The cats of ThunderClan separated into their own little groups, discussing either Firepaw's fight or her own actions. Longtail limped off to a corner of camp, and Sparkpaw smirked at the pathetic image he gave. He was only lucky Whitestorm hadn't let her join in. If she had, he'd have more wounds than just his ear to worry about!

"Great fight, Firepaw!" Sparkpaw turned to see Graypaw had popped out of nowhere and was giving her brother the stupidest grin she'd ever seen on anybody's face. She immediately started snickering, making him give a mix of a pout and a glare at her. He didn't verbally respond, however. "Longtail's a warrior, but he only finished his training a few moons ago. Still, you spoiled his good looks, that's for sure!"

Sparkpaw snorted, her good mood from laughing still obvious. "He had good looks? I hadn't noticed them." she purred, smirk widening when both toms started giggling at her like kits. Feeling buoyed by their reaction, she bounced on her toes and made a show of looking around. "Did he hide them? Are they behind that ugly looking tom with the face?"

The tom she was referring to was the one that had been sitting behind Graypaw during the meeting. He glowered darkly at her before raking his dark yellow eyes over Firepaw's frame. He wasn't all that impressed with what he saw. "Lucky your collar snapped when it did. Longtail might be young, but I can't imagine losing to a kittypet."

The disdain in his expression ruined Sparkpaw's good mood. With faux pleasantness, she meowed, "Hi, I'm Sparkpaw. And you are?" Posture shifting to express his sudden wariness, he introduced himself as Darkstripe. Still with that off putting pleasantness, "Hello Darkstripe. I don't like you and I hope you sit on a thorn."

Darkstripe hissed at her while Firepaw and Graypaw choked on their laughter, not even trying to hide it. Instead of responding, the warrior stalked away. Through his laughter, Graypaw stammered, "You, you're kind of horrible. Did you know that?" Sparkpaw didn't take him seriously. By the somewhat awed look in his eyes, he hadn't meant it as an insult either.

Whether she took offense or not, though, her mood had been ruined. She grunted and cast her gaze about camp, not looking for anybody or anything in particular. "You're just lucky Firepaw likes you. Otherwise you'd be getting it just as bad." Graypaw's laughter trailed off nervously. Firepaw kicked her lightly in reprimand, and Sparkpaw sighed heavily while rolling her eyes. Knowing she'd well regret it, she drawled without looking at them, "So, care to show us around Graypaw?"

Somehow, without even seeing him, she just knew he was puffing up. "Oh yeah, sure! Leave it to me!" He flashed by her and in the split second she had, Sparkpaw leveled a look at Firepaw. He's your friend, you deal with him. Firepaw made a face back at her. Be nice. She scowled back at him, but that was all the time they had before Graypaw whirled on them with a blinding smile. "Okay, so-"

Before he could continue, one of the old cats from near the log yowled. He didn't seem to be in distress, but the way Graypaw tensed up had Sparkpaw suddenly alert too. "Smallear smells trouble!" He hissed, bristling.

Sparkpaw had a moment where her first thought was, 'Smallear? They have a cat named Smallear?', before the meaning of Graypaw's words hit her. She grinned and gripped the ground with her claws, fixing her eyes on the barrier. Was she about to have her first fight as a Clan cat? Her tail lashed in excitement and her ears perked up.

Her whole entire being drooped though when a scrawny black cat burst through the entrance. He was pitch black except for a small white marking on his tail, and his amber eyes were wide open with his pupils the size of an ant. Something had spooked him horribly. Sparkpaw noticed a long cut on his shoulder, and the rest of him was ruffled and agitated. "That's Ravenpaw!" Graypaw hissed, introducing the black cat. He went on speaking to Firepaw but Sparkpaw ignored him. She watched with narrowed eyes as Ravenpaw panted and staggered his way across the clearing. The blood dribbling down his leg left red paw prints as he went, sending a chill down Sparkpaw's spine.

Bluestar met the young black cat in the middle of the clearing. The only thing betraying her unease at the situation was a glint of worry in her eyes and the subtlest twitching of her tail. "Ravenpaw?" Ravenpaw tried to answer her, stuttering and starting words. Either the blood loss was getting to him or he wasn't getting enough air into his lungs. Bluestar leaped back onto the Highrock and gestured with her tail for Ravenpaw to join her. "What has happened? Speak, Ravenpaw!"

