Disclaimer: I don't own Warriors or have any rights to it. Now, On to the story, baby!

""= talking

''=Thinking

Chapter 1

It was the dead of night, and darkness was everywhere. Rusty could sense a presence close by. The young tomcat's eyes widened as he analyzed the dense undergrowth. He was not familiar with this place, however, strange scents drew him forward, deeper in shadows. His stomach growled, reminding him that he's hungry. He slightly opened his jaws to allow the interesting scents to reach the scent glands at the top of his mouth. Musty odors of leaf mold mingled with the tempting aroma of a small creature.

A flash of gray flew past him, obviously a mouse. He stood still, listening to his surroundings. It was less than two tail-lengths away from him. He swallowed, knowing that his hunger would be satisfied very soon.

He crept down into a crouching position, poised for attacking his vulnerable prey. He went downwind from the mouse. He knew he had not been discovered and did a final position check. With an air of confidence, he pushed on his haunches and leaped, kicking up the leaves from the forest floor.

His prey dived towards the ground, looking for cover, however Rusty was already upon it. He scooped it into the air, hooking the small furry creature with his sharp claws, flinging it on to the covered ground. It landed into a daze, but it was still alive, and tried to run. However, Rusty snatched it again and threw it farther than last time. The mouse scrambled a few paces before Rusty caught up with it.

A noise suddenly happened, causing Rusty to look around, and allowing his prey to escape. He tried to give chase, but stopped as it darted between the tangled roots of a tree. Furious, he stopped the hunt. He spun around, green eyes glaring, focused on finding the noise that disturbed him from trying to catch his prey. The sound however, kept on going, and gained a sense of familiarity. Rusty blinked his eyes open.

The forest was entirely gone. He was inside a hot and airless kitchen, curled in his bed. Light from the moon shone through the window, creating shadows on the smooth, hard floor. The noise from earlier were food pellets being poured into his dish, showing Rusty he was in a dream the whole time.

He raised his head, laying his chin on the side of his bed. His collar rubbed uncomfortably around his neck, as in his dream the wind ruffled through the soft fur where his collar now is. He rolled over on his back, remembering the moments he had in the dream. The forest smells, the prey, the wind blowing through his fur. He could still smell the taste of the mouse in his dreams. Ever since the last full moon, he has had that dream three times, including the one he just had.

He licked his lips, smelling the bland scent of his food from his bed. His owners always refilled his dish before they went to bed. The dusty smell chased away the vivid scents from his dream, but he was hungry, so Rusty stretched his limbs and padded across the kitchen to his dinner. The pellets felt dry and tasteless on his tongue, but he ate it anyway. He reluctantly swallowed another mouthful, then turned from the food dish to the cat flap, hoping that being in the garden can restore the scents and feeling from his dream.

Outside, the moon shined brightly, and there was a light drizzle outside. Rusty stalked down the neatly-kept garden, following the path of the moonlit gravel, which felt cool and sharp underneath his paws. He made his dirt beneath a large bush with glossy green leaves and heavy purple flowers. The sickly sweet scent invaded his nostrils, and he curled his lip to drive the smell away.

Afterwards, Rusty settled on top of one of the posts in the fence that marked the end of the garden. It was one of his favorite places, because he could see into the neighboring garden on the other side of the fence. The rain chose that time to stop.

Behind him, the close-cropped lawn was bathed in moonlight, but beyond the fences of his garden was the forest, full of shadows. Rusty stretched his head forward to sniff the damp air. His skin was warm and dry under his thick coat of fur, although he could feel the raindrops which were sparkling on his ginger fur.

His heard his housefolk give him one last call from the back. Rusty knew that if he went back, he would be greeted with gentle words and caresses and welcome him back onto his bed, where he would relax, go into a ball and purr, drifting into contempt sleep, expecting to be greeted by his owners the next morning, but this time, he ignored his owners' calls and turned back to the forest.

The forest started to become more scentful after the rain passed. His spine started to tingle. He always pondered whether or not there was something out there, in the farthest reaches outside of his garden, where he lived in peace. He decided he was going to find out. Contracting his muscles, Rusty got ready to leap into the forest which was so mysterious yet alluring to him. He jumped down on the other side of the fence, his collar bell ringing through the night air.

"Where are you going Rusty?" asked a familiar voice.

"Yeah, I want to know, too," agreed another voice who Rusty knew very well.

