Chapter 3
Redkit stayed in the den that her parents made for her and she only left to hunt or visit the moon pool. She would journey to the river to try and catch fish and she was successful sometimes, but most other times she would wait by the river for hours and no fish would come. So when she couldn't catch fish she would go to her camp and take some prey from the fresh kill pile that she moved to the leader's den. However, Redkit had received many scars from outrunning coyotes and foxes. She would skillfully lure them to her den and let them get caught in the brambles. After getting a pelt full of thorns, they would usually leave her alone. But some predators were persistent, and would still try to catch Redkit. Redkit, however, was able to scare them off with one swipe of her claws and an angry yowl. She did this for a full moon and now she was two moons old. She could hardly believe that she had survived for a full moon. Everyday she always thought the she was going to die, but she managed to survive for a full moon without her clan. She made regular visits to the moon pool to ask her grandfather for guidance because she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep up her desperate need to survive. Brackenstar embraced his granddaughter and told her not to worry as she only needed to survive on her own for one more moon and then she would find "Salvation in the form of a clover". She didn't quite understand what he meant, but she place her trust in her grandfather. She knew that Starclan had a plan for her and that it would soon unfold. She went back to her den and slept for the night.
Meanwhile, beyond the borders of Moonclan territory, there was a new clan of cats. Cloverclan was a clan of exceptional strength, but they were also known for their kindness. They did, however, uphold the traditions of the four original clans. They had been frequently checking their borders because they knew that there was another clan that lived within the area. They wanted to respect their boundaries and not cause trouble with them. They had heard yowls from the forest and they believed that it was the other clan. However, the clan had not marked their borders in a moon and Ashstar, the leader of Cloverclan, was growing concerned about it. He didn't want to take any territory from this other clan, but the rest of his clan wanted to take the opportunity to expand their territory. Lavendermist, the medicine cat, came to her leader's den and he turned to her and he meowed, "What's wrong, Lavendermist?" The she cat replied, "Ashstar, I've received a prophecy from Starclan." Intrigued, he asked, "What did they say?" The light gray tabby answered, "They told me, 'While the green clover with the sun continues to thrive, the red one without the moon struggles to survive.'" Ashstar was surprised by this prophecy and he questioned, "Do you know what it means?" Shaking her head she mewed, "I'm afraid not. I'll try and decipher it, but I don't know how long it will take me. Because you and I both know that Starclan doesn't give us straight answers." He nodded and dismissed her. This new prophecy troubled him. He hoped that this prophecy would bring his clan good fortune rather than destruction.
Back with Redkit, she continued her constant struggle to stay alive. She continued to hunt and prey was still down in numbers. She continued to make trips from the river and to her clan's camp for prey. She also managed to avoid and outwit predators everyday. Another moon had passed, Redkit was now three moons old. She survived two moons without her clan and she knew that she couldn't keep this up anymore. She had wounds that ached badly and restrained her movements quite a bit. There was no way she would survive another attack. But until she found her salvation, she had to keep surviving on her own. One day, she went out to hunt and she waited patiently by the bank of the river. She first looked at the water and noticed that it was moving faster that day. She stayed close to the bank and watched for a fish. Then as if Starclan willed it, a huge fish came to the surface. She then paw-flipped the fish out of the water and into the air. Then she leaped up and caught the fish. She then quickly killed the fish. Then Redkit celebrated her success by devouring the fish. This was the first big meal she had since ever. Unannounced to her, she was being watched.
Earlier that day, Ashstar formed a patrol that consisted of: Hawkeye, his deputy, Spottedshadow, a warrior, Lavendermist, another warrior, Blazeheart, a third warrior, Frostgaze, and an apprentice named Berrypaw. They came to check the border and the clan that they were avoiding still wasn't marking their territory. This troubled Ashstar even further. It had been two moons since they arrived and the clan hadn't marked their borders since then. He knew that something was wrong. Hawkeye meowed, "This clan still isn't marking their border. This is a great opportunity to expand, Ashstar." Ashstar turned to his deputy and hissed, "I will not take the territory of a clan that was here before us! We will respect the boundary and not go past this border! Do not bring this up again, Hawkeye!" The other cats were shocked by Ashstar's response, but he was right. They had to respect the boundaries. Lightening up his mood he turned to Lavendermist and asked, "Have you deciphered the prophecy yet?" The light gray she cat explained, "I've deciphered the first half of it. The first half talks about Cloverclan and Sunclan, but I'm unsure of the second half." Ashstar thought it over and then he suggested, "Let's visit the Sunclan border and see if they can help us figure out the prophecy. They've been here longer than us so they know the area better than we do." The cats all agreed and they traveled to the Sunclan border.
