Ok this took sooo long to come out I'm so sorry everyone. I hope you still know this book exists. Also 9LOT is at 10k???? That's so crazy. All y'all are amazing. Also if you like this book, go check out AngelTheWildWolf's The Whispering Storm, it's very good!

Silentpaw trotted though ThunderClan territory, a rabbit hanging from her jaws. Her neck ached from carrying it, but she couldn't be more excited. This was her first big catch ever! She had also just recently returned to training after straining her paw. "Bloodfang is going to be so impressed," Littlepaw said, trotting next to her with a plump mouse in her mouth. The two apprentices had been sent off by their mentors together. After all, ThunderClan territory was safe. They had long since chased out any enemies. Silentpaw didn't realize they were near ShadowClan territory until she was right at the border.

"Oops. I didn't smell it behind this mouse," Littlepaw said.

"Same," Silentpaw mumbled around her rabbit. Silentpaw squinted, seeing two shapes darting towards them. "Uh-oh. Are we in trouble?" she asked. If we are, I can take them!

"I don't think so," Littlepaw replied. "We're friends with ShadowClan. Oh, look, they're apprentices like us!"

A big, oak-red tom and a black tom with a white splash on his chest skidded to a stop in front of the two she-cats. "Hey there!" the oak-red tom yowled. "It's ThunderClan! I'm Oakpaw, that's Sterlingpaw," he announced. Sterlingpaw dipped his head in greeting. "Are you cats apprentices too?"

"Yep! I'm Littlepaw, I think I've seen you two at a Gathering before," she meowed.

"I'm Silentpaw," Silentpaw said. Her paws tingled with excitement. This is my first conversation with a ShadowClan cat!

"Nice to meet you," Sterlingpaw said. His voice was quiet compared to Oakpaw.

"Yeah, you've probably seen us. I'll be a warrior soon," Oakpaw meowed, puffing out his chest. Sterlingpaw rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, Oakpaw, you say that all the time. We know."

"Silentpaw and I aren't even halfway done our apprenticeship yet," Littlepaw purred. Well, maybe you aren't. I bet I could become a warrior sooner. I'm training with Froststar, after all! Silentpaw wanted to blurt that out, but knew she shouldn't.

"Hey, nice catch!" Oakpaw praised, looking at the rabbit and mouse at their paws.

"Thanks," Littlepaw and Silentpaw said in unison. Oakpaw dropped into a crouch.

"Sterlingpaw and I were hunting too. We though we caught a toad, turns out it was a mushroom! Embarrassing. I hope our mentors didn't see. I'm almost a warrior!" Silentpaw locked eyes with Sterlingpaw, and they both rolled their eyes in a good-humored way.

"I wonder if we'll get to fight any battles soon, ShadowClan and ThunderClan together! We chased out all our enemies, we could beat anyone! RiverClan, WindClan, and SkyClan never had a chance! I wonder if it'll be rogues. Or dogs. Ooh, I'll rip their flea-ridden pelts to shreds!" Oakpaw growled, ripping up the grass with his thorn-sharp claws.

Silentpaw, Littlepaw, and Sterlingpaw all laughed. Oakpaw stood up, licking his chest fur to mask his embarrassment. "Hey! What are you doing on ThunderClan territory?" came a yowl. Silentpaw and Littlepaw yelped and jumped aside as a red-brown blur streaked past them. Sterlingpaw and Oakpaw were bowled over at the same time, hitting the ground with a thump.

Silentpaw gasped. "Bloodfang!" she yowled, but her mentor ignored her. The ThunderClan cat slashed Oakpaw's nose, causing him to yowl in pain. She landed a back-kick in Sterlingpaw's head, as he tried to scramble to his paws and attack. "Bloodfang stop!" Silentpaw yowled.

"No, Bloodfang!" Littlepaw yowled as well.

They don't deserve to be hurt! They didn't do anything wrong! Silentpaw thought. Without really thinking about it, Silentpaw leaped onto Bloodfang's back. The she-cat expertly rolled over, crushing Silentpaw. She struggled weakly against the solid cat. Silentpaw gasped as the weight was removed, as Bloodfang yanked her to her paws.

"What are you doing? They got away!" Bloodfang spat, jerking her head towards the two shapes receding in the distance.

"Good!" Silentpaw snapped. "They didn't do anything wrong! They didn't cross the border! Why did you attack them?" Bloodfang paused, then sat down, licking her paw stained with Oakpaw's blood.

"Well. I guess I just haven't fought another clan cat in awhile," she said.

"That's your justification?" Silentpaw almost screeched.

"Well, it's true. If you were as bloodthirsty as me, you'd understand," Bloodfang snapped. Silentpaw flinched, as if Bloodfang had struck her.

