a/n: The first few chapters will be building up to things, don't worry, real action happens soon!
Chapter 2
"All cats gather beneath the highbranch for a Clan meeting!" Flickers of conversations came to be heard as leaves and branches rustled with the movement of cats. Squeals of excitement were suddenly heard as one brown tabby with white paws, chest and muzzle and a grey tabby with a light brown tabby tail leap down from the tree with excitement, pads grazing on the rough, brown bark of the oak. A cinnamon coloured tabby followed, her delicate white paws carefully leaping from branch to branch on her journey down from the cosy nursery.
"Eveningkit! Quailkit! Come here, I haven't even groomed you!"
Meows of protest could be heard as the queen rasped her tongue over her kits' pelts, smoothing their fur that appeared to be standing on end with excitement.
"We're not kits anymore, Specklewhisker. We can take care of ourslves."
Nettlekit heard Eveningkit say. She lashed her tail in frustration. She wanted to be an apprentice, and sleep next to her best friend instead of next to three wailing kits who'd been born a mere half-moon ago. Turning her head, the she-kit saw a fluffy black molly with golden eyes pad softly out from the large, hollow trunk. With her fur fluffed up against the cold, she looked almost twice her size, big enough to be a warrior.
"Silkpaw! Next to me!" she called, as her friend came to sit down beside Nettlekit,
her fur radiating warmth from when she was inside the apprentices' den.
"Hi, Nettlekit. Are Eveningkit and Quailkit becoming 'paws?" Nettlekit nodded. "Ok.
I remember when I was apprenticed." The molly glanced over to Mouseriver, a rose gold she-cat, who was sitting beside Rustrunner. "It was the best day of my life!"
"And I'm guessing you'll always think of me as a kit until I'm in the apprentices' den?"
"Yeah, how did you guess?"
"I know you, Silkpaw."
When all the cats had gathered around the highbranch, Stonestar coughed, then raised his voice. "We are here for the apprentice ceremony of two kits." he gestured with his tail for the grey-and-brown tabby she-kit to climb up to the highbranch. "Eveningkit, 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 Eveningpaw. Your mentor will be Snowsoar. I hope Snowsoar passes all she knows on to you."
With another flick of his tail, the grey tom gestured the molly up to the branch.
"Snowsoar, you are ready to take on an apprentice. You received excellent training from Sagestorm, and you have shown yourself to be quick-thinking and smart. I hope that you'll pass on that to Eveningpaw."
Both of the mollies' blue eyes were shining with pride as they touched noses and jumped down as Quailkit was called up.
"Quailkit, same as Eveningpaw, you have reached the age of six moons and it is time for you to become an apprentice. Until you have received your warrior name, you shall be known as Quailpaw. Your mentor will be Goldensky. Goldensky, you received formidable training from Paledust, and you've shown strength and skill. I hope you will pass all you know to Quailpaw."
"Eveningpaw! Quailpaw! Eveningpaw! Quailpaw!" the crowed cried out, both of the apprentices'
eyes glimmering with pride and excitement.
As the crowd of felines died out, Nettlekit's ears pricked up as a green-gazed molly padded over to where her and Silkpaw stood. It was Mouseriver, Silkpaw's mentor.
"Hey, Silkpaw! Mottledusk and Boulderpoppy are taking Wolfpaw and Smokepaw out to practice battle training, and I thought we'd join them." she then turned to Nettlekit. "Sorry, but until you're an apprentice you two won't get to go out together."
"I know, Mouseriver.."
Silkpaw turned her light golden gaze to Nettlekit's leafy one. "Sorry," They then turned, and walked away.
Nettlekit sighed, and trudged back towards the nursery-tree. After leaping up the two branches and scrabbling on the bark leading up to the leaf entrance, she squeezed in to the hollow part of the tree; where the branches separated and made a large dip to sleep in; and wherer the walls were tightly packed to form a dry, solid den. The first thing she noticed was how big it was. Specklewhisker had moved back to the warriors' den, and it seemed that Frostfeather had too. Now it was just her, Cherrykit and Hollyfrost, and her kits Shellkit, Thrushkit and Petalkit. And Hollyfrost and Cherrykit weren't even here right now! She purred with satisfaction and stretched in the new space she had.
After a few minutes, she sat up, and watched the rough, green leaves of the bramble-twined entrance, and then tuned round to groom her fur, which had been blown about in the chilly wind. Her fur stood on end even more as she froze, rigid. She had a grey spot on her fur, which hadn't been there before.