Sunpaw:
"There's something wrong," Sunpaw remarked to Silversplash. "I can feel it in my heart."
"Where?" Silversplash mewed, narrowing her eyes.
Sunpaw shrugged. "I don't really know."
Silversplash sighed. "Really, you shouldn't worry, Sunpaw. It's probably nothing." She paused, then flicked her tail. "Now, go on. Brightpaw and Icepaw have already started their assessments!" Sunpaw tensed. Today was her final assessment, and, if all went well, she would be a warrior by sunset. She padded over to the lake shore to hunt. She spotted a large trout in the water and leaned back, her shadow away from the water as she scooped it out and killed it quickly.
She turned to look for Silversplash, but she had vanished. As Sunpaw caught a pike, she spotted a dark figure by the water, a fish in its jaws. She narrowed her eyes and padded over, her heart thumping as she realized who it was. "Sootclaw! What in the name of StarClan are you doing?"
Her friend's blue eyes betrayed shock and guilt as he stared at her. "Our clan is starving... and dying from greencough," he mewed defensively.
"We face hunger, too!" Sunpaw snapped. "All the clans do!" Her gaze was hard as she glared at Sootclaw. Her voice was a whisper as she spoke again. "You used me!" she gasped, her tail lashing. A smirk crept across Sootclaw's face, and Sunpaw unsheathed her claws, scoring them across his face, making him yowl. To her surprise, he didn't retaliate.
"We needed prey badly," he growled.
"Leave." Sunpaw's voice was a snarl as she spoke. Her voice lowered. "Tomorrow night. We need to settle things." Sootclaw let out a snarl but nodded and padded away, the fish still in his jaws. "Prey-thief," she muttered, before going back to fishing.
However, for the rest of her assessment in hunting, she was bitter and angry. She didn't even feel a small bit of loss when she thought about Sootclaw; she was simply angry, and she would never forgive the dark gray tom for what he had done. To think I actually loved him once. She snorted. She unsheathed her claws, imagining them tearing into Sootclaw's pelt, creating streaks of blood across his fur. He used me. He never really loved me.
Sunpaw shuddered and let out a growl as she thought about how the cat she had once loved had betrayed her. Is this how Cloudpatch felt?
"Sunpaw, stop! What are you doing?" Sunpaw jumped and whirled around to see Silversplash, looking at her in confusion. Sunpaw stared down at her paws to see the minnow she had caught, bloody and mangled, from her claws.
"Sorry!" she gasped, surprised. "I was thinking about ShadowClan tresspassers."
Silversplash laid her tail on her shoulder. "It's okay." She paused. "It's time for your fighting assessment. Come along." Her heart thumping with anticipation, Sunpaw padded after her mentor, into the clearing where the apprentices' trained for battle. She saw no sign of Brightpaw and Icepaw, and Silversplash saw her sniff for them. "They're done already. Now, it's your turn. Attack me."
Sunpaw gulped and circled around her mentor, her eyes slits as she imagined Silversplash to be a real enemy. Like Sootclaw. Sunpaw hissed and dodged as her mentor leaped first, and managed to land a few soft blows on the gray she-cat. Silversplash hissed and landed a blow on her muzzle, but Sunpaw bowled her over and battered her belly with her hind paws.
As she continued to fight as hard as she could, a haze fell over her. Silversplash's gray pelt became darker, almost black, until it grew to the dark gray pelt of Sootclaw. "You!" she spat, her claws out now as she raked her opponent's shoulder.
"Sunpaw! Stop!" The haze vanished, and Silversplash was gasping for breath, pinned down by Sunpaw, a cut on her shoulder.
Sunpaw gasped. "No... I thought you were someone else..."
Silversplash sighed. "It's fine. Come on, let's get back to camp. I think you passed you final assessment!" Sunpaw brightened, her eyes gleaming with anticipation, and she raced over to the apprentices' den, where Brightpaw sat.
"Where's Icepaw?" Sunpaw asked, confused.
Brightpaw waved her tail. "Over there." She pointed to where the white tom was speaking to Reedfur, his father, sounding excited. "Did you pass, Sunpaw?"
"Of course!" Sunpaw mewed. "What do you think I am, a hedgehog?"
"Me, too!" Brightpaw purred. She turned to where Icepaw was approaching them. "How about you? Did you pass?"
Icepaw nodded. "Yes!"
"Great!" Sunpaw mewed excitedly. "Look, it's Streamstar!" She pointed with her tail to where the RiverClan leader was jumping onto the Highrock to address the entire clan. "We're becoming warriors now!"
"Yes!" Brightpaw mewed, racing to the center of the clearing.
