Chapter One
"Oh Sweetheart, they are just beautiful!" Mallowtail cooed as she nosed her denmates head to look at her newly born kits. Sweetheart had a tough labor and Thunderclan's medicine cat Oakstep didn't think she or the kits would make it. "They are perfect." Sweetheart sighed, exhausted and barley conscious. "Let her rest Mallowtail", Oakstep whispered, his pale-yellow eyes almost as droopy as Sweetheart's. "Redfeather is going to fetch water for her. I also sent Dewpaw to get her a bit of mouse."
Mallowtail's gray striped tail clung close to her body in nervousness, "Will she be alright? She was in labor all day and her kits seem awfully still." She sniffed the three damp lumps of fur and found them all to still be breathing, her stiff shoulders relaxed slightly. "Why are they not hurrying for milk? My Silverkit and Snowkit practically ran for my milk when they were first born."
Oakstep sighed, "I have done all I can, their fate is in Starclan's paws now." Just then a ginger head poked through the moss-covered Nursery. "Here is the moss, is Sweetheart Ok?" the worried voice of Redfeather was muffled by the wet moss in his mouth. "Great Starclan Redfeather, you brought enough moss to give every cat in Thunderclan a drink." Oakstep joked, pushing out of the cramped den so Redfeather could attend to his mate.
"She is fine and so are the kits…for now." Oakstep said a slight pause caused Redfeather's bright ginger pelt to bristle. "For now? Is she sick? Are the kits? What did I miss?" Mallowtail put a gentle paw on his shoulder, "Calm down Redfeather, Sweetheart is just tired and so are the kits. They just need some rest and they will be jumping around just like my kits." Redfeather turned his worried gaze to his mate whose tortoiseshell flanks where damp with sweat but her breathing even. "Here is some water my love, I will be right outside if you need me." With a lick between her ears the new father looked down at his first litter of future warriors. There were two toms, both ginger tabbys like himself and one she-kit with the same tortoiseshell markings of her mother. They were small and seemed like they were barely breathing, Sweetheart had gone into labor much too soon and he knew that wasn't good.
"I'll watch over them Redfeather, if anything happens I'll come for you right away." Mallowtail said with an encouraging purr which seemed to make the worried father feel a bit better. "Thank you, I will be outside keeping Breezefur and Mothdust company on watch."
As he slipped out of the Nursery Mallowtail moved closer to Sweetheart and her kits. She licked the kits to keep them breathing and nudged them to their mother's belly for milk. The toms were mostly unresponsive but the she-kit wailed loudly when Mallowtail licked her. With a light push with her paw Mallowtail breathed a relived sigh when the she-kit latched on to her mother. "Starclan is watching over you dear little one and your brothers too. I bet Firestar himself is here right now, blessing his newest kin." At the mention of Firestar, the two toms started to wiggle and made slow progress to their mother's milk. "Shall I tell you about your great ancestor Firestar? My kits won't mind missing a story, I am sure." Mallowtail said softly looking to her two kits. Barley two moons old and the two gray speckled toms were filling up the nest so much that Mallowtail could hardly fit in it.
"Where do I begin? At the beginning I suppose, alright my dears let me tell you all about the great legacy of Firestar."
- Two Moons later -
"Hurry up Shadekit! Or you're going to be the Windclan warrior!" Silverkit laughed as he and his brother Snowkit left Shadekit to untangle herself from the ivy strand they were playing with. Shadekit growled after them but knew that the two toms did this on purpose because she usually beat them in every race despite being two moons younger than them. The ivy was thick and the bitter plant taste made her wince as she tried to chew herself free. "Shadekit, my dear are you ok?" Sweetheart gasped, hurrying over from the mouse she and Redfeather were sharing by the warrior's den. "Im fine mamma, just stuck."
Redfeather followed his mate and snickered at his daughter's predicament. "Don't laugh Redfeather, our kit is wrapped up like a squirrel in a bramble bush." With quick fangs, Sweetheart bit through the vines with ease and Shadekit rolled onto her paws, huffing in frustration. "I could have gotten out on my own."
"Of course, you could have my dear, I didn't even have to chew very hard to break through the vine." Mother said, licking my ears with warm strokes. "Did you see what way Silverkit and Snowkit went?" I said twisting my head away from her insistent grooming. "Don't worry about them, how about we go take a nap in the sun? Or I could take you to Branchfoot for a story?"
