Glowing Shadows

C H A P T E R O N E

"Dappeldkit! Come here!" Gingerkit mewed happily and bounded up next to his sister, leaping at Dappledkit and pouncing.
"Hey! That's not fair! Robinkit, Rainkit, and Black-kit can't play with us yet!" She screamed, thinking of defense against herself. Gingerkit flopped off, falling on the soft hole in the nursery.
"Ow! That hurt!" His mother stopped grooming Rainkit and turned over to the hole,
"I keep asking the warriors to fix that, but they never do," Garfoot huffed and picked up Gingerkit, just as the medicine cat, Jaystream, had peered his head into the nursery.
"Ooh, that red spot on his head looks bad. I'll take the water from the Nightstream, " he mewed, recalling how cold the water from the Nightstream was.
"Hey, brother, how's Ravenpaw? Is she doing well?" Garfoot asked, laying down with her head on her paws.
Jaystream dropped the bundle of poppy seed-looking herbs, letting out a mrrow of laughter as if he was waiting for her to ask that.
"I'm going to give her her medicine cat name as soon as we get to the Moon Tree!" He bounced around as if he was just made an apprentice. We're going to be apprentices soon. Dappledkit's mind began wandering, tuning out the boring conversation between her mother and her uncle.
"Let all cats old enough to howl at the moon gather underneath the highlegde for a clan meeting!" She heard the voice of Blankglitter call out.
"Gingerkit, Rainkit, Robinkit, Black-kit! C'mre!" She shouted, bringing them out of the nursery and into the outside.
"Gingerkit, Rainkit, Robinkit, Dappledkit, and Black-kit, you have reached the age of four moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Gingerpaw, Rainpaw, Robinpaw, Dappledpaw, and Blackpaw. I shall appoint your mentors separately," he said, the cats seemingly knowing that he could not fix mentors for 5 cats as a group.
"Dappledpaw, your mentor shall be Starlingheart." Starlingheart was astonished that the leader would choose her, who only became a warrior 2 moons ago.
"Milkleaf has taught you well. I hope you pass on this knowledge to Dappledpaw," Blankglitter announced to the crowd.
"Dappledpaw! Dappledpaw!" The Clan shouted in honor of the new apprentice, Blankstar was getting ready to appoint another mentor.
"Gingerpaw, your mentor shall be Ashenfern." Ashenfern lifted his head and pranced around.
"Gingerpaw! Gingerpaw!" The Clan cheered once more.

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"Hey, Robinpaw!" Gingerpaw cheered, showing Robinpaw his robin.
"That's offensive!" Robinpaw trotted into the medicine den and threw a ginger root at him. "Take that!" The root hit Gingerpaw in the face,
"owww!" He cried, while Robinpaw ran and got water from a stream and hurled it at Rainpaw.
"Oh, it's on. Blackpaw!" Rainpaw nodded at her siblings as they got random black things.
"Is something wrong? Did Sandyowl send me on a pa—" he couldn't finish his sentence when he got black leaves and berries thrown at him.
"Wait, what are we going to throw at Dappledpaw?" Blackpaw's question was followed by silence.
"How about this speckled leaf?" Robinpaw questioned, holding a leaf in her jaws, "I got it from the apprentices' den." Gingerpaw puffed up, hissing at his sister,
"That's my leaf! But, you can have it," he muttered.
"Dappledpaw!" Rainpaw yelled, the leaf clenched in her jaws.
Dappledpaw rushed over and ducked at the leaf flying at her face, the leaf falling on the ground and getting stepped on by Cloudfire, Gingerpaw ran over and picked up his leaf.
"I heard you! You're louder than five dogs!" Dappledpaw chuckled, "also, I have to get back to training." She skidded off, I swear, we have responsibilities now! She rolled her eyes and got back to Starlingheart.
"Alright, this lesson is your first on hunting," she explained.
"Okay! Let's go get some... uh...." this is embarrassing.
"We eat rabbits, and occasionally fish from the stream." Dappledpaw shook her head anxiously, I can't catch rabbits! She was thinking.
Starlingheart swished her tail, asking Dappledpaw to follow her. The scent of rabbits was pungent.
"There's a whole burrow!" Dappledpaw turned excitedly to Starlingheart.
"Show me how you'll catch rabbits." Dappledpaw looked around, ears perked. She found an old rabbit. You're all mine. She ran closer to the rabbit, and when it hopped away, she hopped with it.
Starlingheart nodded. odd technique, she thought, but it gets the job done.
"I caught it! I caught it!" The tortoiseshell apprentice chuckled and laughed as she paraded her first catch to her mentor.
"Nice, let's take it to camp." They strolled to the camp. When she saw her littermates made catches too. Robinpaw had two fish and a bunny, Gingerpaw had two hares and a fish, Rainpaw had a fish and a hare, and Blackpaw had two fish. They all caught more than me. She shook her head. No..
"Hey, Dappledpaw, you good?" Oh no! They saw shaking my head!
"Yeah... I'm fine... it's oki." She tried to brush it off.