When they arrived, they met with a patrol marking their borders. Soulstar, the leader of Sunclan, was among them. Soulstar greeted, "Welcome, Ashstar. How are you enjoying your new life here?" Ashstar replied, "It has been good so far. Cloverclan is truly getting back on its feet." Smiling Soulstar responded, "So, what brings you to the border?" Ashstar explained, "Lavendermist received a prophecy recently and we are having trouble deciphering it. The prophecy states: 'While the green clover with the sun continues to thrive, the red one without the moon struggles to survive.' We know that the first half talks about Cloverclan and Sunclan thriving, but it's the second half that has us confused. Do you have any idea of what it could mean?" The Sunclan cat thought it over and he then realized that three clans were referenced in the prophecy. Soulstar spoke, "Yes, the moon it talks about must be referring to Moonclan. They live just beyond the border here. Although, I don't know very much about them because they tend to keep to themselves. This is the extent of my knowledge. I am unsure who this 'Red one' is." Ashstar nodded, "Thank you. You've been a big help to us. We'll be going now." Soulstar called, "Come back anytime you need help with prophecies." The cats then began to leave. Then Spottedshadow suggested, "Why don't we go a meet Moonclan and find out why they aren't marking their borders." Ashstar then thought it over and then he meowed, "Yes, I'm concerned about them not marking their borders." They then crossed the border. They split into two groups. Ashstar, Hawkeye, and Blazeheart were in one group, while Spottedshadow, Lavendermist, Frostgaze, and Berrypaw were in another. They explored the territory looking for the Moonclan camp. Spottedshadow's group found themselves close to a river. That was when they saw a kit catch a huge fish. They stayed low and they watched the kit kill and eat her catch. Lavendermist whispered, "That kit is so thin, but it knows how to hunt so it shouldn't be that thin. Plus, those wounds are infected and need treatment, now." Frostgaze asked, "Does Moonclan abuse their kits?" Spottedshadow answered, "I highly doubt it. They wouldn't have taught the kit to hunt if they didn't care about it." Berrypaw said, "Uh oh, looks like that kit is getting ready to leave. We should follow it and see if it will lead us to the camp." They all agreed and began moving to follow the kit.
Redkit was enjoying the riverside after finishing her big fish. For once, she smiled because she hadn't had a big meal like that ever since the prey population went down. Redkit, however, missed her clan very much and she was very lonely. She survived two moon without them, but she was still struggling to hold on to her life. She hoped that her salvation would come soon. She couldn't keep up much longer. She then got to her paws and began walking back to her den. But as she was walking, she picked up a scent she hadn't smelled before. She then turned to see four cats she didn't recognize. Those four cats were then joined by three others. The four cats knew they had been spotted and the three cats saw the kit and they were shocked as to why she was away from her clan's camp. Redkit started to back away out of fear. Berrypaw then slowly approached Redkit and meowed warmly and softly, "Hey, kit, don't be afraid we won't hurt you. Please, don't go." Redkit looked at the kit approaching. There was no doubt that she was an apprentice. The warm and soft voice put more at ease, but she still kept her guard up. Berrypaw continued, "Don't be scared. I just want to talk with you." Redkit lowered her defense and she stood straight up, but she still kept her guard up. She then mewed, "Talk?" Berrypaw nodded, "Yes. I just want to talk. I'll sit right here and not come closer. I promise I won't attack you." Redkit eased up a bit more and finally she started to come closer. Redkit then asked, "Who are you?" Berrypaw answered, "I'm Berrypaw. What's your name, kit?" Redkit replied, "I'm Redkit." Redkit now had confirmation that the cat in front of her was an apprentice which meant that she was talking to clan cats. The clan cats knew that Redkit was female and that she was from a clan. They hoped that she was from Moonclan. Berrypaw was about to ask Redkit another question when Ashstar yowled, "Look out! Fox!" Then a fox lunged between them and tried to bite at Redkit. Redkit clawed the fox's muzzle and ran off while it was distracted. The adult cats ran towards the fox and began trying to defend Redkit. They fought the fox out numbering it six to one. Ashstar ordered Berrypaw to stay with Redkit and not to let her out of her sight.
