Beetlepaw's Moonstone

It was time for Beetlepaw's Moonstone journey, as she was told by Leopardsun. The sun was warming the camp now, and the apprentice and Burdockroot should leave shortly. Lumbering her form over to the apprentice's den, she spotted the apprentice for today's trip. Not really caring if she woke anyone else, she only merely avoided stepping on paws and tails before standing above the sleeping form. Nudging her with her paw, the medicine cat flicked her tail. "Come. Moonstone." Burdockroot said flatly before retracing her steps back to the medicine cat den. A pile of herbs lay there for the apprentice.

When she was finally joined by the soon-to-be warrior, she nudged the small pile forward with her paws. "Eat. Yes, it's gross. You don't need to tell me." She flicked her tail and glanced towards the sun.

Beetlepaw's brows furrowed as they groggily opened their eyes, displeased that the first thing they saw was Burdockroot's disinterested expression and even words. What she said didn't register with the apprentice at first, but by the time the medicine cat had left the den, they realized; It was time for their moonstone trip.

Skipping from the apprentice den, Beetlepaw met Burdockroot at the medicine den, expecting some light-hearted explanation. Instead, they were met with the same tone, a demand to eat and not complain about it. Their brown remained furrowed as they choked down the herbs, shuddering once they had eaten the last one. At least Burdockroot had given a warning.

Out of spite, Beetlepaw refused to say anything once they were ready, making Burdockroot lead their interaction. They didn't want to waste their breath on a cat who wouldn't put in the same effort.

Burdockroot cringed. She did it again. She could see the hostility roll off of the apprentice. "Sorry." She muttered. "I didn't mean to come off that way. This should be more special." A glimmer of a grimace crossed her face - natural, this time.

"We should get going." Her badger pelt was left behind, so her mottled fur was left to bounce with every step. The trip was much like the others, uneventful and quiet. She tried her best to make up for her harsh awakening by asking the apprentice about his life. The journey would eventually end, and the apprentice and medicine cat found themselves at the entrance of the cave.

"Follow my tail. It's dark." Plunging into the darkness, Burdockroot didn't hesitate and followed her paws through the winding cave. At this point, it was sheer habit. Eventually, they emerged into the large cave, where the Moonstone had just started to shine.

"Lay down and touch your nose to it. Wake me when you wake up." With another yawn, the mottled cat walked to her usual spot and plopped down, curling into a ball with her tail over her nose. She kept her mismatched eyes open to make sure Beetlepaw did as she was told.

Beetlepaw's demeanor softened at the medicine cat's apology. "It's fine." Neutral, genuine. "Alright." It was then that Beetlepaw exited camp, following behind Burdockroot. The trip was quiet, right up until they reached mothermouth. The apprentice nodded at Burdockroot's instruction and plunged in behind her, trusting their sense of sound to lead them. It was so dark that even their well-adapted eyes struggled to make out the medicine cat's tail. Eventually, though, the cave opened up, revealing a big, shining rock. More beautiful; than anything they'd even seen before. Once again, they nodded at Burdockroot as she explained what to do and touched their nose to the stone.

In the blink of an eye, they were elsewhere. Somewhere new, warm. The sky shined brightly above them. This must be starclan, then. Feeling lost, the called out. "Hello?" The lack of any cat was worrying, it wasn't anything like what the other apprentices had describe - although their descriptions were vague.

Silently, patiently, they said, tucking their paws close to their belly as the light breeze ruffled their fur.

"You've grown, Beetlepaw!" A bright tortoiseshell with mismatched eyes bounded forward with a purr as the apprentice arrived in the starry marshland, her pelt studded with starlight.

"Sorry- Do you remember me?" When she had helped Beetlepaw and their sibling out of fourtrees during the chaos, they had been young kits. "Stars... It's been a while since I've been able to speak to anyone. Shadowclan's quite chaotic, isn't it?"

