Rosepaw stalked miserably through the forest. This is a disaster, she thought. It was all going to work out. I was going to be a warrior. She kept walking and walking until her paws burned and her legs crumbled from beneath her. Rosepaw collapsed on the grass, exhausted. Suddenly, she noticed the rows of Twoleg dens in front of her. She padded up to one and sniffed the fence. I wonder if any of them would take me in, she thought. She started to meow loudly and a Twoleg kit came up to her. She squeaked and bent down to stroke her. Rosepaw purred as the little Twoleg scratched her ear. This isn’t too bad, she thought. Maybe it won’t be so bad being a kittypet. The warrior code rang in her ears. This isn’t right. Rosepaw turned around slowly and padded off. This is against the warrior code! Suddenly, a nasty odor filled the air. Dog! Rosepaw heard a shriek and barking, along with the distant smell of blood. Terror filled her mind as she detected a familiar scent mixed in.
“Almondpaw!” she shrieked, hurtling through the trees as if her paws were on fire. There stood the biggest dog Rosepaw had ever seen in her life, snarling threateningly at something. To Rosepaw’s horror, she saw her friend cowering on the ground, shaking with fear.
“Rosepaw!” she cried. “Rosepaw, help!” Rosepaw stood there staring and the enormous creature, nearly three times her size. Frozen with fear, she watched the dog stalk towards her cornered friend. A picture of Shadowtail flashed in her mind. Anguish filled her as she realized the same thing was about to happen to Almondpaw.
“No!” she whispered. “No! Almondpaw!” Rosepaw launched herself at the giant dog and dug her claws into its back. The dog howled and released Almondpaw. She leaped into the air to assist Rosepaw. Together, they fought off the dog with the swift blows that their mentors had taught them. Instead of frightened and shaking, Rosepaw felt like she was the most powerful cat in the clan, fighting off enemies with her best friend. Soon they sent the dog running away with its tail between its legs. They stumbled back to camp together.
“Rosepaw! Almondpaw! Where have you two been?” Crystalfur bounded towards them the moment they stepped into camp. She gasped when she saw the condition they were in. “What happened?” Other cat started to gather around, horrified to see the two apprenticed caked with scratches and blood. Rosepaw heard Almondpaw take a deep breath.
“Rosepaw fought off a dog!” she declared proudly. Rosepaws’s fur ruffled in embarrassment as the clan’s surprised murmurs rose up. “It’s true!” mewed Almondpaw. “The dog was about to eat me, and Rosepaw jumped in just in time and fought it off!” Rosepaw lashed her tail. “That’s not true! We both know that I couldn’t have done it without you! You helped me!” Almondpaw rolled her eyes, but Rosepaw could see her whiskers twitching.
“Well,” Rosepaw shrunk back as Crescentstar padded up to them. “I think I know two apprentices who deserve their warrior names.” Almondpaw gasped as the rest of the clan cheered. Crescentstar climbed up to the Highledge. “Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!” Almondpaw glanced at Rosepaw excitedly as their clanmates gathered around the Highledge.
“Rosepaw and Almondpaw have shown much bravery today by fighting off a dog all on their own,” Crescentstar announced. “They more than deserve to receive their warrior names today.” Almondpaw nudged Rosepaw to her paws.
“Almondpaw and Rosepaw,” mewed Crescentstar. “Do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your clan, even at the cost of your life?”
“I do,” mewed Almondpaw joyfully. She looked down at Rosepaw expectantly. Rosepaw opened her jaw and then closed it again and then said, “I…I can’t.” Gasps rose up as Almondpaw looked at her friend, shocked.
“Rosepaw?” questioned Crescentstar, narrowing her eyes. Rosepaw lifted her head to face her clanmates.
“I...I can’t be a warrior,” she mewed shakily. “I broke the warrior code today! I went to a Twoleg nest because I thought I wasn’t worthy to be a clan cat anymore. I thought the life of a kittypet would suit me better.” She hung her head in shame as shocked murmurs floated around. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled, running off to her den.
“Rosepaw!” called Almondpaw, lashing her tail. But Rosepaw didn’t turn around.
Rosepaw buried herself in her nest and tried to sleep everything off. I can’t do it. She squeezed her eyes shut. I’m not worthy to be a clan cat. Suddenly, she felt a warm pelt brush against her. Almondpaw prodded a mouse towards her. “Here,” she whispered. “Eat this.” Rosepaw took a bite out of the mouse and put down her head.
“I’m sorry, Almondpaw,” she mewed. “You should have received your warrior name.” Almondpaw shook her head. “Remember what we said back when we were kits? We’ll become warriors together.” She licked Rosepaw’s ear. “And besides, after you left, Briarleaf came out and told me that I had some strange blindness.” Rosepaw bolted up.
