StormClan
|Nightkit|
Speckled light danced through the branches and bristly leaves right into a black furred kit's green eyes as she woke.Frustrated,she tightened her forest-green eyes shut,wanting to savor a few more moments of ease.The spots of sunlight glistened on her black pelt, making the white and orange flecks scattered across her tail,back and head stand out.
Thunder rolled far off but only a soft sweet breeze swept the foliage gently,she figured if a storm was traveling this way it would be nothing to worry about and it definitely wouldn't interfere with her naming ceremony.
Clenching her paws and tensing her shoulders she stretched her back.She now noticed a few leaves that had stuck to her pelt in sleep falling off.Before stepping out of the nursery into the full morning light her jaw opened in a wide yawn and she got a better smell of the light morning air.
The rustling of moss and crunched leaves caught the dark she-kit's attention,having just woken she hadn't thought to see who of her den-mates were still in the nursery.An off-white she-kit with dark gold colored patches and paws swayed her forelegs in her deep sleep,she never rested quietly.
The dark she-kit smirked,amused by her pale sisters flaying movements
-If she kicks Blaze'Paw in the apprentice den in her sleep then it's over for her-
The dark she-kit thought to herself lightheartedly but she knew deep down that she would defend her sister at any cost,even against their old nursery mate Blaze'Paw,who was made an apprentice barely a moon ago.
He was always large and thick furred,he knew he held an advantage over his playmates as kits but he was gentle and kind though after his naming ceremony he was different.He grew to be competitive and snappy,using his size and strength to his advantage to pick on the other apprentices and sometimes kits.
The dark she-kit chose to put aside thoughts about the snappy tom and made her way out of the nursery.
Taking in the sight of her clan-mates going about their ways,she realized how much smaller everything looked since she was finally around six moons old and too big to stay in the nursery without crowding things for queens and their kits any longer,even with her somewhat shorter height. She truly felt ready to leave the nursery,to start her long days of training as a warrior.Glancing around the camp,she saw many cats were still slow moving and enjoying the warm sunlight.
-There's no way Goldenkit didn't stay up late into the night thinking about the ceremony today with how long she's been asleep now-
She thought about her resting sister still in the nursery,wondering if she should go wake her.
Ducking her head to dodge a falling leaf as she turned herself around back into the nursery that was made beneath a dense blackberry bush with stones set along the edges,dirt was long ago piled over the stones and since then grass grew over them and the dirt firmed,becoming an extra barrier from the elements.
She perked her ears forward to Goldenkit so she could listen closely and hear her breathing,she would know if her sister was truly sleeping from her steady breaths.
Spitting snakes!she really is still asleep.She better be well groomed and ready by sunhigh,I guess I'll help her if she really needs it
With the queens out watching over the other kits playing outside she didn't worry about disturbing anyone else.First steadying her hind legs,she reared her upper body up on them to then slam her front paws back down near Goldenkit's ears,hoping the thump against the ground would wake her.
The off white she-kit groaned as she slowly wrenched her face to look at her sister above and groggily opened her bright yellow eyes. They held a silent stare into each other's eyes before both smirking.Goldenkit snorted a raspy laugh and reached her paw up to jab her dark furred sister's jaw
"Come on Nightkit,one day you'll slip up and smack my head doing that" Goldenkit faked a serious tone with a sneer "And you might as well be waking up a crazed badger at that point than your oh-so-loving sister"
Nightkit began to part her muzzle to speak but Goldenkit cut her off
"No need,I'm sure you're about to blab about how late it is,I know I know.The light practically blinded me when you thudded me awake"
She jeered while turning over on to her stomach and shaking her pelt free of dirt and leaves.
Nightkit kept up the sarcasm in her tone as she spoke
"Mhm,you're right.So get up and ready so we can be properly groomed before sunhigh. I won't be caught dead looking like you at our apprentice ceremony"
Goldenkit rose to her haunches,now somewhat more presentable with slightly less dirt clinging to her pelt.Just as the off white she-kit titled her head to lap at her shoulder fur,a deep and heavy "Hmph" sounded from the nursery entrance.
A tall she-cat with a white pelt,tabby ginger patches,wide jagged stripes on her face and grayish-green eyes held her head through the entrance.
A strong scent of herbs wafted the sisters way immediately,each recognized different smells from their time in the medicine den before,listening intently to what the medicine cats had to share with them about healing.
Nightkit could point out mint and chervil,both pleasant aromas to her.Goldenkit noticed the mint and chervil but also lavender.Both sisters figured that the white she-cat,a stern but kindhearted Medicine Cat of StormClan named Rosethorn had been gathering early and found her bounty of herbs already.
