The Starcave

[Vessel]

Moonraven Fuzzy

Life one

The first to step up was a glimmering, pale gray she-cat with a white muzzle and icy blue eyes. She was more solid than most of the other Starclan cats gathered around; a clear sign that she had died more recently. Her gaze was stern and regretful.

"I am Moondrift. A warrior of Windclan in life, and a warrior of Windclan forevermore." She spoke with her head held high in a regal manner.

"When I still walked the moor, I possessed cunning, intelligence and beauty, just as you do." She paused, eyes filled with longing. "I vowed to myself that I would use it to one day better my clan. Alas, things did not go as I had planned. I killed my own clanmates due to hallucination and, in the end, it was a clanmate that killed me." She flicked her tail, choosing her next words carefully.

"I was also a loner and a spy. I snuck into other territories, valuing exploiting their weaknesses rather than directly focusing on my clan. I was also distant from my clanmates, and what I wanted my legacy to be died when I did. My skills were never used in a way that benefited my clan, and I can't watch you make the same mistake."

Moondrift took another step towards Twilightshine, internally wincing. Maybe I shouldn't exalt myself so much. After all, my little 'missions' were always duds.

"Take this life and use your skills to protect your clan, no matter what. Even if the path seems dark, or the methods seem dirty, you must stop at nothing to keep Windcan safe. And never, under any circumstances, harm a clanmate, no matter what
they may have done!"

Tears were now spilling down Moondrift's face, no matter how hard she tried to hold it back. It was hard speaking of her utter failure; she'd mostly avoided the topic since she died. Still, she reached forward and touched her nose to Twilightshine, lowering her voice to a whisper.

"I give you a life of loyalty. The loyalty that will stop at nothing to protect those you love and destroy those who threaten them. Don't you dare make the same mistakes I did."

With that, she closed her eyes and hoped that her life wouldn't hurt too bad.

~~~

She stepped back, allowing the next cat to give their life.

"I will watch over you, Twilightshine. Please, live the life I wish I had."

[Starfall]

Life #2 Moonraven
The russet molly sat quietly, a blank stare unwavering from the living feline that appeared. Windclan had yet another new leader? Her mouth twitched as Moondrift was the first to step up. The second the newest member of Starclan opened her mouth, the older drowned her out as she took in all the expressions of those around her. What should she look like? Sad? Proud? Excited? So many to choose from, so many emotions to pick and plaster on.

After a few moments she returned her deadpanned gaze onto Twilightshine, ears leaning forwards as she picked herself up. She made her way towards the pale molly before Moondrift finished speaking, her amber gaze resting on the younger warrior before dragging it back to the receiver of the lives. "Long winded." she gurgled.

The ginger tabby stopped in front of the soon to be Leader, paws together, tail flicking behind her. The ideal image of poise in her mind. "Hello Twilightshine, I am Emberdust." she said, gaze unwavering. No smile, no greeting head dip. She just stood there, head tipped upwards slightly. Her form was a little more faded compared to a few others, but she wasn't the oldest one here. Not by a long shot. "I wont tell you a sob story, frankly there's no need for it." she paused, looking back at the Warrior who went before her before proceeding. "So I will get right to the point. I am here to give you the life of Flexibility." her voice grew louder as she lowered her head, looking up at the Deputy through her lashes.

"Don't be afraid to stray from your long thought out plans, and take a different path to get to where you want." her expression didn't change. "Very few things in life come without a cost, be prepared to work around and even with your losses to get to your goal." with that she stepped forwards and pressed her nose against Twilightshine's doing her best to shove all of her dulled feelings of pain, joy, fear, and anger into the molly. Her emotions were no stronger than a smoldered flame, buried, dull, quiet. But they were there none the less.

With that Emberdust swiveled on her heels and made her way back towards her spot.

[marshy]

Life Three
Moonraven Fuzzy

The calico She-cat stepped up and looked at Twilightshine. “Hopefully” She thought “She will lead Windclan better then Brightstar ever did.” She walked over to Twilightshine and Smiled. “Hello, I am Pebblepool.” She said. “I used to walk the plains of Windclan as you do right now, living the best life I could live. But, I had one flaw. It was myself before everyone else. I didn’t care about other cats, I only cared about myself. That, is what ultimately got me killed.”

Pebblepool looked down, It wasn’t easy for her to recall her past, and to say it as well. She stood there for a few seconds, looking at the ground. Before she shook her head and looked back up at Twilightshine. “I was on a patrol, and foxes came out of no where. They attacked everyone on the patrol, I didn’t help, I ran away. Needless to say, Our leader at the time wasn’t too happy about that. Before I knew it, He had already killed me.” She looked down one more time, then looked up and touched Twilightshine’s head with her nose and said “With this life, I give you Selflessness. Use it to protect the cats of Windclan, and to make sure every cat is not left behind and all have their needs met. Use it so that you will not make the same mistakes I made.”

Pebblepool then stepped back. “Twilightshine, may you lead better then any other leader of Windclan. And may you lead Windclan to greatness.”

[mochi]

Life Four
@Moonraven (http://warriorcatsonline.com/forums/member.php?u=10662) @Fuzzy (http://warriorcatsonline.com/forums/member.php?u=5297)

As Pebblepool returned to her spot, an unassuming molly got to her paws - a pleasant, yet somewhat amused light in her mismatched blue and yellow eyes. Her golden-brown tabby pelt was a bit more faded than some of the other ancestors, but something about the way she moved and the way her eyes gleamed gave her a youth that her transparent body didn't quite posses.

"Hello, Twilightshine." She purred in greeting as she came to a stop in front of the soon-to-be-leader. "I'm Sweetbreeze." She paused for a moment, before continuing with another soft look. "You probably don't remember me, you were only an apprentice when I left." Her gaze turned to land on something just beyond the circle of ancestors, and a warm smile blossomed across her features. "I left because I fell in love." She spoke, turning back to Twilightshine. "But he and I were from different clans, and that's frowned upon as you may know." She let out a little laugh at that, as if she hadn't committed a scandalous crime against the warrior code.

