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overgrowth-wc · 9 months

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PYROPHYTE: CHAPTER ONE

HERE WE GO AGAIN

Our new warrior is about to learn to be careful when making promises. Thankfully, she's not in too much trouble for it. Hopefully?

“Hey, Turtledove!” The calico molly looked up from where she had been trying to take a nap, struggling not to show her irritation. Owlfeather was running up to her, Rainstripe hot on his heels, and their obvious excitement was enough to make her soften. She could just nap later, anyway. I guess. Hopefully.

“What?” She asked, staring at the white blaze on Rainstripe’s forehead. She could just see the way his blue eyes, so similar to hers, crinkled in a smile.

“Amberpelt is having her kittens now,” he mewed, kneading the ground excitedly. “Maybe she’ll have three, and then when they’re old enough, we can be their mentors! Wouldn’t that be fun?” Turtledove rolled her eyes with a smile, flopping back down onto her side.

“We were only just made warriors, you know. They’d probably make Cloudclaw and the rest from that class mentors before us.” Owlfeather threw himself down beside her with a chuff, Rainstripe content to stay standing, tail still lashing happily.

“Turtle, you forget our advantage. You were Mintstar’s apprentice! And you helped save the forest! Surely that entails some exceptions. And we, as your loyal and loving brothers, can be lumped in as well!” Turtledove muttered something to the effect of a denial, now staring up at the golden evening sky above her. It had been two moons since that final battle, and things were, well. Not normal, but not terrible either. No progress had been made in finding Featherfall, the molly disappearing into the Town like a ghost. Shadowclan had been trying all their contacts, but anyone who had allied with Featherfall had similarly disappeared, heading deeper into the Town to avoid any more conflict with the Clans. Things were about to change on that front, however. Now that the weather was turning favorably and prey was returning in droves, the Clans could finally concentrate more effort into hunting Featherfall instead of food. At least, that’s what Mintstar said.

Her old mentor had taken to being leader like a duck to water, and together with Whitefoot had ensured Thunderclan survived the worst of winter without further tragedy. Turtledove and her brother’s warrior’s ceremony this past moon had been a huge to do, being the first ceremony Mintstar had performed as leader. I wanted to ask you about your name, her then mentor had said, the same afternoon that the three apprentices had completed their assessments. I know it’s not traditional, but I was thinking of naming you Turtledove. For the peace you helped bring, and the hope the Clan has for peace in the future. Now, the Clan was living boldly, and spring was looking to be busy. Amberpelt was currently having kits, and Dovecall would be having her litter sometime in the next moon. It was nice to see new life after so much death, and Turtledove couldn’t help but share in her brother’s excitement. Even if we don’t become mentors this time, she thought, it will still be fun to have more kits in the Clan.

“Where is Mintstar, anyway?” Owlfeather asked, nudging his sister in that pesky way of his. “She still has to announce who’s going to the Gathering tonight. We’re gonna get picked, right?” Turtledove huffed.

“I don’t know why you think I’m Mintstar’s flea,” she complained. “I don’t know where she is or what she’s thinking every minute, you know.” A pause. “But she’s talking with Snowdrift now, and yeah, we’ve been picked to go tonight.” The two toms cheered, and Turtledove couldn’t help her happy grin. “I hope Loudpaw and Beetlepaw are there. They’ve probably got their names by now too!”

The siblings passed a pleasant while like that, chatting and laughing and discussing what might happen at the Gathering that night. It would be the second since the battle, and they hadn’t gone to the last one, you know, sitting vigil instead, so it was even more exciting to be going tonight. Eventually, though, Rainstripe parted for a hunting patrol, then Owlfeather for the dusk patrol, and Turtledove, having gone on patrols that morning, was left to hopefully have a short nap before it was time to leave. Once again, she was interrupted, but this time by Mintstar, so she didn’t roll her eyes.

