so. style swaps huh. it sucked because i couldnt use my poor old jitter brush for most of these but its ok...
inspos here
Shadestar - @hushclancats (i TRIED to use the pencil brush but alas. tumblr hates any quality in my art!!!)
Longfalcon - @ranchclan
Pipitpatch - @heavensgaze (her build is similar to mulberry so... couldnt pass it up could i)
Snowdawn - @missedclangen (i feel like she'd have SOME kind of mark so i just put the sinner one as its the only one ive seen depicted. unless im blind and havent seen lemon enough. also i made her look Too normal i fear)
Pumpkinwisp - @cutieclangen (rip my boy's contrast)
Massifmallow - @the-stars-and-the-tide
Spikekit - @crystalline-clangen (please alert me if any crystals actually look like that. im curious. also i drew her a little older and grouchier)
Mouse hadn't expected the forest to be quite so big when her mama had put her there, but that was okay! It was more exciting than boring brown walls had ever been.
The only issue was... it was a bit lonely. A few weeks ago, she'd had her mama, Canopy, Skip and Salt. It was crowded, but Mouse had loved the company. Being alone in the big forest was... weird. Scary, maybe even. Her mama had warned her about "predators that swallow you whole". Clearly, she thought, those predators are stupid! If she could just curl up under a bush and be safe, how were they so scary? Besides, they always left their food.
Mouse winced slightly as she thought of food, sniffing the air for a moment. And then, upon catching a strange scent she hadn't noticed before, sniffed again. Other cats!
Her ears (that she swears that she'd grow into) pricked, trying to pick up where the other cats were. She could hear voices, faint against the wind. What kitten wouldn't follow them?
Mouse kept herself low, her nose practically against the frosted grass. In fact, she had been so busy tracking, that she almost walked into a greyish pile of fur!
The fur-pile twitched slightly, before spinning around wirh a confused trill. She could see the faint brownish stripes running down their sides, the curls in their fluffed up tail, the soft pinkness in their eyes. They weren't just a pile at all, they were a cat!
"Hiya!" Mouse chirped. "Who are you?"
The cat blinked at her, their pale eyes confused. "Uh, I'm Wheatpaw. Are you... supposed to be here?"
Mouse tilted her head. "Dunno. Are you?"
"Yeah, actually. My mentor's taking me on my very first hunting patrol!" Wheatpaw said, the caution on their face fading away as they puffed their chest out in pride. "What Clan are you from then? I won't force you back or anything, I swear..."
Mouse felt her own confusion stir. This forest-cat was weird. "What's a Clan?"
The forest-cat's eyes widened, a brief "Oh!" escaping them. "You're a... loner? Kittypet? Rogue?"
Mouse shrugged, still not understanding a word of what the older cat was saying. "I'm a cat?"
"Ha! Okay, smart-head. Do ya wanna come back with us?"
Mouse's eyes lit up. Whatever a Clan was, it sounded interesting. Besides, this cat was funny, and if she got to talk to them MORE....
"Yes please!" she replied, her tiny body trembling with excitement.
A faint rustling distracted Mouse from her thoughts. Wheatpaw perked up, falling quiet too. "Honestly, Wheatpaw, you can't just run..."
The other cat trailed off, staring at Mouse. They were tall, even taller than Wheatpaw, their height only amplified by the curls on their ears. They were curly all over, actually! Maybe not quite to the same degree as Wheatpaw, but Mouse couldn't help but wonder if they were related. Their pelt was a pale beige, deep red blotches like a squirrel against the grass.
"Wheatpaw, who is this?"
Their voice was sharp, their snowy eyes squinted and boring into Mouse. She couldn't help but back away ever so slightly.
"I'm Mouse!" she chirped, trying to puff her chest out as confidently as the younger forest cat did. "Nice to meet you, maam!"
The beige cat paused, one of their ears twitching. "I'm a tom," they replied curtly, "but thank you anyway. Where's your parents?"
"Not here!" Mouse replied. "And no, I am not a Clan."
"Not from a clan," Wheatpaw chimed in, smirking again as they dodged Mouse's glare. "She's coming with us, if that's alright?"
The older cat sighed, rolling their eyes. "Fine. Next time we are hunting prey, and not random outsider kits. As for you," their gaze flitted over to Mouse again, "Longfalcon'll get you straight to the nursery. We can sort out what to do with you there."
The nursery! "But I'm not that young!" she whined.
