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Usagikit pounced in the snow, enjoying the cold, fluffy feeling under her paws. Her mother, Northfrost, was watching her with a smile.
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Usagikit had always felt a bit different from the others, considering that she wasn’t always optimistic like the rest of the Clan, and since Winterwing was her father.
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Her ceremony was tomorrow, and Winterwing treated her to what seemed like more special than anyone else. Of course, PolarClan didn’t mind that. They were also very friendly to her, as well as anyone else in the Clan. She was excited for her ceremony since she would find out who her mentor would be, and she would get her necklace, as everyone who were apprentices and warriors had one. Usagikit personally didn’t know why the necklaces were so special, but she was excited to get one anyway.
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She continued to pounce and burrow in the snow, excited for the day to pass. Tomorrow she would be an apprentice! Oh, she could explore all the territories tomorrow and she bet everyone would be just as friendly as she was meeting them. She hoped her mentor would let her. She wanted to explore the whole Clan territories, like LavaClan and NightClan. She wasn’t sure how she would explore SeaClan, because their territory was literally in the lake, but she was sure she would figure it out. Maybe she could meet one of them if they were on the shore. If only she could breathe in water, too!
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She wanted to catch one of the mystical creatures in ValleyClan and look at the NightClan cats fly like birds. She didn’t think it was fair. While all the other Clans had wings and scales and lava blood, all PolarClan could do was camouflage in the snow.
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Douma, could you have made us a bit more unique? We’re practically arctic foxes.
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“No, but every other Clan wishes they could thrive in such cold places as yourself,” said a voice, very suddenly, from the boulder crevices.
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Usagikit’s gaze snapped to the boulders, and then at her mother, who had padded away and was talking to Cacholong. She looked back at the boulders. That can’t be. I never said anything out loud.
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Something like a soft laugh sounded from the boulders. “You’re not hallucinating. Hello, Usagikit.”
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A figure started to step out of the shadows, but it wasn’t a cat of any sort. It had two legs with a black hard-looking hide covering them. Eyes gleamed with the colors of a rainbow, and clawed paws with fingers were holding a kind of golden fan.
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Usagikit found herself trembling, unable to stop, as Douma stepped out and smiled right at her.
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“I come with a message for you.” Douma circled her as if inspecting her. Usagikit glanced at the other cats, and they all had their backs turned, or even looking in Douma’s plain sight as if none of them noticed a literal Novapelt- our NovaPelt at that- standing right in front of her.
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“Oh, no one else can see me but you,” Douma answered her thoughts.
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“Y-you… you-,” Usagikit stammered.
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“Yes, I’m really here. I apologize for coming on such short notice, young one, but you are destined to be in a prophecy all of us have been trying to solve for generations. I think perhaps I should wait until you’re older for further details, but the thing is, I’m not very good at acting all mystical and mysterious like you’d imagine a NovaPelt would be, so I’ll get to the point.” Douma laughed again, and Usagikit instinctively looked at the Clan members again, and of course, they didn’t notice anything.
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“Tomorrow, as soon as you can, you must go to NightClan. It will be a long journey for you, but I promise that we will guide you. There is a cat- the same age as you- who is having his apprentice ceremony tomorrow. You must meet him, as he will be very important to you very soon. I will meet you at the entrance of the camp tomorrow after you’re an apprentice, and I must have your answer by then. If you don’t accept, then- let’s just say your whole destiny will fall.” For the first time, a frown appeared on Douma’s face as he looked at her with gleaming, emotionless eyes.
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“Y-yes, I accept,” Usagikit stammered again.
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Douma smiled once more. “Good! Farewell, young one. I will see you again tomorrow, I hope.” When Usagikit looked at Douma, blinked, opened her eyes again, and Douma had vanished.
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Usagikit found she was still shaking. I have a reason to be shaking. I have real feelings, unlike the rest of PolarClan, and I just got an order from a NovaPelt. What could she do? There’s no way she couldn’t say no. She wanted to explore the Clans since she heard her first story about them. And what was so special about this cat from NightClan? Did he know what was going on, too? And how was she, a nobody, in a NovaPelt prophecy? She couldn’t believe what had just happened. She didn’t even know what the cat looked like, or what his name was. Maybe I can ask Douma tomorrow.
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She looked up at the dimming sky, and there was already a star that shone right above her as if it was watching her. Usagikit looked at it for a long moment, her thoughts racing. It wasn't until the sun was almost gone from the sky that she looked back down when Northfrost walked toward her and smiled in front of her. “Time to spend your last night in the nursery, dear. Winterwing is very enthusiastic about performing your ceremony.”
