Hello everyone. :) This is my new story and I hope you all like it. Mainly, it's that everyone's gender is switched but Rusty's/Firestar's. That means that all the she-cats you all pair him with (Sandstorm, Spottedleaf, Cinderpelt, Bluestar, and more...) are toms now! :D So, if Firestar gets a mate, I guess it will have to be one of the toms turned she-cat. (Graystripe, Dustpelt, Longtail, Ravenpaw, and more...)
It also means that the whole story has changed, the plot may be different and the characters might act differently and have different feelings.
So, before we start, here are 5 things you should know:
1. All queens stay she-cats.
2. In Shadowclan, Clawface, Nightpelt, Brownpaw, and Stumpytail keeps the same gender.
3. In Windclan only Tallstar was listed in the book, so that's all I wrote.
4. In Riverclan only the leader and deputy was listed in the book, so that's all I wrote.
5. Rusty's gender stays as a tom.
Thunderclan
Leader:
Bluestar- A blue-gray tom, tinged with silver around his muzzle. Apprentice, Firepaw
Deputy:
Redtail- Small tortoiseshell she-cat with a distinctive ginger tail. Apprentice, Dustpaw
Medicine Cat:
Spottedleaf- Handsome dark tortoiseshell tom with a distinctive dappled coat.
Warrior:
Lionheart- magnificent golden tabby she-cat with thick fur like a lion's mane. Apprentice, Graypaw
Tigerclaw- big dark brown tabby she-cat with unusually long front claws. Apprentice, Ravenpaw
Whitestorm- big white she-cat. Apprentice, Sandpaw
Darkstripe- sleek black-and-gray tabby she-cat.
Longtail- pale tabby she-cat with dark black stripes.
Runningwind- swift tabby she-cat.
Willowpelt- very pale gray tom with unusual blue eyes.
Mousefur- small dusky brown tom.
Apprentice:
Dustpaw- dark brown tabby she-cat.
Graypaw- long-haired solid gray she-cat.
Ravenpaw- small, skinny black she-cat with a tiny white dash oh her chest, and white-tipped tail.
Sandpaw- pale ginger she-cat.
Firepaw- handsome ginger tom.
Queen:
Frostfur- beautiful white she-cat with blue eyes.
Brindleface- pretty tabby she-cat.
Goldenflower- pale ginger she-cat.
Speckletail- pale tabby she-cat, and the oldest nursery queen.
Elder:
Halftail- big dark brown tabby she-cat with part of her tail missing.
Smallear- gray she-cat with small ears, the oldest she-cat in Thunderclan.
Patchpelt- small black-and-white she-cat.
One-eye- pale gray tom, the oldest cat in Thunderclan. Virtually blind and deaf.
Dappletail- once-handsome tortoiseshell tom with a lovely dappled coat.
Shadowclan:
Leader:
Brokenstar- long-haired dark brown tabby she-cat.
Deputy:
Blackfoot- large white she-cat with huge jet-black paws.
Medicine Cat:
Runningnose- small gray-and-white she-cat.
Warrior:
Stumpytail- brown tabby tom. Apprentice, Brownpaw
Boulder- silver tabby she-cat. Apprentice, Wetpaw
Clawface- battle-scarred brown tom. Apprentice, Littlepaw
Nightpelt- black tom.
Apprentice:
Brownpaw- brown tom.
Wetpaw- gray tabby she-cat.
Littlepaw- small brown tabby she-cat.
Queen:
Dawncloud- small tabby she-cat.
Brightflower- black-and-white she-cat.
Elder:
Ashfur- thin gray she-cat.
Windclan:
Leader:
Tallstar- a black-and-white she-cat with a very long tail.
Riverclan:
Leader:
Crookedstar- a huge light-colored tabby she-cat with a twisted jaw.
Deputy:
Oakheart- a reddish brown tabby tom.
Cats Outside Clans:
Yellowfang- old dark gray tom with a broad, flattened face.
Smudge- plump, friendly black-and-white she-cat who lives in a house at the edge of the forest.
