Chapter Text
Far from the town nearby, was a large meadow. It was full of grass for the sheep to eat, and had plenty of prey. There lived MeadowClan, led by the noble leader named Vanillastar. Vanillastar was an old farm cat who often watched the sheep but the farm was long since abandoned. Thanks to Gingerpaw and his friends they managed to bring MeadowClan back… along with an old foe… Wiltedflower . But more importantly, they had found and brought MeadowClan’s leader back.
Being the kind cat he was, he allowed some stray elders and rogues that were in their camp to stay and even join the clan. It was a nice area, a creek was nearby, along with a small pond. Although Vanillastar’s job wasn’t done yet.
Vanillastar had light blonde and brown fur. He was a flame point ragdoll cat. He had a soft, warm-toned orange hue. He had heterochromia, one eye was a soft amber color while the other was a deep sky blue color. He sat in the middle of the long grass of the meadow as he gazed up at the sky as the stars shine above.
The slight breeze blows through his soft fur as the stars reflect off of his eyes. “Oh, Lilywhisker… I’ve been gone for far too long. Wherever you are, I hope the wind carries my words to you. I hope you are doing well… We’ll meet again, I'm sure of it.” He speaks to the sky as the wind swirls. “StarClan… I ask for your forgiveness, please… make sure she’s safe.” He stands.
Raisinfur makes her presence known as she sees him. “Vanillastar? Speaking to the stars again I see…” she meows. Vanillastar turns to her, looking at her with his soft friendly eyes. “The stars are always listening, and so is StarClan.” Raisinfur shakes her head.. “I’m still not sure if my faith is with them, especially after what they did to my…” She trails off. Vanillastar offers her a soft comforting smile. “Be patient, StarClan hears your cries… they did send me to you afterall.”
He begins walking back to camp as his tail flicks. He wasn’t wrong about that. A small smile makes its way to her face. He always knew what to say, he was a wise cat. Perhaps his time as a medicine cat taught him a lot, especially about the stars. They get back to the camp and settle down… until the next day.
Gingerpaw and his friends had come back to MeadowClan for Vanillastar. He turns to Gingerpaw and his friends, bowing his head as he greets them. ”Welcome back.” The three share the nod as well. “You called?” Gingerpaw says happily, he was always so eager. “Yes… I would like you to accompany me. I will be traveling to go to the gathering and hopefully meet my friends.” he meows. Wizardpaw looks at him, “Friends?” he asks.
Vanillastar nods. “The other clan leaders. Darkstar, Hollystar, and Goldenstar… I do not believe that Lilywhisker will be there, I hope they’re all alive and well. ” he sighs. Strawberrypaw speaks up, “I think they’ll be okay… How do we get to the gathering?” She asks. “We must travel a long way… and we must get prepared to leave today, and leave tomorrow in order to make it in time.”
“But why do you need us to come with you?” Gingerpaw asks. Vanillastar looks at the three apprentices before him. “Because… I do not have much of a clan to take with me. The cats I do have are better off staying here to rest and gather their strength again. Unless… you do not want to go…” his ear flicks. “Of course we can go with you! But who will guard your clan?” Gingerpaw asks.
“The others do not know about my clan’s return. I don’t think anyone would want the field mice that are here… we don’t have anything of value so we should be fine. Raisinfur will also come with us. You three should go with her to prepare yourselves, and I can gather the herbs we will need.” They all nod before running off.
He looks around the camp, seeing a few elders lounging. He felt a small pang of guilt for all the cats he had lost in the Dark Fur War… Could he really move on and live in the very same clan in happiness? Without them? He remembers running through the camp with his friends as they rushed to stop Wiltedflower… The bloodshed on the grass and ground, the countless cats he ran past as they bled out… He looks back up to the sky. Would they ever forgive him?
The next morning… Vanillastar wakes up just before the golden beams of light from the sun shine over the horizon. He stretches his stiff body, his tail flicks as he spreads his paws. He wasn’t expecting Raisinfur to already be awake when he left his den. “Goodmorning, Vanillastar.” She greets him. His eyes widened slightly. “Oh, Raisinfur. You’re already up!” he smiles. She nods. “I had to be sure that everyone was okay before we set off. Want me to wake the others?” she offers. He nods, watching as the black she-cat stalks off towards the apprentices den.
The soft morning breeze gently blew through the tall grass surrounding the camp and smoothly went through his fur. He goes to the medicine cat den and grabs the bundles he had packed and prepared prior. He eats his share of herbs before going back out and giving the rest to the others. They begin their journey.
They walk for a very long time. “Vanillastar… How far is this…?” Gingerpaw asks, panting after they’ve just got done climbing up yet another steep hill. Vanillastar has a calm smile on his face as he keeps walking. “We’re almost there,” he reassures them. “How do we know that you still know where you’re going? No offense but you’ve been gone for a very long time.” Wizardpaw meows.
Vanillastar chuckles. “Oh, do not worry. I know where I'm going, I'm sure of it. StarClan has shown me the way. I know now what I must do, and that’s to reunite with my friends. We must warn them about Wiltedflower’s return.” he keeps up the pace. Raisinfur looks at him. “And what if your friends are…?” she trails off, unsure if she wanted to ask the question. “My friends are fine. I’m sure of it.” his tail flicks anxiously.
Raisinfur sighs. “Just don’t get your hopes up… I don’t want you to get disappointed.” she mutters. “Either way, everyone must be made aware of the danger ahead.” he mumbles as they continue on their way.
