Swooppaw's Moonstone Journey

Dropping the familiar bundle of herbs onto the ground outside the apprentice's den, Leopardclaw took a moment to shake the slushy snow off his pelt before calling out into the frosty air; "Swooppaw, it's time to go!"

The body heat of all the apprentices laying together was trapped inside by the walls of the den, making the apprentice's den a temperature that could almost be called comfortable. But on a day like this, the frosty chill in the air still managed to find its way to each cat in the forest, including the sleeping ones. Swooppaw wakened with a start at the sound of Leopardclaw's voice, and panic sho through him. Did he sleep in again? Specklefang was always scolding him for that! After grooming off some of the slush that had gotten in his fur, he raced outside, finally registering what was going on. It was earlier than training time, and the deputy was standing right there with a bundle of herbs. All those facts triggered a memory in his mind. It was his moonstone trip today! It was weird to think that he wasn't a young apprentice anymore, and now he would take a big step forward in his life. He quickly took the herbs in his mouth and chocked them down, hardly chewing the avoid a lingering taste.
"Uh, Leopardclaw? Will you be my friend? I mean, just for the journey, but I don't like to be in a place without a friend for even just a little bit. But other than that, I'm ready to go!"

Leopardclaw smiled faintly as he saw Swooppaw race out of the apprentice's den, and chomp down the herbs without much hesitation.  Usually apprentices sniffed at the herbs first, and complained about their smell before reluctantly gulping them down; the deputy was relieved to be spared of having to convince him this time.  The gray tabby tom's next question though threw him a bit off guard.  'Will you be my friend?'  His friend?  Well...he guessed he already was, since a deputy's job was to look out, love, and protect all of his clanmates.  The golden spotted tom though didn't really have very many friends...only Grasswhisker, Lichenfang, and Blizzardstar had really gotten past his wall of distance and insecurity.  For this journey though...it could probably work.

"Uh...um, sure Swooppaw, I'll be your friend."  Feeling a bit awkward, he flashed the smaller tom a slightly crooked smile, before getting back to business.  "We have a long walk ahead of us, the sooner we leave the better.  Let's head out."  With a guiding wave of his long tail, Leopardclaw trotted across the clearing and ducked out of the camp entrance, before checking over his shoulder to make sure Swooppaw was following.

"Thanks Leopardclaw! I'm right behind you!" Swooppaw grinned at Leopardclaw's reply. Even just having a new friend for a little while was a good thing. Especially if it meant that he didn't need to travel a days worth of land without any friends nearby. That would drive him insane. He quickly followed the deputy out of camp, ignoring the chill of the slushy snow on his paws. He smiled as his new friend looked back, nodding to show that he was following. He wasn't usually this energetic (though he was usually a pretty excitable cat), but the excitement of what was ahead of him boosted his energy. Speaking to dead cats seemed cool, and he couldn't wait to get there. His only fear had been the journey, but now that he was reassured the spotted tom would look out for him, his fear was nearly all gone.

Leopardclaw led the gray tabby apprentice out of ThunderClan territory towards Fourtrees, before they crossed over into WindClan's moorland.  The rolling hills and tall grass were a vast difference to their own forest territory, but the golden spotted deputy had always enjoyed it here.  He loved to run, and when snow didn't block his path like it did today he always took the chance to race along the carved-out trails in the grass, feeling the breeze whip against his ears.  He loved ThunderClan more than anything, but the moorland had manged to capture a small section of his heart.  He slowed down a bit so that he and Swooppaw were walking side-by-side, and wondered how the young tabby felt about being this far from their own territory.

Swooppaw just strode casually by Leopardclaw through ThunderClan territory and Fourtrees. By now, he was far enough into apprenticeship to have traveled the whole territory and he have been to a few gatherings. But as they crossed into WindClan territory, his light green eyes grew wide. Though the covering of snow didn't allow must of the tall grass and moorland flowers to be visible, what amazed him was just how much open space there was. He bet that from their camp WindClanners could see every border without anything blocking their view. But how did they hunt without trees where prey lived? It seemed strange. His thoughts scattered as he realized that deputy had sped up, and he needed to catch up. He ran as fast as the snow around his paws let him, and only managed to get there when the spotted tom had slowed down. He wasn't panting to much, the adrenaline had given him the energy to run, so he didn't feel to drained. And probably the traveling herbs were helping out as well. Once recovering what little breath he had lost, his question from before came back to mind.
"What does WindClan hunt? There aren't any trees for birds, squirrels, mice, or basically any prey to live in on the moor. How do they get food?" he asked, genuinely curious. He couldn't think of any animal that didn't need trees. Maybe they hunted birds that flew over from trees in the other territories? It seemed like a long shot.

