A/N: I wrote the first two chapters a couple months ago, but I didn't like how fast things were progressing. It is a novella, which would be shorter than a novel, but I wanted to try to give Lionpaw a little more dimension. In the original set-up, he was nice on the outside but extremely jealous and judgmental on the inside, giving others a sense that he was hiding behind a facade, which is true.
However, in this version, he's much more... lax. He's a hard worker, but arrogant at the same time. He's like one of those big-headed football jocks in the cliche movies, I guess. He cares about others, but not more than he cares about himself. Let me know what you think!
Thanks for reading!
"Guys, I'm pretty sure Foxdawn was being serious when she wanted us on patrol," Eelpaw said a while later, after they'd finished their food.
"Okay, I'm going," Sandypaw muttered, heaving himself up. "Someone come with me."
"I'll go," Lionpaw volunteered, standing up. Flicking a good-bye to the others with his tail, he and Sandypaw headed over to Foxdawn to get patrols.
The russet deputy nodded approvingly, and angled her ears to Streamstrike, who was waiting with Snowberry near the entrance. "You can join their patrol."
The two tom strolled over to the warriors. Streamstrike stood up promptly and headed out, the other three trailing behind him. The chilliness ruffled everyone's fur, and Sandypaw playfully pressed closer to Lionpaw, who shoved him away, feigning disgust.
"Stop messing around, you two," snapped Streamstrike, looking annoyed at the scuffles behind him. He was one of the few that disliked the popular ones, and wallowed in the shadows of his self-created grumpiness.
"Sorry," Sandypaw said, not sounding sorry at all. Lionpaw stifled a laugh, and settled for a knowing grin.
"Being talented and skilled does not give you the option of being silly during serious times," the young warrior said loftily, his chin held high and eyes glittering in disapproval.
"We were bonding," Lionpaw responded, unfazed. "What are we even supposed to do?"
Streamstrike narrowed his eyes. Apparently, not everyone in the Clan likes me. They're just jealous of me, hehe. "We're supposed to be doing a border check."
"Oh! Dibs on marking it!" Sandypaw shouted, racing ahead.
"Hey! You can't mark it all by yourself!" Lionpaw hollered back, and ran to follow the paler ginger tom, passing an annoyed Streamstrike and an exasperated but amused Snowberry.
"Get back here!" they heard Streamstrike shout furiously. "Oh, for StarClan's sake-"
"Loser," Lionpaw sneered so only Sandypaw could hear. They shared a laugh before skidding to a stop a tail-length before the border with ThunderClan, shoving each other, trying to make the other fall cross the border.
"Seriously?" Streamstrike and Snowberry had caught up to them. Embarrassment and frustration glowed in the tom's eyes, and Lionpaw enjoyed seeing Streamstrike squirm.
"Okay, okay, marking it." Lionpaw headed down, and Sandypaw headed north. Quickly, Lionpaw marked the border, making sure no one would dare cross into SkyClan territory. They're just jealous of our glory if they try!
Suddenly, a strong smell hit him. Narrowing his eyes at the strange scent, he opened his jaws. It was coming from ThunderClan territory, but it wasn't the trademarked ThunderClan stench. Then, next to him, across the border, some bushes rustled.
"Come out!" he called in his deepest voice, trying to sound intimidating. His claws slid out, and he crouched, adrenaline flowing through him. He would defend SkyClan no matter what it was.
Then, a calico she-cat stepped out. Lionpaw's mouth went dry. She was the prettiest she-cat he'd ever seen, and there was no way he could attack him now. Besides, she had a collar on his neck, which indicated she was a kittypet, a property of Twolegs. Not very hostile at all.
"H-hello," said the she-cat.
It took several minutes for him to recollect that he could speak, too. Shaking his head, he narrowed his eyes again, trying to seem scary. She was still a stranger, no matter how attractive she was. "Hey," he said stiffly, eyeing her with what he hoped seemed like suspicion, and wariness.
"I'm lost," the she-cat said immediately, sounding queasy. Lionpaw's terrorizing demeanor fell, and he crept forwards. She drew away instantly, her lips drawn back in an attempt to seem stronger. An urge to tease her bubbled up within him, but he forced the feeling back down, and instead forced a friendly smile. She was, after all, really pretty. If she decided to stay...
"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you," he said in a gentler tone. "I'm Lionpaw. What's your name?"
