#snowpaws shadow

[kiwibattlecats]

Some updated art of Dewstar, Tinystar and Snowpaw!

[ivystar-defender]

Inherited sweet dumb husband genes from his papa

[theanoninyourinbox]

Longstar AU - A Dark Interlude

Trigger Warning - blood, injury, animal death

The night was dimly lit, the tree branches weaving together into a nigh impenetrable ceiling against the full moon.  The Newleaf air was chill against Longstar’s pelt as he slunk through the undergrowth.  He squinted in the gloom, the scars on his face pulling as he focused on the bushes ahead of him.  Longstar was on a mission of great importance, one that would shape his very future.

He was catching a late-night snack for his nursing mate.

Flamewish had told Longstar of her second pregnancy shortly after the Bloodclan Battle.  He had been, and still was, ecstatic about the development.  He loved Cloudtail like a son already, and Snowpaw and Mistlepaw like his flesh and blood, but kits of his own…he had taken one look at them and fallen in love.  Little red coated Foxkit, and tiny brown coated Swiftkit.  He only hoped Swiftspirit would be honored by the name.

It had only been a little over a week, and the usually jovial and lively Flamewish was exhausted, and craving a fresh midnight mouse.  Longstar was more than happy to provide, and had left his terrifying beauty in the capable paws of the Nursery and Fireheart.  And Cinderpelt, of course.  Neither sibling would forgive him if he forgot about “their” apprentice. Shaking the memories from his head, he scented the air for mouse-scent and listened intently.  Fireheart had told him though his eyes were fine now, they could – and probably would – deteriorate over time.  The dog’s teeth could have done quite a lot more damage, Starclan bless, but if he was going to lose his eyesight at some point, he’d best be prepared ahead of time to still be able to get around.  There was no fresh mouse scent, or even bird-scent, but a faint hint of bonesandbloodandteethandpack had his hackles raising.

And then a cat screamed terror and pain into the silence.

Longstar leapt into motion, a streak of silver-brown against the shadowed bushes and tree trunks.  The cat wailing was joined by the barking of a dog, and fear cut through Longstar like The Tyrant had cut down Tiger”star” – cold and piercing through his guts.  But a cat was in danger, and even if he was too late for them, he had to drive the dog off.

He only hoped it didn’t take a Life.

The sounds of thrashing bushes and feline terror grew close, and Longstar clambered up a tree to get a better vantage point.  There was indeed a dog, though far smaller than the ones Tiger”star” had lured to kill Thunderclan.  But it was tearing ruthlessly into a gray form, shaking the unknown cat like a leaf in a storm.  With little time to plan if he wanted to save the poor cat, Longstar calculated the distance, and leapt.  He landed on the small dog’s back with a yowl, causing the dog to drop its victim and whirl about wildly.  Digging his claws in, he bit down on the beast’s neck as hard as he could.  The dog yelped in pain and scrambled to get away, and Longstar had to jump off to not be dragged away.  With a final swipe at its hindquarters to drive it away, Longstar finally turned towards its poor victim.

A gray cat lay in a puddle of blood and debris from the bushes.  Their sides heaved raggedly, and their breaths sputtered horribly.  Longstar approached, but it was very apparent that this cat was dying far too quickly for him to help.  He crouched close to their face, and the cat’s remaining heather-blue eye locked onto him.  Longstar’s mind interposed Swiftspirit’s face on the dying cat, and he shuddered in grief.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here fast enough to help you” he gently mewed, “but I promise to be here for you now.  Yow won’t be alone.” 

The cat looked at him with their teary eye, and tried to speak through gasping breaths. “…d…da…k…” The cat coughed wetly, then continued. “DaaAark…kkkk...t...t…nnnh…”  Their eye looked beyond him, and as he processed what they had said, passed into the night with a sigh.

…Dark?...Itn?...Dark kitten?  A KITTEN!?!?!

Longstar quickly looked around in a panic, the blood in the air clouding his senses.  Oh Starclan was there a kitten in this mess?!  Blood spotting his paws as he searched, he saw a gleam like starlight out of the corner of his better eye, and whipped his head around towards where the now lifeless cat had looked.  A tiny tuft of bloody white fur protruded out of the bushes, and Longstar rushed to the spot.  Within the bush, behind the brave parent cat, was an injured kitten, no more than three moons old.  Their – judging by the scent through the blood, a little tomcat – ear was nearly torn off, bloody scratches littered his little body, and his tail hung by a scrap of flesh.  His eyes were wide and horrified, and his sides heaved in terror. 

Oh sweet Starclan he needed to get this kitten help Right NOW! He reached his head out to grab the kitten, and was rewarded with a hiss and a warning swipe to his nose.  “Hey there, are you okay little guy?” Longstar mewed, trying to look friendlier.  “I’m not going to hurt you…you must be Dark, right?”  The kitten stared, as if not even seeing him.  Then his eyes focused at Longstar’s face, and his fur started to flatten. “You’re very brave, little guy, but I need to get you some help.  Can I take you with me?” The kitten – Dark – began to tremble, and whispered “…momma?”

Longstar hid his wince as best he could, and quietly mewed “I’m sorry, but she’s hunting in the stars now, and nothing can hurt her anymore.” Dark’s face twisted into tears, and he held back a whine.  “Please, Dark, can I take you somewhere safe?  My family and my own kits would never forgive me if I left you here.”  The kitten heaved a sob, and nodded, stepping forward gingerly. “…my name’s Darkkit…”

Oh.

That is a very Clan name.

“That’s a great name sweetie, just” Longstar paused, looking at the carnage behind him, “just close your eyes for me, okay?  You don’t want to see your mother like this.”  Darkkit nodded again, with a wince, and wobbled forward.  Longstar grabbed him gently by the scruff, and as fast as he could manage without jarring Darkkit’s injuries, headed for home.

Please Starclan, he prayed, let Fireheart and Cinderpelt be awake!

