Legacy

Part 1 Chapter 3

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im tired :P but enjoy!

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PART 1: FALLEN FAITH
CHAPTER 3 (3) --

* 6 MOONS LATER *

"Ready, Strongpaw?" It takes me a moment to realize that she was talking to me; I'm still getting used to my new name that was given to me for becoming an apprentice. I turn to look up at my elder step-sister. "Umm, yeah," I reply back, really not in the mood to be out.

I'm just adjusting to the new life I've wanted since my mother's death 6 moons ago; my new den, role in society, and name bring me one step closer to becoming a warrior. And to be honest, I'm afraid. Terrified, even, of what my future life holds for me. Will I be a good warrior? Will I save lives? Will I die a noble death? I hope all the answers to the questions circling my head are yes, and follow Blackheart outside of the camp.

About a moon ago, she had become a warrior herself. I could see the pride and joy in her purple eyes as our leader gave her the warrior name she deserved. And, now, she has been chosen to mentor me.

As we exit, I see Wildpaw (who was announced an apprentice the same time was) enter the camp with his mentor. "How was it?" My sister asks the cat, whose name I can't remember. "It was good. No side of trouble. We took it easy. Just went to the river."

I glance over at Wildpaw. "Was it fun?" I asked him. "It was...alright. Didn't learn a lot, though. He said we'll carry on with it tomorrow."

Ever since my mother died, Wildpaw has grown distant from me. I crumbled at the realization that she wasn't coming back, and refused to eat for days. Though I still miss her dearly, I've gotten over it, and eventually came back to my old self. Wildpaw, on the other hand, wouldn't talk to anyone. Every time I saw him, he'd have tears running down his face, or just stare beyond me with sad and tired eyes. Over the last couple moons, he's gotten better, and I'm happy to see him becoming happier and more social.

"Let's go, Strongpaw. We don't have all day," Blackheart says, nudging me. "R-right. Sorry. See ya, Wildpaw," I say, waving. "Yeah. See ya," he replies, walking over to grab some food.

I follow her out, and gaze up at all the green trees and plants that surround me. It looks so different from when it was snowing.

"Today, I'm supposed to explain to you borders and territories. So listen up," she says, stopping after walking for a few minutes. "If we walk further out over here, we'll be crossing TigerTribe's territory. To the left is LeopardTribe," she says, pointing to the right, then left. "We're going to the border of LeopardTribe's today. The river. So hurry up," she says, starting towards the left.

When we reach the river, I look down, and see all the fish swimming around. "Don't fall in. That'd be embarrassing. For you and me. And don't try to catch any, if you even can. This isn't our hunting side of the river," she informs me, sternly.

"Got it?" She asks me. "Yeah. Don't hunt over here or the other side of the river. Got it," I answer. "Yeah. Okay. Now that that's out of the way-" she begins, but trails off, and stares past me. I turn my head, but am pushed out of the way by her.

"Hey! You! I saw that! Your tail's showing! Get out of the bush now and go home!" She shouts, running towards the bush. A white cat with patches of reddish-orange jumps out of the bush and faces my sister, holding his ground.

"What are you doing here? You reek of LeopardTribe! Get out of our territory, you stupid apprentice!" She shouts. "W-wait. This isn't LeopardTribe territory?!" The tomcat asks, now unsure and frightened.

"That's right, Mr. Know-it-All! Now back off before Strongpaw here gets back up!" My eyes widen and my ears perk up at the sound of my name, and the male cat glances over at me. His yellow eyes meet mine and lock; he gazes into my eyes, and I do the same, for what seems like forever.

"Strongpaw!" Blackheart screams at me, and I look up at her, startled. "Pay attention! You're gonna have to do this too once you're a warrior!" I return my gaze to the cat, and look at him sternly, ready to fight.

"I-I'm sorry! I wasn't sure about the border! I snuck out without my mentor and I'm sorry!" He yells back. "You should be! Go home!" Blackheart orders him. He takes one last look at me, and runs back to his territory.

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"Tribes dismissed!" Yells who I now know is the leader of TigerTribe from the huge rock. As he says that, the noise level from all the cats who attended multiplies by ten.

Tonight, I had witnessed my first gathering. Selected cats from each tribe are sent off to the gathering place at midnight where all the borders of the tribe meet once every moon. After everyone arrives, we go over news from each tribe and hold discussions, which I was very interested by. So many cats were there!

I turn to Wildpaw, who was smiling widely. "Can I show you her?" He asks. I nod and smile. He leads me to where a pretty white apprentice she-cat with blue eyes sits beside the cat I met at the border. "That's the cat from the border next to her!" I tell Wildpaw. "Well it's your chance to talk."

He gives me a push, and I land a few feet from the cats, gaining their attention. "Uhh...h-hi..." I say, stumbling. "Hi," the male cat says, smiling. He approaches me and helps me up from the ground as I see Wildpaw get the she-cat's attention.

"W-what's your n-name?" I ask him. So stupid. I mentally kick myself. "Redpaw. And you?" He asks. "Me? I'm Strongpaw. And I think you have a cool name," I reply to him.

"W-well I think you're pretty cool, too! You and your mentor looked like you were gonna kill me!" He says, chuckling. "Haha! Yeah...she's my older step-sister, actually," I say. I hear a voice calling out me and Wildpaw's names. "Speaking of which, I think that's her calling me. Talk to you next time!" I say, and Wildpaw follows me. "See ya guys!" He yells out to us.

Blackheart approaches Wildpaw and I. "We're leaving! Our tribe can't wait for you. I wanna go home. Oh, and, don't talk to those cats anymore, guys. Escpecially you, Strongkit. Daddy wouldn't like that. Would he, now?" She says, smirking. Wildpaw and I stare at her in confusion.

"I can tell you kits about that later. It's not like Mom was gonna tell you anyway. But for now, let's get a move on," She tells us, and we follow her and the tribe back home.

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I awoke the next morning from a strange dream.

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i hope you guys liked it! thanks for reading!