//-------------------------------------------------------// The Warrior's Way -by Moonlit Scribe- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// Prologue //-------------------------------------------------------// Prologue Twilight stood in the middle of the library in the Castle of Friendship. Her "apprentice", Starlight Glimmer, was off in the human world, learning about magic from Sunset Shimmer. Sunset had been ecstatic to teach Starlight about the magic in the human world. While the other girls, including the other Twilight, would try to understand Sunset's rants, they didn't really get it. From what Sunset had written, it was a nice change to have someone around who understood at least the basic principles of magic. Twilight's thoughts turned back to the other Twilight. The girls had decided to call the Twilight from the human world "Sci-Twi" and her, "Princess Twilight" There's another me, she thought as she so often did whenever Sci-Twi came to mind. Sighing, she turned her thoughts towards her plan for the day. The girls, CMC, Spike, and herself were going to a Wonderbolts show. It was Twilight's responsibility to transport them to the show. While Rainbow had wanted to fly up there with the Twinkling Balloon, Twilight's coming of age present from Celestia, cooler minds had prevailed and the group was to be teleported by Twilight. Even though her ascension had greatly increased her magical capacity, Twilight was still not powerful enough to teleport more than half a dozen ponies, especially as far as Cloudsdale was at the time. So, Twilight was searching her library for a way to transport nine ponies and one dragon. Or ten ponies. Whichever. Finally, she pulled out a book titled The Transport Guide for Unicorns: How to Transport Six Mares, Three Fillies, and One Adolescent Dragon. "Well, thats awfully specific," she said. Twilight flipped skimmed the book until she found the right page. The letters blurred together due to her lack of sleep, but she eventually got the spell written down. A few hours of sleep later, Twilight met with her friends and the CMC in an open field behind her castle. "Okay,"she said."Is everypony ready?" Her question was answered by a chorus of agreement. Twilight began her spell. Unfortunately, due to her half-asleep state earlier that morning, Twilight had copied the incorrect spell. This spell was not to transport them halfway across the country of Equestria; this was a spell to take them to whichever world was halfway across the multiverse! Twilight's spell ended in a great flash of light. Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Spike disappeared, not to be seen again in that world for quite a while. Meanwhile, in another world... A small, sleek, skinny, jet-black tomcat with a white dash on his chest, a long, thin, white tipped tail and green eyes, stood beside his mate. She was bluish-gray with unusual teal eyes. She was giving birth to his kits. Her sisters, Cadence and Celestia, both near kitting as well, stood nearby, watching. Their mates, Armor and Barley respectively were keeping watch, just in case something happened. Just then, the cry of a kit sounded. Ravenpaw spun around and bounded toward his mate, Luna. She was licking a miniature, she-kit, version of Ravenpaw himself. Soon, another little she-kit was born. This one was an orange she-kit. "What should we name them?"Luna asked. Ravenpaw nosed the little black she kit."How about... Night for this one?" Luna nodded wearily. "And Day for this one,"she said, glancing at the orange she-kit. Far away, but in the same world... Leafpool and Jayfeather stiffened. A cat from StarClan was walking down the path leading to camp. She turned and faced the medicine cats. "Not far away, there be ten lost, And the Clans are tested, To send them home." Leafpool awoke, bristling. Beside her Jayfeather woke as well. "We have to tell Bramblestar!"he said. Author's Note Okay, let me just get this straight. For those of you who haven't read the warriors series, Twolegs are humans. Also, Ravenpaw is the sleek black tom. Celestia is a orange she cat with amber eyes. Cadence is a... tortoiseshell with blue eyes. Armor is a snow white tom with blue eyes. Barley is a short, compact, muscular, black-and-white tom with a plump belly and broad shoulders. Also, in this new world, Cadence and Armor are Night(Twilight)'s Aunt and