A new day was dawning brilliantly in the eastern sky, coloring the normally blue canvas with splashes of pink and orange. The first hints of golden light had just begun to spill over into what cats called the main camp and home of Dawn Clan when their current leader, Ashstar, stepped out of his den in the leader's tree, The larger of two such trees in the mountain clearing. He rubbed his lanky body against The edge of the opening that had been formed generations ago, scratching an itch beneath is tawny pelt before enjoying a limb shaking stretch, briefly digging his front claws into the wood of the tree limb beneath him. Yawn splitting his muzzle for a moment before the Tom shook out his fur, Ashstar slid into a seated position as his golden gaze swept over camp, watching the first of his clan mates stir.

A tiny spot of orange and white was streaking across the open space in front of the nursery cave, obviously attempting to make a break for a bit of adventure, but A beautiful black and silver she cat was in hot pursuit of the escapee. Ashstar released a [I]mmrow[/I] of amusement at the sight of his mate Eagleleap chasing down the excitable, and rather slippery, kit Poppykit. Nearby, a sleek light brown and white tom was just stepping out of the warrior's den, releasing a wide yawn before going after an itch behind one of his ears. Poppykit streaked beneath Sandpelt's Front legs as the deputy of the clan was doing this, startling him to release a soft yowl.

"oh, sorry Sandpelt! Poppykit! Get back here you naughty kit!" Eagleleap's clear voice rang out, Clearly exasperated.

Another warrior, clearly having just been woken up, poked her head out of the den next to Sandpelt, Obviously curious and a little annoyed. When she spotted the bicolored kit scampering away with her leader's mate right on her tail, Sunspot couldn't help but give a heavy sigh before joining in the Chase, her long fur streaming out behind her.

Giving his head a brief shake, whiskers twitching with amusement, Ashstar maneuvered his way down from the leader's tree, landing nimbly on the ground before making his way over to his deputy. "that kit is going to make an excellent warrior one day." He meowed, drawing the attention of the light brown tom.

"She most certainly has the energy for it." Sandpelt sighed, giving his long tail several flicks.

"have you organized a Don patrol yet?" Ashstar then went on to ask, sliding into a seated position and curling his tail around his paws.

"no, not yet. I was just about to win Poppykit... Well, you saw." The deputy responded, giving his chest fur a few quick licks with his embarrassment at having reacted so strongly.

Ashstar tilted his head dismissively, excepting the fact that every cat got startled at one point or another. That was just how life was. "I'd like to join in on the patrol today. I could use the walk."

"Count me in then too." A slightly tired voice chimed in, Eagleleap trotting around the edge of the warrior's den A moment later. Behind her, Sunspot appeared, a resigned looking Poppykit dangling from her jaws. "I could use the time away from camp so that I'm not tempted to take this little scoundrel backwards through the barrier." She continued, giving the little kit in question a sharp look.

"That should be just fine. I was going to ask you to come on patrol anyway." Sandpelt responded, nodding his head at Eagleleap. "I'll just round up a few more cats and we can head out." He then said, looking back into the warrior's den before ducking back inside.

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Paws Quickly flitting Around the stock shelves at the back of the medicine cat's tree, Dapplefern Happily sorted through the herbs, Making mental notes of which needed to be replenished soon. Flicking Her long tail, The medicine cat apprentice Scooped out a few dead leaves And added them to the small pile that she would throw out when she was finished. She hadn't been sleeping well lately, troubled by disturbing dreams, and cleaning and organizing the medicine cat Hollow was something that she instinctively started attending too. Another night of waking up well before dawn saw her cleaning once again, paws always moving.

Dapplefern had known from a young age that she wanted to be a medicine cat and had been absolutely thrilled when she had been chosen to become an apprentice to Icerain. She hadn't been under her tutelage for long, but had learned so much already. She highly respected the older medicine cat, Working very hard to prove herself worthy of becoming a medicine cat herself.

 The sound of some cat yowling floated to her only a minute later, causing the she cat's ears to instinctively  perk up.She left her work reluctantly, Quickly trotting over to the opening in the tree and looked out, surprised to see the clearing outside already awash in early morning sunlight. Blinking her light blue eyes a few times, she hunted around for the cause of the disturbance and spotted the clan deputy talking with The leader, a couple of other cats chasing after a kit that had obviously escaped from the nursery. Poppykit, If she wasn't mistaken. The Little she cat had been quite the pawful since she had recovered from being abandoned in the forest. No one knew who her mother was or what clan she might have come from, but had been discovered by one of the warrior patrols hidden in a cluster of poppy flowers on the edge of the territory. It had already been a half moon since then...

[I]How Time flies...[/I] dapplefern thought quietly to herself as she watched Sunspot manage to catch the runaway in her jaws, the little kit meowing in protest. Her gaze then shifted back to Ashstar and Sandpelt. [I] I wonder if the Don patrol has been put together yet... It would be a marvelous opportunity to get some new herbs...[/I] she noted as she looked back over at the pile of dead leaves she had swept together. Deciding that it probably would be a better idea to ask her mentor if she could go rather than volunteering herself, Dapplefern began climbing up the side of the tree, heading for the next branch up where her and Icerain's nests were.

"Icerain? Are you awake yet?"she called out softly as she got to the opening, poking her head inside.