Echopaw's Moonstone Journey

Weak rays of late morning sunshine bathed the desolate camp in a warm golden light, the faint tongues of heat desperately licking at the snow and ice that clung to the gorse and earth, resulting in slush-like puddles spanning across the clearing. Wincing as her paw accidentally came into contact with the frigid puddle, Brindlewhisker carefully padded away from the sheltered burrow that Mottleheart and Featherpaw called home. Shaking herself to force some warmth into her deeply-chilled form, the Deputy carefully held a small bundle of herbs in her mouth as she sought a safe place away from the pestering puddles that seemed to appear everywhere she placed a paw.

After speaking briefly with Smokepelt and Ashstar, she had been pleased to hear that another apprentice was ready to take their final steps in their training. Although she really only knew Echopaw through the occasional training report, she always looked forward to traveling with all of the apprentices in the Clan- their limitless energy was often quite endearing to witness at times. Taking shelter beneath an overhanging clump of slightly wilted gorse, Brindlewhisker gently deposited the small bundle of dried leaves at her paws as she waited for Echopaw to appear.

Echopaw saw the deputy and realized that it was time for his Moonstone trip. He sighed quietly and walked up to Brindlewhisker, he already knew what question he where gonna ask although he where afraid of the answer he would get. "I-I guess I'm r-ready" he stammerd and looked at her.

Ears pricking at Echopaw's notably tentative approach, Brindlewhisker offered a short nod in response to his words, finding herself a tad bit surprised at the lack of enthusiasm on his part. Most of the Apprentices seemed to be practically frothing at the mouth with the excitement of traveling to the Moonstone. Leaning down and gently pushing the dried bundle of herbs towards the grey tom, the brindled she-cat took great care in making sure that the precious traveling herbs remained damage free. "Eat these- they're traveling herbs. They'll keep you from becoming overly exhausted or hungry while we travel." Brindlewhisker instructed, her gaze breaking away from the neat bundle of leaves and up to the young tom who stood before her, "Although I must warn, they do taste quite foul."

He nodded as an 'okay' and quickly ate the herbs "Ugh.." he meowed quietly and waited for them to get going, after this he would be ready to become a warrior even if he didn't fell like he deserved it. He looked up at the sky and wonderd what Starclan had in mind for him, what was his future? Even if he wonderd that, that wasn't his question.

Watching Echopaw obediently eat the herbs with minimal complaint, Brindlewhisker's nose twitched slightly as she recalled the foul taste of her own herbs that she had eaten several heartbeats prior to leaving Mottleheart and Featherpaw's den. Curiously watching as the young tom gazed up at the sky, she allowed him a brief moment of privacy, sensing that he probably wouldn't appreciate any prying statements on her behalf. "Are you ready to leave now?" Brindlewhisker finally questioned, pupils dilating slightly as she gazed at the forlorn tabby who stood beside her.

He looked back at the deputy. "Yeah.. I think so" he replied quietly and followed Brindlewhisker as both of the cats started to walk towards and out the camp entrance.

"Good. We have a long journey ahead of us, so make sure to pace yourself." Brindlewhisker mewed, nodding her head briefly in response to Echopaw's punctuated statement. It was slowly becoming apparent that she needn't worry about having to keep up with the fast-paced and constant stream of chatter that most apprentices launched into during the duration of the journey. Flicking her tail to gesture that it was time for the two to take their leave, Brindlewhisker set off with a brisk pace and guided the two out of the safety of the camp and out into the dew-heavy moorland before eventually offering, "Make sure to not fall too far behind!"

"Okay" he meowed while following his deputy. He didn't bother to look around, he had seen these moorlands so many times before. He sighed quietly, worried about what would happen by the Moonstone.

-time skip-

The late evening sky was heavy with the rapidly fading hues of deep red and gold while the imposing outlines of the Highstones eagerly swallowed the final rays of sunlight. Faint traces of starlight were evident alongside the towering and jagged form of the Highstones, casting faint speckles of weak light down upon the sparse foliage that spanned the territory that led to the Moonstone. Brindlewhisker and Echopaw had arrived at the Highstones earlier that day and spent the rest of their time basking in the unusual warmth of the day, hardly any conversation picking up between the pair.

Brindlewhisker's head lifted as she gazed at the rapidly gathering stars high above them, her whiskers twitching briefly as she caught sight of the slowly rising moon. It was almost time. Shifting her shoulders to work the stiffness away from the tight muscles, the Deputy turned to give Echopaw an inquisitive glance, part of her face obscured by the deep shadows of dusk. "Are you ready to meet your ancestors, Echopaw?" Brindlewhisker questioned, oblivious to the young toms fretfulness about his impending journey.

He looked at Brindlewhisker and sighed "I guess so.." he meowed slowly and got up. He followed her into Mothermouths dark tunnels. He couldn't see anything but his deputy quickly made her ways throught the darkness, he did the only thing to do and followed her scent otherwise he would get lost, he knew it.

Listening to Echopaw's quiet admission, Brindlewhisker gave the young tom a reassuring bump with her shoulder before slipping into the dark tunnel. The scent of stale dampness and ancient stone hung heavily in the air as the two ventured deeper into the darkness, the ragged walls that encased the tunnel pressing down upon them with a near menacing intent. Relying heavily on her previous journeys through the tunnel, the Deputy's whiskers twitched and bristled slightly as used them to find familiar grooves in the well-traveled walls. The soft, muddy earth beneath Brindlewhisker and Echopaw's paws began to become rockier as they followed the tunnel upwards several paces.

As they drew closer to the Moonstone, a silver light steadily grew more visible, illuminating the suffocating darkness in the faint glow of moonlight. Brushing past several jagged teeth of stone that marked the full entrance to the Moonstone cavern, Brindlewhisker turned to gaze at Echopaw, whiskers twitching as she gazed at the silver-drenched young tom. "This is the Moonstone," She began softly, her voice reverberating sharply off of the walls of the cavern, "Since it's now moonhigh, you will be able to speak with out Warrior ancestors. Now you must lay down next to the Moonstone and press your nose against it." She instructed, nodding towards the dazzling piece of stone that protruded from the rough stone floor, "I hope you find comfort in whatever our fallen Clanmates speak to you about." Brindlewhisker finished softly, settling down several tail-lengths away from the apprentice.

Echopaw stared at the Moonstone with his eyes wide open. He shook his head and took a long deep breath. He then glanced at Brindlewhisker Would shebe able to hear him?? he wonderd. He then slowly walked up to the glowing stone. He layed down next to the stone and gently pressed his nose against the stone.

A solid gray she-cat with white rings around her tail. The former leader Raccoonstar was laying on top of a rock, her ice blue eyes looking down at the apprentice. "Greetings." The leader greeted the windclan apprentice. "What do you wish to speak with me about?" She didn't know why she was chosen to speak with this apprentice out of all of them, but this was the first interaction she has gotten with the living in a while so she wasn't going to complain to much.

Echopaw looked up at the cat Was this Racconstar? He was talking to the former leader!, he nervously looked down at the ground and slowly opened his mouth "H-hello.. Y-y-you'r umm.. Racconstar, r-righ-t?" he stammerd as he looked back up at the Starclan cat.
"Oh.. Yeah right my q-ques-tion..." he then quickly meowed. "Um.. Uh d-does a..." he stammerd but then stopped and looked down Sould I really ask? he thought and sighed.

Raccoonstar nodded. She didn't know stories of her were still being told. It made her feel a little warm on the inside that she was being remembered. "Yes, I'm Raccoonstar." The gray she-cat said. She stood and jumped off her perch, and stood in front of the Apprentice. "Come on out with it." She encouraged harshly.