Sleepy Over the Years

"i know"! sleepykit went. "we can practice fighting, and hunting and and then we can-" sleepy kit fell face first

Sleepykit thrashed his legs in the nursery. He was dreaming. Sleepykit ran through the camp, hunting beetles and play fighting with the other kits. Everything was fine. He jabbed his paws into another kit, and hooked another kits leg and knocked him off balance. He flopped down in the middle of the clearing, exhausted from playing clan war and catch the fresh kill. The camp looked smaller than usual. The waves lapped the bottom of the nusery and swallowed up the reeds. The camp was sinking! He raced to the nursery to the saftey of his mother. The other kits did the same. They raced to the nests, but the queens were gone. Sleepykit dared to look into camp. He peered out to see warriors amd apprentices helping elders and queens out of camp. Everyone else was gone.and soon so were the rest of them. The nursery rocked and swayed. The camp was gone. Just a floating nursery and terrified kits. The nursery flowed down river. Sleepykit looked around at his denmates.  They huddled in a corner and soon Sleepykit joined them.They swayed and rocked until one day, it stopped.

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Sleepykit walked throught the RiverClan camp. Every time he had one of his dreams, there was the stench of rat. Now the horrid stench crossed his nostrils again. It smells diseased... Then the most suprising thing happened. A rat walked straight into camp like it was a clanmate. Soon cats from all Clans who walked in the dream cat was stalking it. Then he stopped. He hated rat. Leave it to ShadowClan. he thought.

"Oh ,hello graystream!" Sleepykit was bursting with excitement.

Sleepy bounced out excitedly. This would be his first training day.

He was following Pebblekit. "Youve gone mad Pebblekit, chasing voices into enemy territory, and now theres a whole bunch of cats following us." he whispered.

Sleepypaws head shot up and it hit the celing. "Ow!" he said and crashed back down. He shakily got out of the apprentice den.

Sleepyyawn fell to the ground at the blows. He was about to be knocked out, or worse, if this continued. Out of desperation, he rolled over. Exposing his soft stomach. He kicked out his legs trying to stop the blows.

Sleepyyawn leaped on to his feet and looked to Bluestar. He looked uncertainly at Leopardheart. She would kill him this time, he was almost sure of it. StarClan help me! Sleepyyawn rushed at Leopardheart, and bowled her over.

"Hi Hawkpaw!" Sleepyyawn mewed as he walked to her. He saw her creation and purred. "Its so beautiful Hawkpaw!" He mewed with happiness, for a moment forgetting Mudpuddle was right there.

Sleepyyawn studied Deadfrost. The warrior was young, and he didnt recognize him from the battle. ThunderClan was pathetic, bringing random cats to personal issues.

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Sleepyyawn, with a stinging pain in his side and a burning flame in his eyes, tackled Deadfrost from behind, and bit down hard on the back of his neck.

Sleepyyawn came out, his gray fur darker then usual. Anger flared in his eyes, and he slapped Sunset down with a sheated, but heavy, paw. He put his muzzle so he was eye to eye, staring directly at her. "You think you can come here and insult our warriors. She died trying something you would never measure up to, so do not tell me she let that kit die just for an excuse to cover up her own death." He stared at the ginger cat. "Get out, and leave us be."

Sleepyyawn arrived at Fourtrees. "Are you ready?" He asked, a slight crack in his voice from not speaking in awhile since the incident.

Sleepyyawn prodded her with a heavy paw. "You need to learn to back up your words more wisely." He stepped back and sheathed his claws, sitting down. "Impressive, though." He licked a bloody wound on his foreleg, shuddering back every once and awhile.

Sleepyyawn smiled a little bit. This would be a great tool for RiverClan to become stronger. ShadowClan would owe them, and with that murderer Tigerfrost gone ShadowClan might settle down. He covered up his grin quickly and went up to Limestone. "I'll take that kit for you. She'll be safe in our nursery." He offered.

