Rabbitpaw's Moonstone Journy

Briarpaw hummed to himself as he prepared some travelling herbs. It was time for him to bring Rabbitpaw to the moonstone! he hoped that the apprentice would be as excited as he was. Carrying both bundles, he padded to the apprentices' den. Briarpaw put down the herbs, and walked inside. He poked the brown tom. "Wake up! It's time for your moonstone! Aren’t you excited?" He retreated out of the den, and began to eat the bitter concoction.

Shivering heavily at the rather chilly paw poking his already dangerously short pelt during the middle of leaf-bare, Rabbitpaw opened his eyes slowly and rose his head to look up at the medicine cat apprentice. He yawned and stretched out his long limbs before standing up, giving his pelt a shake to help fluff it up a little for whatever good it would do. He gingerly slipped passed his fellow sleeping apprentices to step by Briarpaw. In response to his question, he nodded. "I suppose so. I'm not looking forward to the journey, but I know it must be done, so I will do it."

He looked down at the wrapped herbs at his paws, then back up at Briarpaw, catching the scent of the same bitter leaves in his breath. So these herbs must be for their long travel to Highstones. Rabbitpaw lowered his head back down to the leaf wrap and tentatively sniffed at it before wrinkling his nose. They didn't smell too pleasant, which meant they would taste three times as bad. Determined to prove himself ready and worthy of this trip, he took the whole thing in his mouth and chomped down on it as quickly as he could before swallowing. He gritted his teeth and dug his claws into the frosty ground to keep from gagging, or showing any real distaste to the flavor really. Once the worst of it was gone after several more gulps and a few licks to his paw, he mewed, "I am ready to go, Briarpaw. Lead the way."

"Okay!" Briarpaw happily lead the way leading out of camp. After awhile of walking, he turned to Rabbitpaw. "What has training been like for you so far?" Briarpaw asked in a voice that was obviously trying to sound casual. Being the Medicine Cat Apprentice, he didn't know very much about what it was like to be a normal apprentice. He hoped this cat could tell him about it.

OOC: Sorry for taking so long to post!

(OOC: That's okay. And I hope you don't mind me taking initiative to wrap up the journey in this one long post, I really want Rabbitpaw to become a warrior before the soft reboot. :3)

Rabbitpaw didn't seem to take much thought in the answer he would give his mentor's son. "Every mentor's training methods are different for their own apprentices, but it's fairly the same principles. Learn to hunt and fight, memorize the territories, and perform chores around camp to build a sense of responsibility and respect for your Clanmates. Your mother, Graybriar, is my mentor. She also teaches my sister Frozenpaw. She's a fair and adequate warrior in her own right. A little unsure of herself, but she still knows what she is doing. I am certain I will become a decent warrior of WindClan under her training in my own due time."

He continued following the medicine cat apprentice during their journey to Highstones, electing to travel in silence to think and ponder on how his conversation with a StarClan warrior would turn out. Naturally, being a WindClan cat, his Clan feeling heavily spiritually connected to their warriors ancestors on account they live closest to Highstones than any other Clan, he had adapted their same mindset. He praised and worshiped them, as he did with the warrior code that these ancestors have created during their time in the living. Any cats who were able to create such a grand and complex system among the Clans deserved all the recognition and respect they received, including his.

Once they finally reached Mothermouth in Highstones as the sun began to fall over the mountains, Rabbitpaw followed Briarpaw into the darkness. He had to admit, this part of the journey, not knowing exactly where he was going, scared him a little bit, but after allowing himself to compare this deep, dark cave to the sandy tunnels beneath WindClan territory he felt a little more at ease.

It didn't take either of them long to reach the large cavernous room where the Moonstone stood, the majestic stone now glowing in a cold, mysterious white light, seeming to draw him closer to its radiance to see for himself the truly wondrous powers it held beneath its sleek, glimmering surface. His paws seeming to work on their own, Rabbitpaw approached the Moonstone slowly, feeling as though he were dreaming, or perhaps even in a trance. Once he reached it, he nestled down on the freezing, unforgiving stone floor that never once felt the warmth of the sun, and he touched his brown nose to it. Instantly, his short, coarse pelt rose as freezing cold shot through his entire being, and his ice-blue eyes shut tightly as he fought to hold back a surprised growl.

