ShadowClan

Leader: Bloodstar–– a friendly and small jet-black she-cat with blood red eyes

Deputy: Dawnfoot–– a black she-cat with a bright orange paw

Medicine Cat: Plumetail–– a long-furred orange plump tom with greenish-yellow eyes

Warriors:

Mistymask–– a white she-cat with gray spots on her face

apprentice: Seapaw

Archclaw–– a dark gray tom with greenish-blue eyes

Icyfang–– a white she-cat with bright white fangs

Tinystrike–– a white she-cat with black speckles and long claws

Cindertail–– a orange tom with a gray tail

apprentice: Lightpaw

Bouncelight–– a black tom with yellow eyes

Sandyspot–– a yellowish orange tom with dark orange spots

Dustdrop–– a scruffy light brown tom with green eyes

apprentice: Runningpaw

Leafsplash–– a orange-ish brown tom with gray splotches

apprentice: Willowpaw

Coldberry–– a white she-cat with a bright pink nose

apprentice: Shadepaw

Lionfur–– a thick furred golden tom with green eyes

Nightfeather–– a pretty black she-cat with blueish green eyes

Sageleap–– a long-legged gray and white tortoiseshell tom with green eyes

apprentice: Cloudpaw

Songcloud–– a pretty black she-cat with white paws

Beeflight–– a yellowish tom with dark gray stripes

Stripepelt–– a dark gray tom with black stripes

apprentice: Darkpaw

Yellowleaf–– a yellowish she-cat with green eyes

Fernwish–– a grey she-cat with darker gray spots

apprentice: Flypaw

Pikestorm–– a reddish-brown tom with green eyes

Apprentices:

Seapaw–– a light grayish-blue tom with dark blue eyes

Willowpaw–– a dark gray she-cat with a plumy tail and yellowish eyes

Shadepaw–– a light gray tom with a dark gray stripe going from his nose to his tail tip

Lightpaw–– a cream and brown-colored tom with orangeish-yellow eyes

Darkpaw–– a jet-black she-cat with a white underbelly

Flypaw–– an copper-colored tom with blue eyes

Cloudpaw–– a gray and white tortoiseshell tom

Runningpaw–– a light brown tabby tom with orange eyes

Queens:

Ashflower–– a dark gray she-cat with blue eyes

(Mother to Sandyspot's kits: Echokit, Foxkit, and Cedarkit)

Mousefang–– a dusky brown she-cat with beautiful dark brown eyes

(Mother to Archclaw's kit: Fawnkit)

Jaybreeze–– a sleek and elegant light gray she-cat with silver stripes

(Still expecting Leafsplash's kits)

Dovefall–– a cream colored she-cat with dark blue eyes

(Mother to Pikestorm's kits: Redkit, and Dewkit)

Elders:

Clawsong–– a used-to-be elegant ginger she-cat with blue eyes

Longstripe–– a dark gray tom with black stripes

ThunderClan

Leader: Flowerstar–– a small light gray and white tortoiseshell with blue eyes

Deputy: Addertail–– a thick-pelted white tom with black stripes on his tail

Medicine Cat: Brownleaf–– a pretty dark brown she-cat with brownish black eyes

WindClan

Leader: Flightstar–– a bulky gray tom with startling blueish-green eyes

Deputy: Hawkwing–– a white-pelted tom with green eyes

Medicine Cat: Greenbird–– a bulky light gray tom with light blueish green eyes

RiverClan

Leader: Birchstar–– a ginger she-cat with green eyes

Deputy: Wingpelt–– (temporarily) a thick-furred white and light gray tortoiseshell tom

Medicine Cat: Splashfall–– a slender light grayish-blue tom with sparkling orange eyes

I woke up in complete darkness, different scents coming and filling my nostrils. There was something warm and fuzzy pressing against me. An orange light was trying to peek through my eyelids, so I tried to open my eyes, but found I couldn't. I guess I just wasn't ready.

I put my nose to the fuzzy thing next to me. A wonderful aroma was coming from it, and made me want to eat it. Or drink it.

Sniffing my nose, I tried to find out where the great smelling scent was coming from. When I did, I latched my lips around it instinctively, and started to suck. A magnificent liquid filled my mouth, and I swallowed it eagerly. Unfortunately, the sucking stopped as soon as the fuzzy thing started to shift.

My fur bristling, I leaped back. I wished I could see what the thing rising was. I tried to see through my eyelids, but it didn't work. As I was trying, something cold touched my ear, and after that, something a tiny bit prickly was grooming my pelt.

