Prologue
A lone cat sat out in the open, awaiting another. She looked at the stars, pondering of what would become of her home.
"You summoned me, Stormstar?" Another she-cat spoke, destroying the pleasant silence.
"Yes, Dappleheart. I know that you too, have received the vison." Stormstar tapped a spot next to her with her tail. "Sit here."
Dappleheart did so, and looked at her clan leader with curiosity. It was not often that Stormstar would summon her, normally Dappleheart would be in her den, sorting herbs. But ever since they had come, Dappleheart was more likely to be treating the wounded, than relaxing.
"Dappletail, what do you sense?" Stormstar asked suddenly.
Dappletail closed her eyes. "I smell the forest, ThunderClan forest. I smell the fields where WindClan roams. I hear the quiet chirping of the crickets and hear waves washing up upon the shore. I feel the dirt beneath my paws, and feel your body heat on my pelt. That is what I sense, Stormstar."
"But what is different about nights than days?"
"It's dark."
"Aside from that."
"It's peaceful."
"Ah, good. That is the one thing that is different from the day." Stromstar nodded, satisfied.
"I wish there was peace now." Dappleheart sighed. "Those moons, I've known for a little."
"I've never known them." Stormstar pointed out. "I grew up with this needless bloodshed. I don't even know what peace is."
A star streaked across the sky, faintly shining light on the two she-cats. Dappleheart stiffened and relaxed as the star passed. "That was a message from StarClan."
"What did they say?"
"They gave us a new prophecy:
A hero will arise from the misjudged clan
She will be regarded as an outsider, but will harbor no grudge
The strength of her soul, her purity of heart
Beware, beware
The Dragonborn will come."
Stormstar looked at her, troubled. "'The Dragonborn will come'?"
"It appears so, Stormstar."
"But what is a Dragonborn? Is it a Twoleg word? I've never heard of such a thing."
"Neither have I, though StarClan wouldn't have said such a thing, if it did not exist."
"Then comes other questions. Such as the line 'He will be regarded as an outsider, but will harbor no grudge'. What could that possible mean?"
Dappleheart shook her head. "Stormstar, we must not try to predict the future. In all my years of being ThunderClan's medicine cat, this is the one thing I know for sure to be true. We are in no place to figure out the future. I think you'll find, that if you just let the future come to you, it will all make sense in due time."
Stormstar scrapped her claws across the dirt angrily. "The one thing I've never had, is patience. And sometimes, I do indeed wish I had such a thing."
"Stormstar, patience is not something you are born with. It is something you develop over time, with age." A wind blew through, ruffling both she-cats fur.
Stormstar looked at the sky again, sighing. She got to her paws, lifting her head high. Dappleheart copied her movements.
"I suppose you are correct, Dappleheart. All we can do, is wait."
"Indeed. Now let's get back to the camp. I have cats to tend to and you have a strategy to figure out. Tomorrow, tonight's peace is broken once again, by those ruthless killers."
The two she-cats walked back to the forest, gliding silently through the underbrush and treading down the paw-worn path of the camp. As they went into their den, it seemed like the wind was whispering the prophecy.
A hero will arise from the misjudged clan
She will be regarded as an outsider, but will harbor no grudge
The strength of her soul, her purity of heart
Beware, beware
The Dragonborn will come
