Foxpaw's Moonstone Journey

Sagelight bustled around the medicine cat's den as the sun began to rise for the day, rummaging through the herbs to try and find the right ones. Mossbloom had instructed him to use specific ones at the Gathering the night before and he was doing his best to remember which ones those were. "Let's see..." he hissed to himself, sniffing deeply. "Sorrel, check. Burnet, check. Chamomile, check. Lamb's Ear, check. Ragweed, check." He pulled out two of each herb as he spoke, sorting them into little piles. "And finally..." Taking a wrapped ivy leaf out of storage with his teeth, he delicately placed a drop of honey onto each pile before putting the leaf back in its spot. The medicine cat apprentice sighed and sat back on his haunches, inspecting his work. That all seemed right... It was his first time taking an apprentice to the Moonstone. His first time doing really anything as a medicine cat, and he was doing it without a mentor present. "Thanks, Mintwhisker," he thought bitterly, digging his claws into the dirt floor of the den. His shoulder still hurt a little from where she had attacked him.

He got up and stretched his paws out one by one. Today he would be taking Foxpaw to the Moonstone. Foxpaw was a nice tom, albeit a little nervous about things. Sagelight leaned down and lapped up his pile of herbs, his whiskers twitching at the taste. At least it was a little better with the honey on there. He was slowly getting used to the taste of the traveling herbs. The tom wrapped Foxpaw's pile neatly in an ivy leaf and carried it out of the medicine den. He set the bundle outside the apprentices' den and poked his head in, squinting around for Foxpaw's red form. "Foxpaw? Wake up, it's time to go." Sagelight was doing better about controlling his volume when he spoke, something his Clanmates were probably very happy about.

"Mrrrp?" Foxpaw trilled lightly as he was awoken by a voice speaking his name, raising his head as he blinked in slight confusion. It was dark, the streams of daylight that he was used to had yet to break through the den's opening and instead there was a form of a cat in the way... His eyes narrowed as he struggled to shake the sleepiness from his head...Until he realized he did recognize the voice that spoke and managed to see the shape as it was - Sagelight.

Right! He pushed himself to his paws, shaking out the heaviness of sleep from his pelt as he nodded his head in acknowledgement of the medicine cat. He had been hoping that this day would come soon, of Sagelight awakening him for their moonstone as it was a sign that he was one step closer to becoming a warrior. Of course, now that he was actually awake he wanted nothing more than to curl up back in his nest but he knew the importance of this and fought the urge as he ducked out of the den, brushing past Sagelight before he turned to look at the lone medicine cat.

"Time to go to the Moonstone, huh?" he meowed in soft awe, his whiskers twitching in excitement. He had always had doubts since he was made an apprentice that he would become a warrior - broken leg followed by his fear of heights made it hard to picture being a proper SkyClan warrior but this? This was a sign that perhaps he would make Spottedleap proud after all.

"Yeah, it's time. Are you excited? I remember being very excited for mine." He smiled at the apprentice, then pushed the bundle of herbs forward with one paw. "These are traveling herbs, make sure you eat all of these! They'll keep you energized for the long journey. They do taste pretty bad, I will warn you, but I put a little honey on there so hopefully it'll be a little more bearable."

Once Foxpaw was ready, he motioned for him to follow and lead the way out of camp. He knew the way to the Highstones from memory by now and spent the day talking with his companion and getting him ready for his talk with StarClan. They reached Mothermouth in good time and Sagelight paused at the entrance to the cave, gesturing for the younger tom to be quiet.

"This is Mothermouth. The Moonstone is in here. Follow close behind me and be quiet, use your whiskers to feel the wall of the tunnel as we go. Once we get into the clearing with the Moonstone, you must go up to it and touch it with your nose. StarClan will speak to you then. Don't worry though, I'll be waiting for when you wake up." He offered the apprentice a reassuring grin and led the way into the cave, following the twisting and turning paths to the inner cavern. The Moonstone was already lit up and Sagelight stopped at the edge of the cavern, flicking his tail in the direction of the stone to signal for Foxpaw to go in.

Foxpaw happily nodded his head as he spoke to the medicine cat apprentice, being mindful to keep his voice down as they were right outside of the apprentice den. "Oh yeah! I've heard so many stories about the Moonstone, its going to be amazing to see it for myself," he meowed before he glanced down at the herbs that sat in a small pile at their paws. Leaning down, he could see a couple herbs he barely recognized from his long stint in the medicine cat den...And lapped them up despite the warning of the terrible taste. His ears went flat as he raised his head, tongue sticking out as the bitter taste really hit him. There was a hint of sweetness that barely salvaged the taste. "Gah! You weren't kidding..."