Redkit had climbed a tree and shocked Berrypaw, who was now struggling to keep up with her. Redkit leaped from branch to branch trying to get to her den. She glanced back to see that Berrypaw was following. She found that she really didn't mind Berrypaw following her. Meanwhile, the other cats had successfully killed the fox and began following Berrypaw's scent trail and hoped that Redkit was with her. Back with Berrypaw and Redkit they were still racing through the forest and closing in on a clump of brambles. Berrypaw started to slow her pace because she wanted to make sure she didn't hit the brambles. She watched as Redkit finally climbed down from the tree and began running towards the clump of brambles. Berrypaw continued to follow Redkit to the brambles, but as they got closer she noticed something odd about them. They didn't look like an ordinary bramble bush. She had no idea why Redkit was running towards them, but she continued to follow and hoped to learn more about her.
Redkit looked behind her to see if Berrypaw was still following. When she saw the young she cat still following her, she was surprised by this. Plus, the fact that she didn't mind it was even more surprising. Redkit was now almost to her den. She hoped and prayed to Starclan that no other predators were waiting for her there. When she arrived, she leaped through the small opening and hid in the back of her den. Berrypaw skidded to a halt and managed to not hit the brambles. She then looked around to make sure that there were no predators lurking around the clearing. Then she looked at the brambles only to realize that they had been made into a den. This only brought more confirmation that Redkit was once a clan cat before becoming a loner. Then she saw her clanmates in the distance. They were approaching the bramble den and they reunited with Berrypaw and expressed how happy they were that she was okay. Redkit peeked out of her den and saw the reunion with the clan cats. This only brought painful memories of when her clan was still living in the very forest she was in. While the clan cats were busy celebrating, Redkit then hopped out of her den and walked away. She made the journey to her clan's camp. By the time that the clan cats finished reuniting and realized that Redkit had left, Redkit was already at the camp. They followed her scent trail and found Moonclan's camp. They saw Redkit in the center of the clearing. Poor Redkit was lying on the ground crying. They all then realized that Redkit had been abandoned by her own clan. It broke their hearts just to see her in pain like this.
They watched as Redkit continued to cry. Ashstar then padded over to the she kit and he pulled her close to him. Redkit looked up at Ashstar and he gave her a warm smile accompanied by kind eyes. He gently stroked her pelt with his paw and a purr rolled in his throat as he allowed the kit to let out all of her emotions. Redkit found that Ashstar was a lot like her father. Pinestar used to do the same things with her when Snowclaw wasn't around. Redkit finally calmed down and the sun was beginning to set. Ashstar then meowed, "So, Moonclan has left the territory. Why did they leave you behind to survive on your own?" Redkit replied, "The mountain trail is too dangerous for a kit to travel on and I can't travel long distances. I was one moon old when they left. At that time, I was too young to handle traveling herbs. So, my parents built me a den out of brambles and they taught me how to climb trees and catch fish. They wanted to make sure that I would survive to the day that they return. They'll come back when the prey population is back to normal." The other cats now knew that Redkit had survived two moons without her clan. Then Lavandermist gasped, "The prophecy! It was warning us about Redkit! 'While the green clover with the sun continues to thrive, the red one without the moon struggles to survive." Why did I not notice earlier?! Ashstar we need to help this kit. She needs a clan to survive." The other cats nodded in agreement. Ashstar turned back to Redkit and he asked, "Redkit, would you like to join our clan. We are called Cloverclan." Redkit was in shock and that's when she understood her grandfather's message. But deep down, she wanted to clarify it. So, she planned to talk it over with her grandfather that evening. Redkit mewed, "I'm not sure. I've never left home before." Ashstar responded, "You don't have to answer right away, but I do have a favor to ask of you." Redkit asked, "What is it?" Ashstar explained, "You know more about the area than we do. Do you know of a place where we can talk to Starclan?" Redkit looked up at the sky and then back at Ashstar. She meowed, "I know just the place you're looking for. Follow me and I'll take you there, but let's try and get there before moon-high." All of the cats followed Redkit and she guided them to the moon pool.