"Good morning, Fawnkit," a warm and friendly voice whispered, tickling my fur. Fawnkit, she said? I assumed that Fawnkit was me. "I'm glad you're still here."

I tried to say "Where would I be?" but all that came out was a bunch of mewling.

The fuzzy friendly thing shifted again, and when it spoke, it was from way high up, and far away from me. "Fawnkit, it isn't time for the queens and the kits to get up yet! Only the warriors and apprentices should wake up right now. We should go back to sleep."

With that, the pawsteps of the fuzzy thing came back to me, and settled down next to me again. Before long, the fuzzy things breathing deepened and I assumed that it fell asleep.

Almost immediately, I got to my paws. My legs wobbled, and my head slumped down and fell on the soft stuff below. I tried again, this time stiffening my legs. I jerked my legs toward the orange light, wondering where it was going to. No one could really stop me!

Soon enough, I reached the orange light, and found a bunch of more bright light trying to leak through my eyelids. Vibrations reached my paws, and I guessed that there were more fuzzy things walking around near me. There was a tangy smell coming from my left, so I tried to move towards there. Something cold and fuzzy brushed in front of me, blocking my path.

"Well, hello little kit. Are you the famous Fawnkit?" The voice sounding like the other fuzzy thing I met, but a little different.

Seeing as I couldn't really speak, I just nodded. Then I tilted my head, trying to ask her what she meant by famous.

The fuzzy thing meowed, "I'm Bloodstar, the first she-cat leader of ShadowClan since we came to the lake." This was very useful information, but it wasn't what I wanted know. I shook my head at her, trying to tell her that's not what I meant.

Bloodstar's eyes pricked my pelt, but then I could feel realization coming off in waves. "Oh! You mean what makes you famous!"

I let out a mewl and nodded my head vigorously.

Bloodstar began to speak. "Oh! Well, it's a short story, not really the best, I'm sure the elders can tell you better stories, but I can tell you anyway." Not very good? Hey, this was my first story, so I could deal with it being short.

"Just two sunrises ago, Mousefang gave birth to four kits. Three of the kits were still-born, meaning they were born dead. One of the kits was born alive, but just a couple heartbeats later, it joined it's littermates in StarClan. StarClan is the cats that were here before us," added Bloodstar at my confused expression.

She continued. "At least, we thought that the kit that was born alive joined StarClan. The next day, just yesterday actually, Mousefang grieved. She wouldn't let anyone bury her kits, we wouldn't let anyone come near her, not even her own mate, Archclaw.

"But at moon-high, a miracle happened. Mousefang woke up the entire Clan, her voice was filled with happiness. She yowled that one kit was alive. That kit was you, Fawnkit!"

I felt absolutely happy that I stayed alive, but felt guilty that the other three kits were dead, and I was still here. I was sad that I was basically going to be alone my entire life.

The leader of ShadowClan seemed to sense this, because she meowed, "Okay, Fawnkit! Since you can't see, or talk, I will have the honor of escorting you around the camp. You will get to meet all of the cats in the camp, and when the rest of the cats come back from patrol, I will introduce you to them."

Bloodstar positioned her body next to mine, so her fur was just brushing my pelt. She steered me toward the tangy smell, which I had been going towards in the first place before Bloodstar had stopped me.

"By the way, you should know more before you meet Plumetail. He is a tom, first of all, unlike you and me. Second, he is the medicine cat of ShadowClan, (that's a cat that helps other cats with their injuries or sickness,) so he must be treated with respect. It might not be long before he treats you!" Bloodstar said. She also explained a lot of things about cats, and the Clans. She had a lot of time to talk since I moved so slow.

The tangy scent was getting stronger, and after a short bit of walking, Bloodstar stopped, got behind me, and nudged me forward, where it smelled like it was the heart of the tangy smell. Bloodstar came right behind me, and when we were both in the heart of the smell, the leader called out, "Hey! Plumetail! Come meet Fawnkit!"

A different scent wafted through my nostrils, and I guessed that Plumetail must be here. Plumetail's voice was different than Bloodstar and Mousefang, agreeing to how Bloodstar told me that Plumetail was a tom. "Fawnkit? Is she here already? She was only born two sunrises ago!" I felt Plumetail stare at me for awhile, before meowing again. "But her eyes aren't open quite yet. She's already up and moving, so it shouldn't be long before she can see. And talk." I wondered how he had guessed that I couldn't talk yet.