"Lies!" he snapped at Dragonsoul. "That's what we're taught to think... so much needless bloodshed and tragedy. Twolegs get closer to the forest every day. Soon SkyClan won't be able to cope." he said, looking down, before staring back up at the sky. He walked away from everyone. "I will unify the forest... even if it costs me the stars."

Sleepyyawn was swallowed by darkness. His sides brushed the cave, and he jumped everytime the wall fell away to a new tunnel. He kept to the main path and was stopped by a light in his way. The Moonstone. He marvelled at it before crouching down with a smile. He would change things. This was his chance. Sleepyyawn's eyes closed and his nose touched the cold stone.

Sleepyyawn's eyes shot open. He was at Fourtrees, surrounded by familiar cats. His heart skipped a beat as a beautiful she-cat stepped forward. But he didn't seem to know her.
"With this life, I give you care so you may protect your Clan mates with all nine lives." a shock rippled his body as he experienced her death. Everything pieced together. "Mother..." he said before she stepped away.
A familiar tom came up. Burnsorrow, his brother. "With this life I give you peace, so you can lead in the darkest of times." Burnsorrow said. Sleepyyawn felt his fears and anxieties wash away and felt himself calm.
A skinny tom stalked forward. Sleepyyawn tried his hardest to not let his claws slip out at the sight of his father. "With this life I give you strength, so you may surpass all your enemies." the tom rasped. Sleepyyawn felt himself almost be ripped apart, but his body held up.
A young she-cat stepped forward. "Cherryfern!" Cherryfern touched noses with him. "With this life I give you intelligence, so you may pass down wisdom for generations to come." Sleepyyawn felt himself be immersed in water. His mind was always working.
Sleepyyawn's heart dropped at the next cat. Mudpuddle nodded his greetings. "With this life I give you concentration, so you will always stay on the right path." He felt deathly sick and concentrated on Mudpuddle's form until the pain ebbed away.
Sleepyyawn stared ahead, waiting for the next cat. Yet another young warrior stepped forward, who had died in her prime. Hollywhisper stared up at him. "With this life I give you instinct, so you may get out of the toughest situations." Sleepyyawn felt a blow to his head, only to stand unharmed.
A black she-cat with brown paws stepped forward. Sleepyyawn wanted to rush up to her. "Pinestar!" he said with happiness. Pinestar touched noses with her former deputy. "With this life I give you nobility. Use it to lead RiverClan to greatness."
Another cat stepped up. Sleepyyawn felt tears fill his eyes as he looked up at Bluestar. "With this life I give you compassion. Have mercy on your worst enemies, and stand up for what is right." Sleepyyawn felt himself free falling, thinking of all the people he had cared about along the way. Could he have stopped all of these deaths?
A cat that looked much like Sleepyyawn stepped up. His fur was lighter. "I am River, your first leader. With this life I give you courage, so you can stand up for all the troubles to come. Now, Sleepystar, lead your Clan."

Sleepystar's eyes flashed open. A black cat stood on the other side of the moonstone, licking his paw. "With this life, I give you hardship, so you may not be weakened." he said. Sleepystar knew that Tinywhisker couldn't give him a life. He wasn't even real. Besides, StarClan wouldn't have approved of that, so Sleepystar glared. Maybe it was his mind telling him to beware. The new leader started back up with a new strength. "Lionclaw!" he called. "Let's go home!"

Sleepystar cheerily walked out. "What's all the commo-" Sleepystar saw the tabby markings. "..tion..." Sleepystar's legs buckled from underneath him. "No..." he mewed softly, not getting up from his place.

Sleepystar purred. He didn't quite understand kit's obsession with assaulting larger cats and turning them into ponies, but he couldn't quite judge. Kits were way too adorable for that. He started walking towards the small group. "How are you all today?"

Sleepystar poked his head out of the water. "I think... I think... I think we should all grow fins... That would work..." Sleepystar brainstormed, before being washed under again.