"So we left our clans to be together without fear of what our clanmates would say. And for a time we were happy. But..." She let out a sigh, a remorseful sadness starting to darken her naturally bright expression. "But when I was pregnant with our kit, my mate was discovered hunting on his old clan's territory. Prey was scarce, you see. He had gone out hunting again because I couldn't move in the state I was in."

"It...was an accident. They didn't mean to kill him, but it happened never-the-less." She took a deep breath, glancing once more outside the group for the one thing that could calm her nerves before starting again. "Not long after I had my son, I came down with some sickness that ate away at me. And it wasn't long after that before I lost the strength to take care of him." Her eyes glistened with the memory, but she took a deep breath and pulled herself together. "I love WindClan." She made eye contact with the fawn-gray she-cat, a fierce sort of commitment in her voice. "It was my home before I left, and I still consider it my home. So," she took a breath, the fierceness fading as a quiet resilience took it's place, "I gave my son the chance to become the warrior I failed to be." She shook her head and a light chuckle bubbled out of her chest. "Well, I believe that's enough rambling from a dead queen."

She looked back up at Twilightshine, but this time her gaze held a certain seriousness that hadn't been there before. "With this life, I give you the gift to cherish. Cherish the young ones, raise them well and in turn they will carry the clan to greatness long after you've gone." She reached forward, gently pressing her nose against the future leader's.

A soft, comforting warmth would spread through Twilightshine, surrounding her like a young kit swaddled in its mothers fur. Then, without warning, it would turn white hot, a mixture of pride, anguish, pressure, and pain all rolled up into a bone-crackling intensity. But just as soon as the heat came, it would disappear, leaving a faint, lingering warmth throughout her body.

As Sweetbreeze took a step back, she smiled once more at Twilightshine, "Oh, and take care of my son would you? Goatkit can be a bit of a handful at times, but he means well." And with that, the queen turned and took her place once more among the ring of starry cats.

[pidgeon]

Moonraven Fuzzy, Undertaker

Life Five

Next to approach the new leader was a sleek, dark brown she-cat whose fur gleamed like the ocean. She was sturdy on her paws as she approached Twilightshine.

"Greetings, warrior. I am Minksprint." She spoke with a honey-smooth voice, before leaning forward to touch her nose to the she-cat's head. Twilightshine would be whirled into a memory. She would see from the perspective of this long-dead warrior, a tragedy.

The moorland was vast, stretching on towards the beach and the sea. Eyes straining into focus, two cats could be seen on the shore. In the distance, the boisterous barking of a dog, loose from its twolegs. The barking is closer and closer. Minksprint freezes in fear, wanting to call out a warning to the cats, but her moment of hesitation would cost them their lives. The new leader would then be pulled back into the present moment, seconds before the attack.

"With this life, I give you certainty. The certainty to know when to act. Do not hesitate in moments of high stress. You must know what you need to do, and act on it." And with that, the starry warrior fell back into line with the rest of StarClan's ranks.

[Undertaker]

Life #6
Moonraven Fuzzy

His paws refused to remain still as he waited for cat after cat to give their life. He's never been all that great with the whole patience stuff. As soon as Minkspirit step back in line he shot forwards in a similar fashion to the name of the clan he once served. He barely managed to avoid colliding with the she-cat as a goofy toothy smile crossed his face. He stood as tall and broad as he did the day he left her, his long ruffled russet coat gleaming like ice. The strange light that encompassed his translucent body flickered steadily like a flame on a candle. His emerald eyes nearly identical to her own with the exception that his shine like the stars themselves.

"Look at you, all grown up and a clan leader at that! Hahaha! Out of all of us, I never thought you'd be leading Windclan one day." He teased, recalling fondly the lethargic kit that was too lazy to even bother nursing from her mother. So lazy that she didn't bother with making connections with those around her nor caring in general for much of anything. Hawkflame wouldn't lie, out of all of their siblings, he was the proudest of Twilightshine right now. She had really changed.

"You know I thought that I'd be where you are one day." There was a tinge of jealousy in his words, but he didn't regret what he had done that day. He was happy for his little sister, Windclan clearly needs her more then they need him. "I've accepted my fate, you should too." He adds to ensure that he did not mean to guilt-trip the young cat. "As much as I want to reminisce with you, we don't have the time and if I remember right you're rather picky about how you use it."

It had taken him a while to decide just what he wanted to give her after learning she'd be visiting. Staring down at molly he took in a deep breath and leaned down to touch noses with her. "You're getting the life of Inspiration. Whether you're stuck in a tight spot, want to make some improvements, or need to get some of your unmotivated clanmates moving, with this life use it to inspire them. Fill them with the passion needed to bring Windclan back from the rut it's stuck in."

It started out small like an ember, filling Twilightshine with his hope, wishes, and desires, before sparking into a full-fledge flame caught on gasoline. All that rage, disappointment, and fear came out like wildfire and just as destructive. Hawkflame pulled away, the flames dying leaving the faintest touch of excitement, his love, and his passion behind. Now he was going to have to watch over her even closer. Hawkflame peered down at her with the gentlest of smirks.

"You'll make a great leader, Sis, try not to screw it up." He taunted, moving away from her. "A word to the wise, Sister, desisted isolating yourself. You're going to need them one day." He didn't bother explaining as he returned to his place among the Starclan ranks.

[dino.]

Life Seven
[ Moonraven Fuzzy ]

By the stars, if he was going to do something worthwhile in the afterlife, he figured it might as well be something notable. Cats were already gathering around WindClan's soon-to-be leader, and Barkprowl realized he should probably hurry up if he wanted to have a chance at this.
