Emberstar's Journey

Prologue

"Come now Emberkit.. It's time to meet your father.." The voice of the russet she-cat did little to soothe the small trembling tom hiding in the moss nest that he was so used to. 

He stared at her with dazzling emerald eyes, how could she possibly think he was comfortable leaving his safe place, the familiar thing he knew for three moons now.

"He isn't going to come out, he's a scaredy-mouse!" Emberkit recognized that voice as Lionkit, a mean bracken-colored tom who eyed him condescendingly from the side of the den behind him. 

"Yeah! Scaredy-mouse! Scaredy-mouse!" And that was his twin, Tigerkit. 

"L-L-L-L-Leave m.....me.. a-a-alone....." Emberkit mumbled shakily as his heart rate increased, all in all, he was proud of himself for being able to talk at all with how nervous and horrified he was. 

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Tigerkit mocked, "Gotta SPEAK UP!" He roared at last bit and sent 

the flame-colored tom hiding in the moss he called home. By StarClan he wished he could just sink into the dirt and never come back but it was false hope.

"Darkpoppy, will you punish your kits for once? Or will I have to punish them myself?!" Redflare snapped, glaring at the calico she-cat who watched uncaringly as her kits blatantly bullied her kit. 

The she-cat rolled her amber eyes, "I'm sure they're just playing, Redflare. Maybe you should let them have their fun, your kit needs a backbone." Her voice was drawled and relaxed as if she was on catnip.

"Excuse me? At least my kit has respect-"

"Your kit doesn't talk, and when he does he sounds like he just came out of the river in Leaf-bare. Face it, Redflare he has something wrong with him." 

Emberkit felt his mother freeze, he didn't have to look up to know she was snarling but he did anyway. He watched as she stomped up to Darkpoppy, hackles raised and teeth bared. 

"He's perfect the way he is, keep your kits quiet or I'll throw them to the hawks." She spat, making the calico flinch and wrap her tail around her two monsters protectively. 

Emberkit could feel his heartbeat racing as his mother eased him out of the den, behind him he could hear Willowcoat, a fluffy white she-cat murmur something along the lines of 'She's right you know' to the dark calico but he stopped listening as he realized everyone was staring at him. 

He pressed his belly to the ground as he stared around. Across the ways from the Nursery he saw the underground cave that was the Apprentice den. He was three moons from being one and he was not looking forward to it, he just wanted to sleep with his mom, away from Tigerkit and Lionkit. Far away.

He turned his eyes and saw that between the Warriors den, which was by the entrance of camp, there was the Medicine den. On the outside, it was just a regular weaved den of stems and river weed, an extension from an already existing cave. It was even adorned with shells that the apprentices found on their first trip to the training island. On the inside, he knew, it was quite roomy with multiple holes for each herb and a dug out burrow for the sick. 

The warriors den wasn't anything special, just another cave along the dried landform, but the Leaders Den. That's what interested Emberkit the most. It was sheer rock from the gorge that was here many moons ago, with a hole that was the den in it. When Lynxstar was up there everyone looked at her with such... respect. 

Something no one had for him.

That thought made him looked down as he heard pawsteps coming towards him and an unfamiliar scent washed over him.