Chapter 1:

The Tingles

It was terrible, tragic, and terribly tragic, that the relationship between ThunderClan and WindClan had been reduced to mere common decency. Quailstar and Runningstar could hardly look at each other anymore, and tensions were high and hot in gatherings and border patrols on the WindClan border. Thus far, no blood had been shed due to incredible self-control on both leaders' parts.

They were civil, barely, but acknowledged that the winds were becoming cold and the rain had become a dreadful sleet when it came. Leafbare was coming and had been proven many moons ago to be the worst season to start a war in: prey was scarce, illness was abundant, and herbs were practically non-existent.

Cedardapple admired both her own leader, Quailstar, and WindClan's own Runningstar. It was a nice change after the long, painful war between ThunderClan and ShadowClan over a territory dispute that'd happened when Cedardapple was a young apprentice. She lost a lot in that war, including her mother, brother, and very best friend. Not to mention, it took the final life of the former leader, Barkstar, and marked the beginning of Quailstar's leadership. ShadowClan's leader, Branchstar, had lost a life as well, but had several more to lose.

He watched the strained relationship between ThunderClan and WindClan developed with what seemed to be mild amusement, or nostalgia, Cedardapple didn't quite know. She assumed that as long as it didn't involve his clan, it didn't bother him. RiverClan's Swanstar seemed indifferent to the other clan problems, having witnessed ThunderClan's previous battle from afar moons ago, and didn't want her clan anywhere near the conflict that was building.

It was just odd to Cedardapple to be quarreling with WindClan, who had been their ally for as long as Cedardapple could remember. Even in the battle with ShadowClan, Runningstar had offered to help despite the abnormally high fatality rate of the fight. All Cedardapple could guess was he didn't agree with Quailstar like he had with Barkstar.

The whole thing was just a shock, but that was apart of life. Things like that happened when they were least expected, like what had gone down with her daughter and Meadowpaw in the forest. It was bizarre, not that the cream-furred she-cat had been attacked by a dog, but because of the minimalistic injuries she'd sustained! Cedardapple still couldn't get over the whole thing even though it happened almost a whole moon ago. What dog only bites once?

Either way, she was grateful Moonpaw, her only daughter, hadn't been the one to be grabbed, how ever briefly, by the dog. Out of her three kits, Moonpaw seemed to be doing the best in her training, or was at least the most enthusiastic. Of course, Cedardapple still loved her sons, Nightpaw and Duskpaw, and took pride in them. Nightpaw was training alongside Moonpaw to be a warrior, and Duskpaw was the medicine cat's apprentice, but he didn't seem to enjoy it very much.

Sometimes, Duskpaw would come to her, asking if she'd be disappointed with him if he quit being the medicine cat's apprentice. He said he hadn't said anything to Brightfur, the medicine cat, yet, but had a feeling she already knew about his apprehension. Maybe she didn't know the extent of Duskpaw's dislike of his position, but she most certainly knew he wasn't entirely happy.

Duskpaw would go to Cedardapple.

Should I tell her I don't want to do this anymore?

It's not my choice, Duskpaw.

I really want to, but if I do, it'll crush her! She's been looking for an apprentice for so long and-

If you are not right for the position it's better she finds out now rather than later.

Yeah, but… you know, I'm just going to keep going.

Alright.

It was the same conversation each time he approached her. In all honesty, Cedardapple dreaded talking with her son because it was always about his disliking of being a medicine cat apprentice, or weighing the pros and cons of being a medicine cat apprentice:

Well I get to go to every gathering at least…

But I always have to go to gatherings, even if I don't want to.

If there's a battle, I won't have to get hurt.

But then am I really a member of ThunderClan if I don't defend the borders?

I won't ever have to compete with anyone else because eventually I'll be the only medicine cat.

But where's the fun in never beating anyone?

I won't have any kits to look after.

But maybe I'll want kits one day!

I'm guaranteed a top spot in clan hierarchy.

But would I really have earned myself that spot in the clan?

It was truly endless, and though she loved Duskpaw with all her heart, she tended to avoid him. Until he could make up his mind, Cedardapple could hardly stand to be around him. She focused most of her time around Nightpaw and Moonpaw instead, keeping her distance from Duskpaw as subtly as possible.