"Really? Tell me then what colour leaves are meant to be. And how many of them are on the trees."
"Uh..." Mouse pondered, trying to think of her earliest days. "They're brown, right? And there's... I dunno, 5 per tree?"
"Because Shadestar'll just make someone who's never seen a spring or summer become an apprentice. Right." They stepped closer to Mouse, before leaning down and picking her up by the scruff. Mouse huffed in annoyance, but there was no getting out of it now.
-
The walk to Mouse's new friends' camp was long. If Wheatpaw hadn't been gossipping to her all the way, Mouse would surely have starved of boredom or something. Apparently, the cat carrying her was called Pumpkinwisp. Also apparently toms here were "he"'s and not "they"'s. Also also there was one tom who was an "e". Confusing stuff.
By the time they were approaching the entrance, or at least what Mouse presumed it was, she couldn't help but feel a bit tired.
As Pumpkinwisp weaved around the trees blocking their way, Mouse finally caught a view of the camp, and how beautiful it was!
Green bushes lined the edges top-to-tail, only made cooler by the shade cast by the bare trees winding above her. It was large for how few cats were dotted around, but it was still amazing.
Mouse squeaked as Pumpkinwisp dropped her from his grasp, landing with her fur puffed. "Not funny!" She stuck her tongue out at him, or at least as best as she could past her fangs, earning a chuckle from the older cat.
She noticed his ears prick suddenly, and she spun around to see yet another cat. This one was slightly smaller than Pumpkinwisp, seemingly a molly? Her ears, though curled back, were pinned to her side, and her icy eyes shimmered round and wide. "Thank StarClan you're back!" she meowed, tapping her paws nervously against the loose dirt beneath her. "Wheatpaw, Longfalcon wants to see you in eir den. Now. Spikepaw's injured."
Mouse didn't understand most of what the new molly said, but from the way Wheatpaw's face filled with horror, she could guess that it meant something important to him.
"What happened to her?" he asked, his voice scarily low, scarily serious. "Is she okay?"
Wheatpaw's fur had fluffed up again, the fear racing over him impossible to ignore. Mouse knew that company was a good comfort, or whatever her mama had said, but she hadn't noticed herself moving closer to her new friend until she was pelt-to-pelt with him.
"She's.... not the best. A dog shredded her tail, apparently. She's unconscious, but Longfalcon says she's stable."
Mouse could feel Wheatpaw shaking before he nudged her off, scrambling to his paws in a panicked frenzy. "Shit!" he hissed as he bolted across the camp and into one of the larger dens. "I knew I shouldn't have left her!"
"Can I go with him?" Mouse questioned, sticking her paw in the air. The grey molly looked down at her, seemingly just noticing her presence.
"Sorry, darling." she whispered with a gentle smile, leaning down to her. "Wheatpaw needs time to be with his sister right now." Siblings! Mouse couldn't imagine a cat with such a name as 'Spikepaw' being related to the soft cat she knew. Her siblings certainly looked like her!
"Wheatpaw's friend," Pumpkinwisp sighed, causing Mouse to realise that both adults were now looking at each other. "She's a loner kit, 3 or 4 moons old at eldest. Name's Mouse. She would've died out there if Wheatpaw hadn't found her."
"I would NOT have died!" Mouse announced. "And, I found him! Not the other way!"
Pumpkinwisp shot Mouse a glare, but the older molly just laughed. "I like your spunk, kit!"
"Yeah, yeah. Pipitpatch, do you mind taking her to the nursery? At least settle her while Wheatpaw's busy."
"Star's sakes, I was just about to! You go check on Massifmallow. She isn't taking Spikepaw's injury well." The older cat, Pipitpatch presumably, said, rolling her eyes. "Sorry about Pumpkinwisp, darling. He has a right temper on him, doesn't he?"
Pumpkinwisp sighed, muttering something under his breath before sauntering off towards a second, larger den. Good riddance!
"Do I have to be in the nursery, maam?" Mouse chirped, glancing up at Pipitpatch as if she'd never looked away. "I wanna be with Wheatpaw!"
As Pipitpatch smiled gently, Mouse felt a sense of comfort and warmth coming from her. "Don't worry." the grey molly meowed. "Just because you're a kit doesn't mean you won't be able to talk to him. Besides, he just became an apprentice today! When you get that old, you'll be able to train with him and Spikepaw. For now, you're stuck with me. Y'know, I know lots about everyone here. I can teach you about them, if that helps."