The mottled brown tom's mouth turned dry as he entered the crowd, but he forced himself to ignore her, instead pushing past the throngs of cats to get to the front. Finally, he stood in front of Twilightshine, his expression solemn.
"My name is Barkprowl," he began, fixing the she-cat with a hard stare. "I was alive before your time, so it is highly unlikely you have heard of me, but I am here to offer you guidance nonetheless."
He leaned forward and briefly tapped his nose to hers. "The life I bequeath to you is the life of trust. You may be WindClan's leader, but you are not there to control them. You are there to watch over and guide them. At times, you may become frustrated and suspicious, but you must remember that they are your family, not your adversaries. Have faith in your Clanmates decisions. Trust they know the right path. If you find they are truly lost, do not turn them away out of fear. You are their guide, not their dictator; help them return to righteousness."
He drew back, his normally blue eyes now filled with milky starlight. "If you refuse to trust your Clanmates, in time, they will grow to lose faith in you. Do not make the same mistake I did."

[BEAR.]

What the HELL was this?

All of these lives were PATHETIC, with even more weak and boring reasoning behind them. It probably didn't help half the damn cats preached 'don't make the same mistakes I did!' No wonder StarClan didn't do dung, if this was the best they had to offer to a new leader. Flintstar's stupidity was beginning to make sense.

Mountaingrowl was glad he wasn't stuck with this lot. The aura of power and malice that radiated off of him was a stark difference between him and the others, and he loved it. Twilightshine might think his death was the end of his plague on WindClan, but he liked to think he was just getting started. So many young she-cats he could visit in their dreams..

And as he approached the pretty lilac she-cat with the reek of blood and death around him, his muzzle was twisted in a smirk.

"My wild chicory," his purr was a deep rumble. "Did you miss me, girl? That little stint in your den earlier was fun, a shame we couldn't continue it with just the two of us.." Because in that scenario, Mountaingrowl knew he would've been able to easily overpower the smaller she-cat. What a delight that would have been, putting her in her place.

Mountaingrowl closed the distance between them, his muzzle pressed against the top of her head as he transferred his life to her: oh, she smell as good as she looked. "I give you the life of AGGRESSION. I saw you in the den. You stayed back and let your Clan-mate choke with my fangs in her throat." His gaze flickered over to where Brightsky stood. "Oh, I'm sure you thought yourself so clever, but bein' passive ain't gonna get you ahead in this world, sweetheart. You're gonna see a lot more dead cats doin' that than Sunflower over there."

Taking a step back, he made a clear wink at Twilightshine before he returned to the row of spirits. "Don't think this is the last of me, sugar. I always liked a challenge."

[ Moonraven, Fuzzy ]

[Fuzzy]

Moonraven

Brightsky… that was a beautiful name that she honestly never thought of having. She'd been so caught up in the moment. Of getting Twilight her lives, possibly dying and doing what was best for WindClan. She didn't even stop to think what her name would be. Honestly she was glad she wasn't going back to being Buttercupbreeze. She was a new cat. Striving to be totally different from what she'd been with that name. Reclaiming it would feel like she was going back to that life. It wasn't what she wanted.
Her mouth gapped a bit at the offer to give Twilightshine a life. To give her something to help WindClan personally. That was something she'd never even thought of. At least she'd be the ninth life. She had eight lives to think this over and pick a life. To figure out what would be best suited for the new leader.
These lives moved faster then hers had. Much faster. On cat after another, each giving encouragement and a word to share with Twilightshine. This just felt right. Maybe it was an 'in the moment' feeling but this just felt better and better the closer things came. Twilightshine was about to officially be leader of WindClan! Everything was falling into place.
Him!? Brightsky outwardly cringed at the sight of Mountaingrowl. Why was he here? She wanted that first and last encounter to be just that. The first and last encounter. She just had to show her teeth to the tom as he glanced at her. Gosh! Sunflower? Him and his gross nicknames! She felt bad for Twilight, having to put up with that brute. It was nasty. He was a total creep!
The creamy molly let out a sigh. It was her turn already. Now that that creep was gone she took his place. Stepping up as the others have done.
This was actually a bit awkward. She didn't actually know what to say... they had come here together and would leave here together. She didn't have a story like the others. Nothing to say. So, she just winged it.
"I honestly never thought I'd do something like this." Brightsky admitted standing in front of the new leader. It was true, even after death she didn't think she'd do leader ceremonies. Then again she never really thought of her after life...
Pressing her nose to the lilac molly's head Bright put her words together. "With this life I give you the life of productivity." The former leader meowed. "With the state WindClan is in we need a productive leader leading us. Use this life to bring WindClan up and form it into a strong clan. Put out patrols, lead patrols, make cats hunt. Just get everyone to stop being lazy kits! I'm included in this." Brightsky explained before stepping back.
This really was the final moment. Was Twilightshine scared? Worried? Maybe excited? Bright wasn't sure but this was the last few words to complete the ceremony. Only thing was, she didn't know the appropriate words. Blazingstar had named her leader using a name changing ceremony but Brightsky felt that was wrong. So, she would just say what came to mind... Hopefully that was good enough.
"Twilightshine, with you're nine lives you are now officially leader of WindClan. Congratulations!" She smiled. "I now appoint you, your new name. From now on you shall be known as Twilightstar! May you lead WindClan well and honor you role as its leader." Brightsky let out, feeling that was ceremony like enough. Right? She really didn't know.
"With me by your side I hope you bring WindClan to greatness and we can bring a fire to our Clan and the cats within it. So that they have a new passion to build WindClan up. I know you're the right cat for this." The creamy warrior added. With that Brightsky cast a glance around the starry clearing. Would they chant her name? She wasn't sure.

