"Hey, Squirrelpaw, will you play with us?"
Nightkit sat at the edge of the nursery wall, which was just a hollowed out section in a cave that had soft mosses and grasses lining it for comfort. She stared out into the camp's main clearing. The fresh-kill pile laid just a few tail-lengths away, closer to the elder's den for easy access. That den was similar to the queen's nursery however it was deeper and also a bit taller. Just across the cave there was the leader's den, a deep cave that was sheltered by mosses and jagged rocks that only the leader could navigate. The warrior's den was to the right of that, closer to the edge of camp. It was situated in a small side cave, and you had to climb a few ledges of rocks to get to it. The apprentices slept in a small indent underneath the overhang of the warrior's den, and the medicine den was in the back of the camp, close to a small pool of water.
She was broken out of her thoughts when her brother, Spiderkit, jumped up as one of the apprentices walked by and began squealing like he was two moons old again. She rolled her eyes at his behavior, but she looked up at the ginger apprentice anyway.
"Oh hey, Spiderkit." Squirrelpaw stopped to look at the kit. "I was just heading over to get some fresh-kill, but I guess I have some time." He chuckled and looked over at Nightkit and Ravenkit, who were sitting side by side. "Are you two going to play as well?"
Ravenkit shook her head, looking longingly at the back of the cave. Squirrelpaw seemed to get the hint, as he chuckled and just grinned at her.
"Well, why don't you see if Goldensong has something for you to do?" He asked. Ravenkit looked at him with wide green eyes before dashing off to the back of the cave. Nightkit rose to her paws.
"Well, I'll play. Can you teach us any cool moves?" She asked, padding closer to Squirrelpaw.
"Yeah! I want to learn how to hunt crabs!" Spiderpaw exclaimed.
"Ew, crabs?" Nightkit protested. "Gulls are much tastier!" She argued back.
"Gulls taste like Twolegs, though!" Spiderkit wailed, shoving his sister.
"Hey!" She protested, jumping onto him and bowling him over. The two rolled and tussled until he ended up on top, pinning her down.
"Hey, Nightkit. Why don't you fight him off with your back claws?" Squirrelpaw suggested casually as he watched the two of them fight. Nightkit looked over at him briefly and then back at her brother before doing just that, battering her brother's stomach with her back claws until he yowled and leapt off of her.
"No fair! You got help from an apprentice!" He yowled.
"You're the one who wanted him to play with us." Nightkit reminded him as she sat proudly.
"Still, I don't think I'm gonna be able to lie down for a week!" He moaned, flopping down dramatically.
"You'll be alright." Squirrelpaw laughed, nudging the black tom to his paws. "Besides, real warriors can take much more than that."
That made Spiderkit jump to his paws eagerly, and he soon forgot about hi loss to his sister.
"What other moves can you show us, Squirrelpaw?" He asked eagerly, bouncing on his paws.
"Well, I showed your sister one move, so I'll show you one. When you attack another cat, try running and hitting their head with your front paw really hard; but with your claws sheathed." He suggested. Spiderkit eyed his sister and she sighed, letting him practice. He came running and did exactly that. Nightkit took a few shaky steps back, clearing her head as it pounded a bit.
"See? It leaves them a bit dazed." Squirrelpaw said. "Now, that's enough training you two. You are almost six moons old, and I want to leave some work to your mentors!" He flicked his tail ad headed off to the fresh-kill pile.
Nightkit shook her head, clearing it and looking at Spiderpaw before smirking and leaping at him. He yowled and she once again rolled around with him on the floor of the cave before eventually pinning him.
"Ha! Now I win." She smiled down into his face. He squirmed and batted at her with his back paws, but she leapt to the side and he was just flailing. He glared and stopped, climbing to his paws.
"You can't do that!" He argued.
"Why not?" Nightkit asked, sitting down and beginning to draw her tongue over her forepaw and dragging it over her head.
"Because, you gotta let me practice, too!" He protested.
"You'll have plenty of practice when you're an apprentice." She shrugged at him, turning as their mother walked out of the nursery.
"Come on, you two. You're making a racket, and it's making it hard for me to sleep." She yawned. "Calm down."
"We can't! It's so small in there, we barely fit. Besides, it's too boring in the nursery." Spiderkit protested, his fur sticking out awkwardly.
"It is." Nightkit agreed. "I want to start apprentice training!"
"You'll have plenty of time to train." Tallsong assured her, purring and pulling her over so she could groom her daughter. The black kit squirmed before eventually giving in, secretly enjoying the feeling of her mother grooming her.
"Yes, well training can't come soon enough." Spiderkit huffed, sitting and beginning to groom himself.
"Sure it can. Soon enough, you'll be training. Your apprentice ceremony is only in a few days." Blackstrike, their father, said as he walked up behind his son and nudged him. Spiderkit stumbled before looking up at him. Their father was a large black tom with yellow eyes and long black claws.
"I can't wait to start training. I wonder who my mentor will be." Nightkit said as her mother released her to scoop up Spiderkit. She sat next to her father, her fur damp as she looked up at Tallsong.
"I hope mine's someone strong like Boulderfur!" Spiderkit exclaimed. "So I can be the best fighter!"
"I hope I get Russetsong." Nightkit sighed wistfully. "She's so pretty and strong."
"I'm sure whoever Froststar gives you will make you into great warriors." Tallsong purred. Nightkit supposed she was right, and she was content with that.
