WindClan Leader's Den

[Rustleaf]

Mosspaw started sobbing again and couldn’t talk because of it, so he let Lionscar tell the clan leader what happened.
@---Bluestar--- - Lionscar / @Moonraven - Twilightstar

[TheNyanCatMinecart]

~ TWISTEDPAW OF WINDCLAN ~

AFAB | SHE/HER | APPRENTICE | 18 MOONS | NO PURRKS

Small, skinny, black she-cat with a light gray belly and tail-tip, a mangled tail, a crooked jaw, and one blind eye.

Twistedpaw sniffled and swallowed the phlegm that congealed in her throat. Her jaw ached from all the talking despite the warm, dry weather. But she was so glad she'd done it. Twilightstar really is the best leader ever. She was so kind, welcoming, and strong-willed. I wish she could be leader forever. StarClan forbid anything happen to her. What will she say? The apprentice's stomach was tight with anticipation, and her heart pounded with hope.

Silence stretched on for a long while. Discomfort began to crawl through Twistedpaw's matted black pelt like ants. Her working eye darted around the dimly lit den. Twilightstar did have an answer, she knew. Her leader was wise. She just has to think. Still, her stomach flopped like a nervous rabbit.

Finally, after what felt like moons, Twilightstar's expression changed. A warm smile touched her lilac-gray face, shimmering from the shadows of the den. Twistedpaw felt her muscles relax. Hope flourished anew. Her single tiny ear pricked. She was going to get an answer!

A pang of pity rocked her as Twilightstar talked about her brother. Her ear flattened against her round head. That's awful! She didn't know what the accident was, or why Twilightstar thought she had caused it, but she wasn't going to invade her privacy by asking. It was strange to think of Twilightstar being young, with siblings and a mother. But everyone has their own story. Every cat, no matter where they came from, had something that was a part of them, some tale that ran deeper than what the eye could see - or, if the eye could see it, it didn't tell the whole story. Twilightstar's plethora of scars showed that she had experienced many battles, much pain and suffering, but they didn't speak of the scenario she had been in that caused her to earn the scar or how it had affected her as a cat. Perhaps that was why some judged Twistedpaw based on her deformities alone. They failed to see the cat behind the scars.

Take all that pain and hurt and make meaning of it. Twistedpaw dwelled on these words as Twilightstar kept speaking. Seeking her own path... finding the light inside... guiding others... The words touched something deep within her. I want to help others. I want to make them happy. She'd long since learned that she couldn't please everyone. She couldn't spend her time stressing over those who acted out because of the way she looked. However, I can make others feel happy, better, by being myself. By pushing through the pain, being kind, giving them that light. With a flicker of grief, she remembered something Cowtuft had said to her many moons ago, when she'd still been a confused kit unsure of the world.

You are sweeter than the sweetest nectar...

Fireflame and Brightpaw had always supported her, too, through the rough and dark times, the pain and the suffering. Twistedpaw could pay that forward. Instead of crumpling under the pressure, she could keep going on for her Clan. And... and for myself.

It wouldn't be easy. Twilightstar made that clear. And Twistedpaw understood that. There was pain, agony even, and grief on the horizon. More losses that would tear into her with teeth and claws and suck so much of her blood that she wasn't sure how much of herself would remain. That thought was terrifying. And yet... there were so many good things, too. Making new friends. Serving WindClan as a warrior. Making others happy. Squirrelrise's smile still stuck out in her mind. It didn't matter that she was from ShadowClan. Twistedpaw had still helped someone, another anxious cat who wasn't sure of her place. She wanted to keep doing that.

Twistedpaw could turn her pain into something meaningful. Instead of letting it destroy her, she could keep moving forward, not just for herself, but for others, too.

She smiled and leaned forward to touch her nose to Twilightstar's fur, rough scars contrasting with her soft pelt. "Thank you. That's... that's exactly what I needed to hear. I want to help others as much as I can. I want to be happy for me, too. Instead of letting the pain destroy me... I need to keep living. Both for myself and for others." Fireflame and Brightpaw had been devastated to see her so upset. They'd want her to keep living, moving forward. That didn't mean Twistedpaw couldn't mourn them, but she couldn't be stuck mourning them forever.

Something else crossed her mind. Something she wanted - no, she needed - to ask. Twistedpaw settled herself more comfortably on the cool wood, trying not to look too longingly at Twilightstar's mossy nest. "So... I've been hearing a lot about this Ashfeather cat." A tingle ran down her spine. All this wondering, and she would finally get an answer. "I know she looked exactly like me. Which is strange, because I know I look so different from everyone else. Who was she? And... and who was Rosebriar?" The memory of the screeching starry cat assaulted her mind, and her fur bristled.

"I - I don't know how much you know... but, when I went out with Wolffang, this StarClan cat appeared. She was called Rosebriar. She and Wolffang were littermates. She said some things about... about them hating cats like me in the past. Wolffang didn't anymore. He's always been friendly toward me. But Rosebriar was so angry that she somehow manifested the giant pile of carrion to lure the coyote. She wanted to kill both of us." She shuddered. "Rosebriar also rejected StarClan, somehow. She chose to live in the Dark Forest. She must've been evil. Ashfeather... Rosebriar... Wolffang... all these past names. They have some kind of story to tell. Something that happened that I still don't know. What was it?"

@Moonraven