Falconkit looked over his shoulder and flicked his small tail in excitement when he saw that his foster mother, Blueshadow, and his sister, Swankit, were both asleep. Paw over paw, he slunk out of the nursery and bounded into the gorge. Rock walls towered above him. To cats other then SkyClan cats, the gorge would seem like a prison, but it was his home, and he loved it.
He ventured further away from the nursery. He could not see any of the warriors anywhere, but he did spot Sharpclaw and Patchfoot sunning themselves on a rock outside their cave nest.
Excited, hoping for another story like the one he had gotten the other day when he had visited the elders, he began the treacherous climb. His kit legs could hardly propel him further then a mouse length ahead, but he had actually made some progress before he heard the voice he had been dreading.
"Falconkit, what are you doing?"
He shrank back as his mother, Darkstar, bounded up beside him. She scooped him up by the scruff of his neck. Completely humiliated, he was unceremoniously carried back to the bottom of the gorge. Sharpclaw and Patchfoot, awoken from their doze by the commotion of Falconkit's indignant mews, came bounding down the rocks, Patchfoot leaning on Sharpclaw and hobbling slightly, thanks to an old injury when fighting EarthClan.
"What's this?" Patchfoot mewed when both elders reached the bottom of the gorge and surveyed Falconkit.
"He wanted to come and see if you would tell him a story," Darkstar explained.
"Don't talk about me as if I'm not here!" Falconkit, angered by his elders' refusal to acknowledge him, had climbed up on a rock so that his face was level with theirs.
Darkstar's blue eyes flashed dangerously. Falconkit suddenly shrank back. His mother's temper was as famous as her benevolence, but she didn't mind displaying the former if the need was called for.
"Get back to the nursery," she hissed, swiping Falconkit off the rock with one paw. He landed on the ground with an oof. "I told everyone that no kit is to climb the rocks alone after the rains. They're still too slippery."
Falconkit slunk back to his den while Sharpclaw and Patchfoot fought in his defense. "Little kit meant no harm," Sharpclaw meowed gruffly. "I would have gotten cramped in that den too."
"He needs to be made an apprentice, Darkstar," Patchfoot observed. Falconkit felt his tail prickle with excitement. He strained his ears and slowed his steps to see if he could catch his mother's response.
"Yes, I know. Maybe, if they can behave tomorrow, I'll hold the ceremony at sunset." Falconkit wanted to hear who his mentor would be, or if Darkstar even had an idea yet, but at that moment Blueshadow awoke, along with his sister.
Swankit pounced on him, her blue eyes, so like their mother's, gleaming with excitement. "Blueshadow said we could go visit Thymepaw and Elmpaw. Remember, they promised to teach us how to stalk a rabbit!"
Falconkit had just begun to get exited – he had forgotten the apprentices' promise – when Darkstar spoke from behind them. "Falconkit isn't allowed to go, are you Falconkit? You would have been allowed, had I not just caught you trying to sneak up the rocks when I told every kit to remain off them."
"Falconkit!" Blueshadow scolded. "You're six moons old, and I still can't take my eyes off of you for a moment! Great StarClan, my kits were never this much trouble!"
"Yes, they were," purred Darkstar, flicking her friend with her tail. "Remember the time they got into Lightspirit's stores and ate so many juniper berries?"
Blueshadow purred. "Oh, they had belly aches for a quarter moon afterwards! But they still weren't six moons when that happened."
"True," Darkstar meowed, growing stern again. "Falconkit, we both know you heard that conversation outside. You had better shape up if you want your apprentice name, understand?"
"Yes, Darkstar," Falconkit muttered.
"Good. Now Swankit, go and see Thymepaw. And Falconkit, to give Blueshadow a break, you can come help Lightspirit."
Shocked and angry, Falconkit followed his mother into the cool cave where Lightspirit, medicine cat and Darkstar's sister, lived.
Lightspirit's eyes widened when she saw her sister and the rebellious kit stalk into her cave. She hurried over. "Is Falconkit okay?" she inquired anxiously.
"Yes," Darkstar meowed. In Falconkit's opinion, she sounded annoyed, which didn't make any sense. The two sisters were the best of friends.
"Falconkit was caught trying to climb the rocks to the elder's den. So he's going to work for you for a short while."
Falconkit nearly bared his teeth at his dark-furred mother, but at the last moment didn't dare. Helping a medicine cat! She might as well have just assigned him to lay in the gorge and wait for the buzzards to pick his carcass clean. Anything besides helping a medicine cat! Besides, Lightspirit always acted so strange around him.
"I see," Lightspirit mewed, looking disconcerted. "Well, Falconkit, why don't you take this mouse bile to Elmpaw so he can get on with checking the elders for ticks."
