A Girl of a Warrior

7 | The Apprentice Den | 7

     "This," Seapaw said with a flourish of her tail, "Is our apprentice den. Which is obviously better than that other Clans'!" she exclaimed, her nose scrunching up. 

     "I mean, not that I've ever seen their apprentice dens, but-" she caught Duskelle's bewildered gaze and laughed. "You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you? I should probably explain this. We apprentices sleep in here. So, apprentice basically means that we're younger than the warriors, and we each get one warrior assigned to be our mentor. They teach us hunting and stuff. You become an apprentice when you're six moons old."

    Duskelle slowly nodded, processing the information. She wondered if Minnowstar would also assign her a mentor, or if the leader would do something else due to Duskelle's...special case.

    "You can also tell who's an apprentice or a kit or a warrior by their name. Kit names end with 'kit', apprentice names end with 'paw', and warrior names can end with anything. That reminds me - what was your name again?"

    "Duskelle."

    "Oh, yeah! So Duskall, you're gonna be an apprentice! This is the apprentice den, and where you'll be sleeping for the rest of your apprenticeship."

    Duskelle looked at the place Seapaw had brought her to properly for the first time. It seemed that the stone from Minnowstar's sleeping place - no, den - extended over the ground all the way to this place and rose slightly. The land around it was covered in lush grass. The ground dipped at the same point the stone rose, making a perfect little hole. It seemed to extend farther inside, but Duskelle couldn't see through the darkness very well, at least not as well as a cat. Moss also grew inside, making the ground comfy and soft. Overall, it was a perfect place to sleep and rest. 

    "So. It looks like you've had a long day," said Seapaw, amber eyes glittering with unspilled gossip. "So, um, yeah, I guess you can go sleep or something in one of the nests. Pick one without a scent." 

     "Okay, thank you!" Duskelle called as she walked away. Duskelle padded inside and found multiple areas where the moss was brought together, with some feathers added. She found one and curled up on it. 

     Then, Duskelle could truly think. And then, she realized just what she had just done. How could she live here? With these cats? 

    They would all hate her for being a creature instead of a cat. Change? Ha, how could a creature ever change into a cat? River would've called it "biologically impossible" which was a term she'd tried to explain to Duskelle multiple times without success, and Duskelle wouldn't have understood but she'd still have laughed and then River would laugh too and they'd both sit there contentedly.

    At the thought of River, a sliver of pain sliced through her mind. River. She was no more now. There was only this...shell, this remnant...Riverdawn. She had to mourn the loss of River's spirit, somehow, anyhow. She thought about River's sarcasm, her kindness, her understanding of Duskelle's frustration when she couldn't communicate with the creatures. That was gone now. Gone forever. 

     But she couldn't think about that now. She had to think about her situation. She couldn't go back to the creatures. They were probably very mad at her for leaving. And she couldn't survive there without anybody to talk to. She'd go insane. 

     But could she stay here? She understood everyone. But she would never be of any use, and Minnowstar would throw her out soon. She had to make plans for what she would do when she got kicked out. Until then, she would stay here.

     After all, she had nowhere else and no one else to go to.