Injured
This will be easy; kit's play, Talonpaw thought as he hid behind the ferns. A patrol of ShadowClan cats sauntered into ThunderClan territory, tails held high and eyes gleaming. They were completely unaware of the dark red-brown tabby tom hiding behind them, green eyes narrowed.
Talonpaw had smelled their reek from all the way across the Thunderpath, and he had known they were coming. He was hunting with his sister, Cloudpaw, when the scent wafted into his nose. Talonpaw immediately sent Cloudpaw to bring a ThunderClan patrol to the border. But Talonpaw was never one for waiting. He had watched the ShadowClan warriors, and he couldn't help but think they seemed slow, underfed, and weak. Leaf-bare had taken a harsh toll on all the Clans, but it seemed to hurt ShadowClan the most. Talonpaw believed that he could beat them all single-pawed.
When they got within range, Talonpaw bunched his muscles together. I bet I'll get my warrior name after this! As he sprang, he thought, Graystar will surely name me Talonstrike, for my amazing surprise attack.
Talonpaw landed on a skinny gray tom, who yowled in surprise. The ThunderClan apprentice quickly slashed at the flat area between his shoulders with his powerful fore claws, which his mother had named him for. The opposing warrior rolled onto his back, squashing Talonpaw. As the gray tom got up, another ShadowClan warrior yanked Talonpaw up by the scruff, and shook him harshly. Talonpaw's vision blurred, and he grew numb. He barely felt the shaking stop when another warrior bit into his front right leg, right where it connected to Talonpaw's chest. Horrified, the apprentice saw his blood flow onto the ground, so he screwed his eyes shut.
In the distance, he heard a cry, "ThunderClan attack!"
He opened his eyes barely, and saw the tortoiseshell pelt of his mentor, Leafshroud. Her amber eyes burned with anger as she launched herself at the brown tabby that held Talonpaw in his jaws. Talonpaw fell to the ground with a plop. He could hear the ThunderClan and ShadowClan cats fighting, but the sound was faint. He looked up to see Cloudpaw standing above him, her snow-white fur glowing unnaturally bright in the sunlight. Her sky-blue eyes were filled with worry. Blackness tugged at the edges of Talonpaw's sight, and he slipped out of consciousness.
Talonpaw awoke to the medicine den. He saw the silvery white back of Moonspirit, the medicine cat, as she worked. He looked down at his leg, and screeched in horror at what he saw. His leg was gone; there was nothing left but a small nub, covered in herb poultices. Moonspirit turned around, her dark blue eyes sad.
"I'm sorry Talonpaw. I couldn't save your leg. I really tried, but it was too late. I'm sorry." She bowed her head in shame. Talonpaw lifted his head to touch noses with the medicine cat.
"It's okay," he purred, "I understand." Talonpaw sighed, "I guess I'll never be a warrior, huh?"
"I'm afraid not." After she said that, her ears perked up. "Talonpaw," she began, "What do you smell?"
"Um, comfrey, marigold, horsetail, catmint, and," he took an extra sniff, "Borage."
Moonspirit purred, surprising Talonpaw.
"While it's true that you'll never be a warrior, I have a different idea. How would you like to be my apprentice?"
Talonpaw's heart skipped a beat. This was perfect; as a medicine cat, he would be able to help his Clan in ways no warrior ever could. And although his old dream had been destroyed, he could still be useful in the Clan, and not just another burden in the elders' den. Somehow, he felt that being the medicine cat was his destiny.
"I think I'd like that," he replied.
The medicine cat smiled, "Good. Tonight's the half-moon, so I can take you to the Moonstone to become a proper medicine cat apprentice."
"Perfect," Talonpaw agreed.
"May all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highrock for a Clan meeting!" Graystar called.
"Let's go, Talonpaw," Moonspirit meowed. She padded out, and Talonpaw hobbled close behind
Graystar continued, "Today I have a very special announcement. I talked to Smokeclaw, and he agrees that his apprentice is ready to be a warrior. Cloudpaw, step forward."
