[I Like Bees]

FCFS -- but to win, you have to write a story about them with a minimum of 1,000 words.
The writing must be new; do not reuse something you've written before

Your form must be posted complete; do not edit your form

A RU will be awarded to anyone who posts a completed form within 1 hour of the first finished form

Code: Select all

[b]Username:[/b]
[b]Cat Name:[/b]
[b]Gender:[/b]
[b]Rank:[/b]
[b]Clan:[/b] (Please link)
[b]Age:[/b] (1 year or above)
[b]Prompt:[/b]

x
Name: Mottlefrost
Gender: Cis tom
Rank: Warrior
Clan: Fernclan
Description: Caramel charcoal braided lynx sepia with
high white and light blue-yellow sectoral heterochromia
Age: 29 moons
Edits: Heterochromia (uc)
Owner: hainu

[hainu]

Username: hainu
Cat Name: mottlefrost
Gender: cis tom
Rank: warrior
Clan: fernclan
Age: 29 moons
Prompt: Late night escapades. [1031 words]


"Are you sure about this?" Mottlefrost questioned, brows furrowed as he eyed Sparrowtail warily. The brown-and-white molly nodded, shooting him a smile in hopes to reassure him.

"Yeah, it'll be alright. Don't tell Pigeonstar, but I went here once with Littlepaw when we were younger. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, well.. if you don't count the horses." She explained, padding alongside him. Mottlefrost's expression went a bit grim at that. Horses? Weren't those dangerous? But.. Finally, the tom relented with a sigh. "Alright."

Sparrowtail gestured her head to follow, picking up the pace to a brisk trot. The familiar homestead wasn't too far from their territory, enough to be comfortable for both the two-legs and the clan. It was night this time around, so it was unlikely they would encounter anything dangerous. Cows would be sleeping, horses would be in their stalls.. They could freely explore the area without too much concern, although of course caution would be important.

After a few minutes of walking in comfortable quiet, the pair arrived at the farm. It was weird when it was quiet, but there was still the few grazing cows out in the pasture and pigs snorting in their sleep from within their muddy pens.

Mottlefrost's eyes widened as he took the scenery in, a mix of surprise and awe. He'd never been to these parts before, and with the moonlit, starry sky comforting them.. Starclan, it was beautiful. Beyond the farmland laid a large meadow, rolling hills as far as he could see. Sparrowtail watched as he absorbed everything, a fond glint in her eyes at the tom glowing with the same excitement as a kit.

"Can we..?" He trailed off, looking past her and towards the rest of the farm. Sparrowtail let out a soft laugh and shook her head, grinning. "The night is still young, isn't it? Come on!" She called, soon bounding off with her tail held high. He took a brief moment to process before bounding after her with a bright grin.

The two explored the area, some new things since Sparrowtail was last here, and, well.. Everything was new to Mottlefrost. It was like a new adventure and quite frankly he loved it.

It was like a pair of kits allowed to leave the nursery for the first time, leaving very little unchecked. Sparrowtail convinced him to come into the cow pasture with her. Wary mothers watched on as their calves slept, while some that remained awake lowered their heads to sniff at the passing cats. The brown and white molly was far more comfortable with it than he was, fur bristling when their heads got too close for comfort.

And then Bristlefrost had convinced her to go into the barn with him, exploring every nook and cranny (and maybe catching themselves a snack or two, they wouldn't know it but the farmer would probably thank them for that) and even bouncing around through the loose straw. It was all in good, harmless fun.

The horses stirred at the noise, some of them sticking their heads out to see what was going on. Luckily they were within their stalls, and were thankfully more curious than frightened. Mottlefrost eyed a particularly large one with caution, ears airplaned to the sides in uncertainty.

"Oh, I remember him." Sparrowtail commented, poking her head out from the straw that she was in. "That's the horse Littlepaw and I saw when we were younger. Had a two-leg on his back and a colorful thing under it. It's hard to believe how big he was when we were apprentices."

Mottlefrost listened with interest, chuckling as she recalled the memory. "Yeah? I guess that explains why you and Littlepaw were so nervous. I would say I'm offended you didn't invite me, but I probably would've been too scared... ooorrr told Pigeonstar." His response ended with a nervous laugh. grooming his embarrassment-ruffled fur down.

"Definitely." Sparrowtail laughed. "It would've been nice, but I didn't wanna clean out the elder's den for the next six moons. And plus, it was pretty scary." She added, letting out an amused huff when Mottlefrost rolled his eyes. "Scary? For you?"

