Lightfall's POV

"Lightfall, Lightfall, Lightfall!" a small voice yowled. I lifted my head up, my mind still blurred with sleep. As my eyes adjusted to the morning light, I saw Ivykit sitting in front of me, the look on her face of pure pleasure.

"Yes, what is it Ivykit?" I asked.

"Me and Mousekit are going to be apprentices today!" she declared, puffing out her chest.

"Oh, congratulations!" I meowed. I had forgotten that Stormlight's two kits had reached their sixth moon.

"And that's not all," she continued, "Branchpaw and Willowpaw are becoming warriors."

"Good for them," I purred, "So, Ivykit, are you and your sister going to train extra hard?"

The gray tabby kit nodded vigorously. "We'll be the best apprentices WindClan has ever seen!"

"I'm sure you will."

Ivykit ran out of the den, declaring her good news to anyone who was willing to listen.

My mind floated back to the subject of my Moonpool dream a few sunrises ago. What had Windstar chosen me for? And why me? I had to stop my musings when Echostar called the Clan together.

"Today, WindClan has new warriors and new apprentices. I will start will the warriors. I, Echostar, leader of WindClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to learn the ways of your noble code, and I commend you to make them warriors in their turn. Willowpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," Willowpaw meowed quietly.

"Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your warrior name. Willowpaw, from now on you shall be known as Willowheart. StarClan honors your courage and your integrity, and we welcome you as a full warrior of WindClan. Branchpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," the tom replied, louder than his sister.

"Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your warrior name. Branchpaw, from now on you shall be known as Branchtail. StarClan honors your energy and dedication, and we welcome you as a full warrior of WindClan."

"Willowheart, Branchtail! Willowheart, Branchtail!" the Clan cheered.

Echostar cleared her throat. "Now for the apprentices. Mousekit, Ivykit, please step forward. Mousekit, you will now be known as Mousepaw. Breezeheart will be your mentor."

The shy Mousepaw touched her nose to Breezeheart's before ducking away, embarrassed. Maybe the small brown she-cat could learn from her spirited new mentor.

"Ivykit, you will now be known as Ivypaw. Ashwing will be your mentor."

Ashwing's blue eyes blinked in surprise. The young warrior must not have known she was going to be a mentor. She touched noses to Ivypaw, and the new apprentice bounded up and down, unable to contain herself. I purred, brave and enthusiastic cats like Ivypaw would be the future of WindClan, and I couldn't be any more proud.

My dreams were peaceful. The clarity of everything I could see was astounding, and I watched in awe as a scene began to unfold in front of me.

Two cats, a white she-cat and a black tom, were sitting in front of me, staring into each other's eyes. After a while, the she-cat dropped her gaze.

"What's wrong?" the tom asked.

"I don't know," she paused, "This, us, it doesn't feel right."

"But it is right. There's something special about you, something I've never experienced before. I love you, remember that."

The she-cat grunted, still unsure. The tom watched her for a long moment. Deep emotions flickered across his green eyes, some familiar to me, some not. Finally, he stood up.

"Well, I'll remember that. Someday you'll see. I love you more than you could ever imagine, and I'll prove that to you someday. Someday," he finished, his voice steady, "Someday you will love me back. I'll talk to you again in the morning. Goodnight."

The image faded away, and I could feel a stillness in the clearing. The stillness of words left unspoken.

"Well, wasn't that touching?" meowed a voice behind me. I turned around, and there was a strangely familiar wiry brown she-cat there, staring at me with unblinking yellow eyes.

"Windstar?" I asked, not sure if my identification of the new addition was correct.

She rolled her eyes, and scoffed softly, "The one and only."

I nodded. "What was that? What did I just see?"

"The future, Lightfall. Part of what will soon become another famous tale of two star-crossed lovers, even though at this time they have not yet met."

"Does it have anything to do with me?"

"It does if you want it to," she replied.

"Is there anything else you want to tell me, Windstar?"

Now she nodded. "Yes. You still remember your dream during the last Moonpool visit, do you not?" she didn't wait for an answer, "Good. Then you know that you have been chosen for a very important journey, one that will shape the future of the Clans in more ways than one. But you will not be alone. Three others have been chosen. Snowheart of ShadowClan. Leafpaw of RiverClan. Stain, a rogue. You will meet with these cats on the night of the quarter-moon, on the Island. It is impeccable that you be there, Lightfall. You must not let me down."

Before I could respond, she padded away. But that didn't matter. I knew that I would be there. It was time to see what these mysteries were really all about.