My first ImagineClan oneshot! Woot! Haha, you don't have to know anything about IC or any of my other stories to read this, but I highly recommend you join ImagineClan. They're awesome.

Disclaimer: I don't own Warriors.

Fish Out Of Water

"Lionpaw, it's time for the hunting patrol! Are you coming?"

"I'll be there soon, Clawtail!" I said, like I had a choice whether I wanted to go or not. Sure, this place is nice and all; and I would probably like it better if only I actually wanted to come live here in the first place.

A fluffy golden ball of fur leaped at the tomkit before him, the two laughing the whole while. Padding up towards the two was a frail-looking she-cat who seemed to resemble the latter kit better with her white fur and green eyes.

"Look, Tabby! Butterflies!" the golden tom's eyes lit up as he tracked one specific butterfly from the bunch. The white-furred kit now known as Tabby followed his brother, only looking in the other direction, where two butterflies were flying wide circles around each other.

"Don't go too far away, you two!" their mother shouted, trailing after them.

I miss those days- the ones before they came and brought me to this dark place. I miss Tabby and Lilac. I wonder if they're okay. I wonder if they remember me at all. How long has it been since I got here? A few sunrises? A few moons? The days all seem to blend together.

There have been cats that have tried to talk to me before, however. Redpaw, she's the one who made me even remotely close to feeling welcome around here. Now, she's my best friend. We did everything together. One day, she introduced me to some of her friends, though we didn't get along as well, and in return I told her a few stories about my old life. She promised to never tell anyone, and to this day she hasn't. She reminds me of my old friend…

"Lilac, can me and Tabby go play with Robin?"

"Tomorrow, Dandelion. Robin's busy today, remember?"

"But-"

"Come on, Dandelion. Robin will get mad at us anyway if we get in the way."

"Listen to your brother, Dandelion."

Listen to my brother. That was the exact opposite of what I did that day. Tabby told me to come back, that I was running too far. I didn't listen.

"Dandelion, wait!"

The little golden-furred tomkit was deaf to his littermate's cries, only hesitating when his mother joined in.

How could butterflies fly so far and so high? Dandelion wished he had the pretty wings, just like the butterflies. Then he could fly with them too, right?

And then it happened. Two strong and fully-grown cats, I now know them as warriors, leapt out from the brush at light-speed. One of them snatched me up by the scruff and if I concentrate, I can still feel the pain where his teeth had sunk deeper than the surface of my skin. I can still hear the sound of my brother gasping on horror and the sound of my mother's pawsteps as she raced fox-lengths in an attempt to save her son.

It didn't work.

When the kit opened his eyes, he saw cats. He saw dark-furred cats looming all around him, all over him, their eyes gleaming with interest. Standing behind the bigger and, probably older, Dandelion noted, cats were those smaller in size. A few of them looked about his age, even fewer younger than him. At last, he gathered the courage to speak.

"…Where am I?"

The interested looks on the bigger cats' faces turned into cruel, mocking sneers and chuckles as one of them stepped forward. He was slim and muscular, with a night-black pelt and piercing amber eyes.

"You, little one, are in a place called ShadowClan."

"Keep up if you don't want to get left behind, Lionpaw!" Clawtail yowled. Then I realized just how far behind I was. Ahead of me Redpaw was gesturing with her tail to hurry up. She didn't want me to be punished later, I figured as I ran to catch up with them.

When they made me a part of ShadowClan, I couldn't help but feel a little overwhelmed at how busy everyone was. I also didn't like who was appointed as my "mentor", the same cat that continued to berate me. I don't think he ever said anything positive to me so far, though he seems to favor Redpaw. Speaking of the she-cat, some time back I told her what I was planning to do. She was and is still the only being I can trust. I told her that I was planning to run away. She understood. And she wanted to come with me.

"What?" Lionpaw couldn't believe what he had just heard. "Why in the name of StarClan would you want to go with me?" As much as he wanted to stay away from this foreign culture, sometimes he couldn't help but use their terms, much to Lionpaw's chagrin.

"For one thing, you don't know your way around this place too well. You'll get caught before you even make it out of the territory. Second, I really want to see what's out there. And two heads are better than one, right? Lastly…I want to be wherever you are. Every day I wonder if it will be the day Briarstar will finally get tired of you and just be rid of you all ready. I care about you, Lionp- no, Dandelion. I really do," Redpaw replied, pawing the ground after she finished.

But we had to watch out. We couldn't let anyone know what we were planning, and I couldn't afford to rouse any more suspicion than I already have- and I definitely wanted Redpaw to stay on good terms with her Clanmates for as long as possible. We stayed up late, sometimes until moonhigh, just planning and figuring out the specifics of what we would do. Actually escaping the territory would be the easy part. Getting out of camp would take longer due to the constant guard watch. But I knew some of the more laidback warriors would slip up every now and then. It was all a matter of timing.

…And before I knew it, it was the day of my warrior ceremony. I still couldn't remember just how much time had passed since I'd last seen my family, or if I would ever see them again. What I did know was that this was the day Redpaw and I would make our move.

"I, Briarstar, leader of ShadowClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has worked long and hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn," Briarstar announced, glancing at me with…pride? Had he finally recognized me as an equal?…Equal or not, it was too late. My mind was made up.

"Lionpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do." No I don't.

"Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your warrior name. Lionpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Lionthorn. StarClan honors your strength and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ShadowClan."

…They honor my loyalty? Yeah, right. The only ones I've ever been loyal to are the only ones I'll ever be loyal to and those are my family and Redpaw.

"Dandelion, Tabby, when I get old, will you take care of me?" Lilac asked.

"Of course!" The two kits shouted in unison.

"I'll never leave you behind, Lilac!" Dandelion added, determination blazing in his eyes.

"Neither will I!"

Later that night, after everyone was asleep, I crept over to the apprentices' den. Redpaw was due to receive her warrior name soon, but neither of us would be around for the ceremony. I nudged the she-cat with my tail, trying to be as quiet as possible. Thankfully, she woke up and silently followed me to the edge of camp. We didn't have to worry about anyone else noticing us- it was too late for anyone to be awake and the night guard had fallen asleep due to my vigil. They trusted me to protect the camp. Took long enough.

Scent trails wouldn't be too much of a problem either. We would cut straight across the territory thanks to Redpaw's directions, and by the time they reported us at the Gathering, we would be long gone and never looking back.

"Tabby, can I ask you something?"

"What is it, Dandelion?" The white-furred tomkit asked, turning around to face his brother. The night was clear, with countless stars shining up above and the moon bathing everything with an ethereal glow.

"Do you ever wonder if there are others like us?"

"What do you mean? Of course there are other cats. Just look at Robin and-"

"No, I mean, like…civilizations. Beyond here, whole groups of cats living together in peace."

"…Can't say I have. Why?"

Dandelion frowned. "No reason. Just wanted to know."

"Are you ready?"

"Let's go."

My first oneshot...turned out to be a lot better than I expected it to be! Questions: Do you think Lionthorn and Redpaw successfully escape ShadowClan? Where will they go? Are Lilac and the others still alive? Should I turn this into a multi-chaptered thing?

Questions, comments, concerns, predictions? Leave them in a review! Concrit accepted!

-Dream