Author's note: I noticed a few horrible spelling and grammar mistakes towards the end of this chapter. Know that I feel ashamed of this and apologize for my inability to catch them earlier. If you all see anything, I highly encourage you to tell me about it either publicly or privately.

Cedarfrost and Leafpaw padded towards the sandy shore, a perfect place for apprentices to learn battle moves. Turtlefoot followed towards the shore, but then diverged towards the craggy portion of the coast which extended outside the camp to cover a major portion of the outside shore. She paused at a section in which the rocks were reasonably flat and as dry as aged freshkill bones.

"Now Duskpaw, I am sure you know that I am a crag-skipper. We are able to hunt swiftly and silently along the seaside crags, hunting both seabirds and their eggs. You're not ready to face the slippery, wave-battered sections of the crag just yet, but one day you will be able to stalk like a misty shadow along this shore, picking off many a seabird along your path. What I would like you to do is to begin to get accustomed to these flatter, dryer rocks first. Watch your paws as you jump from rock to rock. Although falling round this area poses little threat, a single misstep could cost you your life on the larger, damper stones."

Duskpaw nodded and leaped onto a partially smooth stone near one end of the flat cluster. He stared down the ocean-chiseled path, the next stone about a foxlength away. He fell to a crouch, storing up enough energy to perform a great leap towards the stone. With a powerful kick-off, he flew into the air, claws extended to grip the rock in front of him. However, the only thing to graze the smooth stone was those stubby, young claws, shrieking against the hardened surface of the stone to the sand below. He raised his head, his grey muzzle covered with many grains of sand. His eyes became clouded with tears as he looked up at his mentor, fearing disappointment.

"I'm sorry Turtlefoot! I... I…"

Turtlefoot cracked a smile with a tiny chuckle and mewed back at her new apprentice. "Duskpaw, calm down. You can't expect to be the best jumper in CoastClan on your first try. You need to keep trying in order to get your legs strong enough to hold you through the curling, drowning pull of the ocean's waves on your fur. What I would like you to do is practice your jumping crouch first. Drop your weight onto your back legs and hold it until you feel them tense with anticipation. Keep that position for as long as you can."

Duskpaw nodded in affirmation and returned to his jumping crouch, tensing his immature leg muscles. He held this position as long as those legs would allow before relaxing and returning to the same stance a while later. Turtlefoot diligently watched the form of his crouch, making sure his desired position would hold him in the correct manner for an optimal jump. At the corner of her eye, she spied on a snow-white body near the tide. Upon a sight tilt of her head, the body was revealed to be Spottedhead, collecting kelp for wound wrappings and storage basins for other herbs. It was the first time in moons she has seen the tom alone, and if he was going to ask him about Lady, she knew now would have to be the time. If there as any cat in her Clan that could explain the familiarity of Lady's scent to her, it would be a medicine cat. She advised Duskpaw to keep working on his crouch until she returned, explaining that she had nearly forgotten to patch up a hole in the wall of the warriors den. She padded over to Spottedhead, attempting to keep calm, knowing the medicine cat could react unpredictably at times. She knew she could easily be catching him in a rotten mood.

"Spottedhead," Turtlefoot mewed, "could I speak with you for a moment?"

Spottedhead's black-dipped ears perked up at Turtlefoot's call, but his gaze shore-pointed gaze held firm. "What is it that you want, Turtlefoot? Pebbles stuck in your paw pads again?"

"Not exactly. I needed to talk to you about the catmint expedition."

"I thought I thanked you and Rockthroat for that moons ago. "

"I know, I know. It's just the scent of the kittypet who lived at the garden puzzles me. Lady."

Spottedhead shifted his attention from the shore to the she-cat. He then cocked his head to the side in slight befuddlement. "Why would her Twoleg scent confuse you? I understand Twoleg scent is a little off-putting to the uninitiated nose, but I wouldn't describe it as something to invoke disconcertion."

"No, it's not that. It's just I can't shake this feeling of familiarity about it."

Spottedhead snapped his head back into a straight position, amber eyes glistening with curious concern. "How in StarClan's name would you find Lady's scent familiar?"

"I don't know why, but I feel as if I have smelled her sent before."

The perplexed tom dipped his head, only to raise it a few moments later. "Ah! I'm not sure why I didn't think of this before. Lady has an obsession with catmint, if you couldn't tell, always frolicking around in the stuff from dawn 'till dusk. As a result, her scent is quite strong on the cluster I bring back to CoastClan each leaf fall. Furthermore, I remember from my apprenticeship that you had a horrible case of greencough during kithood. You must be remembering the scent from back then. I also remember visiting the catmint garden for the first time with my mentor, Heronwhisker. I could barely see that little kit, rolling around in the catmint so much."

Turtlefoot contemplated the tom's explanation, and it seemed to make sense. The memory of her kithood greencough had long since flickered out and faded away, leaving the Lady's scent as the only, puzzling remnant.

"Anyway, if you don't mind, I best be getting back to my work. You should go check on that new apprentice of yours; he looks ready to collapse."

Turtlefoot turned towards the craggy coast. As she was about to pad away, she heard Spottedhead call out.

"And Turtlefoot, don't disturb me with such trivial matters again. "

Turtlefoot sprinted back to Duskpaw, who lay flat on his side among the sand around the flattened stones. The black tom seemed exhausted from his first patrol along with his first stint of warrior training. Turtlefoot reached her apprentice as he lay on the sand, a calm, approving smile across her mottled face.

