Post by Silverfeather24 on Jun 15, 2020 9:00:04 GMT -5
Riverclan- Leader: Ripplestar- darker gray tom Deputy: Lakefur- dark blue she-cat Medicine Cat: Oakpelt- light brown tom Apprentice: Featherpool- lighter gray she-cat Warriors: Stoneclaw- gray tom Clawwing- large brown tom Apprentice: Dawnpaw Whitecloud- white she-cat Mothfur- pale golden she-cat Apprentice: Mosspaw Nightflower- black she-cat Dapplefoot- tortoiseshell she-cat Apprentice: Stormpaw Blackear- black tom Apprentice: Troutpaw Birchleaf- golden brown tom Frogleap- light brown tom Roseheart- cream she-cat Apprentices: Troutpaw- light blue tom Mosspaw- gray she-cat Stormpaw- gray blue tom Dawnpaw- deep blue she-cat Queens: Silverfeather- silvery white she-cat, mother of Clawwing's kits: Minnowkit- silver she-cat, Mousekit- brown she-cat with white chest, and Pouncekit- brown tom Elders: Graytail- dark gray tom Fawnpelt- light brown she-cat Honeyclaw- golden she-cat
Post by Silverfeather24 on Jun 15, 2020 9:07:12 GMT -5
Chapter 1:
Minnowkit was dreaming. She was Minnowstar, leader of Riverclan. She led her cats to the gathering, and lept onto the Great Rock, surveying the other clans.
She stepped forward, about to speak. But a voice cut in, jolting her awake.
"Can we go outside and play? Please?"
"Fine," came the exasperated reply. "But don't get in anyone's way."
Minnowkit heard her littermates happily respond, "We won't!", before running out of the nursery.
Minnowkit yawned, blinking open her bright blue eyes. She gave her silvery tabby pelt a quick wash before slinking to the entrance of the Riverclan nursery. She peeked her head out and looked around.
Minnowkit could see a huge, gray rock in the middle of the clearing, the Largerock, where Ripplestar stood to call clan meetings. The fresh-kill pile's in front and Ripplestar's den is behind. Yum! Minnowkit thought.
She could also see the warriors' and medicine cats' dens to the left, and the apprentices' den to the right. The warriors' and apprentices' dens are made of intertwined reeds, and the medicine cats' den is a split rock, Minnowkit noticed.
She knew the elders' den was next to the nursery, to the right, even though she couldn't see it.
Suddenly, Pouncekit rolled in front of the nursery. Minnowkit darted through the entrance, leaping on top of him.
"Hey!" Pouncekit mewed. "That's not fair. Mousekit!"
Minnowkit turned around to see her sister incoming. She tried to jump away, but was too late. Mousekit barreled into her, knocking her down.
"Oof!"
"Got you!" Mousekit yowled triumphantly.
"Look!" Pouncekit mewed. Mousekit let Minnowkit up as a hunting patrol returned, loaded with fresh-kill.
"Clawwing!" Minnowkit ran towards her father, purring. Clawwing dropped his prey to greet all three of his kits. He then turned to his apprentice, Dawnpaw.
"Go have some fresh- kill, you've worked hard today."
"Okay, thanks!" Dawnpaw called as she raced to the fresh-kill pile.
Minnowkit turned to see her mother, Silverfeather, walking over to them.
"I'll help you," She said, purring. She picked up Mousekit, who was on Clawwing's back, and set her gently on the ground.
"Hey!" Mousekit mewed.
Silverfeather stepped forward to welcome her mate.
"Why don't you three eat something before tonight?" Clawwing suggested.
"Okay!" Mousekit yowled as she ran to the fresh-kill pile, with Pouncekit close behind. Minnowkit picked up the fish that Clawwing had dropped and followed them.
As she walked, Minnowkit looked up. It was a little past sunhigh. What happens tonight?
Post by Silverfeather24 on Jun 15, 2020 16:18:36 GMT -5
Chapter 2:
Minnowkit sat in the clearing with her littermates, trying to be patient as the sun slowly set.
Silverfeather walked over to them and gasped.
"Look at the state of your fur!" She exclaimed, and started to lick Minnowkit fiercely.
"Mom! I'm fine!" Minnowkit protested.
"You can't become apprentices looking like this!" Silverfeather retorted.
"What? We're going to be apprentices!" Pouncekit mewed in surprise, and Mousekit leapt to her paws.
Apprentices! Now I can hunt, fight, and go on patrols! Minnowkit imagined how exciting it would be.
"Of course! You are six moons old," her mother continued. She started licking Pouncekit, who squirmed and mewed in defense, when Clawwing showed up, padding over to them.
"I think they've had enough," he said with an amused expression.
"I wonder who our mentors will be," Mousekit mewed, as Pouncekit ruffled his fur, undoing his mother's licking.
"I hope I get Whitecloud," Minnowkit responded.
"Yeah, she would be a great mentor," Pouncekit agreed.
"You should be okay with who ever you get," Clawwing reminded them. "You should listen to and obey them."
"We're know," Mousekit replied.
Ripplestar jumped onto the Largerock and called the clan together.
"Let all cats old enough to catch their own fish gather together for a clan meeting."
Once everyone was ready, Ripplestar began.
"Riverclan is lucky to have three fine kits. Today, they are six moons old. Mousekit, Pouncekit, and Minnowkit. Please step forward."
Ripplestar leapt down as Minnowkit and her littermates slowly inched forward, trying to contain their excitement.
"From this day forward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Pouncepaw."
"Pouncepaw! Pouncepaw!" Minnowkit proudly yowled her brother's new name.
"Birchleaf," Ripplestar continued, "You are a strong and loyal warrior. I hope you will pass on your skills to this apprentice."
The golden brown tom stepped forward to touch noses with Pouncepaw.
"Mousekit," Ripplestar went on. The brown and white kit bounded forward, quivering with excitement.
"From this day forward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Mousepaw."
"Mousepaw! Mousepaw!" Minnowkit cheered.
"Roseheart." The young warrior looked stunned. "You are a faithful and kind warrior, and I know you will train Mousepaw well." Roseheart touched noses with her apprentice.
"And finally," Ripplestar meowed, "Minnowkit."
Minnowkit walked forward, excited.
"From this day forward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Minnowpaw."
Minnowpaw stood proudly as her clanmates called her name.
"Minnowpaw! Minnowpaw!"
"Nightflower," Ripplestar announced.
Who? Minnowpaw wondered before guiltily remembering the black she-cat.
"You are a very skilled and hardworking warrior," Ripplestar continued, "and I trust you to pass on these qualities to your apprentice."
A surprised Nightflower touched noses with Minnowpaw. I'll try my best, Minnowpaw promised.
"Pouncepaw! Mousepaw! Minnowpaw!" The clan welcomed the new apprentices.
Ripplestar leapt back onto the Largerock, and waited until the cheers died down before speaking.
"I hope these new apprentices will work hard and serve their clan well." Ripplestar jumped down to signal the end of the meeting.
"When can we start?" Pouncepaw asked as the meeting broke up.
"It's too late to do anything tonight, but we can train tomorrow." Birchleaf answered before heading to the warriors' den.
"We get to sleep in the apprentices' den!" Mousepaw mewed excitedly.
"But what about Silverfeather?" Minnowpaw asked, looking back at the nursery.
"She'll sleep in the warriors' den." Pouncepaw answered.
"With Clawwing," Mousepaw added.
"Okay," Minnowpaw mewed before slipping into her new den. She curled up in an empty nest, and fell asleep.
Post by Silverfeather24 on Jun 20, 2020 15:57:53 GMT -5
Chapter 3:
Minnowpaw yawned and stretched, before remembering. Today's my first day of training!
She leapt up and slipped out of the apprentices' den. Her mentor, Nightflower, was already awake, standing in the clearing with Roseheart, Birchleaf, and Mousepaw.
"I'll go get Pouncepaw," Mousepaw mewed, darting back into the den.
Once she returned, with Pouncepaw, Nightflower spoke.
"Today's your first day of training."
"Can we do battle training?" Mousepaw asked quickly.
"Or learn to catch fish?" Minnowpaw mewed hopefully.
"You need a tour of Riverclan territory first," Nightflower purred, amused.
"If it's alright with you we can go together," Birchleaf offered, turning to Roseheart.
"Sure," Roseheart agreed. Minnowpaw glanced at her littermates and saw that they were as excited as she was.
"Come on, then." Nightflower said, heading towards the entrance.
"Yay!" Mousepaw yowled, sprinting ahead of Nightflower. Minnowpaw and Pouncepaw followed, with Roseheart and Birchleaf in the rear.
"Slow down!" Roseheart called to her apprentice.
Mousepaw was waiting for them outside the entrance.
As Minnowpaw splashed through the stream that encircled the camp, she looked up across the territory and gasped. It's so big!
"Where are we going first?" Mousepaw mewed impatiently.
"Let's go to the river." Roseheart meowed, taking charge. She glanced at Nightflower for permission, who dipped her head.
