Dacekit's Apprentice Ceremony

At last, the time had come for Dacekit to claim her place among the ranks of RiverClan's apprentices. From his perch on the Willow Branch, Scorchclaw had quite the view over the island camp. He sat in silence for a moment or two, watching the young she-cat as she frolicked down below. Dappleshine's daughter was an energetic young thing, as most kits her age were. He admittedly held some interest in her, but his duties had kept him from spending any time with her for the most part. In the blink of an eye, she was already six moons of age. At the thought of how pleased Dappleshine must be, he could not help the slight curve of his maw. To think that the kit he had helped raise was now a mother herself, and her kit was now going to be an apprentice. He had made mistakes in raising Dewshine's litter, but at least one of them had come this far; Dappleshine, unlike her brother Rowankit, had gotten to see so much. The heavy thought wiped the small smile off his face, reverting his expression back to that of its usual emotionless state. He had wasted enough time, he thought to himself. Rising to his paws, he cried out the traditional summons for a clan meeting. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Willow Branch for a clan meeting!"

"Dacekit! Dacekit my dear, come here." Dappleshine pulled her daughter in, grooming her quickly one last time. It was time for her only kit to take the step from kithood to apprenticeship, and while Dappleshine was looking forward to returning to her warrior duties, she would miss the nights curled with her perfect daughter in the nursery. Time slowed for none, however, and pride shone in her blue eyes as she gazed down at her daughter. "I'm so proud of you, Dacekit my love. Remember to listen and do what Scorchclaw and your mentor says. I'll be right in the front with you." She gently nudged Dacekit's head with her nose before settling at the front of the crowd, her head held high and a graceful smile on her face, her tail moving to wrap around her daughter before stopping just short and hesitating. This was her daughter's day to shine, and she couldn't wait to see it.

At the sound of her name, Dacekit looked up from the pale, barkless stick of driftwood that she had been wrestling with on the ground. Her round green-hazel eyes were afire with the light of life, and when they landed upon the eyes of her mother they only gllimmered brighter with pure love and delight of recognition. At her mother's beckoning she immediately abandoned her "opponent", springing to her paws to present herself before her mother. Immediately the sleek, radiant queen began to groom her dilute calico child, and Dacekit's response was a thick, rattling purr that had only gotten louder since her kithood. She leaned into the affectionate, and effective, licks, and she asked, "Momma! This must be my apprentice ceremony!"

Dappleshine confirmed it, her face and voice full of emotion. She gave her kit a few short instructions, and Dacekit drank them in, nodding emphatically at each new point. Pawpaw's going to give me a mentor! I'm going to have a mentor! she thought, and she pranced after her mother to sit beside her in front of the Willow Branch. Dacekit looked up - way way up, it felt! - to see her grandfather's rugged, regal form perched authoritatively above. She fought the urge to mew a bright "hello" and instead settled for simply continuing to purr with the sound of a Thunderpath full of monsters tucked inside her chest.

Dacekit's dilute calico pelt, still laced with the last traces kit fluff, was a reminder of who her other parent was. Scorchclaw did not know what Dappleshine had seen in Sparkfrost, but it was not his place to ask. Jaystar and Goldeneye's son was a decent enough warrior... if not slightly unusual. Scorchclaw had heard that the young tom had suffered a memory loss upon waking up from his coma. Under such circumstances, perhaps a little oddity was understandable.

As soon as the cats of RiverClan had gathered, the large deputy began the ceremony. Dacekit was already brimming with excitement, as evidenced by the loud purrs rumbling from the she-kit. "Dacekit, step forward." Scorchclaw's words were tinged with the solemnity of the occasion. "Dacekit, 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 Dacepaw. Your mentor will be..." There might have been a slight pause, for the crowd seemed to lean forward in anticipation. "Addershade." Scorchclaw finished firmly. "He has proven himself to be ready for his first apprentice, and the time has come for that." His green gaze lifting off the newly-named Dacepaw, it alighted upon Addershade. He spoke again, addressing the warrior this time. "This little one is committed to your paws. Guide her well, in the ways of the Warrior Code."

Dacekit did her best to try to stifle her purr when her grandfather began to speak, his sonorous voice ringing out over the sandy camp for all the Clan to hear. She was amazed at how brave he was, talking to everyone all at once and being so confident in his authority; she would get to be brave like that someday, too, and this was the first step! Scorchclaw called her name and the little kitten quickly stood, casting one last excited glance at her mother before turning her full attention to the deputy and bouncing forward standing proudly before him. Even his somber voice couldn't fully pull the energy from the kit as she hung on his every word. Her name was given, the old one past: She was now Dacepaw!

Scorchclaw paused thoughtfully before stating her mentor, and Dacepaw leaned forward with a grin of kittish anticipation. "Addershade", he declared, and the newly named apprentice thought, I have a mentor! I hope they're nice! "Thank you, pawpaw!' she cried gratefully and lovingly up at Scorchclaw. Immediately she began to look around, searching for them in the crowd of gathered cats to greet them enthusiastically in typical Dacepaw fashion. Her purr was thundering once again.

