Finch- light brown and copper she-cat with copper eyes*
Apprentice, Spotted
Of age
Storm- light silver she-cat with blue eyes and white paws*
Of age
Dappled- tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes*
Apprentice, Honeysuckle
Not permitted
Fern- light golden she-cat with black paws and green eyes*
Apprentice, Snow
Of age
Raven- pure black she-cat with icy blue eyes.*
Mate to Dark
Taken
Rain- light gray she-cat with black spots; amber eyes*
Apprentice, Blue
Of age
Shade- black-and-white she-cat with green eyes*
Mate to Stag.
Taken
Dusk- light dusty brown she-cat with grey eyes
Too young
Sun- orange-and-white she-cat with dark yellow eyes
Too young
Swift- black-and-white she-cat with amber eyes.*
Sister to Shade.
Of age
Poppy- dark ginger she-cat with green eyes. Long, bushy tail.*
Of age
Lightning- dark grey she-cat with light silver slashes and yellow eyes
Apprentice, Ivy
Of age
Swallow- light cream-and-black she-cat with ember eyes
Too young
Ash- dark grey she-cat with white paws and dark blue eyes.*
Apprentice, River
Of age
Bright- white she-cat with silver paws and blue eyes
Of age
Cherry- dark ginger she-cat and amber eyes
Sister to Poppy.
Apprentice, Lily
Of age
Fleet- calico she-cat with green eyes
Apprentice, Daisy
Of age
Willow- cream-and-silver she-cat with green eyes
Too young
Apprentices-
Spotted- tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes
Mentor, Finch
Honeysuckle- golden she-cat with green eyes
Mentor, Dappled
Snowpaw- pure white she-cat with blue eyes
Mentor, Fern
Blue- silvery-blue she-cat with blue eyes
Mentor, Rain
Ivy- dark brown she-cat with green eyes
Mentor, Lightning
River- ginger she-cat with cream underbelly and blue eyes
Mentor, Ash
Lily- tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with amber eyes
Mentor, Cherry
Daisy- pure white she-cat with green eyes
Mentor, Fleet
Queens-
Fall, mother of Wolf's kits-
Sand- light golden tabby she-kit with gold eyes
Thunder- light grey tom-kit with white paws and sky-blue eyes
Night- black tom-kit with one white ear-tip and amber eyes
Fawn, expecting Soot's kits
Elders-
Blaze- red-and-white she-cat with white paws and green eyes
Cliff- dark brown she-cat with lighter brown paws and underbelly
Splash- elegant orange-and-silver she-cat with amber eyes
Prologue
The group of ten she-cats slid silently through the tall grasses, the noise of fur brushing the blades, a whisper, lost to the wind.
The seemingly never-ending Plain of grass stretched for miles, rustling in the wind.
The grass was taller than a cat, waving high above their head as they traveled to the forest that seemed to spring from nowhere.
The Plains were a sharp contrast to the hot, green forest, whit not a tree in sight.
The golden waves of grass ripped in unison, the wind cool.
"Finch." the cat who had spoken was Storm, a silver she-cat with blue eyes; the deputy of the Pride.
Finch, a copper-and-brown she-cat with copper eyes, twisted, looking back at her deputy.
"What is it, Storm?" Finch's voice was quiet, and seemed to blend with the whisper of the grass, a skill that all apprentices were required to learn.
Plains-speaking, it was called.
Storm dipped her head, glancing at a dark grey she-cat with white paws and dark blue eyes and a dark ginger she-cat with green eyes and a long bushy tail.
"The scouts, Poppy and Swift, reported that Jungle Pride was already there."
Finch nodded, rearing on her back paws and looking to where a dark blur on the horizon marked a canyon. She fell back to all four paws and told the deputy, "Move out the cats. We'll reach the Red Canyon at sun-high tomorrow."
"Very well, Finch." Finch's orders were spread, and soon, all ten cats were racing across the Plains, paws thrumming on the ground.
They kept running until sun-high, a group of ten tired she-cats padded down the trails of the Red Canyon, tails drooping, ears flat and eyes almost shut.
The Pride of the Jungle was gathered on the bottom of the Canyon, a group of ten toms.
The Prides were each gender separated, the toms in the Jungle and the she-cats on the Plains.
There was less fighting, less conflict and less injuries as a result.
It was a two day journey made each four full moons, to mate and give more kits to each Pride.
And every three seasons, one cat from each Pride made a journey to the Twoleg place about four sun cycles away to get new blood mixed into the Prides.
Finch pricked her ears up, watching as one of her Pride, a she-cat named Fall, looked up, a kit dangling from her jaws.
She caught sight of her mate and padded over to him, setting the grey tom-kit down and nudging him towards his father.
The golden-brown tom, Wolf, looked delighted and nuzzled the kit, saying something to Fall.
After initial greetings from the toms were out of the way, Finch called her cats to go sleep until sun-set.
She was curled on a boulder, watching the sun as it sank slowly when a low, purring voice pulled her from her nap and pointed her towards a tall, black tom.
"Finchy, dear."
"Shadows," she greeted, dipping her head and standing. She beckoned with her tail, leaping up the rocky slope to settle on a boulder lodged firmly in between two others.
Shadows followed, settling down beside her.
Finch often watched her Pride from here, keeping an eye on the new she-cats.
"Will you be going, this time around?" his voice carried the lilt of the jungle, while her's was a whisper, a rustle in the wind.
She grinned. "Not even in your dreams, Shadows. You should know a Plains Pride leader isn't allowed. She must place her Pride above all else, even her bloodline." she recited straight from the Code of the Prides.
He chuckled back, closing his strange burning orange eyes.
"Just asking."
Finch glanced at the sun, marking where it was at.
"It is time. Do you want to announce the Beginning or shall I?"
Shadows meow was firm. "You."
She stood, her copper pelt gleaming in the setting sun.
She threw back her head, letting out a yowl that echoed around the Canyon.
Let it Begin.