Chapter 3
It had been a moon since Buzzardkit had his dream, and Darkenedstreak had faded into a distant memory. He had made a point to speak with every cat in the clan, including the elders, but the dream cat had not reappeared to him since. Maybe she's got the wrong cat. He thought bitterly. There wasn't another cat in the clan that he felt could be the second, and thus, he kept the dream a secret, even from his father.
Now, Buzzardkit was sitting outside of the nursery, his mother fretting over a burr stuck in his pelt. He groaned in disdain, wanting to be left alone.
"Please, Fawnleap, I've washed my pelt twelve times today. One silly burr won't ruin anything."
The small brown she-cat wasn't listening, grasping the burr between her teeth and yanking it from his thick fur. "No, Buzzardkit. Today is your apprentice ceremony, and you need to look your best."
Buzzardkit smiled to himself quietly. He had finally reached the age of six moons, and was ready to be apprenticed. He wondered who his mentor would be. Palecloud? No, he just had an apprentice. Maybe Newtwhisper? She seems like a fun cat. Looking up to the sky, the tom sighed. His ceremony would be held at sunhigh, but it seemed like the great ball of fire didn't want to rise today, barely crawling across the sky. Oh, come on.
He was distracted by his thoughts by his mother rasping her tongue over his head once more. Groaning loudly, Buzzardkit shuffled away from her, fixing the tuft of hair on his head the way he wanted it. Fawnleap smiled at him softly, her fluffy tail wrapped neatly around her paws. She opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by a voice.
"All cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!" Goldenstar's yowl rang out, echoing across the large camp. Yes! Buzzardkit bounded to the Ledge, sitting directly in front of it. Goldenstar smiled at his son, his dark brown pelt shining in the pale sun. Once the clan had gathered, the tom began to speak.
"Today is a great day for Thunderclan," He started, his deep voice filling the camp, "We have three apprentices becoming warriors, and one kit becoming an apprentice. Dragonflypaw, step forward."
The black and white tom bounded forward, his discolored eyes glowing as he looked up at his leader. "You have passed your warrior assessment with flying colors, and are ready to become a warrior of Thunderclan. Thus I, Goldenstar, leader of Thunderclan, call apon call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in turn."
Dragonflypaw's chest swelled with pride as he lifted his head, his tail swaying behind him eagerly. "Dragonflypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"
"I do."
"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Dragonflypaw, from this moment on you will be known as Dragonflywing. StarClan honors your courage and bravery, and we welcome you as a full warrior of Thunderclan." Dragonflywing stepped back, his mentor giving him a nod of approval. The ceremony continued for Violetpaw and Volepaw, with each of them earning the names Violetstream and Voletail respectively. Buzzardkit zoned out, awaiting his turn.
"Buzzardkit, step forward." Yes! It's finally happening!
The brown tom stepped forward, looking up at his father who was beaming with pride. "Buzzardkit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Buzzardpaw. Your mentor will be Russetprowl. As a senior warrior, I hope Russetprowl will pass down all he knows on to you." Buzzardpaw turned to his new mentor, padding towards him to touch noses. The fiery colored tom gave the apprentice a small nod, his tail whisking behind him. "As the leader's son, I expect great things from you."
Buzzardpaw nodded, sitting down as the cats around him cheered their names. "Dragonflywing, Violetstream, Voletail, Buzzardpaw!" Smiling with pride, the tom turned to his mother, whose eyes were clouded with tears. "I'm so proud of you." She mouthed, a big smile on her face.
With that, Goldenstar gave a small nod, then leaped down from the great stone. "Meeting dismissed!"
Buzzardpaw padded over to the new warriors, dipping his head. "Congratulations." He mewed to them, his ears twitching. They would be sitting vigil tonight to make their ranks official. "Good luck keeping quiet the whole night, Dragonflywing." Buzzard jokes, his tail whisking behind him.
