Brokenpaw's Moonstone Journey

Poplartooth had already taken it upon himself to swallow down his herbs immediately after he had received them from Mintpaw. Now, he held a bundle in his jaws that would be enough for the apprentice that he'd be escorting to Highstones, tonight. The fluffy tom didn't know Brokenpaw very well. In fact, he was quite sure that the two of them had never spoken to each other. Poplartooth wasn't the kind of cat who strived to get to know each and every cat he met, so he didn't bother to try and spark up a friendly conversation with Brokenpaw. There would probably be a time when an apprentice would try and talk to him. Hopefully, that wouldn't happen for a long time. No, he didn't hate any cat's guts. He just disliked the idea of friendly conversation with any cats that he didn't know. Once the brown-and-white deputy made it to the apprentices' den, he dropped the bundle of herbs at his paws so that he could summon Brokenpaw.

"Time to go Brokenpaw!" He called from where he stood, "Don't keep me waiting!"
He meant it, too. He didn't want to be kept waiting. Poplartooth wanted to be at their destination on time, and he wasn't about to let an apprentice slow them down.

Brokenpaw heard his name being called and trotted outside the apprentice den. Standing there was the new deputy Poplartooth. 'Oh crud', he thought, trying to keep his consternation from showing on his face, 'he's here to take me to Highstones. Just what I wanted today...well, or any day.' Rippedsky had told him that the new deputy would now be the one to take him for his Moonstone journey. But as much as Broken hadn't been excited to go even with Ripped, it was probably going to be much worse now. The only thing he knew well about Poplartooth was how grouchy he had become, at least in the last few days. He wasn't sure that the new deputy had always been that way.

But even besides the new circumstances, the apprentice certainly hadn't wanted to go before. 'To speak with one from Starclan.' What did that even mean? They were dead, what did they care about the living. The only thing Brokenpaw felt for Starclan was the slightest hope that someday he would not be stuck living in the clans any more, but free to roam the skies, he imagined in some ghostly form.

"Yes, Poplartooth. Well I guess let's go then", was all the younger cat said aloud.

Poplartooth used his front right paw to slide the bundle of herbs towards Brokenpaw in a nonchalant manner. The tom figured that eating his own herbs before giving them to the apprentices was better, so they wouldn't have to see his reaction to the bitter taste. Perhaps that was the best strategy. He didn't take the time to stare Brokenpaw down as the apprentice ate the herbs, but he could imagine that the younger tom's reaction would be the same as any other cat: scrunched up nose and disgusted outburst. Flicking his fluffy tail, the tom signaled that it was time to head out. He wanted this journey to be a quick one. No talking meant no annoying or irritating questions from young cats who barely knew which way was left and which way was right. Poplartooth did occasionally look back over his shoulder to see if Brokenpaw was nodding, but he made no sign of showing his approval once the two of their gazes met.

The deputy felt a rush of relief go through him once Highstones came into view. They were there, at last. Right on time, too. His pawsteps were light, quick, and quiet as he led Brokenpaw towards the place that all five Clans respected and considered to be sacred.
"Brokenpaw," The deputy spoke up, not looking back at the younger cat, "When we enter the tunnel, we are not allowed to speak. It'll be pitch black in there, so use your sense of smell to follow directly behind me. After we enter the Moonstone cave, press your nose to the stone, and StarClan will meet you in your dreams. Don't waste time staring at the Moonstone in awe, either."

With that, Poplartooth dove into the darkness of Mothermouth. Walking in a tight tunnel without any light wasn't any cats idea of fun, but it was necessary. The light that the Moonstone provided at the tunnel began to shine brighter and brighter with every step the tom took, until it was there, right in front of both him and Brokenpaw. The fluffy cat shot the apprentice a quick look and jerked his head towards the shimmering stone before heading over towards the side of the cave and sitting down to wait.

Brokenpaw stared at Poplartooth for a moment after he dropped the herbs in front of him. 'We're drugging cats and then taking them out into the forest. This can only ever go well. No wonder the clans think there's Starclan cats lining up to chat.' But the apprentice bent down to put the herbs in his mouth, wanting to get the whole thing over with. Poplartooth didn't even wait to see that Broken had actually picked up the herbs. And good grief did they taste awful, but Brokenpaw did not swallow. If Poplartooth had turned around or asked him to speak, Brokenpaw would have swallowed the herbs, but since he did not, the apprentice spit them out some lengths from camp. Although it was hard to keep it in his mouth without protest for so long, he didn't want anyone to notice them lying around. No, he wouldn't be tricked into the clan delusions so easily.

The walk itself was a real joy. Trekking on for what seemed like ages in silence with the less than personable Poplartooth. Oh well, at least there wasn't more indoctrination to happen as they padded to the Highstones.

'We are not allowed to speak', he thought, 'As if I had been encouraged to speak to you at all this whole time.' But he was smart enough to continue his quietness, as the deputy turned tail and plunged into the darkness. 'Maybe I'll get lost in the darkness and be spared the rest of this trip', he grinned to himself. But it was not so, and soon he found himself in front of the stone next to the other cat.

After Poplartooth turned to the side of the cave, Brokenpaw openly sighed, and stepped forward to touch his nose to the Moonstone. 'This is officially the dumbest thing I've endured yet.'

Instead of materializing mysteriously from the stars like many other cats did, this tom just sat there, his face set in a slight scowl. His gray tabby fur was short and ruffled, and his tail was long and thin. His whiskers were long as well, and his piercing yellow eyes seemed to stare right through the tree that Brokenpaw sat next to. When he caught sight of the apprentice, the lean warrior blinked slowly, not offering any other sign of welcome. "I can tell you don't want to be here," the warrior growled. "That makes two of us. I'm Breezewhisker, Crowstar's least favorite son. The other StarClan cats didn't want to talk to you, so I got stuck with this job. Who would have thought... even up here, I get passed over. I can't stand all this constant chatter in the SkyClan part of StarClan about the new leader.... Honestly, Rippedsky could fall off a tree for all I care."

Brokenpaw looked around. to say he was shocked wouldn't have even touched on what he felt. Until this very moment he had always assumed the whole Starclan bit was just a bunch of cannon fodder. But now, with this cat facing him, how was he to continue denying anything. He had assumed that the herbs had something in them that made the others see things, but..he hadn't even taken them. And, speaking of, that was going to easily take it's toll on the journey back. But.. this.. What. Was. Even. Happening.

Brokenpaw jumped violently and yelped when the other cat began speaking, he hadn't even seen him there. "Breezewhisker..uh yuh uh uh.. Crowstar...? What??!" He tried to calm himself down, but this was not at all the day he expected to have. Breezewhisker's harsh tone and stare helped ground Broken a little, and finally, he managed some composure. "Um, so this is Starclan? Like, really Starclan? Like you're really here, and I'm really here? ...and Crowstar? Is he here?"

Breezewhisker blinked. That was... not what he'd expected. When Flamestar had shoved him off on this apprentice, he'd been expecting someone with a bad temper, or someone who disliked him, or.... something. The leaders never let him do the Moonstone apprentices. But a cat who hadn't believed in StarClan? Now, that was different. A small, crooked smile appeared on his face at the tom's confusion- until he mentioned Crowstar. Then it slipped off again. "Yes, this is StarClan," he replied, voice somewhat flat. "Not all it's cracked up to be, in my opinion... but that's just me, I suppose. And yes, unfortunately for me, Crowstar is here. Not any more interested in me here than he was down there. Just goes to show you, huh?" The experienced warrior's tail-tip flicked irritably, then he got himself under control. It hasn't used to be that difficult.

It was awkward, standing here in front of this living apprentice, gawking at his starry fur as if he was a piece of purple crowfood. "So... I've never actually done this before," he admitted uncomfortably, an unsure light in his previously glaring yellow eyes. "Do I tell you a story, or offer you words of wisdom, or...? Help me out here. I'm not sure what you want."

Brokenpaw was even more amazed that Breezewhisker had just as little idea of what to do in this situation as himself. His slowly moving brains recognized that this Starclan cat was not well loved among the others, and perhaps never had been when alive either. He wasn't sure where to even start with the things he wanted to ask right now, and even though he was unsure that the Starclanner would want to simply answer questions, he decided to go with the few that were most important on his mind.

Brokenpaw started, "Well, no offense, but I honestly never thought Starclan was for real. And I guess in my mind even if it had, I had hoped for all your sakes, and my own, that it would be... less like how the living clans operate." He paused, not sure how much more of his personal opinions of clan life he should pursue in conversation with Breezewhisker. Clearly he hadn't been a big fan of certain cats, but maybe he still had thought clan life was wholesome and purposeful overall; unlike Brokenpaw. He decided to pursue some questions instead. "I guess we could just start off with a couple questions. I mean, I'm not even sure I've heard your name before, but uh, why are you so..um.. left out of things?"

Breezewhisker shrugged after the tom's first statement. "It's not like that for everyone," he clarified, glancing up towards the sky as if he could see his fellow StarClan cats there. "Clan boundaries don't matter as much, but they are still there. And I'm not completely alone, I still have my mate and daughter. But as to how I'm treated by most other cats...? No, that's just me. I'm not exactly popular. Funny how you'd think being a leader's son might do that for you." The gray tom snorted- both at his circumstances and at himself for still being bitter.

But the young apprentice's next question caught him off guard. He hadn't been expecting Brokenpaw to want to hear about, well, him. A little unsure, but also strangely grateful to the other cat for at least pretending to show interest, the StarClan warrior spoke up. "I.... Well, to be honest, I wasn't exactly the most... extroverted cat, unlike my brother Thornpaw. At the time I was born, my father was recovering from losing three of his lives, so the deputy at the time- Vixenheart, I don't remember much about her, maybe I should go find her- did my ceremonies. I was still pretty hopeful then, that maybe my father could find some time for me." Breezewhisker shook his head ruefully.