Addershade made his way out of the crowd to greet his new apprentice. His new apprentice-- that was a weird thought. He still felt quite unready for the world, how was he going to help prepare someone else? Well-- it didn’t matter now, he had an apprentice. He would just have to try his best and hope it was enough. And whether or not he felt he was ready, the clan’s deputy did, and that certainly counted for something.

He looked at the young she-cat, who was obviously brimming with energy. Clearly the two of them had quite different temperaments, and his whiskers twitched in amusement as he wondered if he’d be able to keep up.

“Congratulations, Dacepaw,” the dark-pelted tom began, “We’ll begin training soon. I promise I’ll do everything I can to teach you what you need to know to be the best warrior you can be,” he smiled warmly at his new apprentice as he finished speaking.

Dappleshine was beaming with pride as her daughter was stripped of her old name, and her new one was bestowed upon her. Turning her gaze up to Scorchclaw as he announced her kit's mentor, she nodded to him. Addershade was a good choice, she recalled how he had fought bravely against the eagle at her and Jaystar's sides. He would have his paws full, certainly, but as she met the young warrior's gaze she smiled at him. He would do a fantastic job. Her own purr rumbled in her throat as her daughter called out to her 'Pawpaw' before turning to find her mentor. Once they had their moment, Dappleshine padded forward to her daughter, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. She smiled before licking the top of her daughter's head. "I'm so proud of you, Dacepaw. I love you dearly, never forget that my minnow." With one last nuzzle, she stepped back and joined the crowd in raising her voice to the sky above, calling her daughter's name to the stars as loud as she could.

A dark figure caught Dacepaw's eyes as it separated itself from the crowd and began to walk towards her. Immediately she oriented herself to face the tom as he approached, taking in the appearance of the cat who was to be her mentor until she was ready for her warrior name. His fur was sleek, a deep red-brown that almost seemed black.  Addershade, she said in her head repeatedly, Addershade, Addershade! I'm gonna remember his name! He greeted her calmly and evenly, carrying himself quite professionally. Dacepaw's demeanor didn't subdue. "Okay, Addershade! I'll listen to everything you tell me!" She beamed over her shoulder at her mom, purr making her whiskers quiver like reeds in the wind. This was the best day of her life so far, and Dacepaw expected life would only get better.

Sparkfrost seemed to be late as usual to welcome the new apprentice. But as he arrived from the warrior den, poking his head out in the middle of the ceremony, the calico realized what was happening. Immediately, excitement lit up his features and he bounded towards the center of camp. His daughter was growing up so quickly! Even if it was not his own heart's desire to continue to live among the clan, she seemed contented and ecstatic in the new position, something that he found contagious. When he passed Dappleshine, he rubbed his forehead lovingly against his friend's cheek before going to greet their daughter, "Dacepaw! How is it you're so old already? Scorchclaw probably recognized how talented you were and couldn't keep you in the nursery any longer. You're going to be the greatest apprentice ever and now we can explore the whole territory together!" His words were quick and enthusiastic. The tom's eyes glowed with love for his little kit as he welcomed her as an apprentice. It was things like this that calmed the storm hidden in his unconscious and reminded him that even here, there were decent things after all. Dacepaw and Dappleshine had been two of those things. They brought meaning to this world. He smiled, a smile that was somehow even more genuine than the usual grin plastered on his expression.

Magpiepaw cheered along with the rest of the clan as Dacekit finally became Dacepaw, a bright smile on his patched face as he tried to catch the tortoiseshell kit's eye; in the end, he settled for greeting her later once they shared a den.  As his tail and head lowered though and the crowd began to disperse, he found himself gazing at the soft family scene, Dappleshine and Sparkfrost embracing their daughter with pure love shining in their bright eyes.  They look so happy...  His eyes lingered for a bit too long on Dappleshine, and he quickly looked away before she could notice.  Ever since the Gathering, being confronted by Thornbriar, Magpiepaw had been debating on what to do about his recent actions.  He wished he could just run up to his best friend and act like nothing had happened like they were simply apprentices again, but the kit standing between them was an obvious reminder that much had happened since they had last truly spoken.  Sometimes, in the late parts of the night, he wondered if she even still needed him...or wanted him.  Dappleshine had a family, friends, respect within the clan...would the companionship of one runty apprentice really mean much to her at this point?  As his fears always pointed out, it probably wouldn't, but his words to Thornbriar still rang in the forefront of his mind.

This is my fault...and only I can do something to try and fix it.

He walked away this time, a faint smile on his face, but maybe next time he would be brave enough...maybe.

A familiar multi-colored pelt appeared suddenly in the crowd, approaching swiftly. Dacepaw drew away from her mentor to look upon her father, Sparkfrost, as he moved alongside Dappleshine, giving her an affectionate nudge before turning his attention to his daughter. The newly named apprentice immediately squealed, "Daddy!" and threw herself as his chest, shoving her head affectionately under his chin as they embraced. They stepped away slightly and Dacepaw fixed her gaze adoringly upon her father's face as he began to purr and praise her. She didn't mind that he'd missed the actual ceremony at all; she had been so distracted by it that she hadn't even looked. Sparkfrost offered that they could explore the territory, now that she'd earned an apprentice name, and immediately Dacepaw's tail began to quiver with excitement. "I'll go everywhere with you!" she promised, and she meant it.