The Apprentice's Quest

“Come,” Firestar meowed, leading Alderpaw farther along the stream until they reached a place where the water spread out into a pool. Firestar motioned to Alderpaw to stand right on the edge. “Look into the water,” he instructed.

At first all Alderpaw could see was the pebbly bottom of the pool, and a few tiny fish darting here and there. Then the water and the pebbles seem to dissolve, and he found himself staring down into a deep gorge, with a river edged by bare, sandy rocks. Cats were moving here and there among the rocks, gathering into a ragged circle with one cat in the middle.

It’s like I’m a bird, looking down on it all.

As if the bird were swooping lower, Alderpaw found himself suddenly much closer, so that he could see the individual cats more clearly. The cat in the center of the circle was a mottled brown-and-cream she-cat with a noble air, and she beckoned with her tail to some cat at the edge of the circle.

Two cats moved forward: a powerful ginger tom and a smaller black-and-white she-cat. The brown-and-cream she-cat and the ginger tom spoke to each other. Alderpaw felt frustrated; although he could see, he couldn’t hear what the cats were saying.

Then the ginger tom stepped back. The older she-cat spoke to the younger one, and the younger one replied. Alderpaw suddenly realized what he was seeing.

“It’s a warrior ceremony!”

Firestar touched his shoulder lightly with his tail. “Watch.”

The Clan leader—for Alderpaw knew that was who the older she-cat must be—rested her muzzle on the new warrior’s head, and the new warrior gave her leader’s shoulder a respectful lick.

The cats who were gathered around erupted into joyful yowls, pressing around the new warrior and brushing her pelt with their tails and muzzles. The young she-cat looked overwhelmed but very happy.

As the ceremony broke up, Alderpaw noticed a small silver tabby she-cat pad up to the Clan leader and exchange a few words with her. Then the silver tabby looked up, and Alderpaw caught a flash of green eyes before the vision faded and all he could see was the bottom of the pool again.

It’s almost like she could see me!

Trembling, Alderpaw backed away from the edge of the pool. “Firestar, who are they?” he asked urgently. “They look like Clan cats—they were holding a warrior ceremony, just like Clan cats—but they’re not from any of the Clans around the lake. Where are they? Are they cats from the past, or the future? What are you trying to tell me?”

Firestar dipped his head toward Alderpaw, his green eyes filled with meaning, but he did not reply to any of his questions. If he was trying to tell Alderpaw something without words, Alderpaw couldn’t understand what it was.

A moment later, a white mist drifted around him, blotting out the pool and the flame-colored figure of Firestar. Alderpaw found himself back beside the Moonpool, with the other medicine cats beginning to wake all around him.

Happiness thrilled through Alderpaw, warming him from ears to tail-tip. I’ve had a vision! That proves I am meant to be a medicine cat. He opened his jaws to tell the other cats about it, but before he spoke, doubts crowded in on him. I don’t know if it was a real vision. It could have been just a weird dream, like the one I had before.

His doubts increased when none of the other cats said anything about what they had seen. I’ll keep my dream to myself for now, he decided. At least until I’m sure what it was.

Chapter 7

Alderpaw was alone in the medicine-cat den, except for Briarlight, who was curled up in her nest, asleep.

“She had such a restless, painful night,” Leafpool had told him when he arrived in the den to start work. “Try not to wake her.”

Jayfeather had straightened up from where he was bent over Briarlight, listening to her breathing. “I think she’ll be okay now. We’re going into the forest to collect herbs,” he added to Alderpaw. “You can stay here and organize the store. Throw out anything that looks too withered to be useful.”

Now that the two medicine cats had gone, Alderpaw was left to get on with the boring job.

But for once he didn’t mind. It gave him a chance to think over his dream at the Moonpool the night before.

I’m sure it was just a dream, he assured himself. It’s not even worth telling Jayfeather and Leafpool about. They’d think I was crazy!

Instead Alderpaw had decided to make himself useful. In the last few days, he felt he was actually starting to get the hang of being a medicine cat.