Lionpaw shared a look with Reedpaw who stood next to him. He wasn't exactly sure why Frostpaw had wanted them to tag along while she went to talk to her mentor, but he wasn't going to decline. They weren't old enough to have their warrior assessments yet, but maybe the pressure of three pairs of eyes would get something out of the somewhat elusive warrior? Or maybe the silvery apprentice was planning on asking her about what had happened at the Gathering? He had no idea. It wasn't really worth the effort to question it anyway.

The black she-cats whiskers twitched at the ever blunt nature of her apprentice, but she gave a nod. "I spoke to her about it this morning actually. We would have done it sooner but Dawnstar was busy setting up the alliance with FireClan." The tip of her tail tapped lightly on the sandy ground, "Your assessment will be tomorrow at sunrise," her eyes flicked to the other two apprentices, "I'll let you know what it is tomorrow before we start."

A grin crossed Lionpaw's face as he looked towards Frostpaw. He knew how long she'd been waiting for her assessment and even if he was itching to be a warrior himself he was still happy for the silver tabby. He looked back to Nightwater with a curious expression in his amber eyes. "So is anything really going to change with this whole alliance thing?" He had only heard what his clanmates who had attended the Gathering had said which was, admittedly, not much.

"Not to my knowledge. We're keeping out territory and all that, but we can share prey and herbs with FireClan freely now as well as cross their borders without trouble." Nightwater shrugged, "It's a change to be sure and some of the other clans believe it's a violation of the Warrior Code, but I don't see a problem with it."

"Isn't the code from StarClan though? Does that mean we're not listening to them anymore?" Reedpaw's quieter voice piped up from where she stood next to Lionpaw. She was always quieter when she spoke to the warriors than anyone else.

Nightwater's green eyes widened slightly at the apprentice, "I don't think that's the case," she responded hastily, "But that might be a better question for Embersky," she paused, "Or better to just not mention it at all." She pushed herself to her paws. "I'm sure Dawnstar has thought this through," though her voice sounded somewhat unsure. Her eyes shifted to Frostpaw, "I'll see you bright and early for your assessment," she told the she-cat before padding off to join Otterfang by the fresh kill pile.

"Well that was reassuring," Lionpaw muttered as he watched the older warrior walk away.

At Frostpaw's sidelong glance Lionpaw cocked his head curiously at her. He had no idea what it was that she was thinking, but his amber eyes widened as she responded to him and then gave her best try at a joke. He laughed brightly at the attempt as Reedpaw's whiskers quivered with amusement. "I'm not fat, I'm just fluffy and there's nothing I can do about that." He was bigger than all of the other apprentices, including his own brother, which did make it a little bit crowded, but it wasn't his fault. He just grew fast.

"Well maybe you should check on some of that fluff. It feels a little bit solid," Reedpaw poked him in the side with a paw, her voice teasing. Her own silver and white coat was sleek and well-groomed; showing off the muscles that had already been built in the couple moons she had been training.

Lionpaw rolled his eyes at the two she-cats as his attention turned back to Frostpaw and her suggestion on going to see Embersky. His brow furrowed slightly, but Frostpaw usually had good ideas so he just gave her a nod. "Alright. If anyone is going to know anything it'll probably be him." Or Dawnstar and Barricudashade but the likelihood of being able to talk to the leader or the deputy was much slimmer than their medicine cat.

They all padded towards the back corner of the camp, nearby the leader's den and the tumble of rocks that were used to make announcements. The medicine den was built partially into the driftwood wall, stacked and woven together with seaweed that draped down across the entrance; providing anyone inside with privacy and shade. Lionpaw shared a look with Reedpaw before sticking his head into the den and peering around. The beds that were set up in the front of the den were mercifully empty since they hadn't been in any fights lately and the weather had been kind to them so far. He could see the small opening in the back that led into the area where he was sure that Embersky and Albatrosspaw slept along with the herb store.

