Hey y'all this is the first chapter. Hopefully you like like! =-)
Disclaimer: I don't own Warriors they belong to Erin Hunter. I do own the OCs though.
Chapter One
"Excuse me, can you hear me?" The voice was unfamiliar but it was so gentle that it made Sky believe for a heartbeat that she was dreaming. He had been asking that question for some time. Sky could smell his pelt that was a bittersweet smell as if the tom had been rolling in leaves all day. Sky could also smell two other cats in here. Their breathing kept hitting her face and she had to fight back the urge to twitch her whiskers at the tickling breeze.
"Great StarClan! What if she's dead?" That voice belonged to a young she-cat. The gentle voice let out a sigh at the she-cat's statement. StarClan?
"What a waste since I had to carry her. She weighs less than you Fernpaw. And that's a huge accomplishment. You're so tiny it's amazing a kit doesn't weigh more than you." The mocking voice belonged to a young tom.
"Mouse-brain you didn't carry her, Owlclaw did. All you did was tell Snowstar about her and that couldn't have been so hard."
"I'll have you—"
"I do believe you two are no longer kits. Why don't you quit your quarreling and go hunting or something."
The two younger cats huffed and left the older cat. Sky could hear them arguing outside over who started the argument that got them kicked out. It was a warming thought that this place was already better than where she grew up. Sky decided that now would be good enough time to make her presence.
Slowly the gray tabby she-cat opened her eyes to find herself in a cave. A black tom faced away from her. He was busy with sorting some leaf stuff. Sky started to stand hoping her legs still worked. It felt as if she had been sleeping for an entire season. Stretching her back legs Sky let out a hiss of pain. Her left back leg stung worse than anything she ever experienced.
"Careful she-cat I just applied some marigold to help your wounds," he hisses. Wow he didn't even turn around. The tom finished with his sorting before he faced her. His sharp intelligent green eyes seem to know more about her than she did herself.
"How are you feeling," he asks gentler this time.
"As good as I can be," she meows. Sky can recall the fight she got in with some cats at Society before she left. Then the run in with some cats from ShadowClan. They weren't very nice. I would have loved to show them a few moves. Sneakily Sky flexes her claws imagining the brown brute who scratched her.
"What's your name?" he asks careful curiosity filling his voice. Sky didn't believe this cat was evil. She's been around evil cats and has had enough experience with them. Besides if this tom wanted her dead he could have killed her when she was sleeping.
"I'm called Sky," she answers.
"Lovely name. Mine's Breezeleaf," he replies. Sky thought Fernpaw sounds like a strange name but hearing Breezeleaf's she thought his was even stranger. Breezeleaf lets out an mrrow that snaps Sky out of her recollection of today's earlier events. Her puzzled look gets Breezeleaf to explain.
"You looked like you swallowed mouse bile when I told you my name."
Mouse bile? Sky didn't know what he was referring to but she didn't ask. She had come expecting these cats to speak differently. Sky was trying to focus on keeping an open mind about clan life. Just then Sky's stomach started to rumble. Breezeleaf let out another mrrow as Sky shuffled her paws in disbelief at how embarrassing her first conversation with a clan cat was going.
"I'll go fetch you some fresh-kill. I believe a hunting patrol just came back."
Breezeleaf left the den through tendrils that covered the entrance. Even though it blocks most of the sun it didn't block sounds. Sky could hear cats moving about outside. Some were laughing. Sky could even hear a kit running about. What surprises her the most was that they all sound friendly with one another. It makes a swirl of envy at the carefree lifestyle this clan had. They only had to worry about hunting it seems like. Now they've got to worry about White Wolf. The thought reminds Sky that she needs to speak with the leader here immediately to warn him of the danger that was coming their way.
The tendrils shift revealing—not a black tom; quite the opposite—a white fluffy tom with intense amber eyes. The tom looks young right around Sky's own age. The white tom jerks back surprised to see her in here. His amber eyes grow huge looking her up and down.
