One by one, Sunpaw had watched the other apprentices go off in the mornings, to return the next day full of some wisdom or another. Eagerly, he waited for the day that it would be him going to the Moonstone... not because he wanted to speak to StarClan - after all, he was still half convinced that StarClan didn't exist - but because it meant he was one step closer to warriorhood, and all the freedoms it promised.
When Birdstar woke him, he was awake instantly, creeping out of the apprentices' den and dipping his head in greeting. The leader pushed a bundle of herbs towards him, and Sunpaw sniffed them, picking them up and waiting for Birdstar to turn away before turning his head and flinging them into some nearby brush. If StarClan was a collective, herb-induced hallucination, he didn't want any part of that. He wanted to know for sure.
**
Near the end of the trip, and Sunpaw was exhausted. His limbs were heavy, his eyelids threatened to stay closed every time he blinked, and when Birdstar turned to tell him something, it took a good minute before his brain processed her instructions. He nodded sleepily, sticking close to the leader's heels... and the moment his paws touched that cold stone, he was awake again. Something about the tunnel looming on all sides of them, of the sudden cold, wet air, instantly had him on edge, and despite himself, Sunpaw felt the fur at his nape prickling with uncertainty. Suddenly the tunnel widened, and the Moonstone gleamed in the darkness before them, casting shadows in every direction. Sunpaw paused, taking it in, his ears flicking to listen to what Birdstar had to say again.
Following her instruction, he settled down touched his nose to the stone.
**
Sunpaw didn't remember falling asleep, but he must have, because suddenly, he was waking up. He wasn't tired anymore, and in fact, he felt great... better than he ever had. He was no longer in the cold, damp cave, though, so this had to be a dream. Getting to his paws, he wandered around a bit, sniffing, searching. It was warm here, and the grass was lush beneath his paws... Sunpaw had never had a dream so vivid.
"Hello, Sunpaw,"
The unexpected voice nearly made him jump out of his skin, and as the sundappled apprentice whirled around, he took in the visage of a dark tom with a white throat, and eyes that mirrored Graypaw's. Sunpaw's brow furrowed. Guess he couldn't fully control the dream, after all... but who was this cat? He certainly never remembered seeing him before, even if there was a nagging resemblance to... someone, he couldn't place.
"Hello," he said cautiously.
The other tom tilted his head slightly. "You speak as if you didn't expect to see anyone," his tone was light, almost-laughter. Sunpaw narrowed his eyes.
The apprentice didn't know what to say. This was his dream, after all, so couldn't he make this other cat go away? He wanted to explore, not chatter. "I... I didn't," he finally admitted, hoping dream-cat would take the hint. But he didn't, he just sat there watching him with Graypaw's eyes.
"I see," the other tom said kindly. "You don't believe in StarClan." He lifted his chin to look at the sky full of swirling stars above them. His voice had held no contempt, no judgement, and that made Sunpaw curious enough to give up on adventuring, and pad back to sit across from this other tom, long tail curling around his paws. The other tom continued. "I knew many cats in my life who forsook StarClan for one reason, or another. Some never believed at all. Some lost their faith. The one thing that connected all of those cats, though, is that, eventually... they knew for sure. Just as you will."
Sunpaw frowned. He didn't like how cryptic that was. They eventually knew for sure? What sort of nonsensical foxdung was that? The other tom must have read the frustration on his face, because after a moment, he started talking again, his expression suddenly deadly serious.
"It's not my job, Sunpaw, to make you believe in StarClan. We are here, whether you believe in us or not, guiding the clans, and providing assistance, when we can. What I offer you today is a piece of advice: Each cat's legacy is their own to make... but some, more than others, follow in the pawprints of those who tread darker paths before them." The tom's eyes grew troubled, and Sunpaw couldn't help but to listen, held captive by the sudden seriousness of this cat's tone. "Rarely does one make the same mistake twice, but rarely is not never... and the safety of those you hold dearest always hangs precariously in the balance between right, and wrong." His eyes met Sunpaw's, and the apprentice almost shrank back with the intensity of the stare. "Keep a watchful eye on your family. Treat them with love and respect. Guide them. Protect them. And never let them stray from the light."
The tom surveyed him, seeming satisfied with the information he'd relayed. Before Sunpaw could say anything, he vanished, dissolving into stars. Sunpaw watched him disappear, suddenly confused and unsatisfied. What did he mean? "Your advice doesn't make any sense!" he called into the darkness. "And-"
"-I didn't even get your name!" The last half of his sentence was shouted, too, but he was no longer in the dream. Sunpaw leaped to his paws and blinked rapidly as his eyes adjusted, turning to look at Birdstar. This was the real world, again. He let out a quiet sigh of relief, turning back to look at the Moonstone again, his voice low as he addressed the leader without looking at her. "Can you dream about a cat you never met?" he asked quietly. It was more rhetorical, than anything... of course you could, because he just had. The alternative, that StarClan did truly exist and could communicate, made absolutely no sense to him. It was unfathomable.
Sunpaw gave the Moonstone a hard stare, but eventually, turned back to Birdstar, once more weary and travel-worn. His bright yellow eyes gleamed at her from the darkness. "Can we go home?"
