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Ava was always hiding from the menace that stalked the nest. A huge, brown, slobbering mess of fur and teeth that happened to be a quite aggressive dog. As its fangs snapped behind her, almost catching her tail, the lithe blueish-gray cat leaped out of the way with an annoyed hiss.

She whirled around, facing the dog with her back arched to make her seem more intimidating. Ava growled at it, lashing her tail, but the dog wasn’t fazed. Guess I’ll have to fight my way out of this, she thought grimly, unsheathing her claws. The cat concentrated on the frost inside of her, the roaring avalanche ready to be unleashed like a wild beast.

Her sharp teeth and claws began to shift, their material and texture changing as they were no longer recognizable as normal claws, but instead ones made of durable and razor-sharp ice. Upon seeing this, the dog recoiled a bit, obviously shocked by the change. However, it still went on the offensive.

The dog lunged at Ava, quickly sinking its teeth into her back and shaking her around like it did to its chew toys. The cat yowled in pain, but was forced to shake it off, as there was no time to lick her wounds. To be treated like a mere toy! She thought with anger. Quickly putting a stop to this madness, she reached up with a paw and slashed where she thought the beast’s eye would be.

It must have worked, as the dog quickly dropped Ava and yelped. She quickly took a look at the damage she had inflicted, and was left pleasantly surprised. The dog’s eye was red and swollen, with a scratch mark near it that was beginning to frost over with ice.

She didn’t really know the full extent of these powers, or if any other cat had them. All she knew was that they were extremely useful in a pinch. 

The dog growled, but wouldn’t make any more moves that it knew what she was capable of. Ava snarled at it, lashing her tail once more. Like a coward, the dog sprinted away whining, its tail tucked between its legs. 

Take that, you mangy mutt, Ava thought with satisfaction and pride at defeating the dog. Although she knew it would be back, as she unfortunately lived in the same nest as it, every victory, even if they were small, counted. Now that the adrenaline rush was over, she could feel the pain that the dog had inflicted onto her. Wincing, she limped to her corner, the one place that the Twolegs havent seems to figure out yet.

The cat’s bell on her collar jingled with every step. Ugh, I gotta get that stupid thing off of me, Ava thought with a twinge of annoyance. She absolutely hated being a kittypet. On top of other cats like loners and rogues calling her weak because she was owned by Twolegs, she also had to deal with the dog and her “nestmates”.

She refused to call them owners. Never in her life would she call anyone her owner. A loud distressed call broke Ava out of her trance. Alert, she raised her head, pricking up her pointed ears so she could hear what was going on better. The familiar murmuring of a Twoleg was heard. It was obviously panicked about something.

Wait… Ava realized as she heard the whimpering of that nuisance of a dog. The Twolegs must have seen its injured eye. And the only other creature in the nest that could do this was her.

She had to hide.

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Ava quickly sprinted to the corner the Twolegs didn’t know about. They obviously liked the dog better than her, as the mutt played with the odd bipedal creatures all of the time. The cat made it to the corner, where she skidded to a halt and sheathed her claws so she didn’t make that much noise.

She could hear more calls, then after about hour, silence. They must have stopped looking for her. I never want to experience that again, she thought, shuddering. Cats were predators, they shouldn’t be hiding like a mouse. But here she was hiding from the creatures that nobody knew anything about.

Carefully padding out of the corner, she saw that an entrance had been left open. She knew it as the entrance that connected the overstimulating nest, to the peaceful outdoors and the call of the forest outside. Ava looked around, making sure the Twolegs or the dog were no where to be seen. 

She had to do this. For the sake of her safety and sanity. With a running start, the striped cat took a mighty leap, preparing to land in the lush green of the woods. Instead, she bonked her head against an odd surface. “OWW!” She yowled. “Argh, mouse-dung…” Ava cursed, rubbing her head with a paw. Hopefully no one heard that, she thought with a slight twinge of worry.

The cat put a paw to the peculiar structure, pondering at the texture. It felt like wood, but not right somehow, different than a natural tree. If it’s wood, maybe I can climb it? She thought with hope. There was really no other choice. The Twolegs might be back any second now.

Unsheathing her claws, which weren’t ice at the current moment, Ava began to sink her claws into the odd material. Being a kittypet, she had never actually climbed before, but she was willing to try anything to get out of this situation.

Come on Ava, just keep moving your paws upward, she thought to herself with determination. With each lift of her paws, the material had visible scratches in them left by her claws. She hefted herself up, and suddenly, she was on top of the fence, looking at the serene landscape of the forest that was soon to be her home.

With another bound, the cat leaped off the fence, and landed in tufts of grass. It’s so soft! Ava thought, surprised at the texture. Nothing in the Twoleg’s nest had been like this. This was obviously going to be a better life. 

