"Dodge! No, left, not right! Gorsepaw, are you paying attention?"

Gorsepaw panted, nearly out of breath by the sudden duck he had to perform to avoid his mentor, Daisystem's, incoming attack. He heard a thunk behind him as she hit the firm moorland turf.

The white she-cat stood easily and shook out her pelt. She frowned. "I told you to dodge, not to duck. You were lucky I didn't grab you from above."

Gorsepaw let out a sigh and rolled his eyes. "We've been practicing the same move for ages now. Can't we do something different?"

His mentor gave him a critical stare. "We've been practicing for so long because you haven't been focused. We'll move on once you get it right."

For a moment, Gorsepaw opened his mouth to reply, then closed it. Daisystem had a point—he'd only been half-listening, the other piece of his mind distracted by the prospect of hunting or tracking later on.

But also by—

No. Shut up.

He dipped his head somewhat reluctantly. "Sorry, Daisystem," he mumbled.

Daisystem's expression softened. "It's only natural," she mewed gently, putting her tail tip on his shoulder. "Let's give it another go."

Gorsepaw nodded and positioned himself, digging his paws deep into the peaty moor ground. He unsheathed his claws, feeling one claw hitting a tiny pebble in the earth.

Daisystem's muscles bunched before she leaped at him, coming at him from just to the right. This time, Gorsepaw swayed to the left, and he cheered silently as he heard his mentor hit the ground again. When she stood, her expression was far more pleased.

"That was much better," she praised, panting just slightly. She let out a puff of air as she regained her breath. "In a real battle, it would've been much harder for me to get back up. Did you notice how you had to put more tension in your foreleg muscles compared to your rear ones?"

Gorsepaw twitched an ear. "Yeah, yeah, got all that. The timing, the muscles, that sorta stuff. Are we done now?"

For a moment, Daisystem's expression twitched, as if she were about to rebuke him again. Gorsepaw cringed internally. Me and my big mouth.

Then she sighed with a brief incline of her head. "Sure," she responded, her tone much warmer than Gorsepaw had expected. "How about we work on your observation skills? It's important that, as a Tracker, you have good practice scouting in the field."

Gorsepaw nodded enthusiastically. He felt his paws itching, and kneaded the ground beneath him, resisting the urge to speed ahead of his mentor as she took the lead.

She looked over at him and shot him a smirk. "Fancy a race?"

Before he could respond, she broke into a run, the white fur on her legs a blur against the moorland grass. Grinning, Gorsepaw shot after her, feeling the tension in his legs breaking loose as his strides lengthened. His fur fluffed up against the breeze as exhilaration coursed through him.

His mentor flashed him a teasing look over her shoulder as she suddenly changed direction, steering them onto a worn-out track beaten by countless rabbit paws. Gorsepaw easily swerved to the right and dug his claws into the earth so as not to slide across the track as he rounded the curve. His paws kicked up sand, sending a shower of earth streaming out behind him.

Daisystem slowed her pace just slightly to allow him to catch up and be even with her. "It's also important," she puffed, "for a Tracker to have good speed. Your Clan relies on you for much of the hunting and patrolling… You'll also need to be quick on your paws to get to a scene of battle."

Gorsepaw could sense his mentor's hesitation in her last words. There had been an unspoken peace between the Clans for moons now—and no Clan, much less no singular cat, seemed to be in any haste to break it.

He gave her a quick blink to show he understood instead of voicing his affirmation aloud. Daisystem's paws churned up more earth as she quickened her gait to retake the lead. The pair bounded along in silence for several more heartbeats, and as the awkwardness faded, Gorsepaw relished in the feeling of the seemingly-endless run.

Daisystem took him up a gentle incline towards the crest of a hill. A patch of heather coated one side of the hill, and she rushed straight into it. As Gorsepaw followed, he breathed in the sweet scent of the purple flowers. The stems brushed gently against his fur as if urging him along.

When the two reached the top of the rise, Daisystem's run slowed almost abruptly. Gorsepaw tried to mimic her sudden brake, and though his was less graceful, he managed to stop without planting into the ground.

He stood atop the hill, panting, and gazing out at the moorland surrounding him on all sides. Brown and green grass danced in the wind, and the open land stretched for many, many fox-lengths before it was at last cut off by forest. A thrill of pride made him puff out his chest.

This is what it means to be a true StoneClan cat, he reflected. When I'm a warrior, this will really be my home. I can hunt for my Clan, protect our territory, maybe even become deputy someday!

