Crowstorm woke early that morning. He was in a good mood - a really good mood - for whatever reason. He didn't know why, but he couldn't stop smiling. It was just one of those days, he guessed. No one else was awake yet, so the tom padded around the camp for a little while, content with simply listening to the birds and watching the sunrise. Such a perfect morning it was. So perfect - everything was just perfect. "Hi there," a purr sounded from behind him. Smiling as he instantly recognized the voice, Crowstorm turned and touched his nose to Daisyskip's. "Good morning. How did you sleep?" he purred. "Pretty well, thanks," she mewed happily. "You're awake awfully early." The black warrior chuckled a little. "I don't know why, honestly, I just woke up and couldn't get back to sleep. For some reason I just feel like today is gonna be a good day...." he trailed off, staring out of the camp at the rising sun. Daisyskip smiled and followed his gaze. The two sat there together watching the sunrise and simply enjoying each other's company for a while. Daisyskip was always happy whenever she was around Crowstorm. He could always make her laugh and cheer her up and he didn't stare at the place where her right eye had been like others did. He didn't care if her eye was missing and always said she was the most beautiful she-cat he'd ever seen, which certainly warmed her heart. For a while now she had been waiting for him to ask her to be his mate. She had been considering asking him herself but was way too nervous about it. As if hearing her thoughts, Crowstorm suddenly blurted out, "Will you be my mate?" before quickly looking down at his paws with a bit of embarrassment. Daisyskip gasped before exclaiming, "Yes! Yes, yes, yes, oh yes!! Of course I will! Yes!" Then a chorus of muffled giggling sounded behind them. The two turned to see Daisyskip's family standing there at the warriors' den's entrance. "What?! What are you doing?" the cream tabby questioned as she bounded over to her mother and brothers. "How long were you..?" Foxpounce chuckled, "Oh, I just heard you two talking so I decided to wake Birch and mom up to see if that was gonna happen." "About time, too," Birchwing added. Honeydapple had the biggest grin on her face as she leaned forward to touch her nose to her daughter's. She was so happy - so happy that Daisyskip found someone.
"Can I leave this stinky place yet?" Adder grumbled, wrinkling her nose at the stench that arose from Appleheart removing the cobweb bound around her former loner's leg. The cobweb was soaked with herb juices which had created such a pungent odor. The ginger tom gave a slight chuckle, "Hang on, let me take a look at it." After he had cleaned the wound of all the herbs and cobwebs, he inspected it carefully, looking for any signs of infection setting in. "Alright, you're good to go." "Finally!" the tortoiseshell breathed as she leapt to her paws and dashed out of the medicine den. With the irritable young warrior out of the way, Appleheart turned his attention to Frostpath. "How are you feeling?" he queried as he looked over her injuries, his eyes clouding with concern. The white she-cat only shrugged, and Appleheart frowned at this. They didn't have anymore cobwebs in the herb storage - they had all been used on Webfang and Adder's injuries, so he was worried about Frostpath. The marigold was working to stop infections and a bit of the bleeding, but not all of it, and the poppy seeds had helped her to calm down. They needed cobwebs. Willowcloud had left early in the morning to search for some and Appleheart had stayed behind to keep an eye on the warrior. He began to pace around the den nervously.