“Turtledove, would you mind coming to my den with me? I’d like to speak with you about some plans for tonight.” Turtledove nodded quickly, anticipation washing away any tiredness she might feel. Owlfeather and Rainstripe do have a point I guess, she mused as she followed Mintstar into her den. Mintstar usually fills me in on whatever is going on. The calico couldn’t help but be proud about the trust her leader placed in her, and pushed herself every day to honor that trust, and show everyone that it was well placed. Be a ‘model Thunderclan warrior,’ like her father had always impressed upon them. Now, if only I could grow to actually look like a Thunderclan warrior, that would be swell. She was still at least a half a head shorter than her average clanmate, even Flystorm, which was kind of embarrassing. The hope for a growth spurt dimmed every day, but crazier things had happened. “Tonight,” Mintstar began, snapping Turtledove from a daydream where she stood taller than Snowdrift, “I will be meeting with the other leaders for a little bit after the Gathering announcements. It’s time to start really looking for Featherfall.” Turtledove couldn’t help but tense at the sound of the molly’s name. She wouldn’t lie- Featherfall terrified her.

“Do you have any idea on how to do that?” She asked, swallowing around the lump in her throat. “I know Shadowclan hasn’t had any luck.”

“The problem is that the Shadowclan warriors are too recognizable. Any Town cat who may know of Featherfall or still be loyal to her are likely to avoid them or be unwilling to help. We need cats going in who won’t be recognized.” Turtledove nodded.

“Oh, so like a spy thing. That makes sense.”

“Exactly. The other leaders and I have worked out a plan. It will involve sending cats into the Town posing as loners and such, in order to build credibility. Those cats will then find where Featherfall is, so that we might bring her to trial.” Yeah, that’s an even better idea. But…

“Well, you’ll need to make sure no rogues who were in our camp could recognize the cats you choose,” Turtledove cautioned.

“Right. That leaves few to choose from.”

“And they’ll need to be pretty sneaky- they’ll be spying, after all.”

“Exactly what I was thinking.”

“And they’ll need to be able to take care of themselves, too. It will be difficult to like, hunt or fight by yourself in a strange place…”

“I would have to choose someone very capable, yes.” Turtledove blinked worriedly.

“It’ll be hard to find a cat who fits all those criteria.” The calico was confused when all Mintstar did was smile, before a terrible suspicion began to build in her gut. She narrowed her eyes at that all-too-pleased grin.

“Turtledove,” Mintstar said placidly, “do you remember when you promised to do whatever you could to help?”

______________________________________________________________

What a manipulator. A swindler. I cannot believe she would do this to me. Turtledove was pouting, yes, but in all fairness, she was in a bind. Mintstar wanted her? Turtledove? The Turtledove, who couldn’t look a cat in the eye, and said the wrong thing, like, more than half the time, and very much disliked being around strangers, thank you, to go play super spy in the Town? By herself?

“This is why you don’t make promises to do ‘whatever you can,’ Turtle.” She murmured to herself, slinking along behind her brothers as they made their way to Fourtrees. “Trouble. Nothing but trouble.” Worst of all, there was a little… spark, a tenuous, tiny ball of excitement in her chest, that tried very insistently to say that this would be an awesome adventure. The part of her that enjoyed sneaking, and doing cool things like investigating a murder, and showing everyone that yes, the Turtledove was capable and amazing and was more than the awkward kit they all saw her as, that part of her, was tumbling around in glee. Things with her clanmates had been a bit better since the battle, it was true, but maybe, if she could pull this off, and help bring Featherfall to justice, then her parents would stop babying her and everyone would respect her and maybe even genuinely like her instead of tolerate her and… yeah. Yeah, that would all be really great.

So yes, she was annoyed, but if she were honest, she was also terribly excited.

They arrived at the hollow then, and when Turtledove sniffed the air, she could only smell Shadowclan. Good, maybe Loudpaw and Beetlepaw are here. Mintstar paused for a moment, bringing everyone to a stop, then waited another beat before nodding to signal that they could move in. Mood drastically improved, Turtledove raced down the slope, outpacing her brothers, who cried out as she slipped between them, and down into a cluster of Shadowclanners. They nodded agreeably to her as she wove through them, which she returned with her own jerky greetings, and quite quickly she found the two cats she was looking for. Loudpaw and Beetlepaw were sitting near Browntail, laughing together about something. Loudpaw perked up when he saw her coming, cheering as she walked up.

