Chapter 2
Hi! I know it's been a while since I last updated this story. I even discontinued it for a while but I have a new plot now which is better than the old one. I had to change the prophecy (New Prophecy: A silver star shall rise in the dark and in the darkness of night, she will start a spark. The slumbering army will wake and blood will run red in the lake.) But nothing of much importance has changed (only minor details here and there) so without further ado here's the chapter. And thank you to TheCrystallineWarrior and Drizzle the Rain Goddess for reviewing!
The sunhigh heat beat down on the expanse of forest beneath it, the light creating dappled shadows on the leaf-littered forest floor. A gentle breeze swept through the land, leaving a cacophony of swirling, scraping dry leaves behind it. The breeze drifted lazily towards the Thunderclan camp, nestled cosily amongst the trees, carrying the scents of the forest along with it. The breeze filtered through the brambles of the nursery, and brushed pelts with the sleeping, mud-furred kit.
Pinekit awoke to the scent of dry leaves and fresh-kill. She let out a sleepy yawn before peeling back her eyelids to reveal two sparkling green orbs. She stood up, stretching her short, stubby legs and twisting her spine. With a few quick licks of her tongue, she smoothed down the fur where it had been ruffled by the wind.
She quickly glanced around the nursery, noticing that Sweetrose's and Skygaze's kits were still curled up and nestled together, a warm bundle of multi-coloured fur. Her spiky-furred brother was still fast asleep next to her, although his mouth was wide open as though he was scenting prey. Perhaps he's dreaming of hunting prey, though Pinekit, her whiskers twitching with amusement.
If only she was here, thought Pinekit as she gazed at the air where her sister should have been sleeping. Three moons ago, she would have been concerned for her sister had she noticed she was gone but her sister's disappearances had become an everyday affair. Pinekit was rather curious as to where her sister slinked off to every day but any attempt to figure out was usually met with complaints of tiredness or pure annoyance which led to her not getting an answer.
Silverkit had been completely neglecting Nettlekit and her. All that Pinekit ever saw of her was a flash of a silver, plumy tail vanishing behind the nursery walls if Pinekit happened to wake up at dawn. The thought of whether Silverkit even cared about her littermates frequently crossed her mind and Pinekit had stopped trying to believe it wasn't true because everything that Silverkit did always seemed to point back at it like a web leading back to the spider at its centre. Silverkit had stopped playing with Nettlekit and her for so long that Pinekit wasn't even sure when was the last time she actually had.
A small part of her told her that since Silverkit no longer treated her like her littermate, she had no reason to treat Silverkit like one either but there was still a part of her that longed for the affection and concern of her littermate. She wanted so badly to forget that her sister ever existed and sometimes couldn't help but think, although she frequently chided herself for it, that it would have been better to have a dead sister than a living ghost. But I don't want Silverkit to die no matter what she does, thought Pinekit in the spirit of loyalty to her clanmate and littermate. But the guilt that it was something she might have done that drove Silverkit away always nagged at her and stayed ever present in her mind.
"If only I had been born to Sweetrose or Skygaze," sighed Pinekit softly, casting a glance towards the sleeping kits. "At least they have each other."
Goldenkit was Sweetrose's sole surviving kit with the same pelt colour as her mother but amber eyes like her father, Cedarwhisker. Sweetrose had given birth to two other kits but they had joined Starclan mere heartbeats after their birth and Sweetrose had followed them to the stars. Skygaze had kitted as well, giving birth to three strong, healthy kits. She had named her two she-kits, Sweetkit and Rosekit, in honour of the deceased queen while the tom was Greykit, after his pelt colour. The four kits had grown immensely close, as close as littermates, which made Pinekit more morose when she saw that the kits weren't even bonded by blood yet were closer than she was to her sister. Rosekit had caught greencough and died and the kits had all mourned her and missed her. It often broke Pinekit's heart to hear them call out to Rosekit as they woke to realise that was gone.
