Smallpaw's Moonstone Journey

With the changing winds, so the seasons followed. In the odd middle-ground between Leaf-bare and Newleaf, Smallpaw had proven himself ready to join Aspenheart to speak with the stars. The journey was becoming a strange one for the medicine cat, who had been cut off from the ancestors for some time now. It seemed that all was well for the apprentices, in any case. Some odd storm brewed in the stars, to be sure. He couldn't help but wonder what the winds would bring.

As always, Smallpaw was excused from his morning duties. By sunhigh, Aspenheart was ready to leave camp, and he waited anxiously to see the familiar tabby pelt scuttle in his direction. Smallpaw's gait would tell Aspenheart all he needed to know about the trip ahead of him. It was one of the medicine cat's many theories. He preferred the nervous ones. They spoke a lot more.

Smallpaw sat by the fresh-kill pile, slowly munching on a mouse. Today would be the day of his moonstone journey, meaning he would have to eat food to keep him going. For the majority of the morning he felt fine, but as the time grew nearer to the moonstone, he felt the familiar feeling of a knot beginning to twist in his stomach, so he didn't really want to eat much. He knew there was nothing he really needed to be afraid of, as other apprentices, now warriors, seemed pretty enthusiastic about their trip.  What worried him most was that he didn't really know what was going to happen once he got to Highstones. He'd heard that you can talk to Starclan cats there, but not much else.

Glancing across the other side of camp, the apprentice spotted Aspenheart, the medicine cat. He seemed to be waiting for him, probably meaning that they were going to be leaving soon. He quickly finished his mouse and hurried over to Aspenheart. "We're l-leaving soon, right?" He asked.

"We're leaving right now, if you're ready," Aspenheart chuckled. He pushed a packet of herbs towards Smallpaw with an eternally shaking paw and swallowed his own pile on reflex. He tilted his head towards the gorse tunnel, beckoning the apprentice after him. His steps were uneven and wobbling, but he never fell. Once out of camp, with the symphony of mewling clanmates behind him, Aspenheart felt the cavity in his chest loosening. He was back in his comfort zone, with the company of only one other cat. He preferred it that way. "Well, we'll walk this way until we reach the thunderpath. Then, we find the tunnel that runs underneath it... your father's mother dug it out herself, the honeycomb... then it's just us and Highstones." He allowed Smallpaw a chance to speak, and opted to meander along in pensive silence. The birds were returning to the forest, with most making their way towards ThunderClan and SkyClan. Quails often stayed around. Aspenheart frowned. Another reminder of his brother, in the form of his smallest son. Quailpaw's warning from StarClan was still poignant to the medicine cat, to this day.

Smallpaw eyed the packet of herbs suspiciously. They didn't look that tasty, and he didn't really want to eat them, but he didn't really have a choice. He gulped down the herbs, scrunching up his face afterwards due to the awful taste. Quickly getting over it, he followed Aspenheart out of camp. He started to relax a bit, relishing the calmness that overcame him. It wasn't often he felt like this, maybe he just needed to away from commotion every now and then. He walked along as Aspenheart began explaining the trip. "My father's mother? That's r-really cool." He'd never had much interaction with cats other than his parents and siblings- or with any cat for that matter. He'd much rather keep to himself than get involved in drama.

Aspenheart watched Smallpaw's steps out of the corner of his eye, working to derive some meaning from the little shuffles of his paws. Runts were often a little more mild-mannered, he had discovered. Aspenheart could at least sympathize with enjoying his space from time to time. He cleared his throat to speak again. "The thunderpath is coming up... the tunnel makes it easier, but it's okay to be nervous," he explained. "I had a tremor, moons and moons ago, right in the middle of it. Couldn't move. A monster almost hit me. That's why we built the tunnel. I was putting myself in danger just walking across it."