"I am bloodthirsty," Silentpaw murmured. "I want to go on the twolegplace raids! But I don't want to hurt ShadowClan, they're on our side." She glanced at Littlepaw, but the blue she-cat was silently staring at her paws.

Bloodfang sighed loudly. "I see where you're coming from." She glanced at Silentpaw's rabbit. "Nice catch. Let's take it back to camp. We're going to spar with Galepaw now. Whoever loses has to clean the elder's bedding." Silentpaw groaned inwardly. Looks like that will be me. She immediately felt defensive, at her own thoughts. It's not my fault Galepaw is better. He's trained longer. Once I'm a warrior, I'll be better than him!

"I'll meet you back at camp," Bloodfang said, glancing at ShadowClan territory again before stalking off. Silentpaw sighed and picked up her rabbit. Littlepaw picked up her mouse and trotted to her side.

"Good luck fighting Galepaw. He's tough to beat," Littlepaw mumbled around the mouse. Silentpaw's fur bristled.

"He's not that hard to beat," she replied defensively, struggling not to drop the rabbit. It was growing heavy. Littlepaw eyed her.

"You don't have to do that, you know. Just because you haven't beaten Galepaw yet doesn't mean I see you as weak or anything. In fact, I think you're a great fighter," Littlepaw said. Silentpaw glanced at Littlepaw, surprised.

"T-Thanks," she responded, stuttering a bit.

"And if you want, I have a nice pile of burrs if you want to use them on Galepaw," she said, eyes narrowing mischievously.

Silentpaw gaped, causing her to drop the rabbit. "So you're the one behind all those mystery burrs in our nests! Wow, I would have never guessed it was you!"

"That's the point," Littlepaw laughed. "Who would have thought it was sweet little Littlepaw?" She suddenly grew serious. "But listen. If I do this with you, you have to actually talk to me. You know, about what's going on. How you feel and stuff. You can't just snap at me. That's how friendships work," she said. Silentpaw picked up her rabbit and they kept walking.

Friendship.... Littlepaw wants to be friends? Like, for real friends? "Okay," Silentpaw replied after a little hesitation. "It's just... I want to be really good. The best warrior, maybe. I want to make Froststar proud I'm in his Clan."

Littlepaw nodded. "That's reasonable. I understand. Just be patient, and follow all of Bloodfang's commands. You have one of the best mentors."

"It's hard to be patient," Silentpaw grumbled. Talking about her feelings was making her feel uncomfortable, so she decided to chance the subject. "So, how is it having Lilysplash as a mentor?"

Littlepaw rolled her eyes. "Nothing is ever good enough for Lilysplash. I'm always too slow, too weak, too small, too stupid. She even called me "not a real cat" one time when she was really angry, because I was born with a stump of a tail." Silentpaw's eyes widened.

"And her words don't bother you?"

"Nah. They did at first, but I learned to just roll with it. I know Lilysplash doesn't really mean it. Not everyone is a great teacher when they start. She just doesn't know how to motivate me. But I am motivated, I want to do well, but Lilysplash doesn't understand that learning takes time," Littlepaw answered. While they chatted, Silentpaw hadn't realized how much time had passed. They were at the ThunderClan camp entrance. Littlepaw stopped.

"Look, Silentpaw.... having a friend, it helps fill the void. You're not the only one without parents. Dirtclaw, Mothshine, Doveheart, Maplelight, Ferretfur, Havenpelt, Shimmerpaw, Graypaw, Swallowpaw, Hazelpaw, and I all don't have parents. That's why we've befriended each other. Bloodfang, Marshfrog, and Fiercefire too, for that matter, but they've been warriors for awhile now and it doesn't seem to bother them. But we all know what it's like."

Silentpaw's heart twisted painfully, and she hated the feeling. It made her feel weak. Her mother was gone, and nobody knew who her father was. She had hoped, that when she became an apprentice, she'd find out who her father was. That she'd feel a click between her and one of the ThunderClan toms, or one would step up to claim her. But it never happened.

********

Silentpaw fell to the ground with a thump, and Galepaw yowled in triumph. "Ha! Look who's cleaning the elders' bedding today!"

Silentpaw slowly climbed up, shaking dirt out of her fur. "Good job, Silentpaw," Mistfeather said, earning a glare from Bloodfang.

"I honestly don't understand why you guys put me up against her, I'm always going to win!" Galepaw jeered. Silentpaw hissed, preparing to jump on him. "Ah, don't do that, Silentpaw! Your face and hiss give it away. I'll just smack you down." That only made Silentpaw more angry, but she decided for once to stop and think. He's right... I can't get him now.... but I can get him when he least expects it.