Pinekit couldn't help but wonder if Silverkit would miss Nettlekit and her in the same way if they joined Starclan. Silverkit was becoming just another clanmate to her now. An invisible clanmate that she knew existed but never saw.
A furry lump landing on Pinekit caused her to snap out of her thoughts as she crashed to the floor in a heap.
"Stupid mouse-brain," squealed Pinekit as she shoved her brother off. "You've gotten heavier. Must be because you've been eating too many mice recently."
"Do you want to play mossball?" asked Nettlekit, ignoring the last bit of what his sister had said to him, as he picked up one in his jaws and dropped it in front of his sister.
"Sure," responded Pinekit, the longing in her voice and mind vanishing temporarily.
"Hello, Rockpaw," mewed Silverkit as she approached the dark grey tom who was lying on his side in the apprentices' den. "Don't you have training to do?"
"I practised fighting at night with Nightclaw yesterday and she was quite pleased with me so she gave me some time off," he replied stretching lazily.
"Oh… I see," she mewed, understanding glowing in her inquisitive green eyes. "Sorry I disturbed you. I'll go now then."
"It's fine, Silverkit," mewed Rockpaw warmly and murmuring affectionately he said. "You can stay. I'd like you to."
"Thank you, Rockpaw," mewed Silverkit as she sat down opposite Rockpaw. "So what new battle moves has Nightclaw taught you?"
"Well," mewed Rockpaw, pride creeping into his voice. "I've perfected the back kick."
"Really?" asked Silverkit, her eyes wide. "Can you show me?"
"Of course," replied the tom instantly, his eyes lighting up with pride and eagerness. "Let's go outside first."
The two went outside into the clearing where Silverkit sat down next to the entrance of the apprentice's den while Rockpaw stood next to a fallen twig.
"Let's assume that this twig is the enemy and that I'm behind it," he said.
Rockpaw whisked around, turning his back to the 'enemy'. He did something that resembled a hop until he was neatly but briefly balanced on his front paws while his back paws simultaneously kicked out. He landed deftly on four paws and turned around to face the 'enemy' which would have been cleanly knocked off its paws and thrown a fox-length back had it received that move.
"And that's the back kick," he announced proudly, turning back to face Silverkit whose eyes were wide with wonder and amazement.
"Wow, you were so good," said Silverkit sweetly, letting a hint of admiration enter her voice. "Can you teach me how to do that?"
"Of course," replied Rockpaw warmly. "So first of all…"
Silverkit returned to the nursery, worn out by attempting to learn the back kick. Her forepaws ached from trying to balance her whole weight on them and she hadn't even been able to move onto the kicking part because she was still having trouble balancing stably on her forepaws. She had wanted to try the whole thing but Rockpaw had told her that she had to perfect her balance otherwise she would be very easy to beat if she fell onto the ground which would lose her any element of surprise that she might have previously held.
Just as she had started making progress on the move, Nightclaw had taken Rockpaw to the forest to train. Resentment raked her belly like claws as she hissed insults aimed towards Nightclaw under her breath for disrupting her practice.
Silverkit grabbed a large, fresh vole from the fresh-kill pile unconcerned that it was too big for her to eat in a single sitting and harbouring no intention to share it. She sank her fangs into the still warm body of the vole. When she normally ate, she would let the taste sink into her taste buds and savour every mouthful as a gift from Starclan. The prey was her closest connection to the forest that she was forbidden to go to and she would relish the woodland scents and tastes attached to it. The scents and tastes seemed to weave a story. The story of the prey in its last moments of life. The story that always ended in a warrior knocking the life out of it. But this time, she drove her fangs into the meat with anger fuelling her, as though the vole was a punching bag for her to take out her rage on. She didn't bother to pick up the scents attached to it and the fishy tang that belonged to the river where the vole had once resided lay in oblivion.