"You have done more than your fair share of training today, Duskpaw. Go get something to eat from the freshkill pile and relax in your new den. There should be a nest waiting for you."

Duskpaw managed to get back on his paws, his legs shaking like wind-blown branches. Turtlefoot helped support him on his way up.

"Thanks Turtlefoot. Today was the greatest, if not the most exhausting. "

"You'd best get accustomed to it," Turtlefoot purred, "You have many moons of rigorous training ahead. No need to fret though. After a while you'll have the stamina to withstand days like this as if they were just another day in your kithood. "

Duskpaw and Turtlefoot made their way back to camp, Spottedhead's words buzzing around in Turtlefoot's head. The medicine cat's explanation seemed water-tight, but something still seemed off. The thoughts kept screeching louder and louder as the camp got closer and closer. Duskpaw padded slowly towards the freshkill pile, picking up a mouse before shuffling into the apprentice den for the first time. Turtlefoot could hear the salutations of his denmates, old and new. The red setting sun had mostly disappeared from the darkened sky, leaving only the glittering crest to obscure the burgeoning stars. The brown mottled she-cat was still overtaken by a nagging feeling of suspicion of Lady's scent and behavior. She needed to clear her head, and decided the crags would do this best for her. When perched on one of the taller rocks, she could see the blue waters of the sea for miles. The serene view would surely soothe the discord that prattled on in her skull.

The night flowed on. The sea's cool breath blew against Turtlefoot's mud-colored fur. The plump crescent moon reflected on the surface of the cerulean waters. Suddenly, a low purr shattered the tranquility and light quietude of the scene. Turtlefoot glared at the sound's foggy source.

"Greetings, brother," Turtlefoot sighed.

The grey tom got a close to his littermate as possible, not being as skilled on the crag as Turtlefoot was. "Good evening. I've waiting in the warriors den to congratulate you on your mentorship of Duskpaw, but you have yet to return."

"I know it's just… I finally got to talk to Spottedhead about Lady today. His answer makes sense, but I can't help but feel there is something more. Do you happen to remember me getting greencough when we were kits?"

Rockthroat lowered his head in thought, a hushed "hmmm" escaping from his lips. A while passed with no words from the misty-pelted tom. Turtlefoot looked at him with slight concern.

"Are you okay down there, Rockthroat? Is that smoke I smell?"

"Heh, very funny, sis." Rockthroat rolled his large, yellow eyes at his sibling's sly remark. "No, I don't remember if you had greencough during our kithood. It must have been earlier than we can remember. I could ask Mudstripe if she remembers. She's a few moons older than us. Why do you ask?"

"Spottedhead explained that I was stricken with a horrible case of greencough as a kit, and the memory of that scent must be from the catmint he gave me. He said Lady practically swam in the stuff back then, almost never emerging from it on the occasions he as there was an apprentice with Heronwhisker. Also, if the scent on the catmint was so strong for it to be familiar to me, why didn't it spark any curiosity from you? Wouldn't I have had her scent on me as well?"

"You know I don't have the best nose in the Clan, but maybe it just wasn't strong enough on you to make an impression on me. I'm not really sure why you insist that there is still something off here. If you are so curious, why not go back to the Twoleg nest and talk to Lady?"

"I have an apprentice now, mouse-brain!" Turtlefoot hissed. "I can't spend half a day away from him with no reason for my absence. It would attract too much attention to me, and then I'll have to deal with Cedarfrost and Shellstar on my tail for moons. If I were to contact Lady, I would need to do so indirectly."

Turtlefoot's eyes focused on the cool ebb and flow of the sea, the calm, rolling tide providing her with a splash of inspiration. She quickly jumped down for her stone peak towards Rockthroat.

"It's brilliant! Look at the moon, Rockthroat. Its curve has nearly faded. In a few nights it will be at half-moon, the night medicine cats and their apprentices greet each other at Moonview Cave to bathe in the gentle glow of the moon as they wait for StarClan to drift into their dreams. Moonview Cave is rather close to the Twoleg nest, and considering we are in leaf-fall, Spottedhead may want to gather some more catmint just in case the greencough returns with a vengeance this leaf-bare. All I need to do is convince Singepaw to tell me what happens during their journey and report to me any odd behaviors. Her little heart practically pumps loyalty through her veins, so I doubt she would inform Spottedhead if I tell her how much keeping that exchange a secret means to me."

After explaining her plan to her grey-furred littermate, Turtlefoot jumped down from the high stones of the craggy coast to softer sands, making her way towards the warriors den.

"It's best we get some sleep. We still have warrior duties to uphold at sunup after all."

Author's Special Footnote: For all of you who have made it this far, congratulations! You no have the chance to participate in the contest below for Chapter 5!

Chapter Five will contain two or three minor CoastClan cats, and I would like to give you all the opportunity to have characters you created appear. Here's the twist: you must write either a haiku or short poem about your character as your submission! I have based CoastClan's location loosely on the United States Gulf Coast, so please try to keep submissions around that theme. Also, I lean more on the traditionalist side when it comes to names, so keep that in mind. This contest will end Thursday April 17th at midnight (Central Time).

Rules and Guidelines:

1. All characters must be Warrior rank only.

2. Natural colors and abilities only.

3. Keep poems under 500 words. A couple words over is fine.

4. There is no limit on the number of cats per entry.

5. I expect the following attributes to appear in the creative portion of the entry:

Appearance

Skills

Personality

6. Send in submissions either by Private Message or post them as a review of Chapter 4.

Form:

Name of Warrior:

Gender (If not specified in the poem/haiku):

Creative Work: