The following evening, Firepaw received his first taste of just how bloodthirsty and cruel Clan life could be.

He was on a border patrol with Ravenpaw, Dustpaw, Tigerclaw, and Redtail, not far from Sunningrocks. At the moment, Ravenpaw was stalking a rabbit that was sniffing through some foliage nearby, while Dustpaw was pointedly ignoring Firepaw. The ginger tom returned the favor, padding after Tigerclaw and Redtail without so much as a backward glance. Perhaps he was being immature, but Firepaw couldn't find it in himself to care. As far as he knew, he hadn't done anything to deserve Dustpaw's hostility. Why should he be polite if Dustpaw wasn't going to make any effort to do the same?

When they arrived at Sunningrocks, as expected, there was a patrol of RiverClan warriors sunbathing on the rocks. Firepaw felt his fur prickle instinctively and saw that his Clanmates had their claws unsheathed. Redtail and Dustpaw's tails were lashing furiously, while Tigerclaw's teeth were bared in a snarl. Even the normally timid Ravenpaw's neck fur was bristling in anger. All of them seemed to have taken the RiverClan warriors' presence as a personal insult, and although he had barely been in the Clan for two sunrises, Firepaw could sympathize with them. Even though Sunningrocks was rich with prey, especially during this particular season, RiverClan clearly had no interest in using it for anything more than a place to take an afternoon nap. It was insulting, not to mention a waste of perfectly good territory.

"We can't stand for this anymore," Tigerclaw growled. "We cannot allow RiverClan to flaunt Sunningrocks in our faces and make us look weak in front of the other Clans. We're taking back the rocks now."

Ravenpaw gave a start from beside Firepaw. "Right now?" he meowed.

"Yes, right now," his mentor hissed. "Don't tell me you're scared?"

"N-no, of course not," the black tom meowed quickly. "But will three apprentices and two warriors be enough?"

"Tigerclaw, think about what you're about to do," Redtail meowed urgently. "Firepaw hasn't received any battle training yet. Do you think it's wise to send him into a fight when he hasn't been properly trained? Everyone knows that RiverClan cats are dishonorable; they wouldn't hesitate to kill him if it came down to it. We'll fight for the rocks, but Firepaw needs to stay out of this."

"No!" Firepaw insisted, shaking his head violently. "I–I can fight. Please, let me try at least. I have to battle at some point, don't I?"

"It's not about that, young Firepaw," Redtail meowed. "It's irresponsible of Tigerclaw to think of sending you to fight when you haven't been taught how to defend yourself. More skilled warriors than you have been killed in battle before, and I don't think Bluestar would be pleased if she knew we sent her apprentice to die."

"I'm not going anywhere!" Firepaw hissed. He knew he shouldn't be talking back to his deputy, but Redtail wasn't giving him much choice. "What else am I supposed to do? I'm too slow; I'd never make it back to camp in time to fetch reinforcements. And I'm sure not going to sit around and watch while everyone else is fighting. I was able to fight Longtail on my first day in ThunderClan. Maybe I'm not trained properly yet, but whatever I've got now will just have to make do."

Redtail stared at him. "Firepaw, you–"

"There's no time," Tigerclaw interrupted. "If Firepaw wants to fight, let him. It will teach him a lesson about Clan life if nothing else."

Redtail looked between the two cats for a moment, then closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. "Fine," he meowed. "I hope you know what you're getting us all into, Tigerclaw."

The great dark tabby nodded, then turned to face the RiverClan cats again. Letting out a loud yowl, he sprang upwards and launched himself on top of the nearest one, a massive tom with ginger fur slightly darker than Firepaw's. Redtail, Dustpaw, Ravenpaw, and Firepaw followed suit, and soon the previously warm, peaceful evening was pierced by the haunting screeches of battle. Firepaw found himself locked in a tussle with a dappled golden tabby she-cat. He raked his claws through her fur with as much strength as he could muster, wincing as he felt her jaws clamp down on his shoulder.

As the battle wore on, Firepaw began to realize that perhaps Redtail had been right in telling him that he wasn't ready to fight yet. Nevertheless, he refused to surrender even as he began to grow dizzy from blood loss. To admit defeat now would mean admitting that he wasn't capable of being a warrior, and he refused to allow that to happen after everything he'd done to prove himself to his new Clanmates. He would not give cats like Dustpaw and Longtail the satisfaction of knowing that they had been right about kittypets all along.

"Firepaw, run!" The voice was not Redtail's, but Tigerclaw's, as the massive tabby knocked a gray RiverClan warrior off of the apprentice. "Get out of here!"

Despite every instinct telling him to listen to Tigerclaw and flee, Firepaw shook his head stubbornly and forced himself back to his feet, launching himself at the gray warrior. He heard Tigerclaw let out a hiss of frustration but ignored him as he bit down on the RiverClan tom's leg.

I can't give up! Not now! I'm not going to act like a coward and run away! he thought fiercely.

But his wounds were bleeding more heavily than ever, and he was beginning to lose his balance. Another RiverClan warrior pinned him to the ground, easily shaking off all of Firepaw's futile attempts at shaking him off. As his vision began to go black, Firepaw saw the warrior's paw raised in preparation for a death blow.

Then Redtail was there, knocking the tom away from Firepaw. "Get away from him, you RiverClan scum!" he hissed. Turning back to Firepaw, he meowed urgently, "Hold on, Firepaw, alright. Ravenpaw, will you take Firepaw away from here? I think Tigerclaw, Dustpaw, and I can handle the rest of them."

Firepaw never heard Ravenpaw's response, that is, if he gave one at all. Overcome with exhaustion, he closed his eyes and allowed a wave of dizzying blackness to overtake him.