Barley- black-and-white she-cat who lives on a farm close to the forest.
Rusty sat in his garden under a large bush with heavily scented blue flowers. The garden was bathed in silver moon light. The air was damp from the recent rain, and Rusty could feel the weight of rain drops on his fur.
Rusty was outside now becuase he had had one of those mouse dreams again, and was left thinking again about what it would be like to be free in the woods.
The desire to explore the woods was killing him, and he knew that if he stayed here with his Housefolk he would never be happy.
Rusty forced himself to his paws and padded out from beneath the bush. At the same time the door to his Housefolk's nest swung open. The female Housefolk looked at him, and gestured with her hands for him to come in side. She called for Rusty, but he ignored her.
Instead he turned away from the Housefolk and padded across the garden, shortly cut grass pricking the padds of his paws. He heard the door slam shut behind him as his owner whent back inside to sleep.
Rusty walked up to the fence, bunched his muscles, and leapt onto the fence. He stood on the top for a moment, staring out at the trees in the forest. But then he heard the noise of claws on the fence.
He turned to se the familiar plump black-and-white she-cat pulling herself up onto the fence. "Where are you going Rusty?" She asked. She trotted towards Rusty and stopped, balencing unsteadily next to Rusty.
"Hello Smudge." Rusty replied.
"You're not going into the woods are you?" Smudge's amber eyes where huge.
"Just for a look." Rusty promised, shifting uncomfortably.
"You would never get me in that place! It's dangerous!" Smudge wrinkled her black nose with distate. "Henrietta said that she whent in there once." She gestured with her nose to the woods.
"That fat old tabby never whent into the woods!" Rusty scoffed. "He's hardly been beyond his own garden since his trip to the vet. All he wants to do is eat and sleep."
"No, he caught a robbin in there!" Smudge insisted.
"Well, if he did, it was before the vet. Now he complains about birds because they disturb his dozing." Rusty meowed.
"But he did..." Smudge sighed, then whent on. "Well anyways, Henry said that there are all sorts of dangers in the woods. Monsters and wild cats that eat their prey alive and sharpen their claws on bones!"
"I'm only going for a look around." Rusty meowed. "I wont stay long."
"Well, don't say I didn't warn you!" Smudge purred. The black-and-white cat looked at Rusty with wide eyes, "Just... be careful."
"I will." Rusty promised, touching noses with his friend.
"Good night, Rusty." Smudge meowed and then dropped down into her garden.
Rusty turned and jumped off of the fence. He landed on the coarse grass. He gave his shoulder a quick and nervous lick, he was wondering how much of Smudge's gossip was true.
Suddenly the movement of a tiny creature caught his eye. He watched it scuttle under some brambles. Instinct made him drop low into a crouch. He slowly padded forward, through the undergrowth. He could see it clearly now, sitting among the branches, nibbling on a large seed between his paws. It was a mouse.
Rusty paused, preparing to leap. He held his breath so that his bell wouldn't ring. Excitement coursed through him, making his heart pound. But then the noise of cracking twigs and crunching leaves made him jump.
His bell on his collar jingled and the mouse darted to the safety of the thick bramble bush. Rusty stood still and looked around for the noise. He could see the white tip of a bushy red tail trailing through a clump of ferns up ahead. It had a strong, strange scent but was neither a cat or a dog.
Rusty forgot about the mouse and watched the tail curiously. All of Rusty's sences strained ahead as he padded for a closer look. But then he heard a different sound, from behind him this time. But it was muted and distance. He swivled his ears back to hear better. Pawsteps? He wondered but kept his eyes on the red tail and continued forward.
The faint rustling became loud and fast approaching and rusty realilized he was in danger. The creature his him like an explosion and Rusty was thrown sideways into a clump of nettles.
Twisting and yowling, Rusty tried to throw off his attacker. He could feel it gripping him with incredibly sharp claws and its teeth pricking at his neck. Rusty writhed and squirmed but couldn't free himself.
