodded. "A majority of you choose to pursue that career because you are still young. But some of us have had enough with our lives and just want to relax…" She shrugged. "Or retire, whatever."
Spiderleg smirked. Lionblaze recognized that look and got ready for a good laugh. "Oh come on now, Yellowfang," Spiderleg chided, "you aren't that old. You're just trigger-happy."
Of course, Yellowfang's trigger-happiness erupted as the others snickered around her. "I'm one hundred fifty-four moons, and you don't call that old?" Yellowfang snarled, raising an unsheathed paw threateningly. Then she caught herself. "Er, I mean-"
The cats of the ThunderClan cast burst into laughter. Spiderleg looked quite pleased that he had succeeded in humoring the others, while Yellowfang sunk her claws into the truck, a vengeful look in her eyes.
Jayfeather's eyes lit up as he spotted the clearing in which they were to hold the awards. Yes, he saw it, because of course, his blindness was all an act. This was another thing that bothered Lionblaze. His brother was so much more better with eye emotions than everyone else was. And in their set, that was something to be jealous about.
"Guys, come look!" Jayfeather called over his shoulder. He continued as his littermates squeezed past the other cats and joined him at the very back of the truck. "Looks pretty, huh?"
"Wow," Hollyleaf sighed in wonderment. As it was newleaf, there was a blooming assortment of flowers- all a pristine white- mixed into wild-growing bushes near a large glittering pond in the distance. There seemed to be a gap in-between the flowers and the body of water, but they were too far away to make out what was there. Good. The twolegs wouldn't notice, then.
"Berrynose, look at this!" Hollyleaf nudged her friend, who happened to be leaning against the truck's side from sickness nearby. "We should be jumping off any moment now…"
"Jumping?!" Berrynose gasped. He looked dizzy. "I can't even sit still without feeling sick!"
Lionblaze sighed impatiently. Berrynose was a nice tom- very nice, in fact- but he caught sicknesses far too easily. When filming, it was always bothersome. He would always be the first to catch greencough when leafbare came around, and he had many allergies. It took a lot of herbs and make-up to make him seem healthy on camera.
Lionblaze opened his mouth to suggest something, but any answer was interrupted by Bluestar's shouting. "Okay, jump! Everybody, get off, quick!" The cats seemed hesitant and unwilling at her order, so she grabbed the nearest cat- Foxleap- by the scruff and flung him off the truck. Poor guy. "Jump, or the same happens to you," Bluestar growled turning back to the cats.
After that, the cats pelted off the truck like furry rain. Berrynose still wouldn't move, so Hollyleaf had to drag him along with her as she leaped off with the rest. A few cats carried the kits and apprentices along with them because of the young cats' inexperience.
The twoleg driving the truck cast a lazy glance over his shoulder and turned back to the road with disinterest. Then he seemed to register what he'd just seen and whipped around again. He lost control of the truck and the vehicle swerved off the road.
Lionblaze felt Jayfeather- the last cat on board with him- nudge him forward and abruptly remembered to jump. He quickly leaped off with his brother while the truck crashed into a tree, and he clumsily landed on the soft grass, stumbling into Molepaw and Cherrypaw. They squeaked and backed away.
"Sorry!" Lionblaze meowed apologetically. "Are you two okay?"
They glanced at each other nervously. "We're fine," they replied in unison Cherrypaw's answer a bit louder than her brother's.
"Good." Lionblaze turned away and smiled. They may have been a bit shy, but they showed potential in acting. After they filmed Bramblestar's Storm, the two would probably move on to be greater characters starring in some other film.
As they moved onward into the forest, Lionblaze felt a buzz in his pelt, and he stayed back for a moment to poof up his phone and check who'd texted him. Rosepetal wrote, can't w8 for da sc awards! who do u think will win best actor/actress? She'd forwarded this message to every other contact she had, which was about every cat participating in the Awards.
Lionblaze sighed. Rosepetal was another one of those she-cats obsessed with their phones and texting. He quickly texted back, I don't really know. We'll just have to wait and see, I guess, but I'm sure whoever wins will deserve it.
Lionblaze stared at his message for a moment before hitting "send." Deep inside, through all his modesty, he knew that he had a strong ambition to win best actor. But he never showed it- modesty and common sense always won. He poofed his phone away and quickly ran to catch up with the rest of the group.
