Storms and Stars

Chapter 1

Sapkit and her sisters bounded outside. Their mother followed. Sitting by their father, the adventurous kits gazed up at Dawnstar as she leaped up.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the Highbranch for a Clan meeting!" she yowled.

ShadowClan gathered

"Sapkit, Flamekit, and Birdkit, you have all reached the age of six moons and it is time for you all to be apprenticed," Dawnstar announced. "From this moment on, until you recieve your new names, you will be known as Sappaw, Flamepaw, and Birdpaw. Sappaw, your mentor will be Duskcloud. I hope Duskcloud passes on all she knows onto you!"

"Sappaw! Sappaw!" ShadowClan cheered.

Sappaw walked over and touched noses with Duskcloud.

"Flamepaw, your mentor will be Rockclaw! I hope Rockclaw will pass down all he knows onto you!"

"Flamepaw! Flamepaw!"

Sappaw watched as Flamepaw touched noses with Rockclaw.

"Birdpaw, your mentor will be Deadbranch! I hope Deadbranch will pass down all he knows onto you!"

"Birdpaw! Birdpaw!"

Birdpaw touched noses with Deadbranch. After the meeting, Dawnstar jumped down from the ShadowClan meeting place.

"Sootfire, I need to speak with you," she meowed. "Kits, I am proud of you."

Sappaw glanced at Duskcloud.

"Spend a little more time before it's time to start training," she meowed.

Sappaw nodded. She walked towards Dawnstar's den. Crouching, she listened in on their conversation.

"-cloud will train her well," Sootfire was saying. "Sappaw is going to be a great medicine cat."

"I know," Dawnstar replied. "All I'm worried about is that Duskcloud will forget in her old age. If Duskcloud had an apprentice last leafbare, we wouldn't have lost Screechfang and Blackfang to greencough!"

Greencough? Sappaw thought. Who's Blackfang and Screechfang?

"Don't worry Dawnstar," Sootfire mewed. "We will be okay."

Sappaw heard Dawnstar and Sootfire get up. Their pawsteps came closer and Sappaw realized too late that they were coming out of the den.

"Sappaw! What are you doing?" Sootfire asked.

"I, uh, wanted to ask you about the Gathering?" she offered.

"How much of that conversation did you hear?" Dawnstar asked.

"I don't know," Sappaw said truthfully.

"Well, you and your sisters are coming to the Gathering," Sootfire meowed.

Sappaw nodded. She bounded away to tell her sisters.

"Sappaw," Dawnstar called.

Sappaw turned around and faced her mother's serious face.

"Never eavesdrop on a leader again," she meowed.

"Okay," Sappaw mewed.

Walking to the medicine den, Duskcloud meowed, "get some rest. Gathering's tonight."

Sappaw nodded and curled up in her nest.

~~

Sappaw opened her eyes and saw a storm around her. The storm was dark, but she saw some stars in the eye.

"When the storms blot out the stars, only then can children of shadows rise," an ominous voice said in her head.

The dream-storm kept raging until Sappaw woke.

~~

"Sappaw!" Flamepaw meowed. "Come on!"

Drowsily, Sappaw opened her eyes. Her sisters were standing over her. Remembering the prophecy, she jumped up.

"Let's go!" Birdpaw urged. "We're going to the Gathering!"

~~

The walk was slightly uneventful until they got to ThunderClan.

"Brightstar," Dawnstar greeted.

"Hello Dawnstar," the ginger she-cat meowed. "It's good to see you."

"Snowymoon!" Dawnstar called.

A white she-cat waved her tail.

"Shall we head to the Gathering?" Brightstar asked.

"We shall," Dawnstar replied.

Sootfire was walking by a tortoiseshell much like Birdpaw. Sappaw walked over to her father.

"Who's this?" she asked.

Sappaw knew her father was born in ThunderClan.

"This is my sister, Ambersky," he replied. "Ambersky, this is my daughter, Sappaw. She's a medicine cat apprentice."

"Hi Sappaw," Ambersky purred.

Duskcloud joined them.

"I see you've met my apprentice," the elderly medicine cat mewed.

Ambersky nodded.

"Look!" Flamepaw shrieked. "I see WindClan!"

Sappaw looked up. Sure enough, there was the moor.

I wonder what it's like, she thought, to run and chase rabbits all day.