Moonkit scrambled to the side of the nursery on her tiny kitten legs. Her paws barely touched the ground as she skidded across the earth. She whipped her head around looking for a good place to hide herself before she was caught. A fox-length away, one of her denmates was busy counting, their tiny voice echoing inside the hollow tree.

"..five, six, seven..."

Moonkit looked back at the kit, wiggling her whole body with excitement. Today they had chosen to play hide-and-seek, a favorite game of any Treeclan cat. Moonkit was determined to win, deciding already that she was the best hider of all the nursery residents. But in order to prove that, she'd actually have to find a spot to stash herself. By the wall, Sweetclaw the Den Mother was napping in her nest. Thick moss surrounded her cream colored body, and Moonkit bet there was enough there to provide her some good coverage. Quickly she dived down under the nest, covering herself in the soft moss and hoped nobody would notice. Moonkit pricked her ears, listening closely as Tigerkit finished counting.

"...sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, aaand twenty! Ready or not here I come!" She squeaked. Moonkit giggled quietly, covering her mouth with her paws. She listened carefully to her surroundings, trying to figure out where the other kitten was. One by one, Moonkit's denmates were found, each squealing or meeping when their hiding spot was discovered. Moonkit felt confident that her hiding place was the best and that she'd be winning the game this time. Suddenly she felt a unexpected weight fall upon her. The little silver and white kit jolted, shrieking out in surprise.

"Gotcha!" Tigerkit squealed. Bursting from the moss, Moonkit whirled around to see the other standing in front of her, her feathery tail high in the air in triump. Moonkit pouted, all of her downy kitten fur standing on end. The other kit giggled. "Sorry, Moomoo," she mewed.

"You could have killed me, Tig!" Moonkit spat, trying to relax. Tigerkit just giggled at her again before bounding off to search for the last kit. Moonkit watched her friend with interest as the fluffy tabby and white molly searched the whole den. But Tigerkit seemed out of luck. The last kit, Moonkit's brother Skunkkit, was nowhere to be found. Had he gone to hide outside the nursery? Moonkit wondered.

"Ok, you can come out now. I can't find you, you win!" Tigerkit shouted in defeat, sitting down with her front paws between her legs. Two tail-lengths away, Moonkit heard some shuffling, followed by a loud yawn. She turned her head, smiling at the sight of her brother.

"What are you yowling about..?" The kit mewed from their shared nest.

"Skunkkit! You were asleep this who time?!" Tigerkit hissed. Skunkkit yawned again, stepping out of the nest with a stretch.

"Yeah. Why, were we doing something?" He asked, shaking out his pelt. Moonkit purred with amusement, catching the annoyed glint in Tigerkit's eyes. It wasn't fair that Skunkkit hadn't told anyone that he'd lost interest in the game, but Moonkit had to admit it was pretty funny her brother had won regardless. Tigerkit puffed up her fur, showing off her agitation.

"We were playing hide-and-seek, mouse-brain! I thought you were hiding so good I couldn't find you. But here you are taking a nap instead. You're as lazy as a kittypet and you're only four moons old," the tabby kit spat angrily. Skunkkit just groomed himself, uninterested. The rest of the kits who had been playing along with them all came tumbling over to greet and play with Skunkkit. Adderkit laughed at him, while Beekit tackled Skunkkit to the ground to cover him in licks. Deerkit merely shook his head and Flamekit made a remark that Moonkit didn't bother to listen to.

"Stop yowling already, I think they can hear you all the way over in Mountainclan," grumbled a larger mollykit. Moonkit whipped around to see the other kitten standing by the den's entrance, her blue eyes seeming to glow within her shadow. Her long black fur was fluffed with annoyance, her tail kicking up a small cloud of dust as it wagged. Tigerkit stuck her tongue out at her rudely.

"Go chase your tail, Nightkit!" She sneered. "You need the practice."

"Shut up you little rat," Nightkit snarled. Tigerkit growled and dropped to a mock crouch, ready to attack the older kit. A fluffy smoke colored tomkit jumped in the way to intervene. It was Smokekit, Moonkit's other brother. The fluffy tom was usually the peacekeeper among their denmates. He always hated when kits would quarrel.

"Stop it you guys!" He mewed.

"Smokekit's right. You two need to stop arguing, it's getting annoying," Magpiekit, Moonkit's sister, joined in.