The calico she-cat gave him a judgmental look when he mentioned his name. "Cherry. You're one of those Clan cats, aren't you?" she asked suspiciously, curling up into a defensive ball.
"Yeah, but we aren't as wild as you think. We protect each other and live with each other. Sorry I got so angry at first. I thought you were an enemy."
"Enemy?" at this, she looked mildly interested.
"We have rival Clans," he elaborated. "I'm here with my patrol to mark the border."
"You have borders?" she tilted her head.
"Yeah. We have to share the forest in some way, right? So we don't fight over everything."
Cherry opened her mouth to ask more, but Streamstrike's impatient voice cut through.
"Lionpaw! What's taking so long?"
Before Lionpaw could answer, the tom slid into the open, followed by the rest of the patrol. Streamstrike narrowed his eyes at the sight of Cherry, who immediately backed away again.
"Lionpaw, who is this?" Streamstrike spat. Sandypaw locked eyes with Lionpaw and arched his eyes.
"Uh, just a kittypet I found wandering around," Lionpaw stammered. It's not like I'm doing anything wrong! "She's like, lost or something," he said, trying to keep his cool.
"Are you?" Streamstrike turned to Cherry, sizing her up.
It took her a moment to answer, with the fawn-colored tom looming over her like a tall tree with glaring yellow eyes. "Yes, I am," she said, more clearly than she'd spoken to Lionpaw. There was a quiver in her voice, but he could tell that she was putting in effort not to let Streamstrike scare her. "My Twolegs' house on the riverbank collapsed, and now I don't know what to do. I was just walking around in the woods hoping to stumble upon some help."
Snowberry stepped forward, her blue eyes shining with concern. "Well, we can't leave you here. Come back to camp with us."
"Yeah, we'll introduce you to our friends!" Sandypaw added bouncing towards them. Streamstrike looked extremely miffed, but his shoulders sagged in defeat. "Fine," e snapped, lashing his tail. "It's this way." He disappeared into the bushes again, stepping through them forcefully.
"He's not usually that bad," Lionpaw reassured Cherry, who was gazing at the fawn-colored warrior distastefully. "Come on, let's get you some food." They walked back to camp with Cherry pressing into Lionpaw more and more. Sandypaw occasionally threw him a smirk, which Lionpaw countered with a scowl. Fernpaw's NOT going to be happy when she sees Cherry, he thought, delighted that there were to be she-cats fighting for him.
When the patrol stepped through the entrance with Cherry in tow, Stagstar immediately frowned, jumping off the Talltree and padding towards them. Lionpaw thought the broad-chested leader, who was almost ten times more intimidating and strong as Streamstrike, would scare Cherry, but the young calico she-cat returned the tom's wary stare with defiant, unblinking eyes.
"This is Cherry," Lionpaw said hurriedly, stepping forward. "She's a kittypet we found."
"And are you seeking to join our Clan, Cherry?" Stagstar asked in his melodic voice. "I am Stagstar, leader of SkyClan."
"Yes, actually," she said, with a slight quiver in her voice, "my Twolegs have abandoned me. I think it would be best for me to learn how to survive in the wild now, instead of wandering around trying to find another nest."
Stagstar nodded thoughtfully. "Very well. You will have to train as an apprentice, like Lionpaw and Sandypaw here, to become a warrior. You will do as your assigned mentor tells you to, and if you pass the final assessment, you will earn a warrior name like any other apprentice."
"Okay," said Cherry simply.
"I'll make the announcement now," Stagstar added. "After the announcement, I would like for you to help her build a nest in your den," he said, turning to Lionpaw and Sandypaw, who both nodded importantly. Flicking his tail, Stagstar scaled the Talltree again, and swept up onto his usual branch.
"All cats old enough to climb trees join me for a Clan meeting!"
The SkyClan warriors began to congregate in the clearing. Those nearest to them cast curious glances towards Cherry, who was now looking confused.
"This is called a Clan meeting," Lionpaw explained as Sandypaw padded away to find their friends. "It's where everyone gathers 'round the Talltree, which is that tree where Stagstar make announcements. He's going to initiate you into the Clan, and give you a mentor."
"So I'm going to become a 'paw?"
"Yeah," he said. "Hey, you're catching on! A mentor teaches an apprentice, and with training, you'll become one of us."
"Sounds good," she replied. "Do you want to join your friends?"
