The frost covered grass crunched beneath Snow's paws, as she made her way to the spot.
For moons now, she had flashes of this place in her dreams, a forest just beyond the mountains.
At first she tried ignoring these dreams, and the voice in her head telling her that it was her destiny.
But the more she ignored them, the more frequent they became, a loud buzz that never stopped ringing in her head, no matter how hard she tried to silence them.
After she felt as though she'd go mad from all the noise, she decided to go to the place they kept instructing her to. She was glad that they didn't tell her to go to the other side of the mountains, that's where the clan cats lived. She never met any cats from ThunderClan, ShadowClan, WindClan, RiverClan, or SkyClan, but she heard stories about how vicious they were, and how they didn't take too kindly to cats that weren't clanborn.
"Think, when you form your own clan, you can invite anyone in that you want, it will be yours to decide what happens."
Snow shook her head, in attempts to extract the voice from her ears. Why would she want to make her own clan? She was perfectly content being on her own. She had no responsibilities to anyone but herself, and that's the way she liked it.
"But you must be lonely."
She sighed, the voice had a point there, as much as she liked not having to worry about anyone else, she often found herself wishing she had a friend she could confide in. Ever since her mother left her in search of a new mate, and her brother got killed by a fox, she had no one.
"Hello, who are you?"
Snow found herself staring at a calico she-cat, whose eyes were open wide in surprise. Beside the she-cat were two kits, a fluffy black tom, and a tortoise shell she-cat, who were wrestling with each other.
"I'm Snow, what are you doing here?" Snow asked.
"Snow, that's a pretty name, I'm Petal, you might think I have bees in my brain after I tell you this, but I came here because of a dream."
"I'm here because of dreams too," a large black and white tom meowed, as he lumbered over to them.
"Me too!" another cat, that Snow couldn't see, exclaimed.
Then, the leaves in the tree above Petal started rustling, and a cat, even smaller than the two kits, dropped down beside them, causing Petal and the kits to jump.
"You nearly scared me to death!" Petal spat with her fur bristled.
"Is that your kit?" the black and white tom asked, fixing Snow with an accusing glare.
"I'm not a kit!" the small cat exclaimed, a pale brown tom, "I'm almost seven moons old, I'd hardly call that a kit."
"What are you doing here?" Petal asked, kinder now that she was no longer startled.
"The dreams, and the voice, the voice said that if I came here, that they'd stop."
The black and white tom shook his head.
"This doesn't make sense! I can understand why they summoned me, I'm big, a great fighter, and maybe her," he flicked his tail over to Snow, "But I can't understand why they'd call on a kit and a nursing queen!"
"I like that they sent dreams to me, I love the idea of living in a clan, surrounded by cats to help me take care of my kits, and when they have kits, I can return the favour," Petal shook her head, "My kits have been so lonely ever since their father left, not that he was around for them in the first place, as soon as I mentioned the word kits, he was out of here."
Snow shook her head, she knew that feeling all too well, she grew up never knowing her father, and as soon as she and her brother were able to eat solid food, her mother was gone as well. She supposed she should be grateful that she at least stuck around for that long.
"Family's overrated," the large tom grunted, "The best part of being a leader of your own clan, is the respect that comes with it."
The smaller tom nodded.
"Yeah, I could use a bit of respect, I bet if I became leader, Maple, Hickory, and Pecan would never call me a runt again!"
"Family of yours?" Petal asked.
The small tom nodded.
"Yeah, littermates, also, if you were wondering, my name is Flighty, I was born with the name Acorn, but my mother decided it didn't suit me after-all, so she changed it."
"Well, I think either name is nice, I'm Petal, and these are my kits, Plum and Raisin."
She pointed with her tail first to the tortoiseshell she-kit, and then to the black tom-kit, as she said their names.
"I'm Snow," Snow meowed, glancing at the large tom, waiting for him to say his name.
"Oh, I'm Hatchback, but everyone calls me Claw," he meowed, extending his claws, that seemed to be so much longer and thicker than her own.
"Wow!" Flighty gasped, "Your claws are bigger than my whole paw!"
"My paw is bigger than your paw," Plum meowed, placing her paw on top of Flighty's, covering it completely.
"So, if we do form our own clans, are you going to ask your families to join?" Claw asked.
"I might, but I don't think my siblings will want to get bossed around by me though," Flighty meowed.
"Of course my kits are going to join me! Where else would they go?" Petal gasped.
"I could make strong warriors out of them, I've fought off more badgers and foxes than I can count," Claw meowed.
Snow couldn't help but to sigh, she found herself wishing that Claw, or someone with his fighting skills, had been around when her brother was being attacked by a fox. Then, he might not have died.
"I'm in for forming my own clan," she decided, saying her decision out loud. After all, what could it hurt?