"Come on," Roseheart said, taking the lead. Minnowpaw followed, looking around. She could see a wall of trees in the distance.
"What are those trees?" Minnowpaw asked, curious.
"That's the forest, or Thunderclan territory." Roseheart answered. "It's across the river."
It must be horrible living under the trees. You'd never see the sun! Minnowpaw shuddered.
"Windclan is over there," Nightflower added, pointing with her tail. Minnowpaw looked and saw a big, open moor.
"Where's Shadowclan?" Pouncepaw asked.
"We don't share a border with them," Birchleaf answered. "They're on the other side of Fourtrees."
"We're here." Roseheart announced, and Minnowpaw sprang ahead. The river!
Minnowpaw stopped at the edge of the rushing water.
"Can we swim?" She begged.
"No, not today. We wouldn't have enough time to see the rest of the territory." Nightflower explained.
"There's Sunningrocks," Birchleaf pointed out. "Thunderclan thinks it's their territory now, because the water's gone down enough for them to reach it. But Riverclan has always had Sunningrocks, and always will!" He finished triumphantly.
"Yeah! Sunningrocks is ours, not yours, Thunderclan!" Mousepaw yowled in agreement.
Birchleaf twitched his whiskers in amusement.
"I think it's time we keep going." Roseheart said.
Minnowpaw saw the stepping stones, the twoleg bridge, the Gorge, and the horseplace before heading back to camp, exhausted.
She padded into the apprentices' den, and noticed her denmates for the first time.
Minnowpaw had a faint memory of them before they became apprentices. They're Lakefur's kits, right? She struggled to remember their names.
"Hi! I'm Dawnpaw," one of the apprentices introduced themselves.
"You just became apprentices yesterday, right?"
Minnowpaw nodded.
"Well, we're almost warriors," Dawnpaw boasted.
"You're never going to be a warrior if you keep staying up gossiping!" Someone angrily retorted.
"Don't mind Troutpaw," a kind tom mewed. "Or Dawnpaw, for that matter."
Dawnpaw huffed and curled up in her nest.
"I'm Stormpaw, by the way." He added.
"I - I'm Minnowpaw," Minnowpaw stuttered.
"That's Mosspaw." Stormpaw continued, pointing with his tail to the back corner of the den.
"Yes," Mosspaw responded, "and I'm trying to sleep!"
Post by Silverfeather24 on Nov 14, 2020 17:37:22 GMT -5
Chapter 4:
"Minnowpaw!" Minnowpaw looked up from her fish she was eating to see Nightflower calling to her.
She quickly finished and darted over to her mentor. It had been two moons since Minnowpaw was made an apprentice, and she was learning quickly.
"Sunset patrol," Nightflower explained as they bounded out of the camp, with Lakefur in the lead. Minnowpaw noticed that Dapplefoot and Stormpaw were also in the patrol.
"More Thunderclan scent was found on Sunningrocks this morning," Lakefur informed them as they ran. "We're going to check it out and renew the scent markers."
Minnowpaw shivered in the icy wind. It's going to be leafbare soon, she thought.
Lakefur halted at the edge of the river, signaling for the rest of the patrol to stop. Nightflower hissed as a cat appeared on the tallest rock.
"Follow me," Lakefur whispered as she slipped into the water. Minnowpaw tasted the air. Thunderclan!
"What are you doing here, Shrewstar? This is Riverclan land!" Lakefur challenged as soon as her patrol scrambled onto the rocks.
"No, Sunningrocks is Thunderclan's now," Shrewstar retorted sharply.
"This is Riverclan land!" Lakefur repeated menacingly, stepping forward.
"So be it," Shrewstar growled as he leapt onto Lakefur. Thunderclan warriors erupted from the bushes.
"Minnowpaw, go get help!" Nightflower yowled before leaping into battle.
Minnowpaw turned and ran, swimming steadily through the river. She sprinted to the camp, and burst through the entrance, panting.
"What is it?" Ripplestar asked, leaping to his paws.
"Thunderclan... attacked... at Sunningrocks," Minnowpaw gasped, trying to catch her breath.
"Stoneclaw, Mothfur, and Mosspaw guard the camp." Ripplestar ordered.
"Roseheart, Birchleaf, Mousepaw, and Pouncepaw are patroling the Windclan border. So, Whitecloud, Silverfeather, Clawwing, Blackear, Frogleap, Troutpaw, and Dawnpaw your with me." Ripplestar finished before racing out of the camp.
Minnowpaw, unsure of what to do, followed. Her heartbeat was racing as she sprinted after her clanmates.
