Mintpaw's Medicine Cat Ceremony

Featherlight had taken her time on the way to SkyClan, mostly due to her own nervousness. She had never done this before - of course she hadn't, technically she was still an apprentice - but it was time for her to step up in place of a proper mentor. Though she tried to suppress it, wanting to remain calm, she couldn't help feeling bitter at that thought - not for herself, but for Mintpaw. She had been made apprentice after the death of the last, and Oceanlight had, it seemed, promptly retired after appointing a new apprentice.

The situation reminded her a little too much of her own, early in her apprenticeship. But unlike her own situation, Mintpaw's mentor was alive and remained in SkyClan, and had seemingly abandoned Mintpaw for no reason Featherlight could gather. No intervention of StarClan had occurred for SkyClan as it had for WindClan in the form of Mottleheart. However, today in particular was not a sad day - far from it. Today Mintpaw, medicine cat apprentice of SkyClan, would gain her full name and finally shed the title of apprentice.

Featherlight followed the scent of herbs, hoping to find her friend in her den. "Mintpaw? Are you ready?" she called out curiously, being sure to keep a slight distance. She thought it likely that the younger medicine cat apprentice was nervous, and might want her space.

Mintpaw's lip trembled as she padded out of her den, keeping her murky green eyes trained on the ground. Her striped fur was messy, and her ears were almost flat against her head. The taupe she-cat's paws shook. She wasn't ready for this. She hadn't trained for this. She hadn't... there was no way she could've learned enough to become a full medicine cat. Mintpaw took a deep breath to steady herself, her eyes still on the ground. "R-ready when y-y-y... when you a-are, Featherlight." Her voice was quiet, but a small, steely hint of determination could barely be found, deep within her shaking, croaky voice. She was really letting go now- there was no turning back. She was letting go of her past. Letting go of her possible future, the other path she could've chosen. She was letting go of her first dream- the path of a warrior. Mintpaw was letting go of her Fernpaw.

"It's a much longer journey from here than it is from WindClan, so we'd best get going," Featherlight said, starting to walk in the direction she had come. "Tell me, Mintpaw. What do you think of being a medicine cat?" It was something that she was always too curious about. How her friends and peers viewed their path in life. She had always embraced hers, even when it felt like too heavy a burden to carry on her shoulders, but she knew that wasn't always the case.

OOC: heck it's crap
IC: Mintpaw flicked her tail. "It's f-fine, I guess." She mumbled to her paws, taking a deep breath. "There w-was no other p-path I could've taken, a-after all. What a-about you? I n-never really understood how y-you got all your training done. Is it true that M-Mottleheart used to be a warrior?"

"The path of a medicine cat is the only one I have ever known," Featherlight said simply. "Sageleaf, the medicine cat at the time, came into the nursery in the middle of the night, demanding that we go to the Moonstone immediately." She let out a laugh at the memory of her mother's reaction. "My mother, Brindlewhisker... Well, I don't remember all the details, but she certainly wasn't pleased. Something about how whatever it was, it could wait until morning. That was when I became Sageleaf's apprentice, but... Well, Sageleaf left WindClan not long after, and from what I understand, she died not long after leaving." She paused, taking a moment to remember her first mentor and all that she had been to her, in their brief time together in life and in their meetings in StarClan. "So, for some time, I was left with almost no training, and no mentor, until StarClan themselves felt it necessary to intervene. One of our warriors was gifted with the knowledge of a medicine cat and became my mentor - that was Mottleheart."

Featherlight watched her fellow medicine cat with curiosity, wondering what she thought of all this - and of her own rambling, she supposed. To answer Mintpaw's question, after all, she had gone off on a tangent of sorts. Perhaps she was speaking too freely. "A lot of things took longer than they probably needed to. I was an apprentice before both Goldeneye and Nettlesting, but they both became full medicine cats a while before I did. But... What do you mean there was no other path? There is always a choice."

That was one of the most important things she had learned, after all.

"Sageleaf." The word felt familiar, on Mintpaw's tongue, like the first word of a language she had always known. The taupe she-cat fought back a smile- She was surprised by how long it took her to remember the gray she-cat who had welcomed her to Starclan several moons ago. the Medicine Cat who had given Mintpaw her first prophecy. The apprentice shot Featherlight a quick, searching glance. The Skyclanner had always felt a connection to the former Medicine cat, but Featherlight was much closer; she had known Sageleaf in life, while Mintpaw only met the gray she-cat in Starclan. "She w-was the second Starclan cat I-I'd ever seen- the first b-being my mother, Pansyface. I-It's just... I forgot that Sageleaf w-was ever alive." The short-legged apprentice grinned lightly, although it faded when Featherlight spoke again. "No. N-not for me. I-If I hadn't a-agreed to become a Medicine Cat, Skyclan would be in p-peril. Oceanlight is t-too old to h-heal much more, and R-R-Rabbitfoot..." Mintpaw trailed off, looking up at Mothermouth. "I never had a c-choice. I w-wasn't much of a w-warrior apprentice, though." The small tabby huffed. "There's no going back now." She mewed. "We're here. W-what now?"

"Now... We begin." The words felt ominous as they left her mouth, not dissimilar from her own feelings at the moment. Featherlight led the apprentice forward to where the Moonstone was shining, a familiar comfort to her in an unfamiliar situation. She tried to remember the words she had heard some time before, at her own ceremony, now it that was her turn to speak them herself for the first time. "I, Featherlight, medicine cat of WindClan..." Would StarClan disapprove of this? Could they do that? She wasn't a SkyClan cat. She certainly wasn't SkyClan's medicine cat. "Call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of a medicine cat, and with your help she will serve her clan for many moons." She closed her eyes for a moment, then spoke again. "Mintpaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of the medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan and to protect all cats equally, even at the cost of your life?"

Mintpaw took a deep, shuddering breath. This was it- she was going to take her place alongside the great healers she had heard tales of as a kit. She had chosen her path. The taupe she-cat swallowed before speaking, her paws shaking with the weight of the decision that she had to make. She was always meant to end up here, although Crowstar had given her the choice to stay a Warrior apprentice. This was her destiny, wasn't it? To stand with the other Medicine Cats? There was no more time left to ponder what could have been. She had learned the art of healing, memorized herbs and watched as her sister trained to become a warrior.
"I do." Mintpaw's voice echoed throughout the dark chamber, sounding so very different from her own. Her fur prickled, although it wasn't particularly cold.

(OOC: you didn't give me any Ceremony Qualities™ so i skipped over it, if you have them lmk and i'll edit them in, also it's short and terrible i am sorry)

"Then, in the name of StarClan, I give you your true name as a medicine cat." This part, at least, Featherlight was well-prepared for. There was much careful consideration, but she had eventually come to a decision that she felt was meaningful. "Mintpaw, from this moment forward, you shall be known as Mintwhisker." She offered her friend a gentle smile. "Now go on, I'm certain your ancestors are eager to greet you by your true name."