Chapter Text
"Alright, little ones, settle down. Get comfortable. The story you're about to hear tonight is the most important story in all the clans. It is the tale of how each clan came to be. It is a story of battles, of diplomacy, and of StarClan's guidance. Story-Keepers of all four clans pooled their collective knowledge together into a pure account of our past, unbiased by any one clan. It deserves respect."
"Can I get something to eat while you tell the story? Stories are better with food."
"Why not. Growing kits need full bellies. But I'm starting the story whether or not you're here."
"Sleettuft, why?"
"Because I'm just as excited to tell it as your clanmates are to hear it. Now, where should I begin? The best place to start is always the beginning. In this case, the beginning of everything.
"Before the clans, before cats and humans and the strange world we call home, there was the sky. The sun and the moon were two cats joined in harmony with one another, watching over their peaceful world. But they were alone. They had only each other for company. And so, Sun proposed an idea to Moon. With their great power, they would create life. Moon agreed. Sun burned with energy, bringing his ideas into reality as spirits. Moon breathed body and soul into those ideas like a bird filling her nest with eggs. Moon trusted Sun to create beautiful creations. The two sent their creations to the ground and filled it with plants and animals. Their favorite creations were the cats, crafted in their shape. All their creations had free will and could choose how to live their lives. Not all of Sun's ideas were so pure, however. Even the sun has nightmares, and from those nightmares sprang monsters. Moon brought the monsters to life because she did not know their true nature. The only desire of these monsters was chaos and bloodshed. By the time Moon realized her mistake, she and Sun had used so much strength, they could not reverse their decision. It was up to their true creations to handle them and the pain and sin they brought to the world. With the last of their strength, Sun and Moon cast a message into time itself for their most beloved creations."
"Are they dead?"
"They cannot die. They still float above us, always watching. They cannot interfere directly beyond the light of Sun and the glow of Moon.
"Their message moved through countless moons, searching for someone who could hear them. In this time, the world formed. Cats and humans and all the creatures we know lived through generation after generation. In this time, all their creatures struggled and fought against their monsters. In this time, there was a large group of wandering cats, hunting as they went. They were led by two mates; Seal's Pelt and Yew. As they passed the coast of the ocean, this weary group of travelers were attacked by one of the most dangerous monsters of the world. A mara. A living nightmare.
"It was a brutal slaughter. Many of their group died defending themselves from the mara. They only won because Seal's Pelt and Yew led the mara into the ocean to drown. The spirits of the dead floated above them, watching the events unfold, and they were terrified. The dead wished to protect their loved ones, from then until the end of time. And so, the message of Sun and Moon found its messengers.
"As Seal's Pelt, Yew, and their travelers mourned, the first stars appeared in the sky. The fallen appeared in front of them as glittering spirits of stardust. This new group, StarClan, as the Sun called them, would guide Seal's Pelt and Yew to form permanent homes by the shore. StarClan glimpsed the power of Sun and the prophetic power of Moon and would guide the living to form the first Clans. Under their guidance and blessing, the two leaders were renamed Sealstar and Yewstar. The two were forced to separate and lead two separate clans. Sealstar formed SealClan, adoring the ocean that saved them, while Yewstar took to the cliffs for protection forming CliffClan.
"With the voice of the Sun and the Moon alive once more, StarClan banished the monsters to the far reaches of the world. If they wished to harm the clans, they would have to face the wrath of StarClan. Their appearance in our territories is rare now. The only threats the clans would have to face would be those of nature, not nightmares. Sealstar and Yewstar developed the first traditions of the clans. Our roles, our duties, and the earliest rules of the code."
"But where did ElkClan and PuffinClan come from?"
"That's where our story becomes more grounded, in my opinion. In the later moons of Sealstar and Yewstar's reigns, there was a CliffClan warrior named Deerfoot. Deerfoot felt like an outcast from the clans for their whimsy, idealism, and wit. They were not alone in that regard. They gathered like-minded cats and approached the leaders with a proposition. They said 'Give us the forests beyond the shore and let us form our own traditions. We do not belong amongst the worshippers of SealClan or the warriors of CliffClan.' The leaders agreed, and StarClan gave their blessing. Deerfoot became Deerstar, the first leader of ElkClan. They formed the role of story-keepers thanks to their passion for the stories of the clans.
"PuffinClan, meanwhile, formed much more recently than you may imagine, when the fields were shared by CliffClan and ElkClan. Puffinflight was a CliffClan counselor who felt that CliffClan was becoming a violent place. The leader at the time, Egretstar, disregarded counselors and put warriors as cats of high importance. CliffClan was becoming dangerous. Puffinflight dreamed of a more diplomatic clan. When she found the time, she would explore the open plains shared by CliffClan and ElkClan. She shared her opinions with others, who saw the makings of a new opportunity in her words. One night, she snuck to the Hollow to confront StarClan on this change. She claimed that StarClan spoke to her and told her to take her followers to the plains and form a new clan. Over the course of a moon, she organized her followers and made the plans. While the CliffClan cats went to the Gathering, Puffinflight gathered her followers, including the seer, healer apprentice, and Egretstar’s former pregnant mate, and left the camp, making their way to the plains. They declared themselves PuffinClan.
"War began between CliffClan and the new faction, one that could not be solved through diplomacy. When PuffinClan tried to go to a Gathering the event erupted into chaos and fights. Many cats lost their lives. Puffinflight was renamed Puffinstar. It was moons later, when the seer of PuffinClan, Clawedfur, and her former apprentice but now seer of CliffClan, Grousefall, began to fight along the shaky borders of the two clans, did the first seer of CliffClan, Mackeralshine, rain down from StarClan in an explosive, fiery blast. Mackeralshine declared that StarClan had carefully discussed the issue of the new clan. Puffinstar’s new faction deserved the chance to make a new clan for like minded cats. StarClan sided with PuffinClan, yet demanded the war end. Clawedfur and Grousefall brought their clans together and told them of the decision. Puffinstar was more than ready to repair the bonds. Yet, Egretstar’s old mate was now Puffinstar’s deputy. Egretstar attacked Puffinstar, and in the scuffle, Puffinstar killed the leader, taking his last life. His successor, Tanglestar, gave PuffinClan their new territory.
"And so four clans live by the shore under the blessing of StarClan. It is said when we die and join the ranks of StarClan, appearing as a star in the sky, we will be able to speak to the Sun and the Moon ourselves. They give their power to StarClan, who guides the paws of all clan cats."
"So without CliffClan, the other two clans wouldn't exist!"
"Exactly. I'd say that's something to be proud of."