-------

Fireheart and Cinderpelt were indeed awake, waiting at the entrance to camp with cobwebs and poppy seeds and worried faces.  Yellowfang’s spirit had woken Fireheart, and apparently was staying with Flamewish – probably to see her great-grandkits.  The Healers rushed the injured kitten to the Healer’s Den, and shooed Longstar away as soon as Darkkit fell asleep.  They had garnered some new information from the kitten – his sire had been a Windclan cat, who had rejected Darkkit and his mother Smoke, though he couldn’t remember the tom’s name or role.  Longstar had sent an early morning patrol to make sure the dog was gone, and another to bury the mother who had fought so hard to save her son. 

After thoroughly cleaning himself up, Longstar entered the Leader’s Den; as he thought, a starlit gray molly was curled over the sleeping Flamewish and the kits.  Yellowfang glanced up at him with a critical eye, then softened her gaze.

“The kit’ll heal up fine, Longface, stop bringing the mood down in here” she murmured.  Longstar sagged in relief – if he could trust anyone to be honest, it would be Yellowfang.  After a moment, he shrugged. “I’m just hoping Flamewish doesn’t skin me for not bringing a mouse” he joked.

“Extenuating circumstances, you live this time” came from the Queen, opening one eye and smiling up at Longstar.  “Now tell me about our new son!” Yellowfang laughed at the look on Longstar’s face, which woke a mewling Swiftkit and Foxkit.  With a glittering smile, Yellowfang departed from the den, leaving Longstar with his loving mate and kits.

-------

Flamewish was right though, Darkkit fit into their family just fine.

[the-story-of-snow]

The Story of Snow: Chapter 4

~First~ ~Next~ ~Previous~

Snowpaw smiled, things had been really good these past few days. Last night was the gathering, Stormpaw and Flowerpaw tried to introduce her to their friends from other clans but Whitepaw had gotten there first and dominated the conversation so they hung out with the medicine cats. Honestly, Snowpaw preferred that. The medicine cats were a much smaller group than the apprentices, so much more conformable. The gathering would have gone perfectly if Ashstar didn't almost forget to announce Snowpaw's name alongside Whitepaw's name. He was so focused on his perfect daughter that he could almost forget about his less-than-perfect one. That was probably why he gave her the most useless mentor in existence. Amberfern hadn't done anything to train her unless you counted making her tend to the elders. Flamehawk had been training her to hunt and fight. She wasn't great at hunting like Whitepaw was but she wasn't terrible. Fighting was a different story. She was great at it! She made up for her smaller size with speed and strategy. She had been able to beat Stormpaw twice! She could probably beat her sister if she got the chance! Maybe cats wouldn't idolize her so much then. Snowpaw shook her head. That wouldn't happen. Ashstar would never give her the chance to face Whitepaw if he thought Snowpaw had a chance of beating her. And Whitepaw would probably twist the situation somehow and make everyone love her more. She was a manipulative, self-absorbed, ditzy Fox-heart. And Ashstar didn't help at all. He always praised Whitepaw for every little action while he either ignored or yelled at Snowpaw for anything. Yelling was worse. When he yelled he tried to make brash decisions. He almost made it so Flamehawk couldn't continue to train Snowpaw this morning. Flamehawk managed to talk him out of it. Flamehawk had lied that he was only training her when Amberfern was busy. It was kinda true. The only problem was the fact that she was always "busy". Ok, maybe these last few days hadn't been great, but they were better than ever before. She wasn't getting yelled at all the time, she wasn't being constantly seen in her sister's shadow, and she was learning stuff! She just finished some fighting training with Flamehawk and Stormpaw a minute ago. It had gone great, she was almost able to take down Stormpaw. And he was three moons older than her! Right now she was just kinda chilling in the woods. She just let Stormpaw and Flamehawk continue ahead. They were great, but alone time was great too. That was one drawback to having Stormpaw as a friend. He was always checking in. Always making sure she was OK. All the time. He would probably freak out when he realized she wasn't with them. It probably stemmed from Flowerpaw. She didn't like being alone. It could also be that's just how Stormpaw is like with those he cares about. He cared about her, Right? She thought so. Why else would he be friends with her? But why would he care for her? 

Snowpaw shook her head. He cared about her. She knew that. She was overthinking. Snowpaw got up and started walking back to camp. As she was walking she scented a rabbit. She froze. She should try and catch it! She sniffed for the scent. She got into a hunting crouch as she caught eye of the rabbit. She stalked close. Then the rabbit looked up, saw her, and ran. Snowpaw gave chase. She had to catch this! They ran through the forest for a bit. But the rabbit managed to duck into its burrow. As Snowpaw came to the burrow she said

"Mouse-dung!" She sighed. Then she looked up. In front of her was this plant. It had these pretty white and purple bell-shaped flowers. She didn't recognize them, and Flowerpaw had shown her a lot of herbs. A thought entered Snowpaw's mind. What if this herb hadn't been discovered? That would be so cool! Whitepaw hadn't found a new herb! Snowpaw quickly grabbed one of the flowers. She held it in her twisted paw to keep it upright as she walked back to camp. As she walked she realized two things. One, Flowerpaw was out of camp. She left around the time Flamehawk, Stormpaw, and Snowpaw left. She was gathering herbs somewhere in the territory. The second thing was that there was a possibility it wasn't a useful herb, or it had been found. If that was true, at least it was pretty. Flowerpaw would probably love it. She liked sticking flowers into her fur. She always had leaves, sticks, or flowers in her fur. Most of it she had purposely put there. Snowpaw decided she would hide it near the entrance to the camp. That way she could wait till Flowerpaw came back and nobody else, Whitepaw especially, could find it and steal it. She could tuck it in the thorn tunnel that lead to camp. That would be perfect. She just had to tuck it deep and no one but her could find it! 

