#jaggedleaf

“Ish dish enough frefkill?” Nightflower muffled through two mice crammed into her mouth.

Darkstar chuckled. “Hey, you shouldn’t have your mouth full when speaking, Nightflower.”

She spits the mice out onto the ground. “Heh, sorry Dad.”

Still, he nodded affirmatively. “With Shimmersky’s fish and Gingerclaw’s bluejay, we should have enough food for the gathering.”

“Darkstar! Darkstar!” a large bundle of orange fur barreled towards the two cats, crashing into Nightflower.

She laughed. “What’s wrong, Tigerkit?”

The ball of fluff straightened himself out until he resembled a normal cat. “Applepaw’s being mean again. She snapped at Pebblekit!”

Darkstar sighed. “Acting out isn’t going to make me change my mind. I’ll have a talk with Blossomtail.”

“About what?” Nightflower asked.

“I decided to have Applepaw stay behind this Gathering. She’s been too irresponsible as of late.”

“I suppose that makes sense.” she probably also would have been sulking if she was left behind.

“You know, since I’m so helpful…” Tigerkit started.

“No Gatherings until you’re an apprentice.” Darkstar sighed.

—

The Gathering itself was just as bustling. The fresh kill was deposited atop the grates of the flaming barrel for the after-gathering feast. Nightflower still didn’t do well with fire, so she handed off her freshkill to Dawnpaw. She decided to meet up with Lynxpaw and Firepaw while Dawnpaw took care of the food.

Firepaw wasn’t hard to find. Her bright red fur was like a beacon, even among a sea of other ginger cats. She was sat with Lynxpaw, who looked very happy.

“What’s the occasion?” Nightflower asked as she padded over.

“My warrior ceremony!” Lynxpaw declared, the enthusiasm palpable in her voice. “I’m Lynxclaw now.”

Firepaw looked glum. “I wish. My mentor’s been ignoring my training… I’ll never be a warrior at this rate.”

Lynxclaw paused. “I’m sorry Firepaw. That sucks.”

“Ah… whatever. I think Smallcloud is just getting sick or something. I don’t know why he’s been ignoring me.”

“Oh… I can’t imagine how you must be feeling.” Nightflower said. Even Leopardcloud, stuck in the nursery, still made sure she kept up her training when she wasn’t able to be there.

A large silence fell over the Gathering. It was time to start; the first leader stepped to the front. This moon, it was Redstar.

“To start, Swampclan has been well. Our kits are well-fed, and will grow strong. Our apprentices, even more so.” Redstar stated simply, before stepping back.

“I heard that those kits born last moon were his.” Lynxclaw whispered to Nightflower. “Jaggedkit and Sharpkit, I think they’re named. Poor kits. Now they have to turn out evil with those names.”

Nightflower wasn’t so sure, but she wasn’t willing to be scolded for talking during the Gathering.

Next, Finchstar took the front.

“My son and his mate have had a litter of three healthy kits! We thank Starclan for them.” He showed an uncharacteristic amount of emotion, before frowning again. His tone was grave. “Unfortunately, one of our border patrols was ambushed by a coyote. One of our apprentices, Splinterpaw, did not make it. We ask other clans to increase their patrols and stay wary until the coyote has left our lands.”

Whispers carried over the crowd— uncertain, and somewhat panicked, before the Wanderers representative spoke up.

“It will not take long for the coyote to leave. The Twolegs will chase it out once they notice it. Remain alert, but calm, while on patrol.” the representative stepped back, allowing Badgerstar to step forward.

“We have two new warriors, as well as one new cleric apprentice.” he drawled, seemingly not caring. “Lynxclaw, Locustclaw, and Mitepaw.” He paused to allow the clans to cheer.

Nightflower made sure to cheer extra hard for her good friend, who seemed extremely flattered by all the attention. Firepaw, on the other hand, looked like her flames had been doused by a heavy rainfall.

After the noise had died down, he spoke again. “We grieve the loss of our beloved Seedwhisker, who succumbed to illness. May my son carry on his path of benevolence in Starclan, just as he did in life.” he bowed his head, ushering in a moment of silence.

