Fernpaw's Moonstone Journey

"Fernpaw," a rough voice called into the apprentice's den. "It's your time time to journey to the Moonstone." Spinestalker sat just outside the entrance, hard blue eyes watching for the cat he'd called for. "Swiftstream is otherwise preoccupied, so I will be escorting you to Highstones."

Fernpaw nodded and went up to spinestalker. “I’m ready.” she mewed up at him.

[skip to highstones]

"This is the Mothermouth," Spinestalker meowed, indicating the gaping cavern ahead of them with his ears. "Stay close to me, there are branches in the path and you do not want to get lost." With that, he headed into the darkness of the caves, following the path on muscle memory alone, ducking into the right tunnel at the large split. Time seemed to pass without any real measure as they traveled further and further into the earth, but in time the Moonstone's light reached their eyes, and the tunnel opened up into the huge cavern that possessed the large, glowing stone.

"Touch your nose to the stone when you are ready to visit StarClan," the huge tom meowed. "I will be here when you awake."

Fernpaw nodded and touched her nose to the Moonstone before going into a soundless sleep to speak with the Starclan cat. She looked around and noticed a cat walking towards her.

Stars decorated the pelt of the cat that approached Fernpaw, but underneath the shimmer of starlight it was very clearly similar to that of the apprentice's own fur. "You've grown so big," the she-cat mewed, voice thick with pride. Brownheart smiled down at Fernpaw fondly. "I have no doubt that you'll be a wonderful warrior, my dear. You would do well to take some matters more seriously, though, or the things you love most might slip through your paws before you know it," she said seriously, looking her daughter in the eyes. "WindClan would be hard pressed to find a better warrior than you." Brownheart licked Fernpaw's head affectionately. "I have to go now, but I just want you to know that I'm proud of you," she meowed, rubbing her cheek against Fernpaw before turning to leave, albeit reluctantly, leaving Fernpaw to return to the waking world.

Fernpaw started to wake but didn’t want to leave her mother behind. She opened her eyes and looked around hoping to see one glance of her but all she saw was darkness. She sighed and went over to spinestalker and motioned for him that she was ready to leave.