Rosethorn's voice had always been deep and rich like the faded memories of the taste of warm milk from their early kithood.
"You've both given yourselves hardly anytime to clean up,do you both want to look and smell like rats at your own apprentice ceremony,in front of the whole clan?"
Rosethorn flattened one ear as she continued
"You're both as toad-brained as newborns sleeping in this late,Daisykit has been up since early light,now she's the sister out of you three that the clan will cheer for"
Goldenkit nodded quickly,embarrassment seeping from her very pelt with no words to defend herself.Nightkit frowned bitterly at her sisters reaction,almost truly irritated with Rosethorn's words even though she knew well the Medicine Cat didn't mean her words with all the bitterness they came off with but Nightkit couldn't stand seeing her littermate distressed.
Rosethorn took notice of Goldenkit's reaction and spoke again
"You both,come and follow me,I'll get something to calm your nerves,no need fretting too much over the whole ordeal I guess"
The tall she-cat swiftly spun herself back out of the den,the sisters trailing right behind.
Swiveling her head only a little,Rosethorn called back to the kits
"It's a one time thing and it'll slip your clan-mate's minds so don't worry about tripping up or anything but I still expect all three of you to be somewhat appealing to the clan"
Rosethorn's words of expectations to the kits came from her closeness to their father Thornmist,leader of Stormclan.The two grew close through many seasons once Thornmist stepped into his place as leader.Rosethorn had helped him with countless struggles since then,including with raising his kits.
Nightkit nodded to the stocky medicine cat's words and slipped a quick glance ahead to the den the little group was quickly making their way to.
The medicine den was under two ancient trees completely interlocked by their arched roots that became overgrown and tangled into each other.The roots are draped and coated by moss,mushrooms and smaller plants that had grown all around the base of the trees and in between the bark.
The entrance reached above a grown cats tail lifted straightly skyward and there was plentiful room within it as well.
Aside from the largest entrance they were walking to,there were smaller ones in spaces between the roots that young kits could fit through and others that full-grown cats could comfortably get through. Between the trees where their roots were interlocked the tightest,a cat could safely sit or stand on top of them without worry it would collapse or they'd slip through.
Nightkit imagined to herself Thornmist sitting atop the binded roots between the trees calling her name forward,his face gleaming with pride at Nightkit and her siblings at their very first ceremony.
Nightkit's thoughts wandered to Goldenkit,was she looking forward to seeing their father proud to be speaking at their big day or was her mind somewhere else,maybe worrying who her mentor would be since Thornmist refused to tell them who he had in mind,he was always fair and honorable to the code and traditions..at least the ones he truly thought were for the best of clan.
Lost in her thoughts the dark furred kit thumped right into Rosethorn's flank,not noticing the Medicine Cat had stopped and turned towards them.
A soft,low rumble came from deep in Rosethorn's throat but a slight smile escaped before vanishing from her maw.
Rosethorn parted her mouth to speak and as she did her eyes darted behind the sisters to another approaching figure,A dark,grayish
brown tabby tom with flowing smooth fur.His stature was tall and lean.Goldenkit noticed a small twig was caught in the soft pale fur of his chest.The sisters smiled gaily and dashed to the tom
"Thornmist!" Both the kits joyfully called out as they dashed to the thick furred tom.
Behind them Rosethorn grinned and her face relaxed.
The kits thudded to stop before nearly crashing against him,which wouldn't have been much trouble with his thickset pelt.Goldenkit grasped the twig tenderly from his fur with her teeth and pulled it out to drop it back down on the dirt.
A great silky purr came from Thornmist's chest.He looked down at them both with his kind eyes that were the shade of honey.Long before,he had already noticed how much they'd grown but his heart burned with nostalgia seeing that Goldenkit was now about to his neck and Nightkit a little above his shoulders in height.
The cheerful little bunch's attention was caught again by a radiant voice calling out from another she-kit the same age who came pacing towards them from the medicine den.
"There you all are!"
At last,the family was complete
The radiant she-kit was the same pale off-white shade as Goldenkit but with yellow and grey tabby patches,white and yellow flecks on her face and the same yellow colored eyes Goldenkit had.The patched tabby she-kit darted to her father and sisters.
Another warm wave of joy swept over Thornmist,relishing the moment with all his kits together and the sun shining on their backs.
Even with a storm approaching,he thought to himself that with all his heart he believed this was the most blissful moment of his life so far,nothing would surpass the peace he felt as he stood by Goldenkit,Nightkit and now Daisykit.
He knew that even though he couldn't always be at their side,he'd never let anything separate his family.