She winced, as her back throbbed with pain. Ah right. The dog bite, she remembered. It would heal over time, no big deal. She took her first step into the forest, marveling at all of the plants. The massive trees stretched far above her, and the bushes rustled as wind blew through them, or maybe there was potential prey in there.

She wondered how a mouse would taste. Would it be like those pellets the Twolegs gave her, or would be something completely different? With every step, much to her annoyance, her collar jingled. I gotta get this off. If there are other cats living here, they won’t take me seriously, she mused, satisfied with her idea. The collar was quite itchy and she couldn’t wait to get it off.

Ava didn’t really know how to get the collar off though. She had tried multiple times. Then, she had an idea. Channeling the ice inside of her, her claws changed yet again, the keratin being replaced with a layer of light blue, tough, and shiny ice. Here goes. The cat took her iced claws, raised them to her collar, and sliced downward, hoping something would be cut through.

To her surprise, the entire thing fell off, cut clean by her unnatural claws. Why didn’t I try that earlier? She thought, a bit angry at herself for not thinking of it sooner. But it was in the past, and she had accomplished her goal, getting that horrendous collar off.

You know, I’m quite hungry right now. How about I try to go hunting? 

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The thing is, Ava didn’t really know how to hunt. She knew other cats did it, but she didn’t know the exact method and procedure. At least sneaking up on prey would be a lot easier due to her collar being gone. Well, before she actually tried to kill prey, she first had to find some.

She padded around the forest, sniffing the air. The former kittypet didn’t catch the scent of any prey animals on the air, but she did smell the unmistakable odor of another cat. She wondered what they were doing here. Maybe the rumors were true, and there were cats that lived in the wild?

Even if it was fake, which was highly unlikely due to the sheer amount of evidence that was in the forest alone, the story would now be true, because Ava was now a wild and untamed cat.

With every step she took, the striped cat made sure to be careful not to step on any dry leaves or twigs, as doing so would certainly scare any potential food away. However, she wasn’t perfect, and a couple of leaves and sticks crunched under her paws. Ava winced every single time a crunch was heard. 

But after what felt like hours of wandering, she finally caught the scent of something. Sniffing the air, she recognized it as a mouse, whose kin were sometimes near the Twoleg nest. The cat crouched down low, and sniffed again, trying to locate the mouse. She stalked the area where she thought the rodent was.

Eventually, she narrowed the scent down to behind a log, where Ava could hear squeaking and skittering. It was right there. She couldn’t mess this up! Bunching her hind legs up, she sprung into the air, and tried to land where the mouse was. Unfortunately, she missed it by a couple inches.

The mouse squeaked with terror, and started darting away. The cat knew her chances of catching it now were slim, but she still had to try. She couldn’t give up on this juicy prey, especially when it was right in front of her. “Get back here!” She hissed, then lashed out with a paw, unsheathing her claws.

To her surprise, they were already made of glistening ice. Perhaps her stress and determination caused them to shift? Ava would never really know. But this was her chance. She surged forward, swiping everywhere with her claws, cutting foliage, and causing more panicked squeaks.

Suddenly, she felt her claws pierce soft flesh, and she sunk her claws into the mouse’s body. The rodent eventually stopped moving, save a few pitiful squeaks, then finally fell still. The striped cat shook the body off of her claws, a bit grossed out at all the blood and viscera, but at the same time, proud of herself.

Even if that was definitely not the proper technique, and she probably caused the mouse a lot more pain than it needed, it still worked, and she was grateful that her reckless action had worked. But she should probably learn how to properly hunt.

Ava stared at her ice-encrusted claws, their tips stained with red blood. It was hard to describe, but she felt more powerful in a way. Like killing that mouse changed her, and awakened the true cat within her. Her name was given to her as a kittypet, and she was no longer a kittypet.

It was only fitting if she changed her name. But what should I call myself? She wondered. Perhaps…Avalanche? It has a nice powerful ring to it, and it fits my ice powers, along with feeling like a current extension of my name. Then she just realized the unintentional name-trick she had created with name she had made up. AVA-lanche, She realized. 

I’m literally a foxxing genius, Ava, no, Avalanche thought. The cat grinned, as she rather liked her new name. She wandered off into the forest once more. Perhaps she would find other cats? Only time would tell.

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Avalanche chewed the mouse she had caught, savoring the taste. Wait, this tastes so GOOD! She thought, very astonished. The cat had thought fresh prey would taste a bit better than the Twoleg pellets, but compared to the mouse, eating the pellets was like eating dirt! The mouse truly had a wonderful taste to it, she didn’t really know to describe it.

When she was done with her meal, she sheathed her claws again so she didn’t make much noise padding through the forest. It was so big, and green, with many plants and animals everywhere. There was truly so much to explore! Avalanche felt like a kit again, wanting to adventure out in the world and discover new things. 

The Twolegs had ruined the possibility of that experience, but now here she was, standing in the place she should have been in all along. Her almost light blue pelt didn’t blend in that much with the foliage, which could be a problem for hunting. But that would be a problem for another day.

