Stars V.2 • Catvent 2024

[polaris.]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: jay. + 688591
↬ clan archive: hollowclan

↬ word count: 454 words
↬ prompt:
playing out by the water was probably not the best decision to make - especially not for a group of unsupervised apprentices. applepaw, echopaw and silentpaw had all snuck out of camp, much to the dismay of their parents, to play in the snow. sure, the clan often experienced snow throughout the year, but this time was different - the lake had frozen over.
not particularly being fans of water they had tended to avoid the lake. it wasn't out of fear, as the water wasn't deep enough to drown them, but it was more so out of the desire of avoiding getting their pelts soaked with unwanted water. to be frank, lake was a bold word to use, it was more of a large pond, only appearing as large as it did to the three young cats due to their size.

"furthest out across the ice wins." applepaw smirked, stepping onto the ice with unfounded confidence before bounding forward, his siblings following shortly behind him.
"unfair! you got a head start." echopaw hissed, hesitating before following after his brother, all while silentpaw stood at the ice's edge, watching with caution.
"are we sure this is a good idea?-" her tone spoke of her hesitancy as she briefly stepped on the ice before retreating, feeling how uneven it was beneath her paws. her concern went unheard, however, as the pair ahead of her continued to bound off onto the ice, applepaw still maintaining his lead ahead of echopaw. he paused briefly to mock his brother, boasting about his, in his eyes, clear victory.

"you're so slow! so much for a warrior apprentice." he sneered mockingly at his rapidly approaching brother before going to turn heel himself, stopping in his place as he felt the ice crack beneath his paws. he froze up, frantically looking back at echopaw in some desperate plead for help. his reaction wasn't fast enough, however, as he quickly felt the ice shatter underneath him, dunking him in water that didn't go any higher than his shoulders. he yelped in sudden surprise, frantically trying to pull himself back onto the ice.

echopaw slowed his pace, coming to a gentle stride across the ice until he reached his brother, snickering to himself under his breath. he knew he wasn't in any real danger, the water wasn't deep enough, so there was no real reason to panic. applepaw was overreacting, as usual.
"not so ahead now, are we?" he chuckled as he pulled a terrified applepaw out from the water and away from the ice, onto steadier ground
"shut up." was the only response he was given by a now pathetic looking applepaw.

[knickknacks]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: knickknacks + 815546
↬ clan archive: salted stone

↬ word count: 341
↬ prompt:

They’ve gotten the timing down to a science now.

Every night, his uncle Driftwood keeps one eye on the window, watching and listening for the nightly guards to make their rounds. After they’ve disappeared up the street, Plover and Sandbar take their bundles and slip out the back door.

Sandbar had found the gap in the wall when he was very young- though he’s grown bigger and broad-shouldered now, it is still enough for himself and his aunt to slip through as they leave. Some nights they have to drag the bundles behind them, for fear of them scraping along the tunnel roof and the sound reaching the guards above. Plover squeezes back to the inner side, keeping an eye on the top of the wall, and hisses along the tunnel when it’s clear for Sandbar to go.

And then he is off- bounding through the sea grass to the cliff’s edge, picking his way down the rocks, down the route he knows well in the daylight but finds trickier and more dizzying in the dark- to the beach. He goes as quickly and quietly as he can, knowing he cannot be gone long.

The pirates’ ship is a hulking wreck, cracked open on the sand. The pirates themselves, dots around a ring of fire.

He dares not approach the circle of their firelight. He knows there are guards watching from the cliffs. Sticking to the base of the cliffs he creeps, depositing his bundles at the agreed-upon crack in the rock. A palm frond lies there, for him to carry back and brush his tracks away.

He glances briefly at the group on the beach before he goes. They seldom speak, but he knows they know when he is here. Far-off bright eyes wink at him, and he dips his head in return.

And then Sandbar is gone, scurrying back across the sand, swiping his tracks away behind him. He does not have long before the guard changes again, and Driftwood will kill him if he is late for supper.

[faelyn]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: faelyn #967122
↬ clan archive: faerie

↬ word count: #366 words
↬ prompt: “...vio? why are you outside?” tucker is very confused, his non-existent eyebrows scrunched up as he tottered into the cold. his army of living turnips marched behind him, all quivering in unison as tucker squinted into a wintry night.

“i’m thinking.” vio shrugged his shoulders and stared blankly into the distance.

tucker sputtered. “what do you mean???” he sniffed. “you’re always thinking!?! and why do you have to think outside? it’s freezing!”

“okay.”