He went to pull his head out and tell the other two that it didn't seem like either medicine cats were in when he saw the dark ginger head of Embersky peer through the gap with a few herbs in his jaws. His green eyes widened slightly at the three apprentices he could see and he set the herbs down on the ground before quickly padding over. "Hello you three. Is something wrong?"

"Um, not physically but I think Frostpaw had a question?" He said slowly; looking to the silver tabby curiously.

Lionpaw shuffled backwards, out of the way enough that Frostpaw could step up and talk to the medicine cat. She was the one who wanted to come over here after all. Even if he didn't really understand the exact reason that they had wandered over here. Sure Embersky could give them answers, but he thought he had heard some rule that the medicine cats couldn't talk about the dreams, or whatever they had, to anyone but the leader.

He watched Embersky curiously as Frostpaw, true to form, went about asking her question in the most blunt manner possible. He saw the ginger tom's eyes blink in faint confusion as he was suddenly hit with this question by three apprentices, but he let out a sigh and stepped backward; waving his tail to usher them all inside the den.

Once they were all settled down in the front half of the medicine den Embersky looked to all three of them. "I can't tell you anything specific, since those kinds of discussions are reserved for medicine cats and their leaders alone," he could see the faint look of suspicion in Reedpaw and disappointment from Lionpaw so he continued on, "I can tell you that StarClan has sent no signs, to anyone as far as I'm aware, that this allegiance is not something they want."

Lionpaw perked up a bit as he remembered something that had happened at the Gathering the previous night, "Oh yeah! When Dawnstar made the announcement Spiderstar and Coyotestar got super angry. They started saying that StarClan wouldn't agree and all that, but the moon continued to shine. Not even a single cloud showed up." His tail waved excitedly as he was the only one there, aside from Embersky, that had been at the Gathering to see it actually happen. "That means that they don't really care right? Since even though the leaders were fighting they didn't try to stop it?"

The medicine cat's whiskers twitched faintly in amusement at the outburst, "I suppose you could say that. It's difficult to know what exactly StarClan wants without omens or a prophecy, but like I said, they haven't made any indications of their displeasure." His green eyes flicked to Frostpaw, "Does that answer your question?"

“Of course Frostpaw,” Embersky pushed himself back to his paws as he retrieved the herbs he’d dropped before slipping back into the rear of the cave. Presumably to put them where they belonged, but honestly what the medicine cat did in his free time had always been a bit of a mystery. Came with being the only cat able to converse with StarClan and really speak with Dawnstar about clan secrets.

The two other apprentices looked to Embersky and then to each other as they gave the medicine cat a respectful dip of the head before he slipped away. They stood to turn and follow after the flick of Frostpaw’s tail.

Lionpaw shrugged his broad shoulders as Frostpaw spoke. “I guess not.” He didn’t really know all that much about how StarClan worked beyond what Cranesong told him and overhearing the warriors. The main thing he knew they did was prevent fights at the Gatherings but they didn’t do that. He knew they were supposed to watch out for all four clans, but if they hadn’t said anything to Embersky then were they really? He didn’t know.

“Hey that’d be pretty cool,” he grinned at the silver apprentice, “I like snails.” Their shells were fun shapes and he had always liked batting them around after it rained when he was a kit. He maybe felt a little bad after he'd learned that there was a little creature inside the shell, but he wasn't like he'd really hurt them.

He picked up a big enough fish that they could all share and moved a short ways away so that they could eat. “It’ll be kind of weird, but it might also be fun right? We’ve got friends in FireClan and now we don’t have to wait until the Gathering to talk to them.”

Lionpaw gave the other two apprentices a broad grin as Frostpaw mentioned being able to talk to both Duskpaw and Amberpaw. He liked the two spunky she-cats, even if Amberpaw could be a bit of a killjoy at times. He went to continue the conversation when he heard the familiar voice of his brother calling out to him and sighed. He loved Scorchpaw, he really did, but the other tom could be a real pompous pain in the tail. That was on a good day.