Silverkit stormed back to the nursery, her rough and huffy gait dissipating till she entered the nursery, leisurely strolling. She slickly slid herself into her nest and devoured a large, meaty chunk from the vole. Her clumsy and brash bite left blood dripping from her mouth and onto the fur above her chin. She felt and smelt the blood, the metallic tang paralysed her with a kind of dread but the sense of power was much more overpowering. When I fight cats as a warrior, their blood will drip onto my fur, staining it red with the blood of my enemies, she thought to herself feeling wonder and a sudden thirst yet alarm at the thought of fighting cats and drawing blood, the life-giving fluid that filled veins.
Stupid Nightclaw, thought Silverkit. How am I to defend my clan if I'm not allowed to learn how to fight? Silverkit's fur prickled with annoyance and displeasure
An elegant silver she-cat, an older version of Silverkit slipped into the nursery. Her green eyes glowed with curiosity and concern as she felt the unhappiness and irritation emanating from Silverkit's pelt.
"What's the matter?" asked Mistheart, concern flooding her voice.
"Nothing," snapped Silverkit crossly, disregarding any respect that she ought to have.
"I'm your mother and you can tell me anything you know," mewed Mistheart unperturbed by her daughter's insolence and more lightly she added. "Besides, you're behaving like a grumpy old badger."
Silverkit muttered something almost inaudible about 'stupid Nightclaw and she-cats who poked their noses everywhere'.
Mistheart, however, heard it and narrowed her eyes slightly in annoyance. "You should show some respect to your clanmates who hunt and patrol every day to keep you fed and safe."
"I'll do a better job than them when I become a warrior," growled Silverkit, digging her claws into the moss covering her nest.
"Speaking of which, you shouldn't be learning to fight and hunt," said Mistheart presently. "You should be spending time with your littermates."
"Yeah, I would totally want to spend time with Loserkit and Stupidkit," she snapped sarcastically.
"They are your littermates and they care about you," repeated Mistheart. "You should spend time with them and do what normal kits do. Not be learning how to hunt and fight when you're just a kit and call your littermates names."
"You just don't want me to be better than them," snapped Silverkit, the fur along her back standing on end.
Hurt flashed in Mistheart's voice. "Why would I want that, Silverkit?"
"How would I know?" she growled back, her gaze crackling with fury.
Mistheart gave a wistful sigh and for a moment it looked as though she was going to break down but she composed herself and turned to face her impudent daughter. "I love you, dear, and I always want the best for you. Always."
Silverkit snorted and stormed out of the nursery, hurling barely audible curses at her mother under her breath. Mistheart watched as she left, her head drooping like a wilted flower. "Starclan, what do I do with her?" wailed Mistheart silently desperate as to what to do with her daughter.
"I beat Rockpaw every single time during battle training today," announced Lionpaw, making no effort to limit his voice to the apprentices' den, instead letting it resonate around the clearing, as he made his way into the den where Featherpaw and Deerpaw were already sharing tongues.
Rockpaw trailed behind him an exhausted yet affectionate smile on his face although on closer inspection it seemed almost forced.
Lionpaw crashed into his nest, stretching his tired muscles while Rockpaw slid into his own much more quietly.
"How was your training today?" asked Rockpaw discreetly trying to change the topic, whilst stifling a yawn.
"That old badger insists that my tree-climbing isn't good enough and made me climb trees the whole afternoon," replied Featherpaw irritably, flicking her tail. "At this rate, I'm going to become a squirrel by the time he's satisfied with my tree-climbing."
"Firestorm, you mean?" yawned Lionpaw.
"Nope, it was Dewberry," scoffed Featherpaw. "Of course it's Firestorm."
"Well, you almost fell out of the tree twice," reminded Deerpaw, her eyes twinkling.
"It was the wind," replied Featherpaw, blushing.
"A warrior doesn't blame anyone or anything else for his mistakes," said Deerpaw in a poor imitation of Firestorm. "You should learn how to climb even with the supposed wind blowing at you."
