For some awesome reason, I started getting reviews on all of my stories at once! I logged on and all but two of my stories had more reviews :) Thank you and you guys have no idea how appreciative I am of your support.
Millie's warrior ceremony happened in a blur. She decided not to change her name, wanting to pay homage to the Two-legs who gave it to her. But when Bouncepaw's ceremony started, she felt her gut rolling and twisting with nerves.
Firestar called Bouncepaw forward. "I, Firestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend her to you as a warrior in her turn." Firestar turned to Bouncepaw, "Bouncepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"
Bouncepaw nodded, "I do."
Firestar continued, "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Bouncepaw, from this moment you will be known as Bouncetail. StarClan honors your energy and perseverance. I welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."
"Millie! Bouncetail! Millie! Bouncetail!" ThunderClan chanted enthusiastically.
Bouncetail leapt off the rock and was immediately swarmed by friends and family. Ashfur was the first to playfully nudge her and say, "It's about time."
Firestar leapt off the rock as well and came to stand by Bouncetail. "Tomorrow is the Gathering and since you've missed the past few moons, you and your former mentor are both coming. As for Millie," He turned to the she-cat, "I'd feel it's best if you stay at camp for the first Gathering. I want you to get acquainted with everyone before you meet three other Clans."
Millie nodded, "I understand. I'd rather stay with the kits anyway."
Firestar turned back to Bouncetail, "But for now, we have a lot to talk about."
Bouncetail nodded and started following Firestar to his den when she froze, "Wait, isn't Ashfur coming?"
The gray tom looked up at her with surprised eyes. He wasn't expecting to be invited to listen to the entire story. Firestar nodded and Ashfur, Millie, Bouncetail and the ThunderClan leader entered the den. Sandstorm and Graystripe soon entered afterwards.
Bouncetail started from when she met Millie and told of a few things the Two-legs did. She told of how they left and wandered for days until they were aching to the core. But when the part about BloodClan came up, she suddenly grew nervous. She stopped her story and looked around nervously.
"Go ahead," Firestar commanded.
"When I say it, you can't interrupt me, though," Bouncetail looked around expectantly. All the warriors nodded as she took in a deep breath. "We ran into BloodClan-"
They interrupted.
Shouts and yowls echoed the cave, questions being shot left and right and Firestar started pacing back and forth, talking about attack plans. Bouncetail let out a low growl as she slammed her foot on the ground, "STOP!"
The cave fell silent as she continued, "If you let me finish then I would have been able to tell you that they don't live anywhere near us anymore! They reformed to a leader named Slate by a forest almost a moon's worth of walking away. We were trying to catch prey when they jumped us. They were going to kill us when..."
Silver. Her sister. If what she was saying was true then Firestar must know something about it.
"When what?" Graystripe demanded when he saw Bouncetail pause. She looked up and met Firestar's gaze directly.
"Firestar, is Brightheart my mother?"
The silence could have killed someone as everyone other than Millie stared at Bouncetail with a jaw dropped on the floor. She stared expectantly at Firestar as he fought to find the right words.
"What?" he gasped.
"Is Brightheart my real mother? I met someone who looked almost exactly like me but she was silver. She...she said we were sisters. That our mother split us up at birth and somehow I ended up here. She said we had a sister named Violet and a brother named Scout but... but that doesn't make any sense. Right?"
Firestar shared a quick glance with Sandstorm. "Bouncetail, Brightheart is your mother. Whoever this cat was, they must have been mistaken."
"She probably once had a sister who looked like you and she mixed you up. And if you said BloodClan lived so far away then how did you get here and she lived there?" Ashfur pointed out. When he said it like that, it did make a lot more sense... "You don't have any secret relatives."
"Yeah, you're right," Bouncetail grinned. "Anyway, Silver stopped them from attacking us and she brought us back to camp. They fed us, gave us a place to sleep and treated us like we were family."
"How many of them were there? Who was their leader? Did they show any signs that they were going to attack?" Ashfur asked and Bouncetail rolled her eyes.