He just let Frostpaw deal with his brother for the moment, but fought back a huff as his attention turned to them. He and Reedpaw had been out doing battle training all morning and he had seen Frostpaw get back. Still he wanted to respect the fact that Frostpaw needed time to prepare for her warrior assessment the next morning. "Yeah, alright, we'll come." He stood and shook the sand out of his golden pelt before waving his tail for Reedpaw as well.

As the next morning dawned he made sure to be awake when Frostpaw got up so he could wish her good luck before passing back out. He was awoken again by the familiar yowl of Dawnstar from the top of the tumble of stones that the leader's den was under. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join beneath the Tallstones for a clan meeting!"

Her voice was clear and Lionpaw woke up the other two before scrambling out of the den. He could see Nightwater sitting next to the stones, looking proud, and most of the clan already gathered underneath as the sun reflected off of Dawnstar's calico pelt. His pelt was fluffed with excitement despite the fact that this wasn't even his own warrior ceremony. He knew Frostpaw had been waiting for this for ages and he was happy for his friend. At least he thought they were friends, he hoped they were.

Dawnstar didn't need any preamble. She stepped forward on the stone and looked down to where Nightwater sat. At the black she-cat's nod she turned to look at the clan. "Frostpaw, please step forward." As the silver tabby did Dawnstar looked up towards the sun as it crept higher in the sky, "I, Dawnstar, leader of Breezeclan 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." She paused as the words rang out, "Frostpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend you clan, even at the cost of your own life?"

A smile crossed her muzzle at the 'I do', "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Frostpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Frostwhisker. StarClan honors your skill and determination and we welcome you as a full warrior of Breezeclan." As the cheers of Frostwhisker's name began Dawnstar jumped down from the stones to rest her muzzle on the other she cat's head. "Join me in my den after your vigil. I have a special assignment for you." Her voice was quiet so only Frostwhisker could hear before she stepped back to join in the cheers.

Lionpaw projected his voice as loud as he could before he bounded over to Frostwhisker, with Reedpaw shortly behind, to bump his head against her shoulder with a bright grin, "Congratulations!"

Lionpaw's tail waved happily in the air as he returned her grin with a broad one of his own. "I hope mine will go that well." He didn't think Frostwhisker was allowed to talk about what she did during her assessment, but he'd heard that they usually involved hunting. He was terrible at hunting unless it was fishing. He always ended up being too loud or his paws shifted weird in the sand and made him mess up his jump. He hadn't been an apprentice for more than a moon, but he still felt like he should be doing better.

That wasn't what he needed to think about right now though, he was celebrating with his friend. He bumped his brother with his hip as the other tom snarked behind him. "You're just jealous. We'll be in the warriors den soon enough." He hoped anyway. He turned his head back to Frostwhisker, "Well we'll let you get to your warrior duties. I need to go find Cranesong." He turned and bounded away to go find his mentor.

Reedpaw watched the other tom go before sending Frostwhisker a rye grin, "Thanks for leaving me stuck with the boys," her tone was teasing as she flicked the silver tabby in the shoulder with her tail. "I'll see you later." She slipped her way through the dispersing crowd to find Goldensight.


She wasn't sure if Whitestar was fully on board with her idea, but Dawnstar didn't plan on asking for permission again. She figured exchanging warriors between clans would strengthen the ties between them. It would also bring those in FireClan to be loyal to her and vice versa, which would further accelerate their plans. She just had to convince the white tom to replace his deputy with one of his own kin. That would be more of a struggle.

Honestly she hadn't expected the exchange to happen so soon, but Embersky had mentioned Frostwhisker coming ato the medicine den and asking some rather...concerning questions. She started at the back wall of her den under the Tallstones, contemplating whether or not she had made the right decision. She had thought about forcing her to remain Frostpaw, but she had already given Nightwater the go ahead and there was no need to punish the mentor for the actions of the apprentice. No this was the best solution.