But then they were off. He had rarely gotten the chance to wander the forest at night and embraced the luxury of the calm, casual walk. His ears perked at noises he rarely heard other than in the dawning hours of the day, such as the chirping of credits or...He frowned as he heard the hooting of an owl, recalling his first and only encounter with such a bird. He also reveled in getting to see the other territories - mostly seeing the WindClan moor for the first time as they were passing by. It was...Terrifying, really to see so much open space but there was something calming about no trees in sight due to his fear of heights.

There was also something thing about simply chatting with Sagelight - he knew little about the warrior turned medicine cat apprentice, other than he was the brother of his mentor. He knew things couldn't be easy for him, having to take Amberdawn's place and then Mintwhisker...Well, to be honest Foxpaw had no idea what really happened to Mintwhisker. But getting to know Sagelight and chatting a bit about what Foxpaw would see was nice, and soon they were at the entrance of the dark tunnel.

He listened to his words carefully, giving a nervous nod of his head in acknowledgement before he followed Sagelight into the tunnel. It was dark, feeling unsure about every pawstep he took but nonetheless followed swiftly after Sagelight's scent in the pitch blackness as his whiskers brushed the side of the tunnel walls. But then there was a light, causing Foxpaw to have to turn his head away as they stepped into a cavern, waiting for his eyes to quickly adjust and he could take in the sight of the Moonstone. His mouth parted in a soft gasp of awe, slowly finding himself taking steps forward until he was at its side. Right, just...Touch his nose to it. He took in a deep breath, crouching as he pressed his nose to it and let the suddenly wave of tiredness and darkness take him.

Foxpaw found himself in a clearing, trees towering above him and marked him as being in SkyClan's territory, although there was no real landmark to tell him where in the territory he was. Was he in StarClan? He glanced around in confusion, noting that if he wasn't completely sure he had just walked through all of the territories, he could have easily been fooled to think that he was awake and at home. He slowly sat down, ears perked as he waited for his StarClan cat to appear...Right? One was suppose to just show up, right? He didn't have to do anything? He tried to think back on Sagelight's words as he waited.

Echoflame's heart hurt for the state of SkyClan. It was all her fault, too. Every single issue going on in SkyClan was directly tied to her. She was mate to Sedgestrike and died, allowing him to fall in the spiral of a cat he was now. StarClan knows how much she loved him, but she hated what he was doing. Sparrowpaw was her own daughter. Of course she was angry of what was done to her, but to keep the chaos in the forest alive? The black and white spotted cat hated Tinystar just as much as any living cat, if not more, but the actions of her family was not one she condoned. "And," she thought to herself, peering back at the twin trailing behind her, "I'm sure Starlingpaw is egging Sparrowpaw on too."

But it didn't matter right now. What mattered was making sure the apprentices of this clan she loved and had hoped to lead didn't fall into blind dedication to authority- particularly the current ones. The apprentice she was visiting today was doing just that.

Finally, her black and white spotted pelt slowly formed in front of the reddish tom as she walked closer. Her green eyes burned with starry and unreadable intelligence and thoughts. Starlingpaw accompanied her as well, as she usually did to quell boredom.

"Foxpaw." she said with a soft voice. Motherly. "Welcome to StarClan. My name is Echoflame, and this is Starlingpaw. I am daughter to Rippedstar, mother of Starlingpaw and Sparrowpaw, and mate to Sedgestike." Though it wasn't necessary, Echoflame liked stating her connections. It made her seem more real to those she spoke to. "I have been watching you since your fall from the tree. My daughter and I were killed when a branch broke underneath our paws." ... and my other daughter was killed by the leader you adore... "Your fear of heights is understandable. Though, that is not what I am here to talk to you about. If you could chose your message, what would you like to hear?" Truth be told, she enjoyed talking to living cats, and she would milk as many words as she could. The aftermath of a life cut too short too suddenly.

Foxpaw stumbled to a stop as he suddenly was aware of two forms taking shape in front of him, his eyes going wide as he slowly started to be able to make out the pelts of cats - honest to StarClan...Well, StarClan cats. He was a bit confused by the fact that there was two, from what he had heard it was normally a single cat...But it seemed only one was interested in talking. His ears perked as he focused on the mothery she-cat, listening to his words.

