Mudpaw's Warrior Ceremony

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Willow Branch for a clan meeting!" The powerful cry rang out in the fading light of evening. RiverClan's leader stood in the willow tree, sharp green gaze hovering above the clearing.

Once again, the moons had passed in a flash; another apprentice was ready to claim her warrior name. Torrentstar had kept an eye on Mudpaw throughout her apprenticeship, and from what he had seen as well as what he had heard, the young she-cat had worked hard to get to this point. Her skeptical nature, while possibly off-putting to some, was beneficial to RiverClan. It was just Torrentstar's opinion, but the leader believed that a clan needed doubters to balance out the naive soft-hearts who swallowed everything they were told. He himself did not trust easily―life had shown him the foolishness of being too optimistic.

No one had told her today would be her last as an apprentice. In fact, the further the sun sank beneath the plains, it seemed less and less likely that her conviction would turn out to be true. But Mudpaw had woken with an odd tangle of hope and anticipation in her gut. That happened so rarely that it had to mean something. Anyway, the facts lined up: she was old enough, certainly skilled enough; she’d gone on patrols, she’d fought, she’d talked to Nettlesting (and had kept her promise to him so far on top of that). The last hurdle on the path to warriorhood was behind her.

Torrentstar’s voice thundered across the camp. It rumbled in her chest, a bolt of lightning that felt fit to make her fur stand on end. This was it. If she was right, it had to be it. Gathering her excitement and pushing it underneath that ever-present confidence, Mudpaw abandoned the fish she’d been chewing on for a place beneath the Willow Branch. She couldn't read Torrentstar's expression—the branch wasn't exactly close, and he was, well, Torrentstar—but she stared up at him all the same. It's my turn.

The warrior ceremony―one of many defining events in a cat's life; while probably not the most important one, it was no exaggeration to say that it was one of the most anticipated moments for an apprentice who had completed the many moons of rigorous training. It was in that instant, when they were standing before the willow tree, that all their hard work paid off. "Mudpaw," Torrentstar began, "Berrycloud and Ivybrook have confirmed with me that you are ready to become a full-fledged warrior of RiverClan. If you believe this to be true, step forward for your ceremony to begin."

Her intuition was a cautious thing, but it rarely lied outright. At the sound of her name in Torrentstar’s mouth, Mudpaw’s determined expression broke just enough to reveal pride, excitement, and the faintest relief. Tonight, she would sit a cold, lonely vigil—but tomorrow and the night after and every night for moons to come, a warm nest in the warriors’ den would be waiting for her. She would decide where she went, when, and for what reason. She’d been ready for this since her Moonstone, if not before. There was no uncertainty in the tall she-cat’s posture as she stepped forward, chin held high. Honeytongue was here, she hoped; Ivybrook and Berrycloud, too. But she couldn’t look for them. Instead, Mudpaw watched Torrentstar like an eagle over the river, waiting for a fish to leap out.

There was no hesitation in the young cat's brilliant gaze. She held her head high as she stepped forward. Torrentstar acknowledged her readiness with a slight nod of his own. "Then I, Torrentstar, 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. Mudpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your clan, even at the cost of your life?"

Torrentstar nodded so subtly Mudpaw wondered if she’d imagined it. Then came the last question, the final step of her training. The oath every apprentice had to take before they shed their ever-changing names for good. Protecting her Clanmates was part of what Nettlesting had asked of her—but as she looked upward, her heart pounding, paws tight against the ground in a desperate effort to keep them still, she knew her answer would have been the same no matter which warrior StarClan had chosen to meet her. She was a RiverClanner through and through. ”I do.” Mudpaw’s voice rang steady and sharp through the camp. This was her choice.

The large, golden warrior watched from the side with a peaceful smile at the quick growth of his apprentice. Salmonburn ran away too quickly to even enjoy the life inside his homeland... he was a traitor... just like Sparkfrost, Dacepaw and... Dappleshine. Mudpaw... was different. He hoped she would. Berrycloud fixed his eyes on the calico she-cat and nodded at her affirmative response. Soon, she would be joining the rest of the warriors in the warriors' den.

RiverClan needed warriors whose loyalties were not so fickle that they would abandon their clan at the bat of an eye. Torrentstar believed―no, he hoped―that Mudpaw would be that warrior. "By the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. From this day forth, you will be known to all as Mudfrost. Riverclan honours your kindness and bravery through tough times. Tonight, as tradition demands, you will hold a silent vigil while the rest of the clan sleep. Until then, however, we celebrate the rise of a new Riverclan warrior who has fully earned her name." As the ceremony drew to a close, he leaped off the Willow Branch. "Congratulations, Mudfrost." He meowed solemnly.

The briefest silence settled over the camp. Torrentstar launched into the ceremony’s last words, and all at once, Mudpaw was a warrior. Mudfrost. It wasn’t as fierce as the names she’d dreamed up in her youth, but, though she doubted she would say as much, it suited the cat she’d become better than Mudclaw or Mudstrike would have. There was already strength in the sound of it. Finally allowing the proud smile she’d been hiding to push its way onto her muzzle, Mudfrost stood tall as the ceremony ended, her new name distinct through the array of voices chanting it.

When she looked around, a fluffy golden tom caught her eye. Her mentor. One of the cats she’d been looking for. She couldn’t explain why she felt relieved, exactly (of course he was here, why wouldn’t he be); still, her smile softened a little, and she gave him a quick nod before turning to address Torrentstar. It was effort that had gotten her here, but Berrycloud had trained her well. ”Thanks. …I’m not going anywhere, you know.” Less formal than the oath, but every bit as binding. She was no deserter. She would fill the newest empty space in the warriors’ den; she would be strong, and she would drag the rest of RiverClan up alongside her. Protect them, the way Nettlesting had protected ShadowClan. It would start tomorrow.