[Moonraven]

As the first cat step forwards the name Moondrift sounded vaguely familiar to her. She got the explanation as to why moments after the thought implanted itself into her head. She was one of the cats they lost not long ago. Though the name held so weight, Twilightshine didn't know her personally she would have remembered a cat who held herself as high as this one did. Hearing of her little adventures of spying on the other clans brought forth her own schemes that she had squashed not long after stepping foot on Breezerock. Her clanmates weren't made to be spies, clearly. Moondrift added some emotional flare to her story, Twilight hoped not every cat was going to break down in tears, the tears did little to move her although words brought some impact. There was no wrong or right, dark or light, with Twilightshine. Naturally, she'd protect her clan with everything she had even if made her the bad guy in the end. However, she doubted she'd able to make sure she wouldn't hurt a clanmate, especially if she felt like this clan mate was a threat to the clan. She'd have to annihilate them and she wouldn't feel a drop of remorse nor guilt about it. She took the life of loyalty without a word, not completely pleased about it but not unsatisfied with it either. Loyalty wasn't something she felt she needed but she wasn't going to debate with Starclan about it.
Heartstruck

The next she-cat walked up and got straight to the point, this cat she name didn't ring any bells so it was safe to assume she had been before Twilightshine's time. It was nice to know that she wasn't the only one who felt a sob story was necessary. Then again, Moondrift had recently died Twilightshine didn't know what that felt like so she wouldn't place much blame for the former cat's tears. Flexibility? This one she felt like she would make much use of. She'd keep Emberdust's advice to work around losses and that little in life came without a price. This life felt different from the first, like a small jolt of something coursed through her body. The sensations that came with it were fleeting and startling. Twilightshine was barely able to keep herself from pulling away from her touch. Nobody said anything this weird emotion thing. A mild scowl crossed her maw as Emberdust backed away, was she going to have to deal with that every time?
Starfall

Well, wasn't someone blunt?! "Thanks?" She replied, uncertain if what the calico was said was a compliment or not. Anyone who actually did something would lead the clan better then Brightstar. Pebblepool was odd. She twitched her tail, as the dead cat retold her tail on how she made her way to Starclan. So basically the she-cat was a coward who ran away when she should have helped her patrol and her leader killed her for it? Twilightshine was conflicted with that, no one wanted to died or at least most didn't want to die. Yet that didn't mean abandon clanmates and think of yourself first. There were pieces of Pebblepool's story that were missing so Twilightshine didn't try to dwell on it for too long. Selflessness another life she'd probably have trouble making use of. Twilightshine was more take care of the whole over the one, but she'd do her best to learn from Pebblepool's mistakes as she would with every other cat here.
~WolfDen~

As yet another she-cat joined her, what was up with all the she-cats? Twilightshine saw that she seemed kind of happy for some unknown reason. Like with the others who came before her, the lilac molly gave a faint dip of her head in greeting. The vague look on her face scrunched itself up and gave way to confusion when the odd eyed tabby said they knew each other. Sweetbreeze was correct she didn't remember her all that much. Twilightshine was dealing with her own stuff during her apprenticeship so the dead cat shouldn't take it personally. Love, Twilight didn't understand why cats were so willing to give up so much or something like love. Perhaps it was because she's never experienced and no desire to, but the thought of losing one's self and become idiotic terrified her. No one cat should hold so much power over another cat that they lose their logic.
Why in the world would they leave their clans when food was scarce? Why did this tom hunt in how old territory would it have been a little safer to hunt int the outskirts? There were so many more questions jumping around in the leader's mind but she put them to rest. It was already done she should really stop questioning what couldn't be changed. Twilghtshine didn't doubt Sweethbreeze's words when she said she loved Windclan, she just didn't understand the deceased Queen's actions.
Cherish? Yet another foreign life that inflicted emotions that didn't belong to her. It started out nice and then felt like someone was tearing out her claws one by one. Did every leader really have to deal with this emotional rollercoaster? Sweetbreeze was the last cat she expected to have all that negativity bundle up inside, it merely proved that Twilight shouldn't judge a book by its cover. It took her a little bit longer to recover from Sweetbreeze's gift, she nearly missed the name Goatkit being tossed over the older feline's shoulder as she left. So that's who's mom she was, as long as Goatkit remained in Windclan she'd do her best to look after him alongside the other countless cats in Windclan that would now be looking at her for her leadership.
mochi

As Minkspirit stepped up she was expecting another straight to the point cat, instead, she got stuck inside some weird dream. It was like some out of body experience that she would have rather not done. This memory or whatever it was rattled Twilightshine a bit more then she wanted to let on. It reminded her of a certain someone who fell in a similar manner. She was overjoyed when it ended, the fur along her spine stood on end as her ears were plastered against her head. She prayed that she'd never had to experience anything like that again. Twilightshine would rather deal with the emotion-inducing lives. This one gave her certainty, the words weren't overly helpful but she got the gist of it. She refrained from sticking her tongue out at Minkspirit as she retreated back to the lineup. Twilightshine's hatred of dogs now furthered increased thanks to her. Word of mouth would have worked just as fine as whatever it was the she-cat had done to her.
Casper

Hey! She knew him! The molly didn't move as a familiar face hurtled himself at her. That was how he greeted her when he was alive too, just threw himself at her. It was so very infuriating especially when he weighted like a billion pounds more than her. Twilight had been anticipating meeting Hawkflame up here so was as startled as most cats might be to see their deceased sibling. She's never been one for reunions so she listened as her brother threw his little jabs and taunts here and there.
Hawkflame certainly looked like he was doing well for a dead guy. There was a mild twitch of her whiskers as he unintentionally reminded her why he'd never get to live out his dream. She ignored the whole accepting thing, Twilightshine didn't blame herself for much unless she truly felt that it was her fault. There was still just a hint of responsibility that would always remain with her from Hawkflame's departure. She was glad that he was quick to move on and give her a life. Inspiration, somewhat befitting for someone like him. As was the lava of hot emotions he dumped on her as well. The lean muscles underneath her pelt spasmed under the onslaughter of baggage she forced upon her. It was about as bad as Minkspirit's dreamscape. What was with these sadistic starclan cats? It dimmed enough for her to catch her brother's last words. They caused her to roll her eyes as she straightened herself. He was always worrying about things like family even in death. Moron.