If she were to find a mate and have kits someday, she'd need them to be protected.
"Should we all form one clan together, or have separate clans?" Petal asked.
"I think we're meant to have separate clans, just like the clans on the other side of the mountains," Flighty meowed.
Claw nodded.
"No offence, but none of you have what I'm looking for to join my clan, I want only the most fierce cats."
"Oh none taken, there will be no fighting in my clan, that's for sure, and I know you're just the sort that I don't want around my kits for too long," Petal meowed.
"But what if someone tries to invade your territory? Won't you want to fight them off?" Snow asked. She knew too much fighting was bad, but not knowing how to fight was even worse. How would Petal and her kits ever be able to defend themselves if they didn't learn how to fight?
"I'll invite them to join of course! A clan can never be too big."
"Well, I don't think that's the best idea, but it's your clan, so I guess it's up to you," Snow sighed, deciding not to say anymore about it. What Petal wanted to do with her clan, was her own business.
"Should we get clan names?" Flighty asked.
Petal gasped and nodded.
"Oh yes! That would be wonderful, how about Petalheart for me?"
"I think they end the leaders' names with star, like Petalstar, Clawstar, Snowstar, and Flightystar," Claw meowed.
"I think we should do something different than star, we're brand new clans after all, what about Petalmoon?" Petal suggested.
Snowmoon, Snow thought to herself, really liking the idea of that name.
"I think that's a great idea," she meowed.
"Instead of being Flightymoon, I'll be Flightmoon, it sounds better," Flighty meowed.
"And I guess that leaves me to be Clawmoon."
The cats stood in silence for a few moments, even Plum and Raisin had stopped playing, and stood behind their mother, not saying anything.
"So, what now?" Snow asked, deciding to be the first one to break the silence.
"Now, you go get your nine lives, and start forming your own warrior code," the voice told her. The other cats must have heard the same things, because Clawmoon exclaimed,
"We get our nine lives!"
While Petal meowed,
"We make rules for our clans! Number one rule of PetalClan will be, all kits will come first, no matter what, whether they're from PetalClan or not."
Clawmoon nodded.
"Yes, kits are important, I will train my kits to be fierce warriors that ClawClan can be proud of," he paused, "Do you think two moons is too early to start battle training?"
"Oh StarClan yes!" Petalmoon gasped. Snow nodded in agreement, two moons was much too early for a kit to begin training, they would probably still be nursing at that time.
"Well, what age would you start training them?" Clawmoon asked.
"No earlier than twelve moons, that seems about right to me," Petalmoon meowed, wrapping her tail around her kits, pulling them close to her, as though she feared they would start battle training at any moment.
Flightmoon shook his head.
"Twelve moons is too late, the other clans begin apprentice training at six moons."
"I don't know," Petalmoon sighed, "Six moons seems much too early, my kits will be six moons in just a couple of moons, I can't imagine them going into battle that soon," she turned to Snowmoon,
"What do you think?"
"Well," Snowmoon thought about it, it was bad to send kits into battle too early, but if they waited too long to be trained, they might not be able to defend themselves.
"Perhaps we should start training at six moons, but not let them go into battle until they're at least twelve moons."
"I will NEVER let my kits go into battle!" Petalmoon exclaimed with her green eyes opened wide in horror.
"But I want to fight!" Plum protested, swiping her paw at Flightmoon, who dodged it, by leaping back into the tree that he had jumped down from.
"Hey! Get back down here and fight me!" Plum angrily mewed, staring up into the tree.
"No Plum, in PetalClan, we don't believe in fighting," Petalmoon meowed.
"But that's not fair!" Plum wailed.
"Before a tantrum breaks out, might I suggest we decide where we're going to live? If we're all going to have separate clans, then we can't very well all live in the same spot together," Clawmoon pointed out.
Snowmoon nodded in agreement, as she thought about what kind of territory she would want. Maybe one by the river? She didn't mind swimming, and fish was some of her favourite food, and besides, foxes liked hanging out in wooded areas better anyway.
"Well, I want a place with lots of trees, I want my kits to be able to be protected from hawks," Petalmoon meowed.
"I'll take the spot closest to the thunderpath," Clawmoon narrowed his eyes, "ClawClan will fear no monsters!"
"I'll take the land closest to the river," Snowmoon meowed, knowing in her heart, that it was the right thing to do, she wouldn't feel right anywhere else.
"I want a place with a lot of room to run around, but still enough trees, that you can leap into for a quick escape from a dog or something," Flightmoon meowed, still in the tree.
"That sounds good, so, we go out and find our territory, and then come meet back here?" Snowmoon asked.
"The other clans gather every full moon, maybe we should do that?" Flightmoon suggested, dropping out of the tree.
