Falconpaw's Moonstone Journey

The familiar bundle of traveling herbs hanging from her jaws, Mintwhisker padded across the dusky, rock-spotted clearing towards the apprentice den, placing the pile of leaves and stems down on the ground once she reached the entrance. Yet another apprentice had finally reached the point in their training when they traveled to meet with StarClan, and the young Medicine Cat was more than happy to escort them. "Falconpaw, it's time." Mintwhisker mewed softly, peering into the apprentice's den.

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Mintwhisker padded towards the opening to Mothermouth, wincing as she stepped over the sharp rocks that lined the tunnel entrance. "Stay close to me," The she-cat murmured, giving the young tom an encouraging nudge before leading the way into the deep dark of the tunnels.
The pair emerged into a large, open chamber. The moon had already risen, the Moonstone was brightly glowing. "We're here. Touch the Moonstone, and you'll feel a strong urge to fall asleep." Mintwhisker padded into the middle of the chamber and stretched. "Don't fight it. I'll be here when you wake up."

Falconpaw looked up from his place in the apprentice's den. His dark brown pelt nearly invisible in the darkness of the den as he nudged Jaypaw gently before heading out into the early morning light to join... Mintwhisker? He blinked for a moment in confusion before realisation sank in. This was his moonstone journey. He was nearly ready to become a warrior. Joy flooded his pelt as he licked up the herbs obediantly despite their disgusting taste and followed the Medicine Cat with a spring in his step.

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Mothermouth was far larger than Falconpaw thought it would be. His yellow eyes widened in awe at the sheer size of it, though the darkness of the black hole they were supposed to enter made him feel uneasy. Mintwhisker's words were not difficult to listen to as he slowly made his way into the tunnel. His pelt bristled against the rock and he fought the urge to hurriedly back out of it. He wanted to be back where the night sky shone above their heads. Yet he had to do this to become a warrior.

With his ears flattened, and determination sinking in, he followed her the rest of the way. The giant stone in the center of a large cavern struck him as strange but awe inspiring as he padded around it with curiousity bright in his eyes. He glanced over to Mintwhisker with a twitch of his whiskers. Who'd want to fall asleep? Right, it was the only way to meet Starclan. He sighed and found a spot that seemed like it would be comfortable before he pressed his nose to the stone with a shudder, the world falling out from him as bright lights took over his vision.

Most cats described StarClan as a utopia sort of realm, which was entirely true, but being like he was, Antdrop never really understood why everyone worshiped it so much, but even so, he wasn't going to complain.

The black tom's life had unfortunately ended too soon due to a hunting accident and now, he lived alone in the starry fields, wishing nothing more than to see his little brother and family again. Admittedly, he'd originally despised the little leader, Tinystar, but he hadn't realized how lucky he was to have someone like that in his life until it was all gone. If only he could've changed his ways earlier, then maybe things would have ended differently.

Per usual, Antdrop sat alone on the empty, cloud covered moorlands, concentrating on something. Noticing a shape begin to appear not far away from where he sat, the black tom lifted up his head from where it'd rested on his paws and focused his gaze on what seemed to be another apprentice. The young tom's pelt didn't shimmer with sparkling stars like those of deceased cats, which meant he was probably just visiting, which was of course good. Standing up, he gave his black pelt a shake, sending specks of stardust falling back onto the misty ground. With him being what looked to be the only cat around, he knew what needed to be done.

"Here for your Moonstone journey?" Antdrop asked stoically as he approached Falconpaw, though he assumed that was what the younger cat was there for. Like always, there was no emotion on his face even when "welcoming" a cat to StarClan. Even when he was among the living, the warrior had never been a very social cat and preferred to keep to himself, since that way, life was much more simple, and he was perfectly fine with things being that way.

When his bright yellow eyes opened, Falconpaw was stunned to see the starry world out before him. A field seemingly made of stars danced into his view. Soft bits of starlight flying off into the air and dancing in an invisible breeze as Falconpaw stepped forward towards a shape outlined in those same stars.
"...StarClan... Uh, yes. I am." He tried to bring himself back into his senses. He was here to get wisdom, then to earn his warrior name as was his right as a SkyClan cat. To help the clan become greater. He lifted his chest proudly, the brown of his coat a dull contrast in comparison to the bright StarClan cat. "I'm Falconpaw... and... " he paused as his eyes narrowed, trying to distinguish the cat in front of him. "...who are you?"

Staying quiet, he watched as the apprentice stared at him with some skeptical eyes, most likely surprised and maybe even confused by his appearance. Listening as he mewed a question in which the warrior had been practically counting the moments until it was asked, Antdrop's tail flicked back and forth. "I'm Antdrop, son of Crowstar and brother to Tinystar," the black tom spoke, standing as still as a statue, no emotion on his muzzle what so ever.

"If you couldn't already tell, you're in StarClan," the bland sounding tom started, looking around the open plain, but soon turning his gaze back to Falconpaw's. "But I assume you already knew that," he added, looking around the starry planes.

The son of Crowstar? Tinystar's brother? Falconpaw felt a rush of approval at StarClan's choice of visitor. He would get to speak to an important cat, one of note. His second comment though made him huff indignantly. As if the bright starry field had been easy to miss.

"I can tell from all the stars." He meowed bluntly, but with a bit of a smirk on his muzzle. "Still, it's nice to meet you, Antdrop. Do you have anything important to tell me?" His tone became more curious as he waited. His tail flicked in intrigue as his eyes caught the shapes of other cats in the starry distance.

While it wasn't unbearable, there was a slight aura about the apprentice that he found odd, but he couldn't quite put a paw on it, and shook the thoughts away, deciding it wasn't important enough to dwell his thoughts on. "Yes, I do," he mewed with a nod.

While StarClan was admittedly a beautiful place, like everything, the twinkling starlit field didn't last forever. In the distance, as if almost perfectly split down the middle, the dimly lit plains faded into a misty darkness. If some-cat were to go close enough to the darkness, the glinting eyes of the exiled could be seen through the grey, hazy, fog, and their taunting, whispering voices, could be heard. Luckily for them, they weren't going to go anywhere near there.

Flicking his tail back and forth, Antdrop pointed his muzzle towards the ominous darkness that sat over yonder. "Do you know what that is?" he asked stoically, not turning his gaze away from where it sat as he spoke.