Chapter Two
Scarletkit was standing beside her brothers who as well as she couldn't keep in place. Nightblaze and Wolfshadow had a hard time grooming their pelts. The whole clan was gathered around the fir where Copperstar was sitting silently. It only took a slight flick of her tail to get the kits rushing to her. Scarletkit took a few slow steps trying to look like an adult cat, but then broke into a run and almost crashed into her leader. Scarletkit backed away and sat down with her head high, ignoring Copperstar's icy glare. The leader lifted her gaze and adressed the clan. "These four kits have reached the age of six moons." Every cat sat quietly, surprisingly even Foxflames' and Dewdrop's litters. "Frostkit, until you have learned the importances of being a warrior you will be known as Frostpaw." Copperstar's gaze raked the gathered cats. "Lightclaw, you haven't had an apprentice for a long time. Frostpaw has the same disadvantage as you, his legs are long and thin. I believe you are the best mentor for this young apprentice." Frostpaw turned and touched noses with Lightclaw. Smokepaw's mentor was Sparkfur and Jaypaw got Darkstream. Scarletpaw wondered who was going to mentor her. "Scarletkit, until you have learned the importances of being a warrior you will be known as Scarletpaw. Daybreak." Copperstar meowed. Oh no! Not him! Scarletpaw wanted to cry. Daybreak never let's his apprentices do anything fun. "You are a honorable and skilled warrior. I believe you will be able to teach this young apprentice everything you know." Scarletpaw touched noses with her new mentor and sat down near the other apprentices. "Frostpaw, Smokepaw, Scarletpaw, Jaypaw!" The clan shouted into the air. The moment the meeting ended the young apprentices started to jump up and down around their mentors. "Calm down, before you let every clan know that you became an apprentice." Daybreak growled. Scarletpaw stopped and stared guiltly at her paws. "Sorry. What are we doing first?" She meowed, trying to sound serious. Daybreak spun around and stalked to the camp entrance. He looked over his shoulder and meowed. "I'm going to show you around the territory. Maybe we'll join with the dawn patrol, since it's going out late." Scarletpaw trotted after her mentor, with her excitment rising. Her first day as an apprentice and her first patrol. Daybreak disappeared into the juniper bush closely followed by Scarletpaw. Just outside the tunnel, she tripped over a broken holly branch. Glancing behind her, she realized the camp entrance was hidden under a large holly. "Are you coming or not?" Daybreak's annoyed growl reminded Scarletpaw where she was. She turned around and pelted after the warrior through the forest. The young thin trees around them gave way to large old ones. Suddenly Daybreak halted in front of a giant oak. Around them where many large trees, like willow, birch, beech and others. "Wow" Scarletpaw gasped. "The forest is so big!" She whispered, feeling really tiny. "This is the Cloud Forest." Daybreak meowed. "Here you can collect moss from the roots and find most types of prey. And it's quite close to the camp too. When you're older, you will learn to climbing trees here." The tree trunks were covered in thick moss and among the roots Scarletpaw could hear tiny creatures racing around.
Daybreak lifted his head, ears twiching and meowed: "Border pateol's coming." Scarletpaw was surprised as she couldn't hear anything but the regular forest sounds. Daybreak seemed to notice her surprise. "Once you get used to moving through the forest, you will be able to detect a cat from far away." They stood there for a few moments, waiting for three cats to catch up. Grayecho was in the lead, closely followed by Lightclaw and Thrushpaw. Scarletpaw looked behind them, expecting to see Frostpaw trailing behind. But there was no sign of Lightclaw's apprentice. "Where's Frostpaw?" Scarletpaw asked, earning an icy look from Daybreak. "This is none of your busness." Daybreak hissed. "But-" Scarletpaw protested, but stopped herself when she met Daybreak's eyes and stared sadly at her paws. "Sorry." She apologized to the older warriors. "It's okay. You're worried about your brother, aren't you?" Lightclaw meowed sympatheticaly. Scarletpaw nodded slightly. Lightclaw smiled and flicked her ear with his tail-tip. "I left him with Sparkfur and Darkstream to show him the tarritory because I had to join the patrol." "Are you two done? The border won't mark itself." Daybreak growled and the five cats raced further into the Cloud Forest. Sooner the trees thined out a bit and were younger and had smaller trunks. Scarletpaw pricked her ears at a strange, loud sound. It sounded like the stream that cut into the camp, but a lot louder. Before she could ask, they skidded to a halt in front of a river. Scarletpaw stared in amazment at the