"Calm down, I'll get to that. Their leaders name is Slate, he's a little younger than you, Firestar, but he's wise. Probably one of the wisest cats I've ever met. He said that the battle between you and Scourge had nothing to do with Slate. All he wants to do is do what's best for his Clan. Osprey, one of the warriors, said to tell you that they only want peace and if we need anything, they're always going to be there to help," Bouncetail finished.
Firestar didn't look convinced and was about to say something when Millie butted in, "They're a family."
Everyone turned to look at the newcomer. "They're much smaller than ThunderClan and treat each other like brothers and sisters. Most of them have gone through a hard time and BloodClan is their haven. They're a lot like ThunderClan in a way. They have a leader and then second in command. They have queens and kits and warriors who would die to protect their family. They don't want harm, I promise."
Firestar looked more at ease after that and he slowly nodded. Bouncetail let out a relieved breath as she continued her story. She told about the other kits and the fox attack and how today was the first time since that either of the kits have actually talked. When she was done, she was out of breath and exhausted. But she still had a vigil to complete for the night.
"Thank you, Bouncetail," Firestar dipped his head. "I'm sorry you had to go through all that and I'm happy that you're back."
"Yeah, it's been weird not having someone yelling at their mentor and causing trouble every day," Graystripe joked and Bouncetail ducked her head as the others chuckled. If one sentence could describe her apprenticeship, that would be the one.
"C'mon, let's go make ourselves nests in the warrior dens," Bouncetail said to Millie as they walked out of the leaders den. They were about to pad off in the direction of the dens when Ashfur and Graystripe stopped them.
"Just catch up with your friends, we'll make your nests," Graystripe grinned and Bouncetail was about to object when Ashfur covered her mouth with his tail.
"That's final. You've been gone for moons, everyone missed you," Ashfur said for the final time before walking off with Graystripe to go make their nests.
"Toms are strange..." Millie muttered. "Let's go see how Padkit and Birdkit are doing."
Bouncetail was about to follow her friend when she spotted Spiderleg and Shrewclaw. Her best friends. "Uh, actually, I really want to catch up with some of my Clanmates so you go, I'll come see you guys later."
Without another word, Bouncetail trotted off to greet her two friends. Her heart filled up with warmth when she spotted them and she could tell that they were feeling the exact same. They padded up to the white she-cat and both greeted her with nothing but love. Millie stared at Bouncetail for a moment and then walked away, mumbling something under her breath.
"So you're finally warrior," Shrewclaw teased and Bouncetail held her head up proudly.
"It may have taken longer than I was expecting but now the only next step is deputy." The two toms laughed.
"I'm going to have to beat you to that one. Chances are that either Padkit or Birdkit will be my apprentice when they're old enough," Spiderleg put in and Bouncetail rolled her eyes. The two kits were around five moons old, maybe a little older and would be apprenticed soon.
"We'll see about that," Bouncetail purred.
"It's getting pretty late, you should start getting ready for your vigil tonight. You're not a warrior until you're forced to stay up all night without being allowed to talk," Shrewclaw reminded her and Bouncetail sighed. She kind of wished that that little detail wasn't a part of Clan tradition. It was more of a nuisance than anything.
"But don't worry, Bouncetail," Spiderleg said with a spark of mischief in his eyes, "Ashfur will be the first one to greet you in the morning."
Both brothers exploded in laughter as Bouncetail ducked her head. Her ears were burning in embarrassment. Deep down, she was glad that she could come back to ThunderClan and not a single thing had changed between the three but it didn't stop her humiliation. "Ugh, I came here to catch up, not be humiliated. Now, just tell me how everyone's been doing."
"Squirrelflight's still frustrating but she and Shrewclaw have been getting...close," Spiderleg explained and Shrewclaw ducked his head. "Whitewing missed you but she handled it pretty well. Swiftstream... he's been kind of weird, honestly. Sorreltail just moved into the nursery with Brackenfur's kits and Leafpaw became Leafpool. Hm... what else?"
"Birchpaw, Larchpaw, and Hollypaw are apprentices now but Ferncloud's taking forever to get back to being a warrior. Tallstar died so Mudstar is leader now. And I think that's all..." Shrewclaw finished. Bouncetail was still thinking about Spiderleg saying that Swiftstream was acting weird.
