The trek home seemed to take forever and no time at all. In a true twisting of time, the sun was just setting, turning the sky to that violet color. Not quite nighttime but not quite evening either. Sparkpaw wanted nothing more than to get something to eat and climb into her nest.

The trio of apprentices approached the fresh-kill pile after being dismissed. After choosing a vole for herself, Sparkpaw looked around for a place to eat. She COULD have simply followed Firepaw and Graypaw to their own chosen place, but Sandpaw was already there with a dark brown tabby she hadn't met yet. Sparkpaw was too damn tired and sore for another altercation, especially if she had to restrain herself from physical violence like she'd promised Whitestorm. So the best way to avoid physical violence was to go nowhere near the other she-cat.

"Sparkpaw! Over here!" A voice had her turning her head to spot Runningwind laying near a bramble bush. At his side was the pretty pale ginger she-cat that had run to Ravenpaw's side when he'd collapsed off of the High Rock. She looked just as surprised that Runningwind had called Sparkpaw as Sparkpaw was. That surprise faded to polite interest when Sparkpaw trotted over and nodded her head in greeting. Suck on that, Lionheart, she /did/ have manners! "This is Goldenflower, one of our queens. As an apprentice, it's your duty to make sure she and the other queens are fed and their nests are taken care of."

Considering what Sparkpaw already knew about the Clans, that made sense. Should she give Goldenflower the vole? Because frankly she didn't really want to. The indecision must have shown on her face because Goldenflower meowed in a surprisingly soothing tone, "We've already eaten. Sandpaw brought us a rabbit that we all shared and Dustpaw took care of the elders. You can go ahead and eat."

Oh thank the spirits. Sparkpaw settled down beside her Clanmates and kept one ear turned to them as they returned to their conversation. "I wonder who Crookedstar chose as Oakheart's replacement. I don't envy him, needing to announce his own brother's death."

Goldenflower murmured an agreement. "He wasn't the only one who lost a brother though." Sparkpaw, mouth still full, made a faint inquiring sound. "Redtail was Spottedleaf's littermate."

… Oh. Sparkpaw suddenly felt a lot worse about all the crap she'd given the medicine cat the previous day. She tried to imagine what her life would be like if she lost Firepaw in such a sudden and violent way. Her vole, which had just tasted so good, turned to bitter crowfood in her mouth. Knowing better than to waste it, she nudged the rest over to Runningwind. "Here. You eat the rest. I'm gonna take something to Spottedleaf and Ravenpaw."

Runningwind blinked down at her but took the vole without comment. Sparkpaw nodded her head toward Goldenflower in farewell before heading back towards the fresh-kill pile. She got halfway there before a she-cat got in her way. This one was old in the way that she should have been retired but the way she was glaring at Sparkpaw made her think she was as fierce as a cat half her age. "And what do you think you're doing, kittypet?" she sneered. "I realize this isn't a concept you're used to, but prey isn't something you can pick and choose at your leisure. It won't magically replace itself because you decided you didn't want it after all."

Holding onto her temper as the hag spoke was harder than Sparkpaw had thought it would be. She waited until she was sure she was done before refuting in an icy tone, "Actually I was going to take something to Spottedleaf and Ravenpaw. I was under the impression that that was something you Clan cats did. Looking after the wounded and the cats that look after them." Sparkpaw gave a casual shrug and half-turned away, giving the elder a side look. "But if I have the wrong idea…"

The elder glowered wordlessly before moving aside. The hidden half of Sparkpaw's muzzle quirked up in a triumphant smirk, but she forced it away before she turned back and gave a sarcastic dip of the head. The elder spat angrily at her before stalking off toward a fallen mossy log that had other old cats laying in front of it.

Sparkpaw made quick work of grabbing two mice and trotted off toward the medicine den. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust from full sunlight to sudden darkness but when they did, she did a quick sweep of the area.

Spottedleaf wasn't in sight but Ravenpaw was. He was stretched out on his side with his injured shoulder up but still covered in cobwebs. He honestly looked a little bored just laying there. His ears perked up when the ferns brushed against Sparkpaw's side when she entered, flattened when he realized it was her, then perked right back up when he spied the mice in her jaws. "Is that for us?" He blurted out. Then he looked like he immediately regretted it.

