Chapter Seventeen

"Today is a good day for the two of you," Leopardflame, Shadowpaw's mentor, began. Skypaw and Leafstorm sat farther apart from the four as they began explaining the assessment. "First, it would be good to test how skilled you are at hunting from the sky. I want to see just how much you have learned from it. Bring back two thrushes, and two squirrels, both of you." Ashwhisker spoke up next, his voice strong as he looked at Cloudpaw.

"When you get back we will test your fighting skills. Leopardflame will take on Cloudpaw, and I will take on Shadowpaw. And after that, we will have a race to see how much of a flyer you have become." Cloudpaw and Shadowpaw exchanged looks before nodding in agreement.

Skypaw watched with jealousy burning deep within her as the two apprentices took off. Leafstorm padded away and led her towards the training area. Skypaw knew for a start that she would not be joining them tonight as they sat vigil over their ceremony.

"I think it's time we had our own assessment," Leafstorm announced once they were far enough away. Skypaw looked at her in surprise. "Obviously this is not a warrior assessment, but I would like to see how much you have learned," she quickly explained.

With a nod, Skypaw studied Leafstorm as the dark ginger she-cat warily. She suddenly leaped forward and rolled to the side, ramming her paws into Leafstorm's shoulders and catching her mentor by surprise. Leafstorm retaliated by whirling around and tried jabbing at Skypaw's now exposed belly. Skypaw wasted no time in jumping up into the air. She kicked her back legs against the nearest tree branch and gained so much momentum that the force of her attack sent Leafstorm flying. Leafstorm landed on the ground in a roll before getting back to her paws.

I haven't used that move in moons, Skypaw realized, feeling elated at the thought. She watched Leafstorm as her mentor started circling her. By now Skypaw had learned all of Leafstorm's tactics, and was already aware that Leafstorm was judging her every movement. Suddenly Leafstorm lunged to the left and tried catching Skypaw by surprise as well. But Skypaw had seen the move coming and moved towards the right, sidestepping her mentor with ease.

"You've taught me too well," Skypaw teased as she managed to leap onto Leafstorm and push her to the ground. Leafstorm didn't bother trying to throw her off. Instead her body went limp, and Skypaw immediately jumped off, already knowing what Leafstorm would do next.

"Alright, I can see that I'm an easy challenger," Leafstorm muttered after cuffing Skypaw over the ears. The two she-cats purred as Leafstorm padded farther away. "Now I want to see how good you are at hunting from the sky. I know that you have been practicing, show me what you have learned."

Skypaw felt her fur bristle slightly when she realized what Leafstorm was doing. This wasn't just any ordinary assessment. Leopardflame had said the same thing to Cloudpaw and Shadowpaw just a few heartbeats ago. And now…. Skypaw nodded and took off without another word, hopeful Leafstorm didn't notice the look of surprise in her eyes.

Once she was in the air she could see Shadowpaw and Cloudpaw flying nearby. She wasted no time in searching the ground for any sources of prey. And sure enough she could see a squirrel jumping from branch to branch. With a bit of hesitation she lurched herself towards the nearest branch and started soaring after the squirrel. At the last second her wings flared open to catch herself as she extended her claws and caught the squirrel right in the air.

Triumph washed over Skypaw as she landed on the ground nearby, squirrel still in her paws. She was careful not to squish it when she reached Leafstorm. Her mentor truly did look impressed with her catch. Skypaw couldn't hide the pride that had taken over, and she wished that her training was always like this.

"I did it," Skypaw managed to breathe once she had showed Leafstorm the squirrel. Leafstorm nodded in approval and carried the squirrel into a higher tree hollow where no predators could find it. "What are we doing next?" She could see Cloudpaw and Shadowpaw landing in the clearing nearby, and had no doubt they were about to start their race.

"I think we'll be having a little race, from this forest to the clearing up ahead," Leafstorm meowed as if she had read Skypaw's thoughts. "Just wait for my signal… in 3…. 2…. Go!"

Leafstorm's yowl made Skypaw jump into the air. Skypaw surged forward as fast as she could, not anticipating the exhaustion that started taking over. She fought back the urge to land and rest. If she did that now she would surely lose.

At last Skypaw managed to level herself out and flew so fast that the trees were blurry in her vision. She knew exactly where the clearing was, and had even passed Cloudpaw along the way. Skypaw didn't miss the gasp that had escaped from Cloudpaw. Her flight had taken her farther than she ever expected. She reached the clearing in what seemed like seconds. And turning around she saw Cloudpaw and Shadowpaw landing not far away from the clearing heartbeats later.

"That was incredible, I didn't know you could fly that fast!" Cloudpaw exclaimed after she approached Skypaw. All three mentors landed in the clearing once the apprentices had landed, and Skypaw couldn't contain the excitement that surged within her.

