Chapter Two

The morning air was chilly, and it was noticeable now that Leaf-bare was rapidly closing in on the clan's territory. Dew was still clinging to the tall grass, clutching as if it were holding on for dear life. Somewhere in the distance, crows could be heard, cawing at one another.

Flowerheart and Ashpaw stood at one end of a small clearing, while Graytail and Oakpaw stood at the other. The open area was oval shaped, and all of the tall grass had either been ripped out or stomped down. Two small rocks sat on one side, out of the way enough so they did not hinder battle training.

"Okay Ashpaw, line up in front of Oakpaw, about two tail-lengths away," Flowerheart meowed, and flicked her tail towards the center of the clearing. Although the air was chilly, the sun was starting to beat down strongly, causing her calico fur to sparkle in the bright light. "Graytail and I want to test your close quarter combat skills."

Graytail nodded in agreement, and the two apprentices moved to their instructed positions. While apprentices were training, they focused on three categories of fighting: close quarter combat, surprise attacks, and defensive maneuvers. Sometimes they would practice the same techniques all day, sometimes they would switch it up.

"Ashpaw, since Oakpaw is bigger than you, you'll have to figure out a way to avoid letting him get too close to you, or right on top of you." Flowerheart approached the two apprentices and stood to their side to observe their formation. Graytail joined her after a few moments, adding her own advice.

"Oakpaw, remember the opposite for Ashpaw. He's smaller than you, but that means he will be faster. Don't get worked up if it takes a few tries to really zero in on him." Both siblings nodded in unison, taking the tips to heart. As of now, there was peace among the three clans. The only threats Grassclan had to face were the occasional opossum, or stray rabid raccoon. Battle training was always needed, and always practiced. Something bad could always occur at any moment, and Moosestar made sure every cat trained at least a little bit each day, even Oldeye. The kits were the only members of the clan who were exempt. Of course, the elders, queens, and medicine cat would have very mild training sessions, nothing like those of the warriors and apprentices.

Flowerheart continued. "Okay, on my signal, let's see what you have learned." She retreated to her side of the clearing, and Graytail returned to hers.

Ashpaw stood staring at his brother, his mind whirling with techniques and ideas. They had fought many times before, but this time seemed different. They were only a moon into apprenticeship, so they both wanted to prove themselves to their mentors, that they would become great warriors for the clan.

"Begin!" As soon as Ashpaw heard Flowerheart's voice, he flew into action. Leaping forward, he kept his body close to the ground as he aimed for Oakpaw's belly. The bigger apprentice was no fool, however, and he tried to pin Ashpaw to the ground before he could complete his move. Ashpaw reangled his attack, twisting to his side to avoid his brother's counter attack. Quick as a trout, he used his back legs to propel himself onto Oakpaw's back. Seeing the move before it was completed, Oakpaw rolled out of the way, and Ashpaw landed back onto his paws once again.

"You are going to have to try something better than that." Oakpaw stood, tail swishing, as he gloated.

Reacting with instinct, Ashpaw decided to try something new. Crouching down, he felt the short stubs of grass tickling his belly. Lightning fast, he lounged straight at Oakpaw, trying to take him by surprise. As he connected, his brother was knocked backwards, onto his side. Ashpaw was shocked to see that Oakpaw shot right back up, and charged with full speed.

Ashpaw jerked out of the way just in time, causing Oakpaw to fly past and land in the grass behind him. Both mentors watched from their respective sides with interest.

"Okay, let's see you dodge this!" Oakpaw roared as he mimicked Ashpaw's last attack, getting low to the ground and charging head on again. Ashpaw was ready this time.

Timing it just right, he jumped above Oakpaw as he attacked, and skimmed over his head as he landed on his back. This was his chance. Claws still sheathed, he desperately tried to hang on as he tried to force all of his weight on Oakpaw's back to bring him down. His brother fought back hard, trying to buck Ashpaw off.

This is harder than I thought, Ashpaw thought. He hopped off of Oakpaw's back and spun around, charging back into him as he was still recovering from all of the weight that was on his.

They both fought hard now, paws scrabbling, back legs burning with stress and ache. He knew Oakpaw would never give up. He wouldn't either, though.

As they pummeled each other fiercely, Ashpaw heard Graytail's meow ring out.

"Okay! Separate!"