It took a bit of scrambling but soon the little black tom was standing beside her. Ravenpaw took one single, deep breath, and shouted for the entire clearing to hear, "Redtail is dead!" Shocked gasps and yowls met his words. The name meant nothing to Sparkpaw, but still she frowned. Redtail must have been an important cat for everybody to react like that. "We m-met five RiverClan warriors beside the stream, not far from Sunningrocks. Oakheart was with them."

Graypaw gasped so loudly Sparkpaw had no choice but to listen this time. "Oakheart! He's RiverClan's deputy, thought to be one of the greatest warriors in the forest. Ravenpaw is so lucky! I wish I'd been there. I would have-"

He was silenced by a furious hiss from one of the elders, and Sparkpaw was glad of it. Whatever Graypaw thought of it, clearly Ravenpaw didn't consider himself lucky. He went on, describing the encounter between the ThunderClan and RiverClan cats. Ravenpaw hadn't had any time to recover, swaying and wheezing as he spoke. Sparkpaw expected him to faint any second and made her way to the front of the crowd. She wasn't surprised when suddenly his eyes rolled back and he pitched forward, off of the Highrock.

Without thinking she lunged forward to try and catch him. It wasn't a far fall, it wouldn't have hurt him any more than he already was. Her instincts just screamed at her to do it. Luckily Ravenpaw wasn't much bigger than she was. She lowered him to the ground gently, raising her head when the ginger queen she'd noticed earlier bounded her way toward them. The queen crouched at Ravenpaw's side with another wary glance to Sparkpaw but said nothing to her, instead licking Ravenpaw's cheek to rouse him. "Spottedleaf!" she cried.

The name rang a bell in Sparkpaw's mind. Spottedleaf was the name of the cat Whitestorm had wanted her to see, to get something on her wounds. The tortoiseshell Sparkpaw had seen beside Graypaw earlier emerged from the fern-shaded corner of camp. She bounded over to them, and Sparkpaw hastily beat a retreat to give them room. Or that's what she would have said, had anybody asked. She didn't want Spottedleaf getting a good look at her cuts and deciding she actually did need help.

She returned to Firepaw's side just as a mournful cry came from just beyond the camp boundary. A large dark brown tabby was forcing his way through the gorse tunnel. He carried the body of another cat like one would prey, craning his head to preserve the dead warrior's dignity as much as possible. He was only mostly successful, as a bright red tail was dragging through the dust.

The tabby laid his burden on the ground gently. Despite Ravenpaw's announcement, there was a massive difference between hearing a cat died and seeing the dead body. Shock rippled through the Clan, though this time no cat made a sound. From her spot on top of the Highrock, Bluestar lashed her tail and demanded, "How did this happen, Tigerclaw?"

Tigerclaw didn't let his leader's apparent anger ruffle his fur. "He was killed in battle, struck down by Oakheart. I managed to take Oakheart's life in revenge before the river rats fled. Redtail's death wasn't in vain. We won't be seeing them on our territory any time soon."

Bluestar didn't reply immediately. She leaped down from the Highrock and made her way towards Tigerclaw. He backed away from Redtail, dipping his head to her. Bluestar didn't acknowledge him, touching her nose to Redtail's shoulder and closing her eyes. She said nothing for a long moment before raising her head to address the Clan. "Redtail was a good warrior, and a good friend. His decisions were always for the good of the Clan, never swayed by selfish desires. He would have made a good leader, and shall be missed."

With that, she closed her eyes again and crouched all the way. Cats moves forward to crouch beside her, licking Redtail's fur and murmuring unintelligible things to him.

Sparkpaw tilted her head and blinked in confusion. What were they doing? She'd seen a dead cat accidentally once, just last moon. Asha had taken her to meet a friend of hers, but he'd died in the middle of the night. Asha had been sad, true, but nothing like this. There was no gentle last words shared or stories passed around. They hadn't even buried him. Asha had led her away and never mentioned him again.

Seeing this though, for the first time, Sparkpaw felt… actually good about joining the Clan. Would it be like this when she died? Mournful and solemn? She was aware of her own mortality, knew it was going to happen eventually, but found she couldn't predict whether she'd be missed or not.

Before her thoughts could spiral, she was abruptly interrupted… by teeth closing over her scruff. Sparkpaw yelped indignantly as she was picked up like a kit. "What the-" Lionheart's scent wreathed around her, and she deduced that he was the one who was now walking. "What are you-" She realized he was carrying her towards where Spottedleaf was caring for Ravenpaw. Panic and humiliation made her squirm. "Let me go!" She even resorted to using her tail to swat at his paws, trying to make him stumble. If he stumbled his hold would loosen and she could make a break for it. "Let me go right now, Lionheart!"

