#birchflight

Cringetober 2025 Day 14 - First OC

Wanted to draw one of the Tunnel Poly kits!

As he got older, Adderclaw got quite a few scars in scuffles. He sees it as no big deal, it's all fun for him. In the Dark Forest, no one holds a grudge against someone that gives them scars. It's just what you do.

He gets something from all of his parents.

From Fox, he gets his sense of humour and energy.

From Ember, he gets his agility and cleverness.

From Gorse (bio), he gets his build, pelt, nose, and ear colours and fascination with mythical creatures in stories.

From Birch (bio) he gets his tabby trait, eye colour, and almost perpetually joyful mood.

His tongue is a mix of Gorse and Birch.

@starfalcon555

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Base: F2U - Longhair Icon by Rexolete on DeviantArt

@starfalcon555 you suggested designs but I saw them a tad late (after I finished Thorn's, who was the first)

At first I thought Half wasn't able to have white spots, but then I remembered that Gorse's bio mother is partly white.

The parents are Gorse and Ember, reason being that in the story they are mentioned, they are said to be the second-youngest litter with Birchflight carrying the youngest, and I don't think that Birch got pregnant twice in a row lmao. And Gorse is the father because the names connect to him the most.

Finding Mallow was definitely a 'oh that feels odd to hear that name' and then the kit with a half-white face was born and that probably sparked the "naming all of them after his old friends" thing.

Thorn: tom (and flamboyant af)

Fire: trans tom

Half: she-cat (and mute!)

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Bases:

Half

Thorn

Gorseheart is then met by a line of cats, each giving him one bone. The cats are his mates, Smalljump, Batlight, maybe his older kits, (maybe Sparktail?) and everyone that Gorseheart listened to back when he was the Resident Therapist (tm) (he still occasionally checks in on them).

And Gorse thinks about back when the Foxbreeze incident happened. How not one of his friends bothered to listen to him about what happened, how he was constantly silenced and ignored, how he had no one but himself and Emberdawn. He had felt unloved, so strongly that it was the catalist that turned a once golden-hearted warrior into a bloodthirsty, angry monster. 

And how now his family cared enough to lure that evil cat to the Dark Forest and tear him apart. And then them and his friends loved him enough, were furious at his pain enough, to want to give him the gifts of Foxbreeze’s bones. 

They acknowledged a pain that he had held in for so long. They didn’t just listen, but did something. And then after that, they gave him gifts to heal, each bone a way of saying “you are here, and he is dust. He can never hurt you again, and I love you.”

And he just.

Breaks.

@starfalcon555

Birchflight

Aliases / Nicknames: ??

Gender: molly 

Sexuality: pansexual, polyamorous 

Family: unnamed mother, unnamed father, Haretalon (sister), Breezeblaze (brother), Sparrowflight (niece), Deerbirch (nephew) 

Other Relations: unnamed mentor, Darkfire (apprentice), Foxfire (crush) 

Clan: Bushclan 

Rank: warrior 

Characteristics: kills to get Foxfire's attention, oblivious, caring, has a secret sadistic side 

Number of Victims: 3 

Number of Murders: 3 

Murder Method: leading onto Thunderpaths 

Known Victims: Larksplash, Mousetuft, Flamepetal 

Victim Profile: friends of Foxfire 

Cause of Death: run over by a BMX bike 

Cautionary Tale: N/A

Story: 

From the moment she opened her eyes, Birchflight had been hopelessly in love with Foxfire. The two of them were nearly inseparable all throughout their kithood and apprenticehood, and other cats joked about them becoming mates when they became warriors. 

Birchflight laughed them off, but truthfully, it made her heart ache. She loved him with all of her heart, but Foxfire only seemed to see her as a friend. Her best friends, Cloudrose and Wrendawn, as well as her siblings, tried cheering her up, saying that Foxfire would come around eventually. But the heartache was too much for Birchflight. Why couldn't Foxfire see how much she loved him?

To make matters worse, Foxfire had started becoming distant from Birchflight in favour of talking to new friends from other Clans: Larksplash of Treeclan, Mousetuft of Cliffclan, and Flamepetal of Prairieclan. Birchflight pretended to put on a happy face whenever they talked to her at Gatherings, but she couldn't ignore the steaming fury boiling inside of her, made even worse by how the three toms would make smug glances at Foxfire and whisper things in his ear that made him blush at Birchflight when they thought she wasn't looking. 

She couldn't let them take her beloved Foxy away from her. Birchflight knew they were gluttons--food was all they seemed to talk about. So she took advantage of the wide variety of prey in Bushclan, creating a trail of mice from the Treeclan border to the nearest Thunderpath. All she had to do then was watch and wait as Larksplash followed the trail onto the Thunderpath, just in time for a sleek red monster to crash into him. 

