Chapter 1

"Hera! Wake up!" a voice hissed, weak light greeted the once more icy gaze of the silver she-cat.

Hera grunted sleepily and sat up, bruises littered her pelt like stars in the night sky.

"Did I pass?" she asked casually.

A dappled gray tom sighed, his icy blue eyes flashed, We've already been through this. "What do you think?"

The bruised trainee smoothed her pelt in a few swift licks.

"Ehh, could of bit that white cat harder." mewed Hera, streching and carefully picking black grass out of her claws.

"Hera, they're all burnt, you lead them into the colored light perfectly. It doesn't matter how hard you bit them with your minature daggers." he retorted.

"Whatever." she meowed, her icy blue eyes flickered with discrete pride.

"Smokecloud, Hera! Get your flea-bitten behinds out here!" yowled a loud voice.

Hera rolled her eyes and padded out of the dark cave and dipped under the low-hanging yellowish-green moss.

How could anyone live without color? the silver she-cat thought with disgust.

Smokecloud's eyes narrowed as they adjusted to the bright light of the green-leaf morning.

The two padded into the grassy clearing, sunlight stained their pelt with warmth.

"So why exactly have we been summoned, Loudface?" hissed the annoyed trainee.

A dark gray tom growled lightly, his irratation danced in his dark amber eyes.

"Dawn patrol, you mouse-brain." he hissed angrily.

"Oh, right. I mean it's not as if we have a WHOLE CLAN of cats to go on DAWN PATROL that are just sitting around doing NOTHING. So PLEASE exuse me, I need to go make dirt," she retorted with fury.

She whipped around and stalked away towards the entrance of camp.

"Oh," she added, not turning back. "Since when do you orginize patrols, little leader?!"

Moments later her silver tail disappeared behind the waving sunlight bathed bushes.

"Yeah, you really need to work on her temper." muttered the dark gray tom, faint amusement edged his voice.

Smokecloud rolled his eyes. "Oh yes, even more than I actually need to physically train her," he muttered.

Darknight shrugged casually.

"Well, it's all verbal, I'm hoping it won't be as hard as it was to teach her not to stick thorns in Herb's nest." the mentor sighed.

"Oh well, anyway. Echo has a cough and a bellyache, so she's with Scream. I was actually told to organize patrols so..." the dark gray tom mewed.

Smokecloud shook his head lightly, "Of course you were." he groaned.

"No, I really was!"

"No, no, it's not that I don't belive you, it's just that Hera seems to have the patience of the thinnest twig in the forest." he growled.

"Well, Veshara, Creekpaw, and Leafheart have already started to go hunt. I can give you two some time to rest, the third trial is the most tiring. That won't help her attitude." Darknight meowed.

"Thanks, brother." he sighed and trodded tiredly toward the meager fresh-kill pile and dragged a thrush and settled beside a damp clump of brambles.

"I'm back!" she mewed, she glanced at her mentor's face and bit her lip and mewed, "But, I honestly doubt you missed me."

"Darknight's job was to organize the patrols." he meowed, his tone was quiet and deadly.

"Oh, joy..." she purred weakly.

"Exactly."

"Oh, uh... er, I'm going to go... uh... Bye!" Hera slunk away from her silently enraged mentor.

Hera padded toward the last piece of prey in the pile, she swooped up a fat squirrel and trodded into the elder's den.

"Sierra? Are you hungry?" she meowed softly, Hera held a great quantity of respect for her ancestors, almost the only thing she actually respected.

Sierra's clouded dark green eyes flitted over to Hera.

"Oh, you're such a dear. Oh my, that's a big one!" she purred shakily.

The smaller silver she-cat padded deeper into the den and gently dropped the squirrel beside the black she-cat.

"Ink would be quite jealous." the elder purred.

"Where is he?" Hera asked.

"Out on a walk. Do you want any of this?"

"No thanks, I'm actually going to go hunt soon. If I'm not condemned to my den by Smokecloud." the trainee sighed.

Sierra purred lightly, "You're a good cat, Hera, don't you forget that."

"Thanks."

"Hera!" Smokecloud called.

She flinched as her name echoed through the den.

"Sorry, I've got to go. Do you need anything else?" Hera asked.

"I'm fine, sweetie. Have fun." Sierra meowed through a mouthful of squirrel.

Hera darted out of the den caught sight of Smokecloud sitting with his tail wrapped aroud his paws.

"You, are going hunting." he purred.

"Me? Can Creekpaw come?" she asked hopefully.

"He just got back from dawn patrol, you can ask him."

"Okay, bye." she purred and bounced away towards the dark brown and black form of Creekpaw.

Hey guys. I hope you enjoyed that. I haven't uploaded because of my cousin (The Eerie Lights) found out she is very sick and has been moved into the hospital. We're not sure what it is yet. This is a shout out to her. She's the original creator of A Path of Scars and introduced me to this site, so I wouldn't be here without her. Thanks Eerie!

QOTD: It's realllllllyyyyyyy early but, names for Smokecloud and Jayheart's kits? Submit a name by reviewing! Please don't cry if I don't pick your name. Please make them names that would fit a gray, silver, or blue-gray kit. THANK YOU!

~A Heart of Silver