He wasn't having it, though. Lionheart grunted and lifted her higher. Sparkpaw's ears burned in embarrassment when Spottedleaf looked up from Ravenpaw. "And what do we have here?" she meowed, eyeing Sparkpaw curiously. Sparkpaw sent her darkest glower to the medicine cat, hoping to sent the message that if she so much as touched her, they'd be having problems. Rather than strike fear into her, Spottedleaf's whiskers twitched in amusement. "Ah. Stubborn apprentice in need of herbs but too proud to ask for help?"

Lionheart finally put her down. Like he KNEW she was going to run, he firmly placed his paw on her tail to discourage her fleeing. "Worse. A stubborn apprentice in need of herbs but doesn't think she needs them."

Sparkpaw bristled. If there was one thing in the entire world she hated more than being underestimated, it was being talked about like she wasn't there. "Um, hello? Right here? And I DON'T need them! I cleaned them off already! Save them for cats like that!" She gestured to the black tom on the ground who thought he was being subtle with his half-open eye. As soon as he saw her looking at him though, Ravenpaw squeaked and clamped his eye shut. Like that would really convince her that he wasn't listening in.

Spottedleaf narrowed her eyes disapprovingly. "Perhaps that would have been enough before, but you would have needed to pass that filthy gully on the way here. Who knows what got into those cuts? Cats have gotten infections from less." She met Sparkpaw's scowl with a determined frown. "Move from that spot and I swear I'll hunt you down and sit on you myself until I get you treated."

She hated to admit it, even to herself, but Sparkpaw was admittedly… a little impressed. Only a little, though! Grumbling incoherently, she looked away. Satisfied that she would stay still, Lionheart lifted his paw from her tail with a nod to Spottedleaf and left them. Spottedleaf returned to her work, pressing a wad of something white to Ravenpaw's shoulder. Oddly, that frown was still on her face. It felt… off, though. In a pinched sort of way. And the way she was concentrating on her work didn't speak well for Ravenpaw.

Pawsteps abruptly came towards them, and Sparkpaw looked over her shoulder to see the broad form of Tigerclaw making his way over. He barely spared her a glance before speaking to Spottedleaf. "So, Spottedleaf, how is my apprentice doing? I've spent a lot of time training him up and it would be a shame to let it all go to waste."

Before the tortoiseshell could do more than open her mouth, Sparkpaw snorted derisively. "Not enough time, apparently." Tigerclaw stiffened and slowly turned to face her, eyes narrowed. She didn't dare flinch from his burning gaze. "From the length and depth of that, I wonder if he just kind of stood there and LET whoever it was claw him to bits."

Tigerclaw hummed, flicking her gaze over her entire body like he was categorizing her features or picking out her weaknesses. Sparkpaw returned the favor. Seeing him from afar didn't really do him justice. He was massive and well-muscled, and his claws were so long they peeked out from his paws even without him unsheathing him. One of his ears was torn down the middle, and there was a scar on the bridge of his nose that made Sparkpaw's sting just looking at it.

Apparently done with his assessment, Tigerclaw snorted. "I wouldn't be surprised. Ravenpaw's one of the more weak-willed cats of the Clan." Sparkpaw glanced at the black mound of fur, aware he was fully conscious and had definitely heard that. How did he feel about the cat teaching him to be a warrior insulting him like that? Tigerclaw dismissed her momentarily and demanded of Spottedleaf, "Will he live?"

"Of course he will." was her confident response. There was no hint of her unusual frown from before. "He just needs rest to help the wound heal, which means no training until I say so." Tigerclaw growled at her, and Sparkpaw unsheathed her claws. She didn't expect him to attack, not really, but it was her immediate reaction. More importantly to her, had she really just been about to take on a cat three times her size for someone she barely knew? That wasn't like her, and it unnerved her a little.

Spottedleaf finally looked up from Ravenpaw and met Tigerclaw's eyes. They stared at each other for a few tense heartbeats before Tigerclaw sighed and dipped his head. Finally he turned his full attention to Sparkpaw, and his gaze flicked over her shoulder. She followed his line of vision and found Firepaw and Graypaw sitting only a little bit behind her. "And who are these two?" he asked Graypaw. She assumed he was asking Graypaw, at least. Obviously he wouldn't be asking her.

