Chapter One: Golly, What a Day

The forest came to life underneath the warm glow of the sunrise. Routine since the beginning of time, birds began to fill the air with their songs and the morning breeze stirred the treetops.

Rabbitleap prowled the forest floor with purpose, but he paused to lift his muzzle to the sky and appreciate the breeze; it tickled his whiskers and warmed his face. He allowed himself a smile, and then continued with his hunt.

Like Rabbitleap, the prey were early-risers. It wasn't long until the worn trail led him to a squirrel in search of its own breakfast. With an ease that came from seasons of training and a smirk that followed, he fell into a hunter's crouch and began slinking silently towards the squirrel.

Well, sliently-ish.

Just as he prepared to pounce, he felt the twig beneath his paw Snap! The squirrel immediately looked right at Rabbitleap, then turned around and ran-

Right into Plumwillow's paws.

Plumwillow quickly landed the killing bite, then raised her head to smile at Rabbitleap. "Good teamwork," she said with a grin.

Rabbitleap's own smile was strained. "Thanks, but I didn't know we were working together."

"We're littermates. We're always working together." She gestured to a bush. "Do you mind carrying the squirrel? I caught a robin earlier."

"Oh. Sure." I had already planned on carrying my catch back to camp, he thought. He tried not to direct his disappointment at his sister; he was lucky someone was there to help him. He was always lucky like that, it seemed.

"Ready?" Plumwillow asked after she retrieved her robin. Rabbitleap nodded, squirrel tucked beneath his chin, and they started on their way back to camp. They walked in comfortable silence for a while, until Plumwillow remarked, "It's a nice morning."

"Mhm. It's a shame Creekfeather and Nettlesplash are missing it."

"I don't know if Nettlesplash has seen a single sun-rise since we became warriors. Even Sharpclaw has stopped assigning him to the dawn patrols; by the time they finally pull him out of his nest, it's sun-high."

"Lazy," Rabbitleap grumbled. "He might as well retire to the Elders' Den! It's not like he's productive in any way whatsoever."

His sister glanced at him. "You sound awful bitter considering you haven't even seen him today. Rabbitleap, I'm sorry about the squirrel-"

"I'm lucky you were there."

Plumwillow stopped walking to fix him with a knowing look. "You're a skilled hunter. You're skilled at everything. You know that, right?"

All of a sudden he found the grass very interesting. "I know. I worked hard for that skill." Every inch of it.

"There's nothing wrong with having to work hard, Rabbitleap. Anyway, you're a better warrior for it." She shouldered him. "Come on. You want a good seat for the Ceremony, don't you?"

At that, Rabbitleap picked up his head. "Absolutely. Especially in the case that Leafstar is secretly planning on giving me an apprentice and is waiting to surprise me." He was only half-kidding.

"Then we better hurry." Plumwillow shot him a playful look. "Want to make a race out of it?"

Rabbitleap grinned. "You're on. One, two-"

Before he could say 'three', Plumwillow was already sprinting away.

Rabbitleap scowled. "Cheater!" He hollered, then took off after her.

Thanks to her head start, Plumwillow was the undeserving winner of their race. Rabbitleap grumbled about it for a bit, but his irritation from earlier had given way to excitement; even if he didn't truly believe Leafstar was going to surprise him with his first apprentice, he was still looking forward to Firepaw and Stormpaw's apprentice ceremony.

Two new apprentices is exactly what the Clan needs, Rabbitleap thought. Not only because there hadn't been any apprentices to take care of chores since Honeyflower, Birdflight, and Sandynose became warriors what felt like moons ago. After the flood, and then the rogue attack, and then Sol, and then Harrykit… the Clan needs something to feel good about.

His Clanmates shared his sentiments. As Rabbitleap and Plumwillow padded into camp with their catches, Rabbitleap noted that the camp was more alive than usual given the hour. There was already a crowd formed around the fresh-kill pile.

"Good thing we went hunting, since Sharpclaw pushed the dawn patrols back today," Rabbitleap remarked. Plumwillow didn't reply; he turned around just in time to watch her duck behind a boulder.

He frowned. "What are you-"

"Take my robin to the pile, will you?" Plumwillow hissed from behind the boulder. "And make a show of it. Be distracting."

Be distracting? Rabbitleap turned around and scanned the crowd. There was their brother, Creekfeather, and Tinycloud and Swiftleap and Honeyflower- Oh.

He turned back to the boulder. "How long are you going to avoid them?" He asked. "It's been, what… a half-moon?"

"Until I die," the Boulder huffed. "And I'm sorry, is that judgment I hear in your voice? Did your friends ever betray you and then rub their undeserved happiness in your face?"

"Rabbitleap doesn't have friends," Creekfeather said, as he joined his littermates. "What are you doing behind a boulder, Plumwillow?"

"She's hiding," Rabbitleap explained.

"Hiding? Hiding from…" Creekfeather trailed off as his gaze drifted back to the cats he had just been sharing a squirrel with. "Oh. I didn't invite them over, by the way, they just walked up and started talking, and-"

The Boulder sighed. "It's fine, Creekfeather. Just because they clawed me across the back doesn't mean you have to cut them off."