"My mentor was Fawnsplash, a brand new warrior. She trained me well, but I'm afraid I sometimes had trouble paying attention. My father was beginning to recover now, starting to walk around and do basic Clan duties, but he never really talked to me. I assumed he was just busy. And my mother, Poppysong, spent her time on patrols, and doting on my brother." That reminded him, he should probably go talk to Thornpaw, see what he was up to. "I was a quiet tom, so I didn't have many friends, but that was fine. I only needed my mentor to be a good warrior. I trained extra hard when Crowstar was recovering, wanting to make him proud. Before our ceremony, Thornpaw- he got killed by a bout of greencough. It was pretty bad. Devastated my mother... and me. All siblings fight, but Thornpaw was basically my only friend. It was hard, to say the least. Especially since I felt abandoned by my parents." He remembered that time- the period of mourning seemed like it lasted forever, but then it was over too fast, and life resumed "as usual". Yeah, right.

"However, everything changed when the fire nation attacked I became a warrior, and fell in love with Fawnsplash. She actually loved me for who I was, and I loved her, too. Before I knew it, we had a litter of kits...." Breezewhisker was suddenly, painfully aware that he was monologuing in front of this random apprentice. "Um. I'm getting off track. But everything was fine, until he showed up... Rippedpaw." Just speaking the tom's name brought a snarl to his face.

"The perfect apprentice with the perfect hero story... Running away because he had better morals than his leader, or something, I don't remember the exact story. What I do remember is that my father suddenly came back to life again, and started doting on Rippedpaw like he was his son... when he'd never done anything for me." Though it sounded strange to be saying it, spilling all his feelings out felt- well, it felt good to be able to express his opinion and not get chewed out for it. "Crowstar took him as his apprentice, welcomed him, stood up for him when others- his own Clanmates that he respected, his mate, even my half-brother- expressed negative opinions. He even named him after the Clan: Rippedsky. Eventually, most people in the Clan started sucking up to him, trying to get on their leader's good side. But not me, and not Antdrop. That was my half-brother's name. He felt as abandoned as I did, but unlike me, he did something about it. He called Rippedsky out, in the middle of camp, arguing with him- and then got yelled at by Crowstar. My brother went out into the forest to get away, where he... fell to his death."

It still stung him, the memory of finding his niece Rabbitfoot crying over his brother's dead, frozen body... Breezewhisker had to blink several times before moving on. "I'd been quiet before then, hiding my feelings because they weren't that important. But Antdrop's death... it threw me over the edge. I ended up doing the same thing as he did, calling the tom out for what he'd done. It horrified me, how many cats stood up for him- my own sister, Antdrop's mother, many Clanmates who I'd respected. The only ones who stood by me were my mate and my daughter, Vipertail. I realized that I couldn't live in this Clan, a Clan that would support WindClan immigrants over their own Clanmates. So, I kissed Fawnsplash good-bye, and I left, vowing that I would come back someday... But I never got that chance. I got killed moons later, before I could make it back to my mate and kits, and my purpose. And without any opposition left, Rippedsky became deputy, and now he's the leader.... And I'd gotten in his way. So, yeah-- I guess you could say I'm not the most popular cat here," the warrior concluded shortly, a bitter taste in his mouth. What did Brokenpaw think of that?... It hadn't taken as long as he'd thought to tell hi whole life story.

OOC: whoops didn't mean to write a giant monologue but here you go

"Oh, so um, you're the one who fought with Rippedstar then? Back when he first came to Skyclan? I had forgotten, but he's been my mentor and I asked where his scars came from once." Brokenpaw wasn't really sure what to say to this cat who had reason to hate Ripped, however it seemed to the apprentice that Rippedstar had been just another way in which Breezewhisker's family had always passed over him. Not that it was Ripped's fault. But it didn't seem fruitful to discuss semantics nor his own expertise to fix broken families, especially with dead cats.

"Not to put any less seriousness on how you've been treated by family, but I've always felt the divided clans do nothing but wreck havoc. We're all cats, what does it matter if it's a giant clan or a million different ones. We should all work together, and we should all take care of each other. We should all be family. It's sad to see that even in Starclan there is division, and which in your case, still allows the mistreatment of certain cats." Brokenpaw paused, he hadn't entirely meant to turn into some sort of afterlife theologian, nor to anger this cat who, Brokenpaw could still recognize had suffered an undeserved fate from his clan and family; even if some of it- a purist hatred and attack- occurred for reasons which seemed ridiculous to the apprentice. But he couldn't deny that he saw that happening even now. It's not like Breezewhisker was the first or the last to hold this mindset, and it wasn't him who had divided the clans from the onset.

He hoped to move the conversation forward, rather than anger the Starclan cat, or fight with him over the governance and separation of clans. "So, when you went off and lived on your own.. I mean not that it didn't involve heartbreak to leave.. but did you, well, like it better than living in a clan? Not specifically just because you wanted to leave Skyclan, but in general, was it better than having to be stuck in a clan?" Brokenpaw had never considered separating himself from his home clan, even if he hated the system of clans itself. But if Breezewhisker had done it, and done it well, maybe he could find an escape from the political drama too.