Falconkit mutinously picked up the string holding the moss soaked in mouse bile. Marching into the clearing, he found Elmpaw watching his brother wrestle with Swankit.
"Here," Falconkit grunted, pushing the awful-smelling mouse bile towards him. "Lightspirit asked you to see to the elders."
Elmpaw wrinkled his nose. "My favorite job. Thanks Falconkit." He reluctantly scooped up the mouse bile and left.
"Falconkit, watch this!" Swankit meowed, wiggling her haunches, her tail struck straight up in the air. Falconkit had to purr at the sight of his sister. The sun lit up her tawny fur, making it gleam.
"You look like a mouse-brained fool," he teased, wiggling his own haunches. She mock-growled at him, and he leaped on her back, wrestling her to the ground. Thymepaw watched in amusement until he heard Tinyfern's call.
The two kits sat up as Thymepaw bounded away, to catch up with the sunhigh patrol as it thundered out of camp. Falconkit felt wistful as he watched the cats bound up the rocks and away to patrol the EarthClan border. He wanted to go on missions like that too.
Lightspirit called; flicking his tail in annoyance, he returned to her, mewing a quick good-bye to his sister, who looked forlorn at the thought of playing by herself.
In Falconkit's opinion, it was the worst day of his life. Lightspirit set him the worst tasks, including cleaning out the nursery bedding and fetching fresh-kill to every cat, including warriors, who were perfectly capable of getting it on their own. He was exhausted when he collapsed into his nest and curled up at Blueshadow's side. He might not have had a fun day, but with any luck, his mother had seen how hard he worked and he would get his apprentice name tomorrow.
Falconkit knew he was the first to awaken in the camp the next morning. His mother, a very early riser, wasn't even up yet. He bounded into the clearing and pounced on a leaf that had drifted down from a nearby tree. He was sorely tempted to try climbing the rocks again, but he didn't want to get caught. Darkstar would be sure to delay his apprentice ceremony if he was found doing something forbidden again.
A loud yawn behind him made him turn. He touched noses with Silverquest as she came down from her solitary watch on the Skyrock the night before.
Her greeting was broken off by a yawn. "Sorry, Falconkit. I'm exhausted. Great StarClan, I hope Tinyfern didn't put me on the dawn patrol. A dead rabbit could escape from me right now, I'm so tired."
Head down, she padded towards the warriors' den. Badgerclaw came out just in time to greet her and shepherd her into the den. He padded across the Falconkit.
"Darkstar told me your apprentice ceremony would be today," he meowed, his eyes glinting. Falconkit felt his muscles seize with fear and excitement. He had thought Darkstar would hold the naming for her kits today, but he hadn't been completely sure…
"Nice day for it," Badgerclaw commented as the sun burst over the horizon.
"Do you know who my mentor will be?" Falconkit asked excitedly.
Badgerclaw purred. "Now why would Darkstar, leader of the Clan, discuss that with me? I'm a lowly warrior!" Still purring, he headed off towards the fresh-kill pile.
Around Falconkit, the camp became active. Tinyfern came out of the warriors' den, followed by her brother, Bouncefoot. Calling to Thymepaw, the three cats headed out of camp. Sparrowpelt appeared, to immediately retreat to the Skyrock a moment later, taking his position of sentry for the morning.
Brownclaw woke his apprentice, Elmpaw, with a sharp yowl, and the two toms padded out of camp for hunting practice. Falconkit watched all of the activity closely, trying to see which cats would look eager or tense, to see if they had been asked to be his mentor. No cat looked any different from normal, all of their shoulders gently relaxed and their eyes shining as they greeted Clanmates and headed out to hunt or train.
Blueshadow padded out of the den. She yawned and stretched. "I'll look forward to moving into the warriors' den. I haven't slept there since Leafstar gave me my name, moons and moons ago. Not that I regretted raising you and your sister," she said quickly, misinterpreting Falconkit's silent concentration for anger. "After all, poor Darkstar, named leader just days after giving birth, couldn't possibly have cared for you in the way she liked. It would make any mother's head spin."
Falconkit silently nodded as Darkstar padded out of her den. Swiftwind, his father, appeared a moment after she, and both cats lay down to share tongues as the sun continued to rise, shedding greenleaf warmth on the gorge.
Swankit appeared, blinking her bright blue eyes at the sudden light. Her fur was fluffed up in excitement, and Falconkit shared it. Today was going to be one he would remember forever.