Sparrowtail (somewhat struggled) to get out of the mound of hay, shaking stray straw out of her fur. "I'm serious! Back then, he was larger than anything I had ever seen! The earth shook when he ran, and it was thunderous when his hooves hit the ground!" She defended herself, semi-serious in spite of her crackling composure. When Mottlefrost snickered, she made an attempt to mock the large draft stallion; dramatic as she stomped against the barn floor.

Mottlefrost broke out into a laugh at the odd movement, grinning with sheer delight and entertainment. She grinned back and soon laughed at her own mockery too.

After some time, their energy dwindled and they were nothing more than a pair of giggling, dorkish cats in a pile of hay. Sparrowtail's gaze went past Mottlefrost and back outside, laughter slowing to a stop. She seemed.. briefly mesmerized? His interest piqued, the tom pushed to his paws.

"What? Is something out there?" He questioned, voice taking a worried edge. She shook her head and let out a soft breath. "You wanna come see something, Mottlefrost?" She asked.

Puzzled, he slowly nodded. She gestured her head outside and began to walk; he followed. They kept walking for a few minutes until he realized they were out in the meadows, watching her as she clambered onto a boulder formation.

Mottlefrost climbed up behind her, and looked at her with furrowed brows until she pointed up with her head, smiling with bright eyes and- Oh wow.

His eyes widened as the two looked up to the sky, now illuminated and dancing with colorful lights. They had heard tales of them, but had never seen them before.. It was a beautiful sight to behold. A soft, breathy 'woah..' left the tom as they looked on.

"It was worth it to come out here, wasn't it?" Sparrowtail asked, chuckling as she looked at him. Mottlefrost met her gaze and flushed at the affectionate look he found within. Fur fluffing up, he averted his gaze with a nervous laugh; although it was genuine at the same time.

"Yeah, it was.. Thank you, Sparrowtail."

[Hush]

Username: Hush
Cat Name: Pantherpelt
Gender: Male
Rank: warrior
Clan: Clan of Roaring Silence
Age: 30 moons
Prompt:
Silvercloud was born in a clan far away from the Clan of Roaring Silence and was born the youngest of three siblings. Though a series of increasingly unfortunate events they were all separated, some chased from the clan and some suffering worse fates. So you would think that his personality would turn bitter and callous but instead he remains bright and always looks for the good side of things and believes the best in everyone he meets.

Starting with his time as an apprentice, he and his siblings were involved in a vision quest to help save his clan, as one was. However a very important part of it was for one of the siblings to be chased out. It was unclear at the time what exactly that meant since they were all barely older than kits at the time, but as time passed one of his siblings who was always bright and chipper, was revealed to be a master manipulator and was directly involved in the plot and successful murder of the beloved clan leader. He was chased out from the clan, his goal unknown until he appeared much later in life. Silvercloud was heartbroken by this betrayal, but didn’t let it shake his belief that everyone deserved a second chance and would gladly accept his brother back with open arms. His sister however, a head strong cat who believed greatly in the warrior code and that her brother was unforgivable, did not. Even though everyone told her to forget about him and that he was already punished to the greatest extent of the warrior code that bound them all, she would hold strong to her grudge, even against a brother she once nursed with. To her what he’d done was not nearly punished appropriately, knowing deep in her heart that he needed to pay with blood.

Moons went by and his sister and him were given their warrior names and Silvercloud did his best to remain her moral compass, not wanting to allow her to succumb to her darker desires and keeping a close eye on her to make sure she didn’t go after their brother. One day however, she slipped him an herb that knocked him out cold and allowed her to escape in the dark of night and hunt down her brother. Little did she know that he had amassed quite the cult following as a rogue, being hailed as ‘killer of stars’ and there was a rumor among them that he had stolen the fallen leaders last life and became a leader himself when he killed him. It was to a point that it made him cocky and over confidence lead to arrogance. Of course his group of rogues were sure to injure her greatly before she reached him for their one on one fight. They fought well against each other since he hadn’t finished his warrior training, he was out classed, but her injuries secured his victory, but scared him. It was too close and the prophesy from when they were kits came to his mind as he killed his own sister. The next day he dragged her body back to the clan for a proper service, but this is the one and only time Silvercloud ever snapped. His usual cheerful demeanor replaced with sorrowful rage, laying into his brother with words and eventually claws as he cursed his name. The group of rogues just cheated on since they believed their leader would revive from loosing a life, but after the battle between siblings was over it was very clear that it was just a myth created. With that the false confidence the group held disappeared and the manipulation from the brother was gone, the disagreeable cats dispensing on their own in the following moons. With this the prophesy of one of them saving the clan from an unknown danger was completed, but at what cost? The lives of two of his siblings and all of these things may have never happened without the prophesy putting the idea in their heads, his sister being obsessed with it and it driving her actions and irrationality.

