Jayhaven Chronicles

The next morning was it. The day their futures were decided. Crisp rounded everybody up in the main lobby, the head of each guild standing right before their eyes. Snow, a striking white she-cat with silver eyes, was head of the Scout guild. Rapid thought he saw Hawk giving her goo goo eyes a couple times. Fox, a lean red tom, lead the Providers. Needle, a dark brown she-cat with sliced ears, was the one who taught the Healers. And of course, Claw was there to take the Battlers.

“Now, when the guild leaders call your name, you will join the guild that they called right before, okay?” Crisp shouted. Everyone nodded.

“Now remember to be respectful and cheer for your fellow students.” She finished.

“Providers!” Fox yowled.“Toad, Moon, Birch, Lily, Storm, Ripple, Flight!”

“Not many of them.” Peak hissed to Rapid. “Quite unusual.”

Rapid whispered back with a contented grin. “It seems Birch and Lily failed their test. No way in heck would they want to be Providers, they hate catching prey.”

“Healers!” Needle raised her tail for the chatter to stop. Rapid noticed Peak in a position that almost looked like a prayer, and Rapid stifled a snort of amusement.

“Robin! Beech! Ash! Petal! Willow! Whipper! Cherry! Minnow! Peak!”

Rapid gave Peak a friendly shove and said, “You go show them how it’s done!” Peak laughed with utmost joy and ran to join his group, his lame paw the last thing on his mind.

Now Rapid could fully concentrate on himself. Only Scouts and Battlers left. Here it is, my fate decided-

“Scouts! Hawk, Sand, Apple, Parsley, Wind, Heather, Dark!”

Rapid felt his heart fall to his feet in relief. “Yes!” Rapid applauded the other students, but his mind was on his clear future.

“Battlers! Sedge, Strike, Flame, Raven, Cricket , Dawn, Rapid!”

Thank you, test! Thank you for being kind. Thank you thank you thank you thank you!

Rapid sprinted over to join Claw, his whole body seeming to swell with joy. He wished he could feel like this forever, his destiny bright and shining in front of him.

He stopped next to Claw, who gave him a, “Congratulations!” before going on to the next cat.

Rapid looked around the room, only seeing a few unhappy faces. But then he noticed cats still in the middle of the room, looking at Crisp and the other leaders with confused, scared, and angry eyes.

“Now if you didn’t get into a guild, you will become a Commoner.” Crisp responded to their uncertainty. “You will study only a small part of each guild. You’ll fulfil jobs like building homes and becoming neutral teachers, like me. And you will be given a seat on the council.”

Not a single gaze changed. All the Commoners were still furious, and Rapid felt a tiny ache in his heart for them. That must be horrible. But what can I do? He almost wished he could do something, but Rapid still stood there, his perfect moment dampened by the fact that other students wouldn’t experience the joy he felt.

Claw lead his group away on Crisp’s dismissal, and Rapid tried to raise his spirits again. You have everything you wanted! He told himself.

Rapid felt his gaze flit over to Sedge. This time, I am going to compliment her, and I’ll do it first! He began to trot over to her. He felt very awkward, but he eventually cleared his throat and began to speak. “Congrats. Are you happy?”

Sedge jumped and whipped around. Rapid noticed the same sadness in her eyes he had seen after Hawk had insulted her. “Sorry.” She said thickly. “You just startled me, that’s all.”

“Are you okay?” Rapid asked carefully. “If it’s private-”

“It is.” Sedge interrupted. Her gaze fell to the floor. “Everyone has enough to worry about without worrying about me.”

Rapid felt another wave of negative emotion crash into his wall of happiness. “Well, if you want to talk, I’m here.” Oh, great. I just sounded ridiculous.

But Sedge only smiled. “Thanks. It’s nice to know someone cares a little.”

They continued to follow Claw in silence, and Rapid decided that getting Sedge’s mind off whatever she was sad about was the best approach. “So, what are you looking forward to about being a Battler?”

Sedge shrugged. “Aerial combat, mainly.” She let out a small giggle. “I know this sounds horrible, but I almost hope we get attacked by a bird sometime during school.”

Rapid pretended to be shocked. “Oh, you villain!” he teased. Wait, did I just joke with Sedge? What is this, another dimension?

Sedge laughed. “Alright, nevermind. What are you excited for?”

“Everything.” Rapid replied as they entered their classroom. His breath was taken away as soon as he looked around. The stone walls were draped with the Jayhaven flag, surrounded by weapons of all shapes and sizes. War diaries sat on shelves, while the nests looked to be made out of golden silk. Moss crawled up the sides, but it only made the room seem more official.

Claw spun around. “Now take a seat, and listen carefully.”

Rapid took his traditional middle seat, and to his surprise, Sedge sat down to his right once again. Just like before. Peak was wrong, nothing’s really going to change.

Rapid was half expecting to hear Crisp’s tail whip against the wall, some fancy contraption causing papers to fall into their paws. But Claw simply walked over and grabbed the books from a shiny case, and walked them to each student.

“Outstanding work finding yourself in my guild, students. But you mustn’t get haughty. You are still but a learner. I am still but a learner. But if we are not humble, we will fall in every battle.”

Sedge leaned over. “That’s the exact same speech Crisp gave us!” She hissed.

“Hmm.” Rapid responded, only half listening to her.

“Now. Without further ado, please turn to page-” The golden tom stopped, and Rapid wondered what was happening. A terrible coughing spell suddenly wracked Claw, as he gasped and wheezed for breath. He seemed about to collapse.

“No worries now,” He croaked through the spasm. “I’m just fine.”

Despite Claw’s reassurance, the whole room felt disturbed as Claw repeated that they turn to page twelve of The Early War Period.

They used the rest of the day’s time evaluating the style of fighting used in the five early wars, and Rapid left with a renewed sense of hope. Today wasn’t the most exciting, but if this is as bad as it gets, I’m glad I’m with the Battlers.

Rapid scanned the street outside school for Peak or Hawk, but neither were anywhere in sight. He waited for several minutes, but when no one made an appearance, Rapid went home on his own. Peak is usually very punctual. It’s strange for him to be this late.

As Rapid’s den came into view, he stopped. He closed his eyes, and thought back on everything that had happened recently. His tests, his guild, the commoners, Sedge, Peak, Hawk, Lily, Birch. I’m only a few moons old, and yet I’ve come so far. Can others say the same?

He thought of his former rival Sedge, who might now be an ally. Peak, his best friend, with a twisted paw and a low self image. The troublemaker Hawk, getting average grades, and Birch and Lily… They were just jerks.

Rapid opened his eyes and shook his head forcefully. “This is too philosophical for me.”