When she got to camp she tucked the flower in the tunnel as she planned. As soon as she walked into camp Stormpaw ran up to her. He started talking 

"Snowpaw! Where did you go? I was so worried when we got to camp and you weren't behind us. Are you ok?" Snowpaw chuckled then said with a smile 

"I'm fine. I just stopped and you continued walking." The look on his face was hilarious. He opened his mouth to apologize way too much but Snowpaw laughed and stopped him. Then she said

"Don't worry about it, I did it on purpose. I need a little alone time sometimes" He started to apologize when Flamehawk called him over. Flamehawk nodded at Snowpaw, letting her know that he saw her and knew she was safe. Snowpaw stood near the camp entrance for a moment, as she started to move a cat came up to her with what looked like herbs wrapped in a leaf. The cat was Brownpaw. They didn't know each other that much. Brownpaw was an older apprentice. All Snowpaw knew about her was that she hung out with Whitepaw. Honestly, that was probably because she was trying to suck up to Ashstar and become a warrior. Brownpaw put the leaf on the ground and pushed it towards Snowpaw. 

"Can you bring this to Ashstar for me? Thanks. Bye," Brownpaw then walked right past Snowpaw through the tunnel. Well, that was rude. Snowpaw looked at the herbs. She did not want to bring them to Ashstar. He was probably still on edge from this morning. He would yell at her. All of a sudden a voice popped Into her head

'The flower' What? The flower? The flower she found? The voice spoke again, it felt vaguely familiar 

'The flower is a foxglove flower' Foxglove. That seemed familiar, like an old memory. Snowpaw was tempted to speak aloud to herself, but she didn't. What did the flower being a foxglove flower mean? 

'The seeds are poisonous' Wait, how did she know this? Snowpaw shook her head, Flowerpaw probably told her once. Wait. She had a poisonous flower. And she had herbs meant for her father. Her father, who was constantly yelling at her. Her father, who constantly overlooked her. Her father.

She hated him. She could slip some foxglove seeds into his herbs easily. Wait, no. This was a bad idea. She would be caught. He would suspect her. She sighed and picked up the herbs when the voice in her head spoke again 

'You can pass it off to someone else. Someone who will pass it on to someone else. It's gone through three cats already. Make it six.' The voice was right. Snowpaw walked into the tunnel quickly. She grabbed the flower and poured some seeds into her paw. Then she put them in the herbs. She took a deep breath and shredded the flower, sticking the remaining bits in the thorns. She picked up the herbs and left the tunnel. She looked around the camp and saw a cat that would work. They would pass it on. She walked up behind them and set the herbs down, then asked 

"Can you please take these to Ashstar? I have to go on patrol." She then turned and walked towards the deputy, who was organizing a hunting patrol. The cat didn't see her face. She joined the patrol and left. She carefully kept herself from shaking. From excitement or fear. She couldn't tell. The voice she had deemed as her own thoughts spoke again 

'Wonderful job Snowpaw'

~First~ ~Next~ ~Previous~

Hope you enjoyed!

[warrior-cats-rewritten]

🐈

Another kitty! Meet Stempelt!

Stempelt is a lean, pale gray tom with icy blue eyes. He looks pretty basic. Not a remarkable looking guy!

But he has a strange origin. Stempelt is the son of Runningwind and Redtail. They used a Shadowclan surrogate named Fidgetflower, Fintfang's mate. When they have a litter, they promise the second born kitten to Runningwind and Redtail.

That second born is delivered to Thunderclan by Flintfang soon after its birth, sweet little Stemkit is given to...

"Oh. I didn't know. I'm so sorry for your loss, Runningwind."

Runningwind still takes his newly born son into Thunderclan, stating that this kit is his and Redtail's. Queen's Rights. He loves his son, but this pudgy, squeaking, nose-nipping little baby is a reminder of what's been lost. Runningwind refuses to let it get to him, and fiercely protects the infant, Frostfur sharing her milk with him.

Stemkit quickly grows into Stempaw, a mischievous little apprentice that forms a friendship with the equally mischievous Cloudpaw for what seems to be the express purpose of driving Fireheart insane.

Then, so suddenly and terribly, Runningwind is killed by Tigerclaw. Stempaw mourns heavily, along with the more silently grieving Sandstorm. The two almost siblings don't talk, they enjoy each other's quiet and peace. Sandstorm never knew what to make of Runningwind, but felt connection to him, seeing as Redtail finding her in the woods as a baby had lots of cats marking them down as family.

Stempaw was incredibly upset once more when Cloudpaw leaves Thunderclan, it actually damaged their relationship a little bit forever. It hurt, his best friend leaving with seemingly no trace, especially when he knew Cloudpaw was too tough to be kidnapped.

He was excited when Cloudpaw came back, but once again the feeling would wind up bittersweet when the now trans molly earned her name first, and when denouncing Starclan at that! Stempaw was older than her, it wasn't fair! She was gonna leave him behind again...

Though, he feels horrible when her crush, Brightpaw, is mauled by dogs. He understands her absence then, as Cloudtail fusses over the cat she loves so very much.

At the same time, Mistlepaw, Snowpaw's sister was struggling with her training. Her mother Speckletail was always supportive, but all the support in the world cannot make you pass assessments. Not that it matters much, with Bluestar refusing all apprentices their Warrior names, but Mistlepaw is especially struggling with tracking and battle training. With nothing much else to do, Stempaw helps her out. The 2 grow close, wrestling around together and Mistlepaw helping him with his grief. He forms a good bond with Mistlepaw and Snowpaw.

Firestar, new leader, finally gives almost all the apprentices their new names, including Stempaw, earning the name Stempelt. His mentor, Cherryshine, sister of Ravenpaw and Dustpelt, beams at him, offering him to sit with her and enjoy a good meal of blackbird together.

He fights in the Battle of Bloodclan alongside Mistleberry and Snowpaw (note: Snowpaw earned his name immediately afterwards, as he wasn't quite ready for his new name yet, he could fight, but he insisted he wanted to get his hunting perfect before he got a new name)

Stempelt would make the Journey with Thunderclan after being freed from his cage by Leafpaw, giving all his assistance to Speckletail alongside Mistleberry and Snowtail. Mistleberry and Stempelt became Courts. Almost mates, but not quite.