Bloodstar gazed at me affectionately. "Yeah. Well, it was a short time here, but we really must be––" I cut her off by estimating where her paw was, then nipping it gently.

"Fawnkit? What do you want?" asked Bloodstar. I used my tail, and gestured toward Plumetail, then I gestured toward the tangy smell.

"You want to learn the herbs, eh?" meowed Plumetail happily. "I'm sorry, but I can't tell you, at least not until you open your eyes." I bristled indignantly, but turned, and brushed up against Bloodstar, telling her to lead the way out by body movement.

The ShadowClan leader obliged, leading me out, and over to a stinky smelling den, like anything in there hadn't washed their pelt for a long time.

As we entered the den, Bloodstar called out names again. "Longstripe! Clawsong! Meet Fawnkit!" Bloodstar, I decided, was definitely full of energy.

I heard rustling and the cats I assumed were Longstripe and Clawsong bustled over to me.

"Is this really the miracle kit?" asked Clawsong, her eyes shining. "Hi, Fawnkit. I'm your father's mother. We're kin!" she announced happily.

Longstripe looked at me, I could feel a sharp gaze inspecting me. "Just yesterday, she was on the verge of joining StarClan," he mewed, "and now she looks like a perfectly healthy kit!" I smiled toothily at him. I tilted my head at him, as if to say, what do you do for the Clan?

The tom elder obviously must have had a lot of kits, because he mewed, "Elders don't really do anything."

"Besides sleep and eat!" interrupted Clawsong, amused.

"Er–– yes," meowed Longstripe embarrassedly. "But we have done our job, serving the Clan for many moons. And it was time that we decided that we needed rest."

Oh. That was a little bit boring, but I decided not to say anything. Not like I could anyway.

"I'm on a schedule," said Bloodstar, "And I promised to introduce Fawnkit to everyone else. We still have the warriors, the apprentices, and Dawnfoot. I'm sure that Mousefang can introduce Fawnkit to the queens, but we have to go already!"

The elders meowed their goodbyes before they settled down for another nap. So Clawsong was right.

Bloodstar and I left the elder's den, me feeling for some reason much more mature, like I was a warrior already. If only I could see all of this, it would be so much better! But Bloodstar shook me out of my self-pity. "Okay, next we're going to see the apprentices, since you're going to be one in about six moons."

A voice meowed, "Well, one of the apprentices is right in front of you!" I jumped.

"Oh, hello, Seapaw," meowed Bloodstar. "This is Fawnkit."

"The miracle kit?" said Seapaw, astonished. "Kidding," he added, "I know that everybody has been mentioning that today. You probably hate it by now, don't you?"

I nodded. Finally, someone who knew how annoying that was!

"The other apprentices are sleeping," continued Seapaw. "Tonight's the night of the Gathering, so we need to catch up on the sleep we might've missed. I'll join them soon, but I can tell you their names." Seapaw brushed against me to guide me to the apprentice's den. I didn't see what was the point, as I wouldn't be able to see them.

Seapaw and I went inside of the den, and clean scents went up my nostrils.

Seapaw meowed, "Willowpaw is in the corner of the den, she's a beautiful gray she-cat." Seapaw sounded embarrassed about calling Willowpaw beautiful. I brushed against him to tell him that it was okay, and not a big deal.

The apprentice looked gratefully at me, and he meowed, "Okay and this is––" His voice was cut off by a yowl from Bloodstar. "ThunderClan! ThunderClan invasion! Apprentices and warriors, be ready to fight!"

I heard the apprentices behind me immediately get up to their paws and rush out of the den. Seapaw stayed with me for a heartbeat, and he said, "I have to go! Fawnkit, get back to the nursery! You'll be safe there!"

My body stayed where it was as Seapaw ran out to join his clanmates. I was completely paralyzed. What if these ThunderClan cats tried to hurt me?

Just as I was ready to make a run for it, Bloodstar's yowl sounded loudly in my ears. "ShadowClan! Attack!" Then I heard a whole bunch of other cat's yowls and gasps of pain. I heard claws scratching, and wails of terror.

I summoned up courage, and bounded into the fray. Immediately I realized what a mistake I had made. For goodness sake, I hadn't even opened my eyes yet! I was a kit! How in StarClan was I supposed to hold off all of these well trained foes?