You're forgetting something, a little voice nagged at him.

His thoughts sharpened, and he felt his posture stiffen. No, I'm not.

Yet the voice persisted. Yes, you are. What kind of warrior would you even be?

I'd be just fine! His gaze flashed to Daisystem standing next to him, her blue eyes stretched wide as she gazed over the moor. Look, Daisystem doesn't—

But who's to say that she won't someday?

Well… how do you know she will?

Because she's a normal cat. The voice was almost taunting him. You want to be normal, too, don't you?

Gorsepaw's breath caught in his throat. Of course I do! I mean, I am!

Don't lie to yourself.

He lashed his tail angrily. Just leave me alone!

"Gorsepaw?" Daisystem's voice was concerned.

With a rapid shake of his head, Gorsepaw snapped out of his silent argument.

"Is everything alright?" His mentor adjusted her stance to be closer to his height and looked deep into his eyes.

"I-I'm okay," he reassured her. He stood a little taller and held his tail high to prove it to her—and to avoid her prodding any further. I can't tell any cat… right?

Daisystem held his gaze for another heartbeat before she let out a breath. "Good. Just making sure you weren't feeling faint after the run."

"Are you kidding? I'm way too tough to pass out after a little run," Gorsepaw shot back, unable to keep the boastful note out of his voice.

Daisystem gave him a light cuff on one ear. "Even Rushstar would wear out after running for too long," she chided him gently. "Watch the size of your head—and of your words."

Gorsepaw ducked his head under her touch. "Okay, okay," he muttered. "Where do you want me to go?"

His mentor looked around the hill crest before her eyes rested on a larger boulder jutting out of the earth. "There."

Gorsepaw trotted to the boulder and leaped onto it. He squinted against the sun for a moment before his eyes adjusted to the bright light and he tilted his head to look down at the territory before him.

"What do you see?" Daisystem called up to him.

"An eagle flying above the treetops over SeaClan territory—probably saw a mouse or vole or something. Border patrol heading that way, but I can't really tell who's on it. Rabbit running into a patch of heather on the hill over there."

"Anything else?"

Gorsepaw hesitated for a heartbeat, trying to pick out specific details against the otherwise-still land. He shook his head. "Not that I can tell."

He felt fur brushing his shoulder as his mentor hopped up beside him, and he shuffled over to make more room for her on the boulder. She sat down on the smooth surface and curled her tail around her paws as she observed the landscape surrounding them.

"I see the bird," she meowed after a moment. "But you missed the second one—that typically indicates it's a pack of vultures instead. Eagles tend to hunt alone, while vultures scavenge in groups."

Gorsepaw squinted as he attempted to identify what his mentor was seeing. He noticed a second shape breaching the surface of the treetops, only to dip back down again, while the first one remained vigilant, flying in continuous loops. He twitched an ear thoughtfully. "I… guess I didn't think to look for that. But vultures aren't dangerous, right?"

"Not nearly as much as eagles," Daisystem answered with an approving blink. "They only hunt if they're desperate—they're normally scavengers." She leaned down just slightly to move her gaze lower. Gorsepaw followed her position, glancing over at his mentor to make sure he was copying her movements properly.

"There's the border patrol," she continued, using her tail to guide his gaze. "Plumpoppy, Haythorn, Cypresspaw, and Skyflight are on it. Haythorn's carrying some heather, probably for the den walls." Her tail curled in amusement. "Skyflight and Cypresspaw have a rabbit—and they look pretty proud of it."

As he noticed, Gorsepaw couldn't resist a smirk along with a short purr. Skyflight and Rosegaze were only made warriors a quarter moon ago. He's gotta feel like he's saving the Clan! The prospect of becoming a warrior himself made him unsheathe his claws in excitement. He did his best to block out the voice from ruining the excitement that ran through him.

After a moment, Daisystem let out a short-lived sigh. "And, from the direction they're coming, they forgot the final marker by the beech copse…" She stood and lightly leaped down from the boulder, flicking her tail to indicate for Gorsepaw to follow. He hopped down after her, pleased when he made the maneuver as smoothly as his mentor had.

She bounded ahead of him, moving in the direction of the border rather than the patrol, who had now moved far beyond them. When they neared the border, Daisystem halted abruptly and raised her tail to block Gorsepaw from continuing.

"Do you know if any patrols are coming?" she asked, giving him a glance over her shoulder.

