"Not bad, but try it like this." Acornpaw said. He showed her an easier way to jump onto an enemy cat. "Now try it like how I did." Acornpaw meowed. Brightpaw nodded. She attempted it, but ended up falling. Acornpaw demonstrated it again and Brightpaw tried it again. After a few tries, Brightpaw finally got it. "That was great! If you keep working on it, you'll master it." Acornpaw purred."Thanks! What's next?" Brightpaw meowed. "Uh, how about the Underbelly Slash?" Acornpaw asked. "You taught me that already." Brightpaw laughed.

"Oh, right. Then how about Sky Attack?"

"Done!"

"Flip Slash?"

"Done!"

"The Midnight Sneak?"

"We did that too."

Brightpaw giggled. Acornpaw continued to list moves and Brightpaw continued to say that they had went over it. "I'm out of ideas." Acornpaw admitted, scratching his ear. Brightpaw purred. They were being tested tomorrow, and Brightpaw had grown confident in herself. She was still nervous, but Acornpaw helped her. They had practiced all day yesterday and all day today. The sun was setting and the two were exhausted. "Let's catch some prey on the way back and rest up when we get home. We'll need all of our strength tomorrow if we want to impress Coldstar." Acornpaw meowed. "Cool, I bet I'll catch something before you do!" Brightpaw laughed, running off. "Wait up!" Acornpaw yelled, racing after her.

"I can't believe you caught a rabbit before I caught a mouse." Acornpaw said, his voice muffling by the mouse. "I used all of the hunting tips you gave me yesterday, so you can have some credit." Brightpaw purred.

"How much credit do I get?"

"I dunno, 30 percent?"

"30 percent?"

"What, too little?"

"No, that was way more than I expected."

The two apprentices laughed. "Hey guys. How's the practice going?" The entrance guard, Oakfall, greeted them. "Great!" Brightpaw exclaimed. "Good to hear. Good luck tomorrow." He replied as they walked inside. "Thanks!" They called.

"So who'd win in a fight? Swiftfoot or Oakfall?" Brightpaw said, taking a bite of a bird. "Swiftfoot. Definitely." Acornpaw replied with a mouthful of mouse. "He's way faster and he's clever." "Alright, how about Greentail or Rosepetal?" Brightpaw asked. "That's a tough one. They'd both flay you if you got too close to their kits." Acornpaw laughed. "I'm gonna say Greentail. She seems like a stronger warrior to me." Brightpaw giggled. "I'm going with Rosepetal. She's got good defense." Acornpaw said.

Brightpaw saw Daisypaw walk past them, carrying borage leaves. "Hey Daisypaw! Who'd win in a fight? Rosepetal or Greentail?" Brightpaw called. Daisypaw rolled her eyes. "That's how you guys spend your time?" She asked. "Hey, we've been practicing hard for the past few days." Acornpaw pointed out. "Because you guys started a fight." Daisypaw meowed. "Hey, you know Redpaw and Volepaw are jerks." Brightpaw said. "Yeah, yeah. Well, I have to go before a stupid kit tries to steal my job." Daisypaw muttered walking away. "What was that all about?" Acornpaw turned to Brightpaw and asked. Brightpaw sighed. "Daisypaw is, well, Daisypaw. I don't understand half the things she does. She's too smart." Brightpaw admitted. Acornpaw smiled.

Before either cat could say something, Cloudwing approached them. "There you two are. I was looking for you." He purred. "Hey, Cloudwing. What's up?" Acornpaw asked. "I wanted to wish you guys good luck for the trial tomorrow. Coldstar, Swiftfoot, and I are going to be judging." Cloudwing explained. "I want you two to rest up. Go to bed early. We want to see the best version of you, so eat well and rest." Cloudwing started to walk away, but he stopped.

"Brightpaw, can I get a word with you?" Brightpaw nodded. She meowed goodbye to Acornpaw and followed the deputy. They sat next to the High Oak. "Swiftfoot asked me to tell you that he's sorry for not helping you get ready that much." Cloudwing began. "It's fine. Acornpaw wanted to train with me, so I didn't get a chance to talk to Swiftfoot a lot." Brightpaw replied. "I'm glad to see you made a friend." Cloudwing chuckled. "Father, I'm not that pathetic." Brightpaw joked.

