Tangerine yawned, jumping up to perch on the fence. Her sleeping place, a comfortable hollow she used when there was pleasant weather was rumpled as she looked at the early morning lake. Her red collar was around her neck, pinching her. Stupid thing, she thought to herself. It was always getting in the way of hunting and always startling the prey she tried to catch.
One of her twolegs called, trying to get her to come inside. This time, she turned away and jumped into the lake area that she'd never quite explored.
She wanted to catch something to eat, to break up the monotony of her life.
"Hi, Tangerine!" She saw the familiar pelt of her brother, Stevie. He stayed out in his garden a lot, even more than her. But she knew that if push came to shove, he'd remain with the twolegs.
She, on the other hand, wanted something more than lazing around in the grass and chasing butterflies.
She went into the empty woods, suddenly recalling a story that their mom, Copper, told them, before the twolegs took them away to new homes. She had told them about some clans their grandmother, Sparky, had belonged to. Her bell jingled, again.
She tugged at it, but it wouldn't come off. She stopped trying to get it out when the ringer of the bell fell out. Finally, some peace!
Hunger still clawed at her mind, but she wouldn't be fed now.
She tried catching mice and rabbits, but they all managed to evade her. Finally, she found an old, lame mouse. She pounced, and it was a messy kill, but a kill nonetheless. It almost seemed to say, "Thank you for getting it over with before you mauled me!" She ate, and it tasted like no meal had ever tasted better. I prefer this over my food back in the Twoleg nest!
"You have a lot to learn."
"What? Who-are you?"
"I am Firestar."
"…Why do you have stars in your fur?"
"I'm from StarClan."
Tangerine had a brief recollection of StarClan, she knew that Copper had told her once about the starry ancestors her grandmother had believed in, who watched over those in the… Clans?
"So why are you here?"
Firestar looked relieved, as if he had not looked forwards to explaining.
"I'm here to ask you to help rebuild the Clans."
"Why me?"
Firestar looked amused.
"All the kittypets ask the StarClan cats who greet them the same thing. You want an honest answer? You reminded me of myself, when I was young. I can't believe I hadn't found you sooner."
"Without the kittypet part?"
"I was actually a kittypet, once."
"You were like me?"
"We're kin, actually."
"Kin? I don't have a Firestar in my family tree. But then again, I only know my ancestry up to my grandma, Sparky."
A she-cat stepped out into Tangerine's vision.
"Sparky?" Even though she'd never met her, her description that Copper gave was pretty easy to match to the cat.
"Call me Sparkpelt."
"Okay, Spark…pelt."
"Why are you looking at us... 'kittypets', anyway?"
"There is a prophecy that states, one whose life is soft will harden and rebuild the Clans."
She swallowed, hard. She instinctively trusted these cats. She could see the things that they had on her own pelt. But could she abandon her friends and family?
Yes.
She longed for purpose. And here it was, presenting itself neatly to her.
"I'll do it."
"Okay, follow us. We'll take you to the ThunderClan camp."
She followed along, struggling to keep up, even though she knew that they were making allowances.
"How much…"
Her voice trailed off as she looked at the hollow. It wasn't as sturdy as a twoleg nest, but it emanated comfort.
"It's been so long…" she heard Firestar sigh.
He composed himself.
"This is your new home. Now, I have a ceremony to perform."
"Tangerine, please step up to the Highledge."
Tangerine's fur burned with unanswered questions. How do these cats know my name? Where is the highledge?
Firestar leaped onto a big rock in the clearing. Tangerine nervously crouched at the bottom.
"Tangerine, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Blazepaw. I will be your mentor, and I will pass on all I know to you."
He leaped down, touching noses with her.
She felt a warm glow of elation as she sat there.
Firestar asked her to collect moss, first of all.
She walked side by side with her new mentor.
My new life starts today, she thought.