“Turtle! Tell me you have a name to match ours,” he demanded, Beetlepaw shooting her a grin.

“Yeah, Turtle, we’ll tell you ours if you tell us yours!”

“Turtledove! Uh, my name, it’s Turtledove now.” The calico wouldn’t lie, she was a little nervous that they would find her name silly, or weird, or say something like Mintstar couldn’t come up with good names. To her relief, they nodded, seeming pleased. Loudpaw smiled brightly.

“It suits you!” The dark gray tom declared, puffing out his chest. “Just like Loudstorm suits me!”

“And I’m Beetlewhisker now! I have to say, though, it doesn’t flow as well as your names do.” The molly shrugged, her grin taking on a mischievous tilt. “Although, I heard a rumor that Loudstorm was supposed to have a different name…” Turtledove leaned forward with interest, deftly ignoring the tom’s protests and denials. “Ma told me that Rosestar was whining to her about Loud’s name. ‘Come on Snakepelt,’” Beetlewhisker huffed in a surprisingly accurate imitation of her leader, “’You had to come up with a difficult name, huh? What am I supposed to call the boy, exactly? Loudfur? Loudcloud? Loudmouth?’” Turtledove was outright cackling now, and even Browntail, who had been silent up to this point, let out a chuckle. Loudstorm was hissing and batting at his sister, furiously denying any such occurrence.

“Well, at least he didn’t name you Loudmouth,” Turtledove snickered, and nearly jumped straight in the air when she felt something bump against her back. Distracted as she was, she hadn’t noticed Windclan and Riverclan’s arrival in the now crowded hollow, cats weaving through the crowd to look for friends or clanmates. She recognized the tom who had accidentally knocked into her when he turned to offer a quick apology for spooking her, the yellow one from the Long Night Gathering performance. He disappeared before she could respond, and she was quick to turn back to her friends, now teasing her for being so jumpy. Loudstorm had found it funny to startle her, way back when she was staying at their camp, and was happy to divert the conversation away from his new name and towards Turtledove’s jumpiness. Browntail had disappeared at some point, and Turtledove was in the middle of telling Loudstorm to go jump in the river when the Gathering was called.

“Let this Gathering begin!” Shalestar, of course. The gray leader stood tall alongside her fellows, looking more lean now than scrawny. Looks like everyone is starting to do better. “I am happy to share some excellent news with you all tonight. This past half-moon, our medicine cat received her full name- Teaseltuft!” Turtledove happily cheered the molly’s new name, just able to see where the medicine cat was bashfully nodding her thanks. Splashpaw, beside her, whispered something in her ear that made her laugh. “I am also pleased to announce that Daisypetal and Oatfur have had three healthy daughters- Sorrelkit, Fennelkit, and Rushkit!” More cheers, this time briefer, and Shalestar gave an accepting nod before stepping back. “Aside from that, no news to report.”

“I’ll go next, then!” Rosestar mewed, not giving the other two leaders a chance to speak. “We welcome two new warriors into our midst- Loudstorm and Beetlewhisker!” There’s going to be a lot of cheering tonight, Turtledove thought. Thunderclan has our names and Amberpelt’s kits, and then if Riverclan has anybody to name… “No activity from the Town, and no word about any trouble brewing. We will, of course, let you all know if anything develops.” Disappointing, but expected at this point. There was a reason the Clans were resorting to spies and the like to investigate now. Oakstar and Mintstar looked at each other, the old tom nodding deferentially to the patched molly. She dipped her own head in thanks before stepping up to speak. She looks so much smaller without her tail. Still intimidating, though.

“Thunderclan is also pleased to announce three new warriors. We welcome Owlfeather, Rainstripe, and Turtledove!” Being on the receiving end of the cheers was quite nerve wracking, Turtledove doing her best to shrink behind Loudstorm, who merely stepped aside with a laugh, the traitor. Mercifully, Mintstar moved on quickly. “Amberpelt also gave birth this morning. Ancestor’s willing, I will have two kits to announce next Gathering.” Her brothers had been disappointed that there were only two, before quickly getting into an argument over which of them would get one, since let’s face it, Turtle, if any of us get one it’s going to be you. Really, it would probably be a question of whether Tigerwhisker or Stripestream got one, but what did she know? “Other than that, it has been peaceful in the forest.” Finally, Oakstar took his place at the front.

