Adderpaw's Warrior Ceremony

The tom could still recall that day in the river. The big Thunderclan warrior above her... the small apprentice with her face covered in blood and left in the shore, about to die because of the blood loss. He remembered the moment he finally approached her after Reedheart's death and seeing with horror what he had done to her. But despite all that... Adderpaw didn't give up. Her training was delayed but now she had proven that she could be a warrior even if she had lost an eye. Jaystar was proud to announce her ascension to warriorhood.

He puffed up his fluffy chest and let out a loud yowl. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey, gather beneath the willow branch for a clan meeting!" His green gazed at the coming crowd, searching for the grey, messy hair of the apprentice he saved that day.

Adderpaw felt thoroughly dazed.

After a plethora of sleepless nights spent agonizing over the reality of Warriorhood, it felt... strange to think that her long awaited ceremony was already underway. It felt as though it was a dream- one that might burn away from the clutches of reality if she blinked for too long. Could it really be happening? The intrusive apprehension tightened her chest as her paws slowed, her mind alight with too many incoherent thoughts for her to properly shed light upon. After all this time? As the young molly drifted towards the center of the loosely scattered circle, she didn't even pay any notice to the usual urge to shy away from those who looked a bit too closely at the still ugly scars. Trying in vain to swallow down the rapid throbbing within her chest, the grey-furred molly set her line of sight upon Jaystar.

Jaystar smiled gently when the she-cat joined the meeting. With a purr, the leader announced the start of the small gathering with a quick movement of his tail. ”Cats of Riverclan. I have good news to share. Today, another of our apprentice has proven to be capable of endure the though training of a warrior and now I have decided that she’s ready to be part of the warrior’s den. Adderpaw, please step forward.” After saying that, he fixed his eyes on the scarred she-cat. He knew that his deputy had a close relationship to her and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he was the most excited one for her promotion. After all, they would finally share the same den and privileges.

Trying to soothe the rambunctious flutter of Adderpaw's overeager heart proved to be a miserable failure on her part, as it only kicked up into a further frenzy at Jaystar's next words. Up until this point in time, it had been quite difficult to simply sit still- it felt as though an entire colony of fire ants had been unleashed upon her poor flesh, stinging her relentlessly every time she even thought about holding still for more than a few moments or so. Toes wriggling apprehensively as she took a step forward, the young scarred molly's whiskers instinctively trembled out of a fierce sense of joy. The fiery sense of long awaited excitement was nearly strong enough to sweep away all of the unpleasantness she had come to know so well- all of the pain, fear, and doubt seemed to melt away as the many struggles she had faced were finally validated in the way she so desperately craved.

Although, deep within her mind, a memory left to collect dust within a part of her that she no longer visited seemed to stir to life, kicking a sorrowful promise back into the fully conscious part of Adderpaw's mind.

The leader looked at the she-cat seriously, almost as an equal. If she was ready to be a warrior, the only thing stopping her was the promise that all warriors had to do before their ceremony. Her answer would define if she stays as an apprentice or decide that she wants to be a warrior. But... he didn’t doubted Adderpaw’s wishes. After all this time, she must be longing to be part of the warrior’s den. "I, Jaystar, leader of Riverclan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend her to you as a warrior in her turn. Adderpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

The unexpected ghost of a memory still refused to leave Adderpaw's mind, no matter how hard she tried to focus upon Jaystar's words. Although her fierce sense of elatedness still burned as brightly as ever, there was now a sharp sense of inexorable guilt residing alongside the scalding kindling of her storming emotions. She hadn't craved the presence of her brother in quite some time, now finding herself to be quite adapted to life without him, but it felt.. wrong to be going through with her ceremony without him here alongside her. Very faintly, practically imperceptible amongst the roaring of the blood within her ears and the soothing drum of Jaystar's voice, the words she still recalled so often seemed to drift by- almost as though carried by a breeze. "I do..." Adderpaw began, struggling to resist the urge to balk at breaking away from the ancient summons every cat knew so well, "But I have a special request."

The ears of the leader perked by the strange event. Apprentices usually just followed the protocol because they wanted their ceremony as fast as possible to celebrate. It seemed that Adderpaw desired something different. The leader gave a short nod. "Go ahead." He mewed as he drew a smile on his face, trying to calm the nervous she-cat. There would be no harm on listening to her. After all, she just swore her loyalty to Riverclan and Code. Adderpaw was practically a warrior but without the name. Now, she had every right to speak her mind.

