Lion's Eye's Apprentice Ceremony

Rippedsky's heart swelled with a brief feeling of excitement. It energized him despite the past moon of exhaustion. Today was the start  of something new. This would be a milestone for bringing the tribe cats and clan cats together. One of the tribe's youngest members would begin their training today, but not as a to-be this time, instead a Skyclan apprentice. His yowl had become exhausted, but this time it rang with a newfound energy, "Let all cats of Skyclan old enough to climb a tree gather beneath the tallbranch for a clan meeting!"

The young tom was, understandably, very nervous as well as a little bit fearful. He had never paid much mind to clan ceremonies and had only ever seen tribe appointments. The unpredictable nature of the event made him rather jumpy, and although Eye of the Prowling Lion had been told that he was going to be trained the SkyClan way, it didn't mean anything to him until Ripped Skies' call sounded throughout the clearing. It was due any day since his sickness had finally been taken care of, and it seemed like that day was today. Jumping ever so slightly in surprise, Lion's Eye made his way closer to the tree the leader used to climb with his tail subconsciously sweeping up dust in his wake. He didn't meet Ripped Skies' eyes, but glanced around in a slight panic in hopes of seeing either Swoop or Stoneteller.

"Lion's Eye, please step forwards." Rippedsky called as soon as the young tribe cat joined the crowd. It was finally time to have him officially join the clan's rank. A soft smile wormed its way onto his maw. Hopefully, this would help to bridge the gap between the two groups. As soon as Lion's Eye padded forwards, the deputy continued, "We gather once more to name another young cat as one of the clan's apprentices. Lion's Eye is old enough to begin training. From this day forwards, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Lionpaw. Tinylegs will be your mentor." The name 'Lionpaw' felt much better on his tongue. He hoped the new apprentice would adjust quickly to the change. Tinylegs would make a good mentor. He had been in Skyclan his whole life and was certainly an experienced warrior.

"I look forwards to watching you train." Rippedsky meowed to Lionpaw as soon as he leaped down from the tallbranch. His eyes shone with encouragement. This was a big step for the tribe-born cat. Rippedsky planned on making sure he helped the new apprentice through his training.

Sitting among the clan and tribe cats with his long, white and grey tail flicking back and forth, Tinylegs watched as another tribe-born cat was given an apprentice name. While of course the strange cats took a bit getting used to, the small white tom didn't really mind their presence as long as they didn't cause trouble for the clan. He may be the clan's smallest warrior, but once they did do something against his frinds and family, they definitely had another thing coming.

Hearing his name called, the senior warrior stood up and made his way to the front of the rather large crowd and stood in front of Lionpaw who was taller than him, just like most of his apprentices. "I can't wait to start training with you," the little tom mewed with a smile. For a moment he almost leaned forward to touch his new apprentice's nose but remembered that they didn't do things the same as the clan did and didn't want to make the younger tom uncomfortable, so he stayed where he was.

The cream tom's ears perked when he heard his name called by the deputy. He stepped forward as commanded, not quite sure how far out of the crowd he was supposed to be, and then stared up at the tree with uncertainty as Ripped Skies began to speak in a well-rehearsed tone. Oh, a clan name. Lionpaw. He mulled over the new name in his mind a few moments before tuning back into his surroundings, catching only the last few words. Something about a mentor. His pelt became uncomfortably hot when he realized that he had missed something important. Lionpaw glanced up at the deputy when he approached, his nervousness showing through his amber eyes.

Lionpaw's attention was suddenly taken by a very odd-looking cat. The length of time that the tom simply stared down at the new cat in total silence was almost offensive, although he meant no insult. He simply had to take it all in. The tribe cat had never seen another cat with so much white, a pelt color that made one prone to eagle attacks if not properly covered. And even more perplexing was that this cat was... well, this strange tom had legs more suitable to a kit. Wasn't this clan the leapers and the jumpers of their forest? Were they not born of the same bloodline? Lionpaw's head tilted slightly to the side as he contemplated the mostly-white tom's words. "You are to teach me, then? Was this intended?" He meowed, wondering for a heartbeat if this was some kind of joke played by the clan cats.

Nodding his head at the apprentice's question, Tinylegs couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle. The younger tom had probably never seen a cat that looked as odd as he did and he couldn't blame him for being a bit unsure of the situation.

"Yes, this was very much intended. I'll be your mentor until you recieve your warrior name and we'll train together until then as well," the small tom mewed cheerfully with a nod, looking up at his new apprentice. "We'll start training tomorrow bright and early."