CHAPTER 1

Echokit pounced as high as he could and swiped his paw in midair with tiny claws unsheathed, eager to prove to his father that he would become the greatest warrior in the Clan one day.

"That's very good, Echokit," his father nodded in approval. "That's the highest leap made by a kit I've ever seen before."

The kit's chest was almost ready to burst with pride and his body felt hot all over. He raised his tail and held his head up high, purring loudly.

"Look at Echokit, getting so full of himself." His brother, Stormkit whispered to their sister. "Let's show him, Honeykit."

The golden kit hunched her back and wiggled her haunches, ready to make a flying leap. "Look at this, Ravenwing!" She slipped and fell on her side.

Echokit moved to help. "Are you okay, Honeykit?" His sister leaned on him to get up, there weren't any bruises that he could see.

Ravenwing was purring hard. "If you hadn't slipped, Honeykit, I think you could easily beat Echopaw in that leap."

"Thanks, Ravenwing!"

"Well, when I grow up, I want to be the best warrior in the Clan!" Stormkit declared, jumping to his paws.

"Not if I become the greatest first!" Echokit launched himself into his brother and the two kits engaged in a playfight in front of their father.

"That's enough, kits." Foxtail approached them and the two pushed off each other.

Echokit gave himself a shake and was just about to boast to his mother about the comments Ravewing made when she spoke first. "I'm glad to see that you have time for your kits." There was sadness and something else that he couldn't tell in his mother's eyes as she addressed the black warrior.

Ravenwing gave her a brief nod and got up, walking away without saying a word to her.

"What's wrong with Ravenwing?" Stormkit asked.

"He's probably tired because we've been playing with him for so long," Honeykit mewed.

"He was really happy when he played with you, wasn't he?" There was longing in their mother's voice that Echokit did not understand.

"Yes, he is. So you shouldn't feel sad, Foxtail," Echokit mewed in an attempt to cheer his mother.

She just sighed, looking more miserable than ever. "I guess I shouldn't."

Sunhigh approached and the hunting patrols returned with freshkill, filling up the pile into a satisfying heap. Ravenwing was at the pile, standing beside their leader, Barkstar. "Well done, everyone," he meowed. "Our bellies will be full tonight."

As yowls of approval filled the air, Barkstar lifted his tail to silence the cats. Immediately, the hollow fell silent as curious gazes swept to the leader for his announcement. The big warrior leaped onto the High-ledge and yowled out the traditional call; "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the High-ledge for a Clan meeting!"

"Foxtail, Barkstar is calling," Stormkit alerted their mother who was furiously grooming Echokit. Honeykit and Maple-eye's kits, Bluekit, Skykit and Featherkit were still peering out of the nursery with wide eyes.

"I know! This is an important occasion for the three of you," their mother mewed between licks. Echokit grumbled in protest as Foxtail's tongue lapsed across his face.

Maple-eye who was looking on, purred in amusement. "I think that's enough, Foxtail. You're licking Echokit raw."

The grey kit wriggled out of his mother's grasp and stood in front of her. "Important occasion? Why?"

Foxtail's eyes were bright in excitement and her tail was lashing back and forth. "You'll see." She got up and gathered her kits with her tail with Maple-eye close behind.

"But we can't catch our own prey yet!" Honeykit protested.

"You will soon." Foxtail was purring so loudly she was barely able to speak.

"Cats of ThunderClan," Barkstar meowed loudly, his voice echoing throughout the hollow. "Today is an important day for three young cats. The Clan couldn't wait to see the potential these cats have to prove to themselves and their Clanmates."

Echokit pricked up his ears and his heart leaped up. Was this the day he was going to become an apprentice? He nearly bounced off his paws as realization hit him. He had dreamed for this day for a very long time but didn't expect it to come so soon. His gaze swept the warriors below High-ledge as they gazed up with expectation in their eyes. Which one of these cats was going to be his mentor?

"Honeykit, Echokit and Stormkit," Barkstar called them to the centre. The three kits stood in the centre with their tails raised proudly. Their mother was brimming with happiness. Below High-ledge, Ravenwing sat with controlled emotions, but his eyes were bright with pride.

"You have reached the age of six moons and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this moment on, until you received your warrior name, you will be known as Honeypaw, Echopaw and Stormpaw. Brightfur," Barkstar called. A fluffy she-cat stepped out of the crowd. "It is time for you to take on an apprentice. You have learned much from your former mentor. I expect you to pass down these qualities to Honeypaw."

Honeypaw tripped over her own paws as she ran over to greet her new mentor. They both touched noses. Likewise for Loudfire and Stormkit.

Finally, Barkstar announced Echopaw's mentor. "Talonclaw, you show wisdom and strength in battles. I expect you to pass down these qualities to Echopaw." The new apprentice met his new mentor in the centre of the hollow and they touched noses. Followed by cheers from their Clanmates as they welcomed the new apprentices. "Honeypaw! Stormpaw! Echopaw!" Their mother's cheer was the loudest of them all.

"What are we going to do first?" Echopaw asked Talonclaw excitedly.

"I figured we could get a tour of the territory? Hey, Brightfur, do you want to join us?" The brown tom hailed the she-cat.

"Yes, please! I wanna tour around with my brother!" Honeypaw chirped.

Brightfur hissed in amusement and swiped her tail at her apprentice. "Rule one of apprenticeship, always listen to your mentors."

The four cats padded through the forest, with duties to remark the border with WindClan. Talonclaw was in the lead and Brightfur brought up the rear.

