"Don't get under any cat's paws, Nightkit!"

Nightkit glanced back at his mother, a purr rising in his throat. His silver mother was sitting beside the nursery, her green eyes gazing at her only kit with worry. "Don't worry Silvershine! I'll be careful!" Nightkit promised. He broke into a run, heading for a cave. The cave was big and shady. There was nests in it, and a small stream running beside it. He stopped, when a strange scent flooded his nostrils. He knew one of the scents was moss, and the other was cat. Then there was another scent, one he couldn't quite place.

"Hi, Nightkit!" A muscular tom with a gray dappled coat, padded over to the kit. His muzzle was green, and his pelt was dappled with green bits.

"H-hi, h-how d-do y-you k-know m-my n-name?" Nightkit stammered, as he looked at the big cat. He then tilted his head. "Who are you?"

"I'm Dapplespots." The tom mewed. Dapplespots raised a paw, and rubbed his muzzle, when he put his paw down, the green was gone. His muzzle matched his pelt, and his green eyes were shining."I know your name, because I was at your kitting."

"Are you a warrior?" Nightkit asked, hoping that Dapplespots was his father. After all, it was the first time he was allowed out of the nursery.

"No, Nightkit, I'm a medicine cat." Dapplespots purred with amusement. Nightkit felt a stab in his belly, when he realized that this cat wasn't his father. Dapplespots sat down, and began to flick the green flecks off his pelt.

"Do you know my father?" Nightkit asked, his silver gaze pleading. Dapplespots paused in his grooming. His ears pricked, and his tail twitched.

"Nighthawk?" Dapplespots gazed at the kit. "Of course I know him! He's my brother."

So Dapplespots was related to him after all! Nightkit brightened up at the prospect of meeting his father. "Do you know where he is?"

"Out on a hunting patrol." Dapplespots stretched.

"I hope Nightkit hasn't been bothering you, Dapplespots." Silvershine's voice sounded behind Nightkit.

"Nope, not at all, Silvershine." Dapplespots meowed. "He was just asking about my brother."

"Well Nighthawk promised to visit Nightkit at Sunhigh." Silvershine bent down to lick her kit. "Besides this is Nightkit's first time out of the nursery."

Dapplespots purred gently. "Nightkit will like meeting his father. Besides he looks like both of you."

"He has my silver fur in his stripes and his father's black fur." Silvershine murmured. "But how did he get silver eyes?"

"Only Starclan knows." Dapplespots turned away to an opening in the rock wall. He disappeared inside. Nightkit watched, and took a few pawsteps forward, before a big, silver paw drew him backwards. He let out a squeal and tried to struggle free, but Silvershine held him fast.

"Come, Nightkit. Time to leave the medicine cat den." Silvershine meowed calmly. She picked him up and turned around. Nightkit didn't like swinging from Silvershine's jaws, but something held him back from struggling free. All Nightkit could do was helplessly bring his paws closer to his belly, and be as light as possible for his mother.


Sunhigh arrived, and Nighthawk padded into camp with a rabbit in his jaws. Nightkit was watching a butterfly flit by. It was an orange and black butterfly, with white spots. He flashed a paw out and missed the butterfly. Before he could chase it, Silvershine wrapped her tail around him, and began to lick his pelt. Nightkit struggled, but Silvershine stopped soon enough and stood up. Nighthawk was padding over, a purr rising in his throat. Nightkit looked at the cat curiously, and he tilted his head. This cat had a night black pelt. It looked soft and fluffy. The cat's amber eyes spooked him though. It stood out against the black pelt and seemed hard. He crouched in fear as the tom greeted his mother with a gentle lick. Then the tom turned towards him.

"Hello, Nightkit." Nighthawk meowed, his black pelt gleaming in the sunshine. "It's nice to finally see you out of the nursery." Nightkit rose from his crouch, and twitched an ear. This tom seems friendly enough.

"Are you my father?" Nightkit tilted his head. "Are you Nighthawk?"

"Yes." Nighthawk purred loudly. "Always have been and always will be."

"Can I become a warrior now?" Nightkit asked, with round silver eyes.

"No, you can't become a warrior yet!" Nighthawk purred. "You need to become an apprentice first."

"And that will be in six moons." Silvershine added.

"But I want to be a warrior now!" Nightkit wailed.

"Wait six moons." Nighthawk purred. "And train hard to become a good warrior."

"Yea! I'm going to be a warrior in six moons!" Nightkit squealed happily.

"No, you're going to be an apprentice in six moons." Silvershine sounded a little frustrated. Her voice became a little scolding, as she turned to Nighthawk. "As for you, Nighthawk, you should be more careful on how you say things."

"Nighthawk!" A grey and black tom called. "Come share prey with me and Brackenstar! You too Silvershine!"

"Okay, Leafwind!" Nighthawk replied. "We'll be right there!"

"Nightkit, can you play with a mossball?" Silvershine asked. When Nightkit nodded, she padded into the nursery, and reappeared a moment later with a ball of moss hanging from her jaws.

