Manda-nee: Hiya! XD

Kit: Hi Nee-chan! I'm in the middle of writing a story!

Manda-nee: Really? Cool!

Kit: I know right? Would you care to do the disclaimer Manda-nee?

Manda-nee: Okie dokie! Kit-imouto-chan does not own Warriors! Also, any similarities to any other fanfiction are not intentional, so please don't start thinking that they are!

Kit: Thanks Nee-chan! ^^

Manda-nee: No prob! Now, on to the story!

Chapter 1

(Kit: Also, just so you know, this takes place one moon after the Prologue. Please keep reading. ^^)

"I, Firestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend her to you as a warrior in her turn.

"Adderpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, and to protect and defend your Clan even at the cost of your life?" The she-cat in question nodded and meowed, her voice serious but heavily tinged with excitement, "I do."

Firestar looked down confidently on Adderpaw, and he could see Ferncloud and Dustpelt gazing proudly on their first daughter. Ashfur, her mentor, was sitting next to her, his blue eyes brimming with his own pride and satisfaction. Adderpaw herself was sitting anxiously, her paws visibly itching and her tail flicking from side to side. He continued confidently. "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name: Adderpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Adderfang. StarClan honors your loyalty and your enthusiasm, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

"ADDERFANG! ADDERFANG!" The ginger tom heard a single, small voice cry out first. He turned towards the sound to see Starkit, the newest kit, yelling at the top of her lungs from just outside the nursery. The newly named Adderfang looked back at the small kit, grinning excitedly.

Then, Firestar heard the rest of ThunderClan begin cheering, "Adderfang! Adderfang!" The brown she-cat kept grinning as her family and friends crowded around her, congratulating her success- particularly her younger brothers Spiderpaw and Shrewpaw. The long-legged black tom meowed happily, "That was awesome Adderfang!" Shrewpaw nodded furiously beside his brother, signaling his agreement.

All of a sudden, to Firestar's great amusement, Dustpelt and Ferncloud's youngest kits leapt from outside the nursery into the throng of cats, weaving their way through the crowd of paws and tails towards their oldest sister. Birchkit reached her first and mewed loudly, "Great job Adderfang!" Larchkit and Hollykit smiled and mewed happily along with their brother.

Then Starkit jumped happily onto Adderfang's back and mewed, her pale blue eyes sparlking with glee, "I told you I'd be the very first to say your warrior name! Did you hear me? Did you hear?" The light brown she-cat smiled, and replied cheerily to the black kit's exclamation, "I heard you, Starkit, don't worry."

After a few minutes the mass of cats began to disperse. Firestar gazed down from the Highrock, resting it on his newest warrior.

Adderfang's dark amber eyes were glistening with pride, and her light brown pelt was glowing in the fading sunlight. He climbed down from the Highrock and padded quietly over to her. Once he got next to her Firestar meowed, "It's time for your silent vigil Adderfang. Are you ready?" She nodded, keeping silent. "Great. You can go get yourself a piece of fresh-kill to eat, and then go take your place at the camp entrance. And remember, you must not speak throughout the night."

Adderfang nodded again, still holding her tongue. Firestar continued, "Good. Ashfur will come and get you in the morning when your vigil is over." Then he turned around and padded back to his den, leaving the she-cat to her fresh-kill.

*******The Next Morning*******

When Firestar got up and out of his den, he saw that Adderfang had already gone back to the warriors' den to rest. Graystripe walked over to him, saying that he had told her to get some rest after her vigil. He also told him that he had organized a dawn patrol, led by Mousefur, and a hunting patrol with Brambleclaw leading. Firestar thanked him, and then went into the warriors' den to check on his newest warrior.

Adderfang was sound asleep and lightly snoring, curled into a tight ball beside her friend Sorreltail, another very young warrior incidentally. Her light brown fur had been ruffled by the strong night winds, looking almost ragged beside Sorreltail's well-groomed tortoiseshell coat, and her long fluffy tail was lying on top of her paws and her nose.

Walking silently around the sleeping warriors, Firestar padded quietly over to the pale ginger form of his mate, Sandstorm. The ginger tom gently prodded her in the side with his paw, and she immediately woke up, her brillliant green eyes opening tiredly. She yawned, and then meowed, "Firestar. Do you need something?" Firestar replied quietly, his own green eyes shining, "I was just wondering if you wanted to come hunting with me this morning." Sandstorm's eyes brightened and she immediately leapt to her feet. "Sure Firestar!"

"Great," the green-eyed tom said happily, and he stepped closer to his excited mate. Their ginger pelts brushed, and Firestar gently touched Sandstorm's shoulder with the tip of his tail. He then affectionately licked her behind the ears and meowed, "Let's get going then, shall we?" Sandstorm nodded, and the two of them weaved out of the warriors' den side by side, making sure not to disturb anyone else.

A few of the cats who were already awake greeted Firestar and Sandstorm as they made their way out of the camp. They walked quietly into the forest, keeping their senses on alert.

The two cats hunted for a long time, shallowly burying their kills as they made their way deeper into ThunderClan's hunting territory. They'd gotten lucky- Firestar caught two small mice and a small blackbird, and Sandstorm finished with a vole, a mouse, and a pigeon.

After a while Firestar said that they should probably start getting back to the camp, and as Sandstorm looked to the sky she agreed. They began making their way back to their camp, picking up all of their prey on the way. When Firestar and Sandstorm finally reached the thorn bed marking the entrance the dark ginger tom stopped walking, made sure neither of the patrols were around, and then set his prey on the ground at his feet. "Sandstorm?" He asked quietly. "Yes Firestar?" The pale ginger she-cat's eyes gleamed in the morning light.

