Crimsonpaw's Moonstone Journey

Ashstorm had never taken an apprentice to the moonstone before.  She remembered a bit of what it was like when her sister helped her talk to Starclan many moons ago, but even then, she had a dream, she did not actually arrive at the Moonstone.  More than anything, she was afraid of messing this up.  Skyclan finally seemed to be at peace... and then Primroselight and Muddythorn go missing.  Oh how she hoped they would come back.  The grey she-cat thought about this a lot.  She especially wondered if she had failed during when the Dark Forest came.  Should they have fought back earlier?  Should she have been the strong deputy that Skyclan deserved? And, most importantly, every time something like this happened it felt like it was on her paws.  She was supposed to be assisting leading Skyclan, she was supposed to protect her clanmates, so why did she keep failing?

Ashstorm shook her head and tried her best to stop thinking about this.  It was time for Crimsonpaw to go to the Moonstone.  Ashstorm walked to the apprentice den and gently nudged the apprentice to wake him up.  "Crimsonpaw?" The deputy said softly and quietly to ensure that she did not wake the other apprentices.  "It's time for you to go to Highstones."

She walked outside the den and waited for Crimsonpaw to join her.  "Muddythorn isn't around right now," She stated after the apprentice came.  "So, I'm going to take you." She guessed that Crimsonpaw may have already guessed that but she thought she would tell him in case he did not.

The grey she-cat nudged the herbs she set down towards Crimsonpaw.  "Here, eat these.  It will help for when you go to the Highstones. However, as a warning they very much do not taste good."  After Crimsonpaw ate the herbs, Ashstorm guided him to Highstones.
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Once they got there, Ashstorm looked into the pitch-black tunnels.  "It is going to be really hard to see here.  Stay close to be, these tunnels are very dark."  Once they reached the top, Ashstorm marveled at the beauty of it, but did not allow herself much time to before turning back to the apprentice.  "Whenever you are ready simply lay down and touch your nose to it.  Starclan will come to talk to you.  Don't worry about anything.  I'll stay here till you wake up."

Aether lifted his head as a voice called his name. Well, his other name. At least the cat waking him was Ashstorm. He would probably be very grumpy if they assigned the former medicine cat, Beechfang, the task of taking him to the moonstone. Or, stars forbid, Bloodstar himself took him. Maybe that was why the deputy was the one taking on this task. Because of all the cats able to, she was definitely the kindest option. That was evident solely in the way she addressed him. And as much as he hated it, he could let the Crimsonpaw thing slide on account of that. (And the knowledge that these cats take their names seriously, he supposed that would also warrant the refusal of using his rogue name. Honestly, what was with these cats and names?)

The deputy was not lying when she said the herbs she gave him would leave a poor taste, although he was not quite prepared for the bitterness. It was hard to swallow the foul leaves, but in the end he did, secretly noting that if they were poisons he was going to come back and haunt this Clan, although if they were going to kill him they would have already. So with that thought put aside, he followed the molly out.

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Aether, for one, was not afraid of the dark. The tunnel in itself did not bother him. Nor did the unnatural glow of the rock in front of him, as painful as it was to the eyes. No, what scared him was what would happen once he completed this supposed ritual. That he would speak to StarClan. The cats that killed his friend just so they could be in control again. And yet the Clans still worshipped them enough to send every apprentice alive to speak with them. Aether couldn't understand why these cats remained loyal to their ancestors. What he did understand was that he had a few words to share with those vile beings. And so he began his journey to their hunting grounds with a touch of his nose to the stone, allowing his body to slumber so his mind could do what it needed.

Oddly enough, the sight that Crimsonpaw would find himself waking to would be a close resemblance to that of the Skyclan territory he had began to call home. In fact, save for the fact it seemed to be constructed of the stars themselves, it was practically an exact replica.

The chosen cat to speak with the older apprentice would be a face that possibly would even come as a surprise. Skyclan's late medicine cat, Myrtledove. Despite the way he had passed, he had found his place among the stars with his ancestors. The tom himself had finally found the peace that seemed to elude him for so, so long. Perhaps that was why he had been the one chosen by the powers beyond his to speak to Crimsonpaw, or perhaps it was just up to fate. Either way, the fluffy tom walked kindly towards the other, dipping his head in greeting. "Unless this is a very different visit than what I'm told it is, it seems Bloodstar honored what we asked of him. I'm glad to see you, Aether." Nothing but kindness spoke in his words. "Tell me, have you taken on a clan name? Mind if I get to know what it is as we walk and chat?" He hummed politely, signaling for him to follow, should he wish.

