Chapter 1
A Poetic Black Cat
Author's Note: So I've wanted to remake Fallenstar's Fate for a really long time now, and I'm not getting the motivation to do so. I first made FF waAAY back in 2013. 7 YEARS LATER and I'm STILL getting notifications on people favoriting and following it to this day! I've decided since my writing style has changed so much, and that there's so much I want to change about the original story, that I'll go ahead and do that!
A disclaimer that this is an AU of sorts to the canon warrior's series and by extension, an AU somewhat to the original FF series, since I'm changing some events and changing around some character deaths and motivations. The idea will largely remain the same however- a human girl is transformed and taken to the world of Warriors!
Her existence causes somewhat of a domino effect, altering the canon reality and changing a lot of things. Apologies for my prattling on for so long, so let's get to it!
I rushed ahead, knowing full well that I was going to be late to my class.
Moving is hard enough and to go to school where everyone already was predisposed to hate you? That made life much harder than it should be for a high schooler such as myself.
I felt embarrassment roll up into my throat once I've realized I had completely forgotten my homework. I shamefully opened the door to my classroom, seeing the pudgy teacher looking despondent at my lateness.
With some children snickering at me, I woefully slink to my desk. The desks were recently polished, enough to see my reflection.
In the oaky polish, my green eyes glimmered bright, accompanied by long, dark brown hair falling over my shoulders and my freckled forehead and face. I brushed back a strand over my ear, embarrassed at my physique as well. I was short, 5'7" with a little bit of a chubby body as well. I hated myself.
I felt a crumpled piece of paper press hard against my head and fall into my hood. I slyly reached into it to pull it out and shakily unfold it. It wasn't a love letter, that was for sure. I read in a rushed and scraggly handwriting; KILL YOURSELF BITCH
Being a grammar nazi, I actually chuckled to myself in my mind. The oxford comma was completely forgotten. It was almost humorous to an extant. If they wanted to threaten me, the leader they could do was do it properly.
"What are you laughing about, bitch?" Hissed the voice behind me.
I turned around with a soft smile. "You forgot the oxford comma."
"Goddamned bitch…" he growled low and slammed his hand into the desk. "You're fucking dead."
I said nothing else, crumpling up the paper in my palm and stuffing it into my bookbag to put into my box back home filled to the brim with more papers not unlike this one. I didn't want to give this boy the satisfaction of a response, so I remained quiet, and bit back the tears stinging in the the corners of my eyes.
This was likely why nobody liked me.
As I left the classroom, I went to my locker a hallway down. I lazily opened my locker graffitied with death threats and hateful curse words. But as I opened it, I saw what appeared to be a lump of sleek black fur at the bottom. On second inspection, it was a cat. It blinked, as though coming out a sleeping trance and stared up at me with large, unblinking green eyes.
I stumbled backward, dropping all my supplies in a haste. Oddly enough, I was the only one in the hallway. Papers littered the ground as the cat's cold green eyes stared into me.
As I crouched down to pick up the papers, the cat stood up and stepped out.
"Hello, twoleg." It purred.
My eyes widened, dropping the papers I had gathered. "Why are you talking? Why was there a cat in my locker?" I swallowed hard.
The cat's thick jet black fur glittered with what appeared to be stars. "I am Shadowstar."
I smiled and brushed back my hair. "Uh… I-I'm Autumn." I said nervously, strange that I was engaging in a casual conversation with an ethereal cat. I couldn't help but glance down both directions of the hallway to make sure no one was watching me.
Shadowstar sat down and licked her paw to proceed drawing it over her ears. "I am here to summon you. You are a twoleg with a heart of emptiness." She looked up at me, her eyes glittering with hope. "You are perfect."
I blushed and waved a hand. "P-Perfect? I-I wouldn't say so…"
She frowned. "Falling, tumbling through the blood will arise a cat, yet not a cat, that will set things right."
I chuckled weakly. "Excuse me?" I finished gathering my papers and stuffed them into my book bag. She stared at me somewhat curiously, but said nothing else.
Without another word, Shadowstar followed me silently for the rest of the day. It looked like no other students could see her. Every time a small instance of bullying occurred, it seemed as though Shadowstar would frown. Was she upset that it was happening, or was she disappointed in me not defending myself? And here I was- thinking a cat couldn't even properly frown.
At the end of the day, pushing through the mob of smelly teenagers, I got to the crosswalk at last. My mother was working and I found myself too afraid to call my father for help- I wasn't exactly in the mood for another bout of verbal abuse about my uselessness and how their lives would be better off without me. This left me to walk to the public transit. It was only about a block away, but it did require crossing the busied street.
I looked both ways as the drivers flashed unfriendly gestures to one another. Then the moment arrived. The light turned red, signalling it was time for me to cross. But as I was jogging across the road, I heard an engine continue roaring. I turned to my right to see a blood-red truck tumbling toward me. Fear gripped me to run, but it was already too late- I was like a deer in the headlights.
Pain rocketed through me as I felt my head collide with the truck but only for a few heartbeats. I collapsed onto the ground, feeling numbness creep over my heart and seeing blood begin to pool around me. People began to scream, the words of panic echoed around me along with pitied whispers.
I tried to get up, but before I could, I saw Shadowstar sitting in front of me.
She rubbed up against my head and sat in my blood. "StarClan welcomes you, Autumn."
And for some reason- I felt all my fear begin to quietly dissipate.