My first battle! Minnowpaw thought excitedly. She tried to ignore the nervousness pricking at her conscience.
Once they reached Sunningrocks, Ripplestar leaped onto Shrewstar, hissing ferociously.
Minnowpaw spotted Stormpaw struggling against two Thunderclan apprentices. She raced to his side, slashing at the golden apprentice.
"Thanks!" Stormpaw gasped.
Minnowpaw glanced at him before turning back to her opponent. She remembered his name, Sunpaw, from the last gathering.
Sunpaw darted in to rake his claws across Minnowpaw's flank.
Minnowpaw tried to twist away, but wasn't fast enough. She winced at the pain.
Focus! Minnowpaw reminded herself.
She spun and slipped under his belly, slashing at his hind legs.
Sunpaw hissed and spun to face her.
Minnowpaw leaned to the left slightly and saw Sunpaw move, preparing for her attack. Instead, Minnowpaw darted to the right, scooping his paws out from under him.
She leapt onto his back, digging in her claws. Sunpaw squirmed and yowled in protest.
Minnowpaw let him up and watched as he ran back into the forest. She licked at her wound, pleased with herself.
Suddenly, more Thunderclan warriors poured out of the forest. More! Minnowpaw thought in horror. We can't hold off all of them!
Lakefur looked up with despair at the second wave of enemy warriors.
"Retreat!" Ripplestar yowled. Minnowpaw followed as her clanmates streamed away from the battle. She swam across the river, exhausted.
Ripplestar led his clan as they headed back to the camp. Mothfur, Mosspaw, and Stoneclaw were pacing at the entrance.
They rushed over as soon as they saw the patrol. The glimmer of hope in their eyes vanished as they saw our devastated expressions.
Chapter 5:
The scratch on Minnowpaw's flank stung as she padded into the camp. Oakpelt and Featherpaw were already in the clearing, checking wounds.
"Are you hurt?" Featherpaw asked, turning to Minnowpaw.
"I have a scratch," Minnowpaw answered, showing her the wound.
"It's not too deep," Featherpaw concluded, "Give it a good lick, and I'll get some ointment."
Minnowpaw started cleaning her wound as Featherpaw walked away.
Stormpaw padded over to her, his left ear covered with cobweb.
"Hi," he greeted Minnowpaw. "You're a good fighter."
"Thanks," Minnowpaw replied, a little embarrassed.
"And thanks for helping me back there." He continued, looking into her eyes.
"It was nothing," Minnowpaw mumbled. She looked up as the camp entrance rustled.
Pouncepaw, Mousepaw, and their mentors returned, looking very confused.
"What happened?" Mousepaw asked, bounding over to Minnowpaw, with Pouncepaw following.
"Thunderclan took Sunningrocks." Minnowpaw answered.
"And you let them?" Mousepaw asked incredulously.
"Of course not!" Minnowpaw retorted, annoyed. She suddenly noticed that Stormpaw had dissapeared.
"I wish I'd been there," Mousepaw muttered.
"But Roseheart and Birchleaf thought it would be a good idea to practice hunting land prey for when the river freezes." Pouncepaw complained.
"I have to get my scratch checked," Minnowpaw said, turning away. Where did Stormpaw go?
"Let all cats old enough to swim gather together." Ripplestar called. Minnowpaw paused to listen, glad when Stormpaw slid in beside her.
"Thunderclan attacked us at Sunningrocks, and... we lost." Ripplestar announced, sadly. "I will wait until after the Gathering before planning any counter-attacks. Goodnight." He jumped down, ignoring the meows of protest.
"But that's in nearly a quarter moon!"
"If the river freezes by then, we'll lose our advantage!"
"What do you think?" Stormpaw asked, looking at Minnowpaw.
Minnowpaw looked back before answering. "I think we need to let our wounds heal, but Thunderclan will boast about it at the Gathering."
"Yes, but the Gathering will help us tell how they were affected by the battle." Stormpaw retorted politely, still gazing at her.
Minnowpaw forced her head to turn as Featherpaw padded over, carrying herbs in her jaws.
"You should rest, it's getting late." Featherpaw meowed after putting her herbs down. She looked amused. "I'll look after Minnowpaw."
"Ok," Stormpaw replied, unaffected by Featherpaw's amusement. "Goodnight, Minnowpaw."
"Goodnight!" Minnowpaw called back.
"He likes you," Featherpaw said when Stormpaw had gone. She started putting ointment on Minnowpaw's scratch.
"What? We're just friends," Minnowpaw felt her pelt get hot, and winced as the herbs stung.
