The Decision: Chapter 3

Chapter 3
         The morning of the gathering, the apprentices were having battle training with their mentors. Sandstripe, Shrewpaw's mentor, was sitting in the middle of the clearing. The yellow she-cat had a brown stripe running down her spine, all the way to her tail-tip. Sandstripe was in the midst of teaching the apprentices a new battle move.
         “Now, watch me. This is called the leap-and-hold.” She circled Squirrelpelt slowly. The tom charged at her, planning to swipe a sheathed paw across her flank. Sandstripe acted just before he reached her. She jumped on his back and held on by grasping his back, claws sheathed. “See?” She struggled, “Now counter it, Squirrelpelt.”
         The gray cat flipped over onto his back, trapping Sandstripe underneath him. The she-cat went oof as the breath was knocked out of her. Squirrelpelt rolled over, back on his feet, and crouched in anticipation. “That would be how you would counter that move. That was called the drop-and-roll. If executed properly, it'll knock off any enemy who is on your back. You try now. Tigerpaw, you do the leap-and-hold. Emberpaw, counter it with the drop-and-roll. After they've practiced a few times, Shrewpaw will take Tigerpaw's place, and Hazelpaw will fill in for Emberpaw. Begin.”
         Sandstripe got to her feet and walked over to sit by Bramblenose, who was Hazelpaw's mentor. The brown tom mewed his apology with a smile for the she-cat having to be squished by the stocky gray tom. Squirrelpelt padded over next to Cindercloud and turned to watch as the two selected apprentices trotted into the middle of the clearing. Tigerpaw circled Emberpaw. He looked at a passing butterfly, drawing Emberpaw's attention to it. Suddenly Tigerpaw charged at the she-cat and pounced. Catching her off guard, he drug her to the ground and pinned her.
         “Ha! Gotcha.” He meowed triumphantly, removing his paw from her shoulder.
         “That wasn't fair!” Emberpaw spat, gathering herself up and giving her chest a few quick licks. “I wasn't ready.”
         “In a real battle, the enemy won't wait for you to be ready.” Cindercloud stepped in between them and continued, “However, the enemy probably wouldn't distract you with butterflies, either.” She smiled as all four apprentices giggled.
         “Now try it again, but this time, correctly. Tigerpaw.” Sandstripe shot a fake glare in his direction and everyone laughed again.

         After sunhigh the apprentices were allowed to go hunt for themselves when they completed battle training. They took their time hunting and enjoyed their freedom. After having their fill back at camp, they settled down to share tongues in cool of the evening. Tigerpaw padded over and sat next to Emberpaw, who had just finished a mouse. She purred. Now is the time. Tigerpaw thought to himself. I can tell her now, no one else is around. This is perfect.
         “Um, Emberpaw?” He began nervously, his eyes on his paws.
         “Oh, worried about the gathering? It's okay. We're all going! You'll be fine. I know you're shy, but you're not as shy as Hazelpaw. You can do this!” Emberpaw smiled warmly at him.
         What? No! He spat to himself. “Uh... Thanks, Emberpaw.” He was silent after that. Why doesn't she get it! I'm too shy to bring this up now... It'll have to wait. Again.
         Emberpaw laid her tail on Tigerpaw's flank. She was excited about the gathering, but she had something else on her mind. Should I tell him now? Yes, I think I will. “Tigerpaw?” She glanced at him and saw that he was already looking at her. This gave her courage. “I just wanted to say--”
         “Time to go!” Oakstar called.
         Mousedung!! Oakstar was rounding up the cats that were going to the gathering! No time now, we have to leave. Maybe tomorrow... Emberpaw got to her feet and followed her clan leader through the thorn tunnel.
         Soon they arrived at the gathering. Cats from every clan filled the clearing with the four giant trees that represented each clan, with a large rock in the middle. The four leaders would soon leap up on the rock and report the last moon of events. Usually each age group would break apart into their own groups, so the four apprentices padded over to the area of other young cats to socialize before the meeting.
         Emberpaw was laughing and chatting with her clanmates as she walked over to meet other apprentices. She glanced over to the group and stopped in her tracks. Her heart skipped a beat. There, in the middle, sat a black tom on a rock. He was elevated at least a rabbitlength above the others. His unusual reddish-orange markings stood out in the moonlight. He was tall and muscular, and his voice carried over to her. His tone was musical, yet demanded attention with its power. The words he uttered reached her ears, but she did not comprehend what he said. She was frozen to the spot she stood. The others had already joined the batch of young ones, but she couldn't move. Time seemed to stop as he met her gaze. The handsome tom ceased to speak and simply stared at her, an unreadable expression on his orange face. Then, he smiled at her. A lovely smile that melted her heart. She sheepishly smiled back at this great tom.
         “Hey, come over here!” It was him. He was beckoning her with his tail, and she felt that there was no other place she was meant to be. She approached him and sat next to the rock, wrapping her tail over her ashen paws.
         He jumped down from the rock, eyes only for her. He ignored the other apprentices' complaints about not hearing the end of the story. “Hi.” He only spoke one word, but his eyes said much more. He looked her over from ear to tail tip, and smiled again, the moonlight reflecting off his teeth. “I'm Darkpaw.”
         Darkpaw...oh, Starclan. Give me the right words to say so I don't embarrass myself! She looked him the in eye and replied, “Hey, I'm Emberpaw.” She quickly looked at the ground.
         “What a pretty name. Your brown eyes are very unique. I've never seen any like them.” He leaned in closer, “I've never seen anyone like you.” He whispered, his breath tickling her ear fur.
         She looked up. “I... Thank you.” She blushed and whispered back, “I think your green eyes are stunning and mysterious.” Great Starclan! Why did I say that?!
         His stare seemed to intensify. “Mysterious, you say? Maybe you can.. unlock what I hold inside.” He glanced at the others. “Hey, everyone! This is Emberpaw!” Darkpaw started to walk away, but turned to her again. He began to say something but stopped himself and continued to stroll toward everyone else.
         Emberpaw met several more apprentices, but their names did not register in her mind. Her thoughts were on Darkpaw. Even as Tigerpaw prodded her to alert her that the meeting was about to begin, she still found it hard to concentrate on her surroundings.
         Reedstar initiated the session of sharing news. “Greetings, cats of all clans. I would like to start by acknowledging our new apprentices. Darkpaw, Silverpaw, and Troutpaw!” Many cats chanted their names; welcoming them. Their voices merged into one big mess in Emberpaw's brain, as she focused only on a single word the Riverclan leader had spoken. Darkpaw.