The tan-coloured tom walked through the bramble thicket into the busy camp, carrying a rabbit tightly clenched in his jaws. As the tom made his way over to the fresh-kill pile he noticed a group of kits tumbling around the elders' den, and, just as expected, a grey tom cat with a crooked tail slid out of the gap in the hazel bush, Jaggedtail. "What in StarClan's name are you kits doin'?! Go play somewhere where you're not disturbing anyone!" The kits ran off towards the nursery as if their tails were on fire. "Darn kits..." The grey tom muttered just loud enough to be heard before he pushed back into the den. The tan-coloured tom purred slightly at the sight and then proceeded to place his rabbit on the fresh-kill pile. "Nice catch," a voiced mewed. The tom looked up to see a reddish-brown tom with a black stripe on his back. "It's okay, but I still didn't catch more than that, I should go back and try to get some more," the tan tom meowed. "Nonsense! That's more than what I've caught all day, take a break already, you've been going nonstop all day." The red cat meowed, concern in his amber eyes. The tan tom smiled slightly. "I'm fine, Reedclaw, don't worry about me." Reedclaw still looked worried though, the tom then sighed, "okay, if you say so, Lichentail," Reedclaw meowed. Lichentail gestured to the rabbit he had just put down, "why don't you take that to Swallowflight and Tawnytuft? I'm sure they need it looking after those little fur-balls." Reedclaw purred, then picked up the rabbit and headed over to the nursery. "Lichentail! There you are!" A tan she-cat meowed as she padded toward Lichentail. The she-cat was Lichentail's sister, Doefur. "Aspenstar wants to see you right away." She meowed in her usual serious tone. If there was one thing you could say about Doefur, it was that she was never in a joking mood, and even though the she-cat acted older and wiser than Lichentail, they were the same age. "Okay, I'll go see him now," Lichentail mewed in return, nodding in respect as he walked past his sister.

The tom came to a small gap in a cluster of boulders, the leader's den. He slipped into the dark cave-like den, letting his eyes adjust to the dim light. "Ah, there you are," a deep voice meowed from the back of the den. A large long-furred grey tom with faint tabby stripes then stepped into the only slightly brighter light at the front of the den. "How was the patrol? Any sign of that badger?" The leader meowed. The tan tom shook his head, "no sign Aspenstar, I think we chased it into ThisleClan territory." Aspenstar sighed. "Better than here I guess, I'll inform them at the next Gathering." The dark grey tom meowed, "oh, and how's Olivefall doing?" Mewed the leader. "He's doing much better now. That badger left a nasty scar on his flank though, but besides that, Blackfeather says he'll be fine in a few days." Lichentail meowed. The leader nodded, then let out a faint purr. "He's got so many scars, if he gets any more pretty soon he won't have any fur left." Lichentail also purred at the comment.

The two toms walked out of the den into the the cold light of a leaf-fall day, both squinting from the sudden change of atmosphere. Once the leader's eyes became used to the glare, he fully opened them, as did Lichentail. The leader's ice-blue gaze met Lichentail's green, "I'm really glad I chose you as my deputy, you'll be a great leader one day." Aspenstar mewed with a warm smile. Lichentail smiled in return. "Thank you Aspenstar... But that won't be for a very, very long time." The tan tom meowed. Aspenstar looked over towards the warriors' den, where Eaglestrike and Ambercloud, two senior warriors were sharing a squirrel. "I think I'll join them," the grey tom mewed. "I'll see you later Lichentail." And with a final wave of his fluffy tail, the leader padded over to eat with the warriors, taking a mouse from the fresh-kill pile on the way.

Lichentail yawned and stretched, flexing his claws. He had to admit he was feeling pretty tired, so he thought he would go lie down over in his usual spot, a patch of moss covered by ferns at the edge of the clearing. As the tom trekked his way over, he noticed a commotion over by the nursery, the kits were at it again. They were batting a moss ball to one another, jumping on it and flinging it into the air, Lichentail remembered doing the same thing when he was a kit. Then the entrance to the nursery quivered and a small kit--smaller than the rest--slipped out. His ginger tabby pelt like flame on the browning grass, while the kits chin, throat, chest, underbelly and paws were as white as new fallen snow. The ginger kit padded over to the others, but they had already stopped what they were doing and were staring at the little kit, "what do you want?" A brown tabby tom-kit meowed, his tail lashing. The ginger kit looked at the other kits quickly before replying, "I was just wondering if I could play, too." He mewed with a hopeful look. The tabby kit scoffed looking at his denmates. "Alright, we were just about to play warrior and mouse, you can be the mouse," mewed the tabby tom, a smirk on his face. The ginger kit looked confused. "But I was the mouse last time, and the time before that, and the time before that, can't someone else be the mouse this time?" He mewed. "No," the tabby kit replied curtly. "Why not?" The ginger tom-kit questioned, "because you're small, you're the smallest one of all of us." A silvery tabby she-kit meowed, padding over to sit beside the tabby tom. "That's not fair! I didn't ask to be small...and besides, I'm only a moon old," he mewed in defense. "And so am I, yet I'm already bigger than you," the brown tabby kit teased. The ginger kit now looked angry, his neck fur starting to bristle. "Mudkit, why do you always treat me like nothing just because I'm small?!" He meowed with fury in his voice. Mudkit went so close to the ginger kits face their noses almost touched, making the ginger kit take a step backwards, his yellow eyes were narrowed to slits. "You don't get it, do you? You think they remember the small cats? No, because it's the big and the strong that survive, and history is made by the ones who survive, not those who were so small they couldn't even be heard." Mudkit's words made the ginger kit freeze on the spot, his paws shaking. With a final huff, the tabby tom jerked around and padded away, the other kits following.

