Lionpoppy's growing annoyance was betrayed by the rapid flicks of her tail.

"Where is that apprentice?" She hissed, her ears angled towards the den. "You did wake him up, didn't you?" Her eyes darted to Silverpaw, fire dancing in their amber depths.

"Of course I did," Silverpaw snapped.

"It sure doesn't seem like it," Lionpoppy retorted. "What, are you trying to make me look like a fool? Go on and actually fetch him!"

The silver apprentice scoffed, rage boiling under her skin. "Why don't you get him yourself?"

Lionpoppy's lip drew back, and she took a furious step forward. A flash of fear overtook Silverpaw, and her ears fell back as she recalled Lionpoppy's wicked claws in the darkness of a storm-filled night, silhouetted by a flash of lightning. Struggling to tame her emotions, she bared her teeth, praying to StarClan she looked braver than she felt.

"That's enough, Silverpaw," Honeywhisker butted in, fixing her with a stern glare.

Was that... concern in his eyes?

Certainly not, Silverpaw dismissed. He just doesn't want to deal with my mother.

"Listen to Lionpoppy and fetch Pigeonpaw," he finished.

Silverpaw's eyes flashed between the two warriors, tempted to argue, but at last she relented, heaving to her paws and storming back to the apprentice's den. Before she could enter, however, Pigeonpaw bustled out, his tabby fur ruffled and unkempt as if he'd just woken up from a long night's sleep, contrary to the groomed appearance she'd expected. Silverpaw narrowed her eyes as the young tom gave his paws a brisk, clumsy lick as he bumbled towards her.

"Sorry for taking so long!" He chirped, shaking out his pelt. "Finchpaw woke up and distracted me. She had such a cool dream!" His amber eyes shone.

Lionpoppy snorted, and once the apprentice reached her side, she cuffed him lightly over the ear. "You're an apprentice now, you can't let yourself get distracted like that," she chastised, her voice light with a trickle of amusement.

Pigeonpaw shyly ducked his head. "Yes, Lionpoppy."

Lionpoppy smiled and touched her nose gently to his forehead. "Now that we're all here," her eyes sharpened like thorns as they settled upon Silverpaw, "let's get moving."

Whisking her tail, the pale tabby led the patrol out of camp. Pigeonpaw's amber eyes were round as they entered the forest, the excitement in the jerkiness of his movements akin to a cat being outside camp for the first time, even though it had already been a moon since his apprenticeship began.

Once they reached the crossing stones, he nervously peeked into the dark river. Water frothed and lashed angrily against the banks, and a thin layer had even overtaken the pathway.

"Come on," Lionpoppy meowed.

Frightened, Pigeonpaw crept to her side. "It looks dangerous," he reproached.

"Stay by my side as we cross. You'll be just fine." Lionpoppy's motherly tone twisted like a thorn to Silverpaw's heart, but she gritted her teeth in hopes to ignore it.

Pigeonpaw bobbed his head, and with Lionpoppy's tail draped assertively over his shoulders, they crossed to the other side unscathed.

Pigeonpaw released a cheerful purr. "Thanks!"

Next, it was Silverpaw and Honeywhisker's turn to cross. Bitter water sloshed over Silverpaw's paws as she gripped at the slick stones. Her claws dug in as fiercely as she could, but deep down, she knew a single powerful wind could blow her straight into the churning current. Leaping carefully, she safely breached the other side, her paws sinking into mud.

The patrol continued on immediately. Pigeonpaw fell naturally into step with Silverpaw, while Honeywhisker and Lionpoppy padded ahead, side-by-side as they lapsed into conversation. The rain-thick air was only penetrated by the squelch of pawsteps, not even the scuttle of a mouse detectable over its thrumming.

"Do you know where we're going?"

It took a moment for Silverpaw to realize Pigeonpaw was speaking to her. She cast him a sideways glance. The tom was walking with a bounce to his step, briefly reminding her of an overexcitable squirrel.

"Nobody told you?" She flicked her tail idly.

"No," he responded, just as bright as before.

"We're headed to the ShadowClan border," Silverpaw explained bitterly, leaping gracefully over a short stretch of river.

Pigeonpaw followed closely behind her, scrunching his small body before he sprang. He landed in sopping grass, but his paws found no hold. He yelped, his hind paws scraping against loose gravel as he slithered back towards the furious brook.