“Riverclan has one new warrior to welcome- Ripplepool!” Turtledove almost felt bad for the molly, as the Clans seemed to be getting tired of cheering by now, but they still gave a few rousing cries of her name before trailing off. “And, finally, we welcome Lavenderfur and Sunsplash’s kits, Blossomkit and Galekit!” Finally indeed. But it was that time of year, apparently, and it was likely the next Gathering or two would see a wave of new kits, apprentices, and warriors. “Now, since it’s such a pleasant evening, we will end the announcements here. Enjoy your time together.” With that the leaders jumped back down, and conversations started up again all around them. Quickly, though, Mintstar appeared from nowhere, looming over Loudstorm, who was now bragging about allegedly fighting a badger all by himself.

“Impressive, young tom,” Mintstar hummed, and the tom in question nearly jumped out of his fur, having not heard her come up. Turtledove couldn’t help but laugh at that, sticking out her tongue when Loudstorm gave her a dirty look. Beetlewhisker snickered about payback while Turtledove flicked a questioning ear at Mintstar. “Turtledove, I hate to pull you from your friends, but there’s some cats I would like you to speak with.” The calico nodded, headbutting her friends goodbye and waving a tail to their well wishes as she disappeared into the crowd. Mintstar lead her over to a spot near one of the Oaks, where the leaders, deputies, medicine cats, and a few other warriors were gathered. There was the yellow Riverclan tom, a Windclan tom she was pretty sure was Shalestar’s relation, and Shadefur, who she actually recognized. The other leaders nodded as Turtledove and Mintstar came up, taking a seat next to Whitefoot and Snowdrift.

“Excellent,” Shalestar said, giving them all a smile. “I’m sure everyone knows, but we gather to finish planning our hunt for Featherfall in the Town. After discussion with the other leaders, we have decided to send two cats into the Town to pose as a loner and a kittypet, supported by warriors from Shadowclan and a representative from Windclan.” She cast a look at the tom next to her, who cleared his throat.

“I… did some reconnaissance in the Town, back when Featherfall and Stonestar were active. I tried to join their group but did not attempt to hide that I was a Clan cat, not that I very well could.” He flicked an overly large ear. “I was in their confidence for a couple of weeks and learned about how they operated, at least on a small-scale level. They had what I thought was a single gang at their beck and call, but we know now that they had multiple. That being said, I would be happy to offer my help when it comes to the cats themselves and how Featherfall ran things. Some of these cats were very loyal to Featherfall- I’m sure that hasn’t changed.” Rosestar jumped in.

“Unfortunately, my warriors are too well known, so they cannot be seen interacting with our chosen spies lest the Town cats see and become suspicious. Instead, we will be happy to host the spies for a while before they go in, to teach them about the Town and help them learn to blend in better. We will also maintain our presence in the Town should anything go wrong and our assistance is needed.” All of this is sounding perfectly reasonable, Turtledove mused, but who’s going to be the kittypet? It better not be me.

“Now, for said spies.” Oakstar rumbled. “Littlesong here will be posing as a kittypet. He will be staying with one of Shadowclan’s contacts in the Town in order to support this story.” Oh, thank the ancestors. Turtledove couldn’t help but feel bad for the tom, though. He definitely looked a little put out. I couldn’t stand being near a twoleg, though. So probably better he gets to deal with it- Riverclanner’s aren’t afraid of them, right?

“Turtledove will be going in as a loner,” Mintstar said, and the calico tried not to shrink away from all the eyes that landed on her. “The goal will be for you two to cover different parts and social spheres of the Town. From what we know, the group Gorsestorm was most familiar with is located near Thunderclan territory. They were her most loyal followers, and likely are still in touch with her. Turtledove will be charged with infiltrating that group and sniffing out the connection to Featherfall. The place Littlesong is staying is further into the Town. We hope that Featherfall might have relocated close to there, since we know she has been seen in that area at least once. In a few days, Littlesong and Turtledove will go to Shadowclan, where they will establish their cover stories and begin their new sort of training about the Town.”

