Lilypaw's Warrior Ceremony

Larkshine stared in shock as Nettlepaw and the other apprentices started making a fuss. Her golden eyes showed how sad the conflict made her and she pressed close to Lilypaw. She couldn’t begin to imagine how the calico molly felt. “It’s ok Lilypaw” She softly purred.
She was happy when Leopardstar finally spoke up and even happier still when she announced Lilypaw would still be getting her warrior name. Larkshine kneaded the ground beneath her as her friend agreed to the warrior code for the second time.

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Discord: ChaoticCrow | Timezone: Mountain Daylight Time (MDT) | Code (c) Kieer

"Then it is my honor to name you as a warrior before all of ShadowClan."

Leopardstar considered the cat before her. She had thought for a while, truthfully, about what names would make sense for her; but eventually she had come to a conclusion.

"From this day forward, you shall be known as Lilyvalley. ShadowClan honors your will to change."

She leapt down, touching her nose to the newly-named warrior's shoulder. "Though this does not excuse you from sneaking out of camp," she whispered, low enough that only Lilyvalley could hear her. "I expect apprentices to get up to a certain degree of mischief, certainly, but I also expect them to be clever enough to not get caught."

Her voice was louder as she spoke again. "Your punishment for sneaking out of camp with Cloudpaw is to stand day guard with me as your partner for the next week. I should hope that, along with moving into the warrior's den and sitting vigil beforehand, will allow you and Nettlepaw to avoid one another easily."

Lastly, she fixed her gaze on the remaining apprentices. "Nettlepaw, Batpaw, and Crabpaw. The three of you are on tick duty for the next moon. Batpaw for insulting a Clanmate and disrespecting kits and queens; Nettlepaw for your inability to make amends; and Crabpaw, since you seem to want to do whatever your brother is doing."

the gods can judge me when i'm dead || code (c) kieer

Larkshine walked up to Lilyvalley with a smile “Congratulations on becoming a warrior again! I’ll run out and grab you some soft moss and feathers for your new nest.” She mewed as the flicked her tail across the new warrior’s back. Then she darted away from Jaggedrock faster than a mouse diving into a burrow. It was true she was going to get moss and feathers for her friend’s nest, but she also needed to get away before a chuckle left her lips as Leopardstar disciplined the naughty apprentices.

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Discord: ChaoticCrow | Timezone: Mountain Daylight Time (MDT) | Code (c) Kieer

"If we did what was easy, then there wouldn't be anything to live for."

Lilyvalley let her new name circle around in her head, before a smile crossed her features. Larkshine had pressed herself up against her, before going to gather materials for her nest. It seemed her friend was rather excited about Lilyvalley moving into the warrior's den, and as mundane as her actions were, she couldn't help the slight flutter in her chest. She'd never had a friend in the Clan before, not one she wasn't related to, at least.

Yet here Larkshine was, so determined to be by her side. They barely even knew each other, but there was an easiness to this friendship. It wasn't like what Lilyvalley had known with Nightdancer, who she had felt she could share everything with, and the other would be able to truly understand and know exactly what she felt. But she knew Larkshine was someone she could rely on, someone who would be there for her when times got hard.

And Lilyvalley really liked that thought.

Leopardstar had dished out punishments, and Lilyvalley found that she didn't even mind it. Yeah, maybe being on day watch would have her a little tired, considering ShadowClan's habits, but it didn't feel too bad of a punishment. Not that she was going to say that out loud and give the leader incentive to make it worse.

She also tried so hard to keep a straight face as the apprentices had gotten punished. A significantly worse punishment than she herself had gotten, with a much longer duration. Was it petty to feel some sort of triumph at the outcome? Or maybe it just felt nice to think that, for once, her leader had her back. Leopardstar trusted Lilyvalley in a way Nightstar never did.

No, that wasn't something she needed to be unpacking right now. This was a time for celebration. For once, she didn't need her past to weigh her down.

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discord: karunamaya  | timezone: edt | code (c) kieer | images: 1 2

Pineblossom

Lilypaw’s explanation admittedly did not do much to justify her actions in Pineblossom’s eyes. She admitted to breaking the rules of camp, continuing to antagonize, and simply not being the bigger cat she claimed to act like. Worst of all, rather than promising to improve and make amends with Nettlepaw, she promised to avoid him. Pineblossom could not fault Lilypaw for everything that she did, but this was not the way to rectify her behavior. Lilypaw was nearly as old as Pineblossom was, yet she acted like the apprentice she was named as. It was all rather disappointing and those who spoke up sounded just as disappointed, so Pineblossom held her tongue. She figured she knew how this ceremony was going to inevitably play out anyway.

Yet, Leopardstar surprised her. Pineblossom’s eyes widened as Leopardstar proclaimed that Lilypaw would be given her warrior name anyway. Pineblossom could not fathom why. Nettlepaw’s grievances were petty, certainly, but they showed that Lilypaw was not behaving with the maturity of the warrior she was once named. She compromised by promising to never speak or work with one of her clanmates again. She volunteered to take a kit out of the clan on her own when she had no right to do so! Even if Leopardstar was giving Lilypaw her name now to get her away from Nettlepaw, that would solve no problems; what about when Nettlepaw earned his name? Lilypaw was not a danger to the clan in her eyes, but she was certainly not ready to be a warrior if this was how she was going to handle problems with her clanmates.

Yet…it was too late to say otherwise. Leopardstar continued with the ceremony, ignoring the other speech that Nettlepaw proclaimed. Pineblossom withheld her sigh. She could only hope that Lilypaw—Lilyvalley as she heard Leopardstar say—would grow and adjust better. She also hoped that Nettlepaw and his friends would swallow their own anger and learn to work with her properly. A fractured clan would do nothing if things could not be fixed and mended; hadn’t Leopardstar learned that with Nightstalker?

Pineblossom called out Lilyvalley’s name along with the rest, though she was already rising to her feet, ready for this mess of a ceremony to be finished.

ShadowClan • Tier 5 • She/Her • 70 | 160 • #6699ff

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