Silverpaw lurched forward and sank her teeth into the young tom's scruff. Her heart pelted as the roiling current lapped hungrily at Pigeonpaw's wildly scrabbling paws. Her claws skidded against the earth as she struggled to find leverage. Mustering her strength, she swung her neck, her muscles straining as she pulled him back to solid ground.

Gasping, she released him.

"StarClan!" Pigeonpaw exclaimed, scrambling to his paws. "Th-Thank you." His amber eyes flashed anxiously back to the river. He visibly swallowed.

Silverpaw closed her eyes for a heartbeat. "No problem," she muttered, reopening them. Her eyes trailed along the path Lionpoppy and Honeywhisker had taken, long out of sight. "Let's catch up, they can't be far."

His fear forgotten, Pigeonpaw nodded eagerly, racing after the older apprentice as she trotted along their mentor's scent trails. She wove confidently through the undergrowth, following a slightly beaten path that indicated their mentor's passage.

"How do you know where we're going?" Pigeonpaw piped up as he stepped over a large stone. "Everything smells so... muddled." His nose crinkled.

Silverpaw shrugged mindlessly. "I've been told I'm good at tracking," she replied softly, her thoughts straying to Sorrelmouse. "If you breathe deeply, you can smell where they went, but you also must rely on your other senses. See here," she nosed a fern. A small tuft of golden hair clung to its leaves.

"That's Honeywhisker's fur!"

"Exactly."

Pigeonpaw touched his nose lightly against the hair and gave it a sniff. He pulled back and glanced around. "I don't see any more fur, though, and I still can't smell them past this rain."

Silverpaw purred in amusement, surprising herself with the sound. "Do you see the crushed grass?"

Pigeonpaw wrinkled his nose. "Yeah."

"That's a good indicator that they've passed through here. I don't smell any foxes or badgers, so it has to be one of our Clanmates at the very least." She lowered her nose, gently brushing it against the grass. The scents of Honeywhisker and Lionpoppy greeted her, faint amid the dampness, but present nonetheless. "The closer you are to the ground, the more powerful their trail will be, too."

Pigeonpaw's eyes expanded wider than Silverpaw thought possible, and she was swept with a wave of amusement as the little tom scampered ahead, shoving his nose into the wet dirt. "Their scent is clearer down here!" His muffled voice cried.

Silverpaw's mouth twitched into a smile. "Yes, but that's enough!" She grabbed him by the scruff and hauled his face out of the mud. His pale muzzle was painted brown, and with a startled squeak, he violently shook his head, sending the mud flying.

"StarClan!" Silverpaw yelped, ducking away from the splatter, her smile broadening into a grin. "Don't breathe in the dirt, you fish-brain. If you inhale it, you'll start sneezing like a fox in a fit!"

Pigeonpaw's muzzle scrunched, and he sharply exhaled to clear his nostrils. "Gross."

"Yeah," Silverpaw snorted, flicking his side with her tail. "Now come on, we're losing their scent."

Pigeonpaw nodded eagerly, scampering beside her, his eyes round and more attentive to his surroundings.

As they edged nearer to the ShadowClan border, pines began to loom above them, weaving through RiverClan's bare trees from beyond the new scentline. Their heavy leaves bounced in the rain, lashing out with the wind as if trying to claw at the air. Silverpaw uneasily lowered her head. The trees were so tall, she wondered if they could touch the stars.

Purring eagerly, Pigeonpaw careened into a pile of pine needles. His toes flexed among the orange scraps, prancing in circles around the detritus.

"What are you doing?" Silverpaw exclaimed, bounding forward.

Pigeonpaw tossed a grin over his shoulder. "They're soft!" He purred. "I thought pine needles would be sharp. Why aren't they sharp?"

Silverpaw shook her head in bewilderment. "They're just like leaves, but for the pines. You haven't been to this border yet?"

"No, Lionpoppy said it was too dangerous for me," he expressed with a faint pout.

Silverpaw scoffed, but found herself agreeing with the sentiment. She hadn't been to the ShadowClan border since her mentor's passing, aside from the time she had helped escort Gingerfang. The thought of encountering one of their patrols twisted her mind in disgust. They were truly vile cats. Subconsciously, her eyes strayed to ShadowClan territory, searching for any flicker of fur.