Mouse could only stare at Pipitpatch in awe, her bright eyes sparkling excitedly. Something was telling her that she would love it here.
The sounds of battle were just as unpleasant as Massifmallow recalled.
Her body squeezed tight against the woven branches of the nursery wall, the small molly forced her fur flat, her breathing steady. When she had noticed JayClan scent too close to camp to be anything but an attack, she had sprinted inside, hissing at her kits to follow suit. Now, the three were all scrunched together; Wheatkit's pink eyes were large and round, Spikekit looking at the ground with an unreadable expression.
"It's gonna be okay," she whispered, her tail gently tapping both of her kits. "You're gonna be safe."
StarClan, how she wished her words were true. As long as this war was on, her family would not be safe.
Keeping herself as invisible as a pale grey pile of fluff could, Massifmallow inched towards the entrance. JayClan cats played dirty. If one were to race in and grab her kits, she would stop them. She could not -- no, WOULD not -- lose them like she lost Sapkit.
Squinting through the light, she could see the battle raging. She could see one cat - Shadestar, surely - trying to fend off two cats. Both apprentices judging by how she couldn't recognise them.
Massifmallow's whole world stilled as her eyes found a certain tom. His pale brown pelt glinted in the sunlight as he slammed Pumpkinwisp to the ground, his fangs sharp as he ripped a chunk of fur from her Clanmate's side, his eyes dark with the same overconfidence she recalled when he had called her his mate.
Her heart moved before her head, and by the stars did she run. Every little thing he had done dashed through her mind, and for a split second she saw the apprentice she knew from her first day in JayClan. His cheerful smile, his gentle welcome.
For a longer split second, she recognised the tom who had pinned her, all but forced her to claim she loved him. How effortlessly his claws raked across her face as she told him she didn't like toms, as he screamed about how their night together had to mean something. The tom she had ran from once she discovered that she was pregnant, to protect her kits.
To protect herself.
And, in that second moment, did Massifmallow realise what she needed to do.
Yowling, she slammed into Bushthorn's side, knocking him clean off of Pumpkinwisp. His eyes, the same shade as her Wheatkit's and yet not containing a slither of her boy's spirit, widened in shock as he attempted to roll from underneath her. She could feel his hind legs now, tearing at her belly; it burned, but her grip remained tight. "Fox-heart!" he hissed, reaching to claw her face like he had moons ago.
This time, Massifmallow was expecting his outburst and was quick to dodge his claws, twisting her head sideways. Before he could get another swipe in, Massifmallow raised her own paw. Bushthorn had always underestimated her; only proven further by how he remained defenseless as she slashed his throat, sinking her claws in as deeply as she could.
The camp fell silent, battle screeches fading into oblivion. Massifmallow felt eyes on her as she stood over Bushthorn, whose attempts to fight her off had ceased as her bloodied paw lifted from his throat. She looked up, trembling. Oh, StarClan.
"ENOUGH!" a sharp cry sounded out. Glancing over, Massifmallow could see Pollenstar, her golden fur drooping even as she puffed herself large. Her ears reflexively pinning, Massifmallow stepped back ever so slightly. Was that a new violet scar on her former leader's flank, or was she forgetting?
"Cats of JayClan!" Pollenstar yowled, audibly frail despite her strong stance. "This battle is lost, and we cannot risk anyone else losing lives. Retreat!"
As Pollenstar bounded off, the many other JayClan cats slowly filtered out after her. Massifmallow recognised most of them; Pheasantspeck, Treebound, even little Jacobpaw who surely had become a warrior by then. All Massifmallow could really think of was how grateful she was that none of her former clanmates were willing to attack her.
In fact, only one cat approached her at all. She knew him best of all; his dark brown pelt lit up by the red patch on his face. He was slim, his river-blue eyes just as round and childish as the day she left, albeit drooping with concern.
"Massif." he whispered, his voice low. "I'm so sorry. For everything."
Despite all the words she wanted to say to her once friend, her own apologies, her "its not your fault"s, her mouth felt too dry. "Go home, Flamenose," she choked. "Go home."
The tortoiseshell tom sighed defeatedly, nodding before dipping down to pick up Bushthorn's body. "Stay safe." And with that, he staggered back towards the entrance, the deputy's body in tow.
