Disclaimer: I don't own the Warrior Cats series!
Title: Resilience
Summary: With a harsh Leaf-bare on the horizon, the Clans are in a bad way. Petalkit is growing up under the stern gaze of her father, Ravenfur, when suddenly everything changes. Stuck in RiverClan until WindClan can produce enough catmint- something no Clan has in these temperatures- she does what any kit would do. She adapts.
Chapter Title: Icarus
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A Warrior at Heart- Oh, definitely more Featherpaw coming in the future! =)
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The next few days move slower than a cold beetle. Petalpaw struggled to sleep at night, scared of what waking up might bring. Eating only made her stomach twist and turn. Her hunting skills became frazzled, leading her to staying out late with Tallblaze, the warrior giving her hints and help. They came back to camp with a bird each, ears frigid, paws numb, and no more happy.
Her own restlessness seemed to spread, infecting the typical cheer of RiverClan. It was never a good sign when a leader, deputy, and two medicine cats spoke in private, and their efforts had been noticed. Patrols were more hesitant and careful, and hunters took their jobs more seriously than ever. The whole camp held its breath, voices dimming to listen for answers to questions unspoken.
Whitestripe seemed the least worried, padding through the snow with her tail high. She brought back shriveled leaves and crumbly roots at all hours, be it early in the day or when the moon was bright, taking naps in-between searches. Petalpaw admired her strength and tried to emulate it as best she could, but the WindClan-born cat had never felt particularly courageous. Everyone keeps asking me to be brave, but that's just not me. Or maybe it was, once, and I've used it all up. Now this is all I've got left.
She only dreamed once.
She's in WindClan, though it's not the warm place she remembered fondly. Just like in RiverClan, the snow had taken up every inch of the moor. Gone was the smell of heather and rabbits, overshadowed by cold water.
Petalpaw looked up and gasped. The stars were so bright and clear, it almost felt like she could reach up and bat at them. The strange, more RiverClan part of her whispered the idea of leaping up and splashing into the night sky, swimming with the spirits of her ancestors. It was much more soothing than the bits and clumps between the willows.
Suddenly, something sprints through her form, and Petalpaw feels just as fluid as the stars, but just as soon as it's there it's gone, leaving her sitting in awed silence. The tri-colored pelt of Cloudear stuck out like a sore thumb as he raced across the snow. Petalpaw followed, paws slipping and sliding. She'd never run on a snowy moor before; in its own right, it's like learning to swim all over again.
"There you are!" Cloudear yelped, and Petalpaw was swamped with a much more familiar scent as he pushed through some dead shrubs, coming up on Raintail. "I was getting worried."
"Don't be," Raintail meowed. Her voice was guttural, like she'd been silent for a long time. "I just needed some time to myself."
Cloudear took a pawstep back. "Want me to go?"
She shook her head. "I've had my time."
Petalpaw's heart felt like it was being clawed as the warrior padded over to her mother, comfortably sitting down beside her. Raintail leaned on his side with a sigh, looking drained. It reminded her of Lichenfang and Brackenheart. Blackstorm and Cherryfur. Volespring and Graystar.
"I hope she's doing okay," the gray and white molly whispered.
"I'm sure she's fine," Cloudear meowed gently. "Petalpaw's a strong kit. She's got your heart, after all."
I'm right here! Petalpaw clawed uselessly at the snow. Her jaws felt glued shut. I'm okay, Raintail! I've made friends! I've learned how to fish! I've met StarClan! Don't worry!
Raintail drew back to meet Cloudear's eye. Her face was blank. "It'll feel so sudden for her, won't it? When she left, I was still with Ravenfur."
Cloudear shrugged. "If she doesn't like me, I understand." He glanced up at the sky, then hesitantly added: "I'm surprised your boys were so open."
"They weren't exactly close with Ravenfur," Raintail said, and left the topic at that. Petalpaw knew her mother didn't like to gossip. Her muzzle brushed Cloudear's jaw, having to bend a little to do it. "How would you feel about having more boys?"
Cloudear shuffled back, eyes wide. "What're you saying?"
Raintail snorted, tail lashing. "I think it's pretty clear what I'm saying," she teased good-naturedly, her face softening. "I'm pregnant."
Petalpaw should've felt joy at the announcement. A small, squashed part of her did. Horror hummed through her blood as she took a step closer, trying with all her might to warn them of what was coming, but a blast of cold wind blew, and by then their forms had vanished into the storm.
Claws sliced into Petalpaw's ear, waking her up with a yowl of sheer terror. She didn't have time to process what her slumber had entailed before she was almost muzzle to muzzle with Whitestripe, the medicine cat's eyes wide and small.
"The blizzard," she whispered, voice so quiet Petalpaw had to strain to hear her. "We have to go tonight."