Uncle. It made sense to me. Keep on reading to find out more. List of eqivalents: Night = Twilight Sparkle Day = Applejack Rain = Rainbow Dash(Bluish-gray. Daughter of Celestia and Barley. Half a moon younger than Night and Day) Snow = Rarity(Snow white. Rain's littermate) Blossom = Fluttershy(Golden tabby. Daughter of Cadence and Armor. Half a moon younger than Rain and Snow.) Bounce = Pinkie Pie(Tortoiseshell. Blossom's littermate) Apple = Applebloom(Bluish-gray. Sister of Night and Day by another litter. Three moons younger than Night and Day) Stripe = Spike(Striped gray tom. Apple's littermate) Flood = Scootaloo(Orange. Sister of Rain and Snow by another litter. Two and a half moons younger than Rain and Snow) Blizzard = Sweetie Belle(Snowy. Flood's littermate) I know there will be people who don't like Sweetie Belle's equivalent, but gimme a break. I'm trying hard, doing what I can. Won't you try, just give it a chance? You might find that you'll start to understand. //-------------------------------------------------------// Welcome to the Clans //-------------------------------------------------------// Welcome to the Clans Night stared at the cat in front of her, the cat who had just uttered her father's name. She had always known that she looked just like her father. But to hear someone else, someone who couldn't have known say her father's name... "Unless,"she realized,"Unless, these are Clan cats." Then she thought of something else. "They could be ShadowClan or RiverClan. I need to get to ThunderClan." "Which way to ThunderClan?" she snarled, "Which way?" The gray cat stared at her with widening eyes. "Who wants to know?"the other cat snarled. Night narrowed her eyes. That sounded like the challenge of a cat defending their Clan. She waved her tail. She drew back with her group, letting the older cats stand up. "We don't mean any harm. Please take us to your leader,"Night answered. "Why? So you can-"the she-cat challenged, before she was interrupted. "Night!" a voice yowled. "Stormfur,"Night called back,"We're over here!" "Stormfur?"the gray tom said in disbelief. Said cat pushed his way out of some ferns, followed by his mate, Brook, and the other four kits. //-------------------------------------------------------// From Loner to Kit //-------------------------------------------------------// From Loner to Kit Night saw a strange look pass between Stormfur and the gray tom. In fact, now that she thought about it the two looked exactly the same. It took a moment, but she realized who the gray tom was, from descriptions that her father had given. "You're Graystripe!"she gasped. "How do you know?"Graystripe questioned. "My father, Ravenpaw told us about you. He also told us to come here just before he...."she trailed off. "You're Ravenpaw's kit?"the orange she-cat said disbelievingly. "Yes. He told us to find you before... he died,"Night answered. "He's dead?"Graystripe asked. "Yes. He died trying to save all of our parents." Night saw Graystripe exchange a look with the orange she-cat. "Follow us,"he said, and then turned to Stormfur and Brook."You can go back to the Tribe if you want to, or you could come with us." "No, we need to go back now. Thank you for taking them in,"Stormfur said."Good-bye, all of you. Take care." Stormfur and Brook touched noses with all the kits; they then turned and left. The kits and the cats stared at each other for a moment before Graystripe flicked his tail, motioning for them to follow him. Eventually, they reached a barrier of thorns, where a ginger she-cat stood near a golden tom. "Hello, Graystripe, Sandstorm, who are these kits?"the she-cat asked. "These are Ravenpaw's kits, Squirelflight"Sandstorm answered,"Whe-" "We aren't all Ravenpaw's kits!"Night exclaimed "Well, some of them are his kits... right?"Sandstorm answered Night made a motion with her tail and the kits organized into little groups. Pointing to the first group, which she was part of, she said,"I am Night, this is my littermate, Day, this is our sister, Apple, and our brother, Stripe. Our father was known as Ravenpaw, and our mother as Luna." Snow stepped up. She said,"I am Snow, this is my littermate, Rain, and these are our sisters, Blizzard and Flood. Our father was known as Barley and our mother as Celestia." Finally, the Blossom stepped up,"I am Blossom,"she said quietly,"and this is my littermate, Bounce. Our