Hi there! I would like to thank CloudyDreamCatcher for reviewing and liking this story.

CloudyDreamCatcher: Thanks for the constructive criticism! I'll try to keep that in mind. As for the kitten fluff sentence, that was purposefully done. ;) The repetitive stuff is now fixed and thanks for pointing that out. I have not noticed. I know Aurora's description was a bit long but I based her off a real cat breed.

Now, on to the story!

Aurora huddled in her nest, trying to look as small as possible. A few fox-lengths away, she could hear Dapplepelt and Antpaw speaking to Froststar about her condition. She had gained some weight, only a little, but it made the medicine cat deem her healthy enough to survive on her own. Aurora closed her eyes, flattening her ears as she tried to block out their discussion.

Though with one discussion blocked out, it gave her time to remember another one.

Aurora was sitting in the clearing, in a patch of sunlight, just enjoying the warm rays on her fur. She must've fallen asleep for the next thing she knew; a paw was prodding her awake. She lifted her head to see Dapplepelt standing in front of her, a serious expression on his face.

"What?" Aurora asked, sitting up, her pelt ruffled.

"It's time for you to make a decision," Dapplepelt responded. "You have gained back an acceptable amount of weight so it's time for you to either stay with us or leave."

"Hang on!" Aurora yelped, rising to her paws. "You said I could stay until I knew how to take care of myself!"

Dapplepelt let out a chuckle. "Yes, but you need to make your decision first. It would affect how we train you."

"What if I don't know where to go or what to do?" Aurora asked, gazing at her paws.

"We'll have to talk to Froststar about this, but you have to trust yourself." Dapplepelt had responded before padding away.

Aurora let out a sigh and raised her head, ears pricking as the medicine cats and their leader padded over. She sat up, stifling a gulp at Froststar's serious expression. Yet, she was surprised to see a hint of wonder in curiosity in the leader's eyes.

"Aurora, I've learned that you remain undecided in your choice." The white she-cat meowed, sitting down in front of her, tail curled around her paws. She tilted her head slightly. "Do you still wish to learn the ways of the wilderness?"

"Yes," Aurora responded, hardly hesitating. "I don't want to be a hou-er-kittypet anymore. I've had bad experiences with hou-er-twolegs and I don't want to go near them."

"That is understandable," Froststar responded with a nod. "I'm giving you a few more days to decide. After that, I'm going to assume you want to leave and train you that way. Unless of course, you want to join Shadowclan as an apprentice."

Aurora let out a sigh and sat up. She had thought of Cloudeye and how nice he and the other elders were. She didn't want to stay with the clan but if it meant that she'll never see the elders' again… "Thanks Froststar. I would appreciate a few more days to decide, but that doesn't mean you still can't train me…right?"

Froststar smiled, her blue eyes twinkling. "We can teach you how to hunt but that is about all we can teach you for now. I'll assign you a mentor soon. Until then, freshen yourself up and get something to eat. I'll send your mentor over to you once I've made my decision."

"Thank you Froststar," Aurora responded politely.

"Don't mention it," Froststar responded. The white and black spotted she-cat got to her paws. She nodded politely to Aurora before turning and leaving the den, not saying another word.

After a while, Aurora sat up and began to groom her thick fur. Once she was finished, she got to her paws and trotted out of the medicine den. She paused, letting her blue eyes adjust to the much brighter light. She guessed the sun was at its zenith. Not daring to look up, for fear of ruining her eyesight, she looked around the clearing. She spotted Cloudeye basking in the sun with Badgerflame and Sunrise. She trotted over, curious to see two she-cats with them. She had learned a few of their names with the time she spent listening to their stories.

As she approached, she noticed that the two she-cats had patched fur and graying muzzles. She tilted her head slightly, curious. She had never noticed them before or met them and she smiled, flicking her tail in greeting.

Cloudeye was the first to notice her approach and the elderly tom sat up. "Aurora, what brings you here on this fine day?"