However, at the present time, the day slogged. Falconkit felt as though he were wading through mud as he worked his paws impatiently, trying hard to be good and wait for sunset without pestering his mother, who looked exhausted after a long day of leading her Clan. Blueshadow tried to entertain them, helping them to practice their hunting crouches, but neither could concentrate. Falconkit was in a heightened state of awareness. He watched every Clanmate closely, but could not discern which was selected to be his mentor. However, finally, finally, the sun began to sink. Finally the Clan began to gather, and finally Darkstar leapt on top of the Rockpile and looked down on her Clan.
"The day has come to give my kits their place in the Clan," she announced. She nodded to them and bounded down from the Rockpile. Falconkit saw pride in his mother's eyes as she approached them.
"From this day forth, until she has earned her warrior's name, this apprentice will be known as Swanpaw," Darkstar announced. "Sparrowpelt, you will be Swanpaw's mentor. Sparrowpelt, you have served this Clan for many seasons, back to the time of the great Firestar. Please pass on your experience and bravery to young Swallowpaw."
Sparrowpelt dipped his head and touched noses with Swallowpaw before they withdrew to the side of the clearing. Falconkit waited, fixing eager eyes on his mother.
"This apprentice will be known as Falconpaw," Darkstar meowed. "Badgerclaw, you will be Falconpaw's mentor. Badgerclaw, you are a good warrior of fortitude and forethought. Please teach all you know to Falconpaw."
"He will be a tribute to his Clan," Badgerclaw promised. Falconpaw touched noses with his new mentor. He was pleased with the outcome. He and Swallowpaw both had very respected warriors for their mentors. Badgerclaw truly would help him become the best warrior he could be.
A surge of excitement coursed through Falconpaw. "I'm Falconpaw!" he said, bouncing happily as Badgerclaw led him away from the Clan who pressed against the apprentices, greeting them by their new names.
Falconpaw scolded himself and sat still as Badgerclaw faced him. He wasn't a kit anymore! "We'll train early tomorrow," Badgerclaw said briefly. "Go get settled in the apprentices' den with your sister."
Falconpaw nodded and raced away, narrowly avoiding a collision with his sister as she waited to enter the apprentices' den.
She purred when she saw him and they found nests beside each other. "Don't wake us up in the morning," Thymepaw commanded sleepily. "We have moonhigh patrol, and Tinyfern promised to let me sleep."
"Sure," Falconpaw promised, his own jaws parting in a yawn. He sank into sleep and awoke the next morning before anyone else.
I love being an early riser, he thought as he walked out of the den, careful not to disturb Thymepaw, who was snoring loudly.
His father, much to his surprise, joined him outside. Swiftwind usually never woke up without Darkstar's prodding.
"Good morning, Falconpaw," Swiftwind greeted him. Falconpaw stretched up to touch noses with his powerful father. The two toms sat side by side.
"First day of apprentice training! Are you excited?" Swiftwind asked, tilting his head towards his son.
Falconpaw nodded. "I can't wait. Badgerclaw is going to be a good mentor."
"I hope so!" Swiftwind purred. "He's my littermate, for StarClan's sake!"
Falconpaw was itching with impatience. "Um, when's he going to wake up?"
"That old lump!" Swiftwind purred. "You'll be lucky to get him up before sunhigh!" Falconpaw's eyes widened in dismay, and he ran into the warriors' den, leaving his father behind. He spotted his mentor in the very back, and went trampling over several other warriors to get to him.
"Badgerclaw!" Falconpaw whined, pushing against his mentor's head. "C'mon, wake up; you said we were leaving early!"
"Badgerclaw, for StarClan's sake, get that scrap out of here!" Doveheart groaned from the corner.
"Is it time for the sunhigh patrol?" Sparrowpelt meowed, waking up and blinking bleary eyes.
"No, it's just Falconpaw," Cherrytail growled at his side.
Sparrowpelt groaned and buried his head under the moss. "Don't wake me until sunhigh!" His voice was muffled.
Badgerclaw blinked, finally waking because of the complaints of his fellow warriors. "What time is it?" Then he spotted the gray dawn outside the warriors' den. "Great StarClan!" He tried to bury his own head back under the moss.
"No, Badgerclaw, come on!" Falconpaw pushed his mentor's head out from under the moss. "You promised, you said early, and I've been up forever!"
"Great. Why did I have to get the earliest riser? Just like Darkstar. Is it too late to switch apprentices?" Though he posed the question to his fellow warriors, they didn't answer; all had fallen back to sleep, except for one. Tinyfern stretched luxuriously and yawned.
"Take that rip outside. I'm going to get these hedgehogs moving." Tinyfern nudged Silverquest, asleep beside Bouncefoot, and Sunburst awake. Both young cats awoke with much complaining and wide yawns.
"We just fell back to sleep, Tinyfern!" Silverquest complained as Sunburst hunkered down again. Tinyfern narrowed her eyes dangerously.
