"Her earliest memory was shivering in a meadow at moon-high, on the coldest day in leaf-bare, with no mother, warmth, or food..."
When a kit stumbles into Thunderclan territory barely old enough to open its eyes, they do as they know they should, an...
Silverpaw told Stormpaw and their new mentors about their punishment and they thought it was fair. They all paused for a moment, looking at one another, wondering what they should do first, when Mousepelt spoke up.
"We might as well get a good start on the day. We can hunt for the elders first, then we can show you where to get moss for all the den nests, and while Snowfoot and I patrol or hunt, you can do the elder's ticks and fleas." Mousepelt suggested.
"Sounds good to me." Snowfoot replied.
That day, Silverpaw and Stormpaw learned what their apprentice duties were. The hunting was fun, but clearing the bedding was a chore, and doing the elder's ticks and fleas was disgusting.
"Ugh, this stuff is nasty!" Stormpaw gagged as he carried his moss of mouse bile towards the elder's den.
"Don't breathe through your mouth." Silverpaw suggested. "Your mouth can smell better than your nose."
If I were a tick, Silverpaw thought, I'd leave pretty quick after getting shoved in this stuff!
For the first quarter moon, Silverpaw and Stormpaw cleaned out bedding, pulled out ticks, and hunted for the elders. It wasn't the happiest of times, but they were still official apprentices, and that made them proud.
Scarkit was pretty sour that he wasn't made apprentice when they were, and whenever Silverpaw passed the nursery, she could see Scarkit glaring at her. He would never talk to Silverpaw or Stormpaw, and if they tried to start a conversation, he would pointedly turn his back and stomp off to the nursery with his scarred little nose in the air.
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Once they were allowed to battle train, Stormpaw and Silverpaw went with their mentors to a small clearing near the Sunstones, not far from camp. It was a sunny day, and Silverpaw's pelt felt hot. It was dry, and she was thirsty before they even arrived.
"We can start with the pounce. It's like pouncing on prey, but trying to land on a cat instead, a bit higher up." Snowfoot said. "Mousepelt and I will demonstrate."
Snowfoot and Mousepelt sat about four tail-lengths apart, and they both crouched to their bellies, then Snowfoot pounced on top of Mousepelt, spinning around in the air to face the same way as her opponent before landing square on her clanmate's shoulders.
"Now you try." Mousepelt instructed.
Stormpaw went first. Silverpaw crouched down, and he pounced on her, turning only half as much as needed.
"Try again." Mousepelt insisted.
This time, Stormpaw spun too much. Then, on his third try, he landed square on Silverpaw's shoulders, and gave a triumphant yowl.
"Silverpaw, your turn now." Snowfoot said.
Silverpaw crouched in the clearing, and Stormpaw did the same. By the twinkle of mischief in Stormpaw's eyes, Silverpaw had the feeling he would try something. She jumped, and landed perfectly on his shoulders, only to be tipped off as Stormpaw attempted to roll over on her.
