Brookpaw's Moonstone Journey

Jaws separating in a yawn, Smallbean sat up in his nest, his fluffy fur disheveled and messy. He blinked his mismatched eyes until they could see clearly, soon noticing pale sunlight spilling through the den entrance. On a normal day, this wouldn't worry him, the most he would do was scold himself for sleeping in, but today he was to travel to highstones with Brookpaw. Scrambling out into camp he raised his head and looked to the sky, pleased to see that the sun was still rising. A sigh of relief escaped him as he turned back toward the medicine den, immediately putting together some travelling herbs. He created the wraps and, after taking some time to groom his fur, walked across camp to wake Brookpaw. Like he did with most apprentices, he snuck through the den entrance and approached her nest, giving her a careful nudge and a whisper. "Wake up, Brookpaw. We must leave soon." He left as soon as he saw the apprentice stir, returning to the medicine den.

Quickly swallowing his herbs, he carried the second wrap out for Brookpaw to eat. When he saw her approaching, he muttered a quick greeting before explaining what the traveling herbs did. "These will help you keep your strength up on the journey. They may taste bitter, but trust me when i say you'll be sorry if you refuse them." A tone of amusement lingered in his voice as he finished speaking. After Brookpaw had, too, eaten her herbs, he lead her to the camp entrance before ducking through and leading her out onto the moors.

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Despite having left later than ideal, the two still arrived to highstones on time, the sun sinking below the horizon. He approached mothermouth, tail swishing back and forth. Turning to face Brookpaw, he took a deep breath before explaining to her what she must do once they entered the tunnels. "Before we go in, i should let you know that you should stick close to me. These tunnels are narrow and you could get lost. Ready?" He didn't wait for an answer before walking into the tunnel, feeling the way his fur brushed against the cave walls at some parts while he couldn't feel it at all in others. Eventually they arrived in a cavern, in the center of it stood the moonstone. He had explained to Brookpaw how to touch her nose to the stone earlier in the trip, so all he did was watch from the side of the cave as she did so.

Groaning, Brookpaw raised her head."Okay okay whatever..." she mumbled, flipping over for a second before getting up. She wouldn't be able to fall back asleep. Smallbean passed some herbs to her, and her nose crinkled up. oh, gross! she thought in disgust.  Licking them up, after complaining and throwing a fit, she ran a paw over her tongue, as if to wash away the foul taste.
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"Don't worry. Downtuft took me in the tunnels before; he said I was a pro." The apprentice huffed proudly, though she did listen to Smallbean and stick close to him. Nodding as the tom explained what to do, she laid down and touched her nose, soon falling asleep.

Dappleshine sat in a starry field, watching the spot where a shadowy figure was slowly appearing and gaining substance. Finally, Brookpaw had arrived in StarClan. The little she-cat seemed quite hard-headed and stubborn, and very confident in herself. Perhaps a little too confident at times.... But it was not Dappleshine's place to say. As the young she-cat started to wake, the StarClan warrior spoke in a soft voice. "Greetings, Brookpaw. Welcome to StarClan. I'm Dappleshine. Tell me, what is it you seek?"

As Dappleshine introduced herself, Brookpaw resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "I know exactly who you are. I was a five moon old kit when Asylum took over and killed you, Raventail, and Goldengale." She mewed, raising an eyebrow. Weren't StarClan supposed to be all-knowing or whatever? "Why dont you tell me what it is you think I seek?" Brookpaw countered.

"I dont understand what's so important about traveling to the Moonstone. I could've easily become a warrior today, Downtuft taught me everything I could ever need to know."

Dappleshine merely blinked at the apprentice's tone. She stayed quiet for a moment, letting Brookpaw finish speaking. "You say you could have become a warrior today, yet here you are. I believe you are here to seek the answer as to why you must be here, instead of becoming a warrior now. However, I could very well be wrong, it would not be the first time." She purred, tail tip flicking next to her paws. "Downtuft is a smart tom, quick and noble, but there are things that no cat can teach. Battle moves and hunting crouches can be practiced until they are perfect, and even the art of conversation can be tweaked with time, but some things are learned through experience, and experience alone. All things are not the same for each cat. For example, Softbreeze was fascinated by herbs and their uses, while Downtuft walked the path of a warrior. What was just a leaf to him is something useful to her. Even beyond that, Goldengale was able to read the terrain and map out the tunnels in her head to navigate them in the best possible way, even to the point that she could build one from start to finish. I, on the other paw, was never able to understand the tunnels and their navigation. I understood the usefulness, but not anything beyond that. I hope that, should the time come, you are able to take a step back and see things from a view that is not your own."