Meeting of Destiny [closed]

The world was washed in the dying light of the setting sun, the sky dipping into seas of violet, pink and orange on the horizon. A lone warrior stood on a hill, his eye closed as he felt a warm breeze brush past him, carrying all the scents of the moor that he knew by heart. Mottleheart's eyes flickered open as he turned his gaze onto the moor around him, the grass looking almost golden in the fading light. There was a small voice in the warrior's head that told him something was wrong. The sun had already set to his memory, that the air should be chilly due to the season of Leaf-bare upon them...That something about this whole thing was just off but the voice as tiny and easily ignored as he took in a deep breath.

No, instead he had bigger things to dwell on. The world around him was silent as he allowed himself to let his mind wander on the thoughts that had been plaguing him since he had become a warrior...Did he have what it took? So many times he had questioned it in the silence between words with his Clanmates, at every sympathetic look he got for his scars - a reminder of how eager the world was to make him suffer...A reminder of why he had been so timid of it all when he was just a young kit and apprentice. He had only truly spoken his doubts once to Ashstar and while she had calmed them in the moment...It still lingered. He wanted to be loyal to WindClan but yet...Yet he found himself unsure of his path in life.

The biggest call of being a warrior was to fight for your Clans but yet after all the fighting he had done...He still couldn't truly stomach the idea of fighting another cat...Or at least another Clan cat. He had fought two fights against cats before - Rockthorn and Smokefang. Both had left him with scars to serve as clear reminders of the burden he was forced to carry but yet there had been something...Off about the two. Neither were true warriors in his eyes; they had forsaken the single thing they were vowed to do when they gained their warrior name - they had forgotten where their loyalties were truly supposed to be. The Warrior Code was something Mottleheart treasured, a set of codes to follow that set them apart from those outside of the Clans. But Rockthorn and Smokefang had betrayed that very thing that had defined them and had become no better than rogues and loners.

And then of course his option felt twisted thanks to the betrayal of Sageleaf. He had once respected the she-cat, thought her once loyal to Ashstar and WindClan...But recent events had shown it all to be false. Declaring that StarClan wished to see Ashstar taken down only to kill her brother and run to be ThunderClan's medicine cat when her ploy failed...He found himself struggling to even dare to accept the excuses she had made up at the Gathering but if Blizzardstar saw fit to take her...Then let her deal with the perhaps traitorous medicine cat. But there was a curiosity to it all - Sageleaf had admitted to him that she wished to have been a warrior than a medicine cat but then why still take a spot as ThunderClan's medicine cat other than for the simple fact that they needed a full one. It had been strange that they had shared almost different beliefs but he was...He hestated. He wasn't content with being a warrior - his mind still feared the idea of fighting another loyal cat of another Clan.

That...Mottleheart blinked as his ears fell flat on his head, lowering his gaze to his paws. He wasn't fond of the idea of fighting another cat who treasured loyalty as much as him, that were only looking out for their own Clan as well. Sure there were those who enjoyed the prospect of battle a bit...Too much but they were still holding their own vows in the end! He knew what the Warrior Code said - it permitted battle when it was needed but yet the idea of inflicted pain and spilling blood of true loyal warriors even if they were from different Clans was had for the tom to stomach. Ashstar had stated that his choice in the matter was his and his alone but yet he was forced to question what that choice would be in the end. A simple question bubbled in his mind that caused his eyes to widen as he found himself questioning his answer.

Was his loyalty to Ashstar stronger than his strong hatred - or perhaps even fear - of causing harm to another loyal cat from another Clan?

He shook his head as he dug his claws into the ground, shaking away that question as he found the answer conflicting to even dwell upon. He dropped into a crouch for all but a second before he pushed off the ground, breaking into a run down the golden hill. Running...Running was always the best way to clear his mind. As the ground beneath him evened out, he closed his eyes as he felt the warm wind rush past him as his paws skimmed over the golden blades of grass as he sprinted across the open moor. The wind open air, the freedom...It was one of his favorite things of being a WindClan cat. He could never handle the tight areas that the other Clans called home.

He had been in ThunderClan's territory and had felt suffocated by the deep undergrowth and the branches that loomed above and cut off his sight of the sky. For the other Clans, he had never set foot in their lands but he knew he wouldn't be fond of the SkyClan's forest, the ShadowClan's marsh and the rivers that surrounded RiverClan. The open wide moors of WindClan was his home through and through - he even found himself terrified to step foot in the tunnels that ran beneath their land due to the enclosed tight area. But this? Running with no care in the world - the warmth of the setting sun warming the side of his pelt while the stars stretched out in the darkening sky above? This, this is what he truly loved.