"What did you say about Swiftstream?" Even if they weren't close, she was still worried about her brother.
Shrewclaw and Spiderleg shared a glance before Spiderleg explained, "He's been distant. I wasn't close with him before but he's always leaving, sometimes for a few days, and then he comes back and acts like nothing's wrong. He's also had a few fights with your parents and Firestar-"
"Firestar?" Bouncetail sat up, alarmed. It was a little more than weird when her brother was picking fights with the ThunderClan leader.
"Calm down, it's nothing big. Swiftstream sometimes talk in Firestar's den and it usually ends up with them yelling and Swiftstream storming out. I can never hear what they're saying though..." Spiderleg trailed off, disappointment flashing on his face.
"I heard Swiftstream yell, 'Why didn't you tell me?' once," Shrewclaw said. It only managed to make Bouncetail more confused. She would have to talk to her brother about it later.
"It was nice talking to you but I should go catch up on some sleep before my vigil tonight," Bouncetail excused herself. The two brothers said their goodbye's as they watched the young white she-cat pad off into the warriors den.
If felt strange walking into the den instead of the apprentice den but once her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she started to feel more comfortable. Ashfur was the only one in the den, spreading out moss with his tail. "Is that my nest?" Bouncetail asked.
Ashfur glanced up and nodded. "I figured you would want to sleep near Spiderleg and Shrewclaw so I made it next to there's. My nest is right there," he motioned to a nest nearby, "and Whitewing's is there." It was a little further away but still close.
Bouncetail spotted a nest in the corner, clearly separated from everyone else's. Bouncetail snorted, "Whose is that?"
Ashfur didn't meet her gaze. "Swiftstream's."
Bouncetail tried not to think too much about it and shook her head, as if to clear it. She plopped down on her newly made nest and motioned for Ashfur to join her. There was enough space for the two of them if they both squeezed close. She'd never really been this close to Ashfur but it was...nice.
"It was strange not having you around," Ashfur admitted.
Bouncetail purred, "Did you miss me?"
Ashfur sniffed, "Maybe. I sure didn't miss you getting attacked by badgers or constantly telling me that I'm wrong."
"Well you usually were! I just had to put you in your place every so often."
The two warriors laughed, remembering the times that they would yell at each other or have screaming matches in the middle of camp. They were both annoyed at the time but it sure kept ThunderClan lively and it was funny to look back on.
"I wonder what changed?" Bouncetail wondered and Ashfur's ears twitched.
"I think we both changed," Ashfur answered confidently. Bouncetail cocked her head.
"I don't look that different..." she glanced down at her white fur. She still, of course, had the same fluffy white fur, bushy tail, and amber eyes, but now her fur seemed more glossy and sleek. Her legs were longer and she had lost all signs of kit-hood. To Ashfur, she looked stunning.
"I didn't mean by looks. I meant that in the moons that you were away, we both grew up a little. We went through different experiences, both life-changing, that made us mature. I think when you were an apprentice, we just didn't mesh well. Now that we're more mature and can be civilized, we get along better."
Bouncetail found herself agreeing with everything Ashfur said, "That makes sense." Pause. "You know, I came in here to get some sleep, not gossip with you."
Ashfur started standing up when the she-cat gently flicked him with her tail, "You don't have to go, you know?" Ashfur lay back down and watched as his former apprentice set her head on her paws and closed her eyes. Once she was asleep, he did the same and drifted off to sleep.
Whitewing was ecstatic that her sister had come back. It was all that she was thinking of when she walked into the warriors den, later that day. But the second she saw the two warriors curled up together, she backtracked.
Squirrelflight was standing near her, talking with Shrewclaw and snorted when she saw the pretty she-cat literally was backwards out of the den with a mischievous grin on her face. Squirrelflight called, "What are you doing?"
Whitewing merely motioned them to come see for themselves. Ashfur and Bouncetail were squeezed onto a tiny nest, both snoring softly as they cuddled. Shrewclaw and Squirrelflight shared a mischievous look as they hurriedly motioned for Spiderleg, Graystripe, Thornclaw and Ferncloud to come look. All of their reactions were the same; quiet sniggering and whispering.
But when Bouncetail stirred and started waking up to start her vigil, that's when they all bolted. She exited the den, looking around.
Everyone was scattered throughout camp, talking with someone else but they all seemed to have one amused eye on her. Bouncetail shrugged it off and headed towards the camp entrance.
ThunderClan was weird.
One vigil and a day later, Bouncetail was walking with Ashfur and Whitewing to the Gathering. They were casually chatting about how the Clans would react when they saw Bouncetail come back from the dead and were joking about how they should pretend that they had no idea what anyone were talking about if they asked about the accident.
It would have been a fun joke to play but by the time they actually reached the Gathering, all the other Clans were there and the Gathering had already begun.
"I'm glad you could finally join us, Firestar," Mudstar sneered. Firestar didn't reply and just climbed up to stand with the other leaders. "As I was saying, WindClan has been thriving. Whitetail has given birth to her daughter Heatherkit and WindClan has never been stronger."
Blackstar stepped forward next, talking about how well ShadowClan was doing but Bouncetail honestly wasn't listening to the words. She still found him to be one of the most attractive toms in the Clan and was s lightly disappointed when he stepped back. Leopardstar stepped up next.
"RiverClan is doing great and at the beginning of the moon, welcomed Minnowkit, Pebblekit, and Tumblekit to our ranks." Short but sweet.
Firestar stepped up next, "ThunderClan has been doing exceptionally well this past moon. Many moons ago, one of our apprentices was hit by a Monster and taken away. Only yesterday, she made the great journey back to us with the help of some friends. So, I'm happy to inform you that we have two new warriors, Millie and Bouncetail."
The white she-cat sat up straight and puffed out her chest as the Clans yelled her name. She had waited twice as long as anyone else for this so she was going to bask in all the glory of being a warrior before the novelty of it all, wore off.
Firestar continued, "We also have two new kits, Padkit and Birdkit who have joined ThunderClan. As for prey, the forest has been full and ThunderClan couldn't be in a better place. That is all."
Bouncetail noticed that he didn't mention anything about BloodClan. She wanted to question him but then answered the question for herself. If BloodClan meant nothing but peace, why stir up more trouble? Out of four Clans, not all of them could be as reasonable as Firestar.
The leaders leapt down from the boulders as the Clans started gossiping again. A few cats came up to congratulate Bouncetail but she didn't recognize any of them, other than Smokepaw - or Smokefur now. He greeted her and said how he missed her at Gatherings but just as Firestar called ThunderClan to leave, that's when he finally decided to ask her.
"Bouncetail, I was wondering if you would want to meet-" he was cut off when Ashfur walked up to them, pressing his pelt against Bouncetail's amd touching his nose to hers.
Bouncetail turned back to Smokefur, "What were you saying?"
"Never mind. You should probably go with your Clan now," he spat. Bouncetail looked confused at his suddenly harsh tone as she padded away. That was strange...
She glanced back to see Smokefur was still watching them. Instead of the same friendliness she had seen in his eyes so many moons ago, all she saw was hatred.
Everything was familiar.
The smell, the houses, the cats. Amber recognized every bit of it. She even recognized a pair of elderly cats but when she said hello, they just turned away from her. At first, Amber had been happy that she had finally reached her destination, but the longer she stayed in this place, the more she wanted to go home.
"Mama, where's Silver and Violet?" Bounce asked and Amber didn't answer. "Mama?"
"I don't know what you're talking about, Bounce," Amber snapped. "I've never met anyone named Silver or Violet. You must have just imagined them."
"No! You remember, Scout, don't you?" Bounce asked her brother but he only mumbles something in response. He had been acting strange ever since Amber accidently dropped him when she found Rusty. She just hoped it wasn't something permanent.
"Bounce, that is enough. Violet and Silver are just figments of your imagination. Don't bring them up again or I'll leave you here for the birds to peck at."
Bounce didn't say a single thing after that.
I made a forum called SomethingClan. You can find the link in my profile. Please go check it out :)