Chapter 1
Inside a small cave, a she-cat was watching tiredly as her kits played, just being able to see as it was already nearing sunset. The she-cat was a beautiful tortoiseshell with fiery amber eyes, which seemed to glow brightly when the sun hit them, and long, glossy fur. She rested her head on her paws, and purred with laughter as her first-born, a tiny tabby tom, was pinned to the ground by his youngest sister, another tortoiseshell who seemed to be a small version of her mother.
The cave she lived in was small, one and a half fox-lengths tall, and maybe three fox-lengths wide. On the right side was a tunnel leading downwards into an even smaller cave where the she-cat and her kits slept. A nest made of moss and bracken was against the back wall, next to yet another tunnel which led to an area where the cats made their dirt. The tunnel was quite long, partly so the tortoiseshell couldn't smell the dirt, and the floor was covered with dead grass and leaves, so they could bury their dirt, sort of. In the main cave, a hole was in the roof, to let light in. The hole was quite small, but even so, it lit up the entire place like the sun itself was inside the cave. A pile of fresh-kill was near the entrance to the cave, a tunnel with a large opening that led to outside. Outside, the entrance to the cave was blocked off by ferns, brambles, and thorn bushes to keep away intruders, and it blended into the area a little. Of course, the tortoiseshell had no problem with finding it, because she had lived there most of her life.
Inside, the tortoiseshell found herself dozing off, until she heard a squeal of pain from one of her kits. She quickly leaped to her paws, and padded quickly towards her kits. Her two sons and one daughter were gathered around her youngest, a tortoiseshell she-kit. She leaned her head down towards her, and the kit quickly leaned forward and showed the she-cat her paw, which was scraped and slightly bleeding. The tortoiseshell sighed with relief that nothing serious had happened, grabbing the she-kit by her scruff, despite the little kit's protests, and set her down between her own paws, where she licked the crying kit's scraped pad. Her oldest son padded up to her, and looked at her in worry. "Will Specklekit be okay?" He asked and blinked at his mother with worry for his sister clouding his gaze. The she-cat nodded. "Yes, Tigerkit. Specklekit may be young, but she's strong." Tigerkit purred with delight, and her other son and daughter trotted towards them.
"Dapplefire, I'm hungry!" Whined her son, a black tom with one orange ear. His sister, a ginger-and-white she-cat, nodded quickly in agreement. Dapplefire purred. "Go ahead and grab a mouse from the pile, Flamekit. And share with Tigerkit and Brightkit!" She added as Flamekit padded away, with Brightkit and Tigerkit following quickly behind. Specklekit looked up at her mother with pleading eyes, and when Dapplefire nodded, sprinted after her siblings. Dapplefire's eyes glittered with amusement, and sighed. "Kits, after you've eaten, come to bed." She rose to her paws, and with a flick of her tail, vanished into the sleeping-cave. After a few moments, her kits followed.
Dapplefire woke to whispers coming from the main cave, and she quickly raised her head. Narrowing her eyes, she slowly, so she wouldn't wake up her kits, stood up and padded out of the tiny cave. She halted as the intruders came into view. A light brown tabby with amber eyes and a dark ginger cat with one white paw and green eyes. Dapplefire sniffed the air. She-cats. She let out a low growl, which echoed throughout the cave. The tabby turned towards the tunnel entrance where Dapplefire was, and the tortoiseshell slowly stepped into view, fur bristling. The dark ginger she-cat dipped her head. "Greetings. We bring you no harm." Dapplefire snorted. "Like I'd believe that." The tabby spoke next. "I am Leafpool, this is Squirrelflight." The ginger one –Squirrelflight– nodded. Dapplefire stiffened. These sounded like warrior names! She cautiously took a step forward, but a small mew made her eyes widen and her heart stop. "Mother, who are these cats?" She spun around and found Specklekit staring curiously at the she-cats in the cave. Dapplefire padded towards her kit and lowered her head to whisper in her ear, "Clan cats." The she-kit suddenly fluffed her fur and widened her eyes in terror, as Dapplefire had told her stories of what happened the last time her mother met Clan cats. Squirrelflight and Leafpool exchanged a confused and curious glance, obviously wondering what had spooked the kitten so much. Specklekit quickly raced back to the nest, running as fast as her little legs could go. "Is that your kit?" Leafpool asked, and Dapplefire growled. "Yes," she hissed, "Why?" Squirrelflight dipped her head again, ignoring the question. "Would you mind telling us your name?" Dapplefire hesitated. Dear StarClan, these cats are more curious than kits! "Dapplefire." She replied. Squirrelflight blinked, startled. "Your name..." She trailed off. Dapplefire snorted, half-amused. "Sounds like a Clan name, doesn't it? Well, to save the questions, I used to be a Clan cat." Leafpool twitched her ears in surprise. "May I ask what Clan?" Dapplefire swished her tail back and forth. "SkyClan." Will they just leave already? Leafpool's eyes widened. "But