#Talonpaw

[forestclan-clangen]

MOON 8 (Final)

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Tree helps Shiverpaw find herbs, and they run into a Woodcrawler. Tree miraculously incapacitates it, barely getting hurt! Tree tells the Clan that they've warded off Deep Root entities before. Closer to the ends of their legs, their roots are sensitive. They're like a heel - the tendons are weak. They can be torn apart, causing the entity to lose motor control.

(Tree, warrior, non-binary, 39 moons) (Shiverpaw, medicine cat apprentice, 8 moons) (Woodcrawler. A mockery of nature. Without defined age.)

---

Shiverpaw felt uncomfortable when Windfur told her that she was capable of gathering plantain by herself. She felt even more uncomfortable when Windfur asked Tree to accompany her.

Ever since she came back to camp with Talonpaw the moon prior, Windfur had been stiff around her. She didn't know if it was something Talonpaw told him, or something she did, but the fact that she was being ousted with a stranger in the middle of the woods to gather herbs made her feel like…like Windfur didn't like her. She wasn't…doing anything bad, right? She knew that earlier in the moon they got into a fight about the Nature's Mockery she saw, but she thought that enough time had passed for it to not matter anymore.

It was hard to believe that when Windfur was looking at her less and less.

She quietly grabbed one of the woven baskets by the handle, and quietly padded up to Tree, who was waiting patiently by the camp entrance.

"Well, no time like the present, eh?" Tree meowed.

Shiverpaw nodded wordlessly, then walked past them and through the entrance. Tree padded after the apprentice, their eyes staring at the ropes and sliding mechanisms that were attached to ForestClan's front gates. Their tail twitched with interest.

Shiverpaw wasn't sure what to make of the former loner. They were brought back to camp by Cloudthunder and Morningpaw the moon prior, and almost immediately went from non-committal about joining, to gaping and inquiring about every little aspect of Clan life. Tree had especially taken interest in speaking to Windfur, fascinated by the amount of medical knowledge and herbs he had at his disposal. Windfur noticed the tinge of lemonweed emitting from their pelt, and offered to provide them with regular dosage, if they wished. Tree was happy to agree.

This happened with almost every single clanmate in camp. Tree asked about the fire burning beneath a makeshift table of stones, and Cloudthunder was happy to show them how they dried out strips of meat. Tree asked about the thick ropes binding the logs of pine and spruce that created their walls, and Barleywave was happy to show them the ropes, literally. Tree asked about how long they've existed in this forest, and Redstar was happy to give them ForestClan's history. Every day, Tree seemed to have another question for someone to answer.

But not for her.

Not that she could really blame them. She…wasn't exactly the most interesting cat. At least, she didn't think so.

As the two cats trekked through the undergrowth, Shiverpaw took a moment to appreciate the sunshine. It was getting colder, and the red and yellow hues of early leaf-fall had long gone. The ground was painted in husky brown leaf litter, and the birch and oaks were stripped bare of their foliage. The only thing that remained were the evergreens, their pines growing dark under the cold.

Shiverpaw's appreciation of the gentle sun was cut short by cloudy overcast. She sighed.

"Ah, poor sunshine." Tree's voice spoke up from behind her. "I was enjoying that."

Shiverpaw let out a huff of agreement. "I was always told that I'd miss the sun the closer to leafbare we got. But…it's hard to really get that when you're a kit."

"Experience is the best teacher," Tree said simply. They paused, then tilted their head slightly. "So you've never felt winter - er, I guess you call it leafbare - before?"

"No," Shiverpaw confirmed. She started walking again, remembering the path towards plantain that Windfur showed her.

Tree padded up beside her and continued the conversation. "It's not very pleasant. The cold is the worst part of it. And how dark it gets, so early."

Shiverpaw gave them a curious glance. Her ear turned towards Tree, attentive.

"But, despite the cold and the darkness, there's something…oddly reassuring about it." Tree's green eyes were filled with unknown emotion. "It's a little mad, with how many creatures manage to survive a time that is so hostile to life. There's beauty in that - but perhaps only a hateful beauty. One that's admired only because we appreciate that there are things not like it. Such as your clan." Tree gave Shiverpaw a look. "It's wonderful how much you create together."

Shiverpaw blinked in surprise. The way Tree described leafbare was harsh, but also poetic. It strangely made her look forward to leafbare - but she'd never admit that to anyone in the clan!

"I'm glad that you like our camp. We work hard on it," Shiverpaw meowed quietly, staying polite. She stopped as the path beneath her feet turned from dirt to stone, and she found the patch of plantain she needed. "Oh, here it is." Shiverpaw put down the basket and trotted towards the herb, carefully cultivating the leaves - as wilted as they were becoming.

"Did you need any help grabbing them?"

"Um, not right now - I'm trying to see what's still good to take."