They held off on having any kits until they were 100% sure they were ready for it. They didn't become official mates until Po3 began, and they only had a litter of kits during The Divided Warriors (The Forgotten Warrior's new title)

During Long Shadows, he is given an apprentice. Deerpaw, new grandson of Tigerstar through his daughter Lynxpetal (a surviving Lynxkit). He acts as a father figure to the nervous little guy, and supports him after he loses one of his paws. Well, he and Graystripe, as Deerpaw was a very unique cat, and needed some extra help with focusing.

Finally, just as it seems things are going badly for the Clans, Mistleberry suddenly gives birth to 2 kittens. Frogkit, a bulky gray tom with green eyes; and Sunkit, a reddish brown spotted tabby molly with amber eyes. Though no one knows it yet, Sunkit is going to transition during apprenticeship, becoming a tom named Volepaw.

Though, tragically, Stempelt will never see this. Stempelt is killed during The Last Hope, fighting against the Dark Forest Trainee, Thornclaw.

He and Mistleberry both perish during the Battle, both watching their boys from Starclan.

[plasmacannonenjoyer]

G@TE: Sun Elves

The Sun Elves are the largest sub-species, or a grouping of sub-species of Elves surviving today. Long ago, they were ruled by the merciless, semi-nomadic daemon worshipping Wild Elves, who used their slave labour to built great shrines to the Dark Powers, and huge mausoleums and pyramids to inter their dark priests and overlords; while they themselves rode in swarms, fleets of chariots to raid other Elven settlements, taking them prisoner for thralldom - or sacrifice.

Daemon princes took great pleasure in these mass ritualised murders, savouring the suffering of those sacrificed, as they drank their pooling blood. For this, they rewarded the Wild Elves - or Wildings as they are more commonly known - with Bronze, with which they made tools and weapons of oppression. Bronze, and many dark gifts, whether their chattels enslaved to solid form, powers beyond reasoning - or to their greatest champions, twisting their very flesh into something else.

The various tribes prayed, so often in vain, until the Gods took mercy on them, and granted them the knowledge of Iron. In secret, the slave miners gathered bauxite ore and passed it on, so that the slave-smiths could clandestinely forge blades for the uprising…

And uprise they did, one village at a time, until they could ambush convoys, waging guerilla war while they prepared to attack the strongholds head on. It was always slaughter, the only thing keeping them going between bloody battles that rarely went their way, the dream of freedom, of peace for their people, and their love for them - and their faith. That the gods’ lent divine assistance when things seemed most bleak.

Ultimately, this wretched, uphill struggle would succeed. And the Sun Elves, as they became known, triumphed over their vicious cousins, their righteous fury only growing with each difficult victory. But still the Dark Powers revelled for the most part, simply for all the bloodshed and misery. The Sun Elves finally tore down their castles and redoubts, demolished their shrines, burned their chariots, and smelted down their arms and armour into molten slag.

The Wildlings were broken and dispersed, many fleeing into the wilderness, others chased into the sea to drown. Many more, their priests and warriors who could be taken alive, given show trials and subjected to grisly public executions. Many more still, were shackled and set to work. Building the new Sun Elf city in the Bay of _______, a palace built on the still-smouldering ruins of the highest, darkest, cruellest fane.

And so Light triumphed over Darkness. More than a thousand years ago; a veritable æon past. But this was not the end of hardship for the Sun Elves, noble paladins and kings they be.

Whilst this fledging kingdom warred with pockets of resistance on its fringes, with sea-borne Snowpaw raiders from their northern reaches, or the enigmatic, subterranean and insular Dwarfs from their southern hills, the Daemons lurked, brooding, peering into this world, they seethed as they saw their rightful sacrificial lambs going to little slaughter, instead, much merriment and success; the gods interfering more in their favour, now that the hellish shroud was so much lifted from the world.

And so it came to pass, that after a life in serfdom for many generations of Wildlings, one was born; by the hand of the cruellest Fates, the highest blood, born into the lowest home. And growing up in such circumstances, he learned of the history of his people. And learned to resent the present as it stood.

Where the tallest spires in Dawnrise cast the longest shadows; the Shadow Quarter of the city, damp and gloomy even at midday, where in that time many an impoverished descendant of the Wild Elf lived; he started his life, working for a merchant, fattened by the cheap labour of indentured child labourers. Near every day, he would be spat on in the street, hurrying home to his frail mother.

And when the time came, that the Temple itself, most ardent of the official institutions, demanded that clemency must be shown to the ancient enemy; that those mistreated and abused for our benefit, were not themselves, most to blame - and that the cycle of suffering must come to a close. For if we are truly morally superior, then WE must show mercy, when they never did.

And so their serfdom was ended. “This will be the end” was the cry of many, “… For if they seek to once more rule over us, where now we are their masters, then they must, in between, stand on even ground, as we do” the exclamation of others. But it came to pass, at least officially; while in reality, there was not much change for most. Their employers would pay a little more; but to stay in their hovels would be a little more expensive still. A wildling, the boy’s uncle, spoke in a public square, and was brutally savaged by off-duty Dawnrise City Guardsmen, as drunk on power as they were on cheap ale.

When his mother bade them to stop, a mailled hand slapped her to the cobbles, bleeding from her face. It was a memory that stayed with him until the end.

Not long after, his poor mother succumbed to the rampant disease in the Shadow Quarter, brokenhearted after seeing her last living brother beaten to death in the street

And so he was cast out, with nowhere to go. And he was taken in by some dangerous fellows, not much older than he; other Wildling boys with nowhere to go, but an empty stomach and a heart full of hate. And so came his first real job, as a cutpurse, and his first fraternity, peddlers of filth and contraband.

*I can’t remember what I called the bay that the city of Dawnrise in; I’ll have to find the maps I drew*

[cloudtail]

[saturnskyez]

[jayfrost-designs]

Now for the next of the BrightClouds kits. I won't have a sheet done for Ambermoon for a bit, because I want to use the same lineart I used for Ambertalon, and I'll have to dig out an old iPad to get the file for that, and I won't be updating Ambertalon's ref sheet because I'm still pretty happy with it, so this is the last of the BrightCloud kit ref sheets for a bit. That all being said, here's Snowbush!