Relief washed over the apprentice when a friendly voice reached their ears. They sighed and greeted the cat with a smile. "Uh, Hi!" Beetlepaw didn't recognize the she-cat, but she seemed to recognize them. "Oh, um. Sorta!.....  Not really!" They felt guilty, searching their mind for where they'd know this cat from. In the meantime, they studied the cat, trying to associate her with a memory. "Shadowclan is... really chaotic. Must not be new then, if you can assume it." They fell silent for a moment. "Wait..." They looked up, making eye contact with the Starclanner. "Are you my mom? I know she died when I was young, are you her?"

A soft laugh tinged with sadness left the Starclanner. "You don't remember fleeing fourtrees and arriving at highstones? You and your sibling were very young. I suppose the clan always has been chaotic. That time it was twolegs and the very ground shifting beneath our paws." Too young to have to face such wild events, and Beetlepaw was still too young for what Shadowclan had been going through. But that was the way of the world, much as Harechaser hated seeing anyone in her clan go through such events. "I'm not your mother, no. My name is Harechaser. I helped carry you to highstones after the twolegs showed up to fourtrees. Not everyone managed to escape capture, but those of us who did tried to keep each other safe, even cats from other clans." The clans had banded together before, but those alliances seemed to be ever-fragile, shattered at the first opportunity by claws.

Huh. So maybe Louse would remember this cat. "All I remember was, like, a lot of panic. I don't remember who anyone was. I do remember everyone talking about it in the moons after, though." They shifted their thoughtful gaze upwards. "Thank you, though, even if I can't remember it. From what I've heard, bad things could have happened to us if you didn't help us home." Beetlepaw offered the Starclanner a grin. It warmed their heart to know that their clanmate's care for one another had originated from the generations before them. Perhaps they would keep that in mind in the future. To share the same care and compassion that was expressed to them before they could even remember it.

"I supposed you died on the way home, then. Or maybe shortly after, since I don't remember you all that well." The apprentice returned their attention to Harechaser. "Did you end up caught by the Twolegs? I know some cats were caught and able to make it back."

"Yeah, it was very chaotic. Nightstar, my brother, was caught by the twolegs that night. Just goes to show even leaders aren't invincible, I guess. Scared all of us, that's for sure." It had been a difficult time for them all.

"We were still at highstones, actually. I was never captured... I just went to sleep one morning and that was it." She remembered the confusion when she had woken in the stars, surrounded by parents and older siblings, instead of in her nest on the rocky slopes of highstones. "It happens. I'm not bitter over it, though I know my siblings were hurt. I never got the chance to say goodbye, even to Swiftheart who I'd been talking with the night before... And Nightstar had to find out after he escaped the twolegs. Nightstar has made mistakes, but he's still my brother. I miss them both, and Echomist."

"Let your family know you care about them. Never know what'll happen, Beetlepaw."

"Oh, you're Nightstar's sister." Beetlepaw observed. They wondered what Harechaser thought of Shadowclan's current state, especially given her unique point of view. They wondered if she was biased. "Yeah, I barely remember Highstones. I never knew Nightstar got caught, though." They purposely avoided talking about their opinions on the leader.

It was interesting to the apprentice that Harechaser had just happened died around the time cats were going missing. Also sorta sad, since they only ever heard about cats being captured and nothing about Harechaser. It was a relief to know that she wasn't among those captured, though. "I'm glad it wasn't painful for you, at least. Not physically." The apprentice fell silent as the Starclanner spoke, looking up to her with wide, understanding eyes. The words she spoke came from a place of emotion. It was probably devastating to not have been able to say goodbye to her kin. Beetlepaw thought of Lousekit. How they'd had to move on without them. The time they had to visit them had been decreasing as their days grew busier, tasked with extra responsibilities for preparation to become a warrior. A familiar melancholic feeling washed over them. Harechaser was right. They appreciated the reminder. "I will. Thank you, Harechaser."

In one fell swooping motion, the landscape before them swirled into darkness until nothing but a bleak, empty void remained. A simple blink brought them back to the cave as they awoke with a gasp, suddenly sitting upright and looking around for Burdockroot. The medicine cat was sleeping soundly nearby. Letting out a shallow sigh, they stood to their paws, turning to Burdockroot to begin the journey home.