Dapplepelt

Dapplepelt was born as Dapplekit to Fernshine and Sandthorn, alongside her littermates Beekit, Elmkit, and Goldenkit. She became an apprentice as Dapplepaw, and received Flameheart as a mentor.

She earned her warrior name, Dapplepelt, and spent most of her time hunting and practising her fighting. She showed no interest in having a mate. When Goldenpetal left the clan to join DawnClan, Dapplepelt was sad to say goodbye to her only sister, and developed a deep hatred of DawnClan for taking her sister away from her.

Dapplepelt became close with Thrushnose, though both of them always viewed their relationship as purely platonic.

Thrushnose and Dapplepelt
Dapplepelt sat quietly beside the elders' den, her leg wrapped around her bottom paws and her head tilted upwards towards the sun. She had just got back from leading a border patrol and was enjoying her free moments basking in the autumn heat. She closed her eyes and let the smell of the fresh air fill her nose, purring. She inhaled deeply again, a new smell filling her nose. Dapplepelt sighed and flicked her tail.

"Come on, then," she mewed sharply. "What is it, Thrushnose?" With a purr, Thrushnose sat himself beside the golden she-cat.

"Always a friendly greeting with you, isn't it?" he meowed sarcastically. "I came to join your peace over here, actually. I didn't realise you were here, but the elders' den is the best spot for basking."

"Peace from what?" Dappletail asked, ignoring the rest of his reply.

"That Tigerpaw has an awful lot of energy." Dapplepelt turned to look at him and saw a slight gleam in his eye. She purred, and bumped his back.

"You enjoy it."

"Oh, of course I do. But sometimes the apprentices make me feel like an elder."

"I take it you won't be having kits of your own, then."

"No, definitely not. Not kits, not a mate. I'm not interested." Dapplepelt flicked the back of his head with her tail.

"I'm not interested either, mouse-brain!"

"Not at all? Not in any mate?" Thrushnose asked curiously. "I don't mean to pry," he added hastily. "It's just that you're one of the most sought-out cats in the clan. A good fighter, a good hunter, organised, serious, and rather pretty, Dapplepelt." Dapplepelt flicked her tail in embarrassment.

"What's with all these compliments?" she demanded. "And to answer your question: no, I don't want a mate. Not at all." Thrushnose stayed silent for a moment before he replied.

"Is this about your sister?" he asked softly. Daplepelt pawed at the dirt angrily. "I'll take that as my answer. Not to be insensitive, Dapplepelt, but you really need to let that go. Your sister is a grown cat, and she can make her own decisions."

"DawnClan stole her from us!" Dapplepelt hissed, whipping her head round to narrow her eyes at Thrushnose. "Harestar never should have let her join the clan!"

"What, just abandon her? When she's carrying his son's kits? Not likely, that. It's not DawnClan's fault your sister fell in love, Dapplepelt."

"Well I don't want to fall in love," Dapplepelt declared. "I'd rather be a loyal cat to my clan." Thrushnose purred, and gave Dapplepelt a quick, unexpected lick behind her ear. "What in StarClan's name was that?"

"You were brilliant on the patrol today. You always are."

Dapplepelt gave her paw a quick, embarrassed lick. “Really, Thrushnose, for a cat who doesn’t want a mate, you’re being very affectionate.”

“Well, I do like you Dapplepelt. As a friend, not as a mate. We’re very alike, you and I, you’re simply an improved version of me.”

“What? That’s not true at all!” Thrushnose purred.

“No need for protests, Dapplepelt. Accept the compliments.” Dapplepelt reluctantly said nothing in reply, though she wanted desperately to tell him to leave her alone to her own thoughts rather than trouble her with undeserving praise. “I do want to ask you something,” he meowed nonchalantly. Dapplepelt turned to him and narrowed her eyes.

“What?”

“If Flameheart were to become leader, would you want to be his deputy?” The question was not at all what Dapplepelt had been expecting; she recoiled in surprise, lost for words and certainly lost for an answer.