Sparkpaw answered before he could do something ridiculous like apologize. "Yeah. I wasn't sure if you'd eaten yet and figured I'd save you the trip. Well, save Spottedleaf the trip." She dropped the mice and padded over to Ravenpaw's side, examining the cobwebs. The dressing had been changed since she last saw them. "How's the shoulder? Have you tried walking yet? How soon until you can start exercising lightly?"

The poor fool looked overwhelmed by the questions. Luckily he was saved from answering when Spottedleaf exited from the cleft in the rock. She had a bunch of shriveled leaves in her mouth, which she dropped when she saw Sparkpaw. In fact, she looked downright shocked yet pleased to see Sparkpaw. "You're actually here! I thought I'd have to make good on my promise to chase you down and sit on you."

The specific wording of promise over threat made Sparkpaw's respect for her grow. "I brought freshkill." She went back for the mice and gave one to Ravenpaw before placing the other at Spottedleaf's paws. "Think of it as a peace offering… and an apology." Spottedleaf's eyes widened, but Sparkpaw went on before she could speak. "Goldenflower told me Redtail was your brother."

A choked gasp made her glance sharply at Ravenpaw, but he hadn't even taken a bite of his mouse yet. He was staring at Spottedleaf with wide, guilty eyes. "And instead of being at his vigil you… Oh Spottedleaf, I'm so sorry."

Figuring that was sufficient, Sparkpaw gestured towards him with her head while looking at the medicine cat. "Yeah. What he said."

At first, Spottedleaf was speechless. She looked back and forth between Sparkpaw and Ravenpaw, working her jaw and blinking. Finally she closed her eyes and took a deep, slow breath before letting it out just as slowly. After, she opened her eyes and looked between them again, but this time with purpose. "Listen here, you two. Neither of you have anything to be sorry for. Yes, Redtail was my brother. But he was also deputy, and he loved the Clan more than anything. I was doing my duty in helping you, and he wouldn't have wanted it any other way. So that's how I'm going to honor him, by caring for my Clan to the best of my abilities."

Staring at her, Sparkpaw could only come to one decision. Spottedleaf was… kind of a badass. With a small yet sincere smile, Sparkpaw stood to her full height… and bowed. It wasn't the usual kind of bow, either, like a small dipping of the head. Sparkpaw had one paw raised close to her chest and her head was so dipped down, her whiskers brushed the ground. Asha had taught her that bowing was the highest form of respect among alley cats because it took your eyes off the other and showed vulnerability. When she rose back up, she saw that both Spottedleaf and Ravenpaw had understood the gesture.

Deciding that was enough of that, Sparkpaw plodded over to Ravenpaw and inspected his shoulder. "So I never got an answer. Shoulder?"

Whether he was trying to save face or was telling the truth, Ravenpaw gave an awkward shrug. Awkward because he was still laying down, that is. "It feels fine. Barely even hurts anymore."

The disapproval from Spottedleaf was palpable. Sparkpaw was sure that if she looked, the medicine cat's frown would match her own. "Barely hurts means that it does actually still hurt." She reached for the dressing to inspect it closer but stopped just short, looking over at Spottedleaf for approval. She didn't want to do anything to accidentally hurt Ravenpaw after all. He hadn't earned it yet.

Rather than answering verbally, Spottedleaf trotted over to carefully peel the cobwebs off. The skin was still flushed from the injury, but the flesh underneath had mended itself. Curious despite herself, Sparkpaw oh so gently touched a paw to it, just barely brushing it, and the sudden yet subtle tension in Ravenpaw's form made her snort. "'Barely hurts' my furry red butt." She stepped away from him with a glare and lashed her tail in aggravation. "If you're hurt, you're hurt, and pushing yourself is only going to ruin your body in the long run. I don't know what macho crap you're learning from Tigerclaw-"

The flinch Ravenpaw gave brought her up short, and Sparkpaw suddenly remembered that he'd faked being unconscious just to avoid his mentor. She didn't think 'macho crap' was the word for what Tigerclaw was teaching him.

Awkwardness was starting to set in, but was thwarted by a head sticking into the den. "Spottedleaf, Bluestar gave the call. We're leaving." Lionheart gave Sparkpaw a narrowed eyed look. "Leave Ravenpaw to rest, Sparkpaw. You should be sleeping by now."