“Gorsestorm will be travelling to Shadowclan as well and staying there for part of the training. Afterwards, he will be travelling to the Town once a week to check in with Turtledove and Littlesong so they can report any information they have learned.” Shalestar mewed. “We do not want you two having any contact with your home Clans lest anyone see or smell the resemblance. Since a Windclanner would stick out too much, we will instead offer our services in a supporting role. Now, we hope to have this situation resolved as quickly as possible, but must plan for it to take a while, even moons.” Moons? In the Town? By myself? This was suddenly not as exciting.

“Town cats are… not the most trusting,” Rosestar explained with grimace. “It might take a while to integrate into a group, and then even longer before they trust you completely. The first goal is just to be accepted. The second goal is to learn something helpful. Remember, this will require patience and dedication from all of us. We will only get this one opportunity to fool these cats. If someone’s cover is blown, there is a chance they could warn Featherfall and she’ll disappear forever.” Ok, she had been nervous before, but now there was a yawning pit in her stomach and this didn’t really sound like fun anymore- Turtledove cast a desperate glance at Mintstar, a little relieved to see the molly looked unimpressed.

“My mother will not simply throw away her goals upon discovery. Even if these cats were to be found out, I feel she would only accelerate whatever her plan is, not abandon it completely. Of course, we do not want that either, so discretion is paramount. I fear that with the turn in the weather, Featherfall is also preparing to enact whatever her next idea is. We must try and prevent that from happening.” Rosestar is so dramatic. Or, well, hopefully he’s just being dramatic. What Mintstar says sounds much more reasonable, anyway. The pointed tom didn’t contest this point, merely nodded, and Shadefur hesitantly opened his mouth.

“We felt it best to assign… mentors, of sorts, to really help you two prepare for your time in the Town. Littlesong, Briarmask and Crowcall will be helping you, since they’re familiar with the part of Town you’ll be in. Turtledove, my mate is from the area you’ll be going to. She and I will be the ones helping you prepare.” That was good. Turtledove liked Shadefur, the tom calm and understanding but not wishy washy. Tulipstem was really timid, but so was Turtledove, of course, so they got along in that sense. She felt a little better knowing they were going to be the ones getting her ready.

“In three days, you will travel to Shadowclan, so make sure you spend time with your family and friends. It might be a while before you see them again.” Shalestar advised, and on that light note, the group all bid their goodbyes. Mintstar dismissed Turtledove back to her friends, and as the calico padded her way back over to where they were gathered, she couldn’t help the anxious beating of her heart.

Can I really do this?

______________________________________________________________

Three days later, it was time to find out. Turtledove sat in the nearly empty camp clearing, the sun just starting to rise. She had struggled to fall asleep last night- she was still just a little unused to her new nest, and now she was going to have to adjust to another new nest. I feel like I’m never going to sleep again. They wouldn’t be going to meet the others until after the sun rose, but the calico wanted a moment to herself before she was inevitably swarmed with goodbyes from her parents and siblings. They were less than happy that she was leaving, except her father of course, who was strutting around camp and bragging like she had hung the moon, but, well, Badger- or, Tornleg, now, was just like that. Turtledove was pulled from her musings when she saw Snowdrift pad from his den, humming to himself as he crossed the clearing towards the nursery. Catching sight of the warrior, he changed direction towards her, approaching with a smile and a friendly blink.

“Morning, Turtle,” he said brightly, as if it weren’t the crack of dawn. “Up early, hm? I guess you do have a big day. How are you feeling about it?” She may not be meeting regularly with Snowdrift anymore, having a much more solid grasp on how to handle the things that gave her so much anxiety, but he did still check up on her regularly.

“Nervous, and excited, and very scared. I don’t wanna mess this up.” She murmured, staring at his paws. He didn’t mind when she didn’t look at him when speaking, and she would take advantage of it now. He was silent for a moment, probably nodding in that thoughtful way of his.