that's so far from here!" She exclaimed. Dapplefire's ears flatted, and she hissed in annoyance. "Keep it down! My kits are trying to sleep!" She spat. "Which, they're probably awake now." She added with an irritated tone. Leafpool's ears flattened in embarrassment. "Sorry!" She apologized quietly. Dapplefire sighed. "Now would you mind telling me why exactly you're in my cave, especially at moon-high?" Squirrelflight nodded. "Well, earlier, on the dawn patrol –I assume you know about those–, I came across this place. I told Leafpool, and we came to investigate." Leafpool nodded. Dapplefire huffed. "And you didn't scent any cats?" Squirrelflight shuffled her paws in embarrassment. "Uh… Yeah, we didn't think about that until after we were in the cave." She muttered. Obviously. Dapplefire thought. "Are you going to report to your leader and chase us out, now?" She asked, a hint of worry in her voice. I don't think my kits could handle any more traveling! Leafpool glanced at Squirrelflight. They were obviously thinking the same thing, and Dapplefire guessed it a heartbeat before they said it. "We can't have you taking our prey. Perhaps you could join ThunderClan?" Though Dapplefire was expecting it, she couldn't help but feel surprised. "Me?" She asked, voice slightly high-pitched from shock. Squirrelflight nodded. "But wouldn't you need to ask your leader for permission first?" Dapplefire asked. It was Leafpool who answered. "Squirrelflight is deputy of ThunderClan. She shouldn't have any trouble with bringing a stray into the Clan, because Bramblestar himself has done it a few times." She said. Dapplefire was silent, staring at Leafpool and Squirrelflight with a thoughtful look. She had told her kits so many stories of her life in SkyClan, of all the battles that had taken place, and of the other cats who would attack them in hopes of removing the 'evil' cats from the world. Dapplefire had told them of how she had trained to be a warrior, and then later found that her destiny was to be a Medicine Cat. The poor kits had been terrified of Clan cats, convinced they were cold-blooded murderers, their last encounter with a ShadowClan patrol not helping to change their minds. By living with ThunderClan, not only would she possibly change their minds about Clan cats, but they would get to see how a Clan worked. Finally, she sighed and spoke. "…Alright. I will join your Clan." Leafpool purred in delight, and Squirrelflight gave a small bounce of excitement. "Great!" She meowed in happiness. "If you would like, I can lead a patrol to fetch you tomorrow at sun-high?" Dapplefire nodded slowly, then she suddenly looked worried. "Listen, I told my kits once about the SkyClan. They thought the Clans were nothing but killers, and a recent encounter with a ShadowClan patrol didn't change that idea. They'd be terrified, no doubt. I just ask that you be kind, and patient. Very patient. Once they get their mind set on something, they'll never let it go." She sighed. Leafpool nodded. "Yes, you will stay in the nursery with Daisy and Cinderheart, our only two queens. They're patient enough, with kits of their own." Dapplefire sighed. "I would like to sleep now. Please," She waved her tail towards the entrance, "Allow us to sleep." Squirrelflight dipped her head, and nudged Leafpool gently with her nose. As they disappeared, Dapplefire sighed. Oh, StarClan, what have I gotten myself into?
"But we don't wanna live with Clan cats!" Wailed Flamekit once Dapplefire had finished telling them what had happened the previous night. Dapplefire sighed, curling her tail around him. "Sorry, kits, but it's our only chance of survival. Leaf-bare is nearly here, and soon we'd starve or freeze to death." They were sat just outside the cave entrance. It was sun-high, and they were waiting for the patrol to arrive. "They'll kill us!" Brightkit whimpered, burying her face in Dapplefire's chest. The tortoiseshell sighed. It was about time they were apprentices, but with no other cats to train them, she hadn't been able to give them the prefix 'paw. I don't know what I was thinking, giving them Clan names. She sighed. A moment later, four cats burst through the trees, causing poor Tigerkit to squeak in surprise and terror and hide behind Dapplefire. She recognized Squirrelflight out of those four, but not the other three cats. Squirrelflight blinked sympathetically, and dipped her head. "Hello, Dapplefire." Dapplefire nodded in greeting, but eyed the other three suspiciously. Squirrelflight glanced behind her at the rest of the patrol. "The white she-cat is Whitewing, the gray tom with black stripes is Bumblestripe, and the cream she-cat is Daisy." Dapplefire nodded. "Hello." Bumblestripe purred a greeting, while Whitewing and Daisy dipped their heads. Squirrelflight nodded. "Right, so, let's go." She turned around and flicked her tail, telling the others to follow. Standing up, Dapplefire grabbed Specklekit by the scruff and watched as Whitewing, Bumblestripe, and Daisy picked up her other kits and followed Squirrelflight. Dapplefire allowed her mind to wander as they padded through the forest, back to the time when she was only an apprentice, learning Clan ways. She looked up as the patrol stopped, and she realized they had reached a thorn tunnel that led into a hollow.
This is it, she realized, this is their camp.