father was known as Armor, and our mother as Cadence." Night stepped forward once more and the other kits broke their groups. "Our mothers were littermates,"she stated before regrouping with her kin once again. "Very... well,"Squirelflight said. "Anyway,"Sandstorm said,"Where is Bramblestar?" "I'm right here." A new voice came from a nearby bush, and a cat stepped out. He looked so much like her father's descriptions of Tigerstar that Night was half tempted to back away. "What have we here?"he asked. "Are you the leader of ThunderClan?"Night said instead of answering He looked mildly surprised to see a kit talking to him so suspiciously. "Yes, I am,"he answered, seeming to have gotten over his shock. "I am Night. Me and my kin were hoping that ThunderClan would take us in,"she answered. For some strange reason, the rhyme in her speech reminded her of something, and she envisioned a striped horse-like creature. Shaking this off, she continued," We have been traveling for many moons, as my father, Ravenpaw directed us to reach ThunderClan." The leader, Bramblestar, glanced at Sandstorm and Graystripe. "Go get Leafpool and Jayfeather," he ordered. Then he turned to Night and the other kits. "Would you like to go in? I would like one or two of you to stay so that I may discuss things with you." At this, Night turned to Day and whispered to her:"I will stay here, and maybe you?" "Yes, I'll stay. Rain and Snow have enough experience watching the younger ones, and they have Blossom and Bounce to help them,"Day agreed. Night flicked her tail to summon Rain and Snow. "Day and I will stay here. We need you two to watch the younger ones,"she said. "Don't worry, Night. We'll be fine,"Rain said. "We shall make sure that there is no problem,"Snow nodded. "Good,"Night said shortly. She turned to Bramblestar, who stood a few fox-lengths away. "Day and I will stay," she said. "Very well. Sandstorm take these kits to the nursery before you get Jayfeather and Leafpool,"he said. Once the medicine cats, Jayfeather and Leafpool, came out the meeting commenced. Night told her story to Bramblestar, Squirelflight, Leafpool, Jayfeather, and the golden tom, who, Night learned, was Jayfeather's brother, Lionblaze. Soon, a conclusion was reached. Night and the other kits would be part of the Clan. They would be treated equally and be given Clan names. They entered the camp, which was a stone hollow. Night saw her friends at one of the dens. She glanced at Bramblestar, who nodded, giving her permission to race across to them. Excitedly, she told them of the decisions that had been reached. All of them were excited. None of them could wait! Bramblestar walked toward Highledge. He kept his thoughts on the ten kits found in the forest. Something about that kit, Night, sparked his interest. She would make a good leader someday, he thought.She knows how to be diplomatic, but still is willing to defend those she cares about. Maybe I should mentor her. He leaped on Highledge. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge!" he yowled. Cats swarmed from every corner of the hollow. When they were all seated, he began. "Today, Sandstorm and Graystripe found ten kits in the forest. Graystripe, please come here and tell them what happened." Graystripe leaped up the rocks to the top of Highledge. He recounted the events up to the part where he was sent to fetch Leafpool and Jayfeather. After he was finished, Bramblestar took over. "It has been decided that these kits will be given Clan names and and be part of the Clan and treated as such,"he said,"And so, each of you come forward." When the kits were ready, he said,"Night you will be known as Nightkit. Day, you will be known as Daykit. Rain, you will be known as Rainkit. Snow, you will be known as Snowkit. Blossom, you will be known as Blossomkit. Bounce, you will be known as Bouncekit. Apple, you will be known as Applekit. Stripe, you will be known as Stripekit. Flood, you will be known as Floodkit. Blizzard, you will be known as Blizzardkit. You are kits of ThunderClan, and we hope you will continue to be part of ThunderClan for many moons to come." All of their eyes were gleaming, and Bramblestar was glad to have played a part in that. Author's Note An awesome cat maker: This is a good place to visualize cats! (http://orig10.deviantart.net/2741/f/2009/200/7/0/kitten_maker___edit_no_dots_by_kamirah.swf) //-------------------------------------------------------// And