What am I called now again? She pondered. She remembered her old friend, who had lived in the Twoleg nest across from her. He had since moved away, but she distinctly recalls him saying something about cats that live in the wild. Didn’t he say something about a thing called clans?

Now she remembered the conversation with him. Her friend, whose name was Bread, said he was a clan cat once. Apparently there were a bunch of cats living in forests peacefully together. But she wasn’t one of those, as she hadn’t seen another cat in a quite a while. What was that other word he called wild cats not living in a clan? She wondered, racking her memory.

Oh yes, they were called ‘rogues’ or ‘loners’. I don’t know the difference between them, but I’m going with rogue, as that sounds more menacing, she decided. 

Avalanche sniffed the air again, trying to locate any more prey. She didn’t need food at the current moment, but she could save it for later. However, instead of detecting the scent of a prey animal, she was met with the odor of another cat, unfamiliar to her. They were nearby.

She quickly unsheathed her claws, trying to appear menacing. Bearing her sharp fangs, her natural weapons shifted to ice. Should she wait for them to attack her, or should she attack first? The answer was obvious, it was always better to strike first, and strike hard. Continuing to sniff the air like she was locating the area of a vole, the striped cat searched for the other cat.

Unfortunately, they had found her first, as a black and white tom leaped out of the undergrowth, and pounced on her. Luckily his claws were sheathed. Avalanche could probably easily defeat him, as he was just a little smaller than her, and she had ice on her side. But she knew never to underestimate someone.

”What are you doing here in TrailClan territory?” He demanded, lashing his tail. He looked a bit younger than her.

”Wait, you’re a clan cat!?” The rogue blurted out, astonished. So Bread wasn’t completely making things up! She stilled doubted he had been in a clan.

“Yeah I am, and you’re just some odd rogue with unusually shiny claws and a weird fur color,” He answered, spitting out the word rogue like it was the most offensive insult in the world.

”Well, can you GET OFF ME?” She shouted, slightly surprising the tom. He regarded her awkwardly, but stepped off nevertheless. “Ugh, you’re so heavy..”

”Hey! I am not! I’m quite fit for a cat my age!” He boasted, puffing out his chest.

Avalanche decided to cut straight to the point. “So what’s the deal with this ‘TrailClan’ and territory stuff? You don’t own the forest, you can’t own nature.” 

“Well it’s our home, therefore we own it,” The black and white tom seemed to struggle making another point. While he was trying to come up with a comeback, the striped cat quickly made her claws turn to normal so he couldn’t find out about her ice abilities. It seemed like the tom couldn’t come up with another thing to say, so he simply said, “So uh yeah.” 

The rogue snickered, much to the tom’s annoyance. “Please learn how to speak properly before trying to get into an argument,” she said smoothly, which caused the other cat to shout, “Hey!”

”Alright, I kinda like you, ‘clan cat’. So what’s your name?” She asked.

”Oh, my name is Gamblepaw!”

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Avalanche simply looked at the odd cat with a weird look. Gamblepaw was a truly unusual name, it seemed too long. Why didn’t he just call himself Gamble? It was less of a mouthful to say, that’s for sure. “Gamblepaw is pretty long. I’ll just call you Gamble.” She said, stating her opinions.

Unfortunately, the tom seemed uncomfortable with her calling him that. “Well, I used to go by that name,” He explained, swishing his tail slowly across the ground, scattering some leaves. “But that was before I joined TrailClan. I’m a better cat now, and I prefer not be reminded of those times.” 

“Fair,” she said. Gamblepaw had changed his name for the same reason Avalanche had changed hers. They were alike in some way. Even their pelts were slightly similar with their patterns. “Why choose the word ‘paw’ at the end of your name?” She questioned. If she would add something to her name, and make it even longer than it already was, the rogue would choose something menacing, like claw, or fang. Paw just didn’t sound scary. 

“Oh I didn’t choose my name. Blazestar did! You see, I have the ending ‘paw’ because I’m an apprentice, but I’m almost a warrior!” He exclaimed, while Avalanche just looked at him quizzically. 

“I have literally no idea what any of that stuff means,” She deadpanned. But she could tell Gamblepaw was quite eager to become a warrior, whatever that was.

”Uhhh okay lemme explain,” He said quickly. Gamblepaw took in a deep breath, most likely for dramatic effect, and started his explanation. “You see, when newborn kits are born, they get the first name part, and their ends with ‘kit’,” He said. Wow, how creative, she thought sarcastically in her head. Calling a kit, ‘kit’. 

”When they reach the age of 6 moons, they become an apprentice and their end part of the name is changed from kit, to paw. They also get a mentor, who is an experienced warrior that trains them, and they eventually become a warrior themself!” Upon seeing the rogue’s confused look, he quickly added, “Warriors are adult cats, and the majority of the clan. They’re really important, and all warrior names are different.” 

This clan idea sounds intriguing, Avalanche thought. But would I really be able to cope with lots of other cats? I might freeze someone because they’re being annoying. Honestly, I’m surprised I haven’t done that to Gamblepaw yet. 

She was about to turn around and leave, and maybe come back another day, when she could hunt and she was older and more experienced with life in the forest. But Gamblepaw interrupted her, quickly blocking her way by dashing in front of her. “What did you want now?” She groaned. “You told me about the clans already, and I’m not in the mood for living with a ton of other cats.”

“Wait wait wait wait!” He quickly shouted. “You asked me questions, so now I ask you some questions.” He demanded. Avalanche simply stared at the younger cat, slightly amused. He didn’t even know her origins or about her power, or really anything about her, what could he ask her about? “Hold on, lemme think of a question.”

“Hurry up,” She said with annoyance lacing her (British) voice. 

“Oh I remember now!” He exclaimed, hopping into the air a little. “When I pounced on you, why were your claws so shiny, and why did your body feel so cold?” Gamblepaw asked her. “It was almost like a fish, except not scaly and not slimy.” He added.

Avalanche froze up. She couldn’t tell him any answers, as he would find out about her abnormal ability. But at the same time, even though they had just met, the rogue felt like she could trust this strange clan cat.

”Alright, promise not to tell a SINGLE cat about this,” she finally said, sighing. I’m going to regret this, aren’t I? But she had already said she would tell him. No backing down now.

The apprentice was practically dancing on his paws, excited. “Just say it!”

She took a deep breath, and finally did the thing she vowed never to do: reveal her power. “It’s hard to explain, but I have ice powers. I can turn my claws and teeth to ice, that give cats minor frostbite when hit.” She explained.

To her surprise, Gamblepaw didn’t even seem phased by the revelation. “Cool power!” He simply said. “Wanna know mine?”

HUH- WHAT? Avalanche thought, extremely shocked. He knew that cats were able to be born with powers, judging by his casual reaction to hers, PLUS he had one of his own? Who even was this cat? “You- also have a power?” She asked, in awe. She never thought that she would come across another supernatural cat like her. 

But the black and white tom in front of her proved her wrong. She wasn’t alone after all. There were other cats with powers, somewhere out there, maybe in the woods, or perhaps a Twoleg nest like she once was.

”Yeah, I do! It’s also really cool, but sometimes has a downside. The rest of us have powers too!” He said.

Avalanche was shocked into silence for a couple seconds.

”WHAT DO YOU MEAN ‘THE REST OF US’!?”

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Gamblepaw seemed surprised by her sudden shocked outburst. “Oh, the rest of us? I meant the rest of the clan! Most of us have powers in some shape or form,” He explained nonchalantly. Avalanche was shocked. She thought she was the only one with powers, and turns out there was a whole group of them living in this very forest!

If what the tom said was true, then TrailClan was a community, a family, where cats with powers would be accepted, not shunned. But still…living with that many cats concerned her. She genuinely didn’t think she would be able to handle all the noise, the bustling of every other cat.

“So,” Gamblepaw started, seeming a bit giddy, judging as his tail was twitching around, and his ears were perked up. “Would you like to join TrailClan? We would be happy to have you there!” She winced. The cat didn’t know how to say this without seeming mean or harsh. 

“I’m sorry,” She began. “But I don’t think I would thrive in such a crowded environment. Being with that many other cats would probably annoy me, and someone could end up frozen, which I don’t want to happen,” She explained sheepishly, shifting her paws awkwardly. Gamblepaw raised an eyebrow at the mention of another add-on to her power.

”Oh,” He said. Avalanche swore she could hear a pang of sadness and longing in his voice. “Well, maybe another time? You’ll always be welcome in TrailClan.” He started to move back into the foliage, but he quickly added, “Oh yeah, and don’t forget to mention me if you encounter other TrailClan cats. They should trust you if I trust you. A friend of mine is a friend of theirs.” He gave one last smile, then trotted off into the forest.

Well…that was certainly an interesting encounter. I didn’t know other cats had powers too! I should probably get out of TrailClan territory, or whatever they claim to have, and go to a different area. She started to pad off, stepping over dry leaves and twigs just in case there was prey around.

She eventually reaches a new area, where the forest is thicker and the scents of unfamiliar cats were everywhere. Another clan? She questioned herself. Probably. Hopefully the cats nearby were as nice as Gamblepaw. Unfortunately, they weren’t. A grayish-black gat with dark stripes running down his body approached her as she was exploring.

He was a tom, just like Gamblepaw. Would he be friendly too? He had 3 other cats with him, trailing behind him, as he must have been the leader of this group. “Hey!” He snarled. Already not friendly, huh? She rolled her eyes subtly. “Get out of ThunderClan territory, rogue, before we make you learn whose forest this is!” He threatened, unsheathing his sharp claws.

