FSE

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Chapter One

Twigpaw's body quivered with excitement as he ran. He was a black-and-white bicolor cat, and his fur pattern made it appear as though he were wearing a sleeveless tuxedo. Black fur ran from both sides of his head down to his neck, leaving a strip of white in-between. His left ear was white, while his right was black like the rest of the fur. The top of his tail was completely black, and the bottom of it white. His two front paws were black, and on his muzzle was a black dot that helped make him unique.

Running next to him was his sister, Cloudpaw, who was also a black-and-white bicolor cat, though her patterns weren't like her brothers'. She instead had patches of black spread out along her back, and on her right side, a patch of black that looked similar to a heart. All of her ankles had black rings on them, and she has black on her face similar to Twigpaw. But instead of a stripe of white, she has a single patch of white on her forehead. Her tail was white except for a patch of black on the bottom, near the base of the tail, and at its tip, on the top.

It was nearing moonhigh, and tonight, the full moon hung high in the sky. That meant it was time for a gathering, a time when all four clans--Springclan, led by Leafstar, Summerclan, led by Breezestar, Fallclan, led by Autumnstar, and Winterclan, led by Froststar--came together under a truce that lasted for only one night. At the gatherings, they normally shared news, such as Apprenticeships or Warrior Ceremonies, or troubles, such as Twolegs causing prey to scatter.

Beside him, he could feel his sister shaking as well. This was both their first gathering, and as they grew nearer and nearer to the gathering place, the Sky Plain, a flat plain on top of a hill many cat-lengths high, he could feel his excitement growing.

His clan, Springclan, pelted up the single steady pathway that led to the Sky Plain. They slowly came to a halt when they reached the flat top, and Twigpaw's heart skipped a beat when he saw how many cats there were. There were cats of all shapes, sizes, and patterns! From Tabbies to Tortoiseshells, Apprentices to Elders, there seemed to be endless combination. Then he remembered he wasn't going to be mingling with the larger group of cats. He was a Medicine Cat, and as such, he would be with the other Medicine Cats and their Apprentices.

Twigpaw turned his head and looked at his sister. She was staring ahead at the crowd of cats, probably as amazed at the sight as much as he was. Then he remembered something, and decided to remind her as well.

"Remember what Leafstar said. 'Use this truce as a time to learn about the other clans. Learn their habits, and see if you can get information from them. But don't give information yourself.'" He mewed to her. She nodded in response, to show she heard. Twigpaw let his gaze go to his leader, Leafstar. She signaled with her tail, and the patrol pounded forward onto the plain. Many cats turned their heads toward them, and the cats nodded greetings.

Just as soon as they had come, the patrol had scattered and begun mingling with the other cats. Only him, his sister, and his mentor Berrystorm, a cream pointed tom with a dark grey face and limbs, his muzzle turning light gray from age, remained.

"Twigpaw," his mentor mewed to him, "let me introduce you to the other medicine cats." Twigpaw looked around the crowd of cats, trying to scent which one might be a medicine cat from the herb scent on their pelt. He couldn't smell one. Berrystorm pointed with his nose towards the back of the plain. A large rock jutted upwards, out of the edge. Below it, there were four cats huddled together.

"They're over there, under the Sky Rock, Twigpaw." Berrystorm mewed.

Twigpaw lifted his paw and was about to begin walking towards the Sky Rock, but then froze. He turned his head and looked at his sister.

"I don't want to leave Cloudpaw alone." He told his mentor, but didn't look away from Cloudpaw.

Berrystorm was about to say something, but Cloudpaw spoke first.

"I'll be fine, Twigpaw. I'll go find Blossompaw, and be with her. She's probably nervous, too."

"But..." Twigpaw was about to say something to be able to stay with her, but decided against it. "Alright, then. I'll see you when the meeting starts, okay?"

"Some cats would think you're my father, Twigpaw!" Cloudpaw purred. Without another word, she turned around and padded off to find her den mate.

Twigpaw turned back to his mentor, and nodded. Silently, Berrystorm led the way over to Sky Rock.

"Greetings, Berrystorm!" Mewed a light gray tabby she-cat, who dipped her head to Berrystorm.

Berrystorm returned the gesture, mewing "Hello, Hazelfur!" They both lifted their heads, and Berrystorm continued speaking. "I trust all is fine in Fallclan?" He asked.