His eyes flickered open as he turned his gaze to the heavens, sliding to a stop as he blinked in surprised. To him...The stars seemed closer than normal. Almost as if he could just reach out and touch them but his paws remained firm on the ground as he titled his head in silent wonder. His tail lashed back and forth as another thing struck him - he wasn't tired in the slightest despite his run. His gaze lowered for a second, gazing around the moor to see it still stretching endless in every direction. Yet again, a voice in his head screamed that it wasn't right...Perhaps...Perhaps this was all a dream? The thought lingered for a second before he decided to ignore it, letting his gaze return to the stars above as he basked in their beauty.

The stars swirled in a blooming pattern that was impossible, yet in that moment, everything seemed possible. It was the haze of a dream, the acceptance of the odd and the queer as the world seemed to just fit with these supernatural occurrences. Slowly, but surely, the stars descended to form the shape of a heavy-set tom, his shape still translucent.

A spark started from the tip of his tail, following down the rest of his body. It revealed a solid form, a calico pelt that was familiar to any WindClanners born before the first rising of the Dark Forest. The open of pale yellow eyes was only the final nail in the coffin.

It was Gorsefeather.

"Hmph, you think too much." He didn't bother introducing himself, instead went about stretching to get the kinks out of his body before licking his hind leg. "I can't believe I didn't spot you back then, your mentor must have gone through the Dark Forest and back teaching a jumped up thing like you."

Mottleheart took a startled step back as the stars shifted above him, seeming to stretch down and take form before a tom stood before him. The warrior's ears flickered back on his head as he stared at the calico, his breath catching in his throat as he stared at the star-pelted tom. "You...You're a StarClan cat..." he managed in a soft voice, all but a whisper to himself in awe and fear. Then he blinked at the words, tilting his head slightly in confusion at his words. "I...What?" He paused as he shifted on his paws before giving a shake of his head. "I-I mean my mentor was Ashstar and she stood against the Dark Forest but..." he titled his head slightly with an hurt look in his brown eyes. "'Jumped up thing like' me?" he echoed before he gave a soft sigh. "Am...Am I truly that much of a mess?" Another pause. "And who exactly are you?"

"You don't know who I am?" The calico leant in real close, amber gaze giving the warrior a good look up and down. "Hmph."

Settling into his haunches again, the elderly medicine cat sighed in mild annoyance. Not really at Mottleheart, more at the responsibility that he'd been handed by the Stars. Really, couldn't they have gotten Leafheart or what not to do this? Though he didn't really have much room to complain, after breaking the medicine cat code, he was probably lucky to even be here. "You're not really helping your case, babbling on like that. Shape up, you have a serious responsibility ahead of you. I'm Gorsefeather, the former medicine cat of WindClan, and I'm here to give you a choice. Mottleheart, do you wish to enter the mysteries of StarClan as a medicine cat?"

Mottleheart pouted slightly, feeling a bit bad for the elderly tom. It wasn't exactly his fault he didn't recognize him - it was easy to guess that the tom had passed away before he had been born and while he knew names of cats who had walked the moor before him, it was much harder for him to put a name to a face he didn't know. He blinked however as the tom started to speak again, focusing on his words. Serious responsibility ahead of him? He opened his mouth to question what it was but his words died in his throat as the choice was given. "...What?" he squeaked out, his ears slicking back on his head as he flickered his tail. "Me? A medicine cat? I-I..."

...Wasn't this what he wanted? He hesitated in his words, blinking as he realized that offer before him...Well, it solved his inner conflict didn't it? If he was to become the medicine cat of WindClan, he wouldn't be expected to fight! He could remain loyal to Ashstar while staying true to his hesitation on fighting. He would only be expected to fight if he was truly needed for the Clan's sake. He had never felt happy enough as a warrior as it was so perhaps this was a path that he was meant to take. His ear twitched as he straighten up, meeting the eyes of Gorsefeather. "I would be honored to become a medicine cat but..." his expression darkened for just a second as another bout of hesitation flooded through him. "But why? Why pick me of all cats?"