“I’m just wandering around,” Avalanche responded casually, like she didn’t just receive a death threat. “No need to be unnecessarily hostile.”

”I don’t care!” The tom snapped back, lashing his tail. “This is our land, and you have no right to dwell in it and catch our prey in OUR land!” He shouted. Yeah, I really don’t like this guy. The audacity for assuming that is so frustrating.

 “Woah woah woah!” Avalanche exclaimed, her eyes widening. “What gives you the right to assume I caught prey here? You cant judge a cat based on where you find them.”

”I’ve had enough of you.” The striped cat snarled. “Get out of here or we’ll make you suffer.” The 3 other cats beside him narrowed their eyes and unsheathed their claws. This was way out of her league. The light blue cat couldn’t take 4 cats at once, even with a power! And judging from what Gamblepaw just told her, some of these cats might have powers too. She couldn’t risk it.

Despite the growing anger inside of her, she turned her tail to the cats and darted off, making sure to make as much noise as possible so they would have a tedious time catching prey. As she did that, a small smirk formed on her face, and the rogue felt a tiny bit of satisfaction, even if she ran away like a coward.

Quickly running out of the forest, Avalanche ventured for a couple hours, then rested in a valley full of grassy hills. Due to an abundance of greenery and flowers, plump and juicy rabbits ripe for the taking were everywhere. Even if there was a clan living here, they wouldn’t care about one rabbit, right?

She quickly caught the rabbit, as she had worked on her hunting technique on the way. It wasn’t perfect, and there were defiantly flaws to improve, but it worked, and she was able to catch her prey. She ate it for a bit, before hearing an angry yowl. Looking up at the hill, she saw 3 cats glaring at her as she munched on her rabbit.

I guess there is a clan here, she thought. The three cats, each of them lithe and slender, started to make their way down the hill. Avalanche was out of there before they even reached the middle, snatching the rabbit up in her jaws so she could eat it elsewhere. An annoyed hiss sounded behind her, but luckily the cats didn’t chase her.

She didn’t know which way or where she was going, but she eventually stopped traveling in a place with a bit more trees than the hills, but still a bit barren. Quickly sniffing the air for other potentially hostile cats, she was relieved to find out that no one had been here in quite a while. It was likely safe to eat here.

The rogue finished up her rabbit, then realized it was already dark. She felt like she had been in the forest her entire life, yet it was only her first day. She had a lot to learn, but the sky was pitch black already. Looking up at the countless stars, she swore some of them twinkled at her, almost like they blinked. Like the stars had the souls of mystical cats inside of them.

Shaking off that slightly disturbing thought, Avalanche laid down, curling her tail around her like a shrimp, and went to sleep, dreaming of hostile cats and an overwhelming cold bringing them all to their deathbed, along with a familiar face in the distance.

Hours later, she awoke with a yawn, arching her back to stretch. It was dawn, and the rogue was ready for a new day in the wild. But first she had to get out of the plains. The grass had pricked her all night, leading to a slightly uncomfortable night of sleep. Getting up, Avalanche walked a bit more, occasionally looking at the multicolored birds that lined the branches of trees that grew more and more dense as she went.

She wanted to catch one of them, but the striped cat knew she would have to be extremely lucky, or skilled, to catch a bird. Eventually, the windy hill terrain stopped, and she was met with another forest area, with the faint rushing of water in the background. Locating the source, she found a crystal clear river with fish contently swimming in it, their scales flashing with the sunlight.

The rogue sniffed the air for other cats, and was met with the stench of many markers, most of them recent. She quickly lectures the area to avoid another confrontation, as she had just woke up, and was really not in the mood for that at all. She was glad she left, as Avalanche could hear slight meowing coming from the area she had just departed from.

After another day of traveling, Avalanche settled down again in a lush green area. The chirping of the birds started to quiet down, indicating that it was night. She had caught a vole earlier, which was a rodent she hadn’t tried yet. She liked mouse better, but the vole was still infinitely times better than the slop the Twolegs gave her.

However, after a couple hours, she couldn’t seem to go to sleep. There were murmurs around her, the chatter of 3 different voices, voices of a cat. There were others here. Standing up and perking up her ears, she shouted, “Who’s there!?” The talking stopped, and she was met with the sound of 3 sets of paws padding out of the undergrowth.

As they climbed out of the bushes, Avalanche could see that there were 2 toms and one she-cat. “Hello!” A brown she-cat announced. “It’s nice to meet you!” 

This was certainly an unexpected interaction. “Uh, hello? What are your names?” She observed the cats, and noticed one of the toms staring at her with an intense glare. The natural cold inside of her didn’t feel there anymore, it didn’t feel right. She quickly averted her gaze from him, and the familiar feeling returned.

”Names?” The brown tom asked. He whispered something in the ear of the she-cat, and the other cat nodded. The tom still stared at her with those unblinking eyes. “Alright! My name is Coco! And those two are Ambereye and Icicle!”

