Warriors: Hidden Sights - Fallen Dawn

Chapter 5 - Just a Kit

"... we are still kits after all."

The truth in Sandkit's words stung. Clawkit himself was merely five moons, compared to the warriors who were at least 12 moons old. He could only imagine what they had learnt until he was of age.

The rest of their talk was reduced to an awkward and relatively silent stroll around camp. Once or twice, Sandkit tried to strike up a conversation, but Clawkit could only manage one word responses which effectively ended the conversation.

He felt bad. He was just so used to spending time alone, usually speaking to others to spoken to first, that interacting with others became something that was almost foreign and uncomfortable.

"I better go check on Cinderkit and Wildkit," Sandkit mewed. Despite sounding rather awkward, he was smiling. "I hope we can hang out again."

"Yeah." Clawkit stared at the cream tom as he bounded off to the medicine cat den.

Their discussion left a bitter taste on his tongue. It was frustrating to be weak, unable to do much about it, and to be constantly kept in the dark. However, his mind wandered to when Cinderkit told him about what he overheard about the dark tabby and became uncertain. Things were never quite the same after that. Should... he know the truth after all?

Despite everything, things seemed to be looking up. Sandkit actually went out of his way to talk to Clawkit, and even if it was for a little while, the dark brown tabby kit felt happy. He remembered the times the younger kit appeared to be on his side, and he wondered whether it was always his intention to be.

I thought I was alone all this while... perhaps I was wrong?

Clawkit could not deny the spark of hope in his heart.

His rumbling tummy told him that it was almost time to eat. He turned his gaze to the fresh-kill pile that was being filled by the warriors returning from the early hunting patrols.

"You must be hungry." Lilyflower's voice, albeit muffled by something in her jaws, surprised him. She dropped a water vole near his paws. "Here, I got this for you. Water vole is your favourite, isn't it?"

Clawkit nodded and crouched down to take a bite. As he savoured the oddly nostalgic and sharp, river-like taste that he grew to love, he looked up at his foster mother.

Sensing his unspoken question, she responded, "You looked rather down lately. I was hoping to cheer you up with your favourite prey, but I see you are in high spirits already."

"Mm. Sandkit talked to me today," Clawkit spoke, almost wistfully. "It made me feel... less alone and even if it was for a short while, it made me happy..."

"I see." Lilyflower's eyes were glistening with a strange emotion that reminded him of sadness.

"... but as long as Wildkit and Cinderkit is with him, it won't happen again. I... don't want to ruin their relationship." Clawkit realised, his face drooping to a saddened frown.

Lilyflower stood up abruptly. Resting her tail on his back, she smiled. "You are a considerate kit... but I think you should think of yourself a bit more. I know, it sounds selfish, but you deserve to be happy too."

Clawkit stared at her, agape in confusion. It did not really make much sense to him; he had been thinking of himself, the loneliness that was leeching off his life and the constant reminders that he was not like other kits.

Before he could ask for an explanation, the queen had already turned away, mewing back at him, "You will find out what I mean eventually."

He let out a frustrated groan. Again... why does everything have to be so confusing?

Gulping down the rest of the vole, Clawkit sprang to his paws, feeling even more restless than before. Impatience itched at his paws, nagging at him to discover the answer even though it would not come any time soon. Unconsciously, he began pacing, perhaps hoping that it would somehow ease his curiosity.

He was beginning to reach the edges of desperation.

He must have walked quite a long while because his paws started to throb in complaint of his habits. Eventually, he did stop, but it was not to rest his paws.

It was just a glimpse, something the dark brown tabby glanced at. Still, it registered something significant enough in his mind such that he actually stopped.

In one of the corners of camp he usually hung out at was a cat. A tom, to be more specific. Even as the shadows engulfed all but patches of the glaring sunlight of morning, cloaking his appearance easily, the kit knew. Clawkit knew.

It was that dark grey tabby from a moon ago.

"Who are you?" He managed to utter out.

The mysterious tom's reaction was that of surprise. "You... can see me?"

"Yes," Clawkit meowed, as-a-matter-of-factly. "You... are just right there... wait, you shouldn't be here."

Immediately, he dropped into a defensive crouch, baring his teeth, despite the hesitance that clung onto his heart. "P-please leave, intruder!"

"Shh!" the tom silenced him hurriedly. "No, I'm not an intruder... I am, well, was from ThunderClan. I'm a StarClan warrior, see?"

To prove his point, he stepped out of the shadows. It was then Clawkit saw the tom in full view. The dark grey tabby pelt with a rather notable scar near his nose, stars shimmering gloomily at his paws... something just felt so familiar about him.

He dipped his head slightly. "Clawkit, it's nice to meet you."

"You know my name?"

There was a pause. "... Every cat in StarClan does."

Somehow, it did not sound pleasant to Clawkit's ears, ringing with an unspoken onimous warning that sent a chill down his back. "What's wrong?" he asked.

The starry warrior did not respond immediately, gesturing for the kit to come closer, as if he was afraid someone would overhear their conversation. "Clawkit... there are a lot of things I want to say, but I can't. Not yet. But at the very least, I wish to give you a warning about your future. It will be hard and more often than not, you will question yourself... but don't worry," he gave him a comforting smile, "you are not alone."

"Wha- wait!" Clawkit called desperately, noticing that the StarClan warrior was ghostlier than before.

"I have to leave," he explained. "This won't be the last time... when you become an apprentice, I will come back. I promise."

It seemed that nothing Clawkit could do to stop the warrior from leaving. Pulling himself away from the river of helplessness, he called out to him again.

"Can I at least have your name?"

The traces of the StarClan warrior had disappeared, but apparently, his wish was heard and granted, gifted in the whisper of a resurging breeze.

"Thornshadow. My name is Thornshadow."

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Looking back, my old Warriors fanfics were really unplanned and didn't make sense 90% of the time but no one commented about it? I hope I can redeem myself with my new books.

Hopefully you can stick around. :)