Chapter 8 and 9 are up! RiverClan time! Sorry if it isn't as good as other chapters. I have good and bad writing days. This was a mix of both. Chapter 10 is almost done as well, so it might be posted later tonight or tomorrow, as long as I get at least 2 more reviews. Enjoy!

I still felt excited, staying with RiverClan all night. I had never been to a gathering. These cats were all new to me, smelling of fish and water. I gazed across the lake toward ThunderClan territory. The sunrise was brilliant, reflecting off the snowy trees! The sight was breathtaking.

"Beechpaw! Come here." Jayfeather called. I slipped reluctantly into Willowshine's den. Echopaw was curled up in a nest, while both Willowshine and Jayfeather smelled of catmint. Echopaw's head lifted momentarily as I entered, but she flicked her tail and went back to sleep.

"If you two want, you can grab a fish to share." Willowshine mewed, finishing up with sorting one last pile of herbs. I shot a glance at Jayfeather. The thought of eating fish disgusted me. My mentor seemed to think the same.

"We can catch something to share when we get back to our territory. We can wait until then." He mewed sincerely. Willowshine shrugged and Echopaw raised her head again.

"You should take a quick nap before you go." She suggested. I shook my head, though I welcomed the thought. I had been so lonely since I became Jayfeather's apprentice, all alone in the medicine den. True, I had been feeling a lot better since I actually started paying attention to him, but even my new herb knowledge didn't warm me at night.

The sun crept into the nest, and a slight breeze began to ruffle my pelt. I rolled carefully onto my back. Echopaw was quietly sorting marigold leaves. Did she always get up so early?

"Morning Beechpaw." She mewed.

"Why don't you introduce her to the other apprentices?" Jayfeather asked, lifting his head from his nest on the far side of the den. Willowshine appeared, licking scraps of moss from her flank.

"Good idea. Those leaves can be sorted later." She agreed. Echopaw's tail rose in excitement and she flicked her tail for me to follow. I slipped out of the roots behind her. There were already a lot of cats outside, even though the sun was just barely rising above the treetops. I hadn't slept long. Did RiverClan ever sleep? I followed her to a group of young cats.

"Morning Echopaw! Is that the ThunderClan medicine cat apprentice?" A brown tom asked. Echopaw nodded.

"Everyone, this is Beechpaw." She mewed. I noticed glances and a pair of them, a tom and a she-cat, murmured about my leg.

"Hello, Beechpaw. I'm Hawkpaw. I'm Echopaw's brother." Hawkpaw reminded me a bit of Eaglepaw, the older brown and white tom who had once been a kittypet. They could have been brothers!

"I'm Silverpaw. That mousebrain's sister." The silver and white tabby flicked her tail to the gray tom, the one who had been murmuring to the other she-cat. His fur ruffled in embarrassment and he hissed, standing up and twisting around me, making me nervous.

"I'm Rockpaw. Strongest apprentice in RiverClan." He gloated, puffing out his chest. He and Silverpaw were obviously older then Hawkpaw and Echopaw, but not by much. All three still had at least a moon of training left.

"You know as well as we do that you couldn't hurt a kit, let alone a full grown warrior." His friend teased, flicking her tail across his flank. She was a pretty calico, her blue eyes dancing with mischief. She was obviously the youngest, maybe a moon or two older then me. "I'm Patchpaw, by the way." She purred.

"Why would I want to hurt a kit?" Rockpaw asked, genuinely confused. I purred in amusement.

"Rockpaw, Silverpaw! Hunting patrol!" A tom called from the camp entrance. The siblings dashed off. I flicked my gaze to Echopaw.

"Ready to go back to the medicine den?" She asked. I nodded, almost reluctantly. For the first time, I was meeting cats from other Clans. I followed her slowly back. Jayfeather was pushing his way out of the den, the catmint held firmly in his jaws. Willowshine handed me some as well. I accepted it with a blink of gratitude.

"Thank you for the catmint." My mentor mewed, bowing his head.

"No problem. We have plenty, and it isn't too hard to get. Come back anytime if yo need more." She mewed. Jayfeather led the way out of camp. His footsteps traced the same path we had taken before, probably because it was familiar ground. We jumped onto the stepping stones of the stream between RiverClan and WindClan. According to Echopaw, it only flowed during leafbare. Fish still swam in it though, and we could see the many silvery bodies fluttering in the clear water. Down the stream a bit, The gra and silver bodies of Rockpaw and Silverpaw sat still as if they were stones on the edge of the river. They flashed a paw into the river, flinging out a wriggling fish body. We meowed a greeting to them. They nodded their heads in acknowledgment before returning to their fishing. Jayfeather continued on. The scent of WindClan filled my nose despite the catmint tickling my whiskers. I noticed how carefully Jayfeather stepped on the marshy ground because of his blindness. I guessed he wasn't used to this path, and therefore had to step carefully to avoid falling or running into anything. I admired him for it.