"Take your time, then. We're in no rush." Tree sat down comfortably on one of the flat stones on the path. They stretched out their front legs and arched their back, letting out a big yawn. Shiverpaw caught them yawning from the corner of her eye, and failed to suppress one of her own. Tree let a mrrow of amusement.

"I suppose we're all due for a nap later."

"That'd be nice," Shiverpaw agreed. She kept winnowing the plantain, hoping that she was leaving enough of the plant to grow back in newleaf. She was so focused on her careful task, that by the time she had turned around with a bundle of them in her mouth, she was caught off guard by Tree standing upright and staring off into the woods.

"...Um, Tree?"

Tree lifted their tail up as a sign to stay quiet.

Shiverpaw froze and her hair stood on end as she panned the scene, desperate to find out what they were looking at. All she saw were rows of tree trunks sticking out in all directions, growing smaller into the horizon. The undergrowth was a heavy layer of dead pine needles and dormant plants, with the largest being the now-bare branches from a broad shrub. Brown leaf litter dappled the ground. Her eyes flicked back and forth, her heart racing.

She scanned around her again. The tree trunks. The branches of shrubs. Leaf litter.

Again. Trees. Shrubs. Leaf-litter.

"I can smell it. I see it." Tree whispered. "Don't move."

Shiverpaw did as she was told. Then, the wind blew softly against her, and her blue eyes widened with terror. Her heart seized in her chest and it took everything in her to not start panting. Her eyes watered as she remembered the wretched scent that invaded her nostrils two moons ago. When she returned to the Dome last moon with Windfur, the absence of the monster gave her peace. She dreamed of StarClan. Icypaw spoke to her clearly, and seemed relaxed. She even saw Warblerkit, and he told her that he was going to be a big brother to any kit that needed his help - it made her purr. It made her happy. She thought, maybe, the moon she was apprenticed - it was all a bad dream. A horrible nightmare that she could move on from, and she could be a good cleric for her clan, just like she wanted.

She wanted to wail and burst into tears when the wet, bloody scent invaded her body.

She didn't want this. She didn't want this.

She couldn't force herself to look away from the undergrowth. She expected a red, foul mass to crawl around the branches of the shrubs and pull itself up to reveal the dead, black eyes of a cat's deformed skull. It would rise above the trees, above the sky, blot out the sun, and lock its eyes on her. Its jaw, raw and haggard, would shudder. "WE…CAN…HEAR…YOU."

"Shiverpaw." Tree's voice pierced into her waking nightmare. "Hold your breath. When the legs rise - run."

Shiverpaw was jostled from her nightmare, rattled by Tree's words. Legs? What legs? What -

She scanned again. The branches of a shrub. Thicker than normal. The tree trunks. Far on the horizon. The leaf litter. The branches of -

Shiverpaw's eyes shot open wide and her claws unsheathed.

Those were not branches.

The legs of the Woodcrawler rose.

Shiverpaw burst into a dash back down the path. Her heart dropped as Tree was absent. She skidded to a halt and looked back to see them hissing as the Woodcrawler's legs jabbed down.

"TREE!" she howled.

Tree did something unfathomable. They dodged, and then jumped at one of the Woodcrawler's legs. Their green eyes were wild with unbridled fury. With all four sets of claws outstretched, they latched on and started gouging. They plunged their fangs around a bulging point near the base of its leg and started tearing.

The Woodcrawler thrashed in silent agony, its legs flailing as it tried to stab the tortoiseshell cat. Tree glanced up to see one of its dagger-like legs above, and pushed themselves off as the attack came down. Tree sprinted towards Shiverpaw screaming, "GO!"

Shiverpaw didn't need to be told twice. The rush of terror and bewilderment that Tree just did that gave her the boost of speed she didn't know she had. Her head throbbed as she felt something chasing them. She could hear it thrashing through the woods, its many legs skittering across the dirt and leaves, rumbling like a Thunderpath. It lasted only a few moments before she heard a loud crash and snapping branches, then silence. The sound of blood pumping through her ears and Tree panting as they ran beside her replaced it.

Shiverpaw felt desperate relief as she saw the tall walls of the camp come into her line of sight. "WOODCRAWLER! HIDE, HIDE, HIDE!" she screeched.

ForestClan sprung into action, everyone's furs on end. Shiverpaw felt the world around her spin. She could hear Redstar barking orders and scrambling with her three functional legs to close the gate with Barleywave. Windfur and Morningpaw's pelts blurred as they dashed into the nursery and pushed Olive up. Branchkit and Perchkit were wide-eyed and limp as Cloudthunder and Talonpaw grabbed them by the scruff. Before she knew it, the clan was huddled into the back of Redstar's den, trembling in the dark.

Iciclepool was at the den's entrance.

Redstar was staring out into the woods from the gate, her ears swivelling.

Shiverpaw could still hear her heart in her ears.

