Alrighty then! I got quite a few names from you epic people! Wow this is a totally new story and it already has 30+ reviews! It's catching up to A Secret Across the Border which I SERIOUSLY need to update XD I've been so caught up in Twisted that I've totally nelected A.S.A.T.B. and TF-Core (The Four Clans of Random Events), another of my stories that only has two chapters: the allegiances and the beginning of the story! Wow I'm slow. Well, let's begin!
Oh and I'm not sure if the names will be needed for this chapter. We'll see ;) I'm also gonna try and do a better job checking for typos in this story.
Twistedkit sat before the nursery, staring at its green fronds that quivered and quaked in the breeze. From the den came Mistfire, Grasskit, Harekit and Rabbitkit. Stormkit and Stripekit were playing with the ever-ignorant Swiftbolt. Twistedkit snorted as she saw her father toppling to the ground dramatically as his son and daughter swarmed him.
A soft paw shoved Twistedkit. She spun around to see Runningshine, her mother. Runningshine gave Twistedkit a scowl of disgust. Ever since the young she-kit had burst at her mother a moon-and-a-half before, Runningshine had ignored Twistedkit. At the worst, the light brown tabby would shove the young kit aside as she pushed past, sending Twistedkit spiraling into the muddy snow.
Leafbare had come, and with it was brought snow flurries. The flurries had excited the kits to a great extent, sending them leaping and twirling in the air, attempting to grab one of the cold, white flakes. The snow had collected on the grass and melted into the dirt, creating countless puddles of slush, water, mud, and a mixture of the three. Clouds in the west threatened to bring blizzards.
"Out of my way," Runningshine gave Twistedkit another shove and she stumbled into a slush-puddle from its force. Runningshine disappeared into the nursery. "Stormkit! Stripekit!" Runningshine called from inside. "Come, my two little warriors! You must be prepared for the ceremony!"
Twistedkit groaned. The ceremony. Any kit would be excited for their apprentice ceremony, any kit but her. Every cat in the Clan despised her, so who would ever be her mentor? The only cats that somewhat liked her were Featherleaf, Snowpaw, and Sprintfur. But Featherleaf and Snowpaw were medicine cats, and Sprintfur was an elder. Twistedkit wanted to be a warrior, not a medicine cat, and a retired warrior couldn't train her.
Twistedkit tried to push away a dreaded thought, but couldn't: what if she didn't get a mentor at all? The odds of that happening were certainly in her favor. But perhaps the wise Flightstar would show her mercy.
Twistedkit scampered inside the den to see two glistening forms of Stormkit and Stripekit. Runningshine licked the two of them thoroughly, while the siblings gloated about being warriors.
"WindClan will be a zillion times stronger with me protecting it! Imagine my warrior name. What about Stormclaw? Or Stormchaser! Maybe Stormloyal. Stormthunder would be awesome!"
Mouse-brain, Twistedkit thought. He's not even an apprentice yet, and already thinks that the entire Clan depends on him!
"Stormclaw would be imaginable, but names like Stormchaser or Stormloyal or Stormthunder or something seem unlikely," Stripekit pointed out. "Cats lmost never get names like that."
Runningshine licked Stormkit's forehead affectionately. "As brave and wonderful a little cat you already are, I wouldn't be surprised at such a name."
Ha! Brave and wonderful? Sure.
"What about me, Mama?" Stripekit asked. "What about my name?"
Runningshine purred. "What do you think it will be?"
Stripekit puffed out her tabby chest. "Stripefire seems perfect."
"Any other ideas?" Stormkit asked.
"Stripewind, Stripepelt, Stripefur, ooh! Stripeheart!"
Stormkit laughed. "Imagine if it were Stripestripe!"
Stripekit burst into a chorus of giggles. "Stormstorm!" The two kits started to howl with laughter.
Runningshine chuckled. "Those would be silly names."
Twistedkit dared to break in. "What do you think my name will be?"
Stormkit and Stripekit rolled their eyes, not answering. Runningshine looked away, focusing on her two favorites. "I don't know," she answered reluctantly.
"You'll obviously be called Twistedfoot," Stormkit said.
Twistedkit looked at the ground. She stole a glance at her paw. Stormkit was probably right.
"That is, if you become a warrior first," Stripekit taunted.
Twistedkit sighed, and walked over to her nest. "I guess."
"What are you doing?" Stormkit asked. "Go play outside or something."
"I need to be groomed for the ceremony." Twistedkit watched, not at all surprised, as her mother froze mid-lick. Runningshine turned to Twistedkit from grooming Stripekit.
"Twistedkit, go mess with the medicine cats," her mother ordered.
"But I need to be groomed," Twistedkit whimpered. "I want to look good for my ceremony."
"Your ceremony?" Stormkit snorted. "More like our ceremony. What's the point in you even getting groomed? No one will be your mentor."
Twistedkit gasped, pelting out of the nursery. She headed for the medicine den, not because of her mother's order, but because she felt liked there. She held back more sobs- Featherleaf and Snowpaw had gotten enough of that lately.
"Featherleaf?" Twistedkit mewed once she was inside. Snowpaw sat sorting through herb piles. She was currently staring at a pile of catchweed. "Snowpaw, where's Featherleaf?"
Snowpaw looked up. "Sleeping." She motioned to Featherleaf's nest, where the pretty light gray she-cat was curled in a nap.
"I need to be groomed for my ceremony, but Runningshine won't do it." Twistedkit shuffled the ground with her paws. "I wondered if Featherleaf would."
Snowpaw glanced where her mentor slept. "Not now."
"But the ceremony will start soon," Twistedkit mewed.
Snowpaw licked her chapped lips. "I guess I could."
Twistedkit sighed with relief. "Thanks." She stood still as Snowpaw lapped her rough tongue over Twistedkit's brown fur. "You have no idea how important this is."
Snowpaw laughed between licks. "Sure I do. I remember when I first became an apprentice. I felt as though the weight of the world was on my shoulders."
"Did Alderheart feel the same way?" Alderheart was Snowpaw's brother. He was a warrior, which explained why he had a warrior name and Snowpaw did not. Warriors usually got their names before medicine cats did.
"I expect he did," Snowpaw replied, spitting a ball of brown kit fur on the grass. Snowpaw's white pelt smoothed as she remembered. "He was very excited. I knew from when I first saw Featherleaf mixing traveling herbs for Flightstar, Flightpelt at the time, to go to Moonpool that I had to be a medicine cat. But when Alderheart saw the apprentices and warriors tussling, he knew what he was going to be."
"I hope I'm a good warrior," Twistedkit whispered. She frowned at her twisted paw. This small problem would make her a poor warrior at best.
"I hope you are, too." Snowpaw stepped back to examine her work. "Perfect as a daisy. You look great."
Twistedkit smiled. "Thank you." She turned to where Featherleaf slept. "You two will watch, right?"
Snowpaw nodded. "We wouldn't miss it for the world."
Twistedkit gave a small bounce. "At least someone won't be watching out of formality."
Snowpaw sighed. "Yes. Well, you go get ready."
Twistedkit nodded. "Okay." The young kit bounced out of the medicine den and into the clearing.
Yay my little kitties are about to become apprentices XD well I didn't use those names in this chappie but I probably will in the next one :) Thanks for reading!