After these events it was hard for silvercloud to remain in the clan, and since he had never taken a mate and had so many bad memories that left him with nightmares, he set off to find a new place where he could belong and forget about his past trauma. Going forwards with his life there would always remain a chipper expression, but he would hide his true feelings behind that mast. He was scared to ever let anyone else close and vowed to never have kits of his own due to the superstition of history repeating itself especially in families. Even as he joined a new clan and settled in, he was very secretive and refused to talk about his past, not wanting to let anyone close, though he was never cold. He kept a friendly attitude towards everyone, and avoided acting on suspicions, at least publicly, he would stalk anyone he had concern about to insure they weren’t heading down the same twisted bath he and his siblings went down, vowing to never let himself be ignorant and blind to the signs of betrayal again. He had no desire to ever be leader of deputy, but he always positioned himself near them to act as a body guard, having seen how loosing one could shake a clan. He never wanted to see that happen again, and even if he wasn’t born here he would gladly sacrifice his life to save the leader of a clan who had graciously taken in a broken liner like him. Of course he explained his past to the new leader to gain his trust and explain his odd habits and behaviors, not wanting to come off as a plotter himself. It took time but her gradually settled into his new clan and began to live a new life, peaceful, but haunted by memories.
1k words

[EchoIre]

Username: EchoIre
Cat Name: Cirrus Luxbane
Gender: Male
Rank: Loner(?)
Clan: LakeClan
Age: 46 Moons
Prompt:

"I have seen the sun, the moon, and all the stars," Remarked the strange tabby, circling around a cat stranger still, "I have seen a snake born with two heads, a raven white as snow, a star banished from the heavens, and so much more, but never," they paused, circling 'round to pause in front of their unwilling partner, their grin bright and chesire'd, "have I seen a cat as strange as you."

The darker tabby, with her mask of swirled across her face, grinned back, a gestured filled with much more direct malice than Cirrus's own. "Clearly, then, you haven't seen Feya nor any of her kind." She remarked. "I'd say they're a fair bit stranger than I am, with their flower hued pelts. Nothing against Feya, of course."

Cirrus's grin grew wider. "Of course."

The stranger scowled. "Well, anyways, I joined LAkeClan exactly to avoid cats like you. So, if you don't mind-"

"Oh, but what if I do mind?"

The stranger paused, fixing Cirrus with a glare that would have made a normal cat freeze in their tracks. "You'll have to get over it."

Cirrus tossed their head back and cackled. "Ooh, brave girl!" They laughed. "I'll excuse that just this once. Be wary - my cousins may not." They recovered slightly, shoulders still shaking as they gestured for the stranger to leave. "You may go."

The stranger rolled her eyes, but wisely set on her path back for home. She wasn't just a stranger to Cirrus, but a stranger to the forest. Only when she safely made it back to camp would the gruff warrior learn what she had encountered.

~

StarClan is wise, but they are not alone. Dying gives a cat now power over nature or of prophecy: it gives them wisdom enough to guess, and wisdom enough to guide, but nothing supernatural.

Which, is all well and good, considering what becoming supernatural and do to a cat.

One may call it superstition to say that spirits of the forest and sky steal away an albino kit's color. They may scoff at the notion that such spirits exist, and that they would steal a child's pelt color of all things. They may not be chuckling when they see what such a spirit may give to a child - pelts of deep purples or striking reds. Undeniably strange, except to a certain foolish few. It is they who say that it's all simply a trick of the light, and exaggeration. It is they who don't believe their own eyes when they see what they do not want to believe. And, unfortunately, it is they who suffer a smaller brood than they reared, for color is not all a creature of the ancient earth may meddle in.

Usually, they try to leave another in their place. These others are good at pretending, and good at disguises. Cirrus's own mother never could tell what happened to her son. Really, she never noticed anything amiss. So, while it is those who distrust their own eyes who suffer from the loss of a child, it is also them who never even realize.

~

The kit awoke slowly. The sun shone warmly on his back, and the faint smell of wildflowers tickled his nose. For all accounts and purposes, he had no reason to panic. He parted his eyes just barely, nuzzling into the soft black fur of his mother's belly.

The kit froze.

His mother's belly was not black.

Cautiously, the kit opened his eyes again, titling his head back to pear at the creature who welcomed him into the curve of their stomach.

