Birdkit and Shadekit Apprentice Ceremony

Dawnhawk hadn't done one of these in quite awhile. He'd had many other concerns and developments brought to his attention. It was nice to have a little bit of normalcy, after the incident with Beechface, Smokefeather and Featherkit. What a tragedy that had been. He pushed it to the back of his mind as he settled on top of the leader's den and let his voice ring out across camp.

"Let all cats old enough to climb a tree gather for a clan meeting!" He spoke with confidence, hiding that anything bad had happened recently. He would continue on as normal, and soon the clan would just believe everything was normal. Flowerthorn had not been taken away. Copperfox had not been beaten to a pulp. Featherkit had not died. Beechface was fine. Everyone was fine. Everything... would be fine.

Birdkit knew little of the cat that was calling the meeting. She knew he was the clan deputy, and the deputy did apprentice ceremonies. She was old enough, so logically this meeting could be for no other thing. Therefore, Birdkit padded forwards, barely-contained excitement in her light pawsteps.

"Come on, Shadekit, it has to be our ceremony, right?" she asked her sister excitedly, weight shifting from paw to paw in anticipation.

Shadekit padded after her sister, tail flagged in interest and excitement as the ceremonial words were called. She turned her gaze up towards the clan deputy, Dawnhawk, and settled down beside Birdkit, bumping her sister playfully with her shoulder. She was just as excited as her, after all, it had to be their ceremony. Things seemed dire around camp, from what the young molly could tell. There was that Asylum cat that killed Featherkit and hurt Beechface, but thankfully Dawnhawk was there to save their grandma Smokefeather before anything else happened. A shudder ran down the smoky pelt as Shadekit did her best to push those scary thoughts away. That was done and over, now was her ceremony, and then her life would truly begin.

Ravenclaw padded out of the nursery, following 'her' kits to what was likely their ceremony. She gave both Birdkit and Shadekit gentle licks to smooth down their fur, though she was mostly trying to smooth down her own anxiety. She looked up at Dawnhawk, scowling at her traitorous sibling. She didn't care how many clan members he supposedly saved. In her eyes, he was still complete scum. Seeing him there gathering the clan together made her sick to her stomach.

As the kits came into view, he heard the one called Birdkit guess that it was their ceremony. Their? His eyes fell onto Shadekit and he supposed he may as well kill two birds with one stone... figuratively. Probably. His eyes scanned the clan and the mentors (now plural) that he'd decided on were already present. Perfect.

"Birdkit and Shadekit, both of you step forward. You have reached the age of six moons and it is time for you to become apprentices. From today until the day you earn your warrior names, you will be known as Birdpaw and Shadepaw." His eyes then flicked over the intended mentors.

"Birdpaw, your mentor will be Ravenclaw. Shadepaw, your mentor will be Vulturecry." His decision made, Dawnhawk then allowed the mentors to unite with their apprentices. His job was done here, for the time being.

Chest swelling with pride, the smoky young molly grinned as she was given her new name. Barely able to hide her excitement, she batted at her sister with a sheathed paw once Dawnhawk was no longer staring at them.

"Birdpaw, you got Mom!" she hissed, tail waving as she rose to her paws. Vulturecry was her mentor, and a molly she recognized. Her aunt, actually, and the larger of the two sisters craned her neck to find her new mentor in the crowd. Once she found her, she politely weaved her way over and dipped her head towards the elder cat. "I'll make you proud, Vulturecry."

Birdpaw broke into a grin as the ceremony was completed, hardly taking notice of Dawnhawk turning away as she turned to her sister in excitement.

"I can't wait to start training! Just think... We'll be able to explore and go hunting together!" She hadn't been sure who she would've expected to be her mentor, but having mom was far from disappointing. Gaze turning towards her mother, Birdpaw's tail lashed in excitement as she leaned up to touch noses with her mentor.

Her chest should've swelled with pride at being named a mentor for the first time, but all Ravenclaw could think of were the lies and heartbreak that followed her like a dark cloud every time she interacted with 'her' kits. She couldn't deny that being a mentor was a good thing, though. Being a mentor was something every SkyClan warrior should strive for and be proud of. She padded slowly towards Birdpaw, being met halfway by her excited 'daughter'. They touched noses, and Ravenclaw glanced up once towards the retreating form of Dawnhawk, scowling. "Well, you finally became an apprentice, Birdpaw. That didn't take long, did it?"

Sweeping forward in a flourish of silky smoky dark fur, Vulturecry's pale gaze is shaded with a complex webbing of surprise and delight as she peered down at the newly-named Shadepaw, finely-bristled whiskers trembling with emotion as she leaned forward. "I'm so glad," She chirped out, tufted ears twitching forward into a pert state of attention, "I can't wait to being training!" It was hardly a secret that her experience with training had been.. a tad bit lackluster and underwhelming, so the prospect of having a redo of sorts was all the more enticing. It was a bit daunting, but at least she had her littermates to consult with at any necessary opportunity.