“um… that’s it? aren’t you going to come inside now?” tucker’s nose wrinkles as he tentatively tip-toes closer to vio.

“no.”

“well… okay.” tucker scratches his head and frowns as his army of living turnips do the same. “i’ll keep you company.”

“you’re on thin ice.”

“WHAT? are you kidding me?? you can’t possibly be getting mad at me ( i’m just trying to keep you company you know?” tucker lets out an exasperated huff. “you might get lonely out here… i’m just saying! it’s cold and its frightening and its scary out here and if i leave you, you’ll be all on your own! you need a sidekick and luckily for you i’m just the right guy for the job!”

“no, no, no, tucker.” vio’s mouth turned into an upside down u. “you are standing on thin ice… just carefully step off- i don’t think its cracking yet so just be calm-”

tucker let out a screech at the realization. his knees grew wobbly and quaked as a spiderweb of cracks erupted at the ice’s surface.

he squeezed his eyes shut.

“i’m sorry, vio. i-i thought we’d have more time.” it was over for him. he was going to die :(. “it was nice being your friend. i also really like your onion soup by the way, even though i said i spat it out and said it was bad-”

vio let out a soft sigh and took tucker by the shoulders, scooting him onto a patch of snow and away from the ice. “okay.” he pat tucker on the head. “you’re safe now.”

“oh-ohhh.” tucker chuckled, his cheeks pink with embarrassment. “whew! that was terrifying! you saved my life! i really thought i was going to die there!”

“i could tell.”

[Embergleam]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: Embergleam #127087
↬ clan archive: In The Wake Of Giants

↬ word count: 596
↬ prompt:
"And what is this strange substance called?"

Mimic had to fight to restrain a laugh. Nighteyes was a strange cat, unrepentantly so, but somehow Mimic had been quite certain they would know what ice was. Yet, here they stood, two mostly-white cats on a mostly-white riverbank, both transfixed by the wintry display laid out before them.

"It's called 'ice'. It happens whenever water gets too cold. We don't get much of it here in the Wake, it's usually too warm, but every now and again..."

Mimic flicked an ear towards the thin skim of ice that had formed atop the river overnight. It had indeed been significantly colder than usual the last few days, but even they hadn't expected it to get this cold. The clan had made the collective decision to stick close to camp and the roaring fire that Sunfire had kindled for them. No one wanted to deal with frozen pawpads or soaked fur, least of all when the unseasonable chill seemed determined to stick around for awhile.

...all except Nighteyes, who had been absolutely enraptured by the cold white stuff drifting down from above. They'd insisted on dragging Mimic out to 'take a proper look'. Now drifted closer and closer to the river's edge as if caught in an undertow, utterly lost in the sights and sounds of winter in the Wake.

"'Ice'. A fascinating word for a fascinating phenomenon. Does it not form on the ocean as well? Oceanfoam made no mention of 'ice' when he returned from fishing this morning."

A shrug from Mimic, who had found himself a relatively dry (and blessedly snow-free) place to sit.

"Not really sure. If I had to guess, it probably moves too much to freeze over? Or the salt in it might have some effect on it. I've seen oceans start to freeze before, but never here, and only in much more severe cold snaps than this one."

Nighteyes was still listening, Mimic could see their ears angling back and forth, but their attention was primarily on the ice now directly under their paws. They pawed at the cold slidey stuff, claws catching on its surface, before bouncing in place.

Their paws promptly shot off in all directions, dumping the star-cat belly-first on the ice with a yowl of protest.

"Careful, friend, you're gonna-"

CRACK.

Nighteyes was, in many ways, something else wearing the skin of a cat. They possessed few of the instincts an Earthborn cat might have, and a dozen utterly alien to their clanmates. Even they, however, possessed something vaguely resembling survival instinct. The moment they heard that first low, booming noise they bolted for the safety of the shore. It took what felt like forever (...but was likely a matter of seconds), but somehow they made it to dry land just before the ice gave way. A great patch of open, running water boiled up in the middle of the river, dark as night and twice as cold.

For once in their very, very long life, Nighteyes had nothing intelligent to say. They just stared, eyes huge, as cracks spiderwebbed through the ice along the shoreline. Bit by bit the whole ice shelf gave way and floated off downstream. Both cats watched it, uncharacteristically silent, then-

"...why did it do that."

"Because ice is brittle and breaks up when it starts warming up. That's why you generally don't want to stand on it."

Another long silence, presumably while Nighteyes' life flashed before their starry eyes, then-

"Duly noted."

