December Medicine Cat Meeting

Mossbloom was, to put it simply, exhausted. The last half moon had been busy, making the journey to Highstones more than once, and trying to keep ThunderClan calm and well-healed following the battle with ShadowClan had not been an easy task. As the cold gripped the forest more and more, herbs became harder to find, and already her stocks were starting to reveal the effects of leaf-bare. It would only get harder from this point, a grim fact that the she-cat couldn't force from her mind at night. She had taken to going on herb hunts almost constantly, her paws freezing when she finally returned to her den to sort them and take a quick nap before heading out once more. Today, though, she had not gathered any herbs, instead she made the walk to Highstones once more.

She was surprised to see that she was the first to arrive as she made her way over the rocky landscape, but the surprise was barely registered as she continued without stopping to disappear into Mothermouth. If she stopped now, and sat down, she would almost certainly fall asleep before descending to the Moonstone. As she padded through the tunnels leading to the Moonstone, she felt almost lighter, although the sleepiness remained. She sighed as she saw the familiar pinprick of light in the distance, growing closer with each step until finally the Moonstone glowed before her eyes. She stared at it for a long moment before padding forward, crouching next to it. Settling herself on the cold, hard ground, she took a deep breath before gently placing her nose to the Moonstone, the darkness of sleep rising to meet her almost instantly.

---

Mossbloom stood on an open hill, the grasses swaying at her paws in the gentle breeze. It was so peaceful, comforting almost, as she turned her eyes towards the sky with a kit-like smile. She watched with an innocent excitement as the stars above her seemed to swirl in a silent dance, the song to which they were dancing unable to be heard. Two stars that shone brighter than the rest seemed to travel together, parallel but not quite touching as they raced across the sky before separating  abruptly. The wind started to grow cold as one of the stars started to flicker, before the two began to meet in the center of the sky once more. A low, gruff growl, not quite menacing but not exactly friendly either, huffed from her side. "Those chosen by the stars to guide paws are meant to share only skies, not nests." 

---

In a brilliant flash, the two stars collided, drowning the landscape in blinding white light. In the next moment, Mossbloom's eyes blinked open, meeting with the shining Moonstone just a whisker in front of her nose, still lit by the moon. Narrowing her eyes quickly against the light, she shuddered violently before her eyes closed again. This time StarClan sent no prophecy, and Mossbloom merely rested in her spot until the others started to wake as well.

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

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'StarClan Revelation' :

Aspenheart's healing pelt ruffled in the nearly blistering chill of the wind as he slowly climbed the towering rocks. There was a distinct frigidness to the lonely journey. It was enough to cool even the strongest beating heart... a sentiment confirmed as Aspenheart ascended just in time to catch a pluming tortoiseshell tail slip quietly into the cavern beyond. A small huff of air collected in a cloud just beyond the silver tom's face. He sought shelter from the cutting windchill, but he wasn't about to let the others find their way down all on their own. As much as he enjoyed his solitude, he didn't see the medicine cats nearly enough to get tired of them. Sagelight was a curious tom, both abled and disabled in a way that reminded Aspenheart of himself. He inherited an entire clan out of tragedy... How did he do it? Life seemed very different a forest apart. WindClan was practically one big litter. SkyClan seemed more like a band of stoic... well, warriors. Though, a gaggle of WindClanners might look like rabbit-huggers to the other clans. Leaning up against a rock, he waited for the next to arrive.

Mothglow had her own way of combating the icy chill, beyond the advantage of her long and fluffy fur. Namely, she ran almost the entire way there, racing against the wind and laughing all the while. Maybe it didn't do as much good as she liked to believe, but this weather reminded her of a simpler, happier time; and if playing games in the snow made her happy, who was going to stop her?

It was true that she often found herself lonely making the journey to Highstones by herself, but it allowed her a freedom she didn't have whenever she was guiding apprentices to visit their ancestors; beyond the fact that she tried to act wiser and more mature than she actually was. Her paws touched the ground for a moment at a time, leaping forward almost instantly; she only began to slow when her paws met stone beneath the snow; and as she approached Aspenheart the wide grin on her face faded into an easy smile.

She was among friends here; and while tragedy seemed to follow the clans like a storm, they had weathered each one so far. "How have you fared recently?" she asked pleasantly, head tilted curiously as she offered up an explanation of how her own season had been thus far. "It's been... Well, it's leaf-bare; but it's not so bad, I think."

The cold was uncomfortable, sure, but she'd always thought of love as something warm; and she had enough of that to last her a lifetime.

(After all, while to most it carried negative connotations, leaf-bare was when Mothglow was born; and in every falling snowflake she saw a piece of her history come to keep her company.)

Sagelight made his way to Highstones with a pace brisker than usual, egged on by the brisk, chilly wind blowing across the forest. His paws tingled from the cold, an uncomfortable tingle that he knew would be painful later. This Leaf-bare was his first Leaf-bare as a medicine cat and he had to admit, it was not easy. He had heard other cats talking about the hardships of Leaf-bare, especially for medicine cats and their herb stocks, but he hadn't expected this. Bad on him for being too optimistic, he supposed. He ran through what herbs he had left in his head, muttering to himself as he rounded the top of the slope towards the Mothermouth.

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

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'StarClan Revelation' :

"It's good to see you..." Aspenheart said softly as Mistleshine shuffled past them both, looking rain-sodden. The medicine cat chewed the inside of his cheek, lost in brain fog. He couldn't dig up a logical sentence. He watched her grey pelt disappear into the cavern. Poor kit. "We're getting by. The pelt-wearers ran my stores dry, though. Don't take it personally if I come sneaking around to steal yours!"