"Come on," she said, shaking out her pelt. "Now's not the time to play around."

"Okay," Pigeonpaw groaned, falling back into pace with the older apprentice.

Instead of training his eyes on the forest, however, his amber gaze burned into Silverpaw's fur, as though he were trying to probe the answers to all of his questions from her head. Self-consciously, she turned away.

The border was freshly marked. Clearly, Honeywhisker and Lionpoppy were continuing the patrol, but how had they not noticed that their apprentices were missing? She frowned, but ignored the thought as their trail strengthened.

"We've nearly caught up," she mewed, glancing over her shoulder. Her ears twitched in surprise, and she froze. "Pigeonpaw?" The little tom wasn't there. "Pigeonpaw, where are you?"

Lashing her tail, Silverpaw raced back in the direction she came from, panic devouring her every movement. Did a ShadowClan patrol capture him? Worse, what if the rogues were there? She nearly felt sick as another thought entered her mind: what if he's dead? Her heart thundered in her ears as she ducked under a bush, peering through the twigs and scraping along to the other side. Still, she couldn't see him.

Rain poured from the sky with the density of a waterfall, rapidly washing the scents away. As she carefully sniffed the ground, she found the barest remnants of his passage, mingled with her own scent. She turned around, following it back until his trail split apart, growing fainter by the second.

She pushed through a wall of bracken, and found herself standing on ShadowClan's scent line. She tested the air once, twice, just to make sure, but by the third attempt she was certain. He'd crossed into the enemy Clan's territory.

Bile threatened to surge up her throat as she stepped over the border, dizzy with disbelief and fear. She parted her mouth to call out to him, but quickly snapped it shut. If another patrol did capture him, I can't let them know I'm here, she told herself.

She pushed deeper into the pines, watching as the naked forest faded into evergreen life.

A faint voice touched the tufts of her ears. "Silverpaw! Silverpaw!"

Silverpaw sped up to a run, dodging around brambles and shrubbery. Finally, through the rain, she spotted the gray tabby wandering through the woods, his ears flat and eyes fearful. "Silverpaw, I'm lost!"

"Pigeonpaw!" Silverpaw shouted. "Over here!"

The little tom whirled around, his expression immediately lifting. He raced over, and the two met in moments. He pressed up against her, trembling in relief. "Oh, thank StarClan," he gasped, "I'm so glad you're here! It's so rainy and confusing, I didn't know where you went or where I was."

Silverpaw lashed her tail and backed away. "We'll talk later. For now, we need to get out of here."

"Can't we rest for a minute?" Pigeonpaw pleaded.

Shaking her head, Silverpaw growled, "No. We're on ShadowClan territory."

Eyes widening, Pigeonpaw snapped his mouth shut and nodded. Together, they sprinted through the territory, Silverpaw's hackles raised the entire time.

When they drew across the border, she sucked in a deep breath of relief. She was still tense, but she led the little tom to a pile of bare underbrush, guiding him beneath the branches where the downpour was less intense. He mewed his thanks and they huddled together. He was trembling, his entire pelt sagged with water.

Once his shaking ebbed, Silverpaw forced him to his paws and the duo continued on the trail. By now, the scents of their mentors had faded, but Silverpaw knew the general direction they were headed in. Frustration itched at her claws, but she kept her temper under check for Pigeonpaw's sake.

After all, the little apprentice was terrified.

Finally, she rediscovered their trail, but the further they padded along, a new smell tinged the air, metallic with the tang of blood shadowed by the musky odor of ShadowClan. Her heart picked up speed, and she drew her tail across Pigeonpaw's path. The tom looked up at her, his eyes wide.

"What's wrong?" He squeaked.

"I smell blood."

Pigeonpaw fluffed out his fur and flexed his claws. "Okay, let's go help!"

"No," Silverpaw hissed, horrified by the suggestion. "I smell ShadowClan, too. You'll help by running back to camp and retrieving backup. You can find your way, can't you?"

His eyes stretched even wider. "I-I can try."

"Good," Silverpaw swallowed her anxiety, which clawed at her throat like desperate rats, and lowered her head to meet his eyes. "Now be quick. Try to retrace our pawsteps, but don't go into the pines. You can remember what I taught you about tracking, yeah?"

