Sparkpaw's Starclan Dream

Beechface's eyes lifted briefly, eyeing the rising moon that was just visible through the den entrance before dropping back to the pile of herbs in front of her. Goldenrod, horsetail, marigold...

An ear flicked impatiently, a sign that the medicine cat wasn't entirely focused on just sorting herbs. Another apprentice would be sleeping in her den tonight to dream of Starclan. She didn't know Sparkpaw all that well, aside from being Flowerthorn's kit and sibling to Leafpaw and Flashpaw. Sparkpaw had taken part in that featherbrained spar against Dawnhawk, but apart from that she knew little.

As if summoned by her thoughts, movement at the den entrance heralded the arrival of the apprentice, and Beechface turned, feigning surprise. She stood, pretending to check Sparkpaw over for an ailment that simply was not there. She didn't enjoy this sort of secrecy, but at least it seemed to fool the guards outside the den, and it was unfortunately necessary.

Pretending to conclude this farce of an examination, Beechface fixed the apprentice with a level stare for a moment.

"Go, lay down." She whispered quietly, gently nudging Sparkpaw towards an empty nest toward the back of the medicine den.

Sparkpaw glanced around, shifting his paws uncomfortably as Beechface 'searched' him for signs of illness or injury. He was, however, perfectly fine of course as this little check-up was just to throw the Asylum cats off of their trail. He contemplated making small talk but refrained from doing so. He didn't want to draw any attention to what they were doing. If Dawnhawk found out about this, would he be upset? Somehow, Sparkpaw got the feeling that his mentor knew about their secret operation and was pretending not to know. Why Dawnhawk might do that was beyond him, but the pale yellow tom always had his reasons for doing something.

With a brisk nod, the white and ginger tabby padded to his designated nest and settled down on the moss. He was worried about this. Who would he meet? Would Starclan shun him for being Dawnhawk's apprentice? He had been rather compliant with the Asylum cats lately. Would he become a warrior soon after this then? It was almost surreal to be here. Well, not in Beechface's den. In this position. Sparkpaw wasn't sure if he'd be ready to meet a Starclan cat yet.

Breath coming a little haltingly, Sparkpaw lowered his head and got himself comfy. It took a few minutes, but his breath eventually began to slow, as did his torrent of thoughts. With one final exhale, the apprentice felt sleep drag him under. The change was instantaneous, jarring almost, and with a gasp, Sparkpaw lifted his head, wide green eyes staring in awe at the starlit landscape around him. This was Starclan's hunting grounds? It felt like a dream. Which, Sparkpaw thought ruefully, it technically was.

The tiny frame of a star-pelted warrior appeared before Sparkpaw. Yellowed eyes were mere slits as she regarded him. A myriad of scars crossed her pelt, giving the former warrior a grizzled look. Clearly this cat had experienced an eventful life before finding her place among the stars. Wolffang found herself at ease as ever standing before a young cat. So many times she had walked the dreams of both Shadowclan and Skyclan apprentices. Mixed blood ran through a memory of veins, tying her to the two clans. In life, Skyclan had been a world away but here she honored the legacy of her father and guided the paws of those who deserved it.

"So, you're Sparkpaw, hm?" It was interesting to be speaking with the tom who was training under Dawnhawk. For as much as she wished to call the Skyclan born warrior a cowardly traitor, her own past bore the scars of betrayal. Regardless, it was a unique opportunity to bring influence to such a cat. Wolffang had never been known to have a tactful tongue so as she drew near, her rasp met the young tom's ears, "Learning anything exciting from your glorious mentor? He teach you the best way to skin a clan cat yet?" There was a short and harsh bought of laughter at her own jest before her whiskers twitched slightly, "I'm Wolffang. Born to Shadowclan and Skyclan."

Sparkpaw immediately stiffened as a Starclan cat came into view. for a split second, he thought he was looking at another apprentice -former apprentice- before he realized that the cat before him was a small warrior. His eyes trailed over the she-cat's plethora of scars and he wondered if he or his littermates might look so battle-worn someday. He found himself admiring the formerly Shadowclan cat. She must have been very brave and strong of will to have survived so many fights.

He nodded upon her speaking. She was correct...did that mean she'd known about him before their meeting? did Starclan cats get assigned to apprentices or was it something that happened by chance? If it was the latter, did that mean she'd been paying close attention to him? Or perhaps all of Starclan knew him for who his mentor was...did they think he was a traitor?

He jerked his head back at the she-cat's blunt words, eyes slightly wide with surprise. "Erm...it-it's an honor to meet you Wolffang. And no...though he did disembowel a weasel once." the memory made Sparkpaw shiver. Both from the thought of the stench, and the imagery painting the walls of his mind.