WARRIORS: GOING ROGUE

-Chapter Three-

They walked in a line through the sandy forest that marked their Clan's home. Cloverwing took the lead as tradition stated, with Sunpaw shortly behind her. Deerbelly was behind her with Silverpaw at his tail, and he made Sunpaw a bit nervous. He was walking so close to her that she could feel his breath on the ridge of her tail, and feel his pawsteps vibrate in the soft grains every time he set a pad down. Next was Weaselfrost with Jaypaw behind, and then Miststorm with Ashpaw. Last but not least was Larkpelt with Frogpaw, and ironically both of them were the youngest of the group.

They reached a little ridge mixed with sand and dirt alike, and dotted with big rocks and sharp stones. Cloverwing stopped he group with a flit of her tailtip. They all sat respectfully around her in a cluster as she opened her mouth and began speaking.

"This training session is not physical," Cloverwing said powerfully, "Not at first. We will enter into a clearing and sit at its rim. The places where you may sit are indicated by a line of sticks outlining the sandy perimiter. Please do not put tail, whisker or paw outside of this defined area - even the mentors. I will be in the middle alongside Cindercloud, and Grasspaw will be among you as he must also learn this lesson."

That detail surprised Sunpaw. Even the medicine cat's apprentice would be getting this lesson - almost everything they had learned so far had been the polar opposites. Sunpaw momentarily racked her mind, wondering what sort of lesson could intertwine the two very seperate ranks?

"Come on, then."

Cloverwing lead the charge over the ridge, sliding down its other side and jumping into the middle of the sandy clearing. This was nothing like what Sunpaw was picturing. It was a sandpit alright, perhaps a little pond long-dried. In total it was about six cat-lengths around. Tall rocks surrounded it, though not tall enough to be seen beyond the ridges that held the rocks. There were two entrances: this one, and one directly across from them. Cloverwing ushered her down to where Grasspaw was already settled, ensuring she left no space though she felt she should. That's usually where her mentor sat!

As everyone settled, Cloverwing looked agitated. Cindercloud paced close to her, but did not sit, rather standing tall next to the reclining Clan deputy.

"As Clan apprentices, you have not seen the world yet," Cloverwing began in an announcer's voice. "You have rested in LagoonClan's camp, fed off our fish who swim in our pools, and listened to the stories of our venerable elders whom we respect. You have rested on the hard work of our StarClan ancestors, and well-protected by your Clanmates now. But there is a side to the world that you have not yet seen.

"What you are going to see today may disturb you. Maybe for life." Cloverwing's eyes lowered solemnly and, for a blink-and-you'll-miss-it second, her shoulders sagged as if weighed down. Then she straightened. "It may even scar you. You may feel the need to run away, hide, or attack. I ask that you resist this with all your might. It is the mental strength of the Clans that makes them Clans, as well as the physical."

By the end of the announcement, Sunpaw could smell the anxiety floating around in the air. Her fur stood on end and Grasspaw shuffled closer. An awkward lightning bolt shot through the young molly; she and Grasspaw had never met. Of the -paws, he was the eldest and had left the nursery before her very birth. Now he seeked her for comfort.

"Go get it," Cloverwing instructed the medicine cat, who withdrew through the second opening on the side of the clearing. Cloverwing stood stock still, but Sunpaw could see anxiousness flickering in her amber eyes.

After a few tense heartbeats, Cindercloud returned to the clearing with something strange in her mouth. A vine, Sunpaw deciphered, and it was attached to something. What came out at the other end made her heart jump.