Nightflower looked over at Starleaf. Her mother was close with Seedwhisker, right? He was one of the members of her prophecy journey. Her mother was huddled up with her Grangeclan friends, Dovelight and Pearlheart.

The silence was broken with a single exclamation.

“Seedwhisker!”

Now, every clan was looking at the three mollies. Pearlheart was staring at the faded outline of a tom, though Nightflower couldn’t pick out any of the details. He was glowing a bright blue, which certainly wasn’t a real pelt color. Was that… a Starclan cat?

“What’s she looking at?” Lynxclaw asked, confusion lacing her voice.

“You don’t see the glowing cat in front of her?” Nightflower said.

Firepaw shook her head. “She’s just staring at nothing.”

“Well, there’s a Starclan cat right in front of her!”

Nightflower quickly looked around. Badgerstar had his head in his paws, and Bonestripe looked shocked. Finchstar merely looked confused, and Redstar was simply annoyed.

Clouds began to crowd around the full moon, blotting out all but a small circle in the middle.

Darkstar took the front, interrupting the moment. “Starclan has spoken. The Gathering has ended for now.” he jumped down, gathering the clanmates.

Nightflower barely had a moment to say goodbye to her friends when she was pulled away with the rest of Crystalclan.

He padded over to Nightflower as they left the Gathering. “Your mother is staying behind.”

“What was that?” Nightflower asked her father.

“You could see it, couldn’t you? How well?” he dodged her question.

“But— well, yes. I could see the glowing blue cat. I couldn’t tell who it was though. Was he from Starclan?”

He nodded to her. “So not well. I see… yes, that glowing cat was a Starclan cat.”

“But why did that ghost appear?”

“To say goodbye.” Darkstar replied. “or maybe to give a warning. We won’t know until we ask your mother.”

“I guess that food will go to waste now…” she said absentmindedly.

“It won’t. Don’t worry about it.” he licked her forehead. “Come on. Let’s go home.”

As he walked away, Nightflower could only wonder what Starclan was thinking. Perhaps she’d ask her mother. Hopefully her mother was willing to share what she’d learned.

—

“Beware the jagged thorns of the lake, for they will sink into you like a lifeline.” Pearlheart repeated back to the other two.

“What could that mean?” Starleaf asked, worry in her eyes.

“I don’t know Leafy.” Pearlheart had a worried look on her face. “But he said the message was for you.”

Dovelight turned to Starleaf. “If you need extra warriors, Grangeclan will send them.”

Starleaf shook her head. “No. I will not put your clanmates in danger. We will handle this ourselves.”

Pearlheart pressed against Starleaf’s side, letting out a sad huff. “Be safe Leafy. Please.”

“I will, Pearlheart. I promise.” Starleaf spared one last look towards the spot where Seedwhisker supposedly stood, thoughts swirling with confusion and fear.

Tigerpaw was basically jumping with joy as he prepared the food for the Gathering. Starleaf was coaching him through what to do, an exhausted look on her face. Nightflower chuckled. She remembered when it was her doing tedious tasks. Part of her almost longed for her apprentice days again… but it sure was nice to have her own space!

Since Crystalclan’s camp was so vacant of good shelter within the wider structure, apprentices lived in the nursery. When it was all ten of them in the same den? Now that got crowded!

To be honest, Nightflower wanted to stay home. But there was no was she’d risk it. After all, Firepaw would be a warrior any day now. It would be a bad move for her to miss the Gathering— she wanted to be there when her friend finally managed to graduate.

Firepaw’s mentor Smallcloud had passed a few moons ago, so she had to receive a new one. Apparently, he wasn’t much better. His name was Cowfur and much like his namesake, supposedly all he did was sleep and ignore her training. Maybe Firepaw was just exaggerating.

Still, Nightflower could see how that could get annoying.

The Gathering was extra packed that night— there were new faces everywhere she could see. She figured the occasion was the face on the loft with the leaders. A younger cat, looking to be about her age, stood next to the Wanderer’s representative.

Darkstar jumped onto the loft to join them. He wasn’t the last leader tonight— Redstar was lingering in the crowd with two smaller cats. He said one last goodbye before getting into place with the other leaders.

