#Here's a Maplekit

[maypleshade]

Day four

[cricketclan]

FINALLY MOON 54 IS HERE!!!!!

sorry everyone for the wait!! things have been busy and artblock wanted me dead... for now I won't have a set day that I'll be updating but I'm going to try to start posting every Sunday again

ALSO!!! Olivebite was captured by twolegs and saved by Sundapple this moon too, which i planned to draw in a comic style format but lost the motivation to do it and is also another reason why this moon took forever to get out. i just decided not to draw it for now but i might later as a little treat

oh also the kits next to timberstep are coniferkit and maplekit i couldnt really fit their names without it looking bad so

First - Prev - Next

[briarclan-horror-artlocke]

And here are three new cats full refs, plus names revealed. Meet Skip, MuddyKit, and MapleKit.

[fallenclan]

I'm reading through the allegiences and trying to decide if I should commit to reading over 200 pages. What happened to Otterslip??? Why was he exiled?? He seemed so happy and friendly dude I can't?? I was brought here by an Evil Ravenstar fanart, but WHO IS RAVENSTAR?? Where did Nick go did Nick die?????? I like that the Goldenstar family tree is still running though. Original cat lineage from the founding of the Clan :3

well, I can't tell you the individual fate of each and every cat (I mean. I Could. but thats kind of the point of the moon updates) but i can give you the general rundown of the clan :)

The clan started with seven cats--Scorchstar, Nettlestem, Wildfang, Oaktuft, Morningpaw, Goldenkit, and Sunkit. Very early on, Wildfang was killed when rogues attacked the camp. This is also how Scorchstar lost her first life.

Wildfang was the medicine cat, meaning that after she died, the clan didn't have one anymore. By this point, Goldenpaw was already on his way to being a warrior, but Sunkit hadn't started her training yet. Scorchstar decided that when she became old enough, Sunkit would be the medicine cat for the clan. Sunkit, who desperately wanted to be a warrior, was understandably upset by this. This was the first instance of a long line of disagreements between her and Scorchstar.

Goldenpaw and Morningpaw became Goldenflare and Morningbloom. Along the way, they fell in love, then, to their elation, Morningbloom became pregnant! Unfortunately, the birth was hard, and she died almost immediately after, leaving Goldenflare the single father of three kits. He named them Maplekit, Applekit, and Honeykit. Only a few moons after their birth, a loner named Toro joined the clan, bringing her two kits, Silverkit and Dawnkit, with her.

The five kits eventually all became apprentices, and then warriors--save for Silverkit, who decided to be a medicine cat, and was apprenticed to Sunwish (formerly Sunkit). Their full names became Maplethorn, Applebranch, Honeygleam, Silverbelly, and Dawnshine. Silverbelly and Applebranch became mates, as did Honeygleam and Dawnshine.

Somewhere in there, Scorchstar became mates with her deputy, Nettlestem, and they adopted a single kit together, Otterkit (eventually Otterslip). When Otterkit was an apprentice, Nettlestem was attacked and killed by dogs. Scorchstar blamed Sunwish for being unable to save her, even though there was nothing to be done. Mad with grief, Scorchstar murdered Sunwish in a fit of rage. At this time, nobody knew except Otterslip.

Not long after the murder, Scorchstar herself was torn apart by a pack of dogs. She read this as Starclan punishing her for what she had done. Realizing it was wrong, she repented, and begged for forgiveness--reluctantly, Starclan allowed her into their ranks. Goldenflare, who was appointed deputy after Nettlestem, received his nine lives and took on the name Goldenstar.

(Since you asked, Nick died the same moon that Scorchstar did. He was buried in a rockslide.)

Otterslip, as an adult, found three abandoned kits and adopted them as his own. He named them Yewkit (Yewberry), Ivykit (Ivybounce), and Grasskit (Grassroot). Grassroot went on to be (you guessed it) killed by dogs. Otterslip, following in his mother's footsteps, blamed Stormsight (Silverbelly's apprentice) for not being able to save her.

Stormsight was told by Starclan that Scorchstar had killed Sunwish. He wanted to tell the clan about this. The combination of this fact and the fact that he 'failed' to save Grassroot drove Otterslip to murder him, by pushing him off a cliff.

Goldenstar also died at this time, losing his final two lives by falling off a cliff. His deputy (and son), Maplethorn, took his place as leader and became Maplestar.

Only a few moons after Maplestar became leader, the truth about what Otterslip had done came to light, and he was exiled from Fallenclan. His surviving children, Yewberry and Ivybounce, spent the rest of their lives with their father's betrayal hanging over their heads.

During Maplestar's reign, Fallenclan came to war with Shallowclan over Shallowclan's lack of prey. The battle was ended with no Fallenclan casualties, after only a few moons. Maplestar, already pretty old, was leader for a relatively short amount of time before losing all his lives at once to a flash flood. His deputy, Cherrydust, took the mantle of leadership and became Cherrystar.

A few moons into Cherrystar's leadership, Ravenkit and Littlekit were born to two former outsiders, Troutspeckle and Gyoza. It became immediately clear that Ravenkit was something special when he graduated early, at 10 moons old. Littlekit followed not long after him, and they became Ravenshade and Littleleaf.

Littleleaf was on a patrol with Fallenclan's deputy, Poppyfeather, when they were attacked by rogues. Littleleaf, a fantastic hunter but not much of a fighter, was badly injured in the attack, and ended up completely blind. Ravenstar, extremely protective of his brother (especially after the death of his father, Gyoza), blamed Poppyfeather. In his eyes, she didn't protect him as well as she could have. Ravenstar plotted for a few moons, and then, when the opportunity came, he caught Poppyfeather off guard and killed her.

One of Fallenclan's medicine cats, Feathersight, received a vision the same moon that Ravenshade graduated. The vision was rather unclear--broken raven feathers trailing from the sky. Nothing immediately came of it, so it was mostly brushed off, but the clan as a whole knew about it. Ravenshade, knowing that the position of deputy was now open, instructed his former apprentice, Flamefall, to remind Cherrystar of the vision, and insinuate that it meant he was destined to be deputy. His plan worked out, and so Ravenshade became deputy of Fallenclan.

With the small taste of power, Ravenshade began to crave more. When his mother, Troutspeckle, was bitten by a snake and killed, he decided he needed to do whatever he had to in order to protect his only remaining family, Littleleaf. He poisoned Cherrystar with nightshade berries, taking all of her remaining lives, and rose to the position of leader, taking on the name Ravenstar.

There's a lot of little bits in here that are important--Honeysong's ghost sight, Feathersight's suspicion, Darkpaw's dream, but this is where the line between what I've already drawn and what's spoilers gets a little wobbly, so I'll leave it at that :3 hope this was a decent explanation, and that I didn't leave anything too important out

And yes, Goldenstar's lineage is still going :3 his surviving descendants are Crowflame, Mothspots, Antbite, and Honeysong.

[owlfangdraws]

STREAMCLAN BABY PATROL!

I’ve been working on this for a while now! Pictured here are some Streamclan OCs :) Sunkit, Maplekit, and Ravenkit and their fathers Smokefern and Coalblaze!!

The territory around Streamclan is generally pretty safe because it’s a large woodland area mostly surrounded by humans on all sides so they dont have any large predators! this means they can take out the kits on baby patrol! they go out to learn about plants and animals, how to navigate the territory, and for general supervised fun!!!

each of these characters has a little pixel art in my backlog accompanying them! check the tags for more art featuring these guys along with some more info about them :3

[sagesden]

Moon 64

Here are Mothwing and Poisondapple's kits from left to right Pebblekit, Sootkit, and Maplekit

Health update

Buckspeckle is now trans!!

Poor Cinderpelt

Dappletail tries to go into the dream of Maplekit but couldn't as a wall of darkness covered her mind

[residents-of-the-darkforest]

okayyyyyyyyyyyyy

I'm someone who frequently starts a new Clangen, so here's a little person challenge: stay focused. It will help to narrow down to certain characters, so here they are:

Swarmkit [male, insecure, oddly observant], Oakkit [female, lonesome, quick to make peace and constantly climbing], and Maplekit [male, quiet, splashes in puddles]

They are the Half-Clan kits of mediator Riverdusk, who possibly had them with a kittypet?

Updates soon!

[catsandcomplexityaddiction]

The Bridge & The Dragon - Year 1 Spring Moon 2

This is part of a play-along series of my personal fanclan simulation system, following the highs and lows and adventures of a clan in a low fantasy setting.

Welcome, and enjoy your stay.

Moon 2

((Moon 2. Ages up.))

Gracklefang felt Dryfur's eyes on her from across the tree hollow. None of the other cats had commented on the shift in her scent that came with expecting kits. Queens don't need to tell. Such was the wisdom of DragonClan, and the mindset saw little shift here. A few of the clan had adjusted by taking more grueling patrols from her, but no one said anything. 