Sleepystar burst out of his den in excitement. "SNOOOOOOOOOOWWWW!" he exclaimed, rushing across the blanketed clearing into Clan territory. In his blind run, he didn't notice the patch of ice he was on. Losing his balance, he landed on his neck and went limp for a few moments before coming back to life, and running back to camp like nothing happened. "I love snow!" he cried again, deeply hoping that no one had caught that.

"As of right now, RiverClan is at war against the forest." he announced, his face grim. "We will strive to unite all cats alike under our Clan's name, so that we may finally bring peace. Rivalries have torn this forest apart, and I seek to end that." Sleepystar concluded, bracing himself for a reaction.

Sleepystar stood at the border with his patrol, claws ready. He hadn't met the new leader formally, but WindClan had a history with RiverClan. Hopefully they will choose not to fight. He looked behind him at his fighters.
"No fighting unless you're provoked. We'll be trying to get WindClan to fold peacefully. Got it?"

Smokekit sat in the nursery, watching the camp go on with daily buisness. All of RiverClan seemed like an odd crew. He sighed and sunk back into his nest. All he wanted was to see Sagekit and Sparrowflight, but he never saw them anywhere. Where could they be?

Sleepystar couldn't help but cast the occasional glance at the Nursery. Smokekit seemed all too quiet and weak compared to the other kits. He tried not to make it noticable, but he started to worry for the kit until it was all he could think about. Sleepystar shook his head, trying to get on with his duties. I have the safety of my Clan to worry about... Drilling himself with that thought, he moved on, trying his hardest not to think about the strange kit.

Sleepystar ripped himself away, warm red streams of blood running from the teethmarks in his neck. He coughed a couple of times, more blood spewing from his mouth and down his gray muzzle.
"Y-you've bested me..." he said in defeat, but a smile grew on his old face. He looked strange, his eyes wide along with the grin.
"But this is also a punishment for you." he said cryptically in a rather clear tone, considering his injuries. He stood at the edge of the large cliff face, the same one that had taken the lives of the leaders before him.
"Farewell."
"Farewell."
And with that, Sleepystar took a leap backwards, falling silently down into the rapids below.

Smokekit stumbled out of the nursery, tumbling onto his back. A sudden swift movement plopped him onto his feet, almost like he was helped, but it must have been your imagination.

Moving on, the small kit stumbled up to the meeting place all by his lonesome, his fur all over the place with a rather bored expression.

Smokepaw followed slowly, looking from the ground to the other side of the river. He caught a glimpse of the tall trees and the sweet scent that drifted from their bark. To the thick undergrowth that was teeming with prey and berries. Then to the very edge of the forest, where it stopped suddenly and gave way to RiverClan territory; a pile of rocks and a gravelly shore that all smelled dankly of fish.
"Incredible... It's even worse than I thought it would be." Smokepaw said in a monotone voice, frowning in disgust at ThunderClan territory.

Smokepaw sat lazily in front of camp among the reeds near the rocky path that led to the entrance. It was early in the morning; the sky was gray and the air was cold, chilling the thin haired tabby to the bone. He sat there, closing his eyes as a blast of cold wind ruffled his fur. The icy cold large drop of rain right on top of his head was just the icing on the cake. Whatever icing and cake was, Smokepaw had no idea.

Smokepaw stood up and sauntered towards the safety of the sedge walls and into the cover of the apprentice den, muttering miserable things the entire way.

"...'Enjoy yourself', they said. 'The weather will be nice this quarter-moon', they said..." Smokepaw mumbled as he passed the cats in camp.

One might wonder what Smokepaw's "deal" was, or if he even had a deal at all. And if he had a deal, was it a big deal that might be interfering with his duties as a RiverClan apprentice and future warrior? The question might require thorough analysis and probably a talk with Smokepaw. Your best bet was just forgetting the whole thing and focusing on getting out of the rain which by now had started to fall onto RiverClan camp and any cats unlucky enough to be caught in it.

The sounds of the ruffling of grass and a couple loud cracks of twigs loudly announced the presence of a very lost apprentice. Smokepaw let out a sigh, which quickly turned into a yawn.

