𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗥𝗜𝗢𝗥𝗦ᶠᵃⁿᶠⁱᶜᵗⁱᵒⁿ 一 𝔅𝔩𝔞𝔷𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔓𝔞𝔰𝔱

❆☾𑁍𓆱ᥴhᥲρtᥱr 𝟶𝟷𓆱𑁍☽❆

Never before had Larkwing seen such a beautiful night sky. The full moon shone particularly large and round high above her tonight. In the Silverpelt, countless stars twinkled like distant, motionless fireflies. A light breeze ruffled her spotted and mottled fur. Joyfully, Larkwing closed her eyes and simply let the moment sink in.

Almost half a moon had passed since she and Amberhaze had been appointed warriors. For the first few days, it had seemed strange for them both to suddenly be treated with much more respect — although it was clear that the other, older cats sometimes still saw them as apprentices who were not to be trusted with anything.

"Larkwing! Seriously, did your ears fall off and to hide it you stole another cat's ears and put them on?"

Slightly startled, Larkwing whirled around. Had I been so lost in thought that I hadn't even noticed someone speaking to me?

"How are you talking to me, Blossompaw?" She gasped with feigned dramatic effect. "Have a little more decency towards a warrior!"

There was a mischievous glint in Blossompaw's green eyes. "I was told by Owlpaw that Nettlepaw told him that all apprentices have to climb on that huge rock at their first Gathering," she rattled off. "And then Owlpaw asked me if I could check if that was true."

Larkwing glanced curiously over Blossompaw's head. Almost as expected, Nettlepaw and Owlpaw were standing under a fern frond, watching them from a distance. "Oh, so you asked on behalf of your littermates," she purred, twitching her whiskers in amusement. "Yes, that's true. But why are you asking me and not Mothspark, for example?"

"He stayed in camp today."

Oh, right. Larkwing nudged Blossompaw with her nose. "You'd better make sure you get to know the other Clans before the Gathering starts."

Eagerly, Blossompaw pranced back and forth. "All right, Larkwing. See you later!" Cheering, she jumped back to Nettlepaw and Owlpaw, who were probably already eagerly awaiting the news from their littermate.

A wave of pride washed over Larkwing. Only a few sunrises ago, the three of them had been made apprentices. Now a whole new phase of their lives is ahead of them, she thought. Hopefully they will learn from this time and grow into good RoseClan cats.

Blossompaw, Nettlepaw and Owlpaw had not been clanborn kits. Six moons ago, on Larkwing's and Amberhaze's very first day as apprentices, they met the three of them, barely half a moon old, along with their parents and sister from a previous litter. Injured and exhausted from a badger fight, they had found refuge and treatment at the RoseClan camp.

Now Larkwing also turned to go. Did Dashpaw and Leafpaw pass their assessments?, she asked herself and decided to keep an eye out for them.

But before she could even get close to MoonClan, she almost collided with Amberhaze. Staggering, Larkwing took a step backwards. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you," she meowed hurriedly.

Amberhaze blinked. "No harm done." Her dark, reddish-golden tabby pelt seemed to shine in the moonlight. "That's something special, don't you think? I mean, this Gathering... And also that we're warriors now. I never thought it would be possible to be at this point one day."

Larkwing flicked her soft black tail in agreement. "I can't believe it either," she admitted. "I haven't even got used to the name yet! Although it's quite alright."

"I feel the same way." Amberhaze snorted in amusement. "Secretly, I still think my name is Amberpaw."

Dismissing her plan to look for Dashpaw and Leafpaw, Larkwing sat down. She would see them again soon enough. Right now, she would much rather talk to Amberhaze.

It seemed that she had forgiven Larkwing at some point, although she hadn't said another word about their short argument. Larkwing was rather glad about it. If there was one thing she didn't need, it would be an enmity with her littermate over some dangerous secret.

Searching for a suitable conversation topic, Larkwing enquired, "You joined the Hunters' Circle, right? What is your impression of them?"

"Well, I'd say it's kind of nice," Amberhaze replied slowly. "But I was shocked, to say the least, when I learnt that I have to take part in hunting patrols twice a day. Twice!" She widened her amber eyes. "I barely have time for anything else now."

"Surely that's only because it's still leaf-bare. When newleaf returns, so will all the prey," Larkwing surmised. "You're a really skilled hunter, though. There's not one cat with a sense of smell as good as yours — or even better."

Hearing Larkwing's compliment, Amberhaze shyly averted her gaze. "I just do what I have to do. What about you? How is your experience with your subrank?"

Only three sunrises after her warrior ceremony, Larkwing decided to take Reddapple's words to heart and decided to become a battle strategist, just like Lakepelt before that. To her surprise, being a part of them now felt almost as if she belonged to a secret alliance. On her second day, Larkwing attended a meeting outside the camp, where they talked about the attack techniques of the Shadowless and the LaurelClan cats and developed ideas on how to counter them.

"It's much more exhausting than I expected," Larkwing finally replied. "It's a lot about developing tactics for possible battles. But somehow it's also fun, because I can use a lot more creativity than in training."

Amberhaze nodded slowly. At that moment, Hailstar's meow sounded over to them.

"The Gathering is starting." Amberhaze shook her pelt briefly, then padded over to the willow.

Larkwing followed her on light paws and settled down somewhere in the middle of the gathered cats. As her gaze wandered to the large tree, she felt worry rise within her. Since LaurelClan was taken over by the Shadowless and Eveningstar died, there were only three leaders left on the branches. Two cats were also missing from the roots; Redleaf from LaurelClan and Leapfoot from SnowClan. Only recently, the latter had disappeared without a trace during an attack by the Shadowless and had not reappeared until now.

It was still a strange, oppressive feeling that only three Clans could gather on Willow Island. Looking over to LaurelClan territory, Larkwing's chest tightened. I wish we would finally do something to banish the Shadowless.

Hailstar padded forwards on his branch. Of the three remaining leaders, he was the oldest, so it was his place to speak first.

However, he didn't even get to say a word. The reeds at the edge of the island trembled suspiciously, then an orange and white tabby cat jumped out.

"Stop for a moment!"

Simultaneously, the cats' eyes turned to the disturber. Furs were ruffled, here and there a disapproving hiss could be heard.

"Get lost," a black SnowClan she-cat growled gruffly. "This is no place for rogues." She jumped to her paws and glanced up at Specklestar expectantly, as if waiting for an order to chase the strange tom away.

He didn't seem to mind one bit that he was unwelcome at this Gathering, though. Without so much as a twitch of his whiskers, he padded forward as if Willow Island belonged to him.

Larkwing stretched her head. He doesn't look like a Shadowless. So what's a rogue doing here? Does he want to join the Clans? But for what reason?

The orange and white tom turned his gaze wordlessly to the willow. He didn't give the impression that he wanted to provide an explanation.

"You'd better go," Palestar warned with narrowed eyes. Her voice sounded deliberate, but her twitching tail showed her displeasure. "We have better things to do than be disturbed by some runaway cats. So see that you get away, even if it means by violence."

Now the tom's fur did bristle. "That's disappointing," he replied cold as an icicle. "I almost feel insulted that you've forgotten me."