Starleaf bounded over to the steps, where the deputies stood. Bloodthorn’s spot was empty last moon; but this moon, a suave-looking cream tom was in her place.

Tonight, her father was the one to start the proceedings.

“All is well in Crystalclan. We have one new warrior, Applesnow! She has worked hard for the position.”

The aforementioned Applesnow just smiled away, seemingly oblivious to the attention placed on her. Nightflower made sure to yell her name extra loud, so that she’d notice they were talking about her.

“Huh? Oh, it’s my turn already?!” she snapped back into reality, before folding in on herself in embarrassment. “Oh… um… thank you?”

Next, it was Badgerstar’s turn.

“There isn’t much to report. Our clan is doing well.” he stated, before lumbering off to the side.

Redstar came to the front next, a serene smile on his face.

He held his paw up, pointing into the crowd. “Swampclan has had a momentous moon. Two wonderful kits have become apprentices. Please celebrate Jaggedpaw, our newest warrior apprentice, and Sharppaw, our first cleric apprentice.”

“YEAHHH!” a loud, loud cheer ripped through the crowd. It came from the mouth of a small, scrappy molly with eyes as crimson as Redstar’s, one of the ones he was talking to earlier. She was definitely Jaggedpaw. She punched the shoulder of the apprentice next to her, who had a meeker attitude. Nightflower assumed this was Sharppaw.

Redstar lifted his pointed paw into the air, silencing the gathering.

“I’m afraid to announce that our deputy Bloodthorn has retired. In her place, Bergamotfur has become our newest deputy. I hope you will all wish him well on his journey.” Redstar said without missing a beat. His smile never faltered.

With that, he stepped back to allow Finchstar to take the front.

Finchstar was not a tom who showed a lot of emotion, from what Nightflower had seen of him. Mainly, it was reserved for his family— in the form of joy. But today, he looked… troubled. She wondered why.

“Today, we have one new warrior. Please welcome Firefall.” his voice lacked enthusiasm.

Nightflower cheered as hard as she could for her friend. If anyone deserved it, it was her! Firefall was a very good name too. Although, as she looked at Grangeclan, she could see an unease settling over them. They were cheering the least out of any of the clans. What in the world could that mean?

He stepped back, and Nightflower expected things to end there. But instead, the Wanderers representative stepped forward.

“I am training a new apprentice to take my place. Penny will be replacing me in due time. However, she has much to learn, so I will not be leaving yet.” The rep mrrped in laughter. “Penny, step forward and say your piece.”

Penny was a tuxedo cat like Nightflower, but with much smaller ears. Her eyes were a bright orange, rather than Nightflower’s purple.

“Um, hello. As you know, I will be taking the position of Torch-bearer in the future. Fran has been a good mentor so far! As part of my training, I will spend a moon living in each camp. I hope to see you all soon!” Penny smiled as she spoke, even though she seemed nervous. She stepped back, and the Gathering began

The extra cats began to cheer. They must have been Wanderer’s cats, she figured. One of them was talking with Starleaf— a grizzled dilute calico molly. Starleaf beckoned Nightflower over.

“You can go congratulate your friend in a bit— there’s someone I want you to meet first.” Starleaf spoke outwardly with a curtness, to keep up appearances. Of course, Nightflower knew her mother well enough to tell that she was quite excited.

“Who is it, Starleaf?” Nightflower said, careful to keep familiarity out of her voice.

Starleaf motioned to the calico molly, and they slinked out of the Four Corners through a rotted board. Nightflower quickly followed after them.

Once they were far enough away to avoid eavesdroppers, Starleaf smiled.

“Nightflower, do you know your grandmother?”

She blinked. Her… grandmother?

The calico molly laughed. “Oh, the little one wouldn’t remember. She was just a week old!”

Nightflower gasped. “I’m so sorry… I can’t remember you. I’m a terrible granddaughter!”

“Come on, don’t worry dear. My name is Squirrel. I’m your mother’s mother; your grandmother. I used to lead a squad of the Wanderers, back in the day. Now your mother’s sister’s taken it over.”

“I-It’s nice to meet you, Grandma!” she stood up straight.