Lionpaw and Rockpaw burst out laughing and were quickly followed suite by Deerpaw. Featherpaw's whiskers twitched with amusement but before long she lost her composure and was laughing as well. The four different voices rang out, unison in their laughter despite no attempt at coordination having been made. It was simply the togetherness of friendship as they exchanged the day's news. I wish I had friends like that, thought Silverkit wistfully as she gazed into the apprentices' den from the clearing.
As Deerpaw was laughing along with the others, her belly aching with the effort, she noticed a pair of green eyes burning with longing, their gaze fixed on the apprentices' den.
"Want to come in, Silverkit?" called Deerpaw cheerfully as she shook herself to regain her composure.
Silverkit nodded silently, casting a grateful glance towards the apprentice and bounded into the den.
"You can sit here," added Deerpaw, motioning towards the space next to her.
"Thank you," said Silverkit as she sat down and pricked her ears to listen to the apprentices' conversation.
There was a moment of brief silence in the den but Lionpaw swiftly put an end to it.
"So as I was saying earlier before my favourite brother over here changed the topic," declared Lionpaw proudly. "I beat Rockpaw every single time."
"You told us that already," grumbled Featherpaw irately, slapping him lightly with her tail.
"Yes I did but I didn't tell you that Nightclaw and Blueclaw said that I fought really well," retorted Lionpaw, although his tone was considerably happier than it was annoyed. "Nightclaw said that I fought like a warrior and then Blueclaw said that it wouldn't be long now anyway."
"What?" squealed Featherpaw and Deerpaw excitedly, leaping to their paws.
"But don't they always say that we'll be warriors anytime soon," pointed out Rockpaw dolefully. "Besides, for cats as old as them, what's two moons?"
"Why do you need to take the fun out of everything, Rockpaw?" whined Lionpaw, pouting childishly. "Is it because I beat you? Don't take it too badly, Rockpaw. Some cats are just more talented at certain things."
Rockpaw eyes flashed with hurt and he seemed like he was going to say something but he choked back the words. Featherpaw's gaze crackled with rage as she spat fire at him in the form of harsh criticism while Deerpaw murmured softly to Rockpaw trying to comfort him.
"You've been an absolute piece of fox-dung towards Rockpaw ever since he beat you when you two went hunting," screeched an irate Featherpaw as she puffed up her fur and looked daggers at Lionpaw who was surreptitiously shrinking away. "He's your littermate for Starclan's sake and he didn't make such a big fuss when he did better than you! All you've been doing lately is trying to prove that you're better than him at every single thing!"
Lionpaw didn't reply. Instead he just continued backing up while keeping his eyes fixed on the floor in front of him until he reached the wall.
"It doesn't matter what he says, Rockpaw," comforted Deerpaw quietly. "You're a fantastic hunter and a wonderful cat."
"Thank you, Deerpaw," replied Rockpaw his voice a little stronger and flooded with appreciation and a hint of affection as well. His eyes lit up almost jovially as he continued, trying to lighten the atmosphere. "We should probably help my brother before your sister devours him alive."
"Featherpaw, it's okay," coaxed Rockpaw. More lightly and airily he added. "Thank you for standing up for me but I'm sure things will be fine."
Featherpaw narrowed her eyes till they were slits at glared at Lionpaw but settled back down in her nest although her fur remained on end and her ears twitched incessantly.
Silverkit's blood was boiling as well. Rockpaw was one of her few friends and both Featherpaw and Deerpaw had tried to help Rockpaw after Lionpaw's words but she had just sat there and watched everything happen. She wanted to prove to Rockpaw that she cared about him just as much and was willing to help him.
Silverkit stood up, her eyes blazing as she fixed her gaze on Lionpaw. "I challenge you to a duel."
Lionpaw stared at her, his eyes widening in surprise, as though she had sprouted wings. He gave a snort of laughter. "Run along now back to the nursery. You'll only beat me when hedgehogs fly."
