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Curled around Laurel, Linnet lifted her head and opened her jaws in a yawn. "What do you mean getting away?" Carefully, she crawled out of her nest, trying not to wake the sleeping kit walked up beside Foxy just to catch the tips of Tigerpaw and Mousepaw's tails slipping into the pines.

Rowan twitched, his paws churning in his sleep as he dreamed of chasing a hare through the tall grass in the clearing. His ears flicked as Foxy and Linnet spoke, but he did not stir, still lost in his dream of hunting.

Linnet hoped Foxy was right and it wasn't that the young cats got scared off by Boulderfur's weird ritual thing last night. "Maybe.." She turned and jabbed Rowan in the side, attempting to wake him up.

Rowan snorted as he shot up, his eyes blurry from sleep. "What is it?" He yawned as he slowly got to his paws and crouched in a long stretch.

Rowan's eyes widened with surprise. The couldn't be leaving, Boulderfur had just given them a great honor! "We have to bring them back!" He cried as he tried to push his way out of the den.

Linnet put her paw up, stopping Rowan in his tracks. "Hold on," she meowed. "Maybe we should give them the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they are just hunting."

"What if they're not?" Rowan hissed as he flicked his tail back and forth, shooting the she-cat a glare. How could those two be so dishonorable to cats that told them they would help them?

Pondering for a moment, Linnet flicked her tail in the direction that Mousepaw and Tigerpaw had disappeared. "Well give them some time." She stepped out of the den and glanced skywards, taking note of the clouds. "It doesn't look like it'll rain anytime soon, so their scent will be easy to follow if we have to go find them."

"Maybe.." Rowan mumbled, staring in the direction of the pines. He was a bit disappointed; he thought he was going to get to teach Tigerpaw all the cool stuff he knew. Well, it wasn't really that cool after all, but he was still looking forward to being a mentor, whatever that meant. "We should go hunt too." He suggested, flicking his tail. "And maybe get some new bracken for Boulderfur's nest." As he commented, he glanced to the old tom's den and noticed the gray lump of fur still dozing, seemingly unaware of the commotion the three of them had just made.

Rowan trotted off with Foxy and Linnet behind him, muttering something to himself as he went. He sniffed slightly, catching the apprentice's scent here and there. He wanted to follow but Linnet was right, they'd come back on their own. ..Right? Whiskers twitching, he made his way toward the clearing, maybe there'd be a hare there just like in his dream.

Boulderfur was sprawled in the middle of camp, dozing in a ray of sunlight that slitted through the trees. He was halfway through a story that he was telling Laurelkit when he heard the two apprentices return. As he went to greet them, Boulderfur heard 'twolegs' come out of Mousepaw's mouth. His eyes narrowed and he jumped to his paws. "You've done what!?" His voice boomed around the clearing, startling Laurelkit out of her fur and his fur bristled out, making him look twice his normal size. "You can't eat kittypet food and expect to be warriors!" He hissed.

Boulderfur looked clearly offended. "You can't live with a paw in both worlds," He growled. "To eat that.. Kittypet slop is saying you want to be a kittypet!" Lashing his tail back and forth, he continued; "Being a kittypet means you're soft, you don't hunt for your own food and you can't go where you want." The old tom squinted his eyes. "Being a warrior," he paused. "Means you're free."

"Good." Boulderfur gave a curt not, his tone stern. "Anyone else that want's to eat that horrid kittypet food had best speak up now." He turned, eyeing the rest of the cats, Foxy in particular.

Rowan flicked his tail as he listened. He was glad the two brothers had decided to stay. He wondered what kittypet food actually tasted like, but by Boulderfur's reaction, he assumed it tasted something fowl. He shook his head and held his ground as Boulderfur spoke.

Linnet frowned. Was it really such a big deal; a cat should be able to do what they wanted, right? Either way, she'd never been a kittypet and never planned on becoming one; she liked the feeling of being able to hunt as she pleased, without relying on a weird, hairless creature. She too shook her head, sitting with her tail resting over her paws. "We're staying with you, Boulderfur."

Boulderfur stared, hardly put off by Foxy's harsh tone. He shook his head. "Clan life is hard," he mewed. "You've been a kittypet for a lot longer, I'm just concerned you won't adjust the same as the others." He was blunt, but he believed what he said. "If you can learn to hunt and fight and take care of your Clan, then you'll earn a warrior name too."

Boulderfur held Foxy's gaze for what seemed like an eternity. Then, he relaxed his fur as his eyes softened and he dipped his head with a purr. "That's the commitment I was looking for." He padded towards Foxy and puffed out his chest slightly. "And with that, from this moment on until you earn your warrior name, you shall be known as Fox." He then touched his nose to the top of the she-cat's head.