Undertaker

Barkprowl? Funny name. By the time the last life settled alongside the others another tom was marching up to her. Considering that she had very little knowledge of more than half the cats here, Twilight wasn't shocked to meet another face she didn't know. She sat waiting for this tom to guide her, hopefully without pain involved. Trust? Really?! She didn't bother objecting as the tom bestowed her with advice that she didn't like but would accept. So he just wanted her to blindly trust her clanmates? That was going to be difficult, Twilightshine barely trusts herself. She didn't think her clan needed someone to guide them they needed a leader, someone to tell them what to. He obviously failed to view the last Windclan meeting. Windclan's blind trust would have led them to ruin if Brightsky had decided to swap ranks with her. She took Barkprowl's life and advice with a grain of salt.
Slushie

A grimace mixed with absolute loathing settled on her face when the next cat showed up. "You have some serious problems." She grumbled underneath her breath as Mountaingrowl shows up. If he was stalking her even in death this went way beyond obsession. It was clear he was no Starclan cat, so why was he even allowed here? Could he go creepy on someone else's ceremony? He smelt as gross as he looked, she was both appalled and disturbed with his horrible nicknames - why the hell was she a chicory? She faintly wondered what in the world had made Mountaingrowl so messed up? Maybe he had some mommy issues that he took out on she-cats? She wouldn't be shocked if he had been born messed up.
It took a tone of willpower to keep herself still when he got into her personal space. He reeked like death, she let growl of discomfort bubble from her chest and escape her closed maw as her fangs exposed them. Could you kill a cat a second time? She really wanted to see if she could tear out his throat. Did he disappear then cause that would be sososo nice. Like him, his life of aggression made her want to vomit. Starclan had a security issue that should look into if Dark Forest cats were allowed to just walk up on in here and give out lives. She throws him a vicious hiss as he walked away, could she neuter him in her dream? Was that possible? She was going to make it possible if he showed his ugly mug around her again.
BILL.

Finally, it was the last life. Getting these things was physically and mentally draining, which she had thought would be the opposite considering she was being filled with life but whatever. She offered Brightsky a semi smile as she walked up. Brightsky never thought she'd be giving one life and Twilightshine never thought she'd be a leader, weird. Productivity? Hmm, she decided that Brightsky's life might be her favorite. She chuckled lightly at the irony in all of this, Brightsky wanted one of the laziest cats in Windclan to make sure the rest of the clan wasn't lazy. She found it funny, Twilight would take it to heart. Once she received her final life and name, Twilightstar didn't feel all that different. Not sure why she was awaiting so huge difference, but she had been, now she felt a little cheated. Welp, now she had literally hung a noose around her neck and there was no going back. Whether Windclan learned how to fly or plunged in nothingness she was tethered to it. With a roll of her shoulders, the she-cat rose determinedly to her paws. "Come on let's go home." She meowed to her deputy, time to go see if they could make a difference.
Fuzzy

[Doom]

Bearpaw had been venting the whole journey, telling Peachpaw all about how nobody cared about what he wanted, and how everybody hated him, and absolutely nothing was going right in his life. It actually surprised him how good of a listener Peachpaw was! He didn't think Icestar's apprentice would be so quiet. Eventually, Bearpaw was feeling much better, but his tone was still low with sadness. "Thanks for letting me get all this off my chest. I've just felt a little...overwhelmed, you know? And it feels like nobody even cares..."

great stars! he told the tom to make himself comfortable around him, but he was not expecting a rant about every negative event that happened in his life! peachpaw tried his best to nod along and keep quiet throughout the whole...whatever bearpaw was talking about, but as time went on, he wished the starcave was closer. "hmm...i'm sorry all this happened to you, bearpaw." he mewed hesitantly, trying to find the right words. "but it really seems like you need to focus on something else. like...what do you do for fun?"

"For...fun?" Bearpaw nearly stopped in his tracks, scrunching his nose. Was this cat serious? "Huh. I don't know. I was tossed into this whole medicine cat thing and I haven't really had time to do anything else." His pelt grew hot at that answer, but he didn't know why. He shook his head to dismiss this ridiculous turn of topics! "I don't have time for fun! I have to get to the StarCave and become an official medicine cat. Maybe if I do that, I'll be given some sort of blessing that gives me the power to fix this whole mess I'm in. Or however this damn job works."

hm. not the answer he was expecting. has this cat ever experienced a relaxing time? "oh come on, every cat does something for fun!" peachpaw purred, beginning to swing his tail and hips in a good groove as he walked. "for instance, i like to ride the rhythm of life. i do whatever feels good, you know? not a care in the world. negativity is too heavy and restricting – how could i thrive if i had all this stress you speak of?" the small ginger cat began to work himself into a graceful jig, twirling delightful circles around the huge depressive bearcat. oh yeah, this is just what he needed! "join me, bearpaw! join me in my poetic groove with life! be happy!"

Bearpaw stiffened as he watched Peachpaw begin to move in a strange way, eyes widening at how ridiculous he looked...but he had to admit, it was kind of funny. Releasing a nervous chuckle, the tom shook his head once more and waved a paw. "N-no, I can't move like that! It's weird!" He wanted Peachpaw to stop, but he just looked so...riddiculous! He couldn't help but laugh at the tom, admiring his upbeat attitude. "Wow, I wish I could be that careless."

peachpaw kept twirling and prancing all around bearpaw, humming a good tune set the mood. "you don't have to dance, chucklehead, just be happy! be thankful you're alive! look up at the stars and admire the beauty this moment has to offer you!" before he knew it, he'd danced his way to the entrance of the starcave, finishing his performance with a grand pirouette. breathing heavy, peachpaw faced bearpaw and bowed. "and vualá! you have made it to the eye of starclan."