She felt the world around her blur as she stared at the interior of the den. The brown tree hollow was dark and splintered. Redstar's bedding was made of yellowed moss.

Her eyes couldn't focus on the moss. Something was wrong. It rippled and shifted. Like something had smudged it and dragged its shape out of reality. It felt wrong. The dirt floor was flat. Too flat. There was a beetle on the floor. It crawled slowly across the den, its antennae waving gently. It stopped, frozen. Shiverpaw wanted to blink. She didn't know how. Was the beetle real? Was the bed real? Were her lungs, her heart, her mind? Was -

She felt someone's paw press against her shoulder.

Shiverpaw blinked.

She looked at the paw, and saw a brown, spotted texture rising along its leg. She slowly turned her head to see Olive staring up at her with softness. In silence, Olive pointed to her own claws. Then her ears. Then her nose. One, two, three. Remember.

Shiverpaw took a deep breath. She unsheathed her claws and dug them beneath her. Dirt. It was dry. It snagged into her claws. Shoot. They were dirty now. She'll have to clean them later.

She breathed through her nose. She could smell her clanmate's individual scents. She smelled pine. The air was cold.

She twitched her ears. She could hear…birds? She thinks so. She could hear a songbird or two. Then, she heard something unfamiliar - a…flock of large birds flying overhead? They made a nasally bellow.

Tree's voice mumbled. "Geese. Big black and brown birds. They're just migrating. It's okay."

Branchkit and Perchkit must've heard the sound too, as their eyes twinkled with relief when Tree spoke. The two kits were wrapped around each other, seeking comfort. The rest of the clan remained quiet.

As Redstar gave a final chitter of alarm, Iciclepool sighed deeply. The camp was allowed to breathe again, and Shiverpaw and Tree were interrogated. Shiverpaw could barely recall what her answers were. She felt her mind move and speak automatically. It wasn't like the time at the Half-Moon Dome. There, she felt like something had actively taken over her. Now, it felt like her own mind had picked her up by the scruff, carrying her around and speaking for her. She knows Iciclepool curled up next to her and started grooming her. She knows Redstar spoke to her calmly. She knows Morningpaw brought her a few strips of jerky to eat. But she didn't really remember how she ended up in the medicine den, sitting in her bedding as she watched Windfur and Tree speak to one another.

"I'm going to have to clean your muzzle with water and mouse bile."

"A bit late for that. It was on my teeth. I spit it out, but if there's some kind of infection related to it, well…"

"Let me put it to you this way - I haven't seen someone insane enough to attack a Woodcrawler and survive," Windfur hissed as he started shoving the water and bile-soaked moss on Tree's face.

Tree hissed. "Ow. Ow. This sucks."

"Wouldn't need to do this if I knew what was in Woodcrawlers to begin with," Windfur sighed. "I guess I can sacrifice some of the honey, but I'm not happy about it. Next time, just run."

"We did run."

"No, you attacked it, then you ran. Big difference."

"If I didn't, it would've successfully chased us. I decided to not bring a giant spider back during my first moon living here, thank you."

Windfur's tail thrashed as he padded towards the back of the den and grabbed a flat pebble and a massive slab of honeycomb, carefully peeling away the wax and scraping off some of the honey. "You could've died," Windfur said gravely. "...You should have died."

There was a tense silence in the medicine den as Windfur grabbed Tree's paw and wiped it clean with moss, then added a layer of honey around a bleeding claw.

Shiverpaw stared blankly at Windfur's treatment. Honey for outer infections. Honey. Yes. That was nice. She tried to bump herself back to the present, coaxing gently. She knew the song, right? Windfur showed her last week.

"Bo-bumblebee, bo-bumblebee, give me a cure, one sweet and so dandy, for my little bird…" she mumbled the start of the nursery rhyme Windfur taught her. She was too quiet for either of them to pick up on it.

Tree watched as Windfur used a small, leather pelt to wrap around their foot. Windfur secured it tightly, then looked back up at Tree.

"...How did you live?"

Shiverpaw's ears twitched. She looked at Tree.

Tree tested their paw on the ground. Seemingly satisfied, they gave an answer. "I've had to fight them before, but I do not recommend it. I made a calculated risk, but you're right. I should be dead." Tree's emerald eyes were solemn. "This one was…I'd say the size of a large bramble bush. I wouldn't recommend confronting anything larger than that - which most Woodcrawlers are. Fighting it close to its den is also a death wish. It doesn't need you dead immediately, only tangled for long enough to drag you down. This one was either desperate, or a hatchling. It was nowhere near its den. Otherwise, Shiverpaw and I would've caught the scent of the den long before we saw the beast."

Shiverpaw blinked. She felt extremely uneasy as she remembered staring right at the Woodcrawler and only seeing the branches of a large shrub. It was so incredibly still that she wouldn't have known if it weren't for Tree.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt her face turn hot. She didn't know where the feeling came from. Embarrassment? Shame? Lingering terror? Tree saved her life. She'd be dead if they weren't there.