"D-Did I win?" she asked, her heart racing at the thought.

"I think so," Cloudpaw replied cheerfully.

"You all did well, even if only the two of you were supposed to be racing," Leopardflame meowed, glaring at Leafstorm. Leafstorm only rolled her eyes in annoyance, but she still looked pleased with Skypaw's latest victory.

"Does this mean we passed the assessment?" asked Shadowpaw in a hopeful tone.

"Yes, but only two of you passed," Ashwhisker growled, ignoring the cold look Leafstorm gave him. Skypaw's ears flattened at the dismissive tone in his voice. Why was it so hard to please this cat? He was almost as bad as Cinderstorm!

She shook her head at the thought and followed the others back to camp. They flew on in silence, much to her relief. Leafstorm's praise had warmed her heart, but Ashwhisker was so stubborn. She knew that if it were up to him, she would never become a warrior.

"How did their assessment go?" Goldenstar asked as they returned to camp.

"They all passed," Leafstorm replied before anyone else could speak up. She ignored the glare that Ashwhisker was giving her. Goldenstar nodded in agreement and turned to the branch where she held meetings under. Skypaw watched her expectantly as she called for a Clan meeting.

"Let all cats old enough to fly, hunt and fight gather around the Leader's Den for a Clan meeting!" Murmurs of surprise rippled through the crowd as Skypaw joined Shadowpaw and Cloudpaw. She could see their eyes gleaming with excitement as they watched Goldenstar. This was far more exciting than Skypaw could have imagined. "There are three cats here who have passed their assessments, and are more than ready to become warriors." Skypaw's eyes widened when she realized that Goldenstar was referring to her as a warrior. "Leopardflame, Ashwhisker, Leafstorm, do you believe your apprentices are ready to become warriors?"

Skypaw half expected Ashwhisker to protest against this, and Cinderstorm. But neither cat said a word against her part in the ceremony. To her surprise, Ashwhisker had proudly stated that his apprentice was more than ready.

"Skypaw has learned everything I can teach her," Leafstorm meowed in response.

"Then I, Goldenstar, leader of WingClan, call upon my warrior ancestors so that they may look down upon these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn." Goldenstar paused to let this message sink in. Skypaw felt her chest heaving as she thought of everything that she had gone through to get this far. "Cloudpaw, Shadowpaw, Skypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your lives?" She looked down at all three apprentices with pride.

"I do," Cloudpaw and Shadowpaw replied together.

"I do," Skypaw replied shortly after.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Cloudpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Cloudsong. StarClan honors you for your friendship and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full member of WingClan." Cloudsong's eyes were bright with happiness as Goldenstar jumped down to press her nose to Cloudsong's forehead. Out of respect, Cloudsong gave Goldenstar's shoulder a lick.

"Shadowpaw, from this moment on, you will be known as Shadowstorm. StarClan honors you for your courage and bravery, and we welcome you as a full member of WingClan." Shadowstorm closed his eyes as he did the same thing his sister had done heartbeats ago.

"Skypaw, from this moment on you will be known as Skyfeather. You who have endured the most pain out of any of us, and have survived it all, deserve a place in the Clan, and we welcome you as a full member of WingClan." Skyfeather felt her heart soar with happiness when she licked her leader's shoulder out of respect. Never had she seen herself get this far in life until now.

"Cloudsong! Shadowstorm! Skyfeather!" The Clan cheered their names, and Skyfeather felt her chest swelling with pride when she realized they were cheering hers as well.

"Congratulations, I always knew you could go this far," Leafstorm purred. "I have a feeling that you will be doing so much more than this though," she added in a wistful tone.

Leafstorm padded away the moment they sat vigil. Skyfeather raised her chin as she stared at the sinking sun. She wondered for a moment if Whiteflower was watching over her with the same amount of pride she felt. Or if Whiteflower was really even there. Either way, Skyfeather was more than proud of herself.

AN: So, what did you think? I thought Skyfeather is a fitting name for her... even if it a commonly used name Oo But Nonetheless, I like it. And to top things off, I've reached over one hundred reviews on this story! That's pretty dang amazing, and I have to thank everyone for taking the time to review this :D You guys are awesome!

Lightclaw's Shadow - Yeah, Skypaw- I mean Skyfeather - really deserves better. But this is a hurt/comfort story, so of course I've got to add as much drama as possible ;)

Ginger Pup - lol That would be a bit awkward Oo

TwilightLifeMain - Thanks, I'm glad you're enjoying this story so far! But clipping off your wings would be a bit extreme... and it probably won't happen Oo

Foreststar of WindClan - Yeah, she definitely deserved that. Shadowstorm knows exactly how to put someone in their place... if only Skyfeather would learn how to do that.

Mermaid1108 - You shall find out soon enough ;)