Sparkpaw rolled her eyes at him but acquiesced all the same, flicking Ravenpaw gently with her tail before following Spottedleaf out of the den. Lionheart was waiting for them, and Sparkpaw and he had a staredown of who would leave first. Spottedleaf gave a very pointed sigh and went, "Sparkpaw."

She suddenly saw an opportunity to mess with Lionheart in the best way. She looked at Spottedleaf and gave the most respectful dip of her head to her. "Yes Spottedleaf, most beloved and respected of non-familial cats?"

Both adults blinked, but Spottedleaf's whiskers started quivering in amusement. She clearly knew what Sparkpaw was up to. "Go to sleep."

Sparkpaw once again dipped her head, this time in acceptance. "Yes Spottedleaf, most beloved and respected of non-familial cats." She turned away toward the apprentices den and casually flicked her tail towards Lionheart in what could be mistaken as an afterthought if one didn't know her that well. "Later, dipstick."

Then she dashed off as the furious snarl lashed out behind her. Sparkpaw let out a 'mrow' of laughter as she pushed her way into the apprentices' den. Sandpaw and that brown tabby, who must have been the Dustpaw that Goldenflower mentioned, were nowhere to be seen. Graypaw and Firepaw were already curled up, but both raised their heads when she entered. Firepaw gave her the side-eye while Graypaw just blinked in confusion. Then Firepaw sighed heavily while she made her way over to him. "Why? What do you have against peace?"

Sparkpaw grinned at him as she slid into their shared nest. "What do you have against fun? You should have seen Lionheart's face when I called him a dipstick right after calling Spottedleaf 'most beloved and respected'." Just the thought of it had her snickering at the deputy's expense. "It was like somebody had hidden crowfood in his nest and he didn't realize it before laying down in it. He was all," and she did the best impression of Lionheart's angry face she could.

Firepaw sighed heavily, his exhalation so great it ruffled the fur along her haunch. "I'm going to have to apologize to him for you. No, not for you, ABOUT you. Because I know you're not actually sorry."

In response, Sparkpaw looked over his shoulder at the visibly conflicted Graypaw. Should he laugh at her antics or defend his mentor? Wow, she was glad she wasn't in his paws. "He knows me so well, doesn't he?" she chirped with a grin.

Apparently that made Graypaw's decision for him. "Like the back of his paw." he teased with whiskers twitching. Sparkpaw laughed while Firepaw gave an exaggerated face of betrayal. Okay, so maybe Graypaw wasn't THAT annoying. At least not when he was doing it to be on her side of chaos. Then he yawned, and that reminded Sparkpaw that she'd been on her paws since dawn. "We should get some sleep. We have to be up early tomorrow."

The two siblings murmured agreements, and soon all three apprentices slipped into sleep.

Sparkpaw woke just before sunrise the next morning, and was surprised when Firepaw and Graypaw rose alongside her. "What's this? My brother actually getting up in the morning? Perish the thought!" she purred. In revenge, Firepaw deliberately yawned in her face, and she gagged at the smell. "Gah, gross, morning breath! Smells like a fish crawled into your mouth and died."

He would have retorted, she KNEW he would have, but Graypaw pointedly pushed his way between them and exited the den. Sparkpaw and Firepaw traded embarrassed glances before following him out.

Still leading, Graypaw took a direct path toward the sandy hollow. Considering this was the first time Sparkpaw had gone directly from camp to there, she made sure to memorize the way. When they got there though, there was already a cat occupying it. "Ravenpaw!" Graypaw mewed happily, tail sticking up straight. "Glad to see you out of that stuffy den!"

Despite joining them in the hollow, Ravenpaw looked like he would have rather been back in the medicine den. His ears were low and his shoulders were hunched. An attempt to make himself smaller or did he need to make dirt? Either way, he offered the three apprentices a shaky smile that fell back to a frown when he looked down at his paws.

Graypaw went off to play with the leaves while they waited, making Sparkpaw roll her eyes and sit by Firepaw closer to the edge. At first there was silence among the 'paws, but soon Graypaw felt the need to break it. "Cheer up Ravenpaw! I know you don't like training but usually you're not this miserable!"

