Cicadapaw
| He/him | ThunderClan Apprentice (43/100) | #BugFamily |
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Cicadapaw’s ears perked the instant the rasping call broke through the camp. He jerked his head toward the Stormcrest, heart skipping a beat. Bumblestar? She sounded terrible, but she was standing and speaking.
He moved closer with the rest of the Clan, weaving to the front without really realizing it, eyes wide as he stared up at her. She looked... well, awful. Like a ghost barely clinging to flesh. But she stood tall anyway, like she always did. And then she started speaking. The words felt strange in his ears. Not wrong, exactly, but heavier than he expected.
Cicadapaw blinked. He glanced at Spiderthroat. Then back at her. Back and forth, like the pieces would make more sense if he kept comparing them. She was stepping down. On her own. Not from a wound, not from a challenge. Just… letting go. He hadn’t let himself consider that possibility. But he didn’t feel angry or scared, just surprised. And maybe a little breathless. By the time she'd finished and stepped down, Cicadapaw didn’t know what to say.
---
Cicadapaw's eyes followed his father as he climbed to the edge of the stormcrest next.
He listened and then blinked, a little stunned at how fast everything was moving. He’d barely finished processing the first shock - Bumblebreak stepping down - and now Spiderthroat was up there, voice firm and heavy, already laying down law, already naming a deputy. But he guessed it wasn’t bad.
As Spiderstar spoke, Cicadapaw found himself slowly sitting taller, taking in the sharpness of his father’s words. The apprentice knew he meant every word of it: the praise for Bumblebreak, the warning to the rest of the Clan, the need for ThunderClan to keep climbing instead of coasting.
He even gave a small smile in agreement when he named Flintclaw deputy. That made sense. The warrior had been steady, dependable. And more than anything, it was Spiderstar's tone, the confidence, that settled him.
---
Then Spiderstar kept going. More announcements. More ceremonies to come.
Hollowpaw had left? His brows furrowed. He’d known Hollowpaw was struggling. Who wasn’t, after everything? But to leave the Clan? Completely? He shook his head, disappointed.
And just as he was starting to sit with that; the announcement of Dragonflycliff's passing. The world didn’t stop, he hadn't known her personally, but he was still shocked. He swallowed hard. She’d fought so hard. She survived the worst of it. And now…?
But he didn’t have time to process it, not fully. Because then, the next surprise. His head jerked up, eyes snapping to his sister as she was called up. Dragonflykit. It took a moment for the shock to crack, but when it did, it came with a quiet, unshakable pride. He rose to his paws. And he called out - not just loud enough for her to hear, but for the whole clearing: “You’ll be brilliant, Dragonflypaw!"
---
Then, what he hoped would be the last surprise of the morning - Butterflypaw was gaining her warrior name. Cicadapaw’s ears perked immediately, and he scanned the crowd until he spotted her. There. His face split into a grin - of course she’d be the first of them to make it. Determined, always pushing forward. He felt a familiar spark of competitiveness light in his chest.
Figures. I’ll have to catch up soon.