you will be legendary // storytime for grandkits

[HOWLINGSTAR]

Howlingstar settles herself comfortably just outside of the nursery, her tail curled neatly around her paws. Around her, five young kits gather, their eyes glittering in the moonlight that filters through the canopy above. It’s nights like these she treasures most. There are no patrols to worry over, no skirmishes to hear of, no decisions to make. It is just a grandmother spending quality time with her kin, the newest arrivals to their family tree. She offers to watch them whenever possible, and she’s sure Nightbird is enjoying the break.

"Listen closely, little ones, and I will tell you a story of the Great Clans," She rumbles gently as she sweeps her verdant gaze across them. "Long ago, in the heart of these forests, there were three mighty clans: LionClan, TigerClan-“ She flicks her tail-tip to brush playfully against Tigerkit’s nose, “and LeopardClan. Each clan was blessed with unique strengths and vast differences, and they roamed these lands as guardians of their territories."

"LionClan," She continues, her eyes glinting with faux ferocity, "was known for their flowing golden manes and unwavering courage. They were bold and majestic, their thunderous roars echoing through the trees as they defended their territory with unmatched strength." She puffs out her chest, lifting her chin to sit as tall and proud as she can to illustrate the lions’ nobility.

"TigerClan," She goes on, her voice taking on a deeper resonance, "was revered for their cunning and stealth. They moved through the undergrowth like shadows, their striped fur blending seamlessly with the dappled sunlight. Legend has it that they spent so much time in the darkness that the shadows themselves stained their fiery pelts with black stripes.” A gentle forepaw reaches forward to brush back Tigerkit’s tabby fur, exemplifying what TigerClan gave her family.

"And then there was LeopardClan," Howlingstar adds softly, her gaze drifting towards the starlit sky. "LeopardClan cats were known for their grace and adaptability. They had the fastest paws of all of the Great Clans and could move swiftly over all terrain. They were elusive and adaptable, their black-spotted fur helping them blend in." Tilting her head, she looks to each of the kits, waiting to see if any of them have any questions.

// @TIGERKIT @STORMKIT @LIGHTNINGKIT @TWILIGHTKIT ⋆ @BAYINGKIT
​

 

[bayingkit]

she is pleased when her grandmother comes to visit. times like these are rare for the oft - busy tabby cat, and bayingkit longs for it every day yet. when her mother is seen off with raccoonstripe for the evening, the girl is settled beneath the star - strung canopies overhead, batting at a familiarly striped tail as its owner begins a slow, wisened story. for once, she keeps her quiet as howlingstar speaks, careful to keep her claws sheathed as she chases flicking tailtip. only once it twitches tigerkit’s way does she diverge, nose twisting with something dark for only a second, tilting tall ears forward and chuffing her delight instead at each clan she names ; the mighty lionclan, the cunning tigerclan, the elusive leopardclan.

lionclan was strong, bold and ferocious.. struck with golden manes that bayingkit pictures bright as the sun itself. she thinks of bigfang’s fiery ruff, his powerful muscles, his hulking size.. a descendant of lionclan, he had to be. howlingstar puffs out her chest, lifts her chin in mimic nobility and bayingkit does the same, stands taller and huffs a breath into her lungs that pushes her chest outward like a gorged toad. her story continues on, to tigerclan, and a single paw reaches out — brushes the stripes alongside tigerkit’s back, weaves words of shadow and stealth that bayingkit cannot hear above the pulse of explosive jealousy that rises suddenly, violently in her chest. she had those, too.

lupine muzzle twitches, jut - whiskered face pinching in muzzled agitation ; her tail lashes and, under the guise of tackling after her grandmother’s limbs, curls into a crouch before launching onto tigerkit’s back where gentle paws had just brushed.

if she lands, she will attempt to tug her sisters ear between teeth pulled carefully back ( acting up in front of grandma is bad ), squaring her shoulders and hoping — proving — the spirits of tigerclan flow through her the same, hoping she looked all the more cunning, more capable than her. after a moment, the burly kitten slaps a heavy paw onto her sisters head instead, lifting her chin as the tale of leopardclan comes to a close with spittle catching moonlight at the corner of her slobbering muzzle, ” ma’maw. “ she barks, curiosity softening the ever-growling edge of her voice. mismatched eyes gleam against the silver night, kittish and wide as they’d ever been — she wanted to know more, takes it all to memory, ” did um, did lionclan, tigerclan ‘n spottyclan have leaders like you? “ maybe she hadn’t been listening to that last part too well..