“Well, he would never consider me for the position,” she mewed eventually. And it was true, she told herself. She was a young, ultimately inexperienced warrior, and she had barely even received her first apprentice. Surely he would never even think about making her a deputy. “I’m inexperienced,” she continued. “No cat would want me as deputy.” Thrushnose looked at her thoughtfully.

“I think not, Dapplepelt. And I think Flameheart would disagree with you.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed him following you around all the time.” Dapplepelt shifted uncomfortably on her paws. Of course she had noticed – how could she not? The deputy had been rather annoying the past moon or so, ever since the battle for the fishing territory. He tried to join her on patrols as often as possible, and treated her like an apprentice, asking her what she could smell and hear. Mindful that he was her deputy, she never snapped at him, though she rather wanted to bat him across the head for being so patronising. It didn’t help that he was keeping her so busy, either. Before she had received Seapaw as an apprentice, she had been in any patrol that was currently out, barely enough time to catch her breath between them. It didn’t help that she had been asked to lead half of them. Now that she had Seapaw, Dappletail had been guiltily using her apprentice as an excuse to not go on quite so many patrols, but she still found herself leading a patrol at least once every two days.

“I have,” Dapplepelt answered simply. “What has that got to do with anything?” Thrushnose scoffed.

“Oh, come on now, Dapplepelt. You’re observant and you’re smart. You must know that he is sussing you out for a deputy position one day.”

“No he’s not, and no, I’m neither observant nor smart.” Thrushnose turned away from Dapplepelt, flicking his tail.

“Have you been sleeping well recently?” he asked. Dapplepelt was surprised by the sudden irrelevant question.

“What cat has been?” she retorted. “How is a cat meant to get any sleep when Stormblaze and Elmheart are constantly either together or talking about each other? Stormblaze has not stopped talking about that tom since she supposedly received the consent of Daisyheart to become mates with him!”

“What’s this about Daisyheart?”

“Oh, honestly Thrushnose, don’t you pay attention to anything?” she bristled. “I heard Stormblaze muttering fervently about it to poor Foxpelt just a day ago! Supposedly Daisyheart visited her in a dream and told her she was alright with her mating with Elmheart.”

“Riveting,” Thrushnose meowed drily. “Love is in the air, I suppose,” he continued, a slight mischievous gleam in his eyes.

“Don’t get me started,” Dapplepelt groaned. “That brother of yours, Acornwhisker, is quite something! First he pined after Goldenpetal and now he’s pining after Stormblaze! Surely he realises he hasn’t got a chance?”

“How do you know about his… well, attempts at love?”

“Well, before Goldenpetal left, I always saw Acornwhisker trying to intercept her and talk to her, or asking Flameheart to join patrols she was on. Now that she’s gone, he’s moved on quickly, the furball! Now he’s always trying to get Leopardclaw alone, even though Leopardclaw is as sharp as a thorn.” Thrushnose paused and purred.

“Not observant, huh?” he meowed, clearly satisfied with himself. Dapplepelt’s ears pricked up and her fur bristled.

“What are you playing at?” she demanded.

“Just humour me. If you had to organise a patrol right now, how would you do it?” Dappletail paused to think for a moment.

"Well, I led a patrol with Seapaw this morning and brought Foxpelt and Acornwhisker, so Foxpelt and Acornwhisker could probably each lead a hunting patrol now – they will have had long enough for a rest by now. They can each bring a warrior-apprentice pair with them, maybe you and Tigerpaw and Stormblaze and Daisypaw. Dumpling can lead a sun-high patrol and take Birchfrost, Thistlepaw, and... Beewhisper." Dapplepelt nodded to herself. "Yes, his sense of smell has been heightened since his ear was injured – he's fast becoming the best tracker in the clan. I would take my apprentice for some training now and then lead the moon-down patrol. I could bring Snowblossom, Flameheart, and Mistycloud. Meanwhile, Leopardclaw could take Fernshine and Sandthorn for a final hunting patrol."

"Brilliant, Dapplepelt." Dapplepelt flicked her ears back in embarrassment.

"Well, you told me to. So I did."

