A.N. So here we go! The first real chapter of Shadows of the Moon! By popular vote, Moonshadow and Otterstrike will be the P.O.V.s for the story. Hope you enjoy the chapter. Leave me some feedback! Thanks for reading! ~12HockeyChick21
Moonshadow's P.O.V.
"All cats of LightClan please come to this clan meeting!"
Moonshadow padded out of the warriors' den at the sound of his father, leader Spiderstar's meow, eyes squinting in the bright sunlight. The tom had been the one on guard the night before, so he had been trying to sleep, praying to StarClan that a meeting like this wasn't going to happen. Moonshadow sighed. Apparently he hadn't prayed loud enough.
"Hey Moonshadow! Good thing you're awake! I was just coming to make sure you'd make it to the meeting." The deputy Fallen Leaves greeted him with a friendly flick of his tail. Moonshadow matched his enthusiasm with an equal tail flick, but then gave him a confused look.
"Wait why?"
"Just go sit and you'll see." Fallen Leaves winked. Moonshadow gave a bit of a nose exhale and went to find a place.
"Moonshadow, over here!" His friends Sorrelbriar, Honeysplash, and Brownbelly motioned him over to where they were sitting. Moonshadow nodded so they knew he saw them and sat down next to Honeysplash.
"Hi Moonshadow." Honeysplash purred.
"Hey."
"Hey bro." Moonshadow looked to see his brother Otterstrike and their other friend Spottedfern padding over.
"Hey." Moonshadow repeated, then everyone quieted down. Spiderstar stood strong up on his tree perch, gazing down at his clan.
"Cats of LightClan, we are here to welcome some new apprentices. Softkit, Sootkit. Come up here please." Moonshadow glanced over his shoulder at the nursery to see Jaysong, one of the first warriors of LightClan standing with her two kits. When Spiderstar called their names, she smiled and ushered them forward. Sootkit strutted forward proudly, while Softkit seemed a bit more timid, but the two made it up to the fallen tree and Sootkit clambered up a bit messily while his sister jumped a bit more gracefully.
"Sootkit, from this day forth until you receive your warrior name you shall be known as Sootpaw. Your mentor shall be Fuzzytail." Moonshadow watched the older warrior pad up the tree and put his nose against Sootpaw's. Spiderstar gazed out into the crowd and caught Moonshadow's eyes.
"And Softkit, from this day forth and until you receive your warrior name you shall be known as Softpaw. Your mentor shall be Moonshadow." As his father said his name, Moonshadow felt his eyes go wide and his brain had to yell at his paws to move. Moonshadow padded up the tree, shocked.
Don't trip, don't trip. He told himself as he went to join the others on the tree. He didn't need to make a fool out of himself in front of the entire clan and his first apprentice.
My first apprentice! He thought as he met with Softpaw.
"Hi." Softpaw whispered.
"Hello." Moonshadow greeted, putting his nose against her nose a bit roughly. "Sorry." He fumbled. Softpaw giggled quietly, seeming a bit more relaxed now.
"Fuzzytail, having been Moonshadow's mentor I'm sure you will do well in not only showing Sootpaw how to be a good warrior, but also show Moonshadow how to be a good mentor." Spiderstar meowed teasingly, making the whole clan laugh.
"But really, Fuzzytail, Moonshadow, I have faith that you two will teach these cats all you know and that you will perhaps even learn new things together! Sootpaw, Softpaw, welcome to apprenticeship!" Spiderstar smiled.
"Sootpaw, Sootpaw! Softpaw, Softpaw!" The clan cheered. Moonshadow stood beside his new apprentice, beaming with pride.
Otterstrike's P.O.V.
Otterstrike tried to make sure his tail didn't visibly lash in the anger he felt as he turned to his friends.
"I'm gonna go hunt." he meowed through clenched teeth, then took off out of camp. How could their father pick only Moonshadow?! Otterstrike had been sure he and his brother would be mentors together. He knew it, Spiderstar had always liked Moonshadow better! He had given Moonshadow a better mentor, he had let Moonshadow go to more gatherings as an apprentice, and he'd let him go on more raids and possible battles.
"UGH!" Otterstrike spat, his fur fluffing up. He sat down once he reached the halfbridge to look out on the lake, angling himself so the wind wouldn't buffet him in the face. It was nearing leaf-fall so none of the twolegs would be coming to use the lake anytime soon.
"Hey LightClan cat!" If possible, Otterstrike fluffed up even more in shock as an unfamiliar voice called out to him. The scent of ShadowClan hit his tongue and he turned to see a russet colored she-cat standing in the shadow of the trees on the other side of the twoleg path.
"Oh hey, you're the leader's kid. Moonshadow right? You don't look very shadowy." she mewed, tilting her head.
"That's because I'm Otterstrike." He spat.
Cats are even mistaking me for him now, great StarClan!
"Sorry, my bad. My name's Russetshade."
"We probably really shouldn't be talking." Otterstrike meowed, turning his head back towards his territory.
"Well... maybe not, but you looked mad so I thought I'd see what was wrong." Russetshade replied.
"Since when does any cat from ShadowClan give a mouse dropping about any other clan cat's feelings?" Russetshade rolled her eyes at this.
"Oh please. And LightClan cats are StarClan's gift to the clans." She meowed in a posh way. Otterstrike looked away to make sure she didn't see him smile. "So what's your problem Lighty?"
"Since when is it your business Shady?" Otterstrike shot back.
"Since I made it my business." Russetshade stuck her tongue out at him, then looked down at her paws. "I'm not over our border right?"
Otterstrike looked down, then shook his head.
"Nope, pretty sure you get both sides of the twoleg path anyways."
"Oh really? Then here." Russetshade padded over the dirt path and sat down right at the edge so she was only a few tail-lengths from Otterstrike.
"Oh yeah, now I really smell the border. I know we switched up our borders and stuff when your clan formed. How far do your borders go?" She asked.
"Um... Rowanstar gave us some of your land above the old ThunderClan territory. ThunderClan split their territory a little and I think they made an agreement with WindClan to take a bit more of their territory near the Moonpool." Otterstrike meowed.
"I guess it's kind of hard to remember the changes when they happened before you were born huh?" Russetshade laughed. Otterstrike nodded, but didn't say anything, so the ShadowClan she-cat continued. "So really... what seems to have you so down?"
"Oh, it's nothing. We just made some new apprentices today and I thought I'd get to mentor one of the kits, but I didn't."
"Ahh... lemme guess, you're frustrated because Daddy gave one of the apprentices to your brother?" Russetshade hit it spot on. Otterstrike sighed and dug his claws into the dirt.
"Yeah..."
"Well I don't know about your brother, but I for one think you're a pretty cool cat." Russetshade told him, giving him a comforting smile.
Before Otterstrike could respond, a call from the ShadowClan trees made both cats turn.
"Russetshade! Where are you?"
"Oh foxdung, that's my patrol. I should go." She hurried back over the twoleg path and reached the trees before looking back. "It was nice meeting you Otterstrike. Hope to see you again sometime."
"Maybe at a Gathering..." Otterstrike called, but Russetshade had already turned and jumped back into the shadows with a wave of her tail. Otterstrike sighed as he watched her disappear, then remembered he said he was going to hunt, as off he went.
