Kay this is either a CinderxJay or a JayxWillow, I'm not sure which I like best. I used to prefer CinderxJay, but then I read this really good JayxWillow, so now I don't know! This story might have a bit of both. Reviews are greatly appreciated!

Cinderheart padded quietly through the forest, carefully drinking in the scents of new growth that wreathed all around her. It was still early greenleaf, but the weather had been unusually nice. Firestar was unsure that it would last, but every apprentice and young warrior were relishing the strong sunlight and warm winds.

A salty tang drifted towards her, signalling that the lake was drawing near.

With a sudden burst of energy, she bounded forward, racing towards the edge of the trees with light paws. The undergrowth thinned considerably as the rocky shore grew nearer, urging her on towards the smooth water that she had befriended. Ever since Jaypaw had introduced her to swimming, Cinderheart had grown better and better, and still took time to venture away from camp to swim, though her leg was completely healed.

At least it was until today. She winced at the memory, feeling her pelt burn in shame as she relived the embarrassing failure.

She had been stalking a fat, juicy squirrel through the forest, until it scampered nimbly up a tall oak, perching on a high branch and staring teasingly down at her. Brackenfur, Hollyleaf and Lionblaze had entered the clearing and looked at it, then told her it was a good try.

She had insisted on climbing up after it, even when Brackenfur gave her a direct order not to.

Cinderheart was barely halfway up when she lost her footing, falling clumsily to the ground and managing to wrench her leg in the process. She frustratedly pushed the memory away; her leg seemed totally painless now.

Running smoothly out of the protection of the trees, she reduced her stride to a walk and padded to the shore, only to stop dead in her tracks at the sight of another pelt in the water.

She squinted slightly against the bright sun, her tail swishing nervously as she examined the small shape. The tom's fur was nearly black from the water, making it hard to identify the cat as he waded smoothly towards her, barely making ripples in the mirrored surface of the lake.

He pulled himself onto the shore, shaking his pet lightly as he padded happily towards her. She opened her mouth gingerly, and recoiled in shock at the scent. The cat blinked his blue eyes at her as she stared in wonder. "Jaypaw?" she mewed, blinking hard to assure herself that she had just watched the blind medicine cat swim like a RiverClan cat.

He halted in front of her, looking uncharacteristically joyous. "Hey, Cinderheart. Come swim with me!"

That was when Cinderheart realized that she was dreaming; Jaypaw would never be that nice, especially not to her, who she was fairly sure he hated. He brushed his tail along her flank reassuringly, and to her surprise, looked her right in the eye. He could see!

"The water's great," he mewed excitedly. "Come on!"

And with that he bounded towards the water, Cinderheart following more slowly. Why was she dreaming of this?

Wading into the silky water, she joined Jaypaw and let her cares wash away in the salty depths as they frolicked like kits in the shallows before going even deeper and swimming for a while. After what seemed like hours they dragged themselves out, their eyes sparkling and their pelts sopping wet. Jaypaw flopped down on the sun-warmed pebbles, and Cinderheart followed suit after giving herself a good shake.

They lay there, breathing heavily. She watched the water run off of his pelt in rivulets, then looked at his eyes, no longer wondering if they could truly see her.

She'd never realized how beautiful a shade Jaypaw's eyes were, probably because she spent most of her time avoiding them out of embarrassment for the strange feelings that she had held for him lately. He gazed back at her with amusement, then opened his mouth to speak for the first time in minutes. "Cinderheart, I-"

Cinderheart jolted awake suddenly, wondering why her heart was beating frantically, threatening to burst out of her chest. Her dream hadn't been scary, just.... just what? She'd had a similar one the night before, but had dismissed it as a aftereffect of the stale thrush that she had gulped down before going to sleep that night. Was there a reason that the medicine cat apprentice walked in her dreams?

Of course there is, her mind told her. You like him.

She shook her head softly, denying what she knew to be true. Jaypaw was a medicine cat, and he hated her. As she thought of him, a pair of jay blue eyes appeared in the blanket of darkness.

"Cinderheart?" he whispered. For some reason shse thought that she heard relief in his quiet mew, but forgot about it as she struggled to find the words to answer. "I..um.. just had a bad dream." The eyes blinked once, relieving her of his disbelieving gaze for a moment. "Okay. Try and stay still, your leg is still healing."

She sighed, having remembered why she was even in the same den as him. Leafpool has insisted that she spend the night in the medicine cat's den, just in case.