Sparkpaw felt her tail twitch, but took a breath to keep the irritation at bay. Well, mostly at bay. "Sparkpaw and Firepaw. I'll let you decide who is who." she meowed sarcastically.

Tigerclaw looked about two seconds from smacking her when Firepaw bluntly stated, "I'm Firepaw. She's Sparkpaw. Yes, she's a nuisance. Yes, she's always like this. And you'll MAYBE get used to it, depending on how adaptable you are. My sister is a mystery even to myself." For a couple of seconds, everybody stared at him. Even Ravenpaw was barely peeking through an eyelid. The sudden attention seemed to fluster Firepaw. He ducked his head and shuffled his paws. "Those are the usual questions I get about her, at least." He mumbled, ears twitching uncomfortably.

Sparkpaw frowned at him. "You talk about me? Behind my back?" She wasn't quite sure how to take that. Today was bringing a lot of uncertainties, and such a fact was making her feel like she had grit beneath her fur. Itchy and agitated, and she couldn't scratch it away. "We're talking about that later." She meowed bluntly. Firepaw sighed but nodded acceptance. Good.

She turned back to Tigerclaw to see him leaning forward a little with his nostrils flared. Sparkpaw leaned back with a growl, warning him away. Whether he heeded her request for space or he had finished taking in her scent, Tigerclaw pulled back with a snort. "You smell like a kittypet, but I've never known a kittypet to have scars or markings like those."

Sparkpaw huffed at him. "And you've met every kittypet in the world, have you?" She sneered, glaring at him. He met her glare with his own, his tabby pelt bristling in his ire. "Firepaw and I WERE kittypets. Bluestar invited us to join the Clan. Get used to us, Stripe-butt. We're gonna be around for a while."

Tigerclaw snarled at her, louder than all the gasps of the cats behind her. Even Spottedleaf's head snapped up to gape at her. Perhaps a saner cat would have been more wary of inciting another fight so soon, particularly with such a large and obviously battle-scarred opponent. But Sparkpaw had never claimed to be the most stable of cats.

She grinned at him and sank onto her haunches, wriggling around tauntingly. It couldn't have been a louder challenge than if she'd leaped onto the Highrock and yowled it to the heavens. He probably would have done it too if Spottedleaf hadn't stepped between them. "That's enough!" She addressed Tigerclaw first and meowed, "Tigerclaw, I'm aware she needs to learn some respect. However, at the moment, she is technically my patient. I'd appreciate it if you could control your temper."

Sensing the situation was being de-escalated, Sparkpaw decided to get one more jab in. "Yeah, Tigerclaw! Control your temper!" She jeered with a snicker.

Tigerclaw's glare doubled, but Spottedleaf whirled on her before he could even open his mouth. "And you! If Tigerclaw needs to control his temper, you need to control your mouth. Think before you speak! At the very least consider the consequences! One more word out of you and I will make sure you spend your first day as an apprentice applying mousebile to ticks!"

Sparkpaw had no idea what mousebile was, but the disgusted sound from Graypaw convinced her she didn't want to find out. She gave a put-upon sigh, even going so far as to dramatically throw her head back. "Fiiiiine. I'll behave. For now." Without even looking at Tigerclaw, she flicked a paw dismissively, like she was swatting away a particularly annoying gnat. "Consider yourself lucky, Stripe-butt."

Tigerclaw growled and glared some more before finally stalking away. Spottedleaf nodded, apparently satisfied, before turning to the wide-eyed Firepaw and Graypaw. "As for you two, shoo. I need peace if I'm to treat both of these cats, and I won't get that with all these distractions!"

Both toms nodded, though Firepaw did so a bit more reluctantly. He looked at Sparkpaw for reassurance and she purred, leaning over to brush her muzzle gently over his. "Go on, go make some friends! Graypaw can give you that tour, and you can show me around later. I'll be fine."

Firepaw nodded again, far more enthusiastically this time. "And I'm finally gonna taste mouse!" He seemed more excited about that than he did about meeting their new Clanmates. Sparkpaw's whiskers twitched in amusement as the two male apprentices bounded away.

Spottedleaf had a warm smile on her face when Sparkpaw turned to her. The medicine cat said nothing though, only ordering Sparkpaw, "Help him to my den." She flicked her tail at Ravenpaw, like Sparkpaw wouldn't know who she was talking about. "I need to apply a poultice and bind the wound."

