The Prophecy

Chapter 1

BlackPaw waits at The Jagged Stone. The tall rock with sharp spikes glints in the moonlight. She sits beside RuffledPaw, WillowPaw, and CloudPaw, all four of them from CliffClan. They were waiting for the other apprentices from TabbyClan and IcyClan. It was only yesterday since BlackPaw had her dream about the prophecy. JaggedSplash and NightWhisper had greeted her in her dreams and spoken a prophecy. RuffledPaw, WillowPaw, and CloudPaw had the same dream. TallPatch, the medicine cat of CliffClan, had spoken to them secretly with DawnStar, the leader of CliffClan, after LeopardSpot and MapleShade, the medicine cats from TabbyClan and IcyClan, had consulted with each other over the prophecy. BlackPaw could still hear the StarClan cats voices in her mind. Her thought was interrupted by a rustle in the undergrowth on her side. The four CliffClan cats looked at the area in which the noise came from.

Two cats pad from the bushes. A fluffy white she cat and a ginger tom come into sight. From their scent BlackPaw recognizes them as TabbyClan cats. "Hello," the ginger tom mews, "I'm OrangePaw and this is StreamPaw." He motions at the white she cat beside him. CloudPaw stands, "I'm CloudPaw. This is BlackPaw," he motions towards the small black she cat. "This is WillowPaw and RuffledPaw." He points his tail at the two grey cats. "Nice to meet you," StreamPaw purrs. "Have you seen the IcyClan cats yet?" RuffledPaw asks impatiently. "No" OrangePaw mews. "Leave it to IcyClan cats to be late," RuffledPaw mews grumpily. "Oh lighten up!" BlackPaw mews and pokes him with her paw, "anyways I think I smell them."

Just on cue three apprentices appear from the forest. "Nice of you to join," RuffledPaw grumps. BlackPaw rolls her eyes and mews cheerfully, "Hello! I'm BlackPaw. This is RuffledPaw, WillowPaw, and CloudPaw." She flicks her tail to her companions. OrangePaw speaks up. "I'm OrangePaw and.." StreamPaw interrupts him. "I'm StreamPaw." The IcyClan apprentices nod. One of them, a silver she cat with crystal blue eyes, steps forward and mews, "I'm IvyPaw. This is MintPaw and PatchPaw." Motions towards each cat. Each cat glanced at each other, studying them. Finally BlackPaw breaks the silence, "We should get going." CloudPaw nods, "Yeah let's get moving." He automatically walks up the front, taking the role of leader. The other cats follow him. The different clans separated themselves from the others.

BlackPaw looks at the other cats. She quickens her pace to walk beside CloudPaw and whispers to him. "Why are we separating from each other? Shouldn't we mingle and get to know each other?" Being the youngest she didn't understand the boundaries. "Your right. I got it" he mews back to her and stops. "Anyone hungry?" He asks. The cats mew in agreement. "Ok, each cat get a partner from a different clan" he mews. The cats look at each other hesitantly. "Don't make me choose your partners." He warns. That seemed to get them to move. MintPaw partners with CloudPaw. BlackPaw watches the apprentices, none of them make a move towards her. RuffledPaw and StreamPaw partner. BlackPaw gets nervous as the available cats start partnering. OrangePaw, WillowPaw, and IvyPaw partner. BlackPaw peers through the crowd. The only one left is PatchPaw. She slowly pads to him. "Umm... Err.." She stutters. He looks down and laughs. "Do you want to partner?" He asks. "Yes." She answers embarrassed.