A beat.

"...can we go home now?"

"Thought you'd never ask."

[I Like Bees]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: I Like Bees + 904964
↬ clan archive: Here

↬ word count: 14 words
↬ prompt: Ghost is on thin ice with Squiggle after stealing their favorite pair of socks 🥲

[ethium]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: ethium + 879455
↬ clan archive: elmclan

↬ word count: 419 words
↬ prompt:

"hemlock! get back here!" comfreydirge watched his young adoptive son run across the ice, skidding on the thick surface with bubbling overjoyed laughter. He's going to get himself killed at this rate... Comfrey tentatively stepped out onto the ice, sniffing at it and listening to the deep groan within the waters. He couldn't exactly blame Hemlock, after all, in planet province, they didn't get snow like this- too close to the dragons. Here, up north on the shores of Ondine amidst the dragon's wing, it felt like he would freeze to death in what little fur coat he still had. Hemlock was probably no better, but undoubtedly the young kit was too excited by the prospect of sliding on what he perceived to be 'solid water' to notice the chill yet.

"Your mother's going to rain hellfire on you, you scamp, get back here!" but Comfreydirge's protests fell on deaf ears as Hemlock continued to run out further and further onto the ice. The further the little bundle of oil-slick dark fur ran, the more panicked comfrey began to become. He paced restlessly and then began to slowly tread out further onto the ice. He'd have run after the kit under normal circumstances, but the further he went out, the weaker the ice became, and he was worried it wouldn't hold his weight. It could hold hemlock just fine, but that was because the kit was practically a thimble anyway.

"hemlock, I'm serious! come back! That's enough!"

comfrey fought to keep the panic out of his voice, wobbling on unsteady legs as the ice gave an ominous creak beneath him, white splinters fracturing the serene scene in two. By the stars, this was bad.

"Hemlock I said come back!" Comfreydirge howled, it was uncharacteristic of the tom to be so aggressive, and it sent Hemlock skidding to a stop. Another ominous creak and Comfrey was frantically waving his tail, every fiber of his fur on end. Gods, if Hemlock kit died of hypothermia because Comfrey had let him run out onto a frozen lake, Gloamneedle would kill him. Then she'd resurrect him and kill him again!

"Come back here Hemlock, it's not safe further out!" He watched as Hemlock obeyed, little paw steps skittering on the ice. Comfrey was breathing a sigh of relief, grateful his son was finally obeying him when there was a sharp crack beneath him. He looked down in time to stare into the cracked, yawning abyss of ocean, before he plummeted into the cold.

[EchoIre]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: EchoIre 798835
↬ clan archive: LakeClan

↬ word count: 370
↬ prompt:
Frost blinked as the distinctive sound of ice cracking filled the air. They stopped, then, slowly, looked to their paws. Snow covered the forest around them, and here was no different, but they had thought they were still on the lake's bank. Although.... now that Frost was looking, the area around them was suspiciously flat.

Frost shifted on their paws, and the ice underneath them crackled in protest. The white cat froze. They scanned their surroundings, trying to gauge how far they had wandered onto the frozen lake. The bank should be to the left - maybe just a few tail lengths? If Frost jumped, they could maybe make it to solid ice.

...Or they could plunge into the icy depths. Even if they didn't become fully submerged, getting wet would be incredibly harmful in this weather. They were far from camp, and frostbite and hypothermia would almost be a certainty.

As if to punctuate their thoughts, a harsh breeze ripped past, kicking snow into their eyes. Frost grunted and squinted against the onslaught. There was nothing they could do for the chill that settled into their bones, though, and as the gale subsided the silver cat once again took in their situation.

Frostbite or hypothermia would claim them if they waited. The ice could collapse under their weight even if they stayed still. There was no telling where the ice was or wasn't too thin.

Frost drew in a slow, shaking breath as they tried to remain calm. A panic attack would do them no good here. They had to act, and fast.

Locking away their growing panic, Frost took a tentative step backwards. The ice crinkled under paw, but not loudly. Another step, more cracks. Once Frost was sure they were off the original thin ice, they dropped to a crouch and began to creep towards where they thought the bank was.

It took hours. At least, it felt like it. By the time Frost was certain they were on solid ground, their paws were stinging with cold and ice hung from their whiskers. They continued their long, half-frozen trek to camp, and only allowed the terror to settle over them once they were safe in a rune-warmed nest.