"That's not the question I asked," Windfur said curtly.

"I'm giving you the preamble because it's the same story I gave to Redstar," they meowed. "Running from Woodcrawlers is the correct answer. However," Tree's eyes grew stern as they glanced at both Shiverpaw and Windfur. "The ends of their legs - their points - there's a grouping of roots near the base of them that are sensitive. There's no bark or scale, just tendons. You can tear them out and cause them to lose motor control. If you're fast, you have time to disable one leg and then make a break for it. But that's all," Tree scowled, their tail twitching. "You can only stop it from chasing you and knowing where you sleep. In the moment, I decided that was a good option." There was a pause, then Tree's expression softened slightly. "But I understand the worry for my well being. Given how promptly you responded to the danger, I think I'll feel better now, knowing ForestClan can defend its home against the Woodcrawlers."

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[songclangen]

this moon upset me so much. i almost went back on it because riverpetal is a fave of mine, he and rainstreak were the first kits in the clan apart from icymoss and were the first kits of sloeprong. also because beebright is so young. but the talonpaw thing is actually true, he’s had that flavor text twice and he feels like a caring little guy, so i think he’ll do his best with this!

also mothpaw badass<3

[smewduck]

removed splashpaw and silentpaw, so here's the updated cast of Alpine apprentices :]

having fewer of them allows me to give more attention to their characters

[hexxo707]

Smokepaw or Nightwing? Smokepaw was the apprentice that fell off the cliff during the journey, and Nightwing was his mother!

Included Talonpaw here too, why not!

[talonpaw]

[koolaidcatley]

[airocats]

[rose-warriorcatsrefs]

[celestralferretdesigns]

Talonpaw

[stus-warrior-designs]

His death is brutal

[xxxfoxflowerxxx]

Warrior cat designs: Talonpaw

[forestclan-clangen]

MOON 8 (Part 2)

<< FIRST | < PREVIOUS |

Hopechase notices that Morningpaw was acting off ever since Tree was invited back to camp. She flags down Barleywave, her mentor. After a lot of pestering, Barleywave agrees to try and talk to her. Hopechase appreciates his effort.

(Hopechase, warrior, female, 90 moons) (Barleywave, warrior, male, 37 moons) (Morningpaw, apprentice, female, 10 moons)

Morningpaw confesses to Barleywave that she's scared of living in the Woods, she's scared of being sacrificed and doesn't want to feed them. Barleywave doesn't know what to say. Desperate, he thinks, "What would Hopechase do?" He gets into a play bow and starts poking and prodding until Morningpaw starts laugh-sobbing, swatting back at her mentor until her pain dulls, becoming bittersweet.

(Barleywave, warrior, male, 37 moons) (Morningpaw, apprentice, female, 10 moons)

---

Barleywave was way out of his depth.

StarClan, why was Hopechase good at bullying you into being a better cat? He was awful. This was awful. He wasn't good with feelings, and even less with being vulnerable about them. He either laughed away his suffering or buried it down in a dirtplace never to be spoken of again. Barleywave, your apprentice is feeling down, Barleywave, go talk to your apprentice, be there for them! Yes. Easy. Definitely, perfectly easy and normal. He was an adult. Feelings were normal. He could talk...about....

Nope, still nauseous.

Barleywave took a deep breath as he approached the entrance to the apprentice's den. He stopped and sat down, briefly taking a moment to admire the outside of it. Talonpaw and Morningpaw had grown attached to the frames they made for the Plentiful Gathering, hanging them outside to show off their work. He remembered how proud they were. They were happy.

And now, Morningpaw wasn't. Hadn't been for a while. And it was his responsibility to fix it.

Come on, Barley. It's just a training patrol. You're just bringing Morningpaw out of camp and hoping to talk. It's not hard, he mentally berated himself. If only it were that easy.

He took a deep breath. If he kept overthinking it, he'd be waiting at the den entrance forever. Forcing his paws forward, he ducked his head inside.

"Hey, Morningpaw?" He asked.

A light brown and white bundle at the back of the den lifted its head up suddenly. "Yeah?"

"Uh, hi. Would you - actually wait, first of all, good morning," Barleywave stumbled on his words. Well, at least he caught himself.

"...But it's sunhigh?" Morningpaw meowed.

Mouse dung.

"Er - right. Apologies. But uh, I was wondering if you'd like to join me for a spot of training? Could exercise those reflexes?" He said with a grin.

Morningpaw didn't seem enthused, but she dragged herself out from her bedding and stretched briefly. "Okay."

Barleywave gestured out the door, allowing Morningpaw to pad out first before following behind her. He noticed his apprentice's sluggish movement and drooping tail. His ears flattened briefly with concern before perking up again. "Alrighty, let's head out. Hey Redstar!" Barleywave called out across camp.