Not until today, at least.

"Last thing we need is more kits," Woolpelt sighed. Her own daughter, Lynxkit, wasn't long from apprentice-ready. But without a leader, who would be the one to appoint mentors? 

Gracklefang nodded to the queen's words. "I will take over care of the other kits when I can, if it helps," she said.

"They're good kits."

"Their mothers would be grateful," Gracklefang said mildly. Another topic carefully stalked around. No cat was eager to bring up the way they'd chosen to leave Featherstripe behind, or how Maplekit's mother simply hadn't made it."

"Maybe." Woolpelt eyed the playing kits in the center of the hollow. "Maybe Bluffstar's turned her mind by now, and they'll come looking for their little lost scions."

Gracklefang lowered her voice. "Bearkit, maybe. You know as well as I that Yarrowkit and Quillkit would be warriors by eight moons and dead by ten."

The other queen's manner darkened. "I do know," she growled.

Gracklefang nodded. She saw fit to shift the topic to something lighter. "Rockthroat said she's seen promising signs for my kits."

"I hope she's a medicine cat true." It was said lowly.

Silent, Gracklefang offered one more nod.

((Three new patients.))

"You're not-" -cough- "-a real-" Emberdapple's complaint fell into a hacking fit and that was enough for Rockthroat to more forcibly herd the stubborn she-cat into the medicine den. Two small shapes were already within, curled up together on a small nest - Maplekit and Bearkit had shown the illness earliest.

"Even warriors get sick," Rockthroat rebuked none too gently. "Now lay down. Tinystep already said he'd take your watch."

"Tinystep is barely a warrior. Not a warrior."

"More a warrior than you if you don't stop acting like a kit. Eat the herbs. Lay down. Rest."

After getting Emberdapple settled in, Rockthroat started the work of bundling kit-bedding out of the half-dug nursery. She nosed and nudged and clawed, with brief aid from Woolpelt.

Across the hollow, she heard Serpentfoot's steady voice - the mannerly she-cat was speaking to Dryfur.

"The answer seems quite simple to me." A flourish of tail marked the words.

Dryfur's mew was edged, but mild. "I respect you, Serpentfoot, but I have misgivings about a cat suggesting themselves."

"Did I suggest so? I think not." 

Rockthroat flicked an ear towards the talk.

"Who, then?" Dryfur sounded bemused now.

"Well. A leader's first obligation should be to the clan over themselves. They should almost instinctively see what the clan needs, sometimes before others do." Serpentfoot's voice lifted, carrying as she seemed to sense her growing audience - Woolpelt and Gracklefang watched from nearby. "They should intuit potential solutions instinctively, but be receptive to criticism and alternatives. They should be willing to tread on tails, but not do so needlessly. They should be focused on the future of the clan, and not dwell with paws in the past. They should be utterly loyal, aware of their own strengths and weaknesses, highly compassionate."

Serpentfoot looked expectantly at Dryfur, but the older cat's response was a puzzled one. "Who? Who do you think-"

Serpentfoot tossed her head with a huff. "Tinystep. Obviously."

Save for the playing of kits, silence descended on the tree hollow in wake of her pronouncement. Rockthroat glanced back toward the medicine den, but there was no sign of Emberdapple's awareness of the conversation.

Small tail flicks came from the elderly ginger she-cat, her manner pensive. "Tinystep?" Dryfur finally repeated, tone underlaid with doubt.

"He's never trained an apprentice," Gracklefang put into the thick atmosphere. "Such is required tradition."

"Never mind an apprentice," Woolpelt added. "He's a tom. He's not even raised kits. Toms don't have the same kind of compassion-"

Rockthroat's tail-tip twitched at a needle-claw of uncertainty she felt over the words, but she had her own quandary. "He's taught me some of medicine, but I'm already exceeding him. It isn't his fault, but he's not really well-taught at medicine, and barely trained in hunting or fighting." That needle-claw prickled, and so she added, "He was a patient teacher, though." And he had been, patient and pragmatic and... Rockthroat flicked her tail again, thoughts jumbled. Wasn't a medicine cat supposed to have special insight? She had none.

With every comment, Serpentfoot's ears went lower and lower, and she looked at last back to Dryfur. "You know better, surely."

Dryfur's own ears were low, but her manner was one more of discomfort than ire. "I don't know," said the older cat. "He's a good clanmate, but I'm not sure he'd make a good leader."

From over by the nursery, Gracklefang cleared her throat. "It is an odd choice. Perhaps you expect to be his deputy, Serpentfoot?"

The elegant she-cat's glare came cold toward the dark-furred queen. "Yarrowkit could be his deputy for all I know," she said, tone just barely keeping a diplomatic semblance.  "I don't doubt my choice. But I can see most of you haven't left DragonClan half as far as you think."

Dryfur started to respond, but Serpentfoot was already on her paws and sweeping up out of the tunnel.

The medicine cat resumed clearing bedding, pressing it toward the exit. The legendary cats had been clear that the leader would be the clan's choice. They would send no signs. But Rockthroat privately worried that the clan would claw itself apart before making that choice.

((Hunting - Serpentfoot.))

The paths of the park still felt strange to Serpentfoot. The wild tangle held elements of the city in it. Too tame for wilderness, too wild for civilization. She still sought to learn where the prey hid, and the best places to find it. Nothing in this place felt familiar. Would it ever?

Serpentfoot leapt atop the roots of a fallen tree. In the scattered brush below, she could almost imagine a clan gathered. A kithood voice echoed in her memory: "No, I'm Serpentstar this time!" A low huff of mirth escaped her in the present. She wondered if Tinystep had ever uttered such words.

She doubted it.

She wasn't ignorant. She knew the other cats still doubted her motives. Let them, she thought. 

Prey was sparse, but Serpentfoot found a plan.

((Border - Dryfur and Tinystep.))

"I don't think we should mark further out, here," Tinystep said, after he and Dryfur finished marking out a boundary near a bend in a creek. The black tom peered further east, to where the park opened up in a more weed-ridden approach to the horse-driven street.

"Too open", Dryfur agreed. There was an off note to her voice. There had been for the entire patrol.

As the pair turned back, Dryfur asked a question. "What do you think of Serpentfoot?"

"What? Do you mean for leader?" If he was anything but mystified by the sudden topic, Tinystep showed no sign of it.

"You named her as a possibility," Dryfur noted.

"She's loyal. And she's not going to start an unwinnable war with DragonClan at first opportunity."

Dryfur's ear twitched. "Did she tell you that?"

Tinystep stopped walking. Dryfur noticed quickly enough, and paused to look back at the tom. His whiskers quivered, but his manner was mild. It still took a heartbeat more for him to speak. "Is that why you ask? You think she's trying to become leader through my words?" His ears almost flatten, but he rights them to stand tall. "We've worked together for years, Dryfur. You know me. Don't you?"

Dryfur took a step toward Tinystep. A discomfited prickling of her fur came of the genuine note of hurt in his voice, slight though it was. Restrained. "It isn't like that," she said. "I just - it's the first time a she-cat your age has likely paid you any mind, and I know she's quite pretty, and-"

The tom's ears twitched down and up again. "It isn't like that," he said, tone neutral. He started past Dryfur. "Let's finish patrolling."

There was nothing else for it. His reactions seemed sincere. So Dryfur simply said it: "She suggested you for leader. Everyone else except Emberdapple was in hearing range, as far as I know. She seemed serious."

Tinystep stopped anew, fur standing on end, posture stiffened. He didn't reply right away. But then: "She didn't say anything to me. I..." There was a stressed edge to his mew, a dip in the holding of his head.

"No, you didn't ask her to either," Dryfur said when he trailed off. The elderly cat moved up alongside him, offering a lick of ear in apology for former hurts. "I do know you. I don't think you'd ever ask that. Even when you and I discuss every other potential cat, I think that you yourself forget that you're as plausible an option."

"No one wants a leader called Tinystar." There was an edge of self-deprecating humor to the mew. "I've not had an apprentice, anyway, even if I were an option anyone would consider."

"Serpentfoot seemed sincere in her consideration," Dryfur noted, nudging him with her nose. She'd been doubtful herself of the idea, but the self-deprecation was something she saw fit to chase off. "And as for Tinystar, my own apprentice ceremony was overseen by Snailstar. Do you think any cat cared what her name was?"

"I suppose not. Still, no other cat wants me for leader, even if Serpentfoot does. I'm not putting myself forth, either. Let's finish the patrol. Perhaps we can discuss other candidates on the way?"

At first, Dryfur took his words for defensive shifting of subject. But then she saw how his fur lay flat, how his eyes were relaxed in a glance to her. To him, that was simply the end of it. Idea entertained, and now he moved on.

To serve the clan. For a moment, just a moment, Dryfur thought she saw what Serpentfoot claimed so obvious.

((Medicine - Rockthroat.))

