Username: Hazelfang
Which Kitten: Bottom right
Cat Name: Butterfly (eventually Butterflyhush)
Gender: Male
Rank: Kitten (eventually a Servus)
Clan: Kin of the VixenAge: 2 months
Prompt: Whispers of spirits, sinister and malevolent, echo from within your heart. Your shadow grows with every passing day until all as we know will be consumed.
Being a shy and quiet kitten, Butterfly often found himself hiding from the other kittens and preferring the company of the Ministra. Being as silent as he is, he would always hear the whispers of his Kin. Many secrets he has learned at his young age and many times he heard the Kin speculating his heritage. Although none of the Ministra caring for him ever brought it up, he knew that he was different from the other kittens and he hated it. The only Kin who was willing to speak to the kitten of his past was the Sybil Superior themself. They were mysterious themself, simply murmuring what seemed to be omens while walking around the camp. Overwhelmed by his frustration, the young kitten decided to approach the Sybil Superior and ask directly. The Sybil Superior, with eyes cloudy and their jaw agape, spoke before the kitten could even ask. The words they uttered sent a chill down the small body: Whispers of spirits, sinister and malevolent, echo from within your heart. Your shadow grows with every passing day until all as we know will be consumed. In horror, the kitten ran away into the nursery and buried himself in his nest, hoping to forget what he just heard and sleep away the fear. Yet, he couldn't escape the nightmares that would ensue after.
Butterfly found himself submerged in an ominous and suffocating fog in an area of which he was not familiar with. After all, the young kit had never stepped paw outside of the camp before. From beyond the fog, he could make out the rapid movements of shadows the color of the starless night sky. The young kit tried to navigate through the fog and called out to the shadows, desperate for someone, anyone to save him. As he traveled further into the fog, more shadows appeared and their dancing hastened. After taking a few more shaky steps, the shadows began to unite into the shape of a large feline. The large feline silhouette approached Butterfly and their voice pierced his ears, echoing within his skull, "You have stolen the spirits of which are mine, young one. How do you intend to repay me?"
The small kitten hunched over in fear, trembling from the haunting presence before him. With the kit unable to move a muscle or squeak out a response, the silhouette growled in frustration, "I expected more from a soul of your strength, but you have disappointed me. I will return once more. I pray for your sake you have an answer for me then, unless you'd like to incur the wrath of Vindicta." With that final statement, the silhouette slowly dissolved into the smaller shadows once more. Its hissing words resonated in the mind of the young soul, stirring him awake from his nightmare. Yet, Butterfly knew that this nightmare would never end. Not until he could learn of what this spirit could want from him and who he truly was.
Word Count: 523
Username: Hazelfang
Which Kitten: Top left
Cat Name: Sun (eventually Sunblossom)
Gender: Female
Rank: Kitten (eventually a Ministra)
Clan: Kin of the VixenAge: 4 months
Prompt: "Your heart is gracious and your soul is tenacious. With a spirit like yours, not even the sky will be your limit. Soar high amongst the birds and guide those who seek your love, young one."
Sun is a gentle, loving soul. Despite her mysterious heritage, the Kin grew fond of her quickly and she found herself often caring for the other kittens in the nursery even at a young age. She was known as the mini Ministra, like a bright shadow following around the Ministra to help with the kits. Unlike other kits who would do similar to boss the others around, Sun genuinely wanted to be helpful and care for the other kits. However, during a terribly cold winter, Sun's kindness would cause her life to change forever.
While a group of kits were out playing in the snow, Sun sat along the side watching them. She would flick the moss ball back to them every once and a while when it rolled her way, but beyond that, she didn't do much playing. While watching the kits, the Ministra sitting beside her noticed a shift in the weather. It had gotten significantly colder with an icy breeze that brought Sun to a pitiful shiver. A frost storm was coming and it was time for the kittens to go back into the warmth of the nursery. Sun helped corral the kits into the nursery, ensuring each one snuggles into a warm nest. However, while helping tuck each kit into the moss, she noticed one of them was missing. She attempted to inform the Ministra, but they had their paws full with two kits who were trying to run past her to return to the snow. The small golden kit realized she had to do something and couldn't wait for the Ministra to help- the poor kit could be out there freezing! So she snuck out of the nursery and searched for the kit.
