Warrior Cats Fanfiction: Whispers of the Shadows Book 1 Rivers Descending

Chapter One

   Silverkit barreled head over tails into the muddy clearing. Her silver fur was soon spiky with drying dirt and water. It would still be a few moons until her long fur, like all of the other RiverClan cats, was able to repel water. She searched the clearing, looking for a large kitten, who was probably tripping over her paws. Then she saw Dawnkit, collapsed underneath the warriors' den.

    "Dawnkit!" Silverkit gasped, dashing to her sister. Dawnkit blearily shook her head and stood unsteadily. Even though they were from the same litter, Silverkit's sister still stood a half mouse-length taller.

    "What? What's happening?" Dawnkit said, looking around the camp. "Is it ShadowClan? ThunderClan? WindClan? Because if they are in camp, I'll shred them!" Dawnkit reared back on her hind paws and promptly fell back into the mud, so her usual orange and black fur was an icky brown.

    "No, you fish-brain!" said Silverkit," If they were attacking, we would be in the nursery and the warriors would be running around like their fur was on fire." Silverkit shook her fur and bounced up and down on her toes. "But Dawnkit, guess what? Guess what?"

    "What?" mewed Dawnkit, tackling Silverkit.

    With one powerful push of her hind legs, Silverkit shoved Dawnkit into the mud. "We're becoming apprentices today!"

    "Really?" Dawnkit gasped, play-fighting forgotten. "Are you sure? Did Softwing tell you?"

    A disapproving meow came from behind the two sisters. "Silverkit! Dawnkit! I told you to stay inside the nursery today! What will the clan think of you?"

    "Did you hear, Softwing?" Dawnkit said, batting her mother's brown and orange tail. "We're going to be apprentices!"

    Softwing sighed. "Well, the clan may not believe it with all of the mud. Honestly, both of you act like you're two moons old!"

    Silverkit stood straight and rigid. "I'm a very well-behaved kit, Softwing!"

    Softwing sniffed and picked Dawnkit up by her scruff. "Back in the nursery, Silverkit. Your apprentice ceremony starts when the dawn patrol gets back. And we need to clean off all of the mud."

    "But the dawn patrol is already back!" said Silverkit, pointing her nose to the patrol gathered in the clearing. Emberstar, the reddish brown tom that led the clan stepped into the clearing.

    "All cats old enough to swim in the river rapids gather in the clearing," he yowled. Softwing dropped Dawnkit in the mud again and started licking her roughly. Dawnkit pressed herself to the ground, making squeals and squeaks.

    "Ha!" Silverkit said, enjoying her sister's discomfort.

    "Silverkit," said her mother," Go to your father. He'll tell you what to do!"

    Silverkit skipped on the muddy ground to her father, Ferntail. He looked at his kit with pride shining in his green eyes. Silverkit dashed up to him and nuzzled his cheek. Ferntail let out a purr.

    "Ready?" he asked.

    "I'm ready!" Silverkit said, and then looked over at Dawnkit, whose pelt was still muddy. I'm not sure if Dawnkit is ready, she thought.

    Ferntail looked over to where Dawnkit was. "What's wrong with your sister? he asked.

    "Too much mud on her pelt," purred Silverkit, then looked up in surprise as Emberstar cleared his throat.

"Cats of RiverClan, he said. "Today we gather to celebrate the making of new apprentices. Silverkit, Dawnkit, would you please gather in front of me." Emberstar waved his tail to indicate the spot.

Nervously, Silverkit stepped in front of Emberstar. Dawnkit was still not there, and being in front of the entire clan without her sister made Silverkit want to turn on her tail and run back into the nursery. You're a warrior, Silverkit, she told herself, you can get through this. Emberstar looked confused.

"Dawnkit?" he asked, and looked over his clan's heads. "Softwing, it doesn't matter what her pelt looks like. It's her spirit that's becoming part of RiverClan, not her fur."

There were amused chuckles as Dawnkit dashed through the crowd. Silverkit twitched her whiskers and tried not to laugh as she stared at her sister's pelt. Now spiky with both water and drying mud, Dawnkit looked like a thistle or a pinecone. Still, the oversized kit looked squarely at Emberstar, not looking like the clumsy kit anymore, but a warrior apprentice.

I hope I look that ready, thought Silverkit, then looked back at Emberstar. He had already started the ceremony, and was looking up at the sky, where the Silverpelt had disappeared and the sun was slowly rising, approaching sun-high.

"Silverkit, from this moment on, you will be known as Silverpaw." Silverpaw shivered as she heard her new name. I'm a warrior apprentice! she thought, and tried not to jump into the air. Then she remembered the next part of the ceremony. Whose is my mentor? she wondered. I hope it's not Tanglebrook. He's a grump.

Emberstar continued speaking, and now beckoned the crowd of warriors. "Iceleap, you are ready to take on your first apprentice. You will be the mentor to Silverpaw. Iceleap! Silverpaw thought, and stepped forward eagerly. She had watched the she-cat's warrior ceremony only three moons ago, so she knew that the young warrior remembered what it was like to be an apprentice. The white she-cat was purring softly.

 "Iceleap," continued Emberstar, " you are brave and patient. I will trust you to pass these virtues onto Silverpaw and make her a warrior that RiverClan is proud of." Silverpaw felt a thrum of energy as Iceleap touched her head with her muzzle. It was almost as if the warriors of StarClan were all rushing inside her, lending her their skills.

"What are we going to learn?" asked Silverpaw. Iceleap's eyes widened in surprise and she placed her tail across Silverpaw's mouth.

"Shh," she said, and Silverpaw remembered how her sister had to still become an apprentice. Emberstar turned to Dawnkit, who stood there, looking small among the warriors that gathered around her.

"Dawnkit," he said," from this moment on you will be known as Dawnpaw. Your mentor will be Tanglebrook." Tanglebrook? thought Silverpaw. Poor Dawnpaw! And although her sister's face did not show anything, Silverpaw knew that she was unhappy.

"Tanglebrook," said Emberstar," you are a fantastic hunter. Please do your best to pass those skills to Dawnpaw, and make her a warrior who we can be proud of." Dawnpaw stepped uncertainly towards Tanglebrook, and as he stiffly touched his muzzle to her head, Silverpaw saw Dawnpaw's blue eyes. As the mentor and apprentice stepped backwards, the clan chanted," Silverpaw, Dawnpaw! Silverpaw, Dawnpaw!"

Dawnpaw stepped over to her sister and mewed into her ear, "Lucky! You got Iceleap while I'm stuck with grouchy Tanglebrook!" Tanglebrook and Iceleap appeared in front of the sisters.

"Come on, apprentices," Tanglebrook said, his black and white fur gleaming in the sunlight. "We're going fishing." The black and white tom turned around and headed to the entrance, leaving the two apprentices scrambling behind him.

"Here's your chance," Silverpaw hissed to Dawnpaw, as they ran after the mentors.

"Chance for what?" Dawnpaw asked, her big paws splattering mud all over her fur.     

"To drown your mentor!"