StarClan, he was sleepy.

"Mouse-dung. What kind of cat would be up at this hour?" Smokepaw complained aloud, grudgingly marching towards Fourtrees. He might as well try to rest up a little bit and wait for the sun to come up. There was no way he was getting home this way.

It was then when a wave of stink invaded his senses. Smokepaw almost gagged. Crowfood? he almost thought before he smelled something else. Familiar, almost. He crouched, slowly approaching almost as if he were stalking prey. He saw the sillohuettes of two figures up ahead.

Reedkit's eyes opened slowly. His eyes had gone from a baby blue to a dark green over the last couple of days. His legs filled with strength and he stood up, yawning loudly and stretching before silently slipping out of the nursery.

He blinked the bright sunlight out of his eyes as the young kit stepped out of the safety of the nursery. It was made of willow branches and padded with sedge. He took a nervous step forward and went paws deep into a small pool of water just outside.

The sun was out now, basking RiverClan in warmth. He took glances around at the active camp under the clear cerulean sky. It was a really beautiful new day.

Reedkit glanced around excitedly and found a discarded ball of moss simply floating in the small pool of water. He batted it out, the waterlogged ball rolling into camp leaving a glistening trail behind it. Reedkit was quick to give chase, flying after it.

Reedkit was trying to narrow his eyes to convey a message of suspicion when Greykit leaped at Acornkit. "Not again!" Reedkit squeaked, getting in a pouncing position. His form was all kinds of wrong and he was much too small and light compared to his target.

Reedkit was still going to try anyways.

"Reedkit to the rescuuuuuueeeeeee!~"

Reedpaw watched the conflict through blurry vision and half-slit eyes. Froststar battled so bravely against such a strong opponent. And with such mastery, too! It was a shame that he didn't possess the same skills... As Froststar was taken out and joined him at the bottom he opened his mouth to speak but only blood came out, and he coughed violently. He attempted to move one of his legs. No response. He tried another one. Reedpaw had more success, and he was able to move it slightly. He started to roll over and attempted to stand up. The strenuous pain in his legs was unbearable and he collapsed again. The apprentice couldn't even stand up. Reedpaw looked back to his leader, his mentor... She wasn't breathing.

I am going to die.

The thought rang out through Reedpaw's head. He was going to die after just six moons of life. There was no hope here. The best Warrior in RiverClan was losing a life to this animal and he was incapable of movement. He had no battle practice or any training in general. The most aggressive opponent he had ever faced was an aggravated moss ball.

No. I can't die here. Reedpaw began to stand up again. The pain instantly returned and he wanted to give up. But he didn't let in until he was standing shakily on three paws. His right foreleg hung limply. He had no idea if it would ever work again. He turned his eyes to the badger, who seemed to be more concerned with traversing down the steep rocks than with its prey. He'd have to be swift.

Of course, swiftness was never on a RiverClan cat's side. Especially a crippled one. He began his shaky walk towards Froststar's now lifeless body. She'd get up soon, right? StarClan granted leaders with nine lives. Hopefully she still had some in her.

Come on, Reedpaw... Come on, StarClan...

"Fr... Froststar... G-get... Get..."

The words couldn't form in his throat. Another coughing fit hit him and he felt blood well up in his throat. The crimson substance flew out in front of him and he was feeling a bit dizzy now. He just wanted to close his eyes...

Come on, Reedpaw... You can do this.

Reedpaw took another step and stumbled, falling face first. "Frost...star... Get... get..." his emerald eyes began to close again, a stream of blood trickling from his mouth.

Reedpaw, after moons of sitting in camp, finally got fed up with waiting. While previously dampened in spirit, he had felt a spark of his former self return. Maybe he'd never get training done. Maybe he'd be a '-paw' for ever. But he'd at least do this, for his own sake. He didn't need a mentor. He'd teach himself.

