"Mosskit, you have reached the age of six moons and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From now on you will be known as Mosspaw," Crookedstar meowed. "Mosspaw, your mentor will be Whiteclaw. I hope Whiteclaw will pass down all he knows to you. Whiteclaw, you are ready to take on an apprentice. You had shown excellent training from Leopardfur, and you have shown yourself to be brave and true. You will be the mentor of Mosspaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to her."

Whiteclaw walked up to Mosspaw and touched her nose.

"Mosspaw!" "Mosspaw!" the Clan yowled.

Mosspaw's mother, Lilystem, rubbed her nose against her fur.

"I'm so proud of you," Lilystem purred.

Mosspaw wished that her father, Whitefang, could be there, but he had been killed by a fox moons before.

"It's surprising that Whiteclaw was given an apprentice," Blackclaw meowed discontentedly. "He is a very inexperienced warrior."

Leopardfur started to fluff up her fur, but Oakheart stepped in.

"Enough," Oakheart meowed sternly. "Crookedstar chose Whiteclaw, and that's that. Maybe you'll get to mentor Heavykit or Shadekit."

Blackclaw sniffed and turned away. Heavykit and Shadekit were not very much younger than Mosspaw, and she knew they would be apprentices soon.

"You should go meet your new denmate," Oakheart meowed warmly.

Mosspaw padded over to Silverpaw.

"Hello," the older apprentice mewed shyly. "Would you like to see your new den?"

"That would be great!" Mosspaw mewed excitedly.

She followed Silverpaw into the apprentices' den. It was a tangle of reeds similar to the nursery.

"Mosspaw!" she heard a cat meow.

They walked out of the den and saw Whiteclaw sitting there.

"I'm going to show you the territory," Whiteclaw meowed.

Mosspaw felt excitement shoot through her.

"Mistyfoot, go with them," Leopardfur ordered.

Mistyfoot padded up to them.

"Let's go," Whiteclaw meowed, turning and trotting away.

Mosspaw followed the warriors through the stream. It felt good, as it was newleaf. They followed the river for a while. Then, Whiteclaw stopped.

"What do you smell?" he asked.

Mosspaw concentrated, sniffing the air. "More cats. But they smell different, like trees."

Whiteclaw nodded approvingly. "That's ThunderClan."

Mistyfoot nodded to a cluster of large stones across the river. "That's Sunningrocks."

"They belong to ThunderClan," Whiteclaw hissed. "For now."

The cats continued along the river. Suddenly, Mistyfoot and Whiteclaw both crouched down. Mosspaw did the same. Mistyfoot sniffed the air carefully.

"I don't smell anything," Mistyfoot meowed.

Whiteclaw and Mistyfoot stood up. Mosspaw saw a dirt path in front of them. It smelled strange and harsh.

"This is a Twoleg path," Whiteclaw explained.

Mosspaw shivered. She had heard many elders' tales of Twolegs. The cats quickly passed over it. Mosspaw noticed a roaring sound she had noticed earlier getting louder. She followed Mistyfoot and Whiteclaw toward the sound. Mistyfoot motioned with his tail for Mosspaw to stop.

"Be very careful," Whiteclaw meowed.

Mosspaw crept forward. Suddenly, the ground dropped away in front of her. There was a river so far below it made her dizzy. She looked up and saw water cascading off a cliff.

"This is the gorge," Whiteclaw explained. "And that is the falls."

Mistyfoot flicked his ears and the cats retreated from the edge.

"Over there is WindClan territory," Whiteclaw meowed, flicking his tail to a place beyond the gorge. "And over there is ShadowClan territory."

"We'd better head back," Mistyfoot meowed, her eyes softening. "I bet you're hungry and tired."

Now that she mentioned it, Mosspaw could feel her stomach growl and her paws ache. The sun was starting to set.

"I could eat a whole trout!" Mosspaw meowed.

Mistyfoot purred in amusement. The cats walked back to the camp.

"Eat something, and then you can rest," Whiteclaw meowed. "You did well today."

Mosspaw wearily walked to the fresh kill pile and dragged off a fish. It wasn't a trout, but it would do. After she finished, she went into her den and fell asleep.