Hollyleaf was talking with Berrynose… Lionblaze decided not to interrupt them. They were like birds in a tree when they were together; loud, nonstop, and a bit annoying at times. Jayfeather was chatting with Poppyfrost, who seemed delighted that he was talking to her- if Lionblaze tried to join in, he'd just be left out. Leafpool was somewhere in the crowd… somewhere. But it would be too bothersome to shove his way in through all those cats and try to find her. That left Dovewing, who coincidentally had decided to trail along at the back of the group as well… No thanks.
But too late, he realized that he had caught her eye, and she padded closer to his side. "Hi," she said briskly, flicking her tail in greeting. "You see that energy drink commercial yet? I heard it's showing on all the channels."
Lionblaze shrugged. "I don't really watch television much…" He looked up. "What about it?" he asked, though he could already see where the she-cat was heading.
"I was in it," Dovewing replied smugly. Of course. "The casting crew had me paw-picked because they said I had memorable face. And a compelling voice." She glanced at him as if expecting some compliment.
"Did they really?" Lionblaze meowed, trying to sound polite, though he really was uninterested in her gloating. It always made him wonder how her parents and kin were like… Were they anything like her?
Dovewing seemed to see through his act, probably from acting in so many scenes with him, and she narrowed her eyes. "Fine, then. I'll talk to Ivypool if you don't want to listen to the cat you wanted to talk to in the first place." With a short huff and a lash of her tail, she stalked off to find her sister. Ivypool seemed to be the only cat that could stand that she-cat…
"Relieved, huh?" came a familiar voice.
Lionblaze didn't turn. "Hi, Mousewhisker," he sighed.
The grey and white tom came into view at his side. "I was stalking you the whole time," he meowed disappointedly, shaking his head. "I just can't surprise you."
"Show business does that to you, I suppose." Lionblaze shot Mousewhisker a glance, a stoic mask hiding his suspicion. This tom was acting too polite. "Is there… anything you need?" Lionblaze asked slowly.
Mousewhisker's grin almost made him shiver. "No need for that kind of talk; you could've just went all out and said, 'What do you want?'… But I guess that wouldn't be… you." He looked Lionblaze in the eye. "You know what I want."
The golden tom shook his head slowly. "No… I don't know what you want." In all honesty, though, his mind drew a faint idea, but it was too weird to possibly be true. "Uh, what do you want?"
Mousewhisker's gaze darkened and he flattened his ears. "You really don't know?" he growled. "Then you're an idiot." He glanced around. "Commercial break. Same spot. Your call whether you'll come here or not." With that, he sped up and disappeared into the crowd.
Then Lionblaze was alone again. It made him feel unwanted… not for the first time. What was he doing wrong? He tried to be nice and everything, but something must have been turning cats off… It was definitely something big if no one bothered with him because of it. He felt like he should have known what it was.
Lionblaze was a bit relieved when they made it to the edge of the clearing. Maybe his littermates would come back to experience the Awards with him? By this time, it was completely night, and the glittering stars were out, as was the bright full moon. Thunder, Shadow, Wind, and River had specifically planned for the Awards to take place at the full moon, just for the relation to the Warriors' "Gathering".
He waited as the cats in front were held up by the news, photographers, paparazzi, and whatnot. The pause and flashing lights gradually started to make him feel edgy and feel self-conscious about his fur and his stance and his… and he started feeling anxious again. Lionblaze sunk his claws into the ground. He needed… someone to help him bear through. Lionblaze looked around and noticed that Jayfeather and Hollyleaf were, in fact, making their way towards him.
"Hi guys," he greeted them warmly, feeling a burst of relief and happiness.
"You were worried we'd leave you alone, huh?" Hollyleaf chuckled softly, shaking her head. "Never. We're going through this together."
Jayfeather nodded. "We'll be there to correct each other's mistakes when we make them, eh?" he said with a grin.
Lionblaze laughed, though he felt uneasy inside. "Haha, yeah… if we make them."
It soon came their turn to go through the news and photographers. The photographers crowded around "The Original Three", and Lionblaze tried not to flinch at all the lights in his eyes. It made it hard to see anything, really. Honestly, how can cats go through this without going blind? His littermates seemed to be facing the same problems, even Jayfeather breaking from his nonchalant attitude to blink at the lights every once and a while.
Lionblaze spotted Ashfur and Whitewing being hassled by a group of interviewers to his left. Apparently they were the next "big couple", but he knew Whitewing would do anything for publicity. Ashfur was just… gullible. It's sad being used like that… but that's just reality, I suppose.
"Excuse me, sir." Lionblaze turned to see a pretty tortoiseshell she-cat holding a microphone with her tail, a white all caps "CAT 5 NEWS" logo imprinted on its side. "We're going live in a few seconds." She jerked her head towards a few burly toms hefting heavy equipment onto their shoulders. "Would you care to answer a few questions?"
