A New Way

Ever since her Moonstone journey, the memory of Aspenheart's, then Aspenpaw, seizure in the middle of the Thunderpath had haunted her dreams. She had immediately proposed her idea to her father, who contemplated the idea before agreeing to accompany her to plan it. Over the days they traveled to survey the area, Barleytuft guiding his eager daughter through what to look for, and carefully picked a spot. A couple more days of preparations, namely marking and watching, testing the the area would hold well and discussing how deep to dig and how far from the Thunderpath to go, and the two were ready to begin. The first days of digging had been difficult, the father and daughter duo returning covered in dirt and exhausted. A small break had taken place after her warrior ceremony, as she settled into her new duties, but her paws itched to return. Every passing sundown meant another lost day of progress. Finally, the day had come where both her father and Aspenheart were relatively free, and she looked forward to surprising the medicine cat with all they had accomplished so far.

First she carefully made her way to where Barleytuft was, and nudged him with a paw. She smiled brightly at him, the pale light of the dawn outlining her figure. "Today's the day! Let's go, so we can really surprise Aspenheart, he'll be thrilled!!" Her father was as early a riser as she was, so she went to fetch Aspenheart. She poked her head into his den and purred as she stepped in, leaning to lick her sleeping brother's ears swiftly. "Good morning Aspenheart! Are you almost ready? Barleytuft and I have something you just have to see, and we don't have all day!" She could hardly sit still in her excitement, feeling like she would just bounce out of her own fur. The time since becoming a warrior had been difficult, learning the new responsibilities expected of her, but she was more than ready to meet them in stride. Backing out of the medicine den, she padded away to wait at the entrance to the camp, shifting her weight back and forth between her paws as she waited for the two toms.

The day had come at last: the tunneling duo were ready to reveal their most recent project and the significant progress they'd made on it. Barleytuft knew that Goldengale had been looking forward to returning to it ever since they'd paused to allowed her to receive her warrior name and settle into her new duties. He could sense that she was itching to get back to it, and at last their schedules had aligned. It was the perfect day; it had rained a bit recently to loosen the soil without making it completely muddy, and that made it easier to dig and to shore up the edges with sticks and stones. Barleytuft was awake with the sun as always, but he rested with his eyes closed to wait for his daughter's summon when she was ready,

It came about when he expected. A soft paw touched his side and immediately his head was raised, his dark hazel eyes locking with Goldengale's in a warm greeting. "Today's the day!" his daughter cheered brightly, and Barleytuft's response was a thick purr as he made his way to his feet to get ready at her behest. "Sure thing, darlin' - I'll see you in a moment," he answered happily. Away Goldengale went to fetch their companion, and in the meantime Barleytuft looked beside him to his sleeping mate, Graybriar.

The beautiful silver she-cat was resting peacefully at his side - at least, Barleytuft hoped that Graybriar was at peace as she slept. The grief of Quailpaw's loss still hadn't left her. Of course it hadn't left Barleytuft either, but she had lost nearly her entire first litter from her first mate. The death of another child struck her hard. Goldengale's ceremony had helped. Barleytuft suspected things would be easier for her once Cloverpaw was out of the medicine den, healed and whole again. He was grateful that their children knew how dearly their mother loved them, and how much she needed their support. They were good kits.

With all the love and tenderness he could muster, Barleytuft gently rubbed his head under his sleeping love's chin, and over her cheek. He let his breaths warm the soft fur of her neck, and he gave her ear one soft, gentle lick as he murmured, "I love you, Gray... I'll see you after sun-high." He pulled away and stood then, turning to pad towards the exit of camp to wait for his daughter and their medicine cat companion.

"'M coming, Goldengale, just give me a second!" Aspenheart said in a muffled voice as he carried a fresh cobweb back to his stores. The spider who he had taken it from was angrily crawling across his ears, tickling them as he hobbled back to the main part of the den. "Alright, Shortstack, go back to your corner," he whispered to the bug as he pushed his head against the dirt wall and allowed it to swiftly crawl back to the dark spot where its web at formerly been. "Spindly! Quit trying to eat her!" With the happenings of his crawlers in order, he was ready to follow Goldengale and Barleytuft to whatever surprise they had for him.