She tried her best to suppress the giddy feeling that arose when she looked at Larksplash's corpse, but it was just too strong to resist. Mousetuft was next.

Birchflight made sure to add in an extra pheasant chick or two into the trail to really seal the deal, the same going for Flamepetal a mere half moon later. Birchflight's sheer joy at getting rid of the three biggest pains in her tail was marred, however, by the sudden deaths of her best friends Cloudrose and Wrendawn, killed in a freak drowning accident while collecting and wetting moss. 

Foxfire had been with them at the time of the incident, and he was inconsolable at not being able to save them. Birchflight comforted him over this and the deaths of his friends, with him comforting her over the loss of her friends and her being the one to find his friends' bodies.

The leader even gave Birchflight Foxfire's young nephew, Darkpaw, as her apprentice, with Foxfire receiving Birchflight's niece, Sparrowpaw, as his in turn. Their relationship had finally returned to what it was, and this time, Birchflight wasn't going to let him go.

Birchflight just had to finish up this hunting session with Darkpaw first. The young apprentice, seeing how she wasn't paying attention to him, wrapped up in her own daydreams and worries, decided to get her attention by trying to catch a raccoon, chasing it across a Thunderpath.

Fortunately, Birchflight noticed the strange, two-wheeled Twoleg monster heading towards Darkpaw and knocked him out of the way just in time. Unfortunately, she was just a little too slow to avoid getting struck herself. 

Now she would never have a chance to confess to Foxfire... or so she thought.

Foxfire

Aliases / Nicknames: Foxy

Gender: tom 

Sexuality: pansexual, polyamorous 

Family: unnamed mother, unnamed father, Morningberry (sister), Sootstorm (brother), Darkfire (nephew), Pebblefox (niece) 

Other Relations: unnamed mentor, Sparrowflight (apprentice), Birchflight (crush) 

Clan: Bushclan 

Rank: warrior 

Characteristics: kills to get Birchflight's attention, oblivious, charismatic, a bit of a himbo, has repressed anger issues 

Number of Victims: 2 

Number of Murders: 2 

Murder Method: suffocating with waterlogged moss 

Known Victims: Cloudrose, Wrendawn 

Victim Profile: friends of Birchflight 

Cause of Death: drowned in a sewer 

Cautionary Tale: N/A

Story: 

From the moment he opened his eyes, Foxfire had been hopelessly in love with Birchflight.The two of them were nearly inseparable all throughout their kithood and apprenticehood, and other cats joked about them becoming mates when they became warriors. Foxfire laughed them off, but truthfully, it made his heart ache. He loved her with all of her heart, but Birchflight only seemed to see him as a friend.

His new friends from other Clans, Larksplash, Mousetuft, and Flamepetal, as well as his siblings, tried cheering him up, saying that Birchflight would come around eventually. But the heartache was too much for Foxfire. Why couldn't Birchflight see how much he loved her?

Foxfire tried to hold in his heartache, but every time he looked at Birchflight, his heart tore a little bit. The freak deaths of Larksplash and Mousetuft didn't help matters either, though there was some comfort in Birchflight being the one who found the bodies. 

He knew she wouldn't hurt them. One day, however, he was sent out to collect wet moss with Birchflight's best friends, Cloudrose and Wrendawn. Being sent to complete a task with them just made Foxfire think of Birchflight, and Cloudrose and Wrendawn quickly noticed his mopiness. When they asked him what was wrong, he deflected at first, but eventually sighed and relayed the whole story.

When Foxfire finished, however, Cloudrose and Wrendawn started... laughing at him. They wheezed out something about being so dumb and not being able to see Birchflight's true feelings before going back to rolling on the grass. Foxfire felt his heart burn with fury. 

They must be insinuating that Birchflight didn't like him back! They must be taunting him! Something snapped within him, and he bowled over Cloudrose and Wrendawn over within seconds, holding the wet moss over their snouts and not letting go until he was sure they were dead.

When the deed was done, however, Foxfire quickly came back to his senses and was hit with an immense wave of regret. He killed Birchflight's best friends! If she didn't return his feelings before, she would never return them now! He quickly dragged them back to camp and told the leader that Cloudrose and Wrendawn had died in a freak drowning accident. 

The day only got worse from there, as Birchflight returned from her hunting trip with the news that she had found Flamepetal's dead body on another Thunderpath. The last of his friends, gone. At least they could comfort each other on the day's tragedies.

The two of them began spending more and more time with each other. The leader even gave Foxfire Birchflight's young niece, Sparrowpaw, as her apprentice, with Birchflight receiving Foxfire's nephew as his. 

Their relationship had finally returned to what it was, and this time, Foxfire wasn't going to let her go. He just had to finish up this tracking session with Sparrowpaw first. The young apprentice, seeing how he wasn't paying attention to her, wrapped up in his own daydreams and worries, decided to get his attention by trying to slip into a sewer grate close to the nearby Twolegplace.

