A/N: I'm back and better than ever! I think...
Light paws tread silently on the bracken and moss covering the forest floor. Carefully assesing each and every one of her own movements, Ravenpaw crept along under the shade of towering trees. The mouse scurrying a few tail-lengths away focused in Ravenpaw's soft green eyes, and she picked up her pace a little bit, claws coming out, ready to sink into the mouse. With a mighty leap, she flew through the air and stretched her claws outwards. Thank StarClan her claws sunk into the flufy brown fur. Letting out a small huff of pride, Ravenpaw gently picked up the mouse in her jaws, and trotted along to where she had buried her other prey.
Maybe Whiteblaze will tell my dad how wonderful I did today! Ravenpaw felt her heart lift at the thought. Ever since her brother, Ashpaw, decided to be a medicine cat,Heronwing and Firethroat had paid no more attention to her. All sunhigh long, Heronwing, Ravenpaw's fussy mother would fawn over the medicine cat apprentice, treating him as if he were better than StarClan. And she was beginning to get enervated of it. Sure, Poppynose, the medicine cat, had a dream about him and that he was destined to become one of the best medicine cats the Clans have ever seen. But wasn't becoming a strong warrior better?
"That was a good catch, Ravenpaw," Whitefoot meowed in his rumbling voice, stepping closer to his apprentice. His normally white paws were covered in cakey dirt, with burrs and brambles stuck over the soft fur. Ravenpaw often thought that he should've been re-named to Dirtyfoot.
Ravenpaw purred a thank you and set the mouse down, freeing her jaws. "Shall we take all of my prey back to the camp?" she questioned, making sure hint that she had caught a lot.
"Let's do that, " Whitefoot agreed, beginning to dirty his paws even more as he scraped the dirt off of her buried prey.
Counting quickly, Ravenpaw confirmed she had caught a whopping four peices of prey, not including her mouse. Proudly, she looked up at Whitefoot, a gleam in her eyes. The two cats started along the way back to the ThunderClan camp. Ravenpaw had a vole tucked under her chin, and in her jaws she had stuffed her mouse and squirell. Whitefoot carried the larger of the two squirells and had another mouse. She felt very weighted down with the heavy load, but moons of training made her carry on.
As mentor and apprentice padded along the trail, Ravenpaw allowed her thoughts to wander. What were Heronwing and Firethroat doing right now? Well, Firethroat was the deputy, so Ravenpaw imagined he was sending out the sundown patrol, his obstreperous
commands and snarky comments echoing thoughout the camp. And Heronwing was probably fussing over Ashpaw. Ravenpaw almost dropped her prey when she wanted to let out a meow of laughter. Poppynose would probably be trying to get Heronwing out of the medicine den, while Ashpaw concentrated on the new poultices he was trying to create.
The ThunderClan camp loomed into view, and Bravepaw raced over, his red-brown coat blending against a few of the trees as he waved his white tipped tail in greeting. Ravenpaw admired the way his well developed muscles gleamed under his clean coat. Whitefoot paced foward even more quickly to greet the Bravepaw, who was only apprenticed two moons before Ravenpaw. Bravepaw was orginally named Redkit when he was born, but in the very first moon of being an apprentice as Redpaw, he had outsmarted and fought a Shadowclan patrol all by himself. Tanglestar had called upon StarClan to name him Bravepaw.
"Oh my StarClan!" Bravepaw yowled, almost running into Ravenpaw. "You caught so much," he said admiringly, stroking his white tip down the black she-cat's shoulder. "I wish I were as good as hunting as you."
Dropping her prey, Ravenpaw tucked her face into her chest fur. "Oh, it's nothing," she mumbled as she spat out the other two peices of prey. Her heart raced as Bravepaw ducked down and picked up the squirell. He closed one bright blue eye, winking at her, and picked his way up to the thorn and bramble barrier leading into the camp.