The scent of lots of other cats soon becomes very strong. Raisinfur’s fur sticks up slightly, she wasn’t used to so many strangers at once. Vanillastar sniffs the air, his tail curling. There were so many new scents, and some familiar ones too. They finally arrived at the clearing where there were so many cats gathered together. The leaders sat atop a rock in the middle of the crowd.
Vanillastar makes his way to the rock. He carefully climbs up, careful not to startle others. Darkstar was the first to recognize his scent, he immediately whips around as his eyes widen. “Vanillastar…?!” his voice was almost as quiet as a whisper. Vanillastar smiles… Darkstar rushes over to him. “You’re back!” That’s when Goldenstar and Hollystar notice the commotion and also rush over to greet their old friend. “Vanillastar! Where have you been all this time?” Hollystar meows,
He laughs, “I’m glad to see that you’re all doing well.” Darkstar was licking his head. “You didn’t answer Holly’s question, Vanillastar.” Goldenstar huffs, joining in on the group 'hug'. “Oh, well… It is a very long story… ahem, long-story short, After I banished Wiltedflower with forbidden moon magic I ended up in a void for all of eternity before I was set free by three apprentices but now Wiltedflower has returned as well and is going to go after us….” He quickly explains. They take a minute to process.
“You mean to say, that after all these years of trying to get rid of her and fighting… she has returned?!” Goldenstar hisses. Vanillastar nods. “We must warn our fellow cats, and prepare for another war… knowing her, she’s probably recruiting more rogues to join her before she strikes.”
Darkstar nods. “I had to deal with some of her lackeys not too long ago… it turns out Darkstrike had been working with them after I exiled him.”
Hollystar gasped, “You never told us that! He’s not still with them, right?” Darkstar shakes his head. “I’m unsure about his whereabouts, but his scent has been near the border of the territory so he’s sticking around.”
Hollystar looks to Goldenstar. “And you? Any words from your… clan?” she asks. Goldenstar shakes her head. “No, not yet… they seem afraid of something and won’t speak to me.” Darkstar shakes his head, “That’s not a good sign…” Vanillastar looks at them. “I think we should announce my arrival, and the return of my clan to clear the air… and then break the news about Wiltedflower. I have a feeling this won’t be ending anytime soon.” he mumbles. “Nonetheless, welcome back Vanillastar.” Hollystar smiles.
Hollystar and Darkstar break the news to their clans while Vanillastar speaks with Goldenstar. “Your clan… you speak to them? How?” He asks. Her tail flicks. “It’s strange… complicated even. But I speak to them in Starclan. They often send me dreams.” She explains. “Ah… I see. That is a very useful power.” He smiles. “I’m glad you’re doing well, better than I expected.” Goldenstar looks away… “I’m just unsure about this… new war, Wiltedflower’s return- everything! It’s just so… terrifying to think about dealing with her again. But at least this time I have nothing more for her to destroy and burn to the ground.” Her ears twitch anxiously.
Vanillastar had noticed her uncertainty. “Don’t worry… This time we know what’s to come, mostly. As long as our faith is in StarClan… we have hope for our clans.” He glances up to the moonlit sky. “Right… but what about us? How many lives do we have left to lose? What if… what if this time we can’t win.” She looks away. He had a frown on his face, feeling sad that his friend felt so distraught by this.
“We can’t give up, whether we lose or not. Our life for our clans… She’s not an actual leader, it’s our lives against her life.” He reassured her. That definitely made her feel better. “I suppose you’re right, I'm just being a mouse-brain…” Her tail curls around her.
The others join them. “We told the others, what now?” Hollystar asks. Vanillastar looks up to the sky thoughtfully. “We must come up with a plan, and find out more about what Wiltedflower is planning. This time we must be prepared.” He has a determined look on his face.
“We’ll need all the help we can get. After this gathering… we will meet up in 5 moons at my clan’s camp. You all remember where it is, yes?” He looks at the three. They all share a nod. “Good, then it’s a plan. I suppose this is where we go our separate ways…” He mumbles.
“Until we meet again, Vanillastar.” Darkstar gives him one last lick on his head before hopping down from the rock. “It was nice to see you again, old friend.” Goldenstar meows before dropping down from the rock as well. “Goodluck, Vanilla.” Hollystar touches noses with him before climbing down from the rock.
Vanillastar watches as they all depart… Wiltedflower would surely be expecting them to reunite. He needed to keep his guard up for what strays he allows into his clan and what ones he rejects. He hops down from the rock and looks at the three apprentices and Raisinfur. “I assume it went well?” he asks.
Raisinfur nods. “We met a lot of new friends…” she mutters. He smiles at that, he was glad they were able to meet the other clans and their allies. The three apprentices looked pretty tired. “I am sorry to inform you that we will be going on the journey home now…” he says carefully.
Wizardpaw groans. “You mean it’s going to take forever again?” He huffs. “Yes, but we must get home as soon as possible. Wiltedflower knows of my return alongside her, and she’ll be expecting me and my friends to reunite and start plotting against her. Every moon counts. We have no time to waste.” He begins walking towards the way they came.
Raisinfur looks at them before following Vanillastar.
“He’s right, let’s hit the road.” She mutters, not looking back to see if the three were following. They all share a tired look before sighing and following the two older cats. This would be a long journey.