A/N: Thanks for the reviews. Here's chapter 4 enjoy!
Brambleberry214- Your question will be answered in this chapter.
LeopardClan
Leader: Stormstar- large tom with big dark spots and gray eyes
Deputy: Doefur- She-cat with reddish fur and round light-brown spots, brown eyes
Healer: Frostwhisker- Tom with pale-ish fur and dark spots, large bright-white whiskers, and blue-gray eyes. Apprentice: Hawkpaw
Warriors:
Eaglescar- Big black tom with green eyes, a long scar runs over one eye
Emberspots- Tom with smoky colored spots and amber eyes. Apprentice: Nettlepaw
Snowstorm- White she-cat with gray-black spots and blue eyes.
Nightsky- Black she-cat with amber eyes Apprentice: Tallpaw
Raventail- Tom with an unusual all-black tail, dark-brown eyes.
Riverheart- White tom with silver spots and gray eyes.
Stoneclaw- Broad-shouldered tom with large paws and gray eyes.
Apprentices:
Hawkpaw- Lean tom with blind blue eyes.
Nettlepaw- Small she-cat with long claws and green eyes.
Tallpaw- Skinny tom with spindly long legs and amber eyes.
Queens:
Dapplepatch- She-cat with lots of large spots and blue eyes. Mother of Emberspots' kit: Lightkit (Slender golden she-cat with barely distinguishable darker golden spots, with one green eye and one blue eye).
Flowernose- Pretty she-cat with strange almost flower-shaped spots, a bright pink nose, and amber eyes. Mother of Stormstar's kits: Boulderkit (large tom with broad shoulders, gray spots and gray eyes), and Rosekit (Slender she-cat with a pink nose and gray eyes)
Elders:
Mudsplash- She-cat with a dull brown pelt and darker brown spots, brown eyes.
Whisperingwind- Skinny almost gaunt-looking tom, amber eyes.
LionClan
Leader: Sunstar- Large golden tom with a glorious mane and amber eyes
Deputy: Raintail- Pale gold tom with blue eyes. Apprentice: Petalpaw
Healer: Mintleaf- Bright-gold she-cat with pale green eyes.
Warriors:
Blazefur- Reddish-gold tom with amber eyes.
Shiverpelt- Pale almost-white she-cat with pale gray almost-white eyes. Apprentice: Thunderpaw
Goldenleaf- Deep gold she-cat with green eyes.
Tinyroar- Unusually small golden tom with green eyes.
Cloudchase- Long-legged tom with pale gold fur and blue eyes.
Apprentices:
Petalpaw- Pretty golden she-cat with unusual blue eyes.
Thunderpaw- Tom with a dark gold almost- brown pelt and amber eyes.
Queens:
Dawnlight- She cat with a slightly red hue to her gold fur, brown eyes. Mother of Cloudchase's kits: Runningkit (Lean tom with legs as long as Cloudchase's, brown eyes), Morningkit (Slender she-cat with pale red-gold fur and blue eyes), and Fallenkit (Gold-brown tom with amber eyes the color of autumn leaves).
Elders:
Braveclaw- Deep gold tom with broad shoulders that reveal the fact that he was once a formidable fighter, amber eyes.
TigerClan
Leader: Swiftstar- Lean she-cat with an orange pelt, thin black stripes, and blue eyes
Deputy: Shadowstep- large tom with a dark orange pelt and thick black stripes, amber eyes.
Healer: Windflight- pale orange tom with amber eyes. Apprentice: Ivypaw
Warriors:
Flamestripe- Tom with a pelt more red than orange and dark black stripes, green eyes.
Hailfur- White tom with gray stripes and blue eyes. Apprentice: Daypaw
Poppytail- Bright-orange she-cat with a black-tipped tail and amber eyes.
Falconswoop- Tom with lots of thick black stripes and dark eyes.
Rushstream- She- cat with stripes running along her flank instead of across her back and blue eyes. Apprentice: Beepaw
Darkpool- She-cat with dark orange fur, thick black stripes, a black tail, and brown eyes.
Apprentices:
Ivypaw- Pretty she-cat with bright orange fur, silver-gray stripes and brilliant green eyes.
Daypaw- Tom with unusual golden fur, dark stripes, and blue eyes.
Beepaw- She-cat with the same golden fur, dark stripes, and blue eyes as Daypaw.
Queens:
Iceflower- White she-cat with silver stripes and blue eyes. Mother of Flamestripe's kit: Brightkit (She-cat with pale orange almost-white fur and black stripes).
Elders:
Brokenshadow- Frail tom with dark orange fur, thin stripes, and dark eyes.