The adrenaline must've faded, as Massifmallow felt every last thought hit her. Relief, above all else, but panic, grief, joy, rage; a whole inferno of emotion roared under her skin. Even as cats of her own Clan surrounded her, as Longfalcon hurried her to the healer's den with panicked words, she could only think of the tom she'd killed, and how with his death came her freedom.
Spikepaw smiled as her Clanmates called her name, only if because she didn't want her mama to be worried. An apprentice ceremony, she'd heard, was a time of celebration and joy. The only thing to celebrate, in Spikepaw's opinion, was the fact that her mama would be mentoring her.
She caught a glimpse of Wheatpaw, his chest fluffed out in pride as he sat next to Pumpkinwisp, and she fought a scowl from her face. At least somebody's happy, she thought bitterly.
It was when the other cats dispersed that Spikepaw noticed her tailtip twitching, but she didn't care to shut down the involuntary movement. The ceremony was over, who'd care if she was upset now?
"Spikepaw, huh?"
The new apprentice pricked her head up to see her mother looking at her, her deep blue eyes containing a teasing spark amidst that warmth she knew from when it was just her and her brothers in the nursery, no scary world to think of. Stars, Massifmallow was the only cat keeping her going by this point.
"Sorry," Spikepaw muttered, stumbling to her paws. "Are we going out already?"
"Sure are! I was hoping to take you on a tour of the territory, so you know where our borders are. And," her mother's voice turned to a whisper as she inched closer, "we'd better do it while that oh-so-average brother of yours is out learning how to hunt with Pumpkinwisp!"
"Mama!" Spikepaw couldn't help but laugh. For all she agreed, it was strange to hear it from her mouth. "You can't say that!"
"Uh huh I can. If we don't go now, he'll hear us!" Massifmallow spun round, trotting off with a quiet laugh.
"Okay, okay, I'm coming!"
--
It was strange, walking around the open forest again. Now that Spikepaw was large enough to step over roots rather than climb, the world felt strangely claustrophobic. Not as much as the camp, as the trees here stood straight, the only roof to speak of being barren twigs.
"Now, do you remember what Clans don't border us? I told you this one a few days ago!"
Spikepaw sighed, reciting their names as she had done before in the nursery. "Tunicate and Sidewinder?"
"Coooorrect! Those two are just north of FangClan's land. Now, which one's which?"
"Uhhh... I don't know. Oh, Sidewinder has no trees in their territory, right?"
"Yep, they share the meadows with us, FangClan and ChervilClan. TunicateClan has a pond in it. I'm impressed you still remember what SidewinderClan land is like, you know."
Spikepaw winced, remembering her litter's escapade a few moons prior. How they'd managed to travel two whole territories, she couldn't tell. "Uh, yeah." she muttered, eager to shut down that conversation. "What's ChervilClan like?"
"Well, I'm glad you asked!" Massifmallow chirped, gesturing in front of her with her paw. "This here is the ChervilClan border!"
Though the forest on either side looked near identical, the strong scent of presumably ChervilClan cats was strong enough for Spikepaw to know that that was their land.
It was too strong, and Spikepaw soon realised that she wasn't the only cat thinking so.
"HEY!"
Spikepaw all but jumped out of her pelt as her mother's yell tore through the air. She spun around to see Massifmallow bolting towards a tree, an unfamiliar cat awkwardly poking out from the branches. They looked like her mother, at a glance, but their fur was much sleeker, like Longfalcon's. Their pale grey pelt did them no justice against the dark brown tree they were scrunched against.
"YOUR TERRITORY'S JUST OVER THERE, COME ON NOW!" Massifmallow yowled, her fur bristling. Spikepaw hadn't noticed that her own fur was doing the same, but it seemed to help.
Spikepaw could hear the ChervilClan cat yell something back. She couldn't tell what they said, exactly, but as soon as they fell silent, she noticed how their ears were pinned and their eyes wide.
It was only when Spikepaw looked around did she notice the large black-brown flash thundering towards her, and only once she recognised the distinctly canine smell did its jaws wrap around her tail.
Spikepaw screeched in pain as she swung round at the dog, flailing wildly, trying to so much as scratch it in her panic. She could see her mother, out of the corner of her eye, but was so lost in her pain and confusion that she couldn't quite grasp what she was doing.
Everything flashed by in such a blur, it was as if that this was where the time that had crawled so slowly during her apprentice ceremony went. All she could register in the flurry of battle was her paws being violently pulled from the forest floor, the pain ripping through her body as she was slammed back down, and the eerie black that followed.
