Warrior Cats: The Four Clans

Of course we like Moonstar!  Keep up the good work!!!

Chapter Twelve

Lilypaw's tail lashed eagerly against her white speckled pelt. She was padding quickly beside Badgetail, her temporary mentor, whom she secretly loved. Badgertail's wild eyes gleamed with enthusiasm.
   Soon they arrived at the training hollow. It was a small clearing surrounded by barbs and tangles of sharp roots. There was a shallow cave punched out in a large boulder for rainy days and special training. Badgertail waded through the bramble and reached the middle of the clearing. It wasn't long before Lilypaw caught up.
   "Alright Lilypaw," he began, slightly anxious."Today is your first day of training for fights. The first move I'd like to show you is the back kick." He lowered himself into a gentle crouch. "This is a great move when your opponent is least expecting. What you do is kick with your back legs and send the weight of your body to your front legs. Keep a steady balance. Falling over could result in an exposed belly, and nobody wants the belly rake attack used on them!"
   Lilypaw knew about the belly rake. If your opponent was on top of you, you could slide your unsheathed claws across his belly for instant control in a battle. It hurt terribly, and Lilypaw did not want to be a victim of it.
   "Stand here, Lilypaw." Badgertail told her. Lilypaw cautiously trudged over until she was staring straight into his large, amber pupils. She immediately looked away, blushing. Suddenly, fierce paws collided with her chest, and she was heaved backward. Gasping,, she landed in the grainy soil. Badgertail had a proud smirk on his face.
   "That wasn't fair!" Lilypaw wailed. "I wasn't ready!"
   Badgertail didn't want to speak harshly to the young apprentice, so he gently replied, "A good warrior is always prepared." His apprentice seemed to accept this comment.

***

   It had been a great training day, and Lilypaw and her mentor were trekking back to Sunclan camp. As they emerged from the bramble entrance, they noticed many warriors crowded around the center of the clearing. Lilypaw darted over to investigate. As she thrust herself through the mob, she found herself gazing into four inquisitive eyes. They were both large, two amber, two ice blue. She leapt back in shock. Playfully, a tiny black paw struck Lilypaw's nose.
   Protests erupted from the cluster. "Throw them out of here!" Sparrowclaw bellowed. "Sunclan is not responsible for abandoned kittypets!"
   "Who says? Sunclan needs all the warriors it can find at this point!" Whitebird pointed out.
   Snakestripe snarled. "Yes, strong warriors! Useless kittypets will never do. We'll be a laughing stock!"
   Smokepelt's fur bristled at each insult. "They were in good shape when I found them; I don't see why we need to pass this offer up." Then he added, with effort, "Maybe Starclan sent them to replenish our warrior stock!"
   "Starclan's never been so mouse-brained!" Snakestripe growled. He eyed the two harmless kits. "And they reek of kittypet!"

   "Enough!" Cloudstar bellowed, silencing the clan. She leapt onto the highrock without calling for a clan meeting. 
   "Our clan is dying out. We have only six warriors and four apprentices. We have only two queens to repoduce." She narrowed her eyes. "The kits stay."
   Yowls of protest rippled throughout the clan. 
   "This shows weakness!" Sparrowclaw yelped. "Are we about to shout to every living creature how desperate we are?"
   Cloudstar ignored him. "When they become apprentices, they will be trained to become fine warriors."
   "They'll need a queen to nurse them." Swiftheart reminded her.

Hollyberry padded forward. "Icepool is expecting, so I'll be happy to feed these two lively kits."
   Cloudstar nodded. "Excellent!" she cried. Their names shall be announced tonight." With a slash from her feathery white tail, she hopped off the highrock.
   Lilypaw trekked through the sea of clanmates over to Thrushpaw and Rosepaw. "I wonder what the new kits will be like!" she exclaimed.
   "I hope they like to play!" Thurshpaw crouched and lashed his tail, then tackled his sister to the dirt. Lilypaw squealed and batted at Thrushpaw's ginger-colored ears.
   Rosepaw gazed at the loving looks Hollyberry gave the new kits. "I hope I am lucky enough to have kits someday," she sighed.
   Lilypaw sprang at Thrushpaw again. "I like fighting!" she informed Rosepaw, as if it wasn't obvious.
   "Clearly!" Rosepaw replied as she surveyed the tumbling siblings. Then she bounded away.

***

   "Let all the cats old enough to catch their own prey gather under the highrock for a clan meeting!"
   Groggily, cats emerged from their dens. It was sunset, and every cats' bones were beginning to weaken before moonrise. The two kittypet kits were perched on the highrock next to Cloudstar.
   After all the cats had settled below, Cloudstar began the ceremony.
   "Hollyberry and I have come up with suitable names for these lovely kits." She began with the dark striped tabby kit. "This tabby one, until she earns her apprentice name, will be known as Amberkit." She turned towards the dark jet black one. "And this," she paused, "will be Crabkit." She looked at the clan. "We believe these two are siblings, but nothing is certain. Also, we predicted their age to be about four months, so they will become apprentices awfully soon. Clan dismissed."
   "AMBERKIT! CRABKIT! AMBERKIT! CRABKIT!" The clan's loud chants rang in Lilypaw's ears. She observed Amberkit and Crabkit. They would be apprentices soon; they were big, and seemed strong and fierce. Plus, they had journeyed all the way to the sun-drown place where Smokepelt found them. She knew it wouldn't be long.
   She gazed into Amberkit's fierce amber eyes. Maybe I'd even like to mentor one of them someday, she thought hopefully.

-- Edited by Moonstar at 00:23, 2008-01-04

-- Edited by Moonstar at 00:24, 2008-01-04

-- Edited by Moonstar at 00:31, 2008-01-04

-- Edited by Moonstar at 20:13, 2008-01-04

It's good Moonstar!! Keep up the good work!!

I like it! Good work!