Aspenheart waved his tail high in greeting to Sagelight, mindful of the fact that the wind probably whistled louder than his voice could call out. He nodded to both colleagues, a small shiver catching his spine as he hobbled towards Mothermouth. "I'm getting out of here, with or without you two!" he laughed spitefully. "How's SkyClan, pal?" With the excitement of a kit on the eve of their apprentice ceremony, Aspenheart waddled towards the Moonstone. There was something electric in his bones, and he had a sneaking suspicion that his old friend had finished hiding. And, oh, how he was going to flay that star-cat for running away!

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A tunnel. Two glowing eyes. A cackle, the cold smell of starlight. Nightrunner ran his face along Aspenheart's cheek. "Howdy, Jiggles," he whispered. The medicine cat tried to speak a reply, but the words were endlessly caught in his throat. He cleared it once or twice to no avail. How curious. "The prophecy isn't mine to give. These folks are a little above my status, ya know? But... they told me they're tired of y'all talking. They want you to listen. Follow me."

The tunnels started to blur together for what felt like hours. Aspenheart grunted and struggled as he kept Nightrunner's swift tail close to his nose. He only got lost once or twice. Wherever they were going, it was far, far away. He imagined the world when he emerged would come out upside-down. His pawpads grew weary and tired until he could walk no more, and then Nightrunner motioned him upwards before disappearing into another tunnel's path. Tentatively, Aspenheart place two paws up on the ledge and scrambled up into the muffled light of the moon. There was something amiss in the air. He nearly swam through the air, thick with spirits and messages. He could not find the source of whispering. He felt bubbled.

And so he was. From his right, darkness crept over the starry moorland, crawling over every blade of grass. A blooming flower wilted as the wave of murk touched its auburn petals. Aspenheart's scruff prickled in surprise as the flower seemed to gasp and curl inward on itself. Aspenheart looked around, feet refusing to inch away from the shadows that threatened him. It was then that he realized he was not alone. Out of the shrubs, cat-shaped figures emerged from his left. They regarded the darkness with a sort of morbid curiosity. Aspenheart did not recognize the figures that joined him at his sides. Nightrunner was right; he couldn't scream for help, or even speak to these strangers. All he could do was move his attention between the cats at either one of his sides, wordlessly begging for answers. As he struggled, the wave came closer and closer, swallowing up the forest around him.

"WindClan, I believe, will suffer the worst," the one to his right hissed quietly. "Don't you agree, Aspenheart?"

"You're a fool to mock them." The one to his right gave the first one a harsh look. The strange cat stepped forward, paws a near pebble's length from the shadow. "Look at that moon. How they take it for granted."

The darkness touched Aspenheart, and for the first time, he screamed in terrible agony. His knees buckled as he collapsed to the ground, shaking as his vision blurred at the edges. He felt like the flower. A large paw gripped his belly and rolled him over, out of the shadows. Feeling doused in icy water, Aspenheart stumbled and backed away from the darkness. The group of strangers approached him, surrounding him as he lay coughing in the dirt. They regarded him with pity. He hated it. Aspenheart opened his mouth, but he couldn't rebuke them. The first cat stepped forward, unblinking.

"This is the forest's final warning. The future is in your paws now. We know what you really are."

---

Aspenheart's world spun as he woke up, sputtering, pushing off the Moonstone and rolling into the center of the cavern. He wheezed with the effort of recalling the dream. "EVERYONE!" he shouted to the medicine cats. "StarClan... or... yeah? no? I... An omen! A bad, bad omen! They said it was the forest's final warning... There was darkness! It destroyed everything, everything. They said they know what we really are. What does that mean?" Aspenheart's chest felt as though it was caving in on itself. "That's not enough to work with! How am I supposed to figure that out? One of them thinks WindClan will suffer the worst! Am I going crazy? Maybe I made it up... foxdung..."

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

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'StarClan Revelation' :

He raised his head to see where his friends were, quickly spotting the silver, striped form of Aspenheart. The tom called to him and he trotted faster to greet the elder, a grin spreading across his face. "Hi, Aspenheart! It's good to see you!" he purred, giving the other's flank a flick with his tail. "Things are going well so far, thank StarClan...Hopefully it won't get any worse. How have you been? You look well!"

As Sagelight and the older tom chattered, they went further into the cavern to meet with StarClan. The gray and tan cat crouched down in front of the stone and gently touched his nose to it, ready to receive his prophecy.

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

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'StarClan Revelation' :

Mothglow made her way into the cavern as the other medicine cats did so, the small smile that had spread across her face all day refusing to leave even as her nose touched the stone and she faded from the waking world into that of dreams.

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

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'StarClan Revelation' :

Mossbloom's eyes shot open as two voices called out, on after another. She was surprised to see that Mistleshine was addressing Mothglow directly, but Aspenheart was speaking to them all. Concern rose as she got to her paws, listening to his words with a tilted head. "They know who we are? WindClan will suffer the worst? Hmm..." Her mind flit to her own prophecy, and she pondered it for a moment. "I was told that those chosen by the stars to guide paws are only meant to share skies, not nests..." Glancing around to the other medicine cats, she couldn't believe any one of them had done something wrong.... Then again, they didn't really guide paws, or maybe they did? She sighed softly, drawing her tail over her paws as fatigue threatened to overwhelm her once more. "Why can't StarClan ever just be clear? Has someone broken the code that any of us know of?..."