AN: I EDITED THIS VERY LITTLE! I only changed the gender from female to male!

Two cats padded through the forest, talking softly. "Mitzie, why must we leave the forest, and our son?" Asked the black tom. "Smoke, you know why we must. The Clans will never accept us. Replied the tabby. "Why must we leave our son, he might not be accepted either." Smoke flicked his tail nervously. "You know as well as I do that he will. He has a destiny that only the stars can predict." Mitzie stopped, and gazed at the starry sky. The cat watching this through a pool purred with satisfaction. "Yes, he does." Pawsteps sounded. "Firestar!" The bright orange tabby looked up to see a cat. "Yes, Jayfeather?" He asked. "What did you want to share with me this time?" "Finding the shadows is the way to the light."

Jayfeather jolts awake from where he lay at the Moonpool. He looks at Alderheart, ready to tell him what he had heard. Then his keen sense of hearing picks up on small mews. "Do you hear that?" Alderheart asks. Jayfeather nods. "It sounds like a kit!" He exclaims. They race up the stone steps, a few tail-lengths away, they find a black kit with grey tail and ear tips. "It's a tom." "What should we name him?" Jayfeather thinks, and the kit opens his eyes, and Alderheart gasps. "His eyes are bright orange. I have never seen a cat with such bright eyes." Jayfeather speaks up. "Emberkit." He murmurs. "His name will be Emberkit."

Emberkit tumbled out of the Thunderclan nursery. It had been two moons since the medicine cats had found him. Why did my parents abandon me? He had no time to worry about this. Today was the day he became a medicine cat apprentice! He had wanted to be one the moment he saw Alderheart help Sparkpelt with a thorn in her paw.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting." He heard Bramblestar call. "Emberkit, 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 medicine cat name, you will be known as Emberpaw. Your mentor will be Alderheart." He touched noses with Alderheart, and wrapped his tail neatly around his paws, listening to the cats call his new name.

Emberpaw! Emberpaw! It felt weird to be called by a different name, but it also felt good. "Well, do you want to see where the herbs grow?" Alderheart asks. "Yes, please!" Emberpaw squeaked, then slapped his tail over his mouth, embarrassed from behaving like a kit. Alderheart blinks sympathetically. "It's alright, I was excited when I became an apprentice, too." Following Alderheart out of the camp, he caught a few cats staring at him with undisguised hostility in their gazes. "Alderheart, why are they staring at me like that?"

Alderheart gave a look to the cats that were staring, and they quickly looked away. "It's because they aren't used to outsiders. Don't worry, one day they'll accept you. You are going to be an amazing medicine cat!" Alderheart's praise meant more than anything. He never got much attention from his foster mother. He preferred to stay in the medicine den. He already knew how to pull a thorn out of a cat's paw.

He padded after Alderheart, following him to the abandoned Twoleg nest. He saw plenty of herbs, as it was newleaf. He padded over to an herb and identified catmint. He had no clue as to how he knew that. "Can you tell me what catmint is used for?" He thought for a moment and then spoke. "Treating coughs, though it is very useful for treating greencough."

Alderheart looked surprised. "I know you spend a lot of time in the medicine den, but I have not had to treat that for a while. How do you know that?" Emberpaw shook his head in confusion. "I'm n-not sure." He was surprised when a look of recognition flashed on his mentor's face. "Starclan must have plans for you, if they already gave you knowledge of herbs." What is he talking about? Why does Starclan have plans for me?

"Let's head to the Shadowclan camp. I want to see how Shadowsight and Puddleshine are faring."

As they neared the Shadowclan border, Emberpaw picked up a scent. It smelled like pine needles. "That's Shadowclan scent, isn't it?" Alderheart nodded. He seemed pleased that he guessed correctly. He nervously looked across the border, worried about how the Shadowclan cats would treat him. A Shadowclan patrol neared, Tawnypelt leading it. "Alderheart. Why are you here?" He dipped his head respectfully. "I was bringing Emberpaw to visit Puddleshine and Shadowsight, if that's okay?" Tawnypelt blinked and nodded. "Come on, then." The Thunderclan cats padded slowly across the border and followed the others to the Shadowclan camp.

As they entered, Shadowsight bounded over. "What brought you here?" Alderheart flicked his tail in greeting. "I wanted to bring Thunderclan's newest medicine cat to meet you and Puddleshine." Emberpaw stepped out from behind his mentor. "Hi, I'm Emberpaw." Shadowsight dipped his head in greeting, and beckoned Puddleshine over. "Who's this?" He dipped his head respectfully as Alderheart said; "Emberpaw, Thunderclan's new medicine cat." He awaited an answer. "He doesn't look like any two cats in the Clans." Puddleshine answered after what felt like a moon. "Oh, that's because I don't have clan blood." Puddleshine didn't seem too surprised. "Rouge, then?" He nodded.

"I'm going to work harder so I will be accepted. Some of the cats don't like me." Shadowsight blinked sympathetically. "I understand how that feels." Emberpaw felt a little better, and he straightened up. "See you at the half-moon meeting!" Shadowsight called as they were leaving the camp. He waved his tail in acknowledgement. He liked Shadowsight because they had both been through some tough things as kits and apprentices.

"They seem nice." He meowed, and Alderheart nodded. "They are, and at the half-moon meeting, you'll meet Kestrelflight, Mothwing, Willowshine, Fidgetflake and Frecklewish." He had heard of the medicine cats when he came to the Clans and had wanted to meet them for a while. He guessed he was cut out to be a medicine cat, because he never wanted to be a warrior. He knew it was an honor to be one, but he knew he wasn't cut out to fight or anything because he was small, and his claws weren't as sharp as a warrior.

Emberpaw sat down at the entrance to the medicine cat den, waiting for his mentor so they could leave for the meeting. After a few heartbeats, Alderheart padded out of the den. "You ready?" He rose to his paws and nodded.

He followed him and Jayfeather out of camp, nervous but excited at the same time. At the top of the spiral staircase leading to the Moonpool, he saw the medicine cats. The cat's leaders listen to. The cats who communicate with Starclan.

He kept his shoulder fur flat, and his tail still. "Who's he?" Kestrelflight meowed. He looked at his mentor, and he nodded. "I'm Emberpaw, the new Thunderclan medicine cat apprentice." Kestrelflight nodded and beckoned his down the path. He slowly padded down the path, his paws fitting into the indents in the stairs. So, this is where Starclan wants me to be. This is...amazing.

AN: why's it like- actually kinda good-