Nightpaw was nice to be around most of the time. Cedardapple knew he wasn't entirely happy either, but he managed a lot better than his brother. He wasn't very good at being a warrior, hardly ever managing to bring any prey back from hunting parties and never once winning a sparring match with another apprentice, but she never called him out on his failures.

The smoky-colored tom may not have been a good warrior apprentice, but he was certainly a charmer when he wanted to be. He was friends with every apprentice and most warriors in ThunderClan and had a record number of friends in other clans he'd made at gatherings. For a while, he'd scammed his mentor, Hollowflight, into thinking he was a marvelous hunter because he was able to convince a pretty young she-cat, Hazelpaw, to catch prey for him to bring back to camp. It wasn't until Hollowflight actually followed her apprentice on one of his hunting expeditions that she found him out.

Both Hazelpaw and Nightpaw had been punished, but the two stayed close nonetheless.

But Moonpaw, she was something. She was sociable and successful in her training, and, despite her grainy-gray fur and stocky figure, Cedardapple still thought her daughter was fetching. Moonpaw may not have been fast, but she made up for her lack of speed and heavy-footing with an impressive fighting prowess no one expected to see out of one of Cedardapple's seemingly lackluster litter.

Her paws were big and webbed like a RiverClanner's, which Cedardapple thought odd, and were phenomenal at smacking things around. She'd knocked her best friend, Meadowpaw, unconscious during a sparring session when one of her oversized paws hit at just the right speed on just the right spot. Moonpaw was a clumsy oaf with her paws, but they were still one of her better traits and Cedardapple was able to take some reluctant pride in them.

Cedardapple herself was very pretty: her fur was a short, soft golden-brown color, her paws and muzzle and chest were a pure white, and her eyes were a bright and happy blue. Her paws were small and dainty and she was light on her feet; a born huntress.

When she had her kits, she was sure at least one would look like her, but none did. They all looked like Smokepath, their soot-colored father. He was handsome enough and she was gorgeous, the whole clan expected the kits would be just as beautiful, but they weren't anything like their parents. For a while, there was a scandalous rumor around ThunderClan that the three mediocre kits weren't Cedardapple's, but it fizzled out by the time the three became apprenticed.

She considered having more, maybe with a different tom this time, but she wanted to see how the first batch turned out before she had another litter. It the three were complete failures, she'd have to try again to make the clan forget the three were hers and focus on them. If not, she decided she probably wouldn't have another litter. But then again, she'd always wanted a daughter that looked just as sweet and pretty as herself and a handsome, talented son that'd make other queens look at Cedardapple and wonder what she did right.

In the beginning, she had those hopes for her three, despite none looking a thing like herself, having other mothers' envy, but she was starting to give up. Yes, Cedardapple did love them, but they weren't what she wanted. Moonpaw would never be beautiful; Duskpaw would never be handsome; and Nightpaw would never be talented in anything besides being a liar. They weren't what she wanted.

When Duskpaw said he wanted to be a medicine cat, Cedardapple would admit she had a glimmer of hope that one of her kits would be something important, but now he was having second thoughts and would likely end up a huge disappointment. At first, she tried to steer Duskpaw in the direction that indicated he did in fact love being a medicine cat's apprentice, but now she didn't even try convincing him because he would never decide what he wanted. He was indecisive and bound to end up unimportant and it drove Cedardapple mad. He was the best hope she had of getting envy and congratulations from other cats and he was blowing it!

Admiddibly, Cedardapple had never had high hopes for her Nightpaw, but Moonpaw had so much promise. She used to in her eyes, but now she looked at her, gallivanting around playing games in the middle of the night and getting attacked by dogs, and she felt no hope in her stocky daughter either. Cedardapple was happy the dog had gotten Meadowpaw and not Moonpaw, she still loved her daughter, but had no real hopes for her any longer. Moonpaw seemed to have peaked and was on a downward slope in her eyes.

Thinking about her, she despaired. What tom would ever want her? She'd never have kits, she'd never be responsible, she'd never do anything! Moonpaw was doomed to a purposeless life.

The thought made her reconsider having more kits. What if they were just like her first litter? What if they were worse somehow? What if her first kits messed the second kits up? What if she has two litters who all go on to do nothing but meander, moan about their lives, and suffer in mediocrity? What would her mother have thought? What would she have done if she could see her daughter and her kits? She would be so ashamed of them, of Cedardapple for producing such boring cats destined for nothing!

"Cedardapple," a voice took Cedardapple from her horrible thoughts, "sit down, Branchstar's going to start talking."

Cedardapple blinked, her whiskers twitching as she came back from the recesses of her mind. She glanced around, horrified that she was among one of the only few cats still standing in the crowd. She quickly sat back on her haunches between Hazelpaw's mother, Rosewater, one of her dearest friends.

Had she still been deep in her self-pitying thoughts, Cedardapple may have complained about her friend's daughter. Rosewater was beautiful and elegant-looking and her daughter was just as lovely-looking. Why was her daughter pretty and Cedardapple's not?

Branchstar began speaking, keeping Cedardapple's mind from straying too far. She listened, somewhat grateful when the raspy sound of his voice brought her back to her apprentice-hood, freeing her from less than glamorous present. The same voice who was belting off the names of the most recent litter in his clan was the very one who threatened her clan, who ripped into her best friend's throat and left her to spill out in the clearing. The memories his voice evoked were all morbid and unpleasant, but Cedardapple relished in them. Terrible and heartbroken as they were, those days were her glory days.

It made her ponder if perhaps the impeding war between ThunderClan and WindClan would be similar, being someone else's glory days. Maybe, just maybe, the war would awaken some fighting spirit in Nightpaw and some light-footedness in Moonpaw and some pride in Duskpaw when he patched up clanmates. Or maybe it'd kill all three, physically or emotionally, Cedardapple wasn't sure she knew or cared. War matured cats; perhaps it'd teach her kits some sense of responsibility and mortality, keep them from prancing around and nearly getting mauled by dogs.

Cedardapple glanced nonchalantly at the friend beside her. When Meadowpaw was brought back, petrified with fear and dragging a stiff, bitten leg behind her, Rosewater wasn't angry with her. Rosewater was concerned, she didn't scold her for being so foolish, she comforted Meadowpaw. Her own mother wouldn't have been so kind to her if she'd gotten herself bitten and she wouldn't have been so kind to Moonpaw if it'd been her who got bit. It was unnatural and wrong.

Quailstar didn't even punish Meadowpaw! She was supposed to come to the gathering with Moonpaw, actually, but last-minute the cream-colored apprentice decided not to go. Said her leg was 'all tingly and stiff' and she wouldn't be able to keep up. That in itself was just ridiculous! The attack was far enough back where she should have been perfectly fine! Meadowpaw still went on a few hunting parties and border patrols! She was just being lazy, not wanting to walk all the way to the island. If that were Moonpaw, Cedardapple would've told her she was going, end of story, because you do what your leader says you're going to do.

Cedardapple blinked back into the meeting, somewhat irritated with her inability to focus that particular night. Moonpaw and Duskpaw were both at this gathering as well, she remembered, they better be behaving themselves.

Swanstar was speaking now. Cedardapple could tell because the tom next to her had straightened his posture. Swanstar was gorgeous, most RiverClanners were. Her water-proof fur was white, but she had black accents on her ears, tail, and muzzle, and looked plush even from the distance Cedardapple was scrutinizing her from. Her eyes were a bright amber that stood out in the milky gleam of the full moon. Her webbed paws were big, but not the clumsy and unfortunate sort of big like Moonpaw's were, they were just enough to be noticeable. Though her fur was plush and her paws were large, Swanstar still held an undeniable elegance that drew any cat around her in.

Her voice was lovely, like birdsong, as she too announced the last litter in RiverClan for the season. Cedardapple actually listened this time; they were called Lightkit and Lillykit.

Cedardapple expected Swanstar to finish swiftly and hand the spotlight to Quailstar or Runningstar. However, that didn't happen.

"Before I finish," Swanstar said, her meow changing from its light, pleasant tone, "I must inform you all that a border patrol found something rather peculiar earlier this moon that I feel I should warn you all about."

The other clan leaders looked curiously, some more guarded than others, probably anticipating an accusation by the pretty she-cat of ShadowClan or ThunderClan trespassing. Swanstar seemed to notice, but kept going.

