Lightkit and Tumblekit were born in the dead of leaf-bare to a quiet couple named Furrowdrop and Dropletear. Lightkit was named for his bright pelt against the snow storm outside, like a beacon of light amongst the grey. Unfortunately, Furrowdrop grew sick not long after birthing the kits, her body frail and weak enough that the sickness that had been spreading in the background that leaf-bare left her teetering on the edge of death. She had to be separated from the kits, and was looked after by the second medicine cat, Tawnycry. Dropletear wouldn't leave his mate's side, and thus fell to the same sickness as well. The two died as they lived, held in each other's arms.

The kits were given to the first medicine cat, Chrysanthemumwatcher, whom had started her own family with kits only a moon older than Lightkit and Tumblekit. Chrysanthemumwatcher and her mate, Lilacshuffle, welcomed them warmly to the family. They never hid the fact that Lightkit and Tumblekit were not biologically theirs, but helped instill within the two that it didn't matter that they weren't blood related. With a few minor hiccups regarding the kits' health, the two lasted the leaf-bare and grew quickly after that. They learned their parents names (though Lightkit called them Mumcher and Lifle due to difficulty pronouncing their full names) and played with their older adopted siblings just as normal kits did. Lightkit stayed small, like Dropletear, though he wasn't nearly as fluffy as his father was. Instead of the long fur that both his parent's held, his grew short and thick. He could remember whispers from Chrysanthemumwatcher and Lilacshuffle about how different the kits were from their quieter, more introverted biological parents. He didn't pay them much mind.

As the kits weaned and Chrysanthemumwatcher had to resume her duties, Lightkit began to gain an interest in work as a medicine cat. He would follow her around every time she left the nursery, with shiny eyes and various questions about different illnesses and their cures. She had thought it was some kind of guilt, for his parents death from sickness, but he didn't hold any of those kinds of feelings. Eventually, she came to understand that he was just genuinely fascinated with how the body worked, and how to cure the quirks that came with the living. While Tumblekit spent more time with Lilacshuffle, learning about warrior duties, Lightkit began learning from Chrysanthemumwatcher. The two held a special bond, not only as mother and son, but as scientists and healers.

Even with his experience in medicine, Lightpaw became a warrior apprentice at first. Hollowclan already had two medicine cats, Mumcher and her apprentice-turned-full-meddie Tawnycry, and none of them (Lightpaw included) thought about adding him to the list. He was actually apprenticed to a much older warrior named Daisysky. They were the only one of their litter not in the Elder's den, and Lightpaw internally cried in disbelief that his mentor was so ancient compared to everyone else. He doubted that they could even keep up with his training, and that he would lag behind his peers due to his mentor's age. However, he was pleasantly surprised to find out that Daisysky had just the energy to help Lightpaw excel in his few moons of warrior apprenticeship. They didn't get too into offense as much as hunting and dodging, as Lightpaw was hesitant to strike out at his frailer mentor, and Daisysky didn't have the same balance or strength as their hayday, but it was still enough to keep Lightpaw on track with the rest of the apprentices.

Around the next moon and a half, Lightpaw would be plagued by visions. It was the same three, one of Tawnycry within the nursery as a new parent, another of Tawnycry conversing with Mumcher, and the last of a pool of watery mud. One day, a patrol came back missing a key member: Tawnycry. They had been hunting for herbs around a more watery area of the swamp, and mud had suctioned Tawnycry up to the chest. The more Tawnycry struggled, the more the mud sucked them in. They were still alive out there, and the patrol gathered more warriors to go out and save the second medicine cat. Lightpaw was not chosen to go, but he was smart enough to piece together what happened while listening to the patrol when they returned, still without Tawnycry. They had lost the exact area that Tawnycry got stuck in, and it took more time to find them. By the time they found the meddie, they had sunk to their mouth, unable to cry out for help, which contributed to not being able to find them. They were weak and baked under the summer sun, and even with someone digging to keep their nose and mouth above the mud, Tawnycry still passed before a solution to get them out could be found.

It was a brutal end, and it stuck to Lightpaw as a cautionary tale of dangers within the swamp, as well as left him to question these visions he had about the situation. He didn't tell anyone struggling alone as he watched their friends and family grieve over their sudden loss. Mumcher took it hard as well, being Tawnycry's former mentor and close friend. Lightpaw did his best to comfort her, even shirking some of his duties to help her within the medicine den. It took a moon for Mumcher to ask him about becoming her apprentice. She had thought about it since Tawnycry's death, as such a sudden death made her concerned for the clan's safety with just one medicine cat. What if something similar happened to her, leaving Hollowclan without a medicine cat? It's not like they could go to the other clans, with how estranged they were. Lightpaw assured her about how she wouldn't die so suddenly, but also agreed to become her apprentice within the same breath. It turned out that she had already spoken to the leader and Daisysky, and they had both agreed with her, though Lightpaw still made an effort to be around Daisysky after his transfer.

It didn't take long for Lightpaw to catch up on his medicine curiculum, as most of it had been taught to him through kithood. The rest of his apprenticeship was uneventful in the training department, other than the lesson on emotional strength. It was important, and Lightpaw found it to be one of the hardest to handle. Otherwise, he was still stuck with visions. Once one set of three had left, another three would come in only a moon or less later. They were all pretty uneventful, and one was always correct in its ending. He couldn't tell if they were able to be influenced, or if the others were red herrings and the ending had been decided from the beginning. He's lucky that the emotional strength lesson gave him the ability to come to terms with this strange power of his, though he still didn't tell anyone

It was only 3 short moons later that Mumcher's fears came to pass, and waking nightmares began to plague Lightpelt's days within that time. One vision, of Mumcher lying on the beach side-by-side with Lilacshuffle. Another, of blood-spattered grass along the forest's edge. The last, of Lilacshuffle lying alone in the forest under the cover of night. He couldn't tell who the subject of these visions was, as both Mumcher and Lilacshuffle were present in two visions each. However, it immediately became clear to him who it would be as Mumcher grew sick from an unknown illness. It didn't seem to be contagious, but it was making her weaker as time passed. They began frantically searching for something to help her, though Mumcher gave up on that only a half moon later. Her son only stopped when Mumcher-- Chrysanthemum begged him to, confiding that she knew in her gut that nothing could fix this. It was just enough time together to reminisce and make new final memories.

The moment she had asked to go to the beach, Lightpelt knew that it was time. He had to quickly step away to pull himself together, come to terms with everything in a few short minutes, before he went back over. The family happily agreed, and Lightpelt offered to carry Chrysanthemumwatcher to the beach side-by-side with Lilacshuffle, nearing elder age at this point. He could hear her ragged breathing in his ears as he spoke about nothing in general until they reached the sands of the beach. The waves nearly drowned out their voices, save for the quiet "thank you" that rang in his ears as she carefully slipped off of him and layed in the warm rays of the sun. He stood back as Lilacshuffle snuggled into her side. The tears were already falling as he watched his parents spend their final moments together, until she layed her head down for the final time. He shuffled up and took her other side, and they stayed there until the sun set and their tears had dried. Just as when they had left, the family arrived back with Lightpelt carrying Chrysanthemumwatcher. The clan held their final vigil for her, and he was grateful for every single moment they had spent together, and that he could call her his mother.

One last sentence before she was taken for burial. "I love you, Mum."

It's been about another 5 moons since her death, and Lightpelt is doing... fine. His grief, while still present, has faded to an acceptable level, and he's able to carry on as he had before, minus the warm body that had given him advice and helped him fix his mistakes. It's time for him to keep moving, with Chrysanthemumwatcher's eyes on him from afar and the visions to help guide him toward the future.