Sage's tail twitched impatiently as she sat on top of the woodpile next to the barn. Her amber gaze was fixed on the fence line at the far end of the field. He said he would come today- why wasn't he here yet?
"Come on, Sage," pleaded her sister from below. "Let's go explore the twolegplace. We might meet some other cats our age- it could be fun! We could make some new friends!"
Sage looked down at her sister. "We can't go to the twolegplace, Willow! Are you crazy? It's so far away, and dangerous. Anyway, Papa should be here any minute."
Willow sighed dramatically. "Papa never shows up when he's supposed to. And I'm bored of his stories. We're not kits anymore, Sage."
Sage jumped down from her perch. "Take that back! Papa always keeps his promises. He's an honorable and trustworthy warrior, just like the Code says."
"You and all that Clan stuff," said Willow with another one of her dramatic sighs. "If you're so fascinated by the silly warrior stories, why don't you just go off with Papa and join his Clan?"
Sage felt like her sister had just swatted her across the face. "How could you say that?" she asked. "I could never leave here! What would I do without you and Mama?"
Willow dropped her gaze. "I'm sorry. I know you don't want to leave… I just felt bad because you said my idea to go to the twolegplace is dumb."
"I'm sorry too. I just worry about you and your crazy ideas sometimes."
Willow rolled her eyes. "You sound like Mama."
Sage laughed, but stopped abruptly as she realized how late it was getting. Maybe Willow was right, and her father wouldn't be coming to visit today. Her tail drooped.
"Come on, let's see if Mama has caught any mice yet," said Willow, noticing the change in her sister's mood. "I'm hungry."
Sage followed her back inside the barn.
"What have you girls been up to?" their mother greeted them warmly when they entered. She had in fact caught several plump mice. The sisters tucked in and told her about their day. Sage left out the part about waiting around for her father- talking about him usually put June in a bad mood.
June was a pretty tortoiseshell, like Sage. Willow, on the other hand, was her father's spitting image- she was a sleek gray tabby just like Smokewhisker. It wasn't a comparison that their mother ever commented on, though. She seemed more concerned about the similarities that Sage shared with him. Sage was glad that she hadn't heard Willow accuse her of wanting to run away to join his Clan- that would have made her very upset.
"It's very late, girls," meowed their mother as they finished up their mice. "Let's get some sleep."
The three she-cats curled up together in their nest in the straw, but Sage couldn't sleep. She was still upset that Smokewhisker had failed to show up. Last time he was here, he had promised that he would teach her the hunter's crouch and some battle moves.
Sage was fascinated by the stories that Smokewhisker told whenever he visited. She loved hearing about the brave warriors who were so loyal to their Clan, and the wise leaders who guided them in living by the Warrior Code. Even the idea of medicine cats speaking to StarClan intrigued her, even though it sounded pretty strange.
As younger kits, she and Willow would play games, pretending to be warriors, defending their clan from enemies. Secretly, Sage still liked to imagine herself as a warrior, defending her "clan," even if it was just her mother and sister.
Eventually, the slow, steady breathing of her mother and sister eased Sage to sleep, just as it did every night.
They were awakened the next morning by a familiar mew. "Hello, my beautiful girls! I brought breakfast!" Smokewhisker grinned at the she-cats curled up in their nest, a freshly-caught rabbit at his feet.
"Papa! You came!" purred Sage, bounding over to him. Willow trailed behind, yawning.
"Of course I came." A tinge of guilt colored his voice. "I'm sorry I couldn't make it yesterday, though."
Behind her, Sage heard her mother sniff irritably, but she didn't say anything.
The four of them shared the rabbit in semi-awkward silence. It tasted very different from the barn mice that Sage was used to. She wasn't sure if she necessarily liked it more… it was just different.
She sat up, licking her jaws. "Thank you, Papa," she said politely, trying to keep from bouncing with eagerness. "Can we go practice the hunter's crouch now?"
Smokewhisker chuckled. "Sure thing, Sage… that is, if it's okay with you, June?" he added, nodding towards her.
"Yes, that's fine," she replied stiffly. "Why don't you go, too, Willow? It would be good for you to learn to hunt as well."
"Um, okay. But I don't want to do battle moves. I don't like fighting."
Sage was shocked. Surely it was important to know how to defend yourself? She opened her mouth to tell Willow not to be ridiculous, but Smokewhisker cut her off.