"I think it should be sooner, we still have to finish making our warrior code," Clawmoon meowed.
"Yes, and we still need to get our nine lives, though I have no idea where to even begin," Snowmoon sighed.
"When you dream tonight, I'll show you the way."
Snowmoon groaned, she thought that when she came to the spot, the voice would stop. She supposed she should be grateful for it now though, after all, it could help her along in her journey to forming her own clan.
"It looks like we have to go to sleep," Flightmoon meowed, obviously being told the same thing Snowmoon had. She wondered if the same voice that talked to her, talked to the other cats as well.
He must be pretty busy, she thought to herself, she wasn't sure if the voice was actually a tom or a she-cat, but it sounded more like a tom to her.
Maybe he was a StarClan cat, when he first started invading her thoughts, he told her all about this place called StarClan, the place where most of the warrior ancestors went. She wasn't sure if she actually believed it though, it seemed a bit far-fetched to her, but after what had been conspiring lately, she found herself growing more open to the idea, that there was a clan full of cats that had already passed on from this world. She wondered if Sleet might be in this StarClan place.
"What do you think of StarClan?" she decided to ask the other cats, curious to know their thoughts on it.
"I love the idea of these mystical cats looking over my kits!" Petalmoon exclaimed.
Clawmoon nodded.
"I like that it will give my warriors something to strive towards."
"My mother told me about this place called The Tribe of Endless Hunting that sounds similar to StarClan, so I believe in it," Flightmoon meowed.
"You know the cats that live in the mountains?" Clawmoon asked, sounding interested, "Are they good fighters?"
"I wasn't born there, my mother left when she was expecting me and my littermates."
"What's the story behind that?" Snowmoon asked, for some reason eager to know more about the cats she had met.
"Well, my mother was a tribe cat, her name was Dust That Drifts Through Wind, but she goes by Hazelnut now, anyway, she ended up falling in love with some rogue cat named Flick," Flightmoon took a deep breath before continuing, "She figured her tribe mates would not approve of this, so she left to go be with him, but he turned her away, and well, I guess that's all there is to say."
"She never tried to go back to the tribe?" Snowmoon asked.
Flightmoon shook his head.
"I guess she was too ashamed, or she didn't think they would take her back, or maybe she tried, and they didn't allow her back in, I don't know, I prefer to focus on the here and now instead of on the past."
"The poor dear, I can't imagine not ever being able to see my family again," Petalmoon meowed softly.
"Is your mother going to join your clan?" Snowmoon asked.
"No, she lives with housefolk now, and she's real happy there, I don't think she'd want to leave."
"She just abandoned you and your littermates?" Petalmoon gasped.
"No, she asked us if we wanted to come, but I could never imagine being cooped up all day, and Pecan lived with housefolk for awhile, but he couldn't stand it, he said he much rather preferred living outdoors with the freedom to go where he wanted, when he wanted."
"I can understand that," Snowmoon meowed, however, she couldn't help but to think, that if she and her brother had been raised by housefolk, then he wouldn't have been killed by a fox.
"The fate of being a kittypet is much worse than being killed, having to spend your whole life cooped up in a twoleg den, eating dry pellets out of a dish, your brother is probably glad he died, rather than having to live that sort of life."
"Just shut up!" Snowmoon spat, she hated how the voice could read her mind, she didn't like the thought of someone invading her private thoughts.
"Excuse me?" Clawmoon demanded, glaring at her.
"I wasn't talk to you, I was-"
"The voice?" Petalmoon asked. Snowmoon nodded.
"I like the voice that talks to me, she seems really nice," Petalmoon meowed.
"She?" Snowmoon asked, maybe the other cats weren't hearing the same voice as her.
"Yes, why? Is yours a tom?"
Snowmoon nodded.
"I think so."
"Mine's a tom too, he sounds like a real strong one too, perfect for ClawClan if he'd ever show himself," Clawmoon meowed.
Snowmoon turned her attention over to Flightmoon, to see him pinning Raisin to the ground, while the black kit bit his ear.
"My kit! Leave my kit alone!" Petalmoon exclaimed, springing forward, and grabbing Flightmoon by his scruff, flinging him aside.
"We were only playing," Raisin grumbled, as his mother checked him over, and Flightmoon scrambled to his paws.
The next thing Snowmoon knew, she heard a shriek, and saw a brown tom, who looked big, but still young, pinning Petalmoon down on the ground.
"Who do you think you are doing that to my brother?" the tom snarled, lashing his tail.
"I have kits! You can't treat me like this!" Petalmoon exclaimed.
"Well, you shouldn't have done that to my brother, you could have seriously hurt him," the tom spat.
"He almost killed my kit!"
"No, I'm fine," Raisin meowed, shifting his paws, looking as though he wished he could be anywhere else except there.