"No, no you're not." Cloudwing purred. He licked his daughter's ear. "I have faith that you'll pass tomorrow. You'll do fine." "I'll try my best." Brightpaw replied. "I know you will. Now go get some sleep." Cloudwing meowed as he got up. Brightpaw watched her father gather cats for a hunting patrol. I'll do my best to make you proud, father. Brightpaw thought. The white she cat stood up and walked into the apprentice den. She saw Acornpaw already curled up in his nest. Brightpaw quickly got into her best and fell asleep. She was exhausted from the training and it felt good to get some sleep.

"Isn't it kinda unfair that Cloudwing's judging? I mean, he'll make sure his daughter will pass." Redpaw meowed. "I will judge fairly. I won't change the rules and give her special treatment." Cloudwing retorted. The four apprentices stood in front of Coldstar, Cloudwing, and Swiftfoot. The test was being held in the Practice Plains. "So what's first, o wise judges?" Redpaw demanded. "Hunting. You have to catch three prey as fast as you can. The three of us will be observing from the trees. After that, you'll be fighting Pebblesplash when he gets here. At the end of the night, the four of you will sit here in Practice Plains." Coldstar explained.

"We're just sitting vigil?" Volepaw asked. "You could say that. But I hear there's a nasty storm coming. The vigil will show discipline." Coldstar went on. "Of course, if you're too afraid, you may come back to camp. Just remember that we will be judging on how well you do. If you are injured, we will understand if you return to camp." "I wasn't expecting that last one." Acornpaw whispered to Brightpaw. "I don't know if I can do that." Brightpaw admitted quietly. Before Acornpaw could say something, Swiftfoot interrupted.

"We begin now. On three, the hunting challenge will begin." He meowed. Brightpaw's heart pounded. This was going to be a long day. She thought. Coldstar, Cloudwing, and Swiftfoot climbed up their own trees. Brightpaw watched as the leader and deputy jumped through the trees, away from the Practice Plains. "One, two, three, go!" Swiftfoot yelled. All four apprentices separated.

Brightpaw saw Volepaw stay in the Practice Plains. Redpaw had darted off towards the Hunting Bay. So creative. I'll head towards the Windy Cliffs. It was close to the Wispy Willows, where Acornpaw was headed. Windy Cliffs was a small, rocky part of the mountain. It was good for finding rabbits and birds.

After a little while of searching, Brightpaw couldn't find anything. I can't finish last! She thought. She scented the air and found a slight scent of rabbit. Brightpaw followed the scent and found a young rabbit sitting on a rock. Brightpaw made sure not to kick any of the small rocks around her. If I make any noise, that rabbit will run faster than you can say 'rabbit'. Brightpaw thought. At that moment, her back leg kicked a pebble, sending it down the mountain and alerting the rabbit. It immediately took off, but Brightpaw wasn't going to give up. She leapt off of the rock and ran after it. The young bunny wasn't fast enough. Brightpaw finally caught it and quickly ended the rabbit's life. "Thank you, StarClan." She whispered as she grabbed her rabbit and ran swiftly back to the Practice Plains.

Redpaw had already caught two mice, Volepaw had a thrush, and Acornpaw was returning with a rabbit. Brightpaw set hers down and ran back to the Windy Cliffs. She saw a finch fly down and land on a rock. Brightpaw jumped and caught the bird, but the rock was sharp. The rock jabbed her in the side of her stomach, making her wince in pain, dropping the dead bird. She slowly got up. The side of her stomach was cut open a little, staining some of her white fur red.

Brightpaw grabbed the bird and slowly made her way to the Practice Plains. She met Volepaw, who was adding a rabbit to his pile. "What happened to you?" He exclaimed. Brightpaw felt like she was dreaming. Volepaw is being somewhat decent? She thought, dropping her bird. "Sharp rocks." She replied. "You should find one of the spectators, I'm sure they'd let you stop to get cobwebs." He meowed. Brightpaw shook her head. "I'm not ending until I have three catches." She said.