"Well, well, my dawn patrol being lazy. Fine, if that's the way you want it." Tinyfern trotted out of the den, and Silverquest lay back down with a contented sigh. Badgerclaw lay back down as well, leaving Falconpaw staring helplessly at him.
"Up! Up!" Tinyfern came sprinting back into the den, a huge wad of moss soaked in water clamped in her jaws. The warriors yowled in dismay and scrambled up, dashing into the clearing, trying to avoid the water-soaked ball. Several, however, were too slow, and got huge dollops of water right in their faces.
Falconpaw trotted happily into the clearing with Badgerclaw, who was looking very disgruntled after his unplanned morning bath. The warriors stood around, glaring at Tinyfern and Falconpaw.
"What's this? All my warriors up so early? What a rare occurrence!" The teasing purr was voiced by Darkstar, leader of SkyClan, as she padded into the midst of her warriors. Immediately, cries of outrage could be heard as the warriors tried to abuse Tinyfern and Falconpaw, who had forced them out of their nests too soon.
Darkstar waved her tail for silence. "Tut tut, warriors abusing their deputy! What next?" The warriors blinked. "I'm glad you're up early," Darkstar continued. "I want patrols out to the EarthClan border, to the rats' nest, and out hunting. And I need to take a patrol over to Twolegplace; Silverquest reported a badger scent over there the other day."
"It probably wasn't any big deal," Silverquest muttered, stifling a yawn.
"I'm not taking any chances. We don't have any kits right now, but I don't want a badger on our territory. So who wants to come?"
Grudgingly the warriors divided up the duties for the day. Blueshadow, Cherrytail and Swiftwind followed Darkstar out of the camp to look for the badger, while Tinyfern sorted the remaining warriors into patrols.
Badgerclaw sighed and walked over to his eager charge. "Might as well go then. I have to be at the rats' nest for a sunhigh patrol, so that means we have to get around the entire territory this morning."
Falconpaw nodded eagerly. His nose quivered with excitement as Badgerclaw leapt out of the gorge, large muscles bunching and relaxing seamlessly beneath his pelt.
I'll be happy when my legs grow, Falconpaw thought forlornly as he struggled to catch up to his mentor. The powerful black-and-white warrior was far ahead of him, and even days tussling with his sister could not have prepared Falconpaw for leaping up and down rocks. It was difficult, and he was gasping for air by the time he caught up to Badgerclaw, who was sitting calmly at the top of the gorge.
"Skyrock," Badgerclaw meowed, flicking his tail at the vantage point. Falconpaw knew his Clan used the rock for a lookout, as a place to initiate new leaders, and as a Gathering place, but he had never been there.
"When is the next Gathering, Badgerclaw?" Falconpaw asked his mentor as they bounded through the woods a few moments later. Falconpaw was struggling to keep an even pace beside his mentor, but for every pace Badgerclaw took, Falconpaw had to take three.
"Soon," Badgerclaw meowed. "When I first came to the gorge, Gatherings were sporadic, but with EarthClan around, it is a good idea to have them once a moon so we can meet with one another."
They drew to a halt beside a broken wood structure. Falconpaw's nose twitched in disdain as he caught a whiff of rat stench. He had only seen rats once before; several had snuck into the SkyClan camp when he was a very young kit. His father had killed them all swiftly, and Falconpaw had barely gotten a trace of the carcasses; rat bodies were too dangerous to leave lying around.
"We had hoped that the earth-shakers would have killed off the rats, but they never did," Badgerclaw meowed. He bared his teeth at the broken nest. "It would have been the one good thing those earth-shakers did, but it never happened."
"How bad were the earth-shakers?" Falconpaw asked. He couldn't remember them – he had been born only shortly before the last one, and he didn't remember it.
Badgerclaw shuddered. "They were terrible. I remember one when I was still in my Twoleg nest, but it wasn't so bad inside. But just after my apprentice ceremony, a huge one hit the gorge. It was as though the earth was trying to swallow itself up."
Badgerclaw sighed and then shot off, leaving Falconpaw scrabbling on the grass, trying to collect himself to follow. Grumbling, Falconpaw took off after his mentor, wondering if it was Badgerclaw's job to torture him on the first day of training.
They crept through the forest quietly; Falconpaw stuck close to his mentor's side, sensing the danger. Or maybe it was just his mother's stories. The EarthClan border was up ahead.
"Stay close, Falconpaw," Badgerclaw mewed tensely. Falconpaw wanted to run ahead, but he had heard a lot of stories about EarthClan, and few of them were good. Though it was said that his mother was very close to the rival Clan, many raids still took place on the SkyClan border.
They stopped at the border; Falconpaw wrinkled his nose at the scent. His own Clan smelled of fresh air and comfort, but EarthClan's scent was alien and pierced his nose like a thorn.
