Condorkit's Apprentice Ceremony

The last time Mistedsong found himself in this position was last leaf-bare. The fact that he was doing this again so soon made his chest lurch briefly with grief. It had been a few moons since Blizzardpaw had joined StarClan, but the medicine was not sure he was ready to share his den again. StarClan did not seem to care for his readiness, however; the perfect candidate laid in wait for him, and the Clan was in need of more paws to keep them safe and healthy. Off-handedly, he wondered if he was permanently doomed to a life of training apprentices, perhaps as repentance for being such a difficult apprentice himself.

Paws cooled by the frigid stone, he stood in front of his herb stores, scraping various leaves and a few chamomile flowers together into a small bundle, having already eaten his own share of herbs. He was almost positive the kit would not reject him, and if he did, he was going to Highstones by himself to visit Spottednose just for the sake of his own sanity. He wrapped the herbs in a leaf and picked them all up as he padded out of his den and towards the nursery.

The medicine cat poked his head inside of the nursery, green eyes searching for the cat in question. "Condorkit?" he called inside softly, hoping not to disturb anyone but fully aware that he was probably going to. He pulled away, waiting for the kit to follow him. "I am.. in need of an apprentice, and you are of age," Mistedsong explained. "Would you like to train as SkyClan's next medicine cat?"

Condorkit squirmed a little before awaking, her eyes heavy and her vision a little blurry as she looked up at Mistedsong. Condorkit wobbled to her large paws and followed drowsily after him, thankfully once the fresh, cold, night air hit her nose she was able to wake up enough to listen to what the medicine cat had to say. And she really, really hoped she knew what it was going to be. Then Mistedsong spoke, and said the words she was praying to Starclan to hear, yes! Condorkit could barely hide her excitement, a grin stretching across her face as she looked up at him. "I would! I really would!" Condorkit mewed, her voice tinny with her excitement. "Thank you! Thank you so so much Mistedsong! I'll do my best at learning the ways of a medicine cat!" She chirped, basically hopping around on her toes, she would do her best each and every day!

The grey tom chuckled warmly at the kit's excitement. "I've brought traveling herbs-- we'll go ahead and go to Highstones tonight, as the sky is clear and it's not too cold." He waited for the kit to eat the herbs before setting off towards the camp's entrance. "If you can stomach those herbs, you'll do just fine," Mistedsong meowed as he started into the snow. "I feel like I spend half of my time eating traveling herbs."

---

Mistedsong stopped briefly to check on Driftpaw, allowing the two a moment's respite before they continued on to Highstones. "Be careful now, Condorkit," he meowed. "The rocks here can be slick or sharp, you'd do well to watch your step. There's not a whole lot more to see here than rocks until we get to the Moonstone."

The medicine cat padded forward, closer and closer to the looming Mothermouth. "Once we're inside the Mothermouth, it will be nearly impossible to see, so either follow my scent or stay close to my tail and stay as close as possible," he told the kit. "We still have a ways to go." The darkness of the cave swallowed the two cats quickly, as it was already well past dusk. The walls narrowed around them as they went deeper, and Mistedsong instinctively took the path to the right. "The path splits here. Make sure that you always go into the right-side tunnel. The left is dangerous and the path unstable."

The damp, smooth walls of the cave brushed against the tom's whiskers as he headed ever deeper into the cave. He could feel the fur on the back of his neck rising as they came closer to the Moonstone. After a few more moments, Mistedsong saw a growing light signifying the end of the path. "We've arrived," the medicine cat mewed, starlight glinting off of his green eyes in a mischievous twinkle as they entered the vast cave that housed the Moonstone.

The Moonstone shone spectacularly with the light of the moon that entered through the hole at the top of the cave. It bathed the two cats in a bright white light, and within it Mistedsong could feel the cold but comforting presence of their ancestors. He briefly reminisced on his anxiety the last time he'd done this, and his paws ached familiarly. "Condorkit, is it your wish to enter the mysteries of StarClan and return to SkyClan as a medicine cat?"

Condorkit was extremely nervous about her ceremony, would her ancestors accept her? Or would they declare her not the right fit despite her enthusiasm? Condorkit dutifully listened to Mistedsong as they traversed the dangerous tunnels of Mothermouth, though she tried to best to deliberately step into the paw prints bigger than her own, impressioned into the ground before her. The beautiful shine of the Moonstone awed her, her eyes shining with the reflective glow of the bluestone. Condorkit stood now in front of Mistedsong, his kind green eyes looking unblinkingly into hers, or so it seemed. "I do!" She mewed, though it was more subdued, for the kitten feared albeit briefly that if she was too loud, dangerous things would happen.

Mistedsong smiled softly at the kit, and fixed his gaze vaguely upwards, looking to his ancestors. "Warriors of StarClan, I present you with this apprentice. She has chosen the path of a medicine cat. Grant her your wisdom and insight so that she may understand your ways and heal her Clan in accordance with your will."

"Come forward, Condorkit, and press your nose to the Moonstone. It's time to visit StarClan," he meowed with an air of finality, waiting for the kit to follow his instruction before pressing his nose to the stone himself. Sleep quickly overtook him, anxious to see what awaited them in their dreams.

A warm, blissful sigh left Mistedsong's muzzle as he stretched his legs, the pain that usually knotted the base of his spine absent and his mind refreshed. He never tired of the energy that the fields of StarClan gave him. "Come, Condorkit, we're being expected," he mewed, padding over the hill they woke up on the other side of to meet the sea of cats with stars in their pelts. He bonked into a calico at the front with unbridled affection.  

"I suppose it's a good thing I get to see you this often, Spottednose," he mewed when he stepped back. The she-cat chuckled. "It is one of the best parts about being a medicine cat," she replied. They shared a brief look loaded with questions, but if any of them went unanswered, it was not acknowledged.

Spottednose turned to Condorkit with a warm expression. "Try not to run my apprentice ragged, young one. From this day forth, you shall be known as Condorpaw. May the stars guide your paws in learning everything Mistedsong has to share with you."

The crowd of starry cats burst with life, seemingly endless cheers of "Condorpaw! Condorpaw!" erupting with no end in sight. The cacophony of voices was the last the medicine cats heard before they awoke once again in the cold cave of the Moonstone, the first light of dawn beginning to stream into the cavern.