Talonpaw's sister nearly flew to the Highrock.
"I, Graystar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has worked hard to learn the ways of your noble code, and I commend her to be a warrior in her turn. Cloudpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your own life?"
"I do."
"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Cloudpaw, from now on you will be known as Cloudsky. StarClan honors your determination and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."
"Cloudsky! Cloudsky! Cloudsky!" the Clan called, Talonpaw obviously the loudest.
When she jumped down, she rubbed up against her brother and whispered in his ear, "I'm glad you're okay."
"I have something else," Moonspirit announced, "Talonpaw lost his leg in the fight with ShadowClan, so he cannot be a warrior, but he agreed to become my apprentice."
Graystar purred, "Excellent."
Cloudsky nuzzled Talonpaw.
"Congratulations!" she exclaimed, "You'll be a great medicine cat."
From the side, Talonpaw noticed that his former mentor, Leafshroud, looked sad, her amber eyes fixed on the ground. Talonpaw padded over to her the best he could without the use of his leg.
"I'm sorry, Leafshroud. It was foolish of me to attack that ShadowClan patrol by myself. I didn't know what I was thinking. I was just so excited about becoming a warrior, and my pride got the better of me."
"It's okay, Talonpaw. We all make mistakes. Even Graystar," she said. Talonpaw looked up at the muscular gray tom, who was also Leafshroud's brother.
"Really? But he's a great leader," Talonpaw protested.
Leafshroud laughed, "Yes, he is. But trust me, he's made mistakes. When we were apprentices, he would always pull pranks on me. Sometimes he still does."
Talonpaw laughed too, "Well, that's what family is for."
That night, Moonspirit took Talonpaw to the Moonstone with all the other medicine cats. He met Heatherfur, the WindClan medicine cat; Robinflight, the ShadowClan medicine cat; and Nightmist, the RiverClan medicine cat; along with Heatherfur's apprentice, Foxpaw. Of course, they asked him about his leg, but they were nice about it. Robinflight seemed ashamed to know that his Clanmates had been that ruthless. Later, Moonspirit performed the ceremony for Talonpaw to become the medicine cat apprentice.
"Talonpaw, is it your wish to enter the mysteries of StarClan as a medicine cat?" she asked.
"It is."
"Then come forward. Warriors of StarClan, I present to you this apprentice. He has chosen the life of a medicine cat. Grant him your wisdom and insight so that he may understand your ways to heal his Clan in accordance to your will."
Talonpaw could almost feel StarClan's presence as the ceremony ended. He touched his nose to the Moonstone and fell asleep.
Many moons later, Moonspirit grew old and realized that she would die soon. Talonpaw was ready to receive his full medicine cat name. In the time that had passed since he became the medicine cat apprentice, Foxpaw had gotten his full name, Foxflame, and Nightmist had taken an apprentice, Rosepaw. When the medicine cats came to the Moonstone, the ceremony began.
"I, Moonspirit, medicine cat of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of a medicine cat, and with you help, he will serve his Clan for many moons. Talonpaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan and to protect all the cats equally, even at the cost of your own life?"
"I do."
"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your true name as a medicine cat. Talonpaw, from this moment on, you will be known as Talonheart. StarClan honors your focus and endurance, and we welcome you as a full medicine cat."
In Talonheart's Moonstone dream, he met the former ThunderClan medicine cat and Moonspirit's mentor, Fernpool. She was white with gray patches, and she had light green eyes. She warned Talonheart that he would soon be ThunderClan's only medicine cat.
That night, Moonspirit died in her sleep.
Talonheart was one of the finest medicine cats that ThunderClan had ever known. He eventually got his own apprentice, Thrushpaw.
Was Talonheart injured? Yes. Did that stop him from achieving his destiny? Absolutely not.