"Whatever you like, Willow."
Sage looked up at her father incredulously, but he ignored her as he led the two young she-cats outside.
"Hunting and providing food for your clan is a very important part of being a warrior," he began. "So every apprentice begins by learning the hunter's crouch. You two are old enough that if you were in a clan, you would become apprentices. So I thought, you ought to learn what apprentices learn!"
Sage's tail waved happily. "Does that mean we get our apprentice names? Are you going to be our mentor?" she gasped, overwhelmed with excitement. "OH! I'm Sagepaw now!" She turned to her sister. "And you're Willowpaw!"
Willow smiled back, happy, but clearly not quite as excited as her sister.
Smokewhisker chuckled. "No, I'm sorry, Sage. You're not Clan cats, and only a leader can give a cat a mentor or a new name."
Sage felt suddenly deflated and her smile faltered.
"But we can still learn warrior skills like a real apprentices, right?" butted in Willow, glancing at her disappointed sister.
"Of course!" their father said. "Look, this is how it's done."
Sage's disappointment melted away as she mirrored her father's crouch. He taught them how to creep forward without making a sound, and how to scent for prey.
"Well done, Sage! You would have made an excellent hunter in the Clan!" Smokewhisker said after she made a perfectly-executed pounce on only her third try.
She glowed with pride. "Willow is really good, too- she's so much better at moving without making any noise. I keep brushing the grass with my dumb fluffy tail."
"You're both doing very well. I'm proud of you," he purred. "I think that's probably enough hunting practice for today. Maybe this evening you can try catching a mouse in the barn to share with your mother."
"How about some battle moves?" asked Sage.
"Not today, I think," he replied. "There's something I need to talk to your mother about, then I have to go back to my Clan. You girls wait out here." He licked their heads affectionately then stalked off to the barn to talk to June.
The sisters glanced at each other nervously. Any time their parents talked, it didn't take long for the discussion to get heated. June was usually in a bad mood for days after a conversation with her former mate.
Once their father was inside the barn, Sage and Willow snuck close enough to hear the conversation.
"…a natural. She deserves a chance to learn more." Smokewhisker's deep voice carried out to where they hid.
"Fine. Come and teach her some more then. Just don't make her any more promises you don't intend to keep. She sat and watched for you nearly all day yesterday. The poor girl was heartbroken."
Sage's pelt prickled with embarrassment. She thought that she had hidden that from her mother.
"There's only so much I can do," huffed Smokewhisker. "I come when I can- the Clan needs me."
"What about your daughters?" June snapped. "Don't you think they need you too?"
"Of course! I want what's best for them. That's why I came up with an idea…"
"What kind of idea?" Sage could almost hear her mother's eyes rolling.
"Sage… and Willow too, if she wants to, should come back with me, to the Clan. They can be properly trained-"
"Are you out of your mind?" June spat. "Who do you think you are, coming here, trying to take away my kits?!"
"I'm their father, in case you've forgotten," he growled. "I want what's best for my kits. They have warrior blood in their veins- they belong with the Clan."
June's voice got so soft that Sage and Willow had to creep closer to the barn door to hear her. "You are no father to them. You promised to be here yesterday, and Sage waited for you all day. She deserves better than that- we all do. Family is more than blood, Smokewhisker. You chose your family when you left us for that clan of yours."
"I didn't have a choice." Smokewhisker's voice was softer now, too. Pleading. "JuniperClan needed me. They still need me."
"There's always a choice, Smokewhisker. You had the opportunity to be their family – our family – and you chose the Clan. You have no family here."
"What- what are you saying, June?"
"I'm saying that unless you're going to commit and truly be a father to those girls, I don't want you coming around here anymore. I can't watch them being constantly let down by a cat who doesn't care enough about them to keep his promises."
"June…"
"Just go. You made your decision moons ago. Now you have to live with it."
Sage felt Willow's tail brush across her shoulders. She blinked back tears and huddled closer to her sister. Willow was shaking, probably on the verge of tears. Sage had to be strong for her. Sage was the strong sister- she needed to be strong for Willow. Sage could cry later- but Willow needed her now.
Smokewhisker finally emerged from the barn, tail drooping. He looked around, but didn't call out to his daughters before making for the far edge of the field. Sage and Willow watched from their hiding spot as he reached the fence line, glanced back one last time, then leapt over the fence and disappeared from view.