First Steps

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All things happen for a reason, even if they are horrible events that kill many. Green eyes flashed through the dimness in the den she was in. She was going to be a leader now, no more living in this den with her peers. Foxstar had vanished when the flood had hit their land. Without saying, everyone knew that she was gone for good, Swiftfire as well.

She hadn't wanted to believe it at first, but as the days had passed she had begun to take leadership of the clan, still hoping for the fox looking cat to appear. It wasn't until last night that everything had been confirmed. Starclan had sent her dreams of the leader walking off into the woods. No matter how hard she had tried to catch up, Foxstar was always out of her reach. Once, the she-cat had turned around with sad eyes and that made Swiftfire finally certain as to what to do next. Foxstar was out of her reach and then Starclan had added a surprise. They had sent a wave in her dream, mimicking the flood, and pushed her away from the forest. She had ended up at Mothermouth. It was clear what they wanted and she didn't dare question it. Even if it was a dream from Starclan or not, something was telling her to take the position of leader.

Facing her clan now would change Windclan forever, hopefully for the better. It was always like this when a leader had to be replaced, but it felt different being a part of the cause. She strode out of the warrior's den and padded towards Swiftbreeze's den. The leader to be needed advice. She needed to know who to name Deputy now that her fears had been put to rest. She was accepting her leadership status officially today. Later, she'd travel to the Moonstone, but not without leaving someone in charge of the clan while she left.

"Swiftbreeze, I need to ask you something," she meowed as she went into the den that smelled of powerful herbs and berries.

((Time Frame in which this happens...probably the morning before Foxstar comes into Windclan to say things to Swiftbreeze, or even earlier...))

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Swiftbreeze

One day love will find you. Break those chains that bind you. One night will remind you, how we touched and went our seperate ways...

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Warm sunlight peeked through the cracks of the roof of his nest, dappling the ground with beatiful shades of the same color. While on rainy days, these wholes were more problematic then anything, on sunny days like these, it was nice to bathe in the sunlight with little noise coming that would otherwise disturb him. For once in a while, he was content, moving his nest into the largest patch of sunlight and silently thanking StarClan for at least one thing going right since the storm... No... Since the disappearance of their previous leader, Foxstar. The thought of the she-cat made him shift uncomfortably in his lest, leaving him staring at the back of his den.

Swiftbreeze had never been a very good medicine cat. He had a bad memory, slacked off during most of his work, and, while his mentor tried to teach him about herbs, all that was going through his mind was 'she-cats...'. It had never really bothered him. His mentor was a good medicine cat and rarely ever needed his help in rough situations, so he thought he would just live his life sitting around while the older of the two did her job. And then she died. So Swiftbreeze, young, foolish, and practically untrained, was forced to step up to the position-by himself. At first, he kind of freaked out. Then, he kept mixing up many of his herbs. He still had little knowledge, expecially when it came to names of the herbs, but he would always take a moment to think, 'alright, what did that herb she used in a situation like this look like...'. It got him... sorta far, but if he wanted to be a medicine cat his clan could be proud of, then he would have to work hard.

Or he could run away.

"What are you thinking, Swiftbreeze?" he asked himself aloud, shaking his head. "You can't just run away from your problems! Besides, where would I go?" He thought about for a little bit. He was born a loner, and his sister barely lived a day in the clans. Maybe he was destined to live outside the clans... maybe...

"Swiftbreeze, I need to ask you something," said a voice from behind him. The tom couldn't help but jump and let out and 'eep'. He turned to see Swiftfire, soon to be Swiftstar, in his den. So it had been the soon-to-be leader who had spoken. But why did she want advise from him? 'I could give advice to save my life, much less another...' he thought, sitting up in his nest and staring at her. A she-cat... He had to resist the urge to flirt... again. He had promised himself that he would never try to hit on his clanmates again. It had mainly been for Foxstar's sake, but also that fact that love-to a medicine cat, anyway-was forbidden. So he kept his jaws shut and kept his comments to the confinements of his mind.

"Ah, Swiftfire, how are you?" He tried to speak in his normal voice, and, to the most part, he thought it worked. "What can I do for you?

Medicine Cat of Windclan

If he ever hurts you, true love won't desert you. You know I still love you, though we touched and went our seperate ways...

Tom | WindClan | Med. Cat | Black and White | Green

(Song lyrics belong to their respective artists)

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At the rustle of leaves and moss, she fully entered the den, glad that Swiftbreeze was here. She needed the support he offered right now more than ever. Foxstar had died too quickly, not giving her enough time to prepare for the leadership position. Knowing that at least the medicine cat was there and hadn't abonded her too, made her thank Starclan.

Swiftfire caught sight of Swifbreeze as he sat up in his nest and she couldn't help feeling she'd disturbed the tom. His friendly words wiped any misgivings away from her mind. Well, how was she supposed to ask him...he was afterall a young cat for his position? She'd just have to try was all and if he couldn't give her advice then it was alright and she'd just ask for a hint from Starclan at Mothermouth.

"I was wanting advice on who to name deputy. Do you have any ideas on what cats would fit best? I'm sorry, it's just... I thought I could use a second opinion," she flustered. It just felt so unreal, trying to find another deputy, the position she'd held for a while now. She could still remember how excited she'd been when Foxstar had named her deputy even though she went against her to protect her clan. Now she needed to find a cat to take that responsiblity, one that earned it just as much, or more, than she had.

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((Heck with the table. I've already made you wait for this reply for so long, so you can just read it plain and simple.))