"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highrock for a clan meeting!" Streamstar yowled. Pricking her ears, Sunpaw rapidly padded over to the Highrock, beside her littermates, and waited for the rest of the clan to gather around them. She puffed out her chests proudly as Streamstar began to speak. "Brightpaw, Sunpaw, and Icepaw have passed their final assessments, thus it is time for them to become warriors. Darktail, Stormheart, Silversplash, are your apprentices ready?"
Darktail dipped her head. "Icepaw is ready to become a warrior."
Silversplash stepped forward as she spoke. Sunpaw drew in a deep breath. Would she mention anything about her actions during the assessments? "Sunpaw will be a warrior the clan will be proud of."
"Brightpaw has proven herself worthy as well," Stormheart mewed.
"Then I, Streamstar, leader of RiverClan, call upon my warrior anscestors to look at these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn. Brightpaw, Sunpaw, Icepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"
Sunpaw was first to speak. "I do." Her voice rang out confidently. No more Sootclaw.
Icepaw swallowed before nodding. "I do."
"I do." Brightpaw's mew was quiet.
"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Brightpaw, from this moment onward, you will be known as Brightfall. StarClan honors your loyalty and courage, and we welcome you as a full warrior of RiverClan." Sunpaw watched as her foster-littermate licked Streamstar's shoulder and stepped back proudly. "Sunpaw, from this moment onward, you-"
Sunpaw stepped forward, hardly daring to do so. "Streamstar?" Her mind was set on doing what she had planned before.
The clan gasped, Silversplash the loudest, but Streamstar didn't look in the least bit angry. "Yes, Sunpaw?"
"I would like to be called Sunshade, because everything bright has its darkness, just like I do." The excuse wasn't exactly a lie, but it wasn't purely true, either. Sunpaw had done it to honor Shadowpaw.
Streamstar narrowed her eyes, but dipped her head. "Very well. Sunpaw, from this moment onward, you will be known as Sunshade. StarClan honors your determination-" Many cats purred at this "-and courage, and we welcome you as a full warrior of RiverClan." Sunshade nodded gratefully and padded forward to lick Streamstar's shoulder with respect. "Icepaw, you will be known as Icegleam. StarClan honors your loyalty and wisdom, and we welcome you as a full warrior of RiverClan." Sunshade watched as her foster-brother licked the leader's shoulder.
Sunshade puffed out her chest as she heard her clanmates take up the call. "Brightfall! Sunshade! Icegleam!" However, from the corner of her eye, she saw Cloudpatch staring at her, a look of forlorn longing in his eyes.
"Invasion!"
Sunshade pricked her ears as she heard Darktail's yowl. An anxious murmuring began in the crowd, as Sunshade sniffed the air. ShadowClan. Instinctively, she unsheathed her claws and sank them into the dirt below her.
Streamstar let out a hiss and addressed her deputy. "Willowsplash, take Sunshade, Reedfur, and Darktail and escort these tresspassers to our camp."
The light gray she-cat nodded and flicked her tail to the chosen cats. My first task as a warrior! Sunshade padded out of camp after Willowsplash, and found the ShadowClan cats waiting just outside the camp. Her green eyes darkened as her gaze landed on Sootclaw. Willowsplash simply flicked her tail. "Why do you come here?"
"To talk." The leader of the patrol, Grayfoot, the ShadowClan deputy, met Willowsplash's gaze evenly.
"Very well." The patrol led the ShadowClan cats into the camp, flanking them on either side.
"Grayfoot." Streamstar's voice was mocking as she addressed the ShadowClan cats. "What brings you here, to our camp?" Her eyes flashed as she glared at the deputy.
"Many moons ago, we aided you in a battle against WindClan," Grayfoot mewed calmly. "We swore that one day, you would have to render us a service." He paused, staring out at the whole of RiverClan. Sunshade shot Sootclaw a glare, which he returned with a smirk. "Now, that day has come."
"What do you want?" Sunshade could find unease under Streamstar's veil of anger.
"Herbs. Greencough has spread in our camp, and we know that you have found catmint, recently. We ask that you spare some of your catmint for us."
What? No! This is all my fault! Sunshade gasped out loud, realizing that Sootclaw had led her into a trap, faking love for her. He had grasped information about RiverClan, slowly, from her. She shot him another glare, which simply said 'How dare you?'
Sunshade watched as Streamstar hesitated. "It seems, we have no choice," she growled. "We would be able to take it to a battle, but we are honorable warriors; if we promise something, we will not go back on our word." Sunshade almost laughed as Streamstar placed emphasis on the 'we'. "Very well. Willowsplash, tell Frostwing to spare a little of her catmint for ShadowClan. Stormheart, Silvershine, and Icegleam, escort these tresspassers off our territory."
I can't believe he used me! Sunshade thought, staring in anger. He lied that he loved me to get information! Her claws unsheathed, and she stared after the dark gray Sootclaw in hate as he padded out of the RiverClan camp.