The entrance to the tunnel was sparsely concealed, though Aspenheart suspected the growth of ryegrass that came with Newleaf would do better to hide it from prying eyes. He brushed back what little foliage was there and led the way underneath the thunderpath. The monsters rumbled overhead and shook dirt down onto the travelers, but when they came out on the other side, Aspenheart was pleased to find Highstones, tall and mysterious as ever. He shook the debris from his pelt and looked over his shoulder to check on Smallpaw. "Nothing like a little dust in your eye to really brighten up your evening," the medicine cat mumbled half-heartedly.

Smallpaw continued along until a foul smell came across his nose. Even though he'd been to the Thunderpath before the acrid smell never ceased to surprise him. "Ugh, it smells horrid." He stated, agitation ringing in his mew. Scrunching up his nose, he kept following Aspenheart until the Thunderpath came into sight. He looked hesitantly at the Thunderpath, wanting to step back every time a monster rolled over the black surface. Then he heard Aspenheart's words of reassurance , making him feel a bit less nervous. "That must've been awful scary," He commented. Scanning the area around Thunderpath, he eventually spotted the tunnel Aspenheart had spoken to him about. Following the medicine cat's lead, he ducked through the tunnel and trudged his way through. The sound of monsters on the Thunderpath overhead made him want to run back the other direction, but he stood his ground and eventually emerged through the other side of the tunnel.

The apprentice couldn't help but let out a small bout of laughter at the medicine cat's sarcasm. Shaking off his pelt, he looked ahead. Standing in the distance was Highstones. They looked a bit smaller than Smallpaw had imagined, perhaps that was due to the amount of space they still needed to cover. This trip wasn't nearly as rough as he'd thought it was going to be, now that he thought about it. Maybe he was making a big deal over nothing? Feeling a bit more confident, he continued alongside Aspenheart, growing closer to Highstones with his every step.

On wobbly paws, Aspenheart led the way up the familiar path to the Mothermouth and the Moonstone beyond. The sun had disappeared beyond the horizon by the time they reached the top, and the medicine cat paused to catch his breath after the ordeal. The stars, which began to dot the sky, twinkled gently in expectation of the coming apprentice. Smallpaw seemed more ready than he had when he arrived. "The path is through a tunnel. You won't be able to see, so you'll have to stay on my tail. When you go in, you'll press your nose to the Moonstone and fall asleep. I hope whoever you meet gives you what you're looking for. Our ancestors have plenty to teach us... especially when we are as young apprentices. Are you ready?"

Watching as the sun slowly sank beneath the horizon, Smallpaw followed Aspenheart up the path. It was interesting how the medicine cat knew this path so well when everything surrounding himself was new. It made sense that Aspenheart knew where he was going, as he had to guide apprentice here and go to the moonstone every half moon, yet it still seemed somewhat intriguing. It wasn't long after the sun set that they had reached the mouth of the cave. He perked his ears at Aspenheart's instructions and nodded in reply. "I'm ready..." he muttered, though he didn't feel as ready as he wanted to be.

He ducked through the entrance to the tunnel, staying right on Aspenheart's tail. Smallpaw wasn't often afraid of the dark, but it seemed as though the shadows were trying to swallow him up. He kept going, keeping right behind the medicine cat, until he saw light up ahead. They had emerged into a cavern with a large stone in the center of it. Moonlight flooded in through the ceiling, giving the stone a glow. 'This is it...' He thought. He walked up to the moonstone and laid in front of it before touching his nose to the cold surface.....

---

It was only a moment later he opened his eyes, and was surprised to be in such a different place. Instead of being in the cavern with the moonstone, he was now on a moor, much like the Windclan territory. The only differences were that there was a forest to his left, and though it was night, the moor seemed to be lit up by the stars. He sniffed the air. The smell of heather and mice flooded his nose. Letting out a sigh of relief, he started to relax. That was until he looked into the forest and spotted a cat. They were a brown tabby with a white chest and underbelly. Their fur glowed like they were made out of Silverpelt itself. "H-hello?" He called out. "Wh-who are you?"