"By the ThunderClan border, there was a body, not a cat of course," she assured when gasps sounded from the crowd below, her eyes widening a fraction, "But the thing is, my warriors didn't know what it was. They said it was like a dog, but different. It smelled sickly, too, something wasn't right about it. I went to see it myself and wasn't sure what to make of it.

"Whatever it was, it had pricked ears, a thick gray coat, yellow fangs, and it looked thin and malnourished. Something was clearly wrong with it, so I instructed RiverClan to not touch the body. I don't know if there are any more of these things out there or not, but either way, I wouldn't feel right if I didn't say anything." The RiverClanner stated firmly.

Cedardapple thought of Meadowpaw, the beast Swanstar described vaguely sounded like what Rosewater's daughter said attacked her. She said it was like a dog, but not. It peaked her interest, but not enough to pursue it; so long as the creature didn't directly affect her, she didn't care what it was or what it did.

There was a buzz around her, and as expected, Rosewater turned to her, eyes wide and somewhat alarmed. "Do you think that's what bit Meadowpaw?" She asked fretfully.

For the sake of the friendship, Cedardapple feigned interest. "I don't know, maybe."

Rosewater shook her head slightly, "I think it is, Cedardapple, she said it smelled weird and foul and she told me, she swore to me it was gray and it wasn't a dog, Cedardapple, she swore! That thing bit my daughter, I just know it!" She was wailing by the end, borderline hysterical.

"You don't think she's sick now, do you? Swanstar said it smelled sickly, surely something like a dog can't pass any sickness to a cat, right?" Rosewater asked, fearfully looking for answers in her dear friend.

Cedardapple flicked her tail dismissively, without thinking, but luckily for her, Rosewater didn't see it. "I'm sure she's fine, Rosewater. It's been over half a moon and the thing only bit her once, she's alright."

Rosewater shook her head again, this time more forcefully. "But she's not! She didn't come to the gathering because her leg felt funny!"

"Duskpaw told me she was fine, she's just overreacting, alright? My son is a medicine cat's apprentice, a dedicated one at that, if he says she's fine, than Brightfur says she's fine and she is fine." Cedardapple told her, hoping to build her son up and indirectly build herself up while making Rosewater calm down enough to stop talking to her.

Rosewater's ears flattened and her eyes tightly closed themselves as she fought to compose herself. "You're right, you're right, she's okay. Meadowpaw is okay." She said, more to herself than to Cedardapple.

The reddish she-cat looked like she was going to talk more to Cedardapple, but Quailstar spoke and stole her opportunity, much to Cedardapple's relief.

Quailstar nodded to Swanstar. "Thank you for the warning, Swanstar," He told her, not mentioning Meadowpaw's attack.

Cedardapple didn't notice the way his sharp, observant gaze subtly looked to Runningstar's perch. She wondered if he would have mentioned Meadowpaw if ThunderClan was on better terms with WindClan or if WindClan was just absent all together.

Quailstar talked more about the dog-beast, somewhat briefly, then quickly went over ThunderClan's affairs while he had the gathering's attention. Runningstar sulked a little about being last, making a comment on the dog-beast himself that Cedardapple hardly paid attention to, and went on to announce a pair of two new warriors: Honeyleaf and Sheeptail. The gathering cheered for the two, excluding the majority of ThunderClan, and the meeting came to a close without incident.

ThunderClan played nice with WindClan and WindClan played nice with ThunderClan. Cedardapple wasn't sure if she was pleased by the lack of excitement or irritated she wouldn't have anything to tell Dawnlight and Stormfoot, two of her other friends who hadn't gotten invited to the gathering.

Between the mediocrity of the gathering and the irritating inconsolable Rosewater, Cedardapple nearly wished she'd stayed behind with her friends and son.

First real chapter is done! Super excited for the next one, which will have us follow Nightpaw around for a while this time (if you hated Cedardapple, don't worry, I'm pretty sure she's not getting another chapter). But yep, stuff is going down next time so get ready!

Review Responses:

I-really-hope-not: Thanks for being my first reviewer! And thanks again, I hope it turns out to be a good story! Yeah, feel free to take a guess of what it is. With the cover in place, my biology-savvy readers should be able to see what it is without even clicking on the story!