This is a story by Flights / Vee~ enjoy :D
Chapter 1 - Squirrelpaw[]
Squirrelpaw mumbled in annoyance as a silver paw poked her side. "Get up, Squirrelpaw." a voice meowed.
The fiery-ginger she-cat shifted in her nest, tucking her nose under her paws. "Leave me alone, Cinderpaw..." she muttered. Her sister, a pretty silver she-cat, was trying to wake her up. Squirrelpaw mewed again as the paw poked her flank again.
"C'mon! Our ceremonies are today!"
Squirrelpaw's eyes flickered open. She leaped to her paws, her fluffy tail lashing her adopted-brother Firepaw across the face. "Why didn't you say so?!" she asked, excited.
Firepaw covered his face with one of his paws. "Can you guys keep it down? I'm trying to sleep..."
The two she-cats had already dashed out of the den, toward the Highbranch. The ShadeClan leader, Cloudstar, and the deputy, Icewhisker, were sitting under it, talking about something. Cinderpaw and Squirrelpaw skidded to a halt in front of them. Squirrelpaw chirped, "Cloudstar, the ceremonies are today, right?"
The white-and-silver leader nodded. "Yes. Icewhisker and I were just talking about it."
Cinderpaw's blue eyes brightened. "So is it gonna begin now?"
"Yes."
The two apprentices bounced around joyfully. "We're gonna be warriors, we're gonna be warriors~!" the two sisters sang.
Icewhisker glanced at Cloudstar, amused. "They're excited, aren't they?"
Cloudstar purred in agreement.
Squirrelpaw glanced at the apprentices' foster-mother, Dapplesky, padded hurriedly over to the two, her green eyes wide. "Your warrior ceremony is today?" she meowed in awe. "You're kidding!"
When Squirrelpaw and Cinderpaw shook their heads quickly, Dapplesky's jaw dropped. "It seems like only a moon since you've been apprentices." she murmured, her eyes clouded with emotion. She shook her head. "Anyway, I'm so proud of you!" She bent forward to lick Cinderpaw's ears.
The silver apprentice drew away, mewing in protest. "I can groom myself!" She drew a paw over her ear. "See?"
Dapplesky rolled her eyes. "Oh, I know. But you're my kits!"
Squirrelpaw stamped the ground with her paw. "We are not kits! We're warriors," she hissed stubbornly.
"But you're always my kits."
Squirrelpaw opened her mouth to protest, but Cloudstar's call cut her off. "All cats old enough to stalk in the shadows gather beneath the Highbranch for a Clan meeting!"
Cats instantly filed out of the dens, elders, warriors, and apprentices alike. They all seated themselves around Cloudstar's perch. The chattering ceased as Cloudstar raised his tail for silence.
"These two apprentices, Cinderpaw and Squirrelpaw, have reached the end of their training. Shadowleap, you trained Cinderpaw well." he acknowledged the black tom with a nod. "Same for you and Squirrelpaw, Brackenpath." Again, he nodded at the former mentor. He looked down at the two she-cats, eagerly awaiting their new names. "Cinderpaw, you will be known as Cinderstripe. StarClan honors your intelligence, and your ability to stay calm during moments of panic, and we honor you as a full warrior of ShadeClan." He leaped off the branch, and touched the newly-named Cinderstripe's forehead with his nose. Cinderstripe licked his shoulder thankfully.
"Squirrelpaw," Cloudstar continued, looking at the ginger she-cat with blue eyes, "you will be known as Squirreltail..."
Squirreltail flicked her fluffy tail.
"StarClan honors your bravery and ambition, and we honor you as a full warrior of ShadeClan." Like he had done with Cinderstripe, he touched Squirrelflight's forehead with his nose. Cloudstar stepped back, and lowered his tail.
The name-chanting was led by Creekpaw, Firepaw, and Bramblepaw. The rest of the Clan followed. "Cinderstripe! Squirreltail! Cinderstripe! Squirreltail!"
Squirreltail lifted her head to the sky, taking in the cheers of her name.
Cloudstar finished the ceremony by telling them that they had to sit vigil that night. He dismissed the Clan with a flick of his tail, then went to talk with Icewhisker.
Squirreltail blinked as a couple of warriors padded over to her. One was a dark brown tabby, and the other was pure-white with differently-colored eyes (one pale blue, the other pale green). He looked rather shy and reluctant to approach the she-cats. She nudged Cinderstripe, who was gazing at the sky, and flicked her ears at the warrior toms. Cinderstripe looked flustered as she looked away.
