By the time the patrol returned to camp, Skypaw was exhausted. He had been walking around all day long. He was ready to fall asleep. Noticing this, Pikestar butted his head against the apprentice gently as he murmured, "Go get something to eat and then get some rest, you earned it. Oh, and Skypaw, welcome to MinnowClan."

"Thank you Pikestar," Skypaw meowed, dipping his head in gratitude. Watching the leader and his two great grandkids walk away first, the young apprentice stretched and yawned. He then trotted over to the middle of the clearing and selected a small fish. At that moment, he heard someone call out, "Skypaw! Over here!" Looking up, Skypaw saw Wetpaw beckoning him over to a blooming lilac bush. Taking his food, the tom went over.

"Welcome to the apprentice den!" Wetpaw purred, puffing his chest out proudly. Flicking his tail, the gray apprentice asked, "How was your patrol?" Setting his fish down, Skypaw answered, "The territory is huge!" Laughing, Wetpaw purred, "I know, right?"

"Can you guys shut up, we're trying to sleep!" a feminine voice hissed from within the den. Skypaw flinched, feeling guilty. Wetpaw merely huffed and whispered, "Perchpaw thinks she's the boss of the apprentice den because she's the oldest and the great grandchild of Pikestar."

"As much as I would like to agree with you dear brother, you know very well that Perchpaw hasn't been the same since Salmonpaw died," Duskpaw mewed as she padded over with her own fish. Sitting down beside the toms, she added, "Plus, I heard Larchpaw had another hard day, so she's probably trying to help her get some sleep."

"Are they sisters? All three of them?" Skypaw asked. Wetpaw and Duskpaw both nodded their heads. It was at this moment that Pantherpaw and two other young cats came over. Cobwebs were plastered over the black tom's left eye. Scoffing angrily, he growled, "Those two need to stop thinking about their dead sister, it does not help the clan when you're too busy mourning the loss of a sibling."

"Yeah, I barely remember mine," the golden tabby tom remarked. The gray and black she cat that was with them meowed, "Oh come on guys, surely you would miss me if I died, right?" Butting his head against hers, Pantherpaw snarled, "Puddlepaw, you're not going to die. You're my sister, I won't let that happen." Stepping forward, the golden tabby chimed in, "Yeah! Me too!"

"Aww, Quickpaw the ever so desperate romantic!" Wetpaw teased, fluttering his eyes. Skypaw and Duskpaw laughed at the gray tom's antics. His face burning red with embarrassment, the golden tabby entered the lilac bush with Puddlepaw on his heels. His claws scraping against the dry earth, Pantherpaw hissed, "Oh, you all think you're so hilarious, don't ya? We'll see who's still laughing after tomorrow's training session."

"Yeah. You got beat by a kittypet today. Maybe tomorrow Mosspelt will show you a thing or two," Wetpaw sneered. Skypaw snorted with laughter. Pantherpaw, however, wasn't amused. Glaring at the white tom with golden patches, the black apprentice muttered, "I'll get you, mark my words." He then crept into the lilac bush with a lash of his tail. Finished eating her fish, Duskpaw murmured, "Come on, we should get some sleep."

"Right," Skypaw agreed. Quickly eating his fish, he followed his newfound friends into the apprentice den. He stopped for a moment in the entrance and looked up at the night sky above with all of its twinkling stars. He was an apprentice of MinnowClan, this was his life now. He couldn't wait to see what tomorrow would bring.