From Kit to Apprentice //-------------------------------------------------------// And From Kit to Apprentice A moon had passed since Nightkit's arrival in ThunderClan. Since becoming part of the Clan, she had befriended many of the cats. Outside of her kin, her best friends were Hollypaw, Fernpaw, and Sorrelpaw, Lionblaze and Cinderheart's kits. Every time she won over another one of the Clan, she felt her heart soar and heard a gentle voice congratulating her, urging her onward to befriend another cat. As amazing as Clan life was, though, Nightkit was getting bored. She continued to stay in the nursery, even though she was approaching six moons. Nightkit glanced at the sky, seeing the sun almost at its peak. A small purr escaped her. Her kin would be gathering near one of the stone cliffs, waiting for battle practice. Never hurts to learn more,Nightkit thought, It'll only help them in the future. She walked to the cliff, which had two or three large ledges that cats could climb up to. "We're all here, Nighkit. No need to look for anypo- I mean anyone else,"Daykit said as Nightkit reached the cliff. It was strange, but all ten of them often fumbled with their words, almost saying things like "anypony". "What is an anypony, anway?" Nightkit wondered, but pushed that thought to the back of her mind as she remembered why she was here. "Okay, positions,"she said. Daykit stood in front of her, with Rainkit behind. Snowkit, Bouncekit, and Blossomkit stood on the ledges. Stripekit and Applekit were to her left, while Floodkit and Blizzardkit were to her right. Everyone was in place. Nightkit waved her tail to signal the beginning of the training session. Daykit leaped at her, claws sheathed. Adrenaline coursed through Nightkit, and she flipped over, right onto Rainkit's back. The fight was only just beginning. "Bramblestar?"Lionblaze's voice called into the den, "There's something going on in the clearing that you might want to see." Bramblestar exchanged a startled glance with Squirelflight, with whom he had been discussing Nightkit and Daykit. "We're coming,"Bramblestar said. He exited the leader's den, and saw Lionblaze gazing down at the clearing, near one of the cliffs. Bramblestar followed his gaze. What he saw caught him by surprise. Nightkit was single-pawedly fighting all of the kits. Then, Blizzardkit fell down and went to the side. Then came Blossomkit. After that, Stripekit. Eventually, the only two left were Daykit and Nightkit. The two kits seemed evenly matched until, finally, Daykit pinned Nightkit down for many heartbeats. Then, Nightkit shook of her littermate and stood, purring. All the kits went back in and the fight started again, only Daykit was in the middle this time. "They're strong kits,"Squirelflight said. "Yes, yes they are,"Bramblestar answered,"Come on. We have important things to discuss." When they were inside the den, Bramblestar said,"I want you to mentor Daykit. I will mentor Nightkit." Squirelflight nodded,"Of course, Bramblestar. When will the ceremony be?" "Today, at sunset. Now send the hunting patrols out. I want a feast ready before the ceremony." Squirelflight's eyes widened, but she nodded and went to send out the patrols. "I certainly hope I'm not making a mistake,"Bramblestar thought. Daykit stared first at Squirelflight, then at her sister. "We- We're going to be apprentices?"Night kit squeaked in excitement. "Yes, you are,"Squirelflight answered,"Now go and get ready, the ceremony begins at sunset." "Who are our mentors going to be?"Daykit begged. Squirelflight twitched her whiskers. "You'll see." Sunset took forever to come. Daykit and Nightkit had spread the news throughout the nursery and had been met with both jealousy and excitement. All of them, Snowkit and Blizzardkit especially, had helped groom the two apprentices to be and were now waiting for the ceremony to begin. Then, Rainkit poked her head into the nursery. "You're up," she said. Nightkit barely suppressed her excitement as she and her sister made their way to the clearing. When they reached, Bramblestar began the ceremony. "Nightkit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Nightpaw. I will be your mentor. I hope to pass on all that I know to you." Nightkit was surprised. She never expected Bramblestar to be her mentor. She