As the ThunderClan cats filed into the camp after the Gathering, Ravenpaw scented fear coming from Sandpaw and Dustpaw. The two apprentices headed to their den quickly. Tigerclaw and two other warriors, Darkstripe and Longtail, sat down in front of the Highrock as Bluestar leapt up onto the stone. Ravenpaw flinched as the dark tabby warrior padded by.

The leader's call rang out across the clearing. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highrock for a Clan meeting."

Graypaw pulled himself off the ground and dragged himself closer to the Highrock, practically asleep on his feet. Ravenpaw followed and settled down next to his friend. Sandpaw and Dustpaw sat on Graypaw's other side, avoiding Ravenpaw as usual. The warriors gathered around them.

Two queens, Speckletail and Brindleface sat outside the nursery. Goldenflower followed, her belly swollen with unborn kits, along with Frostfur. The white she-cat's four kits scampered around her feet until she nudged them back inside the bramble den.

"WindClan have been forced out of their territory," meowed the Clan leader. Shocked mews traveled across the gathered cats who didn't go to the Gathering.

Ravenpaw exchanged confused glances with Graypaw, who turned to stare questioningly at Dustpaw. The brown tabby ignored Graypaw, his gaze not breaking from the Highrock.

"Who did this?" mewed Frostfur, probably more to herself than Bluestar.

"ShadowClan attacked their camp," the gray leader continued. "Brokenstar asked for part of our territory and RiverClan's." Bluestar gazed at her Clan. "I refused. Crookedstar, however, gave in without a fight."

Ravenpaw looked over at his mentor who looked revolted by the RiverClan leader's choice.

"I want extra patrols along the ShadowClan border," finished Bluestar. "They will likely decide to attack, and we must be ready."

# # #

"Ravenpaw," snapped Tigerclaw. "Wake up!"

"S-sorry," the dark tom meowed quickly. He already had Tigerclaw's murderous actions on his mind, and paired with the threat of ShadowClan, Ravenpaw was a shell of even his former, weak and worried self. If he was intimadated by Tigerclaw then, he was absolutely terrified now.

"Do we need to show you again?" Tigerclaw's annoyed growl snapped Ravenpaw out of his thoughts almost completely this time, but the dark cat still looked at him with the same frightened stare.

Lionheart gazed at Ravenpaw, then turned to Tigerclaw. "There's nothing wrong with demonstrating a technique for a second time." When Tigerclaw didn't reply, he continued, "I don't mind showing him again. Graypaw could use some help, too."

Tigerclaw growled. "Fine."

He stood facing the golden warrior, Graypaw and Ravenpaw watching them intently. Tigerclaw lunged forward, level with his opponent's body, and Lionheart darted underneath, his belly as low as a snake, and swiped Tigerclaw's belly with his forepaw. Tigerclaw landed on his feet neatly and looked back at the apprentices.

"You try," said Lionheart, sitting up. "Ravenpaw first."

Graypaw pounced, soaring toward Ravenpaw. The smaller tom sat and stared stupidly at the gray apprentice. Suddenly remembering what to do, he ducked under Graypaw and darted forward, struggling to keep his balance as he swiped at the bigger apprentice's belly with his forepaw just as Lionheart did, and sat up as soon as Graypaw landed next to him.

"You won't ever learn anything, will you?" Tigerclaw hissed at his apprentice.

Lionheart didn't seem to notice the two cats as he praised Graypaw for his balance. "I think we've gone through enough moves for today," he meowed to both apprentices. He paused as voices sounded from nearby. Sandpaw and Dustpaw appeared with their mentors, Whitestorm and Darkstripe.

"Perfect," meowed Lionheart. "Darkstripe, Whitestorm," he called to the warriors. "Could we practice as patrols?"

Whitestorm nodded, and Darkstripe reluctantly agreed. "Darkstripe, Lionheart, Tigerclaw, and I will be an invading patrol," said the big white warrior. "Sandpaw, Dustpaw, you will work with Ravenpaw and Graypaw."

"You four can start at the Owl-Tree," continued Lionheart. "We'll start from the Great Sycamore."

Dustpaw exchanged muttered words with Sandpaw before speaking up. "That's no fair. "Four apprentices versus four trained warriors."

"It's practice," growled Tigerclaw. "During training, we'd rather you fight cats stronger than you than weaker." He glanced at Ravenpaw when he said weaker.

Ravenpaw looked away.

"You're goal is to reach the Great Sycamore while stopping us from reaching Owl-Tree." With a concluding nod, Tigerclaw and the other warriors turned away.

Dustpaw lead the apprentices out of the training hollow.

"So, do we have a plan?" asked Sandpaw as the four young cats headed stealthily through the forest toward the Owl-Tree.

"Not yet," Dustpaw replied.

Graypaw quickened his pace, leaving Ravenpaw at the back of the group. "We should focus on defense," he suggested. "We only need one cat at the Great Sycamore. And what's the use of making it there if the warriors make it to the Owl-Tree first?"