Shifting in the moss, Cinderheart realized that it was no wonder she was dreaming of Jaypaw: she had been given his nest, and that coupled with him being right next to her would be enough for his scent to find it's way into her dreams. Satisfied with the explanation, she curled back up and closed her eyes, shivering as she thought of what Jaypaw would said had he witnessed her dream.

It wouldn't have surprised her if he had, actually, seeing as he seemed an expert at reading thoughts and feelings. It would not have been a huge shock if watching other cat's dreams was included in his strange array of talents. She drifted gradually into sleep; this time deep enough to be dreamless.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jaypaw lay awake long after Cinderheart returned to slumber, unable to simply close his eyes and fall asleep as she did.

He had woken to her shifting and murmuring, pleasure and amusement radiating off of her pelt like the sun's heat. She was dreaming of water, he could tell, just from a small and accidental glimpse at her dreams. She was swimming with another cat, one that Jaypaw didn't take the time to place.

Her dreams were her own, he decided. The other medicine cats, however, were a different case.

They had visited the Moonpool about half a moon ago, with minimal results. The medicine cats had received no important news, and after a small sample of their dreams, Jaypaw had surrendered to his own, which had been considerably less interesting.

This time it was Redtail, the old ThunderClan deputy, who warned him not to walk carelessly in other cat's dreams. Jaypaw bristled in the darkness at the thought of some dead cat ordering him around as if he was clan leader. What say did he have in what Jaypaw did and did not do?

Forcing his fur to lie flat, he got up and slunk out of the stuffy den and into the cool night air, stretching generously once outside.

Murmured voices came from the Highrock, and he pricked his ears to listen in on the conversation. Brambleclaw was discussing the WindClan border with Ashfur and Birchfall, he realized, recalling the sound of beating paws that had accompanied the dawn patrol as they thundered into camp, bringing news of a moved border.

Windclan had grown dangerously thin that leaf-fall, and moving the border was a desperate and hopeless move. There had been a brief skirmish, and the skinny cats had quickly fled into their own territory, leaving ThunderClan to reset the border.

Many cats, including Lionblaze, had been in favour of setting the border further into Windclan territory, and enlarging our hunting grounds. Jaypaw's brother had been particularly angry when Firestar insisted on keeping the old border. His behaviour scared his siblings, who were beginning to see him as overly ambitious like Tigerstar before him.

Jaypaw slipped back into the den, moving to the shelves at the far wall where the herbs were stored, and began to sort them sluggishly. Noting that they were low on catmint, he resolved to recruit a young warrior or apprentice to help him fetch some and carry it back to camp. It was unlikely that greencough would strike the clan now, but after a hard leaf bare, everyone was more vulnerable to sickness.

Besides, he'd never forgive himself if one of his siblings caught the deadly sickness and he did nothing to assure their safety.

Finishing up with the herbs, he picked up a bundle of stale and rotten plants in his mouth and made his way out of the den, relying on memory to guide his paws as a he could smell was herbs. Night was already slipping away, and a pale ray of sunlight shone down on his back as he crossed the hollow.

Slipping through the thorn tunnel, he nodded to Whitewing and continued into the forest, finding a good spot beneath a tree to bury the useless plants. He scratched the last bit of dirt over them and stood still.

He thought of going back to camp, but instead hurried on into the forest, eager to explore his territory.

Weaving through trees with practice, he had broken into a smooth run when an unnoticed rabbit hole caught his paw, twisting it painfully. He tumbled to the earth and sat miserably on the ground, wincing as pain shot up his leg.

Curiously, he sniffed at the hole, realizing that the scent was stale. No wonder he hadn't noticed it while running.

Even with his sharp nose, his uninhabited hole was hard to scent if you weren't looking for it. Scowling in frustration, he limped back in the direction of camp, muttering to himself.

Forcing himself to walk normally, he stalked back past Whitewing and through the tunnel, sitting down at the edge of camp. Breathing heavily, he tuned his senses to take in his surroundings. The sun was stronger now, and he realized that his run must have been longer than he thought.

The camp had woken up considerably since he had left, and apprentices milled around eagerly, waiting for a day of hunting or fighting. A familiar flash of jealousy hit him as this, but faded as he reminded himself of the prophecy. It was just a matter of time before he was more powerful than every cat in the clearing.

Padding slowly to the medicine cat's den, he listened to Mousefur's joints creaking as she sat up in her nest, and felt the ground tremble as Millie's kits romped around the nursery. Graystripe pulled himself reluctantly away from them, bounding towards the Highrock, his pawsteps uneven.

Jaypaw dragged himself into the den, dreading another boring day of collecting herbs and consoling fretful queens. Daisy was constantly worrying about her energetic litter, and he was ready to pronounce Rosekit bind and deaf just to give her a real scare.

