"Go ahead, take a bite!" Greypaw urged.

They were sitting in front of the tree stump by the apprentice's den. Sandpaw, Dustpaw, and Ravenpaw were still out with their mentors, so it was quiet.

Firepaw stared at the mouse in front of him. Its tantalizing scent filled his nose, and he closed his eyes for a moment, savoring it.

"What are you waiting for?" Longtail, his mentor, growled.

"Give me a second!" Firepaw snapped, his fur prickling self consciously. He didn't want to admit that he was afraid; what if it wasn't as good as he imagined? Although, if it smelled good it must taste good as well, right? His stomach rumbled loudly and, before he could change his mind, he leaned down and took a small bite.

"Oh, wow," Firepaw mumbled. He swallowed his bite, swiftly grabbing another.

"Hey! Save some for me, greedy-paws," Greypaw exclaimed, reaching over and snagging the mouse with a claw. "I take it you like it?"

Firepaw nodded. "It's amazing!"

Longtail stood up. "Good, then you can go hunt some tomorrow. Be up at dawn for training." With that, he left, walking over to where Darkstripe sat by the warrior's den.

Hunting training tomorrow? Already? The apprentice's paws tingled with excitement. He was already enjoying life as a ThunderClan apprentice. Earlier, after his and his brother's apprentice ceremonies, Mousefur and Longtail had taken them out to tour the territory. Firepaw and Longtail had to wait for Mousefur and Tinypaw to come back from the medicine den, because Tinypaw had gotten a thorn in his paw. Firepaw had been worried that he wouldn't be able to go with them, but Tinypaw assured him that Spottedleaf had made him good as new.

While he was in the medicine den, Longtail had taken Firepaw's collar off. The fresh breeze felt odd against his bare neck, but soon he appreciated the freedom.

ThunderClan territory was big, and it didn't take long for Firepaw to get tired. But he kept going, eager to prove himself. They stayed away from "Tallpines" which Firepaw learned was the forest that him and Tinypaw used to frequent.

Longtail and Mousefur had shown them the RiverClan border, explaining the current war over Sunningrocks. They had crept quietly through the bushes, not wanting to provoke any RiverClan patrols that may have been around.

Next, they briefly visited Fourtrees and the WindClan border. Mousefur told them that WindClan cats were "cowards" and played in rabbit tunnels instead of facing fights head on. They also told them about the Gatherings that occurred every full moon. Firepaw hoped to go to the next one; he'd love a chance to meet the other Clans.

They ended the patrol at the ShadowClan border. A road cut between the territories. The wild cats called it a "thunderpath", which Firepaw supposed was fitting. He had crossed thunderpaths before, but none quite as big as this. Longtail reassured him that he would learn to cross them safely when they went to the Moonstone.

The Moonstone was a place for cats to contact their warrior ancestors, or "StarClan". It was quite an honor to go, and apprentices went only once. Leaders and medicine cats had the privilege to go more frequently.

While Longtail and Firepaw had gone back to camp, Mousefur had insisted on training Tinypaw right away. She claimed that as an adult, he had lots of training to catch up on.

"Hey, Ravenpaw's back!" Greypaw nudged Firepaw, and he looked over to see the small black apprentice trudging towards them. His white-tipped tail dragged on the ground, and his fur was ruffled.

Greypaw gasped as Ravenpaw grew closer. Firepaw's heart sank as he noticed why.

A scratch tore Ravenpaw's ear, and blood had already begun to dry on it. Even though Firepaw had only been an apprentice for a day, Longtail and Mousefur had already emphasized that training was done with sheathed claws. He knew that Ravenpaw had been in the sandy hollow with Dustpaw, Tigerclaw, and Redtail. There was only one way for him to have gotten that scratch.

"What happened?" Firepaw asked as Ravenpaw settled beside Greypaw. The grey apprentice gently began cleaning his ear.

"Tigerclaw encouraged Dustpaw to use his claws," Ravenpaw mumbled, looking down at his paws. "Redtail was pretty angry about it, and he sent me back to camp to go see Spottedleaf."

"Well then why are you here?" Greypaw scolded. "You should let her treat you."

Ravenpaw shook his head. "But I deserve it! I was too slow. I was only lucky that it wasn't Tigerclaw that time."

Greypaw's fur rose in anger. "This is ridiculous! Tigerclaw can't keep getting away with harming you like this. I'm glad Redtail witnessed it, maybe now he'll stop."

Ravenpaw shrugged miserably. "He'll only find better ways to hide it." The black tom stood up, avoiding Greypaw's gaze. "I'm gonna call it a night, see you tomorrow." He hurried into the apprentice's den, ignoring his friend's mew of protest.

Greypaw sighed, and his body seemed to deflate. Gone was the anger, now he just looked sad.

Firepaw laid his tail on Greypaw's shoulder. "If Redtail doesn't do anything, we'll go to Bluestar ourselves," he reassured. He may not know Ravenpaw that well, but he was not one to stand by when there was injustice.