A face large and sharp peered down at him with eyes of the deepest, brightest green. For a moment, the kit was transfixed in them. They spoke of forests and light, of song and life and the deep murmur of something Other in the shadows.

Then, he started to scream, scrambling desperately away from the beast before him.

"Hush, child." The creature murmured.

And so he did.

"You are safe now. You will always be." The thing lowered its massive head to his, touching its nose to his head.

Suddenly, the kit was calm. What had he to fear?

"Where's my mother?" He asked. More out of curiosity than anything.

The creature tilted its head at Cirrus, but didn't blink. "She is safe to."

"May I go back to her?"

"Do you remember what she looks like?"

He paused for a moment. "No." He said at last, surprised to find he wasn't troubled by the revelation in the slightest. Why would he be troubled by someone he didn't remember?

The creature hummed. "That is okay. You will remain here, then. In the forest. With us."

"Who else is there?"

"Oh, all my brothers and sisters. And yours, too."

The kit gasped, starting to speak, before the creature cut him off. "Not those brothers and sisters, little one."

"Oh." He let his head hang slightly.

"...Do you remember your name?'

"No."

The creature shifted, lowering their great head to peer the kit in the eyes. "You are Cirrus, child of Bozhena."

Cirrus blinked, staring into the creature's deep green eyes. "Who is that?"

"That is me." They replied, sitting up.

"You don't look like me."

"No, not right now. But I can."

And in the next moment, there was a ginger and white tabby sitting where Bozhena once was. Their fur was long and wispy, and almost seemed to glow in the gentle sunlight.

Shock coursed through Cirrus's veins, but quickly faded. Almost as though it were... muted, in a way.

"Huh. That was weird."

Bozhena laughed.

"You will learn to do the same and more, Cirrus." It purred, smiling at the small kit at the curve of their dappled belly. "I will take you to my brothers and sisters and yours my moonhigh, and you will learn all there is to know of us."

Cirrus paused to think. He supposed his mother always did have black dur - or dappled orange and white fur, whatever they happened to feel like, really.

[Southern sweetie]

Username: southern sweetie
Cat Name: Stormripper
Gender: Tom
Rank: warrior
Clan: Larchcreek clan
Age: 32moons
Prompt: [1,056]

It had been a gloomy start to Stormrippers morning. He was unfortunately chosen to go out on one of their earlier hunts. Just in time for the thunders and rain. Of course there wasn’t much luck at catching anything. But boy was there luck for soaked fur!

As the patrol slumped back into camp, one of the apprentices bounded over his way. A she cat who had quite the eye for the tom. As he looked over to see the silver sleeked she cat, a loud grumble eroded from his chest. “Hi stormripper! How’s the morning catch!” Silver paw squeaked with excitement. Barely giving any effort within his answer he mumbled “what do you think..” and with that he shook his fur violently, in hopes the non soaked apprentice would scare from the water. But in fact she sat there almost in even more awe at the Tom and so love struck. The Tom flattened his ears and groaned once again. What was it with she cats being so goo goo eyes for a warrior like himself anyways? He was sure there was plenty of younger male apprentices within the clan to suit her. Whatever, this Tom had other plans in mind to try and dry off before the rains fell apon the clan once more.

Later on once he had finally been able to dry off and catch a few more moments of uninterrupted sleep. A voice quickly rang within the den; “Fire! Fire! Fire in the apprentice den!!” The warning quickly drew stormripper from within his dream to see who was shouting this warning. The leaders first born daughter and lead queen; Goosefeather. The she cat looked at the drowsy warriors in panic. “Get up you lazy sack of fur bones!!! The apprentice den is on fire!!” She screeched. Fear practically shot right through stormrippers heart as he thought of the small she cat, silver paw trapped within the burning flames. He quickly jumped from his nest and hurried past Goosefeather.

As he entered the camp, there was thunder and lighting rolling as if a stream had moved upside down and into the sky. Panic was overtaking any movable body within sight of the Tom. Kits and queens quickly rushed to the Medicean den, elders not far behind. The deputy, Dogwood quickly lunging through the crowd trying to get a swift head count. Just as stormripper began to look through the crowd, even more fear replaced his adrenaline as he noticed not one single silver tuft of fur running amongst his clan mates.

