Waterstar's Heart

Chapter 4

The sun was just rising, and it barely lit the forest. Most of the clan was still asleep, but when he was awoken by his mentor, both Grasspaw and Oakpaw were gone. The previous night he had told the two all about his moss gathering, in which Grasspaw had laughed in his face. She complained that it was tedious and she'd 'never make an apprentice do that.'

"Where are we going?" Waterpaw chirped. "How much am I going to see?"

"We're going to travel along the border of RiverClan and WindClan today. Due to ShadowClan giving us issues, I won't take you there quite yet." Clovernose replied tiredly. The molly had seemed to had woken up extra early.

"I'm so excited! Are we going to see any warriors?" Waterpaw gasped, quickening his pace further until he was next to the she-cat. 

"I'd assume that there will be a Dawn Patrol out somewhere. If Whitestar knows to keep his warriors off of Sunning Rocks, we won't have a problem." She replied with a chuckle.

They continued to walk through the forest. As the trees grew thinner, Waterpaw could hear a faint trickle of water. They drew nearer to the noise. The smells of the territory weren't the same for Waterpaw. It smelled of fish, and other cats. Clovernose stopped where a formation of rocks sat.

"This is the Sunning Rocks. Many battles have taken place here. You one day will battle here, as well. We bask and hunt on these rocks." The molly purred, leaping onto one. She squinted at the other side of the water. "...RiverClan lies over this river. During leafbare, the river freezes over. It's extremely dangerous to try and chase prey across it. In the wet seasons, especially after leaf-fall, it floods, so we try to stray farther from it."

Waterpaw made his way onto the rocks, careful to not misplace a paw. As he made it to the top where his mentor sat, he could see a group of cats in the distance. His fur prickled in excitement. "Are we going to fight them?"

Clovernose shook her head. "Not unless they give us a reason. I recognize them."

As the group of cats drew nearer, Waterpaw could make out the looks of the RiverClan cats. There was an orange tabby she-cat, a white tom with a giant scar that ran down his belly, and a much noticeably younger tabby she-cat.

"Clovernose. I see you've been given an apprentice." The white tom meowed from across the river. His face showed an equal mix of curiosity and hostility.

Clovernose raised her chin high, tail lashing gently. "Hollytail. I could say the same for you. How is the prey running?" She inquired.

The orange tabby stepped forwards, her claws unsheathed slightly. "Wouldn't you care to know, you—"

"—Enough." As the warrior stepped forwards, Hollytail pushed himself in front of her. He raised his tail in warning, and gazed at Clovernose. He never moved his glance away from her.

To Waterpaw's bewilderment, the white molly gestured the RiverClan warrior to come forwards.

Waterpaw stiffened. What was Clovernose doing?

He obliged, dipping his head. "Pay no mind to Lynxscar...prey is running well. I suppose for ThunderClan the same? Who's this new apprentice?" The white tom slowly made his way towards the stepping stones of the river, his attention now on Waterpaw. His thick, white pelt rippled over his muscles as he leapt from one to the other. "He seems strong. He resembles Shadestar."

"His name is Waterpaw. Shadestar's son." She glanced down at the younger tom. "Waterpaw, this is Hollytail of RiverClan. Then Lynxscar, and...?" Clovernose tipped her head to the side.

The RiverClan apprentice stepped forwards. She had a thick, brown pelt, and blue eyes. "Falconpaw."

Clovernose dipped her head to the apprentice. "I've just giving him the tour of our territory. Now, we must go. Enjoy your fish, Lynxscar." Her one good eye burned into the orange tabby as she gestured Waterpaw to get off of the stones.

Waterpaw leapt away, his paws hitting the grass heavily. He was grateful that the interaction with the patrol had ended peacefully.

He watched as the RiverClan warriors said their final words to his mentor before heading back into their respective territory.

"Lynxscar was the one to make me go blind in this eye." Clovernose pointed with a claw.

"I heard about the story! Cowpatch told me!" Waterpaw replied, stopping in front of her.

The river continued to flow steadily. Waterpaw then gazed towards where the sun was gradually rising. The forest was growing lighter with each passing moment, the first rays of sunlight hitting both of their pelts as it filtered through the leaves.

The two continued on their tour of the territory, and by sun high, they made it to the border of WindClan. She had stopped to give him a couple of pointers for hunting. Clovernose had explained that beyond the moor is where the Highstones were, and how Mothermouth laid in it. 

"WindClan are...interesting cats. They claim to be closer to StarClan than any of the clans because they sleep in the open." Clovernose snorted, rolling her eyes. She continued her trek, turning to pad away. Waterpaw followed, but kept his gaze on the moor.

There were no trees. It looked barren, and sad. All that he could see was some flowers and the tall grass.

"Come, Waterpaw. We still have one more place to see!" She called out.

Soon, they arrived to Four Trees. It was breathtaking.

Waterpaw couldn't help himself, and raced towards the clearing of the hollow. All scents of the four clans seemed to merge into one as he drew closer. It was steeper than he had realized, leading him to tumbled down the steep slope. He let out an oomph sound before getting back onto his paws.

Clovernose made her way down carefully, laughing, "I don't blame you for being excited. I'm sure you'll be even more excited when you go to your first gathering. By the time the full moon arrives, you'll be trained in hunting and fighting." She purred happily, gazing at the Great Oaks.

The white molly moved forwards, taking in the sunlight.

"All of the clans gather here. We are watched by StarClan, and we keep a truce throughout the whole night. Leaders share important news and the clan cats discuss with each other. If StarClan is angry, they cover the moon with clouds, and we all leave." She explained, her voice echoing throughout the hollow.

"The leaders gather on The Great Rock in the center, the deputies sit below it...One day, you might sit upon The Great Rock, too." She purred, turning back to Waterpaw.

His heart filled with a sense of wonder and excitement. His father sat up there with the other leaders!

Waterpaw stood next to Clovernose, also taking in the view of the whole clearing."Will I go to the gathering?" He asked, his blue eyes wide.

His mentor dipped her head, "I couldn't deny you of it. Just promise me that you'll work extra hard."

Waterpaw let out a yowl of excitement, circling his mentor. "Yes! Thank StarClan! Thank you, Clovernose! I promise, I'll work super hard!"

She nodded. "Let's head back to camp, rest, and then I'll take you and the others out for some battle practice."