Greypaw nodded, resting his chin on his paws. Firepaw sat beside him, offering silent support as they rested in the fading sunlight.

~~~

The next morning, Tinypaw and Firepaw sat outside the apprentice's den. Sandpaw and Ravenpaw had left with the dawn patrol, and Dustpaw was sleeping in. Firepaw had woken up Greypaw, but he was sure that he had gone back to sleep by now.

The air was chilly, and Firepaw bushed up his fur, letting out a yawn. Tinypaw groomed his fur, making it sleek and shiny.

"So, how was training yesterday?" he asked Tinypaw. He was jealous that his brother had already gotten a head start, although he figured it was only fair. If they had been clanborn, Tinypaw would be a warrior already.

Tinypaw stopped licking his chest fur and looked up, his eyes glowing. "I caught a mouse," he announced proudly.

Firepaw gasped. "Already?"

His brother nodded. "Turns out I'm a natural. My technique isn't perfect, but it wasn't hard to figure out. It's just common sense."

Firepaw's jealousy was replaced by excitement. He was proud to have such a skilled brother. "I bet you could feed the whole Clan single-pawed!"

Tinypaw purred, basking in his praise."Not quite yet, but maybe when I'm a warrior."

"Longtail is teaching me to hunt today," Firepaw meowed. "I'm going to catch two mice, you'll see."

Tinypaw murmured in agreement, standing as Mousefur approached. "Don't come back until you catch three," he teased as he walked away.

Firepaw laughed in response. "I'll come back with four," he shot back.

"Four mice? I'll believe it when I see it."

Firepaw turned to see Longtail, and the silver tom beckoned with his tail as he walked towards the gorse tunnel. Firepaw bounded after him, following him into the forest.

"Remember, you were just a kittypet two days ago. I highly doubt you'll catch even one mouse," he continued.

Firepaw rolled his eyes, but kept quiet. Longtail knew more than he did, so he wasn't going to argue. Secretly, though, he knew his mentor was wrong. He'd prove himself to Longtail. He had almost caught that mouse the other day, and that was without any training.

The forest was chilly, even as the sun rose and they made their way to the sandy hollow.

Longtail settled himself in the center of the clearing and flicked his tail at Firepaw. "Show me your crouch," he ordered.

Feeling suddenly self-conscious, Firepaw crouched. It felt natural and instinctive as he began to pull himself smoothly forward, pretending a mouse was hidden under the leaf a few tail-lengths away.

Longtail hissed, startling the apprentice and breaking his concentration. He stood, looking at his mentor in confusion.

"All kittypet softness! This is the wild, not some patch of soft grass outside a twoleg nest," Longtail spat. "The creatures out here are trying to survive, same as you. They're not going to sit around and wait for you to catch them."

Firepaw flattened his ears, biting back a snarl. The fur on his hackles began to rise. "Then why don't you do what Bluestar chose you to do and teach me! You can't expect me to be perfect immediately!" he hissed. Longtail's unfairness ticked him off, especially because he brought up his heritage.

Longtail blinked, his eyes wide. Clearly he had not expected Firepaw to talk back. The tom sighed. "Fine. Get back into the crouch, I'll show you what you're doing wrong."

Firepaw obeyed, adjusting as Longtail poked and prodded him, giving him tips on how to hold his tail and to wiggle his haunches before leaping.

Soon, Longtail was satisfied as Firepaw stalked across the clearing and landed neatly on a leaf at the far side.

"I suppose that'll do," he grunted.

Although he didn't say it, Firepaw could tell he was impressed with his progress. He tried not to puff out his chest as he walked back towards Longtail. His mentor stood as he approached.

"Let's see if you can catch some real prey with that. Follow me."

The pair walked into the forest, in the direction of the Thunderpath.

"See if you can pick out any prey scents as we walk."

Firepaw nodded, his steps faltering as he focused on sniffing the air. After a few moments, he thought he detected mouse. He looked at Longtail, who gave him an encouraging nod.

"Remember," Longtail whispered, "a mouse will hear you before it smells you. So step carefully and quietly, and keep your tail off the ground."

He mewed in response, turning and listening intently to pinpoint the mouse's location. Soon, he could feel its heartbeat in his ear fur and he looked closely at the undergrowth. A leaf quivered suspiciously, giving away its hiding spot.

Firepaw dropped into a crouch, lifting his tail slightly and being careful not to step on anything as he moved forward. His paws felt deliciously light, his movements smooth, and he suppressed the urge to shiver with excitement.

Once he got close enough, he pounced.

Fur tickled his paw pads and he delivered the killing bite. He turned, trotting back to Longtail proudly with the mouse in his mouth.

"Good job," Longtail praised. "You picked up the technique faster than I expected. Let's head back to camp and you can catch more on the way."

Firepaw followed the warrior. As they walked, the comfortable silence made his mind turn to other matters.

"Longtail?" he began slowly.

"Hm?" the warrior responded, his focus on the forest in front of him.

"You said we keep our claws sheathed during training, right?"

"Yes, why?" He turned to stare at Firepaw, halting.

Firepaw swallowed, wondering if what he was about to say would come crashing down on him. "And mentors have to sheathe their claws as well?"

"Yes. Firepaw, tell me what this is about."

"Well, Ravenpaw told us that Tigerclaw unsheathes his claws, and encourages the other apprentices to as well." Firepaw was very still, preparing for whatever Longtail was going to say. Would he be angry? Would he laugh at him? He almost felt foolish to meddle in these clan affairs when he had only been there for a couple days, but what else was he to do? Stay quiet and let Ravenpaw continue to be abused?

"He's hurt Ravenpaw?" Longtail's voice was low, holding the promise of a threat.

Firepaw nodded, his eyes wide.

Longtail cursed under his breath. "Bluestar will hear about this," he growled.

They traveled back to camp in tense silence. All pride from the day's hunt had

vanished from Firepaw's body, instead he worried about Ravenpaw. He hadn't meant to get Longtail involved, but maybe now things would get better. Somehow, he didn't believe that. He had a very bad feeling about this, and it chilled him to his core.

Oh, StarClan. What have I done?