Redstar was having a conversation with Windfur. She seemed to be in a tense mood as she turned to look at Barleywave. Her blue eyes were glazed with boiling anger.

Dear StarClan, was everyone having the jitters this moon?

"I'm taking Morningpaw out training at the clearing!"

Redstar nodded and dismissed him with a wave of her tail before resuming her strained conversation with Windfur. Barleywave was glad that Redstar wasn't talking to him right now. He beckoned Morningpaw to follow him, and his apprentice complied without protest.

The forest had grown colder, and the trees had been stripped bare of their colorful leaves by this point in the season. It was always a dull time between leaf-fall and leafbare - too warm for rain to turn to snow, but too cold to enjoy much of anything. Barleywave's dark grey fur bristled out under the wind. 

"Brr," he chattered as he shook himself out. "Pretty cold out, huh?"

Morningpaw didn't respond. Barleywave stopped and turned his head, only to feel his apprentice bump into him.

"Oof - sorry!" Morningpaw squeaked as she scrambled backwards. Her amber eyes were nailed to her paws, and she repeated more quietly, "I'm sorry."

"Hey, no worries." Barleywave felt his chest tighten. Morningpaw was always a bit of a jumpy cat, but he realized that Hopechase was right - she was acting off. By this point, Morningpaw would've launched herself into an endless string of apologies, meeting his gaze with wide, pleading eyes. The fact that she refused to even look at him made him nervous.

Barleywave stopped for a second, lifting his tail to let her know. Morningpaw sat down wordlessly.

The warrior glanced around him, his hazel eyes wide with surprise. Wait, was he doing this now? Well, they weren't at the clearing, but they were far enough from camp. No suspicious plants or bushes, he couldn't smell anything. He guessed this was fine?

Barleywave sat down and faced his apprentice with a nervous expression. How…okay, how was he going to break this subject? How does one ask if someone's doing okay without pressing them? Did - no, SHOULD he press her? He was her mentor. Did he phrase it like a leader? Morningpaw, you must tell me - no, no, that was too pushy. She didn't have to. Yo, Morningpaw, I think - no, wait, who was he? Talonpaw? Well, maybe if -

Morningpaw had torn her gaze from the ground to glance up at her mentor. "...Barleywave?" 

"You good?" he blurted.

Fox-dung.

Silence fell on them like an eagle dropping dead into camp. Barleywave held his breath as he waited for Morningpaw's answer, and the longer she waited, the more anxious he became.

Morningpaw's amber eyes finally wavered with an unknown feeling. "You…you don't have to ask. It's okay."

"What?" he blurted. The air released from his chest and was replaced with jumbled words. "No, no, I'm - come on Morningpaw, I'm your mentor, I'm just asking if you're good. Cause, yannow, I stopped really suddenly and all, and you seemed rather down - not that I'm assuming anything, but, you know, just in case."

"I'm fine. Really."

Barleywave blinked, feeling like a rock hit his gut. He stayed quiet for a moment. "...Are you sure?" Barleywave surprised himself with how firmly he said this. But, he stood by it. It was fine if Morningpaw didn't want to talk to him - he was no good with feelings, everyone knew that after…

His mind muddled the image of a grey and white kit together, before blowing it away.

But…despite that, he wouldn't be a good mentor if he didn't try. He was no good talking about feelings, but maybe his apprentice just needed company, or a listening ear, or something else to focus on. He could spare ten minutes to be the bigger cat, for once in his dumb life.

Morningpaw met his mentor's eyes, and something changed. Maybe she saw something in Barleywave's eyes, maybe she was surprised by his honesty or maybe it was the last straw. But her amber eyes glazed over and flooded with fear and grief. Her lips curled into a fearful snarl as she lay on the floor, covering her eyes with her paws.

"I'm scared!" she wailed. "I'm scared of the woods! I'm scared of the Woodcrawlers, and the tendrils, and - and the Fake Twolegs, and I feel like no one else feels like I do!" Morningpaw's claws unsheathed into her forehead as she continued. "I don't want to die! I don't want to feed the woods! Everyone says that won't happen because Redstar is here, but what about Warblerkit? What about Olive's third kit? What about every single Clan that used to be around the lake?!"

Barleywave froze. His hazel eyes wavered as he stared at her.

"I thought - I thought with Tree telling me there's other territories, that we could leave! We didn't have to live in the woods! We could go somewhere else - where there weren't any Woodcrawlers, and we - and I wouldn't need to be scared anymore, but they told me that wasn't true! They're everywhere! I can't hide, and no one can, and we're all going to die! It doesn't matter if - if I become a kittypet, Woodcrawlers go after Twolegs too! It doesn't matter! There's no hope! I'm - I'm going to die, we're all - " Morningpaw choked back and let out a long, pained caterwaul.

