#peanutfur

“I’m worried,” Fungichomp told them, facing the half-circle they formed around him. His fur itched with impatience. “Cherrystar is going to have kits.” The she-cat had spoken to him the other day, briefly letting him know that he should expect another addition to his daycare. 

“Good for her?” Bristleblaze narrowed his eyes at Fungichomp as though he were stupid.

“Cherrystar is a kit-killer. Those victims included her own.”

“Her own?” Gorsebriar echoed in disbelief.

“How horrible!” Aloemist exclaimed, fur bristling to match with the prickles in her skin.

“Why?” Jackdawfoot asked roughly. Fungichomp expected him, more than anyone, to be the one to ask that question. 

“Some sort of sacrifice, I think,” Fungichomp responded. Between living his own life and watching the kits, he hadn’t had much time to watch over what the living cats had been doing, but he saw enough to know that Cherrystar couldn’t be left alone with a kit.

“If it’s a thing she did for Starclan, she probably won’t do it again, not here,” Aloemist put in thoughtfully.

“I wouldn’t take the risk,” Gorsebriar told her. “What if she thinks killing a Dark Kit will get her into Starclan?”

“Right,” Peanutfur agreed. “Or she could take the anger of her failures out on it.”

Fungichomp cleared his throat. “Okay, so, we’re in agreement that that situation isn’t safe. How are we going to get Applekit out?”

“I don’t see why we have to,” Myrtlewing put in, nonchalantly picking at his claws.

“She’s a kit-killer,” Fungichomp repeated more emphatically. 

Myrtlewing nodded, but if he hadn’t heard what was discussed before, he didn’t seem any more alert now. “And the problem is…?”

“That she could kill the kits,” Bristleblaze said with a deep exhale.

“Right,” Myrtlewing nodded again. “And the problem is…?”

“Myrtlewing, you twink!” Fungichomp just barely snapped. “Alderstar, silence your shimmer, please.”

Alderstar’s eyes narrowed defensively, and Fungichomp began to wonder if he should prepare for attack. Then Alderstar laughed instead and knocked his shoulder against Myrtlewing, who seemed more bothered by Alderstar’s silent teasing than Fungichomp’s comment–another relief.

“What’s the pattern?” Myrtlewing asked.

“What?” 

“Killers have patterns,” Myrtlewing said as though it were obvious. Here, it probably should be. “What age does she target? If she never killed anyone below two moons old, just take her when she drops the things off at your area. She should be safe until then. Or,” he added, “find out how to make it so that her kits don’t fit her profile.”

Fungichomp listened with pricked ears, and remembered why Myrtlewing was brought to these meetings in spite of his…less than favourable thoughts on kit death, or death in general. “I’ll have to look into that,” Fungichomp thought aloud. “But it would have to be quickly, before they’re born.”

“Great.” Myrtlewing stood and stretched, his legs shaking. “Fun to be part of team kitnappers.”

“We’re not kitnapping anyone!” Bristleblaze hissed.

“Right,” Alderstar scratched his ear. “Just taking a kit away from their parent.”

“For their safety,” Fungichomp growled. “And nothing needs to be done yet. We just need to keep an eye on her.”

===========================

Aliases / Nicknames: Peanut-brain, Traitor, Number-one Dad

Gender: trans tom

Sexuality: pansexual, polyamorous

Family: Pumpkinmallow (mother), unnamed father, Gulltuft (brother), Rosykit (adopted daughter), Stormwater, Thornspeckle, Blazesnow, Iceheart, Nettlefang (former mates)

Other Relations: unnamed mentor

Clan: Thunderclan

Rank: warrior

Characteristics: killed former mate in revenge for his daughter. Stole prey to resurrect his daughter

Number of Victims: 1

Number of Murders: 1

Murder Method: blunt force trauma

Known Victims: Stormwater

Victim Profile: former mate

Cause of Death: killed by Rosykit

Cautionary Tale: ??

Story:

He loved everyone with every fiber of his being.

When Rosykit was found, he took care of her, and tried to ignore the way she looked at other kits like they were freshkill.

When he came to the nursery and found it smeared with blood and the remnant of her denmates, he had asked Rosykit what had happened, his voice raising to fever pitch.

She had looked up and said, calmly, “there was a dog.”

Like a fool, he believed her, and helped groom her blood-matted fur.

His mates didn’t believe Rosykit or him. They left him for each other, and soon, Stormwater moved into the nursery with a fresh litter of kits courtesy of Nettlefang.

Or, he had a fresh litter.

One after the other, Stormwater’s kits died, and he started yelling at Peanutfur, blaming him for the deaths. Nettlefang came to his aid, but Stormwater kept blaming Peanutfur.

Gulltuft came to help, helping with Rosykit and keeping her safe, but even the most watchful of cats has to take a break at some point.

His little Rosy, dead. Her blood coating the den floor, Stormwater staring down at her in shock.

He left the Clan. He had to leave, and never come back. But first, he killed Stormwater. Crying as he did it, apologizing even as blood coated his fur. He took Rosy with him, so she wouldn’t be buried by the Clan who had killed her.

During his flight, he briefly shared an old rabbit warren with a warrior named Sapfur, who spoke of a ritual to bring back the dead. He warned, however, that the thing that came back would not be all there, that his Rosy would have to feed daily on flesh.

This didn’t faze Peanutfur.

He started killing that night.

Not cats, of course.

But prey. All kinds, from the smallest shrew to a chicken from a twoleg backyard. He piled the bodies high, and completed the ritual.

He didn’t think she’d wake up so hungry.

As his little Rosy drained him dry, he soothed her, calling her his precious, and telling her that he was so blessed to have her as a daughter.

Additional Information:

--Submission by @ambitiousauthor​

--Rosykit only kind of cares about him.

--Stormwater didn’t kill Rosykit.

--He’s a chimera! Hence the gold and brown eyes.

--His design was adopted from Chloriineacid on Etsy.

Pumpkinmallow (mother) would look like this