(Lilypetal POV)
Catrina follows me through the forest with Crowtail at her heels.
"Stupid, stupid," he mutters. "Bringing a Twoleg to camp."
"Not just any Twoleg," I growl. "Now, shut up, fleabrain." I turn to Catrina. "I'm Lilypetal," I say, "ThunderClan medicine cat. That's Crowtail. He's a warrior. His mate, Rosepelt, is the leader's daughter. Her name is Willowstar. She makes all the decisions, and she has nine lives. Oh, and her mate, Owlfur, is deputy, and that's second-in-command."
Catrina nods slowly. I stay silent the rest of the trip to camp so as not to confuse her any more.
"Twoleg!" the kits howl when we enter the clearing. They scurry back to the nursery.
Purring in amusement, Willowstar walks up to greet Catrina, who looks out of place in her bright Twoleg clothing.
"Hi," Catrina mews.
"Hello," Willowstar replies, seeming surprised. "I'm Willowstar. Welcome to ThunderClan. Um, I'll need you escorted to a special place where we get messages from our ancestors in StarClan, um, so if you will…"
Catrina nods and followers her to the Highrock. A group of warriors has assembled there, waiting. They escort Catrina out of camp and towards the Moonpool, and as I watch them leave, I wonder what lies ahead of our Twoleg hero.
(Catrina POV)
The place the cats lead me to is huge and ornate. I do as they say and touch my hand to the water. I fall asleep quite suddenly, as if by narcotics.
I blink open my eyes to see the night sky all around me, bathed in starlight. I look up to see a pure snow white ca with dazzling blue eyes approach.
"Catrina," she meows. "I am Snowstar. I was leader of RiverClan."
A black tom with sharp green eyes steps up beside her. "I am Nightshadow of ShadowClan," he says. "I was killed mere hours before I would have become leader."
Before I can mutter sympathy to him, another cat joins them, a wiry grey cat with pale brow flecks in her fur. Her eyes, a soft grey, gaze in my general direction, but it appears that she is blind.
"I am Duststar of WindClan," she says. "Leader, of course."
Now a fiery orange tom with glowing green eyes joins them.
"I am Firestar," he says. "I was a great leader of ThunderClan, and to some, a legend. Were you born in ThunderClan as a kit, you would have heard stories about me and the Great Battle." He just looks legendary. He has a sense of ancient pride about him that's untouchable.
"Catrina," Snowstar mews. "You are given the task of living two very different lives, a great task granted by StarClan. We are here to help you. You will find that from now on, when you cross the border between the Clans and the Twolegplace, you will change into either your human self or your cat self. StarClan honors your courage coming here today and accepting your challenge."
"But," Nightshadow starts, "There is trouble coming for the Clans. You are the beacon of hope sent by StarClan to help them survive it. You must be prepared to fight and risk your life as if you were a true Clan Warrior."
"Now," Duststar mews, "your Clan is your choice, but choose wisely, for it is where you will belong for many moons ahead, as you will live much longer than us cats as a human. And therefore your power to change will fade over time."
"Catrina," Firestar mews. "You now have the choice of your Clan to make." He flicks his tail and a part of the sky changes to reveal a vast moor with wiry cats sprinting across it after rabbits. "WindClan lives on the moor. They eat mostly rabbit. They are thin and long-legged so they can run very fast." The scene changes to a swamp-like meadow with a wide stream cutting through it, and there are muscular cats with thin, glossy pelts swimming through the water. "RiverClan," Firestar says. "They hunt fish and can swim. If you're as deathly afraid of water as most cats, I wouldn't go there if I were you." The scene changes again to a dark, shadowy pine forest, and big, battle-scarred cats stalk through the shadows unseen. "ShadowClan," Firestar continues, "thrives in the shadowy pine forests in their territory. They are very big and bold, often attacking other Clans for various reasons. To upset one greatly is like a death wish." The scene changes one more time to a bright forest with thick undergrowth and lots of plants. A group of cats that are average-sized and just a little muscular, the average cat, I suppose, stalks after prey in the forest, one even climbing a tree after a squirrel. "ThunderClan," Firestar says brightly. "My home Clan. We're average cats, and we value courage and intelligence. We live in the brighter part of the forest that has the most growth. We can stalk prey in the bushes or climb after it in the trees. And we do our best not to provoke any kind of battle."
"So," The other cats chime. "Which Clan do you choose?"
I think back to all the Clans; the bleak WindClan moor and fast, wiry cats; the wet RiverClan meadow with the strong cats swimming up the stream; the dark ShadowClan forest with the huge scarred cats stalking in the shadows; the bright, overgrown ThunderClan forest with the pleasant cats stalking and climbing around.
We value courage and intelligence. That's what Firestar had said, and it describes me well.
ThunderClan. I belong in ThunderClan.
"I choose ThunderClan," I say. Firestar nods, his eyes smiling.
I wake up back where I was by the pool, except now, I'm a cat.