Sparkpaw blinked and looked over at the black apprentice, who was still doing his best to avoid their eyes. Ravenpaw looked back up and hurriedly put out, "I guess I'm just afraid of hurting my shoulder again!"

Scent and leaves rustling announced the mentors' appearances even as he spoke. Sparkpaw narrowed her eyes at him and went to speak at the same time as Tigerclaw. "Well that's just stupid." "Warriors should remain-"

They turned to stare at each other with glares in their eyes. "Ah, there it is." Sparkpaw mewed with faux casualness, shrugging. "Until this moment I couldn't tell at all you were mentor and apprentice but I see it now. You're BOTH being stupid." She ignored Tigerclaw's hiss for now and looked directly at the bewildered Ravenpaw. "Ravenpaw, if there was at all a CHANCE of your wound reopening, would Spottedleaf have let you return to training?" She visibly waited for his answer, which was a sheepish slow shake of his head. "That's what I thought."

Now she turned to Tigerclaw, who was glowering darkly at her. It was like he was DARING her to challenge him. And well, who was she to deny him? "And you! Pain is the body's way of telling you to knock off whatever you're doing. Walking on a sprained paw could mess it up forever, not treating a wrenched claw could mean a limp for life," and here, she flicked her tail toward Ravenpaw, "a wound reopening could make it larger and take longer to heal. And if I hear you tell him that again, I'm telling Spottedleaf you are deliberately putting him in harm's way for YOUR pride. Are we clear?"

For a long, frosty moment, she thought he was actually going to attack her. It was clear Tigerclaw's pride meant everything to him. To have a lowly brand new apprentice, not even Clanborn, call him out on it must have stung. Through clenched teeth, he growled, "Crystal."

Sparkpaw squinted at him before raising her paw to her own eyes and pointing at him. "I'm watching you." Satisfied that she had gotten her point across, she looked at the silently observing Lionheart. "Alright, Mister Statue Cat. As the only adult here I actually… well not like or respect, but currently am not mad at, what are we doing today?"

Strangely enough he didn't even seem mad. If anything he seemed sorta amused. Sparkpaw would never understand him. "Stalking practice. You and Firepaw watch for now." Shrugging, Sparkpaw retreated back to Firepaw's side to watch the warriors question their apprentices. "Now, what's the difference between stalking a mouse and stalking a rabbit?"

At first it seemed neither apprentice would answer. When it came to anything even resembling hunting, Sparkpaw had zero clue. Weren't they both prey? What difference did the stalking make? Oddly enough, Ravenpaw seemed to glance at her and Firepaw before speaking up. "A mouse will feel your pawsteps but a rabbit will smell you."

His tone was uncertain, his posture nervous, but Sparkpaw was coming to realize that was just him. The lack of a stutter or stammer surprised her, but not as much as him simply speaking up had surprised the others. Even Graypaw was eyeing him with thinly veiled shock.

Sparkpaw could see him shrinking in again but wouldn't let him. "Wait why? I mean I can understand if rabbits had super hearing cuz of those ears but why would a mouse feel you?"

Graypaw opened his mouth to answer but Sparkpaw flicked her ear to silence him. She wanted Ravenpaw to answer. It seemed to confuse him, but he obediently shut his mouth. Ravenpaw was equally confused but answered. "It's because a mouse is among the smallest things we hunt. About the only thing the same size is a shrew. A mouse's body is so close to the floor," and here he stomped on the ground, sending up a small sand cloud, "that would basically be the equivalent of a tree falling for us."

That was actually really fascinating. And for once she wasn't being sarcastic. "So I guess for a mouse to not feel your pawsteps you gotta kinda… float?" She tried to imagine it and made a face at the mental image.

Apparently she wasn't the only one to imagine it. Tigerclaw gave a contemptuous snort, making Ravenpaw flinch back. "Don't be ridiculous. Just step lightly."

Lionheart gestured to the two Clanborn apprentices. "Show her." They obeyed and immediately dropped into crouches before starting to stalk. "Nicely done, Graypaw! See how they're keeping their pawsteps light?"

She did. She also saw Ravenpaw's butt sticking up in the air. "Put your rear down, Ravenpaw! You look like a duck!" Tigerclaw growled. She could see it. A black furry duck. Sparkpaw accidentally let out a snicker but felt immediately bad when Ravenpaw shot her a wounded look.