She waited until she heard the paw steps of Frostwhisker and turned her face up into a welcoming smile, "Come in Frostwhisker." She turned to face the entrance to her den and curled her tail around her paws. "I know it might come as a surprise, me picking you for this and not one of the experienced warriors, but we think that it would be best to send a new warrior." She knew that the 'we' didn't need to be explained, her and her children had discussed it. "We're starting an exchange program with FireClan, swapping warriors to learn about the other clan and facilitate cooperation between us." Her whiskers twitched, "And you're the lucky first."

The shock on Frostwhisker’s face was the kind of reaction she’d expected. Part of her was curious to see how much the she-cat would be able to cover, how willing she was to listen. Dawnstar had little use for warriors who weren’t completely loyal to her and her ideas. The lashing tail did not go unnoticed but the restraint was surprising from the blunt warrior. She’d seemed bold enough talking to her son, but now she was holding her tongue.

The question was expected and Dawnstar already had an answer crafted. “Many of our warriors, unfortunately, are very set in their ways. You’re new to being a warrior and are, I should hope, more willing to learn all you can.” Her whiskers twitched, though with what emotion it was difficult to tell, “You’ve grown up watching our warriors and know our ways, yet you’re still young enough to learn from our closest allies.”

One of Whitestar’s warriors would be coming to her as well, and whoever the tom chose would be welcomed. She wouldn’t trust them though. Part of why she wanted Frostwhisker there was to keep an eye on the going’s on in the camp. Listen for dissent and any rumors.

She smiled at the tabby, “I want you to take this opportunity to learn what you can. However, I also want you to listen. Gossip, rumors, discontent, anything that catches your attention.” She knew Frostwhisker was good at listening and it would be helpful to put those skills to use. “You’re a competent young cat Frostwhisker and I wouldn’t choose you if I didn’t think you were up to it. I’ll give you a couple days to settle your thoughts before you go to FireClan.” She waved her tail in dismissal, “Oh, and try not to mention the more…clandestine nature of your assignment,” with that said she turned her attention back to her constantly twisting thoughts with no further room for arguement.

It had been a long day and a long night as he was out training with Cranesong and then he had to come back and keep working with the elders. Not that he minded hanging out with Trouteye, Stonestep, and Dappleflower. They could be kinda grumpy, but at least Trouteye always liked to tell stories about when they were apprentices and kits, before even Dawnstar was leader. It was hard for Lionpaw to comprehend a point so many moons ago, but it was always interesting to him.

He had missed Frostwhisker's presence in the apprentices den. Now he was just stuck with his brother and Reedpaw, who wasn't so interested in cuddling. Not that Frostwhisker had been, but just having four breathing bodies in the den had always made it feel more full. He had seen her heading into Dawnstar's den the morning after her vigil though and was waiting with curious thoughts for when he could ask her what their leader wanted.

Reedpaw was crouched next to him at the fresh kill pile, munching away on some shorebird that she had caught in the hunting patrol that morning. He hadn't gone out yet, he was waiting for Cranesong to either take him with her on border patrol or go do battle training. He hoped it was battle training, that he was good at. Border patrol was ok, so long as they didn't go hunting. He sucked at that.

Once he saw the familiar tabby pad out of the leader's den he sprung to his paws, amber eyes gleaming. "Hey, Frostwhisker!" He padded up to her, plumed tail waving, "What'd Dawnstar want to see you about? Must've been something important if she dragged you in there right after you've been awake all night." He knew she was probably heading to the warrior's den to rest, but he couldn't resist asking.

A snort of amusement pulled itself free as Stormstrike heard the hiss from his brother. He had been up for a bit at this point figuring out who would go on patrol, and it didn't seem like Smokestep was particularly happy to be chosen. He wanted to get the other tom out and about though given that his niece and nephews were all doing well. They were only a little more than a quarter moon old, but getting bigger and more explorative every day. It made him happy to see Smokestep settling into fatherhood so well.

