I wrote this as a challenge for The Clan Cat Cafe.

Description: A fourteen moon old apprentice, tired of waiting for his/her warrior ceremony, sets out to do something heroic in order to prove that they are worthy of a warrior name. Does their expedition turn out as they expected? That's up to you to find out.

Word requirement: 800 minimum; no maximum

OC or canon: OC

Type: One-shot

Poke. Poke. Harder poke.

"Goway, sleeping," the patched apprentice mumbled, his words mixing together incoherently. He flailed his paw blindly, trying to hit whoever was bothering him.

"Spottedpaw, it's time to get up," someone whispered next to him. His ears flattened against his head. He had already reached the decision that he was not waking up, the one fond of poking might as well give up. He felt teeth grip the scruff of his neck and was about to let out a yowl when the voice spoke again.

"Don't you dare make a sound. Get. Up," Darkriver meowed quietly but firmly, for who could it be but her. No one else ever talked to him. The black warrior sighed before continuing, "If you don't get up now, I'll get a lizard from the valley and drop it on you when you least expect it."

Spottedpaw shuddered in disgust. Lizards were so creepy with their scaly skin, staring eyes, and tails that just broke off randomly. How could she even threaten such a thing!

The long-furred apprentice rolled over onto his paws and slowly stood. His yellow eyes blinked several times as they adjusted to the darkness. After a few seconds, he could make out Darkriver's silhouette in front of him.

With a flick of her tail, the black warrior padded out of the apprentices' den. Spottedpaw contemplated curling up and going back to sleep, but an image of a lizard flashed in his mind, and he padded out after her.

"How come you woke me up?" Spottedpaw wanted to know.

"I'll tell you when we get in the tunnels."

"Why hasn't the guard seen us? Wait, tunnels!"

"I may or may not have slipped poppy seeds into her prey. Now shush!"

Apprentice and warrior crossed the open area of the cavern WillowClan called their camp. There were many entrances to tunnels in the stone walls, passages which led to many places in or on the mountain. Darkriver quietly led the apprentice into one of these holes.

Spottedpaw felt earth turn to cold stone, the sides of the tunnel pressed against his fur causing panic to rise in his chest. Darkness, darkness everywhere, he couldn't even see his whiskers. No sounds except the noise of his paws hitting the stone. No smells but the scent of fear. He had to get out, his heart was pounding in his ears. He had to run. Run! But he was frozen with terror.

"Why did you stop?" A voice cut through the panic. He saw Darkriver turn around to look at him, her blue eyes glowing in the dark. "Spottedpaw, what's wrong?" He could breathe again, the passageway wasn't collapsing on him.

"I'm afraid of small spaces," he confessed quietly as he began moving again.

"Oh. I'm sorry, I forgot. We should be out of here before long," Spottedpaw could hear the concern in her voice. She shouldn't worry, he'd be fine.

"And where exactly are we going?"

"Didn't I tell you? I guess not. Well, you're fourteen moons, and you're still not a warrior because no one wants to admit you exist because they think you're a mistake. And I want an apprentice so I figured we'd team up. Only the strongest warriors can reach the top of the mountain so they'll have to listen to us when we bring back a sprig from the Pine," Darkriver finished, obviously pleased with her insane plan.

"That's insane," Spottedpaw pointed out. But...it could work. If they were very careful.

"Never stopped me before," the black warrior said. They carried on in silence for almost a minute.

"Could you keep talking, please?" Spottedpaw meowed as he felt a slight touch of panic.

"Okay." Darkriver began to ramble about everything from the weather to the prey she had caught that day. Her voice washed over him like a gentle stream, and before he knew it, they were nearing the end of the tunnel.

A slight breeze ruffled the apprentice's fur, and he purred. Spottedpaw could see a faint light up ahead that grew steadily brighter as they near the end of the tunnel. He smiled as his face was bathed in moonlight. Fresh air filled his lungs, and his swiveling ears could detect the whistle of the wind. Stars shone brightly above him, the spirits of his parents watching over him.

Darkriver draped her tail over his back, and he turned to smile at the black warrior. "Where would I be without you?" he wondered. She was the only one who didn't care that he was half-clan. The only one who ever spoke to him, and now she was helping him become a warrior. He hoped that someday he could be as kind as her.

"Oh, don't start getting all sentimental on me. Come on. We have a mountain to climb."