Chapter Text
The furred creature could feel the cold of Bareleaf right onto his pelt, his face. Paw pads unused to the feeling of dirt and rocks under them due to the big amount of moons away from his territory. A vague memory suddenly became rough once he felt it, coldness, overwhelming coldness and a rough feeling in his mind as he—stepped onto the high rock, looking down at Joey.
Under the warm sun, the birds sang in that forest of reddish pines
”I have been waiting for you, Honeypaw“
Said the young yet tall kittypet, a small smile on his muzzle. With some clumsiness, the brown-haired apprentice jumped and landed right onto the soft grass. Standing before what had once been a domestic cat, with a happy expression, he finally spoke.
”Follow me, I've already told Longstar you're coming with me. He said you need to be escorted to the camp.“
Neither of them could hide their excitement. The wild cat's pupils were dilated, unable to stay still. In a flash, the chestnut-brown cat started to run, and with even more silence than Joey had ever managed to achieve on foot, darted deeper into the forest, the elegant Siamese trying to follow at the same pace.
Mudears was the nicest cat of the clan, big yet sweet, chocolate fur, if Joey even knew what chocolate was. Rustleg was big, probably the biggest feline he had ever talked to. Goldenpaw was just a moon older than Honeypaw maybe, but even if they were almost the same age, the blond had the heart of an old and cold cat, unlike the brunette one.
Every cat was called by that long, long cat—Maybe it was the reason for its name— For that meeting. Every cat old enough to run with the stags had gathered beneath the antler-shaped tree branch, looking both at the leader and the kittypet.
“Now that our clan has found this small newcomer, with the approval of Starclan and our own clan, even with that twoleg scent in your pelt, it shall be brushed off in the next moons. This cat has reached the age of six moons, meaning that he can be part of Antlerclan as not a kittypet, but as an apprentice. You shall be named Doepaw, in honor of your brown fur that reflects the same way a doe's fur does”
A smile appeared in Honeypaw's face, who was looking up at J- Doepaw, proud of his new name, his new life into the wild, looking up at the leader.
"Raggednose, your apprenticeship has shown both a mixture of courage and intelligence. For now until your warrior ceremony, Doepaw will be your apprentice"
The newly-made apprentice's name was chanted by the number of cats of the clans, everyone looking at him, ignoring his past, ignoring his life as a kittypet, now happy and curious to see who he would become in the next moons.
Eyes opened wide as Henry felt the cold wind hitting his face. Everything was destroyed, every den had fallen apart, everything, even the proud antlers that had once stood tall in the middle of the camp had now disappeared. Fear filled his mind, almost no familiar scent but Doestar's. Yet, the scent almost made his body relax for one second.
His heart pounded against his chest as the second passed, overwhelming nostalgia gone, fear filling that void it had left. Adrenaline hit his body, and soon enough, he started running, darting onto the forest. Instead of the dawn, of the sun hitting his back and warming, he could only feel the slimy mud in his paws, muck. Every tree changed, dead, no leaves, his pelt stained with muck.
Not much time to think when he saw it in front of him, a tiger-like creature with black, muck stripes falling from it. As quick as he had seen it, as quick he turned around to keep running. And suddenly, when he saw the first bits of sun that should have led to the twolegs dens, he fell, he fell, and fell, unknowing how he hadn't broken each one of his bones with the harsh fall. Those claws ruined the barricade of leafs— Almost pawmade, entering the cave with the last strengths he had in his body.
Mind? Dizzy, looking at the cave, maybe it was the adrenaline wearing off. Those two small mountains of branches, the smell of death, and- Shadowfang and Rustlefoot's smell, how could he remember them, how could he remember himself, if he hadn't been that tom for a long time?
His legs stumbled a bit, falling onto the old, dirty terrain, vision turning foggy.