"Time to head back to camp. Good job, both of you. Silentpaw, start right on the bedding when we get back," Bloodfang said. Silentpaw sighed loudly, but didn't protest. She had lost. It was only fair. Bloodfang and Mistfeather lead the way, after them Galepaw, and at the back, Silentpaw. She focused on his swishing tail, imagining herself sinking her claws into it and ripping it right off. Silentpaw kicked a pebble, and Galepaw didn't flinch at the sound. Good. He's not on high alert. I can get him now. Heart pounding, Silentpaw leaped, landing right on his back and sinking her teeth into his neck. Galepaw yowled in shock and pain.

She heard the warriors' gasps of surprise, and the pounding of their paws as they ran back towards them. Galepaw flipped over, but Silentpaw was ready for that. She leaped off his back right before he fell. Galepaw twisted in the dust, scrambling back to his paws. Blood rain down his neck and shoulder, dripping onto the forest floor. Mistfeather reached the two first, and cuffed Silentpaw hard over the ear. It stung, but Silentpaw bit back a hiss of pain.

"Silentpaw! What do you think you're doing?" she cried. Bloodfang was chuckling quietly, and Silentpaw felt a burst of pride. "Really, Bloodfang? Do you seriously condone this behavior?!"

"Galepaw should have been ready, after beating Silentpaw like that. Though Mistfeather, you are right. Silentpaw, don't do that again. Save the fighting for training exercises."

"He's bleeding so much! Galepaw, we're going to Spruceheart right now," Mistfeather said fretfully. Silentpaw made eye contact with Galepaw. She expected to find anger, but instead, she couldn't read his eyes at all. I wonder what he's thinking. Bloodfang held Silentpaw back as Mistfeather and Galepaw went ahead.

"That was a nice move, Silentpaw, though I would rather you beat him in a fair fight. But that move, right there, is very close to one of the kill moves I will be teaching you. Tomorrow, you'll learn it, and I might just see about bringing you on a twolegplace raid tomorrow," Bloodfang purred. "Now get going, you have work to do."

Silentpaw bounced ahead, feeling light as feather despite her hard sparring sessions just moments before. Kill moves? Twolegplace raid? It all seemed too good to be true. Now I really have something to tell Birchpaw and Heatherpaw! Silentpaw slipped into the camp, nodding hello at Roseheart who was basking in the late new-leaf sun. She headed over to the elders' den, padding inside. For once, she wasn't going to mind doing this.

"Oh, hello Silentpaw," Pineshadow murmured, half asleep.

"Finally, someone to do our bedding," Creekwater grunted.

"Hello," Silentpaw replied pleasantly, ripping the old moss away with her claws. She was only a few heartbeats into her work when Galepaw slipped in. Silentpaw couldn't help but hiss. "What are you doing? Come to gloat some more?" Silentpaw hissed. The elders perked up. Elders love gossip and drama.

"Actually, no. I have something I want to talk to you about," he said. His expression said "not here though." Silentpaw sighed.

"I'll be right back, Pineshadow and Creekwater."

"Be quick," Creekwater grunted. Silentpaw followed Galepaw out of the den. He lead her behind the first warriors den. The camp got so full during the beginning of Froststar's leadership, so the Clan had to make two warrior dens. The first one the was nicest, for the oldest warriors. That consisted of Shadeblossom, Roseheart, Robinflight, Mistfeather, Cedarfur, Thrushfeather, Larktalon, Firelily, Crowflight, Oneflower, Lilysplash, Seedpod, Fernclaw, Pebbleleap, Pigeonwing, Silverspark, Bloodfang, and Marshfrog. Plus Fiercefire, who insisted she belonged there considering she was part of the Inner Circle. The second den was filled with the rest of warriors.

"Look, Silentpaw, you have good potential. What you did back there took guts, no one has ever tried that on me before. If you want to know how to really fight, the way I do, meet me at the sandy hollow tonight," Galepaw said.

"Oh, really?" Silentpaw scoffed. "Are you suggesting that you'll teach me how to fight, better than Bloodfang can?" And Froststar, for that matter.

"No, it's not me who'll be teaching you," he said. Silentpaw almost laughed again, but Galepaw's face was serious.

"Who is it, then?" she asked.

"You won't believe me. You'll have to see them for yourself," he replied. Is it possible that Galepaw is being trained by Froststar too? Her gut twisted. She hoped not. She felt special, being the only one Froststar trained. If it was true.

"Okay, this sounds awfully sketchy Galepaw," Silentpaw said, rolling her eyes and getting to her paws. "I'm going back to the elders now."

Galepaw shrugged. "Okay. I don't care if you decide not to come. But I'll be there tonight anyway. I'm still being trained. Just don't mention this to anybody. I'm only offering this to you. For, now at least." The gray tabby then stood up, slipping out from behind the den, tail flicking behind him. Silentpaw watched him go, then followed. Just as she stepped out, the camp entrance rustled and the scent of ShadowClan flooded the camp. A big, russet colored tom stepped into ThunderClan camp. He narrowed his eyes, and bellowed: "Froststar!"