Sparrowpaw. She mentioned many names but that was the one that stuck out to him - he knew that name. He frowned, trying to place it...Before it hit him. Tinystar's trial. She had been the apprentice that Tinystar had killed. His ears slicked back a bit, biting his tongue lest he blurt out something stupid in front of her as she went on. At the mention of his fall, Foxpaw couldn't help but flinch. Of course StarClan knew about that, about his fears...There was something calming thought about StarClan themselves saying that his fears were understandable.

But then the question was left open - what did he want to hear about? Part of him wanted to ask more about his fear - of if he could be a proper warrior but she had already said that she wasn't here to talk about it. It...Wasn't the biggest thing to talk about, he supposed. As he thought about it, his mind kept drifting back to a single event - Tinystar's trial...And he frowned. "I...The word of the leader is law, isn't it? They are chosen by StarClan to lead their Clan but..." his tail nub twitched as he shifted on his paws. "The Clan was divided by what Tinystar did to...What he had done but..." he floundered for the right word, anger burning in his chest at the fact that he couldn't think of what he wanted to say. "...I guess I just don't know what side I should have taken in that situation - shouldn't everybody have taken Tinystar's side when he is a leader? When his words are law?"

Echoflame grew silent as the apprentice questioned her further. She should have expected him to ask her about this. Her jaw set and her tail flicked as she tried to figure out what to say and not give away her bias. Finally, her words started to come to her. "The clan leader's word is law, you are correct. But that doesn't necessarily mean they are always right. Your leaders are cats just like you. Do you make mistakes? Bad choices? Yes. Do you face consequences for them? Yes. Why would a leader be above that?" Echoflame moved closer and crouched in front of the apprentice, getting more on his level. "StarClan has his paws in everything in the forest. It is up to you to decide the path you want to walk. Do not let others decide for you. Not the medicine cat. Not your mentor. Not StarClan. Not even your leader." The spotted warrior stood, taking a step back and slowly fading. Sigh. Too soon. "You need to form opinions for yourself, Foxpaw." Not cryptic message needed here. Slowly, the form of Echoflame and Starlingpaw faded from view, rejoining the stars and leaving Foxpaw to... decide how to live his life from this point on.

Echoflame was...She was right. Foxpaw took a couple steps back as she approached and crouched to get to his level, staring into her eyes as he listened to her words. Slowly, his shoulders relaxed and he sighed softly. He nodded, although he still felt uncertain. She was right, cats were prone to make mistakes. The older cats might know more but they were prone to make mistakes, to have their own view on events but...So would he, they would at least know more and...His ears slicked back as he tried to how to reply, what to say...Before he nodded. He...He think he got it. Slowly, the world started to fade as he glanced around in surprised, opening his mouth to say something - a thank you perhaps, but the words died on his tongue as the word faded into white...Then darkness.

And then he woke up. He blinked as he slowly pushed himself to his paws, stretching out his limbs before he turned to glance at where Sagelight was still sitting. "Well...That was...Something," he meowed as he turned, taking a couple steps forward before he turned to look back at the rock. He...He had spoken to StarClan. He sighed softly, thinking on Echoflame's words. He knew what she had meant but it still felt so confusing, something he would have to think on for sure. "...But it was helpful, it really was," he finally said before he padded up to the medicine cat. "So! Suppose its time to head back now."

The medicine cat sat in silence as he waited for Foxpaw to wake up. Although it was not really his place to ask, he was curious who Foxpaw was talking to and what they were saying. He smiled to himself, remembering his Moonstone where he spoke to his grandfather Rippedstar. That was a benefit of becoming a medicine cat, now he would have a special connection with StarClan forever. Sagelight kneaded his paws into the dirt on the cavern floor absently, peering up at the Moonstone. As the night went on and the moon travelled in the sky it slowly began to fade.

There was movement nearby and Foxpaw stirred awake, raising his head. Sagelight got up and padded over, smiling. "How was it? If you would like to tell me about it you are free to, otherwise it can be entirely your secret. It's up to you. Anyway, I hope you had a good time. Let's go, time to head back home." He gave the apprentice a friendly flick with his tail and led the way out of the tunnel. Soon the two cats made the long trek back to SkyClan in the peaceful Leaf-fall night, making it safely back home.