Creekfeather didn't seem very reassured by that.

A new thought occurred to Rabbitleap. "Hey, is Nettlesplash awake yet?"

"Is it sun-high yet?" His tabby littermate retorted.

Rabbitleap looked towards the Warriors' Den and shook his head. "I swear, one of these days I'm going to drag him and his nest to the river and toss them both. That'll encourage him to be more productive!"

"That's a bit dramatic, don't you think?" The Boulder asked.

"Says the cat hiding behind a boulder," Rabbitleap retorted.

"She's going through a hard time!" Creekfeather huffed. "Have some sympathy!"

Rabbitleap rolled his eyes. "Fine. Plumwillow, if you can drag Nettlesplash out of his nest, I'll drop off your robin."

He'd barely finished his offer when Plumwillow streaked past them; the dark gray blur darted into the Warriors' Den. Rabbitleap was admittedly impressed by her speed.

Creekfeather stared after her. "I feel bad for her," he said after a moment.

"Not bad enough to stop hanging out with her friends," Rabbitleap remarked, stepping behind the boulder to collect the robin. Creekfeather frowned.

"Swiftleap has always been my best friend."

"But Tinycloud and Honeyflower were her best friends."

"That's not fair! We've been in the same friend group since we were apprentices!"

"I'm just telling you, I don't think she's as okay with everything as she says. If I were you, I would be careful with how much time you spend with them." Rabbitleap readjusted his squirrel so that he could pick up the robin.

He started to carry the prey to the fresh-kill pile, but stopped as a new thought occurred to him. "Creekfeather, you do understand that the Ceremony taking place today is incredibly important to the Clan, right?"

A grin spread across Creekfeather's face. "There's a Ceremony today?"

Rabbitleap narrowed his eyes. "Don't do anything bird-brained, got it?"

"Have I ever disappointed you before, brother?"

He tipped his head to the side innocently, but Rabbitleap noticed his whiskers twitch. "Seriously, Creekfeather. Be on your best behavior." Reluctantly, Rabbitleap turned and resumed walking to the fresh-kill pile, as Creekfeather's blue eyes pierced the back of his head.

While Plumwillow worked on dragging a stubborn Nettlesplash out of his nest, cats had started to settle down for the Ceremony. Rabbitleap found some space near the front of the crowd and claimed it for himself.

"You're sitting awful close to the front," a voice said. "Don't you know that this space is reserved for senior warriors, Rabbitleap?"

Rabbitleap resisted the urge to roll his eyes, and instead turned towards the speaker. "I'm sitting a perfectly respectful distance from the Rockpile, Mintfur. Don't you have anything better to worry about than where I'm sitting?"

The gray tabby she-cat smirked, like she knew something that he didn't. "Not until after the Ceremony, anyway," she said. "But if you're going to insist on staying here, I suppose I ought to keep my eye on you." She sat down beside him.

"Keep an eye on me?" He repeated. "What do you think I'm going to do?"

Mintfur shrugged. "I don't know what sort of schemes you have planned, but this is a very important Ceremony for the Clan, and I'm not going to let one of you or one of your littermates ruin it for everyone."

Rabbitleap wanted to tell Mintfur that she was being ridiculous, except… she had a point about his littermates. That was why he insisted they all be present for the Ceremony, so that he could… keep an eye on them.

"Fine," he relented. "Sit wherever you want. I don't care." With that, he pretended to groom his pelt so that his arch-rival would lose interest in the conversation.

"Arch-rival?" Nettlesplash had echoed the first time Rabbitleap made the declaration, back when they were still apprentices. "Arch-rival for what?"

"For the deputyship," Rabbitleap had said, as if it were obvious.

Becoming the deputy of SkyClan had been Rabbitleap's dream ever since he was apprenticed to Sharpclaw; he was fascinated with the ease that Sharpclaw organized patrols and the respect that he commanded from even the senior warriors.

Apparently it was Mintfur's dream as well, and she had always made sure that Rabbitleap knew it. He stole a glance at her now, as she groomed her own pelt. He didn't like to spend time dwelling on his apprentice moons; they always left him with a pit in his stomach. Mintfur was responsible for a lot of that feeling.

"Well, I did the best I could," Plumwillow interrupted his thoughts, as she sat down beside him. "Nettlesplash said that he would poke his head out once Leafstar called the Clan together, but he isn't going to attend the Ceremony."

Rabbitleap scowled. "Seriously? It's for Stormkit and Firekit! There hasn't been a more important Ceremony since the days of Firestar and Sandstorm."

"I thought about that," Plumwillow began, lowering her voice. "Do you think Nettleplash feels-eck!" She yelped, as Swiftleap and Honeyflower drifted towards her. "Make room!"

"What- ow! That's my paw, Plumwillow!"

"You stepped on my tail!" Mintfur hissed, as Plumwillow forced the other she-cat to scoot over.

"Sorry," Plumwillow said, ducking her head to hide. A few warriors turned around to see what the commotion was, including a sullen-looking Honeyflower, and Mintfur glared at Rabbitleap accusingly.

Rabbitleap ducked his head apologetically as his face went up in flames. And this is why the front is reserved for senior warriors, he thought bitterly to himself.