Lightkit POV
"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here below the Greatstump for a clan meeting!" Stormstar's call rang around the clearing. I sat at the entrance to the nursery, watching, as Boulderkit and Rosekit were licked furiously by their mother, Flowernose. Stormstar continued, "I've called you all together for one of the most important moments in the life of a clan, Boulderkit and Rosekit have reached their sixth moon, and it is time fore them to become apprentices." Stormstar's gray eyes glowed with pride as he beckoned his kits forward, "Boulderkit, from this day forward until you receive your warrior name, you will be called Boulderpaw." Boulderpaw sat up, his large shoulders straight, as the clan called out his name. "Stormstar meowed, gazing up at the sky for a moment before continuing, "Stoneclaw, you will be mentor to Boulderpaw. You are a loyal and courageous warrior, I know that you will pass on these qualities to Boulderpaw." Stoneclaw was Stormstar's brother and one of the strongest fighters in the clan. Boulderpaw eagerly stretched up to touch his nose to his mentor's. Stormstar turned to Rosekit- the she-cat sat quietly and patiently but her gray eyes shone with excitement- "Rosekit, from this day forward until you receive your warrior name, you will be called Rosepaw." Rosepaw dipped her head as her clan mates called out her new name. Stormstar continued, "I call upon the Stars to guide this new apprentice on her path to becoming a warrior." Stromstar said, repeating the words he had used to bless Boulderpaw's apprenticeship. "Doefur, you will be mentor to Rosepaw, you are my loyal deputy and I trust you will pass on all that you know to this apprentice." Doefur dipped her red head to Stormstar before bending down to touch her nose to Rosepaw's.
As the clan called out the names of the new apprentices I had to squash a surge of envy, just one more moon and then it will be my turn I told myself. Nettlepaw, my father's apprentice, bounded up to Boulderpaw and Rosepaw- followed closely by the only other warrior apprentice: Tallpaw- to greet her new den mates. I tuned them out, dreaming about my own apprentice ceremony.
"Bye lionkit! Have fun in the nursery! Our mentors are taking us on a tour of the territory now!" Boulderpaw taunted, pulling me out of my daydream, as he and Rosepaw followed their mentors out through the gorse tunnel leading into the forest beyond the camp. Lucky furball. How come he gets to go explore the territory while I'm stuck in camp? I think enviously. Suddenly I have an idea: I would explore the territory too! Of course, I didn't want to get lost so I would follow Boulderpaw and the others.
I didn't bother looking out for mother; she would be caring for Oak-kit. I winced inwardly, it had been a moon since they had buried Oak-kit and I still kept forgetting that she was gone. I glanced around the clearing, spotting Dapplepatch chatting with Emberspots, I quickly darted through the gorse tunnel and out into the forest.
I ran to the top of the ravine that stood in front of the camp entrance and stopped at the top, staring down in awe at the forest, which spread farther than I could see. I scented the air to locate Boulderpaw and the other cats. Catching a whiff of them, I followed the scent deeper into the woods. It wasn't long before I caught up to them, hiding in the undergrowth I listened as the mentors spoke to their apprentices.
"This is the training hollow, we will practice battle moves here." Doefur explained to the apprentices.
"Show us a battle move!" Boulderpaw exclaimed
Stoneclaw looked uncertain, "There will be time for battle training later in your apprenticeship but for now lets keep moving."
Boulderpaw must have put on his best disappointed face because Doefur let out an amused purr, "Its ok Stoneclaw, why don't you show them the best way to attack a badger." I peered out of the ferns to watch as Stoneclaw shrugged and leapt into the air twisting as he did so- claws outstretched to scratch the badger's back-, landing on his back legs and turning quickly, dropping back onto his forepaws and nipping at an imaginary badger's leg.
"Wow!" Boulderpaw exclaimed. I couldn't help but agree with him- I would try that when we got back to camp.
"Let's keep going, we have a lot of territory to cover." Stoneclaw said in response.
I followed the cats at a distance, keeping in the undergrowth and staying downwind so they wouldn't scent me. The cats stopped at a giant white oak tree.
"This is the White Oak. It's a good place to catch squirrels." Doefur told the young cats before they started walking again.
The next place the group stopped was at the river's edge, a strong musky yet strangely sunshine-y scent hit my nose. "This is the LionClan border, they prefer open sunshine and plains to forestland." Stoneclaw said. "If you look across the river you can see Goldenleaf sun-bathing on some rocks." He pointed with his nose toward where a deep gold she-cat was sunning herself a few tree-lengths across the river. The group moved on, I followed but I was distracted by the LionClan warrior and didn't watch where I was going; I walked straight into a thorn-bush. I turned my head forward, away from the LionClan cat, and immediately wished I hadn't. As I turned a long thorn jabbed straight into my eye. I let out a yowl of pain.
The voices in front of me stopped, there was the sound of paw-steps and the other four cats stared down at me in shock, "Lightkit! What are you doing here? Dapplepatch must be worried sick!" Doefur scolded.