touched noses with him, and dazedly stepped back to watch her sister's ceremony. Bramblestar continued,"Daykit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Daypaw. Your mentor will be Squirelflight. I hope Squirelflight will pass down all she knows on to you." He turned to Squirelflight. "Squirelflight, you are ready to take on an apprentice. You had received excellent training from Dustpelt and you have shown yourself to be strong-willed and brave. You will be the mentor of Daypaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to her." Mentor and apprentice touched noses, and Daypaw came and sat next to Nightpaw. Daypaw's eyes were shining like Nightpaw's and both were excited by the prospect of sleeping in the apprentice's den. "This is wonderful! Being an apprentice will be such a great learning experience,"Nightkit thought,"This is going to be so exciting!" //-------------------------------------------------------// Meanwhile... //-------------------------------------------------------// Meanwhile... ... in Equestria Discord wrestled the tiny centaur once again. At least the centaur was tiny to him. In reality, he was as tall as a mountain. Behind Discord, three magic-less princesses stood, watching with great interest. Finally, Discord held the centaur down, panting. "Give the magic back,"Discord told Tirek,"The Elements of Harmony may be missing, but that doesn't mean I won't destroy you to protect Equestria." "Oh, really?"the smooth-talking centaur questioned, trying to break free of the other's hold,"But, you know what I can give, don't you? Freedom, magic. I'll even throw in a little bit of friendship!" "Oh, please, like I'd fall for the same trick twice." "You fell to the Elements twice." "A trick is not the same thing as powerful magic." "Sure, sure. What other lies have these ponies fed you?" "No lies!" "Poor Discord, fallen so deep under the curse of "friendship"?" "Oh really? Then why am I still able to fight you?" "Because I haven't taken your magic yet." "You'd do it in an instant if you weren't so scared." "Oh really? Of what am I so scared? Shadows? Changelings?" Discord was about to answer, when two figures appeared in his peripheral vision. One formed out of Tirek's shadow, and the other looked like a burnt cheese statue. "Oh, so you're too much of a coward to fight me alone?" Discord taunted, but a sickly feeling crawled up his throat. "I'm much too smart to do so,"Tirek answered. Discord knew that Canterlot would perish if he continued the fight in Canterlot Castle. He snapped his fingers and popped himself and the three bad guys away. Dark watched as the three littermates fought. She had to time her jump perfectly, or she would land on Shadow or Black instead of Fog. It was of most importance because... because... "Thats strange,"Dark thought,"Why are we fighting?" "Why are we fighting?"Fog echoed Dark's thoughts. "I... "Black trailed off. Shadow looked similarly stumped. "We... should probably go to that forest over there, see if we can catch some prey"he said after a bit. "Yeah..." Dark looked at the pine forest near them. Glancing at the three toms, who were still gazing at the forest apprehensively, she sighed. "Come on. Are we going or not?"she asked. "Yeah,"Fog said, finally shaking off his stupor. Together, three toms and a she-cat entered the pines. //-------------------------------------------------------// Gathering //-------------------------------------------------------// Gathering Nightpaw stared up at the full moon. Tonight, she would be going to the gathering along with Daypaw, Rainpaw, and Snowpaw. Rainpaw and Snowpaw had become apprentices half a moon after Daypaw and Nightpaw. They had been apprenticed to Lionblaze and Cinderheart, respectively. Hollypaw bounded over. "You have to tell us what happens at the gathering!"she said. "I will, I promise,"Daypaw answered. "Us too?"Bouncekit lived up to her namesake as she asked the question. "Well, unless you might get in trouble because you tell us what happens,"Blossomkit said, as always, tempering her sister's enthusiasm. "Don't worry, I doubt we will,"Rainpaw answered. "Come on! They're leaving!"Snowpaw exclaimed suddenly. "We'd better go! See ya!"Rainpaw cried out as she raced after her sister. Daypaw and Nightpaw followed suit, yelling good-byes over their shoulders. When they had caught up with the others, Night whispered