The evil flames finally caught his attention as he had his mind made up to find the poor cat. He quickly ran to the warriors already gathered slinging dirt and water as fast as they could to put out the fire. The Tom bounded up to dogwood in hopes his eyes had just played tricks on him and the she cat was actually somewhere safe. “Dogwood, has everyone been evacuated?” He called out . The white Tom, now practically black from soot and dirt gave a curt no. His mouth to full of bowled leaves tossing water. Stormripper turned to the next best warrior he could find that didn’t have their mouth full in hopes to get a better answer. “Tell me Yarrowstag, who is still in there??” The younger warrior looked at the Tom with horrid fear and agony as he struggled to answer. “W-w-well there was two young warriors who had went in before the fire spread to help the apprentices out and when they did not emerge back from the den, Silverpaw flew down the tunnel before anyone could stop her. Now she and the two warriors are trapped and we are struggling to find an entrance safe enough for a cat to save them!” Stormrippers heart sunk in that instance.

All this time dreading to talk to the she cat, and being so annoyed with her presence. Now the Tom wanted nothing more then to be able to hold the she cat and not let her go. With a swift grunt the Tom quickly assessed the flames growing wilder and wilder from the den. Almost as if starclan themselves laid out the path for the Tom, a short opening became visible to him. It was a small hole but he would surely be able to fit within side the den! Before anyone could stop him he quickly bounded down the hole in hopes that the three cats were still alive. Other warriors and dogwood screamed at the Tom in protest. But they fell of deaf ears and nothing but love clouded the toms judgments.

Finally making it into the den itself smoke overtook most of Stormrippers vision as he began to try and search around the flame ridden den. “Silverpaw! Silverpaw! Where are you???” He called into the smoke. A small whisper arose from the far corner, where 3 shadows loomed in the haze. Hope took flight within his heart, only to be shot down by the possibility’s of what he might see when finally face to face with the cats. As he bounded over he finally made out 2 standing bodies and one smaller but laying down body. Stormripper scream with fear, “no!! No it can’t be please don’t let it be starclan!” As he finally came within clear eyesight of the cats, he saw that Silverpaw was the smaller cat laying on the ground. Her chest barely heaving up and down with oxygen. He looked at the two warriors with worry in his eyes. “Come on, I’ve found a hole. We need to get her out of here now!” Without hesitation on waiting for the other two warriors, he quickly grabbed silver paws scruff and slung her over his shoulder and began rushing out of the den.

With the two warriors hot on his heels, they all emerged from the now singed opening. They were created by both medicine cats, leader, deputy and the rest of the clan. The storm had finally subsided and the fire now under control. Stormripper quickly ran Silverpaw to Nettleberry, where she was already awaiting to assess the two cats. Laying her down gently, the Tom curled up next to the she cat. Alas they both were finally safe, but the little wings of fear still fluttered around his heart.

[ethium]

Username: ethium
Cat Name: birdsong
Gender: molly
Rank: deputy
Clan: elmclan
Age: 29 moons
Prompt: i tried if i missed this oops my bad


the wind rolled east over the mountain, rain splattering the already drenched camp. Felines struggled to find shelter, cramming themselves in small crevices or under fallen logs to get out from the downpour. The one place that was dry was the medicine den, but even that was already at capacity with sodden pelts seeking refuge from the torrent. However there remained one cat, who had slunk away from the others. Whose secret was now bulging and stretching her stomach. With each step she felt ache, and each step she struggled against the wind. Crawling at a turtles pace from the safety and shelter of camp, and into the nearby glade.

The mother panted, exhaustion picking at her weak bones like vultures to a fresh carcass. She didn't have much stamina at all.
She hadn't had had much stamina since the kits growing inside began to swell with their size. She knew she was far along, and she knew what she had to do.

A medicine cat always knows.