"Anyway," Plumwillow was whispering again, "I think Nettlesplash is having a hard time with what happened to Harrykit again, now that his sisters are being apprenticed. Harrykit was supposed to become an apprentice today, too."

Despite his irritation towards Plumwillow right then, Rabbitleap couldn't help but look at her and ask, "Why do you think that? Did he say something?"

Plumwillow shook her head. "It's just the way he reacts whenever somebody mentions the Ceremony; suddenly he gets defensive. And just now, when I was trying to convince him to join us, he kept saying, 'I'm not going to that Ceremony'."

Rabbitleap looked over his shoulder at the Warriors Den. "I don't know why he would feel guilty about it; it's not his fault Harrykit snuck out. And then Leafstar and Billystorm thanked Nettlesplash for finding him."

"Excuse you," Mintfur suddenly hissed, "but the Ceremony is about to start and some of us would like to actually hear what Leafstar says!"

Plumwillow shot Mintfur a glare, but whispered to Rabbitleap, "Just talk to him about it later, okay?"

Me? Rabbitleap wanted to protest, but he was silenced by Leafstar's arrival. The leader of SkyClan took off running and then leaped atop the Rockpile, landing easily. She turned to face her Clan and her smile was not quite bright, but it was soft and it was proud.

"Let all cats old enough to climb join together for a Clan meeting!" The few warriors who hadn't already gathered in anticipation raced to join the crowd.

Wait! Rabbitleap leaned over and whispered, "Where's Creekfeather?"

"Sitting in the back with Those-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named," Plumwillow hissed back. When Rabbitleap cranked his neck around, he had no trouble picking his tabby brother out of the crowd. Creekfeather caught his eye and sent him an innocent smile.

Rabbitleap narrowed his eyes, suspicious, but turned around to give Leafstar his full attention.

Once Creekfeather knew that Rabbitleap had seen him, he breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay," he murmured to Swiftleap, "we can leave now."

"Leave?" Swiftleap repeated. "The Ceremony just started!"

"That's the point," Creekfeather said. "Come on, now I can show you what I've been planning!"

For a moment, Swiftleap looked like he was finally going to put his paw down and refuse to get tangled up in whatever plot Creekfeather was cooking. But the moment passed, and Swiftleap's curiosity won out. "Fine, but let's try to catch the end of the Ceremony!"

"SkyClan has faced much trouble these last three moons," Leafstar began. "First the river flooded our camp; then our Clan was attacked by a group of rogues; we were tricked by a snake who called himself Sol, and he was banished; and then, just two moons ago…" Leafstar trailed off. Silence washed across the crowd. Leafstar steeled herself and said, "Harrykit will live on in our hearts until the day we are reunited with him in StarClan. SkyClan has faced much, but we are warriors, and have endured. Today, I am so proud to name our newest apprentices."

She looked to the back of the crowd where her kits were waiting with Billystorm. Rabbitleap peered over his Clanmates' heads to catch a glimpse of the kits, and when he did his whiskers twitched in amusement; both were quivering with contained excitement.

Firekit's dark ginger pelt was groomed to perfection whilst Stormkit's gray-and-ginger pelt was a bit ruffled in some areas, but she was tall with confidence.

For a moment, Leafstar simply gazed upon her kits. Then she started to recite the traditional words: "Stormkit, 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 Stormpaw. Your mentor will be..."

Leafstar paused, and Rabbitleap found himself withering in curiosity, and maybe a bit of hopefulness that she would suddenly call his name.

"Sparrowpelt. Sparrowpelt, you were my first apprentice and you are one of the Clan's best hunters and fighters, and I trust that you will pass all that you know to Stormpaw."

Rabbitleap masked his disappointment well enough, shooting Sparrowpelt a smile as the warrior strolled forward to touch noses with his new apprentice. You knew you weren't going to be named, the voice in his head reminded him. They're Leafstar's daughters. There's no way she would trust their lives' with anyone less than a senior warrior.

Leafstar began the Firekit's ceremony. "Firekit, 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 Firepaw. Your mentor will be... Mintfur."

Rabbitleap sucked in such a sudden breath that he choked on it. Mintfur shot him a smirk as she stood up and approached the Rockpile.

"Mintfur, you are young but you have experience. Trained by Waspwhisker, you were merely an apprentice yourself when you joined in the fight against Dodge's group, and you have continuously proved yourself since then. I trust that you will pass your spirit and determination to Firepaw."

Everything happened in slow motion, maybe so that Rabbitleap could feel tortured for as long as possible. Plumwillow was murmuring to him, he could feel her breath against his face, but as Mintfur and Firepaw touched noses, he couldn't hear a thing.

Well, Nettlesplash thought, as he peered outside of the den, Rabbitleap is going to have a meltdown.

Then he scoffed. Good riddance. He ducked back inside the den and curled up in his nest.

"Why couldn't this wait until after the Ceremony?" Swiftleap pressed, as he followed Creekfeather into the forest.

"Because the Ceremony provides us with the perfect cover," Creekfeather answered. "If we're quick, no one will notice us slip back into camp!"

Swiftleap frowned. "You still haven't told me what we're bringing back to camp with us," he pointed out.

