Welcome to my second (well, third, but I deleted my second) fanfic! One, I'm going to try to make chapters quite long and two, try to make this a bit more romantic. Neither of those are my strong suits so I'm going to practice! Expect updates to be irregular and infrequent at best, but I'll try my hardest while also keeping focused on my priority story, Heart of the Willows. Anyway, I hope this isn't too bad (and just saying, this is ThunderClan again but with different characters).

Dawnmist looked longingly at the only nursing queen in the clan, Featherflight. The light-grey queen laughed happily as she watched her three kits, Shadowkit, Lionkit and Lilykit, play and nestled into her mate, Longclaw, purring loudly.

I want to start a family of my own someday, she thought dreamily, before a patrol returning disrupted her fantasy. She suppressed a groan. It was lead by Robincry, the shallow, arrogant but handsome dark grey deputy of the clan, and had Honeymist and Berrysplash on it. Honeymist was perfectly kind, always sweet and there to lend a helping hand. Berrysplash on the other hand, was just as roguishly handsome as Robincry, but with a soft brown tabby pelt and white splashes on his chest, but he was always grumpy, and took advantage of the fact that she-cats mooned over either him or Robincry.

It was so stupid. Sure, Robincry had white wing-like markings on his back. Sure, Berrysplash had a perfectly carved muzzle. The deputy was pumped with muscle, while the senior warrior was sleek-pelted and sparkle-eyed.

Who cared? Wasn't it the inside that mattered? But Dawnmist knew what fame for looks felt like. She had long, cream fur herself, along with a gentle smile to melt anyone's heart and sparkling blue eyes that could never be refused. And she hated it.

Dawnmist wanted a tom who loved her, not the colour of her pelt. She wanted a happy family with a few kits, a successful career and the honour of retiring to the elders den when she grew old. Of course, Dawnmist had only been a warrior for a moon, but she had her life planned out. She would settle down with a kind, sweet and loyal tom who she would share a nest with and discuss the clan and share prey with. Then they would start their own family, watch their kits grow to be apprentices, warriors, even the deputy or leader, and when their time was up, die peacefully in the elders den. To some, it sounded normal, unambitious, boring. But to Dawnmist, it sounded like paradise. Happiness was what she wanted in life, not to be the highest ranked cat in the clan.

"Dawnmist, would you go on a walk with me?" Clearlight, another warrior, asked bashfully. Dawnmist knew he only liked her because of her stunning beauty, not to boast.

"Um, sorry, I'm busy right now," Dawnmist said, flustered. "Uh- I promised to catch up with Honeymist and Goldheart!"

Honeymist and Goldheart were both senior warriors but Dawnmist considered them friends- her best friend was Snowfur, who had a massive crush on Robincry, but Snowfur was out on a hunting patrol along with the two apprentices, Oakpaw and Skypaw.

"Alright," Clearlight mewed, looking slightly disappointed, before he perked up. "I'm on the dawn patrol tomorrow, and Robincry said you would be on it too! Can we talk then?"

"Um-"

"Clearlight, Dawnmist is walking with me, aren't you?" A new voice interrupted, and Dawnmist turned to see Bluesky, another warrior. His voice was friendly and light, and but he had no luck with controlling his facial expression. His eyes were glowing with jealousy and his muzzle was twisted with a strange fury.

"You two barely know me," Dawnmist said furiously. On the outside, she may seem kind, sweet, perhaps a bit dull. But really, she was just a good actor. She may have a docile and pleasant plan, but inside she was sarcastic, fiercely, even strangely loyal, and always tried her best. She could be slightly socially inept, and when someone didn't put in their best effort, she could get mad. Very mad.

"Don't be silly, we're your clan-mates, we know you. Or at least, I know the real you. I don't know about the mouse-dung over there," Clearlight said immediately, sending Bluesky a glare.

"Describe me, then," Dawnmist challenged. She had a reputation to uphold, though she couldn't seem too horrible.

"You're beautiful, and you have spirit in your eyes. You don't like getting up early in the morning, but you're never the last. You are popular and sweet, but you can have a bit of a tongue, a slight temper. Sometimes you're cruel- you can be harsh to cats who don't get it right, even if they are trying their best- but we all know you don't mean it," Clearlight recited as if he had practised.