"Tigerpaw died the night of my Moonstone journey," Adderpaw quietly began, an icy trickle of tension creeping down her veins with unyielding determination, "And he was also the StarClan cat who visited my dreams." A reedy sigh was exhaled in time with the pained admittance, the young molly's heavily scarred features downcast as the painful remembrance greatly overshadowed the significance of her ceremony. Remaining eye drifting shut as the long gone conversation buzzed about angrily within her mind, desperately clamoring about the importance of the final moments she had spent with Tigerpaw. Those moments, often both her greatest source of comfort and torment, never seemed to leave her for longer than a few heartbeats. "Among the many things we discussed, he told me that he had always wanted to be named Tigerfeather. It's been nearly a full season already since he died, but there hasn't been a single day in which I haven't thought of him." Casting her gaze upwards towards Jaystar once more, Adderpaw's remaining eye was dimmed with the stark, colorless note of undeniable grief. "I'd like to name myself Adderfeather, after him. We won't see one another in this lifetime, but I want the comforting of knowing that a part of him, no matter how small, still goes on with the rest of our kin."

The she-cat's words warmed his heart and he couldn't deny such a petition. After all, it had a noble reason behind that and the leader had no trouble with the name. He wondered if Tigerpaw was okay... he still felt like it was his fault that he died... that he wasn't quick enough to save him from that illness.

Jaystar nodded again and taking his usual stance when he named a warrior, he spoke again, with joy in his heart. Adderpaw took her time to be a warrior... but he was still proud of the she-cat she had become. "Then, I'll grant you your wish. By the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. From this day forth, you will be known to all as Adderfeather. RiverClan honours your loyalty and pure-heart. As tradition demands, you will hold a silent vigil when the night comes and protect the clan while the rest of your clanmates rest."

The leader jumped off the branch and approached the one-eyed she-cat with a smile. "Congratulations, Adderfeather... I'm sure Tigerpaw must be pretty proud and happy for you. I'm... proud of you." It wasn't usual that he congratulated a new warrior privately but this she-cat was a different situation. She had endured a lot and her name was well-deserved. She was going to be a good warrior. Jaystar was sure of that.

Scorchclaw had been silently watching the ceremony from the crowd. Adderpaw had certainly gone through a lot. Right when her warrior ceremony had been within her reach, she had lost an eye to a ThunderClan tom. As a result, she had had to work extra hard to make up for her now limited vision. She was moons older than the other inhabitants of the Apprentice Den. It certainly hadn't been easy, but now she was finally ready to receive her warrior name. While his expression was impassive as ever, his pale-green eyes revealed his true feelings. They shone with both pride and joy. Pride for the she-cat who had overcome the obstacles in her path, and joy that she would finally be joining him in the Warriors' Den. He couldn't deny the latter emotion. The difference in their ranks sometimes made it hard for the two of them to hang out. With Adderpaw's promotion, that distance would close at least a little.

When the fluffy she-cat stated her request, Scorchclaw felt a mild sense of surprise. The pain in Adderpaw's voice rang sharply in his ears. Once again, he was struck with what it was like to lose a family member. He hadn't known about Tigerpaw's visit during her Moonstone Journey. Barely anyone knew about his meeting with Fawnsong either. A distant memory stirred within his mind, of two cats strolling by the river side in the middle of the night. Although it had been brief, Adderpaw had mentioned her dead littermates to him. Had she suffered all this time, and he was unaware of it? Strangely, he could understand why she would want to choose the name she did. As the ceremony drew to a close, he called out her new name along with the other RiverClan cats. Adderfeather.

After Jaystar had congratulated her, he padded forward as well. As their gazes met, he tilted his head to one side. "Congratulations." He said quietly, with the hint of a rare smile. "Didn't I say that you'd be able to become a warrior? Now look where you are. Reedheart couldn't stop you in the end. He lost." There was a pause before he added finally, "You've worked hard, Adderfeather."

Relief slackened the painful grasp on Adderpaw's lungs and heart, softening the dull ache within her chest by the sheer heat that bubbled up from within the very tips of her toes. Jaystar's agreement to her unusual request helped brush away the lingering, dismal cloud that had been previously weighing down upon her. It felt as though now she could truly enjoy this moment- regardless of whether or not those unwanted ghosts decided to stay a bit longer. Finally indulging in the excitement that was welling up within the deepest fathoms of her being like a Newleaf-full stream, the young molly's weight shifted forward. A slight simper curled her lips at the acknowledgement of her new name; Adderfeather. A loud purr rumbled forth from chest with enough force to rattle her frame, a purr that didn't stop even in wake of Jaystar's kind words.

Scorchclaw's outline was visible on the farthest reaches of her vision, and her attention only fell away from Jaystar as he fully approached. Although the rumbling purr that rasped from deep within her lungs finally dwindled to a halt, the grin that lifted her features still burned brightly. Even at the mention of Reedheart, which sent the familiar prickle of emotions clawing its way down her spine, she couldn't help but still ooze a sense of satisfaction. Perhaps he was right, maybe she did win. Even if Reedheart was a ghost she'd have to deal with for the rest of her days on this earth, that was all he'd ever be. Nothing more than an unwanted visitor. Giving her head a little shake to clear away the perplexed thoughts, Adderfeather instead gently brushed her cheek against Scorchclaw's for the briefest of moments. "I hope you're ready to share a den again! This time you won't be able to get away from my snoring no matter how hard you try."