Dewpaw lay near the back of the apprentices' den, watching his siblings play with the others. He felt so unwanted, so out of place. He had been hoping that after she became an apprentice, Russetpaw would cease her taunting - but she didn't. The young tom had no idea why it was 'weird' or 'creepy' for his eyes to be different colors, but his sister was bent on convincing the others to avoid him. 'If his eyes are all messed up, StarClan knows what else is wrong with him! Could be why he's so grumpy all the time,' she'd say. Words cannot express how deeply hurt he felt inside, so alone and abandoned. Weren't his siblings supposed to be the ones who look after him and always stay by his side? He didn't know what he'd done to make his sister act such a way. It was mornings like this that when the sun was out and the birds were singing and everyone was happy, he'd sit in the apprentices' den all alone and try to sleep for as long as possible, dreading leaving the safety of the den and being out in the openness of the camp where Russetpaw would surely see him and think up another taunt for him. It was times like this that when he'd see all the other apprentices frolicking about in the camp, having fun, he'd begin to cry quietly, knowing that he would not be welcomed. He just didn't understand and would want to let all his emotions out in a scream, but knew he couldn't, for it would draw so much more unneeded attention. Suddenly Frigidrose poked her head inside the den, and Dewpaw quickly made an effort to regain his composure, wiping a paw over his face in an attempt to dry the few fresh tears. "What do you want?" he mumbled, just barely audible. The warrior tilted her head to the side a bit. "Dewpaw, are you okay?" she queried gently in the soft voice that only a mother has. The apprentice sent her a slight glare before returning his gaze to his paws. "Yeah, sure, I'm definitely okay." Frigidrose frowned and stepped carefully into the den, sitting down next to her apprentice and wrapping her tail around him. "Is it Russetpaw?" Dewpaw didn't speak for fear that his voice would crack and gave a small nod. The she-cat sighed lightly and licked the top of his head. "I don't know why she's doing this either. Soon enough she's bound to realize just how mouse-brained she is, don't worry. "But what if she doesn't stop?" Dewpaw whimpered quietly. "I-I don't get it. My eyes are different colors - so what? It doesn't affect who I am, does it?" Frigidrose gave a small smile. "You're exactly right. It doesn't affect who you are at all." She paused a moment before continuing, "Sometimes others just have to pick on someone, and only StarClan knows why. But you'll show them." Her big pale green eyes stared into the apprentice's odd ones. "You'll certainly show them. Wouldn't you want them to understand just how hurt, how betrayed you feel?" He didn't speak for a moment, taking it all in, pondering each and every of her words. Finally, a quiet but firm meow came from him, "Yes." A broad smile found its way onto Frigidrose's face. "Alright then. Oh, Ashenclaw wanted us to patrol - are you up for it?" Her words having given him a little more confidence, Dewpaw nodded with a smile.
"Good morning, Honeydapple," Emberstar purred to the cream warrior as she finished her breakfast of mouse. "Oh, hello, Emberstar! How are you this morning?" Honeydapple replied, giving her chest fur a lick before getting to her paws. "I'm well, thank you. I came to ask how Breezepaw and Cinderpaw's training is going? I know they're the age of being appointed warriors, and I wanted to know if you think they're ready," the leader meowed. She hadn't seen much of Frigidrose's kits lately. Either they were out training or on a patrol, always somewhere she couldn't find them. She was curious to see how they were doing, knowing that their mother had apparently moved on after mourning her lost daughter for so long. Hoping not to appear to have anything against the former queen, Emberstar was eager to promote the two apprentices to warriors. They deserved it after all - they were training hard and were fourteen moons old already and hadn't caused the Clan any havoc with their mother having been so enraged by Shadekit's death. "Yes, yes, they're both doing wonderfully!" Honeydapple purred happily. "They have finished their final training session. I believe they are ready." Emberstar smiled. "Great. Why don't we all go on a hunting patrol together so I can see for myself how they're doing?" The cream warrior nodded eagerly. "Yes, that would be fantastic! I'll go fetch them and Cloudtalon."
Breezepaw and her brother were sitting at the entrance of the apprentices' den, watching as the other older apprentices left the camp to train. Breezepaw kneaded the ground anxiously with her claws. It had been a couple moons since she and Cinderpaw had completed their fourth training session - why weren't they warriors yet? Was Emberstar still upset with their mother? Why would she take it out on them? It was so unfair, she thought. Just because Frigidrose was a jerk didn't mean they were! The silver tabby let out a low sigh as she glanced around the camp. The two siblings had been so idle lately with nothing to do besides patrols. Their training was finished, all they were waiting on was their warrior ceremony. Whenever Breezepaw thought of the sure-to-come ceremony, her paws tingled with excitement. But when would it come? Surely Emberstar wouldn't make them wait too much longer? "Hey, are you two ready for your assessment?" Cloudtalon meowed excitedly as he trotted up to them. Breezepaw's expression brightened. "Assessment?" "Yeah, Emberstar wants to go hunting with you two, Honeydapple, and myself to see how you're doing," her mentor purred. "Come on! You'll both do great." The silver she-cat turned to her brother with a thrilled gleam in her eye before they bounded off after the warrior to where Emberstar and Honeydapple were standing at the camp entrance. The leader gave a small smile and meowed, "Let's go."
