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place-where-even-stars-are-lost · 1 year ago

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Wake up the elder

You came towards Mildewchase, and tried to gently nudge them, so they would wake up and not get startled. Tried.

The moment you touched him, his olive-green eyes widened, head shot up and fur bristled. Definitely not the best awakening. Mildew sighed in relief, once she saw only you and your brother, and gave few licks to get more tidied look.

“Oh kits.. don’t scare me like that.” he smiled.

You began patching up hole in the elder den’s wall, while Mantis was begging to elder to tell a story. Finally, he decided to take some time storytelling, with you both feeling quite happy for the opportunity to make monotonous work a bit better.

“You see.. long ago, we weren’t Reaper’s Colony. And clans bordering us weren’t FossilClan and AmberClan.”

“We were known as Algae’s Colony, who lived and always bordered with NectarClan and BloomingClan. We weren’t even living here. We lived in large fields, filled with wildflowers and sunlit glades. Still remember how nice it was to run around in tall, soft grass blades.”

It felt like your paws started working slower while tying brambles into the wall. You tried to imagine it how it was. In this spruce forest you lived your entire life, there were just pinecones, thorns and spikes on either sandy ground or a bit damp, sharp grass, instead of this sweet scent around you what you could’ve felt on the clear field. Patches of sun were mainly only visible at safe clearing, and it was hard to imagine living in a place without shade and obstacles, the place where you can just run free without having anything in your way, not even bushes.

“Life in there was a bliss. Most of the cats passed away due to old age, and there was barely any diseases so bad, that cats couldn’t cure them.”

“It was all because our great-great-great-and probably greatest ancestors began looking at two-legs, and seeing what they did. Then, they began replicating what they did, which lead us to such technological advantage among other cats.”

“But then, two-legs began building tall metal dens, out of what we just saw completed products doing out of them, so that’s why we couldn’t improve further. We just weren’t able to see how they were doing it.”

“We lived happily, but then.. two-legs got too greedy. They began taking colony’s and clans’ territories to build their rye fields. At first, we didn’t saw it as something bad — craftscats were able to get free access to rye stalks, and it became quite popular among cats to wear them as accessories. But then, their fields always were getting bigger and bigger with each day, and cats began getting lost in these fields during hunting.”

“And with two-legs came dogs. They began chasing cats away, and as they began getting closer to our camps, we had to decide something before dogs will start chasing us out from our own dens. Reaptuft was the first one to offer going into the spruce forest.”

“Of course, everyone was hesitant to do it. No cat ever returned from that place. As danger kept creeping closer and closer, we one sunhigh began going there, but only after our herbalist, leader, deputy, hunters and few craftscats were lost to the dogs.”

“And now, our StarClan connection has been weak for many, many moons. We lost place where to see them, and none of us ever managed to get out of this place. Now, leaders don’t get nine lives, and lore keepers barely get any visions.”

Mildew stopped for a moment, and then began searching for something in the corner of the den, where all elder’s stuff was stored. He took out a map, with a layout of the territory. You and Mantis came up to him to get a better look, and with you both finishing up work anyway.

“Our territory with other clans’ are separated by a large creek, which wraps around the territories. And outside this creek- we never went there, since it’s just swamp with a thick layer of fog.”

Suddenly, you felt few more scents in the den, and few cats followed by them. Other elders came from the camp to sleep, along with deputy getting them into the den.

“Good day, Mildew. How was your sleep?” - Ravenface asked, the moment she all elders got in their nests.

“I won’t be volunteering to join midnight patrol.”

“I came here not for that!” Ravenface giggled. “I came here to take Mantis and Hellebore back to the nursery. It’s getting quite late.”

Of course. All cats had some kind of set bedtime, so the next day they will have enough energy. It felt like a usual, normal day. Ravenface would always escort you back to the nursery once sun began to set. But today was different. Halfway through the clearing, deputy stopped, and got her head down, so both of you would hear what she whispered.

“Remember, in here.. it’s impossible to do anything without being watched. There always will be a witness. It won’t be StarClan, it won’t be anyone from other groups. You’ll never know if your denmates or friends don’t have a second pair of eyes and ears.”

You looked over to Mantis. Neither of you really understood why she said it, and why now.

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place-where-even-stars-are-lost · 1 year ago

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You are Hellebore!

[…]

You’re play-fighting with some kits in the “safe” clearing, where was nursery, campkeepers’ den, elders’ den, medicine den and patient den. Fighting with your denmates began to get more boring with each game, since you were the oldest and it felt like your paws memorized each next move your opponent is going to do.

Soon, you saw your sibling walk out of the medicine den.

This was green-leaf and sunhighs are definitely not merciful towards dark colored cats, since most of them gotten a heat stroke, counting your brother. Mantis has gotten better, and was finally able to play once again. Once he came closer to you, you pushed him into bramble wall of elder’s den, causing few thorny branches to squish under Mantis’s weight and make a little hole.

“That’s not fair!”

said Mantis, feeling few spikes dig into his just cleaned, black spine fur.

“You know I have twisted paw!”

Your brother pushed you away with his back legs, and with a bit of struggle, got back up and walked out of den’s shade. This time, Mantis began joining the game, but instead of using his claws like you, he most of the time used teeth to attack. Happily, everyone left uninjured while “battling” across the sunlit, warm clearing. Evening was creeping closer, but kittens didn’t wanted to give up on their game of two different cat groups against each other.

In the fiercest moment of the play-fighting, camp keeper walked into the clearing, and after almost tripping over a gang of kittens, they said:

“Mantis, Hellebore, your father wants to see you in his den!”

You both immediately let go your opponents, and gave each other a quick glance. Neither knew why your parent would call you into his den. Well- there was no other option, so you began trotting into second clearing.

Entrance was hidden quite well, and you probably would be lying if you never confused just some bushes with exit from the main clearing. Once you reached the main clearing, you looked around to find the needed den: these thistles under fallen tree were novices’ den; one greatly hidden in ferns was forging den, where most of little trinkets were made like steel claws for clawless cats; the den around the tiny water pool was filled with craftscats, who were ones making everything around here, starting from den carcasses to little lamps in which they trapped fireflies to keep camp light in the night; among tree stump’s roots was lore keeper’s den, who were learning about clan history; along with others, there were hunters’, fighters’ and guards’ dens, until you noticed one significant cave, what was your father’s den.

Without hesitation, you walked into the den and Mantis followed. You saw a figure of tall cat with stiff fur and tired posture once you entered the den.

“Mantis, Hellebore. You quite disappointed me today. I know that games are games, but you ruined one of the den walls.”

You both a bit shamefully lowered your heads.

“I feel like getting you to clean mess you left will be a worthy punishment. Go to craftscat to get hare’s fur to cover stones in the den. You don’t want to get elders cold.”

“Got it, dad. We’ll start right now.”

Mantis replied, and as he was walking out of den, he murmured to you to get brambles. You hated the most when you had to help clan keepers, since last time during cleanup to got quite a lot of pine needles stuck in your pawpads.

But since there was no choice either, you went back to safe clearing when Mantis wandered off into foraging den.

After you got all recourses needed, you took a peek into elder’s den before fixing the wall.

There was a single elder, Mildewchase. She retired not so long ago, and for now, she’s enjoying her position. Despite his usual restless and fierce personality, he also enjoys a moment of peace and quiet.

“We should wake them up. They have best stories to tell us, and Mildew is usually awake at night anyway.”

Offered Mantis, while covering bare stones with soft fur given to him by cratfscat.

“No, what if he’ll get angry? For either hole in den or disturbing her peace.”

“Don’t worry! We’ll fix it while they’ll tell story!”

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