☽ ˚ ｡ 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐁𝐋𝐀𝐙𝐄𝐃 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐒  𓃥 【 𝑰𝑻𝑺 𝑫𝑨𝑹𝑲 𝑰𝑵 𝑯𝑬𝑹𝑬 】

• i.
  
  
• 
  
  
• ” speech “
• BAYINGKIT——————— SHE / HER, KITTEN OF THUNDERCLAN. NIGHTBIRD xx RACCOONSTRIPE, SISTER TO TWILIGHTKIT, TIGERKIT, STORMKIT & LIGHTNINGKIT. 3 MOONS OLD, SMELLS LIKE DISRUPTED SOIL & WET FUR. PENNED BY ANTLERS.
  a large, unsightly black tabby kitten.
  
  mongrelish, standing all thistlethorn fur and bared teeth, bayingkit would be thought roguesblood if not for the dogtooth crown she uncomfortably bears. a hereditary haunting lies in the shag of ornate black striping and long limbs that do not yet suit her wide, slouching shoulders ; her fathers daughter, laced in dredge and filth moreso than he’d ever been. a constant, incessant need to make herself small forms in hunched spine and weary, whale - eyed suspicion, communicating mostly in rumbling growls.. bayingkit tends to hold herself with a tuck tailed and trembling livewire of feral volatility.
  

  teething, easily frustrated with her lack of vocal skill and highly reactive. prone to biting, swatting and general moodiness it is highly encouraged to correct. powerplay is allowed for disciplinary swipes, scruffing and general redirection.

  
  
  

​

 

[STORMKIT]

Howlingstar was lucky he'd been playing all day, because man... stories weren't his number-one favourite thing in the world. He'd been thinking that, at least until she'd said ... it was gonna be a story about the ancient Great Clans. That, that piqued his interest, yeah. Visibly, too- ears swivelled to make two devil-horn points atop his head, and copper eyes rounded with tangible fascination as they settled in the direction of Howlingstar's voice.

LionClan- TigerClan- LeopardClan. Shadowed fur skittered with thrill. Hey, that middle one- that was like Tigerkit, wasn't it? Stormkit's teeth locked close together. Huh, how was that fair then? Was Tigerkit especially descended? But that didn't make any sense, did it...

Still, he'd have a one up over a bunch of older kits if he knew this story, so Stormkit resolved to listen intently, ignoring the distracting sounds of Bayingkit shuffling and pouncing and whatever else. LionClan had big manes... were ferocious ... like ThunderClan, then? Well, if the mane was like... like the heat of the sun, warming your whole body. Yeah, it was probably that. And yeah, ThunderClan defended their territory! Kicked out and bit into any stupid Skyclanners who fell over the border or Riverclanners who had a problem with, uh, those rocks. Or something.

TigerClan- he was really, really listening to this bit. Stained by the shadows- wasn't that cool? Stormkit fidgeted, wondering if any one of them had the stealth of TigerClan in them. Maybe Tigerkit ... that'd make sense. Bayingkit, probably not, cos she was always growling and stuff.. and he could always hear when Twilightkit was coming. Really, all of his siblings he could hear coming from quite a mile off. And Lightningkit, she shuffled. Well, except for him! Although he supposed no one could probably hear themself coming ...

LeopardClan, though- they seemed pretty cool. Adaptable- yeah! Whatever that meant. But they could blend in realy well, and Stormkit wanted to do that pretty well. But, eh ... running was fine, but not as cool as fighting for your land. On those arbitrary means, and omitting TigerClan out of jealousy, Stormkit decided LionClan was his favourite. "Why couldn't I have been called Lionkit?" he whined, tipping his head backward, seemingly distraught by the missed opportunity.​

penned by pin ༄​

 

[TWILIGHTKIT ⋆]

Twilightkit settles in neatly beside Lightningkit, ready for another night of rest and to do it all again the next day. However, things change - Nightbird bids her children farewell for the evening and Howlingstar steps in as their presiding caretaker. Twilightkit watches as her mother departs with for once wide, owlish eyes, blinking a few times to try and gauge if that has really happened. In all of her short life, the silver tabby never had to worry where Nightbird was. Just her rambunctious siblings! But now all of her littermates are in one spot, and her mother... isn't.