When they arrived at the cave, Redkit then beckoned for Ashstar and his clanmates to follow her. At first, they were unsure about going into the cave, but the placed their trust in Redkit and followed her into to a cave. She lead them deep into the cave and she never turned down any of the tunnels. The others stayed near her and made sure to memorize the way. Then they reached a chamber filled with glowing mushrooms. They were amazed by the mushrooms, but they were unaware that the best was yet to come. Ashstar then walked up to Redkit and meowed, "These glowing mushrooms are amazing, Redkit. But, how will they help us talk with Starclan?" Redkit replied, "It's not the mushrooms that you need. Just wait, what you need will appear any moment now." Ashstar and the rest of his patrol cats noticed that Redkit was looking up. Then moonlight shone through a hole in the cave ceiling and revealed a pool of water that wasn't there before. Spottedshadow gasped, "When did that pool of water get there?" Redkit mewed, "Oh, it's always been here. We just can't see it without moonlight. In fact, the glowing mushrooms just vaguely announce its presence." Ashstar purred, "Well, this is quite a sight. So, how do we speak to Starclan?" Redkit responded, "You're the leader of your clan right?" Ashstar nodded, "Yes, I'm Ashstar of Cloverclan. Also Lavendermist over there is our medicine cat." Redkit dipped her head respectfully to the leader and she said, "Perfect. Both of you come towards the edge." They walked up to the edge of the pool. Then Redkit explained, "All you need to do is touch your nose to the water and the rest will take care of itself." The two cats nodded and they watched as Redkit leaned in towards the water and touched her nose and the water rippled. Almost instantly, Redkit fell asleep. They followed her demonstration and they touched their noses to the water and they too fell asleep.
Then they walked along an endless starry plain, but the surprising thing that they didn't realize until now was that Redkit was there. Then a large brown tabby tom began walking towards them. Ashstar and Lavendermist didn't recognize him. Redkit, however, bounded towards him and the tom touched noses with her. Redkit mewed, "Hi, grandfather." This shocked Ashstar and Lavendermist. Then the brown tom meowed, "Hello, Redkit. I'm aware of why you're here, but first introduce me to you're new friends." Redkit replied, "Yes, of course. This is Ashstar, leader of CloverClan, and Lavendermist, the medicine cat." The brown tom dipped his head to Ashstar and he said, "So, you're Ashstar. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Brackenstar, the former leader of Moonclan. You've already met my granddaughter, Redkit." Ashstar dipped his head in respect then asked, "If you wouldn't mind, can you tell me what happened to Moonclan?" Brakenstar nodded, "Two moons ago, Moonclan faced a hard crisis. Prey was declining and it was becoming hard for Pinestar, my son, the current leader of Moonclan, and the father of Redkit, to feed the clan. He came to me and asked what he should do and I told him to take Moonclan and cross the mountain to the second camp that was built a long time ago by the founders." Lavendermist gasped, "Second camp?" Brakenstar explained, "Moonclan's territory happens to flood every New-leaf. The snow from the mountain melts and heavy rains flood the river and flash floods usually occur. So, before that happens Moonclan migrates to their second camp on the other side of the mountain to wait out the flood. Moonclan, however, had to go there early this time. If they didn't, they would either starve to death or be killed by the increase in predators." Ashstar meowed, "I'll bet our arrival here also gave them incentive to leave. We drove them away." Then Brackenstar replied, "Now, now, you didn't drive them away. I had hoped Moonclan would actually welcome Cloverclan since we both have the same religion, but Pinestar's reasoning to strengthen his clan first was actually valid and something I actually didn't think about." Lavendermist added, "We can at least make up for it by taking in Redkit." Brackenstar responded, "About that. I've called in two other cats to help counsel Redkit." Then the two cats arrived and began walking up to the group. Redkit was in complete shock to see who was going to help her make a decision. Tearing up she ran over to the two cats. She then cried, "Mom, Dad!" Redkit reunited with her parents and then they walked over to the new cats. Pinestar meowed, "Hello, I'm Pinestar, son of Brackenstar, father to Redkit, and current leader of Moonclan. This is my mate, Snowclaw and a mighty fine warrior she is." Ashstar dipped his head and greeted, "It's a pleasure to meet you both. I'm Ashstar, the current leader of Cloverclan. This is my medicine cat, Lavendermist." Lavendermist mewed, "It's a pleasure to meet the parents of Redkit and the leader of Moonclan." Ashstar then continued, "My apologies for trespassing on your territory, but no one was marking the border and that got me worried. So, I wanted to see if you were okay."
