Chapter Text
Thunder winced. His housefolk were yelling again. He knew housefolk hearing was bad, but did they need to be this loud? Thunder wished he knew what they were saying. He had had enough. His ears had been aching. The only one who didn’t yell of his housefolk was the kit of the fully grown housefolk. Suddenly The bigger one with a deeper voice leaves the room and comes back with a big black packet with small paws. He walks out the door and got into the monster waiting outside. Then he left and never came back.
The next few days were hard, his housefolk could no longer feed him properly, as the days went by he got thinner. Thunder noticed that his housefolk had changed too. Around there eyes there pelts had grown big black circles, the female had also been leaving the home more often, for a while now the smaller housefolk the one with blue rings that poked out in front of her eyes had been the one taking care of him.
Thunder noticed that her brown pelt had grown lighter. He wondered if this was because of the food shortage. Thunder felt bad, he was just a dead weight to them. If they didn’t have to fend for him as well as themselves, maybe they could survive. There was only one thing to do, he had to leave. Thunder couldn’t bear thinking about leaving all he had known, leaving behind everything he loved, the housefolk who had taken care of him from since he had been a tiny kit. But, he told himself, that it was because of those reasons, he couldn’t be selfish, he had to leave for their own good. But, he wondered, where would he go? Then he remembered a story his mother had told him, about cats that lived in the forest, if he could remember correctly, they lived in what they called clans. Maybe they will take him in. After all his mother used to be a clan cat, a WindClan cat, if he remembered correctly. As Thunder curled onto the smallest housefolk’s lap for the last time, he wondered if this really was the only way, could he really leave them and all he had ever known?
It was time. He had watched his housefolk do this many times, Thunder grabbed the big white thin leaf from the pile, dipped his white and gold steaked paw into the black gloopy stuff that waded thick around his paw, he quickly and carefully pressed his paw down on the leaf. Leaving it there for a bit was uncomfortable, but when he lifted his paw, the result was worth it. There amidst the white lay a pawprint. He made three more and then scratched out a picture of him leaving his nest and then he drew himself in the forest and with other cats. Thunder looked at his handiwork and smiled, his small housefolk had taught him well. As a kit when Thunder had gotten into a mess with a coloured version of this stuff and had watched and studied the drawings, as his housefolk called them, he had felt that one day all his studying would come in handy.
That night the cover of darkness, Thunder left the house. Tears brimming in his eyes, he made his way to the forest in front of his home. A little while earlier, when his housefolk had gone to bed, giving him a little scratch behind his ears, Thunder had stuck his message to the entrance of his nest. During the day, the forest looked peaceful. But under the cover of darkness, it seemed mysterious and imposing. Thunder suddenly doubted his decision. Was it really a good idea to leave his housefolk? He had seemed to be their beacon of light in this time of hardship. Thunder shook his head. It was the right choice there was no going back now. He padded on with determined paws. With every pawstep he felt his body thrumming with fear and anticipation. It seemed that returning to his birthplace of his ancestors, the forest, had renewed some strange energy in him.
Suddenly, four cats stood in front of him. Their pelts gleaming in the starlight. Almost as if their pelt were made from stars. One of them was a black cat with a white muzzle and an extremely long tail. The one to his right was a cat with a stiff leg that seemed as if it were going to prevent her from walking, the cat beside her was a cat with a bright orange pelt that seemed like it was made of fire. The last cat was a pinkish-grey cat with blue eyes. They all looked at him as if they had waited an extremely long time for him.
“Welcome to the forest Thunder.” Said the black cat, “I am Greystar, former leader of WindClan. Your Clan.”
“I am Blazestar.” Said the cat with the flame pelt, “former leader of ThunderClan.’’
“I’m Echofall, RiverClan’s former medicine cat.” Meowed the cat with the stiff hind leg.
“And I am Greenstar. I was leader before Moonstar of ShadowClan.” Meowed the pinkish-grey cat.
Thunder stared at them.
Three of these cats were former leaders, and when it comes to leadership only when a leader dies can another cat take his or her place. This meant these cats in front of him were dead! Then Thunder remembered a story his mother had told him; Up in the sky, high above the Earth, is Silverpelt, home of StarClan. When a warrior dies they go up there to hunt with their warrior ancestors. Your ancestors are there too you know. Watching you, making sure you’re behaving well, they’re also waiting for you to come and join them.
StarClan watches of all the cats of the Clans. So even though we are not in a Clan anymore, StarClan will still look after us. These cats were from StarClan! What were they doing down here? Why were they speaking to him? Had he done something wrong? But these cats don’t look like they want to punish him.
