The small, frail, silver tabby she-kit shook as she pushed through a patch of bracken.
She was terrified.
Every time a part of the plant flung into her particularly harder than the rest, she squeaked in horror.
After stumbling out of the hellish prison plant and into a small clearing, the she-kit looked up at the sky with her sharp, light-green eyes. The midnight skies were clear, there wasn't a cloud in sight, and the moon and stars shone brightly in kit suddenly felt calmer than before. 'Even if i'm lost, the moon would still keep me safe!' she concluded.
The kit smiled at her thought - that sounded like something her mother would say.
A rustling sound snapped her out of her happy thoughts and smiles, and the she-kit's head turned to the left to look for the source of the noise.
But she was too slow, and the white blur coming towards her was already just a few inches away from her, before it crashed into her, causing them both to smash into the ground.
Too petrified to make a noise, the kit could only examine her attacker. She was surprised to find that it was another kit - about the same size as her. The kit had pristine white fur, and a dozen small gray splodges dotted about their rounded muzzle, as well as around their green eyes and ears.
And most surprisingly - the kit looked..faded.
To some extent, she could see the sky behind the kit, and many twinkling stars danced in it's pelt. It was as if the kit was crafted out of stardust.
"You're here! You're here! You're really here!" the kit chanted, nothing but excitement gleaming in his strangely familiar green eyes.
"Goldenclaw! She has arrived! Icekit has arrived!" the strange kit continued to shout. The she-kit was confused - how did this stranger know that her name is Icekit?
Icekit let out a pained cry and squeezed her eyes shut as the kit pinning her down, seemingly unknowingly, shifted their weight onto her rib cage, and another, deeper, more masculine voice called out from not too far away.
"Get off of her, Strongkit." the voice said, and a few seconds later, the weight essentially crushing her had been removed, and she could breathe again.
She heard a cat sit down a few meters away from her, and the same loud voice that came from the kit mumbled a quick "Sorry.."
After what seemed to be half a minute, she caught her breath and shakily sat up, scanning the area for any potential attackers like the kit before.
Directly in front of her sat a handsome, possibly very muscular tom with long golden fur, and the same familiar green eyes of the kit, who was sitting next to him. As well as sharing eye colours, they shared the same peculiar transparency, and the same starry pelts.
"Good evening, Icekit. Welcome to Starclan." the same masculine voice from before called out, this time coming from the tom.
Then it suddenly struck her. Starclan! That's why they were starry!
But.. why was SHE in Starclan! She wasn't dead, was she?
"Don't fret, you're still breathing, young one." the tom said, possibly having some sort of mind reading ability.
"My name is Goldenclaw." he continued.
"I'm Wingfeather's father - your grandfather."
'Maybe that's why his eyes look familiar', Icekit thought to herself.
Wingfeather was indeed her mother - a small blonde she-cat, with brown tabby markings going along her sides and down to her tail, and the same light-green eyes as all of her kits had. This Goldenclaw cat had the same eyes too!
"No". Icekit thought aloud.
"Stripestar is our grandfather. He said so himself!" she continued.
Stripestar was a large gray tom, with darker gray markings on his sides, rather like Icekit's mother's. He was one of the oldest warriors in the clan, according to Argankit.
His deputy, Whitefur, was Icekit's father. He was a brave warrior, and Icekit knew that he loved her and her siblings very much. He became deputy when they were born, but he's always been one of Stripestar's favourite cats, again, according to Icekit's brother, Argankit.
Goldenclaw smiled kindly at Icekit.
"Stripestar is my brother. I died just after Wingfeather was born, so he adopted her."
"Right.." Icekit frowned.
The tomkit sitting next to Goldenclaw smiled enthusiastically at Icekit.
"I'm Strongkit! I'm your brother!" he beamed, causing Icekit to cock her head questioningly.
"But I only have two brothers! Bluekit and Argankit! Mother has never told me about any other brothers." the she-kit stated.
Strongkit looked a little hurt, and Goldenclaw moved his tail around the kit, smiling at him.
"She hasn't told you about him because she doesn't want to upset you. Strongkit died just after he was born." the golden tom replied, licking Strongkit's head reassuringly.
"Well, it's nice to meet you Strongkit! I'm Icekit." she declared, making sure to be polite, like her mother would have wanted.
"Oh, I know that!" Strongkit jumped to his paws, having regained his lost enthusiasm.
"I know that because Goldenclaw has told me all about you!" He continued.
"You're the one to carry on his bloodline!" Strongkit finished, grinning like a fool, 'which he possibly is', Icekit added in her head.
"What does that mean? I'm not carrying on anybodies bloodline! Nobody has said anything about a bloodline!" Icekit choked, looking extremely confused now.
"Well, now I have. You're the kit gifted with the same power that I have."
Goldenclaw looked calm and collected as he spoke, the exact opposite of the confused and terrified Icekit and the extremely excited Strongkit.
"I never got a chance to fulfil my prophecy, and my purpose, but i'm going to make sure that you will."
"What prophecy?" Icekit questioned, looking rather worried now.
"It's quite long winded, but all you need to know is that I should be ruling the forest by now.." Goldenclaw's tone darkened, and he began staring at Icekit, who shuffled uncomfortably.
"Stripestar was never meant to be leader" He continued. "I was meant to unite the clans, and I was meant to be leading them!"
"But..other things got in the way. I died." The tom hissed.
"By some miracle, Wingfeather was the kit who had the powers. But, by the time I was done with some urgent business the damn thing was already so brain dead through Stripestar's pacifist, peace loving tripe, there was no point in trying to teach her how to be a leader!"
The tom stomped a front paw on the ground with anger, and the sparkling dew that resided on the malachite grass flew in all directions.
Goldenclaw's tone had gone very deep, and his eyes flared with anger. Or was it madness? Icekit could not tell the difference, being so naive, as she had only begun to speak a mere week earlier.
"But..but now.." The adult stuttered, a grin forming on his face.
"You will carry on my legacy, Icekit."
Goldenclaw reached out and stroked Icekit's cheek, making a small happy noise, and she recoiled.
"You will rule the forest, with me leading you. You will unite the clans so that I can fulfil my destiny! All you have to do, is take my paw."
He slowly reached out his paw, pad up, and smiled reassuringly, Icekit didn't wish to be here. She wished to be home, with her Mother and her sisters and brothers!
"W-what if I don't want to rule the forest.." Icekit barely whispered, shuffling back slightly.
Goldenclaw tilted his head and smirked, his golden pelt shining in the moonlight, and making him look like a warrior of Lionclan to the tiny Icekit.
"Oh Icekit.. Icekit... Do you really think you have a choice?"
Icekit gulped. She wanted to wake up and find this was all a bad dream. A nightmare.
But as the tom's mantis green eyes stabbed into her like knives, she pondered over his words.
'If I don't do what he says, he could hurt me! Besides, Mother tells me to listen to what the warriors say, right..?'
Icekit shakily lifted a miniature paw and hovered it over Goldenclaw's open paw for a few seconds. She wasn't really going to do this, was she?
The small kit closed her eyes and looked away, then timidly moved her paw half an inch down, till it connected with Goldenclaw's.
And then everything was gone.
Icekit opened her eyes, she was back in the nursery, her mother curled up protectively around her. She was safe! It was just a dream!
Quietly, a voice echoed in her mind.
"I'll see you tomorrow night then, Icekit."