"I don't want to hear a story, I want to play!" I whined, ducking from her paws and dashing to follow my den mates. "Hold on little warrior, don't run away from your mother and I like that." Father said blocking my path. I looked up at his bright green eyes and marveled at how the sun glowed off his pelt, making it look like he was on fire. As is the signature of all Firestar's kin, I may not have the full ginger pelt but I knew I was going to have his green eyes. Redfeather was the deputy under our leader Silentstar who wasn't a direct descendent of Firestar but his best friend Graystripe.
I had heard the story of their friendship and the many troubles they got into. Redfeather and Silentstar where best friends too and I knew that if I was going to be like them then I needed to make Silverkit and Snowkit my best friends! They were our leader's kits so it just made sense, even the two toms where big fat worms sometimes. "But papa, I want to show them I can keep up!"
"You are still very little Shadekit, they might hurt you on accident and your mother and I don't want anything to happen to you." Redfeather said, grief apparent in his eyes as he remembered that I was the only survivor of their first litter. My two brothers Sunkit and Foxkit where too sick to make it passed their third sunrise. Mother and father grieve for them endlessly and I knew that they just wanted be safe but it still made me frustrated. "Ill be fine, I promise! Please let me go play?" I begged, wrapping myself around my father's strong foreleg and started at him with all the longing I could muster.
"Alright but stay where we can see you." He sighed, licking me lightly. I bounded off right as Sweethearts mews of protest caused father to change his mind. Silverkit and Snowkit where passing a small stone back and forth when I jumped on Silverkits back. "Gotcha! Now you better get out of Windclan territory!" I said, nipping his ear. "Ew gross! Now I have Windlcan germs!" Silverkit joked, rolling me off his back easily. I still wasn't very big but I knew that would change, I ate properly and measured myself every morning. I couldn't be a respected leader if I stayed this small my whole life!
I launched myself at Snowkit and we rolled on the ground playfully. To my surprise none of the passing warriors seemed to care when they usually scolded the toms for being too rough with me. "Give up Windclan filth, just give us half of your prey and we might let you live?" Silverkit said, standing over me as Snowkit had me pinned. "Never! Windclan never surrenders!" I said, trying to push Snowkit off but to no avail. "Just give up Shadekit, you'll never move Snowkit." Silverkit laughed using a paw to stop my protests. "Alright kits that's enough." A stern voice froze us all and the sun disappeared as a large shadow loomed over us.
Silentstar, a light gray tom with deep golden eyes looked down at us and before I could explain that I was just about to make a comeback Silverkit and Snowkit jumped away and sat straight as reeds in front of their father. "Sorry father, we were just playing." Silverkit laughed nervously, "Yeah, we didn't hurt her honest." Snowkit added quickly. Silentstar looked down at his sons, "I'm not mad about Shadekit, she can take care of herself." He gave me a quick wink and I smiled back at him. At least he understood.
"What I don't like is that you threatened to harm another warrior if they didn't surrender half of their prey? Thunderclan never threatens the prey of another clan under any circumstances." His tone turned solid as stone and his kits looked down in shame, "We didn't mean it like that, we were just playing." Silverkit said quietly. "Play or not that is not a thought I want you to get into your heads. We honor the warrior code and the boundaries it sets. Do you understand?"
The two toms nodded and with a dismissive wave of his tail they dashed back to the nursery where Mallowtail was washing just outside. Her head shot up as they dashed inside and when she saw Silentstar she hurried in there with them. Was she afraid of him? "You ambushed them well." Silentstar praised, the warmth back in his eyes. "Thanks! Redfeather showed me how. He told me it was perfect for hunting squirrels."
Silentstar nodded in approval, "Indeed it is. Your father is very wise, make sure to listen to everything he says and you will be deputy too someday." With that he moved toward the nursery, probably to explain his comments to Mallowtail and with a smile I padded back over to my parents who now dozing in the sun. "Did you see!? Silentstar said my ambush was great!" I squealed leaping onto my mother's belly.
"That's wonderful Shadekit." Mother said sleepily, Redfeather however snapped his head up and looked around for his leader, "Silentstar is back already? I thought his communion with Starclan would take longer than this, he must have news." He jumped up and followed Silentsta'rs scent. I sighed and slid of mothers' warm fur and snuggled up in the crook of her neck her snores told me she had fallen back asleep. What news could father be talking about? Would they call a meeting? I was determined to stay awake for it if they did but the warmth of the sun and mothers soft snores lulled me to sleep.