The two fighting kits glared at each other, never breaking eye contact despite the interuption. After another heartbeat, Tigerkit backed down. But it would seem Nightkit wasn't ready to give in. With a growl, the black kitten leapt for Tigerkit. Tigerkit gasped, dodging the attack, scrambling to get away. She headed towards the mouth of the nursery, only to have her path blocked by the other mollykit. Nightkit bared her teeth, unsheathing her claws. She raised a paw, ready to strike. Just then, an older cat arrived, grabbing her by the scruff. Darkfire, Nightkit's mother, lifted the kit from the ground, with Blackkit squeezing in between her legs. The older tortoiseshell she-cat did not look pleased in the slightest with the behavior of her kin. The other kits around the den snickered, Moonkit included.

"Tattletail!" hissed Nightkit to Blackkit. Beekit ran over to her brother, standing in front of him protectively. Darkfire carried the angry mollykit to their nest, dropping her inside and climbing in after her.

"Nightkit. This is not how a dignified soon-to-be warrior behaves. Do you want me to have your apprentice ceremony postponed?" She threatened. Nightkit gulped, flattening her ears, and mumbled a soft "no" in reply. Darkfire purred, leaning down to groom her kit, whispering something quietly into her ear. A little black spotted kit and a black kit with odd eyes came barrelling into the nursery, diving into the nest next to their littermate, Nightkit.

"Leopardkit, Batkit, what's the rush?" Nightkit asked in surprise as her siblings settled at her side. Had they gotten into some trouble too when no one was looking?

"Beetlenose said we had to come in so mother could groom us. Blazestar will be calling us soon," respondes Batkit. Darkfire nodded in agreement, turning her attention to Leopardkit.

Moonkit's fur prickled with excitement. An apprentice ceremony, how thrilling!

From across the den, Moonkit heard her name being called. Happily she skipped over to join her group of friends.

"I can't wait to become an apprentice," Tigerkit was meowing as Moonkit arrived. The tabby's yellow eyes twinkled bright like stars. "I'm going to be the best warrior in Treeclan history!"

"Well I'm going to be the best hunter," proclaimed Magpiekit, elevating her head proudly, "just like mama and papa."

"I think I just want to learn," admitted Smokekit, shrugging nonchalantly. "I don't want to decide what I'll be until I see what I'm best at."

"That's a good idea," Moonkit chimed in, wrapping her fluffy tail around her paws neatly as she sat. "I think I'll wait too, and see how I feel when we're all warriors."

The young molly honestly didn't know what she wanted to do yet. The thought of being a warrior was nice, but she wasn't as excited about it at the others were. Perhaps she was odd in that regard. Then again the clan had many jobs a cat could do, so Moonkit wasn't limited in her options. Still, as of right now she didn't have a clue towards what she may choose.

"Let all cats old enough to travel through the trees gather here beneath the Great Stump for a clan meeting," called the clan leader, Blazestar, from outside. Instantly the camp became alive with activity. Everyone came to gather around the Great Stump. The dozen kits which crowded the nursery came spilling out to join the older cats and other kits, sitting with the queens by the den's entrance. Moonkit sat with her siblings and mother, Brightsky, staring at the Great Stump with curiosity. She had never seen an apprentice ceremony take place before.

The last cats out of the nursery were Darkfire and her three kits, Nightkit, Batkit, and Leopardkit.

The queen nudged her nervous brood forward, her expression unreadable. It was odd; most queens would look proud or excited during a time like this. But Darkfire seemed as if she felt indifferently about the occasion. She was always an unusual cat, who showed little excitement for anything except battling or hunting. Everyone thought she'd at least show interest in her kits becoming apprentices. Even that, unfortunately, couldn't gain a reaction from her. Moonkit was grateful her parents weren't as unfeeling. In fact, Moonkit silently thanked Starclan that she wasn't born to Darkfire, feeling sympathy for the three kits who had been. They didn't deserve the treatment their mother gave them.

The crowd parted to allow the four cats to get through to the front where they were needed. Moonkit climbed onto her mom's back to get a better view of the area. On the sidelines near the front of the crowd she spotted her dad, Wolfheart. She smiled at the sight of him, happy to see that he was making strides to get closer to the rest of the clan. For as long as she could remember Wolfheart had always sat away from his clanmates, but she couldn't figure out why. Was he shy? Or had he done something wrong that she did not know of? Moonkit would never know. It wasn't her place to pry. And she knew her dad would explain if the time was right to. Moonkit was suddenly pulled out from her thoughts by the voice of the clan leader.

"Today is a special day in a young cat's life, where a kit leaves the nursery and joins the world as an apprentice," Blazestar began, turning his attention to the four dark colored cats in front of him. "Darkfire, have your kits reached six moons old? And do you believe they are ready to join us and learn the ways of the clan?"