"Your turn." Her attention shot back to Lionheart who was nodding at her and Firepaw. "Firepaw, you first." She felt Firepaw drop into a crouch beside her but kept her eyes on the other two 'paws. She analyzed their stances as much as she could from where she sat, even as she winced when she heard Firepaw's attempt at stalking.

For a first attempt it was… not bad? Okay no, that was her sugarcoating it. It was atrocious but like hell she'd be the one to tell him that. Luckily Tigerclaw had no such compunctions against being an asshole. "It's obvious you've known nothing but kittypet softness your entire life. You move like you're expecting your prey to just lay there and wait to be caught!"

Sparkpaw wanted to defend her brother but, well, Tigerclaw had a point. If she'd been able to hear his pawsteps then a mouse could DEFINITELY feel them. Luckily she didn't need to defend him because Lionheart chose to. "His forward movement and pace will come with time, but his crouch was perfectly balanced." Really? Huh. Maybe she SHOULD have been looking at him. "Your turn, Sparkpaw."

Joy. Sparkpaw rose from her sitting position and dropped right back down into a crouch. She figured if the crouch Asha showed her was good enough to stalk cats, it was good enough to stalk prey. Keeping in mind what Ravenpaw had said, she kept her pawsteps as light as she could and tried to copy what she'd seen Runningwind do. "Not bad." Lionheart meowed. "Keep your tail still or it's going to alert your prey. And relax your muscles! You won't need to leap until the very end, and keeping tense like that just wastes energy."

She hadn't even noticed her tail was twitching. Had it always done that? Well, she supposed before it hadn't mattered. A cat wouldn't have noticed her stalking them in the town, where there'd been no foliage to disturb. It took a concentrated effort for her to make it stop, and an even more concentrated effort to relax her muscles while staying in her crouch. Asha had always said to be ready to fight at a moment's notice, as whoever she was stalking could just as easily turn right around and attack. Heck, Asha had done it herself just, what, two days ago? Before she and Firepaw had joined ThunderClan.

… Spirits, was it only two days ago? So much had happened in just that short expanse of time. The sprint through ThunderClan territory, Firepaw's fight with Longtail, Redtail's vigil, the dawn patrol, the territory tour, bonding with Spottedleaf…

Sparkpaw blinked back to reality when Graypaw started stumbling forward in a far-too-exaggerated fashion. "Well I'M more lopsided than a one legged badger!" She and Firepaw both snickered as he staggered comically across the clearing, kicking up sand as he did. "I suppose I shall have to settle for hunting stupid mice. I'll just wander up to them and sit on them until they surrender."

The warriors were the only ones not amused by Graypaw's antics. Even Ravenpaw was smiling reluctantly, though he seemed to be doing his best to keep Tigerclaw from seeing it. "This is no time for your jokes, Graypaw!" Lionheart rumbled sternly. Sparkpaw grinned mischievously and was about to proceed with her usual shenanigans when he sighed heavily and shook his head. "Perhaps you four would be more interested if you tried your skills for real."

All four 'paws perked up, even Sparkpaw. Did he mean what she thought he meant? He must have because Tigerclaw was quick to dole out hunting routes among the three of them. "Ravenpaw, Owl Tree. Graypaw, bramble bush. Firepaw, rabbit track. Sparkpaw… just. go that way."

He waved his paw in the direction he wanted her to go. Sparkpaw debated being difficult for the sake of being difficult but decided there'd be no point to it. The four of them split up, Spawkpaw going in the opposite direction to Firepaw. While he went into the bushes Tigerclaw had indicated, she was directed to the trees they had all just come from.

Sparkpaw took it slow, figuring the prey wouldn't be going anywhere. She kept her senses alert though, and soon she came upon a rodent. It was about the size of a mouse but had a long nose. Was this a shrew, like Ravenpaw had mentioned? She didn't recognize it. Either way it was about to be fresh-kill.

She shrank down into her crouch, remembering what Lionheart had said. She kept her muscles lax and her tail still and she crept closer to it. But in this case, habit beat out new teachings, and her tail twitched. The shrew heard it and disappeared right after Sparkpaw leaped, leaving her with nothing.

She cursed under her breath but tried not to let it get to her. She'd catch the next one. And if not then she'd keep trying. She had to get something eventually… right?