I heard a pawstep and a yowl right next to me, and a ShadowClan warrior, (I could tell by the stench) fell on top of my legs. I let out a screech of pain and tried to escape, but it was no use. Luckily, the ShadowClan warrior got off of me, and went away, looking guilty.

My feet pounding against the earth, I ran as fast as possible, scenting around, trying to find the nursery where Mousefang was. I cursed myself as I stumbled over a rock. To the Dark Forest with this blindness! I tried desperately to open my eyes, but it was no use.

Without being able to see anything, I ran into numerous pelts, both ThunderClan and ShadowClan. I ran into one ThunderClan cats legs, and, caught by surprise, they toppled over onto me. I felt as if all of the life was just squished out of me, and there was nothing I could do about it. I tried to let out another screech of pain, but I couldn't summon enough breath to do so. I was going to die, with a fat warrior on top of me.

I thought about Mousefang, and how both of us had already lost a lot. I lost my littermates, and my mother lost her kits. My mind was positive she would kill herself if I died in battle. In fact, I thought a heard a voice, a panicky voice. "Fawnkit! Fawnkit, where are you?"

I was probably right in front of her, but I couldn't say anything like that. Mousefang kept on wailing my name, hyperventilating, until I felt her eyes fall onto me. Almost straight after she looked at me, heard a body in front of me slump on the ground, and I guessed that my mother had completely collapsed in shock, right in the midst of the battle. Great. How was she supposed to save me now?

The warrior on top of me didn't even notice that there was a small and weak kit under them. They kept fighting their opponent hissing ferociously, and I started lose the orange light that was trying to break through my eyelids. But thankfully, the ShadowClan cat fighting the warrior that was on top of me yowled loudly, and I heard claws scrape flesh repeatedly until the warrior on top of me scrambled off. I heard the warrior that was ShadowClan yowl after the ThunderClan cat as they fled, "Ha! And that's what you get for sitting on kits, you lump of kittypet!"

But the ShadowClan warrior left me, with no breath, all alone so they could go and fight more ThunderClan warriors. I tried to catch my breath, but warriors kept on falling around me, and I was having to resort to rolling and jumping out of the way. I realized that I was probably never going to catch my breath until this was over, so I tried to scramble to Mousefang.

I did reach the unconscious queen, and feeling around with my paws, I found her scruff and sunk my teeth into it. My body heaved as I tried to drag her, (and me,) over to the nursery. There was barely any strength left in me, and even if I had that strength, I wouldn't have been able to pull her a quarter of a tail-length.

Slumping over, I abandoned Mousefang, who was still staring at where I was being crushed by that clumsy ThunderClan warrior. I tried to find a cat, any cat that could help me get Mousefang and take her and me back to the nursery. My mind wandered onto Plumetail. He'd still probably be in the medicine den, waiting for hurt cats!

Suddenly, I felt claws scraping my body, and my sides stung terribly as I felt blood welling up all over my pelt, dripping heavily onto the already blood-soaked ground. Just a couple of more heartbeats, and I might be joining StarClan. Would the StarClan cats know I existed? After all, I had only been born two sunrises ago!

I changed direction, opening my mouth so through the blood-scent I would be able to smell the tangy herbs of the medicine den. I loped the direction of the tangy scent, only to find a screech and me being pinned down. I tried to find words, so I could yowl something really rude at him, but alas, I still couldn't make words. Just helpless little mewls.

The ThunderClan warrior pinning me down had a furious glare; it burned throughout my body and made me try to squirm out of their grip. "What are you doing on the battle-field, kit?" asked the ThunderClan warrior gruffly, and judging by their voice, the warrior was a tom.

"Never mind," hissed the warrior. "I should take you to the medicine cat. It's part of the warrior code, to help kits that are in trouble." Mm hmm, yeah. Now will you hurry up and get me over to Plumetail?! I'm bleeding to death here!

As if sensing my impatience, the ThunderClan tom picked me up by my scruff with his jaws and carried me over to the medicine den, though he kept changing direction randomly. I assumed that the reason was that there were many fighters he had to avoid.

"What are you doing here on the battle-field, Fawnkit?" asked Plumetail, repeating what the ThunderClan warrior had asked me. I could feel the whooshing of his head, dipping his head to the cat, and he thankfully meowed to the ThunderClan warrior, "Thank you for bringing her here, Addertail."

