Warriors: Mosspath's Choice (REWRITTEN)

Chapter 1

Green eyes shone in the darkness.

Mosskit blinked, her eyes a vivid green that glowed and radiated in the almost pitch darkness of the nursery, the moonlight in the clearing blocked by thick brambles. The moon was outlined against the bramble thorns, pooling silver light in the camp clearing.

Mosskit yawned, opening her mouth to show a set of white, thorn sharp teeth with a small pink tongue glittering in between. She snuggled back into the warmth of her mother's silvery fur, hiding from the chill that seemed to seep through the bramble entrance, freezing all the cats in the nursery. Mosskit could feel her siblings squirming around her, bundles of gray pelts that swamped her scent glands.

The lighter gray pelt suddenly moved, revealing fluffy fur around its head. It opened its eyes. They were a pale yellow, catching and gleaming in the pale moonlight shafts that the brambles allowed.

Her mother shifted, letting a draft of cold air hit Mosskit in her flank. Flaming amber eyes glowed with pride in the darkness as she stared down on Mosskit and her sisters.

"Hi!" the light gray she-kit piped up, her pale yellow eyes glittering excitedly as she looked around the den, surveying her clanmates.

"Welcome to FireClan, my kits." Mosskit's mother swept her long, feathery tail across her three kits. The other kit, a gray tabby, mewed in protest, snuggling deeper in her fur. A swish of the light gray kit's paws made Mosskit's head snap to her bigger littermate, as she pounced on the feathery tail, grasping it in her teeth. "And especially you, Moonkit." Moonkit purred as she let go of her tail.

"When are we going to see the camp, Silverheart?" she asked, her innocent mew ringing through the nursery with barely contained excitement. Mosskit quivered with elation.

"After Skykit wakes up," Silverheart meowed patiently, gently prodding the other gray kit until she mewed and opened her eyes.

Mosskit caught her breath. They were a brilliant, sharp ice blue that seemed to scorch through her fur. Mosskit backed away, trembling as she edged to hide behind Moonkit, a solid barrier between her and that icy blue. Her eyes sent shivers down her spine when Mosskit thought of that ice.

"You could have let me sleep a little longer," she grumbled as she scrambled to her paws, glancing back ruefully at Silverheart's warm pelt. "It's cold out." Skykit shivered, a small gesture that seemed to make her fragile frame tremble. Mosskit bushed up her long, thick fur to hide the cold that crept up on her.

Silverheart ignored Skykit, though she did wrap her tail around her, pulling her closer to her warm belly than the others. "It's still night, you can go outside in the morning."

"But we're not t—" Moonkit's protest was interrupted by another yawn. Mosskit muffled her mrrow of amusement, stuffing her fluffy black-striped tail in her mouth before Moonkit noticed.

Her littermate glared at her, all forms of tiredness gone, a fierce energy burned in her eyes. She bowled Mosskit over with her paws, pummeling her white belly fur with her hindpaws. Mosskit squealed, throwing Moonkit off balance as she flipped over, her fur as smooth as a snake as she slithered out of Moonkit's grasp. Mosskit leaped at Moonkit, trying to catch her in surprise.

A thunk and a sting of pain rippled through Mosskit, making her rear back in shock. She had tripped over Honeymist in her own haste, a gray queen that was sleeping on the other side of the nursery and looked to be about a moon from delivery, judging by how swollen her belly was. Mosskit leaned over to look more closely and was stung by the brambles that fortified the nursery.

Moonkit purred, making Mosskit turn around and irritably give her a glare, rubbing at her nose and finding a small scratch. Mosskit looked down at Honeymist, making sure she didn't hurt the expectant queen in any way.