Leopardstar's Honor/Chapter 5

"Be gentle with him. Take his lead and guide him with love."

— Frogleap to Leopardfur about Whitepaw in Leopardstar's Honor, page 121

Leopardstar's Honor
Chapter number:	5 (of 35)
Page numbers:	108-128
Point of View:	Leopardfur
Chronology

Below contains in-depth information for chapter five of Leopardstar's Honor. If you are looking for a shorter summary of the entire book, please check the main article.

Chapter Number: 5 (of 35)

Page Numbers: 108-128

Chapter description

Leopardfur is training with Whitepaw on a hunt. She notes that the young tom has been especially quiet since the death of Sunfish and is focused on training. Soon after, she realizes he has disappeared, and finds him by the shore. Whitepaw announces that he has found a sparrow's nest. He suggests they use the feathers to warm Beetlenose's nest, but when Leopardfur insists it is greenleaf, Whitepaw mentions how Beetlenose is used to sleeping beside Sunfish, and Leopardfur feels sympathy. The apprentice gathers the feathers and suggests they practice battle moves. The two have a fun time, as Leopardfur quietly reminisces about Sunfish and how proud she would have been.

Leopardfur tries to teach him to hunt fish in shady areas such as an algae patch, and Whitepaw tries to catch a fish, but keeps forgetting moves and key details. Leopardfur starts to lose her patience, and once he catches a minnow instead of a fish from the algae patch, she gets mad and insists that the fish is not big enough. She gives him a harsh lecture before diving in to catch her own fish. Afterward, they head back to camp, and Whitepaw is sad and asks Leopardfur if she would stop being his mentor. Leopardfur reassures him she will always stay.

When they get back to camp, Rippleclaw announces that ThunderClan has killed two RiverClan warriors. Whitefang has been killed, and every cat is in a frenzy wondering what Crookedstar would do. Leopardfur ponders options, and thinks that she should be a part of that discussion. Mudfur approaches and reprimands her, saying she should be training Whitepaw to hunt frogs. Leopardfur is slightly taken aback but takes her apprentice out to hunt.

She and Whitepaw head to the meadow. The latter is sullen and makes a remark about frogs tasting weird, but Leopardfur brushes it off and says he needs to hunt them anyway. After some time, she notices that Frogleap has followed them to the meadow. She talks to him, and Frogleap tries to tell her that the river is a bad place to be frog hunting because of climate preferences. Whitepaw sees a frog in the grass and starts to hunt it with Frogleap advising him. The frog escapes, but he manages to catch it, sparking a flame of annoyance within Leopardfur that he listens to Frogleap rather than her. Frogleap tells her to be patient with Whitepaw and to be the mother that he lost. She uses his advice in Whitepaw's next session, where he is hunting a bird. Taking his lead, she realizes that Whitepaw is listening better than before and that Frogleap was right.

A half moon later, Whitepaw is trying to hunt Frogleap. He fails to catch him, but Leopardstar and Frogleap reassure him and Whitepaw thanks Leopardfur for her mentorship. They leave back to camp, where they find Crookedstar and Oakheart discussing their next course of action. Crookedstar says to keep close watch on the ThunderClan border and to attack after the first threat. Leopardfur is eager to fight, but Oakheart tells her off, saying she has an apprentice and should stay at camp. She insists that Whitepaw can stay, but Crookedstar agrees with Oakheart. Leopardfur is frustrated by this, even more so due to the fact that Frogleap is chosen instead of her. Once the patrol leaves, she takes Whitepaw to check on the camp wall.

Characters

Major

• Leopardfur
• Whitepaw

Minor

• Frogleap
• Crookedstar
• Rippleclaw
• Oakheart
• Mudfur
• Ottersplash
• Stonefur
• Owlfur
• Vixenleap

Mentioned

• Beetlenose
• Sunfish
• Grasswhisker

Errors

• Stonefur is not part of the patrol during which Oakheart died and is instead replaced by Beetlenose, even though him being present during the patrol is vital for The Prophecies Begin. This error is fixed in the paperback edition for when the patrol leaves.

Trivia

• This chapter aligns with chapter eight of Redtail's Debt.