Silly Old Elder (Open)

The old tom was feeling far more tired than usual, exhausted even. He sunned outside the elder's den with his eyes shut tightly as usual, his ears flicking frequently to catch noises of apprentices talking excitedly and kits tumbling under the watchful care of the queens. The young ones didn't seem to mind the scars over his eyes, but he still tried his best to be friendly and not to scare anyone away. Today, Lightfoot had been feeling strange despite having just slept for quite an unusually long time. Focusing was difficult for some reason, but the white tom tried to lift his head up and seem as normal as possible. Maybe a youngling would approach and he could occupy himself with a charming story of his youth. Or maybe one of his sweet little grandkits would run by and he could ask them about what they dreamed of being in the future. He smiled wistfully, bittersweet emotions rising over the memory of his dear daughter who had died at the gathering.

Sandkit hadn't come out of the nursery for days after the death of his mother. Daisypatch was usually there beside him, and kept him company when he wasn't in the mood to play with other kits. It was just him and Sunkit now. "Hi Lightfoot..." the orange tabby breathed, his eyes dull. "T-the nursery's kinda quiet and I can't find Sunkit..." The tom trailed off, settling down in front of his grandfather. He watched the elder closely. It seems my mother's death has affected more cats then just me... Sandkit thought, wincing. "D-do you have any stories for me?" For once, the tabby tom found himself in need of a friend.

Heatherkit padded up to Lightfoot and Sandkit. She hadn't had much to do, and sitting around in the nursery all day had been getting terribly boring. "Hello Lightfoot, Sandkit," she purred quietly, and sat down.

Kestrelstorm stretched as he exited the warrior's den. It felt a little odd being back in WindClan, and he missed Tigerstorm dearly. His heart ached at the thought that they only had a few moons to be true mates. With a yawn the warrior trotted over to Lightfoot. The older tom and he had never gotten along, but he was an elder now. Things could be different. As the tall cat neared Lightfoot, the kits came up. Sitting silently, Kestrelstorm was reminded of his kits in ShadowClan. Would Hawkkit and Mousekit ever even remember him? Would Tigerstorm tell them?

Lightfoot smiled at the sound of the kits' voices, glad to have company. He had always loved kits. He picked up tones of sadness in Sandkit's voice and wondered how he and his brother were dealing with the loss. Heatherkit's purr returned his good spirits, and he meowed jovially, "Hello, kits! I'd be happy to tell you a story." Lightfoot picked up another scent on the wind and went quiet for a moment. "And hello to you, Kestrelstorm." The elder had mixed emotions when it came to this particular warrior. Never mind their past problems; he didn't hold such petty grudges. It was Kestrelstorm's absence when WindClan needed him and his partial loyalty to ShadowClan that caused Lightfoot some concern. Still, if Ashstar trusted him enough to accept him back, then he wouldn't question his friend's judgement and would accept the warrior as well.

"How about I tell you three about the exciting story of WindClan's conquest?" He meowed, recalling the events that had taken place many seasons before. It would be a good story to remind them that their clan was always strong, and it would even have a nice hidden lesson for them to decipher.

Heatherkit nodded, with another gentle purr. "That sounds exciting! I would love to hear it, Lightfoot. Sandkit, what about you?"

Sandkit nodded, his gaze still on the elder. "Yes please." He mewed curtly, the tom's ears pricking up a little as his request for a story was granted. Sandkit curled his tail around his orange paws and blinked slowly in anticipation.

A purr rumbled in the blind elder's chest. "It was a lovely day. Leaf-fall was just starting, but the weather was still warm and the prey still plentiful." He squinted his already-closed eyes in concentration, willing his memory not to fail him just yet. "Now, I was much younger then, but still not a youngster. Ashstar and I were already fairly experienced warriors; back then she was just Ashwing, my denmate and friend for life. She wouldn't become deputy for several more seasons. Emberleaf was still the medicine cat apprentice, and Gorsefeather, StarClan bless him, was still treating patients and being quite harsh with them. And my children... your mother, Daisypatch, and her siblings had become warriors a few moons before that." It was still a prickly topic to think of his old mate, but thoughts of his beloved kits were always warm and cheery. Lightfoot was silent a moment before he realized that he was getting off topic and probably boring the kits.

"Ah, forgive my rambling. It was a lovely day. The clan was feasting together and celebrating StarClan's gifts. I remember that I was sharing a meal with Icestorm like it was any other day when the wind carried a scent that was quit out of place. Before we could investigate the source, a hungry pack of dogs burst through the gorse walls and attacked the camp!" Lightfoot meowed suddenly, remembering the fear that had come over him like a wave. "One of them went straight for Falconstar, and the other two wrecked the dens and sent cats scattering like crazy. Some of the warriors did their best to fight them off while the rest carried the kits and guided the queens and elders away from camp. I think Kestrelstorm here and his sister, Spiderfur, were among the littlest ones that day. Fortunately no one died, but there were many injuries."

The white elder paused again, tail flicking as he was deep in thought.

OOC: I hope you appreciate this history lesson, I'm doing some real digging to get the facts straight cx

(OOC: Mobile, and yes, the history lesson is greatly appreciated)

Heatherkit listened with wide eyes. Only when Lightfoot had finished, she spoke. "Wow! I'm proud to be a WindClan cat." She paused for a moment, thinking. "My mother, Saltpelt, she said Falconstar is Emberkit and I's great-grandfather."

Kestrelstorm flicked his tail, picking up the caution in Lightfoot's voice, but deciding to ignore it. Kestrelstorm listened quietly to the tale, nodding along. "Yes, the dog attack is my first memory. Falconstar saved me and since then, Falconstar was my idol. I was trained by him you know, his last apprentice." He paused, morning for his idol. "Falconstone, my son, is named after him."

Sandkit's green eyes were wide, his ears swiveling around to catch each cat's input on the story. It was hard for him to imagine his mother as anything younger then she had been... "Could you tell us more?" He squeaked shyly, intrigued.

"Of what, young kit?" The warrior asked, remembering his own young kits in ShadowClan.

Lightfoot chuckled. "Oh, it's far from over, young ones. We were run out of our home by those dogs, but we still thrived. What seemed like a curse became a blessing for us. We were so strong, even the other clans bowed to us!" He laughed, remembering how they had taken much of RiverClan's  territory without being contested. "We camped out on RiverClan territory for at least a moon before we moved on. They never even showed their fishy faces. But it wasn't enough to support our ever-growing clan, so we moved on to bigger and better places." He stopped to consider who was there at the time. "At this point, I believe Kestrelstorm and Spiderfur were apprentices. We went straight to the heartland of our biggest enemies: SkyClan. They were much weaker then. We've managed to make peace, but we never know what they'll do. Especially since their leader was such a big supporter of the Dark Forest." Lightfoot mused to himself for a little while before going on. "Well, only a few measly apprentices and inexperienced warriors bothered to contest us. It wasn't a long battle at all. We then stayed in their camp after they got run out. Our conquest would not be forgotten, and it's thanks to our strong and reliable leader, Falconstar. He was an excellent leader." The elder said, remembering the old tom. "Very long lived. Worth naming a kit after, I believe." He said, nodding in approval. "As good an idol as any. But still just a cat, and still gone. But I have no fear that Ashstar will be great, too."