The Weight of Living | warrior cats fanfic

𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧 | 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐦

fourteen

before the storm
________________________

"Peonypaw, make sure you're staying close to Catalpapaw in battle. Don't lose sight of each other, and have each other's backs. Sagepaw and Poplarpaw will stick together too."

The sun beat down on the training hollow encircled by shrubs and a few trees on the ZephyrClan plains. All of the apprentices were gathered, along with their mentors, including the three new additions: Sumacpaw, Apricotpaw, and Auburnpaw. Today was their third day being apprentices, and they could barely sit still for Camphorwind to get through the overview for the day.

"What about us, Camphorwind!" Sumacpaw bounced on his toes, the red tabby's eyes glowing with eagerness. Acaciapaw snorted a laugh, and the kit-fluffed tom looked away with embarrassment.

"You three won't be fighting," Camelliaheart meowed and shot a glare to his apprentice. Acaciapaw met his gaze before glancing down at her paws with respect.

"Wait, what about Acaciapaw, Camphorwind? You said Peonypaw and Catalpapaw are partners, and Sagepaw and Poplarpaw are partners!" Apricotpaw squeaked.

Acaciapaw met her estranged father's gaze with a narrowing to her eyes. "There's an odd number of apprentices," Acaciapaw answered the young cream and white she-kit, deciding to take a kinder approach than scoffing at the youngest addition's comments like she had for Sumacpaw. "But don't worry— I won't be on my own."

Acaciapaw's thoughts over the past three days had been preoccupied with her dream of the white StarClan protector. She hadn't seen him in another dream since then, but she had felt his presence. When she really, really concentrated at just the right moment... she could feel him. It made her fur prickle and chill, yet her mind would clear and relax. She couldn't tell exactly where he was, but she could tell he was nearby. One time yesterday during training, though, she felt his worries and anxieties crumple in her stomach and she knew it was from him.

Even now, in the training hollow, she could tell he was around.

"She means Camelliaheart has her back!" Sumacpaw meowed smartly, closing his eyes with pride.

Apricotpaw shook her head. "No, have you got catchweed in your brain? She means she's got the rest of the warriors to watch her back!"

Catalpapaw sighed deeply, looking toward the collection of mentors to rescue him from the conversation. Acaciapaw gave him a light shove playfully.

"We used to be like that," she murmured to him, and her brother rolled his sapphire eyes. A glimmer of humor was held in them.

"'Used to?' You act like that was a lifetime ago— that was us four moons ago. And... you still like to argue with Poplarpaw like that." The gray tabby in question was trying to look stoic and detached. That was his new thing— trying to impress the warriors and look more ready for his warrior title. It made Acaciapaw even more annoyed with him. He's not really like that, he's actually annoying and always picking on me!

"Alright, alright, enough," Camphorwind growled. Poplarpaw shot a glare to Auburnpaw to back up his mentor's command. The two apprentices sat up sharply in line. The other mentors— Peachhop being Catalpapaw's, Bluefall being Peonypaw's, Roseslip being Sagepaw's, Ryefoot being Sumacpaw's, Pochardpound being Auburnpaw's, and Blizzardstream being Apricotpaw's— broke up from where they had been gathered off to the side discussing the plans for training for the day.