The two apprentice's backed away from one another, panting profusely. They stared, not breaking the hard character of their battle face. After a few seconds, both cats chuckled.

"You fight like a Lionclan warrior." Oakpaw praised his brother.

"You don't give yourself enough credit. I can't find a weakness!"

Flowerheart and Graytail approached them, eyes bright with pride.

"Well fought, both of you! You will both make fine warriors one day." Flowerheart purred.

"The fact that you both battle so hard and with so much passion is something the entire clan can be proud of," Graytail added.

Both apprentices beamed, as this is everything a clan cat lived for. To be able to fight and protect their clan from any threat that may occur.

As they were accepting their praises, another cat was noticeably coming into view. All four cats turned to see who the newcomer was.

"I didn't see from the beginning, but from what I did watch, these two will make some of the fiercest fighters the clan's will have ever seen." Moosestar's long brown hair looked extra shaggy as he approached the group. He looked down at the apprentices, and then at the mentors. "I couldn't be more proud of you all. I am happy to be able to call you my clanmates."

"We all appreciate the kind words, and we couldn't ask for a better leader," Flowerheart meowed, speaking for the whole group. They all dipped their heads in respect.

"How about we put on a bit of a show for the apprentices?" Moosestar looked at Graytail and Flowerheart, a glint of mischief and amusement in his large eyes.

"What do you have in mind?" Graytail cocked to her to the side as she replied.

"How about we have a training battle, you and Flowerheart against me." Moosestar said. Ashpaw looked at Oakpaw, stunned. Surely that wouldn't be a fair fight? "We will see if you two can still stand up to these old bones."

Flowerheart laughed. "You must be getting to be a mouse-brain in your old age, Moosestar."

"We shall see. Are you up for it?"

The two she-cats looked at each other, then back at their leader. Graytail took a step forward. "Okay, yeah. Let's do it."

Ashpaw and Oakpaw, now thrilled at being able to witness Moosestar fight for the first time, backed up to the far side of the clearing, next to the two rocks placed side by side. Moosestar padded to one side of the clearing, while the two she-cats headed for the opposite end. The wind had picked up a little, causing the tips of the long grass around the clearing to dance ever so slightly. A bird let out a loud shrill somewhere off in the distance.

Oakpaw leaned over towards his brother's ear. "This is so exciting! I can't believe Moosestar is going to take them both on at once!" Ashpaw just nodded in response, his gaze clearly locked on the warriors in front of him.

Moosestar hunched down and narrowed his eyes. "Don't go east on me, you two." He glanced over at the two apprentices, who were watching with intent regard, obviously aflutter and anxious. "Pay attention to each side. In fights, you aren't always going to have a fair opportunity. Sometimes you might have to adapt, and face much stronger opponents." They nodded at their leader and resumed watching, waiting for the action to start.

Ashpaw's heart almost jumped out of his chest when he heard Moosestar yowl, "Begin!" At his call, both Graytail and Flowerheart surged forward, slithering their bodies along the flat ground as they skirted towards their leader, like snakes closing in on their prey. Moosestar had barely moved, watching his opponents with sharp eyes, trying to see their moves before they put them into action. Ashpaw was in awe, they all were highly skilled and trained to fight. He was envious, he couldn't wait to be a warrior. It's all he's ever wanted.

As the she-cats approached Moosestar, he made an unexpected move. Dashing forward, he jumped up into the air, so that was over top of Flowerheart. He landed behind her, and as Flowerheart and Graytail were spinning around to attack, he swiped a large paw out as Flowerheart, pulling her back right leg out from under her. As she collapsed momentarily to the ground, Moosestar charged head on at Graytail. Being much smaller then the massive brown tom who she called her leader, her only option was the rear back and try to side step out of the way.

"This is crazy!" Ashpaw barely heard his brother over the adrenaline pumping through his ears.

Moosestar slammed in Graytail, sending her sprawling on the dirt behind her. He turned back to face Flowerheart, who had now recovered. They traded blows with one another, no victor clear yet. Flowerheart darted down, trying to aim for Moosestar's belly. He was ready though, and he dropped his weight on top of her, cutting off her attack.

Graytail had returned to the action, leaping on to Moosestar's back, batting his head and ears with sheathed claws. At the same time, Flowerheart had squirmed out from under Moosestar, and was also batting at his head.