Time seems to blur together as Petalpaw roused the rest of the den, then did as they had planned. Herbs stick to cobwebs, which stick to her pelt, so they won't be flying completely blind into the night. Volespring demands some be put on her as well, the deputy more than a little unwilling to leave good medicine behind. Stonebird was oddly silent as they worked, blinking sluggishly.
Graystar's voice cut through the night, but Petalpaw doesn't pay her any mind. She knows what she's got to say, and it's all up to the gray she-cat to convince her warriors to go along with it.
The next thing Petalpaw knows, Graystar is pushing into the den, businesslike and efficient. "I want everyone here up front with me. The strongest warriors will take the back and sides, with Blackstorm, the kits, and the apprentices in the middle."
Volespring's tail fluffed up indignantly. "I'm the deputy! I can't just-"
Graystar silenced her with a look. "You're my deputy, and you will walk with me to show everyone that we are willing to face the unknown for them first-paw."
"Graystar?" Stonebird's voice was hesitant as he called the leader's name. "I'm not sure I can walk."
Her ears flattened. "Are you ill?"
"I'm old," he meowed. "Haven't been eating right. Been- been trying to save it for the younger cats."
"Stonebird," Graystar said, looking like she was trying very hard not to bat at him. "An elder doesn't retire so he can treat himself badly. He retires to rest and be respected."
"I know, I know." His gray tail thumped on the dirt. "But I'm not afraid of StarClan, Graystar. I've got family waiting for me there. If this is how I go, this is how I go."
Graystar let out a long, restrained sigh. She padded around him to his back, laid down, and thrust her muzzle under his side. Stonebird let out a yelp as Graystar worked her head underneath him. Had the situation been different, Petalpaw was certain she would've laughed as the leader clumsily stumbled to her paws, elder awkwardly flopped across her back.
"When I became leader, I told StarClan I would give every one of my lives for my Clan," she meowed. "That includes you, and that includes now."
They headed for the barn first, climbing up to where Missy had died and slumbering in the dead hay, feasting on rats, determined to make their saved fresh-kill count. The snow fell steadily, but not heavily, and Petalpaw fell asleep wondering if this was all in their heads after all. She prayed it was.
"You're on the right path," someone whispered into her ear as she drifted off. It sounded like Poppykit. Her misty green eyes searched through the sea of pelts for Lionpaw and Sedgepaw. She wondered if Raintail's kits would matter to her like they did. Like Stripepaw and Beepaw did. Or would they be separate, the chasm between their ages too wide to leap across? I don't know if I want that or not. Petalpaw pushed the thought away. Now's not the time to worry about that kind of thing.
Not long afterwards she was being shaken awake by Fluffywing, the yellow tom having been on watch. It wasn't a gentle fall now; the wind stung her face as they moved as one into the night. Graystar refused to complain, but Petalpaw noticed her legs were shaky with the weight of snow and Stonebird. Petalpaw didn't notice the incline until they were almost on it. She wondered, for the first time, what Checkers would do when they all came into her den. They trudged on, uncertain and cold and far, far too invested to turn back now.
A loud cracking sound had them all stopping in their tracks.
"It's me," Hawktail called, sounding surprising calm. The gray and white tom was on the edge of the incline, where the rock was undoubtedly unstable. "I don't think I can move, ya'll."
Sandstorm tried to move a little closer, muzzle stretching out, but another snap had him backing off.
"It's... It's okay, really," the trapped warrior meowed. "I've really missed Littlepelt, y'know? We trained together."
"Don't go, Hawktail," Swiftmist urged, the brown she-cat pressed close to Graystar and Stonebird. "Let's go home together. All of us."
"I don't have much of an option, ma'am. Moving'll only bring me a quicker farewell." He twisted his head around. "Sedgepaw? Lionpaw? Fish-guts. I can't see a stinking thing out here. Boys, if you can hear me, just know I'm proud of you, and I love you both a lot."
"Will someone try and haul him back already!?" Volespring snapped, looking like she was helpless and hating it.
One final, horrible screech of rock and Hawktail broke away from the rest of the group, letting out a shriek of fear, no longer able to put on a brave face. His claws scrambled to find purchase. There was a wail of horror, a blur of white, and then the warrior was thrust to the safety of the solid ground, and pitching out over the trees wasn't Hawktail, but Lionpaw.
"Lionpaw!" Petalpaw cried, but it was too late.
He was gone.
Author's Note: I wrote this all in one day! I was originally planning for it to be longer, but I feel like this is a good place to end the chapter, y'know?
I always felt like Graystar picking up and carrying Stonebird was a huge moment for her character, tbh. It's just a small little thing, but it means the world to both her and RiverClan.
-Mandaree1