Gorsepaw was about to tell her what a mouse-brained question she was asking; how should he know the patrol schedule of SeaClan? Upon realizing, he opened his mouth to taste the air and kept his ears pricked, keeping his senses focused on the signs of an approaching cat. After a moment, he shook his head. "No." He stood taller to signal that he was confident with his decision.

Daisystem let out a purr of satisfaction. "Well done." She trotted closer to the border and began to mark a patch of shrubbery in front of a beech tree. Gorsepaw padded behind her and rubbed his scent against a group of ferns.

He felt a fern frond rustle against his cheek as his mentor suddenly perked and lowered a hind leg. "There's a vole close by. It might be coming from one of the tunnels."

Gorsepaw sniffed the air. Despite the scent of SeaClan and forest overwhelming most of the smells of moorland, he could decipher a faint warm scent—vole. "Should we stalk it?" he asked, looking up at his mentor for confirmation.

The she-cat hesitated. "Stay here and finish marking the border. I'll fetch it. I haven't trained you to hunt in or near the tunnels yet." She shot him a knowing glance to prevent any objections. She leaped ahead lightly and began slowly observing the tussocks of grass, occasionally scenting the air, ears pricked and alert for any sounds.

Despite her argument, Gorsepaw let out a huff of a breath and rolled his eyes as he marched back to the border and marked a beech tree. Why'd they have to miss this copse in the first place? Not that hard to mark a border…

The sounds of paws padding through the undergrowth distantly caught his attention, and he quickly laid his scent on another trunk. It was only until he identified the noise as coming from the SeaClan side of the border that he realized it wasn't his mentor—and, after checking the scents and sounds, not only one cat.

A tom's voice piped up first. "We're not going to get in any trouble, right?"

Gorsepaw's tail whipped to one side and he glanced over his shoulder. Daisystem wasn't back from her hunt yet; should he stay like she had instructed him to, or leave before he had to deal with a patrol of presumably-older cats from another Clan? Curiosity, however, got the best of him, and he crouched down low behind the clump of ferns he had previously marked.

"Of course not," a she-cat's voice replied with a disdainful snort. "No one's going to find out—so long as that little fur-ball keeps her mouth shut. It'll be our secret."

Who is that? Gorsepaw's brow furrowed in concentration. He didn't recognize either of the voices; he had only been to one Gathering, and during it he had mostly spent time with the other apprentices instead of growing familiar with faces or voices. Not like their figures would help him much—the cats were too hidden by the undergrowth and distance for him to see them.

"…You really think she won't blab to the whole Clan about it?" The tom's voice had a hint of doubt laced into his question.

Gorsepaw heard leaves crunch, as if the other cat had suddenly whirled around to face the tom. "If she's smart, she'll keep her mouth shut," the she-cat growled. "This is what is best for the Clan. Praising a cat for something they don't even deserve—I can't believe I'm living with a bunch of mouse-brained pansies." Her mew lightened on her next words. "This is simply… a wake-up. It'll show cat's true colors… and then we'll know who we can trust."

"Oh." Though his reply was single-worded, the tom sounded satisfied with the she-cat's response.

"When we return to camp, no cat is to know about this—we need to act like this never happened." The she-cat's voice lowered to a growl.

"Of course," the tom meowed earnestly. Gorsepaw could almost picture a cat nodding its head enthusiastically. "I won't tell any cat—I swear by StarClan."

The she-cat's simple response was, "Good." With that, Gorsepaw heard the swish of undergrowth as she turned and headed back through the forest, likely towards camp.

He let out a hiss of frustration under his breath. For a heartbeat, he was halfway tempted to cross over the border to trail them—something about their conversation made him feel uneasy—before he heard the swish of grass behind him.

"Did you finish?" Daisystem asked, speaking around the tail of her freshly-caught vole. Once he had nodded in response, she added, "Then we'd best be returning to camp. I promised Softripple I would be on the midday patrol."

Gorsepaw frowned. He wasn't sure whether he should tell his mentor about the conversation he had just overheard. On the one paw, whatever the two cats had been discussing seemed almost… disturbing. As if they were planning something more sinister than just a simple act of disobedience. On the other, he knew it wasn't StoneClan's job to butt their noses in other Clan's business.

Even if it's something dangerous?

"Daisystem—" he started, then broke off abruptly.

His mentor looked over her shoulder at him with a tilt of her head.

He faltered. "I… just thought I heard something strange at the border."

Daisystem's expression grew puzzled. "It was probably a bird," she mewed slowly. "You know that forest birds don't always sound the same as birds that come out on the moor."