Ashpaw thought for sure he would sound defeat now, but was proven wrong when Moosestar let out a roar, spinning his body around and extending his muscular forelegs out. Flowerheart was caught by the initial swing and thrown backwards several tail-lengths, out of the fight this time. Graytail ducked out of the way, but before she could strike back, Moosestar threw his head into her, causing her to fail backwards on to the ground. Moosestar stood victorious for a moment or two, and then went to check on his clanmates, just to make sure they were okay.

Oakpaw jumped into the air. "Wow! That was awesome! That's how real warriors fight!" He exclaimed, looking at Ashpaw. "Did you see that?!"

Ashpaw nodded, and then started padding over to where Moosestar and their mentors were standing. Flowerheart looked up at them as they approached. "It seems Moosestar still has his skills from before."

"Which we had already knew, we just had to test them out." Graytail added.

Moosestar chuckled. "I got lucky, you two almost had me a few times."

Oakpaw circled excitedly around the three of them, weaving in and out. "I've never seen anything so amazing! I can't believe Moosestar took on two strong warriors at once, and won!"

"Believe it or not, but Moosestar has always been a terrific fighter. I don't recall him ever losing." Flowerheart meowed, looking at her leader.

Moosestar looked off in the distance, as if memories were flooding in his mind. "There was one time, but it is a long story. It would best be told another time." Before anyone could argue, he glanced up at the sky. "Well, as much fun as this was, I must be heading back now. Flowerheart, Graytail, you put up a very good fight. I couldn't be more proud." They dipped their heads at their leaders kind words. Moosestar looked at Ashpaw and Oakpaw. "You two as well. I hope you learned something from watching us. You're all valued members of Grassclan. I hope you know that." With that, he dipped his head and strode off.

Flowerheart padded over and stood next to Ashpaw. "Of all my choices for a leader, there is no cat I'd rather have. He has done this clan good."

Oakpaw skidded to a halt next to them. "Do you know who the cat is he lost to?"

Flowerheart sighed and looked over at Graytail, who had followed Oakpaw over at a slower pace. Graytail took the look as a notion to explain what they knew.

"Nobody knows much. What we do know, we usually keep quiet on. It was a while ago, and most cats have forgotten about it. Moosestar was a warrior at the time, older then us. We were both apprentices still. His name was Mooseshade before he was leader, and was even more muscular then he is now." She paused, sifting through her thoughts. "I remember there was a rogue cat spotted by the small creek next to the forest, just inside of our boundary marker. Ratface's patrol had scented it, and reported it to our leader at the time, Fernstar. She passed on to Starclan before you two were born."

Oakpaw cut in. "What was she like? Was she strong, like Moosestar is?"

Flowerheart nodded. "She wasn't nearly as big as Moosestar, but she used her toned limbs and intelligent mind to win battles. She was a fierce fighter."

Graytail sat down and wrapped her tail around her paws, giving her chest a few licks. "Moosestar was a bit more… wily in his younger days. It was always claws first, think later. When he heard about this, he begged Fernstar to let him track down the rogue. She was hesitant at first, but Mooseshade was persistent. Fernstar decided to ask some of her senior warriors what they thought about the idea, and they didn't see a problem with it. So she eventually made the call to let Mooseshade take the fight on his own, on one condition."

Ashpaw's ears perked up, and Oakpaw scratched his side with his back leg without taking his eyes off of Graytail. Flowerheart was scanning the edge of the clearing, just to be safe. Graytail continued.

"Mooseshade could track down and chase off the rogue, but a small patrol of warriors would follow behind him after a short period of time, just to keep things secure. Mooseshade agreed, and immediately took off in the direction of the forest." She shifted on her paws, thinking of a way to simplify and shorten the end of the story. "Moosestar has never spoken about the situation since then. When the small patrol showed up, they found him laying in a small pool of blood, which was slowly seeping from a wound on his right flank. All he shared is that he was ashamed he lost to a clanless cat, a black and white she-cat. Nobody really pushed for more information, and Mooseshade vowed from that day on, he would never lose a fight again. He has stuck to his word."

Ashpaw was amazed, and shocked. He knew Moosestar was a fierce fighter, but to only lose one fight? That was crazy. He heard Oakpaw's mew overpower his thoughts.

"Amazing! Moosestar has to be the greatest fighter to live as a clan cat, right Graytail?"

Graytail sighed, looking at Flowerheart. "Yes, that I have ever known. Don't go spreading that story around though, okay? I don't know how many younger cats actually know about that stuff, and I don't want to create rumors."

