Auburnpaw's Moonstone Journey

The herbs were absolutely the most distasteful part of the whole journey. She swallowed them though, determined to prove a point. The journey was made in silence aside from occasional small talk. She passed through the mothermouth and lie down in front of the moonstone. This just seemed so stupid. Why would anyone do this or care what any dead cat thought? She pressed her nose to it regardless, though she didn't expect anything to happen.

She was transported to a world full of starlight. It was already more than she expected, but she was determined to hide her surprise and look indifferent. So where was this alleged Starclan cat? What wisdom did they think they could give to her that she didn't already have?

How long had it been since someone remembered him? How long had it been since someone needed him?

Longwhisker roused himself from a long-forgotten sleep, stretching out a pelt that had begun to look worn and faded with years. Dimly, he glanced around the starry fields where he'd lain down years ago to take a nap with his mate Ivory...something. He'd forgotten her name somehow. Where had she gone? She hadn't vanished too, like his mother and sister, had she? Oh, well. It was hard to shake any kind of sensation from the lethargy. Any kind of worry, any kind of concern for the faded silver she-cat who might no longer even walk these stars. For now he simply got up and followed the rare responsibility he'd been given. Speaking to an apprentice for their Moonstone journey.

It didn't take too long to walk to the open, green moor where he was to meet her; on the journey, he slowly began to feel more and more like himself. A strong warrior of WindClan. He'd had a relatively short and uneventful life, but--he'd been important to the Clan as a whole, hadn't he? Surely it wasn't a coincidence that they'd been torn apart by war after his death. Grief for him, most likely. Yes. That may not have meshed with how the surroundings were beginning to show through his thinning pelt, but he didn't really care. His mind was focused on the fact of finally being needed again. And, what an interesting apprentice they'd given him to speak to. A strange one, who refused to listen to authority she deemed useless. Who knew she was going to be the most important cat in WindClan. Who needed help to get off of the path she was on, and onto the right one. Perhaps the stars were trying to tell him something; if they were, it went straight over his head. He walked through the starlit fields, wind brushing through his fur, and felt more alive than he had since his death.

A light-furred tom with black tabby stripes arrived shortly after Auburnpaw awoke, appearing out of the seemingly endless moor as if from thin air. He had dark brown eyes, a thin tail, and whiskers of an absurd length for which he'd been named. They ought to have looked foolish, but they looked normal instead when tossed around in the breeze. His pelt, glimmering with stars, looked impressive at first until one looked closer. It was starting to fade now, growing near-translucent with his age and lack of progeny. "Hello, Auburnpaw," he said, sitting down near her with a flick of his tall ears. "My name's Longwhisker. Welcome to StarClan." How should he go about this? StarClan was supposed to be benevolent and wise, but neither of those things really came easily to him. Instead, he decided that saying things plainly couldn't possibly hurt. If he spoke around the problem she would just interpret it wrongly. "The way you've been acting is pretty stupid. You know that, right?"

It wasn't often that Auburnpaw didn't know what to say or do. At the approach of a ghostly star-wrapped cat however... well she just didn't have something to say hidden away in her fur for such an occasion. The Starclan cat introduced himself as Longwhisker... fitting. But his next set of words? It was enough to prod Auburnpaw's brain into action. There was a flash of anger, but it was gone as suddenly as it came and her lips curled up into a smirk. Her eyes however, were full of contempt.

"Oh... do educate me on my stupidity, Longwhisker. While you're at it, why don't you give me a run down on your list of accomplishments and why you feel that you are so qualified to call me stupid, when you are dead. Was it the best line of vitriol she had? Not even close, but her anger had her grasping at straws. Better than just standing there and taking it though. She didn't believe she'd be in starry world for very long if this was how it was going to unfold.