October Medicine Cat Meeting

Mossbloom was, to put it simply, tired. For the last half Moon she had been making every other day trips between SkyClan and YhunderClan, and while she had been taking care not to linger too long in one or the other, her efforts in doing so had drained her. The trip might not have been as long as say WindClan to ThunderClan, but after making that trek back and forth after the Gathering... Her paws ached. On the flip side of that, however, ThunderClan was still well taken care of, Pricklebush keeping watch on their Clanmates when he wasn't in RiverClan, and her trips to SkyClan were brief enough that she wasn't gone too long when he was on the far side of the river.

Additionally, Sagelight had learned almost everything she could teach him. She was proud of her taken on apprentice, and looked forward to leading him to the Moonstone again soon for his medicine cat ceremony. He would still need guidance sometimes, surely, but what cat didn't? No, he would be just fine. And if he did need help, he knew exactly where to find her. The border had been blurred the tiniest little bit in her numerous short stays, and she would be comfortable going to aid him if he so needed or desired. All would be well.

For now, though, she made her way to the Moonstone on weary paws. The silvery moonlight cast a serene glow on her tired face, but she yearned to rest among the clan's ancestors. Perhaps she would discover more about the prophecy she had received at the last meeting. Arriving outside of Mothermouth, she sat and waited patiently. She was early, much earlier than usual, having taken into account the possibility of needing to take a break thanks to her exhaustion. Fortunately, it had been unneeded, so she took the extra time to groom her pelt neatly, and relax while she waited for her companions to join her, eyes searching for the familiar figures of her friends, especially Sagelight and Pricklebush.

Aspenheart was slow to climb Highstones, as he was guiding Mistystripe along the way. She was proving to be quite a competent medicine cat. However, he had a few concerns of his own. She really hated Grousefrost. He dreaded the day that he found himself in the medicine den when his apprentice was on duty. It was a conversation he had yet to have with the she-cat, but he knew it would need to happen soon. He hoped she would understand the line between personal grievances and the importance of neutrality in healing. There was too much to do tonight. The lecture would have to wait. His apprentice's first meeting was of the highest priority.

Mossbloom was already at the plateau where Mothermouth stood, and he gave her a welcoming mew as he approached. "I'd like to formally introduce my apprentice, Mistystripe. Recommended by StarClan and everything. She's doing pretty well for herself, and I'm glad I don't have to haul tail across the forest to train her." He punctuated his joke with a wink.

Mistystripe followed her mentor up highstones. This was going to be her first medicine cat meeting, and she was surprisingly not excited. Her mind was currently a tad bit preoccupied. She was thinking about who she would see. Would it be Briarstream again? Or Brookclover? Those were the likely ones, but she hoped she could spot her baby brother. Quailpaw had died as an apprentice, and she wanted to see his face, just one last time. Would he appear to her? Probably not. But it didn't hurt to hope. What would they even tell her? With so many more important medicine cats around, they wouldn't actually give her a prophecy, would they?

She heard her name and jumped from her thoughts, quickly dipping her head in greeting as she realized she had just been introduced. Her mentor was really flattering her this introduction, making her a tiny bit flustered. "Well, um, I, uh, wouldn't go that far. I, er, I just have my moments. Believe me, I am a mess!" While she did enjoy the fact that Aspenheart liked having her as an apprentice, she didn't really quite see herself fit for boasting. All it did was make her nervous.

Standing as two figures approached, one noticeably more wobbly than the other, Mossbloom mewed her welcome in return. "Aspenheart! It's good to see you again. I hope things are going better in WindClan? Deliver anymore kits?" She teased with a grin before turning to the newcomer with bright, welcoming eyes. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mistystripe. We're all a mess in our own ways, so don't worry about that. Isn't that right, Aspenheart?" She purred as she leaned forward to touch her nose gently to Mistystripe's shoulder. "Pricklebush should be here soon, along with Mistlepaw. Sagelight will be around shortly as well, I'm sure, I've taken him on as my apprentice after what happened at the last meeting..."