However these kits were forbidden, clan law had always dictated that a medicine cat never have children of her or his own. Though the reason behind it seemed well enough she couldn't disagree with it more. Which is why she was in this predicament in the first place.. Curse her innate desire to break the rules. What would her ancestors think.. she cast away the thought with a quick shake of her head, and shouldered her way sluggishly through a thicket. Just a little further, and then I can find proper shelter.. and hunker down for whats to come. She could feel herself grimacing at the thought, of the pain she would have to endure alone. The tom who had done this to her was the victim of unfortunate circumstance, a boulder across the mountain trail while on patrol, but maybe that was starclans way of telling her she would pay for her sins just as he had.. by sacrificing his life. She shuddered once again, but was unable to distinguish whether it was from the cold rain or her discomfort at the thought of vengeful ancestors. Once again she pushed through the clearing, feeling her breath labor as a round of pain wracked her body. It was nature telling her it was nearly time.. "Please not yet little ones.." she huffed. Her breath coming out in gasps as she pulled herself through the thick grass and into the shallower glade. Finally. With this she cast her gaze around, and though with the torrential downfall it was a challenge, she was able to pick out a spot across the glade, underneath a fallen tree, hidden from sight, but hopefully dry. She took a breath of air, in preparation for the final crawl, and made her way across the clearing in desperation. She needed to get to safety before the kits decided to come, needed the dry shelter. She didn't want her kits to be exposed to the wet air, that might as well be sentencing them to death before they would even get the chance to live at all. There were, of course, a few questions she would need to decide answers to before she could return to camp. Such as who would raise the kits, if she would hide them, if she should just come clean or if she should deny it all together. The molly figured starclan had already decided her fate, as they always did, and if this was the wrong decision well.. so be it. She had long lost her faith in the stars, despite her worry of upsetting them. She had seen their wrath and bore their visions for her clan. If anything she deserved the joy of motherhood.. even if it would mean banishment. The though sent another tremor through her, but that tremor soon turned to a roar and she bit down hard trying not to roar out in pain.

After another few moments the exhausted medicine cat pulled herself underneath the log, pleased to find it spacious and dry. Although not the warmest option, she didn't have much of a choice in the matter, and didn't have time to be picky. With a howl, she pulled a nearby stick off a bush, and hunkered down for the pain to stop.

Sun pierced the nearby clouds, and the rain pattered the roof of the fallen tree, slowly it turned into a drizzle, and then finally stopped all together. The rain stank of wet earth, and the panting mother watched as worms wiggled in their puddles beyond, soaking up the sun before disappearing once again beneath the earth. Her elation was evident, as sun pierced the clouds and they slowly drifted east with the once howling wind. Peace seemed to fall over the glade she had chosen to take shelter in, and it was with this peace that joy managed to find her. She grinned, her heart fluttering as she stared down at the mewling scraps of fur she would call her children. "my babies, my beautiful babies." She mewed fondly, lowering her head to lash her tongue across their dainty heads. They nuzzled against her now, both for her warmth and her food and she sighed lovingly. Oh how she wished her tom could have been here to see this.. could have been here to experience it with her. However the molly took solace in knowing that nature had experienced it with her, and for that she was glad.

Looking down at the kits she decided that there was one last important step she needed to pick: their names. For the first, the tough and lean one, she chose to name him Tumblekit. For she was certain he was going to be the one roughhousing through the day and would likely be a handful. For the middle, the lightest one, she chose the name Daisykit, for the bright spot she made in her fur when she curled close, and she knew she was going to be the softest. And before she could name the final kit, a beautiful birdsong broke off across the clearing, and the molly with a smile perked her ears and nodded to the earth. "Okay mother, you know what is best." The last kit she named Birdkit, for the song mother earth had promised she would be in the hearts around her.

[1061 words]

[Vivika]

Username: Vivika
Cat Name: Iver (aka the Falcon
Gender: Male
Rank: Messenger
Clan:Falls of Eden
Age: Twenty moons
Prompt:
He was being hunted.

Iver pressed himself against the back of a rock, forcing a breath through his nose. He squeezed his eyes shut as pawsteps approached, clipped and steady. The pawsteps of the Imperial. The elite guard of the King.

There would be no escape from here.

He dared a look beyond… to the village just behind him. Movement flashed in and out to an unheard rhythm, efficient and calculated. Orders thundered, zipping like lightning through the army of gathered cats as they marched to carry out their orders. Their orders?

Find the Falcon.

Him.

It’d been a betrayal. Someone in their ranks… amongst the ranks of the Messengers had defected. Defected and gave the names of all known Messengers in the kingdom. The Cardinal. The Swan. The Hawk. All those names, those lives, potentially compromised.

A Messenger was an enemy of the kingdom. Allied with the rebellion. To be caught would mean being sentenced under the highest charge of the lands… treason.

And there was only one outcome for all traitors.
Execution.

Stars, he wouldn’t be one of them. Closing his eyes, he gathered his resolve, compartmentalizing the fear, the icy terror that splintered the very depths of his soul, the rage. The rage that burned so deep. If he ever lay paws on that traitor…

No, stop. Focus. There was only one goal --- to escape. Get out of this village alive. It wasn’t for him. No, far from it. All Messengers would be interrogated, before their eventual execution. Any intel, any information, on the rebellion would be extracted. Crucial information. Intel that could send the rebellion crumbling in a blink of an eye.

Shadows flickered near, approaching, flickering in and out like as the fickle sunlight fast descending into the horizon.