He looked up to see a black and white cat balancing quite clumsily on the fence he just leaped off of. Rusty then looked to the left to see a silvery white cat with blue paws and sapphire blue eyes. "Hey, Smudge, and Flower," Rusty meowed.

"Are you going into the forest?" Smudge asked with wide amber eyes.

"I'm just going for a look," Rusty promised.

"You don't know what's in there, Rusty," Flower said, worried for his brother's safety.

"I won't be in there long, I promise. Just a quick look and I'll be back."

"You know Harry said there are wildcats living in there," Smudge put in.

"Please, that fatso never went into the woods. He's barely been in his garden ever since the vet." Flower pointed out with a roll of her eyes.

"No really, he even caught a robin there!"

"Well it must have been before the vet. No he complains because the birds are too loud." Rusty said this time.

"Anyway," Smudge meowed. "He said there are lots of dangerous animals out there. Giant wildcats who eat rabbits for breakfast and sharpens their claws on old bones!"

"I'm only looking around. I'll be back."

"Okay, don't say I didn't tell you!" Smudge jumped back in the garden and went home to his housefolk.

"Be careful. I have to go back now," Flower informed Rusty before going to her housefolk as well.
XXXXX

Rusty's senses were all over the place, looking at every single detail possible. His sharp green eyes grazing across the dark night forest, and his ears perked at any and all sound. After a while, he saw a tiny brown creature in his eye.
He crouched and was getting ready to pounce. He was able to get a better look at the mouse; his prey. It was like a dream come true to Rusty. He was about to pounce, but a loud sound of cracking twigs made him jump in surprise. Frightened, the mouse ran away. Angry at losing his chance to catch some prey, he whipped around ferociously at what cost him the mouse. Then, he thought the sound he heard were, pawsteps?

In an instant, something crashed into him with the force of a train. (AN: Would cats know what a train is? I mean, cars are called monsters and all, but trains? IDK). In his shock, he was quickly held down by his attacker. He twisted and turned trying to throw him off, to no avail. An idea popped into his head in the heat of it, but it would make his stomach vulnerable, meaning he was taking a big risk, but had no other ideas. With a giant heave, he rolled over on his back and threw his attacker off. He knew it worked as he heard the wind knocked out of him.

Rusty began running back to his twoleg nest. However, as he looked back the kitten was clearly giving chase, and starting to gain ground. Knowing he couldn't outrun the wildcat, Rusty quickly swerved and hissed at the cat, daring it to attack him again, flexing his claws and tensing his muscles, ready to fight for his life. The cat with yellow eyes came up to him from the shadows, and Rusty was so tense he thought his fur would explode. Strangely, the kitten revealed himself, sitting on his hind paws, showing no sign of aggression.

"Well, you put up quite a fight for a tame kitty!" the cat plainly meowed, as if the two had never been in a fight.

Rusty, though, was still tense, alert to any threatening movements from the gray tom. "I'll fight you again if I have to."

"Please, I'm the least the forest has to offer. In fact, ShadowClan warriors would have just ripped you to pieces, no questions, period. (AN: Do cats know what a period is?).

"Are you a ShadowClan warrior?"

"Oh, StarClan no! I'm an apprentice from ThunderClan. I'm training to become a warrior, you see."

In the middle of their conversation, Graypaw's nose started sniffing, at he went into a small panic.
"I smell cats from my clan. Hurry go!" Graypaw cried worriedly.

Rusty quickly picked up the worry in Graypaw's voice, and took his warning seriously. Rusty was prepared to run, but he was stopped when two big cats appeared before he could take off back to his owners. He instantly knew he didn't have a chance against these giant cats. They would probably kill him if he stepped out of line, even a little over his boundary. Rusty looked at Graypaw, who was bowing down toward the cats, and quickly followed what he was doing out of fear of being killed or worse.

"The blue she-cat with the blue eyes is our leader, Bluestar, and the golden tom with the mane is my mentor, Lionheart. He's teaching me how to become a warrior," Graypaw explained, seeing how confused Rusty looked at the mere sight of all these cats.

"Up, both of you," Bluestar addressed the two young cats. They both followed her instructions instantaneously. "Well, Graypaw, how do we have here?"

"Uhhhh, n-n-nothing Bluestar, just a kittypet who overlooked his boundaries.