She trailed off slightly, the fatigue setting in again as she considered what had happened to Mintwhisker. With a small sigh, she continued. "He's doing well though, I imagine he'll have his name in the next half moon. At least SkyClan and ThunderClan are relatively close, I've been able to walk between the two almost daily! Sure keeps a cat busy." Sitting back down, she wrapped her tail around her paws before turning her gaze towards the distance searching for more figures. None yet... Hopefully they wouldn't be long.

Mothpaw made her way up to Highstones alone, as she had so many times. She greeted her friends at the entrance to the tunnel, another familiar occurrence - "Aspenheart, Mossbloom! It's good to see you both! Is that your apprentice?" - before moving on. She'd have loved to stay and chat, but she also didn't quite feel up to it. It would mean acting like her usual self, when she still felt the weight of death and loss so heavily. Instead she walked the familiar path, step by step by step, into the Moonstone's cavern; where she lightly touched her nose to it and closed her eyes.

~

The member 'Holly the Witch' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'StarClan Revelation' :

Aspenheart sucked in a breath as he nodded to the other medicine cats and proceeded, timidly, down the cavern. He had a feeling that Nightrunner would not be in attendance this evening, either. When would his smart-mouthed friend return? He longed to be led, for once in his life, instead of being looked at. It felt as though the ancient tom was the only one who possibly could, in his infinite knowledge.

Darkness swallowed him tonight. The moonstone was duller than usual, pulsing with crescent moonlight. He touched it with hesitation.

The mist in his dreams was overbearing. He could not smell where he was, nor could he make sense of the figures in the darkness. This was not WindClan's land. He sensed that the sky was concealed by tall and powerful trees. His already wobbly paws tended to stumble more on this overgrown dirt. He blinked, once, twice, trying to make sense of the dense haze. A sudden yowl, quickly stifled, turned his attention as he whipped around to catch a peek. Two shadowy cats stood in the darkness, one limp in the jaws of the other. With a gentle thud, the supposed winner of whatever brief fight had occured dropped his deceased opponent. A trail of scarlet blood came to rest at Aspenheart's paws. A small tremble shook the medicine cat's blood as he looked down into the pool. In the reflection, he caught amber eyes and a sickening sneer. The face was so familiar. Had he seen this tom at a Gathering..?

Splash. A thick, heavy paw stomped the reflection, spraying blood onto Aspenheart's muzzle as he hissed in disgust. When he lifted his head, something was not right. This was not the tom in the reflection. Hidden by the dense mist, the much larger cat gave a chuff of laughter and lifted his claws to the medicine cat's face. In an instant, the wind picked up, and the mist disappeared... taking the shadowy cat with it.

The forest was empty, except for one last cat cloaked in darkness. Aspenheart's eyes narrowed, squinting to make out the stranger's face. A yellow eye winked.

"Nightrunner?"

The next time he blinked, he was awake in the cavern. Morning hung heavy in the air. He yawned, disappointed once more with Nightrunner's distance, but intrigued by the story he had been given to unravel.

The member 'Grisly Grizzly' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'StarClan Revelation' :

Mossbloom mewed a quiet greeting to Mothpaw, taking one last long glance over the stones leading to Mothermouth. Praying that her apprentice and mentor were alright, she turned and hesitantly made her way inside. She'd go straight to SkyClan to check on Sagelight after this...