Fortunately, Foxfire noticed Sparrowpaw just in time and pulled her away from the edge of the grate. Unfortunately, he tripped and fell in himself, landing into oasis of sewer water himself, just slightly too deep for him to stay afloat.

Now he would never have a chance to confess to Birchflight... or so he thought.

Additional Information:

--Submission by @starfalcon555​

--These two share exactly one (1) braincell, and most of the time, it's in the possession of one of their friends or their apprentices.

--Birchflight and Foxfire would be SHOCKED to see each other in the DF at first, and even more shocked to learn that they killed the other's friends, but when they realize the reason for it, they are quickly overcome with joy and become mates almost immediately.

--Birchflight and Foxfire died on the same day, on opposite sides of the same Twolegplace.

--Birchflight and Foxfire's nephews/nieces picked their own warrior names to remember their dead aunt (Sparrowflight and Deerbirch) and uncle (Darkfire and Pebblefox) respectively.

--It’s possible Sparrowflight and Darkfire eventually becoming mates themselves, as they bonded over the trauma of their mentors dying to save them, as well as said mentors being each other's family members. Maybe they even name their own future kits Birchkit and Foxkit, for the Angst (TM).

--LOVE everything about this. The similar crimes, how their deaths were similar to their crimes, two halves of a whole idiot.

It should have been a happy moment.

It was the moment all parents look forward to and never forget. 

Harekit was the first. She was the first of her litter to do everything, to wobble, to open her eyes, to babble, and now, to talk. It had been unexpected, but first words tend to be. Birchflight was resting on her side, purring while the kits tussled clumsily at her belly. Foxfire had been laying, half-asleep with his chin on her shoulder, while Gorseheart groomed Emberdawn’s head-fur. 

Harekit then broke apart from her brothers, wobbling clumsily over to Gorseheart and Emberdawn, who smiled warmly down on her. Harekit looked like she wanted to communicate, and they had all expected babble. 

Gorseheart’s heart froze.

“Da.”

She had said “Da.”

Everyone cooed, cheering as loud as they could without frightening the kits. Foxfire jerked his head up, ears perked and smiling widely. Birchflight’s pupils dilated, and Emberdawn lowered her chin to the floor to level with Harekit. Harekit was blinking expectantly at Gorseheart, completely unaware that she had done anything worthwhile at all. She only wanted his attention.

Gorseheart loved her, he loved her with all of his heart. But in all the preparation for new kits, he hadn’t been ready for how this moment would make him feel. Without a word, he hurried away, ducking through the tunnel and bounding a couple tail-lengths across the ground before stopping abruptly. 

Immediately, he regretted leaving. Harekit must be so confused. He wondered if she was crying now because he had ignored her and left, yet he couldn’t bring himself to go back. Not yet. He needed a little time. 

“What was that?” a gentle voice asked. Foxfire padded over to join him. 

“I’m sorry,” Gorseheart’s own voice shook. “Is she okay?”

“Perfectly.” His eyes lit up, likely thinking about Harekit’s first word. “You don’t seem to be. They may be small as mice, but you don’t need to be scared when they talk!”

Gorseheart wiped his paw over his nose. “It just reminded me of something, is all.”

Foxfire frowned. “Must be something pretty bad. I’ve never seen someone run away when their kit says their first word. Oh yeah, Webstripe!” He grinned, trying to lighten the mood.

Gorseheart huffed a laugh, appreciating him for it. But he was still unsteady, needing to dig his claws into the ground to keep himself up.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Foxfire offered, laying his tail over Gorseheart’s. Gorseheart thought about it, then shook his head. The time would come to tell Foxfire and Birchflight about Jaykit, but now didn’t feel like the time. He didn’t want to spill his feelings right now, especially not without Emberdawn wanting to talk about it too. He just wanted to suppress it, at least for now, and go back to the kits. Harekit had said a word for the first time. Now was the time to celebrate.

“Come on,” He said, picking a soft, wilting daisy from the ground. “Harekit should get a gift.”

He led the way back into the den, grateful to see Harekit sleeping in Emberdawn’s paws with her brothers, and not crying as he had been expecting, in spite of Foxfire’s reassurances.

“Is everything okay?” Birchflight asked in a mixture of confusion and concern, curled in a ball against Emberdawn’s belly. Emberdawn’s eyes met Gorseheart’s, much more knowing. 

“Yeah, just a scare,” Gorseheart told them. Curling between them all, he was grateful when they didn’t say anything more, moving the conversation instead to what they thought Adderkit’s and Larkkit’s first words would be. Gorseheart resolved to react better when that time came, and hoped that he would be better prepared.

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--Reminder that Jaykit died shortly after saying his first word, which was ‘da.’

--Emberdawn is still pregnant at this point, probably close to giving birth.