It's been two and a half moons since they starting training. Gingerpaw wanted to be a warrior already. He wanted his warrior name, but Dappledpaw thought it was odd. He was going to go on a mission with his mentor! My personal glory starts... now! He started laughing as he met up with his mentor, Ashenfern. Still can't get over the fact he's mates with my father... but he kept training with him, cause at least he was cool to be around.
"Alright Gingerpaw. You ready to be a warrior?" He asked. Well of course I am! Duh!
"Yes!! Oh! Do you have my warrior name picked out?" Gingerpaw was ecstatic to finally be a warrior, obviously. Cause he's the average warrior fic protag as a supporting character. Oh crap. *fixes fourth wall*

"Yes! Blankglitter says it'll be Gingerspark!" Woah! I like that name! It sounds so cool (CELOR!)
So they set off of the second biggest part of his life, the most biggest was him being named deputy and then, leader! He hoped Blankglitter just resigned, cause he didn't want him to die. But that didn't matter now, all that matters was getting that warrior name. He was so wrapped up in the mission, that he didn't notice that there was an eagle coming down for him. It lunged downwards and got a grip on his back leg. He screamed in terror, fear, and pain as the eagle tugged at his leg and he tugged on the ground. Ashenfern immediately jumped in, but he was  one minute too late, because Gingerpaw's lower leg had come off. He froze for just a split second when he then turned to the eagle, and he tried to kill it. He tried and tried, but ultimately, the eagle killed him, then flew off. Gingerpaw stared at his dead mentors body, and his lower leg in horror.
My mentors dead, and now I'm doomed too. But, I might as well try to get back home. He dragged himself, carrying Ashenfern when he eventually made it back to camp, everyone staring at him, as you would if your best friend came home with his tutor dead and his leg gone.
"GINGERPAW! WHAT HAPPENED!" One cat screamed.
He choked out the story to the cat.
"I was on my assessment, and an eagle came down. Ashenfern tried to save me, but my leg was torn off and he died."
Gingerpaw realized the cat who asked was his uncle, Jaystream. Jaystream ran over to him, along with a whole crowd of cats.   Jaystream was nice, and gentle. That's why he's a medicine cat. I could never.
"Luckily, or, as lucky as someone who got their leg torn off could be, the eagle also took off the bone, so I'll just need a hair from the longest furred cat in this clan." Yay... he thought as he had no clue what he was going to do to him. But he knew the longest furred cat here was Cloudfire. Jaystream cleaned the wound where his leg was, got the hair, and got some weird metal footwalker tool, he looped the fur in the device, and put the sharp end in his skin.
"What in the Zodiacs name are you doing to him?!" Mother asked, horrified.
"Don't worry, footwalkers tie up wounds with this thing and hair all the time." He said as he put the sharp end in the other side of the hole in his leg. He kept at it until the wound was completely sealed shut.
"Now go wash that in the stream, just to be safe." Once Gingerpaw came back, Blankglitter was on the moon calling rock.
"Oi! Gingerpaw! I'm giving you and your siblings warrior names. Come here." He called.
He didn't necessarily like the name Rippedfern, and he was jealous of his sister's name. It was cool! Dappledlynx, so cool! Rainpaw's new name, Rainfall wasn't as cool, but it still was nice to hear. His brother's name was just basic. Blacktail. Hah! And Robinpaws new name was just downright hilarious. Robinthroat! Hahahah, that's just dumb!
"Hey! My name isn't that dumb!" Robinthroat laughed, almost choking on air.
Blacktail looked at her. "Seriously dude... what? No, Robinthroat is reallyyy dumb"
Rainfall wheezed. "Says Blacktail!" Blacktail jumped up and down in response.
"Hey!! It'll be Blackglitter real soon!" He whined, angry.
"Whatever..." Robinthroat rolled her eyes.
"Hey, Guys. Why did the least important one of you get the coolest name?" It was their cousin, Hopkit.
"Hey! That's not fair! Everyone knows Blankglitter has a crush on Dappledlynx!" His sister, Antkit laughed and Dappledlynx looked stunned.
"Uhhm...." was all she could say.
"I'm just kidding!" Antkit wheezed in laughter, and scurried off happily with Hopkit