You can find the reverse side of his design here.

For his physical description, Snowbush is described as fluffy. The name "Snowbush" would put a lot of people in mind of a round, floofy boy, but because of EOTW, my mental image of Snowbush was set in stone long before he got his warrior name in canon. So my Snowbush has an overall regal look, with a thick medium coat that's thickest around the neck, a tall moderately muscular frame, and tufted ears. He reminds a lot of the older cats of Whitestorm to look at him, though there's still some differences. I used this image of a Turkish Angora as a reference.

For his pattern, Snowbush is described as a white tom with amber eyes. Pretty self-explanatory.

Overall, I'm really happy with how this turned out.

[exocynraku]

warrior cats au where during greywing and clear skys “kill me and live with the memory” battle, clear sky DOES actually kill grey wing, causing him to end up taking over the forest alongside one eye. he takes over all of the other clans’ territories except for one; riverclan. riverclan, lead by river ripple, leaves the territory around skyclan and heads far away to somewhere they will be safe. they find a big river with a good surrounding area and set up camp there, eventually renaming themselves to the cats of the river (river ripple chose to name them that cuz it sounds like the cats of the park hehehehe) the cats of the river survive for many many many many moons until one day, skyclan shows up near their territory (ps this is super in the future so clear sky is long gone) because apparreently their territory got all destroyed by twolegs and they need to find a new place to live. because skyclan is so massive, they totally outnumber the cats of the river and threaten to take over their territory, until the cats of the river receive a prophecy; ice and snow alone will reunite sky, shadow, wind and river  the cats of the river soon find out the meaning of the prophecy when they meet two young kittypet sisters, bella; a grey-blue molly with bright blue eyes and sadie; a white molly with grey colourpoint markings and blue eyes. bella and sadie join the clans, gaining the names; bluepaw and snowpaw

[strelles-universe]

The Cats of ThunderClan: Snowpaw

Name: Snowpaw

Other Names: N/A

Meaning: White Furred

Age: 14 moons (Book 5 - Ch. 5)

Identity: Cisgender Tom - He/Him

Orientation: Bisexual

Rank: Apprentice - Guard

Former Rank(s): N/A

A medium furred white tom with a double layered coat that keeps him warm in katamme. He’s very fond of his singularly folded left ear. Snowkit has pale translucent blue eyes and pale pads and ears. Snowkit was born severely deaf - something that became apparent very quickly and it was realized that he wasn’t responding to auditory stimulus which sent his mother into complete overprotectiveness mode. Speckletail spent a lot of time drilling him on battle stances and defensive poses, often waking him up early to shadow guards and get him to mimic the moves.

Snowkit doesn’t know what he wants to be but he certainly doesn’t like fighting and long since decided he doesn’t want to be a guard. He’s wary of disappointing his mother though so every time someone asks, he insists that he’s not ready yet. He enjoys being around Yiska who speaks shining pawspeak and has steadily begun to teach him as well. He put off his apprenticeship until Whitestar couldn’t delay it any longer by the will of the code and was apprenticed to Brackensight at 10 moons old. Snowpaw was still very nervous but Brackensight was a calmly, gentle and patient mentor who’d been learning pawspeak on the side so he and his mentor were able to communicate smoothly. 

Maskpaw is his best friend in the whole world and although she was a bit younger than him, she was fiercer than an alligator and he admires her a lot. She encourages him to train his skills and sits up at night, gossiping in the apprentice’s den about the rumors around camp. Lately she’s been helping him decide how he wants to handle his training and decide what he wants to do outside of being a guard.

Snowpaw is anxious about the fact that his mother and sister are fighting more and more (much to his guilt, they’re often fighting about him) and spends his time training or playing with his friend to avoid thinking about it.

Mentor(s): Brackensight

Apprentice(s): N/A

Parents: Speckledtail (mother), Smallear (sire)

Sweetparent(s): Whiteeye

Auncle(s): Whiteeye (aunt), Snowgaze (uncle/deceased)

Sibling(s): Mistlefall (sister)

Nephling(s): N/A

Cousin(s): Mousefur, Aspenwind (deceased), Frigidkit (deceased), Frostkit (deceased)

Mate(s): N/A

Crush(es): Maskpaw

OoC Friends: N/A

Kit(s): N/A

[kiwibattlecats]

Cavekit - Cavepaw ♂ Gorseclan Kit - Gorseclan Apprentice "Badly scarred mink-pointed tom with blue eyes." Shy || Serious || Analytical || Lonely Mother: Shadefeather Father: Thrushwing Brothers: Sedgetuft and Surgingpaw Sisters: Dappledstar and Falconpaw Former Mentor: Spider (ex-Gorseclan, loner) Mentor: Dappledstar Appears in Dappledshade’s Vision and Snowpaw's Shadow

[mallowstep]

Not Shadepelt but I'd love to see Dawnpaw's reaction if one of the other apprentices - Shadow or otherwise make a comment about her sister. I'd also like to see if she tries to talk to Tawnypaw to see how Feather is doing as she can't herself.

ooooooo........good ideas, nonnie.

like..

.

Dawnpaw fiddles with the mouse. Heavystep would chastise her for wasting it like this, but she will eat it. Eventually.

She's just not hungry.

"Do you want to go for a walk?"

Surprised, she looks up. Snowpaw, one of the ShadowClan apprentices, watches her carefully, Whitepaw by her side.

"You looked lonely," Whitepaw adds.

Dawnpaw looks around camp. Heavystep has released her for the day, and she doesn't talk to the younger ShadowClan apprentices. Can't talk to them. "Sure." It can't hurt. Anything is better than sitting here and wishing her family was okay.

Snowpaw and Whitepaw chatter on about things Dawnpaw doesn't get. She just follows their footsteps, until she hears Featherpaw.