Dustpaw nodded approvingly. "This would work better with just one more cat. That way we could send another cat along to capture the Great Sycamore, just in case the first gets caught."

Sandpaw agreed. "Yeah. But if one of us is fast and sneaky enough, we would do just fine with one capturing the Great Sycamore." The ginger she-cat sounded like she was suggesting a cat already.

"Do you have someone in mind?" asked Dustpaw.

"Well, I thought maybe I could do it. I'm a good hunter thanks to speed, so why wouldn't I be able to do this?"

Dustpaw and Sandpaw race ahead as the Owl-Tree came into view. Graypaw turned to Ravenpaw. "What do you think?"

They approached the Owl-Tree where Sandpaw and Dustpaw were already sitting, developing a plan. "Who wants to go capture the Great Sycamore on their own?" asked Graypaw, finding a spot between Ravenpaw and Sandpaw.

Sandpaw opened her mouth to speak, but Ravenpaw was quicker. "I'll do it!"

"No way!" Dustpaw shook head. "You can't do anything right. You'd get captured and we'd never know it."

"I'm small and I can hide," argued Ravenpaw. "As long as I keep out of sight, I should be able to reach the Great Sycamore without getting caught."

Graypaw glared at Dustpaw. "He needs a chance to prove himself, too."

"Fine. But only because he can't fight, and the warriors are probably on their way."

Sandpaw jumped to her feet. "I'm going with him."

"No," Dustpaw hissed. "We need as many cats as possible if we're going to beat fully trained warriors."

"Just go," Graypaw meowed to Ravenpaw.

The dark apprentice raced away into the undergrowth. A twig snapped beneath his foot and he ran faster. He climbed partway up the trunk of an oak tree and leapt onto a low branch. He jumped up to the next. Running along from branch to branch like a squirrel, Ravenpaw spotted Tigerclaw and Darkstripe. The muscular tom and his somewhat scrawny partner were hiding beneath a bramble bush, but through a hole in the top, Ravenpaw could see them clearly.

He started running again, then slowed to a brisk walk. He stopped when Sandpaw appeared at the base of his tree. She glanced from side to side as if being stalked. She didn't stay with Graypaw and Dustpaw, Ravenpaw realizes. She went off on her own.

Then she started sprinting. Ravenpaw struggled to keep up with her quick pace, and almost lost sight of her due to a longer jump from one tree to another.

Ravenpaw took three steps backward. Running and jumping, he landed on the next branch with a thud. Sandpaw stopped and looked up at the sound. In the split second she looked up, a golden tabby landed on her back, forcing her to the ground.

Whitestorm's voice sounded from behind them. "She was looking at something - check the trees."

Lionheart released the young she-cat. "Good try, but you're our prisoner now." He started climbing the tree slowly. The golden deputy looks too big to be a good tree-climber, but more fit for the job than Whitestorm.

Ravenpaw crawled along his branch, then leapt one higher, trying desperately to get out of Lionheart's path. He broke into a run, making his way to the Great Sycamore at a fast rate. The big tree was no more than a fox-length away. Whitestorm stalked around the base, Sandpaw sitting beneath the tree. He must have come here along different path than the one he and Lionheart found Sandpaw on.

Suddenly, a dark tabby tom dropped onto the branch in front of Ravenpaw.

Darkstripe.

He lunged for Ravenpaw, but the young tom darted underneath and dashed toward the huge tree. He leapt onto a thick branch and crawled down the trunk, astonishing Whitestorm.

"Good job," he said, his voice betraying his surprise. "You're a good tree-climber."

Ravenpaw opened his mouth to thank the senior warrior, but was interrupted by a yowl from above his head.

Darkstripe dangled precariously from a tree branch. The claws on his forepaws gripped the bark, but his hind paws helplessly churned the air beneath him.

Whitestorm climbed up to help him. The white warrior could climb quickly, but not in the least bit stealthily. The branch shook as he walked along toward Darkstripe. He grabbed the gray tabby by the scruff and pulled him up, dropping him near the base of the branch.

Both toms crawled back down, Darkstripe looking shaken and embarrassed. Tigerclaw padded along the forest floor to the great tree. He glanced, shocked, from Whitestorm to Ravenpaw, then at Darkstripe.

"Your apprentice did very good," meowed Whitestorm.

Tigerclaw ignores him and watched Darkstripe, confused by the look on his face.

Lionheart, Graypaw and Dustpaw appeared a moment later. "What in the name of StarClan happened to Darkstripe?" exclaimed Graypaw.

"He climbed a tree," stated Whitestorm, not bothering to save his Clanmate's pride.

Graypaw held back laughter.

Turning to Tigerclaw again, Whitestorm reworded his previous statement. "Ravenpaw did amazing today."

Tigerclaw nodded, casts a sideways glance at his apprentice, then glared at Darkstripe. "Let's get to camp," he growled.