Brightpaw turned and slowly headed back to Windy Cliffs. Every second she moved or breathed caused her more pain. That was a really sharp rock. She thought, stopping to look at it. But I've got to keep going. Brightpaw had finally reached Windy Cliffs. I just have to find one more prey. She thought.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a wren. Brightpaw watched as it pecked at some seeds. As quietly as she could, she started to inch closer. She leapt at the bird, but it flew out of her reach. "Foxdung." She muttered as she watched it fly away. Her cut stung as she got to her feet. Brightpaw felt like she was going to pass out from the loss of blood. The scent of mouse wafted into her nose. A plump mouse was busy cleaning itself. Brightpaw ran after it. The fat mouse was no match for the white she cat. She killed it and thanked StarClan for its life. Brightpaw grabbed it and headed to Practice Plains as fast as she could. A few times she stumbled, but finally arrived.

She was the last one there. "Brightpaw!" Acornpaw exclaimed. "Volepaw told us what happened." Cloudwing jogged over to his daughter. He looked at Lakebreeze, who was sitting next to Pebblesplash. He summoned her with a flick of his tail. The she cat grabbed cobwebs and other herbs that Brightpaw couldn't recognize and padded over.

"Lie down, Brightpaw. I can stop the bleeding and make the pain bearable." She said. Brightpaw slowly laid down and Lakebreee got to work. "Ha! The little kit got hurt." Redpaw laughed when he saw Brightpaw. Brightpaw watched as Volepaw whispered something in his friend's ear. It was too quiet for her to make out. She saw Redpaw roll his eyes.

"Lakebreeze, can Brightpaw continue?" Coldstar asked. "Of course I can!" Brightpaw exclaimed. "I finished my hunting challenge, I can finish the test!" Coldstar looked at the apprentice and then turned to the medicine cat. "Lakebreeze?" He repeated. The medicine cat hesitated. "If she takes it easy, then I guess it would be okay. But when you're done I want to check on it." She said. Brightpaw let out a sigh of relief. "Good. We will continue on with the combat challenge. Pebblesplash?" Coldstar turned to the rest of the cats. Pebblesplash jogged up to his leader. The light gray tom was a new warrior. He had only been made a warrior about a moon ago. "Redpaw will go first." Swiftfoot told the apprentices. "Why me?" Redpaw demanded. "You're the oldest apprentice. Besides, you've been running your mouth all day." Swiftfoot replied. Redpaw scowled.

"We're judging on how well you fight, not if you win or not." Cloudwing said told everyone. Redpaw stood on one side of the Practice Plains while Pebblesplash stood on the other side. "Hey Pebbles! Remember the last time we fought? I totally crushed you!" Redpaw taunted the light gray warrior. "I thought we agreed to stop calling me Pebbles." Pebblesplash muttered angrily.

"Come on, Pebblesplash! You can do it!" Brightpaw cheered. Redpaw glared at her. "Begin!" Coldstar shouted. Redpaw dashed at the gray warrior, who didn't move a muscle. Redpaw leapt at his side, and at the last moment Pebblesplash dodged out of the way. Redpaw landed on the ground. "He moved so fast!" Acornpaw exclaimed. "Unlike you, Redpaw, I've grown since our last fight." Pebblesplash grinned. Redpaw jumped to his feet and ran up to the warrior. He slashed Pebblesplash's chest. Pebblesplash then leapt over Redpaw and grabbed him by his tail. Redpaw cried out in pain. Pebblesplash spun Redpaw around and threw him. "Pebblesplash is really fast!" Brightpaw meowed. The gray warrior charged at the apprentice. Redpaw bit Pebblesplash's leg, making him flinch. He jumped onto Pebblesplash's back and bit into it. Pebblesplash threw him off. The two charged at each other once more. They more clawed at each other's chest.

"I've seen enough." Coldstar meowed, making both toms stop. "Cloudwing, Swiftfoot, are we ready to move on?" Both replied with a nod. "Alright. Who's next?" Coldstar looked at the three apprentices. "I'll go." Volepaw volunteered. Brightpaw watched as Volepaw took on Pebblesplash. He's way smarter than Redpaw. Acornpaw went next. Brightpaw watched her friend fight valiantly. Even still, nobody could match Pebblesplash's speed. Brightpaw knew she would have to come up with something to counter it. I can do this. I just have to remember what Acornpaw said.