The Moonstone was duller than usual, which was odd. She didn't recall seeing any clouds in the sky... Settling herself, she pressed her nose delicately to the Moonstone as closed her eyes, nervously anticipating what was to come.

~~~

Opening her eyes, she found herself in a completely strange place. The rocks under her paws were foreign, as was the horizon. Where was this place? It was so different from anything she had ever seen or heard of.... No, wait, she had heard of a place like this.... Emberheart, Batbite, and Pricklebush had all spoken of it. The mountains, with the strange tribe cats she had heard about. Why was she here though?

A handsome tom approached on soundless paws, and her head tilted in confusion. What was the emotion welling in her chest? What was happening? He opened his jaws and they moved, but no sound came out. The strange tom gazed at her with warmth, judging from his expression his words must have been kind, but why couldn't she hear anything? Looking down, she realized that the paws she stood over were not her own, and realization shone. This was not her, it was some other cat, one she did not know, who was deaf. The sensation of a tail winding with her own was so foreign and unexpected, but it clued her in on what was going on. Sighing, she looked back up and saw Emberheart's starry form just ahead, looking back at her. She tried to move, but found herself stuck in place as the pelts of these two unknown cats brushed close together. Her former mentor smiled, youthful glee clear in her expression before gesturing towards the two cats.

"The mountains held more trials than simple survival. Kits with half-SkyClan blood and half loner blood walk among the clans. Do with this information what you will, Mossbloom." Astonished, Mossbloom tried to call out as Emberheart's figure dissipated, fading out of sight. Only silence met her as the dream faded in it's turn, and she woke next to the Moonstone.

~~~

Sitting up, she shook her head. What did it matter? The mountains had been so long ago, those kits were probably well-established in SkyClan. Or, well, any clan for that matter, she considered as she recalled that a specific clan for their location hadn't been specified. Why drudge up old matters, especially when she wasn't even involved? With a shrug she made her way back through the tunnels to Mothermouth, waiting in the cool night air. Pricklebush had been in the cavern, she had scented him in the darkness. Hopefully he would emerge soon.

The member 'Mossman' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'StarClan Revelation' :

Just as Mossbloom said, the SkyClan medicine cat was not far behind. He picked his way up the slope to the Mothermouth, greeted with the familiar sight of the other medicine cats. Sagelight broke into a grin and padded over to Mossbloom's side, flicking his tail. "Hi Mossbloom, hi Aspenheart, hi Mothpaw! It's nice to see all of you again. And..." His bright blue gaze settled on the blurry shape of Mistystripe, the new WindClan medicine cat apprentice. He somewhat recognized her from the last Gathering. "It's Mistystripe, right? I'm Sagelight, the SkyClan medicine cat apprentice. Nice to meet you...again!" He was excited for his first prophecy, to say the least. As the other cats made their way into the cavern, he did as well. Upon entering the clearing with the Moonstone, he padded up to it and crouched down, touching his nose to it. Just as the other times, he fell into darkness, awaiting his message from StarClan.

-------

He was standing in a clearing surrounded by large hardwood trees, vastly different from the tall, spindly pines he was used to at home. The sky was dark, pitch black, the moon directly above. Sagelight found his eyes drawn to it, like it was the only thing that mattered. His paws were rooted where he stood, almost as if he was a tree himself, forced to observe. As he watched, the stars in the night sky winked out one by one. On the horizon, the sun began to rise, a new dawn, a new day. There was something wrong, though. The moon was blood red, rising too quickly, bathing the area in a sickly red glow. As the sun rose, the moon began to change too, transforming from its usual white color to a dark crimson, the same as the sun. The tom watched in horror as the moon began to melt, dripping away, pooling at his feet like it was in fact made of blood. He tried to move, to get away, but he couldn't. The sun's light became harsh, nearly blinding, and he had to close his eyes tightly to block it out.

When he opened his eyes again, the blood was gone. The sun had returned to its usual yellow glow. Sitting in front of him was a plant. At first he didn't recognize it, but a voice in his head told him it was the sage plant. Sage? He stared at it, expecting something awful, but instead the clouds shifted overhead and cast a shadow over the plant. Was...Was this StarClan telling him he was safe, or telling him he was in danger? It could only represent him, he was the only Sage he knew of.

A breeze ruffled his fur and a voice whispered on the wind. "Dawn's light grows cold as it gazes upon the fading dusk. Cold, harsh, glaring, beware of the new day. Dusk fades to nothingness. Are you ready for what the light of day may bring?" A piercing cold shocked his system, and then there was nothing.

