"Are you sure you're ready?" Wavedance's breath tickled the fur in Ospreykit's ear. "There's no shame in waiting another moon, you know."
Ospreykit blinked in surprise and watched Ripplestar stand at the top of the Daystones. The whole Clan gathered at her call, and the air buzzed with their chattering. Most warriors relaxed on the lowest stones, their pelts shining in the sun, while Eveningshell stood right next to Ripplestar with her head held high.
Only a few sunrises earlier, Poolpaw and Currentpaw earned their apprentice titles—Poolpaw was assigned to Sticklefur, and Current to Runningblaze. Now it was Ospreykit's turn along with their brothers, and they couldn't keep their pelt prickling from excitement. They scanned the crowd of warriors, wondering who their mentors would be, but nobody gave it away.
"I want to become an apprentice with my brothers," Ospreykit mewed decidedly and stepped away from their mother. "Besides, NightClan only causes more and more trouble every day. I have to help the Clan!"
Wavedance didn't say anything when Ospreykit trotted to sit with their brothers. The entire time, they could feel her gaze burning into her pelt. The sensation only stopped when Riverflower emerged from the medicine den and padded over to her.
"You all know why you're gathered here today," Ripplestar announced loudly, her amber gaze drifting over Ospreykit, Splashkit, and Crabkit. "It's time for our remaining kits to receive their apprentice names and start their training. You three kits, are you prepared to start the path of the warrior?"
Ospreykit nodded eagerly and lashed their tail. They could see Crabkit's fur bouncing in their peripheral view; he was likely nodding just as eagerly as they were. Splashkit looked much more serious, but even he gave a swift nod.
"Good." Ripplestar paused and her expression grew warm for a few moments. Her amber eyes shone in the sun before she tilted her head downward. "Eveningshell, you've been ready for an apprentice for several moons now—you've taken everything I've taught you to heart, so you will train Splashpaw until he earns his warrior name. I trust you'll pass down your compassion in your training."
Ripplestar paused and watched as Eveningshell slowly stepped down from the Daystones. She didn't move to greet Splashpaw as an apprentice just yet, but she stood across from him and gave him an assuring nod.
"Daceclaw, like your sister, you've proven yourself ready for an apprentice. Sleekthistle trained you well, and you've proven yourself to be hardworking and strong. I hope you pass these traits down to Crabpaw during his moons of training."
Once again, Ripplestar paused and waited for Daceclaw to rise and stand beside Eveningshell. His gaze swept over the whole litter, pausing on each of them before he held Crabpaw's gaze steadily. Ospreykit took the brief silence to glance at all of the remaining warriors, wondering just who their mentor would be. Surely Ripplestar wouldn't assign them to their own parents, so that left Lilypetal, Darkshadow, Webheart, Mudbreath, and Eelmask.
Ripplestar waited a few more moments—as if she knew how anxious Ospreykit felt—before she spoke again. "Darkshadow, Webheart's training has turned you into one of our best warriors, and you're more than ready for your own apprentice. Your bravery and strength are unparalleled, and because of this I entrust you with Ospreypaw's training."
With Ripplestar's words, Ospreypaw's heart leaped into their throat. I get to be trained by Darkshadow! Their thoughts raced as the black tabby slowly moved to stand with Daceclaw and Eveningshell. Unlike the other two, he simply met Ospreypaw's gaze with his own stony stare. Ripplestar sent the warriors a nod, and they each stepped forward to meet their new apprentices.
Eveningshell and Daceclaw both touched their noses to their apprentices' and whispered words of encouragement. Ospreypaw moved to mimic this with Darkshadow, but he only brushed their forehead with his muzzle.
"You'll have to work hard if you want to become a good warrior," he murmured before regaining space.
His tone, while not exactly condescending, was more matter-of-fact than the other two warriors sounded. Ospreypaw found themself nodding fervently, though they were saddened to realize he wouldn't be as kind as Daceclaw and Eveningshell were with their brothers.
"You can all start training at once, but make sure you steer clear of the NightClan border." Ripplestar slowly stepped down from the Daystones and nodded approvingly at the pairs. "The river is calm today. You can show them how to swim—perhaps near the stepping stones at BlazeClan's border, or further east."
After the leader spoke, a few cats stopped and murmured their congratulations to Ospreypaw and their brothers before going about their duties. Before long, excitement prickled Ospreypaw's pelt again, and they paced impatiently as Eveningshell, Daceclaw, and Darkshadow gathered to address them.
Eveningshell glanced at the other two warriors. "Let's—"
"I'll take Osprey to the far eastern riverbank; the open water there will be good," Darkshadow interrupted Eveningshell as if he hadn't even heard her speak. "Eve, why don't you join us with Splash? Daceclaw can take Crab to the stepping stones with Runningblaze and Current—I know they're still working on Current's swimming."
"That sounds good," Eveningshell agreed with a swift nod and a glance at Daceclaw. "Runningblaze and Currentpaw shouldn't be far. You can catch up with them before the stepping stones if you're fast."
"Of course. Let's see how well you keep up, Crab," Daceclaw challenged the rich brown tabby before setting a fast pace and leading him out of the camp.
Eveningshell and Darkshadow set out of the camp shortly after with Ospreypaw and Splashpaw following closely. Darkshadow tried to urge them along faster, but much to Ospreypaw's dismay, Eveningshell kept stopping the group to point out landmarks. Some of them didn't even look like landmarks to Ospreypaw—a collapsed tree, or a petrified piece of driftwood that hardly stood out against the environment.