fast-flowing water surface. "Is this the border?" She asked in a tiny voice. "No, of course not." Thrushpaw meowed. "Our territory is much bigger than that." "Really?" Scarletpaw couldn't believe their territory was so big. And I thought the camp was a big place... she remembered when for the first time, she went out of the nursery. "But how are we going to get across it?" Scarletpaw hated getting her paws wet, ecen more swimming. She looked from one side to the other and noticed a few stones just barely above the water surface. Stepping-stones! she thought. The other apprentices mentioned them a few times. Without a word ,the older cats trotted over to them, leaving Scarletpaw to follow behind. One by one the warriors jumped over the stones and landed on the other shore. When it was Scarletpaw's turn, she hesitated for a few moments, but then leapt onto the first stone. It was quite small so she didn't waste any time and jumped onto the next one and than the next and another. Once on the last jump, her hind legs slipped on the wet rock and Scarletpaw went flying onto the shore. With a thud, she land on her side. Shaking her head, she stood up and shook out her pelt, embarassed. Daybreak let out an annoyed hiss, but didn't say anything. The patrol followed an invisible path through the thick undergrowth. As they neared the border, Grayecho meowed silently: "There's a LightningClan patrol waiting." Scarletpaw pricked her ears but couldn't detect anything. Just past some more ferns there was another river, this time smaller. At the other shore sat four unknown cats. A brown tabby tom with amber eyes and a white she-cat with green eyes and red stripes looked like they didn't want to meet the ShadeClan patrol. A white she-cat with black stripes and one blue and one green eye was apparently in charge. Scarletpaw was surprised to find another cat with two different colored eyes. Her parents said it was quite unusual. Next to her was a small brown-and-white she-cat with black paws, tail-tip and one ear and sky-blue eyes. No older than Scarletpaw. "Hello Oceanwind, Snowfire, Oaksand." Meowed Grayecho, dipping his head slightly to each one of them. "Daybreak, Grayecho, Lightclaw, Thrushpaw. And who is this?" Greeted them the black-and-white striped she-cat called Oceanwind. "My name is Scarletpaw." Meowed the young apprentice and fluffed out her chest fur. Grayecho's eyes landed on the young LightningClan apprentice. "And who are you?" He asked her. "Skyaw. Oceanwind's apprentice." She meowed in response. "So, how's prey running?" Snowfire asked. Scarletpaw stared at the red striped she-cat. She thinks she can just ask as that and expect an honest answer? Scarletpaw wondered. To her surprise the warriors fell into deep conversation in a few heartbeats. Scarletpaw gazed at the LightningClan apprentice and their eyes locked togather. Scarletpaw smiled and ignored Thrushpaw's stupid comments and warnings. Then Skypaw smiled too. Scarletpaw flicked her ear to clear Thrushpaw's voice out of her head and Skypaw flicked her other ear. Than Skypaw lifted her front leg and Scarletpaw copied her. They played their little game for a while until Skypaw's mentor meowed: "We have to get going. Have a nice day." She dipped her head politely to the ShadeClan patrol. Other cats—including the youngest apprentices—did the same. Grayecho trotted further along the river shore and the patrol followed. Scarletpaw looked over her shoulder at Skypaw and stuck her tounge out at her. Her brothers used it as a sign that meant they're friends no matter what. If the other cat stuck their tounge out too, it meant she was agreeing, but this was used only by her brothers and other ShadeClan kits. To her surprise, Skypaw stuck her tounge out too and vanished into the forest. The patrol stopped for a few times to mark the border and then to a stream they cleared easily with giant leaps. Scarletpaw landed with her hind paws in the water, splashing almost every cat with water. "Sorry." She apologized. Further downstream, they stopped by a place where the river they got over before, was joining with the bigger river that made the border. In the middle of the smaller river was a large boulder. Without any warning, the patrol jumped one by one onto the boulder and landed smoothly on the other bank. This time Scarletpaw cleared it easily. "We'll head to the Gathering Island and then to the StormClan border." Daybreak meowed to his apprentice and pelted of. Scarletpaw raced as hard as she could to catch up. They headed downstream till the river split into two, forming a island with some trees and bushes here and there. Scartletpaw crouched down, panting. "There's the Gathering Island." Daybreak meowed. "See that fallen tree over there? That's the only way onto the island from our bank." He pionted to a large fallen pine covered in moss.