A hesitant mew from Cinderhear jolted him out of his scheming. "Jaypaw?"

Jaypaw sighed wearily and turned to face her voice, ready for a volley of redundant and annoying questions. "Yes?" he meowed, trying to keep his voice even and unjudging.

"Um..well, I had this dream, and...." she trailed off nervously, sounding unsure of whether to continue.

Intrigued, Jaypaw found himself leaning forward slightly. Maybe some cat had finally got news from StarClan, though why they would visit Cinderheart on her dreams he had no idea.

She was a medicine cat in her past life, he realized.

"Well, I..."

"What?" he pressed, feeling irritation bleed into his voice. Why couldn't she just spit it out?

He sensed fear and uncertainty tingling in her pelt, and wondered just what StarClan had told her that frightened such a usually energetic she-cat.

"Erm....never mind."

Jaypaw stared in her direction for a moment, then turned his back on the indecisive warrior, tail lashing in frustration. He forced it to stay still and poked his head out of the den, parting his jaws slightly to catch Leafpool's scent.

Rocks clattered down into camp as she was bounding up to Firestar's den, her pawsteps distinct enough for Jaypaw to be sure who it was. Pulling back into the den, he nudged Cinderheart impatiently out of her nest, poking her leg with his nose. It seemed fine, and he was sure that it would heal if she exercised it enough and didn't strain herself again.

He told her so, then added, "Make sure you keep swimming until it's completely healed."

She nodded vigorously, seeming as eager to get out of camp as he had been. The thought of swimming reminded him of her dream. He thought that he knew who the cat was, but was afraid to make assumptions.

Jaypaw didn't need to glimpse her thoughts to know that she was thinking of the Gathering.

He shook his head at her, actually feeling bad. He knew what it was to be stuck in camp all day, with everyone looking at him with pity.

"You won't be able to go to this Gathering." he meowed. "Sorry."

A swish a air passed him as her tail dropped, and he could nearly see the excitement go out of her deep blue eyes. Nearly.

"Firestar will let me go next moon, right?" she mewed hopefully, making him want to console her.

"If you take care of your leg and don't do anything stupid, then yes." She didn't answer, and he guessed that she was thinking of how to impress the clan leader.

They stood in silence, then he remembered that they were running low on catmint. "Hey, could you come help me fetch some catmint? It would do your leg some good."

He quickly checked the other supplies, noting that they were also low on goldenrod; Leafpool must have made Mousefur a poultice for her joints. Jaypaw quickly looked through his knowledge of goldenrod and remembered that there was a nice growth of it near the Sky Oak.

Turning to Cinderheart, he felt her gaze on him. "Okay, we need some goldenrod too."

There was silence for a moment, then she stuttered, "O-Okay. I, um.. forgot you couldn't see me nodding."

Jaypaw appreciated her bluntness, and decided not to mention that he had sensed the movement of her head without sight. "It's okay. Let's go." he mewed briskly, trotted out of the den with her in tow.

She was barely limping, he noticed, and nobody objected to the blind apprentice and the crippled warrior going out into the forest alone.

He slowed down as they emerged from the tunnel trying to decide which way to go. The Sky Oak was closer, but the old Twoleg nest might be too far to go after getting goldenrod from near the lake. Catmint was a more important herb, and they could use juniper for Mousefur's joints if needed.

On a whim, he turned in the direction of the lake, deciding that if Cinderheart wasn't up to another trip he would find someone else, or go by himself.

The young warrior seemed happy that they were heading towards the lake, yet anxiety pulsed of of her at the same time.

Maybe it has something to do with that dream, he thought, remembering the small glimpse of water that he'd had. Had something bad happened to the cat she was playing with?

Remembering where he was just in time to swerve around a tree, Jaypaw adjusted their direction slightly, heading for the ancient oak.

Cinderheart didn't seem to mind following a blind cat; she was padding along with joy radiating from her paws, absolutely ecstatic to be out in the forest again. A sudden warmth on Jaypaw's back told him that they had entered the clearing, and he walked around the edge, sniffing for the well-known scent of goldenrod.

He trotted briskly underneath the shade of the trees and out of it, traveling in between shadow and light. Finally he scented a patch of goldenrod ahead, just behind some brambles.

Scowling, he parted the thorny bushes and nipped off a few stalks, spitting them out beside him. Cinderheart silently copied him, managing not to damage the plant.