Oakpaw nodded, turning serious. "Don't worry. We won't say anything." Ashpaw agreed.

Flowerheart started to pad off. "Let's head back to camp. We all could use a nice meal."

Back at camp, the activity was low. The sun was high in the sky, warming up the chilly air. Branchfoot and Rosepelt were lounging outside of the warrior's den, chatting with each other. The kits were playing outside of the nursery, with Skyleaf watching over them with keen eyes. The hunting patrol had returned right before Ashpaw did, and he saw Darkthroat and Fallowberry dropping off their catches on the fresh-kill pile. Between the two of them, they had caught three mice, two moles and a blackbird. Once they deposited their food on the pile, Ashpaw noticed how well fed the clan actually was. With Leaf-bare rapidly closing in, the clan was trying to keep the food supply as high as they could.

Oakpaw stopped next to Ashpaw and flicked his brown tail towards the fresh-kill pile. "Want to share something? I see a nice plump sparrow on the side that is calling our names."

"Sure." Ashpaw replied, and followed Oakpaw over to the pile. From the corner of his eye he noticed Moosestar appear from his den, and motion Ratface over to him. Ashpaw wasn't sure he could look at Moosestar the same way now.

The leader of my clan might be the best fighter the clan's have ever had, he thought to himself. No, he shouldn't be too naive. The clans have been around for longer then anyone knew. How could any cat know who the strongest fighter really was? I'm going to be the strongest fighter the clans will ever see.

Oakpaw pulled him from his thoughts, yanking the sparrow out of the pile and mumbling "follow me."

They settled down next to the apprentice's den, watching the clan slowly stir around them. Ashpaw took a big bite of the bird.

Oakpaw swallowed his first bite and licked his paw. "I'm glad we got the mentors we did."

Ashpaw looked over at Oakpaw, puzzled by the odd statement. "Me too. Wouldn't you have been happy with anyone though?"

Oakpaw pawed at the sparrow, staring across the camp clearing. "Yeah, probably." Ashpaw saw his brother's gaze stop at a certain spot in the camp, where Hedgestripe and Hardfoot were quietly speaking to each other. "Those two just rub me the wrong way sometimes. The way they look at Ratface…" He trailed off. Ashpaw knew how to finish the statement.

"They don't fully respect him. Most of the clan knows that Hardfoot believes he should've been deputy instead." Ashpaw prepared to take another bite. "Either way, though. Moosestar chose our father, and that's all that matters."

"I suppose." The two sat in silence as they finished their meal. Ashpaw didn't care who disliked Ratface, he was glad he was deputy, and personally thought he did a great job with assuming the leader role when Moosestar wasn't around.

Oakpaw flicked his tail on Ashpaw's back. "What do you think those two are talking about?" Ashpaw followed Oakpaw's gaze as he spoke, spotting Moosestar and his father speaking with their heads close, very animate in their conversation. Ratface seemed displeased, as did Moosestar.

"It's hard to speculate. I'm sure if it's important, Moosestar will call another clan meeting." Ashpaw continued watching Moosestar and Ratface as they talked with one another. It seemed as though they were arguing about something, but it was hard to tell what. Usually Moosestar and Ratface got along well, so this was out of the ordinary.

The two quickly changed their posture as Stemtail approached them. After a brief exchange, Ratface followed Stemtail back to his den, while Moosestar headed towards his own.

"Weird," Oakpaw commented in between licks as he cleaned his fore paws.

As the two brothers continued to sit in silence, Ashpaw caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see Flowerheart approaching them. "Graytail and I are going to be going on patrol tonight, would you like to join us? That would save me from having to bother the other warriors, who have mostly been busy all day so far."

Ashpaw thought about glancing at his brother to make sure he was thinking the same, but figured there was no need. He would want to go regardless, just like Ashpaw would. "Yeah, sounds good." Oakpaw was already up, hearing the conversation take place.

"You two might as well rest until then. I'll come fetch you when it's that time." Flowerheart turned and padded off in the direction of the watering hole, which was located behind the medicine cat's den.

Ashpaw stood up next to his brother and looked over at him. "I'm gonna go catch a little bit of sleep, what about you?"

