Everything begins and ends with flowers [closed]

Having caught the scent of prey and been stalking it for a little while now, Daisyflame made his way towards the Thunderpath border, checking every few fox-lengths or so to make sure he was still on the prey’s trail. It didn’t take long before he caught sight of the plump vole that was mozying along a little bit in front of him, and crouching down, he made sure to keep his head and tail low.

Sneaking up on the rodent, he got closer and closer until he pounced, missing it by just a hair. Scurrying off, he wasn’t about to let his prey get away that easily. Bounding forward, the warrior raced forward, easily catching up. The stench of the approaching Thunderpath filled his nostrils, but he wasn’t worried; he’d be careful like he always was when near it.

Reaching the path, he closed the gap between him and his kill. Leaping forward with legs stretched out and claws unsheathed, he landed squarely onto the vole, killing it with a swift bite. 'Gotcha,' he thought happily, proud of himself for still having the same spunk and speed that he’d had when in his younger days. Unfortunately for the tom, he’d been too absorbed in the chase and had failed to realize where he had put himself.



Rounding the corner and approaching faster than any normal animal could run, a monster raced towards Daisyflame, reaching him before he had any time to react. Plowing over the warrior with ease, it ran off into the evening, leaving Daisyflame lying there on the path, his pelt mangled and blood soaked.



It all happened so fast… why had the world suddenly gone dark… and only for a second?

Standing up, Daisyflame gave his pelt a shake and looked around for the prey that he’d just caught, though what he saw wasn’t at all what he’d been expecting. Lying next to him was a white and ginger pelt just like his and for a moment his heart sank as he presumed it to be his daughter’s, but taking a step forward, he knew exactly who it belonged to. Had he… had he died? No… it couldn’t be...

"Welcome, Daisyflame," a familiar voice spoke behind him out of the silence. Turning around, the white and ginger tom suddenly realized what had really happened, but instead of fear filling up inside of him, he couldn’t help but be… happy. Before him stood his father; Mudfoot; the cat he respected most, even in the afterlife.

Not saying a word as tears began to cover his vision, he jumped over to the rusty colored warrior with a smile on his muzzle and pressed his face into his father’s fluffy, star-covered pelt. After a few moments, he watched as his smiling father took a step back and began to fade to the stars above. Hesitating for a moment, his paws suddenly felt heavy. Was this the path he needed to take now? It was a jaunting thought, especially since he’d be leaving Tulipfang behind, but it meant that he’d be reunited with his family again, which he’d honestly longed for forever… Besides, Tulipfang was a strong warrior who had good morals and knew where she stood in life. She’d be more than capable of carrying on.

It’d been an unexpected way to go, but deep down he knew he had no choice. StarClan needed him for bigger things and whatever their reasoning was, it must’ve been for the best. 'May we see each other again,' he prayed silently to himself about reuniting with Tulipfang someday. Taking one last look behind him, he gave a silent nod, accepting the fate that StarClan had given him. Turning back to his father, he ascended up to the stars, leaving behind the world of the living.

Night had fallen, and Mistyfalcon had taken a small patrol towards the border. The thunderpath was rank and vile, the acrid stench stinging his nose with each inhale, but like it or not Shadowclan's borders still needed to be kept secure. Not many cats liked to intrude upon the treacherous marshes, and while they'd recently found two loner kits and accepted several cats into Shadowclan's rank, the warm late newleaf night looked to be a quiet one as he led the patrol through the sparse foliage along the strip of strange black stone that made up the thunderpath.

A lump of something caught Mistyfalcon's gaze, and initially it was dismissed as roadkill. Monsters ran the thunderpath and were generally heedless of anything that might try to cross, and most prey animals were simply dumb. And yet, the still form on the path was a bit too large to be a squirrel, and wasn't the size of a raccoon, both of which turned up dead on the path often enough to warrant little concern.

He continued to lope along the border, and upon stepping closer to where the figure lay, he could make out flashes of bright fur beneath spilled blood... And the scent of Shadowclan, buried beneath the acrid stench of monsters and blood. Mistyfalcon felt his heart sink at the realization, and ran through a mental list of his clanmates. Tulipfang and Daisyflame were the only ones with that white and ginger pelt.

The thunderpath was still and silent, but Mistyfalcon still instinctively paused, dark gaze sweeping both sides of the path uneasily before he darted forward. The bloodied white and ginger form in the middle of the thunderpath was far too still, limbs twisted and mangled in a manner that could have only been caused by a monster.

Carefully, Mistyfalcon lifted the body, dragging it back to Shadowclan's side of the border alongside one of his patrolmates. It was Daisyflame, he realized then, and it looked like this patrol was going to be cut short. The clan would need to know of the old warrior's death.

His tail flicked, a silent message to the rest of the patrol. Turning, Mistyfalcon silently lifted Daisyflame's body, another warrior moving to help him as they vanished into the marshy terrain in the direction of Shadowclan's camp.