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“Alright, so hello-“ Coco began, before getting cut off by the other tom, who Avalanche now knew as Ambereye. He narrowed his eyes at her, and instinctively, the light blue cat flattened her ears and puffed up her already big and fluffy tail.

“We told you our names,” He hissed, before glaring at Coco. “Whether we wanted to or not.” His eyes held the intense stare of a predator eyeing its prey with an unwavering stare. If looks could kill, Ambereye’s would tear her limb from limb. “So tell us yours, oddly colored stranger.”

I suppose I have to do this. I can’t fight 3 cats on my own, even with my power, she thought. “My name is Avalanche,” She introduced herself with confidence, ignoring the harsh stare coming from Ambereye’s piercing red and golden eyes. 

“Interesting name…” He mused, putting a paw to his chin. Avalanche began to feel more uncomfortable than she already was. She wished she had never met these rogues. Gamblepaw was certainly much nicer and overall had a much more joyful aura to him than these mysterious cats. They radiated secrets, and the only one who showed the slightest amount of kindness was the brown tom, Coco.

“Yeah, it fits me for uh…” Halfway into the sentence, the she-cat realized her mistake. If she told these strangers why her name was the way it was, it would reveal her power, and the rogue definitely did not want that to happen. Who knows what they would think of her. “Reasons.” She eventually finished.

Ambereye simply raised an eyebrow at her, but said nothing else. The single she-cat pushed her way to the front, obviously wanting a turn to finally speak. “Why are we telling this random cat our names?!” She hissed, probably aiming towards Coco, who flinched and took a step back.

“She doesn’t belong here!” The she-cat, who Avalanche remembered was called Icicle, a name pretty similar to hers, shouted, pointing her tail accusatory at her. “We barely know this cat, and we’re already telling her our names! What, are we gonna tell her our life stories next? Our foxxing powers?” Icicle yelled.

The hostile cat immediately realized her mistakes. She quickly put a paw to her mouth. “I didn’t say anything!“ She exclaimed.

Behind her, Ambereye lashed his tail. “Look what you’ve done, you idiot!” He roared at Icicle, who began to shrink back in shame. “Now this random cat knows cats with powers exist, and that we’re some of them!”

“Guys, don’t fight! Maybe we can be friends!” Coco pleaded, interrupting their argument. Avalanche simply stood there and watched the chaos unfold. “After all, maybe she already knows about cats with powers, or has one of her own! Or maybe she’s related to one, friends with one, there are so many possibilities!”

”Maybe she’s a clan cat too! No, her name screams rogue. But that’s cool, just like us! Except for Ambereye!“ The tom continued to ramble on, spilling more information about the group with every word.

”SHUT UP, COCO!” Icicle and Ambereye stopped their fight and turned their wrath onto the poor tom. “Now she knows EVEN MORE!” Icicle hissed. She slashed at Coco, unsheathing her claws. Avalanche prepared for the worst, a fight. She got ready to unleash the ice inside of her.

However, in the most anticlimactic way possible, the angry cat’s claws didn’t even pierce Coco’s flesh. The slightly bigger cat simply chuckled, which lead to her scratching him even more. It was amusing, they fought like kit siblings in a way.

Ambereye must have had enough of this nonsense, as he bounded in between the two fighting cats. “Both of you. Stop it now.” He commanded, like a leader commanding his clan. His red eye gleamed with the promise of bloodshed to come.

”Fine,”  Icicle groaned. “I guess since this cat knows, we might as well ask her the Big 3. And some others, I guess.“ What’s that? She thought. However, she would soon find out very quickly.

In an instant, Icicle rushed up to her, getting really close. She backed away a bit, obviously surprised by this sudden rapid movement. “What Big 3?”

”Let’s get this over with,” The other she-cat took a deep breath, then started spouting out rapid questions, a lot of them personal stuff she wouldn’t reveal to any ordinary cat. “Do you know of cats with powers? Do you have a power? Is your name based on your power? Are you from a clan?”

“Geez, you’re starting to sound like me now with all of these questions,” Coco snickered. In response, Ambereye, the biggest cat in the area, simply smacked him with his large tail. “Oww…” The brown tom muttered, rubbing his head with a paw.

Some of these Avalanche wouldn’t answer. She didn’t want to lie, so she would tell the truth, although not giving them all the details. “Alright, I’ll start at the beginning. Yes I know a cat with powers. He met for a little bit. And obviously, you guys.” Icicle seemed satisfied with this answer, like it was believable.

”Second question. Yes I do,” She admitted. “I don’t know the full extent of it however.” This was true. Avalanche didn’t know how powerful her ability really was. She was still figuring out her true nature. Icicle nodded, while Coco seemed to be smirking, probably about being right about his prediction about the she-cat having a power.

