Hey, everyone. Thank you so much for checking my new chapter out, and you guys have all been great support. :) This upload took a little longer, but I've decided to stop updating every Saturday and Wednesday, and just update once a week on Wednesday. All clear? Cool. So thanks again, you all are great people to write for. That's why making Warriors fanfiction is my favorite :D
So without further ado, here's my seventh chapter, where we can finally get to learn more about the new generation for LightningClan. Enjoy!
Chapter Seven: Training Begins
The jungle was quiet. Sunset had come and passed, and now shadows ruled the wild trees.
A pair of glittering green eyes sparked from the darkness of the apprentice den.
"And the powerful huntress... creeps up on her unaware prey..." came a soft, silky voice, and suddenly a flash of pale brown fur as a lion cub pounced on her sleeping brother.
"Ah! H- hey!" her brother, Lionpaw, shouted, as Cricketpaw leapt on him, laughing and rolling as they batted at each other. Frostpaw and Rowanpaw watched with amusement as the two bounded along in the dust of the snug apprentice den, and suddenly crashed into the largest apprentice, a male with dark gray-brown fur.
"Hey!" he spat, startled, as his head shot up, and the sleeping apprentice growled at Lionpaw and Cricketpaw. They fell back, tails lashing. "You're supposed to be sleeping."
"Aw, Buzzardpaw, we're just having a little fun!" Lionpaw protested, eyes shining, as the golden-furred apprentice batted at the eldest apprentice's ear.
Buzzardpaw rolled his eyes and twitched his whiskers, laying his head between his paws. "Cubs," he muttered.
"Hey," Frostpaw spoke up, her pale fur gleaming. "Whatever happened to that strange apprentice?"
"You mean Brightpaw?" Lionpaw meowed, the playfulness dying in his eyes as he sat on his haunches, looking serious. "I dunno. I haven't seen him since the ceremony, which was awhile ago..."
"Who cares where he is?" Rowanpaw growled, sitting down as well and wrapping his long tail over his flank. "I don't think Snowstar should have made him an apprentice."
"Half the Clan thinks the same thing," Buzzardpaw added, ears pricked, as he reluctantly turned to face the new apprentices. It must be weird for him, Lionpaw realized, to have been the only apprentice, and have an entire
den quiet and to himself, then suddenly be swamped by noisy new apprentices.
"He has his reasons!" Lionpaw instinctively protected his mentor.
Cricketpaw sighed and rasped a tongue over her paw, rubbing it over her face. "Honestly, you all sound like elders, gossiping about the Clan problems."
"But the Clan problems belong to us, too, now," Lionpaw told his sister impatiently.
"Since we're apprentices," Rowanpaw purred, looking rather proud of himself.
"Yes, that's very nice," Buzzardpaw mewed, sighing and suddenly looking tired, as he sank down again. "Now go to sleep. You'll start training tomorrow."
"Training!" Frostpaw repeated, eyes brightening.
"It's going to be so much fun!" Cricketpaw exclaimed.
"Great StarClan," Buzzardpaw muttered.
"But you know," Rowanpaw said suddenly, swiping a tongue around his jaws. "We'll have to train with that half-Clan apprentice."
"It's not his fault!" Lionpaw snapped. He had grown up alongside Brightpaw, and came to care for him like he was kin. It wasn't fair Rowanpaw accused him of his blood.
"That doesn't make the truth any nicer," the red-furred apprentice retorted. "And the truth is, he'll never be a warrior. Heck, he probably won't even survive to his ninth moon!"
Suddenly there was silence, and everyone quickly glanced over their shoulders to see Brightpaw standing at the mouth of the den, tail down, eyes dark. He had heard everything.
Lionpaw felt anger at Rowanpaw and pity for Brightpaw war in his heart as he took a step towards the striped apprentice. Rowanpaw snorted and turned away, Frostpaw sadly gazed at the ground, Cricketpaw looked at her paws, and Buzzardpaw just sighed and closed his eyes, knowing there was nothing he could do.
"Come on," Lionpaw said amiably, roughly licking Brightpaw's shoulder. Lionpaw towered over the apprentice, and he almost felt shameful that he was healthier than this cub. "Rowanpaw's just got some stones in his throat."