Tragically, the child pins her own tail beneath her lone forepaw to keep it from lashing. She's uncomfortable, sunflower eyes flicking to the camp's entrance time and time again. She only settles when Howlingstar finally starts on her story, hoping that the tale will be enough to quiet her suddenly loud mind. It's of the great Clans - something she's heard passed around the other kits before. Of LionClan, TigerClan, and LeopardClan. Like some of her siblings, she can't help but feel a spot of jealousy with TigerClan, but it quickly dissipates as Bayingkit makes hers too loud.

"LeopardClan," Twilightkit corrects Bayingkit, easing herself to lay down. She chuffs, wondering if her older sister ever listens, when Stormkit whines his own sour sentiments. "Because - you're dark-furred, Stormkit. Not golden," didn't he know that? Wasn't he listening? The child feels antsy, her body tense with the change that she is clearly unhappy about. She shifts her weight again, tucking her nose beneath her now rattling tail and keeping her eyes on the camp's exit. The story is nice, and all, but she just wants her mother back.​

 

[LIGHTNINGKIT]

LIGHTNINGKIT . of . THUNDERCLAN

2 moons old (born 07.08.24) / lh silver tabby with green eyes / feminine pronouns
raccoonstripe xx nightbird / little sister to bayingkit, twilightkit, tigerkit, & stormkit

Sprawled on her stomach beside Twilightkit, she stares up at Howlingstar with widened eyes as she describes each of the long-ago clans. What would it have been like to be a LionClanner? TigerClanner? LeopardClanner? Were their kits kept like Lightningkit and her siblings, tucked away in the nursery? Or maybe they weren't so worried, and their kits wandered free. She's sure other children wish that was true —like Bayingkit trying to leave— but Lightningkit thinks that they would probably have to do chores if they could roam about. Her nose wrinkles at the thought, and her eyes glaze over a little when Twilightkit admonishes Bayingkit and Stormkit.

She cradles her chin on the back of her paw and twitches her back toes. "So they're like ThunderClan's grandmamas. Where did they go?" Did they leave? Is Howlingstar going to leave? She drops her chin to instead chew on the tip of her paw, an anxious gesture. Maybe they didn't leave, but if that's true, Lightningkit's never heard of them before like she has the other clans.
​

​

 

[HOWLINGSTAR]

Howlingstar's whiskers twitch in amusement as she watches Bayingkit's energetic antics. As a paw slaps over her sibling’s head, she chuckles and leans forward to gently nudge the kits apart and back into a more comfortable circle. There is no anger in verdant eyes, only the twinkling of warmth. "Ah, my spirited little one," She purrs softly. “That is a very good question. Yes, each of the Great Clans had their own leaders, much like me." She notices that she gets one of the names wrong, and her sister doesn’t let the mistake go uncorrected. She gives the girl a nod of approval for listening well.

The tabby then chuckles softly at Stormkit's lament, understanding his childish dismay. She tilts her head slightly and reaches a reassuring paw towards him to gently stroke back the fur on his head. "Oh, Stormkit," She purrs, "the names we're given aren't always the ones we might choose for ourselves, but each name carries its own special meaning and strength." She ponders for a moment whether or not explaining to the blind tom that his pelt is not golden like a lion’s would be beneficial before Twilightkit says so herself, drawing a chuckle from the leader. She continues, “You were named for a mighty storm - a force of nature not so easily tamed. You had an uncle, Graystorm, you know. And your cousin, Burnstorm, has the same name. You should carry it with great pride.”

Howlingstar then notices Twilightkit’s anxious behavior and the flickering gaze toward the camp's entrance. With a soft purr, she gently nudges the young kit closer and wraps her tail around her in a comforting gesture. She probably misses her mother, but she’ll be back soon. Green eyes shift to Lightningkit, who seems a bit anxious, too. Soothingly, she mews, “Time changes many things. The stories of LionClan, TigerClan, and LeopardClan have become part of our clan's history; they are our ancestors. Their legacy lives on in the skills we have today." She looks around at the kits with a warm smile. “When you climb a tree for the first time, know you got your legs from LeopardClan. When you face a foe, recognize your courage from LionClan. And when you outwit an opponent, thank TigerClan for your cleverness. That is how we honor them.”
​