Chapter One

"Ripplekit, come away from there!" Splashflower called, her gaze flickering towards the nearby clearing. The young queen had taken her kits out of camp for the first time since their birth, and now they were dangerously close to the Twoleg's greenleaf place.

Ripplekit let go of the cattail he was playing with and sighed. "You said we could play over here," he argued.

"She said we could play over there, actually," Minnowkit corrected, flicking her tail towards a tree stump.

Ripplekit rolled his eyes. "We didn't wander that far, but fine."

Splashflower seemed to relax as the kittens made their way back to her. "I know you were having fun over there, but it's dangerous." As she said that, plumes of smoke began to rise into the sky from the direction of the clearing. "What idiots," she remarked under her breath. Shaking her head, she directed the kits back to the direction of RiverClan's camp. "We're going home."

"Wait, why?" Ripplekit asked, turning his head to see the smoke. "What is that, and why can't we go over there?"

"That's the Twoleg's greenleaf place," his mother explained. "The Twolegs go there every greenleaf, bringing all sorts of dangers with them. It isn't safe for a cat to go near. If one of those creatures spotted you, there's no telling what could happen."

The fur on the back of Ripplekit's neck began to bristle.

"I heard Twolegs have been known to kidnap any cat that goes near, and... eat them!" Minnowkit squealed.

Splashflower's eyes widened. "Who in the name of StarClan told you such a thing?"

"Lilypelt."

"Why am I not surprised?" Splashflower muttered, shaking her head. "I'll have to talk to her when we get back to camp. What other things has Lilypelt told you?"

Minnowkit was quiet for a moment as she thought. "She told me that Pikeheart could speak to fish! Oh, and that whenever kits don't have, StarClan sends a giant bird-"

Suddenly, the reeds ahead of them rustled loudly, causing everyone to freeze. Minnowkit let out a scream and ducked behind Splashflower, while Ripplekit unsheathed his tiny claws, ready to face whatever was there. To his relief, it was only Nightsky, the medicine cat.

The black she-cat's eyes widened as she realized she had startled everyone. "I'm sorry," she apologized, dipping her head to Splashflower. She then directed her attention towards the two kittens. There was something about the way she looked at them that made Ripplekit uncomfortable, but he couldn't place it. He brushed the feeling off and tried to relax.

"Is this their first time out of camp?" Nightsky asked.

Splashflower nodded. "It is. They've been begging me to take them out of camp for a while now, and I decided it was finally time. We're on our way back to camp now."

"I can't believe how fast they've grown," Nightsky meowed. "They're, what? Two moons old now?"

"Yes," Splashflower said proudly.

Nightsky didn't say anything more. Instead, she flashed them another look that made Ripplekit squirm. He looked to Minnowkit, wondering if his sister was also uncomfortable, but to his disappointment, she wasn't even paying attention.

"Well, I'll be off then," Nightsky finally meowed, looking away. "I've got herbs to collect."

"Be careful," Splashflower advised. "The Twolegs have started another fire at the greenleaf place."

"Another one? Don't they realize the forest is going through a drought?"

"You know how stupid Twolegs are," Splashflower snorted.

Nightsky let out a sigh. "I guess all we can do is keep an eye out, and try to be careful. Anyways, goodbye Splashflower. And goodbye, kittens." She gave them another weird look, before heading off.

When they were out of earshot, Ripplekit asked, "Why was Nightsky looking at us like that?"

Minnowkit titled her head. "What do you mean?"

"You didn't notice it?"

"No," Minnowkit meowed. "What did it look like?"

"I don't know how to explain it. It was just... weird. Like there's something she knows, that no one else does," Ripplekit explained.

"Well, she is the medicine cat after all. Maybe she was having a vision! Lilypelt said-"

"Lilypelt is filling your head with fluff," Splashflower interrupted.

"So cats don't receive prophecies and visions from StarClan?"

Splashflower frowned. "They do, but it's something sacred reserved specifically for medicine cats and leaders. Regular warriors typically don't share tongues with StarClan."

"Why doesn't StarClan share tongues with every cat?" Minnowkit wondered.

"That's something you'll have to ask Nightsky about," Splashflower told her as they made their way into camp. "For now, it's time for your nap."

Minnowkit let out a whine, while Ripplekit yawned. He had never walked so far in his entire life, and now his paws were sore. When both kits were safely in their nests, Splashflower gave them a couple of licks and headed back out into the clearing to look for Lilypelt.

It didn't take long for Ripplekit to fall asleep. He dreamed he stood on the riverbank, watching a group of frogs hopping about. Ripplekit leaped forward, trying to catch the frogs. To his annoyance, they hopped away into the reeds.

"Come back here!" he yowled, chasing after them. The frogs continued to hop away, leading Ripplekit further and further away from the river.

The reeds were getting thicker now, causing Ripplekit to stumble. As he struggled to his paws, he could feel a presence behind him, one that sent shivers down his spine. Spinning around, he spotted an unfamiliar white she-cat.

"You'll never catch a frog like that," she meowed gently.

"Can you teach me how?" Ripplekit asked.

Before the she-cat could say anything, the reeds around them began to turn into wisps of black smoke. Ripplekit's eyes widened, and he began to cough as smoke filled his nose. "What is this?" he asked, between a fit of coughs.