Iver hunched his shoulders. Muscles tensed, he unsheathed his claws. His eyes narrowed into slits, primed to pounce.

The shadows struck.

Heat seared along his shoulders, enough to wrench a gasp from his throat. He threw his weight forward, barrelling into his attacker. He didn’t look, didn’t think. Instinct reigned and he seized it. A strike to his attacker’s jaw, and a shoulder into another’s side. Enough to disable. Not to kill.

As his attacker recoiled, he darted to the side, barely dodging the snap of jaws. Stumbling and off-balance, he took off, streaking into the forest.

A shriek pierced the air; a long keening wail.

Chills crawled along his spine. A reminder of what was to come. “Stars, please,” he whispered. He urged his paws on faster, willing the wind to grant him wings. Wings to sweep him into the unknown.

He could see them, now. In his peripheral vision, the army was already sweeping into action, forming a barrier around the forestline. He kept his gaze trained ahead, trained on the small gap, untouched by the army. Yet---

He was knocked clean off his paws.

The dirt swarmed up to meet him. Breathless, he attempted a roll to his paw, hissing at the weight that held him captive. It was useless. This fight was long over, before it began. He never had a chance. Never.

“... Iver, isn’t it? I’d say it’s a pleasure to meet your acquaintance, but I’m afraid being graced by the presence of a traitor is hardly an honor.” The blue-silver female’s smile was cold, yet cloaked with unfailing decorum.

He swallowed, forcing a wry smile. “Ah, what can I say? I should congratulate you on your latest capture. You had help, I assume. The Imperial is hardly capable of mounting such a large scale attack without… certain sources.” Derision dripped from his words, a challenge flickering in the depths of his eyes.

“You’d best watch your mouth, traitor.”

“I have nothing to fear, not from your, nor your army. I believe I can say as I wish.”

“Anything you say can be used against---”

“Please. Do the courts even run anymore? Between you and I, we both know the state this land is in. There is no justice. Nothing.” His gaze settled on those pale eyes. “So get this over with.”

Something flickered within the depths of those pale. stony eyes. Wordlessly, her tail flicked, a curt dismissal to the rest of her guards. “Leave us. I need to speak to this one alone.”

Behind her, the rest of the army dipped their heads in acknowledgement, quietly retreating into the distance. One remained, a dark-furred tom, who lingered close.

The weight lifted from him as the female backed off, letting him up.
This was his chance. Run. Now. But why---

“I apologize for the earlier exchange.”

The words froze him in his tracks. What in the name of the Stars---

“...I-I need your help.” The cold arrogance faded. In its place… something akin to uncertainty.

He reeled, taking a step back. One, then two and three. “I don’t understand.” A pause. His brain struggled to keep up, to process. He fumbled for the necessary words. “I can’t help you. Look---”

Her eyes flashed. “Drop the act, Iver. We both know who you are. I’m… I’m defecting.” Her voice softened. “To Eden. My father… he’s allied with the rebellion, and he’ll be executed at dawn. The rebellion… can they help?”

His mind was in a thousand places at once. This was a trap. It had to be. There was no way… but the Imperial, they were ruthless, yes. Crafty, no. Yet… his gaze flicked to her. Flickered to that uncertainty… far too genuine from all the deception he’d ever known. “What’s your father’s name?”

“Lukas. He’s from the northern villages.”

Ah, the crow. It was legitimate. The name, the village, but this molly in front of him screamed trouble. Instincts tugged at him, chiding. Was it just because she was a member of the Imperial? His bias? He swallowed hard, turning the question over in his head. Quietly, he sat down, beckoning her close with his tail. “I don’t know.” A response to her earlier question. “But perhaps.”

He cleared his throat, heaving a soft sigh. “Tell me more.”

// 1,010 words <33

[Only_Sky]

Username: Only_Sky
Cat Name: Honeyfeather
Gender: Female
Rank: Warrior
Clan: Cricketclan
Age: 29 moons
Prompt: How Honeyfeather found the clan.

Hard pawsteps thrummed against the cold, damp ground rhythmically, kicking up dirt clumps and leaves as a shadow fled through the forest. Hard on their trail, a second and third set of pawsteps seemed to slam against the ground like thunder as they pursued the small animal just a length ahead, hot breath and foaming drool flying from their hungry mouths.