"Uh, do you—I mean where's Breezeleaf?" he asks sounding completely nervous. The young tom cocks his head to the side with his ears laid back giving him a shy endearing look. Sky gets a fluttery feeling at his attractive look. Sky quickly dismisses the feeling. She finds it charming that the tom actually seems nice. Not like the ones in Society, but still she can't go giving her trust to every cat that seems nice.
"He just went to get some fresh-kill," she states. The tom seems nervous being in here. He keeps glancing around the den as if expecting an animal to jump at him.
"Oh, okay…I was just here for some mouse bile. I've to clean the elder's den." The white tom's tail swishes behind him making the hanging tendrils move along with it. The tom must not have expected it because he jumps a full tail-length inside the den. His white fur bristles at the unexpected scare. Sky lets out an mrrow at the tom's antics. He glances at her sheepishly with his ears laid back in embarrassment.
"I'm sorry—I should go—I don't normally act like this." He's only a couple paw steps away from Sky. Being this close Sky notices a black spot on his right foreleg. Otherwise he's all white.
"What's your name?" Sky asks hoping to put the tom out of his misery.
"Moonpaw," he answers relaxing a bit. He sits with his tail curled around his feet. What strange names they have.
Just then the tendrils shift again except not from Moonpaw's clumsiness. Instead, Breezeleaf appears with fresh-kill in his mouth. Behind Breezeleaf comes in a magnificent fluffy white tom with striking green eyes. The large white tom's eyes fix at Moonpaw with interest.
"Moonpaw, what are you doing here?" The large tom asks with narrowed eyes. This large tom displays power at a flick of an ear and flick of a tail. It makes Sky nervous watching him scrutinize Moonpaw. What's he going to do with me? Sky had no doubt that this white tom was the leader.
"I was just waiting for Breezeleaf. I need some mouse bile." An air of confidence replaces Moonpaw's nervousness. It actually made Sky twitch her whiskers in amusement at the change in Moonpaw's demeanor. Wonder what made him so nervous. It was probably me. He might never have seen a strange cat in his lifetime.
"Well, you know where it is. Get a move on. You don't want to keep Treetail waiting." Breezeleaf's words were strict and dismissive. Something seemed to have switched Breezeleaf's earlier mood to a now bitter mood. Moonpaw nods and walks away into the crack where he later came out with a moss soaked ball that smelled worse than dung. Sky's nose curls in disgust as the moss ball passes her.
"Sky this is Snowstar. He's ThunderClan's leader." Breezeleaf explains ears flicking in annoyance. The leader either doesn't care about Breezeleaf's mod or is just ignoring it. The white tom fixes Sky with his fierce gaze making Sky feel like she's got ants in her pelt. Sky can see a scar just below Snowstar's left eye that had healed but just still marred his fur.
"Welcome to ThunderClan, young one. I know you just woke up, but I would like to ask you some questions. Is that all right?" Sky nods feeling as if she couldn't refuse the leader. His presence demanded attention.
"Where did you come from?"
"The Society." Snowstar's eyes glaze with wonder and Sky decides to explain more. Breezeleaf even seems to be paying close attention as she starts to speak.
"It's a place where inequality dominates. She-cats are treated like trash. Toms there have more power over she-cats. She-cats are only used for mating for the toms. They have no rights. Toms get to train to fight and can beat up she-cats just because they want to." Sky pauses letting the fact sink in. Snowstar's fur bristled a little and his eyes were wide in shock. Breezeleaf's tail thrashed back and forth.
"The leader of this misfit bunch is White Wolf. He loves showing off by fighting. Every day the toms fight each other to death to prove who's better. The place always smells of blood and a rotting stench of dead prey. Most these cats are bloodthirsty. Those who aren't stay because of fear."
"If anyone leaves White Wolf will track you down until he finds you and kill you. It's not a threat—it's a promise. I grew up being expected to play a good she-cat and roll over for any tom that comes my way. I didn't though I fought them. I watched the toms fight and taught myself. So whenever someone tried to get with me I fought them. As you can imagine this made me very unpopular. My life was on the line so I ran away knowing the risks."