“Can I tell you something?” She twitched an ear. “Even if you do mess this up, it’ll still be ok.” She couldn’t help but glance up at him in surprise. Everyone had been telling her they knew she could do it, but that was also scary, because how disappointed would they be when or if she failed- “Like Mintstar said, Featherfall is committed to seeing this through, and any bit that you can do or learn will be helpful. So, even if you did get found out, we’ll still be in a better place than we are now.” He gave her a kind flick with his tail. “And anyway, I don’t think it’ll come to that. I know it’s hard to believe you can do this. I felt the same way when I received the omen and all. But remember this- when you doubt yourself, think about how Mintstar and I and everyone else trusts you, and believes you’ll be successful. Do you think we have bad judgement?” Turtledove furiously shook her head. “Good. If you don’t trust yourself, trust us, and do your best. Now, I was actually going to see about doing the kit blessing for Amberpelt and Ashleaf. If you wait outside the nursery, I’ll tell you what the kits names are when I’m done. Sound good?” And yeah, that did sound good. The names wouldn’t be announced to the Clan until after the blessing, bad luck and all that, which meant besides Snowdrift and the parents, Turtledove would be the first to know. And maybe her time in Shadowclan had rubbed off on her, because being the first to know sounded delightful. Turtledove obediently trotted after her medicine cat and reclined outside the entrance to the nursery, happy to distract herself with identifying the different birdsong. Robin, bluebird, thrush…

As the sun really started to shine in the clearing, Snowdrift wiggled his way out of the nursery, wincing as thorns scratched at his pelt. Turtledove bounced to her feet, looking at him expectedly. He snorted, but it was fond.

“Applekit for the tom, Sagekit for the molly, of course.” He said, and Turtledove nodded happily. It was to be expected that they would’ve named one kit after Sagefur. She knew some Clans didn’t like naming kits after dead family, but it was just the thing to do in Thunderclan. It was an honor, to carry on a name, and to have the blessing of your namesake. Her own brother was named after their uncle Owlwing, who had passed of some illness as a young warrior. Owlfeather would be blessed by his special protection, just like Sagekit would now be protected by her aunt.

“Turtle!” And speaking of… Her brothers had finally woken up, and now insisted on escorting her over to the elder’s den so they could wait for their dad to wake up, Aspenwing trailing over after them. It was nice, to spend this time with everybody. Rainstripe and Owlfeather swatted at each other in their excitement, insisting on showing her some last minute moves they had come up with to help her out. Aspenwing fretted, reminding her to watch out for rats and rogues and, stars forbid, strange toms. Tornleg sat there with his chest puffed out, giving her a gentle cuff around the ears and an atta girl, telling her he just knew she’d make them all proud. When Mintstar emerged from her den to make her way over, the morning sun bright and full and signaling that it was time to head out, Turtledove was suddenly overwhelmed with the desperate feeling of I don’t want to go. She wanted to stay in camp, and go hunting with her brothers, or share tongues with her mom, or see if maybe Tigerwhisker would wanna go look for feathers or something, the molly had been becoming something like a friend, lately, since they were the youngest mollies in the warriors den, you know, and she wanted to have a molly friend, not just her brothers, or maybe she could join Snowdrift in looking for herbs-

“Turtledove.” She looked wildly up at Mintstar. Her leader placed a solid paw on her shoulder. “It’s time to go. Are you ready?” No, no I’m really- And then something Snowdrift told her about came back to her, and she took a deep breath.

She could see the smiling faces of her family, Minstar, solid and secure as ever, the pride in their eyes, the brilliant blue sky, the way the morning sun dappled the camp. She could feel the night cold sand beneath her feet, the cool spring breeze in her fur, Mintstar’s comforting paw on her shoulder, the nerves fluttering in her gut. She could hear all her beautiful birds, her clanmates chatting as they slipped from their dens, the new leaves rustling. She could smell the familiar oak, the warm scent of prey carried on the breeze.

She could taste the anticipation snapping on her tongue.

“I think so.”

