Chapter 43: Innate and Created

Windclan's camp was strange to say the least, or rather, lack of camp. There wasn't any barriers or bushes to protect them from the elements. Instead, there was merely a dip in the land. It protected from the worst of the wind but little else. It was also strange to see the cats of Windclan. I couldn't tell if they were gaunt or just skinny. The only thing I could really figure out about them is that I held a very similar physique, probably from the detestable cat who sired me. Of course, Onewhisker spotted us arriving pretty quickly. He must have noticed me eyeing their warriors' forms. The main difference between myself and Windclan was that I had more muscle developed in my shoulders and hind legs acquainted to pouncing whereas they had leaner muscle meant to sprint.

"I'm sure if we get you running long enough, you'll look like a proper Windclan cat." Onewhisker commented, likely trying to console me in some twisted way. It was like he believed I wanted to join him, like I saw him as something worth pursuing.

"I think I'll just stick to what I know, thanks." I cautiously mewed. I didn't want to start a fight in Windclan's camp. Onewhisker had a high report within his clan which made trying to refute him harder.

"The offer stands. If you ever feel like it, I'll gladly show you our ways. It'd be a good bonding experience." Onewhisker mewed cheerfully.

I shuddered mentally. His delusions of me just joining him were sickening. Why would I ever leave Father, Dad, and my mentor? They loved me as my kin despite not being of my blood and knowing my past life. I could just tell that Onewhisker only wanted me now that I was something no clan would be dishonored to have. Not that I ever considered it, but my position as guardian made it potentially easy to defect clans. That's what Onewhisker was trying to get me to do.

Dawn must have picked up on how uncomfortable Onewhisker was making me, and given her blunt nature, she decided to come to my defense. "You need to back off." She hissed. "I'm getting weirded out by proxy with how you're trying to shmooze him. Can't you tell that you're creeping him out? He barely even knows you."

Onewhisker took a step back at her aggression. "Oh sorry. I guess I got a bit ahead of myself. I'm Onewhisker, your biological father." He mewed, as if that made everything he did acceptable.

"And?" I mewed with an unimpressed tone, letting the silence hang for a couple moments as Onewhisker was too flabbergasted to respond. "I don't care all that much about blood ties. I was raised by two cats who share no blood with me who thought of me as their own kit regardless. I barely even know my mother, and she left me for my own benefit. Why again would I care about blood?" I queried.

Onewhisker stammered a moment before answering. "Well, you've got to have noticed that you're different from them. I mean in comparison to the rest of Thunderclan, you're skinny. Wouldn't it just be easier to join us where you'd fit in?" He asked as if this was an obvious answer.

"Please. If it really mattered about my body type, Father wouldn't be Thunderclan either since his legs are too stubby to climb trees." I joked, making a point that Onewhisker's argument was weak.

Father must have heard our argument and yowled out. "I resent that remark!"

I laughed in response. "That doesn't make it untrue." I teased back.

"Why you little!" He playfully hissed before bowling me over, turning into some kittish tussling.

Dawn, seeing us go at it, decided she had to join in. "Wait. Are you guys wrestling? I've got to get in on this." She mewed before diving in in an attempt to pin Father.

Father can be deceptively slippery when he wants to. Apparently that's mostly because he picked up some tricks from Swiftbreeze on wrestling. It didn't help that we'd all have to keep switching our attention to the other cats in the pile. Dawn was mostly trying to beat Father because he was bigger than her and most of the cats she knew from the cave guard. I was trying to get Dawn before she turned on me, and Father was trying to get me since I was the one who teased him. We were in an awkward struggle where if either of us changed focus, one of us would win. That's when the fourth contender decided to jump in. Crowpaw jumped on top of me which inadvertently pinned the other two.

"What? Crowpaw?" I decried.

"I Crowpaw of Windclan have defeated these two Thunderclan cats and the one known as Dawn's Early Light. Thus, I must declare Windclan superiority." He mewed proudly in a playful way.

Tallstar seemed to have caught on to how we'd just been playing, so he decided to lean into it a bit. "I don't know Crowpaw. Last I checked, Smudgefoot and Darkpaw were guardians, and therefore not Thunderclan." He jokingly commented.

Of course, the fun had to end. Mudclaw stormed up to us, a furious look on his face as he looked at Crowpaw. "What do you think you're doing Crowpaw? Cease this kittish behavior immediately!" He growled out.

Crowpaw cowered at Mudclaw's chastising. Though, with Tallstar present, Mudclaw soon found himself getting thoroughly berated for his treatment of his apprentice. "Mudclaw. While it is your right as Crowpaw's mentor to try and train him to be a warrior, you must remember that he is a cat as well. What you see as kittish behavior, I see as him maintaining a bond with another cat from his journey. Besides, things have been too gloomy lately. It never hurts to have some entertainment like a few warriors letting their inner kit show." Tallstar publicly mewed before getting close to Mudclaw to explain further, which I just could barely hear. "Allowing the guardians to play like that is good for our clan. it makes our cats less wary to interact with the guardians. If they maintain a positive relationship with the guardians, then we'll be favored over the other clans who remain wary of them."

Tallstar sent a strange nod to Father who returned it. Had those two planned this the whole time? I mean it was Father who instigated the wrestling match, and Father himself often joked about his short legs. Had Father's goal been to 'humanize' (his word) us to them, make us seem more like them by being imperfect and playful? It might have been a collaborative idea. It's certainly something I could see Father doing. Then I thought back to Crowpaw. Had he been in on it, or had he simply joined because it looked like fun? Maybe Tallstar urged him to join. Then there's how Mudclaw reacted. That wasn't right. Was Crowpaw alright? I looked for him, but he wasn't in sight. Neither was Mudclaw. I worried for my fellow journey cat, but I couldn't do anything for them while I didn't know how to find him.