"What?" Sage burst out.

The starry tom smiled at her. "You are the answer to both of Thistletail's questions, Sage. We believe you are the Sage from the prophecy we gave to Thistletail."

"B-but the first part," Sage stammered. "About the Clan's leader? I don't understand!"

"We have chosen you as JuniperClan's next leader," explained the StarClan cat.

Sage couldn't even think of a way to respond.

"Her?" demanded Cougarstrike. "That can't possibly be right!"

He quailed slightly as the starry tabby turned his attention to him. "Cougarstrike. Do you question StarClan's wisdom?"

Cougarstrike lowered his head slightly. "No... I just... are you /sure?/ She's never even been trained as a warrior! She's not clanborn!"

The starry cat raised an eyebrow. "Do you want to begin a discussion about bloodlines?"

Cougarstrike didn't respond. The StarClan cat turned his attention back to Sage.

"You may not have received formal training as an apprentice, but your father taught you about the Warrior Code. You have much yet to learn, but you have been destined since the beginning for this. Do you accept your destiny as a leader for JuniperClan?"

Sage looked around for answers, but Cougarstrike avoided her gaze, and Thistletail's eyes were simply filled with awe.

"I don't know... how can I be a leader? I don't know anything! I-"

A slender gray spotted tabby stepped out of the crowd, stars shining in his fur.

"Sage." His voice was gentle and familiar.

"Father?" She longed to leap forward and press her face into his pelt.

Smokewhisker smiled. "Yes. Sage, you can trust us. You can do this, and you don't have to do it alone. Leaders don't lead alone- they have their medicine cats, deputies, and elders to advise them. And you would have StarClan. We would guide you as much as we can."

The first starry tom nodded in agreement. "So, Sage. Do you accept your destiny as a leader of JuniperClan?"

Sage locked eyes with her father. He smiled. She took a shaky breath.

"Yes."

The StarClan cat smiled at her. "Then step forward, Sage, and join us."

Gingerly, Sage stretched forward a paw and placed it on the water's surface. It was cool and wet, but somehow firm. It held as she put her weight onto it, then took another step forward.

One pawstep at a time, she made her way to the middle of the pool. StarClan cats made a shimmering circle around her. The tom who first spoke to her sat immediately before her.

"Sage, I am Juniperstar, the first leader of JuniperClan," he said. "Today you take your place in a long line of cats who have devoted their lives to JuniperClan. Do you accept this duty, to place your Clan before yourself and all else?"

Sage dipped her head, the weight of the responsibility settling on her shoulders. Still unsure of whether she would be able to live up to it, she nodded.

"Yes."

"Very well. As leader of JuniperClan, you will receive gifts from nine StarClan cats to assist you as you serve your Clan."

Sage looked up at the majestic StarClan cat. His expression was solemn and intense.

Three cats separated from the group, led by a sleek she-cat with a dark face and paws.

"I am Nightstar," she said. "I was the leader of JuniperClan before Eaglestar. He should be the one to give you your first gift, as your predecessor- but he is not here. You must do your duty as leader and ensure that he and the rest of the fallen of JuniperClan receive the proper burial ceremony, so they may find their way to the StarFalls."

Sage nodded. "I will, Nightstar. I promise."

"Then I give you my gift," she said, touching her nose to Sage's.

There was a flash of light, and Sage saw Nightstar standing on a low branch of the juniper tree she had seen in the destroyed camp. The whole clan was gathered below her, listening. Sage couldn't hear what she was saying, but she seemed to be performing a ceremony.

The vision faded, and the second of the three cats stepped forward. He was large and had thick, soft-looking ginger fur.

"I am Copperwhisper. I was a warrior of JuniperClan."

He touched his nose to Sage's and another vision appeared to her. This time, she saw Copperwhisper fighting alongside his clanmates. Their claws tore viciously into their enemies, who fought back with claws of their own. Sage watched as both sides sustained injuries. Before long, this vision faded as well, and the third cat approached.

This cat was younger than the others. He couldn't have been more than three seasons old, Sage thought.

"I am Talonpaw," he said. "I was an apprentice of JuniperClan."

He touched his nose to Sage's. She saw him in a clearing, crouched low to the ground. Suddenly, he sprang forward, claws snatching a fat mouse. He picked up his prey and smiled at an older cat who had been watching from a short distance- likely his mentor, Sage thought.

The vision faded, and the three cats stood before her, the leader, the warrior, and the apprentice.

"We give you your first life for duty," Nightstar said. "As the leader of JuniperClan, remember your duty to defend, feed, and grow the Clan."

"I will," Sage said.

The three cats each placed a paw on her. She couldn't help but cry out as pain, like bolts of lightning, shot through her from the points where they touched her. She clenched her jaw and squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself to endure, until the pain subsided and the StarClan cats withdrew and rejoined the crowd.