Snowstar and Breezeleaf are shocked speechless. Both sit rigid with disbelief. The disbelief is also written on their faces. Sky fears that they won't believe her. She didn't run away from that dreadful place to be laughed at here. She gets ready to add more, but Snowstar speaks instead. His green eyes are raw and fierce.
"All I can say is, why are you so honest with us? It's almost too honest. It makes me want to not believe you." Breezeleaf looks appalled at Snowstar's answer. Breezeleaf must believe me because he's glaring at Snowstar.
"All I can say Snowstar," I start mockingly. "Is I'm putting my life at risk by running away. And I'm also putting your Clan at risk too. Which even if you throw me out they still will be in danger. Also, to be more honest, I came here to you because I wanted to join your Clan. I want to be respected for my skill and treated fairly. Not disrespected as I was at the Society."
Snowstar doesn't say anything he just sits rigid with a blank expression. His tail tip flicks occasionally but he doesn't speak. Looking at Breezeleaf Sky can tell he is impressed by what she said. Snowstar finally speaks with an eerie calm voice,
"What do you mean my Clan is in danger?"
"White Wolf knows you four Clans live by the lake. He wants to get rid of all of you." Sky answers carefully. Breezeleaf and Snowstar share a look. Snowstar's fur bristles slightly and he stands up as if to leave. Before he steps out of the den he once again freezes Sky to the spot with his gaze.
"I believe you. I will let you join ThunderClan, but I can't promise that my warriors will trust you." His words didn't hold no warmth or promise in them. Sky glances from Breezeleaf's expecting look and Snowstar's hard look.
"I guess I've got a lot of work to do to."
Luckily with the healing herbs Breezeleaf had Sky was out of the medicine cat den after a few days. Within that time Moonpaw had visited her and explained what Clan life is like. Warriors patrolled the borders and hunted for the Clan. They also trained the next generation of warriors called apprentices. Apprentices were left with honorable but boring tasks—Moonpaw's words—and had to earn their warrior name. Medicine cat's, like Breezeleaf, train differently than warriors. Also, Moonpaw explained the whole name thing which afterwards helped ease Sky's wonder about them.
Currently Sky sat outside the medicine cat den feeling like ants were crawling in her fur. All the cats in camp were staring at her as she waits for Snowstar to call a meeting to make her an apprentice. To her surprise most cats had welcomed her here. There was only a few that didn't like her being here. It was a tom by the name of Talonswipe. He was a huge light brown tabby with an ugly scar across his face. Talonswipe's brother Mousenose, a brown tom, also shared the same hate of her.
"All cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!" It was Snowstar's booming voice. Cats stop what they're doing and all gather beneath the rock pile that Snowstar stand on top of. When all cats finally settle he begins again,
"Today we gather to see a cat become an apprentice of ThunderClan. I'm sure most of you have heard of her. As you're leader I took into high consideration if I should let her. I've listened to her story and I believe she will be a strong addition to our Clan."
No cat objects besides Talonswipe who gives a snort. Snowstar must not hear Talonswipe because he continues,
"Sky, step forward, from this moment on until you receive your warrior name you shall be known as Skypaw. Stormstream, you received excellent training from Treetail. I know you will pass down all your knowledge and bravery to Skypaw."
"Touch noses with her," Breezeleaf whispers from Skypaw's side nudging me towards a silver she-cat. Jumping to her paws Skypaw hurries forward to touch noses with her mentor. Skypaw feels like she's about to burst with excitement when she meets her mentor's proud yellow eyes.
"Skypaw! Skypaw! Skypaw!" The Clan's cheering makes Skypaw feel so loved and secure that she knows this is where she belongs. Skypaw is so caught up in the congratulations of her joining the Clan that she doesn't notice a pair of amber eyes. Talonswipe stood off to the side glaring at the new ThunderClan apprentice. He vows to himself to make her regret joining.