"I feel bad for her," Whitepaw says. "I mean, I know she's a parasite---" (she says the word so calmly it makes Dawnpaw miss a step) "---but still."

"She seems happy," Snowpaw says. "I've seen her talking to Stonefur..."

Dawnpaw doesn't hear the next part of what Snowpaw says, because the rush in her ears overpowers everything. "Shut up," she growls. "You --- she's younger than all of us, she's not happy, you don't know anything."

Both ShadowClan apprentices pause, looking back at her.

"She's my sister," Dawnpaw says. (Her little sister, the one she promised to protect because they weren't quite littermates and Dawnpaw was two moons old when she was brought to RiverClan and she used to fall asleep on the outside of the nest because she was afraid the River would take them just like Robinkit and Woodkit.) "She's not a parasite, she's an apprentice, and she was going to be an amazing warrior. I used to take her swimming and she caught a minnow once, just as a kit."

Snowpaw curls her tail down diplomatically. "I didn't know you were related. Aren't you all-RiverClan?"

"Our mother adopted her." Dawnpaw shakes her head. "That's not the point. You shouldn't talk about her like that."

She leaves, because she doesn't know what they can say that won't make her feel like attacking them, and that will probably get her in trouble, and Mosspelt doesn't need to worry over another kit.

.

as for tawnypaw and dawnpaw, hm. will have to think on that.

<3

[residents-of-the-darkforest]

Dark Forest Resident: Sablefleck 

Aliases / Nicknames: Sable, Fleckie, Uncle Sable, Best Uncle Ever, Foxheart, Murderer 

Gender: tom 

Sexuality: homosexual 

Family: unnamed mother, unnamed father, Echomoon (sister), Snowpaw, Harepaw, Ravenpaw (nephews) 

Other Relations: unnamed mentor 

Clan: PrairieClan 

Rank: warrior 

Characteristics: kind-hearted, loyal, loveable, reckless, loves his family, wants to impress his nephews 

Number of "Victims": 3 

Number of "Murders": 3 

Murder Method: leading to dogs (accidentally) 

Known "Victims": Snowpaw, Harepaw, Ravenpaw 

Victim Profile: his nephews (unintentionally) 

Cause of Death: throat slashed, killed by Echomoon 

Cautionary Tale: N/A

Story: 

Sablefleck was a very happy, outgoing, and loving cat. 

He always tried his best to cheer up anyone he saw having a bad day, even if they weren't in his Clan. And it worked, because his positivity was just that infectious. Everyone in PrairieClan loved him and was his friend. Except for one cat--his sister, Echomoon.

Sablefleck never understood why Echomoon didn't want to hang out with him. Even as a kit, she had always been snappy, mean, and rude. He didn't get it. He just wanted to hang out with her, like siblings should! But she just kept turning him away. 

Things changed when Echomoon became pregnant. Sablefleck was overjoyed for her and promised to be there for the kits as much as possible, since their actual father wasn't around. Surprisingly, Echomoon let him. When Sablefleck's nephews, Snowkit, Harekit, and Ravenkit, were born, he doted on them just like their father should have. 

He spent so much time playing with them, Echomoon watching them carefully from the nursery. She still treated him stiffly, but she adored her kits more than anything else. Sablefleck was very much looking forward to showing his nephews all of his favourite places in the territories once they became apprentices. And soon enough, they did. 

The first place Sablefleck took Snowpaw, Harepaw, and Ravenpaw to was a garden in a Twoleg house that was unfenced. It was full of catnip and very peaceful and safe. Nothing bad could happen to them there... at least, that's what Sablefleck thought.

How was he supposed to know that the Twolegs living there had other Twolegs visiting them? 

How was he supposed to know that those Twolegs had brought large dogs with them? 

How was he supposed to know that they would let those dogs out in the garden?

 And how was he supposed to know that the dogs would charge towards his precious nephews, ripping their bodies to shreds before he could even flick the tip of his tail?

Sablefleck barely got out of there alive himself. When Echomoon saw him stumble back into camp, covered in blood, dragging the torn up bodies of her sons behind him, she lost it. She screamed at him, calling him so many horrible names. She said that she should have never let him near her kits, that he was the reason they died, that he was the worst brother a cat could ever have.

Sablefleck tried to explain himself, but her words stung him like a hundred wasps, and he found himself believing them a little too. The only thing that stopped the tirade was the medicine cat pulling him away and into their den to patch up his wounds.

Sablefleck lay in the medicine den that night, unable to sleep. The events of the day kept on flashing through his mind. The one thought he kept coming back to, over and over again, was that he hoped Echomoon would forgive him.

And then, suddenly, he saw her shadow appear in the entryway to the medicine den! His prayers were coming true! However, the smile on Sablefleck's face was quickly turned into an expression of fear and panic, as Echomoon stepped into the den and unsheathed her claws. He tried to call out for help, but with one single slashing motion, it was all over.

Additional Information:

--Submission by @starfalcon555​

--Himbo

--He should have gone to StarClan, but his own self-guilt, combined with the fact that some StarClan cats thought he could have saved his nephews and thus killed him via negligence, resulted in him getting sent to the Dark Forest.

--Had they lived, Sablefleck's nephews' warrior names would have been Snowfern, Harejump, and Ravensky.

--They tried to make him look as much like a sable as possible

--Echomoon is a future submission.

--Sablefleck becomes Fennelbur’s mate. Ironically his old mate I also picture as black and white.