In the back of the medicine den, Rockthroat scored the earth with frustrated claws. She could heal all physical ills, but how was she to help the clan find a leader without signs from the ancestors? There was no precedent she knew from any legend, none of a clan with neither leader nor deputy. Rockthroat worried it was because any such clan would not last long at all. 

Distracted with her own miserable uselessness, the medicine cat almost jumped with a grey tabby puffball came skidding down into the den. Alarm pinched at her own fur- Rockthroat almost hissed at how close Quillkit came to the herbs. "Not in the medicine den!" she snapped.

The little tom backpedaled away from her, stumbling over his own uncertain paws. "M'sorry," he said. "Me and Yarrowkit were playing."

"Well, play elsewhere."

"I'm sorry," he said, finally finding his paws. "Did I mess anything up? Are Bearkit and Maplekit-"

"They'll be fine," Rockthroat said, though her manner remained dismissive. 

"What about the snake?"

Rockthroat blinked, then looked at Quillkit in confusion. "Snake?" A serpent?

He bobbed his head. "I saw a snake earlier. It scared me, but it didn't hurt me." He paused. "Woolpelt said I was just dreaming."

The medicine cat loomed closer. Quillkit fell back a step. Rockthroat questioned: "Did the snake do anything?"

The kit scrunched his nose in uncertainty, eyes flicking up to her and away for her intensity. "I don't think so? It scared everyone, but it didn't hurt anyone. It hissed - but I think it was scared, not mean. It brought prey, too - it was there when I woke up. Woolpelt said one of the warriors brought it, though."

Rockthroat's answering hum was all she gave right away. Serpentfoot is trustworthy, maybe? Or perhaps just a dream. The uncertainty worried her.

"Can I go now?" asked Quillkit, paws shifting back.

She nodded. But as she watched the little tom carefully make his way out of the medicine den, she thought that perhaps she might have an apprentice sooner than she'd expected if his dream proved more than a dream.

((All patients healed.))

In the rugged hollows of old wood within the ancient tree the clan had camped in, numerous lofty perches had been found and deemed the warriors' and apprentices' dens - the warriors generally higher, and the apprentices lower, with curves in the tree offering some blunting of sounds from below. In such a hollow, the silvery and darker shapes of Serpentfoot and Woolpelt curled together in a moment of relaxation. Old Dryfur was below, keeping an eye on the kits so that Woolpelt could have time away.

"Lynxkit will be an apprentice soon," Serpentfoot mused as the she-cats' prior topic waned. Woolpelt's own daughter was the eldest of the kits. Serpentfoot was grooming herself as she spoke, as she often did, but incidentally including Woolpelt as well where their long fur blended together. 

A worried note entered Woolpelt's eyes. "We've no leader to oversee the ceremony."

"You're worried about it becoming less about Lynxkit and more a grounds for the clan to argue," Serpentfoot guessed.

If Woolpelt hadn't been before, she was now. Her eyes clouded in unhappiness.

"I think I'll talk Dryfur into holding the ceremony." When Woolpelt looked sharply at her, Serpentfoot huffed. "She's the eldest here, not really a potential leader due to her age, and she's heard the words a thousand times. She won't ruffle fur."

"But who will mentor Lynxkit?" asked Woolpelt.

Serpentfoot languidly stretched in the hollow. "Well, between me, Tinystep, and Emberdapple, I think you have a preference."

Woolpelt's answering mew was reluctantly amused. "I wouldn't recognize her if you trained her, and Emberdapple is... Emberdapple."

"Tinystep's inexperience means she'll likely be communally mentored, in practice," Serpentfoot said, manner soothing. "And he'll certainly not be pushing her into any clan maneuvering for leadership. It's not his way."

The queen considered, then nodded. "It's true." She narrowed her eyes sidelong toward Serpentfoot. "I do notice this gives him an apprentice, Serpentfoot."

The silvery she-cat's eyes glimmered with playful mirth. "Oh, does it?" She kept Woolpelt's gaze, amused manner only growing before eventually Woolpelt shook her head.

"You're impossible," Woolpelt said, but her voice was fond. "Always were." Her head tilted, and her eyes narrowed. In a much-lowered voice, she asked, "Do you think you can manage him, then?"

"He's a tom, no?" said Serpentfoot without shift of gaze, her tone one of light verbal shrug. Tell them what they want to hear, she remembered in her father's voice. She received an answering snort from Woolpelt, and then continued, "You'll ask Dryfur for his mentoring of Lynxkit, then?"

Woolpelt's manner was much mollified as she nodded. "Yes, yes, needn't fuss. Between you and I, I'd prefer you for leader over that half-sized cat or Emberdapple either, but I trust you know what you're doing." Her tail flicked toward Serpentfoot. "I'll ask her, and if he doesn't do an awful job with Lynxkit, I'll lend a mew to his bid."

Serpentfoot's answering purr was low and mild, but when she turned her head away, her eyes glinted with hunter's satisfaction. One down.

[tatertotwc]

Patchkit of Thunderclan

Here he is!!! All scruffly!!!! The maplekits trio is now complete!!! With this little baby <3

[warriorsbutnotreally]

well Badgersting wasn't a great parent but she tried her best as a single parent, she spoiled Maplekit and Sunkit after the lost of her other kit, Emberpaw (who was attacked by a eagle).She did approve of the halfclan relationship but she constantly had a bad feeling about Appledusk, but teen Mapleshade never listened to her. While in starclan she watched over her grandkits never letting Oakstar's kin ,Rabbitfur or Appledusk near them (Birchface was allowed tho). Once Mapleshade got to the DF she only spoke only a few words "I still love you, but the things you did were wrong and now your family is scared of you"

bonus facts

Badgersting and Oakstar here friends when they were younger but Oakstar started to be an ass once he was promoted to deputy.

Rabbitfur was the sire of her kits, and Owlflight (molly) was her mate

She treats Reedshine like her own daughter

If she was alive through MV she would've fought Oakstar to let her kin stay.

She tries to talk with Mapleshade but Mapleshade doesn't want to talk to her anymore

at least Badgersting is there for her grandkits, but it must suck for her that her daughter doesn't want anything to do with her anymore

I do like this AU tho and I'd love to hear more about Badgersting :0

[warriors-but-cats-die]

windclan — year seven — leafbare

sugarfoot and thundershine become warriors.

oakpaw dies.

baypaw & skypaw are apprenticed to fireye and cariboustripe. their siblings (blizzardkit, hurricanekit, juniperkit, maplekit, and thfitkit) die.

baylight and crouchkit die.

gorsetail has another litter: duskkit, furzekit, and stagkit. sorry no descriptions i'm Sleepy.

heathertail and breezepelt: alderkit, birchkit, emberkit, skykit, sprucekit.

[edit: i'm back to add tags and queue, so here are your descriptions.

alderkit: pale she-cat with hazel eyes.

birchkit: blue she-cat.

duskkit: light brown she-kit.

skykit: blue she-cat.

sprucekit: black tom with long fur and amber eyes.

stagkit: pale brown, striped she-cat with white freckles and amber eyes.

as always, canon kits do not get described here.]

birchkit dies.

[wcstarless]

"Dove?"

Doveflight gasped, her eyes clearing from the fog she'd put them in as she was staring into the distance. Staring into the black forest. Behind her a mottled light brown tom padded close. His breath was warm and comforting on her shoulder and cause her muzzle to upturn in a smile.

"What're you doing over here, Dove?" Thrustpelt asked, tilting his head to the side. Doveflight huffed.

"I thought I heard her," she whispered, "I thought I heard my baby." Thrushpelt frowned and wrapped himself around his mate's body. "She always sounds so...angry...when I hear her. Loud and very angry."

"Come on, Dove, you don't need to sit so close to this darkness." Doveflight's ears twitched and she turned to look at Thrushpelt. He was forcing a smile onto his very concerned face. Doveflight smiled back, an exhausted look on her face. "It's not your fault, you know."

"Oh, Thrushpelt, you don't know that," she hummed, "You don't know the idiot I was. StarClan makes you wiser, yes, but not smart. i was terribly dumb. And I did something awful."

"Ages ago," he said, "And now you have Maple's kits to cherish. And what would Mosskit do without you? And...and you have me." Doveflight pressed her temple to Thrushpelt's chest. "As often as you need to hear it, I'll remind you that you are loved."

"Thank-" She gasped as a flurry of small balls of fur tackled her to the ground.

"Gramma! I found a turtle!" Larchkit yowled.

"He did not! I found it!" Petalkit growled.

"Come see the turtle, Doveflight!" Mosskit pleaded, "Daddy come see the turtle!" Thrushpelt looked up at Doveflight. She immediately felt warm again, briefly forgetting Maple's angry screaming. Her smile faltered slightly as she spotted Patchkit bringing up the rear. While Petalkit looked just like Firefall and Larchkit resembled Doveflight herself, Patchkit was basically Maplekit reborn. But while her face was alive and happy when she was a kit, Patchkit's face had been sad for a long while. She rose and padded to him. He stopped and looked up at her.