"Here, guess: what's sweet, golden, and StarClan's gift to cats?"

Swiftleap froze, eyes widening in realization. "Don't tell me you're talking about-"

"Ta-da!" Creekfeather exclaimed, pushing aside a curtain of grass to reveal a honeybee hive. "I finally found Echosong's honey stash! Isn't it great!"

Swiftleap circled the hive, eyeing it. "How did you find it?"

"I followed Echosong from above," Creekfeather explained, nodding at the branches that stretched overhead. "She never even scented me. Now we have access to all the honey we could dream of!"

Swiftleap looked behind them, as if waiting for someone to catch them. "I'd prefer a different sort of Honey these days."

Creekfeather rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know. The perfect couple, whatever." He eyed his friend. "I really thought you would be more excited about this. We've been looking for Echosong's honey stash since I became a warrior!"

"I mean, yeah, it's cool that you finally found it. But I don't think it's such a good idea to steal from it; Echosong and Frecklewish use honey for healing, and I know you, you could lay around and lick a honeycomb until your tongue falls off. I would feel terrible if Echosong needed honey for one of our Clanmates and she didn't have any because we ate it all."

Creekfeather stared. "Who are you and what did you do with my friend?"

Swiftleap rolled his eyes. "One of us has to be the responsible one."
"Since when?"

"I guess since Honeyflower has rubbed off on me." Swiftleap looked away. "Do you think the Ceremony has ended yet? Tinycloud was saying that she or Sparrowpelt might get one of the apprentices."

Creekfeather stared at Swiftleap, then looked to the honeyhive, then again to Swiftleap. You've only been mates for a moon, he wanted to say. I've been your best friend since I was an apprentice, and your name was still Egg.

"We might be able to catch the end of it, if we leave now," Creekfeather said. He didn't bother to keep the disappointment out of his voice, but Swiftleap didn't seem to notice.

"Last cat back has to bring Tangle his prey tonight?" Swiftleap challenged, looking back at him. Creekfeather forced a smile.

"You're on."

A chorus of "Stormpaw, Firepaw!" jerked Nettlesplash out of his near-sleep-state. A moment later and voices started carrying into the Den.

"Did you see Billystorm?"

"Hah, yeah! I thought he was going to break his back, he was puffing his chest out so far!"

"Forget about Billystorm; did you see Mintfur? She's strutting around like she's just received her nine lives!"

"Well, that's to be expected. Mentoring an apprentice is a huge honor, especially for such a young warrior. But she's certainly earned it!"

Warriors started entering and exiting the den. Nettlesplash made sure to glare at every single cat who trotted past him, and hissed at the ones who stepped on his tail.

"Sorry, Nettlesplash!" Tinycloud cried, exasperated. "But your tail is just across the floor…"

"Do you mean to say that you're too lazy to step over my tail?" he challenged.

Ebonyclaw rolled her eyes as she passed. "Nettlesplash, you're the laziest cat in the entire Clan."

"No one asked for your input!" Nettlesplash snapped.

"She has a point," Tinycloud meowed. "I mean, it's hypocritical of you to-"

"Just watch where you're stepping," he interrupted. Tinycloud huffed but she stomped out of the den without another word.

For a few moments, Nettlesplash hoped that he could finally return to his napping. The steady stream of voices faded as Sharpclaw sorted patrols, and cats returned to their regular routine. But just as his eyelids grew heavy again:

"Did you watch any of the Ceremony? At all?"

Nettlesplash heaved the heaviest sigh he could muster. "I'm sorry, Rabbitleap, did I miss the part where you received an apprentice?"

Rabbitleap narrowed his eyes. "There's no need to be sarcastic... Doormouse."

"Dungface."

"Gross. Now you're just acting like an apprentice."

"Speaking of apprentices, will you pass my congratulations on to Mintfur? I know you two are close."

Rabbitleap scowled. "I don't even know why I waste my time with you, Nettlesplash. Here I am, trying to be a good littermate and check on you, but-"

"Check on me?"

"Plumwillow is worried about you. She thinks the reason you didn't want to attend the Ceremony is because you feel guilty about finding Harrykit."

Nettlesplash snorted and turned around in his nest. "Plumwillow overanalyzes everything. Remember when she used to think Swiftleap was in love with her, but he was in love with her best friend the entire time?"

Rabbitleap moved to stand in his line of sight. "So you're not haunted by what happened to Harrykit, then?"

"I don't see his tiny broken body in my nightmares if that's what you're asking."

Rabbitleap took a step towards him. "It would be okay if you did, Nettlesplash. And it would be okay if you somehow felt responsible for-"

"But I don't." Nettlesplash opened his eyes to glare at Rabbitleap. "It's not my fault the dumb kit played too close to the cliffs. He's just lucky I found his corpse before the vultures did."

Rabbitleap recoiled, his muzzle wrinkled in disgust. "Great StarClan, Nettlesplash," he hissed. "You're horrible!"

"And yet, I have a perfectly clear conscience. Now, what do I have to say for you to leave me alone?"

"Don't bother," Rabbitleap growed. He stomped past Nettlesplash on his way out, tail lashing. Nettlesplash stared at the back of the empty den.