The small cat's glowing blue and yellow eyes darted desperately across the scenery, searching for any way to escape the ravaging dogs that seemed to be snapping right at her tail. There! A scraggly little tree to her far left, barely a few lengths taller than the dogs - at least she really hoped so - with a spindly branch entangled in a much stronger, older tree's broken limb. Spinning her momentum to the left, she skidded for e few moments before charging for the sapling, throwing her claws into the bark and tearing her way up the thin, springy trunk. Behind her, she could hear the sound of the two dogs colliding in a loud 'thunk' as they struggled to make the quick turn after their prey, but by the time they reached the straggler, she was already up in it's highest branches, staring down at them cautiously.

Although the little tree held her weight, Honey's paw's only just managed to grasp the tiny little arms of it's branches as it swayed perilously in the breeze. This was definitely not the great escape she had hoped for. As she tried to readjust her paws, the limbs shook violently, threatening to dump her down into the maws of the mutts below. Hissing lightly, she dug her claws in deeper, and the shaking eventually subsided. " Stupid sapling, how am I supposed to get to the tree? " Honey stared longingly across the twiggy branches at the tree beside her, just out of reach. If she so much as moved, the little scrub of a tree would shake like a leaf (ha!), who knows what would happen if she dared to even clamber her way over to the sturdy branch. Casting another glance down at the circling beasts below, she didn't have to think very hard of the things that could happen. Perhaps if she stayed there and made herself 'comfortable' then her hunters would grow bored and leave..


The soft glow of sunset through the trees indicated that Honey had been sitting in her straggler sap for almost half the day. Great. She hadn't expected to drop into the backyard of a couple of dogs this morning, let alone expected them to jump the confines of the fence just to chase her all the way from the village all the way to the forest. If fate were a cat, she had half a mind to bite their tail off.

Below her, the dogs had settled down and had begun taking turns laying down and snoozing while the other circled the tree, staring up at her every so often, snuffling and drooling like the gross beast it was. Her paws had been dug into the thin little branches for so long that they had begun to feel numb, her paw pads felt as if they were burning hot from sliding across the bark every so often, only to be dragged back so she didn't buckle under herself. Worst of all, her claws felt as if they'd just fall off any moment, she had rarely needed to use them for lengthy periods, and holding her weight to a weak set of branches was way out of their usual range of usage. She was in a right pickle.


Soon enough, the dogs traded spots again, and the larger of the two began to circle again, snuffling around the tree curiously, it's dark eyes dragging lazily as it passed glances at her from below. Suddenly, the beast threw it's body upward, and it's huge front paws grasped at the lower branches, sending a wave of tremors up the tree. Howling with surprise, Honey's eyes grew wide with fear as the large oaf began to.. climb. Well, climb is a bit of an overstatement, it was more of a clumsy clamber as it slowly heaved itself up through the branches, but still! A dog climbing a tree!

Her heart began to race as the second dog barked excitedly and jumped around below it's partner in a crazed frenzy. The straggler tree wasn't very big, and so the larger dog was already a third of the way up when standing on it's hind paws, and as it clambered further up, it was already halfway to grabbing her tail. With panic gripping her with icy claws, Honey's eyes darted once more for the tree that lay just out of reach. Thats my only option. The branches began to shake even more furiously as she propped herself into a crouch, her own limbs shaking and creaking painfully as she forced them out of their stiffness. Prepping herself to launch for the tree, a sudden.. battle cry? Screeched from behind her. Whipping her head around, three more creatures appeared from the shrubbery.

Three cats charged right for the smaller dog, howling angrily with claws extended. Surprisingly, instead of turning to face them, the beast yelped and high tailed away with it's tail between it's legs. Not bothering to chase it, the cats in stead began to swarm up the tree, snarling and swiping at the big dog's hind end ferociously, " You know you're not welcome here, beetle brain! " A black and white tabby tom growled, clawing the dogs nose and sending it toppling to the ground in a great heap. Like it's friend, the large dog whimpered and galloped away fearfully.

" Are you alright? " The black and white tom asked softly from below her, and Honey let out a shaky breath, nodding. " Alright. Come with us, we'll get you something to eat and see what we can do about your paws. I'm sorry we weren't here earlier, perhaps then you wouldn't have been stuck for so long. " Strange, she thought, what type of cats could these be to so easily scare a couple of beasts?

[I Like Bees]

Closed! I'll have results posted in a moment

[I Like Bees]

Username: hainu
Cat Name: mottlefrost
Gender: cis tom
Rank: warrior
Clan: fernclan
Age: 29 moons
Prompt: Late night escapades. [1031 words]

Congrats! That was some very quick writing!

Hush, EchoIre, Southern sweetie, ethium, Vivika, and Only_Sky have all won RUs!