"Did you see the turtle, Patchkit?" Patchkit grumbled. "Speak up."

"No gramma."

"Well, we'll just have to go find our own turtle." Patchkit gasped as Doveflight slipped beneath the kit, toppling him onto her back. "Ah, ah, ah, you're not allowed to be a turtle treasure hunter if you don't smile." Patchkit smirked and then let out a giggle.

"I wanna be a turtle treasure hunter too!" Larchkit gasped.

"Me too! Me too!" Petalkit whined.

"Papa, can we?" Mosskit said, "I'll bet we'll find the biggest and the best turtle in all of StarClan!" Thrushpelt dipped his head and smiled at Doveflight. His smile turned mischievous as he picked up Larchkit and Mosskit, placing them on his back.

"Last one to the pond is a toad!" He yelled. Doveflight huffed, throwing Petalkit on her shoulders behind her brother.

"Cheater!" Doveflight called, "Come on guys we can-" Her ears twitched, listening. Angry voices on the wind made her freeze.

"Gramma, come on, they're winning!" Petalkit's cries and tugging on her fur woke her out of her trance. Doveflight shook her head and smirked, taking off after Thrushpelt.

Maybe Mapleshade was lost. But at least she could show her kits a fun time.

[warriorsredux]

What are your suffixes (and appearances!) for Maplekit and Cherrykit (Leafpool and Squirrelflight), please? And, I'd love it if you feel like answering this too, what would the New Prophecy arc be like in your version of Warriors? Thank you so much, you're amazing!

Hello and thank you for the kind words! I think I got an ask about this before, but I might have accidentally deleted it? Whoever sent that in, if you did, my apologies. 

Leafpool’s name was going to be Maplenose, with -nose being a way to celebrate her finding the Moonpool. Likewise, Squirrelflight was to be Cherryfoot, which is closest to her original suffix and also her skill in the Redeux. As for the Redux’s version of the second arc, I talked a little about this here, with some continuation here!

Edit: I forgot to add that their appearances are both tortoiseshells/torbies!

[doritopaw101]

Arc1, book 2: Chapter 5

It had been a whole half-moon since that day. Things had been eventful to say the least.

Riverclan as expected called out Splashsong's murder and Bluestar defended Graypaw saying it was an accident, leaving out why Thunderclan cats were there in the first place of course.

Brokenstar had been quiet throughout Bluestar's hissing match with Leopardclaw. The golden molly demanded blood but Willowpelt nearly tore her throat for demanded her son's death. "The only thing you'll get from Thunderclan is fox dung" Willowpelt had snarled "This death is your fault not Graypaw's"

He had to corner Whiteclaw to tell him what happened to Silverpaw and Silverstream. Silverpaw has recovering, his eye will heal, not the best but he'll be able to use it.

When Windclan showed up, Brokenstar looked like he was going to rip Duskstar's throat out. When Brokenstar asked what they were doing back here Bluestar cut in and said.

"Starclan sent an omen and said Windclan would return right?"

Duskstar and Stormstar agreed with her words, it was a wise choice. Brokenstar was furious but Palecloud said that he had the omen but didn't say anything. Brokenstar basically called the gathering over and left in a huff.

He heard from Weaselwhisker that Shadowclan tried scaring off Windclan again but Duskstar wasn't going be driven out again and they won the fight. Luna wasn't fully convinced with clan life but she said she would stay til her kits, Marblekit and Thornkit become warriors, she held the name Moonclaw for the time being.

Piling on with Riverclan and Shadowclan biting at Thunderclan's heels, winter had arrived already and there was a greencough outbreak in the camp. Adderkit and Leapkit currently had it as did Birchstep.

Swiftpaw and Lynxpaw had been apprenticed a few days after Cinderpaw, Smokepaw, Lichenpaw, and Brackenpaw were. Swiftpaw to Fogtail and Lynxpaw to Willowpelt respectively.

Brindleface's litter was certainly interesting. The rest of the clan thought they only had three kits when they had four. Brindleface had snuck out of camp the night of the birth,the clan lead them but Bluestar asked Icebelly and Embereyes to watch them, they agreed. Blackfoot was the sire of the kits and took the only kit that would give them away, Elderkit. Icebelly couldn't have been to sure whether Brindleface saw him but it felt confirmed when the pale gray cat made sure to stay out of his way at all times.

Though with the filling nursery came with the decrease in food for the warriors and apprentices.

The nursery in general was packed with: Frostbite expecting kits sired by Tiger-roar for her and Mossthorn, Yellowkit was growing big for her age, Willowpelt's litter was also growing well, Miststrike's kits: Yewkit was getting bigger by the day but Leapkit was still so small and wouldn't be ready, Doekit, Adderkit, and Volekit were close to apprenticeship. Robinwing's litter was growing well and should make lovely apprentices. Bluestar had also given birth to her litter: Maplekit, Snowkit, Mistlekit, and Aspenkit, one had been born still and Bluestar named the kit Starkit. Icebelly had been all over the four kits from the get go.

His own apprentice, Cinderpaw was definitely a pawful but he was determined to train them well like Tiger-roar trained him. He was glad he got to have Tiger-roar and Nightshade to lean on for advice as well as Miststrike and Leopardstorm. Cinderpaw worked well in a group setting rather by themself so being around Sleetpaw and Smokypaw helped alot.

Ravenpaw decided he wanted to be a Silverblood. His help certainly lighten Thymeroot and Yellowfang's workload. The tom seemed more at peace in the medicine den than he did in the apprentice's den.

Though things could've been better:

-Flashback-

His belly had been aching all day, he just thought he ate something bad but apparently not. He definitely didn't let Cinderpaw fight him with the chance to kick his belly.

Chestnutclaw looked ready to claw his ears off "Go be weak in the herb den with herb cats" he hissed "I don't want Smokepaw's training falling"

He had went to see them, feeling like he was being kicked all over. Thymeroot examined him and her tail curled up in surprise "Well, you're not sick Icebelly?"

"Then.." Icebelly trailed off, knowing the answer.

"Congrats" the seer purred, her green eyes shining "I know you've wanted to have kits for a while"

'Not with his kits' he hadn't mated with Chestnutclaw as planned, he had been busy training Cinderpaw and had pushed the plans til Cinderpaw had finished her training. He wanted to forget what had happened to him but Brokenstar seemed determined to make sure he never forgot like the scar on the side of his throat.

"If I may be so bold to ask, who's the sire?"

Icebelly looked away "I...he's..."

"Not of Thunderclan?"

Icebelly couldn't bring himself to really answer with words but Thymeroot took his silence.

Thymeroot licked his ear "It's alright, you'll be fine"

"I hope so"

-Flashback ends-

"I never realized how it must suck having short fur during leaf-bare, how do Sandstorm and Ravenpaw deal with it" Cherrycloud mewed, nudging into his chest breaking his thoughts

Icebelly hummed "Find a fluffy cat to huddle and snuggle with"

"Oh is that what I am" she rubbed her head along his neck "A cat to snuggle with"

"Or course not, I'm fluffy as well if not more than you though we've been doing a lot more than 'snuggling' lately" He smirked 'It take my mind off the fact I'm carrying Brokenstar's kits, please let some of them be Chestnutclaw's' he shouted in his mind

Cherrycloud purred with amusement

"Icebelly Cherrycloud" Redtail's voice sounded rough and tired. Icebelly could see the deputy looked exhausted he couldn't blame him. Him and Bluestar must have a hard time dealing with their clanmates concerns about the Shadowclan attacks, Riverclan's new hostility and now the greencough outbreak.

"Can you two take your apprentices out?"

"Sure" Cherrycloud mewed getting up

"Any place in particular?" Icebelly asked shaking his fur

"We need prey try going near twolegplace or the owl tree"

Thymeroot popped her head from the medicine den, some feverfew and tansy were stuck on her pelt. "If you find catmint get as much as you can"

"Gotcha sir deputy sir" Cherrycloud purred "And you miss medicine"

A smile appeared on Redtail's face and a chuckle escaped from his throat. "You are a blessing in this time Cherrycloud"

They woke Cinderpaw and Brackenpaw up and headed for twolegplace. The experience could do them good.

Cinderpaw pounced on a squirrel, a swift bite to its neck. "Got it!" they called

Brackenpaw looked down, while Cinderpaw had managed to catch four kills now all he caught was a "lousy shrew" in his own words.

Cherrycloud noticed and bumped against her apprentice "Hey cheer up, everyone has off days, I'm sure Mossthorn or Frostbite will love it"

"Maybe you're a better fighter than Cinderpaw, you got Lionheart's large build while Cinderpaw got Mossthorn's lean one" Icebelly added, though he wondered if that was true. When he first took Cinderpaw out he taught her some basic fighting moves and increased the harshness since. Cinderpaw complained of sore pads the first day but was ready for it the next day. The eagerness of this young cat made it worth while.