For a second he felt helpless, but then he froze. Thinking fast, he flipped onto his back. He knew instinctively how dangerous it was to have his soft belly exposed, but it was his only chance. He heard a "huff" beneath him as the breath was knocked out of his attacker.
Thrashing, Rusty managed to wriggle free. Without looking back, he sprinted toward his home. Behind him Rusty heard a rush of paw steps, they told him that his attacker was giving chase. Even though his scratches hurt, he decided that he would rather turn and fight then just get jumped on again.
He skidded to a stop and turned to face his attacker. It was another kitten, with thick shagy gray fur, strong legs, and a broad face. Rusty could smell that it was a she-cat, but could sence the power beneath her the soft coat.
Taken by surprise by his turnabout, it skidded to a stop and stood barely a whisker legth from Rusty. She stared at him with wide eyes for a heartbeat or two, then leapt at him again.
Rusty fell back, the wind knocked out of him this time. Rusty staggered, but quickly found his footing again and pushed the cat away. He arched his back, ginger fur puffed out, ready to spring at her.
But his attacker just sat up and began to lick one of her forepaws, all agression gone. Rusty felt strangely disappointed.
"My fur!" The kitten muttered and brought her paw over her ear. Then she looked over at Rusty again. "Hi there, Kittypet!" She sounded cheerful. "You put up quite a fight for a soft kitty!"
Rusty remained ready to pounce for a second, wondering whether to attack anyways. Then he remembered the strength in the kitten's paws when she held him down. He dropped to his pads, losening his muscles, and letting his spine unbend. "And I'll fight you again if I have to." He growled.
"I'm Graypaw by the way." The gray she-cat whent on, ignoring Rusty's threat. "I'm training to be a Thunderclan warrior."
Rusty remained silent, he didn't understand this Graywhatsit, or what she was talking about. Rusty hid his confusion by sitting down and licking his ruffled chest fur.
"What's a Kittypet like you doing out in the woods?" The gray she-cat asked, looking him up and down. "Don't you know it's dangerous?"
"If you're the most dangerous thing the woods has to offer, then I think I can handle it." Rusty bluffed.
Graypaw looked at him through narrowed eyes. "Me?" She shook her head. "Oh no, I'm far from the most dangerous." Her tail flicked back and forth quickly. "If I was even half a warrior, you would have some serious scratches to think about!"
Rusty felt a thrill of fear at these words.
"Anyway," Graypaw whent on, she used her teeth to reach a peice of grass between her claws. "I didn't think it was worth hurting you. Your obviously not from the other clans." She looked up at Rusty again, then continued to smooth down her fur.
"Other clans?" Rusty asked, confused.
Graypaw rolled her eyes and set her paw on the ground again. "You must have heard of the four great clans!"
"No, I haven't." Rusty shook his head. Clans? What is a clan?
Graypaw took a breath and started to talk and explained the clans. After a minute Rusty started to only half listen. This must be one of cats Smudge had meant. She didn't seem too big and scary though.
"... And when I become a warrior, I will be so dangerous that the other clans will be shaking in their flea-bitten skins! They wont dare attack us then!" Graypaw finally finished.
"So your not a warrior yet?" Rusty asked.
Graypaw laughed, "What? Do I look like one?" She purred, and shook her head. "No, that is still moons away! Kits have to be at least six moons just to start training! Tonight is my first day of training." She finished, looking and sounding a bit proud.
"Why don't you find yourself an owner with a nice cosy house instead?" Rusty meowed. "Your life would be much easier. There are plenty of housefolk-"
"What?" Graypaw yowled. "Are you mouse-brained? Me, living with Twolegs? Never! There is nothing worse then being a Kittypet." She spat the word like it was poison. "Eating pellets that look like rabbit drippings, making dirt in a box of gravel, wearing collars, and peeking their noses outside only when Twolegs allow them to? That's no life!" She spat. "Untill you have eaten a freshly killed mouse, you have not lived. Have you ever tasted mouse?"
