The future's in your paws. Shape it well.Roleplay in a cat Clan of warriors. Based off the Warriors series by Erin Hunter. Takes place in an AU before the cats in the books existed.
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As the weeks passed, Nightpaw fell into a familiar rhythm. His days were much the same, filled with studying and tirelessly picking through herb stores. Not much broke his routine... aside from Moonstone journeys. Every few days, it seemed, his schedule was interrupted. He'd never felt crowded in the apprentices' den, but it seemed ShadowClan had a lot more apprentices than he'd ever thought. A never-ending line of them, apparently, each waiting for the journey that would mark the near-end of their adolescences.
Today, the lucky cat was Briarpaw. Nightpaw had been sure to get a few hours' sleep before they were scheduled to leave at dawn, and his eyes were bright as he peered into the apprentices' den in search of the leader's daughter. Last time he'd traveled this path alongside one of Leopardstar's daughters, Heatherberry, she'd gone missing. He was a bit nervous to lose Briarpaw like he'd lost her. But her brother's Moonstone had gone just fine, and he was so sure of the path to Highstones and back by now that he was determined to remain confident.
"Morning, Briarpaw," The tom meowed softly, afraid to startle her. He reached out one paw to gently tap her shoulder. "It's time to leave. I have some herbs here to help you with the journey."
He padded out of the thorn tunnel with the calico close behind him. There was no need to duck; he was small enough to pad right on through. The journey seemed to go quicker than most. Maybe he'd just learned the path well enough by now that it didn't feel like endless stumbling, as it once had. As they reached Mothermouth, Nightpaw turned, his fern gaze flashing with warmth as he looked at Briarpaw. "Now, the tunnel will be very narrow, but I don't want you to worry one bit. I'll be right ahead of you the whole time, and you can just follow my footsteps. If you get scared at any point, just call out, okay?" With that, the tuxedo tom led the way into the narrow cavern with his head held high.
Briarpaw woke quickly at the paw nudging her shoulder, blinking up at Nightpaw blearily. "Morning," She yawned, but pulled herself from her nest. Larkshine had told her that her moonstone journey could be soon, and the medicine cat apprentice didn't usually pull cats aside for no reason. Especially not the other apprentices. With her brother Smokeytimber now a warrior, it had only been a matter of time until Briarpaw followed his steps.
She wasn't keen on the herbs, though if Nightpaw told her to eat them, she would. They tasted truly awful, and Briarpaw grimaced. "Ugh. I'm ready." With that, she followed the smaller tom out of the thorn tunnel and away from camp, sticking close to her clanmate as they entered unfamiliar-to-her territory beyond Shadowclan's border.
The journey seemed quick, though Briarpaw was startled to look up and see how late it had actually gotten by the time they reached the entrance to what seemed to be a long cavern. She nodded at Nightpaw's words, though was a little apprehensive about following him into the narrow tunnels. It was dark, even by Shadowclan standards... Briarpaw again kept close to the medicine cat as they walked. Were she bold enough to try this on her own, she knew she would be turned around immediately, lost. It was a good thing to have the medicine cat by her side.
Nightpaw had made his way through this twisting and narrow tunnel so many times before that he didn't think too much of it. Of course, there was a point at which it bottle-necked, and his pulse always quickened as he began to think about all the ways one could get stuck or trapped - there was no way to turn around in the tunnels, and if a predator or an enemy cat was waiting for them, they'd be in terrible luck - but the cavern always widened again after a foxlength or two, and his fears were usually eased. His whiskers brushed past the walls of the cave as he padded forward. It was dark down here - too dark, even for cats who had keen night vision, but he kept his faith true. He could see the faintest glimmer of light ahead. The Moonstone. It wasn't far now.
"I'm just right ahead of you," he reassured. "We're almost there. Just a few foxlengths now." It was almost like he could sense her fear. Smokeytimber had hidden his well - if he'd been afraid at all. But Briarpaw seemed much less guarded. He appreciated that.
Finally, finally, the tunnel opened out into a wide, expansive cave, the Moonstone standing tall and proud in the center. The cavern was bathed in sparkling moonlight, and Nightpaw stopped for a moment to marvel at it. It didn't get old, it seemed. After a short pause, he turned to Briarpaw. "Alright. Now you can get comfortable, and whenever you're ready, just touch your nose to the stone. I'll be right here, waiting." The ruddy tom nodded toward her encouragingly, then sat by the tunnel's entrance with his tail curled over his paws in wait.
The walk through the tunnels seemed like it took ages, though Briarpaw was sure it couldn't have really. Perhaps it was the all-encompassing darkness, or how narrow the tunnels seemed to get. It was... Restrictive, confining. It set her nerves on edge, though she tried to hide the tremble in her paws even if there was no way Nightpaw could have seen it. Just as quickly as the tunnel seemed to have narrowed, it widened once more, and Briarpaw breathed a sigh of relief at that. There was a soft light up ahead, outlining the shade of Nightpaw's ears in front of her. And then the tunnel opened up even more, a shining, bright stone in the center of a large cavern.
"...Wow." She mewed softly. The sight of the moonstone made the discomfort of the tunnels worth it. Briarpaw moved to do as Nightpaw said, curling up with her nose against the stone without hesitation. She wasn't sure what to expect or what would come next, but sleep claimed her faster than she would have thought.
Webshadow’s head angled slowly, thoughtfully, upward and to the side. He shifted his weight between paws and blinked as he looked around, as if he were looking upon StarClan’s land for the first time. It was a little disorienting, honestly; he couldn’t remember the last time he’d been called for a Moonstone. It felt strange to stand alone after so many seasons spent in constant company. Not knowing what he would say upon Briarpaw’s arrival felt strange as well.
But he’d run out of time to consider it. Before long, a shape was taking form near him on the dry patch of land. Webshadow’s attention slid away from regarding the starry marshland to instead peer down at Briarpaw’s congealing figure. When she had gathered her bearings, he waved his tail in greetings. ”Hello,” Webshadow said simply. He regarded the apprentice for a quiet moment before blinking. Something seemed to loosen in his expression. ”I’m here… to offer you guidance.” The words came slowly, with consideration behind each of them. ”Is there anything you think you need to hear?”
Briarpaw opened her eyes to shimmering stars seeming to touch everything around her. Slowly the apprentice sat up, taking in her surroundings with silent awe. She almost didn't notice the cat who was just as star-flecked as their surroundings until he spoke, and Briarpaw tried not to jump slightly. Right, the whole 'speak with the ancestors' thing wasn't just dreaming of a starlit marsh. There was an actual ancestor to speak to.
"Wow... So Starclan isn't just stories, then? Who are you?" Briarpaw asked, unable to contain her curiosity and hardly even thinking about if the question could have been considered rude or not.
"I'm... Not sure, honestly. I know I want to do right by my clan, though. I know sometimes we'll have to fight-" The raccoons that seemed to tail every hunting patrol, or stars forbid Windclan, if it came to it, "but fighting doesn't feel right. Will fighting other cats really be necessary, do you think?" Well, she hadn't been meaning to voice her unease with the idea of fighting, but it seemed that her mouth had moved before her brain caught up with the question the strange tom had asked.
