Kitten of the Dark Forest

Ch 2: New Beginnings

Tinykit sat at the edge of the clearing, looking into the woods of the Dark Forest. He knew that the cats shouldn't be in groups, that they were supposed to walk their paths alone. That was how it was meant to be. But the members of the Dark Forest had found a way to overcome that, to join forces, to disobey StarClan. And Tinykit liked that. A grin spread across his face as he thought about tearing apart each and every cat in StarClan. He hated them. "Everyone I meet that doesn't belong to the Dark Forest will be shredded by my claws! I will killed as much as I need to so they fade and never return!" he growled quietly, as so not to disturb the others, for they were trying to sleep. So hate filled as he was at the moment, Tinykit heard a Voice in his head, one he had heard before he was born. "Ah, you remind me of myself when I was alive. I couldn't be prouder," the Voice said. Tinykit's eyes widened. "But I thought you hated me for failing to destroy ThunderClan," Tinykit thought in surprise, "and that you would never talk to me again!" The Voice laughed. "Oh, Tinykit. We all make mistakes, we all fail to kill our enemies once or twice. But sometimes mistakes can be good! For some of us, at least. Hey, if your mother hadn't been stupid enough to go to ThunderClan for help, I would have never met you! Now, I think it's time you learned more about me, and some of my, ahem, comrades." Tinykit's eyes widened. "Really?!" he exclaimed. "Tinykit, who are you talking to?" the voice of Mapleshade said. Tinykit spun around and saw Mapleshade walking towards him, looking at him with curiosity. "Ah Mapleshade," the Voice said. "A good cat to have on your side. Trust me, I know. I'll talk to you later when you are free." And with that the Voice left. "Oh, I'm just talking to myself," Tinykit responded quickly. Mapleshade nodded her head understandingly, then said, "Yeah, it can be hard to get used to this place. As horrible as it may be, it's home. At least, for now it is. I share your unquenchable thirst for vengeance. One day, the forest shall be our home again." The two cats turned their heads to face each other, and a look of understanding passed between them. But Tinykit also saw something else in Mapleshade's gaze, as though she had seen something else in him.  "Hmm, I wonder what she's thinking," Tinykit thought. "Well, I have my secrets, and she has hers. But if she sees something in me...I'll have to ask her when we know each other better." Mapleshade got up and began to walk back to the tree. "Come on," she said. "You need to get some sleep. You have a big day tomorrow." Tinykit sighed and nodded, getting up to follow her. "Coming," he said. As he was drifting off to sleep by the tree, he heard the Voice again. "Don't forget that we must speak tomorrow when you're free. I like you, so don't disappoint me."

Mapleshade woke up to the gloom of the Dark Forest. It had been hard to get used to at first, but she was used to it now. She felt something stir beside her, and looked down to see that she had curled up around Tinykit. Mapleshade felt the unknown feeling inside her stir again, but for all the prey in the forests, she could not figure out what it was. She nudged Tinykit with her nose, and said, "Wake up, Tinykit. You need to meet the other cats today." Tinykit yawned, then groggily got up. He tried to shake most of the moss out of his fur, failed, then began to groom himself. Mapleshade left him to his work and walked around the tree that they had slept by, arriving at the other side where Thistleclaw, Darkstripe, and Clawface were still sleeping. Since it was Tinykit's first time in the Dark Forest, Mapleshade had decided to sleep with him on the other side of the tree so he could get used to sleeping with a Dark Forest cat. She prodded Thistleclaw with her paw. He woke up, and looked at Mapleshade like she was crowfood. "Wake up," she hissed. "And wake the others up, while your at it. We are going to be introducing Tinykit to everyone, so get your tail out of bed." Thistleclaw hissed, but stood up no less and began to wake up Darkstripe and Clawface. Mapleshade nodded in approval and began to walk back toward Tinykit.

Tinykit had just finished grooming himself when he heard the Voice again. "Hello, my little friend. Did you enjoy your first sleep in the Dark Forest? Don't answer that. It can be a pain trying to sleep, I know. We're not even supposed to do that. Anyways, Mapleshade is going to introduce you to all the other cats, so I'm going to tell you a bit about each one. Now, are you ready?" "Yes, I am," Tinykit thought. "but I need to know something first. Who are you, and who are your comrades?" The Voice chuckled. "Very well, my friend," it said. "You shall meet my comrades later, but as for myself, I am Tigerstar."