to them,"With all that we've imagined, the reality of this night is sure to make this... The Best Night Ever!" For some reason, those words sounded strangely familiar. Daypaw stared around the island. Her sister and friends did the same. "Whoa, this place is huge!" Rainpaw, unsurprisingly, was the first one to speak. "Why don't you meet some of the other apprentices?" Cinderheart surprised them from behind. "It looks like there are some over there." "Sure,"Daypaw answered. They walked over to the group. "Hi, there!" a grayish tom with golden eyes said as Daypaw and her friends neared them. "Hi, I'm Daypaw. This is my sister Nightpaw, and these are Rainpaw and Snowpaw,"Daypaw answered. "Nice to meet you. I'm Fogpaw. This is my brother, Shadowpaw,"Fogpaw pointed to a black tom with amber eyes,"this is my other brother, Blackpaw," he pointed to a ginger tom with golden eyes"and this is my sister, Darkpaw." Darkpaw had the same color scheme as Shadowpaw, except with green eyes. "Hi,"each of them said. "So, what clan are you from?"Nightpaw asked. "ShadowClan,"Fogpaw answered immediately,"What about you?" "ThunderClan,"Nightpaw answered. "We could tell,"Shadowpaw said. "Don't be so rude!"Darkpaw admonished. Shadowpaw rolled his eyes and turned away. "Don't mind him,"Blackpaw said,"He's not very social." "You should have seen him when we first came to ShadowClan! With how hostile he acted, I'm surprised they even let us stay the night, let alone for good,"Fogpaw said. "You're not born in the clans either!"Nightpaw questioned. "No... Wait. Did you say either?"Fogpaw exclaimed. "We weren't born in the clans! My father told us to come here before he died! We just got here a moon ago!"Nightpaw said. "So, this is your first gathering as well?"Fogpaw asked. "Yeah!"Nightpaw answered. Just as Fogpaw seemed to be about to say more, a yowl was heard. The leaders had called the gathering together. Rowanstar, a dark ginger tom with green eyes, began. "Food is plentiful as always in green leaf, and ShadowClan are thankful for it. The Twolegs have come as usual to the beach and clearing but ShadowClan are not troubled by them. We have four new apprentices. Shadowpaw, Blackpaw, Fogpaw, and Darkpaw have only recently joined our clan, but I am sure they will become great warriors that will help their clan." ThunderClan and ShadowClan cheered loudly for the new apprentices, but there were confused murmurs from the other two clans. "They're not Clanborn?"Nightcloud, a black she-cat with amber eyes, asked. "No, they have travelled far to avoid Twolegs that destroyed their home,"Rowanstar said. Some of the cats who were on the Great Journey let out sympathetic murmurs. "And one of their names is Shadowpaw?"Onestar, a small, mottled, light-brown tabby tom with amber eyes,asked. "Yes, we considered that, but Littlecloud had a sign that told us to accept these cats,"Rowanstar said. "Very well,"Onestar answered. "Now, I believe it is ThunderClan's turn to speak,"Bramblestar said,"We too, have four new apprentices: Nightpaw, Daypaw, Rainpaw, and Snowpaw. They are not Clanborn either. They came almost two moons ago, along with six other, younger kits. Four of them, two of them being present here, are kits of Ravenpaw, and the other six are kin to these four. ThunderClan is unwilling to turn away any kin of Ravenpaw's. Other than that, prey is plentiful and there has been little sickness." "RiverClan's turn,"said Mistystar,"We have little to report." "Same with WindClan,"said Onestar. Meanwhile, Daypaw had turned back to her friends, new, and old. "It was nice to meet you all. Maybe we'll see each other next time!"said Nightpaw, though Daypaw noticed her gaze linger on Fogpaw. Now that she thought about it, Nightaw and Fogpaw had been speaking to each other the whole gathering, whispering when the leaders had been speaking. Daypaw sighed. It looked like she and her sister were about to have a long talk about the warrior code. Author's Note You should be able to guess who is who(As in Fogpaw = Discord/Sombra/Tirek/Chrysalis). A yay to the first person who guesses right! //-------------------------------------------------------// Daypaw's fears //-------------------------------------------------------// Daypaw's fears "What were you thinking?" Daypaw was pacing in the dirtplace, and Nightpaw could see her sister's claws gouge the earth below her. "What