"I told you, Dapplepelt, you may be young, but you're sharp as a warrior's claw. You'd be a perfect cat for the job." Dapplepelt forced herself to purr, though she felt uncomfortable at Thrushnose's excessive high praise.

"Thank you," she meowed quietly. "I would be honoured to serve my clan as deputy if Flameheart would have me." Thrushnose nodded, tilting his head to the side slightly.

"There's just one thing, Dapplepelt." She stared at him questioningly. "The way you acted before, about having a mate..." Dapplepelt narrowed her eyes, wondering exactly where Thrushnose was going with this. "You can't act like that."

"Like what?" Dapplepelt snapped, bristling. "You mean it's bad for me to not want a mate?" Thrushnose shook his head, his eyes gleaming, though he looked less amused and more solemn than he had before.

"No, I've expressed myself poorly. I mean to refer to your resentment for DawnClan – you must let it rest."

"DawnClan stole my sister!"

"No, they didn't. If you want to be mad at someone, be mad at Owlflight alone, although he doesn't deserve your anger. But DawnClan deserves your anger much less. If Acornwhisker mated with a she-cat from FieldClan, and she were expecting his kits and asked to join MapleClan, would you turn her away?"

"No..." Dapplepelt admitted reluctantly.

"And that's exactly what DawnClan did. They didn't demand her for her kits – Goldenpetal chose to join them to be with her mate and to raise her kits loyal to one clan. It was her decision. Be angry with her for breaking the warrior code in the first place if you want to be angry. I understand you're upset to have lost your sister, it must be hard. I can't imagine what I would do without Acornwhisker." Dapplepelt turned to face the tom who had a reputation for being cold and icy, confused at his sudden shrewdness and empathy. Was she really that obvious, or was there more to this tom than met the eye?

"Thrushnose, why are you here right now?" Dapplepelt blurted out bluntly. "Gossip tells me that you're not particularly interested in she-cats, but if you are... in-interested in me, I mean..." Dappletail trailed off, flicking her tail in embarrassment and guilt.

"If this is an offer, then I'm flattered, but I'm not looking for a mate. My brother might be besotted with she-cats, but I'm rather disinterested. Like I've said, Dapplepelt, I just like you as a friend. We trained together for a while, didn't we? And you bring me on patrols with you often. I'd like if we could spend more time together, as friends."

"Well, for a cat who's disinterested, you're certainly laying on the compliments!" Dapplepelt fired back sharply, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. Thrushnose's expression of amusement had returned. "Besides," Dapplepelt continued decidedly. "Surely you must have some ambition of becoming deputy? You're one of the best fighters in the clan!" Thrushnose firmly shook his head.

"No, not at all, and my father knows that. I've told him I have no interest in being deputy. I'm happy as I am. I enjoy being a loyal and fierce warrior, but I could never have a whole clan's worth of problems resting on my shoulders. I don't care for all the gossip and the kits and the mates."

"Neither do I, though."

"Perhaps not," Thrushnose agreed. "But you care enough to listen to it." Dapplepelt could tell that Thrushnose had finished his piece. The two cats sat side by side in silence, both staring into the bright blue sky, not a speck of grey in it. Privately, Dapplepelt thought that Thrushnose might be quite right. She was indeed fond of the ginger tom, and they were rather complementary. They would make good friends for each other. Her other thoughts drifted off as she wondered what a future as MapleClan's deputy might be like.

Apprentice Ceremony
Firestar: Dapplekit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Dapplepaw. Your mentor will be Flameheart. I hope Flameheart will pass down all he knows on to you. Flameheart, you are ready to take on another apprentice. You have done excellent work with Dumpling's training, and you have shown yourself to be modest and considerate. You will be the mentor of Dapplepaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to Dapplepaw.

Warrior Ceremony
Firestar: I, Firestar, leader of MapleClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as a warrior in their turn. Dapplepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?

Dapplepaw: I do.

Firestar: Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Dapplepaw, from this moment on you will be known as Dapplepelt. StarClan honours your strategy and dedication, and we welcome you as a full warrior of MapleClan.