Three new cats approached, this time led by Juniperstar.

"I am Juniperstar. I was the first leader of JuniperClan."

He touched his nose to Sage's and she saw Juniperstar talking to another cat, a tall she-cat with bright orange and black patches. She held herself with confidence and seemed to be giving a report to the leader. /His deputy?/ Sage wondered.

After the vision faded, another cat approached, a thin black-and-white she-cat.

"I am Fidgetburr," she said. "I was an elder of JuniperClan."

Sage raised an eyebrow. This cat didn't look any older than the other cats who had spoken to her.

When she touched her nose to Sage's though, she saw a different Fidgetburr. Before her was a frail old cat, but with the same black and white markings. She was in a dim, cozy den, surrounded by kits and younger cats. They were listening to her intently as she spoke. Sage wished she could hear what the old cat was saying.

The vision faded, and another cat approached, a she-cat whose face seemed to be split in two. The left side of her face was vibrant orange, and the right a deep black.

"I am Berrypetal," she said. "I was a medicine cat of JuniperClan."

The starry medicine cat touched her nose to Sage's, and she saw a young Berrypetal approaching the very pool where Sage now stood. She looked worried. A single starry cat emerged from the mist and spoke to the medicine cat before the vision faded again.

Apprehension building, Sage listened as Juniperstar spoke again.

"We give you your second life for wisdom." His intense gaze seemed to bore into Sage's very core. "You will not have all the answers. As leader of JuniperClan, remember to counsel with those you can trust to aid you."

"I will," Sage promised.

She braced herself as the three cats gently placed their paws on her. This time, she didn't cry out when the pain came, even though it was more intense than the first time. She was beginning to feel dizzy when they finally withdrew and the last three cats approached. This time, they were led by her father.

He smiled at her. "I am Smokewhisker. I was a warrior of JuniperClan."

Tears pricked her eyes as she touched noses with her father. She couldn't help but smile as she saw her old home. She saw Smokewhisker with two gray kits. /Me and Willow,/ she realized. He laughed as the two kits leapt onto him and wrestled him to the ground. They rolled in the grass until the vision faded.

Smokewhisker beamed at her as he stepped back to allow the next cat to approach, a fluffy white she-cat.

"I am Shimmersnow," she said. "I was a queen of JuniperClan."

They touched noses, and Sage saw the white queen in a dark den. She looked thin and ragged, but the three kits that suckled at her belly looked plump and healthy. Her eyes were closed and Sage was sure that she was purring, although she couldn't hear her. The vision faded, and the last cat approached.

The final cat to step forward was a tiny kit- they had to be less than a moon old. The kit shone brighter than the other cats. It was as if all the starlight from an adult StarClan cat had been condensed into their tiny body. Sage almost had to squint in order to look at the brilliant kit when they began speaking.

"I never received a name," the tiny kit said. "I was a kit of JuniperClan."

Closing her eyes, Sage touched noses with the unnamed kit. What followed was unlike the visions she had received from the other StarClan cats. There was a blinding flash of pure white light, which faded to darkness until she couldn't see anything at all. Suddenly, she was overwhelmed with a sense of vulnerability. She felt small, fragile. Fear briefly flooded her senses- she was utterly defenseless. What if something should happen to her?

Before she could begin to panic, a warmth surrounded her. It was like being covered by a blanket. She knew she could trust that warmth, that it would protect her no matter what should happen. She knew that the source of that warmth would keep her safe.

The vision, if it could be called that, faded like the others, and her father spoke to her.

"We give you your third and final life for protection of the innocent," said Smokewhisker. "Kits are the future of the Clan, and StarClan's greatest gift. They trust their kin and their Clan completely. Remember to honor that trust and care for those who cannot care for themselves."

Sage took a breath.

"I will."

The third life was even more excruciating to receive than the first two. She tried to dig her claws into the ground to steady herself, but the water gave no purchase. She slumped to the ground, grimacing. The three StarClan cats maintained contact with her, however, lightning bolts of pain shooting from their paws through her body.

Just when she thought she would lose consciousness, they withdrew. Panting, Sage shakily got back to her feet. Smokewhisker was immediately at her side, lending her his shoulder to lean on.

"I'm proud of you, Sage," he whispered before joining the rest of the StarClan cats before her.

Juniperstar was once again at the front of the group.

"Your previous life has been stripped from you," he explained. "You have left behind you the cat you were, and now you are a new cat, a leader fit for JuniperClan. You are no longer Sage, the barn cat. You are now Sagestar, leader of JuniperClan."

Hundreds of StarClan cats chanted her new name. "Sagestar! Sagestar! Sagestar!"