Rushing River

Fawnbreeze was born as a Clan cat into a Clan known as StormClan. StormClan lay on a flat plain, with grasses riding higher than a cat’s body. The wind blew strongly against the StormClan territory, and in the times between seasons changing, the storms that gave the Clan their name would ravage the land. The cats were used to it, though, and never particularly minded the pelting rain or winds so powerful they could blow a kit away.

Fawnkit was born to this Clan, with two siblings; Honeykit and Bluekit. Her mother was a beautiful cat named Goldenrye, and her father an elegant tom named Rushingriver. Fawnkit was the spitting image of her mother, and her family life was relatively well and stable. Before she knew it, Fawnkit and her siblings became apprentices, with her sister Honeykit--now Honeypaw--becoming a medicine cat apprentice. Fawnpaw’s mentor was a ginger tom named Rustfur. He taught her well, teaching her easily the ways of a warrior.

The first tragedy of her life came when she was eleven moons old. A patrol went missing one day, a patrol of five cats, two of which were Goldenrye and Bluepaw. None of them were ever seen again; the last evidence of their existence was a tussock of gray fur and a spattering of blood. Grief hit the Clan hard, because everyone had lost someone that day, and Rushingriver grew distant while Fawnpaw and Honeypaw grew closer, drawn together by their loss. They were not only sisters, but best friends. Another apprentice, Whitepaw, had lost a parent, too; the last one of theirs, as well. Whitepaw had never really liked any of the apprentices, and he especially despised Fawnpaw due to a series of events in their early apprenticeship, and the loss only made him grow to hate the others even more.

When Fawnpaw was made a warrior and given the name Fawnbreeze, she was readier than ever to help serve her Clan with everything that she had in her. However, this was not long to last. That same apprentice, now a warrior alongside her with the new name of Whitefox, had other things in mind.

She was spending a rather pleasant day out with her sister--who had, in the meantime, been named to Honeymeadow. Honeymeadow was specifically looking for herbs, but Fawnbreeze had tagged along, deciding to help her carry them and then maybe even hunt a little in the meantime. They were walking along the gorge to find a specific herb, and they were deep in conversation, discussing the Clan’s latest gossip and what Honeymeadow should look for in an apprentice when the time finally came. However, they were interrupted when they heard a yowl. It happened so quickly. A flash of white emerged from the tussocks of grass that framed the gorge, and Fawnbreeze felt a heavy weight shove into her. She staggered to the side and tried to catch herself, but her paws landed on empty air and she slipped. She barely managed to catch the edge of the cliff, but she could see Whitefox’s pure white fur for a moment before she slipped further down. The cliff’s edge obscured her vision, but she could hear Whitefox’s angry snarls and Honeymeadow’s cry. Fawnbreeze’s heart jumped into her throat and she tried to climb upward, but the dirt and clay gave way beneath her and she came further to the rushing, terrifying waters below.

The fight above her continued, and she could barely make out what was going on, but then she heard pounding pawsteps and the sound of a familiar cry--”Honeymeadow!” It was her father’s voice. A moment later she heard a snarling shout from Whitefox, one that quickly turned into a pained shriek. That was the last she heard of Whitefox; whether he died or fled, she would never know. All she remembered was seeing her father lean across the cliff’s edge, his grayish-blue muzzle stained with blood, and reach out a paw. She reached forward to try to take it, and her claws grazed his… and then the dirt beneath her collapsed, sending her falling into the cascading waters below.

Rushingriver’s expression of horror was forever imprinted on her mind.

--

She didn’t remember what happened in between the fall and when she woke up. When she did open her eyes again, though, she was in an unfamiliar land, being dragged by the scruff of her neck by a large cat. Immediately, she yanked away, taking a few staggering steps away and puffing her fur up. She didn’t recognize the cat, their scent, or the forest they had dragged her to. The cat looked more tired that threatened, though, and sighed.

“I was helping you,” the cat--a she-cat--said.

Fawnbreeze seemed uncertain, but then recalled the previous events. “I… where did you find me?”

“You were half-dead on the bank of the river back there. I wasn’t planning on leaving you there to be crow-food.”

“Oh,” she said softly. How long had that river been? How far away was her Clan? “Do you know where StormClan is?”

“StormClan? Are you one of those Clan cats, then? No, though,” she responded. “Where do you live?”

“The grasslands upriver.”

The cat seemed like she was thinking, but she shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. There’s a forest upriver, but I don’t know what’s beyond that. You must have been in there for a pretty long ways. No offense, but with that long of a ride, I don’t know how you aren’t dead yet. All you’ve got is some soaked fur and that cut on your face.”

Fawnbreeze’s pelt prickled uncomfortably. “StarClan’s blessings,” she merely whispered, feeling the sting in her muzzle. She didn’t notice it before.

“Do you… want to go home?” the cat hesitantly asked. “What’s your name, anyway? I’m Briar.”

“Fawnbreeze,” she said quietly, looking down. The cat posed an interesting question. She did, sort of. But at the same time… she was hesitant. Was there really a home for her? From the sounds she heard, Honeymeadow was not likely to survive what had happened. Her father was the only one that she could go back for, but after how distant he had become with her mother’s death, he would no doubt become even more so after Honeymeadow’s.

“I don’t know,” she said quietly. “I need to think on it.”

--

With time, she decided she wouldn’t. The Clan would march along without her. Her family was gone, and her father was no doubt a shell of who he once was. It was better that she make a name for herself her own way, and she would start fresh, as a warrior not for a Clan, but for herself.

So, she tagged along with Briar, a nomadic cat who had up until then traveled for herself. They saw many things together, but traveling took a toll on a cat. It was Fawnbreeze who brought up the idea of settling down, and Briar agreed, having traveled even longer than Fawnbreeze had. Though exploring was in her blood, it could get tiring.

The territory they found to settle in was a nice one. A cool lakeside forest with the undergrowth rather thin, full of only ferns and the occasional thistle. It was only upon exploring the lakeside that they found out that the land was partially inhabited by a cat Clan--HazeClan. Fortunately, the leader, a very young cat named Lilystar, did not particularly mind their presence, as long as they stayed beyond the territory markers. That was fine enough for them, and after finding a small hollow in the southeastern highlands of the territory, they decided this, in fact, would be their home.