Hazelfur hesitated for a moment, and then nodded. "Two of our apprentices are sick, but they are recovering quickly. They are well enough to get by without me tonight."

"That's good that they are recovering." Berrystorm replied.

Berrystorm looked at Twigpaw, and then looked at the other cats. "Fellow medicine cats," He began, "I would like you all to meet my new apprentice, Twigpaw." The other cats greeted him with purrs of acceptance. Twigpaw gave his chest fur a couple of quick licks to hide his embarrassment.

When he looked up again, he saw a pretty black she-cat with a white muzzle, neck, and chest fur, and her two front paws were white as well. She looked no older than him. As she spoke, her dark green eyes met his hazel. "Hello! I'm Petalpaw. I just got appre-" she was cut short by her mentor, who happened to be Hazelfur. "As well as Springclan, Fallclan has a new apprentice as well." Hazelfur looked happily at Petalpaw. "And this young she-cat is her. Petalpaw." she finished, and the cats purred as they had for Twigpaw. Twigpaw stood calmly as the other cats looked at her.

The other medicine cats broke up and began mingling in their own groups. Berrystorm with Hazelfur, and Coppertail with Yewwhisker, while Twigpaw and Petalpaw were left alone. "So, how long ago were you apprenticed?" Twigpaw asked, hoping to start a conversation. "Only a few sunrises ago, actually," she replied. "I was apprenticed with my two siblings. The sick two sick cats that Hazelfur mentioned," she finished. Twigpaw felt bad for her. Her siblings should be here with her. "I'm sorry about that, Petalpaw." He sympathetically meowed. "It's alright. Gorsepaw's too headstrong to let sickness keep him down for long." She purred. Twigpaw wanted to still feel bad, but Petalpaw's cheery attitude made him believe that he didn't have to. Suddenly, he heard a loud voice from above him. "Let all cats gather below Sky Rock for the gathering!" it yowled.

He looked up and saw Leafstar sitting with three other cats. The other leaders... Twigpaw thought. He looked through the cats that were gathering around the Sky Rock, and quickly spotted his sister at the front. He padded towards her, and when he turned around to sit next to her, he noticed Petalpaw had followed him. "Sorry for following you. I had a fight with one of the other apprentices, and I don't want to be near him." She explained, after she had settled next to him. Twigpaw replied with a nod, and then noticed Cloudpaw looking strangely at Petalpaw. "This is Petalpaw, Fallclan's medicine cat apprentice." He explained, and then looked up at Sky Rock. "Look, the leaders are beginning to speak!"

Cloudpaw and Petalpaw both looked up at the leaders. Leafstar was standing up, announcing her news. She was almost done with her report. "...and other than that, Springclan has only one other thing to share. Recently, we have had the pleasure of apprenticing three cats. And those three are Cloudpaw, Blossompaw, and Twigpaw!" She finished, and all the cats shouted their names as if at a naming ceremony. "Cloudpaw, Blossompaw, Twigpaw! Cloudpaw, Blossompaw, Twigpaw!" They shouted, and every cat turned their eyes to the three. Twigpaw held his head high this time, and his sister followed. Two cats away, though, he could see Blossompaw ducking shyly.

Leafstar bowed her head, signaling that she was finished, and sat back down. Breezestar spoke next, reporting nothing but good hunting and fair weather. Autumnstar spoke of some Twolegs at the edge of her territory, but nothing else was out of the ordinary. "She must not want to admit that some of her apprentices are sick..." thought Twigpaw. Lastly, Froststar was to speak. "Prey has been well," she began, "but we have a more important matter at hand." Twigpaw heard questioning whispers ripple through the crowd. Froststar waited until they died down to speak again. "Our medicine cat, Yewwhisker, has had a dream." All eyes turned to Yewwhisker, who looking like he was about to say something, but Froststar spoke before he could. "There came a leaf-bare, and the days began speeding up. Our clan thrived, while the other clans began to wither away. Eventually it was time for Newleaf, but the snow never left. The other clans' cats suffered slowly, and eventually Greenleaf came. Still, the snow stayed. It did this for many seasons, until only Winterclan was the sole survivor." Gasps erupted from the crowd immediately, and the cats began asking each other what it could mean. "My fellow clans, I believe that this can mean only one thing." Everyone grew quiet. "All the other clans will be killed off, and Winterclan will reign supreme!"