The warrior rolled his eyes, sticking his tongue out at the new apprentice. "Yeah, whatever. Try not to get ripped to shreds by Russetprowl, that guy is tough." As he said this, Russetprowl called his apprentice's name, summoning him. Buzzardpaw bounded over, his eyes glowing happily.
"We'll start our training now. Let's get a look around the territory, then head back before the sun sets, alright?" Buzzardpaw nodded, following his mentor out of camp.
His nose was immediately hit with the smell of forestry and snow. Having been outside of camp with his father before, the scenery wasn't a complete shock, but the sounds and smells still fascinated him. Russetprowl looked at him, his eyebrows raised slightly. "You've been out here before, yes? Well, that makes things easier for me."
The two toms padded around the territory, Russetprowl pointing out the major landmarks. The lake, the Sky Oak, the abandoned Twoleg Place… Buzzardpaw processed the information inwardly, humming quietly as his mentor pointed out something new.
"Windclan territory," Russetprowl was saying as they stood on the border, "Is mostly moor and grass, so it's very wide and exposed. We haven't been having too much trouble with them recently, but sometimes their warriors get a little picky about their rabbits." Buzzardpaw nodded, following the red tom through the dense forest once more.
"There's one more place I need to show you, then we can head back to camp. The Shadowclan border. Let's pick up the pace, so we can get back before dark." The two toms sprinted through the woodlands, finally coming to a stop at the small thunderpath that was the border. It's acrid scent was strong enough to make Buzzardpaw wrinkle his nose, earning a chuckle from his mentor. "Though it's rarely used, this Thunderpath still smells strongly of monsters and Twolegs. It's still advised to be cautious here." He looked up from his apprentice, pointing his tail to the thick trees past the border
"Shadowclan territory is much like ours, a dense forest full of trees. The tree's branches are so thick there, however, that they block out the sun almost completely, permanently covering the place in shadow." As he spoke, a movement passed by on the other side of the border. Buzzardpaw focused on it, spotting two cats pad out of the dense undergrowth, a massive gray tabby tom and a smaller, but definitely large brown tom with a splash of white on his belly. His striking golden eyes shone as he looked at Buzzardpaw and his mentor.
"Hello, Viperhiss. Who is this you have with you?" Russetprowl called.
The big gray tom spoke, his jaw moving awkwardly due to the long scar on his face. "This is my apprentice, Hawkpaw. Today is his first day out."
Russetprowl nodded, turning to Buzzardpaw. "This is my apprentice, Buzzardpaw. It's his first day as well."
The gray tom hummed, observing Buzzardpaw. "That's Goldenstar's son, yes?"
Buzzardpaw didn't hear his mentor's response, his attention focused on the young apprentice on the other side of the border. The other tom, Hawkpaw, stared back, his large plack paws barely visible against this dark brown pelt. Why is he so… interesting? Buzzardpaw couldnt help but wonder. The other tom seemed non threatening and pensive, his golden eyes locked with Buzzard's.
The apprentice was shaken from his thoughts as he was nudged by his mentor, his tail whisking over his flank. "Well, it's nice to speak with you Viperhiss, but Buzzardpaw and I must be returning to camp now." He turned to Hawkpaw, who was still facing Buzzardpaw. "I wish you well with your training. Come on Buzzardpaw."
Buzzardpaw shook his head, giving the other apprentice one last look. Following his mentor, he turned his head to look behind him one more time, seeing that the other apprentice had done so as well. Viperhiss called his name, making him wrench his gaze from the Thunderclan cat. Buzzardpaw watched his brown tail disappear into the shadows, finally turning around to rejoin his mentor. Something about him is… familiar. He shrugged it off, finally entering the Thunderclan clearing.
The moon was climbing its way up the night sky, meaning that the new warriors would be sitting their vigil now. Padding to the apprentices den, Buzzardpaw lied down in his new nest, which his father had kindly made for him earlier. It felt weird not having the scent of his mother filling the otherwise empty den, but Buzzardpaw shook away the thought, curling up. Closing his eyes, the tom gave a quiet sigh, quickly falling into a deep sleep.