“How’s retirement been, Mom?” Starleaf asked.

Squirrel chuckled. “Oh, it’s been nice. Your father’s No-furs keep me fed, and it’s fun to see the new recruits struggling in the yard! Maya was too busy to come with me, but she says hi.”

“Maya?” Nightflower asked.

“Ah, you haven’t met any of your aunts and uncle, have you?” Squirrel chuckled. “Maya is one of your mother’s sisters. She’s the one who took over my squad. There’s also Hazel, my son, and Shauna.”

“Penny is Shauna’s daughter.” Starleaf clarified. “That’s why your grandma hauled herself all the way here.”

“Ah, and what a good decision that was. I’m so glad you’re doing well here.” Squirrel smiled. “I wish your littermate was still with us. But I supposed she’s watching over you from your stars, isn’t she?”

Nightflower’s thoughts lingered on Ravenkit, and how she had seen her last moon. “Yeah. Sometimes I wish I knew what she was thinking.”

Starleaf seemed surprised. “You’ve seen her recently?”

“Yeah. She led me to Grassfoot on the First Snow. I wouldn’t have found her if it wasn’t for Ravenkit.”

Starleaf furrowed her brow. “I— I didn’t know that. Nightflower, will you remember to tell me next time you see her?”

Nightflower gasped. “Oh! Yeah Mom, I promise. Sorry, it slipped my mind.”

The grief lingered in Starleaf’s mind just as it did Nightflower’s. She hadn’t really considered how hard it was for her mother to not know what Ravenkit was doing… and to watch one child grow, while the other stayed the same for all of eternity.

Squirrel butt her head into Starleaf’s, then Nightflower’s. “It’s so good to see my kin again. If you’re ever in the area, be sure to stop by the No-fur den, ok? Conan and I will be so happy to see you around. And make sure you take care of Penny, alright? Don’t let those Swampclan bastards hurt her!”

Starleaf turned to Nightflower. “You can go now. I’m going to stay to catch up with my mom for a bit. Enjoy the Gathering, ok?”

Nightflower smiled. “Alright. Bye Mom. And it was nice meeting you, Grandma!”

“Good seeing you too, dear!” Squirrel waved her off.

—

When Nightflower had returned, everyone had started eating. She picked up one of the last pieces of prey, a small sparrow, and ran over to where Firefall was sat.

Their friend group was tucked into a corner, away from the fire. Not many others were near them due to how cold it was that night, but the friends huddled together for warmth. It was Shimmersky and Lynxclaw on the outside and on the inside, was the new warrior of the day.

For a molly who just passed the greatest milestone of her life, she looked awfully conflicted. Just as much as the rest of her clan. Nightflower set her food down next to Firefall and turned to her.

“Hey new warrior!” She said excitedly.

“Hey.” Firefall repeated without much enthusiasm.

“What’s with the long face?”

She just turned away.

Shimmersky nudged Nightflower “Hey, trade prey!” Shimmersky had a big, juicy vole by her side. Nightflower was happy to oblige.

The friends sat side by side, silently eating prey, before Lynxclaw spoke.

“Ok, enough of this! Firefall, what’s going on?! You’ve been practically counting down the days before you became a warrior, so why are you so upset now?!”

Firefall looked at her food. “I… I can’t tell you. I’m not supposed to discuss it with the other clans.”

“Other clans?!” Lynxclaw was indignant. “Firefall, we’re your friends! We’re not some enemy!”

Nightflower looked at Shimmersky, then back at Firefall. Shimmersky nodded. “Go for it.”

“Hey, I get it Firefall. I get it.” Nightflower started. Firefall seemed to relax a bit. “If it makes you feel better… I have a secret of my own.”

Lynxclaw’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

“I’m not supposed to tell the other clans, but… you’re my friends. I think it’s time for you to know.” Nightflower said, “I’m not Shimmersky’s littermate. I’m Darkstar and Starleaf’s surviving kit.”

Firefall and Lynxclaw’s eyes went wide.

“I-is that really safe to be saying out loud?!” Lynxclaw whispered. They knew just as well as Nightflower did the danger of what that meant. “I mean, we won’t tell anyone, but what if someone heard that?!”