Brightpaw's heart pounded. It was her turn to fight Pebblesplash. She gulped as she stared at the gray warrior. He stood on the other side of the Practice Plains. "You can do it, Brightpaw!" Acornpaw shouted. "Don't worry about your injury! You'll do fine!" Volepaw added. Brightpaw gasped. I forgot all about my injury! Oh I'm screwed, aren't I? Brightpaw glanced at her cut. Even though she had cleaned her fur after Lakebreeze treated it, some fur around it was stained again.

"Begin!" Swiftfoot hollered. Pebblesplash dashed at the white apprentice. Brightpaw was too scared to move and was knocked down. "Oof!" Brightpaw said. "Stay calm! You got this!" Acornpaw shouted. Brightpaw was on her back. She saw Pebblesplash leap into the air. He's going to land on me! Brightpaw panicked. She felt like the world was going in slow motion. Oh right! Acornpaw taught me about this! As Pebblesplash was about to land on her, Brightpaw used her back legs to push him. Pebblesplash landed on the ground hard.

It worked! Brightpaw quickly got to her feet and jumped onto Pebblesplash's back. She was only able to get in a scratch before Pebblesplash knocked her off. He grabbed Brightpaw by her tail and began to spin her around. It's just like what he did to Redpaw! Brightpaw knew she had to come up with something. She started to kick his muzzle with her back legs, but it didn't do much. Her injury slowed her kicks down. Pebblesplash threw her into the air. Brightpaw landed hard on the ground. She heard Acornpaw and Volepaw gasp while Redpaw laughed. As Brightpaw got up, she winced in pain. Her cut had reopened.

Pebblesplash bit into Brightpaw's back. She shrieked in pain. Brightpaw slashed his ear with her claws, leaving a small knick. Pebblesplash let go of her. Brightpaw scratched his leg and he slashed her nose hard. She saw blood drip from her nose. Pebblesplash's ear was bleeding too.

"Finished!" Coldstar's voice boomed throughout the Practice Plains. "Pebblesplash, thank you for doing this. You fought like a brave and powerful StarClan warrior. Make sure to get Lakebreeze to check out any scratches and get some rest." Cloudwing meowed to the young warrior. Pebblesplash dipped his head in his respect. Before he walked away, he turned to Brightpaw. "That was a good fight. I'm glad we're in the same clan. I'd hate to face you in battle. Oh and I'm sorry about that cut. I didn't mean to open it again." Pebblesplash meowed. Brightpaw's face felt hot after his remark. "Lakebreeze will check out your wounds. Then I want you to grab some food and rest a little bit. At sunset, the four of you complete your challenge." Coldstar meowed as he walked off towards camp.

Brightpaw sat in the Practice Plains. She watched the sun slowly disappear. "I wish you all good luck." Coldstar told the apprentices. The white tom turned and left the apprentices at the Practice Plains. "How about we make a bet?" Redpaw meowed. "What kinda bet?" Volepaw asked. "Who's going to run home to mommy first?" Redpaw smirked. "My bet is on Brightpaw!" Brightpaw glared at him. "I'm going to say Redpaw." She replied. Redpaw snorted. "You talk a big game, but that's it. You're just a coward." Brightpaw went on. "I'm picking Redpaw too." Acornpaw said.

"Volepaw?" Brightpaw turned to look at the brown apprentice. He hesitated to answer. Brightpaw noticed Redpaw glaring at him. "I-I-I guess Brightpaw." He said quietly. "Good choice." Redpaw smiled. "So what are we betting?" Acornpaw asked. "How about we bet fresh kill? Losers give up their food tomorrow." Brightpaw meowed. "Deal." Redpaw said. "So it's between Redpaw and Brightpaw." Acornpaw told the group. "Good luck guys." Volepaw said. Redpaw glared at his friend. He stood up and started to walk to the other side of the Practice Plains. "Come on, Volepaw." He growled. Volepaw hesistated. The brown tom finally got up and followed his friend. "Let's go sit over there." Acornpaw said, pointing to the other side of the plains. Brightpaw nodded and the two walked over. As Brightpaw sat down under a tree, a rain drop fell on her nose, making her jump a little. emIt's going to be a long night.

