Chapter 3

Ripplekit's eyes gleamed as he followed his father towards RiverClan's camp. The reeds and grass that surrounded the camp were finally starting to grow back, meaning the warriors could start rebuilding.

"I'm going to build a whole den all by myself!" he squeaked.

Waveheart let out a chuckle. "Oh really?"

Ripplekit nodded. "It'll be the best den ever."

"I'm sure it will be," Waveheart meowed as he padded back into the remains of the camp. The entire clearing was black with soot and ash.

"How depressing," Shellnose sighed as he padded over to where the warriors den used to stand.

"Let's get to work!" Birchtail announced. The RiverClan deputy then began to sort cats into different groups. "Ripplekit, I want you to help Nightsky rebuild the medicine cats den."

The little tom let out a small hiss. He wanted to build the warriors den! Ripplekit glared at Nightsky, who was padding into camp with a bundle of sticks in her jaws. Slowly, he headed over towards her and growled, "I have to help you build your stupid den."

Nightsky blinked at him, clearly surprised by his tone of voice. The RiverClan medicine cat then sat the bundle of sticks down.

The two cats worked in silence for a long time. Finally, Ripplekit stepped back from the wall they had built and said, "I'm going back to the abandoned Twoleg nest."

"But we aren't done!" Nightsky argued.

I don't care, he thought. For a second, he was almost tempted to tell that to her face, but he held his tongue.

Ripplekit turned and headed out of camp as fast as he could. After a little while, he felt his chest tighten. He tried to ignore the pain, but it proved to be too much for him. Plopping down in the grass he let out a loud hiss.

The grass behind him rustled. Looking up, he saw that Nightsky had followed after him. "Are you okay?" she wondered, taking a seat next to him.

Ripplekit scooted away from her, wanting nothing to do with her. "No," he grunted.

"Why don't you want to train as my apprentice?" Nightsky suddenly asked.

Ripplekit blinked at her. Was she really asking him this question? Trying to remain calm he replied, "From the moment I was born, I knew I wanted to be a warrior. You get to hunt and fight, and in my opinion there's nothing better! Healing just doesn't interest me whatsoever. I know it's an important job, but that's not what I want to do with the rest of my life."

Nightsky was quiet for a few moments. "What if I were to tell you it's your destiny to train as my apprentice?" For a second, Ripplekit thought she was going to say something else, but she didn't.

He snorted. "I don't believe in destiny. I think a cat should be allowed to walk down whatever path they want. We shouldn't blindly follow what dead cats tell us to do."

The medicine cat let out a sigh. "You must do this, Ripplekit. It's for your own good, as well as the good of the Clan."

Ripplekit glared at her once more. "No," he stated firmly. "Now do me a favor and leave me alone!"

Nightsky flattened her ears to her head. "I'm just trying to protect you. You have no idea what kind of trouble you're facing!" she whispered, unable to meet his gaze.

Ripplekit stared at her. "What are you talking about?" he begged. What did Nightsky know about him? Was he going to be killed in a future battle, or taken hostage?

"I've already said too much," she rasped. "But please reconsider my offer." Without waiting to see his reaction, the black she-cat stood up and raced back towards camp, leaving Ripplekit alone.

Ripplekit stood to his paws, confused, upset and angry. Pushing his thoughts away, he headed back to the Twoleg nest where RiverClan was staying for the time being.

"You're back early!" Splashflower commented as he squeezed through a gap in the wall. She then asked, "Where is your father?"

"I left without him," Ripplekit replied as he settled down next to the crook of her belly.

Splashflower's eyes widened. "It's far too dangerous for you to be wandering back and forth without your father! What if a dog had gotten you?"

"I'm fine," he insisted.

His mother let out a sigh, before giving him a few licks on the head. "Have you welcomed the newest members of the Clan yet?"

Ripplekit shook his head. Last night Brambletail had given birth to a tom and a she-kit, which she had named Frogkit and Reedkit.

"Well, come on." His mother lead him over to Brambletail's nest.

As they approached, the brown tabby she-cat lifted up her head. "Hello," she rasped. "Have you come to meet the kits?"

Ripplekit and his mother nodded.

Brambletail let out a small purr, before repositioning herself. "This is Frogkit," she meowed, flicking her tail towards a light brown tom. "And this is Reedkit." Brambletail then pointed her tail at the dark brown she-cat.

"I see neither of them took after Shellnose," Splashflower laughed.

"I'm very surprised," Brambletail said. "I really expected them to look like their father."

"What does he think of them?"

Ripplekit tuned out from the conversation. He wasn't very interested in the kits, so he turned and headed back to his nest. No matter how much he tried to clear his head, it was impossible. Nightsky's words repeated over and over, making him extremely anxious.

"Have you met Frogkit and Reedkit yet?" Minnowkit wondered.

Ripplekit nodded.

"Aren't they the cutest?" his sister squealed. "They're so small and fluffy... Oh, I can't wait until I have kits of my own some day!"

He grunted. "I guess," he muttered, before curling up in the hay.

Within seconds, he found himself in a dark, stinking forest. The smell of rotting corpses and toadstool hit his nose, causing him to gag. "What is this place?" he shrieked.

Suddenly, the screams of his sister sounded from up ahead. Breaking into a run, Ripplekit chased after the sound. His chest tightened with every step he took, but he knew he could not stop. His sister was in trouble!

He skidded to a halt when he reached a clearing. Ripplekit's blue eyes widened with horror when he saw a large pile of bodies laying in the center. Their throats had been slit, and their eyes were rolled back in their heads. Ripplekit turned away, unable to stare at the grotesque scene for very long.

"Look at them," a voice hissed from the shadows.

"No!" he wailed.

"Look at them!" the voice roared.

Ripplekit flinched, before turning his gaze back at the pile of dead bodies. He immediately realized that he knew every single one of the cats in front of him.

Morningstar, Birchtail, Nightsky, Shellnose, Pikeheart, Splashflower, Waveheart, Minnowkit, Frogkit, Reedkit...

"What happened to them?" he cried out.

No reply.

"What happened to them?!" Ripplekit repeated.

The silver tom sat up, panting. To his relief, he was back in the Twoleg nest. Once he had calmed down, he began to wonder what the dream had really meant. Did the dream symbolize his fate if he didn't become a medicine cat?

Once again, thank you for all of the reviews. I apologize at how short this chapter was. My computer is broken, so I have to use my iPad to write stories from now on. I'm not very used to typing to much on here, so that makes for shorter chapters. I will try to update again as soon as I can. I will tell you now that the next chapter involves Ripplekit's apprentice ceremony, so look forward to that.