Aurora sat down beside the elder with a sigh. "Froststar is assigning me a mentor today. But she wants to know if I'll be joining or not within a few days…."

"And the choice isn't obvious?" Cloudeye stated, his whiskers twitching.

Aurora gazed at her paws. "Well…no."

Sunrise snorted. "Let her be, Cloudeye. You've been wasting your time with her."

"That's not nice," Badgerflame croaked. "You're just feeling your joints again."

"We won't have to feel them if the apprentices changed our bedding every day." A brown she-cat with white speckling her back, complained.

"They're too lazy to do anything else," a silver tabby agreed.

Aurora gazed at them curiously. "What are your names? I'm Aurora."

"I'm Fawnwing," the brown and white she-cat stated. She flicked her tail towards the silver tabby. "And that's Watermist."

"Nice to meet you," Watermist meowed politely.

"Likewise," Aurora responded. "So, can you tell me more about your Clan's customs?"

Watermist nodded and sat up with a smile. "Of course, what do you want to know?"

"Everything," Aurora breathed. She only knew the legends so far and was beginning to learn the Warrior Code, but she still didn't know how the Clan worked.

The elders all exchanged a glance before Cloudeye let out a mrrow of laughter. "The Warrior Code is the majority of our customs, why do you want to know more?"

"It doesn't look like anyone follows it!" Aurora burst out, eyes wide. She flattened her ears slightly and gazed at her paws. "Besides it's all so confusing."

"Well, then. I see its time for another story." Badgerflame sat up and smiled at Aurora. "This tale is not one of ShadowClan but one of ThunderClan."

Aurora pricked her ears. She had never heard any tales about the other Clans yet. In fact, she only thing she knew about the other Clans were their names and nothing else. "What about them?"

Sunrise spoke up this time, a bit gruffly. "They used to have a ginger tom leading their Clan. He was from the old forest and traveled here during the Great Journey."

Aurora flicked an ear in understanding. She had heard the story a few times and how Tawnypelt had saved ShadowClan from the twolegs and their terrible machines. She taught they were talking about tractors but she couldn't be sure since she wasn't there. After all, a twoleg term wouldn't be appreciated in the Clan.

"His name was Firestar," Cloudeye put in. "He is arguably one of the greatest leaders the forest has ever seen apart from Blackstar and Cedarstar of course."

"Though he wasn't born a Clan cat," Fawnwing rasped. "He was born a kittypet in the old forest."

Aurora listened intently, only asking questions when she wanted clarification. The elders had begun talking about the battle with the twolegplace cats when a small cough interrupted them. All six cats looked up to see Froststar standing in front of them, a patient expression on her face. A ginger and white tom stood just beside her, amber eyes gleaming.

"Aurora, this is Flameclaw. He was an outsider when he first joined," Froststar meowed. "Flameclaw, this is your apprentice, Aurora. You will teach her only how to hunt until she has made a firm decision."

Flameclaw dipped his head slightly. "I understand, Froststar."

"Aurora," Froststar turned her blue gaze to her.

"I understand," Aurora meowed. "And I'm thinking about it."

"She already knows what she wants but hasn't realized it yet," Cloudeye put in. "I lost track of how many stories we've told her."

Froststar's whiskers twitched. "Well, then it shouldn't be a problem. I'll leave you be." The leader gave each of them a nod before turning and padding away.

"Can I stay and listen to the story? They're almost done." Aurora asked immediately before Flameclaw could speak.

"Of course," Flameclaw meowed. "We can train later." Before Aurora could respond, the ginger and white tom padded away.

Aurora sat down and gazed at Cloudeye eagerly, curling her tail around her paws. "Continue."

Cloudeye nodded. "Where were we?"

"You were talking about twolegplace cats with cats with dog teeth in their collars," Aurora meowed.

"Ah, yes," Cloudeye meowed. "It was a dark day for the forest when the Clans all gathered at Fourtrees in daylight…"

So, what do you guys think? Should Aurora stay in Shadowclan?