"Froststar's always made wonderful decisions." Blackstrike purred, rising to nudge his mate's cheek. Tallsong let out a loud purr and looked down at her kits.
"Haven't we told them, yet?" Tallsong asked, as the two kits looked up at the pair, confused.
"Told us what?" Nightkit asked. There was something she didn't know?
"One day, after you become warriors, you will be able to take a mate." Tallsong purred.
"You'll ask Froststar, and he and Redheart and Goldensong will all decide on a good mate for you." Blackstrike looked down at them proudly, his tail curled around Tallsong.
"They choose our mates?" Nightkit asked, looking up at her mother. That seemed…weird, in some way.
"Yes, dear. They decide who it will be depending on what your skills are." Tallsong explained. "That way, we raise excellent kits and give our Clans the best possible chance of survival."
"Oh." Nightkit said, looking down and then back up at her parents. It couldn't be that bad, because Tallsong and Blackstrike looked so happy together. Her father was staring at her mother, his eyes full of nothing but love as he let out strong purrs. No, it couldn't be bad. It may not be what instinct told her, but it was what was best for the Clan, and that was what mattered.
"You'll see, honey. It's not a bad thing." Blackstrike explained. Spiderkit seemed bored with all this talk about mates, and he squirmed out of his mother's paws to smooth down his pelt. Nightkit nodded.
"I'm sure it will all make sense to me." She said at last, turning as Tallsong grabbed her son, who had escaped from her grooming session prematurely.
She walked out into the cave clearing. Because it was so sheltered, kits were allowed to be out of the nursery a lot more than most Clans, or what she had been told. She headed towards the cave entrance, settling down once she was sitting in the sunlight. It warmed her black fur, and she let out a small purr. She watched the waves of the nearby ocean as she let a smooth breeze cool her.
She wondered how it was when Blackstrike and Tallsong first met, or perhaps, when they were first told they would be mates. Had they known each other well before that? Had they wanted to be mates, and were lucky enough to be assigned? Or were they enemies and they somehow grew to be mates against all odds? Her head swam.
Who would be assigned as her mate? Would she have a say in it, at the end of the day, or would she just have to agree with what they gave her and suck it up? How would that affect her life as a warrior?
She got so caught up in her thoughts, she barely noticed as there were cats yowling about a hawk overhead. It was only until a large mass bowled her over that she broke out of her thoughts. She looked up as a large white tom was battling with the hawk. It only took a few well-placed claws and the hawk was on the ground, unable to fly. Another swift bite to the neck and the hawk was dead.
"Froststar…" She said softly as she stared at him, paralyzed with fear, her black pelt puffed up, and her pupils nearly slits.
Her great leader rose to his full height. He was a massive white tom with powerful muscles rippling underneath a white pelt. There was a long scar on his shoulder, another on his back, and numerous smaller scars on all his legs. There was a scar on his nose, he had a torn ear, and there was another scar dangerously close to his eye. Now, he had another bleeding wound on his shoulder.
He looked down at her with burning yellow eyes. She shrank down in front of him, the sheer power of the cat in front of her making her feel immensely weak. He stared for a few moments before straightening up.
"You need to stay inside camp, kit." He said, nudging her to her paws. She let out a soft noise and got to her paws, quickly scrambling into the camp and to her mother, who was looking at her in both stern anger and in fear.
Nightkit hid under her mother's paws, and looked back at Froststar, who was making his way to the medicine den. Goldensong was waiting with Ravenkit nearby.
"Tallsong, you should look after your kit more." Froststar said. "She's almost apprentice age. I would like to see her live until her ceremony."
Tallsong nodded, dipping her head.
"Of course, Froststar. Thank you for saving her." She mewed. The large white tom nodded to her and went to get treated by Goldensong. Immediately, Tallsong whirled around and glared down at Nightkit.
"What were you thinking?" She hissed. Nightkit averted her gaze and looked at the ground.
I just wanted to think…about what you said." She said softly, refusing to let her voice reveal how she truly felt. She had been terrified, and now she felt so ashamed.
"You can think about it in the camp, or even better, the nursery!" Tallsong practically screeched, growing closer to her daughter. Nightkit shrank down even more.
"I'm sorry, mom…." She said softly, keeping her gaze elsewhere, her ears flattened and her tail tucked between her legs.
"Come on, Tallsong." Blackstrike said gently, nudging his mate. "She just went through a terrifying ordeal; she doesn't need any more trauma for the day." He said softly. Tallsong glared at her daughter for a few more moments before eventually relaxing and sighing.
"I suppose you're right, Blackstrike." She said softly, withdrawing and heading for the nursery. Spiderkit slowly padded up to his sister, who was trying to smooth her fur and collect herself.
"What was the hawk like?" He asked curiously, sitting next to her and helping her smooth her fur.
"I don't know, I don't remember." Nightkit responded miserably, turning her head away from her brother. She didn't want to recall the incident. Not right now. Almost every Clan cat had been staring at her, and she had been cowering like the kit she was. She had made the Clan leader disappointed not only in her but also in her mother, and she had made a fool out of herself in front of everyone. She didn't want to talk to anyone about the incident. She just wanted to curl up in her den and never wake up.
She padded into the nursery and laid down next to her mother, closing her eyes and flattening her ears against her head. Her pelt burnt with embarrassment, and she didn't know how she would ever live down today's incident. She felt her brother lay down next to her, and eventually her sister joined her, and she could hear them both fall asleep rather quickly. However, she stayed up for some time. Eventually, as the moon was high in the sky, she fell asleep.