"Wait," Dawnmist said suddenly. "Is that how you see me? A joke who never means anything, including constructive criticism? A slave to beauty? A cat with a sharp tongue?"

"I told you I know you very well," Clearlight said smugly. "But I love you for who you are. You're beautiful, for one, and even with your sharp tongue-"

"The things you listed are all things that I do!" Dawnmist said, her heart cracking. Yes, she could be a bit emotional, though she never cried- that would scar her reputation. But really? Did nobody know her for what she truly was? Of course, Honeymist and Goldheart knew parts of her, but the only cat she had truly let peek into her heart was Snowfur. And sure, Dawnmist liked Snowfur, but Snowfur was so infatuated with Robincry- was there anyone who truly understood her?

"I will walk with neither of you tomorrow," Dawnmist said slowly. "I'm sorry, but I have my own thoughts to gather."

Nothingness happens here.

"Hello, Dawnmist," Goldheart acknowledged. She was pretty, and Dawnmist was pretty certain before Dawnmist was a warrior, Goldheart had been the trophy for toms. Goldheart was- you guessed it- gold, but her paws faded to a snowy white, she had wide, amber eyes and sloping shoulders. Only Dawnmist, with her long, creamy fur and especially her crystal eyes, beat her when it came to beauty.

"How do you think the clan is going?" Honeymist asked as a topic-starter. "We're running out of kits and apprentices, don't you think?"

"Maybe," Dawnmist said. "If the she-cats focused on the inside then maybe we would have more kits," She said bitterly, reminded of her conversation with Bluesky and Clearlight. "Same with the toms."

"Dawnmist, you need to gently shepherd them away. You can't say 'later' or 'soon' or 'maybe' because they will hold onto their hope. What you need to do, is tell them a simple but gentle no. Don't be cruel, but be firm," Goldheart instructed. "I've been through that too and I know how to handle it now. You need to step carefully, when you are so popular. One wrong move and the whole clan will hate you. Everyone is watching."

"Thanks for the confidence booster," Dawnmist griped, thinking about the clingy toms. "What are your hopes? Your dream lives?"

"What do you mean? If you're saying, what would I like my life to be, I would like to wipe Robincry from existence, become a deputy, and once Briarstar's time is over, maybe even take over. There are a lot of things that need to be changed. Like how we handle border trespassers, and battle plans," Honeymist said, her eyes glazed with happiness from the daydream. "Does Robincry even have a personality? Has he loved anyone before?"

"Well, I would love to become an elder and tell stories to young kits after many seasons," Goldheart said, her voice bright. "But my real ambition is to become a mentor. And a good mentor. A trustworthy one, you know? And as for your question, I don't think Robincry has ever truly loved any cat. Perhaps his family, but no one else. And he allows no one to peek through to take a look at who he really is. He relies on his looks alone to get him through life, which is why nobody can truly love him. They can wish for him, beg for him, flirt for him all they want, but they will never win his heart, because they do not know him and he does not know them."

"You're smart when it comes to all of this wise love business. Maybe you should be an elder after all," Dawnmist said in surprise. "But that nobody can truly love him part. I suppose that's the same for me."

"It is the same for anyone who does not allow others to see their personality," Goldheart said, not even trying to keep it secret. "Dawnmist. Is there anyone in ThunderClan who knows everything that you like, what you fear, what you find funny and what you think should be outlawed?"

"Not really," Dawnmist mumbled. "Oh, look, Snowfur's come back."

Dawnmist hurried to her best friend's side, thoroughly spooked. Nobody knows me, she realized, and my fantasy will never come true until I can let someone in. But I have always protected myself. How do I stop?

Mumble mumble mumble, nothing nothing nothing

Dawnmist frantically trotted ahead of the dawn patrol, trying to get away from Clearlight and Bluesky. Unfortunately for her, the cat leading the patrol was Robincry, one of the only two toms who disliked her. Not that it mattered, as she hated Robincry more, but it meant she had no one to talk to.

"Dawnmist! You entitled mouse-brain! Get behind the patrol leader and your deputy," Robincry said sharply, giving her an easy glare. Most she-cats would have melted and fallen for his mysterious, dark eyes, but not Dawnmist. Instead, she haughtily stepped further ahead.