The pawsteps stopped abruptly. Nettlesplash waited for Rabbitleap to start on his tangent again, but after a moment of silence, the steps resumed. They faded into the background, along with the rest of the world outside of the Warriors' Den.

Finally alone, Nettlesplash closed his eyes and tried to find sleep again.

Plumwillow laid down beside the fresh-kill pile, one eye on the Warriors' Den as she plucked the feathers from a robin. Any moment now, Rabbitleap would appear and hopefully Nettlesplash would be in tow.

"Hey." Creekfeather sat down beside her. "Good Ceremony, right? I thought Leafstar did well."

"Well, they are her daughters. But I don't know if Rabbitleap will ever recover. Mintfur is going to be insufferable now that she has Firepaw-"

"Mintfur is a mentor?" Creekfeather blurted out. Plumwillow shot him a look. "I mean, that's crazy, right? She's not much older than us and she already has her own apprentice."

Plumwillow's gaze slipped towards the Rockpile, where Sharpclaw was sorting the last hunting patrol for the morning. She was less concerned with Sharpclaw's orders as her gaze zeroed in on Swiftleap and Honeyflower.

Honeyflower leaned her head on his shoulder. Swiftleap licked the top of her head. When Sharpclaw called their names they stood up, tails loosely intertwined.

"Can I have those feathers?" Creekfeather asked, pawing at one. "It's about time to reline my nest again."

Plumwillow pushed the entire robin to him, her appetite gone.

"Well, I tried." Rabbitleap announced, demanding Plumwillow's attention as he stomped out of the den. "Nettlesplash is determined to waste away in that nest."

"Hey," Creekfeather greeted him. "Leafstar did a nice job with the Ceremony, didn't she? Sorry about Mintfur, but at least you weren't expecting an apprentice-"

Plumwillow stomped on Creekfeather's tail. "Yow! What?!"

Plumwillow shrugged. "I saw a flea."

"It's fine," Rabbitleap huffed. "No, Creekfeather, I wasn't expecting an apprentice… I suppose I should just be grateful that you behaved yourself throughout the Ceremony."

"Mhm, sure, excuse me, Plumwillow- I do not have fleas!"

"What are you going to do now?" Plumwillow asked Rabbitleap, ignoring Creekfeather's indignation. "We could relax by the Sunningstones?"

Rabbitleap shook his head. "I don't have time to sunbathe; I need to prove that I'm just as good a warrior as Mintfur, or else Leafstar is just going to gift her the deputyship!" He sped over to Sharpclaw and the nearly departed hunting patrol, asking to join.

Distracted from his wounded ego, Creekfeather asked, "Does Rabbitleap realize that Sharpclaw has to die for somebody else to take his place? Why is he so worried about the deputyship?"

Plumwillow shrugged. "Maybe he thinks Sharpclaw is going to retire soon."

"Which one is more likely: Sharpclaw retiring, or Sharpclaw dying?"

"This is a morbid conversation." When Creekfeather only stared at her, Plumwillow huffed. "Sharpclaw dying, obviously."

"Obviously," Creekfeather repeated, before taking a bite out of Plumwillow's robin. Silence settled between the littermates; Creekfeather didn't seem to notice how quickly the silence became uncomfortable. Then again, he was never the most observant.

I'm being silly, she thought to herself. Creekfeather is easy to talk to. Just say something.

Plumwillow cleared her throat. "So, the Sunningstones-"

"Creekfeather!" A voice called, and soon Tinycloud appeared, followed by Frecklewish. "Come sunbathe with us!"

Creekfeather perked up. "Sure! Let me just-" he turned towards the Rockpile, but his face fell as he watched Swiftleap's tail disappear over the cliffs. "Nevermind."

Tinycloud's gaze shifted to Plumwillow. "You can join us too, if you want," she offered.

Plumwillow's chest shook with the effort it took to not laugh in her former mentor's face. "No thanks. It's too hot for the Sunningstones."

Creekfeather turned back to her. "Weren't you just asking Rabbitleap to-"

"Good luck with your flea problem, Creekfeather," Plumwillow interrupted him. She headed towards the Medicine Cat Den, ignoring his indignation and Tinycloud's piercing gaze.

The Sunningstones were the Clan's hot spot - literally.

The warriors who were spared from Sharpclaw's patrols often found themselves on the flat rocks, soaking up their warmth. It was the perfect place to share meals and gossip. Creekfeather used to enjoy both of those things, but not since there was new gossip to dig into…

"I can't believe she's angry at us," Tinycloud huffed. "Don't seasons of friendship count for anything?"

"Honeyflower and Swiftleap only told us about their relationship right before Plumwillow found out for herself," Frecklewish added, sullenly. "We wouldn't have had time to tell her, anyway. They didn't tell anyone."

Creekfeather stared at his half-eaten robin. "Rabbitleap says she'll move on eventually."

Tinycloud snorted. "I'll believe it when I see it. She's even stopped talking to Cherrytail! What did Cherrytail ever do to her?"

"She still visits Echosong," Frecklewish said. "But only whenever I'm not with her."