"Yes," replied Darkfire flatly.

"Are you ready to rejoin your peers as a warrior once more, or would you like to reside as a queen permanently?" asked Blazestar.

"I would like to return to my warrior duties," responded Darkfire dryly, glaring up at her leader as if he had just insulted her. Blazestar returned her gaze with slight confusion. He blinked, breaking away his gaze for a moment and flicked his ear as if that would rid himself of the negative thoughts that might be swirling in his mind.

"Very well. Then with Starclan as witness, let it be known that from this day forward, this cat shall be recognized as a full warrior of Treeclan once more."

Darkfire scoffed quietly, waving her tail at the leader untraditionally as she turned around. She gave each of her kits one final lick before stepping back into the crowd with the warriors, glancing up at Blazestar with an odd, yet unreadable expression while twitching her tail-tip. Moonkit lowered her body closer to her mother's drawing comfort from her warmth and scent. Darkfire sure is an intimidating cat.

"Nightkit, Batkit, and Leopardkit, step forward," Blazestar commanded. The trio eagerly stepped forward, away from the crowd, walking at the same pace as one another. The excitement on their faces was obvious, even on the other side of camp.

"You have survived the first six moons of your life. May Starclan guide your paws from this moment on," Blazestar told the kits. "From this day forward, until they have earned their warrior names, these apprentices shall be known as the following: Leopardkit, from this point on you shall be known as Leopardpaw. Beetlenose, it's been some time since you've trained an apprentice. Teach Leopardpaw how to be the best warrior he can be."

Beetlenose emerged from the crowd to appear in front of the new apprentice, who happened to be his son. The toms were mirror images of one another in every way expect for height and eye color. Leopardpaw turned around to touch noses with the senior warrior happily before the two of them walked off to sit in the front of the crowd.

"Batkit, from this point on you shall be known as Batpaw. Sagetail, you will mentor this apprentice. Teach her well, help guide her paws on the path to becoming a great warrior," Blazestar continued. The little odd eyed cat stepped towards her new mentor to touch noses, the pair then walked off to join her brother and his mentor in the crowd.

"And Nightkit, from this point on you shall be known as Nightpaw. Wolfheart, you did an excellent job training Shadeleaf, and have proven yourself to be trustworthy enough to train another apprentice. Guide this young cat's paws on the path to be a great warrior just as Thornberry and I have trained you," concluded Blazestar. Wolfheart stepped towards the front of the crowd to meet Nightpaw, touching noses with her. Nightpaw's bright blue eyes shined with admiration as she met with her new mentor. Wolfheart blinked slowly back at her in return. The clan erupted into cheers.

"Leopardpaw! Batpaw! Nightpaw! Leopardpaw! Batpaw! Nightpaw!"

Moonkit sort of envied Nightpaw. She had secretly hoped she'd get Wolfheart as her mentor when she'd be apprenticed. She adored her father and would have had fun training with him. But she was sure Blazestar would give her a great mentor when her time came. With the apprentice ceremony completed, the meeting was dismissed. Moonkit decided to head to the elder's den to share tongues with Badgerface now that there was nothing else going on. She ran to the bramble covered pile of tree branches where the elders lived. There, she found Badgerface, an old black and white tom, sitting outside sunning himself with Daisypetal. Upon seeing her Badgerface lit up, sitting up to look at the fluffy little silver and white kitten.

"Hello, Moonkit," he purred with a soft blink.

Moonkit beamed up at him, "Hi Badgerface! Can I sunbathe and share tongues with you please?" She asked politely. Badgerface purred louder.

"Of course," he trilled. Moonkit wasted no time marching up to the old tom, plopping herself down between his front paws.

"Can you tell me a story pleeeease?" She begged, looking up at him with round eyes. Moonkit adored listening to the elders' stories. They were always so entertaining and inspiring to her.

"Of course! Let's see now, what to tell. Hmm...Would you like to hear the story of The Fox and the Queen?" Badgerface asked. Moonkit's green eyes lit up.

"Yes!" She squealed, snuggling down to get more comfortable, pricking her ears. Badgerface chuckled and began telling his tale.

"There once was a she-cat named Ladybug-"

"Ladybug?" Moonkit interuppted with a giggle. "That's a silly name!"

"I suppose it is." Badgerface turned his muzzle downward to groom his little companion's head. "Ladybug was a caring molly, with pretty tortoiseshell fur. She adored kits of all kinds- and apparently of all species. She could never bring herself to hunt or harm a baby animal. This love increased when she one day became a queen. She adore her kits to bits, but soon found herself overwhelmed by them. For you see, this young queen had given birth to a litter of eight kittens."