Poultice? Of what? Figuring she'd find out, Sparkpaw made a show of reaching over and lightly jabbing her paw into Ravenpaw's uninjured shoulder. "Come on, Ravenpaw, wake up." Whether he was playing along or actually had fallen asleep in the past minute, he groaned and blinked slowly at her. She gave him a Look before bluntly stating, "I'm not carrying you. You can walk."

He groaned again but heaved himself to his paws. Sparkpaw watched carefully while still making sure to look like she didn't care as he took a few steps forward, wincing every time he put pressure on his injured side. Grumbling incoherently, Sparkpaw moved to his side and gestured for him to lean on her. She pretended to not see the grateful look he sent her.

The going was slow, but eventually they did get to the den. Spottedleaf was nowhere to be seen, but Sparkpaw could hear her rummaging around through a large crack in a medium-sized boulder. Her voice echoed through a moment later. "Set him in one of the nests! I'll be out in a moment!"

Sparkpaw looked around in curiosity. There were nests made of moss and ferns set in seemingly random spots in the small shaded clearing. One was set in the fern wall itself, placed so that the fronds could be used for privacy if need be. She left Ravenpaw to his own devices to poke one of the nests with a forepaw, pleasantly surprised to find it as plush as a cushion underneath. It didn't feel anything like she'd imagined it would.

She was unaware of Ravenpaw watching her until he mumbled under his breath to himself, "It's probably not as soft as you're used to." Sparkpaw gave him such a sharp look he flinched. "I-I didn't mean anything by it! It was just an observation, I promise!" He trailed off, keeping his eyes on his paws and sheathing and unsheathing his claws.

Sparkpaw decided he was telling the truth. He honestly hadn't meant anything by it. He looked so pitiful though that she couldn't do anything other than sneer in contempt. "Tigerclaw was right. You really are pathetic." Ravenpaw flinched even further away at the words. "Okay, no. That's even worse. Look, when somebody insults you, insult them back. Call 'em ugly, call their mother ugly. Do literally anything other than cower away and take their words." He didn't respond, didn't even look at her, causing her to sigh heavily in annoyance. "Spirits, it's like talking to a trash can."

That at least got his attention. "Spirits? I didn't think kittypets believed in the afterlife." He faltered at the blank look she sent him and stuttered out, "O-or, is this being stereotypical in that I take what I think to be true and apply it to them all? L-like you told Tigerclaw, I haven't met every kittypet in the world. Actually I haven't met any kittypet in the world. You and your brother are the first, though I suppose technically I met you after you joined ThunderClan so you weren't a kittypet anymore-"

Sparkpaw stared in disbelief as Ravenpaw just kept rambling. And that's what it was, rambling. At this point she didn't think even he was sure of what he was saying. It was a relief for both of them when Spottedleaf appeared, leaves in her mouth and her paw swathed in more white stuff. She waddled over to Ravenpaw first and placed her leaves down with a frown. "Your wound opened up again. I need to stop the bleeding before putting the horsetail on."

Is that what those leaves were? Horsetail? Must be. Sparkpaw watched curiously as Spottedleaf carefully unraveled the white bundle around her leg. Finally it was too much for her to take and Sparkpaw crept forward to get a better look. Whatever it was, it was soaking up the blood like a rag would water. Sparkpaw looked up at Spottedleaf to find her concentrating once again. "What is that? How is it stopping the bleeding? How do you know if the bleeding has stopped if you can't see it?"

Spottedleaf flashed her a quick surprised look before looking back to her work. "These are cobwebs. They absorb the blood while the pressure stops the bleeding. We clean it gently afterwards to get any debris, like grass or splinters, out of it." The cobwebs were peeled back and Spottedleaf gave a satisfied nod. "I did that earlier, so thankfully we don't have to waste time." She reached for some of the leaves and answered Sparkpaw preemptively. "This is horsetail. It's used to both treat infections and keep the bleeding to a minimum. Do you want to smell them?"

Sparkpaw leaned forward eagerly and took a deep breath of the herbs. The sharp, bitter scent caught her off guard, and she backed away coughing. "Oh, oh wow, jeeze, that's pungent." She wheezed. She could feel her eyes watering and wiped at them with a paw to clear her version.

Spottedleaf was purring, and even Ravenpaw was smiling a little. "Yes, they are. They taste even worse and burn like fire when applied to wounds, but it's better than having an infection." She licked up two or three of the sprigs of green and chewed while Sparkpaw watched in morbid fascination. The mixture was spat directly onto Spottedleaf's paw, which she used to gently work the poultice into Ravenpaw's wound. He winced as she did so, but didn't move away, so Sparkpaw figured maybe Spottedleaf had exaggerated. If wimpy Ravenpaw didn't seem to mind too much, it couldn't be THAT bad, could it?

