Eaglepaw's Warrior Ceremony

The large leader made his way to the branch and he climbed it after having a meeting with his daughter, Hailsong. It seemed that her most recent apprentice, Eaglepaw had completed her training and now she was ready to undertake the name of a warrior. Jaystar looked over his camp, who was covered by a thin cape of snow and tried to force a small smile in his face. Prey was starting to run short these days because of the high amount of cats and not enough hunting lands. With more warriors, Riverclan could have more independent cats who can hunt for the fresh-kill pile. It was a relief some of the apprentices were starting to leave their former rank for this greater purpose. And, according to Hailsong, Eaglepaw had proven to be pretty skilled at hunting. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey, gather beneath the willow branch for a clan meeting!" He yowled, raising his feathery tail.

As soon as Jaystar's voice came ringing throughout camp, Eaglepaw strutted out of the apprentices' den, her head and tail held high. Since her Moonstone journey, Eaglepaw had never felt more accomplished of herself. She had finally come to terms with her true personality, and she was going to show it. No more of this goody-two-shoes mouse-dung. 
Sitting down elegantly in the midst of the crowd, the pale tabby looked up with disinterest at the blue-grey leader but also with hope that this would be her ceremony.

Once a good bunch of his cats were gathered, the leader once again addressed the whole clan for this important meeting. "Despite the difficulties of leafbare, one of our apprentices has completed her training with merit and now is the day we welcome her into the warriors' den." He started with a confident, rather cheerful tone in his voice. He fixed his green eyes on the pale brown she-cat and offered her a serious smile. "Eaglepaw, Hailsong had confirmed me that you are ready to undertake your warrior ceremony. If you believe this to be true, step forward now for it to begin."

As Jaystar started the ceremony, Eaglepaw's white chest puffed in pride, and her pale sky-blue eyes shone with the same delight. She gradually stepped forward, nearly knocking aside some cats in the process. Of course she was ready for this!

The leader flicked his tail as an involuntary reaction of happiness for the young apprentice who was ready to take her first step into warriorhood. "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. Eaglepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

---

Hailsong finally joined the clan meeting and sat down close to the willow branch, watching how her apprentice was about to become a warrior. It was her first mentoring who actually finished properly. She couldn't be prouder of Eaglepaw and it would be an honour to share a den with her from now on. Hopefully, she would be a great, independent Riverclan warrior one day, acclaimed for her hunting skills.

At this moment, Eaglepaw knew all eyes were on her. This was her time to shine! Responding quickly, she rose her head and announced, "I do."

The tom purred softly in delight and nodded at the already determined she-cat. Remembering the words of his own daughter, Jaystar had already made his mind about the future name of the apprentice. "Then, by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. From this day forth, you will be known to all as Eaglebrook. As per tradition says, you will hold a silent vigil tonight but for now, we just celebrate as a clan for a new warrior who was trained under the wing of the Warrior Code and Starclan." With a dismissive swing of his tail, the leader ended the ceremony and joined the chattering for the newly made warrior. Despite the hardships, today was a day to rejoice.

---

The dilute-furred she-cat smiled when her father decided to take her suggestion. The former mentor had remembered that in one of their first patrols together, Eaglepaw mentioned to Berrycloud that she wanted her name to be Eaglebrook and now, Hailsong thought it suited her well. The small warrior made her way to the younger one and touched noses with her one more time, even if it wasn't part of the common tradition. "With this, I say you goodbye as your mentor and hello as a warrior of the same rank. You've been a wonderful apprentice, Eaglebrook. Don't lose sight of what being a warrior means." She purred.