Tinycloud flicked her tail. "She's acting like such a kit. Just because we want to stay friends with both her and Honeyflower, we're guilty? If we had known about their relationship the entire time, we would have told her."

Creekfeather's stomach churned. "Just give her a little more time. She'll have to get over it if she wants friends again, and Plumwillow hates being alone."

His friends (her friends?) didn't look convinced, but they shrugged and switched gossip. Tinycloud started talking about how she thought Sparrowpelt was getting ready to ask her to officially be his mate now that they were seriously courting, but Creekfeather couldn't hang onto her words like Frecklewish could. If Swiftleap were with them, they would have branched off on their own conversation.

His stomach felt like it was full of maggots. Maybe Plumwillow gave the robin to him intentionally. Maybe she knew, and was just waiting for him to burst.

She'll get over it, Creekfeather told himself. She can't stay angry forever.

Despite his very best efforts, Nettlesplash could hide from Sharpclaw for only so long. He'd made the mistake of poking his head outside the den to snatch a sparrow from the fresh-kill pile when Sharpclaw nailed him.

"If you're going to eat, then you're going to contribute to the Clan! Dusk patrol, now!"

Nettlesplash disliked patrolling in general, but this specific border patrol was a weird version of hell. Mintfur led it with Firepaw at her side, rattling off landmarks and trails like the information was carved into her brain. Firepaw nodded along but she looked like she was struggling to keep up, and Nettlesplash might have felt sorry for her if he wasn't busy feeling sorry for himself.

Swiftleap and Honeyflower followed dutifully along, tails intertwined, as they'd been for the last half-moon. The new mates were in the 'honey moon phase' as Clovertail called it, and Nettlesplash thought that if they were going to whisper gooey, meaningless nothings to each other, they could at least wait until after the patrol was over.

It could be worse, Nettlesplash told himself, as he somehow overheard the word 'honeybug' even though Mintfur was determined to be the loudest voice on the cliffside. It could be worse. Birdflight could be here, too.

"This is where our border ends, and the Twolegplace begins," Mintfur told Firepaw. "Still vigilant, but there's not much danger here. The Twolegs usually keep to their side of the border, and kittypets are harmless."

Firepaw's ears perked forward. "Stormpaw and I have a bet to see who will meet the first kittypet!"

"Don't speak to them," Mintfur's voice was sharp. "If they speak to you, then ignore them."

"But if they aren't dangerous, then why can't we speak to them?"

"There's sort of an agreement between us and the kittypets," Honeyflower explained. "We didn't used to be so strict, but then one of them, Sol, came around and caused us a lot of trouble, and after that, there was a strange rogue attack."

Firepaw's eyes widened. "I've heard stories about Sol, and the rogue attack! It was the first time SkyClan's camp had ever been attacked."

Swiftleap added, "And you've heard of the daylight warriors before, yeah?"

"I think so. Billystorm, Ebonyclaw, and Frecklewish used to be daylight warriors, right?"

"There used to be more," Swiftleap agreed. "But Leafstar put her foot down and made the daylight warriors choose where they wanted to stay. Some of them just couldn't commit to SkyClan."

"Thank you for the history lesson," Mintfur said, clearly irritated at having her lecture interrupted.

"Wow," Firepaw breathed, fascinated. "What sort of trouble did Sol cause?"

Nettlesplash felt smug as the other warriors looked between each other. That's what they get for running their mouths. Soon after it happened, Leafstar and Billystorm decided that their kits were too young to remember being kidnapped and it would stay that way. Now who was going to tell Firepaw that the trouble had revolved around her?

"It's old news," Mintfur finally said. "There's no point in rehashing it."

Firepaw looked disappointed. "But I-"

"It's old. News." Mintfur interrupted, voice sharp. "All you need to know is to never cross this border. Just because the kittypets aren't dangerous doesn't mean there aren't any other dangers lurking behind that fence."

Firepaw huffed. "I understand."

The matter was seemingly dismissed. And then a certain she-cat poked her head over the fence, completely at ease until her eyes landed on the patrol. "Uh-oh. Hi guys."

"Birdflight!" Nettlesplash spat.

Mintfur hissed. "For StarClan's- how am I supposed to teach my apprentice to respect our rules when you break every single one of them?!"

Birdflight's eyes grew round. "You won't tell Leafstar, will you? Sharpclaw will skin my pelt and use it for nesting!"

"Ew," Swiftleap grumbled.

"Birdflight, what are you doing in the Twolegplace?" Honeyflower asked. She sounded like she was pleading with her littermate to have a reasonable explanation. Nettlesplash seriously doubted it.

Birdflight pulled herself over the fence with ease and landed on her paws. "I wanted to speak to the dogs."

Nettlesplash felt very smug.

"Stars above," Honeyflower groaned.

"That's ridiculous!" Mintfur cried. "Of all the nonsense-"

"You can speak to dogs?" Firepaw gasped, eyes wide.

"Of course she can't speak to dogs!" Nettlesplash snapped. "Birdflight has fallen from a tree too many times."

At Firepaw's confused expression, Swiftleap leaned down and explained to the apprentice, "He means she's bird-brained." Firepaw nodded in understanding.

