Chapter Text
Flowerbreeze lifted her head out of her nest as three kittens scampered into the elder's den, talking amongst each other in what was probably supposed to be a hushed voice but didn't really work as they were just too excited.
The calico gave a light push to the cat sleeping next to her, Sagetail waking up in confusion.
"Wh-what? whas going on..." The tom mumbled before smacking his head back down on his nest, intending to go right back to sleep.
Wisplight giggled from his own spot in the den, apparently he had been awake already. The golden tom got up to greet Mousekit, Birchkit and Ebonykit.
The kittens immediately launched into conversation, talking over each other with loud voices before Sagetail managed to silence them all, having woken up for real this time.
"Does every cat like the Star Festival?" Mousekit asked, her siblings settling in next to her, clearly they were expecting more than just an answer.
The elders all looked at each other and settled down as well, holding a silent conversation for a moment before turning to the kittens.
"Let me tell you a story," Sagetail began, "about a long, long time ago..."
It was a cold, cold leaf-bare, snow blanketed the ground and thick ice covered the lakes, rivers and ponds. ShineClan's leader at that time was a grumpy brown tabby, Ferretstar. The tom disliked a lot of things, like the coldness of leaf-bare and the heat of greenleaf. He always wanted things exactly right or he would sulk in his den, leaving most of his duties to his poor deputy, Honeystripe.
The golden brown she-cat would try her best, but it was hard to keep up with both the demands of being a deputy and pseudo-leader.
Now, Ferretstar especially didn't like the Star Festival. It was loud and there were too many other cats.
So, one day, he decided to cancel the festival, deaf to the protests of his Clanmates. No matter how much they yowled, begged, snarled and pleaded the tom refused to budge.
Several cats would stand outside his den every morning and try to talk to him, yet he told Honeystripe to turn them all away. The she-cat would do so, now matter how much she disagreed with him, eventually she herself tried to talk him out of cancelling the festival, with no luck.
An apprentice by the name of Frostpaw had been watching everything go down the last few days when an idea struck her.
They didn't need Ferretstar's permission to hold the festival, if they planned the celebration in secret!
So, the white she-cat went around telling every cat about her plan, except for Ferretstar, of course.
At first, no ShineClan cat wanted to listen to her, even if they really wanted to continue the Star Festival, they also didn't want to completely go against Ferretstar's wishes.
Nevertheless, Frostpaw kept trying. She was a determined young cat, never faltering in her quest.
One day, she spoke with Honeystripe, the exhausted deputy who really wanted a day of rest. Most cats now came to her if they had any problems, because she actually helped to try and solve them.
Fed up with constantly doing Ferretstar's work for him while the grumpy tom sulked in his nest, she agreed to help Frostpaw convince the rest of their Clanmates.
It still took a few days for the clan to grow comfortable with the idea of going behind Ferretstar's back, though most cats were also beginning to grow tired of his constant complaining about everything and everyone.
So they began gathering decorations and prey, all in secret.
And it went well! They couldn't get as much as in previous years but it was still something. Excitement grew among the ShineClan cats, rippling through from one cat to the next.
Unfortunately, their success didn't last forever and right on the night before the festival, Ferretstar found out about what his cats had been doing without his knowledge.
He got very angry and upset, screeching his displeasure to the sky before storming off to sulk near the large frozen lake that lay close to camp, stars reflecting in the clear ice.
The ShineClan cats thought for a moment, then decided to just keep going without him, leaving their leader alone.
Ferretstar was surprised, however, when Frostpaw joined him a few moments later.
"We aren't you with the rest?" He huffed, refusing to look at her. "Thought you wanted to 'party'."
Frostpaw kept her eyes on the lake, watching small fish flit around under the frozen surface. "Oh, I don't think I'll like the Star Festival."
Silence descended on the two cats.
Eventually, Ferretstar shook himself and stared at the she-cat who just turned her head to look back at him, seemingly not caring how much her words shocked him.
"What? But you just spent days rallying the rest of the Clan to celebrate in secret, and now you're saying you don't care!?"
Frostpaw looked back out over the lake.
"I didn't say I don't care, I just don't like being around so many cats at once. Just not my thing."
"Then why did you try so hard to get the others to celebrate?"
"Because they like it. It's not fair to forbid them from the festval just because you don't." She shook her fur out for a moment. "Also I talked to our medicine cat, Mudsong. He told me the festival is meant to be more than just a fun time, It's got something to do with StarClan and our connection to them, I think."
She stood up, snow falling from her pelt, "you should really ask him if you want to know more, he can explain it better."
And with that, the she-cat disappeared into the woods, to go help her Clanmates with the last preparations, leaving Ferretstar to contemplate her words.
And he did, the brown tabby thought for the rest of the night, finally making up his mind once the sun began to peak over the treetops.
He went to Mudsong and listened to the ginger tabby as he explained the importance of ShineClan's connection with StarClan for the festival.
Next, he apologized to his Clanmates for the way he had been acting. Some forgave him immediately, others needed a little more time. And there were a few cats who never did.
Ferretstar did not join the festival but he also did not keep his Clanmates from their celebration.
As Sagetail ended her tale, the kittens brought their heads closer to each other and began talking amonst themselves.
"Was that one real or made-up?" Wisplight whispered to Sagetail.
"Real," the gray tom answered. "I was a kitten when Ferretstar told us all about his conversation with Frostpaw near the lake, don't know how much of it was true though. Frostpaw didn't stop him so most of it probably was."
The three elders already knew what was about to happen when the kits turned to them again, eyes shining.
They were going to be telling stories for a good while, weren't they?