Chapter One
Golden light slipped into the camp through the canopy, glistening like tongues of bright flames. The warmth of greenleaf spread throughout the forest, scalding the delicate leaves and the bare tussocks of grass. Even the river that gurgled through the landscape did little to keep away the scorching heat of greenleaf. Many of the prey had scurried into their dens, and the cats of RiverClan were basking close to the bank of the river.
Padding closer to the entrance, a brown tabby kitten poked her head out of the nursery, her golden eyes glistening with curiosity. Never had she felt the sun pour into the den with such intensity. No cat would deny that this was the warmest day they had felt for seasons, but this was different for the kit. This was her first greenleaf, and she had not been expecting it to be so different from any of the other seasons.
"Rainkit! What are you doing there? I have to clean your fur!" a voice called from the back of the den, amusement sparking in the tone. In the shadows of the coolest part of the den sat a pale cream tabby, blinking her golden eyes. There was no doubt this was Rainkit's mother. The two looked almost identical, aside from their size and the hue of their pelt.
The dusky brown tabby grumbled something underneath her breath, casting a haughty glare back at her mother. If there was anything the kit could think about now, it was her apprentice ceremony. Soon enough, the leader would be bounding onto the meeting place of RiverClan, calling for all cats to gather around. That would be her one chance for freedom. Maybe she would be bossed around less.
As the kit padded over to her mother, she felt the pink tongue rasp against her head. Rainkit twitched her ears indignantly, lashing her small tail and stirring up the reeds in the nest. "I think I can do this myself!" Rainkit snapped, leaping away from her mother and swiftly lapping at her pelt. The dirt tasted foul against her taste buds, but that didn't matter. She wasn't going to let her pride be injured over something trivial.
Abruptly, a voice came from behind Rainkit. A golden tabby kit had padded in alongside a blue-gray tabby tom, his amber eyes showing a mocking expression within their depths. "Rainkit, is that the way you go about becoming an apprentice? Palestream seems to be doing all of the work for you. I'm able to do everything on my own." The golden tabby twitched his ears, snorting in disgust.
A spark of anger flared inside Rainkit's golden eyes. Just how long had Sunkit been there? She had never liked this kit. He always seemed to have his head high up, as if he was scoffing at every other kit. Of course, what did she expect? No leader's child would ever act kind around a lowly kit. Though she did not hear him boast about it much, Rainkit knew that Sunkit felt higher because he was the leader's son. Sunkit's brother, Sparrowkit, was not much better. Still, it seemed like Tidalstar favored Sunkit.
Tidalstar dipped his head, his blue eyes glistening. "Don't worry about my son. Sunkit, you should be easier on the other kits. You'll be a fine warrior one day, but I don't want that to make you critical of every other cat. Just remember, a true warrior fights to protect his or her clan. That is the way of RiverClan as I have always known it." The blue-gray tabby smiled down at his son, glancing back over at Rainkit for a moment.
At one point, Tidalstar's sapphire gaze rested on the young, brown tabby. "Are you ready to become an apprentice, Rainkit? Sparrowkit's already leaping around my paws, and Sunkit won't let me forget it. I'm surprised you haven't started bothering me about it yet." The RiverClan leader let out a hearty laugh, swishing his tail around Rainkit and Sunkit. "Come on, you two. I'll call all of the cats to a meeting now." With that, Tidalstar bounded out of the nursery, heading for the meeting place.
Rainkit could hardly contain her ecstasy as she followed him. In fact, she almost forgot that her mother, Palestream, was following her. In spite of this notion, the dusky brown tabby swiftly padded alongside Sunkit, noticing the occasional glare from the larger kitten. Rainkit rested beside the reed-covered rock at the head of the camp, allowing herself to be enveloped by the soft gurgling of the river nearby. This is what she loved about her clan's camp. There was always a peaceful, serene feeling to it. Not to mention, RiverClan was always the most well-fed clan.
While Rainkit was shifting restlessly and Sunkit was gazing out at the group of cats, another kitten stumbled to the front of the rock. Even though his brother was massive, he was considerably smaller than Sunkit. In fact, his stature was even smaller than Rainkit's. In spite of this, he puffed out his chest proudly. There was no doubt that this was Sparrowkit.
"I call you here for a clan meeting!" The leader's voice resonated through the camp, calling the cats to meet around the rock. A beam of sunlight cast its golden flames upon the silhouette of Tidalstar, making the fur along his spine appear golden. "Gaining new apprentices has always been one of the most important traditions in clan life. I bring forth three kittens, in hopes that they can become brilliant warriors one day."
"Sparrowkit, I believe it is your time to become an apprentice. You will be known as Sparrowpaw, and your mentor will be Echostream. Echostream, the clan values you for your empathy and understanding. Though you are a new warrior, please teach this apprentice everything Briarmoon taught you."
"Sunkit, you will be known as Sunpaw. Hawkwatcher will be appointed as your mentor. Hawkwatcher, the clan values you for your loyalty and cunning. Please teach this young apprentice the ways of a true RiverClan warrior." Tidalstar dipped his head, and his steady gaze rested upon Rainkit.
Rainkit inhaled a sharp breath, almost choking on the air out of excitement. Over the course of the moons, she had been waiting eagerly for this moment. Her only dream was to become a warrior, and this was one pawstep closer to that dream. That was it. She was definitely going to surprise all of the warriors when she excelled at the training.
"Rainkit, your new name shall be Rainpaw. Your mentor will be Willowheart. Willowheart, the clan values you for your honesty and understanding of right or wrong. Teach this young apprentice the ways of an honorable and noble warrior."
Yowls went up as the meeting finished, and the warriors chanted the new apprentices' names encouragingly. Rainpaw felt excitement spark underneath her pelt, and her golden eyes glistened as she padded over to her mentor. The pale brown tabby was sitting with her emerald-green eyes glistening. As Rainpaw's gaze met the young warrior's, the apprentice could already tell that these would be the best moons of her life.