Though a bit surprised that the almost warrior-aged apprentice hadn't yet learned this bit of information, Leopardclaw quickly obliged to answer his curious question.  "WindClan cats hunt rabbits and hares, mostly.  There are also a few species of birds that live on the moorland that they prey on, like lapwings and pheasants.  Once and a while I imagine they can find normal prey like mice and forest birds too, as well."  Speaking of prey made Leopardclaw curious, and he gazed around them, trying to spot the wiry brown pelt of WindClan's signature prey.  Not to hunt it - he would never steal prey from a clan that ThunderClan held good relations with - but to point it out to Swooppaw.  Unfourtantly though, he saw no prey at all.  Either WindClan was being hit hard by leaf-bare, as ThunderClan was, or they just weren't in the right spot to catch anything.  More likely though, their heavy paw steps had scared away any animals in their presence.  With a dismissive flick of his torn, black-tipped ear, the deputy purred.  "Everything that lives up here is fast, including WindClan cats.  They have to be; if they were as slow as most other clan cats, they would starve, unable to catch their prey.  Remember that Swooppaw, if you even must face a WindClan cat in battle.  They're as swift as the wind it's self, and can slip through your paws as easily as a fish."  Noticing his serious tone, Leopardclaw quickly added a comforting remark to soothe any of the apprentice's possible worries.  "There's no need to worry about that much though, WindClan and ThunderClan have been at peace for a long time now.  The chances of battle between our clans is slim to none."

"Oh. Okay," Swooppaw said in reply the Leopardclaw's explanation, taking the deputy's words into account. How could he have forgotten about rabbits and hares, and how they burrowed? It seemed like a silly thing to forget, but at least he wasn't getting in trouble for that. If Specklefang had been there when he asked, he would have been in trouble for sure. Well, at least before the battle at Sunningrocks it would have been that way. Even though she had terrified him, he missed the scary harsh mentor that she used to be, because the depressed version of her was even more frightening. If a warrior that strong could be knocked down, how would he ever survive? He nodded in relief at the spotted tom's assurance of peace with WindClan, he liked that for many reasons. He kept walking, looking around at everything with a sense of awe. Now that he didn't have any more questions burning in his mind, he kind of just looked around. His eyes grew wide as a familiar scent hit his crooked nose. A Thunderpath. He had forgotten that they needed to cross one of those. He braced himself, breathing in heavily and waiting for instructions.

The two cats had reached the end of the moorland, where the first Thunderpath they must face lay.  While he had crossed many in his lifetime, Leopardclaw knew that this would be Swooppaw's first time, and made sure to explain everything clearly.  Digging his claws into the grass at the edge of the rancid black path, he yowled above the roaring of the monsters.  "Okay Swooppaw, when I say go run as fast as you possibly can, and don't stop until you reach the other side."  Gazing one way down the path, then the other, he waited for one lone monster to rush past before he hissed "Go!"  Pushing off, he dashed across the rough surface of the Thunderpath as fast as he could, and soon enough crashed into the bushes that guarded the other side.

Swooppaw nodded seriously at Leopardclaw's instructions, looking nervously across the Thunderpath. It seemed scary to have to cross the crow-food smelling and monster ridden strip of stone. But not nearly as terrifying as the time he had gotten buried in snow. He had survived that. He could survive this. The determination in his gaze was not put off by the monster that roared across the path, only focused on waiting for the deputy. At his word, he hurtled across the Thunderpath as fast as his legs could go, eyeing the spotted tom paces in front of him. Soon he had reached the other side before any monsters would have to chance to zoom by, not that there were any to do so. He collapsed into the bushes, legs feeling like crow-food from the sudden sprint. In a few moments they had recovered and he stood back up, padding a few steps in the direction of highstones. They were visible now, and breath taking. "I'm ready to keep going."