Once that was done, Spottedleaf applied more cobwebs to the wound and left it at that. Sparkpaw didn't ask this time. She'd already made a fool of herself and refused to do it again. That vow died a swift death when it was her turn and Spottedleaf started putting the poultice into her cuts. Burned like fire was NOT an exaggeration. Sparkpaw leaped away from Spottedleaf's paws with a pained hiss. "Son of a trash-raiding dung-sniffing raccoon!" She snarled, glaring distrustfully. "I'll take my chances with the infection, thanks!"

Spottedleaf looked beyond done with her. "I told you it would hurt. It's your own fault for not believing me. Believe me now, though, this is nothing compared to how it will feel if ALL of that goes sour!" She waved a paw to gesture to all of Sparkpaw, and though she grumbled and growled, Sparkpaw stalked back into range. "That's what I thought."

The rest of the treatment was spent in tense silence. Sparkpaw cursed and grimaced and squirmed, but didn't jump away again. "There, done." Spottedleaf declared. "You'll be fine to train tomorrow, but I want you back here tomorrow night so I can check on them."

Sparkpaw flicked her tail and left without a goodbye. She emerged into a different world. The sun had still been up when she'd entered the medicine den, but evening had descended while she'd been gone. Only a tiny bit of the sky was still lit up, and it was quickly darkening even as she took notice of it. Cats were still gathered around Redtail's body, but many had moved on to sleep.

At first she didn't see Firepaw anywhere, but eventually she did see him by the tree stump. He was with Graypaw, and a light ginger she-cat had joined them. More interesting, Whitestorm seemed to be scolding her. A fellow troublemaker? Sparkpaw hurried over to join them, but her hopes were dashed when the she-cat dipped her head to Whitestorm and spoke smoothly. "I just didn't expect to be sharing my nest with a kittypet, that's all."

Annoyance spiked once more, and Sparkpaw switched her hurried pace to a stalking one. "And I didn't expect to share my nest with a piece of dog dung, yet here you are." She growled with a sneer. Whitestorm seemed about to rebuke her again, but Sparkpaw cut him off with a scowl. "No. There's a difference between defending myself and being a pest just to be a pest. I'm not about to stay silent and let these cats badmouth me and my brother when we've done nothing to earn it. If SHE-" she tossed her head at the pale ginger she-cat, who growled, "-is going to insult us, I'm going to insult her back."

She and Whitestorm stared each other down. If he was expecting an apology or for her to take it back, he would be sorely disappointed. Eventually he got the message, for he closed his eyes and sighed. "I guess I can't fault you for that." He opened them into a sharp glare and said warningly, "But do NOT let it get physical, am I understood? You are Clanmates now, and Clanmates do not purposefully harm one another."

Sparkpaw shrugged in compliance. "Fair enough. I won't start anything. Make HER promise the same thing and everything will be fine."

Whitestorm set that same glare on the ginger she-cat. She tried to meet his glare like Sparkpaw did, but was soon squirming a little. "Sandpaw."

Ah, so that was her name. Sparkpaw filed that away in her mind even as Sandpaw groaned and rolled her eyes. "Fine! I won't let it get physical. Not like a kittypet would even be worth it." The only thing stopping Sparkpaw from launching herself at Sandpaw then and there were the looks of all three toms. It didn't stop her from hissing.

Whitestorm looked satisfied when Sparkpaw made no move. "Good. Now, training starts early in the morning. All four of you should get some sleep." He sternly looked at all of the apprentices until they nodded, even Sparkpaw. Though she did roll her eyes for good measure. He nodded back and took his leave then.

Sandpaw was the first to enter their den and Sparkpaw was the last. She entered just in time to hear Sandpaw growl, "Anywhere, so long as it's not near me." 'Don't claw her, don't claw her, don't claw her.' Sparkpaw chanted to herself. She watched Firepaw make a nest larger than the others, and she slipped in beside him when he took one side of it.

The warmth at her side and the softness beneath her made it apparent just how tired she was. Her muscles ached more than they ever had before. Her eyes were already shut when she heard Firepaw whisper, "At least you can't call me names anymore."

She chuckled at him and whispered back, "That's what you think. Good night, Rustbucket." He sighed like he'd expected that, and Sparkpaw finally fell asleep.