"We'll try to battle train soon though" Cherrycloud mewed "For now let's make make Redtail proud that we all caught at least something"

That seemed to cheer Brackenpaw up. The all had caught some good and worthy kills. Cinderpaw found catmint and couldn't wait to see the look on Yellowfang's face when she brought it.

"Look!" Cinderpaw pointed with her nose at a molly padding along across the forest floor. It was a fluffy white molly with blue eyes. 'Princess!' Icebelly thought with shock. Her belly was swollen, heavy with unborn kits. "Kittypet!" Cinderpaw sneered, their fur fluffed out "Let's chase her out"

"No" he mewed pulling the gray apprentice back by their tail "She's a kittypet afterall she's no threat, stay here"

Princess may have a collar but it had many teeth and fangs it it to protect her throat and he knew his sister was far from helpless, Bone taught her well.

He padded slowly over to her "Princess!" he called

Princess's back fur spiked up and she bared her teeth but she got a closer look at him. "Splinter?"

He nodded and nuzzled her.

"What on earth are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing, far from the city"

"I got picked up, Snake found me" Princess mewed

"We''ll talk tomorrow" he mewed "Stay around here, my other clanmates would shred you trust me on that"

"I'd kill them when they stood if they tried" Princess drawled "But I have kits to think about, be around here tomorrow by dawn, I have to get back to Bloodclan soon" She heaved herself over one of the fences.

"Problem solved" he said heading back "Let's get back to camp shall we?"

/

Icebelly woke at dawn with the image of his sister still clear in his mind. He pushed his way out of the den, hoping to get out of camp as soon as he could. It was another cold, frosty morning. Though his fur seemed to get fluffier where it was more tolerable. Leopardstorm and Fogtail were waiting near the camp entrance, preparing to leave on patrol. Mousefur padded past on her way to join them and greeted Icebelly with a cherry mew. Fogtail called for Swiftpaw, who came racing out of the camp.

He padded across the clearing, wondering if Cinderpaw was awake yet. Brindleface was just squeezing out of the narrow nursery entrance. Ashkit followed her, Tulipkit close to his dam, then Fernkit followed tumbling out and falling onto the ground. Brindleface picked Fernkit up by her scruff and placed her gently back on her paws.

"Are they well?" he asked

"So far yes" Brindleface replied, green eyes avoiding his "We've had no other cases in the nursery so far and we hope to keep it that way"

"How's Embereyes?"

Brindleface sighed "She's keeping it together for Volekit and Doekit but she's worried for Adderkit, Nettlemist has been helping her relax"

Icebelly nodded as he heard Cherrycloud's pawsteps behind him. He turned to greet his friend, stretching his head to touch Cherrycloud's nose, and asked, "Could you take Cinderpaw for the day?"

Cherrycloud looked curiously at Icebelly "Why?"

"Oh, nothing important" Icebelly replied "Just wanted to check something and plus they'll need the battle training I can't really do in my state"

"Alright" Cherrycloud mewed, whiskers twitching with amusement, he knew she didn't believe anything he said but was going along with it.

"Thanks, Cherrycloud!" Icebelly bounded away toward the camp entrance.

As the houses came into view through the trees, Icebelly dropped into a crouch. He opened his mouth and breathed in the cold morning air. No sign of a Thunderclan patrol, and no human scents either. He relaxed a little.

Slowly he approached the fence where he had seen the molly disappear. He hesitated at the bottom and looked around, sniffing the air once more. Then he leaped, landing on a fence post in one easy jump. No huamns to be seen-just an empty garden with its strongly scented plants. Icebelly felt exposed on the post but he didn't have to climb when he heard the cheery voice of his sister.

"Splinter!"

Icebelly jumped from the fence landing flat on his paws right infront of his littermate. "It's Icebelly now, how are you doing?"

"As well as you could expect with me expecting" Princess mewed, her collar had more teeth than the last time he saw her

"Who'd you kill?" he asked

"I forget as time goes by" Princess replied, she sat down firmly resting her budging belly "Seven now, got three claws from that one"

"Is this your first litter?" He eyed her belly

"Yes, finally decided I wanted to help Bloodclan's legacy with my kits"

"Smudge?"

"Yep, I'm due very soon"

Icebelly sighed, rubbing his face with his paw "At least I'm not alone in parenthood"

Princess looked confused and cocked her head to the side "What?"

"Luna's had kits and joined Duskstar and Jake in Windclan for the time being, I'm also...expecting"

Princess's eyes widen "Seriously? You having kits?"

"Yeah"

"Well we know we'll do better than our birth giver" Princess stated

"Also Filou is part of Riverclan she's named Flamepaw, Nutmeg's in Shadowclan under the name of Dewflare with our new siblings. Also we have an older brother, Gingerblaze"

"What?"

"Yeah. Nutmeg was a clan cat, she lived in Thunderclan before she had us"

"I'd like to meet him"

"I'll work something out"

Princess moved closer to him, pressing her fur against his flank. This is what he missed, the feeling of someone who related to him.

"You've mentioned these clans"

Icebelly nodded

"I've heard things from dad already before but what's it like? Is it different than Bloodclan or the other groups round here?"

"In the clans, we take care of each other, Younger cats hunt for elders; warriors protect the hunting grounds from the other clans. I trained all spring and summer to become a warrior from training under Tiger-roar. I have an apprentice of my own now Cinderpaw"

"Was that the pointed dark gray cat I saw yesterday?"

Icebelly nodded "They're great, full of energy but knows the skill well so far" he looked around "where've you been staying?"

"This house doesn't have humans you know, I relax here and go inside if needed which I'm doing right now"

Icebelly looked back at the forest "I have to get back to my clan and you'll have your paws full soon enough as will I. I'll come back to see you in two days, I'll see if Gingerblaze will come"

"Great" Princess called over her shoulder. She was already trotting back to the house "See ya Icebelly?"

"See you soon" Icebelly called. His sister disappeared from view, and he heard the swinging flap slap shut behind her.

Once the garden was silent, Icebelly crept through the bushes to the fence. He jumped over it and ran into the forest.

/

When he finally returned to camp, he carried a vole and a wood pigeon in his mouth. He missed a few pigeons along the way when his vision started to blurry. The sun was setting, thank Starclan, and the clan were gathering for their evening meal. Graypaw sat alone beside the nettle clump, a fat chaffinch at her paws. She looked like she wasn't sleeping he was about to go over when Nettlemist laid his tail on his back "I got this" he whispered and Icebelly nodded to him as he padded across the clearing to the pile of fresh-kill that had already been collected.

Tiger-roar, Lionheart, and Leopardstorm was sitting near by, the dual colored tabby's amber and blue eyes narrowed. "I noticed that Cinderpaw spent the day with Cherrycloud" he mewed as Icebelly dropped his catch onto the pile. "Where were you?"

Icebelly returned Tiger-roar's gaze, he was good at not flinching at the gaze after being around Tiger-roar for so long. "It seemed like a good day for hunting-too good to waste" he replied

"Considering your vision's acting up and that you were alone" Icebelly could tell that Tiger-roar's voice contained a great amount of amount of concern which which didn't surprise him. Tiger-roar had been his mentor so he knew when he had any of his problems. "I'm guessing you missed a few catches on your way back"

"Why did Bluestar let him be a mentor" Lionheart muttered to which Leopardstorm nudged him in the shoulder harshly

Icebelly forced his fur flat and tried not to curse the golden tom "Bluestar trusts my abilities, have a problem take it up with her" Icebelly tried but couldn't resist " Or maybe you're a little bitter that Frostbit seems to have dumped you for Mossthorn, or that she's pregnant with Tiger-roar's kits rather than yours"

Lionheart's eyes narrowed at him

"But hey you're not mateless, you have Leopardstorm and Tiger-roar it seems. The great two-colored tom he is allows you to worship his great di-"

"Icebelly" Tiger-roar warned

He regretted nothing and he knew Tiger-roar knew that as well. "The clan needs all the fresh-kill it can get at the moment, I may have missed but I got something at least" Icebelly replied calmly

Tiger-roar nodded, suspicion darkening his eyes "Yes, but we also need warriors if we're going to put Shadowclan back in their place and send Riverclan back into their rivers. Cinderpaw's training is your responsibility not Cherrycloud's, she already has Brackenpaw to worry about. Redtail wants apprentices in as top shape as possible"

Icebelly nodded "I understand, Tiger-roar" he dipped his head respectfully "I'll take them out tomorrow near the Riverclan border"

"Good" Tiger-roar said seeming satisfied

"Make sure they doesn't get into any trouble with Riverclan, we already have enough of it as is already" Leopardstorm added

"Of course Leopardstorm"

/

Three of Morningflower's claws snapped off when she met rock and clay. She didn't even flinch she was used to her claws snapping off when tunneling, it still felt good to be back down here after moons in a rotten twoleg tunnel. She still swiped the dirt with her left paw, standing firmly on her hind legs.