Addertail stared at me for what felt like forever, making me feel quite uncomfortable, and nodded back. "You're welcome. Besides, what kind of deputy would I be if I disobeyed the warrior code?" Addertail hissed softly, as if he had made a mistake in his choice of words. He tried to hurry out of the den, but Plumetail stopped him. "Why are you attacking us? What did we do?"

The ThunderClan warrior growled, "Some cat in your Clan told one of our clanmates that you planned to attack us today. So we got there first." With that, he bounded away, back into the battle. Plumetail was stuttering, before he finally turned and looked at me. "What he said was true, we were going to attack them today. But who told his Clan?"

I shrugged helplessly, and indicated to my pelt with my tail, where blood was still dripping onto the dirt. "Oh, yeah. Sorry. Here, I'll fetch––" He padded away, with something that smelled unique; it burned my nose. "––goldenrod, and cobwebs." I heard him smacking his lips as he chewed up the goldenrod. He plastered the pulp against my pelt. It felt sticky, and weird. And if to make matters worse, we fastened the cobweb on top of the goldenrod. I felt really weird and disgusting.

Plumetail meowed, "Okay, well goldenrod is for––" He got interrupted by a voice. Addertail's voice.

"Retreat, ThunderClan! Retreat!"

The ShadowClan cats cheered as I heard the ThunderClan cats' paws thumping against the earth; probably high-tailing it back home. I smiled, and went to see if Mousefang was up from her collapse.

I scented her when I passed most of the Clan. I put my small paw on Mousefang, and felt the slippery substance of blood. She was injured! Then I sniffed, and relaxed. Most of it was ThunderClan blood. She shifted under me, and murmured, "Fawnkit? Are you there?"

I mewled, and that got Mousefang up.

"My kit! My kit, you're okay! Are you injured? I saw you struggling under that fat kittypet, and I was so worried! You're only a few sunrises old, and I wouldn't have born it if you got hurt!" Mousefang chose not to say the word 'killed'. I comforted her by rubbing up against her and purring. Mousefang's eyes softened with relief.

A voice sounded far away from me, but it seemed like it was above my head. "All cats old enough to catch their own prey gather under the Treebranch for a Clan meeting!" I immediately drooped my head. I couldn't go, because I couldn't catch my own prey.

Mousefang must of realized my disappointment because she meowed, "Don't worry, that's just a call. Bloodstar will let you see what's going on anyway." I perked my ears up, and brushed against Mousefang as she led me to wherever the Treebranch was.

Bloodstar's voice rang out again. "In this battle, four apprentices fought with skill and bravery, and deserve to earn their warrior names. Cloudpaw, Runningpaw, Flypaw, and Willowpaw. Come forward." Willowpaw's name was the only one that had nothing to do with flying or being fast.

Mousefang whispered in my ear, "Cloudpaw, Runningpaw and Flypaw are toms. Willowpaw is a she-cat." I heard Seapaw's voice congratulating Willowpaw happily as the apprentices pawsteps went farther away from me, and closer to Bloodstar.

"I, Bloodstar, leader of ShadowClan, look down on these four apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn.

Cloudpaw, Runningpaw, Flypaw, Willowpaw," she paused, and I guessed she was inspecting each apprentice, "do you promise to uphold the warrior code, to protect it and defend it, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," chorused the four apprentices. I was tempted to say 'I do' as well, but restrained myself. Bloodstar continued, her voice serious, but happy.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Cloudpaw, from this moment on, you shall be known as Cloudspots. StarClan admires your determination and enthusiasm." There was a pause until Bloodstar spoke again.

"Runningpaw, you shall be known as Runningfoot. StarClan admires your honesty and your patience." Another pause.

"Flypaw, from this moment on, you shall be known as Flywing. StarClan admires your spirit and your strength." A pause. Mousefang whispered in my ear, "I forgot to tell you. During those pauses, the leader places their muzzle on top of the newly named warriors head, and the warrior licks their shoulder in return." That explained the pauses.

Bloodstar meowed, "Willowpaw, from this moment on, you shall be known as Willowshade. StarClan admires your intelligence and loyalty." There was the pause when Willowshade licked Bloodstar's shoulder.

"We welcome you all as full warriors of ShadowClan," Bloodstar finished.

The Clan chanted. "Cloudspots! Runningfoot! Flywing! Willowshade!" I tried to yowl their names too, but eventually I just gave up. I settled on chanting their names to myself. I felt all tingly and warm inside, and happiness flowed in my blood.

And in that time, I knew that I wanted to become leader of ShadowClan.