Spiderkit's Medicine Cat Apprentice Ceremony

When the two cats had first started out on the journey to Highstones, Torrentstar had been concerned that it would prove too much for Spiderkit. Of all the cats he had escorted there before, there had been none as young as the little tom; Spiderkit was hardly even six moons old. As the journey progressed, however, Torrentstar was gradually reassured that getting to the Moonstone was not impossible.

Whenever Spiderkit's strength failed him, Torrentstar would allow him to clamber unto the leader's broad back. It felt odd carrying a kit that was not his, but he did what he had to.

At last, as leader and kit broke out from the darkness of the tunnel, their visions were filled with the glow of StarClan's divinity. Torrentstar lowered Spiderkit to the ground, before gesturing to the Moonstone. "Is it an impressive sight?" He asked, voice devoid of emotion. Like StarClan, it was disguised by a sheen of glitter; nothing but empty headed fools lay behind it. "Go ahead. Touch your nose to it. I'll be right behind you."

Spiderkit's chest heaved noticeably, breath coming out in small visible puffs in the freezing air. He was very grateful for Torrentstar, since his little legs probably would have given out long ago if it wasn't for his help. His thin coat did very little to defend against the cold, making Spiderkit very grateful to enter the cave. It may have been dark and cold in its own right, but it was sheltered from the wind and snow at least.

They walked in darkness for a while, the much smaller tom relying on his leader's silhouette to get to the ever nearer light in the distance. When the pitch blackness of the cave was finally smothered by the Moonstone's blue glow, Spiderkit couldn't help but to gasp in awe. He had technically been to StarClan, or at least a projection of it, but he could never get used to the beauty of it all. He felt almost gravitated towards the huge stone, which he almost touched before he was shaken from his wonder by Torrentstar's question.

He knew his answer, of course, but Torrentstar appeared to disagree. He seemed to have a strange apathy in his voice, but Spiderkit hesitantly disregarded it as a figment of his paranoia and answered with his first thought. "Yeah, it is. I've never seen anything... Glow like that. It's so beautiful..." even before the leader's prompt, the young tom instinctively padded closer to the stone. Feeling a strange presence in front of him, he reached out and touched the Moonstone with his muzzle upon hearing a voice behind him encourage he do so.

His body went limp. Or rigid, he couldn't tell. He was no longer in control of it. He felt the expected but still unfamiliar sensation of being both hot and cold at the same time, then was whisked away from the physical world.

Starlight shone off a bright and glittering field. The soft and almost musical sound of a river that flowed serenely nearby cut the silence and softened it. The pale and moon glowing flowers blended into the soft silvery pelt of the she-cat who waited, and smiled, when she saw the young apprentice. Her blue eyes glowed a vibrant blue as she stood from among the flowers. Petals fell off her back, and drifted towards the ground like soft, fresh snow.

"Welcome, Spiderkit.” She purred, her gaze flickered behind him for a moment, to Torrentstar behind him, but she placed her attention back to the kit, the one who was the reason. The one who needed the help. She smiled kindly at the kit, as she padded towards him. "You are ready?”

The question was a gentle one. A last opportunity, if the kit desperately didn’t want to be a medicine cat, surely he would voice it. Yet, if he really didn’t want to be one… he wouldn’t have been here. He wouldn’t have been chosen to be one. Warmth prickled in her pelt. Never had she thought she’d be doing a ceremony… even in StarClan.

Spiderkit opened his eyes to welcome StarClan's soft glow. He couldn't help but to look around for a moment, taking in the atmosphere once again. The sheer vastness of it all came to him in a rush, but he shook it off after a second of being overwhelmed.

He looked towards the unfamiliar silver she-cat before him. She gave off a similar feeling to Dewshine, gentle and motherly. Stars seemed to dance across her pelt, radiating a dim glow and proving her position as a member of StarClan. He was enraptured by her almost ethereal appearance, almost not hearing her question. Almost. "Yes, I- I think I am." He spared her the speech this time, as the question was clearly intended as a comfort more than anything else. A reminder that he could make a choice still, though he had already made his choice when Torrentstar asked him. No, he made up his mind back when he had received his vision. There was no turning back now, and Spiderkit didn't want to anyhow. He smiled a bit, hoping to reassure the StarClan cat of his determination.

Dewshine purred softly, then looked back over the field. In the distance, starry figures and shapes began to emerge. Other StarClan cats, whose pelts flickered with colours and appearances were varied from all different clans. She turned her attention back to Spiderkit.
"Warriors of StarClan, I present you with this apprentice. They have accepted the path of a medicine cat. Grant him your wisdom and insight, so that he may understand our ways and heal the clans in accordance to our will.” Her smile grew, beneath it her pelt grew brighter.

For a moment, she looked as she did in life. Her delicate pale silver pelt lined with starlight as she touched the top of Spiderkit’s head with her muzzle, turning him into Spiderpaw for the rest of starclan to see, before she stepped back. The knowledge of other StarClan medicine cats would reverberate through the young apprentice.

"Remember to seek out Mossbloom. She will help you become a great medicine cat as you heal Mistleshine together.” Her gaze rested on the young tom for a moment. Giving him time to process before she turned towards Torrentstar. Blinking slowly, then looking down.

"Torrentstar. I’ll never be able to thank you enough for looking out for my kits when I could not.” Her head lifted, gazing at his dark pelt with sadness clear in her gaze. Pain, at what was to come. "Dappleshine is a good and strong warrior, because you raised her. I only wish her path had stayed true, though it is no fault of yours things have become as they are.” She paused, then blinked. Her appearance fading slightly as the scenery around them shifted and changed. It darkened, and oddly brightened as well. As though the shadows of the cave the moonstone laid in was beginning to show.

The newly named Spiderpaw tried his best not to squeal in delight. Finally, after all that travelling and discussing, he was finally here. This was the first step to helping RiverClan, to helping Mistleshine. His little heart raced in his chest, as giddy as he was with happiness. A medicine cat! Him! Who would have thought that strange little Spiderkit would become something so important.

He looked to the cat before him, who he realised was Dewshine after all, and uttered a quiet "T-thank you" as the starry field around him started to fade and darken. He could hear Dewshine say something to Torrentstar, but that wasn't his business so he didn't listen. He simply sat down, taking in the beauty of StarClan for the final few moments he could be there. He'd be back, eventually. Soon, hopefully.

The RiverClan leader was not about to let Spiderkit wander off into the starry realm alone. Thus, moments after the little tom had fallen asleep, Torrentstar followed him. As both cats were swallowed up by the void of unconsciousness, only the glimmering night sky continued to watch over them.

The only role Torrentstar had to play in this ceremony was that of an escort. Watching Dewshine interact with Spiderkit, the brown tabby was reminded of his time as a deputy. The words of the ceremony rang in his ears; he had never heard them before, yet somehow they seemed oddly familiar. Great words of old, full of power. He had subtly avoided Dewshine's gaze when they had first arrived, hoping that she would think he had not noticed. It seemed, however, that the former warrior was not giving up so easily.

This conversation had been a long time in coming. Torrentstar tensed as she turned to him, expecting some form of criticism. But as always, Dewshine had nothing but kind words―even to him, to the failure of a leader who had exiled her daughter and grandchild. Something stirred deep within the tom. As stubborn as he was, deep down he knew the truth. Whatever he had thought of Dewshine in life, he felt nothing but guilt toward her now. One parent to another, he had failed her. "No." He forced out, voice deep with pain. "It was my fault. Your daughter is gone, Dewshine. I... I couldn't keep her in RiverClan. From now on, you have nothing more to thank me for..."

The world around them was flickering, changing. Time was almost up.