"Morningflower, take a break I got this" Deadfoot called, his twisted paw covered in mud

"You should go see Barkface for that paw" Mudclaw added "We don't need infections right now"

'Like I'll leave our kits without their mother' Morningflower dropped down to all fours, shaking her fluffy coat. "I'm fine, just a broken claw"

"Now's not a time to be stubborn, rest, go the nursery with your kits" Deadfoot stated

"Yes deputy sir" Morningflower mewed rolling her eyes. She padded past the tom, head held high as she made her way up the tunnel.

Things in Windclan haven't been the best since they've been back. Prey was scarce as it is in leaf-bare and Shadowclan thought that was the best time to attack them. Duskstar was firm and saying Windclan won't be driven off again. Let's hope they'll survive to newleaf.

Morningflower padded out of the tunnel, eyes shut from the blinding sunlight. As a tunneler, her eyes were more sensitive to sun than a moor-runners.

She quickly headed to the nursery where Barkface was waiting. Ashfoot and Rabbit-tail were asleep in the corner of the den while Moonclaw was in a nest close to her with Marblekit and Thornkit. Whitetail was quiet and at peace, her new born kits suckling gently.

She laid down in her nest, her kits latching on as she did. She let Barkface treat her bleeding paw as she watched her kits nurse. They were growing well thank goodness, Briarkit gave her a scare but she hung on.

She didn't expect Runningpaw to start mushing her belly. She was about ask but Runningbrook beat her too it.

"It's to stimulate milk" the gray tabby mewed "Frogleap told me he tired it with Fallowtail and it worked well"

Morningflower sighed just letting them do their work, it wasn't too bad. It felt nice to be honest

"Have you thought of names yet?" Thrushwing padded into the den, her plump belly showing brightly as she sat close to Whitetail, placing more wool in the nest "It's been a moon" Morningflower wasn't surprised to see her sister already back into the ways of the clan. She wore the jewels a high ranking moor-runner as well as a star-keeper in training.

'Important to the clan' Morningflower thought 'That's what mother wanted for us, for you most of all Thrushwing' she was aware their mother wasn't pleased when she became a tunneler, even more so when Stoneclaw became one was well. She wanted them all to be proud moor-runnners like her and their late father Grasstail.

"Icekit" Whitetail replied, softly licking her son's head "For the cat that helped me when I needed it and the cat who helped bring back Windclan when he didn't have to"

Morningflower could see her sister's annoyance at their nephew being named after a Thunder cat rather than his late father but thankfully her sister seemed to know she wouldn't win.

"Lovely" she said, Morningflower could tell it was forced "And the other tom? He reminds me of the sun with his golden fur"

"More like a Lion" Runningpaw commented "Fluffy like one too."

"Fluffy isn't a term used for Windclanners" Thrushwing retorted.

Morningflower wondered if her sister would talk about Runningbrook being half-clan. The clan already had a time when they found about Ryestalk's code breaking with Marshcloud, she fought hard to make sure Runningpaw didn't face anything.

Runningpaw cocked their head to the side "Is thick-furred better?"

Before Thrushwing could reply Whitetail interrupted "Lionkit it is" she purred "My little lion"

"Maybe he'll have the strength of Lionclan" Runningpaw mewed

Thrushwing narrowed her eyes at the gray tabby "Lionclan is Thunderclan's circle we have Leopardclan as ours Runningpaw"

"That you have to share with Riverclan" Moonclaw sneered "Shadowclan gets Tigerclan all to themselves"

"Don't mention them here" Thrushwing shushed "It could bring bad fortune for the kits, Tawnykit's future as a seer could go bad"

"What?" Tawnykit whimpered "I can't be Barkface's apprentice?"

"Wait no no you'll still be my apprentice" Barkface quickly soothed the kitten "You'll be a great seer Tawnykit"

"That she will" Rabbit-tail purred.

Rushkit, Ryekit, and Robinkit looked out of place the attention was once again returned to their sister/cousin.

It was peaceful for a few moments, but of course it couldn't last forever because nice things can't happen.

"Shadowclan is coming up near the east badger den" she heard Sorrelflight cry "I see Dewflare leading them"

"Oh it's on, a score needs to be settled" Moonclaw rushed out before anyone could stop her.

"Why can't they leave us alone, it's leaf-bare" Runningpaw whined

"That's their goal" Whitetail answered

"Moonclaw!" Thrushwing called

"Don't" Rabbit-tail hissed "I'll watch Moonclaw's kits" she drawled "Who else will I be watching?"

"Mine" Ashfoot mewed "Eaglekit's easy to watch"

"Mine too" Morningflower replied "I need to stretch my legs"

"I'll get my marigold" Barkface signed as they rushed out.

Morningflower and Ashfoot were on their paws and racing out of camp leaving Rabbit-tail in charge of their kits. "Send them back in their marshes" Deadfoot yowled leading them on.

Morningflower smirked at the command.

Windclan won't be chased from their home a second time.

[catsandcomplexityaddiction]

The Bridge & The Dragon - Year 1 Spring Moon 1

This is the first (after the initial setup post) of a play-along series of my personal fanclan simulation system, following the highs and lows and adventures of a clan in a low fantasy setting.

Welcome to the journey, and enjoy your stay.

Preseason

((Year Start.))

The City of Bridges. A city of light and shadow, resting where the river's journey from the mountains came to a close, welcomed by the ocean. For humans and their kith, it was a city of a million and more souls living lives of adventure and desperation, plotting and poverty, hope and grief. 

But this was not a tale of the humans, nor elves or dwarves or whatever else such may have lived there. On the eastern side of the city stood a park that had been allowed its wildness. Druidic symbols lined the open fences that marked its western perimeter. Beyond, trees grew tall and foliage thick, as squashed together as the delapidated brick buildings across the roadway from them.

High on a branch, a dappled shadow slipped forth into a splash of rare sunlight. The calico she-cat's flame-ginger streaks flashed like windtossed torches as she lifted her head to scent the air, poised on tiptoes with alertness, with energy. The stretch eased. Her body retracted to shadow as gracefully as prior emerged. Muscles gathered, and her tail twitched. Emberdapple crouched and watched and waited.

A lone bat fluttered above the rooftops, far away. Emberdapple continued her spying, until the small creature dipped out of sight. She waited a heartbeat, more, and then the tree's leaves swallowed her.

((Season Start.)) 

"It's too exposed here," said a small black tom, so small as to almost be mistaken for a kit. He was Tinystep, and he sat in the shadow of some of his fellows deep within the tangle of the park.

Only one of the cats he was with sat close to him - the rest kept their distance in the manners of those doing it on purpose, for what varying reasons they held. Tinystep's companion was a frazzle-furred old ginger she-cat named Dryfur. She turned a calm, curious eye to him. "Exposed? We're well within the brush."

A silvery-white cat with a flowing pelt licked her paw gracefully as she listened, eyeing the pair. Her tail streamed like a silken banner as she curled it upward. "Perhaps Tinystep wants to go back to the caves," she suggested.

Tinystep's eyes flashed - fear? anger? worry? - at the elegant she-cat. "Of course I don't, Serpentfoot. But we're too well within the brush, as it were. Sure, nothing can see us. But we can't see anything until it's on top of us, either. And the kits are loud-" As if to puntuate his words, Woolpelt hushed a squeal from Maplekit where the queen was sheltering the five kits in a shallow hollow between roots.

Serpentfoot gave a subtle flick of tail. "It isn't a permanent place," she conceded, eyes glimmering with thought.

((Moderate Scarcity and Triage, High Trespass and Discontent.))

Two pelts moved within the undergrowth, ginger and black. The ginger was Dryfur again, but the black was too large to be Tinystep. No, and this was a she-cat besides. Gracklefang moved on steadier, surer paws than the older feline beside her. 

"Serpentstep thinks she should lead, I daresay," murmured Gracklefang.

"Of course she does," Dryfur said, though her tone offered a note of doubt. Dryfur's whiskers pricked up. "Down!" she hissed. Gracklefang heeded immediately, crouching beside Dryfur under a fallen branch still flush with green leaves.

The pair watched a stranger leap between roots ahead of them - a massive orange tabby, hide riddled with scars. He stopped to sniff the air - and his head swiveled right toward them, ears pricked. 

"Who's there?" he called, voice edged with a growl. "I know I've been smelling strangers, and I know fresh scents when I smell them."

Hesitation lasted only a few heartbeats. Dryfur slipped forth first, head raised and tail high in projection of confidence. Gracklefang followed close behind. 

"We are strangers, yes," said Dryfur. "But needn't be unfriendly."

The tom eyed each of them. His manner eased with a mellow confidence in finding them unthreatening to his eye. "Passing through?" he asked.