Barleywave stared at his apprentice with wide eyes.

Oh. That was - yeah, that was bad. That was a lot to handle. He was woefully unequipped to deal with existential doom. In fact, he spent the majority of his life not thinking about it, otherwise he would have spiraled into despair. Well, fox dung, maybe that's why he was bad at feelings. But - what could he even say? Nothing he said could fix this. Because she was right. The Woodcrawlers were terrifying. Fake Beings were terrifying. And tendrils -

His face turned hot with repressed emotions. They rippled at the surface with wide open jaws.

Normally, he'd shove a rock in those jaws and kick them down to hunt later, but maybe, just this once, he could watch them. Not act. Just…watch. Morningpaw was scared of those jaws too. So, maybe…

Barleywave closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He didn't know what to say, so he didn't. He placed his tail gently on his apprentice's shoulder -

He should've opened his eyes before doing that. His tail landed on her ear.

"Sorry," he mumbled as he shifted to her shoulder. But Morningpaw…laughed. It was an exasperated and humorless laugh. One that could only be made in dismay. But still. He sat there quietly, letting her cry her heart out for as long as she needed. He kept trying to find something to say, but he never did. He eventually just shifted beside her, and purred sympathetically.

Sunhigh passed into the early afternoon before Morningpaw sat up, her eyes dulled with pain and her face ragged with marks of her own paws. Barleywave brought his purr to a slow stop, tucking his tail back around his paws.

They remained silent for a while, their environment filled with the sound of wind and the occasional shuffling in the undergrowth. Barleywave had time to think, and despite it all, he had found nothing to say. Finally, after being frustrated for so long, he thought - what would Hopechase do? If she had nothing to say, what would she do to comfort a young cat?

He slowly raised his paw and prodded at her shoulder.

Morningpaw peered at him from the corner of her tired eyes.

He poked her again. The tip of Morningpaw's tail tapped the ground. Barleywave blinked slowly and padded her again.

"Don't." Morningpaw hissed weakly. Barleywave did what she asked and stopped, his paw still half-raised.

The two cats stared at each other, until Morningpaw's eyes narrowed and she let out a defeated laugh. "You look stupid."

In response, Barleywave smirked and batted his paw at her shoulder again.

"Quit it!" Morningpaw whined. She batted back at him half-heartedly.

"Oowww, oof! I've been had! Defeated!" Barleywave yelled dramatically as he flopped to the floor, his eyes flickering.

"You're not taking me seriously!"

"But I am! And yeah, it sucks." Barleywave tried to squish her face between his paws, and Morningpaw pouted as she pulled back and swiped at his face.

"It doesn't just suck, Barleywave. It's over. I'm just going to be scared forever, and - mphff!" Morningpaw ended up with her mentor's paw in her mouth, somehow. She growled and spit it out before tackling him. "Stop it!"

Barleywave had an idea.

He started poking, prodding and play fighting with his apprentice - no training, no serious skill, just pretending like she was a kit in the nursery and goading her into fighting him. Despite her verbal protests, she never ran or distanced herself from him. She always fought back. After an hour of bouncing off trees, rolling into pinecones and Morningpaw yowling at him to get back here so she could bite his stupid fur off, Barleywave watched his apprentice's expression go from despairing to bittersweet. When Morningpaw finally knocked him off his feet one last time, Barleywave heard her yowl with pyrrhic triumph.

"Stay down!"

"Grraah, Morningpaw has bested her mentor! How could this happen?"

Barleywave heard Morningpaw force a laugh. That was good enough for him. He shuffled back onto his feet and started combing through the stray pines stuck in his fur.

"Sorry. Sorry," Morningpaw finally mumbled, looking at him with guilty eyes. Barleywave purred. That was the Morningpaw he knew. He stopped, then met the young cat's gaze.

"Look, Morningpaw. You're right. I didn't have to ask, and honestly, I'm not good at the whole 'feelings' stuff. But, that's 'cause I'm scared too."

Morningpaw gave him a bewildered stare.

"Hey, don't gimme that. I'm serious. I was never good with hiding my fears. So I just kicked it down the road instead. Left it as a problem for future me." Barleywave felt himself staring at the jaws on the surface of the water. His instinct to kick a rock at it was strong - but he couldn't. This time, he had an apprentice to teach beside him. So, he taught. He could do that. He could teach. "But, it's no good to run from them. I ended up running from…lots of other feelings. If I couldn't deal with it, then I avoided it. Avoided sadness. Grief. It, uh. It sucked." His throat tightened.

"You don't have to talk about it," Morningpaw mewed hesitantly.

"Nope. But I will." Man. He really, really wanted to shove a rock in that stupid ass jaw rippling over the water. What was it, a bass? A pike? Could it mind its own business? Was he comparing his emotions to fish? Yep. Whatever it took for him to deal with it.

