Chapter One “Mintkit! Mintkit!” Glimmerkit’s voice filled her head. Mintkit slowly got up from her resting area, “What do you want, Glimmerkit?” She snapped. “Oh, no, Mintkit! You better be nice to Glimmerkit!” Scolded Darkshimmer, Mintkit’s mother. She flicked her tail to show that she had heard, “Sorry, Glimmerkit. You know how I am after someone interrupts my sleep.” Glimmerkit nodded while Darkshimmer gave her a “quit that right now!” stare. “Glimmerkit!” A voice called, “Smallwind wants to check something!” Glimmerkit looked at Mintkit and rolled her eyes, “Here we go again.” “GLIMMERKIT!” “Okay, okay I’m coming Glidingfeather!” She raced out of the nursery, poor Glidingfeather sounded like she was about to claw the ears off of her own kit! Glimmerkit had been very into herbs and been getting visions from StarClan which meant she was a medicine cat. Smallwind was about as excited to have an apprentice as a cat about to devour a nice and juicy mouse all by themself. Mintkit padded over to Grovekit and prodded him with her paw, when he didn’t wake up, she screamed in his ear, “WAKE UP THERE’S A FOX TRYING TO EAT US!” He bolted up and looked around wildly, Mintkit snicked. Grovekit growled and jumped on her – well he attempted to jump on her. She had moved out of the way at the last second and he had landed on his face. “What was-!?” Grovekit started, but was interrupted by a screeching outside. “WHERE’S THE FOX!” Branchpaw screamed. “Mouse brain! We were just playing!” Mintkit said. Darkshimmer gave her a death stare. “Sorry…” she mumbled. Behind him she could very much hear Nightpaw and Daisypaw laughing at him. Branchpaw and Nightpaw had just become apprentices a couple moons earlier, Beepaw and Daisypaw were the oldest. And Turtlepaw was stuck in the medicine cat’s den. Nightpaw entered the nursery, “Where’s Glimmerkit?” she asked. “Oh, she’s with Smallwind again,” replied Mintkit, “I can’t wait to be an apprentice!” She exclaimed. Nightpaw nodded excitedly, “You’ll love it! Who do you think will mentor-?” Branchpaw coughed audibly, “What I’ll love is to finally have a friend! Grovepaw, do you think you could grow up fast-AHHH-!” Nightpaw hit him in the face, “Do I not qualify for that role?!?” She chased him out of the nursery. Daisypaw stumbled backwards, “Nightpaw is seriously scary sometimes!” “Almost as scary as Mintkit!” Said Grovekit while nodding his head. “That’s why we’re friends!” Exclaimed Mintkit. Daisypaw nodded and left shortly after. Grovekit went to the elder’s den, and Glimmerkit was still not back from the medicine den, so she had the idea to sneak out of the nursery. Silently, she slipped past Darkshimmer and out of the tiny den. Outside she saw Beepaw and Daisypaw eating some fresh kill, her stomach growled, but she refused to be caught. Crystalstar was walking around camp talking to Stonefall, the deputy of ShadowClan. Perfect! She thought, I’ll eavesdrop on their conversation! But somehow it felt wrong so Mintkit only inched a bit closer to them, hiding in the bushes. She began to pick up a few words. “The kits,” this was Crystalstar’s voice, “are nearing their sixth moon, they should be apprenticed soon.” Mintkit choked back a squeal. “How about in two weeks?” This was Stonefall’s voice now.
She heard Crystalstar agree and then say, “Stonefall, do you think I chose the right cat?” Maybe for mentors thought Mintkit, Crystalstar continued on, “I still feel like it should've been Glimmerkit.” Now Mintkit was confused, “She’s the future medicine cat after all…” Stonefall was speaking now, “Glimmerkit has brown fur, not black like Mintkit.” Mintkit’s heart skipped a beat, why was she mentioned in this? “The cat in the vision was black and had teal speckles just like her, she has to be the right one.” Mintkit was shaking now, what did this mean? She raced back to the nursery, wishing she had never heard anything. Crystalstar chose Mintkit. Chose. What was she chosen for? Two weeks had gone by and Darkshimmer had only gone seventy-five percent frantic mother mode when Mintkit had arrived at the nursery. Thankfully that was all behind her now and Mintkit was about to be apprenticed. She could hardly wait! She heard Crystalstar yowl for a clan meeting. Mintkit practically sprinted over and sat as still as the stillest rock in the forest. Her eyes glazed over the camp, the warriors den, elder’s den, nursery, leader’s den, and finally, the apprentice’s den. I’m going to sleep in there soon, she thought. More happy thoughts swarmed in her head but they were interrupted by a, “Mintkit,” her heart pounded as she stepped up by Crystalstar. “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 Mintpaw.” Mintpaw licked Crystalstar’s shoulder. “Tallfish,” she said, “You have mentored many apprentices and they have been excellent warriors, I rely on you to pass on your skills to Mintpaw.” Mintpaw walked up to Tallfish and they touched noses. The clan cheered Mintpaw’s name. She smiled, forgetting everything she had heard those weeks ago. She, Mintpaw, was finally an apprentice. Mintpaw watched as Grovekit became Grovepaw, and Smallwind stepped up to do the future medicine cat’s ceremony as well. Beepaw and Daisypaw each earned their warrior names, Beeflight and Daisyflower. Mintpaw was sure that the clan would lose their voices tomorrow from all the cheering. “I bet the clan is going to lose their voices tomorrow from all the cheering!” Exclaimed Grovepaw. Mintpaw jumped. Grovepaw gasped, “Did I just scare the one and only Mintpaw?!?” Mintpaw growled, trying to hide the uneasiness that stirred inside her. One and only her mind kept repeating, one and only. She took all the words she had heard and tried to make sense of them. Crystalstar, chose, mint, black, speckles, teal, Glimmerkit, medicine- “Hey, uh, Mintpaw. Are you okay? You kinda look like you’re about to descend off the ground.” Mintpaw shook her head, “Sorry, I was zoning out. You know, we finally became apprentices!” Grovepaw looked at her in a way that said yeah, right but didn’t say anything else. After accomplishing her new responsibilities, Mintpaw padded over to the nursery, she stepped in and- “Uh… Mintpaw?” She whipped around to find Nightpaw making a weird face at her. “Yeah?” Nightpaw fake coughed and said, “You’re not a kit anymore.” She flicked her tail at the nursery and then the apprentice’s den. “Oh… yeah…” Mintpaw ran over to the apprentice’s den and chose a bed nearby Grovepaw in the corner, hoping nobody else saw that embarrassing moment. Nightpaw padded in not long after with Branchpaw a tail length behind. She nestled into the moss bed across from her. Branchpaw took the bed next to Grovepaw. “Mintpaw,” Nightpaw said, “Are you okay? You seem to be troubled.” Mintpaw shifted uncomfortably. “I’m… just tired from the ceremony. It was one of the longer ones.” Nightpaw glanced at Grovepaw and they shared a look. “If you say so.” She said, “I’m going to go to sleep now.” She left it at that. Mintpaw was grateful. After all, whatever Crystalstar had said probably wasn’t important and plus, she had a long day ahead of her.
