Quailkit's Apprentice Ceremony

Nettlefire took her place on the Highrock, green eyes momentarily flicking back and forth across the camp. She called out, her sharp voice ringing over the clearing,  

“Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath Highrock for a clan meeting!”

It is good to be doing another apprentice ceremony, she thought as she waited for her clanmates to begin congregating and for Quailkit to arrive, It feels like I am finally getting back into the old rhythm of things. The normal rhythm.

Quailkit peaked his head out of the nursery. It was time. My apprentice ceramony! I can't wait to be Quailpaw! The dark grey tabby tom ran out of the nursery and skidded to a stop in front of the highrock, sitting down excitedly.

Nettlefire watched Quailkit skid forward to his seat in front of the Highrock, her whiskers twitching in light laughter. She really was fond of conducting apprentice ceremonies, seeing how the kits often carried themselves with unbridled excitement and joy at theirs.

"Quailkit, please take a step forward," she said, "Quailkit, you have reached the age of six moons, and are now ready to become an apprentice. From this day forward, until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Quailpaw. Your mentor will be Cedarheart,"

Cedarheart had sat down, watching the ceremony. She had wanted an apprentice ever since she had become a warrior, and she hoped her presence would influence the decision. It would be so nice to get to train a cat, to help them learn and grow. She watched as Quailkit stepped forward, and soon he was Quailpaw. What she didn’t expect was what came next. She was his mentor? The brown tabby stood up, smiling as she walked toward the small tom. She touched noses with him in the customary fashion. ”I’ll take you out for training at sunrise.” she explained. Lots of the time, the first words uttered after gaining your ‘paw name were, ‘When does training start?’ The warrior hoped to be a good mentor to him, and would try to teach him well.

Quailpaw smiled as he was no longer Quailkit but Quailpaw! Quailpaw ran towards his new mentor and touched noses with her. "Sounds good to me!" Said Quailpaw after Cedarheart said that she would take him to training at sunrise.

Minkstream's ears twitched at the summons, a flicker of nervous excitement thrilling down his spine. The first of their kits to get apprenticed. They've grown so fast. A part of him almost couldn't believe just how fast they went from wriggling, mewling bundles to hyperactive kits running around camp. Well... most of them. His heart squeezed as a lump settled into his throat, and he took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. The others were growing. And soon they'd be out of their paws.

A dark grey form hurtled out of the nursery, and he felt a smile break over his maw in spite of the dark clouds of his thoughts as Daris skidded to a halt in front of the Highrock, and couldn't help remembering wryly his own ceremony and that of his brother. I wasn't smart enough to figure out it was my ceremony. And there had probably been less kits in the RiverClan nursery back then.

He was broken from his thoughts by Nettlefire's words, a smile breaking over his maw as Daris's mentor padded forward to touch noses with him. Cedarheart's a good cat. She'll be a good mentor to him. He called his son's new name with the others as he padded forwards.

"Congratulations!" He purred to both of them, touching his chin to the top of Quailpaw's fuzzy head. "And don't forget to bring a squirrel for your littermates still stuck in the nursery, kit," He added teasingly.

(ooc: I'm sorry I'm late but have a post)