There was a rustle in the bushes on the other side of EarthClan. Falconpaw tensed, and his claws slid out. He bared his teeth in a snarl as a group of cats slid into view, reeking of the foreign scent.
Badgerclaw was on edge beside Falconpaw, but his voice was friendly as he greeted the EarthClan cats.
"Greetings Paleflower, Stripedpelt. How is the prey running?"
The brown-and-gray tom, who acknowledged the name Stripedpelt, settled down on his haunches just near the border. Falconpaw thought he saw the large tom's eyes flicker towards him for a moment before he answer Badgerclaw. "Prey is running well. I just wish I could find the horsetails that I need – it would make storing herbs much easier!"
Falconpaw scrutinized the tom closely; he must be the EarthClan medicine cat, from the way he spoke. Paleflower, the sandy-colored she-cat, was not so happy about letting her Clanmate gossip near hostile warriors. She paced anxiously, her lean body betraying her wariness.
"Whose are these?" Badgerclaw meowed in surprise as two smaller cats, apprentices by the looks of it, slid into the clearing. The huge white tom, speckled black, seemed to be as wary as Paleflower, but the smaller she-cat sat down next to Stripedpelt and wrapped her tail over her paws.
"Ah, yes, I'm sure you remember hearing about Fishspring's kits, correct? Smallpaw and Hardpaw just began their training recently."
Badgerclaw flicked his tail. "Yes, of course, Nettlestar's kits. Greetings."
"Hello," the small black-and-gray she-cat meowed after a glance at Stripedpelt.
"Smallpaw is my new apprentice," Stripedpelt added affectionately. He flicked her ear with his tail. "She is a very fast learner."
Paleflower suddenly interrupted, her eyes still flicking uneasily from side-to-side. "Stripedpelt, SkyClan will hear of our news a quarter moon from now. We must patrol the border and get back – I promised to help you gather herbs, not chatter with your friends."
"All right," Stripedpelt meowed, narrowing his eyes. He stood up, shaking himself off. Smallpaw scampered into the bushes, disappearing with a hasty "Good-bye!"
"I'll see you at the Gathering, Badgerclaw," Paleflower meowed, dipping her head to her brother. Badgerclaw nodded and led Falconpaw back through the words.
"Who were they, Badgerclaw?" Falconpaw asked curiously. He was still thinking of Stripedpelt and the strange way the medicine cat had looked at him.
"Stripedpelt, the medicine cat of EarthClan. Nettlestar is their leader, as I'm sure you know, with Wolfclaw under him as deputy."
"And Smallpaw and the big tom are his kits?" Falconpaw asked as they began to head back towards camp. That was something; he was the kit of the leader of his Clan, and they were the offspring of Nettlestar.
"Yes. I suppose we'll hear at the Gathering the rest of their news; I can't remember the tom's name."
"Do I get to go to the Gathering?" Falconpaw demanded to know. He knew that, sometimes, the youngest apprentices didn't get the honor of going to the Gathering.
Badgerclaw purred. "I think I can manage it, if you're good. Thymepaw and Elmpaw said they would like to stay in camp this once."
"Why's that?" Falconpaw asked in amazement as they reached the gorge. He couldn't imagine wanting to miss a Gathering, for StarClan's sake!
Badgerclaw purred. "Because they're both having their final assessment that day, and they're going to be too tired to go anywhere."
"Good," Falconpaw mewed determinedly. He didn't want to think what a final assessment for his denmates meant – it meant that they would soon become warriors, leaving Swanpaw and himself alone in the apprentice den. He was just happy to be able to attend the Gathering.
Badgerclaw led Falconpaw into the camp. Cats were clustered everywhere, all relaxed and happy. Since Darkstar had become leader, peace was prevalent between EarthClan, who had sheltered her when Leafstar sent his mother to exile, and SkyClan. Life was good and prey was plentiful.
"Falconpaw!" Swanpaw spotted him from the apprentice den and hurried over, her tawny fur fluffing out in excitement. Badgerclaw mewed good-bye, not leaving Falconpaw with any orders, before hurrying out of the clearing and jumping from rock to rock to make it out of the gorge. He was late to the sunhigh patrol. Falconpaw turned to greet his sister.
"Silverquest just moved into the nursery! She's going to be having Bouncefoot's kits!"
"That's great!" Falconpaw meowed. He wanted to go see Silverquest, but he would let the queen and her mate alone for a while. More kits for SkyClan!
"We'll have more kits then EarthClan soon!" Swanpaw boasted. "Then they'll never try to mess with our prey again."
"Yeah, and I'm really sure that you can keep them away," Falconpaw teased, flattening his ears.