Lichentail watched as the kits left the ginger tom all on his own. He could hardly believe what he just witnessed. How could that kit be so cruel to his own denmate? The little ginger kit was now sitting, his head hung low. Lichentail reluctantly started making his way over to the kit. When he reached him, his body blocked out the sun casting a shadow on the small flame-coloured kit, yet he did not move. It was as if he didn't even know he was there, that or he didn't care. But after a few moments he looked up, his smoky blue eyes filled with sadness, Lichentail felt his heart jerk from the sight, the kit then quickly wiped his paw over his eyes. Lichentail laid down so he was at the same eye line as the ginger tom. "H-hi." The kit mewed, his eyes still full of clouded sadness. Lichentail smiled a warm smile. "Don't worry about what those other kits say." He tried to sound reassuring. The kit looked down at his white paws, "but it's true..." He started to rip pieces of dead grass out of the ground with his thorn sharp claws. Lichentail frowned, then he sighed. "I'm Lichentail," he mewed casually, the kit looked up again. "I know, you're the deputy, right?" He mewed. Lichentail nodded. He noticed the ginger kit was looking at a scar on his shoulders. "Wanna know how I got it?" He inquired, the kit looked up and gave several quick nods. Lichentail purred and began telling him the story of how a fox had wandered into camp one day and was trying to get into the nursery, and how he had ran in without thinking and battled the creature tooth and claw. And he had underestimated the sharpness of its claws, but in the end was victorious, though he did lose a lot of blood, he was okay. The kit stared in awe as the tan tom told his story. "Wow," he breathed when Lichentail had finished. "I wish I was that brave." The ginger kit mewed. Lichentail looked at the kit with a soft green gaze. "I'm sure you are." The ginger kit's ear twitched and he lowered his eyes. "No...I get scared of everything, one time I got scared by a leaf, I'm nowhere near brave." He continued, "Mudkit says it's because I'm so small, that everything is big and scary compared to me." The kit's striped tail lashed back and forth. "I hate being small!" Lichentail looked at the kit, finding it hard to think of anything to say. "You know," he finally mewed, "I was the smallest kit in the nursery when I was your age." The tom-kit looked up instantly and stared in disbelief. "No way! You're huge!" The kit stated. Lichentail purred, "thanks, but it is true." The ginger kit looked at the tom with round blue eyes. "How did you deal with it? Being small that is." Lichentail had a thoughtful look on his face, he blinked slowly. "I used it to my advantage. Because smaller cats are faster and can go places big cats can't, so really, being small is a means to good things, I earned the respect of my Clanmates once they saw how fast--" Lichentail jumped up and zoomed back and forth, weaving between long blades of grass and dodging leaves that fell from the trees above, "and strong I can be." Lichentail reached out and grabbed a falling leaf by one claw, at the same time dodging another. The ginger kits eyes were as big as full moons. "Wow! I never thought about it that way!" He started to run round, copying Lichentail's moves. "There you go! You're a natural!" The ginger kit stopped and looked up at the tan tom, his eyes now bright and full of determination. "See?" Lichentail leaned down close to the kit. "Never worry about your size, because, even little cats can do big things." The ginger kit smiled and touched his nose to Lichentail's. "I'm going to work hard to be the best warrior I can be!" He declared. Lichentail purred, "I haven't even asked your name, what is it?" The kit puffed out his chest. "Blazekit," he meowed. "Blazekit, a strong name for a soon to be strong warrior." Lichentail mewed.

"Blazekit!" Called a voice from the nursery, a brown and black she-cat then slipped out, Tawnytuft, Blazekit's mother. "Come inside Blazekit, it's freezing out here." Blazekit looked up at Lichentail, the tan tom gave a nod. Blazekit smiled and began padding over to the nursery entrance, looking back one more time before disappearing into the den. Lichentail was no longer tired, he felt determination running through his veins, he made the decision right then and there that he would train Blazekit as his apprentice. I will make you the best warrior Blazekit, I promise, no one will ever call you weak again.