“You… survived. You survived that. You’re… you’re the cat from the prophecy.” Firefall looked at her with a new expression; one of determination.

“Yeah. I know this is dangerous. But I trust you guys. And I want you to know that we trust you too, Firefall. We’d never tell your secret to anyone else.”

Firefall nodded. “Ok. Ok…” she looked up. “Do you know what reincarnation is?”

Nightflower shook her head. Shimmersky and Lynxclaw seemed similarly confused.

Firefall continued. “Basically… if a kit dies really young, they can sometimes use their power to be born again. They lose their memories, but get a second change at life. It’s purely Starclan power— they don’t even need a second parent to be reborn.”

Nightflower could see where this was going.

“One of my clanmates— Ashrise— used to get really weird around me. A few others would too, but especially him. And I never used to know why. But… this moon, my parents sat me down. Apparently… I’m the reincarnation of one of his dead kits. They figured this out because… well… apparently my father can’t father kits. So my parents were really confused as to how I came to be. And when I was born, I looked a lot like Ashrise’s kit Emeraldkit.”

“Emeraldkit?” Shimmersky asked. “This must have been long before our time. I’ve never heard of that name before.”

“Pearlheart went to Starclan to ask, and well… all of the other kits were still there; except Emeraldkit. And her littermates confirmed it. I’m… someone’s dead kit. I don’t know what to do. Do I talk to Ashrise? He’s… technically my father. But at the same time… I love my parents. Rainleaf and Bloomfur are the ones who raised me. And I don’t know… do I even have room for another parent?“

Nightflower looked at Firefall. “I don’t think it should be up to us what you do. In the end, your decision is your decision. But… I mean, I don’t think it’ll hurt to get to know him. Maybe give it a try? In my experience,” she thought about Rime and their porch, “another parent never got rid the ones that came before. They just became another person to love.”

Firefall seemed to think about it a bit. “I… yeah. I’ll give it a try. Maybe not yet, but someday. Ashrise has always been nice.” she sighed. “It’s weird to think about how I’m technically the deputy’s sister.”

Lynxclaw thought for a moment. “Have you been able to meet Emeraldkit’s other parent?”

Firefall scrunched up. “No… that’s the weirdest part of this whole situation. They won’t tell me anything about Emeraldkit’s mother or how she died. The whole clan’s been on edge about it. Something… bad happened. Something really bad.” she sighed for a moment. “All I know is that she was the cleric before Flyheart. I don’t know a name though.”

Both Lynxclaw and Shimmersky looked as confused as Nightflower felt.

“Well, just know that we’re here to support you, Firefall. If you ever feel like your clan’s too hard to be around, you can come stay with us in Crystalclan.” Shimmersky butt her head into Firefall’s. She chuckled.

“I’d offer too, but Badgerstar is the worst. He probably won’t let you stay. I’d fight him for you though!” Lynxclaw added.

“Thanks guys.” Firefall smiled. “I might take you up on that offer. Not the fight one though— I don’t want you to get in trouble.”

Nightflower settled in closer to Firefall. “We can stay with you until the end of the Gathering, if you want.”

She laughed a bit. “I think I’m getting flashbacks to that first Gathering.”

“Hey, you get your turn to mourn too. It really sucks to be isolated from your clanmates.” Lynxclaw looked over to the side, eyes focused on a small group. Nightflower could see Penny speaking with Yarrowheart and Badgerstar.

“Agreed.” Firefall said.

The four settled into their spots, talking idly until the gathering ended.

—

Nightflower and Shimmersky had said goodbye to Lynxclaw and Firefall, wishing them the best. They joined the rest of their clan on the way out. Everything had seemed to conclude normally. It was just Swampclan and Crystalclan left in the Four Corners. Both were on their way out. Nightflower was with Starleaf.

“Where will Penny sleep when she comes to our clan?”

Starleaf hummed. “I think the elder’s den would be best. It’s empty for now, so she’d be quite comfortable there.”

Nightflower started to make a statement in agreement, before the loudest yowl she’d ever heard ripped across camp.

“YOU FOX-HEART!”