Pinestar smiled, "Don't worry, we're fine. In fact, Moonclan has been doing much better now. There's a possibility for us to return somewhere towards the end of New-leaf or the beginning of Green-leaf. So, please feel free to use our territory if you need it, but when we come back, the territory will be remarked." Ashstar nodded, "I'll be sure to respect your boundaries. I don't want any conflict between our clans." Lavendermist then asked, "So, about Redkit, do you want us to take her in?" Snowclaw answered, "If you would, that would be great. Redkit can't survive any longer without a clan, but this is ultimately up to her." Pinestar then meowed, "Redkit do you want to join Cloverclan?" Redkit mewed, "I do, but…. won't I be betraying Moonclan that way?" Pinestar replied, "No, Redkit. You're not betraying us. You need a clan and in this situation it is acceptable. You'll always be apart of us. Go join Cloverclan, Redkit. When the time comes, you can decide if you want to come back to us." Redkit then responded, "In that case, I'll join then." She then padded over to Ashstar and he placed his head on top of hers. She licked his shoulder out of respect and Ashstar whispered, "Welcome to Cloverclan, Redkit." Then he looked up at Pinestar and meowed, "I promise that my clan and I will take good care of her until you return." Smiling Pinestar replied, "I would expect nothing less." The two leaders touched noses. Pinestar then continued, "Your welcome to use the moon pool any time you need it. Even when we return we'll let you use it. But tell no one else, of it's location." Lavendermist the asked, "One other thing, Does Sunclan know of this place?" Brackenstar answered, "No. Sunclan does not believe in Starclan. They are not welcome here." Ashstar nodded and he said, "Redkit why don't you go back now. We have to talk with our warrior ancestors." Brackenstar meowed, "No need to send her back. I was just welcoming your warrior ancestors to the new territory." Then the former leader of Cloverclan arrived. She meowed, "Welcome, Ashstar." Ashstar gasped, "Cloverstar." Cloverstar explained, "All of our warrior ancestors have made the journey and are now available to guide you. Come to the moon pool when ever you need to talk to us." Ashstar nodded, "Thank you, this was all we needed to know." Cloverstar smiled, "Then it's time to wake up. The moon is just about gone." Redkit said goodbye to her parents and they woke up.
When they woke up they decided to head back to Redkit's den and spend the night and journey there tomorrow. They also told the other cats that Redkit had agreed to join. They went to the den and they slept through the rest of the night. Then when they woke up Redkti asked if they could stop by the river first. Ashstar agreed and they went to the river. Redkit carefully padded over to the bank. She looked at the fast-moving water. She also noticed how deep it was. She knew the water level was rising. She then saw a fish and she caught it to bring it back as a gift for her new clan. Ashstar meowed, "Very impressive fishing technique, Redkit." She meowed, "Thanks, my mother taught it to me. I wanted to bring one back as a thank you gift for you guys." Lavendermist purred, "How sweet of you, Redkit." Redkit nodded and continued, "Was also checking the river." Berrypaw asked, "What's wrong with the river? Why do you need to check it?" Redkit explained, "Every cat in Moonclan is taught how to check for signs of flooding. When we hunt by the river, we check to see how fast the water is moving and we check the depth of the water. So far, the river is moving faster then before and the water level is rising. Also there are small chunks of ice in the water, which indicates that the extra water is coming from snow-melt. In other words, the snow on the mountain is melting and feeding into the river. It'll turn into a flash flood if the heavy rains received in New-leaf start to arrive." The cats nodded in understanding and Ashstar asked, "Does the river need to be checked frequently?" Redkit nodded. Ashstar then continued, "Then we'll bring you on our patrols so you can help teach our warriors how to check for flooding." Redkit smiled and picked up her fish. They began leaving for the Cloverclan camp. Redkit was a bit nervous, but she was happy that she would get to live in a clan again. She wondered what challenges awaited her in this new clan.