“Young Thunder, you have a long and dangerous path ahead of you.” Meowed Greystar.
“Yes, when the water rises, go to the rock hidden in the valley of forgotten warriors. Listen to the tiger’s roar.” Added Blazestar.
“A great storm is coming. You must save the Clans before the third moon rises. Or at midnight all will be lost.” Whispered Greenstar ominously.
“I Echofall will travel with you. I shall not leave your side till the mission is accomplished. Then you are on your own. Warriors of old shall join with new.” Then Echofall came up to Thunder and touched noses with him. Thunder felt as though a tree had slammed into him. Thunder felt a new wise energy seep through him. He felt as if all of Echofall’s life and energy had flowed into him. Buckling with new strength he looked up to face the cats of old.
“I won’t let you, or the forest down. I promise.” He meowed shakily.
The three cats in-front of him nodded and then swept up into the sky. Disappearing once more into the sea that carried Silverpelt. After they left a
new cat came down.
“I am Emberstar, I was leader of SkyClan before Shadestar, I have come down to warn you. Whatever you do you musn’t make the same mistakes we did.” Then Emberstar vanished before Thunder could ask what she meant.
“Come on, we’ve got to get you to WindClan. You’re exhausted. Snowstar will be kind with you. For now, all you need to worry about is full stomach and a good night’s rest.’’
Meowed a voice from inside Thunder’s head. Echofall!
She must have really meant what she said about being with him! He wasn’t alone after all!
As relief flooded his body, he heard Echfall’s mmrooww of laughter before her comforting scent whisked away into the night.
Thunder padded on, having reached the forest, the soft forest floor felt soothing on his pads after the dash across the Thunderpath.
The grit had stung his soft pads so much he had to stop for a while. But now, after a little while in the woods, he felt his pads hardening up, to protect him in case something sharp hurt his paws. Suddenly a welcoming scent hit is scent glads, mouse! Opening his jaws, Thunder pin-pointed the mouse. I was under an oak tree, nibbling on a seed. As Thunder silently crept forward, memories of his mother teaching him to hunt in the old barn they had lived in for a while before they were taken to live the housefolk. Thunder paused; his mother had had a different name for them. What was it? Twolegs! That must be what the Clan cats call housefolk. Suddenly the mouse moved.
Remembering that he was hunting, Thunder crept forward. Thankfully, the wind was blowing his way, masking his scent, so the mouse hadn’t detected him yet. Thunder’s stomach growled with hunger. Making sure his paws were as light as air, he went forward and dashed after the mouse. Curving up his spine and stretching his forepaws forward Thunder felt as if he were soaring above the ground. Thunder imagined the trees in his way to be the poles that he had learnt avoid in the barn as a kit. It felt good to run again.
This mouse was fast. Or Thunder was slow. It had been several seasons since he had hunted his own prey. But he would have to scratch up his skills if he wanted to prove he could hunt for the Clan. Thunder was no use to them if he couldn’t even catch a small mouse for himself, let alone a whole Clan of who knows how many cats.
Thunder was only one tail length away from the mouse so pounced, jumping the mouse and giving a swift killing bite on its spine. Thunder bit into the juicy succulent flesh that brought back so many happy memories of his mother. Finishing the tasty mouse in a few famished gulps. Thunder padded onward.
That was when Thunder first glimpsed the moor. It was beautiful! His mother had often said it was big and free and green, but at the time Thunder could have never imagined how colossal it would be. It seemed to stretch on endlessly towards the mountains and far beyond. Thunder wondered how WindClan managed to protect all of this. Imagine what it would be like to run through these fields.
WindClan sure was lucky. Then he noticed movement up ahead. Cats! These cats could be WindClan! There were only two cats, one of them was small and the other looked old. The cats were travelling toward the little clump of trees to the right of Thunder. He wondered who these cats were, and where they were coming from. Suddenly a thought struck him, Thunder looked up at the half-moon in the sky. Thunder remembered how fondly his mother would talk about Clan traditions, like when the moon was full, all five of the Clans would go to the great oak tree for the truce that had been laid down by StarClan, so that all the Clans could meet peacefully for one night.
But on a half-moon, like tonight, all the medicine cats and apprentices would go to the Moonpool and share tongues with StarClan. These cats must be medicine cats! Medicine cats are meant to keep the peace, so maybe, just maybe, they won’t attack me. Thunder took a deep breath and made up his mind. He jumped down from the rock and ran out of the trees. The tough springy grass made running easier. When the cats saw him, they stopped dead, their eyes not filled with hostility but with surprise and confusion.
