it had only been less that a week, when buzzardsnow approached duskstar about needing a deputy.

the place that they now called orcaclan camp was much neater, but not as neat as their old home.

tall grass still grew on the outskirts of camp, which duskstar wanted to get rid of.

they had managed to clear a large patch, which wasn't as big as they thought it was- only because a large rock covered the small area, and was hidden by the grass.

duskstar had claimed it as the great rock, where he would make announcements from here on out.

there he sat now, after calling a clan meeting, as he watched the five cats emerge from the one den built.

they decided it would be the apprentices den, for it wasnt very big.

they were in the process of making a few other dens at the moment, and because of this, sticks still covered the camp floor, but this time in smaller, more organized piles.

duskstar had faith in himself, for the first time in a long time.

he finally felt as if he had found his true home.

duskstar cleared his throat, and gave a small nod at buzzardsnow.

"orcaclan, i have finally decided on who to make my deputy, after some time of thinking."

the group that sat below duskstar suddenly bristled in excitement, looking at one another happily.

duskstar had thought this out carefully. he didn't want to choose the wrong cat.

the first cat he had crossed off his list was starlingdash- the tom was only just barely out of the apprentices den, and was still young and immature.

duskstar knew he would make a loyal and hardworking warrior some day, especially after all of this.

wildflowers was next. as much as duskstar admired the courageous molly, she didn't think things through very much, and was always quick to jump to conclusions.

it had taken duskstar awhile to choose between ashstumble and citrinedazzle, but in the end, he had chosen citrinedazzle.

she was the daughter of flamestar, the previous leader, and had some experience and knowledge about being a leader.

duskstar knew how loyal she was. she had almost once got herself killed after trying to chase a fox out of their old territory, when she was only an apprentice.

she was mature now, though, and friendly to every cat. duskstar knew she was someone he could trust, especially as deputy.

duskstar had told buzzardsnow who he had decided, and buzzardsnow was content with his choice.

and so now it was time to announce it to the clan.

"i hope you all agree with my pick... citrinedazzle will be the deputy of orcaclan!"

citrinedazzle's eyes widened, and she turned to wildflowers.

wildflowers gasped excitedly, jumped up, and started chanting citrinedazzle's name, and soon the rest of the cats followed.

they all looked happy and content with his choice, and all were smiling warmly.

"thank you so very much, duskstar. i promise i will be a great deputy for you and the clan, through thick and thin. thank you, again!" she purred, a big smile on her face.

duskstar dipped his head at her. "i trust you, citrinedazzle. i know you will be an excellent deputy, and leader when i die."

"wow..." ashstumble meowed, "it's like we're actually a clan now. not just some tiny group of stragglers... we're a real clan now." he said quietly, and happily.

duskstar nodded in agreement. he prayed to starclan that things would be this peaceful forever.

though, he knew things didn't work that way.

but a cat could dream, couldn't he?