Adjusting to the humdrum and everyday without Mintwhisker to guide him was surprisingly difficult, and he found himself missing the old geezer of a she-cat. He hoped to see her again soon, when the half-moon came around. He wondered if he'd even remember it without her to remind him! Luckily, everything was in its place and tidied, even with Aspenheart's faulty organizational skills. Before long, he was out of the den and into the sunlight, hobbling to meet his companions for the day. "How far are we walking for this?" he joked with a smile.

ooc; in case you're curious for some ridiculous reason, Shortstack is a garden orb-weaving spider and Spindly is a cellar spider!

Barleytuft was the first to approach, and the she-cat smiled brightly at him. Aspenheart started hobbling towards them, and the young warrior's excitement grew. This would be so wonderful for him, and would hopefully ease his mind and make the trips to the Moonstone much easier and less stressful. She couldn't wait to reveal it! "It's a bit of a walk, but I can guarantee that you walk further on a regular basis." She teased back, flicking his shoulder before turning to lead the way out of camp. She didn't stray far from a straight line to the Thunderpath, the sooner they arrived the sooner she could reveal the surprise, and they could keep working on it together. As the sun rose steadily overhead, they finished the last of their journey, the Thunderpath could be heard several tail lengths away, and a bunch of sticks and gorse stalks were placed on the ground. She turned to face Aspenheart with a wide grin and pushed the sticks away, revealing a hole that led into the ground, seemingly in the direction of the Thunderpath.

"Surprise!" She exclaimed, watching his expression closely. "Remember what we talked about during my Moonstone journeys? It's been a while since Barleytuft and I have been able to work on it, but it is started! Why don't you take a look? I promise it's safe and secure." She mewed, taking a step back to let the medicine cat take a closer look if he wanted. She met her father's gaze, eyes lit with joy and pride at all they had accomplished so far.

Barleytuft touched his nose briefly to Goldengale's ear when he arrived at her side. They only had to wait a moment for Aspenheart, for the silvery medicine cat seemed to be close on the warriors' heels. The toddling and waddling tom approached with a smile and a playful question, asking how far they were walking. Barleytuft's whiskers twitched with amusement, and Goldengale laughed, flicking the tom's shoulder with her tail before striking off towards the gorse tunnel with a vague response flitting over her shoulder. Barleytuft followed at Aspenheart's side, giving the unsteady medicine cat as much room to walk as he needed.

They took a direct path, making the shortest journey they could while still traveling at a pleasantly comfortable pace. They chattered away amiably along the way. Barleytuft could feel his daughter's excitement growing, radiating off of her tawny tabby pelt infectiously. The senior warrior tried to maintain a calm demeanor; when they approached the bundle of tunneling materials which hid their progress, he couldn't keep his tail from twitching with anticipation. When they were near enough, Barleytuft left Aspenheart's side to join Goldengale beside the bundle. With a grin and a dramatic shove, the way was cleared.

The tunnel under the Thunderpath was revealed.

Barleytuft met Goldengale's gaze with a proud nod before gazing at Aspenheart hopefully and eagerly. They certainly looked like father and daughter with the same glimmer of excitement on their striped faces.

It was as if a bright sunlight broke through Aspenheart's eyes, but his face lay frozen in shocked silence. With his mouth agape, he hobbled towards the tunnel entrance and peered inside. He could see the daylight on the other end, and he suddenly felt a deep tug at his heartstrings. The fruit of many days of labor, he figured, just for his comfort and ease of travel. Endless digging of a new path for a crippled medicine cat. How hard had they worked for him, in the pursuit of his happiness? It was confusing and exciting to feel so much love at once. All the time he spent in the medicine den, feeling othered and different for his affliction and his high status, suddenly seemed fabricated. He wove it out of his own mind, distracted by an endless sea of tasks. He never took the time to notice that he was being noticed.

