February Medicine Cat Meeting

Mothglow was used to the trip to the Moonstone; and typically she looked forward to it. It meant bonding with ShadowClan's apprentices, or seeing her friends, and those were both things she loved. Now, though, the sky was dark and cloudy, and the winds howled in the low and constant way they tended to this time of year. She moved swiftly, as though she were afraid to stand still, until she finally reached Mothermouth. There, where medicine cats had met for countless seasons past, she sat in silence and she waited.

As she did, she watched the cloudy sky for even a hint of light; but the stars were silent as ever and now she couldn't even see them shine. Were they there at all, or had they turned their back on everyone now? For the first time in a long time, if only for a moment as she waited for her company to arrive, Mothglow felt truly alone.

The busy state of ThunderClan's camp had kept her from the most recent Gathering, something that Mossbloom was both grateful and dismayed by. She hoped that the other medicine cats, her friends, were well, but feared what she may have missed due to being stuck in camp tending to coughs and aches and pains and trying desperately to find the herbs to keep up with it all. Tales of greencough and whitecough in WindClan had trickled to her ears following the Gathering, and she shuddered at the thought. The clans had enough to worry about without the threat of sickness looming over them.... Her fur prickled as she started the ascent into the rocky terrain leading to Highstones, recalling Aspenheart's anger and the way he had lashed out at Softpaw. Flinching at the memory, she could only hope that the two had been able to talk, civilly, and work things out. For all of their sakes.

Aspenheart had looked like a shadow of his mentor in that moment, Mintwhisker's shadowed, haunted eyes seeming to reflect in his fearful ones. Had he forgotten so soon, how it had felt to watch when she struck at Sagelight? No, surely he hadn't. He had been lost, as much so as the others, and scared. They all were scared. Softpaw's sentiments, while being shared in part at least by herself, had only heightened that fear, with StarClan seeming to be so close yet so far away. Tonight though, they seemed the farthest they ever had, not even a single star glimpsed from the clouds covering even the light of the moon. ThunderClan's medicine cat shuddered as a cold wind ruffled her fur the wrong way, ears flattening as she reached Mothermouth and saw Mothglow's silhouette.

Her voice cracked as she spoke, paws aching and cold as she drew closer to the other she-cat. "Hi, Mothglow. It's very cold tonight, I hope all is well in ShadowClan?" The unasked question seemed to echo in her words. Had Mothglow heard anything further? Had anything changed, or happened? It still felt to her as if the clans were on the edge of a cliff, standing at the edge of the gorge perhaps. Not quite dangling, but not safe either.... But nothing had changed that she had seen yet.

"As well as I can hope for," Mothglow sighed. It lifted a bit of the weight from her shoulders, though, to see Mossbloom arrive. She hadn't missed her friend's absence at the last Gathering, after all; and to see that she was at least physically fine was a rare bit of good news. "Nothing's changed - not yet, anyway. I hope you and ThunderClan have been well?"

"Softpaw, you must know the way yourself by now," Aspenheart murmured to the small she-cat. "Lead me up, won't you?"

Things were dreadfully different now, without Barleytuft. He left with a mere whisper, gone in a single breath, and the medicine cat hadn't even been there to witness it. There was one diamond in the rough, to be sure, and it came in the form of a strange, spiritual closeness he now felt with Softpaw. Of course, the events of the last moon had put a tight strain on their relationship, but there was a eerie connection to be felt between two cats experiencing a great loss. All they had was their grief to share with one another. Aspenheart wondered if she also felt that she had let her father down, though it was a nauseating idea to have. Though, he did believe in the love of a clan, and in that old tom's absence, the love each WindClan warrior felt for him was distributed equally between the rest of their clanmates. In their grief, they all loved more deeply and truly. Infighting, in a time like this? Aspenheart loathed the thought. He hoped that his presence beside Softpaw would send a message to the other medicine cats that his wrongs had been righted. But just in case...

"Ahem," Aspenheart coughed, bowing his head to the other medicine cats. "Dark times have found us all. My actions were... well, I'd say out-of-character, but were they, really? In any case, it's difficult to care so much about pride when the forest feels so turned on its head. I have no pride without the respect of my clanmates, and I am gaining it back in pieces. WindClan's medicine den would be lost without Softpaw, and I wronged her. She offered me her forgiveness, proving for what feels like the fourth time now that she has enough grace to make up for my lack of it." Aspenheart felt in a flicker of shame he could not bear to look into his peers' eyes, and he turned his cheek to them, choosing instead to gaze off at some pebble. "We'll see if StarClan shares that grace."

The events that had occurred during the previous meeting still weighed heavily on Sagelight's mind. While he had the great joy and honor of training one of his kin as his apprentice, she was very new to it all. She held such a respect for her uncle that he really, really hated to let her down. So he hid away all his negative thoughts and late-night broodings over Mintwhisker and what was going on with StarClan. It felt so wrong. This was not the StarClan he knew. Rippedstar wouldn't do this.

He had to keep up appearances, though. At least until he could wrap his head around what was happening. He would tell Honeypaw everything soon...probably. At the very least, I should speak to Spottedstar about it, he thought to himself, making the last leap up to the gathering place in front of the Mothermouth. He looked swiftly over his shoulder to make sure little Honeypaw was still doing alright before turning his attention back to his friends. It seems his arrival had interrupted something; he managed to catch the tail end of Aspenheart's speech. An apology of sorts, as much of an apology as the WindClanner's pride would allow. Sagelight flicked his ear, putting on a warm smile as he approached the other medicine cats. He didn't mention the noticable scars on Aspenheart's face, instead brushing past Mossbloom with a friendly purr. "Another moon, another meeting," he sighed, keeping a blurry eye on Honeypaw. "The stars don't look very good up there, though..." He was doing his best to keep his demeanor upbeat but even Sagelight was not like himself.

