When she returned to the camp, Yellowfang spotted the other apprentice, Cinderpaw, tucking into the fresh-kill pile with his mentor, Nutwhisker. When Stumpypaw started making his way over to join them, Brokentail stood in front of him, blocking him.
“You can eat when you’ve caught enough prey to feed the elders,” he snapped.
Stumpypaw just nodded unhappily and trailed off toward the camp entrance. Yellowfang thought he looked tired out.
The Clan deputy was sitting in a patch of sunlight near the warriors’ den with Amberleaf and Finchflight, discussing the best places to hunt.
“Cloudpelt, may I talk to you in private?” Yellowfang asked as she padded up.
“Sure.” Cloudpelt rose to his paws and drew her away a couple of fox-lengths so no cat could overhear them. “What is it?”
Yellowfang mustered her courage, knowing that not even a medicine cat should question the way a mentor chose to deal with his apprentice. “It’s Brokentail,” she began. “I’m not happy about his mentoring. Have you seen how he is with Stumpypaw?”
She could see from the flicker in Cloudpelt’s eyes that he knew what she was talking about. “All mentors train in different ways,” he meowed. “It’s not my place to interfere.”
“But some cat has to do something,” Yellowfang insisted. “You can’t imagine what I saw earlier today…” She told Cloudpelt the story of Stumpypaw hanging from the tree branch.
“Was Stumpypaw injured at all?” Cloudpelt asked.
“No,” Yellowfang admitted. “But he could have been!”
“In that case, I can’t get involved—and I wouldn’t want to,” Cloudpelt told her. “Look, Yellowfang, I understand your concern for every member of the Clan, but it’s been a long time since you were a warrior. Perhaps you’ve forgotten how tough it can be for apprentices!”
There was nothing more that Yellowfang could say. Dipping her head coldly to the deputy, she turned and stalked back to her own den.
“Look, I brought you a vole,” Runningpaw announced as she slipped between the boulders. “It’s really fresh.”
“Thanks, Runningpaw.” Yellowfang flopped down beside the fresh-kill and took a bite.
“Nightpelt said you had an argument with Brokentail,” Runningpaw chirped. He sniffed and then continued, “If you don’t mind me saying so, you ought to be careful what you say to that cat. He’s bad news.”
Yellowfang blinked at him, grateful for his concern. “You know,” she mewed, “it’s time you stopped being my apprentice.”
For a heartbeat Runningpaw looked horrified, until he understood what she was really saying. “You mean I can become a full medicine cat? Wow!”
“You more than deserve it,” Yellowfang told him. “I am lucky to have had you as my apprentice.”
“And I’m lucky to have had you as a mentor.”
Yellowfang snorted with amusement. “Even if I haven’t taught you how to cure your sniff yet!”
Yellowfang and Runningpaw, with the other medicine cats, sat in the dark cave of the Moonstone as they waited for the moon to shine through the hole in the roof.
“I have sad news,” Featherwhisker reported. “Goosefeather has gone to join StarClan.”
“I’m sorry,” Brambleberry meowed, with her ready sympathy. “How do you feel, being ThunderClan’s only medicine cat?”
“I’m coping,” Featherwhisker replied. “There’s a very promising new arrival called Spottedkit. She’s already taking an interest in my herbs, so if StarClan approves I’ll make her my apprentice.”
“I have some good news, too,” Yellowfang put in. “Tonight I’m going to make Runningpaw a full medicine cat.”
All the other medicine cats chimed in with their congratulations. In the faint starshine, Yellowfang could see that Runningpaw looked happily embarrassed.
“You’re so lucky!” Barkpaw purred.
“It will be your turn soon,” Runningpaw told him.
As he spoke the moon floated into sight, and the Moonstone woke into life, its icy radiance filling the cavern. Yellowfang rose to her paws and beckoned to Runningpaw to join her beside the shining stone. He was shivering with excitement as he padded up to her.
Yellowfang took a breath, remembering the words from her own ceremony. “I, Yellowfang, medicine cat of ShadowClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the way of a medicine cat, and with your help he will serve his Clan for many moons. Runningpaw,” she meowed, “do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan, and to protect all cats equally, even at the cost of your life?”
“I do,” Runningpaw replied in an awed whisper.
