Swirl

Bubble, a Frost Colony molly, had a fling with an outsider that resulted in a litter of kittens. The kittens’ father left Bubble to raise them by herself, leading Bubble to worry about her kittens’ futures and whether or not she’d be a good mother. This is when Swirl and her siblings Ice and Glaze were born. Swirl and Glaze were both energetic kittens, while Ice was quiet and dainty. As Swirl got older, she came to prefer playing with Glaze due to their personalities aligning better than her and Ice.

Though Swirl was an excitable gal, she loved settling down to hear her mother’s tales. Knowing her mom was the giver of the Frost Colony, she’d get plenty of exciting information once she was older, too! Swirl dreamed of dashing through her life with ideal adventures; exploring her home, proving herself to the Frost Colony, making lots of friends. Only one issue with all of that, she was kind of a klutz. Not many cats easily took to her loud mouth, but Swirl was nevertheless proud of herself and determined.

Swirl was older now and couldn’t be always sticking to her mom’s side, as much as she wanted to. Before, she was so excited about growing up, but now she was quite worried about the transition! Fortunately, though, Bubble had plenty to teach her and her worries were eased when she got to know the other residents of the Frost Colony. Her fav was Six-Claws, he was really entertaining! Swirl adored his stories, it reminded her of his mother’s, except a lot more fun to follow with colorful plots and secrets about ghosts. He even showed her around the borders, and she got to meet his kind friend from the Fire Colony, Thunder.

Blobert was having kittens of their own, and Swirl almost squealed when she finally got to see them. She imagined getting to teach them all the stories she heard when she was younger, how nice that’d be! But maybe she’d have to leave that to Blobert themself, and maybe even her mom. Well, shortly after the news of Blobert’s kittens was another litter, Tux and Snake’s! Such a perfect family, it got Swirl wondering if maybe she’d want a family of her own someday… Though others thought her to be immature and probably not suited to be in charge of a kitten, she really thought they were precious and appreciated their naive honesty.

Spring rolled around and brought about change. New colonies popped up around the Frost Colony, as well as changes in high ranks in the other colonies. But for Swirl, the most impactful change was the worst. She’d lost Six when he was swept away in a current and drowned. All those pleasant memories of hearing his funny stories and venturing with him around the borders were… painful. Whenever she dreamed of those good times, it reminded her that she wouldn’t ever see him again. She tried her best to block anything to do with him out of her mind, which just backfired on her.

When Swirl got the news that Thunder had passed as well, she wanted to shut down. She didn’t understand how the Frost Colony could move on after Six’s death. When she lashed out at the cats around her, she wondered if it was wrong of her to be so upset. Swirl’s emotions began to numb as she failed to think of where to go from here. She didn’t want to move on.

One night, Swirl sat alone by the Fire-Frost border, wallowing in past memories. Perhaps in a stroke of luck, a Fire Colony cat spotted her and came over to introduce herself. She said her name was Camellia, and Swirl felt immediately soothed by the chocolate tabby’s soft voice. The two immediately clicked when Swirl shared why she was there. Camellia shared stories of Thunder, and though she didn’t know much about her, she was still left wanting some sort of resolution. Though it was certainly no resolution, Swirl and Camellia were able to find solace in sharing stories. The two became good friends, occasionally visiting each other to share stories.

Swirl heard Camellia had been trying to connect to the rest of the Fire Colony, as she’d never really tried to make friends. Swirl herself felt alone in the Frost Colony, alienating herself initially out of grief. Now she just didn’t know her place in the colony.