namesake

~~~

DYING WAS A FUNNY THING. Violetdust wasn't quite sure how to describe it. One moment she was in the most pain she'd ever felt in her life, feeling blood spray over her fur as from the bend in her beck, and the next, she was at peace.

Then came the memories. Thousands and thousands of scenes from her life played out in front of her; befriending Swanfrost, Honeykit's death, apprenticeship, Stormbird, becoming a warrior, that final meal she'd had with her friends before her walk tonight. Then, the sound of her name, drummed again and again until she was certain it was imprinted in her head.

Violetdust. Violetdust. Violetdust.

Following that was a fierce blow of heat, the hatred and loathing she'd felt towards StarClan her entire life. This was only amplified as she realized why she'd been attacked tonight - some cat, somehow, figured out StarClan had given her the prophecy, and they didn't want it to get out.

It was StarClan's fault she died.

Suddenly, a harsh breeze of cold wind blew and the scene of her being attacked flashed brightly in front of her. She saw her attacker's face clearly, and she felt her stomach drop as she realized unhappily that she hadn't scented the cat wrong, that her murderer was truly-

But before she could scream the name - think it, even - everything blacked out.

The last thing she remembered was her name being repeated.

Violetdust. Violetdust. Violetdust.

Then it all faded into silence.

~~~

"FEATHERPOOL SAYS you shouldn't fret too much." A tom's voice, strong and firm, broke through the hazy sleepiness of her brain. "It normally takes kits a few moons to open their eyes."

"But it's already been three." This cat's voice was higher, taking the identity of a she-cat's, taunt with worry. "Sweetkit's already opened her eyes."

"They all develop at a different pace, my love," the tom meowed, a sprinkle of a gentle purr in his tone. "You can't expect them to be the exact same."

A pause, and from the way the she-cat spoke next, she surmised that the she-cat had scowled. "You'd better not be laughing at me, Frostsky."

"Me, laugh at you, the great Swanfrost?" Frostsky mewed, clearly teasing. "I'd never dream of it."

Somehow, these names stirred something in the back of her mind, tugging at some unplaceable familiarity that urged her to open her eyes, move, speak - to do something. Slowly, she tried to feel the soft, soft moss beneath her body and Swanfrost's heat pressed against her side, wiggling around.

"Ooh, ooh, Frostsky, look!" came Swanfrost's voice, excited. "Violetkit's moving."

With great effort, she - Violetkit - forced her eyes open. At first, everything was blurry, but they focused as the pretty blue eyes of Swanfrost soon swooped down to look at her, full of love and care. "Hello, little one," she cooed. "Frostsky, come see."

Frostsky's eyes were much sharper, the type of green that was so brilliantly clear it hurt to look at. But they were still loving, and he leaned forward to give Violetkit's head a careful lick. "She's beautiful."

"She's perfect," Swanfrost whispered softly, her voice suddenly laden with sadness. As Frostsky pressed his pelt against hers, she continued, "I miss her. I miss Violetdust."

For some reason, the name Violetdust rendered with Violetkit too. Perhaps it was just because it shared the same prefix, but it tugged on something in the depths of her brain, hidden away, a constant drum; Violetdust, Violetdust, Violetdust.

"I know you do. I do, too. We all do." Frostsky lapped his tongue gently across Swanfrost's ear. "Shall I fetch you some prey? Leopardbounce just caught a thrush today."

"Alright," Swanfrost meowed, curling herself around Violetkit. "Fetch Sweetkit while you're out there. That way, she can come meet her sister."

Frostsky nodded then turned to leave camp. As he did so, Swanfrost pulled Violetkit closer to her body, and the little white she-kit snuggled into her mother's soft gray fur. It was comforting, and she felt a burst of love for her parents; but, somehow, she felt unsettled, a gut feeling that told her that this wasn't right.

~~~

"VIOLETKIT, over here!" Sweetkit's voice, a lovely melodic tune, called for her sister's attention. She was standing on the other side of the clearing, racing towards her and waving her tail wildly to indicate her presence.

Violetkit nodded, though she couldn't reply with the moss ball clamped in her jaws. Turning to glance behind her shoulder quickly, she spotted Brightkit and Ravenkit chasing after her, the latter slowly gaining distance with his lengthy legs.

As he got closer and closer, Violetkit quickly tossed the moss ball to Sweetkit; however, Ravenkit had already pounced, and whereas the ball was received safely by Sweetkit, the black tom-kit barreled into Violetkit, knocking her over.

"Hey!" Violetkit protested, smacking him angrily with her tail. "Get off!"

Ravenkit's yellow eyes gleamed mischievously, and instead of climbing off Violetkit, he suddenly went limp in his legs so that he was laying on top of her completely, crushing her.

"Off, off!" Violetkit demanded, increasing the speed of her tail slaps, though that didn't seem to faze him at all. "You weigh as much as a badger!"

At this, he scowled down at her. "No I don't," he meowed indignantly. "You don't even know how much a badger weighs!"

"I'm estimating, fluffbrain," the white she-kit snapped. "Now get off before I kick you off."

Ravenkit lifted his muzzle. "I'd like to see you try," he challenged.

With a face set in hard determination, Violetkit positioned all four legs under Ravenkit and pushed upwards as hard as she could. Ravenkit fought back, too, digging his claws in the ground so that he was unmoving, creating an odd sight where they struggled around with each other until Sweetkit and Brightkit approached them, the moss ball forgotten.

Brightkit tilted her head, her calico fur fluffed in the chilly leaf-fall breeze, the setting sun casting a golden ray on her pelt. "Are you two fighting again?"

"No," Violetkit defended herself instantly, "I'm not fighting. I'm just trying to regain my freedom to get up, move around, and breathe."

Finally, Ravenkit rolled his eyes and hopped off. "Great StarClan, you're dramatic."

For some reason, at the mention of her warrior ancestors, Violetkit felt her pelt prick with annoyance. "I am not dramatic," she snapped. "See how you'd react if you were knocked over."

"I only knocked you over because you weren't fast enough to outrun me," Ravenkit mewed smugly.

The white she-kit lashed her tail. "As if! I'm twice as fast as you are!"

Ravenkit tilted his head again in that challenging, infuriating way. "Wanna bet?"

"Yes! Let's race right now." Violetkit whipped around and crouched down, muscles tense, ready to go. "First to the camp entrance has to say yes to everything the other cat says for a week."

"Why only a week?" Ravenkit hummed, crouching down as well. "Only making the punishment short because you're certain you'll lose?"

Violetkit's tail-tip twitched in irritation, and the words came out before she could stop them. "Fine, a moon, then. Sweetkit, can you count us down?"

The pale gray she-kit moved to stand between the two kits. "On my call. One... two... three... go!"

Quickly, Violetkit pounced forward, desperately trying to push ahead of Ravenkit - because having to agree with him for a moon would simply be humiliating. For a moment, halfway to the camp's entrance, it seemed to work, and the white she-kit glanced over her shoulder to sneer in Ravenkit's direction.

Distracted, she didn't notice it when a warrior walked in front of her, and she crashed into a mound of ginger far as Ravenkit snickered and darted around, reaching the entrance first with triumphant glee in his eyes.