After a while longer, he sighed and let the feelings pass through his back. "I get it. World's a scary place. It's hard to feel like there's a chance for something better. I grew up thinking that nothing mattered. But, that's why I followed Redstar. 'Cause maybe, if we really fought hard instead of being scared, things could be different."

Morningpaw's ear twitched. She waited for him to continue.

"I won't go into too much detail, but the leader before Redstar was…scared of a lot of things. Enough to prioritize it over caring for the rest of the Clan. We didn't want to live like that anymore and…well, here we are now." Barleywave took a moment to collect himself again. "...What I'm saying is, you don't have to stop being afraid, but you do have to do stuff while you're scared sometimes. It's way easier said than done, trust me. I mean, look at me. I'm still trying to figure out how to do that. I've failed at doing that. I failed to be better for…for Warblerkit."

Morningpaw seemed surprised to hear that name, then sad. Barleywave continued quickly. "But, it starts somewhere, right? I mean, you managed to put some of your fear down for long enough to best me in single combat."

Morningpaw pouted and her tail twitched. "I wasn't fighting you for real."

"But we had fun, right?" Barleywave asked. Morningpaw hid behind her whiskers and started grooming her chest fur. Barleywave suppressed a mrrow of amusement, then continued.

"I can't…really tell you how to be brave or stay calm, or whatever. I don't have the solution to that. I think Windfur or…heck, maybe Olive might be able to help more. But if you need a distraction, I got plenty of those. If you need to feel like you're running from something, we can go for a sprint and get that out of your system. It doesn't make you brave, but it does make you feel less cornered."

Morningpaw remained quiet. The air was tense and for a moment, Barleywave wondered if he said the wrong thing. But then, Morningpaw said tersely, "I need to run."

"What, like right now?"

"Please."

"Can do," Barleywave stood up and stretched his legs. His hazel eyes flickered. "Sprint to the border and back to camp as fast as you can. Let's not stray too far from each other."

And so, Morningpaw ran, and Barleywave followed.

He thought about Hopechase, and for a brief moment, he was glad she pushed him into doing something. It was like pulling his teeth out, but he hoped Morningpaw felt a little better. Or at least knew who to go to next. That's all he could ask for.

---

Barleywave overcame a tough challenge for him, and is really excited to tell Hopechase about it. Hopechase congratulates him and bats his ear affectionately.

(Barleywave, warrior, male, 37 moons) (Hopechase, warrior, female, 90 moons)

Talonpaw has a nice conversation with Olive. Olive reassures him about something that was bothering him.

(Talonpaw, apprentice, male, 12 moons) (Olive, mediator, female, 64 moons)

Olive had recovered from giving birth, and has relaxed a bit. She recognizes the insight and personalities her two kits have, and despite her best efforts, a creeping sense of hope fills her. She plays mossball gently with Branchkit and Perchkit, who are happy and exciteable. Olive wishes she could be more optimistic like her kits are. It's hard...but she'll try her best.

(Olive, mediator, female, 64 moons) (Branchkit, kitten, female, 3 moons) (Perchkit, kitten, female, 3 moons)

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[songclangen]

swankit……practicing bird calls…….you don’t even know how special you are

[smewduck]

sketched a bunch of ocs

[warrior-cats-rewritten]

Missing Kits, Part 2/?

Part 1

Dragonflykit - Greenflower's son, now surviving greencough. Dragonflypaw is mentored by Grasswhisker, and becomes Dragonflynose. However, between Firestar's Quest and Midnight, before the Forest starts getting ripped up, Dragonflynose slips off to the Moonstone and transitions, becoming Dragonflywing! She looks a lot like her mom.

Duckkit - Now a dark tortoiseshell molly with a small tail, Duckkit does still pass, but Greenflower is seen getting reassurance from Mudfur that he saw her in Starclan, running around with a moss ball.

Featherkit - Now Dappletail and Stormpelt's son. His death is now retconned. He was deaf, yes, but he wasn't a strong kit to begin with. He passed from fading kitten syndrome, but had a nice life before that, and was starting to get interested in herbs.

Cricketkit - A blue-gray tom like Bluestar, but with yellow eyes. He was apprenticed to Russetmoth, Willowpelt's father, and named Cricketfang. He is mates with Longtail's sister, Heatherwish, and now the father of Cinderpelt and Brackenfur.

Sol's siblings are brought up but they're for another post, as are Cloudtail's and Firestar's.

Quietkit - Now a dark brown tabby molly with brilliant blue eyes. She has made it through her sickness! Her mother has been renamed from Ashheart to Gravelheart. She is currently apprenticed to Russetfur. I have bumped her up to have been born a few moons before ITW, but she should NOT be an apprentice right now, this is much too early. Thankfully, Russetfur is good to her. Her warrior name will be Quietfeather.

Her siblings are under the cut!