Panting a little bit, Leopardclaw flashed a smile down at Swoopaw as the young tom recovered from the run.  "Nice job, keep that up when we cross the next ones and you'll be just fine."  Once they were both ready, the two cats continued their journey, making steady progress through the snow.

By the time they reached Highstones - after crossing a few more Thunderpaths, and cautiously making their way through small patches of Twoleg territory - the sky was already dark, and stars were beginning to emerge.  The opening of Mothermouth stood before them, wide and foreboding.  The deputy, who had gone through this many times, stepped forward confidently, and sniffed the musty air that flowed from the tunnel.  "Come, we don't have time to waste."  Taking the first step down into the dark caverns, he waited for Swooppaw to follow.

His paws felt heavy and sore by the time the reached highstones, but excitement kept Swooppaw far from being sleepy. He almost felt like StarClan was watching him as he climbed up the rock hill to Mothermouth. He only felt slightly nervous, knowing Leopardclaw would be with him in the tunnel the whole time. Unlike some other apprentices, he didn't have the fear that StarClan wouldn't accept him. He had been careful to follow code as much as he could, and offered himself as a friend for all. And his fear did nothing to hold him back from becoming a warrior. Maybe his problem with fighting was making him do things he wished that he wouldn't, but they couldn't blame him for something he was trying to fix. That would be silly. None of those thoughts lingered in his mind when they reached the tunnel. He followed the deputy into the tunnel, the darkness blocking the spotted tom from sight. He found himself inhaling repeatedly to make sure the deputy's scent was still there. He could do this.

Leading the way through the pitch-black tunnel, Leopardclaw was strangely comfortable thanks to his vast experience traversing these caves.  He made sure to stick close to Swooppaw though, and held his tail high; maybe his bright pelt would stand out a tiny bit against the blackness.  On they went, walking down narrow tunnels, changing direction a few times, having to crawl through some tight spots, before finally they saw a faint light ahead of them.  It was brighter than usual, telling Leoapardclaw that the Moonstone was already glowing with moonlight.  His pace quickening, the golden tom's pelt seemed to glow many shades brighter as they fully stepped into the brilliant light of the stone.  Squinting his eyes, the deputy stood tall and meowed; "Lay down beside the Moonstone Swooppaw, and touch your nose to it's surface.  StarClan will call you to dream with them."  With a hint of a smile, he whispered "Good luck." before finding a place to sit down, watching Swooppaw intently.

Swooppaw knew what was coming as soon as he could see Leopardclaw. He sucked in his breath, feeling the tunnel grow wider, anticipating for what was in store. His green eyes grew wide when they emerged into the full cave, the huge crystal giving off its beautiful light. All of StarClan's power and grace seemed to be portrayed by this stone. The gray tabby almost didn't register the deputy's words due to his amazement, but when he did took a deep breath and looked at the stone again, having to squint to dull the brightness. Excitement seemed to fill his entire body. He had spent his whole life worshiping and honoring StarClan, and now he was going to meet one of its members. Anxiously, he lay down next to the glimmering stone, looking one last time at the deputy before closing his eyes and pressing his nose to the crystal. For a moment his vision darkened, and soon he opened his eyes, wondering if it had worked. His jaw dropped and he scrambled to his paws, looking at the starlit plains with awe. This was all so awesome, almost unbelievable. But he did believe it. He was in StarClan territory.

The cats in StarClan knew just who was coming to visit them that day, and they sensed the presence of Swooppaw's spirit the moment he fell asleep. The cat who had chosen to speak with him made her way over to the ThunderClan apprentice. In a quiet, grass-covered meadow, where the visitor opened his eyes, a starry form appeared, growing from dim to extremely bright in the space of two seconds, some otherworldly being that took the shape of a warrior. The StarClan cat was medium-height, with a full frame and a long, furry tail. Her pelt was brown and white dappled tortoiseshell, and there was a clever gleam in her green eyes. Despite her star-studded fur, the she-cat smelled of ThunderClan, and looked almost like any other young warrior in the forest. However, there was something deeper in her eyes, a knowledge and wisdom that even leaders rarely possessed- the wisdom of StarClan. "Hello, Swooppaw," she purred, grinning widely. "My name is Turtlepelt. It's wonderful to see another strong, loyal apprentice. ThunderClan needs cats like you in its ranks."