"I'm gonna go visit the kits real quick, see how they're doing." Oakpaw cast an anxious glance towards the nursery. Ashpaw knew that wasn't the real reason for him visiting the nursery. Deep down, he felt bad for their mother. Instead of being able to hunt and patrol like the rest of the warriors, Skyleaf was stuck watching Dovecloud's kits until she recovered. If she recovered, that is. It was no secret that Dovecloud was very sick, and the rumor around camp was that she would never fully heal. Hedgestripe was constantly on edge because of it. He didn't like the fact of another cat taking care of his children.

"Okay, but I'd get some rest if I were you." Ashpaw meowed. Oakpaw just flicked his tail in response, already heading off to the nursery.

Ashpaw made his way into the apprentice's den and slithered his way into his nest. The soft blades of grass that were weaved into the bowl shaped bed cushioned his body, and sleep soon found him.

He woke up, out in the middle of a large field. Tall stalks of wheat grass swayed in the nonexistent breeze. He realized pretty quick that he was dreaming. There seemed to be a light haze to the air, more supernatural than typical fog, and the stars above were circling him.

Movement off to his right caught his attention, and he swung his head around to look at what it was. When his eyes found the spot, the only thing he saw was more tall grass. He could sense something was around, watching him.

"Hello?" He called out, his voice more shaky than he was anticipating. Dreams were quite common, and were in fact hoped for. They gave a false sense of hope that could build the moral of any cat. Usually they were short and rapid, and weren't remembered by morning. Ashpaw could remember dozens of other little dreams he had had. They were comforting.

This one, however, was different. He felt the fur on the back of his neck stand up, a natural response to fear. Not knowing what to do, Ashpaw turned away from the spot he was watching and bolted into the grass.

It didn't take long for the voices to start. Soft and silent at first, they gradually increased, burning his ears. He could sense something stalking him. Pushing his legs harder, he pelted through the grass, looking for a way out. This wasn't a dream, he realized. It was a nightmare. He could smell his own fear-scent, sense his own wariness. He was afraid.

He charged on, pushing stalks of thick grass over with his head as he surged on. Whatever was following him was getting closer. Ashpaw kept going, deeper and deeper into the endless jungle of grass and foliage. The voices were intense at this point, pounding his eardrums from the inside out. He could feel breath on his tail now, and he dug harder into the ground, throwing dirt up around him. Ashpaw closed his eyes and hoped for the best. He hated this. He wanted it to end. Preparing for the worst, he mentally prepared himself to never wake up again.

"Get up you furball!" Ashpaw was jerked awake by a paw prodding his side. Heart racing, he sat up to see Oakpaw standing next to him. "It's just about time to go on patrol. Are you okay?" Oakpaw raised an eyebrow.

Shaking the weariness from his pelt, Ashpaw sat up. "Yeah. Just a bad dream, that's all." He studied his brother. "Did you ever take a nap?"

Oakpaw flicked his ear. "Yeah, shortly after you did." Ashpaw wasn't sure how much he believed him, but he didn't press the issue. Oakpaw was known to lose sleep due to the fact of worrying about their mother. Ashpaw worried as well, but he knew that Skyleaf was an adult, and a warrior. She could do as she pleased. Plus, she was the most fit to take on the job of raising two kits.

Ashpaw got up the rest of the way and followed his brother out into the camp. Flowerheart was waiting just outside of the apprentices den. The air was cooling off as the sun began to dip down towards the horizon. The wind had picked up slightly too, carrying the scent of fresh prey and dry grass with it.

Flowerheart looked at the two apprentices. "I'm going to go fetch Graytail, then we can head out. Maybe we will do some hunting on the way back." As she took off towards the warriors den, she called over her shoulder. "I'll meet you two by the camp entrance."

"Simple enough instructions for me." Oakpaw mewed, prancing off towards the entrance. Ashpaw followed more slowly behind him. His nightmare was still lingering in the corner of his mind. The feeling of fear and adrenaline was too real, he had never felt anything like it before.

They didn't have to wait long for Flowerheart and Graytail to meet them, and the group of cats took off in a brisk trot away from camp. They headed in the direction of the Waterclan border, the wind streaking out around their bodies as they cut through it like liquid.

As they neared the stream that separated Grassclan and Waterclan, they slowed down. Flowerheart, who was at the head of the group, slowed to a halt. She craned her neck back to look at her clanmates. "We will mark at the fallen tree, and then follow the stream up towards the Gathering Island." The fallen tree was just a very large ash tree that has crashed over many moons ago, creating a great place for Grassclan to hunt. Many birds and rodents made a home within its gnarled trunk.

