Ashenwater's litter, Hopekit, Bluekit and Screechkit. 

The wind howled with a brutal ferocity that the cats of BleakClan hadn't known in moons. Shrieking, it drove every kit, elder and warrior to their dens, cozily nestled in the heart of the mountain, despite how starving they were. 

All but one cat. 

Ashenwater trudged through belly-high snow, his blueish-gray tabby fur draping an emaciated form. He had to find food for his mate, who had started to bear an accidental litter of kits. It was a bad time. An awful time even, but the kits were going to arrive, whether they were prepared or not. And if Gentlebreeze didn't have food, they wouldn't make it. 

 With a hiss, he plunged into powder up to his ears, fighting to get his head above the crust and to keep it there. He couldn't scent so much as a vole, and his head spun as he drew heaving sob-like breaths, watching grimly as the blizzard raged harder and harder, enveloping him in the bitter, unending cold. 

He felt his limbs going stiff, and his mind was hazy. I can't go like this. Gentlebreeze needs me! The thought gave him strength, but soon enough, that strength was gone, sapped away by the ice-cold wind. BleakClan cats have been born and bred for the snow and cold. I'm not going to let a little blizzard send me to the stars. 

But slowly, with a sinking heart, Ashenwater realized he was lost. Nothing looked familiar, and he was so, so cold... Defeated, he sank to his belly, visions of his stunning mate, and unborn kits- Kits I'll probably never meet- drifting through his numbing head. Ashenwater's blue eyes fluttered closed, eyelids heavy with ice and snow. 

The tempest had been deafening, but he realized it was becoming hushed. His very blood seemed to be turning to ice, and he let his head rest on the drifts. He was too hungry, too cold, too hopeless. There was nothing he could do except surrender to the blizzard. I hope The Land of Shining Stars takes me. And I hope Gentlebreeze is alright... 

He drifted away on a cloud of numb serenity, conflicted thoughts growing foggy and disappearing. 

                                                                 ~❆~

"Welcome, Ashenwater. You have lived a fulfilling and noble life, and now reside in The Land of Shining Stars." Ashenwater let out a sigh of relief, breathing in the warm air of the afterlife. 

He glanced at the cat that had come to greet him, a starry white tom with piercing amber eyes. "Can you tell me anything about my mate and kits? Are they okay?" The white tom dipped his head. "Your mate bore three kits, just after you left to find food. You have two sons and a daughter." Joy welled in Ashenwater's chest. 

"But, your kits have a difficult life ahead of them." A shimmering image materialized out of stars, showing a little cream-coloured she-kit, with a ginger stripe down her back, and several other ginger markings. "This is your daughter, Hopekit." That was the name we decided on if we were to have a daughter! He realized, and although he had never met this kit, he already felt a deep fondness for her. 

The stars changed their image again, to an older version of Hopekit. She was missing most of her tail, and she looked scarred. Inside and out. "A terrible tragedy will befall her. Her thoughts will start to shift, she will become bitter and withdrawn." Dread began to creep into Ashenwater's heart. "Wait, I don't want to see this. Can I see my sons? My mate?" The starry guide shook his head, intense amber eyes glowing with boundless wisdom. "No. This is something you must see."

He paused for a moment. The image changed again, this time to a warrior-aged Hopekit. "As an adult, she will briefly find peace. But, it will not last." The stars shifted slightly again, this time showing his daughter with her mouth drawn open in a wail or scream. She looked... Insane. "No! No, please, I don't want to see any more." 

The star-speckled cat began to speak in a low, steady voice. "Dark thoughts poison this young cat's mind. Insane, enraged, and broken, inside and out, this cat's destiny is anything but peaceful."

"Is there anything I can do?!"

"Walk in her dreams. You can try to lead her, but you must not reveal her impending fate. It will be difficult, and destressing." 

"What happens if it doesn't work? What will happen to her?" Desperate now, he scrambled for answers. 

"If you don't succeed, you will be the one to send her to an eternity of suffering, in The Land of Shattered Moons." 

Fun Fact: The cat that greeted Ashenwater was his great, great grandfather.