Birdflight's eyes pierced Nettlesplash. "I'm surprised they were able to drag you out of your nest," she remarked. "At least I'm willing to try new things. You haven't even tried a new piece of fresh-kill since you were a kit."

"For real?" Firepaw whispered to Swiftleap.

"Probably," Swiftleap whispered back. "Nettlesplash is boring." Honeyflower shushed him.

"At the rate you're going, one of these new things is going to kill you," Nettlesplash snapped. "But I'm not surprised you crossed the border. It's not the first time you've visited Twolegs."

Hurt flashed across Birdflight's face.

"Nettlesplash!" Honeyflower hissed. "That's not fair, we were just apprentices!"

"I didn't cross the border and need rescuing from an elder Twoleg when I was an apprentice."

"That's a low blow," Swiftleap huffed. Firepaw nodded her disapproval. Mintfur actually looked like she agreed with his point, and that was when Nettlesplash thought he may have gone a step too far.

"It's still the truth," he muttered, looking away from Birdflight and the hurt on her face. Pathetic.

"We won't tell anyone you crossed the border," Honeyflower told her littermate.

"Speak for yourself," Mintfur said. "She did it right after I told my apprentice why she shouldn't cross the border!"

"Give her a break," Swiftleap argued.

But Mintfur didn't waver. "Nope. Firepaw is very young and impressionable. If I give Birdflight a break, then the first time Firepaw breaks a rule, she's going to expect a break!" Mintfur fixed her apprentice with a stern look. "I don't give breaks."

"Understood," Firepaw meowed, looking a bit sick.

For a moment, Nettlesplash listened as the three warriors attempted to sway Mintfur, but he knew it was pointless; Mintfur was ruthless. Bored with it all, he stood to his paws and started back to camp.

No one noticed as his tail disappeared over the cliffside.

Rabbitleap dropped a squirrel on the fresh-kill pile, then frowned.

"It's a good catch, Rabbitleap," Plumwillow meowed, exasperated. "Look how fat it is!"

"It's just one squirrel."

"Remember that group training session we did with Waspwhisker? Quality over quantity?"

"Why can't I have quality and quantity?"

Plumwillow groaned. "You do understand that Leafstar won't take Firepaw from Mintfur and give her to you even if you feed the entire Clan by yourself, right?"

"Of course I know that!" Rabbitleap looked away from his only catch, towards the forest. Mintfur decided to end Firepaw's first day as a 'paw with a border patrol. He would have done the same thing. "I just have to be ready for the next apprentice."

Plumwillow's face lit up. "Hey, why don't we relax on the Sunningstones while they're warm? That'll cheer you up!"

Rabbitleap wasn't usually one to 'relax', but with the dusk patrols starting to return, there wasn't any work to be done. Reluctantly, he let Plumwillow lead him to the stones.

A few cats were already there, sharing tongues; Ebonyclaw, Patchpelt, Clovertail. Rabbitleap noticed Plumwillow scan the stones, as if looking for someone.

He nudged her. "Swiftleap and Honeyflower are on Mintfur's patrol. I heard Sparrowpelt was planning a twilight walk with Tinycloud."

"Frecklewish is with Echosong," she murmured, checking off her mentel list. The littermates settled down on a smooth stone, and Plumwillow began grooming Rabbitleap's back. His eyes fluttered; despite the setting sun warmth seeped into his bones, easing tension from his body.

"You must think I'm bird-brained."

Rabbitleap didn't open his eyes. "I understand why you feel betrayed by your friends; but I don't see the appeal in Swiftleap. Think of all the trouble he gets into with Creekfeather."

"The trouble they used to get into. Now he's too busy spending time with Honeyflower for Creekfeather's antics."

"Tell me about it." Creekfeather jumped onto their stone, shoving Rabbitleap aside so he could snuggle between them. Suddenly, all of that tension was back… "Did you know Swiftleap ditched me for a border patrol? That's his second patrol today. He hates border patrols!"

"He doesn't hate Honeyflower," Plumwillow mumbled.

"You aren't bird-brained, Plumwillow," Rabbitleap said, eyes open as he struggled to get comfortable again. "Your feelings are valid-"

"So valid."

"-But I don't agree with cutting off your other friends. We've spent more time together in the last moon than we have in our entire warrior careers."

Plumwillow looked indigent. "Well, maybe I regret that! What's wrong with wanting to spend time with my brother?"

"There's nothing wrong with it," Rabbitleap countered, Although I do miss hunting by myself in the mornings… "It's unlike you, is all."

"How come you don't want to spend more time with me?" Creekfeather asked. "I feel like I see you less than I used to!"

"It's because your best friend is no longer available, obviously."

Rabbitleap lifted his head and blinked to make sure his eyes weren't playing a trick on him. "Who got you out of your nest?" he asked.

"Sharpclaw," Nettlesplash replied. "I went on a border patrol, Rabbitleap; are you proud of me yet?"

"Same patrol as Swiftleap?" Creekfeather asked, hopefully.

"And Honeyflower?" Plumwillow was poised to run.

Rabbitleap looked past Nettlesplash. "That's the last one to return. How come you're so far ahead of them?"

"They're probably still arguing over whether or not to turn Birdflight into Leafstar. She crossed the Twolegs border because she wanted to speak to a dog."

