It had been about a moon since Honeystar had met her new medicine cat who had agreed to be renamed to Crowcloud for his black fur and easy-going nature. He was a good start, she felt, because he had agreed to follow the rules of medicine cats (which she had awoken with the knowledge of one night) without complaint and in fact seemed eager to take on the role. He claimed that he preferred the security a clan offered, or at least promised to offer, and so made himself busy by hunting for herbs and prey. Why herbs, Honeystar didn't know but she didn't argue as he seemed to know what he was doing.
"Would you consider yourself a good hunter?" asked Honeystar as they lay in the weak newleaf sun. While Crowcloud was invaluable, as there never seemed to be enough prey for just the two of them, she had noticed weaknesses in his technique. Almost as though he were used to someone else giving him food. She hadn't asked, but she suspected that he had been an alleycat or a kittypet at some point.
Crowcloud's whiskers twitched with some emotion. "Not really, no," he admitted.
"Would you like me to teach you?"
He looked Honeystar in the eye and she looked away, uncomfortable. "Are you suggesting that I can't hunt?"
"No no," she backpedaled, "but I thought that you'd like to learn some better techniques? That way we might actually end up with a surplus of food one day."
The medicine cat's tail twitched and he smiled. "Alright," he relented. "I suppose we do need to eat."
"We'll have to be careful," said Honeystar, "because the weather hasn't been all that great. Don't want either of us to drown in the River."
Crowcloud smiled. "I remember how you found me hiding under that rock."
"Boulder," she corrected.
"Boulder," he acquiesced.
"Crowcloud's Boulder," she said, testing out the words on her tongue. "I think that's what I'll call it."
The tom in question laughed. "Really?"
"Well, yes!" Honeystar said, starting to laugh as well. "I mean, it is where I found you. And now you're a medicine cat for my clan. How things have changed!"
"They sure have."
It was on a border patrol some days later when Honeystar smelled an intruder. Crowcloud was a decent hunter and had started having more success after her instructions and so that day, was out hunting. Honeystar decided to follow the scent; perhaps she could convince the cat to join her clan.
A quick investigation showed a longhaired cat bounded over the rocks that crossed the River. As the cat got closer, they spotted Honeystar but, seemingly finding her unimportant, continued to cross the river. The leader could let this go, as she certainly didn't want the stranger to slip and fall. She doubted that she had the strength to pull them out of the river. Once the cat made it safely to where Honeystar stood, she walked over to them. A whiff of their scent confirmed the other cat was a molly.
"Hi!" chirped the molly. "I'm Caroline. Is this where you live? Sorry 'bout that."
Honeystar smiled. "No, it's alright," she said. "I'm Honeystar, leader of Forestclan."
"Oh, one of those clans?" asked Caroline. "Would you be alright if I joined? I've been…curious about them for a while."
Honeystar blinked. Crowcloud had been a stroke of luck and since him, no one had petitioned to join. She had assumed that she would have to go out and find cats on her own but if cats wanted to join the clan… Well that changed things quite a bit. She simply had to find the right ones.
"I'd love it if you could join the clan," she said honestly. "But you'll have to receive a new name and learn the ways of the Warrior Code."
Caroline's tail twitched and she appeared indecisive. "Ummm…"
"If you join Forestclan," said Honeystar, "we will become your new family. You will have to take on a new name to symbolize your new loyalty. If you don't want to, then I can grant you safe passage out of my territory."
"No no," said Caroline, shaking her head. "I- I'll do it."
Honeystar let out a breath of relief. She had successfully recruited another member to her clan. "Then let's go home. I'll show you around. And then we'll decide on your new name."