Swanpaw growled and pounced, her claws unsheathed. Swanpaw always play-fought with her claws out – she believed merging training into play. She didn't act serious about being a warrior, but she was. She would do anything to become a warrior.
"Falconpaw! Swanpaw!" The harsh voice interrupted their play-fight. Falconpaw sat up, shaking his fur to rid himself of dirt. His ears flushed in shame when he saw his mother, Darkstar, standing in front of him. He was trying to prove to her that he was responsible!
His father waited behind Darkstar, his tail flicking in amusement. "Darkstar, they had a full day," he commented.
"The elders still need to be cared for. Falconpaw, mouse bile; Swanpaw, moss. And make sure all of the elders are fed before you take any fresh-kill for yourself."
Darkstar flicked them both gently with her tail before bounding across the clearing, to meet up with a hunting patrol as they hurried out of camp.
Thymepaw and Elmpaw were just waking up. The two brothers yawned widely, almost at the exact same time, before strolling over to Falconpaw and Swanpaw.
"You two handling the elders today?" Thymepaw questioned.
Falconpaw sighed and nudged the ground with his paw. "We're not thrilled about it, trust me."
Elmpaw blinked kindly. "It's a pain, StarClan knows, but it's not too bad – the elders usually tell us stories while we're helping."
"Yeah, but I've had to work with the elders two days in a row now!" Falconpaw whined. He knew he shouldn't be complaining – the cats had given good service to SkyClan, and deserved his respect, but he hated mouse bile.
"Better get going," Thymepaw mewed sympathetically. Tinyfern called; he trotted away, throwing the words, "At least you can go to the Gathering," over his shoulder as he went.
"We can?" Swanpaw gasped in surprise. Falconpaw remembered, with a twinge of guilt, that his sister didn't yet know their good fortune.
"Badgerclaw promised he would ask Darkstar for us," he meowed, leaving Elmpaw to head over to the fresh-kill pile as the brother and sister headed into the medicine cat clearing.
"Wow!" Swanpaw mewed in delight. "Thymepaw and Elmpaw weren't allowed to go to their first Gathering for three moons after they were apprenticed."
Falconpaw nodded; he had only shared a den with Thymepaw and Elmpaw for a short time before they were apprenticed, but he could easily remember the two brothers complaining about the wait before they were allowed to go to a Gathering.
Cleaning out the elder's cave was always boring, and disgusting, the most-loathed chore of any SkyClan apprentice, and easily the most boring. Falconpaw reflected, with some irony, that it had only been the day before when he tried to climb up the rocks to visit Sharpclaw and the other elders.
Falconpaw jumped up the rocks that led to the cave where the oldest cats made their nest. His hind paws scrabbled awkwardly on the red sandstone rocks, and he watched with no small amount of envy as Elmpaw leapt easily out of the gorge behind his mentor, Brownclaw.
Sharpclaw, Patchfoot, Petalnose, and Sagefrost were all lying in the cave, their paws tucked underneath of them as they chatted animatedly. Though they lounged in the gorge during the day, soaking up the sun, as night grew cooler the older cats retreated into their warm den.
"Ah, Falconpaw! Excellent, I have a tick on my shoulder," Sharpclaw mewed as soon as the young apprentice entered the den. Falconpaw suppressed an eye-roll only with difficulty. Sharpclaw, though a very noble tom, was also the pushiest of the elders.
"Hello Falconpaw," Sagefrost mewed happily. He propped himself up on his forepaws with some trouble, as his back hind legs were completely worthless. He had lost the use of them saving his mate, Blueshadow, from an earth-shaker, long before Falconpaw was born.
"Where's Swanpaw with the fresh-kill?" Patchfoot growled from the corner. Falconpaw flicked his tail, gingerly setting down the mouse bile.
"She's getting moss for your nests first. Sharpclaw, give me your shoulder." Sharpclaw shook his head and shifted himself until Falconpaw was able to part the fur on his ginger shoulder. He suppressed a shudder as he pressed the bile-soaked moss onto Sharpclaw's tick. It dropped off, landing with a small thud on the cave floor. Petalnose shuddered and kicked it out of the cave.
"You really shouldn't let them get so large, Sharpclaw," Petalnose scolded. Petalnose was very mothering; having lost her mate, Rainfur, and her daughter, Mintcloud, many moons before, she treated every cat like her kit.
"Well then, we need to tell Darkstar to send the apprentices up here twice a day." Sagefrost's eyes sparkled with humor. Falconpaw winced in horror; imagine having to mess with the disgusting mouse bile twice in one day!
"We can't do that," a soft voice said from the mouth of the cave. "The apprentices need to train as well."