do you mean?" "What do I mean? I mean, why were you breaking the code?" "I would never break the code! That... that would just be wrong!" "Well, you were doing it right there, at the Gathering!" "No, I wasn't!" "What are you two doing here?"a new voice asked. "Shouldn't you be asleep?"another said. Just then, the moon came out from behind a cloud to illuminate Hollypaw, Sorrelpaw, and Fernpaw. "We could ask you the same thing,"answered Nightpaw. "Really, did they have to come right now?"she secretly thought. "Well, Hollypaw woke up and noticed that you weren't there, so she woke us up. We came into the clearing, and heard the two of you from there, so we came to check it out,"Sorrelpaw said. Nightpaw shot a glare at Daypaw. Obviously, Hollypaw had noticed this, because she was looking between the two of them confusedly. "Are you two okay?"she asked. "Yup. We're just fine and dandy,"answered Daypaw. "We heard you mention something about the warrior code..."Fernpaw nervously fidgeted with a claw. Nightpaw winced. The game was up. "Fine,"Nightpaw said,"Daypaw was saying something about me breaking the warrior code." "No!"Hollypaw, Fernpaw, and Sorrelpaw gasped. "Well, ya should have seen her. She was clearly falling for that Fogpaw feller,"Daypaw said. "Was not,"Nightpaw said. "Was too." "Was not." "Was too." "Was not" "Wa-" "Okay, how about we calm down a bit,"Fernpaw said,"Now, let's see. Daypaw, what made you think that Nightpaw likes... Fogpaw?" "Well, those two were talking up a storm, even when the leaders were speaking! And when we were saying goodbye, Nightpaw kept looking at him. Not his littermates, just him,"Daypaw said. "Well... those are some reasons to suspect that she likes him, but they aren't enough,"Fernpaw said,"Like, have you seen Lilyheart and Dewnose? They spend all their time together, and they sometimes get a little clumsy around each other. That is what it looks like when two cats like each other." "What about Fogpaw?"Sorrelpaw teased,"Did his gaze linger as well?" "Well... yes,"Daypaw said. "No, it didn't! You're just reading too much into it! Just... stay out of this, okay! In fact, if you can, just stay out of my life entirely!"Nightpaw yelled, before storming off to go to her nest. "Likes me. Yeah, right. More like she likes him! She shouldn't jump to conclusions like that!"she muttered as she crawled into her nest. "What if she's right though? What if I really do like him? What if he likes me?" a small voice in the back of her head said. For a second her heart felt lighter. "No! I can't think like this! Daypaw isn't right, of course she isn't! I don't like him! And he doesn't like me!" She shook herself. "I am a loyal cat of ThunderClan. No-one can say otherwise." Daypaw entered the den and saw her sister fast asleep. She made her way to her nest, which was right next to Nightpaw's and flopped onto it. She looked forlornly at her sister, and wished that she had not confronted her. She nuzzled her sister and said,"I'm sorry Nightpaw, I shouldn't have doubted you." Nightpaw purred, but Daypaw suspected that it was not because of her words. The thought stayed with Daypaw as she fell asleep. //-------------------------------------------------------// No Way Back //-------------------------------------------------------// No Way Back Night looked behind her. Her sister, Day was helping Bounce over a fallen log. Rain and Snow were padding beside Blossom, helping the tired kit. They were all kits, except for Brook and Stormfur, who were far behind, with the younger kits, Stripe, Apple, Flood, and Blizzard. Sighing, Night turned her head back to the front. She was losing hope that they would ever find the Clans. Before he died, her father, Ravenpaw, had told her to find the Clans. He had said that they would take the the ten kits in. Unfortunately, they had not found the Clans yet, and it had been two moons since they had left. We'll never find them. There was a tense silence in the air, as if the rest of the group had caught on to Night's thoughts. We'll spend forever just walking, until the day we die. Night glanced behind her, to see the others no longer talking or clustering in little groups. It's all my fault. I should have never brought them this far. We could have gone to Twolegplace. Found some other cat willing to help us. It's all my fault. She and Day were the oldest kits. The others