You're Just a Boy With His Mother's Eyes, That Carries the Weight of His Father's Heart

Galepaw

The night air was crisp and the snow crunched underpaw as Galepaw made his way outside the camp. Despite the encroaching clouds, Silverpelt still shone brilliantly overhead, a reminder of the dream he had shared with Sageleaf, a StarClan cat who had once been WindClan's own medicine cat. The wise and beautiful she-cat had told him her own story, one about her brother Slatethroat's anger and betrayal that had ultimately led to his own destruction.

Galepaw's paws led him on along familiar paths through the temporary WindClan territory. The sounds of the lake in the distance soothed him, and since his dream with StarClan, he thought more clearly than he had in moons. He found himself on a sandy decline leading down to the creek bordering ShadowClan territory. He followed it down and launched himself on top of one of the great grey boulders there, a place where he sometimes came to sun himself after a long day of training. As he laid there beneath the stars, he allowed his mind to wander.

Who am I? And what do I want?

Galepaw was a WindClan cat born in lands foreign to the clans. His father, Hailstorm, had died on the journey to the lake, leaving his mother, Morningmoon, to give birth to her kits in a stange land. His sister, Cloudypaw had been born first, named after the cloudy sky, followed by Galepaw, named after the windstorm during their birth. Though he had never known his father, he had always had faith that he was watching his kits grow up from StarClan. Every night Galepaw looked up at Silverpelt he saw Hailstorm looking back at him.

What would my father think of me now? he pondered.

Though Galepaw had always done his best to follow the Warrior Code that was so dear to him, in honor of his father and his clan, he knew that he hadn't been the perfect son. He had fallen for Daisypaw, WindClan's medicine cat - Daisyfang now, fully realized - and medicine cats were bound by their own code that prevented them from taking mates, Galepaw knew. I couldn't possibly burden her with my feelings, he had decided. Even if she did feel the same for me as I do about her, it would only hurt her to put her in such a position when she has a greater duty to WindClan, and... to StarClan. Galepaw had put some distance between himself and the medicine cat, his visits to the medicine den growing less frequent as he focused more on his training with his mentor, Goldengale. The best thing I can do for Daisyfang is to become a strong WindClan warrior that can help protect the clan.

His mind flickered to the day he had told Daisyfang about his nightmares: Cloudypaw running out of reach, the burning, resentful amber eyes gazing back at him, the sensation of being choked with dirt and the mewling of kits. StarClan has deemed you worthy of such a warning, she had told him then, do not disappoint them by doing something brash. But of course, this had been after he had already hurt Cloudypaw when she told him about meeting with that rogue. As usual, when he thought about the rogue cat that had captured his sister's complete attention, Galepaw seethed with anger, scraping his claws along the rock he was laying on, his eyes glinting in the moonlight. Don't do something brash? A growl rose up in his throat. I would shred that flea-bag if I ever set eyes on him!

Galepaw forced his fur to lie flat and sliced at the boulder beneath his paws to let out his frustrations. Daisyfang's omen echoed in his mind once more. There is a trial your sister will face, but it is hers, and hers alone. If you are not careful, it will destroy you too.

It aligned all too perfectly with what his StarClan guide, Sageleaf, had warned him about. Slatethroat never thought what he was doing was against the clan. At the most, maybe against me. He was driven to see Windclan strong. He remembered the vision of Sageleaf pushing her power-hungry brother into the gorge to save herself and her clan. You're not Slatethroat. Galepaw gulped. The nightmares, Daisyfang's omen, and the words of the StarClan medicine cat were all so ominous and foreboding. Galepaw glanced down from his place on the rock and into the moonlit creek, shocked to see Morningmoon's reflection - no, Galepaw thought as he squinted harder. It's just me. Galepaw had never realized how much of his mother's looks had been given to him.

He stared down into the deep, fiery amber eyes reflected back at him, his tail tip twitching anxiously.
"It seems that my paws lie at a split path," he told the reflection. The weight he carried in his heart felt crushing. "What would my father have done?" Hailstorm had been a honorable, brave WindClan warrior. He would know what to do. "Oh, StarClan," he murmured. "What am I to do?"

The moon had begun to set before Galepaw realized it was nearly dawn. Training with Goldengale this morning, he reminded himself, getting to his paws. He headed back to camp, his mind no less burdened than when he had set out that night.

As he arrived back in camp, the first streaks of dawn began to paint the sky, and Silverpelt had begun to fade. He entered the apprentice's den, surprised to find Cloudypaw fast asleep in her nest. He watched his sister as her flank rose and fell steadily, snoring softly. It felt like all of his anger melted in that moment. She looks just like a kit again, he thought fondly. Galepaw nosed his nest closer to his sister's and circled in it a few times before settling, his back brushed up against hers. For now, I can leave my burdens outside the den and enjoy this moment. Curling his nose into his tail fur, he closed his eyes. For the first time in moons, Galepaw did not have nightmares.

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