“What?!” she exclaimed. “What?!”
“You only have to say it once,” mewed Almondpaw, annoyed. “And it’s not that big a deal. It’s just that sometimes I can’t see. “Rosepaw paced around her friend.
“Sometimes?” she mewed. “How does that work?” Almondpaw shrugged.
“I’m not sure. I only know that sometimes I can see, and other times I can’t. Most of the time I can’t though.” Rosepaw buried her nose into her friend’s pelt.
“This isn’t the best day for either of us, is it?” Almondpaw curled up in her nest and didn’t reply.
Rosepaw walked through a patch of trees. Am I dreaming? She looked around. This looks kind of familiar. Could this really be ThunderClan? But the trees were rich with green leaves and the air was warm and smelled of plants. It’s not greenleaf… She padded into the camp, confused. She saw two queens sitting outside the nursery, chatting quietly.
“Redshard?” she called out frantically. Her mother didn’t answer her. Can she hear me? Rosepaw padded up to them, but they didn’t even turn.
“I’m worried about Rosekit,” said Redshard. Rosepaw’s eyes widened. What was she talking about? “I’m not sure how she’s going to cope as an apprentice.”
“What do you mean?” asked the other queen. “She’s very well behaved. I don’t think she’ll get into any trouble.”
“That’s just it, Maplefur,” Redshard replied. “She’s always so quiet, and doesn’t like getting into the other kits’ games. I don’t think she’ll like getting her paws dirty, let alone hunting and fighting.”
“Oh, Redshard, you worry too much. I’m sure she’ll be fine.” mewed Maplefur reassuringly.
“I hope you’re right,” said Redshard, her gaze laced with worry. Rosepaw’s mouth dried up. Her own mother had doubted her! She couldn’t imagine what she could be thinking right now, when she had become such a coward. She walked away from them, as if her paws were working on their own. She stepped into the bushes froze as she saw two tiny kits crouched down on a pile of twigs.
“Come on, Rosekit!” mewed the ginger kit. “Just jump!”
“No!” squeaked the white kit. “I’m scared!”
“It’s not that scary, see?” The ginger kit jumped from the twigs and landed with a thud on the ground. “Not scary at all!”
“Maybe not for you,” mewed the white kit. “You can do anything!” Rosepaw’s jaw fell open as she realized that the tiny kit was her.
“Don’t be such a kittypet!” mewed the ginger kit. “You can do it, I know you can!” The white kit shook her head and started to throw the twigs off the pile.
“You’re such a scaredy-mouse, Rosekit!” grumbled the ginger kit as she scampered off. The white kit hung her head sadly. Rosepaw backed her, stricken.
“You haven’t changed a bit, have you?” mewed a voice behind her. Rosepaw whirled around to see a black she-cat standing there. “Who…who are you?”
“You were always a bit of a kittypet,” she sneered, ignoring her. “Always shying away from the least bit of a challenge. Everyone was concerned about you.” She narrowed her eyes. “They were right to.” Rosepaw took a step back, her eyes wide with horror.
“Cats like you don’t belong in the clans,” she continued. “You were right to go to the Twoleg nest. You should have stayed there. What could you possibly have accomplished after that? It doesn’t matter what your friends or your clanmates tell you. You don’t have what it takes, and that’s that.” She turned around and padded off.
“No!” Rosepaw cried. “No!” She felt her legs crumble as she collapsed to the ground. And then she woke up, gasping. Her head started to spin. “No,” she whispered. “It’s too much!” She leaped out of her nest and bolted out of the den.
Rosepaw’s paws thumped on the ground as she raced through the forest. She ran and ran and ran until her paws ached and her stomach cramped.
“You can’t run away from your problems!” hissed a voice. Rosepaw whirled around to see the black she-cat standing behind her. “Problems are different from clanmates, they’ll be there wherever you go.”
“And clanmates won’t?” mewed Rosepaw, confused.
“That’s one thing you learn about life, little one,” hissed the cat. “Everyone deserts you eventually. Soon you’ll be left with nothing but the fur on your back.” She took a step towards her, narrowing her eyes. “But your problems never leave you, no matter how fast you run or how high you leap. They follow you like flies, and you can’t get rid of them.” Rosepaw stepped back, her eyes wide with fear and anguish.
“That’s not true!” she mewed. “My clanmates will always be there for me, and they can help me with my problems!” The she-cat snorted and turned around to leave.
“Believe what you want. I thought the same thing when I was young and naïve, and look where that’s gotten me.” With that, she padded off into the trees, leaving Rosepaw standing alone.