Brightpaw, despite the despair in his eyes, couldn't help smiling. "Yeah, I thought so."
Lionpaw gazed at Brightpaw. No lion had ever properly explained what had happened to any of the apprentices, and what Lionpaw knew was only rumor and gossip flung around the camp. But one thing was for sure:
Brightpaw knew his Clanmate's disdain, yet didn't understand why. A pang of sadness pinched Lionpaw's heart, and he sighed. "Come on."
Frostpaw and Rowanpaw had settled down in their nests together, eyes closed, feet curled. Cricketpaw had pawed together her own soft clump of leaves and grass and moss, and she waited for Lionpaw to lay down before collapsing next to him, pressing against her brother's fur.
Brightpaw hesitated, then lay down next to Lionpaw, slowly closing his eyes.
Cricketpaw sighed. "I miss Amberpaw already," she whispered in Lionpaw's golden ear.
Lionpaw blinked, and realized he's almost forgotten about his sister, who had been accepted into the strange, mystical apprenticeship of the medicine-lion. She would be sleeping with Pebbleheart in the medicine-lion den tonight. He felt a little sad that the days he and his sisters had all slept together were already gone, and he murmured, "Yeah. Me too." Rasping a tongue over her ear, he settled back into his nest. Slowly, gently, sleep claimed him, and Lionpaw dreamed of paw steps long forgotten and angry souls galloping in the stars.
* * *
A bright, annoying light blazed into Lionpaw's eyes, and he yawned, blinking sleepily, as a sharp paw jabbed him in the ribs. "Hey. Lionpaw. Get up."
He narrowed his eyes, and an image of a gray-brown apprentice swam before him. "Buzzardpaw?" he yawned.
"Yes, and you're going to be late for your first day as an apprentice," Buzzardpaw replied.
"Whoa!" Lionpaw shot up, eyes suddenly wide. He glanced around, feeling sleep drain from him, and realized he was the last one to awake. "Where are the others?" he asked breathlessly.
"Waiting for you. Come on," Buzzardpaw meowed with a flicker of amusement, turning around and leaving the apprentice den. Shaking the bright sunlight from his eyes, Lionpaw padded after his Clan mate, and into the warm, sun-washed clearing.
"Wow," he murmured. It looked beautiful, with lions and lionesses busily padding about, organizing patrols, sharing tongues, and preparing hunts.
"Lionpaw, over here!" came a voice.
Lionpaw glanced around, and saw Rowanpaw, Frostpaw, Brightpaw, and Cricketpaw all waiting for him with their mentors. He hurriedly padded over, and felt overwhelmed as he gazed into the wise faces of all the older warriors.
"Hello," Lionpaw stammered, nodding his head respectfully.
The two tallest mentors, Curlclaw and Sunpelt, gazed back in amusement, while Lionpaw's gaze flitted over Redflower and Buzzardpaw's mentor, Shiverpelt, and finally Brightpaw's mentor: Dustleg. Gazing at the last mentor with interest flooding his eyes, he felt something brush his shoulder, and a huge shadow fall across his body.
Glancing around, eyes wide, Lionpaw gazed up into the face of Snowstar.
"Snowstar!" he meowed, purring.
The great leader chuckled, and touched his large tail to Lionpaw's flank. "Good morning, Lionpaw," he rumbled, then nodded at the other apprentices and mentors. Lionpaw noticed his eyes hesitate on Brightpaw, and pricked his ears with surprise. He wondered what Snowstar really thought of the cross-Clan apprentice.
"This morning, I thought it would be wise to start off with a tour of LightningClan territory," Snowstar went on, amber eyes glowing. A shaft of burning sunlight hit his mane, and washed him in fiery white flames. Lionpaw took a few steps back, shaking his head, unable to stifle a sense of awe inspire in his chest.
"Sounds good," Curlclaw replied calmly.
"Fine," Sunpelt, his dull golden fur almost sparkling in the morning light, agreed.
"I think we should split into two groups," Snowstar continued, tail flicking. "Redflower, you and Shiverpelt and Sunpelt will take your apprentices first, and I shall go with Curlclaw and Dustleg."