"It's okay," Lionpaw said, quite taken with her, "I'll keep you company. We can meet them later."
"Today," Stagstar began, and the Clan fell silent, "Streamstrike's patrol found a kittypet wandering in the woods-"
Excuse me, but I actually found her.
"-and, as her Twolegs have abandoned her, we have decided to take her into our Clan and train her to become one of us. Today, we welcome Cherry into the Clan. Cherry, please step forward."
Lionpaw gave her a reassuring smile as she left his side, giving him a wish-me-luck glance, and nervously stepped below the branch. Stagstar landed deftly in front of her, making her wince and tense slightly. He stepped forward, his eyes fierce.
"Until you receive your warrior name, you will be named Cherrypaw. Whitesoot, you are a loyal and dedicated warrior, and I hope you will pass your skills unto Cherrypaw."
"Cherrypaw! Cherrypaw!" the Clan chanted, some half-heartedly, some unsure, and others welcoming. Cherrypaw gave them a dip of her head, touched noses politely with Whitesoot, and stepped back to Lionpaw, giving him a new, more confident smile.
"Well?" she asked. "How'd I do?"
"Wonderful," he said warmly, feeling affectionate. "C'mon, let's go build you a nest."
The others had beaten them to the apprentices' den, as Lionpaw and Cherrypaw had sat next to the camp entrance. Fernpaw's eyes glittered excitedly.
"Thank StarClan," she burst out when Lionpaw introduced Cherrypaw. "Now I'm not the only she-cat!"
"What was so bad about us?" Tigerpaw said in a mock-offended voice.
"Everything," Fernpaw replied loftily, and earned a laugh from everyone. "Wolfpaw, you can help build the nest once the materials are here. Lionpaw, Tigerpaw, go fetch moss. Sandypaw, Eelpaw, go get some feathers. Cherrypaw only deserves the best!"
Reluctant to leave Cherrypaw, especially to leave her with charming-and-handsome-Wolfpaw, Lionpaw grudgingly followed Tigerpaw out. He did not want to "disobey" Fernpaw in front of her, anyway.
"Wow, you've got these toms under control," they heard Cherrypaw say to Fernpaw, sounding amused.
"Yeah, well, when you're the only she-cat, you get to enjoy some power," Fernpaw replied importantly.
"So," Tigerpaw said once they were in the woods, "Fernpaw, or Cherrypaw?"
"You can't ask me that now," Lionpaw exclaimed indigantly. "But between you and me, definitely Cherrypaw."
Tigerpaw gave a dark smirk. "Well then, I guess that gives me space to go for Fernpaw?"
"As best friend, I give you my blessing," he said jokingly, scraping together moss.
"You've only known Cherrypaw for a couple of hours," Tigerpaw said lightly, but Lionpaw heard the judgmental tone in his voice.
"Well, I think she's nice," Lionpaw replied, feeling slightly annoyed at the sly look Tigerpaw was giving him. StarClan knows you won't have a chance with Fernpaw. She still likes me, even if I don't like her back.
When they returned with the moss, Lionpaw was angered to see Wolfpaw chatting up Cherrypaw. She's mine, mouse-brain! He thought furiously. His expression must've been showed on his face, because all of them frowned when he stepped into the den.
"Are you okay, Lionpaw?" Wolfpaw asked delicately, looking genuinely concerned. Curse Wolfpaw and his compassion. He could only hope that him talking to Cherrypaw was out of politeness, and not interest. He did not want competition.
Ever the gentle tomcat. "I'm fine," Lionpaw said in his most cheerful voice. "Got you the moss you needed, Fernpaw."
"Thank you," she said, taking it. Tossing Wolfpaw a wad with her mouth, they began to build, while the others stood around, watching with mild interest. Tigerpaw stepped forward.
"I'll help," he offered, and both flashed him a greatful look. Cherrypaw tilted her head.
"I'll try, too."
"No need," Wolfpaw said, giving her a dashing smile, "this is your nest. Let us build it."
While Lionpaw seethed, Cherrypaw returned Wolfpaw's grin. "But I want to learn. Move over." Obediently, Wolfpaw shuffled over to make room for her, and the sight of the two of them side-by-side pained Lionpaw. Sandypaw and Eelpaw smirked behind their back, exchanging a knowing look with Tigerpaw, but Lionpaw only sat there and simmered in his anger, fueled by the jealousy he refused to acknowledge.