"Settling," corrected Dryfur. "We will be claiming territory - we've seen no evidence this area is taken."

"It isn't. Still should be moving on."

"Why's that?" Gracklefang cut in.

His claws crooked forward, scoring the dirt. "Because I'll claw you if you don't. I don't like strangers or their smells."

"Then you can keep your distance," suggested Gracklefang.

His eyes glinted. "I go where I please."

Moon 1

((Moon 1. Ages up.))

At a later point in the day, Dryfur returned to the temporary camp alone, mouse in her teeth. She ignored the low gnaw in her own belly to bring the fresh-kill to Woolpelt and the kits.

"Too many kits, too few paws," Woolpelt muttered. She shook her maned head at Dryfur. "Thank you. I know everyone is trying to help. I just wish the kits better understood why they ought to listen."

"They're kits," Dryfur said in commiseration, earning a nod. "They'll learn. Still, keep them close. There's a rogue tom skulking about." Message delivered, she started to turn away. 

"Dryfur!" The squeak came from one of the younger kits - Bearkit. "Do you need help?" The brown she-kit almost tripped over her own shaggy fur.

Dryfur shook her head. "No, little one - just mind you listen to Woolpelt."

((One new queen.))

Dryfur settled onto a branch overlooking the temporary camp and surroundings. She'd not been alone long when the dark shape of Gracklefang joined her. The black warrior flicked her ears in greeting.

"Fewer scratches than I feared. You tailed him long enough?" asked Dryfur.

"I did," Gracklefang said. There was a furtive element to her tone.

"You spoke to him," Dryfur guessed.

Gracklefang flicked her tail this time. "We came to an understanding." Her tone and manner betrayed nothing.

Dryfur sneezed.

((No new patients.))

Apart from the others, a younger grey she-cat pawed carefully through some herbs with extended claws. "Burdock, and...hm."

She scarcely noticed Tinystep as the little black tom settled in a respectful smattering of pawsteps away. He watched.

"...Yarrow," said the she-cat.

"The ancestors aren't going to quiz your knowledge of herbs, Rockthroat," Tinystep said mildly.

"How would you know?" she snapped, narrowing her eyes sidelong at him.

His eyes lingered on hers long enough for the uncertainty to rise. He looked down at his paws.

"You don't," Rockthroat said. "None of us know if our ancestors will even speak to us, if any have even followed us here. If any we want to follow us have followed us here. Don't give me platitudes. We need a medicine cat yesterday. We need a leader last moon." 

Tinystep's ears flattened as his gaze snapped back up to hers. "And muttering by yourself about leaves isn't going to bring either closer. The bat told us-"

"It's a bat, Tinystep! How does it know anything of our ancestors?"

"Last I checked, bats don't usually speak. It led us here, didn't it? So why not to this alleged Moontower?"

"We can't all go there. And who knows what will be on the way. I don't see you going by yourself."

Tinystep sniffed and rose to his paws. "I'm not," he muttered. "But neither are you, it would seem." He slunk off beneath her frustrated glower.

((Patrol prep.))

"We don't have borders yet," said Dryfur, "But we should still be patrolling. Learning the area. Looking for a proper camp."

Emberdapple's calico pelt flashed among the darker pelts of her clanmates. "I didn't see anyone name you Drystar. Aren't you a medicine cat?"

"An assistant," Serpentfoot corrected quietly. "They don't share tongues with the ancestors."

Dryfur flicked her tail in annoyance. "Am I incorrect? We need patrols. We need safe haven."

"I'll go," said a voice. The other cats looked around before realizing the shadow of Tinystep among them. The tiny tom shifted forward. "I'll lead a border patrol. Camp searching patrol. Whatever it is, I'll lead it."

"You? You'd barely been out of the caves before we left," Emberdapple scoffed. "You still jump at shadows."

Tinystep didn't take the bait. "It doesn't matter who's in charge. We need shelter that we can defend. We need it now. So I'll go alone if I have to-"

"Oh, stop being so dramatic." With a flourish of her tail, Serpentfoot rose gracefully to fall in at his flank. "I'll go with you, Tinystep. Lead the way."

He eyed her skeptically, was far from the only surprised by her easy following. She offered no further words, fully unruffled by the attention on her. "Alright," said Tinystep. "The rest of you-"

"Oh, now we have Tinystar," huffed Emberdapple. "Just go. Spare us your decrees."

The tom and his accompaniment disappeared into the brush without reprisal.

"I think we could use a hunting patrol as well," Dryfur said. "I'll go with you if you'd lead, Emberdapple. You brought back a lot earlier, and I'd like to see from where."

"Someone had to." Emberdapple puffed her chest. "Yes, come along. Gracklefang, stay with Woolpelt, won't you? I think she'll start hissing if we leave her alone with the kits."

"I'm going to the Moontower," announced Rockthroat, turning heads with it.

Emberdapple and Dryfur spoke at once.

"You're joking."

"Absolutely not."

Rockthroat's tail lashed. "We need communication from our ancestors."

"And you think you'll get it?" Emberdapple asked. "You're not a medicine cat."

"Who else?" challenged Rockthroat.

"Either of the two medicine cats we do have. Not a pretend one."

"It's not an awful idea," Dryfur put in, shifting her stance in the face of the rising fury between the two younger she-cats. "It's a ways to go. I'm not as young as I used to be. Tinystep isn't a strong climber or fighter if it comes to it. But sending you alone seems fraught." An idea occurred to her. Dryfur anticipated hisses. "Emberdapple, tell me where to hunt. Then you can go with Rockthroat."

"No." The word came from both other she-cats. Dryfur resisted a sigh. 

Rockthroat shook her head at Emberdapple. "See it how you like. I'm going. If I fail, maybe I wasn't meant to be a medicine cat, yes?"

Dryfur's pelt prickled. "If you fail, we're down a cat - we need all paws right now."

"And we need to know if our ancestors consider us a real clan," snapped Rockthroat. "Because if they don't, then we might as well start accepting that we're glorified rogues."

"Maybe you are," said Emberdapple, eyes bright, "But I'll claw any cat who says I'm not a warrior, ancestor or not. Go on, then, Rockthroat. And if they say no, then drop the fake medicine cat act and claw them until they smarten."

The words hung in the air. Then, it was as though a spell broke. The absurdity cracked the tension hanging over the temporary camp, and the three she-cats quivered with brief, uneasy laughter.

((Hunting Patrol - Emberdapple, Dryfur.))

"That's three. How many do you have?" Emberdapple stood tall, spry, and energetic, tail waving merrily in the air.

Dryfur glanced to the cache, and her single tiny sparrow atop the lot. She didn't say anything.

"I don't know why you came," Emberdapple was saying. "You're going to be more useless than a kit sooner than later. You're a complete bag of bones, Dryfur."

"I came for the kits," Dryfur muttered.

"Right. Maybe when you keel over of exhaustion, they can eat you." Emberdapple shook her head. At Dryfur's sharp look, she added, "A jest, Dryfur. I don't abide eating cat."

"Let's keep hunting," Dryfur said, turning away.

"By 'let's', you mean me," said Emberdapple, but it was more exasperated now. She followed as Dryfur took off. And she saw the loose bark just as Dryfur leapt. Her eyes widened. "Wait!"

The bark gave way, and Dryfur slid too-swiftly back to the ground. She didn't crumple, but when she backed away from the tree, a paw gingerly lifted from contact with the ground.

Emberdapple's enthusiasm dampened.

((Border Patrol - Tinystep, Serpentfoot.))

Tinystep carefully didn't look over his shoulder as he led Serpentfoot through the trees of the park. He sensed her eyes on him, or at least imagined he did. There was still a discomfit in the way the she-cats tended to treat him, despite its stark removal from the ways of DragonClan. Finding himself now leading a patrol, Tinystep felt as though the huntress behind him judged every placement of his paws.

He tried to focus. The clan needed a camp. The kits needed a den. Stability. Focus.

"Your fur is sticking up," Serpentfoot said conversationally. "I suppose it was that skunk-scent. I hope it doesn't linger in my fur."

He smelled no skunk, but then, Tinystep knew scents far less well than the others. Emberdapple wasn't wrong about his prior sheltering. Tinystep chanced a glance back, and found she wasn't looking at him at all when he did.

"What kind of place, do you think?" asked Serpentfoot.

Tinystep almost stopped walking at the question. He managed otherwise. "Me?"

"You insist that we need one," she pointed out.

He placed his paws steadily. Her voice held no mocking. So, the tom studied the vegetation ahead. "Somewhere properly enclosed. Or high up, maybe."

"Too enclosed could leave us cornered," she observed.

"Higher up could be difficult for cats who are young or injured," countered the former medicine assistant. Behind him, Serpentfoot made a mild, affirming sound.

They traveled onward.