"Dawnmist, you lizard-brain, I am the clan deputy, and a good one at that-"

"And I suppose you're also StarClan's gift to females?" Dawnmist replied drily, not even turning to look at him. "Hmm. Well, who's entitled now?"

"Excuse me, stop this disrespect and look at me," Robincry ordered sharply, and Dawnmist turned to give him a dismissive glance. He gave a crooked smirk, obviously trying to aggravate her and woo her at the same time to show that even the strongest hearts couldn't resist such a tom. No such luck. The smirk only succeeded in the first goal, and Dawnmist yawned tiredly.

"When will you learn that you need to get a brain from somewhere and you know, actually think of something different for once?" Dawnmist said tiredly, looking back at the front. "And by the way, the scowl that replaced your smile. It's really not attractive."

Robincry scowled more, and hurried to get ahead of her. "I wish I could say the same for you, but you weren't attractive in the first place," He snarled. "At least I look good anyway."

"If you think looks matter, you're really shallow," Dawnmist said unfeelingly, spraying the border. "It's the inside the matters. And no matter how much you try to cover it up, you're ugly, lonely and horrible on the inside. Evil, even. You toy with she-cats' feelings for your own enjoyment. It that's beautiful, I want you to tell me, what's ugly?"

"You," Robincry said, apparently unaffected. He swiped a paw over his ear. "Let's end this business quickly. I can't stand you."

"Don't worry, the feeling is mutual."

After the patrol

"Dawnmist! You were on patrol with Robincry! He's like, the god sent by StarClan!" Snowfur bounded up to Dawnmist excitedly, her eyes wide.

"No, he's the same mouse-brain as every other tom in the clan. Why do you like him, again?" Dawnmist grouched. Usually she remembered everything- not remembering tainted her image of herself- but she was so mad at Robincry she didn't even care enough to remember why Snowfur worshipped the ground Robincry stepped on.

"Because he's brave, and he's skilled," Snowfur said blankly. "When I was an apprentice. I fell into the lake, remember? And he saved me. And I realized, he isn't empty-headed. Sure, I don't know all that much about him, but those reasons alone are enough for me."

"So you don't like him for how he looks?" Dawnmist questioned.

"Of course, that makes him even better. But mostly because he saved me. How handsome he is doesn't have the final say in what I think, you know- I'm not like most idiots that are she-cats," Snowfur said drily, nearly as sarcastic as Dawnmist herself.

"Ah well," Dawnmist hummed. "We have a gathering today, don't we? Who do you think will go?"

"Hopefully me," Snowfur mewed. "And you, of course. Skypaw and Oakpaw will probably come, considering it's their last gathering as an apprentice if they pass their assessment."

"Maybe Berrysplash won't go this time. He's so horrible to the other cats he's ruining our reputation," Dawnmist said darkly, giving the roguishly handsome brown tabby a cold glare, which he gladly returned.

"Not everything in this world is about reputation, Dawnmist!" Snowfur said exasperatedly. "Don't you have a dream to focus on? Like, maybe you want to be deputy, or maybe you want an apprentice, or you have an eye on a tom from another clan-"

"SNOWFUR!" Dawnmist roared, though she knew full well that Snowfur was joking. "It isn't funny to joke about things like that! What happened to clan loyalty!"

"It's a joke," Snowfur sighed ("I know," Dawnmist supplied, still grumpy) and she started to groom her snowy white fur. "It's getting colder. Despite my name, I hate the snow and when it gets so cold."

"I'm fine with it, seeing as my long fur keeps out most of the coldness," Dawnmist said lazily, stretching her muscles. "Want to go on a walk?"

"I'll go with you!" Bluesky volunteered.

"Well, no, if she's going on a walk, she might as well help me gather herbs. You too, Snowfur," Fallenwing, the medicine cat of ThunderClan, ordered.

"Um, me and Snowfur were going on a hunt to you know, speak in private?" Dawnmist said, but she knew duties called. You must do your best for your clan. Because that is the purpose of life.

Yes, that was it.

A warrior's only purpose in life was to serve the clan.

How she would be proven wrong.

2300 words! That was a long chapter for me, though if you felt that was a filler chapter, sorry, I tried my best. Hopefully my chapters will get naturally longer without feeling forced. I am really enjoying writing about Dawnmist's story, so I hope you enjoy it too and don't forget to stick around so that you always know what happens next! Anyway…

Don't forget to review!