The slim molly padded forward, a soft smile of her face, though the spring in her step betrayed the energy that had been restored to her at death. “Greetings, Smallpaw. I’m Falconwing, a former ThunderClan warrior. I died defending my adopted daughter, Mossbloom. You may have heard of her, as she’s still serving as ThunderClan’s medicine cat.” She gave a light chuckle, tail flicking. “I’m here to tell you my story, in hopes that it will encourage you to stand strong and fight for what you love.” Falconwing paused for a moment, allowing the young tom to soak in everything around him.

It wasn't long before Smallpaw realized that this mystery cat meant no harm. If she wanted to hurt him she'd have probably done it already, and her gentle expression chased away all of his doubts. The she-cat started to speak, and it wasn't long until he learned that her name was Falconwing. "I've heard of her. I s-saw her during the l-last gathering." He mewed, growing quiet again to listen to what else Falconwing had to say. He sat down and wrapped his tail around his paws, perking his ears to hear the her story.

Falconwing nodded, before speaking again. “When I was an apprentice, I lost my only friend at the time. He drowned, falling into the river after trying to attack Beartooth. He was just Bearpaw, then. I moped about for a while, getting into some fights and overall just being an angsty apprentice. But soon after I earned my warrior name I opened my heart up to love again. His name was Flintfang, and I thought he could do no wrong. I adopted two kits without consulting him, Mosskit and Lilykit. You should have seen the look on his face when I told him he was a father.”

She laughed, a wistful smile on her face. “I was assigned Lilypaw as an apprentice, but she left the Clans to go explore. I didn’t try to stop her, but it hurt nonetheless. Then, after a flood, Flintfang left. For StagClan, a “Clan” led by a rogue warrior named Burntstag. He never returned to me. It seems I never had very good instincts when it came to toms.” The pale brown tabby flicked her tail, shaking her head. “Mossbloom was the only kin I had left. We’d always been close, so when I went out with her to gather herbs, and that fox attacked, there was no difficult choice to make. I would rather sacrifice my own life than see the last of my family die in front of me. I didn’t fear death. And that’s the important bit of this.”

She straightened, ears perking. “If you don’t fear death, there is nothing in this world that can make you afraid. You might be afraid for your friends and kin, as I was for Mossbloom. But that kind of fear only makes you stronger, gives you a drive to protect what you love. And death is nothing to fear. It’s as natural as being born, as scenting out your first rabbit. It’s not an end of life, but a culmination of it. Even here, I take joy in what I left behind. I made so many friends, I loved and lost, so many times. None of those joys would have been possible if I feared death happening again.”

Falconwing stepped forward, giving Smallpaw a friendly nudge. “Have no fear, and joy will be yours. Live well, young one, and enjoy life to it’s fullest.”

At those last words, she turned away, padding back to the woods. Her stomach was beginning to rumble, and she could just hear a juicy squirrel calling to her from the trees.

Smallpaw listened to the Starclan warrior's story, watching as her expressions and poses changed throughout. He paid attention to the detail she told him about, and most importantly, he took in the lesson she was teaching him. This cat had gone through great pain and sorrow, as her friends and loved ones began to leave her, but she'd risked her life for her sister, charging death head on with no fear at all, just to make sure her sister was safe. He looked at his paws, feeling a bit disappointed with himself. He couldn't even hold a conversation with more than 2 cats at once without internally losing it, while Falconwing full on jumped in front of a fox for her sister. Why couldn't he be that courageous? He couldn't accept himself being a warrior if he would just run away all the time. Maybe.... Maybe he just needed to stop worrying all the time? Now that he though about it, Smallpaw found himself worrying about the littlest of things.

As Falconwing started walking away, he stood up, feeling a bit more confident than when he'd first arrived. His eyes seemed a bit brighter, and his expression seemed less ridden with nervousness. He called out to the Thunderclanner. "Thank you Falconwing! I'll never forget you, or your words of wisdom!" He watched as she padded into the trees, and suddenly his vision went dark.

He opened his eyes. He was back in the cave with the moonstone, it was just how it was before he'd met Falconwing in Starclan. He looked behind him and saw Aspenheart still sitting in the shadows of the cavern. One thing that stayed the same was the small bit of determination and confidence Falconwing's words had given him. He knew that he'd hold onto that confidence, and help it grow the best he could.