Russetpaw and Ivypaw were giggling amongst themselves as they carefully crept out of the camp. Now that Russetpaw was out of the nursery, Snowstep wasn't watching her all the time and she was free to sneak off with her friend. She had been waiting for this day since she first spoke to Ivypaw. They would have so much fun! They would get to hunt by themselves, go spy on the bordering Clans - oh, what fun it would be. With Crowstorm pretty much taking the day off to spend time with his new mate, Russetpaw was free from training. However, Ivypaw thought that Foxpounce had mentioned the day before that they would be training today, but the younger apprentice managed to convince her to forget about that for a little while so they could go explore the territory. "You have to show me all your favorite places in the territory! she chirped. "And then we'll go to the border - any border, really! - so we can pretend to be big, scary warriors defending our territory from those rascals!" Ivypaw could only giggle at Russetpaw's imaginings and play along. "They shall forever tremble at the mention of Ivypaw and Russetpaw," she declared. "No! Russetstar and her beloved deputy Ivyfoot!" the younger meowed quickly, making up her friend's warrior name on the spot. "Hmm, no, 'Ivyfoot' doesn't sound so cool...." she mewed, racking her brain in search of a better name. "Ooh! We could both be the leaders! Russetstar and Ivystar!" They both laughed at this and hurriedly continued on their 'patrol'. Suddenly a sound caught Ivypaw's attention. Russetpaw immediately noticed this, asking quite loudly, "What is it?" and was quickly shushed by the older apprentice. Was it the patrol that had been sent out not too long before they ventured out of the camp? The two stood perfectly still for a few moments, careful not to make any sound - Russetpaw even held her breath, which soon resulted in obnoxious gasping after only a couple seconds. "Russetpaw! I told you to keep quiet!" "Sorry! I -" "Russetpaw?" The apprentices froze at Snowstep's voice. "Russetpaw, what in StarClan's name are you doing out here? Ivypaw too? Get over here!" Allowing herself a few muffled grumbles of complaint, the ginger tabby began to pad slowly toward her mother with the tortoiseshell tabby not far behind. It was the patrol, Russetpaw realized. Wait, was that Dewpaw there too? "What's Dewpaw doing out? If you meet a different Clan's patrol, they're bound to think we're weird because of his messed up eyes," she blurted carelessly. Her brother's ears flattened back and he stared at his paws. "Russetpaw, we've talked about this -" Snowstep began firmly, but was interrupted. "You should have just left him back at the camp. No one wants to see him, he's weird." Ivypaw could tell the situation was going to take a turn for the worst, and so she quickly spoke up, "I-I think we should get going." She said to Snowstep, "I'll make sure she gets back to camp okay." Dewpaw could feel his throat tightening as they left, tears threatening to spill. He wouldn't let them, though, not one bit. No one could see how he would cry like a kit - he was too proud. And so he swallowed his frustration, but it was soon to boil over.
x1 poppy seeds and x1 marigold have been used
Becoming an apprentice: Fernkit
Becoming mates: Daisyskip & Crowstorm
Herb hunting: Willowcloud
Becoming warriors: Breezepaw & Cinderpaw -> Breezeclaw & Cinderdawn
Patrol: Ashenclaw, Patchthorn, Frigidrose, Adder, Snowstep, & Dewpaw
Hunting: Emberstar, Honeydapple, Cloudtalon, Breezepaw, & Cinderpaw
Training: Falconpaw, Heatherpaw, Pinepaw, & Ivypaw
"Can I leave this stinky place yet?" Adder grumbled, wrinkling her nose at the stench that arose from Appleheart removing the cobweb bound around her former loner's leg. The cobweb was soaked with herb juices which had created such a pungent odor. The ginger tom gave a slight chuckle, "Hang on, let me take a look at it." After he had cleaned the wound of all the herbs and cobwebs, he inspected it carefully, looking for any signs of infection setting in. "Alright, you're good to go." "Finally!" the tortoiseshell breathed as she leapt to her paws and dashed out of the medicine den. With the irritable young warrior out of the way, Appleheart turned his attention to Frostpath. "How are you feeling?" he queried as he looked over her injuries, his eyes clouding with concern. The white she-cat only shrugged, and Appleheart frowned at this. They didn't have anymore cobwebs in the herb storage - they had all been used on Webfang and Adder's injuries, so he was worried about Frostpath. The marigold was working to stop infections and a bit of the bleeding, but not all of it, and the poppy seeds had helped her to calm down. They needed cobwebs. Willowcloud had left early in the morning to search for some and Appleheart had stayed behind to keep an eye on the warrior. He began to pace around the den nervously.