When night had fallen and Silverpelt appeared in the sky he left the den, careful not to disturb anyone. After a much needed stretch the apprentice had sneaked off. Reedpaw, keeping low with his best imitation of a hunting crouch, creeped to the front of camp. Of course, his hunting crouch was rubbish. Reedpaw didn't have any training in hunting water voles and mice. He didn't even have any training in fishing. But this would do, for now.

When he reached the Camp entrance he also encountered his first problem. RiverClan camp was on an island and the only way to reach it was through swimming. Reedpaw could swim, yes, every RiverClan cat could by apprenticeship. But how could he do this quietly? Of course another disadvantage. In apprenticeship they were supposed to teach you how to swim quietly when battling; to use the water to your advantage. But of course...

The apprentice dabbled a paw in the water. It was icy cold. Leaf-fall was just the precursor of what was to come, but even this was a bit troubling. Reedpaw gave a sigh and braved through it, slowly slipping foreleg deep. He felt some of the remnants of his cobweb bandages detach themselves and float away. He just needed to get to the pebbly plains that marked mainland RiverClan territory.

ShadowClan's scent was heavy in the air. The patrol had found the bodies of the rogues in Twolegplace. It was undeniable now; the Deomilites were real, and they were heading for the four remaining Clans.

Reedheart stood at the entrance of camp, ears pricked. It was his vigil. It had been a quiet night; the stream surrounding camp was lazy and crickets sung their songs. The night sky was clear, and the moon hung in the sky, illuminating the camp in a pale silver light. Reedheart's breath billowed in the cold. Leafbare hadn't been as cruel to the Clan as it was to the others. The river was a source of life, and StarClan had blessed them with fish. But Reedheart had been contemplating his place in the Clan now that he was a warrior. The ceremony had been delayed for far too many moons. The aches and pains of the badger attack so long ago had only began to fade. That's when strange scents hit him. He was startled for a second, standing up. His fur bristled as he thought about calling out and breaking the silence. The crickets and frogs stopped their noises, so only the gentle movement of the stream was all he could hear. He opened his jaws and the strong and the scent of ShadowClan hit the roof of his mouth.

Fish-faced... Reedheart began before shaking the thought away. By the smell of it, there was more than one. Uncertainty and fear tainted the air.

"Who goes there?!" Reedheart called out, unsheathing his claws. The tom dipped a white paw into the icy cold water, ready to leap in at the first sign of trouble.

Reedheart cast Froststar a doubtful pointed glance before turning to the beaten ShadowClan cats with sympathetic eyes. Their injured state made his heart lurch and he stepped forward, beside his leader. "Morningfur will take a look at all of you." he mewed reassuringly, wishing he could say more. Reedheart's eyes slowly moved over the bloody body of Sagestar. Froststar's reaction was strange... Perhaps they were friends, outside their Clan rivalries.

Forcing a weak smile, Reedheart looked to Nightwing and promised to himself to hunt for these cats in the morning. He somehow doubted that they'd like fish or be able to hunt in RiverClan territory without guidance. "I can show you the dens, if you'd like..." he mewed, flicking his tail towards the back of camp. They were all similar crude looking constructions. Skinny sticks leaned against each other, with reed and sedge stuffed in between them. Shells from the river bank gleamed in the dying light.

A pale full moon hung high in the sky, basking the clearing in a pale light. It was quiet, peaceful even. But every Clan cat knew that blood would be spilled on the sacred ground tonight. Had things been different, it would have been a night of peace. The Great Rock glimmered in the center of the clearing, a jagged stone pointing towards the sky.

But the Deomilites had changed that. They had come, driving the Clans out of their rightful homes.

A slight warm breeze stirred and rustled the bare skeletal branches of the four oaks. Maybe it was a good omen, that the winds of fortune were now on the Clans sides.

Clan cats were gathered all around. RiverClan cats formed a ring around the clearing, ready to pounce. ThunderClan waited in hiding within the undergrowth, ready to leap out at the signal of battle. WindClan cats dotted the slope, crouching and blending into the earth. ShadowClan cats silently prowled the perimeter, masked by the darkness. SkyClan cats balanced on the branches of the four great oaks, looking down into the clearing below.