When they had both collected good sized piles, Jaypaw picked his up gingerly in his jaws, listening to the warrior do the same. This time they walked with Cinderheart slightly ahead, her tail on the medicine cat apprentice's shoulder to guide him since the herbs beneath his nose and in his mouth rendered scent useless.

They entered camp side by side, hurrying to the medicine den and dropping the herbs. While Jaypaw sorted them carefully, Cinderheart watched with interest, asking the occasional question.

"What's wrong with that one?" she asked curiously as he deposited a seemingly fine stalk in a separate pile.

"Too dry," he mewed shortly. He didn't really mind the questions, actually; they gave him more of a purpose.

He finished up and turned to her, searching for weariness beneath her pelt. Surprisingly, she was full of energy, ready to go out again.

"Where now?" she asked, her tail swishing across the dirt and betraying the impatience that she was trying to conceal.

"The old Twoleg nest," he said, suddenly finding conversation much more natural. "We're almost out of catmint, and that's the best place."

"Why do we need catmint?" she pressed on. "It's not the season." This made Jaypaw want to roll his sightless eyes at her, but suppressed the urge, reminding himself of her adventurous and occasionally kit-like personality.

All the same, the smart comment slipped out.

"Oh, we'd just like some to line our nests with, and a bit to feed the kits, and maybe some to fight off rogues! StarClan knows that catmint is useless for greencough!"

"Oh." her answer came quietly out of the air, and he suddenly felt bad for snapping at her.

"Sorry." he muttered, embarrassed by his nearly unprovoked outburst. Her tail lay still in the dirt now, the energy having been driven out of her.

She didn't answer, just stalked out of the den, heading to the camp entrance to wait for him.

Guilt weighed heavily down on his shoulders, burdening him while he slunk shamefully into the clearing, feeling as if the stone walls were towering over him. Shoulders hunched, he came almost silently through the tunnel, causing Cinderheart to jump up in surprise. He felt her gaze on him, trying to dig into his pelt and see what he was really feeling.

Hardening his emotions, he headed off in the opposite direction from before, gesturing with his tail for her to follow him. She obeyed, but stayed at least a tail lengths behind him, obviously still feeling the sting of his patronizing comment.

Jaypaw sighed, wishing that he hadn't gone and put out the tiny flame of friendship that had been growing steadily between them.

Why did he have to be so mean all the time?

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Hollyleaf watched as Cinderheart left the hollow, her bushy tail dragging on the earth.

Jaypaw slunk out of the medicine cat's den almost shamefully, and though Hollyleaf wasn't a mind reader like her brother, she could clearly see that he was guilty.

Shaking her head, she wondered if Jaypaw would ever be able to withhold his snappy comments long enough to make a real friend. She could only guess at what he could've done to put Cinderheart out; she was as bouncy as a kit.

Though secretly, Hollyleaf was glad that Jaypaw acted as mean to her friend as he did to every other cat.

Lately, she'd been catching Cinderheart gazing at her brother with a strange look on her face, and didn't particularly like the idea that the energetic warrior fancied her brother. She would only get hurt trying to pursue the snappy medicine cat apprentice, and besides, it was against the warrior code!

Hollyleaf clawed at the dirt with unsheathed claws, wondering how any cat could do something so forbidden, and directly obey their warrior ancestors. If she found a mate, it would be inside the clan, and not a medicine cat. At the thought of taking a mate she shivered, once again feeling the pressure that was laid on all she-cats: to have kits.

She honestly wasn't sure that she wanted a mate, let alone kits of her own.

There were plenty of nice toms in her clan, and there would be more, but she didn't feel drawn to any of them.

Maybe she should have kept training as a medicine cat; they weren't expected to bear the clan new warriors, but deliver and care for them. The idea was unimaginable, though. Hollyleaf knew that she was destined to be a warrior, and decided that she would follow Leafpool's advice and focus on supporting the clan.

Perhaps she ought to go and talk to her again.

Brambleclaw's low mew interrupted her thoughts. "Hollyleaf! Why don't you join our patrol? We could use a good nose."

Her black head shot up, and she nodded eagerly, padding away from the warrior's den to join the rest of the patrol. A hunt would clear her mind of all her other duties.

Berrynose, Lionblaze and Brambleclaw stood waiting for her at the camp entrance. Hollyleaf nodded to herself in satisfaction: they would catch a good amount of prey, if Berrynose would stop bragging long enough to hunt. Purring at the thought, she followed them through the thorn tunnel and out into the forest, her worries brushed away by the soft sunlight and green ferns.

Please review, I'd love to know what everyone thinks. If I get enough positive comments, I'll write some more. May be some JayxWillow coming up!