"Yeah, they were only playing," Clawmoon shook his head, "I don't see what the big deal is."
"The big deal?" Petalmoon screeched, shoving the brown tom away, and getting up to her paws, "No one should push MY kits onto the ground!"
Snowmoon stood there, not knowing what to say, she understood that Petalmoon was Raisin's mother, and of course she'd be protective of him, but she thought she was being a bit too overprotective. She didn't say anything though, as nice as she seemed at first, she could tell that the other she-cat had a temper, and she didn't want to get on the wrong side of it.
"Hickory, what are you doing here?" Flightmoon asked, limping over to his brother.
"We were getting worried, you're usually back by now," the brown tom, Hickory, answered.
With them standing side by side, Snowmoon couldn't tell how they were brothers, Hickory was larger with smaller ears, a dark brown pelt, and grey eyes, Flightmoon was much smaller and skinnier, with large ears, a light brown pelt, and yellow eyes.
My brother and I nearly looked identical except for our pelt colours, she thought to herself, hers being white, and his being grey.
"I told you about the dreams, remember?" Flightmoon meowed, flicking his tail, "Come on, let's go talk in private."
The two toms padded away, and Petalmoon gasped,
"Do you think they're plotting to hurt me and my kits?"
"Oh yeah, two kits, one being no bigger than a mouse, are totally planning on hurting your kits," Clawmoon meowed, rolling his icy blue eyes.
"But they are! The small ones are the most vicious," Petalmoon gasped, "My mother told me all about this clan she used to be part of, BloodClan, she said that the leader was the most vicious cat ever, and he was hardly bigger than a kit!"
Clawmoon mrrowed.
"Is something funny?" Petalmoon demanded with her green eyes flashing.
"I just find it amusing, that you believe that a cat the size of a kit, could ever be a threat much to cats a lot bigger than them," he meowed, flexing his claws, "No cat would be able to take me down."
Snowmoon rolled her eyes, the large tom had an ego, however, she had to admit that he did have a point.
"I'm going home," Flightmoon meowed, as he padded back over with his brother, "Should we meet here again tomorrow at dawn?"
"What about when the sun reaches the highest point in the sky? My kits need to get enough rest," Petalmoon meowed, no longer seeming like she believed that Flightmoon and Hickory were plotting to hurt her and her kits.
"Aw, do we really have to go?" Plum wailed.
Raisin nodded.
"Yeah, I was having fun here."
"Yes, but don't worry, we'll come back tomorrow."
"But I want to come back nowww!" Plum protested.
Snowmoon sighed, she was glad that she didn't have kits. She didn't think she'd be able to keep her patience for long.
"That sounds good to me, and during that time, we can try and recruit more cats to join our clans," Clawmoon meowed.
Hickory padded over to the large tom, and dipped his head.
"I would like to be the first to join your clan."
"What?" Flightmoon asked with a surprised hiss. Snowmoon couldn't help but to feel a twinge of pity for him, she couldn't imagine what she'd do, if her brother decided he wanted to join a clan that she wasn't in.
"I'm sorry Flighty, I mean, Flightmoon, but I don't feel as though your clan is the right clan for me, I want to be part of a clan that has a strong and fierce leader."
"But Hickory, you're my brother."
Hickory shifted his paws uncomfortably.
"I know, and we'll always be brothers, but this is the best move for me."
Flightmoon sighed.
"Well, alright, please be careful, I don't want anything to happen to you."
"Nothing will happen to me, I've always been the strongest of the litter," Hickory meowed proudly, with his chest puffed out.
Sleet thought he was stronger than me, and he ended up getting killed by a fox, Snowmoon thought to herself, she didn't say it out loud though, she didn't want to cause more problems for the brothers than they were already facing.
"I hope you're right," Flightmoon glanced down at his paws, "I'll really miss you."
"You'll still be able to see each other at gatherings, but we really should go now," Clawmoon meowed, before he started padding away.
"Aren't you going to with him?" Flightmoon asked his brother.
Hickory shook his head.
"We're meeting back here at sun high tomorrow, I want to be able to say goodbye to our littermates first."
"Do you think they'll want to join the clans?"
"I don't know, maybe."
The two brothers padded away, and Snowmoon could no longer hear their conversation.
"Come on kits," Petalmoon meowed.
"When we get back, can I join ClawClan?" Plum asked, swatting at her brother's tail.
"Absolutely not!"
After Petalmoon and her kits left, Snowmoon found herself standing there by herself.
She was all alone, she realized. Petalmoon had her kits, Clawmoon had Hickory, Flightmoon might be able to recruit his other two littermates, but she had no one.
She sighed, and for once, she found herself wishing that the voice would make an appearance, and that he would tell her what to do.