Maybe he didn't need to be so isolated after all.

Aspenheart shuffled backward out of the tunnel and wobbled to Barleytuft first, nuzzling the old tom like a dear friend (which he certainly was). Though he was smaller, frailer, and more impish than the beige warrior, he was so overcome with glee that he nearly knocked the other over in his haste. The medicine cat shifted to Goldengale, pressing his forehead to hers like a proud mentor. He thought of the little kit nursing at Graybriar's belly with a rumbling purr for the graceful cat she had become. Near-floating, he disappeared down the tunnel. After a few moments, a silver head popped out of the ground on the other side with a triumphant yowl.

"I'm not getting squished today, monsters!" he hooted, "Oh, you two featherbrains! All this for one lousy cripple!" With that, Aspenheart went back through to meet the two warriors on the other side, shaking stray dirt and grime from his pelt. "It's perfect. Thank you."

Aspenheart made his waddling way over to the entrance of the tunnel after a few heartbeats of stunned silence during which Goldengale had a sudden moments of hesitation. Oh stars, what if he hated it? What if it was all for nothing? Her fear was unfounded, however, as his eyes lit up brightly, especially once he peered into the tunnel. He back away, making his way to Barleytuft first and almost knocking her father over in his excitement.

Next, he came to her, pressing his forehead to her own. Pressing gently back, her rattling purr resounded as he disappeared into the tunnel. Waiting patiently for a few heartbeats, she jumped with glee as his head appeared on the far side of the Thunderpath with a yowl of triumph. He commented on them being featherbrains, doing this for him, and disappeared once more, reemerging on the clan side of the tunnel. He declared it was perfect, shaking the dirt from his pelt.

"I'm so glad you like it! There's still plenty of work to get done, we still need to shore the center and far walls some more, and we have to see what it does in the rain, and I want to watch it when the Thunderpath is busy to make sure there's not any issues with that... But it's on its way!" She exclaimed, her excitement having returned tenfold.

Aspenheart said nothing, simply waddling past them with a look of shock spread wide across his face. Barleytuft's excitement didn't lessen; he had never been a part of such a monumentous surprise before, but he had seen many, and the kindly tom was unable to miss the awe and amazement that had burst in the medicine cat's eyes when he saw their work unveiled. The silvery tom stared for several long moments, examining it closely, before at last he turned back towards them and began to approach at a notable speed. Barleytuft's grin broadened as Aspenheart came thundering up, and he let out a boisterous laugh as his dear friend came practically crashing into him with an affectionate head-butt. The pale tabby tom staggered and nearly fell, but he caught and righted himself when Aspenheart backed away to turn his glee on Goldengale.

"I don't think I've been so thoroughly romanced since Graybriar and I returned from the flood," Barleytuft teased Aspenheart with a toothy smirk, half forgetting that his daughter was right there. The medicine cat had turned again, and with a look of sheer delight he lumbered down to the tunnel and disappeared. For a moment Barleytuft felt the fear in him bubble up as he second-guessed whether it was stable enough for the medicine cat's thumping gait yet, but in no time Aspenheart's striped head appeared from the other side to let out an overjoyed yowl. Barleytuft had to laugh, forcing his tail-tip to sit still when he hadn't noticed it twitching in the first place.

Within a moment Aspenheart had returned, purring his genuine joy and gratitude. Barleytuft chuckled and looked to Goldengale as she spoke of what had gone into it and what had yet to be finished - it was still a work in progress, after all. She had truly picked up tunneling quickly; she was always so eager to please, learn, and conquer, and she always did. The senior warrior wondered how many more ways she'd make him proud before he was forced to retire to the elders' den. It would be a while yet, hopefully, and Goldengale was turning out to be quite the achiever. He nodded in agreement and added, "This has been an honor to make - I mean, really, using StarClan's knowledge to create a more safe and direct route to StarClan. I can't think of a better way to use our gifts. Thank you for making this possible."