Bloodkit and Pantherkit

"What did she want?" Pantherkit asked as soon as she got inside the nursery.

"What did she say?" Strongkit added.

"Guys, she will tell us if she wants to. Don't pressure her." Wildkit called from the back of the den.

Bloodkit blinked greatfully at Wildkit. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you."

Slenderkit, laying next to her, snorted on his sleep. Bloodkit felt a pang of jelousy at how peaceful he looked. With a shiver, she remembered how him limp and cold he looked in her dreadful nightmare.

"Sure, Bloodkit." Her friend blinked with understanding. "let's go get something from the freshkill pile."

Both she-kits went outside tailbto tail. Wildkit, who was getting taller every day, reached for the top of the pile and grabbed a fresh, warm vole; big enough for both of them to share.

"What is it?" Wildkit asked as they settled on a corner at the edge of the clearing, were parties of hungry warriors were settling for a well deserved meal.

"I had a nightmare..." Bloodkit began when she'd made sure everycat was too busy on their meal to pay attention to the two she-kits.

Wildkit lowered her voice to a murmur. "Was it a ghost again?" Her friend knew how dead cats haunted her constantly.

Across the clearing, Irislight was resting on a sunny stone. Bloodkit suspected the translucent apparition had an eye half-opened, and was keeping it on her; Bloodkit knew dead cats did not need to sleep.

"No. It was..." She swallowed. Her throat felt stucked. "I saw you and Strongkit and my brothers dead. You where covered in wounds and blood..." She couldn't bring herself to tell her that Bloodkit thought she had been the one to kill them.

"What a horrible dream! Bloodkit, I've told you already; I think you must tell everything to Vividsong."

Bloodkit stared at her with a horrifyed expression. "No way! What if she thinks I shouldn't be a warrior? What if they cast me out for being a freak?"

"What if your destiny is to become a medicine cat?" Wildkit inquired.

"I don't want to! And besides, even medicine cats can't see ghosts when they're awake, they see spirits in starclan." She shivered, remembering some of the most perturbed apparitions she'd encountered. "The cats I see.. Not all of them are nice. "

She thought of Jaguarspots, a warrior who had been brutally murdered in his sleep. The cat was so ancient that his figure was faded and translucent; he claimed he was unable to be at rest till he discovered who his murderer was.

Wildkit's eyes widened. "Even so..."

Bloodkit shushed her as she saw Orangefur approach them. "Your mother is coming." The orange queen looked at Bloodkit with scorn. Bloodkit knew Orangefur didn't like seeing her daughter and Bloodkit together.

Thats her own problem. Wildkit and I won't ever stop being best friends for anything. She thought stubbornly

Most of the clan eyed Bloodkit constantly. She'd heard whispers of her being a loonatic who talked to herself. Yet, fear kept them from expressing their opinions openly. Cheetahpelt seemed to be the only cat in the clan who wasn't intimidated by her sister, and the only grown warrior who had affection towards Bloodkit.

As Orangefur came nearer, Bloodkit sensed that the queen was troubled by something else besides Bloodkit, for once. She wondered whether she should go back to her nest.

"Bloodkit! Bloodkit! " Irislight shouted across the clearing. Even though Bloodkit knew nobody else could hear her, she still felt her ears warm up with embarrassment. Irislight had clearly spranged up at the opportunity to interrupt, proving Bloodkit right about her spying.

Bloodkit whispered to Wildkit's ear, "I'm going to the dirt place tunnel."

Wildkit gave her an understanding nood.

With a frown, Bloodkit made her way to the apparition. She signaled with her tail for Irislight to follow her to a silent spot apart from any cat's eyes.

"Do you have to yell in front of everyone?" She muttered, looking out for cats near by who might listening; it wouldn't do for her to prove Wolfclan cats right about her being crazy .

"You silly kit, you know nobody ese can hear me, right?" Irislight tryed shoving Bloodkit playfully, but Bloodkit moved aside. She knew Irislight couldn't actually touch her, but she didn't care for feeling the sensation of a spirit going through her.

"Stop it!" Bloodkit whined through gritted teeth.

Irislight sat on her hunches with a satisfied expression. "Really, you are so easy to tease sometimes."

Bloodkit bristled indignantly. "When I'm a warrior, nobody will tease me."

"I suppose you mother pretends to make you an apprentice soon." Irislight dipped her head to one side.

"Not soon enough for me." Bloodkit's little feet tingled at the thought of hunting and fighting for the clan. And yet, her fantacies where disturbed by a perturbing thought. "Irislight... I should be a warrior, right?"

Irislight rolled her eyes as she replied, "How could I tell? As you perfectly know, I'm not a Starclan cat."

Bloodkit stared unimpressed. For a dead cat, Irislight had less wisdom than an apprentice.

"I don't care about dead cats, I'm going to be the best warrior in the clan." She resolved firmly. She paused before adding quickly, "You are a useless ghost."

"Useless?" Irislight reapeted indignantly, but then her eyes sparked mischievously. "A ghost can be useful to overhear gossip."

Bloodkit's interest sparked. "Do you know something about Wolfstar?"

Irislight snorted. "Silly kit, there are far more interesting things out there than Wolfstar."

Bloodkit disagreed, but she pricked her ears attentively. "Like what?"

"Like Skyclan, Or rather, as they call themselves nowadays, Moonclan." Irislight replied dramatically.  "Turns out I wondered up there the other day, and I saw something rather peculiar. "

Bloodkit remained quiet. She didn't know much about Moonclan, just that of all the rival clans, they where by far the worst.

"That clan is full of misteries and some very weird cats, " continued Irislight, "Strangest of all is the family of their leader, Moonstar; he has a daughter who's about your age, but there is something going on with her. Some whispers say that either she was sent from starclan, or destined to doom them all." Irislight looked expectant, seemingly for a reaction.

Bloodkit was indeed puzzled by all this. She had heard that Moonstar was Wolfstar's greatest rival. Did that ment his daughter really had to be as bad?  "Why are cats saying all that? She's just a kit. "

"I didn't fully understand. I think she has a curse or something."

Bloodkit felt annoyed with the whole race of cats suddenly. "She's just a kit." She repeated with annoyance.

Irislight purred.  "You are a very smart kitty." Then her semblance turned a bit more serious. "Cats will assume and have prejudices about other cats, based on their clans, families, and appearance. But what really matters is their hearts and their  actions. "

Bloodkit was troubled by Irislight sudden shift of tone. She ussually didn't take anything seriously, insisting that she was dead so what did she care anymore. "Why are you telling me all this?" She asked.

Irislight took a deep breath. "Because a part of your upbringing has been neglected. It's time for someone to teach you what it means to be a warrior, by teaching you the warrior code."

Bloodkit confusion risen. "The what?"