”3rd and 4th questions. Yeah, my name is based off of my power, and no, I’m not a clan cat, and I was never a clan cat.“ With all the questions done, Icicle seemed pretty content, and she didn’t accuse othe rogue of lying, which was surprising. She had only been with Icicle for a couple minutes, but the rogue already had a grasp on what her personality was.

”Honestly, I didn’t expect you to answer all of these,” Icicle admitted. Her ears drooped a little bit. “Sorry for being so rude earlier. I’m a bit nervous around new cats.”

Avalanche smiled, happy to hear that the other she-cat had realized her doings. “It’s alright.” She then turned to Ambereye and Coco. “So what are your powers?” She asked.

So far, Avalanche has met 4 different cats with powers. She’s assuming all of these 3 cats have one of their own. She had met Gamblepaw, Coco, Ambereye, and Icicle. Cats with special abilities are much more common than I realized. I’m really not the only one. She thought. Although she had already known that from Gamblepaw, it was nice to feel a sense of belonging.

At her question, the other she-cat groaned. “Alright, who wants to explain? This is gonna take a while.”

Chapter Text

“I’ll explain!” Coco happily volunteered, raising a brown paw. Icicle nodded, and stepped back, the brown tom taking the spotlight. “Alright so this won’t take as long, since I don’t have a power,” He meowed, a bit sheepishly. Perhaps he doesn’t feel as important since he doesn’t have a power? Avalanche mused.

“But these guys do!” He exclaimed, pointing his tail at said cats, who simply stood there blankly. “Buttt let’s play a game real quick! Try and guess Icicle’s power!” He said. At his words, Icicle made a noise of obvious annoyance, but didn’t intervene. She was obviously letting the powerless tom have his moment, as an apology for being so harsh to him earlier.

Well she asked me about my name, Avalanche thought. That means other cats probably name themselves after their powers. Icicle is an obvious choice for an ice power, like mine. “Let me guess,” She deadpanned, already knowing the answer. “She has ice powers like me?”

Coco chuckled, practically cracking up. “What’s so funny?” Avalanche snapped, already getting a bit aggressive. “You laughing at my LOGICAL claim?”

The brown cat flinched and stopped laughing immediately. “Ack, didn’t mean to rile you up! It’s just that everyone says that, but in reality, her power is much much different,” He explained. “Seriously though, you have some serious anger issues.”

She flared up, puffing out her tail to make it seem bigger, and flattening her ears, a universal sign of hostility. “I DO NOT!” She shouted. 

“You just proved my point,” Coco said with a smirk on his face.

”YOU LITTLE-“ Avalanche’s words were cut off by Icicle shoving her way to the front, pushing Coco out of the way. Seems like he had had his chance, and promptly failed.

”Enough, both of you,” She said, glaring at both cats, whose fur was puffed up and eyes narrowed. “I will explain my power myself.” Icicle took a deep breath, as if this was going to take a while. Or maybe she was just sick of cats fighting. Or other cats in general. Either way, it definitely seemed like she was going to say a lot. Was her power really that complex.

”Alright. Unlike what most cats think, my power has nothing to do with ice, or elements in general,” The she-cat explained. Avalanche was surprised at this revelation. Who would name themselves Icicle, and not have anything to do with ice? “So what’s your power?” She asked.

”I’m GETTING TO THAT,” The other cat hissed, before continuing her explanation. “You see, my left paw can heal any wound, as long as the cat isn’t dead. However, it’s incredibly tiring to do, and drains my energy extremely quickly.” Icicle said, holding up said paw she was talking about.

”That’s actually incredible. Think about how useful that would be in a clan or something like that,” Avalanche thought out loud. 

Icicle grinned a toothy smile, waving her left paw around. “I always use my power to make sure Coco and Ambereye are in their best shape. Even when they annoy me sometimes,” As she said this, she specifically looked at Coco. “I still care about them. We’re like siblings in a way.”

“Interesting power!” Avalanche then turned to Ambereye. The tom’s glare had gotten less intense, as if she had gotten used to it, but it was still a serious stare. “What’s your power?” The rogue felt an unnatural pang of excitement. She wanted to know what everyone’s powers were, and if there were any limits. Imagine the possibilities! How many different powers there are in the world.

The huge tom cleared his throat, preparing to speak. “My ability is quite complex, so it’s okay if you don’t get it the first time.” He explained.

”Nah, I got it, how hard can it be?” She waved it off with a paw. She would soon learn that Ambereye’s power was incredibly difficult to comprehend.

Ambereye simply regarded her with a look, then continued speaking. “As you can see, I have two differently colored eyes. One of them is normal, but my red one holds all the power. If you look closely, around my pupil, there is a spinning golden triangle. It’s related to my power.” Avalanche was already confused and he hadn’t even revealed his power yet.

“You felt my hard glare when you first saw me right? Other cats have described it like penetrating through you, and seeing through your soul,” Ambereye asked her. 

