Warrior Cats: The Four Clans

Prologue

I cowered under the tall girl's harsh glare. "What did you say to me?" she growled in a voice low enough to be an old man's.
"Nothing," I insisted, wincing inwardly as my voice cracked pathetically.
She snorted. "That's what I thought." She glanced around at her companions - some were equally as large as she, others even more so. They all snickered, their eyes narrowing at my fear.
Her beady eyes burned holes in my face as she glared at me. "Stay out of my way next time. Got it, squeaky?"
Her favorite nickname for me.
"Yes..." I cut myself off. I had almost said, "Yes, ma'am." I covered my near-mistake by nodding vigorously.
She stuck a finger into the center of my ribcage. "Good." She let out a low, rumbling chuckle that echoed through the throats of the thugs behind her.
I stared up at her for another moment, before ducking away and half-running down the hall, not daring to look back.

If only they knew the truth.


Chapter 1
I thrust an arm in the air, my index finger extended, as I nearly shouted the last word of the song. Silver confetti poofed out from machines on each side of the stadium. I grinned at the crowd as I listened to the wild cheers that erupted from all around me. It turned into a chant: "Lind-SEY! Lind-SEY! Lind-SEY!" to which I took a bow that made the dark-haired wig fall in front of my face. Standing up straight and brushing my "hair" away, I cried, "Thanks for comin', everyone! I really appreciate it!" in the voice that was just a tiny bit different than my own, and dashed offstage.

"Great job, 'Lindsey,' " my cousin, Troy, congradulated me with a wink as I came offstage.
"Thanks," I breathed, wiping my forehead with my sleeve. Man, those stage lights were HOT.
"C'mere, Beth-...er...Lindsey," my mom called from outside my dressing room.
"Mom...get it RIGHT," I insisted as I trudged into the dressing room. At least it didn't hurt to breathe, like it did after my first few concerts.
I brushed out my wig and mopped up the sweat on my face, looking into the dressing room mirror. "Ready!" I called after nearly half a minute.
Two security guards escorted me out, followed by my mother in her usual brunette wig and Troy with his hood up, as usual. The gigantic hood on his jacket that he always wore to concerts never revealed his face. He had refused to wear a wig - "It's too itchy!" - so instead he wore the baggy jacket and put the hood up.
I climbed into the limo and rolled down the window to wave to the screaming fans as we drove away. "Thank you, everybody!" I shouted as the limo pulled away from the sidewalk.


Chapter 2

I stared out the window as the limo drove through a dark, one-way street. "I hate having to do this," I muttered to no one in particular.
Troy put a hand on my shoulder and I looked at him. His expression was filled with fake sympathy. "It's what famous people do," he said, nodding as he spoke like I was three years old.
I rolled my eyes, surpressing a smile, and looked back out the window.
Finally, we pulled up at the corner of an almost deserted street. There was my aunt and uncle - Troy's parents - waiting in their Volvo, as usual. I took the wig off my head and let my blonde hair fall to my shoulders. My mom did the same, and Troy slipped off his hood. We got out of the limo and hurridly slid into the Volvo as the limo pulled away.
"Thanks once again," my mom said to her sister, known to me as Aunt Kayla.
"No problem," my aunt replied, a smile in her voice.
"Anything for Miss Pop Star," my Uncle Jacob said, grinning into the rearview mirror as he drove.
I rolled my eyes as Troy snickered, nudging me with his elbow.

I glanced over my shoulder. "Good, I lost them," I whispered in relief, heading toward the front door of the school.
Ashley and her friends had tried to follow me out of the school, but by climbing and descending stairs as fast as I could, now they were nowhere to be seen.
Ashley is the bully, with her army of thugs that always trail behind her. Ashley doesn't seem like a bully's name, now does it? Well, at my school, the name "Ashley" is always followed by a collective cringe from whoever hears you.
Ashley is actually quite pretty, minus her beady eyes that always seem to burn red when she looks at me. She is very tall with strawberry blonde hair and pale skin. She always wears designer clothes, although nothing can hide the fact that she is terribly strong.
Which is why most of us choose to stay away.