She Stays. Get Over It. (Ceremony)

[Splash]

Flamestar had decided to this much earlier then she had originally planned. As far as she was concerned, she was doing the newest member of her clan a favor. She was learning fast and would grow into the name over the next moon, but, it would put a temporary slow on the fact of all the cruelty her clanmates showed to her. Nodding to herself, she found a high vantage point. "MidnightClan, gather here! Today we welcome a new warrior." She yowled, a simple statement to get attention. After a respectable number of cats had gathered, she continued. "Sparkles, please step forward." Flamestar meowed. I hope she gets rid of that ridiculous name.

[Deleted]

Hollyfire rolled her eyes from where she sat by the fresh kill pile. Not every cat disapproved of newcomers, but Hollyfire wasn't one of those cats. Maybe it would be different if Midnightclan had only taken in one or two of these strange cats, but ever since a few moons ago they have had several kittypets, loners, and random kits join the clan for no apparent reason other than the leader allowed them to. She felt a growl rise in her throat. At least she could understand the taking in of kits who were lost or abandoned, but grown kittypets and loners? Midnightclan was going to become overrun by cats who didn't understand clan life, just like Leafclan had been, and already their clan was crowded as it was. What was seriously running through Flamestar's mind right now, to decide to let more of them in?! From what Hollyfire had seen, Sparkles or whatever her name was had done next to nothing to prove herself here. They didn't even know if she would stay here, let alone fight or hunt. And here I thought warrior's ceremonies were for cats who had trained and proved themselves worthy! Hmph! If that's the case then maybe I should just be named leader or deputy for no apparent reason other than being here! Oh- but I bet Flamestar wouldn't like that! Funny how things change when the roles are turned around. She flicked her tail and stalked toward the camp entrance.

Crowpaw looked like he was sulking over by the apprentice's den and his red eyes shot a glare over at Sprinkles. Why in Starclan was the kittypet who just joined getting named a warrior, when he should be named one first?! HE was the one training for it after all, and though he had just started, the kittypet hadn't had any training at all that he had seen! I bet she didn't even have to clean out smelly dens or search the elders for ticks! Why is it that I have to train hard, and she is just given the title when she didn't do anything! She just walked right in and was made a warrior! She doesn't even know how to hunt or fight I bet! She should have been made an apprentice first if she wanted to become a warrior! He lashed his dark tail. This was so unfair, and he was sure that his grandmother would have never done this to him or the other apprentices, not without making sure the kittypet had proved herself and learned first.

Sparkspirit padded over from the warriors den, a calm look on his expression. He understood that making Sprinkles a warrior might help her fit into the clan more while she learned their ways, though he wasn’t quite sure whether he agreed with that decision or not. He liked the thought of Sprinkles being able to fit in, but already he knew that cats would still treat her differently. Now that she was being made a warrior without being trained or having proven herself, he knew that there would be several cats who were going to be against her, possibly even worse than before. Was Flamestar really making the best decision in this case? This wasn’t like accepting abandoned kits- this was accepting a kittypet/loner who knew nothing about their ways, and had already been used to her old ways. It was more difficult to train an older cat the ways of the clan quickly than training a kit to eventually become a warrior. He didn’t know what the best answer was, and it could be that there was none. He just hoped that cats kept their senses and wouldn’t give Sprinkles, or their new leader, more trouble.

Darkstream hung at the edge of the group silently as she watched, not because she was against the ceremony but because she wasn't one to hang in the center of crowds and was usually off by herself. She didn't mind that Sprinkles was here but wondered if she would find it easy to adjust to clan life. She wasn't sure if the she-cat understood that there was so much to it and how rough the battles could be. She herself wasn't one for battles, and preferred to stick only to hunting unless she absolutely had to.

[Midnight]

Shadowgaze and Nightgaze sat side-by-side outside the nursery. Nightgaze had come to visit Shadowgaze and play with the she-cat's kits; which definitely wasn't something Nightgaze would've done, but since Nightgaze was very close to her niece, Shadowgaze, she decided she could take the time off to do it. The two black-furred felines now glared and hissed and whispered to each other about Sparkles.