Pigeonpaw nodded earnestly, and he backed away a few paces. "Be careful," he mewed, before haring off into the underbrush. The sopping wet grass and needles squelched beneath his thundering pawsteps, and Silverpaw stared after him until the sounds faded into the background assault of rain.

Squeezing her eyes, Silverpaw steeled herself and burst through the trees. Her paws thumped loudly against the puddle-strewn ground, her pace spurred by her fright. The last ShadowClan battle swirled in her mind. What do I do if one of them dies? Her heart ached at the thought. Even after her mother had disowned her, she had to admit that she still cared for her. She was her mother, for StarClan's sake.

She exploded through the foliage, the powerful stench of blood strengthening as she emerged into a clearing where Lionpoppy and Honeywhisker were locked in battle with an enemy patrol. It was a frenzy of four against two, and from what she could tell, one of the enemies was an apprentice. The rest, of course, were warriors.

Lionpoppy's snarl split the air as she faced off against two warriors, a burly black tom with strange white spotting, and a slim silver she-cat. The ShadowClan warriors pressed their flanks together and charged as one, their claws battering at Lionpoppy in perfect synchronization. The pale tabby hissed and backed away, but she couldn't escape the dual assault.

Her body seized with fear, and it took a moment for Silverpaw to reign it in. She charged forward, latching her claws deep into the silver warrior's shoulders, who she recognized to be Bluedawn. Lionpoppy spun on the tom and kept him preoccupied, swiping her claws across his cheek while Silverpaw ripped the ShadowClan she-cat away.

Bluedawn tore herself free from Silverpaw's grip and whirled around to face her, her teeth bared. "It's your fault he's dead!" She spat furiously.

Not giving the apprentice enough time to register her words, she darted forward and snapped her teeth, finding the flesh of Silverpaw's ear. As she pulled away, so did the tip, earning a shriek from Silverpaw. In retaliation, she slashed her claws at Bluedawn's shoulders, shredding bits of fur and flesh. She darted nimbly away with a flurry of blood, and it took the entirety of her willpower to keep her bearing at the sight of the crimson liquid. Her spine arched and she hissed through gritted teeth.

Bluedawn didn't even bat an eye at Silverpaw's threatening display. She leaped at the silver apprentice with a snarl, tackling her to the ground where they rolled around in a writhing mess of teeth and claws. The ShadowClan warrior's claws gripped Silverpaw's sides, tearing painfully into her flanks. Silverpaw's back slammed against the ground—pinned. Sharpening her focus, Silverpaw extended her claws to their fullest and battered at Bluedawn's soft belly fur. Hot, sticky blood soaked her feet and splattered onto her fur. Bluedawn yowled, quickly pulling away from the RiverClan apprentice.

Silverpaw rolled to her paws, her flanks messy and stinging with blood. She kept her tail close to her side, recalling the agony of it being pulled in her last battle. She glanced back at Bluedawn, and realized that the enemy cat was worse for wear. Her stomach oozed a sickening flow of crimson, and she was panting, blue eyes glittering angrily.

"We'll get our payback, just you wait," she growled. She took a hesitant step back, before she spun around and crashed through the forest, fleeing back to her side of the border.

Frozen in shock, Silverpaw stared after her. Did I just... win?

Before she could comprehend her own feat on top of what the enemy warrior had said, a pair of claws cuffed her over the ears. Silverpaw ducked with a yelp, her claws splaying out, only to find herself face-to-face with Lionpoppy's livid amber eyes.

"Where in the name of StarClan were you?" Lionpoppy's lips curled in a snarl, her hot breath washing over Silverpaw's face.

Silverpaw shrank away, her claws slipping back into their sheathes. Her eyes darted around, but the ShadowClan cats were gone. All who remained in the clearing were herself, Lionpoppy, and Honeywhisker. The golden tom was too busy washing his nasty wounds to spare a glance at the she-cats.

Lionpoppy's growl rose. "I asked you a question. Look at me! What did you do to my apprentice? Did you kill him, too?"

Silverpaw blinked up at her in astonishment. "Kill him? Why would I do that?" She demanded.

"A murderer never strikes only once!"

Silverpaw staggered backwards as the crazed she-cat crept closer. "I'm not a murderer! I sent Pigeonpaw back to camp to get help," she stammered, her paws scrabbling against the earth as her mother loomed above her.