Swiftbreeze watched in silence as Swiftfire completely entered his den. This was odd-others rarely ever visited him, expecially within his own den. Was it that he wasn't a likable tom? Or maybe his flirty ways scared others away. Or perhaps it was some magical combination of the two. But that wasn't something to worry about at the time. The deputy apparently needed his assistance and the least he could do was gift her with just that-assistance. Of course, knowing him, whatever she needed help with he would mess up. But it was the thought that counted, no?

"I was wanting advice on who to name my deputy," Swiftfire began. The tom had to resist the urge to ask, 'Are you sure you're asking the right person?'. He was already bad enough with advice, and still being so young only made things more difficult. And, to make matters worse, there were few cats in WindClan to chose for a deputy. How would he know the perfect cat for the position? Perhaps that wasn't what she wanted-a straight out anser. It wasn't his decision, after all, but hers. Besides, he would probably make the wrong choice. "Do you have any ideas on what cat would fit best? I'm sorry, it's just... I thought I could use a second opinion," the ginger and white she-cat continued.

"No need to be sorry, Swiftfire," he meowed reasurringly. "Sometimes the opinion of others is somewhat necessary. But I'm afraid I can't tell you exactly who you can chose for a deputy... That's your decision, not mine. But I suppose I can help you with what to keep in mind when choosing one." The black and white tom tried to sound as smart and sophisticated as he possibly could. The last thing that he wanted was Swiftfire tinking that he was disrespectful. Or, at least, something of the sort. "Sorry if that's it's not the kind of advice you were looking for... But it's the best I can do."

Taking a deep breath, he began, "First order of business, who, at a glance, do you think would not be fit the position. Absolutely out of the question. And don't try to exclude someone from the picture just because you don't like them-if they are the best choice, but you don't choose them because of your dislike towards each other, they'll probably feel a bit cheated on. And, for the same reasons, don't choose someone just because they're your friend. If you do choose a friend of yours, choose them for their abilities and not because your buddy buddy towards one another. But you already knew all that, didn't you?

"Once you've got that figured out, the best thing to do is to think about your own strengths as a person. What virtues to you have? What made you the best choice for deputy when Foxstar gave you the position? Well, one of them is open to others' opinions. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here, would you?" He laughed a bit, even though his comment wasn't all that funny. "But the most important step-find out what virues your missing. Say Blackstar is leader of his clan and is brave, kind, and loyal. But he's also impatient, childish, and a bit rude. His deputy can be the wimpiest, meanest, most disloyal cat in the clan, but can still make a decent deputy if he's patient, mature, and polite. Do you see where I'm coming from?"

The tom thought bitterly, 'Knowing my luck, she didn't understand a single word I said. That, or she wanted to now who I thought was deputy...' Staring at Swiftfire, he wondered if she would be content with his silly little advice or if she would grow angry with him for telling her something she already knew...

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((Sorry if this is the lamest post ever, but I need to get some material down here.))

Swiftfire, soon to be Swiftstar, wrapped her tail around her paws and listened. Swiftbreeze was rather new to the medicine position and she didn't blame him when she saw his surprise at even being addressed with this issue. She knew she was a bit out of line, but didn't leaders ask for advice from more than one cat? Usually it was the deputy or medicine cat who advised the leaders, along with close friends. Well the close friend she thought she had....she didn't know anymore. Something told her that he had had a crush on her, but now...was he swept up in the flood? There were so many doubts and really, every time she closed her eyes she could see each cat being swept away in a mighty torrent of water. Foxstar had been a victim of it and Starclan was finally pressuring her to set her paws in her place. It was time for the cat with a questioned heritage to take her rightful place as the clan's leader. Swiftbreeze was going to help the one question that held her back though. Who was she supposed to name deputy when she came back from MotherMouth. Hopefully Starclan would help, but right now she was needing some advice.

Her ears pricked as he began and she nodded for him to go on whenever she thought he'd stop to collect his thoughts. The cat was acting off, she noticed. He was trying the act any kitten or apprentice would with their leaders, trying not to be disrespectful and such. It made her smile as she gave herself a mental note to address it with the tom.

His advice rolled through her thoughts and she cocked her head, showing she was really trying to grasp this. It wasn't like she'd been trained in finding the right traits before, Foxstar really hadn't passed any of her know how onto her before she left unexpectedly. It was good to hear familiar feeling words though. From what she was hearing, she had been thinking on the right track, but the advice helped form her thoughts together. Swiftfire felt that she could actually begin to think straight as Swiftbreeze put everything in proportion. Who said he wasn't knowledgeable for his age? Not this she-cat.

When he was about done, she didn't miss his light joke, which she smiled at, but kept her serious face on as she concentrated. With the example over as well, Swiftbreeze finished. His eyes bored into hers and she blinked, straightening her body back up. In the den light, her green eyes glowed at the tom. They were brimming with happiness and acceptance, but a bit of fear and confusion lit them as well. It was great advice and all, and it helped a lot, but still...who? "Yes, I do. Thank you Swiftbreeze. Your advice has really helped me organize my thoughts again," she meowed and then looked down. "With the flood and Foxstar suddenly,... it's been really hard," she spoke and then looked back up. A faint shimmer of tears lay near the side of her eyes, but other than that she seemed alright.

Swiftfire stood up on her paws and continued. "Now all I have to do is figure out who fits all those expectations," she grinned. "I'm finally accepting my title, so can you please get me some traveling herbs, too." The she-cat was filled with a bit more confidence in herself, but fear was still there burning her chest. What if's swirled through her mind as she tried to remain focused on the cat in front of her without totally losing it.