Chapter 1
Mintpaw nosed her way through the undergrowth, treading the ground lightly. She could smell a vole a few tail lengths ahead of her. She crouched and drew herself forward more slowly. Then, the small, furry creature came within view. It was crouching underneath a swath of heather, nibbling on a stalk of grass. With a flick of her tail, Mintpaw pounced. As she landed, she snagged the fleeing vole with two claws, brought it to her muzzle, and ended its life with a snap of her jaws.
"Excellent work, Mintpaw!" the she-cat's mentor, Oreclaw meowed as Mintpaw dropped the vole at his feet. "I think that's enough hunting for one day. Gather up the rest of the prey and we'll head back to camp." Mintpaw nodded and sprinted away to the tall oak where she had buried the two mice she had caught earlier. Digging them up, she grabbed each of them by their tails and raced back to Oreclaw, who was just beginning to pad in the direction of the LeafClan camp.
Mintpaw tried to stick to the patches of light that shone through the trees above her. It was leaf-fall, and warmth was beginning to become as scarce as the leaves on the trees. The apprentice's pelt still hadn't grown out yet, so she had trouble keeping herself warm at night. At least she slept between Marshpaw and Lizardpaw, her two best friends. The two of them had naturally fluffy coats, and so whenever Mintpaw was cold, she could snuggle up against one of them to warm herself. Mintpaw wondered how the two of them were doing. They were supposed to be at battle training. Lizardpaw had injured his paw about a moon ago when he was chasing a squirrel and it still hadn't fully healed. A pang of worry struck Mintpaw in the heart, but she shook it off.
Lizardpaw can take care of himself, she thought. He'll be fine.
By the time Oreclaw and Mintpaw had returned to camp, the sun was beginning to set, and a light mist had settled over the LeafClan camp. Requiemstar, the leader of LeafClan, sat atop the Lowstump, where Clan meetings were held, sharing a mouse with her deputy, Waspwing. Mintpaw deposited her prey onto the fresh-kill pile and scanned the clearing for Marshpaw and Lizardpaw. She saw the two of them sitting by the medicine den, talking in low whispers with Marshpaw's twin sister, Stormpaw. Mintpaw trotted over to the group and sat down beside Lizardpaw.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"Stormpaw got a message from StarClan!" Marshpaw mewed excitedly.
"Really?" Mintpaw meowed. "Cool!"
"No, it's not!" Stormpaw hissed. "I've never gotten a dream from StarClan before! And they said that the Clans would be destroyed!"
"Well, what can we do about it?" Marshpaw muttered. "We're just apprentices. We might as well just sit back and watch our Clan wither away."
"Don't be so negative, Marshpaw," Lizardpaw snapped. He turned to Stormpaw. "Why don't you tell us about the dream? What did StarClan say?"
"Well," Stormpaw mewed. "They said that four cats could save the four Clans, but they didn't say who the cats were. They did say that the cats would be from LeafClan, though."
"How do we find out who the chosen ones are?" Mintpaw asked.
"I'm supposed to bring Thrushwing and all of the apprentices to the Star River tonight," Stormpaw meowed.
"Then you'd better tell Requiemstar to get all the apprentices together," Lizardpaw meowed. "I'll go get Thrushwing."
In a heartbeat, the two of them were gone, leaving Marshpaw and Mintpaw sitting side by side, just staring at each other.
"Well," Marshpaw meowed finally. "If we're gonna go all the way to the Star River, we might as well eat first."
XXXX
It was moonrise when Stormpaw, Thrushwing, and the rest of the apprentices set out to the Star River. They had a good distance to travel, and so far they were keeping up a pretty good pace. All of the apprentices had a glint of excitement in their eyes. Foxpaw, Rosepaw, Seapaw, and Marshpaw trailed along in a small cluster at the back of the group, while Mintpaw, Stormpaw and Thrushwing trotted along in front, leaving Lizardpaw sandwiched in the middle. The tabby tom kept his eyes on the ground most of the way, and after a while, it began to worry Mintpaw. She slowed her pace until she was padding right alongside her friend.
"Are you OK?" she asked.
"No, I'm fine," Lizardpaw insisted. "It's just that, what if I'm one of the chosen cats? I'm really not the heroic type, you know? And plus, if we have to go somewhere far from camp, my paw will only slow the group down."
"Even if you're not chosen," Mintpaw mewed. "You'll always be a hero to your Clan. And especially to me." Mintpaw licked her friend's shoulder.
"Are you sure?" Lizardpaw meowed.
"Of course," Mintpaw replied sincerely. "You're my best friend. Would I ever lie to you?"
"I guess not," Lizardpaw murmured.
The two of them padded along in silence for the rest of the hike through the forest. Finally, just as the moon reached the highest point in the sky, the group of LeafClan cats arrived at the Star River.
"All right, everyone," Thrushwing meowed, gathering the apprentices around her. "Lay down on the bank of the Star River and lap up some of the water. Then, close your eyes, and you'll go to share tongues with StarClan. When you awake, you must all tell me which of you has been chosen."
"Yes, Thrushwing," the apprentices mewed in unison. Then, they all raced over to the stream. Mintpaw sat between Lizardpaw and Stormpaw and lapped water nervously from the sacred river. Then, she closed her eyes hesitantly and lay her head on the cold, hard earth. In a moment, she was asleep.