Daybreak lifted his head, ears twiching and meowed: "Border pateol's coming." Scarletpaw was surprised as she couldn't hear anything but the regular forest sounds. Daybreak seemed to notice her surprise. "Once you get used to moving through the forest, you will be able to detect a cat from far away." They stood there for a few moments, waiting for three cats to catch up. Grayecho was in the lead, closely followed by Lightclaw and Thrushpaw. Scarletpaw looked behind them, expecting to see Frostpaw trailing behind. But there was no sign of Lightclaw's apprentice. "Where's Frostpaw?" Scarletpaw asked, earning an icy look from Daybreak. "This is none of your busness." Daybreak hissed. "But-" Scarletpaw protested, but stopped herself when she met Daybreak's eyes and stared sadly at her paws. "Sorry." She apologized to the older warriors. "It's okay. You're worried about your brother, aren't you?" Lightclaw meowed sympatheticaly. Scarletpaw nodded slightly. Lightclaw smiled and flicked her ear with his tail-tip. "I left him with Sparkfur and Darkstream to show him the tarritory because I had to join the patrol." "Are you two done? The border won't mark itself." Daybreak growled and the five cats raced further into the Cloud Forest. Sooner the trees thined out a bit and were younger and had smaller trunks. Scarletpaw pricked her ears at a strange, loud sound. It sounded like the stream that cut into the camp, but a lot louder. Before she could ask, they skidded to a halt in front of a river. Scarletpaw stared in amazment at the fast-flowing water surface. "Is this the border?" She asked in a tiny voice. "No, of course not." Thrushpaw meowed. "Our territory is much bigger than that." "Really?" Scarletpaw couldn't believe their territory was so big. And I thought the camp was a big place... she remembered when for the first time, she went out of the nursery. "But how are we going to get across it?" Scarletpaw hated getting her paws wet, ecen more swimming. She looked from one side to the other and noticed a few stones just barely above the water surface. Stepping-stones! she thought. The other apprentices mentioned them a few times. Without a word ,the older cats trotted over to them, leaving Scarletpaw to follow behind. One by one the warriors jumped over the stones and landed on the other shore. When it was Scarletpaw's turn, she hesitated for a few moments, but then leapt onto the first stone. It was quite small so she didn't waste any time and jumped onto the next one and than the next and another. Once on the last jump, her hind legs slipped on the wet rock and Scarletpaw went flying onto the shore. With a thud, she land on her side. Shaking her head, she stood up and shook out her pelt, embarassed. Daybreak let out an annoyed hiss, but didn't say anything. The patrol followed an invisible path through the thick undergrowth. As they neared the border, Grayecho meowed silently: "There's a LightningClan patrol waiting." Scarletpaw pricked her ears but couldn't detect anything. Just past some more ferns there was another river, this time smaller. At the other shore sat four unknown cats. A brown tabby tom with amber eyes and a white she-cat with green eyes and red stripes looked like they didn't want to meet the ShadeClan patrol. A white she-cat with black stripes and one blue and one green eye was apparently in charge. Scarletpaw was surprised to find another cat with two different colored eyes. Her parents said it was quite unusual. Next to her was a small brown-and-white she-cat with black paws, tail-tip and one ear and sky-blue eyes. No older than Scarletpaw. "Hello Oceanwind, Snowfire, Oaksand." Meowed Grayecho, dipping his head slightly to each one of them. "Daybreak, Grayecho, Lightclaw, Thrushpaw. And who is this?" Greeted them the black-and-white striped she-cat called Oceanwind. "My name is Scarletpaw." Meowed the young apprentice and fluffed out her chest fur. Grayecho's eyes landed on the young LightningClan apprentice. "And who are you?" He asked her. "Skyaw. Oceanwind's apprentice." She meowed in response. "So, how's prey running?" Snowfire asked. Scarletpaw stared at the red striped she-cat. She thinks she can just ask as that and expect an honest answer? Scarletpaw wondered. To her surprise the warriors fell into deep conversation in a few heartbeats. Scarletpaw gazed at the LightningClan apprentice and their eyes locked togather. Scarletpaw smiled and ignored Thrushpaw's stupid comments and warnings. Then Skypaw smiled too. Scarletpaw flicked her ear to clear Thrushpaw's voice out of her head and Skypaw flicked her other ear. Than Skypaw lifted her front leg and Scarletpaw copied her. They played their little game for a while until Skypaw's mentor meowed: "We have to get going. Have a nice day." She dipped her head politely to the ShadeClan patrol. Other cats—including the youngest apprentices—did the same. Grayecho trotted further along the river shore and the patrol followed. Scarletpaw looked over her shoulder at Skypaw and stuck her tounge out at her. Her brothers used it as a sign that meant they're friends no matter what. If the other cat stuck their tounge out too, it meant she was agreeing, but this was used only by her brothers and other ShadeClan kits. To her surprise, Skypaw stuck her tounge out too and vanished into the forest. The patrol stopped for a few times to mark the border and then to a stream they cleared easily with giant leaps. Scarletpaw landed with her hind paws in the water, splashing almost every cat with water. "Sorry." She apologized. Further downstream, they stopped by a place where the river they got over before, was joining with the bigger river that made the border. In the middle of the smaller river was a large boulder. Without any warning, the patrol jumped one by one onto the boulder and landed smoothly on the other bank. This time Scarletpaw cleared it easily. "We'll head to the Gathering Island and then to the StormClan border." Daybreak meowed to his apprentice and pelted of. Scarletpaw raced as hard as she could to catch up. They headed downstream till the river split into two, forming a island with some trees and bushes here and there. Scartletpaw crouched down, panting. "There's the Gathering Island." Daybreak meowed. "See that fallen tree over there? That's the only way onto the island from our bank." He pionted to a large fallen pine covered in moss.