"Well you're not going to be much use to your clan with your anti-fighting attitude." As soon as he spoke those words, the medicine cat regretted them, the tom was clearly struggling with things and perhaps needling him with his insecurities wasn't the best plan. Sighing, he carefully chose his next words. "The simplest explanation is that your clan needs a medicine cat. Sageleaf was a poor fit. And... You... You're not stupid, you see more than some boneheaded fools in your clan. You don't think of talking or compromising as a weakness, and you have faith in your leader. Those are traits we need. Ashstar can be a fool at times, probably her heritage showing there, but we chose her as leader for a reason."

He was half-tempted to spill the truth about that kit's true parentage, but now wasn't the right time. Though he wasn't below giving hints. He hated lies too much to stay completely silent. His father had ruined his life through his little lies. "Ashstar likes you, trusts you. And you're not stupid, it makes you a better candidate than half the damn clan. So that's why we're choosing you... Anyway, enough talking, are you taking the position or not? I don't have all night. The sun is rising soon."

Mottleheart ears fell flat on his head at the tom's first snappy remark, feeling his shoulders tense up. It was true, he wasn't going to be much help being a warrior with that mindset...No matter what Ashstar said. But then Gorsefeather took on a kinder tone and Mottleheart's ears perked as he stared at the tom with a shocked look. "I...Thank you," he managed weakly at the tom's soft praise. He felt warmth blossom in his stomach, realizing that many of the things the tom was pointing out made him a good fit was all things that Mottleheart had already known to be true. And for all the parts of himself that he hated...Well, those parts barely mattered if he wasn't a warrior now did they?

Then he blinked as the tom pointy asked again what his answer was, jolting as he gathered his thoughts together. Him...Medicine cat of WindClan? It certainly wasn't an idea he had played with since he had been a little kit but back then it had just been a hope of escaping the path of a warrior...And perhaps it still was but now he could see another reason to take it - to be that help that Gorsefeather and all of StarClan seemed to think he could be to Ashstar. "I do. I accept the position of the medicine cat of WindClan." There were other questions he wanted to ask - what about Featherpaw? Certainly she would keep her position but who would care for both of their training?

How was he to go around informing Ashstar and the others of this change of duty? Of course, Ashstar did trust him...She wouldn't be against him if he stated that this was what StarClan wanted, right? And perhaps...There was a blink, a small part of himself that wiggled with a soft fight of if he truly wanted to believe it or not. Gorsefeather had stated that Sageleaf had been a poor fit. So it had been their will that she had left...He grim maced for a second before he pushed that away with a shake of his head. He could muse on how to feel about that revelation later. Now, he simply stared at Gorsefeather as he waited for the StarClan tom to continue to speak.

"Then by the powers of StarClan I, Gorsefeather, give you my knowledge, my wisdom, and my compassion, I pass onto you all I've accumulated over the many moons I lived." It was something that had never been done before, but Gorsefeather knew that there was no other way to do this. He couldn't teach the warrior moon's worth of knowledge himself manually, though they preferred to not do this, they had all agreed this had to be done. He touched noses with the warrior, giving to him all his memories as a medicine cat, the good, the bad, all of it. He passed to him the feeling of lamb's ears, the strong scent of catmint after it rained, the fear when a kit coughed, the heartbreak when a cat breathed their last. It was all that he needed, but also not enough. No wisps of memories would really be able to replace real experience.

"StarClan honors your kindness and loyalty, Mottleheart. We welcome you as medicine cat of WindClan. Now, it's time to awaken, Mottleheart. You have an apprentice to teach, guide Featherpaw well, we trust you." It wouldn't be easy, that was something that was certain. But with his memories and Mottleheart's thoughtful nature, perhaps this wouldn't be a complete disaster.

"Thank you Gorsefeather, I won't let you dow-Wait, what?" The warrior took a slightly startled step back as the tom spoke again. Give him his knowledge and wisdom? How did that even work? He had heard of some knowledge being passed down when leaders got their lives but...He got his answer soon enough when the medicine cat took a step forward and touch his nose to Mottleheart's, the warrior's eyes widening for just a second as new memories and emotions flooded over him. It was almost impossible to put words to the experience as thoughts, knowledge just...Came to him.

He felt his heart sink with heartbreak, his throat closing with fear...But he could also feel the lightheartedness of joy of a cat making a full recovery as the scents of herbs that he suddenly knew the names for flooded his senses. He took another dazed step back once it was all over, giving a shake of his head as he tried to sort out the new memories from his own and focus on the tom as he started to speak again. "Thank you Gorsefeather," he repeated although his voice was a bit...Distracted this time as he tried to recover from it all. As he spoke, the word started to fade from view as he started to awaken. "I won't let you down."

And then, nothingness.

OOC: Continuing into A New Path