winter solstice. wrote:SeaClan
Leaf opened his eyes and stared in shock at the sight that greeted him. He was outside, in a clearing surrounded by a thickly-vegetated forest. In the middle of the clearing were four massive oaks, all growing next to each other. An unknown amount of cats stood at their edge, white frost sparkling at their paws and starlight twinkling in their translucent fur. One of them, a powerful-looking blue-grey tabby tom, broke away from the group of silent cats and padded toward Leaf, causing the brown-and-white tom to back away slightly.
The blue-grey tabby stopped in front of the startled rogue and meowed, his deep mew filled with authority, "Do not fear us, Leaf. We have been waiting for you to find us." Indicating the cats who had edged closer to the two with his tail, the tom continued, "We are the spirits of those who have gone by, called StarClan. We watch over our descendants and warn and advise them if need be." Pausing to take a breath, the blue-grey tabby then continued, "I am Seastar, founding leader of SeaClan, the clan of iwld cats living where you have discovered earlier tonight. We were fearless in battle, compassionate to any who meant us no harm, and agile fighters in the turbulent waters we call the sea."
While Seastar was talking, a black-and-white tom stepped up next to him. Dipping his head toward the both of them, the tom spoke, "Greetings. I am Thornstar, the last leader of SeaClan before it was disbanded. We were attacked by badgers who had once made their homes in the caves we called home, and lost. We lost so many cats that the Clan was reduced to four cats in the aftermath: myself, with my last life, an apprentice I'd saved, named Sorrelpaw, a warrior named Gorsetail, and the ever-loyal medicine cat, Longwhisker. We knew we were done for, so I made the decision to send Sorrelpaw away to the nearest Twolegplace, along with Longwhisker, who had once trained as a warrior before dhe found her calling as medicine cat. Gorsetail I convinced to go and become a rogue. I stayed in the cave until I died of my injuries, some sunrises later." Seastar nodded solemnly before speaking once again, "It is why we were waiting for you to arrive."
The silent starry spirit-cats of StarClan around them began to become more solid as Seastar drew up to his full height. "We need you, Leaf, descendant of SeaClan, to receive your nine lives and rebuild SeaClan. These shores have been Clanless for so long!"
Leaf's mind reeled from the information that his ancestors had given him. 'Me?' he thought, 'I'm supposed to become leader and rebuild a Clan?' He then voiced his biggest question: "Nine lives?" Seastar nodded sagely, saying, "All Clan leaders receive nine lives from StarClan, so they can use them all for the service of their Clan." "I..." the rogue tom stammered, glancing at each starry cat haltingly, "I don't know what to do! I didn't know this was a thing! 'Nine lives', that's an old queen's tale..." Neither Seastar nor Thornstar said a word in reply, so Leaf replied, trying to keep himself calm, "O...okay. If you want me to, I'll try. But you must help me, I don't know a thing about Clan life." Thornstar promised him, "You have my word, Leaf. Myself and the rest of StarClan are here to guide your paws."
"So... What do I do?" Leaf asked. "Only to brace yourself for the task ahead," the founder of SeaClan meowed in reply, "we have stripped away your old life so you are ready to receive nine new ones." Then the two leaders stepped back into the ranks of StarClan warriors.
Before Leaf could let those words sink into him, a small white she-cat stepped up to him. Her pale green gaze were solemn as she mewed, "Hello Leaf, I am Whitepaw, and I was apprentice to Longwhisker before a badger ended my life." As the rogue tom stared at the white she-cat in shock, the medicine cat apprentice continued, "With this life, I give you the gift of leadership. Use it to become a leader known for listening to his Clan, not for violence." The young cat then reached over to teach noses with Leaf. At that moment, the brown-and-white tom was wracked by a strong pain that began at the point of contact on his noise, and it continued to ripple throughout his entire body. The tom could barely stand as he fought not to scream out in pain. By the time he had recovered, Whitepaw had returned to the ranks of StarClan.
In her place, a dark-furred tabby tom was padding toward him. Recognizing the tom, the astonished Leaf cried out, "Thrush?" Thrush was his favorite uncle, who had died recently in a fight for territory against another band of rogues. The dark-furred rogue smiled as he meowed, "Yes, Leaf. StarClan have graciously allowed me into their ranks, knowing I would have been a fierce warrior if I had been born to a Clan." His tone became serious as he continued, "With this life, I give you the gift of reasoning. Use it well during SeaClan's darkest hour." Another wave of pain rippled through the brown-and-white tom touched noses with him. Panting slightly from this ordeal, Leaf thanked his uncle as he bounded away, joining the cats around them.
