~Chapter 48~

Hollystar could almost feel Firepaw's excitement as she showed him the territory. It was the day after their apprenticeship, and she had promised to take him out, along with Lynxclaw and Lilacpaw. Lynxclaw was leading the patrol towards the ShadowClan border, where it had been unusually quiet for the last couple of days. Russetstar had promised not to fight over borders for the next couple of moons so the Clans could live in peace and not fear. Though Hollystar was grateful for her promise, she wondered if the ShadowClan leader would keep to her word. They were usually sneaky and tended to fight dirty.

"What's that smell?" Firepaw asked as he wrinkled his nose. Hollystar's whiskers twitched for a moment. She had asked the same thing on her first day as an apprentice.

"That's the ShadowClan border," she explained.

Firepaw nodded, though his tail still flicked from place to place. Lilacpaw's eyes were wide with excitement when she looked at the abandoned Twoleg nest that was near the border. Hollystar couldn't tell whether or not it was from it was from curiosity or sheer stupidity, but the tabby-and-white she-cat stepped forward. Lynxclaw let out a yelp of surprise and bounded forward to stop his apprentice.

"You're not supposed to go there unless there's a good reason," he meowed.

Lilacpaw looked back at him, then nodded. "But I smelled a mouse," she murmured. "I thought it would be a good idea to try out my hunting skills."

She's an odd little one, Hollystar thought as she led the small group towards the Sky Oak. It was here that she caught her first prey, and here that she first learned of her power. Hollystar let out a sigh as she pictured the memories.

As she thought of them, she was completely unaware of the fact that Firepaw had caught a thrush, which had been hopping in the undergrowth, searching for food. "Well done Firepaw!" She purred when she realized he had come towards her.

The golden brown tabby stared at her with wide, proud eyes. After that their day had been pretty slow. Hollystar had run into Silverpaw and Pepperpaw, who were holding their assessment. The two of them had been doing very well apparently, and Hollystar had begun to notice that Silverpaw looked unusually plump. She had seen how close Silverpaw was to Leapordblaze, and wondered if Silverpaw was expecting kits.

By the end of the day, Hollystar felt fairly tired. She had also taken Firepaw out for some battle training. He had done well, considering it was his first day.

The sun was beginning to set as Hollystar leaped onto the Highledge. Silverpaw and Pepperpaw returned with a large amount of prey - prey that could last the Clan for a couple of days. "Let all cats old enough gather around the Highledge for a Clan meeting!" Hollystar yowled.

She watched as Berrynose, Poppyfrost and Mousewhisker approached the clearing. Whitewing, who had also begun to look rather large emerged from the warriors' den, closely guarded by Birchfall. Rosefoot and Bumblestripe also came from the warriors' den, while Briarleaf bounded towards the clearing from the fresh-kill pile. Squirrelflight and Cloudtail came back from a patrol and quickly approached. When the Clan was gathered, Hollystar allowed Kerntail and Muskedfur to gather up Silverpaw and Pepperpaw.

Hollystar felt a pang of sorrow as she realized that Bramblestar should be with them to guide Silverpaw towards her warrior ceremony. But she choked up the feeling and held her head high. This was the biggest occasion for her.

"I, Hollystar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors so they may look down upon these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in turn." She looked down at her two daughters and felt a burst of pride flash through her. "Silverpaw, Pepperpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, and defend your Clan, even with your life?"

"I do," Pepperpaw's voice came out almost like a squeak. Hollystar hadn't even noticed the fact that she was bursting with excitement.

"I do," Silverpaw mewed in a more quiet tone.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Pepperpaw, from now on you will be known as Peppermint. StarClan honors you for your endless energy and excitement." Hollystar leaped down from the Highledge to press her muzzle on Peppermint's forehead. Peppermint licked her mothers' shoulder in return.

"Silverpaw, from now on you will be known as Silverpond. StarClan honors you for your courage and wisdom." Hollystar felt another rush of pride as she nuzzled Silverpond's shoulder.

"Peppermint! Silverpond! Peppermint! Silverpond!" The Clan chanted their names, and Hollystar joined in.

She watched as Leapordblaze padded over to Silverpond with a mouse in his jaws. She gratefully accepted it. Hollystar padded over to them and licked her cheek. "Now, according to tradition, you must sit vigil for one night."

Cloudtail arched his back and yawned. "Yeah, so we can all get a good night sleep," he murmured.

Hollystar shot him a hard stare. Cloudtail of all cats acted out more then anyone else. He always seemed to act before he thought. He noticed her stare and looked away. With a nod of satisfaction, Hollystar headed towards her den, where it felt oddly lonely. All she wanted to do right now was get as much sleep as she possibly could, for tomorrow would be another tough day of training.

Two days had passed since she became leader, and they had both been exceptionally well. She felt as though her heart had been torn in two when Bramblestar died, but Hollystar thought that she could at least live out the rest of her life as a strong, dependable leader, just like him. And it was all thanks to Bluestar, perhaps the greatest leader of ThunderClan.


Okay, I know I said there would be two more chapters, but I really didn't know what else to add. So up next will be the epilogue. Please leave a review so I know what you think of this story^^