An ambush, conceived by a rogue.

They'd make their final stand here.

The clearing suddenly grew dark, and the silver glimmering of Silverpelt disappeared behind a dark menacing cloud. Thunder boomed, summoning the rain. Lightning cracked and ripped through the sky, and water began to pour from the heavens. This was no Leafbare blizzard, but the start of something new. Barely audible above the storm, the churning of mud and many paws could be heard. A march.

The Deomilites were here.

Reedheart sat at the edge of camp. He'd been like that, in that same position, for the last couple of days since the battle against the Deomilites. He hadn't even gotten up to eat or train Mistpaw, and he looked scrawny underneath his glossy fur. They'd won. They had driven out the murderers from their homeland, with little casualties of their own. So why didn't he feel victorious? Why didn't he feel happy? He had looked forward to the end since the whole ordeal started, but now...

That rogue. He couldn't even say his last words properly, because of the blood that had welled up in his throat. Reedheart had killed him out of anger. Out of malice. And now... he couldn't feel joyful, or pride in his victory, or... or...

"You're no better than us now."

No. He just felt numb and empty. Reedheart continued to stare forward, green eyes wide, forward... at nothing.

A skinny looking tabby had walked up to the den. Or, more accurately, stumbled his way there. He could hardly feel his paws anymore, and wanted nothing more than to just fall onto his nest and let sleep embrace him. But he couldn't do that. Even still, he looked... ill. He could hardly stomach fresh-kill these days, and could hardly get a wink of sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, he could hear the... the warrior shook his head to clear it. No time to think of that.

"Froststar, are you...?" Reedheart blinked, seeing the shapes of Morningfur and Lichenkit come into view. It seemed the kit was finally out of the nursery and bugging the medicine cat already. Even with his troubled thoughts, it put a smile on his face. "Oh, sorry." he added quickly, not wishing to look intrusive. "I'll come back later."

"Ah, uh... see you!" he said, struggling with his words. That could have gone a lot worse... he thought, nearly grumbling it out loud. They were on his territory after all, and he was glad that the leader had seemed to let them off easy for it.

Reedheart sighed with relief as Lionstar disappeared among the trees, his fur hot despite his wet fur. He felt bad for nearly insulting the leader, who seemed to be merely teasing and turned to Lichenkit. "That was the ThunderClan leader, Lichenkit." he hissed, tail lashing. "Even if he is a rival, you must give him respect as a warrior and a leader!" Irritation bubbled in his chest, but it began to subside at the sight of the two. Duckkit was thoroughly soaked. "That's enough..." he told himself as he began to walk back to camp.

"Come on, now. Let's talk to Froststar and get this over with."

Reedheart was oblivious to Maplepaw's slight distress as he looked around. This part of the territory was rather barren; yes, some far-flung streams and pools could be seen glittering in the sunlight here and there, along with tall grass that pushed up through the rocks. Other than that, it was a sea of monotonous gray that rose up and down like the waves of the river.

The warrior began to notice the aching in his paws and his exhaustion from so much climbing and walking. It was true that RiverClan couldn't bathe in the sun's rays at Sunningrocks, but his pads still burned with every step. The hazy heat wasn't helping, and Reedheart found himself straying towards the distant roaring of the Gorge with thoughts of that glorious cool spray of water and foam that was sent up from the falls.

About daydreaming at this point, Reedheart was almost shocked to feel another cool breeze whip across his fur. He prayed a silent thank you to StarClan for it. He'd be hard-pressed to describe a more novel and fantastic sensation than that of unbridled winds blowing on a hot Greenleaf day. He inhaled deeply, expecting to fill his senses with that of the peat and grass and instead his nose being invaded by a suffocating scent of ash.

A violent cough racked his body as he came to a lurching halt. "Foxdung!" he exclaimed, a bit louder and sharper than intended.

"Do you smell that?" Reedheart asked, turning his head to the rest of the patrol.