Lionpaw glanced over at Brightpaw, grinning. He was in the group with the striped apprentice, and Frostpaw. Brightpaw smiled back, apparently relieved he hadn't gotten into the group with Rowanpaw.
"Very well. Come, Rowanpaw," Redflower purred, nodding respectfully to her leader, as she padded away with Cricketpaw and Buzzardpaw and their mentors. Cricketpaw glanced back at Lionpaw, waving her tail in farewell, before disappearing into the lush undergrowth.
Lionpaw padded backwards and sat down heavily. Frostpaw smiled and sat next to him, but Brightpaw stood alone, staring uncertainly at Snowstar.
"So you three are future warriors of LightningClan, eh?" Snowstar rumbled, eyes sparkling as he gazed at the three apprentices. Lionpaw glanced at Frostpaw, and knew she was thinking the same as he was: what about Brightpaw?
"Well," Lionpaw meowed, deciding to answer for them all. "I'm going to be the best future warrior."
"Oh really?" Frostpaw retorted, giggling as she swiped at Lionpaw.
"Hey now!" Lionpaw batted back at her.
"The first rule of being an apprentice," Curlclaw meowed, voice deep, whiskers twitching, as he took a large step towards his apprentice. "is to stay focused at all time. Meaning- no play business."
Immediately, Lionpaw and Frostpaw relaxed, and sat obediently.
"Go on, Brightpaw," Dustleg spoke for the first time. He was standing a ways off from the other two mentors, and looked as lost as his apprentice. "Join the other two. Don't stand there like a loner."
Brightpaw's eyes flooded with shame as he ran over to stand next to Lionpaw.
"Well," Snowstar growled, glancing at Dustleg. "I think we can begin the tour."
So the six lions left LightningClan camp, and padded through the exotic jungle. Crazy scents and sounds overwhelmed Lionpaw's senses, and he realized this was the farthest he'd been from the camp.
Finally, the mentors came upon the first spot. "This is the training tunnel," Curlclaw rumbled as the spanned out over a large, sandy hollow, surrounded by plants and warm sunlight. "Here we will practice fighting and other skills."
"I'm gonna be the best fighter LightningClan knows!" Frostpaw boasted, whiskers twitching.
Snowstar chuckled, and shook his head. "We'll just see about that."
Curlclaw looked over at his brown-furred companion. "Dustleg?" he inquired. "Have anything to say?"
From the looks Snowstar was giving his warrior, Dustleg was not normally this subdued, and Lionpaw knew it was connected to the fact he was the half-Clan cub's mentor. "Not really," Dustleg growled.
Curlclaw gazed at him a moment longer, then at Brightpaw, who was standing close to Lionpaw. He shrugged and looked at his leader.
"Thank you for your input," Snowstar replied, smoothing over the awkward situation. Frostpaw giggled, and Lionpaw managed a grin, but couldn't help the growing unease in the pit of his stomach. He wished more than anything he could help Brightpaw, but had no idea how.
* * *
The group spent the rest of the morning traveling through LightningClan territory. Lionpaw hadn't known it was possible to walk so far, and he felt exhausted as Snowstar decide to return to camp. To his relief, Brightpaw had grown less uneasy as the sun wore on, and he and Frostpaw talked as they walked back to camp.
"DarkClan smells so yucky!" the silver-furred cub was meowing, her eyes round.
"I can't believe SwiftClan lives with just grass," Brightpaw replied, shaking his head. "Imagine- no trees!"
"I know!" Frostpaw agreed, then looked at Lionpaw, who was walking a ways ahead of them, ears trained on the quiet conversation between their three mentors in front of him. "Lionpaw? What did you think?"
Lionpaw glanced around, and smiled. "Well- I didn't think there could be so many trees in one jungle!"
Frostpaw laughed. "Exactly! And so many paths... my paws are dropping off!"
"Whose aren't?" Brightpaw asked quietly, eyes beginning to brighten. Frostpaw's whiskers twitched in amusement. Lionpaw happily joined his Clan-mates, glad to see at least Frostpaw was taking to Brightpaw kindly.
"Apprentices!" Curlclaw called over his shoulder. "We're taking the short way home, to spare you your paws."
"Thank StarClan!" Lionpaw exclaimed, then looked embarrassed at being so loud. Frostpaw smiled and nudged her friend in the shoulder.
