Copperkit's Apprentice Ceremony

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Willow Branch for a clan meeting!"

Even with leaf bare's arrival, clan life would never grind to a halt. There was always work to do, areas that could be improved on—especially more so, now that the cold season was here. As Scorchclaw perched on the Willow Branch, he could feel the treacherous caress of an icy breeze on his whiskers. From up high, the island camp was blanketed with a sparse, thin layer of white. He knew that the heavier snowfalls would follow before long. He was holding another apprentice ceremony, this time for Copperkit. More 'paws in the Apprentice Den meant that there would be more cats capable of bringing prey back. While the large size of RiverClan held many advantages, it had its disadvantages as well. He could only hope that this leaf bare would be better than the last one.

Of course, Copperkit didn't know much about leaf-bare. But was more than excited to show his parents how big he had gotten, and to spend more time with his loner father if he could. Blue eyes shone up at the willow tree with a well-groomed pelt. Maybe he would catch a fish? Maybe a vole. He loved voles. Fish were hard to come by during the winter, the to-be apprentice figured, glancing at the fresh-kill pile.

Or, he may fight off some big bad cats from ThunderClan who wanted to take back the Sunning Rocks!

Minkpaw loped over to his brother, bumping into his shoulder and grinning at him. "Hey, you finally get to join me in the apprentice's den! Good luck catching up!" Whacking him lightly with his tail, he whirled around before Copperkit could jump on him or something, sitting near Littlestream. It was hard to keep his grin contained as he tried to stop his paws from kneading the ground, memories of his own apprentice ceremony bubbling to the surface.
"Just wait till you get to clean the elder's ticks!" He whispered loudly enough for his brother to hear, winking.

The atmosphere in the camp that afternoon seemed to be a good one. Warriors and apprentices went about their menial tasks, and bright chatter filled the air. Scorchclaw's summons quickly drew the attention of every cat to the great willow tree in the center of camp. One by one, his clanmates gathered on the ground below. The RiverClan deputy waited patiently, swishing his dark tail from side to side. When the size of the crowd had grown large enough, he began the ceremony. "Copperkit, step forward." The pale green gaze that sought out the young tom was unreadable as usual. "You have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day onward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Copperpaw. Flurryshine will be your mentor and teach you the ways of a RiverClan warrior." As the words left his mouth, he smirked ever so lightly. He had told the warrior that he would give her another apprentice; now was the time. It was unlikely that Flurryshine would every stop blaming herself for Firepaw's death, but she could not let her failures hold her back for the rest of her life. RiverClan had plenty of warriors and almost as many apprentices. There were a few warriors who were already mentoring two apprentices. Copperpaw, one of Starlord and Littlestream's kits, was the second chance that was extended to her.

The ceremony drawing to a close, Scorchclaw leaped off the Willow Branch. I'll choose to believe in you one more time. Do your best, Flurryshine. If she had any protests regarding his decision, she was always welcome to look for him.

Flurryshine's eyes widened in sheer surprise, and a sliver of fear began trailing up her spine. She remembered very clearly when Scorchclaw told her he would entrust her with another apprentice in the future. She just hadn't expected it to be so soon. What if she failed Copperpaw in the same way she had failed Firepaw? ...No. No, no, she couldn't think like that. She had to be strong. Besides, there was no super huge war needed to be fought this time, and all of her kits had become apprentices, so she wasn't stuck in the nursery anymore. Perhaps... Perhaps things would be fine after all.

Padding up to the young tabby tom, she smiled and touched her pink nose to his. Stars, he looked so much like Firepaw... "I look forward to training you, Copperpaw. Training begins tomorrow at dawn."

Copperkit wrinkled his nose and quickly groomed his shoulder which had ruffled his pelt. "Just wait until you are old and have ticks." He mewed to his brother, tail lashing. Though, he didn't look too annoyed by his brother. Instead, he was very happy to have his brother at his side as he was named apprentice. He was named Copperpaw now, and he was going to be a warrior! Abandoning his brother's side, the apprentice bounded toward his new mentor, eagerly touching noses with Flurryshine. "Will do!" With bright eyes, he left his mentor's side after a moment and rejoined his brother to make a nest in his new den.