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Northfrost said the word “enthusiastic” as if it was hard to come out. Sure. As if he can feel enthusiastic. Why do I have to be the only one with emotions? Do I truly belong to any Clan?
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Usagikit followed her mother to the nursery, curling into a ball and closing her eyes, her mind still lost in thought. This may be the last time I get a great night’s sleep. I’ll have to stay awake at night if I am to meet with a NightClan cat, and after that, who knows, being an apprentice may also be exhausting! I might as well enjoy this.
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She breathed deeply, and then darkness swept over her and she fell asleep.
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Usagikit woke up when Northfrost licked her ear gently, and she lifted her head to see the biggest “smile” on her mother’s face. She was standing, and it looked like she’d been awake for some time.
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I must’ve slept deeply. Ergh, what was that dream? She thought she remembered seeing blood in her dream… though it was foggy.
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“Time to go out of the nursery, dear. The whole Clan is waiting for you outside,” Northfrost said.
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Usagikit yawned and stood up, heading out of the nursery. Snowflakes immediately embedded in her fur, sprinkling over the mountain even though it seemed like there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Ignoring them, Usagikit strolled down with her mother to the clearing, every Clan cat sitting below the SnowRock.
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“Ah, and there she is, everyone! Usagikit, come, come, sit below the rock. You must know what day it is, yes? Everyone, today is very important! My own daughter is becoming an apprentice today. Ah, a great day, indeed!” Winterwing laughed from atop the SnowRock, and Usagikit wanted to dive in a deep snow cave to hide from all the smiling eyes that were staring at her. Do the other Clans have Clan meetings as undignified as PolarClan? she thought in second-hand embarrassment.
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She sat below the rock, and Winterwing immediately spoke again. “Usagikit, dear, you will now be known as Usagipaw until you become a warrior. Now, who wants to be your mentor? Let’s ask, shall we?” Winterwing turned to the Clan. “Who feels they have the desire and skills to mentor Usagipaw? Raise a paw!”
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Many Clan members lifted their paws, shouting in what sounded like excitement with smiles as wide as the mountain.
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“Oh, let’s see… Neptunewhisker! I will pick you to mentor Usagipaw if you wish?” Winterwing looked at the warrior as she lowered her paw and nodded. “I’d be honored!” she purred.
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Yes. As if I’m a rabbit handed out to the chosen cat to eat, Usagipaw thought.
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“Um, Winterwing,” she meowed despite herself. The Clan stopped cheering and Winterwing looked down at her. “What is it?” he asked.
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“Um… could I… maybe… not have a necklace?” She hurried on as the Clan gasped softly. “I just don’t think it would suit me, is all. I think it’s great that you all like jewelry things, but if it’s possible, I’d like to skip this part of the ceremony, if that’s okay with you, Father. Would it really hurt to… to not have a necklace?” Usagikit’s mind was on the journey. I’d prefer not to wear a necklace during the journey through the other Clan territories. I don’t get why it would be required to wear a necklace. I would hate wearing something cold and hard on my neck for the rest of my life. My father will agree to my request… right?
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Winterwing looked at her as if he was confused. “What an odd request… I suppose, if my daughter wants, we could make an exception… are you sure, dear? This part of the ceremony has been going on for generations. This necklace is your Clan’s signature! Do you really want to be the one to not have a necklace? I don’t think you’ll be able to go back on this…” he said unsurely.
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Usagipaw nodded. “I’ll take that risk, Winterwing. I would like to not have a necklace,” she replied as firmly as she could.
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Winterwing flicked his tail. “Alright, then. Neptunewhisker, congratulations on your new apprentice, and, of course, congratulations, Usagipaw, for becoming an apprentice!” he said cheerfully. The Clan cheered once more, and Usagipaw forced a smile.
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“Clan dismissed!” Winterwing called after a few moments, and Clan members parted different ways, going about their day.
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Usagipaw started toward her mentor. “Neptunewhisker, um…” she paused awkwardly. How in all the moons am I going to explain this? she thought. “I’m gonna go outside the camp and… and explore the mountain, is that alright?” she asked.
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Neptunewhisker raised an eyebrow. “By yourself? When you’ve never been out of camp? Didn’t you just have an odd-enough request at your ceremony?” she asked, as if bewildered.