-------

Sagelight woke up with a start, panting heavily. His mind was racing from what he saw; he swore his paws were still stained red from the moon's blood. He had gotten nearly the same message that Mossbloom had received before him. As he struggled to his feet and absently made his way out of the cavern, he ran through what he had seen in his head. The trees...Could it be...ThunderClan's territory? Was this going to happen in ThunderClan? He trotted faster. He had to warn Mossbloom.

The member 'Aspe-ider' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'StarClan Revelation' :

Soon, Mistlepaw stalked into the gathering. She, per usual since the most recent death in her close circle, padded by her fellow medicine cats without a word. If anyone paused to look at her, she'd meet their stare with the softest, kindest smile, even if her eyes were glazed over and hollow. She just wanted this to be over with; she just wanted to get home to her comfy moss nest and sleep the day away. She hadn't been in the mood for the past few sunrises. Though it could be pinned onto grief, a pit in her stomach told her something was off. Her medicine cat senses were tingling. Shuddering, she hastily padded into the cave and made her place by the Moonstone. Some other medicine cats had arrived before her. As quietly as possible, she settled down and touched her nose to the stone before being enveloped by darkness.

~~~

Blood.

The scent hit her nose abruptly. She stopped walking, even though she had no recollection of taking a step. She looked to her sides and noticed two cats, a calico and an unnaturally large brown tabby, rushing past her, fear scent trailing behind them. Curious, she trailed after them, taking note of their rigid expressions and obscured features. Ah, this was a revelation. But a revelation of what? Starclan never gave her a prophecy like this. She looked down at her paws and chest, surprised to see that she was in her own skin. What was going on? Why did she smell blood? What was Starclan trying to tell her? Was..was something bad going to happen to her, and the two other cats she was with? Before she got too overwhelmed, she tried to clear her head and observe her surroundings better. Perhaps paying more attention would give a better hint as to what was happening. She breathed in deeply, trying to pick up any different scents that might cue to the situation at hand. Alongside the strong coppery scent and the smell of the three cats' combined anxiety, another pungent odor pierced the air. Mistlepaw recognized it immediately, her eyes widening as dread pooled into her stomach. 

Fox.

The scent was unmistakable. She found herself shaking, breathing quick, shallow breaths as the memory of the hideous beast tearing her mentor apart and slaughtering the Thunderclan queen's kit and nearly biting Dappleshine's leg in two seeped into her mind. "No, no it can't be. Starclan wouldn't allow this to happen. Oh, oh Starclan," she opened her mouth to warn the others of what she smelled but no sound left her maw. Her lips moved but no words escaped them. The other cats seemed to be muttering silent prayers, but no words were heard. The only sound was the gentle rustling of branches as wind gently swept through them, and the crunching of fallen leaves underneath their paws. Mistlepaw felt anxious as the scent grew stronger and stronger, tears slipping freely onto her cheeks. Her paws were moving and she suddenly she was running, running all the way back to the clearing. Her legs carried her as swiftly as they could, leading her to the site of some poor creature's demise. The scents increased significantly, and she willed herself to run faster than she ever had before. So fast that she had to skid to a halt when the scents grew the strongest and the gruesome spectacle was in front of her. She tried to cry out in despair, but the sounds of her wails fell on deaf ears. She was too late.

"You're all alone now, Mistlepaw."

~~~

"No!" she shrieked as she jolted awake, claws unsheathing and grappling to the floor. She pushed herself off the ground, gasping and shaking as the shock settled in. Slowly, ever so slowly, her breathing evened out and her muscles relaxed, but the same horrified expression remained behind her wide, bright green eyes. Whatever her revelation was about, it was clearly horrible. She had to warn someone about it. "Pricklebush will do. He's experienced, he'll know what to do. But how will I be able to bring it up?" she gave her flank a brief lick to help herself feel calm, and she trotted away from the Moonstone. That was enough for tonight. She needed fresh air to clear her head, and hopefully figure out a way to approach the Thunderclan tom regarding such an important matter.

The member 'skeleku's waifu' has done the following action : Dices roll

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'StarClan Revelation' :