Almost as soon as the piercing cold began, it faded away, dissipating into a comforting warmth, and Rabbitpaw could just detect little shimmers of light behind his eyelids. Opening his eyes, he found he was in a brand-new sparkling land full of warm breezes and flitting lightning bugs dancing across the fields of soft, flowing grass. The world above was pitch black, making the sparkling stars that much more noticeable and beautiful. He quickly took notice that some of them were beginning to shift, then swirl, as they descended down to the earth. Then, they began to take shape, forming a beautiful snow-white molly with gorgeous blue eyes.

The StarClan cat stepped forward and fixed Rabbitpaw with the same calm, stoic expression he himself wore, yet there was still a welcoming glimmer in her eyes that prevented the WindClan apprentice from being put on edge. "Welcome to StarClan, Rabbitpaw of WindClan. I am Snowdrop, formerly of ThunderClan."

"ThunderClan?" Rabbitpaw echoed accusingly, narrowing his eyes slightly. Why couldn't he have been visited by one of his own former Clanmates?

"In StarClan, it matters not what Clan you were from during your time of the living. StarClan is all one Clan, where cats of five different backgrounds come together as one," Snowdrop explained calmly, not even batting an eye at the WindClan apprentice's tone of voice. "Of course, that is not at all how the living world works. All five Clans remain in their respective Clan. They do not join together, nor should they ever. We have had five Clans for generations, and it must be kept this way. The idea of Clans forming alliances with one another simply out of bias is disgusting to think about."

Rabbitpaw blinked, confusion filling his mind at the StarClan cat's words. He tilted his head questioningly. "Yet WindClan's allied Clan is ThunderClan. Your home Clan."

"Well, it shouldn't be," Snowdrop suddenly hissed, causing Rabbitpaw to flinch. "The only thing alliances cause is confusion. Cats won't know whether to be loyal towards their allied Clan or their own. The same stands for RiverClan and ShadowClan. At least Tinystar has enough sense to keep SkyClan out of this silly nonsense. Rabbitpaw, I am here to tell you to never put another Clan above your own. Even though ThunderClan is your ally and my home Clan, if they are in trouble and helping them could risk WindClan's well-being in the long-run, you should not help. Protect your own Clan, even at the cost of your life. That is what the warrior code states."

The thought of putting his own Clan in danger to help another made Rabbitpaw feel a little threatened. He would never allow anything bad to happen to his Clan or his Clanmates. But at the same time... "But Brindlestar has decreed--"

Snowdrop didn't even allow him to finish his thought. "Then your mother is a fool. As I said, alliances only cause confusion. Have a discussion with Brindlestar about this if you feel the need to, but if she continues down this unforgivable path with ThunderClan, she will only put her own Clan in danger. Nothing lasts forever; what if the alliance ends? Then you will be forced to choose between your own Clan and the friends you have made in the other in inevitable battle. Even if you would not have second thoughts about who to be loyal to, not all your Clanmates would be nearly as sensible. It would be best to end it sooner rather than later. Do what you feel is best, Rabbitpaw, but never forget to remain loyal to your Clan first and foremost."

Rabbitpaw slowly nodded, feeling very uncomfortable. He had praised and worshiped StarClan ever since he first learned about them as a kit. But at the same time, the word of the Clan leader was law, which was stated in the warrior code, as was the law Snowdrop had just recited. Perhaps if he just approached his mother about this and asked why they held an alliance with ThunderClan, something could be worked out.

Seeming to feel that the two cats have reached an agreement, Snowdrop stepped back without even another word, not even a farewell, and floated back up into the black sky to join the rest of StarClan's warriors. The world around Rabbitpaw grew too bright for him to keep his eyes open any longer, and when he opened them once again he found himself back in the cold cavern, nestled in front of the Moonstone, which was no longer glowing.