Nightkit' silver eyes narrowed playfully at the mossball. Silvershine tossed the ball, and padded off to join her mate, deputy, and leader. Nightkit chased the ball of moss across the clearing. He was so intent on the mossball, he didn't realize that he scampered into a space between the apprentice den, and the elders den. Nightkit's ears pricked at a chirping coming from the bush. "Twig and Stick, I'll be back soon." A thrush was chirping to her chicks. Nightkit stalked forward, and stuck his head in the camp wall. The thrush fluttered up in surprise at Nightkit. He squeezed into the wall, and landed on the ground with a plop. He looked up, and saw a strange nest made of sticks and twigs. There were two birds in it, and a bigger bird was sitting on the branch that supported the nest.

"Hello." Nightkit meowed. "Who are you? Who's Twig and Stick?"

"My chicks." The mother thrush chirped. Her body visibly relaxed. She hopped onto the ground, and looked closely at the kit. Nightkit scrambled backwards when that weird looking mouth, was eye-level with his eyes. "I'm Sky and this is Twig and Stick." Sky nodded to each chick in turn. "Who are you?"

"I'm Nightkit." Nightkit replied. "I heard you talking to your chicks, and I became curious."

"Cats have never understood us before!" Sky exclaimed, flapping her wings. "I must tell Night!"

"Who's Night?" Nightkit asked Twig and Stick, once Sky flew out of the camp wall.

"That's classified information." Twig answered, and Stick slapped a wing to her sibling's beak.

"We're probably not supposed to tell him that!" Stick scolded. "Night will be furious, if he found out we told a cat that we know classified information!"

"What's classified information?" Nightkit asked, moving closer to the nest, now that Sky had left the area.

"Well you'll find out, since we don't know how to explain it." Twig chirped after a while.

"Can you understand cats?"

"No, we only understand prey, not predators." Stick answered. "You're the first cat we've been able to understand."

"Nightkit! Where are you?" Silvershine called. Nightkit stiffened, and looked guilty at his pelt. It was studded with sticks, leaves, and thorns. His mother will surely give him a lecture for sure. He didn't break the code, because he was still in camp, but he doubted that Silvershine will see it that way.

"I've got to go." Nightkit told the chicks. "Silvershine wants me."

"Who's Silvershine?" Twig asked.

"My mother." Nightkit answered.

"Bye, Nightkit!" Stick chirped. "See you soon!" Nightkit nodded, and backed out of the camp wall to face his mother. A ginger, black-spotted she-cat, sat next to his mother, her golden eyes alight with amusement. A fiery glow filled the clearing as the sun set, and stars were beginning to appear in the sky. Nightkit narrowed his eyes, he didn't think that the day can go by so fast.

"Look at you!" Silvershine exclaimed, her gaze flickering over Nightkit's messy pelt. "You're a mess!" She dove for him, and began to lick his pelt. Picking out the sticks and thorns while flicking the leaves off. Nightkit ducked out of his mother's tongue, and gazed at the strange she-cat. She milk scent but she was huge!

"Who are you? Why are you big? Where are your kits?" Nightkit asked, padding over. Silvershine followed, her green eyes alight amusement.

"I'm Cheetahwind, and my kits haven't arrived yet." The ginger, black spotted she-cat purred.

Nightkit felt Silvershine's tongue licking his pelt clean, as he watched Leafwind walk up to Cheetahwind, purring. Leafwind licked Cheetahwind on the cheek, before heading for Nightkit. "Hello, Nightkit, welcome to Windclan."

"Hi, Leafwind!" Nightkit stared at him with wide silver eyes. "Will you be my mentor?"

Leafwind let out a purr of amusement. "Brackenstar decides mentors."

"Time for bed!" Silvershine announced, picking up Nightkit by his scruff. Nightkit went limp, as Silvershine carried him into the nursery. She put Nightkit down in the mossy nest, purring gently as she curled around her kit. Nightkit let his silver eyes close, as he drifted off to sleep.

Windclan

Leader: Brackenstar: Pale golden she-cat with white paws and tail-tip has amber eyes

Deputy: Leafwind: black tom with gray paws muzzle and chest has yellow eyes

Medicine cat: Dapplespots- muscular tom with a gray dappled pelt and leaf-green eyes

Warriors

Whispernight: a she-cat that whispers all the time with a night black pelt. Has blue eyes sister to Nighthawk

Nighthawk: pure black tom with amber eyes

Leopardheart: looks like Leopardstar of old but has blue eyes instead. Tom

Coralreef: Gray and white black spotted she-cat with ice blue eyes

Rabbitpelt: A one eared pale gray tom with leaf-green eyes

Apprentices:

Mosspaw: Calico she-cat with blue eyes

Stormpaw: gray colored tom with a blind eye and a green eye

Treepaw: dark brown she-cat with amber eyes

Queens:

Silvershine: Silver she-cat with green eyes

Cheetahwind: a ginger with black spotted she-cat that is fast with golden eyes

Kits:

Nightkit: Black tom with silver stripes and silver eyes

Elders:

Mumblesnout: a short muzzled tom with a golden pelt

Tallwhisker: Black spotted she-cat with green eyes.


Other animals:

Squeakers: brown boy mouse

Night: black boy rabbit with hazel eyes

Twig: Black boy with ruffled feathers

Stick: Brownish-black she-chick

Sky: mother thrush with a speckled chest