Wolfkit's Apprentice Ceremony

Rippedstar made his way to the tallbranch. It was easier to push himself than before. It wasn't hard at all to go through the motions, that much he could manage. Somewhere deep inside the young leader felt bad about the lack of true connection to his clanmates and his kin during this time, but there was no energy to remedy the situation. All of his seemingly tireless drive had worn out. He could manage to do what he needed to do and nothing more. In a way, the black and white tom was a shell of his former self, hallowed out by recent circumstances. However, his expression was hardened and his demeanor gave off nothing less than full control. Likely, the clan saw how much he had changed, though. They knew who he had been and who he had become in the mere matter of days. He only hoped that they saw he was doing all he could for the clan still, just as he always had. That included getting this ceremony done.

"Let all cat old enough to climb a tree join under the tallbranch for a clan meeting!" They probably knew it was another ceremony. Since that day... since the dogs, he had called the clan together very little other than for matters like this. He did not want them to have to feel fear, to think anything was wrong. Other than the loss that loomed over all of them still, there was nothing wrong. Rippedstar tried his hardest to feel that, too. But, there was little time to process things for the tom. He did not want to dwell on his in iniquities. There were things to be done, namely, Wolfkit's ceremony today. He glanced down at the throng of cats slowly appearing before and looked for the kit. Soon, he would begin his training.

Wolfkit heard Rippedstar call out. Wolfkit half ran and half padded over under tallbranch. Wolfkit had found himself a comfortable spot to settle into for this meeting. A little sun and a little shade. The half of his body in the shade seemed to meld with the darkness while he shone easily in the light. Mismatched eyes showing shade or not. An uneven stare rested upon Rippedstar, waiting to hear what this meeting was about.

It took a moment for the clan to gather. His eyes scanned the clearing and eventually locked with those of the kit. He nodded slightly and flicked his tail as he meowed, "We gather today to watch another kit join the apprentices. Wolfkit has reached six moons and is ready to begin his training. Wolfkit, please step forward." Rippedstar repeated the words as he had many times before. This was something he had grown accustomed to even before leadership. As familiar as it was, it still irked him a bit to stand as the official leader. The black and white tom doubted he would even get used to it. As he studied the kit below, he found himself thinking about the fact that this kit would grow knowing him as the leader and barely remembering Crowstar and that he would be the leader the young tom knew. It only worsened the numbness to consider that, so he continued on, "Wolfkit, from this day forward, you will be known as Wolfpaw. Echoflame, you currently do not have an apprentice and will be a mentor to Wolfpaw. I expect you will pass off all of you bravery and strategy to him." With a nod, he let the yowls ring out before disappearing back into his den.

Wolfpaw accepted his apprenticeship with a nod. He looked forward to helping the clan as much as possible. It was about time for him to be carrying his weight. He approached Rippedstar after the ceremony and held his head high "Thank you, for this opportunity. I will do my best."

Wolfpaw noticed that Rippedstar seemed to be carrying a weight around, a burden of some sort. He slightly cocked his head to the side, making his stare more uneven. "Is there anything I can help with right now?"

The leader was prepared to head back to the nest that kept him so comfortably numb to everything happening around him. It was safe there, easy to forget there. He had not abandoned his clan, at least not seemingly so, but had in another way. Rippedstar stood before them and performed the ceremonies because it was what was required of him. In every other way, he had become detached. For a moment, he had forgotten that the words he had just spoken and the name he had changed had actually been a cat. So, it shocked him when Wolfpaw came up to him. What stopped him even sooner were the words out of the young tom's mouth.

Blue eyes glanced down to meet a mismatched gaze. Rippedstar blinked slowly. It did not occur to him that for a moment he may have appeared dumb. However, in the monotonous run-through of the traditional apprentice ceremony, he had not prepared for this. His maw betrayed no emotions and he stared at Wolfpaw almost completely expressionless, if not with a hardened look. That very look practice from long nights spent staring at the den well. Finally, he meowed lowly, "I'm not sure." There seemed to be more to the pressing question than what was on the surface. The fact that this near kit saw something in him pushed through the numbness and the leader added, "Ask me tomorrow. I will think on it. In the meantime, ask your mentor." Rippedstar dipped his head to Wolfpaw before turning to the welcoming darkness of the den. He found himself looking forward to talking to talking to the tom tomorrow. But, for now, he was back into his routine of emptiness.

Wolfpaw could tell that there was something off to begin with, but the response he got further solidified that his concerns were accurate. His mismatched gaze softened as he watched his leader enter his den. He spoke once more hoping his leader could hear him.

"I will be back tomorrow, and I will ask again. I hope to be able to help ease your burden. It looks heavy, but you aren't alone." Wolfpaw left on that note, turning to go to his own den and to contemplate what the change in his status will mean for his future. He knew this meant more responsibility. He could only hope to prove he deserved it.

Echoflame blinked as Wolfpaw didn't even wait to speak to his new mentor. This happened, she supposed. Echoflame returned to the nursery.