Turtlekit - Now a dilute tortoiseshell molly with one green eye and one yellow eye, Turtlekit is Gravelheart's second born child, and is currently apprenticed to Blackfoot. She is also too young for this. Her warrior name will be Turtlesong.

Rubblekit - Another rare prefix, a lot of these kits gave prefixes never seen before. Now he is a small gray tabby tom with (as a reference to his wiki sprite) bright green eyes! He is illegally apprenticed to Nettlespot, who thankfully acts tough but is very gentle with him. His warrior name will be Rubblefang.

Cherrypaw - Originally Robinwing and Fuzzypelt from long ago, appearing in Spottedleaf's Honest Answer. Well Robinfuzzy is getting destroyed and SHA no longer exists, so Cherrypaw is getting moved away from that and is now bulky ginger and white molly with amber eyes, and a child of Grayflower (OC) with her littermates Dustpelt and Ravenpaw. She was made a warrior early due to fighting off a boar! Her mentor was Frostfur and her name is Cherryshine.

Chestnutkit - He was bumped down to be Frostfur's littermate as Brindleface is no longer her sister, he was mentored by Snowfur, and he is also now a skinny pale brown tabby tom with a white chest and blue eyes named Chestnutwing. He will mentor Elderpaw after Russetmoth dies.

Lavenderkit - Now a rose-cream mollynwith deep blue eyes, Lavenderkit survives her illness and is apprenticed to Volewhisper. She becomes Lavenderpool, and is mates with Blossomclaw.

Smokepaw - Nightwing's boy, the apprentice that falls. He is a HUGE part of The New Prophecy! A main character now! He will still fall, but find his way home, and he is featured in WCR!Graystripe's Adventure, found by Graystripe and Cody. His name will be Smokeheart.

Talonpaw - Now pale gray with large white feet, the attack from the kittypets nearly killed him, and he collapsed unconscious when he dragged himself back to camp. He would lay in effectively a comatose state, being given a Dying Warrior Ceremony from Blackstar. He woke up during the end of Sunset, and was shocked to hear cheers of his new name: Talonshine.

Nightwhisper - Nightwhisper would not become Darkflower's mate, but instead brought his young daughter to be nursed by Queens who could help. Kinkfur was that kit. She is, for all intents and purposes, half Bloodclan.

Pouncetail - To avoid same names, this man had been not only hit with the Gender Beam, but also a cool new name. Meet Muntjactail! Now has an itty-bitty tail, a lighter chest and belly. She is mates with Stoatrunner (1 half of Stoatfur, who is now split into 2 cats) and is the mother of Beenose!

Since Wolfstep is dead, the lean tabby tom and tortoiseshell queen with 2 kits are now Rubblefang, and his sister Turtlesong. He is giving her loving support. Wetfoot has just died, he was the father of her kits. Ivykit (Ivytail) and Whitekit (Whitewater).

Crowfrost - Dawncloud now gets together with Picklewish (OC, kinda. One of the names from the Fan Vote that Wafflepaw won. He joins Shadowclan during the Journey) and has Crowfrost. He will also be surviving AVOS! She also has them a little bit later than canon.

Spiderfoot - Crowfrost's brother, a cowardly little guy who leaves to become a kittypet. His kittypet name is Socko, and he is loved.

Swallowtail - Now a skinny gray-cream molly with darker legs and amber eyes. Born to Vixenleap and a posthumous Swancall a few weeks after the Battle for Bloodclan, Swallowtail may look like a Windclan cat, but she is a shining star in Riverclan. She even earned her name early and was trusted with an apprentice before anyone else! She has secret kits with Rainwhisker!

Wait, what?

Pebblefoot - Now a mottled pale brown tom with bright green eyes and small paws, Pebblefoot is an alright enough guy. He had a bit of a celebrity crush on Ashfoot when he was young. His mentor is no longer Mosspelt, but now Heavystep, who is no longer an early elder. He gives the next Riverclan Leader a life after his death during The Hopeless Storm.

Minnowtail - Oh, I have BIG plans for this girl, should all go well with ASC. That's far away for now, but just know that us Mouse x Minnow fans are EATING.

Tumblekit - Now a chubby little boy. I am deeply sorry for anyone who likes this little guy and wanted him to live. He was never meant to survive. I tried to think of how I could spin him, but his death is a Canon Event for Minnowtail.

Mallowtail and Grasswhisker - Grasswhisker is now a trans tom who might later realize they're actually a tolly! That isn't set in stone, but what is is this relationship! But, since he and Mallowtail cannot have kits of biologically, they get help from a sire. Who, you ask? Well that's private! (a loner) after Mallowtail gives birth, they are shocked to see that one of their kits, Beechkit, looks VERY much like Grasswhisker! The other is Rippletail. Mates of Gorsetail and Petalfur.

[talonpaw]

congrats lil buddy that’s the worst anyone’s ever done it