The Wingless- a “Warriors” AU Fanfic

Instructions

AU means “alternate universe!” Basically, I’ve changed some stuff. :) Warning if you don’t like mentions of death/hate/family hate/self-doubt/and (I guess brief mentions of what could be interpreted as $ui*ide?)/gore etc. If this isn’t appropriate for Scratch, PLEASE tell me! Love and fave for more! A long time ago, when the ancient Clans were still new, a great and powerful dragon came to the forest. She bestowed a gift upon each clan, a gift that was carried down for centuries and is still there today. For the cats of the shadows, she gave them horns. For the cats of the sky, she gave them wings. For the cats of the thunder, she gave them scale armour. For the cats of the river, she gave them talons and fins. For the cats of the wind, she gave them fire. A cool breeze swept through the nursery, and Kestrelkit shivered, snuggling as close as she dared into her mother’s warm fur. Leaf-bare was truly here now. Snowtail had picked the wrong time to have kits, everyone said. That’s why there were problems, everyone said. Though she was barely four moons old, Kestrelkit already knew what “problems” meant. She was “problems”. The problems were always with her looks. She was way too small, for a start. Secondly, she looked nothing like either of her parents- her mother, Snowtail, was pure white, with silvery wings. Her father, Breezewing, was a dark brown tabby with mahogany wings. Kestrelkit was ginger on one side, black on the other- like two kits in one. Also, she was wingless. Everyone in SkyClan had always had wings, ever since the very beginning. Apparently, Kestrelkit was the first one to be different- and different was bad. The nursery entrance rustled as Hollyfoot, a young warrior, pushed her way in. “Hey, Snowtail? Stormstar wants to speak with you.” She said. Snowtail slowly got to her paws, then left the nursery. Hollyfoot sneered at Kestrelkit and her brother, Falconkit. Her grey wings flared. “You, wingless, are lucky to still be here…” she turned and left. Over time, Kestrelkit had learned to block out the insults that got thrown around her. After all, what could she possibly do? Falconkit stirred, then opened his grey-green eyes to look up at his sister. “You had better watch out”, he said, “I don’t want any of your shame rubbing off on the family.” Kestrelkit turned away. “Shut up, brother.” Falconkit began to chant some of the SkyClan cats’ favourite insults at her. “Twoface! Halfkit! Wingless!” Kestrelkit ducked her head in dismay. Nobody cared for her- not even her own brother! She was the Problem Kit, for sure. Even her parents felt only shame when they looked at her. It was then that Snowtail returned to the nursery. “Kestrelkit, follow me…” she said, and left again. Kestrelkit padded after her mother, and was surprised when they began to climb up the tree-trunk of the Leader’s tree. Snowtail squeezed her body through the entrance of the hollow at the top of the trunk, and Kestrelkit followed. The inside of the den was pretty dark, but she could just make out the shape of Stormstar, the small she-cat leader of SkyClan. Kestrelkit gulped. Blue eyes glinted from the darkness. “Kestrelkit, come closer.” Kestrelkit took a few cautious steps forward and sat down. “Kit, your very existence brings shame upon the clan. Look at how your family suffers. This is your fault.” Kestrelkit lowered her head, and guilt and sadness swirled through her heart. “However, the other Clans know nothing of you yet. They only know that Snowtail was expecting. You have a healthy brother- we can easily pretend that you never existed, and avoid any… trouble.” Kestrelkit’s world fell apart around her as the cruel words vibrated through her skull. She was dimly aware that Snowtail was still talking. “… so, that leaves us with two options for the only remaining issue- you. We could execute you now- I promise that it’ll be quick, for it is within the warrior code to end the terminally ill’s suffering with a form of near-painless death. I would say deathberries.” No! Kestrelkit wanted to screech. She had so much more life left to live! She wanted to become a warrior and prove everycat in the clan wrong! “Or, we could banish you. Strip you of your clan-cat status and let you live out the rest of your days as a rogue.”