"You ready for your tour of the territory?" Fawntail asked Snowpaw as the apprentice returned from grabbing a quick bite to eat. "Sorry we didn't do so earlier, Webfoot wasn't wanting to let you all go until you learned a thing or two on fighting. There's been a fox out there for a few moons and the warriors haven't been able to catch it yet, so we'll have to keep an eye out for it."

Barkpaw's insides jumped with enthusiasm as she was led out of camp by her mentor. The older she-cat padded between the tall grass and bushes and flicked her tail for Barkpaw to listen. The two stopped and in their way and listened to the air around them.

In the air Barkpaw could hear a long, rushing sound. For a few moments, her mind switched back to the night when her mother had been caught in the fire. The flames had sounded almost exactly alike to the sound she was hearing now. But her thoughts were taken back as she felt Fawntail's tail-tip on her shoulder.

"Come along, I'll show you what that sound is." The two padded through the grass and came to the edge of a sheer cliff. Down below, Barkpaw's eyes flickered upon the sight of a high level of water gushing out of a river and into a ravine. She stepped back, frightened by the sight and loud sounds.

Beside her, her new mentor let out a mrroww of amusement and flicked her ear. "That's the waterfall. Don't fall in, or you'll be heading to StarClan sooner than you wish."

Giving one last look to the water, the she-cat scampered off and caught up with her mentor.

Above them, the sky was covered in clouds and the sun was hiding beside the horizon. Barkpaw suddenly realized a peculiar scent wafting in the air as Fawntail led her deeper into the grass. It wasn't too strong, but strong enough for her to tell it was mouse. Fawntail noticed her apprentice and flicked her tail.

"Not until you learn to hunt. Come, we're almost to Outlook rock." The mentor led the way uphill to a tall rock sitting on a ledge. Barkpaw watched as Fawntail leaped on it, then proceeded to taste the air with her tongue. The apprentice jumped up beside her mentor and did the same, not know what they were doing but hoping she was making a good impression on the warrior.

"Let the air be strong as you smell it," Fawntail mewed loudly, though it sounded as a whisper above the cold winds. "Parting your jaws will help you take in the air better and be able to distinguish the smells."

Barkpaw nodded in understanding. "When can we start training?" She asked, curious about learning battle moves.

"Not until tomorrow. The territory has enough in itself for you to learn."

The apprentice lowered her tail to the ground in disappointment, but raised it as the brown she-cat jumped off the rock and flicked her tail for the darker she-cat to follow. The two padded down the slope and ducked their heads to enter camp.

The sky had darkened the clearing, but Barkpaw could make out a couple warriors sitting together outside the den, their heads bent low in deep discussion. Beside the fresh-kill pile, she could make out her sister, Blackpaw, Mudpaw and Jaypaw. The three were sharing a rather large rabbit, and Blackpaw looked up as Barkpaw padded towards them.

"Hi Barkpaw," The striped tom mewed, and Snowpaw looked up at her sister.

The dark brown apprentice nodded. "Who caught it?"

"I did!" Snowpaw's voice bounced with excitement, and stood to her sister's level. "Want to see what Tornear taught me today?"

Barkpaw looked at her sister, whose tail was lying silently on Blackpaw's shoulder, and nodded curiously. "Sure," But her voice betrayed the jealousy hidden in her mind.

Her sister didn't notice, but stood a little farther from the apprentices and crouched low. Using, her hind paws, she forced herself up into the air and flipped back, swiping a leaf above her with her paws. She landed, not with perfect precision though, slipping in the dirt and landing on her jaw.

Mudpaw gave a smirk and flicked in a mocking amusement. "You really do act like a kittypet."

Snowpaw's eyes flicked up in fury. "What?"

The dark brown tom shrugged. "Just saying. Your mother was a kittypet, and you have no idea who your father is, so we can only assume he was a kittypet too."

Her sister stood up, tail flicking furiously. "How dare you! Our father is-"

"Not important, Barkpaw," The voice of Mudpaw's mentor rose up behind her and the apprentices looked to see Webfoot and the other mentors padding up. "Mudpaw, I'm ashamed of you, being so rude to a fellow Clanmate. Barkpaw and Snowpaw are WindClan now, and should be treated as such."

Beside him, Yellowtail and Hollowclaw padded forward and flicked for their apprentices to follow them. Blackpaw glanced back at Snowpaw, but the white she-cat just shrugged, and the tabby let out a sigh and padded after Hollowclaw. Barkpaw watched her sister's eyes follow the tom and let out a long sigh of annoyance.

Sunrises passed, and Barkpaw and Snowpaw had both been initiated into the Clan well. The older cats respected them as fellow Clanmates, and them to the rest of the Clan as well. Mudpaw and Jaypaw had dropped the subject of Snowpaw and Barkpaw's lineage and kept to themselves mostly, except during training times. Blackpaw and Snowpaw grew closer together, but kept themselves apart whenever they needed to work.

Most mornings, Tornear had Snowpaw and him assigned to the Dawn Patrol for 'Extra Practice', as Tornear would tell her. Snowpaw realized as the sunrises passed that the Full Moon would soon be up and she and her sister would be going to their first Gathering.

The thought bounced in her head as Snowpaw padded alongside her mentor and the Dawn Patrol on the morning of the Gathering. Her head pounded with her heartbeat as she thought about it, and her tail flicked with complete energy.

"... Go ahead and catch it." The words of her mentor began to fade back in, and Snowpaw realized he had just asked her to do something. The older tom cocked his head. "You alright Snowpaw?"

The white tabby looked up at her mentor and nodded, still dazed. "Yeah, just tired."

Tornear gave a slight grin. "I know. I remember my first Gathering and how excited I was. I couldn't sleep for an entire quarter moon before."

"But… what if I see my father there?" She mewed softly.

Tornear gave a puzzled look and stopped in front of her, flicking his tail for the patrol to go ahead. "What do you mean? Your father's a kittypet."

Snowpaw searched her mentor's eyes. "But Sasha always told me his name was Tigerstar, leader of ShadowClan."

The mentor was taken aback at this from what Snowpaw could tell, and she cocked her head. "Is that bad?"

"N-no, I just," He glanced around; the rest of the patrol had headed off on their own. "Let's go back to camp."

"But what about the patrol?" Snowpaw asked, confused. "I thought we were going to finish the patrol."

Her mentor glanced down at her as he led her down the path back to camp. "No, I have to tell Tallstar something."

They entered camp again, which was now almost completely empty. Most cats were still asleep, and some were out on early hunting patrols. By the leader's den, Tallstar was basking in the sun, speaking softly with his deputy, Deadfoot. Tornear flicked his ear for Snowpaw to go find her sister, and quickly padded to his leader. The three looked back at Snowpaw, whose pelt was itching with worry, but then Tallstar nodded and they each retreated back into the leader's den.

"Snowpaw?" The white she-cat entered the apprentice's den, awakening her sister. "Why are you back so early?"

"Tornear wanted to speak with Tallstar about something." She mewed softly, curling up into her nest beside her sister. "But it's weird though, because I mentioned Tigerstar to him and he went berserk."

Barkpaw cocked her head. "Why would he do that? I thought Tigerstar was a good cat. That's what Mama always told us."

Snowpaw nodded, but just lowered her head and let out a long, thoughtful sigh.