"I wish we'd take the long way back," Brightpaw meowed suddenly.
Frostpaw frowned, and Lionpaw asked first, "But why?"
Brightpaw suddenly looked uncomfortable, and he shrugged, averting his eyes. "Well... I dunno. It's just more fun when I'm away from camp, away from all those hostile eyes..." His voice trailed off, and Lionpaw felt his breath catch.
"You don't know, do you?" Frostpaw mewed after a long moment.
Brightpaw stared at them, eyes glassy. "Why they all hate me? Yeah, I've got no idea. I never do anything to them."
Lionpaw blinked, and looked at Frostpaw. He wondered how it was possible Brightpaw really never heard the gossip, the truth, whirling around, but knew some lion had to tell him eventually. And it would be better from his
mouth instead of Rowanpaw's: but how could he, when he hardly knew the whole story?
As if reading his mind, Frostpaw said quietly, "My mother told Rowanpaw and me the whole story when we were a little younger... but I never forgot. I... I guess I should..." She shrugged, and all their earlier happiness had died from her face.
Lionpaw rasped a tongue gratefully over her face. "Thanks," he murmured.
Brightpaw looked anxiously between them. "What?"
Frostpaw looked at him for a long time, eyes dark. "Brightpaw," she meowed. "You know how you've got stripes, and we don't?"
Brightpaw blinked, taken aback, and glanced at his chest, where the faint yet painfully obvious stripes crossed his body. "Yeah. What about them?" Lionpaw realized with a stab of dismay that never had Brightpaw thought those stripes were the truth painted like blood on his fur?
Suddenly Snowstar called, "Hurry up, you three, we're hitting one last stop before returning."
"Mouse dung!" Lionpaw spat under his breath, knowing their only chance to tell Brightpaw the truth had passed. Now he guiltily knew the apprentice would he swarmed with concerns about it for the rest of the journey home.
"What is it?" Frostpaw meowed, careful to keep her voice level as she trotted through the weeds and bushes and trees as the plants abruptly fell away, and the grassy land gently sloped into a river, where the silver water crashed and roared over rocks, rushing by noisily.
The six lions came to a stop at the small clearing, padding close to the muddy bank, as the furious water thundered by, blotting out all other noises.
"Wow!" Lionpaw breathed. The water spattered a bit onto his furry face, and he shook himself, instantly disliking the way the cold droplets melted into his fur.
"It's huge!" Frostpaw mewed, eyes wide, claws unsheathing and hooking into the mud, as if she felt the water might sweep her away into its wild depths.
"I know," Snowstar rumbled, voice barely recognizable over the crash of the river. "This river marks the territory between LightningClan and WaterClan. Across the river- see that bit of land? That is where WaterClan territory begins."
Frostpaw exchanged a glance with Lionpaw, and Curlclaw murmured something into Dustleg's ear.
"It's beautiful." Everyone was surprised to hear Brightpaw speak: his eyes were wide and awed, and his body trembling as he cautiously reached a paw forward, and let the water wash over him. He shivered, but didn't look unhappy. To Lionpaw's unease, he looked more peaceful by the crashing river than he'd ever looked in LightningClan camp.
"It's not ours." Once again, heads turned in surprise to see Dustleg staring uncertainly at his apprentice, yet with annoyance in his eyes, for whatever reason. "Yet you look like you're ready for a swim."
Sensing everyone's unease, Brightpaw looked up, and stepped back from the water, shaking his paw free of the river water. "Why would I swim in it? You said it belongs to WaterClan, not our Clan."
Dustleg fixed Brightpaw with his hard gaze for a heartbeat longer, then turned away, stalking into the ferns.
Hmm... when will Brightpaw realize how different he really is? He feels so loyal to LightningClan; the truth would break him. Guess you'll have to find out in... another chapter! ;P
So thanks again for reading, and I'd love you to death forever and ever if you'd review, and tell me what you think. It's pretty cool to finally get this story out there; trust me, I've had it in my head for years now, and it's more fun than I've ever had piecing it together to create a great story. Legends sure are funny things.
Anyways, Spring Break is comin' up XD so I'll have more free time... and that means more chapters. Until then, readers~
-Sarafina :)