"No, you're doing it all wrong," Sharpclaw insisted with irritation flicking in his eyes.
Stormpaw groaned, "Sorry I wasn't born into a clan who loves the water!"
Sharpclaw challenged, "Are you saying that you don't like RiverClan?"
A lump formed in the apprentice's throat. Even his mentor doesn't trust him! It's been a moon, is his hardest not enough?
He said angrily, "No, I'm saying I'm not used to swimming and fishing! My own mentor doesn't even trust me! Well, I'll show you!"
Sharpclaw opened his mouth to reply, but Stormpaw had dived into the river. A current sent him tumbling under water, but he pedaled his legs. A scaly body slammed into him, and on instinct Stormpaw flailed his paws, claws unsheathed. His claws tore into something, and red pooled in the water around him.
A large fish was hooked on his claws, and his lungs throbbed. Holding the fish against his body, he resurfaced, coughing and sputtering water. He swam to the bank, and hauled his drenched body out of the water. Sharpclaw stared at him, worry in his face vanishing to astonishment.
"How...?" he began, but never finished.
Stormpaw said, puffing out his chest, "I'm going to be the best RiverClan warrior!"
The two cats padded back to camp, Stormpaw happily carrying his catch to the camp. Nova would be so proud of him! Pain filled his heart, but he pushed it away. Knowing his sister, she would've found somewhere safe. Nova was an intelligent cat.
His friend, Seedpaw, a pretty white she cat, bounded over. Her sleek pelt rippled, and she looked at him with bright blue eyes.
"Wow! That's bigger than you," she exclaimed, eyeing the fish hungrily.
He said, "Don't get any big ideas! I want to give it to the elders. I'm sure Rippleclaw and Littlesky will be delighted!"
Seedpaw nodded in amusement, and helped carry the fish over. Sharpclaw shrugged, and padded over to his mate, Brightfern. Their kits were busy playing with a ball of moss, so they had time to talk together for awhile.
Littlesky rasped, "Oh StarClan, that's huge! I don't think we can eat all of it!"
"You'll have to help us," Rippleclaw meowed, prodding the fish with a paw.
Stormpaw said with pride, "I caught it all by myself! Sharpclaw said I didn't like RiverClan..."
Littlesky purred, "Well, I'm sure you proved him wrong! He can't argue with this monster!"
Seedpaw chirped, "Sharpclaw will have to like him at some point!"
Stormpaw muttered, "I don't care if he does or not." Then he added ,"Once I become the best warrior, he'll be jealous and wish he treated me like a true RiverClan apprentice!"
The two young cats left the elders to eat the fresh kill, and found a patch of sunlight to sit in.
Jaypaw joined them, and said, "I overheard cats talking about the fish. Was it really as big as Scarrednose?"
Stormpaw glanced at the large tabby tom, and shook his head quickly.
"Just a bit bigger than me. Scarrednose is a huge cat," he said, flicking his ears.
Scarrednose growled playfully, "Did you just call me fat?"
Stormpaw stammered, "N-no!"
The senior warrior gave him a kind cuff around the ears. Stormpaw grinned, looking up at him. He admired the warrior, and thought of him almost like a father. Scarrednose was always the first to praise him, and stuck up for him when Viperpaw would bully him for being a "kittypet-rogue".
The older warrior said, "Sharpclaw wanted me to fetch you. Him and Redstar want to see you."
Fear fluttered in Stormpaw's belly. Did Sharpclaw say he was doing bad?
"It's a good thing," he said, seeing the worry in Stormpaw's eyes.
Stormpaw nodded, and stood. He waved his tail in a goodbye to Seedpaw and Jaypaw. He headed to where Redstar and Sharpclaw stood, waiting for the newest apprentice to join them.
"Sharpclaw says you've been putting a lot of effort in. He says you did a fish-brained thing and jumped in the river, though," she said briskly.
Stormpaw meowed in embarrassment, "W-well yes... He-"
Sharpclaw silenced him with a glare, and Stormpaw lowered his head.
"But what you did was brave. You went to extremes to prove your loyalty, and was rewarded with prey to satisfy the elders to where they won't finish. That fish did good for your reputation. I just wanted to say you're doing a great job, and to keep up the hard work. Take it down a notch though, cats will think you've grown fond of yourself. Not that what you're doing is bad. I'm just saying you should rest for a bit," she said gently, giving him a kind smile.
Sharpclaw added, "Yes, why don't you rest? Tomorrow, we can work on battle moves."
"Why do you want to train me? You said-"
His mentor slapped his tail over Stormpaw's mouth, once more silencing him. He glared at Sharpclaw angrily. Why wouldn't he let him speak? Redstar looked at Sharpclaw in confusion, but shook her head, and dismissed the two. Stormpaw padded away, grumbling to himself.
What would it take for his mentor to have any faith in him?