Travelling to Shadowclan was both familiar and foreign. The last time she had come this way it had been snowy and miserable, and for part of it she had also been running for her life and desperately trying to keep Snowdrift alive as well, so it really couldn’t compare to this nice spring jaunt she was on now. There was only a bit of snow left, with most of it melted into puddles and mud. The breeze was cold, but the sun was warm, and she couldn’t help but enjoy herself. All to soon they were at the road, and although they knew about the tunnel now, Mintstar said they were going to cross normally out of respect to Shadowclan. Sitting here peacefully with Mintstar was also much nicer than sitting with Stonestar had been, and Turtledove was content to wait in an easy silence. Not for too long, though, since Shadowclan knew they were coming, and before long two cats appeared across the road, waving them over quickly. Now Turtledove just did the best she could to block out those memories, of that day on the road, and the fur on her spine prickled, waiting for heavy paws to slam into her back-

And then they were across, Blackear and Bluebird comforting in their familiarity, and they chatted amiably with Mintstar as Turtledove trailed along behind them. She wasn’t super paying attention to their conversation, but she was listening intently for the birds, which is what alerted her to the barely there sound of someone creeping through the undergrowth near them- try as they might, they couldn’t help the quiet squelching of the mud pulling at everyone’s feet. Trying to act casual, she dropped back a little further, acting like she was intrigued with a fern unfurling nearby, but really, she was straining to hear, and yes, now they were sneaking up behind her…

When her assailant leapt, she was ready, rolling to the side and immediately throwing herself at where they had landed, unbalanced. They went tumbling, and then she was snarling down at Loudstorm, who was trying to laugh but was too winded to do so properly.

“Good job,” he wheezed. “Passed your first test.” A test? Blackear, Bluebird, and Mintstar had stopped, approval written across their faces as she glanced over at them. I… guess that makes sense. Still, she couldn’t help but tease as she stepped off her friend.

“Whatever Rosestar says, your mother gave you a good name.” She said. “I could hear you coming a mile away.” Loudstorm hissed in mock offense, bapping her repeatedly on the head before she ducked away, laughing. They continued on, the two young warriors trying to shake the mud out of their fur, and soon they came to the now fading familiarity of the log nest that made up Shadowclan’s camp. Beetlewhisker was waiting outside, calling a cheery greeting as they walked up, and seeming very pleased with the muddy streaks in her brother’s fur.

“I knew you’d get him,” she praised, and Turtledove couldn’t help but puff up a bit. Together they pushed their way into camp, where the calico was immediately swarmed by kittens.

“Turtle’s back! Turtle’s back!” They cried, and Turtledove couldn’t help but collapse with an oof under the combined weight of Mumblekit, Scratchkit, and Beekit. They were about five moons old now, and getting very big, which meant they were almost as big as she was, regrettably. Their three siblings, as well as Lichenkit, Graykit, and Newtkit, pranced around her, speaking over each other and generally being loud. Ears twitching, she pushed as gently as she could, trying to struggle through the fur and wiggly bodies to stand again, and was mercifully saved by the appearance of Tulipstem.

“Come on, kits, she can’t say hello to you if you smother her.” Crazy as they were, they were at least obedient, and they quickly clambered off her, Scratchkit using the tender gap between her ribs as a launching point. Wincing, she finally stood up, blinking gratefully at the queen. “It is good to see you, Turtle. Even if the circumstances are… less than ideal.”

“You too, Tulip. Uh, I mean, it’s good to see you, not that you’re less than ideal.” Tulipstem smiled, whiskers twitching in amusement, and waved her tail.

“Of course. I’m sure Rosestar would like to greet you, but then you can come and find me and Shade when you’re ready to start.” I wonder what exactly this will entail. Probably lots of verbal instruction, but if her first test was anything to go by, there would be some practical skills to go over as well. Turtledove bid goodbye to the disappointed kittens and trotted off after Mintstar, who now sat with Rosestar and Marshfoot.

“Good morning, young warrior,” Rosestar purred, seeming to be in a cheery mood. Probably happy something is getting done. I’m sure he hasn’t been pleased with the lack of progress. It had been a bit of a culture shock, going from Thunderclan, with the emphasis on respect and the Code and being a model warrior, to Shadowclan, who were undeniably dedicated to the Code, just… in a more relaxed way. Senior warriors joked with young warriors, apprentices snarked with elders, and kittens were lovingly entertained by everybody. Turtledove loved her family and her Clan, but she couldn’t deny it was nice to not have to worry about saying the wrong thing to a senior warrior and getting cuffed for it. Like right now- she wouldn’t have been caught dead in front of Stonestar or a senior warrior with a muddy pelt. But now, she couldn’t bring herself to mind.

