Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Lionpaw felt as if he had been put on the spot again. He thought about what it would be like to have Honeywing as his mate. But the only things that came to his mind were Heathertail. He shook his head to clear his mind and looked at Honeywing.

Would loving me be so bad? The words echoed in Lionpaw's head.

Honeywing just stood there, watching him. He looked back at her and wished all this stress and Heathertail and Rainstorm and the prophecy was gone. He wanted it to be like old times, when he and Honeywing were young apprentices with a strong friendship. He wanted to just curl up next to her in the den and be able to close his eyes and dream of being a warrior… but those dreams had been overthrown by Heathertail. Lionpaw loved her, he really did, but Heathertail was from a different Clan and he could understand what Honeywing had told him back at the clearing. He just… didn't want to believe it… he didn't want to believe that they were growing up.

Suddenly, a cat burst from the bushes. Honeywing jumped, so did Lionpaw. It was only Foxpaw. "Lionpaw, Firestar wants you to… oh, sorry, am I interrupting anything?" the reddish brown tom asked.

Lionpaw saw Honeywing shake her head. "No," she said, her voice going back to normal, trying to hide her hurt. "What did you want?" Honeywing asked the apprentice.

"Firestar is going to make Lionpaw and Hollypaw warriors!" Foxpaw exclaimed. Lionpaw's eyes brightened instantly and so did Honeywing's. Their eyes met for a brief moment, and Honeywing jerked her head towards camp, signaling she wasn't mad at him and for him to get to camp.

It was two hours until he would be made a warrior and they flew by so quickly. He felt like a kit when his mother came and began covering him with licks. He came out of the den with his sister and stepped up onto the high ledge.

Firestar stood before them. "StarClan, we gather beneath Silverpelt for a special ceremony. These cats have trained in your noble code and I commend them to you as a warrior in their turn," the fire colored leader meowed loudly. He stepped to Hollypaw.

"Hollypaw, from now on, you will be Hollythorn. We welcome you as a full warrior to the Clan. ThunderClan honors your intelligence and eagerness to learn," Firestar meowed and moved to Lionpaw.

"Lionpaw, from this moment on, you will be known as Lionclaw. We honor your strength and courage and welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan," the ThunderClan leader meowed.

Lionclaw couldn't believe it. He was finally a warrior. The Clan chanted his and his sister's new names and he looked down at his clan mates and saw Honeywing in the crowd. She, along with his brother and parents were chanting the loudest. He bounded down to her and realized he didn't want anything more to spend time with her, but knew he had to keep vigil for the night. He wanted things to go back to normal, when she and he were just friends without any care in the world.

"Hey," she mewed to him, looking up at him. "Lionclaw," she purred. "Congratulations," she mewed to him, looking down.

He could tell she was still thinking of the conversation earlier. "Being in love with you wouldn't be bad, Honeywing. I think that any tom who could win your heart would be one of the luckiest toms in the world," he whispered to her.

She looked up at him and said nothing, but in her mind, she screamed, But I want you, Lionclaw!

She looked down at her paws. She hadn't revealed that she loved him, but just that fact that she wanted someone to love her…

Lionclaw stood in the entrance of camp with his sister. Thoughts filled his head about the two she-cats in his life: Heathertail and Honeywing. He loved both of them, but he loved Honeywing as a friend. He would give his life to save her, but he didn't think of her as his mate in the future. Then again, he couldn't think of Heathertail taking that role either, he just once dreamed about it.

He was a warrior of his Clan, given the responsibility to protect his Clan at whatever costs. He was to follow the code of StarClan and be a good example to kits and apprentices. It would soon have to end between him and Heathertail, he finally realized.

His heart felt like it was being torn in two. No, he couldn't let Heathertail go. Not just yet. He wanted to make the most of what they had… and what they had was very special, but there was just the feeling of wrongness. His feelings lingered elsewhere at times, but he didn't know where to. He sighed.

"Are you okay?" Hollythorn asked.

"No," he mewed, turning to his sister…