looked up to them. Admired them. Trusted them. But Day had never wanted to be a leader. When push came to shove, Day would take charge, especially if Night wasn't there. But, normally? All the responsibility fell onto Night's shoulders. She had to make all the decisions. If something went wrong, it was her fault. She couldn't help it. None of them could. It was natural. The younger followed the older. That was just how it worked. But these days, it seemed that even Stormfur and Brook looked up to her. But that wasn't the way it was supposed to work. Night sometimes wanted to give her position to them. But even if she could, Night would not do such a thing. It was her burden to carry, not theirs. Suddenly, she heard someone ahead of them. Flicking her tail to signal to the others, she climbed up a nearby tree. They did the same. Two cats walked below them. "I'm telling you, I heard someone here," the gray tabby said. "Maybe you are right after all. It smells like someone passed by here not too long ago," the other cat, an orange she-cat. Flicking her tail down, Night signaled to the others. They all jumped down, three to one. She leaped onto the gray tom and with the help of Day and Blossom, pinned him down. She unfurled her claws and held them at his throat. His eyes widened when he saw her. "Ravenpaw?"he blurted out. Author's Note Can anyone guess who these two cats are? I'll give you a hint, it is two clan cats that have been here since the very beginning. //-------------------------------------------------------// Planning //-------------------------------------------------------// Planning "I can't believe it! How could she think I would do something like that?"Nightpaw exclaimed. "I know, right? My sister said the same thing!"Fogpaw answered. "We didn't do anything wrong!" "Yeah!" "It isn't fair! She's reading too much into friendly conversation." "True." "I wish I knew how to get back at her!" "Well, I might know a way..." "Really?" "I am amazing at pranks. Of course I know a way." "What do I do?" Fogpaw leaned towards Nightpaw and whispered in her ear. When he finished, Nightpaw's eyes were gleaming. "That... thats perfect!" "I know,"he answered. "You know, if you could get Darkpaw to come, then we could get revenge on both of them,"Nightpaw suggested. "That would be awesome!" "Okay, the other day, I found this old Twoleg den, outside Clan territory. If we could meet there, it would be the ideal spot to trick them into coming to,"Nightpaw said. "Okay, lets meet there tomorrow night. Then we can set up the trap,"Fogpaw agreed. "Wait. Where are we?"Nightpaw asked, finally taking their surroundings. "In your dreams,"Fogpaw said. "Then you're my imagination? I'm dreaming about you?" "No,"Fogpaw said,"I can manipulate dreams and thoughts. Its, like, an ability that I have. I came into your dream to see if someone said the same thing to you that my sister said to me." "Oh. Okay. Well, then, see you tomorrow!" "Bye!" Then, Nightpaw woke up. Daypaw woke to see her sister stretching in her nest. "Oh, you're awake,"Nightpaw said. Daypaw squinted against the sunlight. It was strange, her sister was never an early riser. Usually, Daypaw had to shake Nightpaw awake, not the other way around. Nightpaw didn't sound as... confrontational as she had last night either. "Hey, look, I'm sorry. About last night. I guess how I acted might have made it seem like I liked Fogpaw. I should have thought it over before I yelled at you, okay?"Nightpaw apologized. "S-sure,"Daypaw said. She never expected Nightpaw to apologize. If anything, she had expected her to be more annoyed than ever. "Come on,"Nightpaw said,"Squirelflight is taking us hunting, and then we have to clear out the bedding in the nursery. We can grab something to eat at sunhigh, and then we have a border patrol. If we finish fast, we'll have some time to share tongues and see the apprentice ceremony before we go to sleep at sunset." Daypaw relaxed. Now that sounded more like her sister. Her sister's plans often confused the others, but Daypaw could usually see the sense in them. "We have dawn patrol tomorrow?"Daypaw asked. "No,"Nightpaw answered,"Rainpaw and Snowpaw have dawn patrol tomorrow. Its their first dawn patrol, though, and I want to make sure they aren't late for it." "Oh, okay,"Daypaw said, heading out the entrance of the den,"Sounds like we'd better get started."