But as Thunder neared, the older cat’s eyes went confusion to surprise, and love? With a hint of pride? Thunder was confused. He had never seen this cat in his life, but it from the way the older cat looked at him it seemed as if though he had known him all his life. Thunder stopped in-front of them, still gazing at the older cat. Thunder was puzzled, he looked so much like him. The same eyes, the same build and structure, even the way they crinkled their head in thought was the same! How could he look so much like a cat from what was virtually from another universe. Then the smaller cat interrupted his thoughts,
“Who are you? You smell like a kittypet, but you run like a WindClan warrior. You also smell of mouse, and a kittypet can’t have surely caught a
mouse! You’re all too soft and lazy.’’ Meowed the small cat.
“Hush! Do not be rude Kestrelpaw! Hello, I’m Yellowleaf. Who are you?”
“I’m Thunder.”
“Nice to meet you, Thunder. I must say you look just like Sunwhisper. If I didn’t know any better, I would say that you were her kit. But she left a long
time ago. So, no-one really knows what happened to her. So sad, she was such an energetic furball. But she was also determined, loyal and smart. I miss her dearly, when Greystar died she was there for me. Helping me cope, and being my stubborn friend. Then one night she just vanished without a word.”
“Sunwhisper was my mother. I was her only kit. My sister Crystalkit died from being washed down a river when she had ventured out to get moss for us without telling us. I never knew who my father was though.”
“So you’re a kittypet? Did Sunwhisper become one too? What happened to her? Is she alright?’’
“Sunwhisper was out hunting when the twolegs came and took me away. I was only three moons old. They took me as a helpless bundle and carried me away. I never saw her again. So, I don’t know what happened to her.”
“So, what are you doing out here if you’re a kittypet?” Kestrelpaw asked.
“My twolegs were having a hard time, they were barely feeding themselves, let alone me. So, I decided to come to my mother’s old Clan, hoping to find a place I could truly call home. I also hoped that with me gone, my twolegs would be able to survive because they didn’t have to worry about another mouth to feed.”
“Aw, what a sad story, I hope you’ll fit into WindClan, I’m sure Snowstar will take you in. Barkface can we please take Thunder to camp? We medicine cats must care for cats outside our Clans if they are in need too, it’s part of the warrior code.”
“Very well, Thunder may come.” meowed Yellowleaf.
“Thank you so much!”
“You look exhausted, maybe you could sleep with me tonight, Snowstar would never turn away a tired cat in need of shelter.” Kestrelpaw suggested optimistically.
“Yeah, maybe.” But Thunder was too busy worrying and wondering what would happen to him next, would Snowstar really take him in? Up the slope they went till the cats found themselves in a well sheltered and protected camp.
“This is WindClan’s camp. This is where we live and where Barkface and I make poultices to heal WindClan.”
“Wow! This is incredible.”
“It sure is, come on lazy-paw, we need you to meet Snowstar.” As the three cats headed inside, Thunder was filled with new worries about the cats not liking him and being hostile. Thunder gulped, his pelt hot under all the curious gazes, several pairs of narrowed eyes stared after and at him as he made his way beside Kestrelpaw.
“Well, who’s this? He smells like a kittypet? Why is he here?” a small black tabby tom with a streak of white padded up to him.
“I’m Thunder, my mother was Sunwhisper. I have come from the twoleg-place, and I am no longer a kittypet, I have left that life behind in hopes for a better life in the forest. I can hunt, fight and I can run well. If I must fight for my place in WindClan I will, if you’ll have me and give me a chance. If you won’t, I’ll try for the mountains, but all I ask for now is shelter, I cannot ask for food, because you have no reason to give me food, when you have your own Clan to care for. If you’ll allow me, I’ll hunt for my own food.” Thunder looked up with determined eyes, Sunwhisper had always told him that WindClan were determined, proud cats, so to look weak and needy would be a bad move.
Snowstar seemed to read his thoughts as he subtly nodded and said, “If you wish to hunt, you may hunt tomorrow, and tonight you can sleep in the apprentice’s den. Which is over there.”
Thunder nodded his thanks and mewed, “Thank you for the generous offer Snowstar, I hope I am not too much of a burden to your Clan.”
‘Yes! This is my chance to prove myself!’ Looking back, Thunder saw that Snowstar was looking at him thoughtfully, staring especially hard at the yellow lighting bolt shaped streak on his paw.
What did the WindClan leader now about him?