Jasminepaw's Moonstone Journey

"Jasminepaw, time to get up," Beechface called into the apprentice den, eyes narrowed as they landed on the form of the apprentice in question. The medicine cat stepped aside to wait for her, and stifled a yawn before eating her portion of the traveling herbs.

After a few moments, Jasminepaw made her way out of the den, and Beechface nudged the second bundle of traveling herbs in her direction with a paw. "Eat these. They're bitter, but will keep you from getting hungry or tired on the trip." She said briskly. Once the she-cat had eaten them as instructed, Beechface turned towards the camp entrance with a flick of her tail for the she-cat to follow.

---

Dusk had fallen by the time the pair of she-cats had reached mothermouth, and Beechface paused at the entrance to the tunnels, glancing over at Jasminepaw. "Keep close to me, the tunnels are dark and cramped. When we reach the moonstone, lay down and touch your nose to it." She waited a moment to make sure that Jasminepaw was ready, before turning into the dark tunnel. It wasn't long before the two cats were plunged into blackness, but she'd taken the path enough times to know where she was going. When they reached the moonstone, Beechface stepped aside, nudging the apprentice towards it.

"Oh, um, right.." The brown and white she-cat mumbled, nodding along to what Beechface had to say. Jasminepaw didn't know her very well.. Well, she didn't know many of her clanmates very well, actually.... Swallowing the herbs, she made a face. BeechFace was right, they were bitter. following the silver cat, she trailed behind her as they left the safety of camp.
———
Nervous behind belief, Jasminepaw stuck very closely to Beechface through the dark tunnels. I don't like this..! She thought, fur rising on her shoulders slightly. Suddenly a bright light filled her vision, and she felt tremendous relief. Pretty..

Following the medicine cat's instructions, she lay down with her nose touching the rock.

"Hello!!" a cat squealed, bounding out into the light to greet the apprentice. She was a quaint, short-furred cat of very plain appearance, except for a long and jagged scar which tugged her face along her left eye. Her tail twitched enthusiastically, and she spoke again, "I'm Ferretshine. It's very nice to meet you. I was a ShadowClan warrior, in my day. I don't get to see many SkyClan cats. You're a funny bunch, you know! What's that like?"

She suddenly bristled. "Oh, dear, I'm sorry! What's your name?"

Jasminepaw hadn't expected to meet a ShadowClanner in StarClan, and she definitely hasn't expected to meet such a... Bubbly one. "O-oh, um, well. Its.. chaotic, actually." She sighed, shuffling her paws. "Jasminepaw. That's my name."

The two brown and white cats sat in silence for a couple of moments, when the SkyClan apprentice sighed. "What do you do if none of your Clanmates know you at all, and you're too afraid to talk to them? You dont seem like you've ever had that problem but.."

Ferretshine sat politely, curling her tail neatly around, purring with jubilance in the presence of the younger cat. How long it had been since she had contact with the forest below!

Poor Jasminepaw. Ferretnose felt the urge to reach out and cradle her as a mother did a kit. After all, she had been a mother at the time of her disappearance. But such a thing would not be appropriate. Not right now, at least.

"Dear, this forest tests us all," she said sympathetically. "We all experience deep lows. We experience isolation, and we hide from the world. But that's what the clan is for! When an eagle took my eye, I was only a young she-cat. I was hardly a warrior yet. And I spent so long cowering from my clanmates... but all I had to do was reach out. And when I did, I fell in love with Mudfoot."

She mindlessly touched the long scar down her face. "Your clanmates will raise you up, and support you when you're lonely. That's what they were made to do. We cats are much better off when we can stick together. It's why loyalty is so important. It's why we keep our ties to StarClan so strong. Embrace your clan, and they'll embrace you back. Take the first step... ask your deputy to send you on the next patrol, maybe, just to start."