A third cat, a pale gray tabby tom crisscrossed with many scars came to face him. The tom spoke, "I am Yarrowstar, and with this life, I give you the gift of endless strength. Use it to show your enemies that the Clan isn't afraid to unsheathe its claws to defend what is rightfully yours!" The tom touched noses with Leaf, sending not pain, but a sense of invincibility coursing through the former rogue's veins. In his mind he saw himself leading a group of cats into battle. His ears rang with the ywoling of the cats as his Clan and he leapt at their enemies. As Leaf recovered, he realized that Yarrowstar had already padded away to make room for the fourth cat.
The fourth cat, a black she-cat, dipped her head and meowed, "My name is Nightflame, and I was a queen during SeaClan's last stand against the badgers. I died defending my kits and the rest of the nursery queens. With this life, I give you the gift of love. Remember that fighting isn't the only way to make yourself known as the Clan leader." When Leaf touched noses with the queen, he was not ready for the pain that came. It was worse than any of the pain before, and he had been lulled into a sense of security by the last life. The pain he felt was also filled with the fierce need to protect those he loved. Reeling back from the pain, the brown-and-white tom looked up to glimpse Nightflame looking sympathetic at him before leaving to make room for a honey-colored she-cat.
The fifth cat spoke, "I am Longwhisker, and I gave my life to protect Sorrelpaw as she crossed the last Thunderpath leading to Twolegplace. With this life, I give you the gift of loyalty. Use it to make the right decisions when your heart comes in the way of Clan duties." Leaf dipped his head in respect as the she-cat touched noses with him. The pain of the new life rushing into him was somewhat dulled, but he still did not let his guard down, learning from his mistakes. Longwhisker whispered, "Hang in there, Leaf," before bounding away.
The sixth cat was a long-haired reddish tabby tom. His amber eyes fixed onto Leaf as he meowed, "My name is Gorsetail. I became a rogue after SeaClan was disbanded, but never forgot the ways of the warrior. With this life, I give you the gift of judgment. Don't let the storm of destruction cloud your judgment." The reddish tom stepped to touch noses with Leaf, and the former rogue could not help but wonder at the similarities he had with the warrior who had refused to fully give up on his Clan roots. The life rushed into him with the ferocity of a TigerClan warrior, forcing the bewildered Leaf to let out a barely-contained hiss. By the time he had recovered, Gorsetail was gone, replaced by a cat who looked almost exactly like him.
Leaf stared at the cat. "Father!" he cried out in shock and excitement. The brown-and-white tom nodded at his son. He too, like Thrush, was killed in battle. The cat meowed solemnly, "With this life, I give you the gift of courage. In times of hardship, use it to guide the Clan without losing motivation and hope." The former rogue eagerly ran out to touch noses with his father, and was faced with the biggest wave of pain yet. His legs buckled from under him from the sheer pain of the life going into him, and the tom let out a shocked, pained yowl. His father murmured an apology before he bounded away to join his fellow StarClan cats.
Thornstar came to replace Leaf's father in front of the brown-and-white tom as he spoke, "Leaf, I must thank you again for agreeing to our proposition of rebuilding our lost Clan. With this life, I give you the gift of endurance. Use it to guide your Clan through its hardships without giving up at all." The former SeaClan leader touched noses with the weary tom, whose back arched with pain as the newest life rushed into him. The former rogue panted as he promised, "I don't know much about being a Clan cat, but since I agreed to this, I promise you, I will not let you or StarClan down." Thornstar rumbled deeply and thanked his successor, then stepped back to allow Seastar take his place.
Seastar meowed solemnly, "You have endured the process of receiving eight of your nine lives, and I must thank you for giving us a chance. Thank you." He bowed his head deeply toward the startled Leaf before continuing, "and with this life I give you the gifts of guidance, mentoring, compassion, and boundless energy. Use these to server your Clan for many seasons to come." The founding leader of SeaClan reached forward to touch noses with Leaf, who eagerly met the blue-grey tabby, wanting to learn from the ancient cat. Once Seastar retreated back, the cats in the clearing sighed in content as they stood up.
Thornstar came back to take his place and announced, his tail up in the air proudly, "As your predecessor, I am honored to say these words: I hail you by your new name, Leafstar. Your old life is no more. You have now received the nine lives of a leader, and StarClan grants you the guardianship of SeaClan. Defend it well; care for young and old; honor your ancestors and the traditions of the warrior code; live each life with pride and dignity." At once, the clearing burst out with the StarClan cats calling out, "Leafstar! Leafstar! Leafstar!" into the star-filled night sky.
And when the shouts died down, Thornstar murmured, "Time grows short, and night is waning. We must go back, but have you any requests for us, Leafstar?" The newly-named Leafstar thought for a moment, then swallowed. He meowed carefully, "If it wouldn't be so much to ask, may I ask for you to send a cat to me, so that we can both figure out how to rebuild SeaClan?"
Leaf became Leafstar!
Leafstar asks for a cat to join the newly-named SeaClan.