"I was just wondering if you had any thoughts about Starkit and her apprenticeship. She's almost six moons old now, and will need a mentor soon." She smiled and meowed, "I thought you'd never ask." The green-eyed tom, greatly valuing her opinion in these matters, nodded, urging her to continue.

"Well, from what I can tell, all Starkit really needs is a confidence booster- the little thing's got less self-esteem than a mouse has space between its belly and the ground. And for that she'll need someone who will be tough on her, but not discouraging; in short, someone who understands her situation, knows what she's going through." Firestar looked at her curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Starkit's going to need a mentor who knows what it's like not being born in the Clan they are loyal to. She's going to need to know how to stand up for herself, especially when it comes to questions about her birth." Sandstorm gave Firestar a knowing look. "You know more than just about anyone how some cats can be about those with...different origins."

Firestar nodded solemnly, flicking his ears and his tail. "So, who do you suggest?" His mate smiled and purred confidently, "Cloudtail." The ginger tom pondered her answer for a moment. Sandstorm continued, "He knows just how difficult gaining the trust of one's Clanmates can be, especially when they weren't born in the same nursery. He can give her the kind of confidence she needs to face down anyone who will try to turn that against her."

The handsome tom paused and contemplated his mate's words. She was right- Cloudtail, like Firestar himself, did understand what kind of predicament Starkit was in, not being truly ThunderClan-born. And he knew just how to push a cat to their limits without breaking down their self-confidence.

He nodded in agreement and meowed, "I think you're right Sandstorm. Thank you for your input- I'll be sure to consider it when making the official decision."

Firestar was about to pick up his fresh-kill when he heard Sandstorm meow, "Firestar? What do you plan for the Gathering tonight? Are you going to say anything about Starkit?"

The Clan leader turned back towards his mate and asked, "Do you think I should?" The pale ginger she-cat shrugged. "If you want to know what the other Clans think, or if you think another cat might be involved with her near-death experience, yes. But if you do, don't outright accuse anyone." Firestar nodded, "Of course."

At that he picked up his prey again and began padding through the brambles and down the path towards ThunderClan's camp. Sandstorm did the same, watching out for prickles on the pathway.

*******That Night*******

"So Firestar, what are you going to say at the Gathering tonight?" Graystripe padded forward next to his best friend and meowed curiously. "You seemed very deep in thought after your hunting expedition with Sandstorm." The ginger tom smiled and replied quietly, "You were out hunting nearly all day, so I didn't get a chance to talk to you.

"I want to tell the other Clans about Starkit. Do you think my decision wise?" The dark gray tom pondered for a moment, then answered, "It might be a good idea, if you want to see if they know anything about a missing kit. On the other hand, you have to play it carefully; they might feel like you're accusing them." Firestar smiled and meowed, "That's just what Sandstorm said. Thank you for your advice Graystripe, I appreciate it." "No problem Firestar. That's what friends are for."

When the ThunderClan cats arrived at Fourtrees only WindClan was already there. Firestar bounded ahead of his Clan and leaped up to the top of the Great Rock to stand beside Tallstar. The elderly tom greeted ThunderClan's leader with a friendly nod, his amber eyes warm. He meowed, "Firestar, how have you been?"

Firestar nodded and replied, "We have less fresh-kill than any of us would like, but that's leaf-bare for you. And you Tallstar, how has WindClan fared?" Tallstar meowed, "I'm afraid we have been in a similar situation. But, as you said, that's just what leaf-bare is like. We will endure."

A slow wind blew through the clearing, and the two leaders looked down upon their intertwined Clans. Firestar could see Cinderpelt talking to Barkface, WindClan's medicine cat, and Graystripe and Onewhisker having an engaging conversation. Some of the apprentices were having a good time showing off their new fighting techniques. The ginger tom smiled at his daughter Squirrelpaw frolicking around the other apprentices, a fierce gleam in her bright green eyes as she jumped onto Shrewpaw's back. The young tom bucked her off, turning around and pinning her to the ground.

Squirrelpaw glared and was about to start thrashing when her mother Sandstorm flicked her tail at Shrewpaw and gently pushed him off. Firestar purred in amusement, motioning for Tallstar to watch the scene. The older cat snickered with him, flicking his long tail.

At that moment another scent flowed into the clearing, and the RiverClan cats arrived and began mingling with the other two Clans. Their leader, Leopardstar, leaped gracefully up the Great Rock and sat down beside the two toms. "Greetings Leopardstar," Firestar dipped his head graciously. Tallstar did the same, and the golden she-cat nodded in their direction, flicking her long tail. "We'll start the Gathering once Blackstar gets here with ShadowClan."

As if on cue a large group of cats entered Fourtrees, a stocky black and white tom at their head- Blackstar and his ShadowClan cats. Blackstar jumped up to the top of the Great Rock, a small thud sounding every time his large black paws hit the smooth stone.

The mostly-white tom loudly meowed, addressing the entire forest, "Let this Gathering officially begin."

Kit: Alrighty people, sorry for the late update. You would not believe how irritating two broken wrists can be!

Manda-nee: Kit-imouto-chan, what's gonna happen next?

Kit: You'll have to wait to find out, just like everybody else! ^-^

Dearest readers, 1) flames - though very, VERY much unnappreciated - will be put to good use, burning pictures of my arch nemesis and 2) reviews are the most wonderful and appreciated things in the entire universe, so please review! XD