She might not have liked him, despite being related to him, but Nightgaze let out a call to Flamestar, "What about Crowpaw and his littermates? Have you seen how hard they've worked?" Nightgaze wasn't about to stand by while her apprentice was getting overshadowed by, of all things, a kittypet. The warrior padded forward, standing now beside her apprentice, and shot a challenging look at the leader.


Crescentheart was settled cozily by the warriors' den, worry flashing in her eyes. What if the kittypet couldn't handle her new Clanmates, who couldn't seem to stand her being around already? "Give her a chance!" The warrior yowled, "She just got here! You all can't seriously despise her so much when she hasn't done anything!"

"Crescentheart is right!" Dawnheart meowed in agreement with her younger sister, "We shouldn't be automatically against the kittypet right from the start!"

"It's true." Duskheart agreed calmly, quieter than his sisters. He was a very calm tom full of wisdom, but he was slightly nervous about sharing his opinions here, for an argument may be started, and that's not what the long-furred gray tabby wanted.

Cloudheart noticed Darkstream at the edge of the group and silently headed for her, sitting next to her and mewing quietly, "What are your views?" He himself didn't mind the she-cat being in the Clan at all, but he wouldn't say that if Darkstream were against it. Cloudheart normally wasn't that scared of sharing his opinions, so why did it matter when it was Darkstream he was talking to?

[misshazel]

"MidnightClan, gather here! Today we welcome a new warrior."
Sprinkles ears perked up and her head swiveled around to look at the others that were gathering near Flamestar. "Sparkles, please step forward.
Sprinkles curled her tail in amusement at Flamestar who continued to address her as sparkles, well close enough she though. Her fur prickled as she stepped lightly around the other cats so she could stand in front of Flamestar. Cats hissed as she walked by and moved away from her. Sprinkles had no idea what was going on but what ever it was the others didn't like it. Yowls of protest rang out as she stood in front of Flamestar with her head held high staring in to the challenging green eyes of Flamestar.

[Deleted]

Hollyfire had been about to walk out but she stopped and whipped around with her tortoiseshell neck fur bristling as she heard the replies. She of course couldn’t help herself but to voice her thoughts now, especially after hearing different sides. “I don’t agree with anymore outside cats being let in here at all. We have too many cats as it is, and it is Leafbare! Outsiders aren’t supposed to be let into clan life at all, but if we absolutely MUST have them waltzing about Midnightclan because our leader said so, then shouldn’t we at least train them first before giving them the title of warrior?! Honestly, that is why we have the apprentice role in the first place! And to you cats who are all yowling about giving her a chance; how are we doing that by just giving her the title and declaring her a warrior? We aren’t! She isn’t going to try to do anything if we just give her the title she is supposed to earn! If you ask me, the kittypet needs to either earn the title of warrior herself and prove to us that she is worth something here, or she needs to go back to her former life instead. We all proved ourselves as warriors, so why should a kittypet not have to first?! Or, does Flamestar think a kittypet wouldn’t need any training and is better than all of us put together? She isn't special just because she is an outsider! This is an insult to every cat in the clan!” The she-cat hissed and flicked her ears back as she glared in Sprinkle’s direction. Better than me? Better than us?! I think not. She huffed. This is exactly why clans don’t take in outsiders. None of these issues would have even come up if we just stuck by the code and chased them off our territory. At least the kits we took in have become apprentices and are being trained. Why should this she-cat be any different?

Briarkit was listening with round eyes. “If Sparkles doesn’t have to train, then does that mean I can be a warrior too?” She squeaked inquisitively. Of course her and all of the other kits had been taught that to be a warrior, you had to be an apprentice first and train. She didn’t understand how things worked in this case, when an outside cat was involved. How would she know how to hunt and fight? Who would teach her how to patrol the territory and what the territory looked like? Her mother had told her that no cat could be a warrior without training.

Crowpaw was surprised to see his mentor speak out against their leader and stand beside him. They hadn’t exactly been getting along to say the least, but he was grateful that she was backing him up in this and speaking out against the kittypet. The black tom rose his head at her words and glared at the leader, feeling bolder to voice his opinion now that he knew he wasn’t the only one who disagreed. “Yeah! She's just a kittypet!” He stated with a lash of his tail, his back fur bristling slightly.