Nightflower turned to see Jaggedpaw, the apprentice from before, wrestling with Tigerpaw.

“I’LL KILL YOU FOR THAT!” her claws were sheathed, but her eyes were filled with as much venom as her words. She had managed to pin Tigerpaw down.

“IT’S NOT THAT SERIOUS, MOUSEBRAIN!” Tigerpaw shouted back, kicking her with his hind legs.

She was unrelenting, leaning into him. “Apologize.” she spat.

“NO! I DIDN’T SAY ANYTHING WRONG!” he writhed under her paws.

Nightflower had started her way there, but Starleaf had already bounded over to separate them.

“That’s enough, Jaggedpaw.” a voice interjected.

Redstar himself calmly strode towards the two apprentices.

“F-Father!” Jaggedpaw smiled.

“Get off the apprentice this instant.” He said.

She looked horrified. “B-But… but he insulted our clan!”

Redstar’s expression never changed. “You are the one insulting our clan with your conduct. Get off him.”

She retreated, stepping off Tigerpaw with a scoff. As she left, Nightflower could swear she saw tears prickling at the corners of her eye.

“This Gathering has already concluded. Jaggedpaw will be punished later for this mistake.” Redstar said, before beckoning the rest of his clan to leave. They exited out of the main entrance.

The Swampclan cats whispered among themselves as they left. Nightflower could have sworn some of them were laughing.

“What were you thinking?!” Starleaf yelled at her apprentice. “Fighting at a Gathering… do you know how that looks? It’s dangerous!”

“It wasn’t my fault!” Tigerpaw bristled under the scolding. “I wasn’t even talking to her! All I said was that it’s creepy that Swampclan is making kits apprentices!”

Starleaf sighed. “Because of you, we could have been in a serious situation. You need to learn to hold your tongue better at Gatherings.” she placed a paw on his shoulder. “What would I have told your parents if you had gotten hurt?”

Tigerpaw scoffed. “She’s just a kit. She can’t hurt me.”

“Really? Because it looked like she was winning to me.” Pebblepaw added with a smirk.

“Shut up Pebblepaw!” Tigerpaw lunged after his sister, who ran away laughing. He followed after her, huffing in anger.

Starleaf looked very tired. “She won’t be a kit forever…”

“There’s no way he can hear you, Mom.” Nightflower replied.

“I know. I just worry for him. He’s too impulsive for his own good.” Starleaf sighed.

Nightflower bumped into her mother’s side. “He’ll learn someday.”

“I hope you’re right, Nightflower.”

—

Jaggedpaw was huddled in a corner of the nursery, wrapping her body around her paw. All she could hear was Rosekit’s raspy breaths. She huffed, turning in on herself.

“Do you want me to look at that, Jaggedpaw?”

She looked up to see Alderflower.

“No. I don’t need any medical care. Focus on stupid Rosekit.”

Alderflower looked at Rosekit, who slept soundly despite her mangled leg. Jaggedpaw couldn’t understand. Why in the world would she care so much about a kit that wasn’t even hers? Why wouldn’t she just let it die?

“Rosekit is stable. Her wounds aren’t bleeding.” Alderflower finally replied. “Yours are. Let me look at them.”

Jaggedpaw acquiesced, holding her injured paw out to Alderflower.

Alderflower gently took Jaggedpaw’s bleeding paw into hers. “He did this to you, didn’t he?”

“No. He didn’t. And even if he did, I deserved it for disgracing our clan.” Jaggedpaw snapped.

Alderflower licked her paw clean, which made Jaggedpaw wince. “Alright, I won’t push.”

She grabbed some cobwebs out from beneath the nest, placing it on Jaggedpaw’s wound.

“It should heal without a scar. You’ll be alright.” Alderflower smiled. “Do you want to sleep with me and Rosekit tonight?”

Jaggedpaw turned up her nose. “No. I don’t want to.”

She looked out of the nursery to the empty apprentice den, where she slept all by herself. Snow had begun to form a thick layer on the ground.

“But the apprentice den is really cold, so I suppose I have no choice.”

Alderflower moved over to make room for Jaggedpaw. She reluctantly slotted herself inside.