Clovertail, the old brown-and-white she-cat, hobbled into the cave and lay down stiffly. Her joints always ached, good weather or bad. Falconpaw couldn't imagine his body hurting like that all of the time; it would drive him mad.
"Clovertail, do you have ticks?" Falconpaw grunted, unwilling to check the she-cat if he didn't have to.
"No, no, Falconpaw, I'm tick-free, thank StarClan. You go get us some fresh-kill, and you can go to bed for the night."
The day had turned black as Falconpaw had worked.
"Okay," he agreed eagerly.
Just then, Swanpaw trotted into the cave, huge wads of moss clamped in her jaws. The elders stood up, Sagefrost supported by Clovertail, so Swanpaw could rake out the soiled moss and gently lay in the new, pale green fronds.
"I'm going to go get fresh-kill," Falconpaw meowed.
"Can't you help?" Swanpaw demanded in exasperation.
Falconpaw flicked her ear with his tail. "No. I took care of the mouse bile – surely you can clean out nests."
Swanpaw hissed in joking impatience and aimed a swipe at him as he dodged around her, making his way down to the fresh-kill pile. It was well-stocked; the elders would eat well.
Most of the cats were heading to their nests as Falconpaw delivered the last of the fresh-kill to the weary elders. Slipping inside the warriors' cave, Badgerclaw called an exhausted good-night to Falconpaw.
Only a few cats remained awake; those with sentry duty, and those scheduled for the moonhigh patrol of the borders.
Falconpaw fell into his nest a while later, content. He was tired, but he felt good. Without his acknowledgement, his first day as a SkyClan apprentice had passed.
The crispness of leaf-fall was barely in the air as the lean gray tom crept through the undergrowth. His one brown paw was barely visible through the green fronds of the forest. Falconpaw was concentrating desperately on the hunt.
It had been a quarter moon since Falconpaw had become an apprentice, and today he was having a minor assessment with his sister, Swanpaw. His every sense was alert; Swanpaw could come from anywhere and he knew, by the scent on the wind, that his mentor was close.
There was a rustling, and the snap of a twig; Falconpaw spun around with a snarl, barreling through the bushes, expecting to find his sister lying in wait. But there was nothing but a mouse, which Falconpaw snatched up and buried before it could escape. Although today was a fighting assessment, one of stealth, feeding the Clan was never a bad thing.
SkyClan cats aren't meant for this undergrowth! Falconpaw thought in disdain as he had to detour around a clump of bramble. He desperately wished that he could leap from tree to tree, as he had seen Thymepaw and Elmpaw practicing during training, but apprentices weren't taught that SkyClan skill until much later in their training.
Falconpaw prowled warily on, dangerously close to the EarthClan border. He curled his lip at the stench exuding from EarthClan's territory, but he had to concentrate. No distractions. None.
Suddenly, a loud yowling went up. Before Falconpaw could move, a ginger-and-white shape bowled into him, knocking him off of his paws. He spat, springing upright once more, to face the intruder. He almost shivered; the tom was hulking and large, far bigger then Falconpaw. But he couldn't let an intruder continue into SkyClan territory unchallenged.
"Get out of here!" Falconpaw hissed, unsheathing his claws.
The tom purred in amusement. "Stay out of my way, kit. And watch out for those guys." Spinning around, the tom plunged into the undergrowth. Falconpaw yowled and tried to run after the tom, but Badgerclaw shot out of the bushes, his fur fluffed up.
"EarthClan is coming," he hissed. "Stay and speak with them; I'll go handle the tom."
Badgerclaw shot off, his heavy black claws pounding on the forest floor. Rounding the bend, he disappeared from Falconpaw's sight.
Slightly mutinous that he couldn't chase after the intruder, though Falconpaw honestly knew that he couldn't fight off a large cat like that yet, he sat down to wait. It was only a few seconds later when EarthClan cats appeared, their fur sticking up as they prowled along their border.
"What are you doing?" Falconpaw called, hailing them. He knew Badgerclaw would want him to talk to them and, thankfully, he recognized one cat; the white-and-black apprentice he had met last time.
A silvery she-cat padded over to Falconpaw, who tried not to stiffen at her scent. She stayed on her side of the border, and Falconpaw forced himself to put his claws away.
"Did you see an intruder run this way?" the silvery she-cat growled, swinging her head back and forth. Her eyes were a startling green.
"Y-Yes," Falconpaw stammered, disconcerted. Another cat appeared from the undergrowth, a deep ginger tom with a fluffed-up pelt.
"Big ginger-and-white tom?" the newcomer asked, obviously having overhead his Clanmate's question.
"Yes. Badgerclaw my, er, mentor, chased after him." Falconpaw felt impossibly tiny besides the big, hulking cats, but he tried not to let his fear show. He was a SkyClan cat, and a hundred times better then any EarthClan cat.