Darkstream looked uncertain as she glanced at Cloudheart. “Well, I don’t think we should dislike her or not accept her because she is an outsider, and I don’t, but- I’m not sure about making her a warrior yet either. I’m just worried that she might not know what she is getting into, and if she is a warrior now then the other warriors will all expect that she will be just like them in abilities, if not better. I don’t know much about her personally, so I cannot say if she is ready and has all of the skills she would need yet.” She replied. It would be awful if the she-cat had no training at all or previous skills and was expected to keep up with the other warriors, or suddenly be thrown into battle. She didn’t think Flamestar would do that, but who knew what would happen on a border patrol or if they encountered hostile cats in the territory? She hoped that Sprinkles would be ready, and had had previous practice with hunting and fighting, otherwise it wouldn’t be good.

[Midnight]

"What's more of a warrior than a name and title?" Nightgaze asked, glaring at Hollyfire. "Proving ourselves is really just another way of saying 'I'm showing off and making myself look better'. Being a warrior is given a name and title in front of a bunch of other cats. It really means nothing more. I don't think she should be in this Clan at all, warrior or not. Apprentices work hard for something they could give to themselves as loners or rogues, but then where would they be? We all make a big deal out of this whole thing, but really, we're nothing more than a giant group of cats with 'meaningful' names." She may have been contradicting herself a bit, and Nightgaze knew that, but it was how she truly felt.

"Nightgaze... is right." Crescentheart admitted.

"No! Nightgaze is wrong!" Dawnheart disagreed with her sisters, "Warriors have honor, a code, and so much more! We have more than just a title or name, and we're much more than just a big group of cats!" The ginger tabby she-cat continued on, but Cloudheart wasn't listening.

"I agree. I went from here, my birth Clan, to StormClan, and I came back.. It's not something I'm proud of, and I know a lot of cats look down on me for it, so I could only imagine how she must feel about the whole thing." Cloudheart said. "I say we let her join, but as an apprentice."

[misshazel]

The yowls of cats around her was overwhelming, they liked her, they didn't like her. Sprinkles had to admit to herself she was disappointed, how could she have expected them to greet her with high tails? Every cat around her was bristling. If one wanted to attack her, what would make the others not as well. She would have not chance against them, not with all their formal training. Even the younger cats looked bigger then her. Her fur bristled and she kneaded the ground self consciously. With round eyes she looked up at Flamestar, "I agree with them, I can catch a mouse but it takes a couple tries and my first battle I fought then fled." Sprinkles flicked her tail in frustration, admitting this would only cause them to dislike her further. "but I want to learn, I'm dedicated and I pick up on things fast." Sprinkles forced herself to look into the eyes of some of the cats that were hissing at her. "I dont deserve a warrior name like the others, I want to earn it." Sprinkles bowed her head, she hoped she had not over stepped her boundaries.

[Splash]

"Quiet!" Flamestar yowled, trying to bring order. "Everyone, please! She will not be a warrior!" Taking a deep breath and cringing for a second. Then something clicked - this had worked out wonderfully. Though she hadn't originally intended it that way, it had. It had worked out when Sparkles - or Sprinkles, because Flamestar really didn't bother to remember the name - had requested to be trained with the others. Even if MidnightClan didn't see it, Flamestar had. That was something you couldn't train into a cat, something that didn't come a birth right. That was honesty and even more. This young cat was, according to her clan, a worthless kittypet. but yet it must have taken so much - to ask for a rank lesser then the one you were offered. She would be the oldest apprentice in the clan, but she wanted to fight for it, to be like them. It was something more then she could have asked for. Flamestar then realized she was smiling slightly and quickly made her face stone. She'd have to tell Sparkles - which Flamestar decided sounded better then 'Sprinkles' though she didn't know which was right - after the ceremony.

"From this day forth, until you earn a warrior name, you shall be called Gingerpaw." Flamestar meowed. Mentor. Flamestar inwardly frowned. The poor cat would get enough torment, she didn't need to be insulted while she trained. She didn't even know her clanmates well enough to find one that she would trust to train a kittypet. She would trust many with all nine of her lives, but, they still didn't like kittypets. "I will be your mentor." She meowed, hopping down from her perch and touching noses with the cat.