“Good morning, Rosestar, thank you for hosting us.” That being said, she knew how to be polite. “And good morning to you too, Marshfoot. I’m glad to see the kittens look well.” The deputy bragged about her nieces and nephew like they were her own- Loudstorm said that if the molly ever had kittens, she’d probably be insufferable.

“Of course, you’re doing all of us a favor.” The pointed tom hummed. “Now, you know the basics, but here’s the rest. Tulipstem and Shadefur will instruct you in the customs of the Town, as well as how to fight like a rogue and how to navigate. You will be responsible for coming up with your own cover story based on what you learn, and with their help- it’ll be easier for you to remember than if we just came up with something for you, as well as be much more organic and thus more believable. Make sense?” She nodded. “Good. The goal is to have you in the Town before the half-moon, which gives us about ten days to prepare. If you work it out before, great. We’ll send you in earlier. Time is of the essence, after all.” Notice how he didn’t say anything about if it takes me longer than ten days. Rosestar looked at Mintstar. “While we have nothing specific, activity in the Town is picking up. If Featherfall is planning something new, she’ll be making a move soon. We will be increasing patrols and Fernfire is being assigned a personal guard again.”

“I’m afraid you’re right.” Mintstar said. “We will be keeping our guard up as well. I would also like to reiterate that Thunderclan is an ally to all the Clans right now. Please feel free to send a runner should anything come up.” Not that this wasn’t important, but Turtledove was getting bored. If she had ten days or less to turn herself into a convincing loner, then she needed to get started as soon as possible. She shifted restlessly, accidentally brushing up against Mintstar, who cast her an amused glance. “Alright, then. I will leave Turtledove in your capable paws. Turtle.” The calico focused on the blip of brown right above Mintstar’s nose. “I am very proud of you, and I am confident in your success. Remember, even when you’re in the Town, you can always rely on your Clan.” With that, the brown and white molly bid her goodbyes, trotting back out of the camp and out of sight. Rosestar dismissed Turtledove to her new mentors, who were sitting together outside the nursery, looking over to her expectantly. She quickly padded over to them, whiskers starting to tremble in anticipation. This is it. It’s really happening.

“Alright,” Shadefur said, “We’re getting right into it, so don’t worry about your coat. The first thing we’re going to do…”

When she collapsed into her new nest that night, Turtledove’s head was spinning and her paws were aching but stars, if she wasn’t thrilled. They had taken her out to spar, to see how to tweak her fighting style away from the rigid Clan forms to the more slapdash style of a loner. Thankfully, because of her size, she had learned a slightly unorthodox Thunderclan style, one that wouldn’t stick out too much to a Town cat. It relied more on being quick and clever rather than Thunderclan’s typical ‘beat it until it can’t move’ style. Shadefur had merely told her to fight dirtier, as Town cats didn’t have the same code of honor when it came to a fight, but that the moves she knew would be perfect. They had then taken her to the Dump and begun an introductory course on edible human garbage, something she had very much disliked and was not looking forward to continuing with. Thankfully, with the spring it wasn’t as likely that she’d have to resort to digging through trash for food, but apparently you never knew. Plus, it was just another thing a loner would know, so she would need to know. Finally, they had brought her back to camp, and Tulipstem had begun teaching her all the vocabulary she would need, like how they weren’t twolegs, they were humans, and it wasn’t kittypets or crow food or gangs, but house cats and roadkill and colonies. The Riverclanner had apparently shown up when she was out at the Dump, but now was sprawled out in a nest near hers, already asleep. I wonder what he’ll have to learn, she mused sleepily, snorting as Beetlewhisker shoved a paw into her side and Loudstorm decided to use her hip as a headrest for his big heavy head. Her earlier nerves had dissipated, more confident now that she had gotten a taste of what she would learn and realized she could handle it.

Maybe I won’t mess this up after all.

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#warriors ocs #warrior cats #warrior cats ocs #my writing #wc pyrophyte #wc fanfic

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