Brightpaw and Acornpaw were crouched together. The wind was blowing hard as the rain poured down on the cats. Brightpaw jumped when she heard thunder. She shivered and pushed as close as she could to Acornpaw. "How are you holding up?" Acornpaw asked. She could barely hear him over the loud rain. "I'm not great but I'm not leaving!" Brightpaw yelled. "How do you think Volepaw and Redpaw are doing?" Acornpaw meowed. Brightpaw shrugged. "Probably as bad as us!" Brightpaw glanced over at them. Volepaw was shivering underneath a tree. His brown pelt was drenched. Redpaw was next to him. His pelt was also messy and wet. "Acornpaw, let's go sit with them." Brightpaw suggested.

"What?!"

"If we joined with them, we'd be warmer."

"I don't know, Brightpaw. They're not the nicest cats in the world."

"Well I'm going to sit with them. You can stay here and freeze if you want."

Brightpaw got up and shook her white pelt out. "Watch it!" Acornpaw groaned. He slowly got to his feet and shook the rain out of his fur too. The two started to walk over to the other apprentices. Mud stained Brightpaw's feet. "What do you losers want?" Redpaw jeered. "We thought it would be better for all of us if we stayed together as a group." Brightpaw replied. "She came up with that, not me." Acornpaw meowed. Brightpaw rolled her eyes. "Well we don't agree." Redpaw said. "You mean, you don't agree." Volepaw retorted. Redpaw scoffed. After a minute of silence, he said, "Fine. You can sit with us."

Brightpaw was lying down in between Volepaw and Acornpaw. The apprentices were trying to fall asleep. So far, Acornpaw and Volepaw were asleep. Suddenly, Brightpaw heard a loud thunder. Redpaw shivered and got up. Brightpaw watched him start to head back to camp. She got up and ran after him.

"Where do you think you're going?" She asked. "I'm going back to camp, alright!" He turned around and hissed. "No way. The four of us are finishing the test together!" Brightpaw exclaimed. "Do you really want to quit after all of this?" Redpaw didn't respond. "What made you wanna quit?" Brightpaw asked.

"I don't have to answer to you." Redpaw growled. "Just tell me." Brightpaw meowed. Redpaw sighed. "I'm scared of thunder, alright. And the rain isn't fun to sleep in either." He admitted. "Redpaw, you can overcome your fear. If you stay out here, you prove that you're not afraid of thunder. If you head home, you'll still hear it and you'll still be afraid of it." Brightpaw told him. Redpaw didn't answer. He looked down at the ground and sighed. "Alright, I'll come back with you." He said finally. Redpaw followed the white she cat back to the Practice Plains. Brightpaw laid down in between Volepaw and Acornpaw and fell asleep.

Brightpaw found herself floating above her body and the bodies of the other apprentices. "Woah. This is a crazy dream." She said, staring at her starry body. "Greetings, Brightpaw." Brightpaw looked up to see a ginger tom sitting nearby. "Who are you?" Brightpaw asked, padding over to him. "My name is Brackentail. I used to be in BreezeClan. Now, I'm apart of StarClan." The tom replied.

"What are you doing here?" Brightpaw meowed. "I've come with a message for you." Brackentail smiled. The Practice Plains slowly disappeared and were replaced by a million shooting stars. The area reflected in both cats' eyes. "Brightpaw, you are more important than you know." Brackentail began. "The bird will see gray as the light and dark tussle." He slowly began to fade.

"What? I don't understand, Brackentail!" Brightpaw exclaimed. "When you want to leave the StarClan Forest, climb back into your sleeping body." Brackentail told her as his body faded away. Brightpaw watched as the Practice Plains slowly returned. She took a deep breath. Brightpaw walked back over to her body. The others were still asleep. Brightpaw laid on top of her body and her spirit returned to her body.

Hope you guys enjoyed Brightpaw's chapter! Brightpaw is getting stronger, they all took their test, and Brightpaw heard the prophecy. It went longer than I thought it would. If you have suggestions, tips, or questions, don't be afraid to ask me. Thanks for reading!