☁ 𝒜𝓈 𝒞𝓁𝑜𝓊𝒹𝓈 𝒞𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒮𝓀𝓎 ☁

Chapter 1

𝒫𝑒𝓉𝒶𝓁𝓅𝒶𝓌

~ ✵ ☁ ✵ ~

It was Petalpaw's first day outside of camp and she couldn't hide the excitement that glistened in her bright green eyes and tingled within her paws. Unfortunately, her mentor, Badgerclaw, didn't seem to enjoy her enthusiasm.

"Quit that!" She snapped at her, making Petalpaw flinch and cower as the muscular she-cat's gaze raked her dark orange pelt. She glanced at her paws in embarrassment, her ears drooping. Was it really so bad to show how much she had been anticipating her apprenticeship?

"S-Sorry," She stuttered as her mentor's head swung toward their destination once again before she continued into CliffClan territory. Petalpaw followed hesitantly. If her mentor wanted to make a terrible first impression on her apprentice, she had definitely succeeded. But as the orange apprentice followed her mentor, she couldn't help but gaze in awe at the towering rocky terrain before her, distracting her from her mentor's harshness. A few moments passed before her gaze was focused on a beautiful butterfly, its pretty orange and black wings fluttering above her. It didn't take long for Badgerclaw to notice that she wasn't paying attention though.

"Petalpaw! Eyes on me!" But the young apprentice was still lost in her distracted mind. "Mouse-brain! Focus!" It wasn't until her mentor cuffed her ears when she finally realized the dark brown, she-cat had been calling to her. With a sigh, she and Badgerclaw continued. It was the first day and already she was struggling. Was training to be a warrior always going to be so difficult for her? She sure hoped that would not be the case.

She tried her best to focus as her mentor showed her around CliffClan territory, but she still found herself getting distracted by small things she'd catch sight of, receiving criticism from Badgerclaw moments later. But finally, they both returned to their clan's camp, and Petalpaw was relieved once she got to join her friend Leafpaw by the prey pile and get away from her disappointed and annoyed mentor.

"Petalpaw!" The kind apprentice greeted with a happy purr. "How was your first day as an apprentice?" The two of them were very similar in age, Leafpaw being just a moon older than herself.

"It went well," She lied. Although she'd like to tell him how she really felt about her mentor and her struggle to focus, she didn't want to embarrass herself in front of her fellow apprentice, especially since she desperately wanted to make friends with him as the only other cat around her age.

"I'm glad to hear that!" He told her, delighted. "I'm sure you'll be a great apprentice to Badgerclaw. She'd better be proud to have gotten such a kind and optimistic apprentice like you." Her heart warmed at his purr. If only Badgerclaw was as proud of her as Leafpaw assumed.

I'm such a mouse-brain for letting myself get distracted like that so many times. She thought to herself. I made a terrible impression on my mentor. She watched from afar as Rainstar, the CliffClan leader padded to Badgerclaw, conversing with the warrior. Just watching as they shared tongues made her anxiety soar like an eagle scanning the ground below, searching for a particular young apprentice to feast on. Her mentor was probably telling her leader about how much of a disappointment she was as Badgerclaw's new apprentice. She sighed, as Leafpaw's mentor, Stoneshade called for his own warrior in training, his amber eyes cheerful as they always were. Leafpaw dipped his head apologetically to her before bounding toward the mottled brown tom. She wished she was assigned to a mentor like Leafpaw's. Stoneshade was always encouraging and cheerful, and even better, he loved to joke around with his clanmates every once and a while. I can do this. She told herself. It's the first day, that's all. By tomorrow she'll be in a better mood, and I'll try my best not to get distracted.

~ ✵ ☁ ✵ ~

It had been about a moon since she was apprenticed, but it hadn't gotten any better, as she once hoped it would. She limped into camp, her mentor following with her green eyes blazing in annoyance as always. "Have Junipernose check your forepaw." She growled, not even the slightest amount of care or concern in her voice. Petalpaw didn't say a word, trudging toward Junipernose's den, her three good paws feeling heavy.

"Petalpaw? Are you okay?" Immediately, the gentle cream and brown tom was at her side, helping her into a nest in the empty den and checking her forepaw within moments. "What happened?" He asked her, feeling her outstretched limb with one of his cream-colored front paws.

"I fell from one of the rocky hills trying to chase a rabbit." She informed him, the memory of her trying to climb up and reach the rabbit, resurfacing within her mind. I was just obeying Badgerclaw's orders, she wanted to say. I just wanted to prove to her that I'm a good apprentice. But she figured the tom wouldn't want to listen to her rant about trying to gain the approval of her harsh mentor.

"You're lucky it isn't broken, but it may be sore for a few days." He informed her before asking, "How's your apprenticeship going? I hope Badgerclaw isn't being too hard on you."

At that moment, all of the emotions she had been feeling during the entire moon she spent as an apprentice, came pouring out of her. "To tell you honestly, it hasn't been going that well. I just keep getting distracted by everything and Badgerclaw seems to hate me. Hunting is so hard and I can't even bear to kill any innocent prey! I just hate the terrified and painful squeals they make! I... If I knew becoming a warrior would be so hard, I would've changed my mind before my ceremony!" She cried, worried about how the healer would respond.

But Junipernose didn't seem annoyed or irritated with how she felt. Instead, he dipped his head to her apologetically. "I'm sorry you feel that way, but it isn't too late to change your mind," he mewed, tilting his head in proposal. "There's no doubt I'm getting older and eventually I'll have to retire as an elder. If you don't desire to be a warrior, that's okay." He told her, licking her head in reassurance. "I could always inform Rainstar that you'd like to be my apprentice instead."

Petalpaw felt too stunned to speak for a moment, her jaws wide in shock. "Y-You'd really want me as your apprentice?" She asked, and Junipernose replied with a simple nod, giving her a cheerful smile. "Then, yes! I'd love to train as a healer!" She felt the skin beneath her fur grow warm as she realized that not all of her clanmates looked down on her and thought of her as worthless like her mentor did. In Junipernose's eyes, she was accepted for who she was.

I won't disappoint him. She thought to herself, determined to prove that she wasn't destined to become a warrior. I wasn't meant to serve my clan in that position, but I can serve them just as well as their healer.