[elliott.]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: elliott. + 720066
↬ clan archive: the hawthorns

↬ word count: 250
↬ prompt:
this was not good.

for a long time, meeting sorrelsting along the borders had been a game, a taunting of the hawthorns scout to razz her up a little bit. it was easy to appear when she did every day — scouts always followed the same paths on the same schedule. hawthorns’ routine was down to when each rank could eat, another bit of evidence of poppyhowl’s strict control over everybody on the territory. fawnfluff had done good to memorize it before sneaking out beneath her mother’s watchful gaze.

she couldn’t tell when her meetings with sorrelsting went from fun taunting to deep conversations and friendship. despite their differences in their opinion on leadership, which rarely came up, they tended to reflect off of each other easily, constantly bantering and tussling around in the long grasses of the savannah. she couldn't tell when sorrelsting had gone from the enemy to her closest comrade other than her sister.

but, now, staring at sorrelsting's burning green eyes as the feeling of shame crawled along her pelt and her heart thudded against her rib cage, fawnfluff had a feeling that she'd never get the chance to fully deduce it. the brown and cream she-cat was looking at her with none of her usual acceptance and grace, replacing those positive feelings with distrust, disdain and disappointment. fawnfluff's tongue felt like it was swollen ten times the size it used to be underneath the scrutinizing gaze of the scout, unable to speak.

"well? are you poppyhowl's missing daughter, or not?"

[Baobabel]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: Baobabel + 39277
↬ clan archive: SecludedGlade

↬ word count: 396
↬ prompt:
It wasn't supposed to be like this. Shaking from the cold and watching with frozen muscles as the cracks raced closer to her brother.
...
As kits, the litter had been told many stories. Some of which were told in a wintery setting. Filled with glittering trees, burning cold wind, hard water called ice, and fluffy cold called snow. To the young ones it sounded fun and magical. No matter than man of the stories were tales of caution and danger. Some included fun times like snow fights.
...
Now apprentices, the litter was experiencing their first snow. It was exhilarating! The strange and foreign. It caused scents and odor to act differently too. They had a blast romping through the snow, shaking branches to cause piles to fall on each other, sliding down hills. During their play, Sheer was reminded of a story one of the younger warriors talked about walking on water. Apparently when it gets cold enough, the water turns hard, and you can actually walk and slide on it. With this idea in her head, she called out to her siblings and they headed to the river. What they forgot was the warning that went along with the story.

When they got to the river, they were a bit confusing. Some areas, especially with fast flowing water, were still flowing liquid, no hard at all. But other areas, like the edges and a deep still pool had a hard crust on top. So intriguing. Curious, the group moved closer. The boldest, Sheer, reached out a paw to the ice. So cold! And slick! Her paw slipped until she pushed her claws into the ice. That seemed kinda fun! She took another step, now with two paws on the ice. The litter was split, two seemed concerned that it wasn't like the stories, the whole thing should be frozen over. Sheer and one of her brothers, Cliff, thought as long as they stayed in the center of the hard stuff, they should be fine.

The two went farther onto the ice, giggling as they slipped and slid over the surface. They were nearing the center of the poll when the first small crackle was heard. Both froze in confusion. That confusion quickly turned to fear as they saw a piece on the edge break off. Followed by a series of splintering cracks racing towards them....

[SushiFoxx]

↬ catvent day: one

↬ username & id: Sushifoxx 1005758
↬ clan archive: Fallen Rose Kingdom

↬ word count: 265
↬ prompt:

Her paw steps quivered, each movement was weak, a threat against everything they had once known. Voices screamed at her and her knees balked, ready to make her collapse to the wills of those around her. The floor seemed to rattle beneath her, growling as though it would bless her with simply swallowing her whole. Everything she had known was crumbling around her, everything she had loved was tossing its wills to the land below. She was cursed to never see her beloved light again.

The voices pulsed around her, her own strength quivering as she was surrounded. She was trapped.

And the whispered
and whispered
and whispered
and whispered

Not even the voice in her head could speak over the cacophony of voices that ricocheted around her. Estelle was forced below her beloved castle by those she had trusted. Her moon and stars were gone, trapped in a room without windows, infrequent bursts of light were cast around her. This couldn't have been what she was meant for, a world where everything around her felt so fake. Everything she had loved became so intangible.

She had threaded on ice when the moon rose later, when the sun bumped into it. She had been caught. Years trapped for a tired slip up. Estelle rejected the idea, balking and snapped at those who surrounded her. She would not go easy, the goddess of the moon would not surrender.

Years, they had unknowingly praised her, and with one crack in the ice she was drowning. Not even a single paw dipped into the water to rescue her.