Bearpaw was astonished. This might have been the weirdest cat he'd met so far, but something about the way Peachpaw spoke was...inspiring. Albeit, confusing, but it had a good message. Somewhat convinced, Bearpaw looked up at the night sky and...he swore, right then and there, all the tension released from his body. He let out a long sigh, admiring the sea of stars overhead. Before he could even react to all that's been happening, the StarCave had seemed to appear out of nowhere. Coming to a sudden halt, Bearpaw glanced awkwardly between the sky, Peachpaw, and the StarCave. "Huh. This journey seemed a little short...did I really talk the entire time?" He chuckled, easing into a smile. "Thanks for guiding me here...and for the tips. I don't know to just be happy, but maybe StarClan can help me with that." Sighing, Bearpaw gave his own little bow to his new friend and worked up the courage to enter the StarCave. "Well. Here goes nothing..."

once bearpaw went inside the eye of starclan, peachpaw took a seat outside and began vigil. he wished the bearcat would know that starclan doesn't grant him happiness...it comes from the mind. the only thing that could solve bearpaw's problems was the bearcat himself. as the night grew darker and cloudier, and the snow fell faster, peachpaw got sick of waiting and went in to the cave to check on bearpaw. the large medicine cat was fast asleep by the sparkling stone, his occasional snores echoing throughout the cave. yawning, the ginger feline curled up beside bearpaw, cuddling into the bearcat's thick pelt. warmth finally came back to him, and he finally drifted off into a deep slumber.

-----

When morning came, Bearpaw woke with a long stretch. He felt like he slept a thousand moons, but his body was aching from the hard stone floor. There was nothing he could recall from his...dream? Vision? All he could remember was seeing a large vicious creature with teeth snapping at him. The more he thought about it, it felt more like a nightmare than anything. It was...disappointing, honestly. Grumbling awake, Bearpaw suddenly realized the cuddled figure beside him. Startled, he stood and gasped...but it was only Peachpaw. "Oh." He sighed in relief, then gently nudged his clanmate awake. "Hey, wake up. We gotta go now."

peachpaw's maw gapped into a very large, slow, yawn. he stretched out one limb at a time, making sure to properly stretch himself awake before standing. "mmmmmmmm...gimmie a sec..." he murmured, giving his spine one last good stretch until a few satisfying 'pops' could be heard. satisfied, peachpaw straightened himself and nodded. "alright, i'm ready now. so how'd the big happy-talk with starclan go?"

Sighing, Bearpaw shook his head and signaled Peachpaw to follow him out of the cave. "It didn't feel like a talk...I don't even know what I saw, to be honest." His brain still felt fuzzy with sleep, and the morning light reflected off the snow nearly blinded him when he stepped out of the starcave. "Agh...maybe this was a stupid idea. Now even StarClan hates me..." Unmotivated to continue, Bearpaw sat in the snow and stared sorrowfully at his paws. He was such a failure. Maybe he should just go back to RiverClan and be a stupid warrior like everyone else...

peachpaw was disappointed in bearpaw. taking a seat beside him, he rested his tail on the bearcat's back for comfort. "you know what? who cares what starclan thinks? who cares what anyone thinks? life is too short to worry about what others think of you." peachpaw stood and began scooping a pile of snow into a neat little ball, smiling as he did so. "think of your worries like this little ball of snow. right now it is light and easy to move around. manageable, right? but if you let it get bigger and bigger..." peachpaw kept adding snow to the ball, rolling it until it was as big as the bearcat, "it becomes heavy and hard to move...and if you're not careful–" he shoved the large snowball downhill and it went barreling, growing bigger and bigger until it crashed into a tree, sending snow flying everywhere. looking back at bearpaw, he shook his head. "you fall and crumble. and we don't want that, now do we? dont stress anymore. just have fun in life!" and with that, peachpaw scooped up another tiny snowball and flung it at bearpaw!

Bearpaw gasped when the snowball hit him, shaking it off with a shiver. "Hey! I can't just let all this stress go, I have a job to d-" Another snowball hit him. "Okay...that's it!" He scooped up his own snowball and flung it at Peachpaw, but missed! He scooped up a few more and flung them...but they all missed as well! Dang, this cat was so light on his feet. Smirking, Bearpaw kicked the snow instead, sending a huge wave of white toward the tiny Peachpaw! "HAHA! TAKE THAT!"

haha! he finally got him to lighten up! gracefully dodging every snowball flung at him, peachpaw purred and puffed his chest with pride. "haha! you shall never defeat the great and dashing peachpa-" and then a wave of snow buried him. well played, bear boy...well played. crawling out of the snow, peachpaw shook his fur and laughed. "not bad, old sport! see? all you had to do was lighten u–"

Before he could even blink, Bearpaw witnessed a large pair of jaws clamp down on peachpaw's body, staining the snow bright red as he was shaken violently. It was a dog – a huge one with no twoleg collar, shaking the life from Peachpaw like some chewtoy. His eyes widened in panic and the smile was instantly wiped from his face. Oh god. Oh god, oh god, OH GOD. Backing up from the scene, Bearpaw's only instinct was to just run.

So like the wind, Bearpaw booked it back to ShadowClan, going faster than he'd ever gone before, leaving Peachpaw to his horrific demise.

[wren]

The silence wasn’t all that appreciated- in fact he rather hated to be left with his own thoughts for the rest of the walk. Plagued with ideas of being rejected.. those stupid star cats not actually being real.. what if Mistyfern sees them and I don’t? He felt his stance tighten and his legs grow stiff and sore from the idea.. what if he wasn’t actually supposed to be a medicine cat? He briskly shook the idea and tried to distract himself with something else.. but there was little to think of.

