Cherrynose's Story

“Wake up Cherrypaw!” The pale pink apprentice felt a poke at her side. “It’s time for our final assessment!”

“Gotcha!” Cherrypaw snickered as she snatched the fish out of the stream, catching it in her jaws and quickly dispatching it. She gave a quick thanks to StarClan before setting it down on her pile of fish. She had gone to the stream closest to the border to catch fish while Lilacpaw had gone into the forest. Cherrypaw had gathered up a decent amount of fish, and was satisfied with her catch. A rustle in the nearby bushes snapped her out of her prideful glow and back into reality. A mouse? She thought. Maybe it was visiting the stream to get a drink of water. When she parted her jaws to scent the air, a shock hit her. LightningClan! What were they doing in PetalClan territory? Cherrypaw didn’t even get the chance to slide her claws out before she was pounced on, a loud caterwaul ripping through the air. She was knocked against the dirt and pinned down by a dark brown tom with glinting amber eyes. Cherrypaw struggled to become free. “Sorry, this land belongs to LightningClan now!” The tom hisses menacingly. Behind him, a black and white tom with a long scar across his face and a gray tom step out. The brown tom clawed at Cherrypaw’s ears and let her go, facing her defensively. Without thinking, Cherrypaw leapt into battle with the brown tom. She raked her claws across his muzzle, and he tore out clumps of her pink fur by tearing at her sides. The other two toms were closing in as well, ready to attack. Three against one. This was a battle Cherrypaw knew she couldn’t win. “CHERRYPAW!” A wail cried out. A blur of light purple fur whizzed past her and knocked the brown tom off of his paws. Lilacpaw had rushed into battle, savagely attacking the black and white tom, who in turn lashed out at her, dragging his claws down her side, leaving a deep wound. Cherrypaw thought it was the end of her sister, before another yowl was heard. Glancing over her shoulder, Cherrypaw saw Willowsprite and Sparrowtail speed into battle, tackling the LightningClan warriors to the ground. The sound of shrieks and ripping fur flew through the air in the heat of intense battle, before the gray tom backed away, panting heavily, and fled into the bushes. Soon, the black and white tom followed, so that the brown tom was the only one left. “Bearclaw.” Sparrowtail snarled to the brown tom. “Tell Redstar that this is, and always will be, PetalClan territory.” The deputy of PetalClan gave the warrior a sharp clout over the ear before sending him scattering into the undergrowth. Lilacpaw stumbled to the side, panting heavily. A deep wound marred her side, blood clumping up her light purple fur. Willowsprite rushed to her side to support her. “Are you okay?” Sparrowtail asked Cherrypaw. “What happened?” “I was hunting and they ambushed me!” Cherrypaw exclaimed between pants. Her sides heaved as she caught her breath.  The light pink cat limped over to her sister. “Lilacpaw, are you alright?” “I’m fine...”Lilacpaw said, pained. “L-Let’s just... go back to camp.”

“I, Mintystar, leader of PetalClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in return. Cherrypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?” The young tom had only been made leader about two moons earlier, after the last leader, Dawnstar, disappeared. “I do!” The pink she-cat exclaimed, quivering. Three sunrises had passed since the assessment gone awry. After the two sisters showed their skill in both hunting and battle, it was a unanimous decision to promote them to warriors. Most of Cherrypaw’s wounds had closed and had begun to heal, but the deep wound on Lilacpaw’s side was still open and troubling her. Nevertheless, the two were being made warriors that day. Mintystar turned to Lilacpaw and repeated the great words passed down from generation to generation. “Lilacpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?” “I do.” Lilacpaw proclaimed proudly. “Then by the powers of StarClan I give you both your warrior names. Cherrypaw and Lilacpaw, from this moment you will be known as Cherrynose and Lilacpelt. StarClan honors your skill and courage, and we welcome you as full warriors of PetalClan.” “Cherrynose! Lilacpelt! Cherrynose! Lilacpelt!” The clan cheered for the two newly-made warriors. The loudest yowl out of the crowd was young Bouncepaw, a close friend of the two. She trotted towards the siblings, her yellow eyes shining. “You’re warriors!” Bouncepaw purred. “I can’t wait until I become a warrior.” She kneaded her paws against the ground excitedly. “I still feel like an apprentice!” Lilacpelt admitted, her whiskers twitching. “It doesn’t feel much different.” “Maybe it will feel different when you sleep in the warrior’s den tonight.” A deep meow rumbled to the two. It was Firefall, coming to Cherrynose and Lilacpelt to congratulate them. “Be careful,” the flame-pelted warrior warned. “Owltail snores like a badger.” “I do not!” The tan tom was in earshot. “If anyone snores, it’s Willowbreeze.” Owltail laughed and nudged the silvery she-cat sitting next to him. “D-Don’t tell them that!” Willowbreeze cried, embarrassed. The warriors all laughed together, until a sharp hiss interrupted the moment. “Ow!” Lilacpelt winced. Her face screwed up in pain. “What’s wrong, Lilacpelt?” Owltail asked.

“My side…” Lilacpelt flicked her tail towards the wound that still ran along her side.  It was crusted up along the edges, bleeding, and the skin surrounding the area was red and swollen. “That looks nasty.” Firefall observed, frowning. “You should go see Cypressflower to get it patched up.” “Yeah, I think I’ll go do that.” Lilacpelt said slowly. She dipped her head respectfully to the warriors before limping away to the medicine cat den. “If you’re feeling up to it,” Owltail turned to Cherrynose. “You can come hunting with Sandcrest and I. We were just about to go. We’re not going anywhere near the LightningClan border, so you don’t need to worry.” Cherrynose nodded excitedly. “Yes, of course! Let’s go!”

