"Sagekit, Volekit, don't you want to see the camp? I asked the apprentices to show you around today once they get back from training." Frostshade's smooth but irritating voice gladed to the kits' ears, causing their half-asleep selves to pop up from a near slumber and lump their young selves to the entrance.
"When will they be here!? When is training done? What do they do? I wonder if the elders will tell us stories like Cedarcloud said!" Volekit strung out the words in one breath easily.
"They should be here any heart beat now, I heard them entering camp not long ago. They're probably just eating." The mother purred.
"Can we go out and look for them? Please? We'll be careful!"Volekit pleaded.
"It's been getting colder lately, I don't want you to go unsupervised. If you were to find your way out of camp you'll freeze!" Despite Frostshade's attempt to scare the kits, they both went unfazed outside the den, leaving a mother to shrug off the disobedience.
"Yesterday they came in to greet us, what were their names again?" Volekit asked to his sister, fluffing up his frizzed fur.
"The tom was Gorsepaw and the she-cat was Spiderpaw. They're littermates like us! I'm a bit excited to play with them." She whispered as they both brushed through this entrance of the nursery, but they quickly both hushed as they saw just how big the camp was.
Large sections and brash coverings of entrances to other dens and cats lazing around, the covering of the camp was just dense leaves and branches that twined enchantingly together, sheilding the dark and muddy camp. The ground was wet and shiveringly cold for two new kits who's pads haven't toughened at all.
Stammering, Sagekit's brother was the first to speak up. "We should find th-" He was cut off by two large figures padding to them, it was Spiderpaw and Gorsepaw.
"We were right about to fetch you two! Guess you were too eager." Spiderpaw greeted with a much friendlier gaze than Gorsepaw, who looked annoyed.
Spiderpaw was sleek and smelled sweet, almost a tad heathery mixed with just the refreshing whiff of brimming youth. Her fur was primarily black, a shined black, with speckles of honeyed brown that pooled more around her paws than anywhere else, her eyes a rich green. Gorsepaw had the same sugary looking brown but it took up most of his coat aside from thin stripes of dull brown that ran around his back and legs. His eyes were a foolish amber that looked unaware of his surroundings.
"Should we start with the apprentice den?" Spiderpaw offered warmly, and after getting nods from both the kits she went off slowly to the entrance of her sleeping place, always making sure the observable kits were right at her flank.
"This is where we sleep, all apprentices sleep here and you'll be able to in about six moons!" Sagekit peeped inside with her brother, only letting their heads through.
It was smaller than the nursery and the nests looked less cozy, more stiff an untouched except for two. The walls were made up of collected leaves and compressed brambles, just like the walls of the rest of the camp except for places where tree roots and trunks stood up.
Sagekit felt a fluffy tail run along part of her spine, looking back with her brother he found the tail belonged to the now softened Gorsepaw.
"We're going to the warriors' den and the elders' den now. They won't be telling you any stories today, unluckily. Yarrowtalon is a bit too frail to do anything lately." he added with a grunt and they went off to another much larger den, one that you smell that there were cats snoozing in there.
"This is where the warriors sleep! They sleep here after late patrols or gaurding the camp and a bunch more stuff you'll be doing one day! When they don't have anything to do they eat and share tongues and such." Spiderpaw piped up, glancing around camp.
"Over there is the elders' den. Only Yarrowtalon is there now that Sedgeclaw left camp a few moons ago. I think he went off to be a kittypet for his last days." Gorsepaw added solemnly, probably taking gossip from young warriors too seriously.
"Eh, yeah. Let's just move onto the medicine cat den and then High Rock." The young she-cat offered awkwardly, directing the conversation away from an unfaithful elder.
"We shouldn't go inside right now. Sootnose and Tornface won't appreciate squeaking kits while they're doing things with herbs." Gorsepaw mewed as the kits took in the sight in front of them. This den wasn't like he others, it was a cave, under two large boulders and was absolutely covered in ferns.
Soon the group headed towards HighRock, which was just a large smooth stone that felt cool and silkily important. Last stop was the leader's den, which was carved under large oak roots and roofed with moss and leaves.
"This is where Harestar sleeps, she's probably in there right now actually. She rarely ever comes out." Mewed the grumpy tom.
"You're right, Gorsepaw. I rarely come out because I don't want to hear your bickering." A raspy mew came from just inside the den and a fuzzy head poked out, one very similar looking to Barkflame's(right down to the eye color) but much less fur above the eyes and almost overcomed by grey, and then retreated back into the den.
The accused cat stomped away angrily, with the rest following.
"That old she-cat doesn't know right from left anymore with how much she's aged! Last life and almost drained. She shouldn't be commenting about bickering when she does it the most!" Great, this was awkward now. Sagekit, Spiderpaw, and Volekit were just standing together, not exactly know what to do about the enraged Gorsepaw.
"Hey, we'll be meeting some of the cats around camp. Do you want to join us or do you want to cool down?" His littermate asked.
"I'll join you."
With that, the group went on to approach another small huddle of comfortable warriors who weren't busy.
There was an old dark grey tom with lowly amber eyes that looked just about ready to retire, a white she-cat with small, steady black patches that puddled at her sides and pretty, calm blue eyes. Last was a senior she-cat with a creamy brown coat with restless blue eyes with a large belly that swelled on her small frame.
"Here is Larchclaw, Gullstep, and Soiltooth. Larchclaw is our deputy and Soiltooth is close to kitting! The kits will actually be your kin." Spiderpaw announced happily.
The three cats gave their greetings with purrs before the small, young group went on to the next cat to introduce themselves.
Hello! Cuten here. Thank you all for reading this far!