The camp was mostly empty, with her fellow Kin also bundling up into their dens, trying to stay as warm as possible. Sun shivered and squinted her eyes, searching around for the lost kit. Frost touched her eyelashes, making it difficult to see, but she was determined to find this kit! So she marched on, deciding to try near the pond where the kits loved to play with the frosted reeds. Trudging through the snow, cold water clung to her frame weighing her down. Her determination, however, knew no bounds and she was not going to give up until she knew that kit was safe and sound. Carrying on, she heard what sounded like a faint squeak coming from the direction of the pond. With newfound vigor, she pushed harder thorugh the snow until she reached the edge of the frosted pond. There, at the center of the icy pond, huddled the tiny body of the lost kit- hunched over and trembling in pure terror. "I'll save you! Don't worry!", Sun had called out, hoping to reassure the frightened soul. In an attempt to test the ice, she placed her paw gently on the fragile surface. The ice seemed stable enough, at least to get her towards the kit that was three adult tail lengths away from her. Step by step, she made her way to the kit until she could sink her teeth into the small body's scruff. Being a kit herself, she wasn't far bigger than the kit, hoowever, she was large enough to pick it up and hold it at least above the ground. "I've got you now," she grunted through a mouthful of scruff while carefully traveling back to the shore. We are going to make it, she had thought to herself determinedly, I won't let this kit freeze! Closer and closer they were approaching the shore until they were hardly a mouse-length away. CRACK! The sound of the ice shifting under the weight of the two kits echoed around the pond. Out of instinct and without much time to think, Sun tossed the little kitten's body onto the shore right when the ice broke beneath her paws. She could see the little body land safely on the dry land, squealing in shock from being tossed, right as she started to sink into the water. Her body stiffened in shock from the impact of the cold. The ravenous water lapped at her hind quarters, dragging her further down into the frozen depths as Sun desperately tried to paw her way out. She wasn't a strong swimmer, I mean she was born during the Fallen Leaves so it's not like she had time to practice! Deeper and deeper she sank into the water until she slowly drifted out of consciousness, overcome by the intensely frigid water.
Sun didn't remember anything that happened after that moment. Her Kin explained that the kit's crying caught the attention of the Ministra who went looking for the two. From there, the Ministra and a pair of other cats who joined the search found Sun drowning and saved her from the water. They had brought both kits back to the Servus' den to be treated for shock and the cold. Thanks to Sun, the young kit suffered no injuries beyond some cold toes and a new hatred for ice. Yet, unfortunately for her, she didn't get so lucky. According to the Sybil Superior, she had spent far too long underneath the ice and was struck with frostbite along all her extremities. The part of her body that suffered the worst was her face, striking her eyes and nose in particular. They suspected she inhaled a lot of the icy water while drowning which lead to the frostbite. Although all of the Servus tried their hardest to heal her, they were unable to reduce the impact the frostbite had on her vision and sense of smell. She could hardly smell the prey in front of her and passing cats looked like colorful blobs to her. Her Kin were heartbroken for her, but Sun did not seem to mind at all. In fact, she was relieved that she was the one injured and not the young kitten she had saved. She remained positive and hopeful that she would still contribute to her Kin, just perhaps differently than initially intended. She would persevere as she always had and will continue to help her Kin, she just knew it.
Her perseverance and unwavering love caught the attention of Verentia, one of the Nine Spirits of Terra. A few nights after the incident, while deep in slumber, Verentia herself spoke with Sun in a dream. The great Spirit commended the tenacity of such a young spirit, praising her for her immense passion for caring for her Kin and the fight she endured to save that kit's life. Although she never did what she did for praise, she appreciated the Spirit's words and what she would hear next would stick with her for the rest of her life: "Your heart is gracious and your soul is tenacious. With a spirit like yours, not even the sky will be your limit. Soar high amongst the birds and guide those who seek your love, young one." After stating those words, the Spirit had brushed her nose against the young kit's, offering her a blessing that recognized the good deed she committed. At that moment, Verentia gifted Sun the ability to communicate with birds, a creature notoriously respected for their perseverance by the Kin, in hopes of allowing her an opportunity to continue to care for her Kin. Despite her own deteriorated vision, this blessing would allow her to have eyes and ears in the sky. She cherished the blessing from Verentia, grateful from the ends of her heart for being touched by the Spirit before the dream slowly ended.
When she had awoken, she knew she had to tell the Sybil Superior. The Sybil Superior was astounded that such a young spirit would receive a blessing directly from one of the Nine, so much so that they insisted she become a Servus and learn the way of the Spirits. To them, this was a sign that she had holy powers and was destined to become a Sybil Superior herself some day. However, Sun decided she wished to use her power to benefit the kittens and that the best way to do so would be to become a Ministra. That way, she would forever be able to love and care for the kittens she cares so much about. The Sybil Superior had been hesitant at first, but respected Sun's confidence in her future and implored the Magister to allow for her to become a Ministra softpaw immediately. And thus the story of Sunblossom, the Ministra with the ability to communicate with birds, begins.
Word Count: 1466