The trio of cats returned to camp with mouthfuls of prey, tails held proudly in the air. After setting their catches down in the fresh-kill pile, Cherrynose made her way to the warrior’s den, where she expected to find Lilacpelt snoozing. However, when she looked into the den, Lilacpelt was nowhere to be found. Instead, Cloudfur was found, eating a rabbit. “Hello, Cloudfur.” Cherrynose greeted. “Have you seen Lilacpelt?” “Last I heard, she was with Cypressflower.” The gray and white tom said between bites. This puzzled Cherrypaw. She was still with the medicine cat? “Thanks for telling me.” Cherrynose said before she went to the medicine cat den. Sure enough, Lilacpaw was in there, lying down on a nest of moss. “What’s up with you?” Cherrynose asked her sister. Before she could respond, Cypressflower answered. “She has a fever and she needs rest.” The medicine cat said, turning back to her pile of herbs and roots. “Fever? It’s just a wound.” Cherrynose’s whiskers twitched. “Cypressflower says it’s infected.” Lilacpelt mumbles. “Looks like I’ll be in here for a few days.” “Your first few days as a warrior spent in the medicine cat den. How awful!” Cherrynose sympathized. “It’s not all awful,” Lilacpelt said, raising her head. “Sometimes Bubblekit comes in and spends some time with us. That kit, she doesn’t say much, does she?” Cypressflower laughs to herself, sorting out her herbs. “No, she doesn’t.” Cherrynose mrrowed in amusement. “Well…” She starts. “I suppose I should be leaving you to some rest now. Are you hungry? Owltail, Sandcrest and I just went hunting.” “No, I already ate.” Lilacpelt says simply. “Sandcrest, eh? Something tells me he might have a thing for you.” “What?” Cherrynose asks defensively. “N-No way! “ “The way he looks at you,” Lilacpelt muses. “S-Stop it!” Cherrynose cries, flustered. “I… I’m going to get some rest now. I’m tired from the hunt. You should do the same.” “Alright. See you in the morning, Cher.”

Three sunrises passed, and Lilacpelt’s condition didn’t improve. Then, on the fourth day, she slipped away, her soul leaving her body to join the ranks of StarClan. It was quiet, and in her sleep. There was no blood, no pain, just silence and the eerie air of death that swept through the entire camp.

Cloudfur and Firefall brought her body out to the center of the camp. Cherrynose stood beside her, burying her muzzle in her deceased sister’s fur. Mintystar made the usual death announcements and tributes, but the pink warrior wasn’t listening. Every mew and meow sounded miles away to her. All she could her was her heartbeat in her ears and the grief that swelled like waves inside of her. How would she survive without her sister to hunt beside, fight beside, or lie beside? “Lilacpelt… Oh, Lilacpelt… You didn’t deserve to die. You had your whole life ahead of you. You were supposed to find a mate and have kits and grow old and retire to the elder’s den with me…!” Cherrynose wailed. “Now you can’t do anything! You can only watch me from StarClan while I carry out everything we were supposed to do together alone!” Her wails of misery grew louder. She felt a warm presence beside her. When she looked to her side, she saw Sandcrest, sitting next to her, his fur brushed up against her’s. “I’ll sit vigil with you.” He said quietly. Cherrynose didn’t reply, but simply nodded. The two sat together in the chilly leaf-fall wind, their heads bowed in mourning.

Hours passed, and Cherrynose did not look up until the sun was beginning to rise into the sky. “Cherrynose?” she felt a prod in her side. Sandcrest looked at her with round, olive eyes. “Wake up, it’s sunri-,” “I’m awake.” Cherrynose hissed quietly. This shut Sandcrest up. The two sat vigil with her for a few minutes more, before the elders took Lilacpelt’s body to be buried. Cherrynose, exhausted and grief-stricken, slowly stumbled towards the warrior’s den. “Hey..” Sparrowtail greeted her as she was walking. “How are you feeling?” With this, Cherrynose exploded. “I’m feeling awful!” She hissed, her fur fluffing up. “My sister is dead! My sister is dead without ever having the chance to be a warrior, and it’s all LightningClan’s fault! If they hadn’t been so greedy, so power-hungry, she would still be here! It’s all LightningClan’s fault, and I’ll never forgive them!” She wails, running towards the warrior’s den. She lays down in her nest, closing her eyes and hoping they’ll never open again.

moonpaw does not give a shit

petalclan by rippercarnival

elkstar of pineclan by cookiefest

littlekit by arin-hans0n

littlekit and his siblings by arin-hans0n

mintystar!

cherrykit and dotkit, the cutest sisters.

Cypressflower - The medicine cat of PetalClan, she is a solemn she-cat with gray and white bi-color fur and icy blue eyes. Other cats refer to her as tall. Despite having a level head, she can still joke around with the other cats in the Clan, and especially with younger ones.

Batwing - A small black she-cat warrior. She was only recently made warrior, and has a determined and daring demeanor. Her black pelt stands out against the rest of the Clan's bright furs and therefore makes it hard for her to blend in with the environment, so she always is found hiding in the shadows.

Cherrykit - The daughter of Willowsprite, Cherrykit is a white she-cat with a dark red muzzle, belly, chest, paws, and ear and tail tips. Her wide green eyes radiate a never-ending sense of enthusiasm about everything. She dreams of becoming a warrior and is itching to see what her name would be.