The tabby meowed, "Hi, Squirreltail, Cinderstripe." Squirreltail nodded wordlessly. "My name's Tigerstripe."
The white tom, though barely audible, introduced himself. "I'm Whiteshadow."
Strange name. Shadows aren't white. Squirreltail thought, already disliking the shy tom. "Nice to meet you." she meowed. "Nice name," she said, looking at the tabby.
Cinderstripe looked at the two toms, then mewed quickly, "I'm gonna go on patrol." She briskly padded toward the ferns, which led outside of camp.
Squirreltail stifled a giggle, then turned to face Tigerstripe again. "Do you want to go hunting?" she asked him.
Tigerstripe looked as if he were about to agree, but a call made him look away. A grey warrior was standing by the ferns, beside Cinderstripe. Tigerstripe glanced back at Squirreltail. "Some other time, okay?" Before she had time to answer him, the tabby had turned and padded over to the grey warrior.
Squirreltail sighed. Whiteshadow watched Tigerstripe leave, then he got to his paws. "I could hunt with you..." he said, sounding reluctant.
"No." Squirreltail snapped, lashing her tail. The white tom looked startled, then he stammered, "S-sorry..." He took a pace back, then turned and headed for the warriors' den.
Dapplesky's tail lay over the ginger warrior's shoulder. "Squirreltail? Where's Cinderstripe?" the calico glanced around.
"On patrol."
"Oh."
"Hey, Dapplesky?"
"Yes?"
"Can we talk?" Squirreltail asked.
"Of course." Dapplesky mewed, blinking. "What about?"
"I mean in private. Like, on a walk outside of camp." Squirreltail added.
Dapplesky looked curious as she nodded. "Okay."
When the two had walked out of camp far enough, toward the creek in the inner part of the territory. Squirreltail shuffled her paws. "Dapplesky, what happened to..."
Dapplesky blinked. "What happened to who?"
Squirreltail took a deep breath. It was time to hear the truth from her mother. "Dapplesky, what happened to my father?" she whispered.
"Your father?" Dapplesky repeated absently. "Your father is dead."
"But how did he die?"
"He was killed by a MoonClan warrior." Dapplesky mewed quickly. "That's all there is to say." She quickly stood up.
There's something she's not telling me. Squirreltail's pelt bristled in anger. "You're hiding something from me!" she yowled. "What is it!?" She watched as Dapplesky tried to edge away from her. She blocked the calico with her tail. "Tell me."
Dapplesky sighed. "He was killed. It's that simple." She closed her eyes, then after a moment, opened them. "We should get back to camp."
As Squirreltail followed Dapplesky back to camp, she couldn't help but thinking. What is she not telling me?
Chapter 2 - Vigil[]
That night, back at camp, Squirreltail and Cinderstripe sat, guarding the Clan by sitting at the fern tunnel. Without talking. Which Squirreltail found really boring. She shuffled her paws from time to time, swept her tail over the ground, flicked her ears, anything to remain not bored. But it wasn't working.
Squirreltail sighed and whispered, "Cinderstripe. Hey. Cinderstripe."
A soft snore met her words. Cinderstripe was asleep.
Squirreltail moaned in boredom. "StarClan, why did you create the vigil?" she whined quietly, looking up at the stars.
The ginger she-cat stood and prodded her sister with a paw. "Cinderstripe, wake up." she mumbled. When the silvery she-cat didn't stir, Squirreltail poked her more roughly. "Cinderstripe."
Then a rusting noise sounded to the left, then to the right a hushed voice. Squirreltail looked up, fully awake now. "Cinderstripe!" she hissed, jabbing her sister in the ribs with her paw. "Wake up, you idiot! I hear something!"
Cinderstripe looked up drowsily and yawned, "Whaaaat?" Then she froze as a whisper of her name sounded from the left. She leaped to her paws and called out, "Who's there?"
A whisper of "Squirreltail" sounded, and the ginger warrior glared around to find the speaker. "Who are you? What do you want!?" she yowled, sounding irritated.