"Yeah." Gorsepaw couldn't help but hesitate before he followed his mentor as she began trotting in the direction of the camp. "Just a bird."

His eyes narrowed in thought. Whatever I heard, I'm sure those two cats are up to no good… SeaClan better sort that out before something bad happens.

The bare shrub bush tunnel rustled as Daisystem and Gorsepaw pushed through into camp. As they padded in, Cloverberry gave them a polite dip of his head—Gorsepaw assumed he was taking up the position of guarding the camp.

StoneClan always had at least one warrior guarding the camp at all times. The other Clans only had a guard for a warrior's vigil; it was tradition after all. But because the moorland was so exposed, and with the tunnel system always available for evacuation, a guard was constantly present to alert the Clan to an emergency.

Daisystem immediately headed for the fresh-kill pile to deposit her vole, before she joined a group consisting of Maplethroat and Flintspirit. Gorsepaw brightened at the sight of his father and was about to go over to ask if he could join the patrol before a call beckoned his attention.

"Gorsepaw! Over here!"

Gorsepaw swiveled his head in the direction of the voice—Featherpaw was lounging outside the apprentices' den with Cypresspaw and Willowpaw on either side of her.

"Come and join us," she purred with a friendly head tilt.

Casting another glance at his father—which was returned with a smile and nod to show he was welcome joining the other apprentices instead—Gorsepaw headed towards the group. His spirits were lifted, and he couldn't help but put an extra-prideful step in his stride.

Cypresspaw dipped his head. "Hello, Gorsepaw." His mew was warm, but formal; likely an influence of his mentor's level attitude.

Willowpaw, however, snorted with a roll of her eyes. "I bet he's still got kit fluff behind his ears. What's he got to do with us?"

Gorsepaw's ears flattened indignantly. "I'm two moons younger than you. We were in the nursery together!"

"Leave him alone, Willowpaw," Featherpaw hissed lightly, bright blue eyes narrowing. "He's got every right to be here."

"Acceptance does not simply come with age," Cypresspaw added wisely. He angled his ears towards a spot on the earth beside him. "Sit here."

As Gorsepaw positioned himself next to the brown tom, Featherpaw spoke again. "We were planning on using the Sunning Rocks, but the elders beat us to them. So we settled for this instead."

Beside her, Willowpaw stretched out in the sunshine. Though her unfriendly demeanor was still present from the brief glare she gave him, at least she was keeping her mouth shut now. Gorsepaw twitched his ears in relief—and satisfaction that she had listened.

"How's your training been going?" Cypresspaw asked politely.

"Great!" Gorsepaw answered earnestly. "Daisystem took me for battle training, and then we practiced scouting." He left out the part about the SeaClan border—although he considered Cypresspaw and Featherpaw friends, he wasn't sure what their reactions would be to his story, much less Willowpaw's certain disdain.

"That sounds like fun," Featherpaw meowed with a purr. "Flintspirit has been letting me participate in more of the political discussions lately; they're quite interesting." As a Guide, Featherpaw would one day be more active in the inner-workings of StoneClan, especially considering many Guides were considered as deputies later on.

Willowpaw's expression grew more interested towards her sister, and Cypresspaw nodded thoughtfully. Gorsepaw tried to appear enthusiastic, but it was tough. I could never sit around all day and listen to other cats ramble on and on about stupid issues.

"Did you get to hear anything… interesting?" Willowpaw pried. Out of the corner of his eyes, Gorsepaw caught Cypresspaw rolling his eyes; the she-cat was clearly trying to get gossip out of her littermate.

"Not really," Featherpaw admitted. "Mainly updates about the construction of a new tunnel, and about a check-in on those dogs that have been hanging around." She paused in thought for a moment. "Swanwing mentioned how excited Cloverberry has been about being a father—Mistyfur keeps having to push him out of the nursery so he can get to his duties on time!" She let out a laugh.

Cypresspaw chuckled. "I hope I get to be a father someday."

"Having a mate is just a natural part of life," Willowpaw added with a sniff. "Every cat gets one someday."

The same cold grip of worry tightened over Gorsepaw. He heard the other apprentices chatting, carrying on as if nothing had happened, but their voices seemed distant, almost drowned-out.

"Having a mate is just a natural part of life."

You want to be normal, too, don't you? The voice was back, repeating its earlier taunting. Panic swarmed through his chest as the thoughts flooded through him. He couldn't be normal.

Because, in truth, he had never felt that way before about any cat.

And the worst part?

He couldn't make it go away.