Galepaw's Warrior Ceremony

The canopy above the camp hummed with the sound of gently falling rain as Oakstar leapt onto the top of High rock. Greenleaf’s heat had subsided for a day, leaving the air fresh and clean as rain pinned down the dust and dirt that seemed to rise with every pawstep lately. The scent was invigorating. A calming balm after a hard moon. He smiled down at the cats milling around the clearing. Some were seeking shelter from the rain, but he chuckled at kits enjoying it.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath High-rock for a clan meeting!" Oakstar’s yowl echoed through the clearing. Overpowering the gentle taps of rain while he sat down on top of Highrock. Ready to make an announcement that would change one lucky apprentice’s role, to one much larger. A warrior. At long last.

When he’d stepped up to the Highrock moons ago, part of him had known that, when the call had gone out, it had gone out for him. He wasn’t nearly so certain now. Still, a meeting was a meeting; Galepaw had accepted them as a part of life, even if they did get boring sometimes. As long as it wasn’t another apprentice being warriored. He and Houndpaw might have been on good terms—as much as anyone could be on good terms with Houndpaw—but if the large-eared tom got his warrior name before Galepaw, Galepaw thought he might explode.

Or. Well. Shaking that thought out of his head before it could begin to fester, (the sound of rain made it easier; after his Moonstone journey, he'd come to find it more soothing than inconvenient), he seated himself with the rest of the crowd in front of the Highrock. The tip of Galepaw’s tail twitched as he waited.

Oakstar smiled down at the cats as they gathered beneath the rock. His gaze steady on Galepaw for a moment before breaking it away to survey and address the other cats.
"Today, I bring good news. It is time for an apprentice to take on the rank of a warrior." He lowered his gaze to where Galepaw was sitting, intent on the silver tom. "Galepaw, step forward."

After Galepaw stepped forward, Oakstar began the traditional words. His expression turning solemn as the meaning of them came falling down onto the ears below like the rain on the leaves.
"I, Oakstar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as a warrior in their turn. Galepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

At first, he chalked up the feeling of Oakstar's eyes on him to wishful thinking, like it'd been at Grayleaf's and Mistwalker's ceremonies. But Oakstar, speaking of good news, found him again. His gaze was too focused, too piercing past his smile, to be anything but intentional. Galepaw's spine straightened, the barest flash of something like hope in his dark eyes.

"Galepaw, step forward."

Electricity tore through him. He shot to his feet before he'd entirely grasped that it was his name Oakstar had called. After a long moment, the almost hesitant (as if Galepaw was capable of hesitance) wonder on his face became certainty, and he stepped forward, carrying himself like a cat who already bore his full, true name. The name that would make him a warrior. My turn.

As Oakstar spoke of training, Galepaw's mouth twisted upward. Darn right I have. He'd made mistakes, same as any cat—his loss against Sagepaw would probably haunt him until his dying day, unless he got his rematch—but no one could deny the effort he'd put toward understanding hunting, fighting, even the code's boring-but-crucial intricacies. The oath was turned toward him, as it had been to so many others. "I do." No two words had ever come easier. Galepaw longed to look back—his mother and mentor was somewhere in the crowd, watching, surely so, so proud of him—but he refused to break eye contact with his leader. He'd dreamed this before, between flames and smoke. This time, he would not let it go.

Oakstar nodded his head, accepting the tom’s pledge before continuing the ceremony.
"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Galepaw, from this moment on you will be known as Galeheart. StarClan honors your strength and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." With the final words spoken, he remembered all at once the little apprentice, who had been so eager. Who had come home battered, but didn’t let that stop him. He raised his gaze to Emberheart, nodding in approval at the she-cat, who had raised her apprentice so well as he leapt down to conclude the ceremony.

"You will have to sit vigil tonight, as per tradition. I don’t doubt you’ll succeed though." Oakstar commented as the cheering died down. He glanced over towards the warrior den. Night wouldn’t fall for a little while… he hummed thoughtfully, then looked at Galeheart. "I suggest setting up your new nest, and taking a quick nap first. The night will be long due to the clouds."

Every name that had been given to him he’d worn with pride, but this was the best one of all. Strength and loyalty and the same suffix as the cat who had raised him. His to keep until the day he died in ThunderClan’s name. Galeheart took a deep breath, feeling his chest swell with it, and ThunderClan began to cheer for him. Their newest warrior. A little late to join his former denmates, as he had been a little late to leave the nursery—but now, he was where he belonged. Or he would be, after the vigil. Trouble rarely came to warriors on their first night guarding the camp; if it did, he was ready to meet it with claws and fangs bared.

Oakstar leapt down beside him, signaling the ceremony’s end. Finally, Galeheart allowed himself to turn away from the Highrock, breaking into a grin when he spotted Emberheart’s ginger pelt amidst those of their Clanmates. He forced his expression to steady before looking at Oakstar again. "The camp's safe with me." However boring it was, sitting vigil would be his first real task as a warrior. The first test. In response to Oakstar's suggestion, he merely nodded; considering how poorly he’d slept lately, a nap didn’t sound too bad, and having a nest to collapse into at the end would make the night more bearable.

Like the dutiful apprentice he was, Houndpaw had attended the ceremony, and sat proudly near his friend Galepaw. He looked up to the elder tom and even if their duties had kept them apart, the lithe tabby was determined to still seek after and look up to the other tom. He was one of the first to yowl out to the crowd and welcome Galeheart. Afterwards, he padded over and butted his head into Galeheart's shoulder, meowing, "Looks like I have some catching up to do with my training. Even with your new name, I bet I could still beat you in a fight! We'll have to test it out tomorrow."