Later in the trek, Tinystep found himself sliding down a burrow, unbalanced from his steps. "Mouse-dung!" he hissed, ears high and eyes alert for anything sharing the burrow. Instead, he found himself caught in a ray of light from above.

"Tinystep?" Serpentfoot called down the burrow.

"Come down here," Tinystep said, eyes exploring the nooks and crannies above. Then louder, "Come see this!"

He'd stumbled into a massive, hollow, shocked-out tree, bark greyed with age of its death.

((Medicine Patrol - Rockthroat.))

Before leaving, Rockthroar organized the herbs she'd collected and pressed some stones near to shelter them. To Woolpelt, she reiterated the important ones if a kit had an accident or needed something. And then off she went. Through the trees, and then-

Rockthroat paused at the road's edge. The scattered dirt and stone looked strange, and smelled strongly of horse and horse leavings. She looked up, but there was no view of the Moontower from here. 

She glanced for horses like they'd seen prior, and then scurried across the road. She ventured through alleyways, seeking a way up for a better vantage point, and not finding one. But she crossed only scents, not strangers, and eventually rooftops parted to offer a glimpse of the tower. It seemed so far. She pressed on.

Eventually, she came to the foot of it. The moon drifted high above. But from a hiding place at the mouth of an alleyway, Rockthroat saw no way to climb the tower. It was made of sheer stone, offered no egress.

"You made it," came a whisper nearby.

Rockthroat tensed. She turned. It was the bat - the one that led the cats to the park. It rested upsidedown against rugged stone, seemingly unafraid. Its lack of prey-fear still perturbed her. But she said... "I need to get up there."

"Use the door," said the bat, as though his words made any sense at all.

"What's a door?"

The bat blinked, then chuffed. "Follow me." And he took off, making her claws itch as he fluttered by. 

Rockthroat glanced uneasily at the twolegged passersby. But she moved to follow the bat through an odd leather flap in the closed twolegged portal. Inside, a stone ascent awaited.

The bat perched anew, watching her. "No humans will bother you," he said. He sounded sure. She guessed he meant the twoleggeds.

"How do you know?" she asked.

"This isn't their place," he said simply.

"Whose is it?"

The bat considered. "Mine."

Sensing she would get no more from him and haunted by the impending weight of her quest, Rockthroat turned to the stone rise. Numerous ledges by which to climb the tower. Up she went.

At the height of the Moontower, the moon awaited her. But did their ancestors? Rockthroat glanced back at the stairwell, fur pricked with a sense of vulnerability. 

"No choice," she said. On the rugged stone of the roof, she curled up and stared at the moon. She wondered how she would know if it worked or didn't. She laid awake for perhaps an hour, growing chilly.

A warm pelt brushed hers. Rockthroat leapt to her paws. But there was no one there.

"Sleep," came a whisper from nowhere.

Rockthroat's tail curled low. *Oh.* She laid down again, and this time closed her eyes. Sleep came with supernatural swiftness.

When she opened her eyes again, nine cats of varying sizes perched on the edges of the roof around her. Some seemed leapt out of nursery tales - a lion, a leopard, a tiger. Others were less familiar. A lean, lithe creature with a dark pelt and a narrow muzzle. A speckled creature barely bigger than her. Lithe and lanky shapes that kept to the shadows. Nearest and foremost was a sandy-furred cat crowned by lengthily-tufted ears. It stood over Rockthroat, quite bigger than she, but not nearly so much as the cats of legend

"The eldest ancestors,"Rockthroat breathed.

"We are of the wild," corrected the tuft-eared cat. "We have been invited here to speak with you, the cats of paws in both worlds."

She bristled. "Both worlds?"

"You are not only wild," said the other simply. "You can live between worlds in a way we cannot. You are not ours. But you are kin." It flicked one of those odd ears. "So we have come."

A question occurred to her. "Who? Who invited you? Where are our ancestors?"

"Rejecting of you," was answer to the second question. "Who invited us is not important now. What is important is that we have come for a purpose. You need the gift of life, passed to one of your own. That is why we are here. To fill the role your own cannot or will not."

"Rejecting..." Rockthroat felt her throat tighten. "If I tell the others our ancestors reject us, they- I can't."

"Then don't tell them," said the Leopard.

The Tiger said, "Or do. And tell them that a bold hunter looks ahead, not behind."

Rockthroat forced herself to look at them, forced herself not to quail at their shapes. "We have the blessing of the great cats." It sounded like a question.

"My people's clans need no one's permission to be," declared the Lion.

"We will bless your leader, when one is brought to us," said the tuft-eared cat. "What you tell your others is your choice."

Rockthroat flicked an ear. "I am a medicine cat, then?" Her voice came bolder.

"Who ever said you weren't?"

((All patients healed.))

Tinystep sniffed the poultice on Dryfur's lower leg. "That should help the soreness," he said. When he looked up, he found the older medicine assistant staring blankly ahead.

The clan had moved to the hollow tree. Most were settling in - even the kits were helping clear debris. Emberdapple was out patrolling, blowing off steam and keeping an eye out to guide Rockthroat to the new camp on her return.

Dryfur sat silently as she was tended. "I'm not going to be much use for much longer, am I?" she asked.

The tiny tom tried not to look at the way her pelt clung loosely to her. "Elders have their purpose just like everyone else."

"I thought I could help the clan more."

"Did you think you could lead it?" he asked quietly. It was a touchy subject among all the cats. Who would lead. Who should.

"Yes. No." She shook her head. "I did. Not anymore."

"Everyone falls sometimes."

"I felt my legs lose strength. No, I won't be leading." Dryfur looked up to meet his eyes. "That will fall to another, but not me."

"Maybe Gracklefang," Tinystep said slowly, offering comfort of conversation. "Or Serpentfoot."

"Serpentfoot?" Dryfur sounded surprised. "I'm not sure she'd make a good leader."

"She wouldn't make a bad one." Or as bad as some had thought, his tone suggested. "Emberdapple maybe?"

Before Dryfur could answer, there was sound in the main entry tunnel. A flash of calico fur, then darker grey. Emberdapple and Rockthroat were back.

All eyes snapped to Rockthroat, all hungry for answers in their own way.

"Well?" asked Serpentfoot, tossing her forepaw forth from a grooming session.

"Tell them!" Emberdapple insisted.

Rockthroat's eyes shone with breathless excitement. "Our new clan has been blessed by the legendary spirits, and they have confirmed me as medicine cat. They await our naming of the clan - and the visit of our leader to receive nine lives."

A thrill chased through every cat present. But so too did the latter words send forth a crackle of uneasy tension. Emberdapple practically bounced beside Rockthroat, her eyes bright with surety of her own potential. Serpentfoot lifted her forepaw to continue grooming, but her eyes drifted sidelong across the faces of the other cats. Her gaze briefly met Tinystep's, the connection made just in time to find him looking at her dubiously. Gracklefang stood still near the den she'd been hollowing out, head at an angle as she weighed her own thoughts. Further back in the hollow, Woolpelt sniffed the bright-eyed kits in between her own glances to the other prospects.

Dryfur slowly rose to her paws, careful not to disturb the poultice. "We don't need to decide right away. It's an important decision."

For once, for now at least, there was no disagreement.

[sootwhiskers]

name: maplestar (she/her)

past names: maplekit, maplepaw, maplestorm

allegiance: windclan

rank: leader (past: deputy, warrior)

parents: appletail and sandbreeze of windclan

siblings: windsight (adopted; biologically cousins)

mate: sootstar of shadowclan

children: beestripe (adopted), ravenstorm, lightningheart and falconflight of shadowclan

other family:

aunt: sageflower of windclan

cousins: quailflight, grayshade, and puddlenose of thunderclan

grandsons: thistlefrost, marshkit, deerkit, and bramblekit (adopted) of shadowclan

granddaughters: sunkit and sorrelkit (adopted) of shadowclan

mentor: stagflight

apprentices: juniperheart, kestrelclaw

story info under readmore (currently a wip)

LEADER INFO

preceded by: flamestar (as leader), stagflight (as deputy)

deputies: dewthroat, rowanflower (current)

medicine cats: nettlespot, littlepool and thrushpaw (current)

nine lives (in no particular order): appletail (mother; gift of protection), sandbreeze (father; gift of strength), stagflight (mentor; gift of fairness), barkpaw (denmate; gift of mentorship), snakestep (clanmate; gift of independence), nightpool (friend; gift of tranquility), flamestar (past leader; gift of loyalty), briarshine (past medicine cat; gift of wisdom), brackenspring (past deputy; gift of endurance)

DESIGN NOTES

typical windclan build: lanky, thin/sleek fur, big ears, and oriental cat-esque face

long tail, tail tip is rounded

thin eyebrows, squared nose

chest is smooth, long neck

maplestar is a trans lesbian woman

short list of personality traits: loyal, hard-working, affectionate, stubborn, independent, often wistful

story goes here