Silverpaw flinched. Her back thumped against a tree.

"Look at you," Lionpoppy's voice was dangerously low. "Covered in blood, like the killer you are. Whose blood is this?" She lurched forward. Silverpaw's body jerked as she scooped up one of her paws, pressing the base to forcefully unsheathe them. Silver hairs that were not her own clumped between them, the blood turning pink as it washed away from the rain. "Is this Pigeonpaw's fur? His blood? Where is he?"

"H-he should've arrived at camp by now," Silverpaw cried, snatching her paw away, bristling against the tree. "A patrol should be arriving at any moment!"

"Liar!"

Silverpaw squeezed her eyes shut as Lionpoppy lifted her arm high into the air, claws unsheathed and ready to inflict damage. She screamed at her body to move, to dodge out of the way, but fear turned her to stone.

The underbrush beyond her mother rustled noisily, and Silverpaw's eyes snapped open to see Lionpoppy dropping her claws and backing a few paces away, her eyes narrowed to slits and cast towards the foliage. Silverpaw released the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.

Pigeonpaw exploded into the clearing, his eyes bright and triumphant with a patrol following shortly behind him. Pinestar, Salmonskip, Minnowstripe, and Quietoak. Honeywhisker perked up at the sight.

"I found my way back to camp!" The little gray tom triumphed.

"Pigeonpaw, you're all right!" Lionpoppy purred, immediately showering the apprentice in brisk licks.

"Is everybody okay?" Pinestar demanded. Wishfern emerged from the undergrowth, a bundle of herbs swinging from her jaw.

"A ShadowClan patrol saw us marking the border and decided to attack," Honeywhisker growled.

As Wishfern checked the golden tom's wounds, Pinestar narrowed his eyes. "Without provocation?"

Honeywhisker nodded, wincing as Wishfern prodded a particularly tender spot. Pinestar's jaw shifted slightly. It looked as though he didn't quite believe Honeywhisker's words.

"Are you all right?"

Silverpaw jolted, and looked at Salmonskip, who had come to her side. She quickly smoothed her bristled fur and gave a stiff nod.

"You seem distressed. Was it because of the battle?" The deputy murmured.

Silverpaw shook her head before she could stop herself.

"Then why?"

"I—" Silverpaw's eyes darted to Lionpoppy, then back to Salmonskip, then to her paws. "It's nothing."

Salmonskip followed her gaze to Lionpoppy, a frown drawing across his features.

"So what exactly happened?" Pinestar asked, swishing his tail. "Pigeonpaw claims that you," he fixed Lionpoppy with a glare, "left him and Silverpaw to fend for themselves, while you claim that they ran off on their own." He switched his gaze to Honeywhisker. "Care to explain?"

Honeywhisker drew away from Minnowstripe to regard his leader, his tail flicking nervously back and forth. He swallowed, eyes lowered respectfully. "Pigeonpaw told the truth," he admitted quietly. "Lionpoppy and I failed to keep a proper eye on the apprentices, and they lost track of us in the process. We were then ambushed and nearly lost the battle until Silverpaw arrived and helped fend them off."

"Thank you, Honeywhisker. Once you and Silverpaw have been treated, I expect you to accompany Wishfern back to camp. The rest of you, Pigeonpaw included, will finish the patrol." Pinestar drew his gaze back to Lionpoppy, whose expression fell blank. "You will come with me."

The brown tom lashed his tail and shouldered through the underbrush, back towards the depths of the territory. Reluctantly, Lionpoppy trailed after him, her cold expression now shifted to one of fear.

Wishfern soon came to Silverpaw's aid, inspecting and patching her wounds. When she reached up to her ear, she murmured, "You've permanently lost the tip, but otherwise you should heal unscarred."

"Thank you," Silverpaw breathed.

Wishfern nodded quietly, stepping away. "Let's go."

Silverpaw and Honeywhisker followed silently after the medicine cat. Rain spattered against Silverpaw's fur, chilly, yet comforting. Every step lanced through her injuries, but in spite of the pain, she felt a growing excitement in her chest. She'd actually defeated a ShadowClan warrior!

The closer they grew to camp, the higher her pride soared, until she found herself beaming. For the first time since Owlpaw had died, she didn't feel like a disappointment.

Maybe she really was destined to become a warrior.