"Hurry up, Havenkit!"
Havenkit stumbled as he fought to keep up with the dark-furred kits ahead of him. Not only were Duskkit and Ravenkit older than he was by a moon and quite a bit larger, they already had long, strong legs like the rest of the SkyClan cats.
"You're so slow," Ravenkit complained, skidding to a stop to look exasperatedly back at him. She waited impatiently for him to catch up, while her brother, Duskkit, bounded on ahead. "Nettlefur's never going to take us to see the territory if you can't even keep up on the way out!"
"I'm trying," Havenkit mewed, frustration prickling at his pelt, but Ravenkit had already turned to join her brother and hadn't heard him at all. Ravenkit and Duskkit had never tried to hide the fact that they didn't like him very much at all – but that wasn't really a surprise, since most cats in the clan didn't.
A mottled brown tom padded up behind Havenkit, nudging him gently with his nose.
"Come on. Your denmates are getting impatient," Nettlefur, the clan's newest warrior mewed. He was one of the few cats who seemed to at least tolerate Havenkit, though he suspected that it was because Nettlefur felt sorry for him. After all, Havenkit had been found by a patrol several moons ago, without any indication of who his parents might be, or even where they were from. On top of that, he was much smaller than the rest of his clan – about the same size as Gingerkit and Fleetkit, who were three moons younger than him.
"There's no reason why Ravenkit and Duskkit should have to limit themselves for a stray," came the cool voice of a sleek, black-furred she-cat. Ebonyflower, Ravenkit and Duskkit's mother, and Havenkit's foster mother – not that she had ever acted like it. She had always seemed to resent Havenkit, for his unknown origins and for taking her attention away from her own beloved kits. "In any case, Nettlefur, don't you think he would attract too much attention?"
Havenkit scuffed his paws against the ground, his ears flattening involuntarily back against his head, and gave his pelt a few self-conscious licks. It was true. All of his clanmates had sleek fur that blended in with the foliage and colours of the forest, but his fur was a bright silver that gleamed in the light and nearly glowed in the dark, with strange, spotted black markings that blended into streaks across his back. He dreaded the thought of hunting for the first time, because he knew that all the prey would be able to see his treacherous pelt from fox-lengths away.
With a sudden burst of furious energy, he dashed forwards, intent on at least escaping Ebonyflower's dismissive words. All of a sudden, he crashed headlong into something very hard and firm. He stumbled backwards and collapsed in a heap on the ground, shaking his head dazedly.
"Watch where you're going," the young cat that he had run into growled. He had dark fur, dappled with dark red and gold that made Havenkit think of patches of sunlight shining through the thick leaf cover onto the forest floor. His odd eyes, one green, one gold, narrowed when he realized who it was. Thick scars of deep claw-marks were scored across his green eye, marring his features.
"It was an accident," came a quiet interjection from the young cat who had been walking beside Emberpaw. Whisperpaw, Emberpaw's brother, was as different from Emberpaw in character as he was in appearance. He was a pale gray tabby with gold eyes, and one of the kindest cats in the clan to Havenkit.
"Sorry, Emberpaw," Havenkit muttered, even as the older tom whirled away and stormed off. He hung his head, both in disappointment and frustration.
"Don't be," Whisperpaw said. "He's in a bad mood because of me. It's not your fault, Havenkit." With that, he padded lightly away after his brother, who had disappeared within the apprentices' den.
"Strange," Nettlefur commented as he watched the apprentices go, beckoning Havenkit forward with his tail. "I've never seen those two fight before. Well, it's not any of my business, anyway. Aspenstar and Hazelnose won't let me take you three very far outside the camp, but I'll show you all the hollow we use for battle training," he added as he approached Duskkit and Ravenkit, who were waiting impatiently by the camp entrance. They didn't seem any less excited by this statement of fact, and raced out of camp, yowling with excitement.
As they made their way back to camp, a while after sun-high had gone and passed, Havenkit reflected that he should have known that their little excursion would have been less than enjoyable for him. Duskkit and Ravenkit had spent most of the time tussling with each other on the smooth earth of the hollow, kicking up stray leaves and twigs while Nettlefur watched in amusement. Havenkit had sat on the side, envious of the strength behind his denmates' wiry muscles, and daydreaming of growing to become the fiercest warrior in SkyClan, powerful enough so that he could send either of his denmates flying with one swipe of his paw if they ever jeered at him again.
As Nettlefur led the kits back into the camp, they heard a commanding yowl. A handsome, broad-shouldered tom stood on the Skyledge, his piercing golden gaze sweeping across the SkyClan cats.
"Let all cats old enough to climb the Ancient Oak gather beneath the Skyledge to hear my words!"
Havenkit glanced around curiously. With Aspenstar on the Skyledge was a sleek-furred gray tom, looking calm and composed as he sat behind the clan leader.
"Oh, there you two are," came Ebonyflower's voice. She swept her two kits away to a spot near the front of the Skyledge, purring as she started to groom their dust-stained pelts from their expedition to the training hollow. Nettlefur padded away to sit next to his former mentor, Feathermist, leaving Havenkit to sit alone at the edge of the hollow.
"There are two things I must address today," Aspenstar announced. His authoritative gaze swept the clan, lingering for just a fraction of a second longer on Havenkit. He tried to make himself smaller than he already was, unable to meet his leader's eyes. "Firstly, that the sun-high patrol has found ThunderClan scent on our territory, along with pigeon feathers and the blood of fresh-kill."
Yowls of outrage met Aspenstar's words. Havenkit watched the furious cats with wide eyes, staring at the way their pelts bristled in anger and how they sunk their unsheathed claws into the ground. Even Gingerkit and Fleetkit, sitting at the nursery entrance with their mother, Honeypounce, were squeaking energetically as they swiped at each other with their stubby paws, though it was more likely from excitement than anger.
Will I ever feel that kind of loyalty for a clan that doesn't even want me?
He had no time to dwell on the thought, because Aspenstar was already moving on.
"And secondly, Ripplewind has informed me that he is ready to take on an apprentice."
Murmurs of surprise now swept through the clan, chasing away the angry yowls in response to Aspenstar's first announcement. Ripplewind's ear twitched, but he remained otherwise completely still.
"Whisperpaw has decided to start training under Ripplewind, to become SkyClan's next medicine cat."
So that was why Emberpaw was fighting with him! Havenkit came to the sudden realization, watching the tabby tom pad up towards Ripplewind and touch noses with him. Emberpaw was glaring down at his paws, looking mutinous. Even so, he still cheered Whisperpaw's name with the rest of the clan, though perhaps lacking the warmth that his brother deserved.
"I want to learn everything," Havenkit heard Whisperpaw mewing excitedly to Ripplewind. "How to recognize illnesses, and treat injuries, and interpret omens from StarClan –"
"All in good time," Ripplewind replied, with a purr in his low, steady voice. He caught sight of Havenkit watching them, and paused in his conversation with his new apprentice. He seemed to stare through Havenkit, without really seeing him, his eyes unfocused and gleaming with a strange sort of light that reminded Havenkit of starlight glinting off puddles at night.
"And I think you'll find, Whisperpaw," Ripplewind continued, as if nothing had happened, though his eyes were still fixed on Havenkit. He squirmed uncomfortably, fighting the urge to flee from Ripplewind's ominous tone. "That some omens are not nearly as straightforward as you think – and sometimes the only way to see whether something will bring salvation or destruction is simply…to wait."