Once they finished remarking the border, they traveled along the stream at a slower pace, looking out into Waterclan's territory. Instead of tall grass, Ashpaw could see many funny looking plants, some he recognized, like cattails and reeds. Others he could not recall ever seeing before. The ground looked glassy, due to the water that covered the ground, like a thin blanket. He didn't know how any cat could stand their paws being wet like that.

Oakpaw must've been thinking the same thing, as he sped up to pad next to his brother. "I would hate getting my paws wet all the time!"

Before Ashpaw could agree, he heard Flowerheart's meow from ahead. "Waterclan patrol just across the stream. Follow me." She turned to head down towards the bank of the water.

Oakpaw perked up, digging his claws into the dirt. Graytail sensed this, and ran her tail across her apprentice's back. "Relax, Oakpaw. There hasn't been hostility between the clans in many, many moons. If our patrols meet, we usually just check in on the other clan, and exchange news." Since only leaders, deputies and medicine cats met at the Gathering Island, patrols would often share bits of news, just to stay caught up with the latest developments.

By the time the rest of the group caught up with Flowerheart, she was already in conversation with the Waterclan patrol. Ashpaw noticed there were only two members of Waterclan on patrol.

Oakpaw studied the two opposing clan cats with interest. He looked at Graytail. "Who are they?"

Graytail slowed down slightly, gesturing for the two apprentices to do the same. "The big ginger tabby on the left is Frogclaw, and next to him is his apprentice, Dawnpaw. She should be a warrior here shortly, if my memory serves me right."

Ashpaw picked up on their conversation as they neared Flowerheart. Frogclaw was speaking.

"...each elder has finally recovered, but Lakepaw has been slower to recover. Seems greencough has struck up early this time. Usually it waits until at least halfway through Leaf-bare before it hits." Frogclaw nodded his greeting to the approaching cats, as did his apprentice. They all returned the greeting.

After some more introductions, Flowerheart proceeded to tell them how eveything had been rather calm in Grasslan territory, and they were just about to leave when Frogclaw yowled for them to halt. "I almost forgot to tell you, we scented a rogue cat not that long ago, it seemed to head into your territory. Just figured I'd warn you." The two groups of clan cats went their separate ways, and the Grassclan cats continued their patrol.

Flowerheart and Graytail padded at the front of the patrol, looking ahead. Ashpaw gazed pack at the Waterclan cats as the headed in the opposite direction.

Ashpaw glanced over to his brother. "Wonder why they didn't ask about the Waterclan scent in our territory?"

Oakpaw shrugged. "Could be they don't even know about it themselves. Ratface did say he thought he scented Grassclan mixed in with it. Maybe nobody wants to stir up any trouble that might just be a mishap with the wind." The answer made sense the Ashpaw.

The rest of the patrol was spent in relative silence, and the finished by marking the boulders that bordered Seedclan's territory. On the way back to camp, they all split up to hunt. Ashpaw's mind was still filled with his nightmare, and he had trouble concentrating on catching any prey.

Oakpaw had caught a small shrew. He glanced at Ashpaw. "Bad luck, huh? It happened to even the best warriors." Flowerheart and Graytail had each caught tiny robins, making the kill at the same time.

"Hunting will get even harder now that Leaf-bare is almost upon us. We should be grateful for every catch we make. Let's take these back to camp." Flowerheart finished up, and turned to lead the patrol back to camp.

The journey back was uneventful, and the patrol places their catches on the fresh-kill pile. Hardfoot and Rosepelt had went out on a small hunting patrol, as Ashpaw saw them drop their crow and field mouse on the pile right after Flowerheart's patrol did.

Skyleaf was sitting outside of the nursery, trying to get Sunkit and Floatkit to retreat to bed as the evening came to a close. She caught Ashpaw's eye as he padded away from the pile, slightly discouraged by the fact he didn't make any contributions. "Don't worry about it too much, dear. You can't make a catch everytime." Ashpaw just nodded back, appreciatively.

Flowerheart called to him. "I'll see you tomorrow for some more battle training, okay?" Again, Ashpaw just nodded. He was suddenly very exhausted.

He crashed in his nest, eager for a good night's sleep. Luckily for him, this time there weren't any nightmares awaiting him.