Creekfeather cracked a grin. "I love that cat."

"Well, I don't."

"Are you sure?" Plumwillow looked like she was trying to extract the truth from him. "I think if you were nicer to Birdflight, you two would hit it off! You're a social recluse and she's a free spirit! Together you could create one normal cat!"

Nettlesplash growled, "Stop."

"Wait a moment, the Twolegplace is the halfway point for the north trail." Rabbitleap stared at Nettlesplash. "Did you only complete half the patrol?"

"It's ridiculous that you have the border paths memorized," Creekfeather said.

"Swiftleap and Honeyflower probably have them memorized by this point, too," Plumwillow grumbled.

Nettlesplash didn't falter. "At least I left my nest and did something productive."

Rabbitleap couldn't believe his ears. "You didn't last the entire patrol! You can't even do the bare minimum!"

For a moment there was anger on Nettlesplash's face. But almost as suddenly as it appeared, it was replaced. "You're right, Rabbitleap. How pathetic of me to even try."

He started to walk up the sandstone path. Rabbitleap thought about calling him back, but now he was frustrated and Nettlesplash would have ignored him anyway…

Rabbitleap looked at his remaining littermates and frowned at their expressions. "What?"

"Harsh," Creekfeather remarked.

"Nettlesplash never holds back! If he can't take the truth, then he shouldn't be so blunt himself."

Plumwillow looked towards the Warriors Den. "I can't imagine why he's like that."

"I am not the one in the wrong here," Rabbitleap said, sharply. The older warriors glanced his way, and he clamped his mouth shut. Everyone always wants to give Nettlesplash a break. That's why he can only finish half a border patrol.
Rabbitleap jumped to his paws and started towards the forest, where Nettlesplash had come from. Behind him, Plumwillow called, "Where are you going now?"

"To finish Nettlesplash's patrol," Rabbitleap called back, steely.

He heard Creekfeather start to follow him, but Plumwillow held him back. "Let him go," she murmured. "He's been in a mood ever since the Ceremony…"

Rabbitleap grit his teeth and pushed into the forest.

ALLEGIANCES

SKYCLAN

Leader: Leafstar - brown-and-cream tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Deputy: Sharpclaw - dark ginger tom

Medicine Cat: Echosong - silver tabby she-cat with green eyes (Apprentice: Frecklewish)

Warriors: Patchfoot - black-and-white tom

Billystorm - ginger-and-white tom

Petalnose - pale gray she-cat

Waspwhisker - gray-and-white tom

Fallowfern - pale brown she-cat with green eyes

Ebonyclaw - striking black she-cat

Sparrowpelt - dark brown tabby tom (Apprentice: Stormpaw)

Shrewtooth - skinny black tom

Bouncefire - ginger tom with amber eyes

Tinycloud - small white she-cat

Swiftleap - creamy-colored tom with pale blue eyes

Sagefoot - pale gray tom with with green eyes

Mintfur - thick-furred, gray tabby she-cat with dark green eyes (Apprentice: Firepaw)

Rabbitleap - dark brown tom with amber eyes

Plumwillow - dark gray she-cat with green eyes

Creekfeather - handsome gray tabby tom with blue eyes

Nettlesplash - pale brown tom with amber eyes

Honeyflower- light gray she-cat with pale blue eyes

Birdflight - black she-cat with a gray muzzle with bright blue eyes

Sandynose - light-colored tom with a darker tail-tip, legs, and ears

Apprentices: Frecklewish - mottled light brown tabby she-cat with spotted legs

Stormpaw - gray and ginger she-cat and blue eyes

Firepaw - long-legged ginger she-cat and green eyes

Queens: Clovertail - light brown she-cat with white belly and legs and green eyes

Cherrytail - tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat; expecting Sharpclaw's kits

Elders: Tangle - large tabby tom with amber eyes

CATS OUTSIDE THE CLAN

Hutch (formerly Shortwhisker) - dark brown tabby tom

Harveymoon - white tom

Macgyver - black and white tom

Snookthorn - black and white tom

Oscar - muscular black tom with green eyes

Mollyheart - brown tabby she-cat

Riley - pale gray tabby tom

Bella - pale orange she-cat with green eyes

Delilah - cream-colored she-cat

Fog - patched gray tom

Crescent - tortoiseshell and white she-cat

August - ginger tabby she-cat with blue eyes

alternate title: in which Leafstar crushes Rabbitleap's dreams

Welcome to the new and improved version of The Impossible Life of a SkyClan Warrior (abbreviated to TIL)! The very first version of TIL was published to FFN roughly five years ago, and in that five years it has gone under two sets of revisions and now this total rewrite. If you were a fan of the original version, don't worry: these are the same bird-brains that captured your heart all those years ago. If you're a new reader, then I hope you'll stay for the ride!

It's gonna be a roller-coaster.

This chapter was already posted to AO3 last Tuesday, and I aim to update over there every Tuesday. FFN gives me more trouble with formatting so I can't promise updates here every Tuesday, but I will try to get them up during the week. Find me on Tumblr under the same user for chapter trivia and other content! Cross posted to AO3 if you prefer the format.