“That’s exactly how I felt!” She exclaimed. Avalanche was relieved she wasn’t the only one to have noticed his stare. She would have thought she was going crazy. “When you looked at me, I felt like the ice inside of me wasn’t there, like a part of me was missing somehow.” She muttered.

The tom nodded. “Yes, that’s right. Whenever I look at a living being, they slow down, and freeze out of intimidation. It’s almost like a petrifying gaze. In cat’s cases, if the cat has a power, it will temporarily cancel out for as long as I look at them. A long as I’m staring at the cat, I can render them powerless, no matter what ability they have,” He finished explaining.

”Both of you have such amazing powers. And you’ve been so kind to me, despite not knowing who I am, or where I came from,” Avalanche said, looking around at the trio of cats. They all had incredible personalities and powers, each one being very unique. 

But the most important thing was that she had never been treated like an outcast with these cats. Upon reaction to her power, besides Gamblepaw, other cats had shunned her, and treated her like some kind of evil monster. She hated it, and sometimes wished she had been born powerless so she could fit in with the other cats and join the crowd.

But not anymore. She had found a place to stay, a place to belong. And these cats were the perfect candidates for her to live with. Perhaps she would find Gamblepaw again. It could be mere days, or it could be moons. But she would see him again, and maybe he would have obtained his warrior name.

However, that was a thought for another time. She had to ask the question, right now. It would change her life forever. Looking around at the cats, Avalanche, the former kittypet, opened her mouth, and asked.

”May I join you?”

Chapter Text

It was the middle of the night. Avalanche was sleeping peacefully. It had been a couple days since she had joined the rogues, and they had been pretty kind to her, even Ambereye. However, much to her annoyance, she was woken up by the soft padding of paws stepping on the soil. She opened one tealish eye to see who had disturbed her from her slumber.

To her surprise, the cat that was cautiously walking out of the sleeping area was none other than Ambereye. Despite her instincts telling her not to, Avalanche was curious, and decided to get up and follow the large tom. She made sure to not step on any dry leaves and twigs, just like she did when she was stalking prey.

As soon as the she-cat started stalking Ambereye, he turned around, the spinning triangle in one of his red eyes easily visible. Avalanche froze to her spot, partially out of fear and because of the eye’s ability.

”I know you’re there, Avalanche,” He said smoothly. “You know my eye sees everything.”

Avalanche emerged from the shadows, revealing herself. “Fine, you caught me. But where are you going?” She asked, getting straight to the point.

Ambereye regarded her with a wary look. He was definitely up to something. “Nothing of your interest. I advise you to go back to sleep,” He said, his eye flashing.

Avalanche flinched, but submitted to his demand. “Fine,” She said before walking over back to her patch of moss, which was her makeshift bed. However, instead of going to sleep like the tom wanted, she simply watched him as he sprinted away. Very suspicious… She thought to herself.

Once he was out of sight, she got up and sniffed the air, following Ambereye’s scent. She eventually caught up to him, as she could hear the faint sounds of paws stepping on twigs resonating through the air. He wasn’t doing a good job of hiding himself. Perhaps he thought he could fight everyone off that encountered him.

But she sensed something was wrong. Taking another sniff of the air, she picked up a familiar scent. The smell of blood, the smell of death. Now that she listened closer, Avalanche could clearly hear the sounds of yowling cats, and flesh being torn.

She quickly dashed to the nearest bush she could peek out of, and witnessed something she never thought she would have seen. Ambereye was in the middle of a circle of cats. There were so many of them, Avalanche was sure he would die or get seriously injured.

However, the tom wasn’t the one getting killed. It was the other cats, who must be other rogues and loners. She saw Ambereye pin down a cat, swiftly delivering a killing blow and leaving a lifeless corpse behind. As the other cats screeched in terror upon seeing him kill one of their own, the large tom simply laughed and went after the others.

She couldn’t watch. The rogue ducked out of sight, curling her tail around her as she hoped any one of them would survive. Eventually the screams stopped. The sounds of violence stopped, although the smell of death was much more prominent than before. The sounds of pawsteps padding away reached her ears again.

When she peered out of the shrub, Avalanche almost threw up at the sight. Limp bodies of cats everywhere, blood pooling out of them. Ambereye, the culprit, nowhere to be seen. 

I can’t believe he would do this, She thought with horror. Even though she had only knew Ambereye for a couple days, he had acted kind to her and the others. Never in her life would she have expected him to commit genocide on a bunch of random cats. Avalanche couldn’t risk staying here. Even though she liked the other 2, she couldn’t trust Ambereye after seeing what he did.

He could turn on them any second, and given how easily he killed all of those cats, they would stand no chance, even with their various powers. She had to leave, and she really didn’t want to. Avalanche would miss Coco and Icicle, but perhaps she could come back and save them.

But if she left now, where would she go? Suddenly, an idea struck her like lightning.

Trailclan.