"No, I haven't." Rusty admitted, feeling a bit defensive. "Not yet."
"I guess you'll never understand then." Graypaw sat back down, and licked one shoulder. Between licks she said, "You have to be born wild with warrior blood in your veins and wind in your fur. You and your kitty friends could never feel the same."
Rusty remembered how he had felt in his dream. "That's not true!" He meowed indignantly.
Graypaw did not reply. Instead she froze midlick and sniffed the air. "I smell cats from my can!" She hissed, her eyes widening. "Quick, go before they see you!"
Rusty looked around, wondering how Graypaw knew that any cats where approaching. He couldn't smell anything different on the leaf-scented breeze. But his fur stood on end at the note of urgency in Graypaw's voice.
"Quick," Graypaw hissed, "Run!"
Rusty prepared to leap, not having any idea of what direction these cats might come from. But he was too late. A voice meowed behind him, firm and menacing, "What's going on here?"
Rusty turned to see a large gray tom strolling majestecally out of the undergrowth. White hairs streaked his muzzle and an ugly scar parted the fur on his shoulders, but his smooth gray coat shone like silver in the moonlight.
"Bluestar!" Graypaw gasped. She crouched down, still wide eyed. She got down even lower when a second cat joined them.
This one was a beautiful golden tabby she-cat. "You shouldn't be so near the Twoleg place, Graypaw!" Growled the golden tabby angrily, narrowing her green eyes.
"I'm sorry, Lionheart." Graypaw whimpered and looked at the ground. Rusty copied Graypaw, crouching down low, his ears twitching nervously.
These cats had an air of strength that Rusty had not seen in any of his garden friends. Maybe what Smudge had said was true.
"Who is this?" Asked the tom.
Rusty flinched as the tom turned his gaze on him, and his piercing blue eyes made him feel even more vulnerable.
"He's not a threat!" Graypaw meowed quickly. "He's just a little Twoleg pet from the Twoleg place! He can't do us any harm."
Just a little Twoleg pet! The words inraged Rusty, but he forced himself to stay still. The warning look in Bluestar's eyes told him that he had seen the anger in Rusty's eyes.
"You fight well for a Kittypet." Bluestar meowed. Rusty glanced over at Graypaw, but Graypaw kept her eyes fixed on the ground. "We've been watching you two. We had been wondering how you would do if you met an intruder, Graypaw."
Graypaw finally looked up, eyes hopeful.
"And you fought him bravely." Bluestar said. Graypaw seemed pleased with the answer. "Sit up now! Both of you."
Rusty sat up immediately, holding Bluestar's gaze evenly. "You reacted well to the attack, Kittypet, even though Graypaw is stronger than you. You turned to face your attacker, and that I have not seen a Kittypet do before."
Rusty managed to nodd his thanks, he had not suspected any praise.
"We patrol here frequently, and I have seen you staring into the forest often. I have always wondered how you would do out here." He stared at Rusty thoughtfully. "You seem to have a natural hunting ability. You would have caught that mouse if you hadn't hesitated."
Lionheart spoke up. "Bluestar, this is a Kittypet we should get him back to his home, not praise him and act like he's welcomed here."
Rusty prickled at the she-cat's words. "Send me home?" He asked impatiently. Bluestar had noticed him and was impressed him, but this golden tabby wanted to send him away? "But I've only come here to hunt for a mouse or two. I'm sure there is enough to go around."
"There is never enough to go around!" Bluestar turned to look at Rusty again, anger clear in his eyes. "If you didn't live such a soft, overfed, Kittypet life then you would know that!"
Rusty was confused by his anger, but one look of Graypaw's horrified face was enough to tell him that he had spoken too freely. Lionheart stepped to her leader's side, and they loomed over Rusty.
Rusty looked into Bluestar's glare and knew these where not the cozy fireside cats he was used to, they where mean, hungry cats who would probably finish what Graypaw had started.
That's it for the first chapter! :D Next one should be up soon and things should start to look more different within the next couple chapters.