SparkClan Shifts

Chapter 4: A Graduation, Three Welcomes and One Return

"Warmleaf is the new deputy of ThunderClan!" yowled Brickstar across the Clearing.

Sweetpaw glowed with pride. His father was Clan deputy!

Brickstar coughed. "You can talk about this later, but right now, we have another ceremony to perform! Step forward, Sweetpaw!"

Sweetpaw stepped forward, and felt excitement, an unusual for him as he walked toward the Clearing. What was his warrior name going to be? Sweetfire? Sweetheart? Sweetstripe? Brickstar needed new warriors: right now, there were the same amount of warriors and medicine cats! After they had fought off a dog together, SparkClan's new leader had decided he was worthy of becoming a warrior.

"Sweetpaw." Brickfur's gaze was fond as she gazed upon her apprentice. "Your new name will be Sweetpool. StarClan honours you for your strategy, and we welcome you as a new warrior of the Clan."

A bittersweet joy filled Sweetpool's heart. Although this moment brought him happiness, it also made him sad that he wasn't here with his siblings.

"May I go on patrol alone?" Sweetpool asked Brickstar hesitantly.

Realising that he must be missing his siblings, the leader nodded quietly.

I should go on a border patrol, he decided. After all, fighting was what he did best.

As he was passing along the border with neutral territory, he found a ginger and white loner. "May I join your Clan?" she asked. "I will give you my healing skills in exchange."

Sweetpool hesitated. That would mean there would still be the same number of warriors and of medicine cats. But I guess more healers isn't anything bad. "All right," he mewed.

"Thank you," purred the she-cat. "My name is Sandstripe. And I have two kittens."

Sweetpool chuckled inwardly. She could have said she had kittens before being invited into the Clan. She must not have known how much SparkClan needed young cats right now.

The kittens looked rather old, not too far from becoming apprentices. "The striped ginger tomkit is Dream," mewed Sandstripe, "and the speckled brown tomkit is called Brindle."

Sweetpool was happier that he had accepted now that he knew he had accepted kits. Sweetpool returned to the Clan, carrying Brindlekit in his jaws. While carrying the kit, he noticed that he had been born with his two hind legs paralysed.

Soon, the two cats entered the camp.

Brickstar was right in the middle of camp, and as soon as she spotted Sandstripe, she called a Clan meeting.

Sweetpool quickly ran to the Clearing, and gestured for Sandstripe and the kittens to do so as well.

"Sweetpool," mewed the leader, "you seem to have brought back three cats from outside. What do you have to say about them?"

Sweetpool suddenly saw Kasi's eyes light up in interest at Sandstripe. Sweetpool was slightly scared by their intensity. But after all, Kasi was a very strange cat. "Sandstripe told me she would exchange her healing skills for a place in the Clan," he mewed. "I told her she could join us. She also has two kits, who will soon be able to be trained, Brindle and Drea-"

Suddenly, a grey cat with spotted fur burst into the Clearing. "Thri-" Sweetpool suddenly processed who the cat was. "Thriftpaw!" he mewed, running up at her and hugging her. He felt tears swelling in his eyes.

"Do you know where Lightningpaw is?" they asked each other at the same time. They both shook their heads next.

Sweetpool felt happiness swelling in his chest. This was the best day of his life!