"You were following us the whole time?" Stoneclaw sounded impressed.
I try to nod but the thorns press into my pelt and the thorn was still in my eye, making me whimper in pain.
"Oh poor thing. Let's get you out of there." Doefur murmured sympathetically. Carefully the LeopardClan deputy pushed aside most of the thorns and broke the thorn that was in my eye off of the branch it was attached to. "I'd take the thorn out but it looks pretty deep, we'd better get you to Frostwhisker."
Doefur led the way back to camp, followed by Stoneclaw, the apprentices hung back with me; I walked slowly and painfully, my tail dragging on the ground. Boulderpaw gave me a shove when the warriors weren't looking, "This is all your fault! Now we have to go back to camp and we haven't even seen half of the territory yet!" he hissed.
Rosepaw whirled on him, "Stop Boulderpaw! Can't you see she's hurt? Besides don't act like you wouldn't have done exactly the same thing in her place." Both Boulderpaw and I stared at her in shock- me with one eye do to the thorn- we had never seen Rosepaw mad, let alone stick up for me against her brother. Rosepaw walked next to me, her pelt brushing mine, "Don't listen to Boulderpaw. He's a mouse-brain." She told me. I just nod.
As we enter the camp, we hear Dapplepatch's frantic voice, "Lightkit! Where are you Lightkit?" guiltily, I hobble quickly toward her. Seeing me, she ran over to me and gave me a few furious licks, "Where have you been? I've been worried sick!" She scolds. Then she sees the scratches and the thorn, "What happened to you? Go see Frostwhisker right now!" not waiting for me to answer she picks me up by the scruff- despite the fact that I'm nearly as big as Rosepaw- and carries me into the Healer's den and sets me down in front of the two Healers, who must have heard the commotion because they were both on their way out of the den when we-er Dapplepatch- walked in.
"Lightkit you're hurt!" Hawkpaw sounds worried. And for a moment I wonder why he would be so worried about me, of course he's worried you're is clan mate he'd be worried about any injured clan mate. I told myself firmly.
Frostwhisker comes up to me and sniffs me, "Hawkpaw go get the Marigoldand Celandine." Hawkpaw nods and dashes off to where they keep their herbs. Hawkpaw comes back with a bundle of herbs in his jaws and Frostwhisker steps back from me, "Ok show me how much you've learned." He said to Hawkpaw.
Both Hawkpaw and my mother look at him in shock, "Aren't you going to do anything?" Dapplepatch asked irritably.
"I will supervise, but Hawkpaw needs to learn how to handle an emergency by himself." Frostwhisker said calmly but his blue-gray eyes were cold as he looked at me and I wondered if that was the real reason behind his refusal to help me.
Hawkpaw trembled as he padded up to me. "Its ok." I tell him, "I trust you." He nodded and gently sniffed my eye before putting a paw on my back to hold me down and pulling the long thorn out of my eye. I bite my tongue to keep from yowling in pain, but I can't suppress a whimper.
Dapplepatch steps forward but Frostwhisker barred her way, "Let him work. Your daughter will be fine. No cat has ever died of a few scratches- or an injured eye." He said firmly.
Hawkpaw chews up the leaves he brought and started to dab it in my eye. I can't help it, I squirm. "Stop moving! Don't you want your eye to get better?" Hawkpaw snapped. However, though his words were sharp he was gentle as he applied the poultice- both to my eye and my various scratches. When he was done he made a nest for me saying that I needed to stay in the Healer's den for a few days so that he could help my eye more easily. I was too tired to argue, I simply curled up and went to sleep.
I wake up to partial blackness and the fact that I'm already getting used to this scares me. It had been a few days since my adventure and I still sleep in the Healer's den and my eye is still no better.
Across from my nest, Hawkpaw stirs, "Can you see out of your eye?" he asked like he does every morning.
"Which one?" I replied just as I did every morning. I stood up, stretched, and padded over to the small pool for a drink of water. I halted before drinking, my reflection had caught my eye- my good one that is- it looked just as it ever had- the image of a young five-moon old she-cat with pale gold fur and barely distinguishable darker gold spots- but my eyes, or rather my eye- the bad one- looked different. The thorn had pierced the corner of my eye not the middle and the wound was now fully-healed with no scar to show for it. But that was not what had made me pause, no now the injured eye- my blue one- was cloudy and had a far-off look. "I look like you." I say to Hawkpaw without turning away from my reflection, "My eye does I mean." Hawkpaw, who had been grooming himself, stops. I turn to meet his grief-stricken blind gaze. "My eye isn't going to get better is it?" I ask quietly.
Hawkpaw dips his head, not meeting my eyes, "No. I'm so sorry. I've failed you."