ThunderClan Allegiances

Leader

Morningstar- pale yellow she-cat

Deputy

Rabbittail- brown tom with squashed face

Medicine Cat

Badgerbranch- black tom with white stripe along flank and no right hind leg, bitten off by fox when apprentice

Warriors

Runningfur- brown tom with white paws

Frostflower- pale grey she-cat

Sneezeheart- blue-gray tom with completely gray right front paw

Apprentice, Foxpaw

Bluestripe- blue-black tom

Bumbletail- black and white striped tom with unusually long tail

Ravenflight- smoky gray tom

Alderfoot- gray tabby tom with white speckles

Sunfoot- bright orange she-cat

Apprentice, Buzzpaw

Mistyclaw- black she-cat with gold and white specks and long claws

Apprentice, Slatepaw

Briarleaf- brown tabby she-cat

Spottedpelt-brown tom with darker spots

Vineflower- pale brown she-cat, missing eye from running into a thorn bush when a kit

Apprentice, Violetpaw

Queens

Berrywhisker-golden tabby she-cat, mother of Sneezeheart's kits (Goldenkit, Silverkit)

Owlwing- pretty orange she-cat, mother of Ravenflight's kits (Hawkkit, Thrushkit, Featherkit)

Silverlight- silver she-cat, expecting Spottedpelt's kits

Woodtail- brown she-cat, expecting Bluestripe's kits

Apprentices

Slatepaw- gray long haired tom

Buzzpaw- Black tom with white chest

Foxpaw- reddish-orange she-cat

Violetpaw- grey she-cat

Elders

Hollywing- reddish she-cat with white tail and paws

Lizardcloud- dark brown tabby tom

Mistyclaw

I crouched low to the ground, creeping closer. The mouse would have no idea what hit it until it was too late.

I swiftly pounced and killed it in one blow.

"Great StarClan! That's a plump mouse! Impressive kill, Mistyclaw," my apprentice exclaimed as he bounded up, his eyes wide in amazement. I shrugged modestly.

"I don't know, Slatepaw. I've always been talented at hunting," I sighed. "I wish the whole clan was as talented as I was. We'd catch a lot more prey, and less cats would starve each leaf-bare..." I trailed off, thinking about the loss of my best friend, Lakeheart. She was taken way too soon; she became a warrior just a mere quarter moon before her life was taken. "Anyway, your warrior ceremony is today, and I believe you are more than ready to earn your name." I looked over at Slatepaw as I tried to change the subject and found him stalking a vole. He killed it quickly and set it down.

"We should head back to camp. I need to look nice for my ceremony. This gorgeous long gray fur won't groom itself!" He picked up his other kills in his jaws.

"Alright, fine. But remember, StarClan doesn't care about your fur."

"Yeah, but maybe some she-cats will!"

My apprentice was too self absorbed about his looks to do anything much when he was younger. I had to work hard to get him to shed those ways, but I could see part of it still clung to him like a burr on his pelt.

Without warning, I felt a tingling sensation on my pelt. My surroundings changed and I was laying in the medicine den with sudden enormous pain in my side, causing blood to pool at the ground. I'm not usually the she-cat to swoon at the sight of blood, but the fact that I had blacked out in the forest and woke up like this made my heart beat faster. If I wasn't already on the ground, I'm sure I would be swaying a little.

Just then, the head of Badgerbranch the medicine cat loomed over at me, and meowed, "You're awake! I thought you wouldn't make it. That tom really shredded you. You're lucky to be alive."

I saw only darkness again, then I came to back in the forest, still standing in the same spot I had drifted off. A rabbit was brave enough to sniff at my front paws and I killed it instantly. Picking up my mouse and rabbit, I ran back to camp.

Mistyclaw

I was still thinking about my vision by the time I returned to camp. I dropped my mouse on the fresh-kill pile, and took the rabbit into the elders' den.

As I came in, my shadow fell over my mother's sleeping face. Hollywing opened her eyes and blinked, and then stretched as she got up. "Mistyclaw!" she exclaimed, visibly perking up as much as her frail body would let her.

When me and my sister Sunfoot became apprentices, she retired, deciding that her five litters of kits were enough of a service to the clan. Nobody complained except for Sunfoot and my father, Lizardcloud. Ever since her retirement, I brought her a piece of fresh-kill I hunted myself, every day without fail. She would routinely insist she was fine, but I could tell her age was starting to catch up to her.

I checked to make sure Lizardcloud was still sleeping in the corner of the den, then I whispered, "I need to talk."

"What is it?" Her dark red features changed into a look of concern.

"When I was hunting, Slatepaw left to go groom his fur, and I must have blacked out or something, because I woke up in the medicine den. Badgerbranch came in and said something about a tom shredding me."

Hollywing's eyes widened. "Was that a vision? Like a medicine cat? Is that a sign from StarClan?"

"I don't know," I sighed, sitting on the dirt floor. "I really hope that's not the case. Ever since I was young I dreamed about finding a mate, starting a family, and maybe rising to the ranks of Clan leader, but if I'm a medicine cat, that ruins all of my plans."

"You know, StarClan has a reason for everything. And that might not even mean what you think it does. I bet Alderfoot is still in your future." I lowered my head sheepishly, and my mother laughed. "Yes, I see the way you two look at each other."

"What are you two talking about?" We jumped to see Lizardcloud, who was glaring at the rabbit like it had insulted him to his face. "And where's my fresh-kill?"

"Right here," Sunfoot called. She sniffed at me and turned away, setting a vole down at Lizardcloud's paws. "I couldn't find a single sparrow in the forest, so I got you your second favorite."

"At least someone appreciates me enough to feed me. I'm not getting any younger!"

"When they were kits, you never visited them! I don't know why Sunfoot shuns me but constantly visits you."

"It's because you were weak and retired early, and she doesn't want to be associated with someone who can't fight. You would always get pregnant and stay in the nursery just to have everyone wait on you and bring you prey while you claimed you were 'performing a service to your Clan.'"

"ThunderClan didn't have many fights during the moons I was in the nursery, and I spent a couple moons in between each litter. And you were the one who insisted on more kits, claiming, 'The last batch wasn't good enough. I want some kits who will actually make me proud.'"

"Have you seen your other kits? They're a disgrace! Most of them died off quickly. Excuse me for getting upset when you retired, stopping us from any more chances."

"Oh, is that why you never visited us? All of your kits were a 'disgrace?'"

"Well, not all of them are completely incompetant. This one seems to know how to respect her elders!" Lizardcloud jabbed his tail at Sunfoot, who was smirking at me like his affection was the best prize in the world.

"Hollywing?" I whispered, "Maybe we should turn it down a notch. He's not worth it."

"You're right. I hear your apprentice is becoming a warrior today."

Lizardcloud's face swelled with rage. "What? We're still talking! This isn't over!"

"Yes, in fact he is. I believe Morningstar will call us very soon."

Sure enough, Morningstar yowled from the Highrock, "Let every cat old enough to catch their own prey join at the Highrock for a Clan Meeting!" Everyone spilled out of their respective dens and gathered below to listen. I managed to snag a front row seat with the senior warriors.

But the effort of calling everyone forward set off a wave of coughing from Morningstar. Everyone looked at each other, concerned, until she finally sat up.

"Although ThunderClan is strong with warriors, we will be adding one more to our ranks tonight. Slatepaw, please come here." The excited tom ran towards her, and he stopped right in front of Morningstar. I noticed his pelt was groomed well, not a hair out of place. That tom is really too vain.

"I, Morningstar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon our warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn." She turned to Slatepaw. "Do you promise to-" More coughing. "Sorry, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

Slatepaw puffed out his chest and meowed with vigor, "I do."

Morningstar smiled. "Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your warrior name. Slatepaw, from this moment you will be known as Slatefang. StarClan honors your willingness to help and your determination, despite a rocky start in the beginning." Not a cat in the clearing could suppress a chuckle, not even Slatefang.

Training an apprentice was a lot of hard work. I was glad to rest, only for a little while. Slatefang would be the first of many apprentices.

"Congratulations," Alderfoot commented behind me. I smiled, catching his eye for a second before I walked into the warriors' den. He followed me and sank into his usual nest in the corner, right next to mine. "You did a really good job training Slatefang."

"Thanks. And it's only a matter of time before Owlwing's kits are six moons old. I hear you're going to get another apprentice then."

"I can't wait."

We settled into our nests. Alderfoot twined his tail around mine, meowing softly, "Goodnight, Mistyclaw."

"Goodnight, Alderfoot."

His gentle snoring filled the air, but I stayed awake. The job of a medicine cat wasn't for me, right?

StarClan? I thought, looking through the cracks in the roof of the den, What do these visions mean? Am I really meant to serve my Clan as a medicine cat?

There was no reply from the stars.

Thank you to those who reviewed!

FrostedShadowsx - Yes, in fact, I did. I decided to rewrite the whole thing.