It was a long walk but before long they stood facing the large looming cave, its rocky exterior beaten and hardened by the harsh weather conditions it had seen in life. He felt those anxious prickles up his spine and a feeling of dread heavier than stones settle in his belly. He paused feeling that hesitance stick his paws to the ground like glue, the numb tingle of fear urging him to go no closer. It was just a cave wasn’t it? But.. maybe that cave held secrets he didn’t want to hear. Anxiously he swayed from paw to paw urging himself not to look like an idiot in front of Mistyfern. You’ve committed to being a medicine cat.. now go in there and do your job His mind hissed that sting of regret being tasted on his tongue. As Mistyfern gestured him forward he could feel the stiffness start to ache.. but before long he felt a pull grabbing him toward the dark mouth of the cave. There was no turning back now.

Xeno
(( oh no worries!! I’m not stressed at all (: ))

[lio]

Duskfeather had never been here before, and yet, she felt she knew the way to go. Of course, she had Flintstar beside her, and he had gone here to have his own lives given, but she didn't want to disturb the silence that surrounded them. StarClan would lead her on this journey, letting her pawsteps fall into the right path as she made her way across the land.
Once they came across the Starcave, the Torbie couldn't help but to stare in awe. It was almost childish, but she had the honor to travel here when only few Clan cats did so. Duskfeather cast a glance toward Flintstar, giving him a nod before she stepped into the cave. A chilly breeze swept over her and yet she did not feel it, too focused on what lay ahead. The moon was almost high in the sky. It was nearly time. Her tail swished back and forth and she sighed. It was so peaceful here. As soon as she stepped far enough, she gasped, seeing the moon light up the cave with dazzling colors. It was wonderful.
Duskfeather looked toward Flintstar once more before settling down, closing her eyes and allowing herself to be drawn into StarClan.
Once her eyes opened, she looked around, examining the land. Stars glittered around her. Duskfeather watched to see if Flintstar would join her shortly, ears pinned back against her head. He needed to have his lives revoked if he were to remain the deputy of ThunderClan. Would thay be painful? She didn't know.
Would receiving lives be painful? Again, she didn't know. So she simply waited for everything to begin.

[ RedHead ]
[ Mention BILL. in your post so he can revoke Flint's lives! ]

[RedHead]

Flintstar took a deep breath before stepping into the mooncave behind Duskfeather, swallowing down the worries in his throat. He was a little scared about going through with this. He sure hoped that Starclan didn't think he'd done anything terrible to cause his lives to be taken away. He was willingly giving them up for the good of Thunderclan. Am I gonna get my original life back? The one I had before I was given my leader lives? Flintstar had never heard any accounts of this happening, and there was a small... odd thrill of excitement to know that he would soon know. But he was still scared. But not doubtful of his decision. This was the one he had made, and he knew it was right. Because otherwise, he never would've come here with Duskfeather. When I leave here, I will be Flintspirit once again.
As the stone lit up with a brilliant light, and Duskfeather lay down, Flintstar took a moment to steel his nerves. This was it. Starclan, please accept Duskfeather as Thunderclan's new leader. Then he lay down and pressed his nose to the stone.

He awoke a few moments later within Starclan, the starry landscape somewhat familiar to him. He'd been here a couple times before. He glanced around to see Duskfeather, but continued looking, hoping to see a sign of his dad. Maybe the same cats who'd given him his lives would come to take them away. Taking another deep breath, Flintstar stepped forward, head raised high as he looked across the landscape. "We have come for the change in Thunderclan's leadership." He meowed, announcing them. He assumed Starclan already knew about this, but he would notify them of their presence anyways.

BILL. hxneysuckle

[BEAR.]

"I know why you're here, Flintstar."

Burningstar's voice was a low rumble as he appeared, amused gaze on the ThunderClan leader and deputy. This was becoming less and less of a rarity, but it was something that brought joy to the fallen leader. "I admire your courage in accepting Duskfeather's demands.. I know it was not an easy decision, and you both will have to prove yourself to ThunderClan once again. But if you keep your head high and your mind clear, you will do well in your new positions."

Burningstar closed the distance between them, touching his nose against the top of Flintstar's head. ""You have come here to give your remaining leader lives to StarClan, to officially step down from the leadership of ThunderClan and pass the guardianship of your Clan over to Duskfeather."

"By the power of StarClan, I revoke the lives granted to you during your leadership ceremony. From this day forth your life as a leader is no more-- the only life you have remaining is the natural life of a warrior.

"By accepting your weaknesses as a leader and peacefully stepping down, you have proven your stout-heartedness and dedication to the safety of ThunderClan. I appreciate your use of caution, the act of thinking before your impulses ruled your heart. With the authority of StarClan I grant you your new name. Flintstar, until the day you reclaim the position of leader or resign, you will be known as Flintspirit. The fire may have burned our territory, but it has not diminished the hope we all hold for ThunderClan's future. Your energy and enthusiasm will be essential to keeping ThunderClan alive in the times to come." Burningstar stepped back, looking at the two cats for a small moment.

"To follow the custom of a leader relinquishing their lives, Flintspirit: you will be giving Duskfeather her final life. This is the gift you are given, for recognizing your shortcomings and doing what you believe is best for the Clan. Use this life wisely. You will have some time to think about what you would like Duskfeather to have before you go."

Burningstar would let this sink in for a moment, but he didn't budge from where he stood to join the edge of the forming circle of seven cats. "Flintspirit, when you are ready, stand by the last spirit to form. Duskfeather, step forward when you are prepared to begin. Your first life is mine to give."

[ RedHead, hxneysuckle ]

[lio]

[ RedHead BILL. ]

The Torbie watched silently as Flintstar's lives were revoked, renaming him to Flintspirit and giving him the position of deputy. She was glad that he had the courage to step down, to allow her to take place as leader. It was for the good of the Clan even if the others did not see it. They would both need to prove themselves, yes, but they would do so in their own time. ThunderClan would just need to be willing to forgive them.
Once it was time, Duskfeather stepped forward, dipping her head in greeting to the star-pelted cat. She flicked her tail, anticipation coursing through her. She was ready for this.

"Let's do this."