Ravenpaw noticed Whitefoot smiling to himself as he watched Ravenpaw's embarrasment. She grit her teeth, forced herself not to be all giddy over the older apprentice, and followed him up. When she got into the camp from her slow plod up, Ravenpaw scurried over to Whitefoot, who was beckoning her over with his striped tail.
"And she caught a good five peices of prey!" Whitefoot was meowing excitedly, looking up at the tall Firethroat.
Ravenpaw felt her heart begin to race. Her mentor was telling Firethroat what a good job she had done!
Firethroat meowed, "Ah, well done, my kit. ThunderClan is lucky to have you." He got up and looked around, pricking his ears. "I wonder where Tanglestar wandered off to..."
Dejectedly, Ravenpaw lowered her head and let her tail lay limp. It was hopeless! If Firethroat would never notice her, Heronwing would be much harder.
Whitethroat coughed, "Uh - Firethroat? Excuse me...?" When Firethroat turned back around to face the tabby and white warrior, he continued, "Um, do you think Ravenpaw could look to become a warrior soon?"
Firethroat's amber eyes blazed suddenly, and Ravenpaw shrunk back. "WARRIOR?" he yowled, his usual snappy voice coming back. Lowering it, Firethroat snapped, "You cannot possibly be thinking of making Ravenpaw a warrior. We have five apprentices - all very good. Bravepaw and Cloudpaw are the oldest, and THEY are not even ready to become warriors! As for Palepaw, she has MANY moons to go...and Ravenpaw, we'll just have to see about her."
"Not to disrespect," Whitefoot meowed quietly, subdued. "But I wasn't talking about Palepaw. At least, I believe, Cloudpaw and Bravepaw should become warriors. They have been training for over a season."
Ravenpaw knew without really looking, that most of the Clan was looking over at her mentor and the deputy. Silently, she wished for somecat to come over and break this up. A silence settled over Whitefoot and Firethroat. Tanglestar stalked over to the quarreling cats. Ravenpaw wished she could just disappear into the rocks behind her.
Tanglestar said quietly, "what is going on here?" He had only become the leader last moon, and was very young. That showed in his voice, which flowed with only four seasons worth of usage. He sat down.
Quickly, Firethroat explained detail by detail about the argument the two had just had.
"Bravepaw and Cloudpaw will become warriors next moon, then. It's settled," Tanglestar said firmly. "I just want to make sure that Firethroat and Hazelfur are training the two to the best of their abilities."
Firethroat coughed, "We are! Don't you remember why Leapordstar named Bravepaw, Bravepaw? He is going to be one of the best Warriors the lake has ever seen!" He added under his breath, "Thanks to me."
Tanglestar narrowed his eyes. "Send out the evening patrol," he murmered, getting up.
Ravenpaw let out a sigh of relief as the leader padded off, greeting his mate, Sageflower. She turned to Whitefoot and nodded at him as Firethroat called out for the evening patrol. "Thank you," she murmered.
()()
"You're right - these traveling herbs do tase better now," Poppynose was saying as she licked her muzzle. "I can't believe nocat ever thought of this!"
Ravenpaw watched sadly as Poppynose smiled at Ashpaw. She pulled her head back as Ashpaw pricked his ears and looked around the den. Since it was dark out, the den was even more poorly lit than usual. Ravenpaw listened quietly to the trickle of the pool of water in the den where cats could drink, and breathed in the scent of tangy and sweet herbs.
Poppynose continued, "I'll have to let your father know of your success." She began to pad around the den, cleaning up the mess the two had made. "And tomorrow, we need to go get some more comfrey."
Ashpaw nodded and picked up a few poppy seeds on the pad of his paw. "I'll do that first thing in the morning."
Ravenpaw backed out from behind the draping lichen and padded away, towards the apprentice den. Poppynose's last heard words echoed across the silent camp in Ravenpaw's ears. It made her wonder why her parents never said it to her, why they never even bothered to notice her.
"I'm so proud of you."