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Usagipaw tried to play along. “I didn’t think of that request as odd… isn’t it something every new apprentice wants to do? I’ll be fine, I promise. I bet Winterwing would let me,” she meowed wryly.
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Neptunewhisker looked at her for a moment, then sighed. “Alright. Go on, then. Try to be back before tomorrow, for Douma’s sake. Don’t get lost in your head!” She padded away, leaving Usagipaw alone.
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My, she’s so careless. I don’t know if I’m gonna learn anything from her, Usagipaw thought.
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She padded over to the entrance, and when she reached it, sure enough, a figure appeared out of nowhere beside her, turning out to be Douma.
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“Usagipaw! Congratulations.” Douma grinned at her, and Usagipaw was still unsettled. She couldn’t yet get used to the fact that the figure of PolarClan was talking to her as if she were a friend.
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“Come with me, come with me.” Douma turned around and whisked out of the camp. Usagipaw exhaled, and then stepped out of camp for the first time and followed him.
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She was led down a slope to an outcropping of rocks, and there Douma stopped and waited for her to catch up. She was out of breath- she had never walked this much distance at once before.
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“We all want you to know that we’re always going to be here to guide you,” Douma said.
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Usagipaw blinked, and suddenly all the NovaPelts stood beside Douma on the other boulders.
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Usagipaw’s mouth gaped open involuntarily.
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N-no way…
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Akaza, the LavaClan NovaPelt, was standing beside Douma, inspecting Usagipaw intently. Nemo, the founder of SeaClan, also looked at her and smiled. Zohakuten, the figure of ValleyClan, looked her up and down with an expression as if he couldn’t care less about her.
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After a moment, Invincible, the figure of NightClan itself, leaped down from the boulder he was standing on and appeared right in front of her in a flash. Usagipaw looked up at the huge tiger, not knowing what to do or how to react.
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Invincible said nothing, just stared at her with gleaming blood-red eyes for a long moment. Then, he turned and whooshed back as Douma stepped forward again.
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“We just wanted to show you, Usagipaw, how real we are, and that you and the cat you will find very soon have the greatest destiny beyond anything you can think of,” he said with a grin.
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Usagipaw couldn’t say anything if she wanted to. Her throat felt completely constricted. What happened to being a completely ordinary kit in the PolarClan camp?
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“You aren’t ordinary, Usagipaw. I hope you can see that. You guys may go now.” Douma waved a hand at the other NovaPelts, and they vanished within another blink.
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“Now, you have three ways you could go to reach NightClan. You could pass in the middle where the Gathering place is located, though I foresee there could be a lot of enemy Clan cats patrolling the borders of their territories from there on the whole path.
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“You could also go around to the left side, where you’ll have to pass through LavaClan territory before you reach the jungle. I must warn you if you haven’t heard, that Akaza has made that Clan into a very strong state, as well as LavaClan’s environment. That would be tough to pass, considering the ashfall and smoky air. That might have a sickening effect on you soon enough, but it is the quickest way. If you hurry through the volcano and breathe shallowly through your nose, you might make it, as I’ll try to prevent LavaClan warriors from discovering you on their territory, though that’s really in Akaza’s power to decide.
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“Finally, there’s the longest option, but what seems like the safest. You can pass through ValleyClan and the shores of SeaClan until you reach the jungle, as they aren’t as vicious as LavaClan and could hear you out if you get caught and explain what you’re doing. A tiring way through the valley and the long lakeside, but you’d probably have the best chance of making it without getting into trouble. Ah, anyway, it’s your choice overall. Which way will you choose?” Douma looked at her patiently as Usagipaw analyzed the decisions despite her bewilderment.
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LavaClan is short, but it doesn’t sound easy- or safe, for that matter. I could go in the middle direction and go along the path to NightClan territory… but I could still run into an angry LavaClan warrior, or anyone, really, considering it’s the middle of all Clan territories. And the last one… I suppose… is the safest…
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Usagipaw looked at Douma. “I’ll go through ValleyClan and SeaClan territory,” she meowed.
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Douma lifted his smile. “A long but safe choice. I will leave you to it. Remember, I’ll always be with you, just out of your living sight. Good luck, Usagipaw!” He vanished in thin air.
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“You’re just gonna… HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW WHERE TO GO?!” Usagikit shouted at the air.
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As if in answer, a gust of wind blew her to her front-right side, and the snow became a darker color as if making a path. “Well, thank you for that, I suppose,” she murmured.
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She turned in the direction of the gray snow and started her path to NightClan.
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