He pushed his way back out of the warrior's den and scanned around for the cats that he'd want on patrol. He wanted to go out himself with Oakpaw and he planned on dragging his brother out with him. He'd still need someone extra though, and his eyes snagged on the black and white pelt of the leader's brother.

"Hawkshadow!" He padded over to the tom who perked up at his approach, "You want to come on dawn patrol with me? We need to check the Breezeclan border. Coyotestar doesn't trust that they won't try to start something." He was sure that all of them were still reeling from what happened at the last Gathering, but he was doing his best to keep everything moving. He was fairly young for deputy, and he knew that Coyotestar relied on him for that. He didn't want to let her down.

The larger tom pushed himself to his paws with a grunt, "Sure. When do we leave?"

"As soon as Smokestep and Oakpaw join us and I assign the other patrols." He heard Sorrelwing call out to Smokestep so he at least knew the tom was awake and moving. He padded to the apprentice den on the far side of the clearing that made up camp and stuck his head in to wake up Oakpaw, and hopefully the other apprentices along with her. StarClan knew they would sleep as long as they could get away with.

He was pleased to see everyone up and moving, calling to the clan to gather round so he could give out assignments. "Crowstorm, I want you to take Barkpaw, Stoatleap, and Dewfall hunting." Once he saw them get moving he checked who was left, "Tornsnout, Sorrelwing, and Duskstripe you take the Darkclan border." They weren't having issues with Spiderstar so three warriors should be fine there. "I'm taking Oakpaw, Smokestep, and Hawkshadow with me to the Breezeclan border."

Everyone else was free to go about their business as they saw fit until he assigned the sun high patrols, and he nodded to himself as the clan collected to do as he said. There was a flash of pride and pleasure through him at being followed so easily by his clanmates. He padded, along with Hawkshadow, to the entrance of camp and waited for Smokestep and Oakpaw to join them so they could get on their way.

Stormstrike's whiskers twitched in faint amusement as he watched his apprentice lay into his brother. She was a bit of a spitfire at times that was certain, but he enjoyed mentoring Oakpaw. She was a challenge and a fun young cat to be around. He was just glad that he didn't get stuck with Barkpaw. The tom meant well, but he was a stubborn as the sun was set to rise. He had to wonder what Smokestep's kits would be like when they were apprentices, it was amusing to think about. He would love to mentor one of them, but he wasn't sure Coyotestar would allow it.

He returned his brother's greeting with a faint grin and Hawkshadow nodded his broad head in response. "Alright, let's go." He turned and pushed his way through the woven fronds and gorse that made up the entrance to camp and lifted his head to wind that raced across the open fields. "We're checking the BreezeClan border. Coyotestar wants to make sure they don't get any ideas."

They kept a decent pace and once they crested over one of the rises of the plains he looked down to where the grasses gave way to the beach. If he squinted hard enough he almost thought he could see BreezeClan's camp nestled away in the rocks and driftwood that made up the shore. How they could stand to live so close to the ocean was beyond him. He was pretty sure some of them even dove into the rough waters to try and fish. The thought made him shudder.

As they stepped over and down the hill he turned to Oakpaw, "What can you smell on the wind?" They were on patrol and he wanted to keep her senses sharp.

With the two other cats on patrol distracted Hawkshadow turned to Smokestep. His large paws cut through the grass with ease as he kept up with the others. "Congrats on all three kits opening their eyes," his green eyes were warm, "Always great to have new little ones in the camp. Won't be long before they're tumbling over and under everyone's paws." A purr rumbled his chest, but he kept his eyes trained towards the beach as the approached the border.

The smell of BreezeClan was strong on the wind and given the flat land they were on it was easy to see the border patrol on the opposite side. Stormstrike had hoped that they would miss the other clans dawn patrol and he bit back a sigh as he realized that they were probably going to have an encounter. He just hoped that it would be a civil one.