WHAT IT COST // intro

VOLATILEKIT

BURN THE WORLD FOR ME.
Feb 7, 2024
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It had been sudden, unexpected, yet it came unannounced and uninvited. Death had yet again come to claim its prize to make the living pay. For everyone it was always the first time to experience the cold aftermath after death's unwelcomed kiss. That day it had just been another normal day but chaos had like a plague stormed into the camp, familliar and unfamilliar faces being the cause of this catastrophic day that would change one kit's life forever. Former clanmates now scorched as enemies. Like a livid storm they had attacked with victious intentions.

Ones brother having fought so bravery for the clan, to protect everything they hold dear only to lose their life along the line. A mother who had left the safety of the nursery in a desperate attempt to save their grown up baby, and the one left behind had been the forgotten child who was now suddenly orphaned. With two innocent eyes had watched the slaughter which had tainted the kit's eyes blood red. Pure and innocent no more. Four months old and life changed just like that. Family ript apart,shattered....and left was him with emptiness as their company.

Everyone had been in a rush, a hurry to see who had made it or not. To busy to notice, to care about the two bodies bleeding beside one another. Small paws had crept closer, hesitant and slow but moving forward until freezing right in front of the bodies to stare, and stare...and stare. It was almost like a game of waiting. Like if standing there long enough the two bodies would rise from their graves and together they could have laughted at death. But no such thing happend, just still, cold, lifeless bodies. No matter how long nothing happend, nothing changed not even when the kit dared to move the mother's body with a low plea to wake up, but still nothing. Indifferent to the touch.

Unable to decide what to do (how was he supposed to know?) Volatilekit, the kit's name had moved closer to the two bodies to place himself down at the cold ground in the blood to rest among them. Maybe then death would come to him as well so he could reunite with the only two who had ever adored him.

It had started to rain he rememberd. Even with the sun scorching down their backs, to blind them like a distraction with the awful beaming light. To the rest of the world it might have shined that day for all he knew but to Volatilekit it had been raining...his world was still raining until this day. Would it ever stop?

Days had passed since then, but for the kit time had stopped entirely. Even now he remained in the same spot where the mother and brother had got slaughtered days ago... staring at the empty spot, the hollowish existence of imaginaring bodies. Not speaking, food untouched and ignored. The world around had lost its importance. He did not wish to be anywhere where the sun touched, cursing it even for it's existence. Death seemed all the more alluring and tempting. It had always been that way, now more then ever before.

 
AS HE RAISED HIS FIST BEFORE HE SPOKE — Rattleheart had always despised just how quickly change could come about when it wanted to. How one's entire world could be shifted upside down without a pause to let them take a breath, or even process their emotions about it before the next cruel twist came. It also served to make things all the more frustrating when they didn't change at all, in spite of efforts made. Windclan constantly seemed to be stuck in a limbo between the two, subjected to sudden and rampant violent shifts that swept the paws out from beneath all of them while at the same time constantly viewed as if it was Sootstar's Windclan. The last gathering had made that all the more clear, Rattleheart's absence not preventing him from hearing about the way the other clans had spat out their name like bile.

If only that had been the only injustice his home had faced that night.

Duskclan descending upon their camp had not been wholly a surprise, considering how their blackhearted faux leader had sworn revenge against them all. Yet he had still been shocked by the sheer boldness of it, not sure how Granitepelt and his pack of dogs thought things would work out. Windclan had never been defenseless, regardless of whether it was the night of a gathering or not. The blood that had painted his claws that night was proof enough of that, even a queen like himself stealing away the life of another when it became absolutely necessary. Had Thornrunner been the only life lost that night, they would have had no cause for anything but joy. Cheering over their enemy's loss of another valuable soldier. Unfortunately, lives had been torn away from them in equal measure.

He could still remember the chill of Nightingalecry's body slumped nearby, motionless and struck mute after Ebonylight's beastly actions. Hers had been only the first body he had seen as he had slowly trudged out of the nursery, scanning around for any injured clanmates that needed his assistance to reach Wolfsong's den. When he had first seen Volatilekit there his heart had sunk, thinking that the child was yet another corpse claimed by Duskcan's cruelty. A jolt of relief had run through the tunneler when he realized that wasn't the case, though the reality of the situation wasn't truly better. The little tom was alive, sure, but he had been left with nothing.

Nothing except for his clanmates, which Rattleheart prayed to Starclan would be enough.

With his own litter to worry about - especially given they were finally emerging from the nursery - he could be forgiven for not immediately noticing Volatilekit's absence. It wasn't until he attempted a headcount of the nursery that he realized they were missing a face, his monochrome fur bristling as his head swung back and forth in a frantic search. "Volatilekit...?" His voice echoed lightly through the camp as he stepped out of the nursery, only finally relaxing when he spotted the motionless lump of fur frozen in place. "Oh... Volatilekit. Honey, you should come back into the nursery. Have some food, talk with us all. Please?" Rattleheart couldn't keep the slight desperation from his voice, rough and strained as he nudged his nose lightly against Volatilekit's side.


  • 75034712_8183RsjuzqJmQXv.png
    longhaired black and white tom with pale green eyes
    53 moons old; ages the 1st every month
    afab; uses he/she/they pronouns
    homosexual homoromantic; mated to venomstrike
    sibling to scorchstreak, lizardbounce, and rabbitclaw
    currently mentoring no one
    somewhat difficult to befriend; wary but kind
    "speech", thoughts, attacking
    peaceful powerplay allowed
    all opinions are ic
 

Death. Rivewhisper had nearly tasted it herself. Had watched her father convulse as he lost lives. Remembered how cold Bearflight was during his vigil. To say she had been marked by it time and time again was not something to forget. She knew it, unfortunate as it was. How it turned your heart cold and ripping piece by piece of it away. Now, Death? She would never wish a kit to experience it- much less lose all of it because of it.

Rivewhisper had been keeping an eye out for Rattleheart, bringing him prey when she could. Being as close to Redheart as she was, she felt... not obligated, but better to be helping them. Whatever prey could go to the queens, kits, and elders, went to them, no questions asked. She'd go hungry before a kit did, and that was fact. Rivewhisper exhaled a breath softly as she approached with a mouse hung from her jaws, blue eyes shifting towards Volatilekit and Rattleheart. Ears flattened gently against her head. There was no game that could cheer this kit up- not the way haunted eyes stared at a particular spot like that.

She remembers doing the same for her brother.

A rattled inhale followed and she stepped closer to the queen, nudging her gently as Rivewhisper set down the mouse. "I brought some prey by for anyone who's hungry." Rivewhisper said, settling down in an uncomfortable sitting position to the side of the conversation now. She didn't want to crowd the kit going through grief and loss. That would be uncouth. "Is there anything either of you would like special? I might be able to find it." She offered in a soft voice.
  • "speech"
  • RIVEWHISPER she/her, moor runner of windclan, eleven moons.
    LH broken braided chocolate tabby with high white and piercing blue eyes. scars stretch over her left eye and across her stomach. graceful, sleek, average height. built for running and stamina
    mentored by snakehiss / sunstar / / mentoring no one
    small romantic interest in redheart / / sibling to featherspine ; sunlitwing ; bearflight ; singedpaw
    peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking
    penned by dallas ↛ dallasofnines on discord, feel free to dm for plots.