"Oh, and this is Honeypaw, my niece. And new apprentice! It's her first meeting, be gentle." A ripple of laughter left his mouth as he turned to look at the cream she-cat. "Don't be shy, Honeypaw, we don't bite."

Honeypaw was panting but the time she reached Mothermouth. She had been here only one other time, during her medicine cat apprentice ceremony, but she still wasn’t used to walking such a long distance and climbing the cliffside of Highstones. Catching her breath, she looked up at Sagelight, and her fur bushed up in fright at the sight of all the medicine cats looking at her. She had met a few of them during the last Gathering, but now that they were all alone, she was going to become the center of attention.

She quickly skated along the edge of the clearing to return to her uncle’s side, pressing her pelt against him, finding comfort in standing so close to such a familiar cat. She looked up at the other cats, but couldn’t keep eye contact, nervously glancing back at the ground. ”H-Hello. I-It’s nice to meet you.” Her mew was timid and quiet.

Aspenheart's words made Mothglow let out a breath of relief she hadn't realized she was holding. For someone she counted a friend - for longer than either of them had held their positions - she'd thought his actions thoughtless, but knowing that he didn't seem to think he'd been right to strike out at his apprentice was a relief. But the question of StarClan remained. "I wonder," she mused, "what they'll have to say."

"Sure, Aspenheart." The cream apprentice replied, bounding ahead of her mentor to help him up.

Leaf-bare had been difficult. She'd lost her father. Softpaw gave her mentor a quick nuzzle, a sign to the other medicine cats that she'd forgiven him, before padding away to a small corner. Mistleshine and Spiderpaw weren't here yet, so she'd wait for them. When Aspenheart praised her grace, she ducked her head sheepishly. She hadn't done anything special. She just had done what her heart told her to do. Aspenheart had apologized, so why shouldn't she accept it? Her soft blue eyes recognized a new golden pelt. Sagelight called her Honeypaw, his new apprentice. Softpaw turned her soft gaze towards Mossbloom and Mothglow. "Hello, magnificent Mothglow, Mossbloom. How are you?" She inquired, offering a friendly smile. Mistleshine, Sagelight, and Aspenheart all had apprentices. Surely Mossbloom and Mothglow would take one soon? "Have you found any potential candidates for your apprentices?" The gentle apprentice asked of both she-cats.

Mossbloom's gaze lowered slightly as she nodded slowly. Things had been fairly quiet in ThunderClan... But it was like the quiet that came before the storm. Just as she opened her mouth to comment on that, the sound of pawsteps approaching turned her head. Recognizing the pelts of Aspenheart and Softpaw, Mossbloom greeted them quietly. As Aspenheart spoke, she tilted her head slightly, watching him carefully even as he kept his gaze pointedly away. "I am happy to hear that you were able to make amends so quickly. Softpaw is a fine apprentice, and I see her going on to do great things." Casting a smile in the medicine cat apprentice's direction, she then turned her attention to Sagelight with a familiar face trailing behind. What had the little she-kit's name been, all those moons ago?


Purring as the SkyClan medicine cat brushed by her, her smile widened. "Welcome, Sagelight, and Honeypaw. I remember when you accompanied Sagelight, Sunflower and myself herb hunting when you were just a kit, Honeypaw. I'm happy to see that our paths have crossed again, and in a way such as this. I pray that Sagelight is training you well? I'll have to cuff his ears otherwise!" She let out a small chuckle, shivering as the starless night above seemed to bear down on the group despite their best efforts. Turning to Softpaw as she asked her question, Mossbloom blinked and looked around. She hadn't really considered it before, but Mothglow and herself were the only ones without an apprentice now. She had once trained Sagelight, but now even he had an apprentice to help. The thought of aid was tempting, but.... 


"I'll be honest, I haven't given it much thought. I guess I'm getting older than I once was, though, aren't I?" She smiled as her green eyes landed back on the younger she-cat. "I have not been drawn to anyone yet, nor has StarClan spoken to me about an apprentice to this point... However, I should probably start the process." Her eyes were kind as she regarded the apprentices for a moment longer before turning towards Mothermouth, breath coming out in a faint cloud as she stared into the darkness. "We should get moving, the night grows colder. I hope that StarClan has something good for us...."


Leading the way into the tunnels, the air was so cold and damp and dark. Her eyes searched for the familiar glow of the Moonstone as she neared the end of the tunnel, only to be met by increasing darkness. The feeling of the stone at her whiskers disappeared, and in her heart she knew she was in the cavern of the Moonstone, but there was no light emanating from it. Instead, a cold, pale lump of stone sat in the nearly pitch-black center of the cavern, barely discernible from it's surroundings. The fur along her spine started to rise - never, in all of her moons as a medicine cat, had she seen something like this. Drawing closer to the unlit Moonstone, she pressed her nose to it, only to be greeted by the chilling sensation of stone at her nose. No rest came, no soft slumber, no ominous prophecies or heart-pulling visions. 




StarClan was silent.