A whisper of "Whiteshadow" sounded, then "Tigerstripe". Whispers of the four warriors' names repeated, and Squirreltail screeched, "Show yourself!" She was panicking now. She pressed against Cinderstripe, trying to find comfort from her sister, but the silver warrior offered none, as she was panicking as well, her breaths fast and shallow. The voices got louder and louder, and filled Squirreltail's ears until it was all she could hear. Squirreltail dropped to the ground and let out a long wail, covering her ears with her paws, but it did nothing.
Then the voices were cut off by a sharp gagging sound. Then everything went quiet.
Squirreltail slowly removed her paws from her ears, and her dilated pupils darted around. Cinderstripe was quietly sobbing, and Squirreltail drew her tail over her shoulders.
Then a scream of agony sounded.
~
"Squirreltail!"
The ginger warrior's eyes blinked open to see her silver-furred sister standing over her, her blue eyes panicked. "Squirreltail!"
Squirreltail gazed up at her. "Ah... Cinderstripe, was I asleep?" Her voice wavered, and Squirreltail cleared her throat.
Cinderstripe noticed her uneven voice, and widened her eyes. "Are you okay?"
"Ugh... nightmare..." The agonized scream still sounded in Squirreltail's ears, and she shook her head to try and clear it away. Then she looked up to the sky and asked, "What time is it?"
"It's moonset." Cinderstripe mewed, nodding toward the moon, which was slowly falling behind the trees. The stars still shone, but most were covered by drifting clouds. Then Cinderstripe's eyes hardened and she growled, "Tell me about your nightmare."
Squirreltail cringed and looked away. "I-I can't..."
Cinderstripe's eyes narrowed, then she shrugged and looked back out into the trees. "Well, just make sure to stay awake, okay? You won't be a warrior if you go to sleep during your vigil. Oh, and I don't want you screaming and flailing like you're being murdered." The silver warrior's eyes gleamed as she said the part about murder, and there was even a hint of a purr in her voice.
"Uh... okaaay..." Squirreltail scrambled to a sitting position, then wrapped her fluffy tail over her paws. Cinderstripe was serious, and a good fighter and hunter, but she could be really weird sometimes. That nightmare... it was only a dream... The ginger warrior sighed as she continued to think about the dream, the agonized screams, the whispers...
Squirreltail shuddered, even though it wasn't cold outside. No, stop thinking about it. she told herself sharply. She tried to concentrate on her vigil, but it was too difficult. The dream still clung to her mind, no matter how hard she tried to push it away.
Chapter 3 - Gathering[]
Cinderstripe looked up, seeing Tigerstripe wandering around, seeming confused. Whiteshadow drifted near the edge of the assembled Clan cats, being the loner he was. Cinderstripe waved her tail to her tabby Clanmate. "Hey! Over here!" she called out.
The light brown tabby tom looked up in surprised, but perked his ears when he recognized his silver Clanmate. He started to walk over to her, but let out a startled mew as a group of GaleClan warriors clustered around him, their voices loud. One of the warriors said something that was apparently funny, and the other warriors laughed loudly, almost obnoxiously. Tigerstripe let out a fake-sounding laugh, but the GaleClan cats seemed to think it was real.
Cinderstripe rolled her eyes. Glancing to the side, she noticed a MoonClan tom talking with a ShadeClan cat. Cinderstripe gasped in surprise and yowled, "Thunderheart!"
The ginger tom whipped around, then beamed at her. "Heya, Cinderpaw!" He looked back to the ShadeClan cat and then turned to pad over to Cinderstripe. "I haven't seen you in forever. How've you been?"
The silver she-cat flicked her tailtip. "First off, it's Cinderstripe. Stripe. Not paw. Stripe."
"You're a warrior?" Thunderheart mewed, looking startled.
"Yeah. Why so surprised?"
"Oh, er, that's not what I meant. Congratulations!" The ginger tom purred. "Oh, and have you met Sand?"
"Mmm? No." Cinderstripe tipped her head to the side. What kind of name was Sand? A Clan name, she could understand. Something like Sandstorm or Sandstream or even Sandwing or some other weird name like that (Sandstorm's pretty cool though... Cinderstripe thought. Oh! Like that one legendary Firestar's mate!). But... just Sand? Maybe it was a nickname.
Thunderheart let out a yowl. "Saaand!" A smaller, pale ginger tom looked up frightfully, his ears flattened. But when he saw that it was Thunderheart that had called out, his ears flicked up. The small tom turned back to the GaleClan cat he had been speaking with and said something. The GaleClan cat nodded, and the pale ginger tom stood and hurriedly padded up to Thunderheart.