"That rogue has been causing us trouble for days now," the silvery she-cat sighed. "But at least it looks as though he's headed out of the territories."
"Let's pray to StarClan that it is so," the ginger tom murmured. Then his eyes seemed to light up as he looked at Falconpaw. "I don't believe I've ever met you, young one," he meowed, his amber eyes glinting. "What's your name?"
"I'm Falconpaw," he meowed, unsure whether or not to be courteous. But then, he figured, they outnumbered and outweighed him. Courteous was the only thing that would stop his pelt from being shredded.
The ginger tom's eyes flashed as though he recognized him. "I am Liverpelt – this is Greenear, and Hardpaw." The other two EarthClan cats meowed greetings.
"We had best finish the patrol, Liverpelt," Greenear mewed, dipping her head to Falconpaw. He was startled by the kind gesture.
"All right. Come on Hardpaw."
Hardpaw started to walk away, but then looked back and meowed, "Are you coming to the Gathering tonight, Falconpaw?"
Falconpaw nodded, his heart leaping at the thought of going. "Yes."
"Good. See you there." Hardpaw hurried off into the undergrowth, calling for his Clanmates. Falconpaw felt a shiver of excitement run through him. He could hardly imagine a Gathering. Surely all of the best warriors would be there, including the leaders. He could see who he was going to fight against, watch them and learn their skills and their personalities. He purred in satisfaction and, as he was doing so, missed the tell-tale rustle.
With a yowl, Swanpaw leapt on him, knocking him off of his paws. Falconpaw yelped in surprise, only managing to get a few paw swipes in before Swanpaw forced him to the ground.
"Ha!" she exclaimed, her eyes glinting with pleasure. "The sneaky warrior gets the prize!" She jumped off of Falconpaw, who sat up, disgruntled. He was glad that Badgerclaw hadn't been around – Swanpaw had won the assessment much too easily.
"Too bad Badgerclaw didn't see," he mewed, flicking his tail towards the undergrowth. "He went to chase an intruder off of our territory."
"Really?" Swanpaw's eyes were huge. "Why didn't you follow?"
"He ordered me to remain here," Falconpaw said, aware that he was bragging slightly. "I met a group of EarthClan cats."
"Oh wow," Swanpaw whispered in awe. Falconpaw felt like preening; he loved it when Swanpaw got excited over things he knew about and she didn't. "What were they like?"
"Well, there were three of them – " he began, but before he could launch into details, Badgerclaw was back, picking clods of mud from his claws in disgust.
"Back to camp," he meowed. "I chased that tom off of the territory, but we have to report to Darkstar."
"Where did that tom come from?" Falconpaw asked his mentor as they hurried back to camp.
"There have always been rogues and loners in the woods," Badgerclaw explained, leaping effortlessly over a fallen tree to arrive in the more barren territory near the gorge. Falconpaw relaxed; he felt more comfortable being able to see the territory around him.
"Some of them joined our Clan, right Badgerclaw?" Swanpaw asked, scrambling over the oak behind the two toms.
"Yes; some of them joined our Clan. Firestar brought them to reform SkyClan. Others, like Sootspots, who you will meet tonight, joined EarthClan."
"I heard Sootspots is a huge warrior, with eyes as black as a moonless night," Swanpaw whispered in hushed tones. Falconpaw had heard similar stories of the EarthClan tom, but he wasn't sure whether to believe them all. Of course, EarthClan cats tended to be larger then SkyClan cats.
"You'll see tonight," Badgerclaw mewed, flicking their ears with his tail. They were at the top of the gorge. Falconpaw looked down on his camp, and relaxed when he saw that all looked normal.
"Go eat," Badgerclaw commanded when they had picked their way down the rocks. "We leave at moonrise, so be ready. I'm going to report to Darkstar."
He bounded away towards the black she-cat, who was speaking with Swiftwind. Her ears pricked as Badgerclaw approached, and then the three cats headed into the leader's den.
"I guess we have nothing to do until moonrise," Falconpaw mewed.
Swanpaw flicked her tail. "Yes, let's get out of sight before Darkstar notices and gives us back to the elders."
Purring in amusement, Falconpaw led the way into the apprentice den, where both fell into a deep sleep.
A/N: As someone so kindly reminded me, I forgot to put a little disclaimer on this story, so here it goes – I started this series long before Erin Hunter ever put out SkyClan's Destiny which, honestly, was the only Warriors book I ever disliked. While SkyClan and the original characters were hers, the rest are of my own invention. So, I don't really care to change the names of the characters, as well as the story I have created, to fit to her new book. So, if people could stop leaving me messages about it, I'd be grateful. As always people, please read and review!