I'm so sorry this chapter took so long! School has been very busy for me, but now with summer coming up, I hope to write more! ^^ I don't know if I'll continue any of my other stories at this point, but this one is currently a priority to finish! ^^

Chapter 2: Introductions

Gathering the strength in my legs, I leapt to the side, avoiding his claws, and reached out to slash at him. I only got fur, though; I had moved too far away to actually hurt him. He hissed, turning and reaching out to attack me with outstretched claws. I didn't move fast enough this time, and his paw raked across my ear. Now it was my turn to hiss, but in pain. I could feel wet blood rolling down my ear and clotting in my fur, and a sharp throbbing pain where his claws had cut the tip of my ear. Some animalistic part of me overtook me, pulling my lips back and baring my fangs. I pounced at him, pushing him down onto the ground, and dug my claws into his side. He yowled in pain, and reached up to scratch and bite at me.

Before he could hit me, though, a strong jaw grabbed me by the scruff of my neck, pulling off him. My body immediately went limp as I hung in the air, some instinctual knowledge telling me not to fight. Cedarpaw scrambled to his feet, anger still filling his golden eyes, and prepared to pounce again, but a strong voice stopped him. "Cedarpaw. That's enough." A muscled black tom stepped into the clearing, blue-green eyes shining sternly. Scars sliced through his dark fur on his back and on his muzzle. He commanded respect, even from Cedarpaw, who backed down immediately. He then turned to look at me now, and it took all my strength not to let my ears droop in shame. He had that sort of power

Whomever was holding me set me down and moved around to face me. It was another tom, this one a silver tabby with green eyes. He seemed much kinder than the dark cat, though, more relaxed and open. He seemed strong too, but not nearly as muscled nor as scarred as the other. He regarded me with calm kindness and curiosity, but the black tom looked at me as if I was some sort of candidate, observing me with careful scrutiny. The blood from my ear was becoming sticky and clotting, but I sat down with as much dignity as I could muster. I would not be looked down upon, no matter his power.

It was strange, but with these new senses, I could tell their genders, tell them apart, and, somehow, tell that they all lived together. I could smell the other scents of cats on them, and a mix of dusty clay, dank wood, and fresh leaves. Beyond them, smells of mice, shrews, birds, rabbits, snakes, and more, and behind me, not far at all, that same scent of clay, wood, and leaves they carried mixed with a darker scent, the smell of pine trees. I could hear what seemed to be near everything, from birds in the trees to a burbling stream not to far away. In fact, now that I focused more closely, I could hear the incoming sound of something and smell the scent of a she-cat with that familiar scent carried by the three males before me. A fluffy golden cat, her ears tipped in black, bounded into the clearing, her eyes gleaming molten silver. She glanced from me to the others, before focusing in on the dark one. "Nightstar, what's going on here? Who's this kit?"

Nightstar, as I figured him to be named, blinked solemnly. "That was what I was just about to discover, Birdsong. It seems, though, that Cedarpaw here has forgotten one of the rules of the Warrior Code; Ivoryfang and I found these two fighting with unsheathed claws."

Cedarpaw's ears drooped shamefully, but he glared at me again. "She fell on me, sir. Dropped right out of the trees and onto me. It was an attack." His paws rolled, claws peeking out from the pads.

"It wasn't an attack!" I defended myself quickly. "I didn't even know you were there until I fell on you! Not my fault you just happened to be where I landed!" The fur on my back raised as my anger grew, but Birdsong shushed me with her tail. Strangely, though, I felt no anger from her, just a warning with a small smile on her lips.

Ivoryfang raised a brow at me, an amused smile on his muzzle. "You fell on him? What was a young kit like you doing in the trees? Where is your mother?" He asked all of the questions very kindly, not at all insinuating any wrong-doing on my part, but his questions made me worried. I couldn't tell him I fell not from the trees, but the sky, or that my mother was back home in an apartment in the city. Who would ever believe that I was a human in cat's skin?

But I needn't worried; Birdsong obviously took my silence as grief as she laid her tail over my back. "Do you have a mother?" she asked quietly, studying me.

With a quick decision, I shook my head slowly no. "I…. I don't remember much since this morning…. When I climbed up the tree to look for a squirrel…." It was a pretty bad lie, but I didn't have much choice. And Birdsong, Ivoryfang, and Cedarpaw seemed to believe me somewhat…. Nightstar, however, I couldn't tell. He nodded, though, seemingly accepting my explanation.

"Ivoryfang, Birdsong, Cedarpaw; head back to camp and report to Snowfall." He spoke with authority and power, and only Birdsong hesitated to leave the clearing. The other two only nodded and left, although Cedarpaw glared at me as he left. Once we were alone, his eyes bore into me. "You're young. Too young to be alone."

A strange sense of defensive pride filled me, and I puffed out my chest as big as it could go. "I'm not that young. Cedarpaw looks like he's the same age as me."

He chuckled a bit, standing up and circling around me. "You're four moons at most at that size. Cedarpaw is six moons old. He's just been made an apprentice. Considering his limited training, though, you held your own quite well. I'm quite surprised. He's much stronger than you."

I watched him carefully out of the corner of my eye. "I couldn't just let him rip into me. It was all in defense."

"Why not just run away?" he questioned, stopping by my side and staring into my eyes. He was searching for something in me. I could see it.

My eyes narrowed, not daring to glance away. "Running away shows fear. I wasn't afraid." That was it. I could see the approval in his eyes, and he nodded and looked away.

"You are very brave, young kit," Nightstar said thoughtfully. "My Clan values that. According to the Code, we must care for you, but if you would like, you may join our Clan."

"What's… Your clan?" My brows furrowed in confusion. I had never heard of cats being in 'clans.'

"I am the leader of ThunderClan," he explained. "There are four Clans in this area around the lake, each led by a leader and filled with warriors. Each has their own territory where we live and hunt, but we often fight for more territory. We all must live, though, by the Warrior Code, which dictates the rules of the clans, of fighting, and such, given to us by our ancestors in StarClan. Our medicine cats, who heal us, communicate with StarClan for us. Young cats from six moons become apprentices to the warriors or, in special cases, to the medicine cat, until they are deemed to be ready to be warriors or medicine cats themselves. The Clans are about honor and loyalty most of all, though."

A shiver went down my spine as he described these Clans. Honor, loyalty…. Things that I have stood for even before this change. Something seemed to be telling me that this was something I must do. Joining ThunderClan…. It felt like I had some destiny waiting me there. I smiled, looking up at Nightstar with determination. "Sounds good to me. I'll definitely join, if you'll let me."

A small smile appeared on his face, and he nodded. "Let's go then. You have to be introduced to the rest of the Clan."

He stood up and bounded off into the woods, with I by his side