[the-story-of-snow]

The Story of Snow: Chapter 8

~First~ ~Next~ ~Previous~

Snowpaw had been reassigned a mentor as soon as Amberfern moved to the nursery, it was Brightspot, which was awesome. She finally had a mentor that could focus on training her. She was great. The only problem was that she woke her up at dawn. Every morning. Usually made her go on the dawn patrol too. Brightspot had apparently decided to not wake up all the other apprentices while getting Snowpaw today so she was currently poking Snowpaw to make her get up. Snowpaw gave a soft groan and opened her eyes. She groggily got to her paws and followed Brightspot out. As soon as they were out of the den, Snowpaw noticed it wasn't even sunrise, there wasn't even weak light hinting at the sun being just below the horizon. It was basically night. Snowpaw spoke quietly, so as to not wake up other cats,

"Why did you just wake me up before sunrise? I was having a good dream." Brightspot said

"We're going to do some training, I want to work on your fighting skills in the dark." She started walking towards the exit to camp. Snowpaw groaned again and followed her. Brightspot was great and amazing but some of her training ideas could be annoying. They certainly worked, Snowpaw's hunting and fighting were getting a lot better. Whitepaw was still better than her at hunting but Snowpaw was working on it. Snowpaw's major strength was fighting. She had come close to taking down Brightspot once or twice, and she was usually the cat Stormpaw trained with to improve his fighting. As they were walking Brightspot said

"Stormpaw and Birchpaw's warrior  assessments will be today." Snowpaw's eyes widened in surprise 

"Really? Cool." She saw Brightspot nod and say

"It feels like just yesterday my kits were getting apprenticed. And now they're almost warriors." Brightspot sighed with a small smile and the two of them kept walking in silence. Eventually, Brightspot stopped in a clearing. Through the trees, Snowpaw could see a sliver of the lake. She could see the reflections of the sparkling stars in the sky on the lake. Brightspot turned towards her and said

"Let's just do a quick practice battle and then we'll focus on your weak points." As they both settled into starting positions, Brightspot added

"Claws sheathed" Snowpaw flinched. She needed that reminder, she found it surprisingly easy to forget. One of their first practice battles like this had ended up with Brightspot getting scratched because Snowpaw forgot to sheath her claws. Ever since that thing that happened with Whitepaw before Snowpaw had gotten her mentor changed, she had had her claws out a lot. Whitepaw usually left her alone if she saw her claws out, afraid she'd attack her. It didn't always work, and Whitepaw would still bully her, but it helped with the frequency. The voice, who Snowpaw had deemed Shadow for the time being, agreed. Saying that she should always be ready to defend herself or others. She was probably right. Ecepsicaly with how Windclan had been lately, venturing onto thunderclan territory and then denying it. Ashstar was going to bring it up again at the next gathering, but windclan would probably deny it again. As soon as she thought of her father's name, she dragged her mind back to the now. She was facing Brightspot, waiting to see who would make the first move. Snowpaw examined her stance. It was hard to see in the dark, but it seemed like she was getting ready to pounce. Brightspot leaped into the air as Snowpaw darted to the side, early enough that she had time enough to move but late enough so Brightspot couldn't change the course of her jump. As soon as Brightspot hit the ground Snowpaw leaped onto her back and held on. Brightspot tried to shake her off, testing her, but she held on, just barely having to unsheathe her claws. Snowpaw noticed the slight shift of weight as Brightspot prepared to roll over to crush Snowpaw under her back, so Snowpaw prepared the move Shadow had suggested. As Brightspot rolled over, Snowpaw quickly moved along with her, and at the moment Brightspot was on her back, Snowpaw had been able to be upright on top of her belly. Brightspot paused, her eyes wide in surprise as Snowpaw held her paw near her neck, claws sheathed of course and then smiled and spoke

"Good. Now get off." Snowpaw did as she said,  and carefully climbed off. As Brightspot claimed to her feet, Snowpaw noticed her glance at her twisted paw nervously for a moment. Brightspot let out a tiny, nearly imperceptible, sigh and said

"That was a good move. I don't think I've taught it to you. Where did you learn it." Her eyes flickered to Snowpaw's paw again. Snowpaw lied

"I just kinda figured it out on my own. I'm fast and light so it works." Brightspot paused and then said slowly

"It works. But I would say to only use it as a last resort. It's very easy to mess up, and very easy to accidentally kill a cat when you're on their belly. Got me?" Snowpaw nodded but she could sense there was something more to it but didn't pry. Brightspot said

"Good. Again. Use different moves this time. Claws sheathed." They did this multiple times. Brightspot won a couple of times, but Snowpaw won a couple of times. There was also one other time Snowpaw won with a move Brightspot deemed a last resort move. They stopped as the sun began to rise, both taking deep breaths, tired from the fighting. Snowpaw decided to break the silence and said

"What do you think Stormpaw and Birchpaw's warrior names will be?" Brightspot shrugged and said

"That'll be Ashstar's decision." Snowpaw tensed at the mention of her father's name. Brightspot noticed and said

"I'll bet you a mouse that they'll be something related to their personalities." Snowpaw smirked and said

"I bet I'll be based on their appearances." Brightspot smiled and said

"You're on. Also, I may or may not have volunteered you to be either Birchpaw's or Stormpaw's training partner for their assessments." Snowpaw's mouth dropped open slightly and she said

"What? But I don't want to ruin their chances of becoming warriors!" Brightspot snorted and said

"Well that's certainly some self confidence." Snowpaw apologized

“Sorry, I-” Brightspot laughed and said

“It's fine. That’s actually pretty good to have some confidence. It's certainly an improvement from a moon ago. Besides, while I would love to say my sons could beat you, I'm honestly not super sure. You have a mind for battle. It sometimes scares me.” She paused, realizing the comment she just made, but she suddenly laughed it off. Snowpaw smiled faintly, not giving away her thoughts. Shadow spoke

‘She's scared of you. A full-grown warrior. That’s good. That means you are good at this. Much better than Whitepaw’ Snowpaw had to keep herself from nodding. She still hadn’t told anyone about Shadow, fearing they’d think her crazy or that she was supposed to be a medicine cat or something. She didn’t want that. Even though it might be true. She might be crazy. She might have made up Shadow as an imaginary friend who’d praise her. Snowpaw pulled herself out of her thoughts. That line of thought always led to a spiral that made it impossible to sleep. Brightspot spoke again

“You’re almost, if not, as good as a full-grown warrior battlewise. You just need to work on your hunting.” Snowpaw folded in on herself slightly, she'd never been good at hunting. Shadow said she didn't need to be, as fighting was important, but being good at hunting seemed to be expected. Brightspot continued