"He might get offended by that," Featherpaw purred back. Carefully covering Minnowpaw's wound with cobwebs to keep the herbs in place.
"I should probably get some rest," Minnowpaw muttered before padding to the apprentices' den.
"Goodnight!" Featherpaw called, but Minnowpaw was already inside.
Minnowpaw curled up in her nest, thinking. Does Stormpaw really like me? Yes, probably. But do I like him back? She thought back to after the battle. Yes? Yes. She could feel herself drifting closer to sleep.
Post by Silverfeather24 on Nov 15, 2020 13:40:46 GMT -5
Chapter 6:
Stormpaw stepped out of the apprentices' den and blinked against the bright light. A white powder coated everything in sight. Snow!
Stormpaw padded cautiously into the snow, shivering against the freezing wind.
Troutpaw and Dawnpaw were already awake, chasing and dumping snow on each other.
Stormpaw purred and raced to join them. He gasped as Troutpaw showered snow onto his head.
He slid away and snuck up on Minnowpaw, who had just come out of the den with Pouncepaw.
Stormpaw pounced on her, barreling her into the snow.
"Hey!" Minnowpaw mewed playfully before darting out of his grip. She quickly zipped behind him and dumped snow on his back.
"Got you!" Minnowpaw purred, as Stormpaw shook off the snow.
Stormpaw looked up guiltily as Dapplefoot padded over to him.
"Battle training," his mentor sighed. "With your littermates. We're going to learn some snow tactics."
"Okay," Stormpaw meowed as he padded to the camp entrance. "Bye Minnowpaw."
"Bye!" Minnowpaw called back.
Stormpaw followed Dapplefoot and Blackear as they led him and his littermates to the training clearing.
Stormpaw sighed as he padded through the snow. He wished that Minnowpaw was here with him, walking at his side.
Stormpaw loved Minnowpaw's brilliant blue eyes. And her fur, so silvery and smooth.
"C'mon Stormpaw!" Mosspaw mewed, calling Stormpaw back to the present. Stormpaw realized that he was falling behind.
"I'm coming!" He called, quicky catching up.
Chapter 7:
Minnowpaw paced across the clearing, impatient. Her paws sank into the wet remains of the snow. Tonight was the gathering.
Dawnpaw and Troutpaw were sitting by the apprentices' den, disappointed. They were staying behind.
Finally, Ripplestar came out of his den with Lakefur. Oakpelt and Featherpaw followed.
Cats gathered in the clearing, following Ripplestar as he led the way out of the camp.
Minnowpaw followed excitedly, quickly finding Stormpaw's side.
They raced to Fourtrees, crossing the river at the twoleg bridge. The water looked freezing, to cold and icy to swim across.
When they finally reached Fourtrees, Riverclan was the last to arrive.
Ripplestar climbed onto the Great Rock, joining the other leaders: Hawkstar, Ratstar, and Shrewstar.
Ratstar stepped forward, yowling to start the gathering.
"Shadowclan has two new warriors: Sleekclaw and Wolfpelt." Ratstar announced.
"Sleekclaw! Wolfpelt!" Minnowpaw joined in to congratulate the new warriors. Minnowpaw could see them, looking proud and strong.
Shrewstar pushed forward to speak.
"Every cat knows leafbare is a difficult time for every clan. All of Thunderclan is grateful to Ripplestar for giving us a fine piece of territory." Shrewstar smirked, looking at Ripplestar with fake gratitude.
Minnowpaw hissed. Ripplestar gave you nothing!
Ripplestar stepped forward, furious.
"I didn't give you anything. You attacked my patrol at Sunningrocks." Ripplestar accused.
"The prey at Sunningrocks is quite plentiful." Shrewstar continued, ignoring Ripplestar's comment.
Ripplestar glared at Shrewstar, and Shrewstar unsheathed his claws.
"I'm surprised you got so much out of land that's prey-poor by Riverclan standards." Ripplestar retorted.
Hawkstar pushed her way between them, uneasy at their hostility.
"Windclan is doing well. Rainfeather gave birth to three healthy kits recently." Hawkstar meowed, trying to ease their mood.
"This gathering is over," Ratstar called, amused. The leaders jumped down, and Shrewstar stalked out of the clearing, head held high.
Ripplestar called his clan together, and walked out of Fourtrees. Minnowpaw followed with Stormpaw.
"Stupid Thunderclan," Stormpaw muttered. "They're acting like we placed Sunningrocks on their paws."
"Yeah," Minnowpaw agreed. "Thunderclan's acting like there wasn't even a battle."
