Stingflame

Six moons passed quickly for the two kits. But for their clanmates it couldn't come quick enough. At their apprenticeship ceremony, Stingpaw was apprenticed to a tom called Sootflame. He began Stingkit's training by teaching them everything he knew from living as a rogue. Throughout this training Stingpaw would hear stories from Sootflame as his life as a rogue. Throughout this time hearing the stories Stingpaw could only think about how they were thankful to be living within a clan rather than alone in the wilderness.

Throughout Stingpaw's apprenticeship they began questioning their gender identity. At first they approached Needlepaw to talk it over to him. Here Stingpaw expressed how they wanted to be a tom. Needlepaw was quick to accept this and immediately started reffering Stingpaw as his brother and as a tom. Needlepaw was there when Stingpaw told his thoughts and feelings to his mother and his mentor. They were unsure at first, but supported him nonetheless.

One fateful night, Stingpaw woke Needlepaw up. Stingpaw explained to Needlepaw that he wanted to take him to a secret place he found while he was out hunting. At first Needlepaw was confused as to why they couldn't do it in the day. But Stingpaw explained that during the day he'd be working on his training. Needlepaw didn't need much convincing, within a matter of moments the two snuck out of camp and were well on their way to Stingpaw's secret place. The two were running through the territory giggling and chatting to oneanother, they felt free in that moment. They made it all the way to the river, Stingpaw was the first to cross the river, using a fallen tree to get across it. As he turned to see if Needlepaw was almost across he heard a splash. As he looked at the tree Needlepaw was nowhere in sight. No, as he looked around he could see Needlepaw was already rushing down stream. Stingpaw took chase and tried everything he could to try and catch up to his brother. By the time Stingpaw caught up to Needlepaw, Needlepaw had washed up onto one of the banks. Still. Unbreathing. Lifeless. Stingpaw stayed there for some time trying to get Needlepaw to wake up. Every second he got more and more frantic. He knew his brother was gone, but he wasn't ready to accept that.

By the time Dawn came, Stingpaw had made it back to camp, carring Needlepaw's body with him. The few that were awake quickly rushed over to Needlepaw's body, while Stingpaw sobbed and wailed. It was only a matter of moments when the pregnant Cherryflight came rushing out, pushing past Stingpaw to see Needlepaw. Upon learning that Needlepaw was walking in StarClan's Plains, she too began to wail with only her mate to comfort her. When Stingpaw tried to approach his mother for comfort, she lashed out. Blaming him for the death of Needlepaw. Stingpaw was taken a back by his mother's harsh words. But he couldn't say she was wrong. It was his fault. If he hadn't taken his brother out that night he'd still be alive. Life wasn't the same without Needlepaw. Stingpaw wasn't the same without Needlepaw.

Weeks passed and Stingpaw continued his training. Things weren't the same. His mother no longer acknowledged him. Any time she did he was only ever greeted with malice and hate. Even when his half sister, Coyotekit was born, he wasn't welcomed to see her. Only for his mother to say that Coyotekit will never learn that Stingpaw was her sibling. She told Stingpaw that she wasn't going to let him near Coyotekit, she wouldn't let Stingpaw lead Coyotekit to her death, like he did with Needlepaw. It hurt. It was earth shattering that his mother was pushing him away as much as she did. But he didn't argue.

As life went on, Stingpaw kept his distance from Cherryflight and her newfound happy family. She was happy not having Stingpaw as a son. She was happy to have replaced him and his brother by Coyotekit, it infuriated him. He hated it. It wasn't Coyotekit's fault, but he couldn't help but hate her too. As he watched from a distance, he watched as Coyotekit grew, all Stingpaw could think of was how much she was like Needlepaw. Not just with her looks but with how she acted. Things she said or did, it just reminded Stingpaw of his lost brother.