Dewpaw lay near the back of the apprentices' den, watching his siblings play with the others. He felt so unwanted, so out of place. He had been hoping that after she became an apprentice, Russetpaw would cease her taunting - but she didn't. The young tom had no idea why it was 'weird' or 'creepy' for his eyes to be different colors, but his sister was bent on convincing the others to avoid him. 'If his eyes are all messed up, StarClan knows what else is wrong with him! Could be why he's so grumpy all the time,' she'd say. Words cannot express how deeply hurt he felt inside, so alone and abandoned. Weren't his siblings supposed to be the ones who look after him and always stay by his side? He didn't know what he'd done to make his sister act such a way. It was mornings like this that when the sun was out and the birds were singing and everyone was happy, he'd sit in the apprentices' den all alone and try to sleep for as long as possible, dreading leaving the safety of the den and being out in the openness of the camp where Russetpaw would surely see him and think up another taunt for him. It was times like this that when he'd see all the other apprentices frolicking about in the camp, having fun, he'd begin to cry quietly, knowing that he would not be welcomed. He just didn't understand and would want to let all his emotions out in a scream, but knew he couldn't, for it would draw so much more unneeded attention. Suddenly Frigidrose poked her head inside the den, and Dewpaw quickly made an effort to regain his composure, wiping a paw over his face in an attempt to dry the few fresh tears. "What do you want?" he mumbled, just barely audible. The warrior tilted her head to the side a bit. "Dewpaw, are you okay?" she queried gently in the soft voice that only a mother has. The apprentice sent her a slight glare before returning his gaze to his paws. "Yeah, sure, I'm definitely okay." Frigidrose frowned and stepped carefully into the den, sitting down next to her apprentice and wrapping her tail around him. "Is it Russetpaw?" Dewpaw didn't speak for fear that his voice would crack and gave a small nod. The she-cat sighed lightly and licked the top of his head. "I don't know why she's doing this either. Soon enough she's bound to realize just how mouse-brained she is, don't worry. "But what if she doesn't stop?" Dewpaw whimpered quietly. "I-I don't get it. My eyes are different colors - so what? It doesn't affect who I am, does it?" Frigidrose gave a small smile. "You're exactly right. It doesn't affect who you are at all." She paused a moment before continuing, "Sometimes others just have to pick on someone, and only StarClan knows why. But you'll show them." Her big pale green eyes stared into the apprentice's odd ones. "You'll certainly show them. Wouldn't you want them to understand just how hurt, how betrayed you feel?" He didn't speak for a moment, taking it all in, pondering each and every of her words. Finally, a quiet but firm meow came from him, "Yes." A broad smile found its way onto Frigidrose's face. "Alright then. Oh, Ashenclaw wanted us to patrol - are you up for it?" Her words having given him a little more confidence, Dewpaw nodded with a smile.
"Good morning, Honeydapple," Emberstar purred to the cream warrior as she finished her breakfast of mouse. "Oh, hello, Emberstar! How are you this morning?" Honeydapple replied, giving her chest fur a lick before getting to her paws. "I'm well, thank you. I came to ask how Breezepaw and Cinderpaw's training is going? I know they're the age of being appointed warriors, and I wanted to know if you think they're ready," the leader meowed. She hadn't seen much of Frigidrose's kits lately. Either they were out training or on a patrol, always somewhere she couldn't find them. She was curious to see how they were doing, knowing that their mother had apparently moved on after mourning her lost daughter for so long. Hoping not to appear to have anything against the former queen, Emberstar was eager to promote the two apprentices to warriors. They deserved it after all - they were training hard and were fourteen moons old already and hadn't caused the Clan any havoc with their mother having been so enraged by Shadekit's death. "Yes, yes, they're both doing wonderfully!" Honeydapple purred happily. "They have finished their final training session. I believe they are ready." Emberstar smiled. "Great. Why don't we all go on a hunting patrol together so I can see for myself how they're doing?" The cream warrior nodded eagerly. "Yes, that would be fantastic! I'll go fetch them and Cloudtalon."
