Froststar curled her tail around her paws as warmth started to seep into her pelt, and blinked her bright green eyes at the rising sun. She seemed to be caught in the golden rays that enveloped the horizon, its beauty seeming to wake up the whole forest. Birds started to chirp in the dangling branches, squirrels skittered up the rough bark of the lake willows, and Froststar could feel the quiet footsteps of mice by her paws. Usually she would’ve gone for a nice hunt right now, since dawn prey was always the tastiest. And it always woke her up to get ready for the new day.
But this time she didn’t feel like hunting. The prophecy StarClan had given her still lingered in her mind, and she had to use all the willpower she could to stop herself from running away from it all. She hadn’t been able to get a wink of sleep, and finally, in the middle of the night, she padded down to the lake. The smooth, soft sand beneath her paws always calmed her, and the swans that swam in the lake gave her comfort. Their delicate wings and snow-like beauty dazzled her. She had offered them a fish earlier, and they humbly accepted it, like they always did. Life seemed peaceful when she was with those beautiful birds, but the weight of her troubles always came back to haunt her.
She had just been Frost before. Frost, a lone she-cat that lived in a small nest by the lake. Frost, a cat that liked to live alone. When StarClan had appeared to her and told her about the Clan she most build, her peaceful life turned into something that she had to work hard for, to strengthen and care for a whole group of cats. She discovered the joy in living with others, and she had to admit it was exhilarating at times. But she was a
leader.How could she care for so many when she could barely keep care of herself anymore? She was still struggling to know which cat to make her deputy. She was afraid to make the wrong choice, and she always doubted her decisions now.
A sudden noise of paws scrabbling against stone startled Froststar. She turned around to see one of her Clanmates, Smokefish, walk up to her. His smokey-gray fur glistened as if he had just washed it, as was SwanClan custom to clean at the rise of a new day. “You weren’t in your den when I woke up, Froststar. Is everything alright?” His eyes shone with deep care for his leader, and Froststar knew he wasn’t just doing it because he had to.
Froststar stared at her paws and sighed. She should stand up, stare straight into his eyes, and calmly say, “Of course!” Like a real leader should do, but she couldn’t bring herself to.
So she turned her head to him and spoke.
“I don’t know. Everything seems to be happening so fast. How am I, a previous loner, supposed to lead an entire Clan? How can I lead them?” She was shaking now. “You probably think I look nothing like a leader. That’s okay. I’m pretty sure everyone thinks that. I bet-“
Smokefish cut her off. “No. You don’t realize it, but a lot of cats look up to you. They need you. You’ve led us through our toughest battles, and somehow, after all the fighting and struggling to keep our territory, you’ve led us through it.” He spoke with pure confidence, and his amber eyes glistened. “You’re determined and clever with your strategies. You’re a true leader.”
Froststar stared at him in surprise. Was she? Did her Clan really see her that way? Did they actually look up to her? Yet she could not doubt what Smokefish had said, it seemed as if he were telling the truth.
“Follow me, if you don’t believe what I’m saying.” Smokefish beckoned to her with his tail, then ran into the thick leaves of the pine trees.
Froststar rushed after him, brushing past pine branches and bouncing off the soft, mossy ground. She turned down the twisting path to the camp, and ran to the camp entrance, which was a small tunnel bordered with blackberry vines. She pulled up beside Smokefish, who nodded his head to the camp clearing.
Her beloved Clanmates ran up to her, brushing her fur and asking where she’d been. Now Froststar could see the loyalty in their eyes, and the respect they had for her. She felt foolish for her doubts. Her Clan had been confident in her the whole time. She would lead them through their darkest days, and fight for them until the very end.
And they would do the same.
Froststar was full of hope now. Even when she had her doubts, she would not think about running away this time. Her Clan needed her, and she needed them. She also knew exactly who her second-in-command would be, and there was no other obvious answer. Smokefish had made her see things clearly, and he would be the deputy she needed. As she chatted with her Clanmates and talked about the upcoming day’s duties, she felt warm and safe.
And she finally felt like the leader she wanted to be.
Word count: 884
Wow that’s a lot. I didn’t mean to write that much, but it was hard to fit all this into one short story.
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