"Oh, uh, of course, sure," Lionblaze stuttered, caught by surprise.
"Great!" The tortoiseshell smiled a bit too enthusiastically and glanced absently at Jayfeather and Hollyleaf. "They'll have to go," she said briskly. "We've constructed questions specifically for you, Cloudtail, and Breezepelt only." She said that last "only" far too forcefully for his liking.
"Thirty seconds!" a dark brown tom carrying a camera on his back grunted. He shambled towards Lionblaze and the news reporter while Jayfeather and Hollyleaf stared on helplessly.
"I'll catch up with you guys later if I can," Lionblaze murmured.
Jayfeather sighed. "Okay, then…" He shrugged. "Better not hold up the flow, I guess. The RiverClan cast is supposed to come next, and you know how big they are."
Hollyleaf gave an amused snort, then cleared her throat. "Good luck, Lion," she muttered. "Keep in mind not to think too much; it makes you stutter. Do that and you should be perfectly fine." With that, she and Jayfeather walked off slowly as they could without making it seem like they were reluctant to leave him.
Lionblaze turned back to the new reporter and swallowed, despite having been through this a few times before. This is live, he thought in dismay. You can't mess this up, or who knows what the public will make of you? His heart thumped as fast as a woodpecker pecking at a tree. Oh StarClan… please don't let them mention anything about Heathertail…
The brown tom with the camera knelt down beside the tortoiseshell and squinted through a seeing-through thingy attached to the camera on his broad back, two other toms with headsets joining him. The camera cat started counting down to the all too familiar words. "Three… two… one… and"- he tensed- "action!"
The tortoiseshell faced the camera and began speaking into her microphone at a rapid pace. "Thanks, Bramblefoot. Hi, I'm Dappleshade, reporter from CAT 5 NEWS, and I'm here live with the acting prodigy, Lionblaze, here to answer a few questions for us!" She turned towards him with an overly-cheery smile. "First thing's first, Lionblaze: we all know the rumors going 'round about you having a secret romantic relationship with Hazeltail even though she is a medicine cat in real life. Can you confirm to us whether or not they are true?" She shoved the microphone into his muzzle.
Lionblaze paused for a moment to calm down his nerves. Don't think to much… just talk. "No," he said, relieved when his voice carried out normally, "I can definitely say that I don't have any romantic relationship with Hazeltail, though we are very good friends."
Dappleshade brought the microphone back to her muzzle and nodded as if she had known all along. "I see. Another thing, Lionblaze; cats have been noticing the funny looks you've been giving Dovewing. What specific feelings do you have towards her?"
Oh man.
Lionblaze quickly decided to go for just a bit of the truth. "Well, I can't say that our relationship is very friendly, nor can I say that we're enemies, but I definitely feel a bit of… negativity towards her. Just the normal annoyances you'd find in every cat."
"Can you tell us anything specific?" the tortoiseshell pushed on.
"Ah… well…" Lionblaze tried to stall for time while he thought of an answer that wouldn't go completely viral. "She can be a little bit much sometimes," he finally said. "She likes to talk, I can tell you that."
"Oh yes, that I can tell. One last thing before you go on the Awards, Lionblaze. I'm sure you've heard of the popular jokes cats are making that you're gay?" Lionblaze nodded. "What are your thoughts about it?" Dappleshade asked.
Lionblaze made sure to flatten his fur before it bristled. He was not gay, but some immature cats out there liked to think of that of toms like him. "Honestly," he began in a cool tone, "I don't think I'm gay, nor do I think I will I ever be gay… but those cats can believe what they believe and joke about what they want. I know I'm not gay, and I think that's enough for me."
"Mmm." Dappleshade nodded. "Alright, thanks for your time, Lionblaze. I hope you win the award for best actor- I think you deserve it!"
Lionblaze gave a fake smile and nodded as the camera cat wrapped up the recording. Dappleshade flashed him a quick smile as she and her crew hurried away to find another cat to interview.
Lionblaze let out a breath. That had went well enough. Nothing major… and nothing about Heathertail. He started moving forward through the crowd of chattering cats and flashing lights trying to find his brother and sister. His quick interview had only been a minute or two, so they couldn't have possibly gone that far. He passed by Briarlight and Brightheart, who were telling of the hardships of acting with fake handicaps to some eager reporters, and veered out of the way as Brackenfur gave an expressive wave of his tail. Where were they?