By the time they finally reached the east shore, Eveningshell had pointed out several rotten tree trunks, claiming they were good sources of moss. She also pointed out a few popular fishing spots, and even stopped to point in the direction that Jackdaw, the parent of Runningblaze and Darkshadow lived.
"I'll demonstrate the basics," Eveningshell offered almost as soon as they arrived. She quickly waded into the water until she could swim with ease. "You kick your legs to keep yourself afloat, to turn, and to propel yourself forward. Come on into the water, but don't wade too far in yet. Get used to how the water feels—"
Splashpaw jumped out into the water, almost meeting Eveningshell where the sand gave way to open water. Ospreypaw followed their brother slowly, remembering the heron attack as water splashed their muzzle.
"—well, you certainly live up to your name," Eveningshell said with a purr as Splashpaw created another wave of water.
"Of course these kits would be ready for the water," Darkshadow chimed in from the shore. "That accident certainly prepared them for worse."
Ospreypaw shuddered when Darkshadow voiced their own thoughts. "It's not so bad now that I'm bigger," they said and walked slowly through the water. Splashpaw hardly seemed to notice what Darkshadow said as he tested the deeper waters.
"The water was pretty turbulent that day, too," Eveningshell mused. "Normally apprentices don't learn to handle that until they master basic swimming."
"Does that mean we've already mastered the basics, then?" Ospreypaw asked, suddenly feeling emboldened by the warriors' words. They ventured further out, enjoying how the water pushed and pulled around their limbs.
"Careful," Eveningshell called. "Even the calmest waters can quickly turn treacherous."
"No." Darkshadow's stiff voice echoed softly over the water. "It's good to be confident. Osprey, see how far out you can go."
"Darkshadow, this is their first proper outing." Eveningshell's voice was suddenly much firmer, carrying with it an unspoken warning that Darkshadow didn't respond to.
Instead, Ospreypaw's mentor merely gave a thoughtful hum. They heard splashing from the shore and soon realized that Darkshadow waded out to join them. As he approached, they paused and waited for him. It didn't take him long to pass Ospreypaw, and soon he floated in the deeper water like Eveningshell.
"Watch how I paddle my paws at a steady rhythm," he instructed with a glance at the deputy. "Eveningshell said to kick at the water, but didn't quite say how. Try to mimic our movements, and don't be afraid to get into more open water."
By Eveningshell, Splashpaw glanced between the warriors and quickly started copying them. His movements were careful and precise, clearly concentrating on getting it right this time. Ospreypaw hesitated, however, and watched Darkshadow's paws kick at the water.
After a few moments, they jumped out toward him. They quickly started kicking their legs, trying to find the rhythm Darkshadow mentioned. Right, left, right, left. As Ospreypaw focused on their legs, they forgot to keep their head above the water and ended up ducking beneath the surface for a few moments. Immediately, they came back up and sputtered up water.
Before long, Eveningshell swam over and nudged them back toward the sandy shore. They did the same for Splashpaw and then climbed out of the water with Darkshadow close behind her.
"That's enough for now," she said after giving them both an approving nod. "We don't want to scare the fish or muddy the waters if we can help it."
Slowly, Ospreypaw followed them back into the sand and shook the water out of their fur. They glanced between Darkshadow and Eveningshell curiously; they were sad to have to stop swimming so soon, and wondered what they stopped for. Splashpaw sat down without even shaking his fur out, soaking the sand around his body, while the warriors took their time drying their fur out.
They glanced back out at the river, wondering if they'd learn how to fish right away. Ospreypaw had seen some of their warriors fishing before at the Sunstone Pond, and it looked easy enough then, but the river seemed like a bottomless pit compared to that. The sun reflected so sharply off the water's surface that they couldn't help asking themself how the warriors did it.
"You know," Darkshadow said as he finished drying out his fur, "we should teach them some battle moves right away. You never know how soon they'll need that kind of knowledge."
Ospreypaw's heart leaped at the mention of learning how to fight. It was the thing they were most excited to learn—they couldn't wait to fight at Darkshadow's side against their enemies.
"Not on their first day, Dark," Eveningshell said, sounding exasperated. "We already took them farther into the water than I planned. We shouldn't throw them into the thick of their training like that."
"What else could be more important?" Darkshadow queried with one ear half-perked. "You've seen how NightClan has been fighting. They'll be totally unprepared for the next attack."
"Ripplestar doesn't intend on allowing for another battle," Eveningshell said coolly. "Fishing is more important right now. Or we could teach them about the warrior code—that's much more important now that NightClan has made a target out of us."
Darkshadow scoffed and flicked his tail. "The code doesn't matter when they behave like this. Their attacks are unjustified and they've been unnecessarily cruel toward Mudbreath!"
"How could you say that?" Eveningshell snapped. "Of course it matters! If we fight like they have, then we'll be as bad as they are."
"Would you die if it meant following a code our neighbors have forgotten?" Darkshadow asked, taking a cold tone. "We have to defend ourselves—"
"I would die living by our code code and defending our Clan," the deputy cut him off. "That's what we swore to do when we earned our warrior names."
Darkshadow rolled his eyes and turned to look at Ospreypaw and Splashpaw. "Fine, we can teach them about the code. Next time, though, we start with battle training—they need to be ready, or else they'll end up hurt just like Mudbreath."
"Thank you." Eveningshell sighed and waved her tail to beckon the apprentices forward. "You two need to pay close attention. We won't ask you to memorize every rule, but there are some that absolutely cannot be broken no matter what."
Splashpaw nodded as he scooted closer to the warriors. Ospreypaw said nothing and copied their brother reluctantly. Maybe if we pay attention, we'll finish early, they thought. Then Darkshadow will get to show me some battle moves!