"Alright, attack me," Swiftmoon meowed menacingly. His new apprentice, Bumblepaw, was already learning well. He had already perfected the hunter's crouch and had caught a thrush.
"Alright." Bumblepaw looked directly at Swiftmoon's paws. Then, without warning, he leaped at Swiftmoon's paws. Swiftmoon dodged to the side, but Bumblepaw turned to the side and brought his forepaw down on Swiftmoon's side.
"Wumph!" Swiftmoon cried. Bumblepaw landed lightly in the grass and began to wash a forepaw.
"How was that? Did I hurt you?" Bumblepaw inquired nervously.
"No, but if I were ShadowClan, I'd be tearing back to my own territory. Well done," Swiftmoon replied. "That's enough training for today. Let's hunt for the remainder of the day."
After dropping the fresh-kill on the pile, Swiftmoon sent Bumblepaw to give food to the elders. Bumblepaw happily jumped off, prey in his jaws.
"Swiftmoon! May I talk with you?" called Graystripe. He already had a small mouse in his paws. His mate, Millie, padded out of the warriors den. Swiftmoon grabbed a vole and a rabbit for Millie. He trudged over and dropped the rabbit at Millie's feet.
"Thank you,' Millie meowed warmly.
"It's no trouble," Swiftmoon replied, dipping his head. "What is it that you wanted, Graystripe?"
"I was wondering how my kits were doing," Graystripe replied.
"Bumblepaw's eagerness matches that of cats I've never seen. He learns very fast, catches prey well, and also fights like warriors twice his age. If he wasn't as small as an apprentice, I'd think he was a warrior." Swiftmoon saw Graystripe's face break into a smile.
"Thank you, Swiftmoon," Graystripe purred happily.
"Oh, no. It's fine." Swiftmoon saw Hollyleaf and Lionblaze come back with their apprentices, Briarpaw and Blossompaw, laden with prey.
This leaf-fall is exceptionally warm, Swiftmoon thought, but how long can it last?
WWW
Swiftmoon decided to take Bumblepaw on a patrol to renew the scent markers. As he walked out of the warriors den, he saw Honeyfern and Berrynose together, sharing each other's company.
"Honeyfern, I need to see you, please," Swiftmoon called. Honeyfern sprang up, gave Berrynose's ear an affectionate lick, and bounded over to Swiftmoon.
"Yes, brother?" Honeyfern meowed.
"It seems as if your patrol yesterday worked," Swiftmoon mumbled.
"Yes, it did! Berrynose admitted that he feels like everyone thinks that he's stuck-up. But I told him that I thought that he wasn't, and that got him!" Honeyfern whispered excitedly.
"That's good. Would you like to hunt with him and Thornclaw today?"
"Sure, I'd…" Honeyfern's reply was broken by a distressed call. Swiftmoon saw a blue-gray cat racing through the grass.
"Greetings, Mistyfoot," Swiftmoon meowed. "What's wrong?"
"Badgers!" Mistyfoot replied exasperatedly. "They killed Leopardstar, and this was her last life. We need your help. Now."