Breezepaw and her brother were sitting at the entrance of the apprentices' den, watching as the other older apprentices left the camp to train. Breezepaw kneaded the ground anxiously with her claws. It had been a couple moons since she and Cinderpaw had completed their fourth training session - why weren't they warriors yet? Was Emberstar still upset with their mother? Why would she take it out on them? It was so unfair, she thought. Just because Frigidrose was a jerk didn't mean they were! The silver tabby let out a low sigh as she glanced around the camp. The two siblings had been so idle lately with nothing to do besides patrols. Their training was finished, all they were waiting on was their warrior ceremony. Whenever Breezepaw thought of the sure-to-come ceremony, her paws tingled with excitement. But when would it come? Surely Emberstar wouldn't make them wait too much longer? "Hey, are you two ready for your assessment?" Cloudtalon meowed excitedly as he trotted up to them. Breezepaw's expression brightened. "Assessment?" "Yeah, Emberstar wants to go hunting with you two, Honeydapple, and myself to see how you're doing," her mentor purred. "Come on! You'll both do great." The silver she-cat turned to her brother with a thrilled gleam in her eye before they bounded off after the warrior to where Emberstar and Honeydapple were standing at the camp entrance. The leader gave a small smile and meowed, "Let's go."
Russetpaw and Ivypaw were giggling amongst themselves as they carefully crept out of the camp. Now that Russetpaw was out of the nursery, Snowstep wasn't watching her all the time and she was free to sneak off with her friend. She had been waiting for this day since she first spoke to Ivypaw. They would have so much fun! They would get to hunt by themselves, go spy on the bordering Clans - oh, what fun it would be. With Crowstorm pretty much taking the day off to spend time with his new mate, Russetpaw was free from training. However, Ivypaw thought that Foxpounce had mentioned the day before that they would be training today, but the younger apprentice managed to convince her to forget about that for a little while so they could go explore the territory. "You have to show me all your favorite places in the territory! she chirped. "And then we'll go to the border - any border, really! - so we can pretend to be big, scary warriors defending our territory from those rascals!" Ivypaw could only giggle at Russetpaw's imaginings and play along. "They shall forever tremble at the mention of Ivypaw and Russetpaw," she declared. "No! Russetstar and her beloved deputy Ivyfoot!" the younger meowed quickly, making up her friend's warrior name on the spot. "Hmm, no, 'Ivyfoot' doesn't sound so cool...." she mewed, racking her brain in search of a better name. "Ooh! We could both be the leaders! Russetstar and Ivystar!" They both laughed at this and hurriedly continued on their 'patrol'. Suddenly a sound caught Ivypaw's attention. Russetpaw immediately noticed this, asking quite loudly, "What is it?" and was quickly shushed by the older apprentice. Was it the patrol that had been sent out not too long before they ventured out of the camp? The two stood perfectly still for a few moments, careful not to make any sound - Russetpaw even held her breath, which soon resulted in obnoxious gasping after only a couple seconds. "Russetpaw! I told you to keep quiet!" "Sorry! I -" "Russetpaw?" The apprentices froze at Snowstep's voice. "Russetpaw, what in StarClan's name are you doing out here? Ivypaw too? Get over here!" Allowing herself a few muffled grumbles of complaint, the ginger tabby began to pad slowly toward her mother with the tortoiseshell tabby not far behind. It was the patrol, Russetpaw realized. Wait, was that Dewpaw there too? "What's Dewpaw doing out? If you meet a different Clan's patrol, they're bound to think we're weird because of his messed up eyes," she blurted carelessly. Her brother's ears flattened back and he stared at his paws. "Russetpaw, we've talked about this -" Snowstep began firmly, but was interrupted. "You should have just left him back at the camp. No one wants to see him, he's weird." Ivypaw could tell the situation was going to take a turn for the worst, and so she quickly spoke up, "I-I think we should get going." She said to Snowstep, "I'll make sure she gets back to camp okay." Dewpaw could feel his throat tightening as they left, tears threatening to spill. He wouldn't let them, though, not one bit. No one could see how he would cry like a kit - he was too proud. And so he swallowed his frustration, but it was soon to boil over.
x1 poppy seeds and x1 marigold have been used
Becoming an apprentice: Fernkit
Becoming mates: Daisyskip & Crowstorm
Herb hunting: Willowcloud
Becoming warriors: Breezepaw & Cinderpaw -> Breezeclaw & Cinderdawn
Patrol: Ashenclaw, Patchthorn, Frigidrose, Adder, Snowstep, & Dewpaw
Hunting: Emberstar, Honeydapple, Cloudtalon, Breezepaw, & Cinderpaw
Training: Falconpaw, Heatherpaw, Pinepaw, & Ivypaw