“That’s alright though. You still have a few moons before your appearance ceremony. Unless…” Snowpaw’s ears perked and she asked

“Unless what?” Brightspot sighed and said

“Ashstar tries to do your sister’s assessment early. I know he wants her to be a warrior as soon as possible but I refuse to have you become a warrior a moment later than her'' Snowpaw smiled. Brightspot was one of the few cats who didn't like Whitepaw, she was on Snowpaw’s side. She could count the cats who didn't like her easily. Herself, Stormpaw, Flowerpaw, Brightspot, Flamehawk, and possibly one or two others Snowpaw didn't know. There were quite a few cats that kept neutrality but they tended to side with Whitepaw if it came to it. Whitepaw was charismatic when she wanted to be and Ashstar liked her. Her Definite side kept seeming to grow. There was Whitepaw of course, she loved herself. Ashstar, who favored his perfect daughter. Brownbriar, who was finally made a warrior a week ago after refusing to train for moons. Sunpaw and Stickpaw, two of the multiple tomcats who clearly liked Whitepaw. Birchpaw, Stormpaw and Flowerpaw’s brother who had a huge crush on Whitepaw, even though she ignored him. Purekit, who followed her around every chance she got, Snowpaw felt bad for her. Amberfern, who was just like Whitepaw so she fit in perfectly. There were a few other cats Snowpaw didn't care about enough to think about, mostly warriors looking to get Ashstar to like them. Then there was Skypaw. Skypaw was a mystery. She never participated in Whitepaw’s bullying, but she never stopped it. She seemed like she didn't like it, but wouldn't risk standing up against Whitepaw. It was easy for Whitepaw to make things hard for a cat, so Skypaw made sense. Snowpaw sighed. Then looked up at the sky, determined. She didn't care how many supporters Whitepaw had, Snowpaw was going to be a great warrior. She didn't need followers. She had her friends. She would always have her friends. That's all she needed. But if anything were to ever happen to them, She would,

‘Kill whoever hurt them,’ Shadow said, finishing her thought.

~First~ ~Next~ ~Previous~

Hope you enjoyed!

[amicide-wc]

   Snowpaw stirred in their nest as the light shifted behind their eyelids. Bandages of leaves and twine wrapped around their body, covering their wound. Letting out a deep sigh, the apprentice recalled the incident in the forest, where their leg had caught in a leaf-covered bear trap and torn at the haunch. Everything was very fresh in the young cat’s mind, as it was only sunrise that day when a Thistleclan patrol had found them injured and brought them back to camp.    Blinking sleep from their eyes and resting on their front legs, Snowpaw’s eyes adjusted to the sunlight that peaked around a silhouette in the den entrance.    “Oh, hi Houndpaw,” the white apprentice yawned, giving a dull smile to the larger cat as she stared down at them with her sharp blue eyes.   “Actually, it’s Houndclaw now!” The large she-cat puffed out her chest, soaking in her own pride, “Sedgestar made me a warrior just after the patrol brought you back.” Snowpaw clenched their jaw, hot shame prickling in their paws, “That’s great,” they smiled, glancing up at their friend as defeat tightened in their chest. I was supposed to be up there with you.    “Yeah,” Houndclaw grinned, kneading her paws on the cold den floor, “And hey, I know you’re probably pretty bummed about not getting a warrior name, but at least you got a different sort of name change, anyway!” Snowpaw sat up, narrowing their eyes. “What do you mean?”    “Well, you know.” the huge brown warrior continued, “Sedgestar renamed you after your leg got all ruined and stuff. So I’m Houndclaw, and you’re Hobblepaw now.”   “Hobblepaw?“ The white cat scrambled half to their paws, but quickly slumped back into their nest as their right side seared with pain, “What kind of name is that! Why name me after an injury? I can be a warrior as well as you can!”    Houndclaw rolled her eyes, swiping a paw across the stone. “Hey, it’s not like I named you. And anyway, it fits with your… attributes now as any name does, you know how Sedgestar likes to keep names meaningful.”   “Meaningful?” Hobblepaw snapped, curling their lip. “How meaningful can it be to be named for having a mangled leg?”  Houndclaw let out a huff, rolling her eyes at her friend, “It’s just a name, Hobblepaw, it’s not like you’ll be using it out and about for a while, anyway. You’ll be in here with Hazelsight and you’ll get used to it before you’re with the clan properly again.”    “So that’s it then?” Hobblepaw stared across the den at the she-cat. “You become a warrior, I get stuck in here.” Houndclaw licked her paw, drawing it over one ear. “I mean, I guess, but you don’t need to put it like that. I was going to become a warrior today anyway it’s not my fault you didn’t get to become one with me.”   “It’s not my fault either!” Hobblepaw cried, hot tears stinging their eyes. “I didn’t want to get hurt! I thought we were here for each other, wait for each other! What did I do to make you leave me like rotten, fresh kill?” They stared up at Houndclaw with round eyes trembling as she spoke.   “Look, Hobblepaw,” she began, “I’m just doing what I think I need to do. I have to get on with things now that I’m a warrior, you know I’ve always wanted to be deputy, if I show Sedgestar how much I can do for the clan he’ll give me an apprentice and I’ll be where I’ve dreamed since we were kits! Why can’t you just support me?”   The white cat snorted, laying their head on their paws. Support you? When you’re doing everything but supporting me? “I see.” They replied, not meeting the she-cat’s eye, “Well, I don’t expect to see you here again then,” they muttered, and before the brown tabby could respond, added “I don’t want to see you again.”   Hobblepaw could hear Houndclaw hesitate, before she turned to leave the den, “Alright, Hobblepaw.” Was all she said, “Get well soon.” Her shadow quickly disappeared and the hot newleaf sun beamed down onto the white apprentice’s pelt once more. Hobblepaw turned to face away from the den entrance and curled into a ball, as much as they could with their injury at least, before closing their eyes and burying their nose into the moss of their nest.   So much for best friends.