He looked timid and shy, as if he didn't even want to be at the Gathering, surrounded by cats from different Clans. Total strangers to him. He also looked ready to bolt, his legs tense. His first Gathering? Cinderstripe thought, eying the small tom.
"Sand," Thunderheart introduced, "this is Cinderstripe, one of my friends from ShadeClan. Cinderstripe, this is my little brother Sand."
"Why not Sandpaw?" Cinderstripe mewed, puzzled.
Thunderheart laughed nervously. "Long story short. Our mother died giving birth to him. All she could say was 'Sand' before she-"
"-faded." Sand interrupted. He looked like he was about to cry. Cinderstripe tried to edge toward him comfortingly, but the younger tom shifted away, his eyes narrowed.
"Our father insisted on naming him Sandkit," Thunderheart added, "but I demanded that his name be just Sand. A tribute to our mother, you know?" The ginger tom shuffled his paws and gazed up at the Highrock, where three out of four Clan leaders sat, discussing something that Cinderstripe couldn't hear. Thunderheart's gaze had rested on Blossomstar. Cinderstripe knew that his father had tried to kill Blossomstar in an uprising, where Scree was the only rebel. Surely Thunderheart didn't carry a grudge against his own leader?
When Sand stood, his paws crushed the grass underneath them, startling Thunderheart back into reality. Sand nodded slightly, then turned back to pad back over to the GaleClan cat.
Cinderstripe blinked. "He doesn't seem like the chatty type, does he?" she remarked, watching Sand leave.
"No, not really. Unless you're close friends with him, he always seems ready to leap up and run away in a heartbeat." Thunderheart sighed. "That GaleClan cat he's with right now." He flicked his tail at the she-cat Sand was with. A few other cats had joined them. "They're really close friends. The GaleClan she-cat is named Windpaw. She saved his life from a fox while he was collecting herbs."
"Oh, he's a medicine cat?" Cinderstripe asked, widening her eyes.
Thunderheart smirked. "Yeah. Why so surprised?"
Cinderstripe butted him in the shoulder with her head and purred, "Shut up."
Suddenly, cats streamed into the clearing. Cinderstripe recognized the scent of PineClan cats, who ran through trees all day like they were better than everyone else. And that's what they thought they were: Better than all the other Clans combined.
Foxstar strode into the clearing, her tail high and her every pawstep loaded with confidence. Her deputy, Cedarleaf, padded alongside her, his chin high and his tail waving. Cinderstripe hated them both with a burning passion. She was sure everyone did.
Foxstar leaped up onto the Highrock, pushing Hawkstar aside as she did so. Hawkstar preformed a death glare on her, then announced, "Let the-"
"Let the Gathering begin!" Foxstar yowled, her voice drowning out the GaleClan leader's.
Cloudstar rolled his eyes. Blossomstar deeply sighed. Hawkstar cleared his throat, but before he could say anything, Foxstar trilled, "Welcome to the Gathering, my royal serv-"
Hawkstar yowled, "GaleClan is doing fine." He shoved her aside, and she glared at him through narrowed eyes. Cinderstripe could tell that the two had a rivaly. "Our medicine cat, Furzepelt, has passed away, and has been replaced by his apprentice Nettlewhisker. We at GaleClan honor Furzepelt's services, and we hope that StarClan takes care of him for as long as he resides there."
A short silence follows his words, then chants of "Furzepelt!" rise from the GaleClan cats. Cinderstripe flicked her ears in annoyance. Didn't they honor their medicine cat? Every cat at ShadeClan silences themselves when a cat dies. Well, maybe it was just GaleClan's custom to chant their fallen's name to the stars, Cinderstripe realized.
Hawkstar's eyes brushed through the group of cats, and eventually his Clan's chants died down. "Fortunately, a queen has given birth to a litter of kits. Most of you may have met Stormsong, yeah? She's had two kits: A tom named Starlingkit, and a she-kit named Kestrelkit. May StarClan light their paths!"
GaleClan chanted the names twice, and all the other cats turned to stare at them. The GaleClan cats glanced around, grinning. Cinderstripe rolled her eyes, then turned her attention back to the Highrocks, where Hawkstar was stepping back, with Cloudstar taking his place.
-tbc-