Crowpaw's Moonstone Journey

"Crowpaw, it's time to go!" Leopardclaw let out a quiet sigh as he placed the bundle of herbs he was carrying onto the ground in front of him; today he would once again be making the trek to Highstones, along with the apprentice Crowpaw. Among the countless reasons he - and the clan - were looking forward to the eventual arrival of new-leaf, snowless journeys were pretty high on his list.

Crowpaw ran out of the apprentice den as he heard his deputy call him over. He looked at the herbs for a second before he ate them. "Yuck!" he meowed in disgust as he'd swallowed the herb.
He looked at his deputy "Alright, I'm ready" he meowed.

Grateful for the young tom's swiftness, Leopardclaw nodded and, with a flick of his tail, led the way out of camp, out into the forest towards Fourtrees.  Leaving a trail of shifted snow and pawprints behind him, the golden spotted tom heaved an annoyed sigh - directed at the snow - before glancing back at Crowpaw, to check on how the bicolor tom was keeping up.

Crowpaw tryed his best to keep up with his deputy but it was a little hard. The snow where getting stuck in his fur, which normally would annoy him but today he where to excited to care and hurryed after Leoperdclaw. At the same time as he where excited he where pretty nervous, he had though about what he should ask the Starclan cat that he would get to speak with.

Arriving at the crossroads of Fourtrees, the two forest cats crossed over the markers into WindClan territory, the unrestrained wind whipping at their pelts as they waded their way through a mix of snow and wilting tall grass.  It was slow going - Leopardclaw kept getting tripped up by hidden patches of sodden greenery that was buried by the snow - but he breathed deeply, relishing the scent of the cold, clear air.  Glancing over his shoulder, he tried to catch Crowpaw's eye, curious to see how the young tom would react to these new sights.

Cropaw looked at the open moors with wide eyes "Wow.." he mumbled quietly as he followed Leopardclaw. He saw a rabbit running quielty over the moors. He then looked back at Leopardclaw and hurryed after him, his small white paws quietly leaving pawprints in the snow.

Leopardclaw smiled slightly, warmed by the young tom's awe; he still felt a wisp of the same amazement every time he saw the moorland as well.  Their travels continued though at a steady pace, and soon enough they left WindClan territory behind.  They were now at the mercy of unknown lands.  They crossed broad Thunderpaths and weaved around patches of Twoleg dwellings, until Highstones came within sight.  Halting at the base of the tall rocky hills, they faced the opening of a dark tunnel; Mothermouth.  With a flick of his long tail, Leopardclaw took the first step forward and entered the tunnel, beckoning for Crowpaw to follow.

Crowpaw followed the golden spotted deputy throught the dark tunnels of Mothermouth. Once they got the the Moonstone he stopped and stared at it "Wow.. It's bigger than I thought" he meowed and turned to Leopardclaw "What should I do now?" he asked.

Leopardclaw stepped into the Moonstone cavern alongside Crowpaw, looking up once against the beautiful glowing stone.  "Lay down beside the stone Crowpaw, and touch your nose to it.  StarClan will send you sleep, and you will walk in dreams with one of your ancestors."  Flicking his tail, he found a spot to sit down nearby, and waited for Crowpaw to do as he had told.

Crowpaw nodded and walked over two the Moonstone and layed down. He touched the Moonstone with his nose and closed his eyes and waited.

To be honest, perhaps the ability for any StarClan ancestor to visit these young cats should be regulated. Foxfang was not the kindest cat to tread the skies by any stretch of the imagination, as prickly in death as he was in life. His grey eyes bored into the sleeping form of the young apprentice before him. The large ginger tom sat perfectly straight as he waited. He had been told several times to be a bit more patient with the growing cats. He paid no heed to that. "If you don't wake up now, you'll miss your chance, Crowpaw." His tail twitched and did not relax his harsh gaze.

Crowpaw waked up as he heard the tom speak infront of him. He looked at the large ginger tom "H-how do y-you know my n-name?" he stammerd "Wait.. I-it's true? You're really from S-starclan?" he continued with chock.

The tom's eyes seemed to narrow for a moment. "StarClan can see all that happens in the forest. Even if we'd rather not." Foxfang decided to skip over introducing himself, his name had been lost for many moons, and they didn't have that much time anyway. "This may be your one chance, Crowpaw. What questions do you have for StarClan? What do you want to know most?" While he spoke, his eyes searched the smaller tom's form, analyzing him. No, Crowpaw was definitely not his kin. No child of his could be so... frail.

Crowpaw looked at the Starclan tom infront of him with a fascinated look. When the ginger tom asked him what he wanted to know the most he replied quickly "I want to know what you think I could do to help my clan the most now, with all the war and.." the small tuxedo tom stopped himself "Well I assume you know everythiing that's going on already.." he meowed quietly.

Foxfang stood and stretched, revealing the crisscrossing of scars all across his back. "War isn't glorious, but at this point, it must be done." His storm-colored eyes had a hint of fire to them. "Don't take stupid risks, but don't be indecisive either. There is a reason why the promise to die for the clan if necessary is in your warrior oath. Your Clanmates would defend you with their lives, and to be a true warrior you must be prepared to do the same." He spoke from experience. If he could, the fierce tom would haunt Otterleap's nightmares for the rest of his days for what he did to dear, young Thistlepaw. "You seem like a kind cat, Crowpaw. The aftermath of any event can be traumatic, and it may destabilize you or your Clanmates and make you vulnerable. Don't be afraid to lean on them if needed. I wish I'd known that while I was alive." He could feel the minutes passing by. How much time was left?