"I can't believe we are finally apprentices! Foxtail didn't tell us about this day," Honeypaw was meowing.

"She was probably going to surpise us," Echopaw responded, his heart still beating hardly from the occasion earlier.

"Was Ravenwing happy for us?"

"I'm sure he is! I saw him looking at us. He was mighty proud!"

"Hush, you two." Talonclaw hissed with a warning gaze. "Even though we are not on hunting patrol, your voices are enough to scare away the prey for the other hunting parties."

"Sorry," Echopaw murmured. He followed Talonclaw and let his the forest fill his senses. Around him, the forest was alive with birdsong and the scuttling of a nearby prey. Sunlight penetrated the leaves and dappled the ground. The trail he was walking on was unfamiliar but he knew that one day he could walk around the whole territory sure-footed. The sound of a stream flowing reached his ears and he could see the trees ending abruptly near the water's edge.

"This is the border," Talonclaw announced. "Take a good whiff, Echopaw. You might want to recognize the scents of different Clans in case you find them in your own territory." He started marking a stunted tree.

Echopaw breathed in deeply. Apart from ThunderClan's own scent markers, he could detect a strong scent of heather. That must be the WindClan marker.

"Do they spend their time around heathers a lot?"

TalonClaw was just returning from marking another tree further upstream. Honeypaw and Brightfur had separated and disappeared towards the lake. "Their home is an open field, Echopaw, teaming with heather. Their camp is exposed to the sun and they have to run as fast as a rabbit to catch their prey."

"Under the sun?" Echopaw repeated. He had been so used living under the shelter of trees that it was impossible to imagine cats living out of their shelter at all.

"You think under the sun is weird, Echopaw? RiverClan has webbed paws, ShadowClan eats frogs."

"Do you think other Clans find us weird? For living under trees, eating squirrels. For living in a hollow, even?"

"I doubt it. Out of all the Clans, ThunderClan cats are the most normal a forest cat could get."

They headed downstream towards the lake where Brightfur was waiting. "Took you long enough, Honeypaw had gone for a swim." She nodded to a shallow part of the shore where a wet bundle of golden fur was splashing around in the water.

"Come on in, Echopaw!" Honeypaw invited her brother.

Echopaw hesitated at the edge. He didn't like the thought of getting his fur wet. "I don't want to be a RiverClan cat," he teased Honeypaw.

"Getting into the water once in a while won't turn you into a RiverClan cat," Honeypaw purred.

Reluctantly, Echopaw waded into the water. Honeypaw charged and pushed him off his paws unexpectedly and he collapsed into the water. Water soaked right up to his ears and when he gasped in surprise, water filled his lungs and burned his nostrils. He opened his eyes only to see darkness. He felt himself struggling but the water seemed to pull him down further. He unsheathed his claws to get a grip on the pebbles underneath but they seemed to slip away. For every passing moment, he struggled to get up and panic began to rise inside him. Teeth clamped into his scruff and he was hauled out of the water and carried onto dry land.

"Echopaw, are you okay?" Talonclaw asked after he dropped the apprentice on the ground.

Echopaw was spluttering and struggling to catch his breath and comprehend his surroundings. He was beside the lake and he was cold. He shivered violently as a strong wind whipped the shore.

Sounds of laughter echoed across the border. "Does ThunderClan teaches their apprentices to swim?"

"Be quiet, Harefall!" Brightfur snapped.

"Yeah, be quiet! It is just his first day out of camp," Honeypaw supported her mentor.

A tom with long legs meowed, "It is my apprentice's first day out of camp too. I didn't expect he would get to see something as amusing as this." Beside him was a white tom with dark tips, his tail was waving from side to side in delight.

"Go back to your fields, Runningsky," Talonclaw meowed with authority. "Otherwise I would have to tell Barkstar you strayed too close to the border."

"I wouldn't want to provoke ThunderClan's leader," Runningsky mewed with exaggerated fear. "Good luck with the swimming cats." With a wave of his tail, he signaled his patrol to retreat.

"I'm sorry, Talonclaw," Echopaw mewed softly. He didn't mean to cause trouble with WindClan. He felt embarrassed that they found his terrifying predicament amusing. His fur burned hot.

Brightfur was already licking his fur the wrong way. "It's not your fault," she sympathised.

"Let's return back to camp. You can warm up on the way," Talonclaw decided.

The patrol arrived back at camp just after sunhigh, stopping along the way for Brightfur and Talonclaw to demonstrate basic stalking technics and hunting two squirrels. By now, Echopaw's fur was almost dry but that didn't stop Foxtail from worrying. She dashed across the camp to meet her son and began licking him frantically.

"Echopaw's fallen in the water," Honeypaw teased.

"You pushed me in," Echopaw flashed back, his fur ruffled up in anger. If his sister hadn't pushed him, he wouldn't embarrassed himself in front of those WindClan cats.

"I've caught a vole." Stormpaw was making his way proudly towards them.

"Echopaw fell in the lake," Honeypaw informed him.

"That's enough," Foxtail scolded her. "Why don't the both of you head back to your dens to rest?"

The two apprentices rushed off. Echopaw sighed gloomily. The episode had shamed him horribly and he guessed that by sundown, the word would spread all over camp.

Foxtail brushed her tail over his pelt. "One day you will be a warrior I could be most proud of," she soothed him. Her eyes were brimmed with sadness and not for the first time, Echopaw wondered what was in his mother's mind.

"No one could forget that I nearly drowned on my first day as an apprentice," he mewed.

"As time goes on, memories will fade." Foxtail gave him a final lick before retreating to the warrior's den.