"Maybe some other time," the she-cat said, ignoring the smoke around them. It was growing thicker now, so thick Ripplekit could barely see. "For now, it's time for you to wake up."

"Wait! Can't you explain to me what's going on?" he called out.

His eyes shot open, and he found himself back in the nursery. He looked around him and saw the den was empty. "Minnowkit?" he called out, standing to his paws.

It was at that point the stench of smoke hit Ripplekit's nose. Heart racing, he bolted out of the nursery and into the clearing. His eyes widened as he saw the far end of the camp was engulfed with flames, and heavy smoke lingered in the air. His eyes began to burn as he looked around the camp for signs of life, but no one was there.

"Mother?" he yowled. The flames were spreading even further now, setting several of the dens ablaze.

Ripplekit felt frozen as he watched the camp go up in flames around him. He knew he only had moments left to escape, but he couldn't bring his paws to move. He was so confused and worried about the rest of the Clan. Where were they, and why had they left him behind? What if they all died in the fire? he thought in horror.

He then spotted something white out of the corner of his eye. When he turned to look at it, nothing was there.

"Follow me," a voice seemed to whisper into his ear, one he couldn't quite place.

Ripplekit nodded and headed in the direction the white figure had been. Although he couldn't see anything, he felt as if there was a presence guiding him exactly where he needed to go. The feeling faded when Ripplekit reached a grove of birch trees. He scrambled up one of them until he was high enough to look out over the forest.

A massive fire spread across the forest, starting in the direction of the Twoleg's greenleaf place, all the way to the riverbank. The entirety of RiverClan's camp was in flames now. Ripplekit's heart ached as he watched his home go up in flames.

"You escaped just in time," a voice said, startling him.

Ripplekit jumped backward, his paws sliding from the branch of the tree. He tried to dig his claws into the bark, but it was too late. He had just enough time to spot the white she-cat from his dream standing there, her face twisting into a look of horror as she watched him fall. And then, everything went black.

"Ripplekit, can you hear me?" a voice whispered, waking the young kit.

Ripplekit tried to muster up a response, but he was too weak. All he could do was lay there in pain. His entire body ached, and his throat and lungs burned. He could hear several voices around him, but he couldn't quite understand what they were saying.

"Ripplekit?" the voice whispered again.

"He's not dead, is he?" another voice asked.

"No, but he isn't doing very good. His breathing is shallow."

"What about his leg?"

"Broken," the first voice answered. "He's going to be laid up in my den for a couple of moons, but it should heal. If he lives, that is..."

"He's going to live. He just has to," a third voice, one Ripplekit quickly realized was his mother, said. "He's too young to die."

"His fate is up to StarClan, I'm afraid. But I will try my best."

"Can't you share tongues with them, and ask them to spare my son?" Splashflower begged.

Ripplekit realized his mother was speaking to Nightsky. "I would if I could, but it isn't that simple," the medicine cat explained.

Splashflower let out a sigh. "Do all you can to save my son's life, then."

For the rest of the night, Ripplekit found himself slipping in and out of consciousness. It wasn't until dawn that he willed himself to open his eyes. They felt dry and painful, but he tried to ignore it. Turning his head, he spotted Nightsky rubbing something strange onto one of his back legs. "What are you doing?" he rasped, his throat aching.

"You're awake!" Nightsky exclaimed. Her expression then turned serious as she commanded him to lay back down. "I'm putting a poultice on your leg. You fell out of a tree and broke it."

Ripplekit stared at her in confusion. Suddenly, the memory of last night came flooding back to him. "The fire..."

"The fire has been put out now," Nightsky meowed.

"Is... is everyone alright?"

Nightsky nodded. "Everyone apart from you."

"What happened?" he wondered.

"That's what we would like to know," Nightsky replied. "How did you get separated from everyone?"

"I was asleep, so I guess I didn't hear what was going on," Ripplekit admitted.

Nightsky's eyes widened. "Asleep? Do you realize how lucky you were, then? You could have died."

"I know," he meowed, looking away. He then thought back to the white she-cat from his dream. As he recounted his dream, he realized she had told him to wake up, and lead him out of camp. She saved my life, he realized suddenly. He turned to look back at Nightsky. "Can I tell you something?" he asked nervously.

Nightsky tilted her head. "Of course."

"I think... I think a StarClan cat saved my life."

Nightsky blinked. "What?"

"When I was asleep, I dreamt of a white she-cat telling me to wake up. And when I did, the camp was on fire. She then lead me out of camp, and to the trees where I fell."

Nightsky let out a gasp. "Are you sure?"

He nodded.

"Did you recognize her?"

Ripplekit shook his head. "No. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," Nightsky said, her eyes gleaming as though Ripplekit had shared the most fascinating news she had ever heard in her life. She continued to stare at him like that for several moments, causing his heartbeat to race. There was definitely something she knew about him, something that she wanted to share but didn't know how.

"Why do you keep looking at me like that?" Ripplekit demanded, trying to get his bristling fur to lie flat.

"Ripplekit," Nightsky began, her voice trembling. "You've got a very important future ahead of you."