This got a rather angry glare from Rusty, who was rather offended of being called, "just a kittypet."

Bluestar then swerved her gaze towards Rusty, who faltered a little at her clear, blue gaze.

"You are a certainly interesting cat, Rusty. We have often watched you standing on the fence, at the very edge of our territory. I personally have wondered when you would muster the courage to step your paws in the forest. Although, it seems you are a very keen hunter."

Rusty perked up at that. "Really? You think so?"

"Yes, I do. In fact, if you did not hesitate and wait so long, you very well could have caught that mouse. Though I wonder, you live with your twolegs in a warm place with food available whenever you want. Why would you come out here to hunt when you didn't need to?" Bluestar asked rusty, slightly narrowing her eyes.

"I only came to hunt a few pieces of prey. I'm sure there is enough for everyone," Rusty explained rather nonchalantly.

Except, it seems that Rusty said the wrong words, and Bluestar's demeanor changed from calm and collected to completed anger and rage. Rusty and Graypaw actually took a step back in fear. "There's never enough to go around! You kittypets are always cared for, and are always fed. Out here, everything is a competition where every piece of prey counts!" She stalked up to Rusty until they were face-to-face staring right in each other's eyes. He looked calm on the outside, but on the inside he was scared straight. "You may hunt for sport, but we hunt to survive."

Rusty was thinking about everything the blue-furred leader told him. Was he really possibly condemning others to their death by taking their prey? Just the thought made him guilty of all the cats he could possibly have starved by taking their prey. Rusty looked straight in her eyes and apologized.

"I am sorry. I meant no harm to your Clan. I will not hunt here again." He gave Bluestar a clear gaze of his emerald green eyes as he swore to her.

Bluestar was genuinely surprised this "random kittypet" reacted so well to her anger, and gained a sense of curiosity, and decided to give him a little test.

"Our territory only covers part of the forest. We also compete with other clans, so prey is often scarce, especially in the season of leaf-bare. It is imperative that the Clan is well fed, as well as protected from dangers, like a rival Clan or foxes, for example."

"Is your Clan big?"

"Big enough. We can support the Clan, as well as be able to defend it." Bluestar was sure now that she should ask Rusty to join ThunderClan. He certainly had the curiosity, as well as the potential to become a great warrior.

"Are most of you warriors? And you all fight, and hunt, and sleep together?" Rusty blasted off the questions, his interest peaking at the max.

'Now, this is the right time.' "Rusty, how would you like to find out? Would like to become a ThunderClan apprentice?"

"What! But he can't Bluestar! He doesn't have warrior blood!" Graypaw swiftly shouted in shock at his leader offering this to a KITTYPET.

"Bluestar, are you sure about this?" Lionheart asked her, rather taken aback by the sudden offer as well.

Bluestar gave a nod to both of the toms before turning back to Rusty. "You will have to leave your twolegs. We can't promise easy food or warmth, and you will often have to work hard, especially in leaf-bare. However, there are upsides. You will have the respect of all your clanmates. Also, you will be around many cats who all depend as each other. You will also remain a tom." She gave a thorough explanation of what this could be like.

"Remember, Bluestar is only offering you training. It might prove too difficult for you."

Rusty was in deep thought. He did not want to leave his twolegs at all. They cared for him, nurtured him, and gave him everything he ever wanted. But the life of a Clan cat, it was so interesting. It was a life of freedom and adventure, just like his dream.

Lionheart decided to speak up. "We must return. Tigerclaw will wonder what has become of us."

"Yes, you are right. Well Rusty, what is your choice?" She asked Rusty.

He didn't know what to pick. "Can I have more time?" He asked, hoping that he can have more time to think about it.

To his relief Bluestar gave a nod. "Lionheart will be here at sunhigh. You can give your answer then." She then bounded back into the woods followed by Lionheart and Graypaw.

XXXXX

Rusty was padding back to his twolegs' house in deep thought. He could not know what he should do. Should he have a life of adventure, or a life of comfort? As he jumped over the fence back in his twolegs' garden, he looked up at the sky, wondering what his fate would be….

AN: And that's a wrap! Whew, that was long! I hope you enjoyed that chapter and I would like to give a shoutout to QuietDagger, who is a friend of mine, as well as iiDuskk, who was the very first person to fave my story! Anyway, the usual. Fav, like and please no flames! Blizzard, out!