Lionblaze finally emerged out of the stifling crowd and into the enormous main clearing where they were to hold the awards. He drew in a sharp breath. It was… It was beautiful. The pond reflected the icy crystal-like stars and full moon perfectly in its clear and still surface, and the soft grass stood tall- a third of the way up his legs- and untouched by the twolegs loud plant-shredders. A crew of cats that had been there earlier had apparently hauled in a smooth, big, and dark slate of rock that would serve as a stage, and Lionblaze could see cats huddled up in the trees with the lighting equipment out of the corner of his eye. He looked to his side and examined the flowers peeking out from the bushes. Where the moonlight touched them, the white and beak-shaped petals turned to a softly glowing silver, and as he breathed in, he noticed a very faint, sweet scent.
"Hey, Lionblaze," Jayfeather greeted from behind. Lionblaze jerked his head up in surprise. "Sniffing the flowers, aren't you?" Jayfeather said with a note of teasing in his voice.
Lionblaze's tongue stumbled for words. "W-well, I tlink- uh, think they smell…" His face heated under his fur. "I mean, you know, they just-"
Hollyleaf smoothed his ruffled fur with her tail. "Hey, it's fine. I like them too. No shame in sniffing flowers." She cast a glare at Jayfeather- Jayfeather smiled cheekily in response- then leaned towards the bushes and sniffed at the flowers experimentally. "I think they're called calla lilies," she said. "They usually grow near shores… which is here, I guess." She looked towards the still pond, enchanted.
"Where were you guys anyway?" Lionblaze asked curiously. "I couldn't find you in the crowd."
"Well, naturally, we ran into a few hasty reporters," Hollyleaf said, meeting her green eyes back to Lionblaze's. Then she scoffed. "Then Jayfeather nearly got trampled by a mob of she-cats that'd snuck in. We had to call for security to get them away."
Lionblaze laughed. "Jay… really?" But inside, his heart sank. Of course, it was Jayfeather. It was always Jayfeather. All the attention Lionblaze had gotten was a lousy interview from CAT 5 NEWS.
Jayfeather flicked one of his ears and grinned. "Hey, not my fault! They just seem to love me." He glanced towards the cats of the ThunderClan cast already gathering in the clearing. "We'd better find a place guys, or all the good spots'll be taken."
Lionblaze nodded in agreement and was about to move forward when Berrynose and Hazeltail came running into them, voices full of laughter. "We'll race ya!" Hazeltail laughed, barreling into Lionblaze, and flattening him to the ground. "The cameras aren't here yet- they're all on the RiverClan cast!"
"Come on!" Berrynose nudged Hollyleaf's hindquarters and glanced invitingly towards Jayfeather. "We'll run straight to the stage… First one there gets to choose the first spot! Ready?" He looked around. Lionblaze stood and felt a kit-like excitement surge through him. "Go!"
They shot forward, Lionblaze starting out as last place from feeling so jittery. He regained his control and pushed his legs as hard as he could, ignoring the tall grass whipping his legs, a stupid grin on his face. He'd needed a time like this- to let all his worries go- and he wanted to enjoy it. The golden tom felt the strength from shooting so many fighting scenes over and over again push him onward, and slowly, he passed Hazeltail… then Berrynose… then Jayfeather… until he was neck-and-neck with Hollyleaf. Maybe he'd win this thing!
But Hollyleaf shot him a sly glance and put on an extra surge of speed, and by the time Lionblaze had gathered enough energy to try to catch up to her, they were already at the finishing point. Hollyleaf skittered to a halt and fell into the tall grass, breathing heavily. Berrynose stumbled into third place, Jayfeather and Hazeltail coming in at a close tie for last.
"I… I won," Hollyleaf said weakly. She hauled herself to her paws and looked around for the spot she would claim. Her green eyes found their way to a path of flattened grass leading up to the stage, but she quickly seemed to dismiss it. Probably the pathway, Lionblaze thought.
Hollyleaf finally plopped herself down ungracefully a few fox-lengths away from the stage, near the middle. "Come here guys; I think this'll be a good view." She tapped her tail to the grass on either side of her.
Lionblaze steadied his breath and sat himself to the left of his sister, Berrynose taking her other side. Jayfeather brushed his pelt as he sat next to Lionblaze, and Hazeltail took up Berrynose's right.
Lionblaze straightened his posture and smoothed his fur as he heard other cats murmuring to each other and finding their places. This is it. This is really it. His mind didn't seem to be able to register it for a while. If I win best actor… if I could just win over Heathertail… oh, that would be all I need.