Silverkit sheathed and unsheathed her claws. Fury coursed through her veins and her primal, animalistic instinct was urging her to claw that smirk off his face.
"I'll beat you alright, Lionpaw," she hissed, her eyes which were now slits fixed on him, blazing with anger, as though she hoped to set him on fire with her wrath, just by looking at him.
"She doesn't know what she's talking about," interrupted Featherpaw authoritatively with a tone suggesting finality. "Let's go back to the nursery. You're just tired. That's all."
"She's right," murmured Rockpaw shrewedly. "There's no need to do anything rashly."
"No, I'm not going to back down," growled Silverkit, turning her death stare to the other apprentices before returning it to Lionpaw. "If I beat you, you have to leave Rockpaw alone and never be mean to him again."
"Of course," drawled Lionpaw breezily as though he could do it in his sleep.
Featherpaw tried to convince Lionpaw that he didn't need to prove anything but in the end, just asked him to do it quickly without hurting her when both of them refused to let go of their pride and stubbornness.
"Let's begin then, Silverkit," declared Lionpaw. "She-cats first."
His blasé attitude and the arrogant sparkle in his eyes made the rage in her blood pump even faster as she leaped at him, using her momentum to knock him to the floor. She felt a rush of adrenaline as she deftly pummelled her paws against him, her fury giving her blows greater strength and speed. Lionpaw raised his paws to block the blows but his movements were slow and sluggish compared to her own. Lionpaw fell to the ground as she rammed into him with all her strength and Silverkit leaped onto him pinning his larger, bulky frame as firmly as she could hope to with her smaller body.
"I win," she smirked, panting, her eyes shining with triumph as she looked into Lionpaw's amber ones that ought to be flooded with defeat, except that they weren't.
Lionpaw leaped to his paws swiftly, throwing Silverkit off as though she wasn't heavier than a mouse and she probably wasn't for him. He turned to Silverkit who was picking herself up, growling with anger and hate. She charged at him, certain that she could beat him just as she had done a few heartbeats ago but Lionpaw sidestepped nimbly and rammed her to the floor with his shoulder before she even realised what he was doing. He pinned her to the floor, his grip firmly holding her in place, a stark contrast from when she had attempted to pin him previously.
"You were saying," purred Lionpaw loftily as he watched the silver kit struggle to get free underneath his paws.
"You cheated," spat Silverkit, not struggling any less to escape the tom's grip. Her voice began to break and tears welled up in her eyes as she choked. "It wasn't fair."
"It was stupid of you to think that you had any chance whatsoever if beating me," he mocked as he lifted his paws and Silverkit scrambled to her paws and scurried out of the den towards the nursery without a sound apart from her sniffing like a piece of prey would if a warrior released it from under his paws.
All the kits and queens were already in the den, fast asleep, their chests rhythmically rising and falling. Silverkit made a beeline for her nest and curled up in it instantly, squeezing her eyes shut. It wasn't fair, she thought, sniffling silently. I shouldn't have bothered to help Rockpaw because this is what happens if I try to be nice and it was all Rockpaw's fault that I lost because he didn't teach me well, she thought bitterly in an attempt to comfort herself, unwilling to believe that any of it was her fault.
Boiling tears threatened to leak out of her closed eyelids as she sobbed softly. I'll get him back for it, she told herself incessantly as she lulled herself to sleep with that sole thought on her mind.
I really hope you enjoyed it! Sorry that the update times are so long. I will try my best to update more frequently though. I was really hoping to bring out the flaws in her character in this chapter but I apologise if the last part was too dramatic. I have no intention of making her a Mary-sue as I really dislike them myself. (Brokenstar (from the depths of the Dark Forest): Death to Mary-sues!) Also do you feel that her flaws are evident enough? The exciting stuff should (hopefully) start in the next chapter. I would really appreciate a review and constructive criticism is very welcome. Thanks for reading! Bye! And Merry Christmas to those of you who celebrate it!
~Rain