"Eight whole kits?!" Moonkit gasped. She thought a litter of five was huge-she should know, she was one of five- but eight was just crazy. Moonkit could only imagine how crowded the nursery must have been with those eight kittens plus any others who took up residence in the den.

"Yes. Eight kits. As you can imagine, Ladybug found herself needing some space. So whenever her kits slept, she would leave camp to take a walk alone in the forest. One day during her walk, she heard the cries of a young animal. Her strong maternal instincts kicked in, driving her towards the baby in distressed. She peered through a bush to see a very young fox kit struggling alone in a clearing. Quickly she ran to the kit's side. She sniffed it and noticed no presence of milk scent on its fur- or any scent of a parent for that matter. Sympathy swelled in her heart, compelling her to pick up the little fox kit and carry it to safety. She found a hollow log near a stream where any scent of the fox would be concealed by the swampy stink of the bank. There, she left the kit. She knew this fox kit had to only be a few days old, and she knew if she would abandon it here it would starve to death. Even though she knew it would be seen as treacherous to help the little creature, Ladybug could not pull herself away from a kit in need.

So, she fed the baby fox until it was so full it fell asleep. Content that it had a full belly, Ladybug left for a while to find some moss to make a nest with. She returned and wrapped up the kit in the moss' soft warmth before heading back home to her clan where she fed and cared for her own kits. For moons she continued to do this. During the day she would take care of her own kits, and when they would sleep, she would leave camp to take care of the fox kit.

'The fox was blind and deaf when I found him. Surely he will never bring any harm to me or my family, since I am the one who raised him,' she reasoned with herself every time she left to visit her fox." Badgerface used his best storytelling voice as he spoke, imitating the voice of a she-cat when repeating what Ladybug was assumed to say. It made Moonkit giggle; this old tom had a deep gravely voice, listening to him attempt to imitate such a delicate voice was silly.

"Ladybug felt so fondly for the little creature, as if he were one of her own litter. She watched him grow from a tiny, helpless scrap of fur into a tall, lanky beast. Ladybug's heart swelled with pride the day her fox kit left the hollow log on his own, though part of her was sad. She knew the fox would always remember her for her deed, but she couldn't help but miss him when he was gone. Some day she hoped to see him again.

One day, Ladybug was on a border patrol with one of her kits-who was now an apprentice-, her mate, and the clan deputy. The four cats split up to cover more ground. Ladybug was busy stalking through some tall grass when she heard a blood curdling shriek come from her kit in the opposite direction. She hurried over to where the commotion came from to find her kit laying on the ground, dead. Her neck was ripped open, gushing blood all over the earth. Standing above the apprentice's body was a large fox. Ladybug's mate and the clan deputy quickly arrived, and together the three cats charged at the fox. The two warriors attacked the fox's back and underbelly while Ladybug rushed at its face. But just as she was about to strike- she paused. She'd recognize that face anywhere. This was the fox she had raised for all those moons. Ladybug froze in place, watching the fight unfold. The fox managed to overpower the two cats, killing Ladybug's mate and sending the deputy fleeing back to camp to fetch backup. Ladybug quickly found herself all alone with her fox. She stood in front of the bodies of her dead loved ones, staring right into the eyes of the fox. Though they stared at each other for a while, the fox did not move to attack the brave queen.

'How could you..?" Ladybug sobbed, drawing her lips back in a snarl. The fox took a few steps closer to her, licking his lips to clean them of cat blood.

'How could you do this to me? I raised you as if you were one of my own!' she yowled. The fox merely stared at her for another heartbeat before lunging at her. He knocked Ladybug onto her back, holding her down by her belly with a massive paw

'You knew what I was when you took me in.' he snarled as he suddenly lunged downward to tear out queen's throat."

Moonkit stared up at Badgerface with wide eyes. She felt a little bit bewildered after hearing that story. But she knew it held a powerful message. Even if she couldn't quite wrap her head around what it was trying to say.

"Do you know the moral of this story, little one?" The old tom asked, his voice rumbling. Moonkit thought for a moment, concentrating hard. She stared down at her paws then glanced back up at Badgerface.

"Um...don't trust foxes?" She answered skeptically. Badgerface chuckled quietly.

"Close enough," he purred, licking the little kit between the ears. Thinking about that tale made all of Moonkit's fur stand with excitement. Even though it was a bit frightening, it was a powerful story. Now she really hoped she'd be able to tell stories like that one day.