Pipitpaw's Warrior Ceremony

The time had finally come. The time for a new warrior and a new identity. Ever since Pipitpaw approached him, he had been thinking a lot about her new name, and what would go well with it. Now he had an idea, just in time for her ceremony too. The striped tom jumped up on the Tall Rock and called out to his clan. "Let all cats old enough to run the moor gather here for a clan meeting!"

She had been waiting, dutifully, for this day to come. The effort that she had exuded in her training had increased tenfold since her discussion with the leader, and since then, her mood had kept an air of excitement too. She hadn't told any cat about her talk with Tigerstar. Not Galestorm, her mentor, not Nectarflower... not even Larchpaw. There was no cat who knew. Her tail rippled with excitement as she heard her leaders call, sitting somewhere amidst the crowd. Hope glimmered in her Hazel eyes, and her tail curled about her paws in an attempt to keep her still.

"Today we are gathered to name a warrior. She has been dedicated to her training since her first day, and I am proud to call this ceremony now." Tigerstar addressed the crowd that had gathered in the moment since his call. His green eyes fell onto Pipitpaw. "Pipitpaw please come forward."

The striped tom adjusted his stance slightly, as he patiently waited for the she-cat to come to the front. Once she had, he continued. "I, Tigerstar, leader of Windclan call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand your noble ways, and I commend her to you as a warrior in turn. Pipitpaw, do you promise to uphold the code, defend and honor Windclan even at the cost of your life?" The leader asked, anticipating her answer.

Her eyes widened just a fraction as her name was called out. She had been hoping, desperately, that it was her ceremony-and it, in fact, was. Quickly grooming a couple of stray tufts of fur, the snow-colored molly was nothing short of pristine in her presentation. Rising to all four paws as Tigerstar beckoned her forward, she made her way through the crowd, the poised smile that she always had being clear on her maw.

Once she had made her way before the Tallrock, she once more sat, her head slightly dipping in reverence and ears swiveling back in a similar manner. As if she was bowing before Starclan, who would be judging her character. Though she felt confident amidst the sea of cats, the idea of Starclan judging her still made her nervous. What if... what if her mother was up there? Being one of the cats to judge her? Deeming her not good enough, never good enough, and she would not be allowed to obtain her name? Such intrusive thoughts had become less and less during her apprenticeship, but in such a crucial moment, it was hard not to hear their whispers.

No. The molly decided, mentally. Her mother would not dictate her future. Her steps were being made to sever ties with her, to become better, to grow beyond the pawsteps that she'd wanted her to fill. She was worthy.

Looking up to Tigerstar, there was a determined glimmer in her eyes as she stated, "I do."

Tigerstar smiled as soon as he had gotten the answer he was seeking. The apprentice had come a long way since their chat, and he only hoped to see her grow further with her warrior name. "Then from this moment on you will cast aside your old name, and I grant you one completely new, to reflect your pelt, and who you have grown into. You will be known as Snowvixen. Windclan honors your perception and your articulation, and we welcome you as a full warrior of Windclan." The striped tom jumped down and approached the new warrior, resting his head on top of hers. "Congratulations." He told her quietly before stepping back to let others congratulate her.

Larchpaw did his best not to stew in the corner. The mixed feelings running through him, from his ears to the tip of his tail, were nearly causing his entire frame to shake if he hadn't been so good at controlling himself. On one paw, he was proud of Pipitpaw working so hard, and glad for her ceremony; he knew she'd been working hard. Way too hard. On the other paw, why hadn't his ceremony been first? He'd been working just as hard, if not harder! Did Tigerstar not like him enough? Had she talked the leader into advancing her first, just to spite him? If he had not been so good at controlling himself, he would've been pacing back and forth anxiously in the crowd, wondering where he'd gone wrong. How he'd failed. Whether this meant Nectarflower hated him, or Tigerstar hated him, or Pipitpaw actually hated him and wasn't just being performative with her snappish remarks.

His ears perked up, though, and he kept his attention fixed forwards when Tigerstar named Pipit--no. A new name. Snow...vixen? A completely new prefix? That did blindside him. Larchpaw blinked, looking at his kithood friend. Had she known about this? Had this been something she'd wanted, something she'd asked for? Or a complete surprise to her as well? Studying her face, she didn't seem too surprised, or at least not surprised in a bad way. Hmm. Her mother came to mind briefly. Not that either of them had really understood when they were younger, but the relationship had been... Well. He'd done enough brooding for now. He couldn't let her know that he felt awful about this; that would mean she'd won and he refused to let her win a single interaction of theirs, if he could help it. So he'd have to do what he knew best would get under her skin, and just act like he was entirely fine with this. And act like he was proud of her, which... wouldn't be too difficult, because he was. He was proud of her.

The taller apprentice made his way over from behind her, allowing his fluffy tail to prod her on the left shoulder. Then he sat down to her right, nonchalantly grooming a flame-orange paw until she looked over at her. Larchpaw grinned. "So, Snowvixen, huh?" he purred. "It suits you. Much better than some silly bird, anyway." His head tilted to the side, and he allowed some of the pride and warmth he felt to glitter in his gaze. "Congratulations. Really."