Paledove's Request [Paledove Kits] [o]

Honeypaw

Honeypaw had never been particularly fond of hunting or fighting. Since she was a young kit, the sight and scent of blood disturbed her, and she hated the prospect of inflicting wounds on other creatures. This made performing regular training and duties particularly hard for the apprentice, so she always jumped at the opportunity to help out in other ways - deticking the elders, gathering herbs, fetching moss, and helping kit-sit, which is what she loved the most. Paledove had always been happy to accept Honeypaw's help, and Honeypaw found herself frequenting the nursery more and more... until the wolves attacked, that is.

Honeypaw shivered at the memory. It had forced all five clans to flee the lake, back into the snowy mountains in the midst of leafbare, and only just after the medicine cats had managed to cure the illness that plagued them since before she was born. Honeypaw often found herself wondering, is this a test sent from StarClan? From the prey shortage in the forest that pushed the clans into the mountains to the lake territories, to the plague that settled amongst the cats, to the wolves attacking them and driving them back out... If this is a test, it is a cruel one.

The arduous journey back through the mountains was not without its losses. Many cats lost their lives on the journey so far - from within SkyClan and the other clans, too. Honeypaw's worst nightmares came to life when Paledove began to lose strength, eventually succumbing to the cold, leaving all her kits behind.

Paledove's departure from this world had shaken Honeypaw to the core of her being. For almost as long as she could remember, she had been helping serve the queen and her kits, and had grown quite fond of her. Had she been a bit older, she thought that maybe the pale queen might even be able to consider Honeypaw her friend.

And now she's gone, thought Honeypaw. And I'll never be able to talk to her again.

The queen's last words has entrusted her kits into Honeypaw's primary care, and although she was still but an apprentice, it felt as though Paledove's request had given her life the meaning she had been searching for. Honeypaw was honored to be the kits' permanent kit-sitter, plagued with grief though she was. I can't let this defeat me, she'd resolved. I have to be strong for all the kits.

SkyClan finally found time to rest in the shelter of a shallow cave, and some of the warriors had gone out to hunt while the rest of the clan sought to recover their energy for the next stretch. Honeypaw gathered all of Paledove's kits about her and tucked her tail around them protectively, bringing them toward the warmth of her flank comfortingly, as she had watched Paledove do so many times before in the nursery. The kits had taken the news hard, as was expected. Paledove's kits had an extremely close bond with their mother. Honeypaw's heart broke for them, but they also gave her the strength she needed to push on.

They're just like me, Honeypaw thought. Thornstalker had been her mother, but she had died shortly after kitting. But Paledove's kits had been able to grow up under their mother's watchful care, and that made it harder for them to lose their mother. Like Wolfblossom had taken over the maternal role for Honeypaw and her littermates, now Honeypaw was assuming a similar role for Paledove's kits. Life is strange, she mused.

"Kits," she mewed gently. "Huddle together and stay close to me." Though the cave kept out the worst of the wind, it was still quite chilly. She nosed each kit in turn to tuck closer to her body, sharing her warmth, and purred, "Condorkit, Yewkit, Myrtlekit, Ospreykit, Deerkit, Cricketkit." Honeypaw rasped her tongue over each of the kits as she murmured their names. "You have been so brave, just like the great cats of LionClan," she praised. "I know it's scary, and you're very, very sad. And you will likely feel sad for a very long time, too. And that's okay." Her heart broke for the little kits. "You will always have me, though. I will always look out for you, no matter what. Paledove is always watching you from StarClan, now. You have to make her proud." Her pale blue gaze met each kit's in turn, and she let out a soft sigh.

name. uwubers timezone. EST discord. @ uwubers code.kiikko

Yewkit was huddled close to his siblings - the chill of the cave piercing his short pelt like the fangs of the beasts that ravaged his home. Honeypaw's soft fur was a comfort he clung desperately to, and his face was buried into her pelt. He breathed in her scent, laced with Mallowkit's - a cruel reminder. His small body was trembling, partly because of the cold and partly because of Paledove's last words to him echoing in his mind. The disappointment that laced his mother's voice during her lecture was haunting, and the weight of her newly discovered expectations of him can only be described as suffocating. And now, she's gone. He'll never hear anything else from her. He'll never get closure. He'll never smell her scent again or touch her soft fur.

As Honeypaw spoke, his left ear flicked. He slowly lifted his head, casting a sideways glance at his littermates nestled beside him. His heart yearned for Mallowkit to be alongside them too - being like a brother to him. I have to be strong for all of them. He thought. Paledove would be disappointed in me if they reassured me. SkyClanners never cry.

Honeypaw's words resonated with him. Bravery - a member of 'LionClan', whatever that was. He swallowed hard. All things that Paledove stated he simply lacked. He displayed that with his cries in the clearing. He unsheathed his claws, remembering Mallowkit's gentle words of reassurance that were cooed to him. He vowed silently that he would change that. He would be a real, genuine SkyClanner and never shed another tear. He'll be a true, courageous warrior. He would live up to Paledove's expectations and make her proud, just like Honeypaw said.

He glanced up at Honeypaw as she finished speaking, her beautiful icy gaze meeting his - and for that moment, he saw love, understanding, and reassurance dancing in them. But, she'll never be their mother. She's almost a kit just like the rest of us. He thought. She's a kit that is trying to fill footsteps too big for her. A kit that seemed to understand, but he didn't know how. At the moment, I guess we need it. We have nobody else.

"Thank you, Honeypaw." He broke the silence, mewing quietly. His tone was almost formal and detached.