Ok, this was so not fair. What was he supposed to say now?

The tom fell awkwardly in step beside Myrtledove, trying to process how this visit would go now. He wanted to yell at StarClan because they took Lionboar away from him. They used cats as sacrifices just so they could hold their influence. But Myrtledove was one of those victims. He had no blame in it. He even stood up for Aether when it came to facing Bloodstar!

He supposed he could start by answering the StarClan cat's question.

"Bloodstar named me Crimsonpaw, and of course he named himself my mentor. He's not as bad as I thought he would be, though, if I am being honest. He is legitimate in his training, not trying to get me killed or anything."

He had to get this off his chest. This was eating at him for way too long. Maybe he couldn't attack like he wanted, but maybe Myrtledove would at least have answers.

"Why did you have to die? You and Lionboar? I thought StarClan was supposed to look out for the Clans, and instead they took lives so they could live. Wasn't there another way? We don't even have a medicine cat now! Why did StarClan have to do that?"

Crimsonpaw.

It was a rather unique name, for an equally unique tom. The starry medicine cat rolled it around in his mind for a bit, commiting it to whatever memory that he had while in the stars. He listened earnestly to the rambles that Crimsonpaw deemed him worthy enough to hear, particularly when it came to Bloodstar. "From when I was young, all I can remember is how strong that tom was. I'm glad he's done some good since returning." It had only added to the fear that surrounded Skyclan during the time the Dark Forest had their rein that Bloodstar had been left at Fourtrees, brutally injured by Morningstar.

His thoughts were once more drawn to Crimsonpaw as he asked the question. It stopped his own steps, and Myrtledove let out a strong sigh. It seemed that he wasn't the only one troubled by this. "...I wish I knew, Aether-Crimsonpaw. I think, I'll just keep calling you Aether, if that's okay." He said, sitting down where they were at.

"There are some things that you don't get to know when coming to the stars. One of those being why you die. Or why you live, for that matter. Perhaps it's for the bets. But truly... I wish I knew the answer. When I came here for the first time? To get advice to be a warrior? I was told to find something else to do if I wasn't good enough. Because not being good enough meant I wasn't worth being a warrior." The tom began. For some reason, it seemed he trusted Crimsonpaw with this knowledge. "On top of that... When Muddythorn asked me to be his apprentice? It was just when the stars had dissapeared. There was nobody there to accept me down that "other path." Even worse when Muddythorn was giving me my full medicine cat name... only for it to be given in the name of the Dark Forest. But I still keep my name, Myrtledove, as a sign of all I've done." It was a lot, truly. "So if there's anything I can relate to you with, Aether... It's in believing in the power of Starclan. Why we do what we do. I'm... honestly surprised I still believed in them after all that time." He laughed in reflection.

"But... I'll tell you this. Even if you think they aren't looking out for you? If all of Starclan is just... crazy? Know that Lionboar and I are up here. We're definitely looking down on you, and believe in you, and want to protect you. Trust me. We wouldn't have begged Bloodstar to let you stay otherwise, alright?" His words concluded with a warm smile as his tail wrapped around his starry paws.

Aether chuckled as Myrtledove made the decision to stick to calling him by his rogue name. "Yeah, I like Aether better, too. I've had it so long, hard to imagine being anyone else."

As the former medicine cat spoke, Aether drew in a sharp breath. So they didn't even get to know why they had to die, they just had to suck it up and deal with it?

"When I was first told I was coming here, I was ready to tear this place apart. I hated that you two had to lose your lives. I still do. If it was not you that had appeared, this meeting would have gone so differently."

Closing his eyes, Aether took deep breaths. He still hated this so much.

"I don't think I will ever be ok with what happened that night. And I don't think I can ever accept StarClan as my ancestors. But I will have faith in you."

He dipped his head in respect to the tom. And the next thing he knew, when he lifted his head, he was back at the moonstone. With a nod to Ashstorm, he knew he was ready.