--

[ FlameQueen Starfall Fae pathos Ever implimm Arie ]
1. BILL. - caution
2. implimm - intuition
3. FlameQueen - compassion
4. Fae - sensitivity
5. Starfall - resilience
6. pathos - serenity
7. Arie - appreciation
8. Ever - patience
9. Redhead - truthfulness

Below are some requested guidelines for those giving lives to follow:
- Please do not have any Dark Forest cats give lives- Duskfeather is not evil and will have no relation to the DF.
- Do not wait for me to reply between lives, I will do one big post at the end!
- Give Dusk traits she doesn't already have! Here (https://sweethxneysuckle.weebly.com/duskfeather.html) is her page for reference.
- Try to be unique and give non-cliché lives! I want this to be interesting.

[BEAR.]

"I wish I had a cat as strong and determined as you when I was leader." It was upfront, an edge of sadness to Burningstar's words as he watched the torbie she-cat. "My burden was picking up the pieces Eternalstar left, and unfortunately I hadn't many Clan-mates I could rely on to help me."

But that was the past, and Burningstar was focused on the future. "You inhibit many powerful traits as it stands, Duskfeather-- so I will not waste your time with ones you bear."

Burningstar leaned over to press his nose against the top of Duskfeather's head. "With this life, I give you caution. This was the life I granted to Flintspirit during his leadership ceremony.. but your impulsiveness yesterday has made me think you may need this more.

"I understand your reasoning for asking Flintspirit to resign, and I support your decision. But all acts of passion come with a price, and I wish for you to think before you act hastily. Consider the consequences of what may happen, and do your best to act in the best interest of ThunderClan."

Burningstar took a step back, withdrawing his touch. "And, a tip for you both for when the time comes: in ShadowClan, you will find a cat named Thunderhowl and a familiar face. They can be of assistance for when you need medicine cat training.

"Good luck, Duskfeather. The path you have woven will be long but with StarClan's blessing, I foresee you will do well."

Burningstar smiled at her before he joined the ranks of the spirits.

[ hxneysuckle, NEXT LIFE IS OPEN. ]

[plum]

Out of the ranks of StarClan pads a shimmering black and white she-cat, eyes still as bright and citrine as they were in life. With her, she carried a little kit. It couldn't have been more than a week old by the look of it, little ears still folded and eyes still fixed shut. The lithe female approaches Duskfeather confidently and as she steps up to the deputy claiming leadership, she places the kit which she held down and nods to the other she-cat. "Greetings," she murmurs.

"I'm positive you don't know me, a WindClan queen who passed after birthing. But it's always an exciting moment, a cat stepping up to the threshold to claim what they believe is theirs. And I've come to bestow a life upon you." She offers Duskfeather a small smile, then looks down at the kit at her paws.

"In our lives, from when we are born to the instant we pass on, we have a feeling inside ourselves. A voice in our hearts, a twinge in our gut when particular things happen or moments come. Sometimes, everybody around you will be telling you different things. They'll pull you in all different directions, question your choices, demand you do things you're unsure of. I've seen you now and again, Duskfeather. You do what needs to be done, and you're mighty good at that." The StarClan queen chuckles.

"But the life I give you today is intuition, my love. That feeling in the pit of your stomach, the singing tune your heart sometimes whispers to you. Sometimes, nothing else in the whole world will matter except for that feeling. Whether it's something you're being urged against, someone you're faced with in the future, or a matter of life or death.." Trailing off, she looks down at the kit wobbling on its front legs by her paws. There was no regret to be tasted in the air around this molly, yet a tangible sadness sweeps over her for a heartbeat.

"Use this life to guide you in moments where you just feel something so moving and you're unsure of whether or not to act on that feeling. Always act on that feeling, Duskfeather. That voice inside is never going to fail you, regardless of the effect it has on the world around you." Her voice was strong, and her gaze unwavering as she stared at the ThunderClan deputy before leaning forward to touch noses with her. As she does so, Duskfeather is shown a very brief image of what must have been this WindClan queen in life, just before becoming a mother. A sad occasion, heavy with the grief of a decision that had to be made, and the sureness the she-cat had in her heart of it, in spite of the consequences it brought.

As she parts ways with Duskfeather, the she-cat smiles again before stooping to pick her kit up and turn back, rejoining the gathered cats who still had yet to bestow their own precious gifts.

hxneysuckle FlameQueen

[Terrestrial]

Blazestorm stepped toward Duskfeather and touched his nose to her head "With this life I give you compassion. Use it well to try to understand your clan-mates' pain and connect with your clan." The tom purred his fiery orange pelt blazing with his blue eyes sparkling. "Tell my daughter I miss her will ya?" He mewed before stepping back to join the ranks of StarClan,the tom shared a vision..It showed scarlet stained grass and three cats two warriors and one apprentice. The only warrior fighting to live was him "I love you my kit." He spoke then death, the apprentice wailed and it Flamepelt wailing. A deep rage and sadness coursed through the vision, then he turned joined the others.
{ hxneysuckle}

[Doom]

Out of the starry haze stepped a small silver kitten, Snailkit. He took deep breaths as he approached her, hoping he'd get through this without making a fool of himself.

Once he was at Duskfeather's paws, he looked up and smiled nervously. "H-Hi! I'm Snailkit...maybe you remember me from the moss games?" His stomach tightened as he said that. No, he shouldn't mention his death! It might make her uncomfortable! "Um..." He swallowed hard, trying to think of a smooth recovery.

But when he couldn't think of anything to say, Snailkit decided to just move on to the reason why he was there. "I-I wanna give you the Life of s-Sensitivity..." he stood on his hind legs in order to touch noses with her, "Use it to be more aware of your actions and...and be able to feel what others feel....and feel more of what you're feeling."

As the Life rushed through Duskfeather, it sent waves of deep emotion: joy, sadness, love, pain, and anger. He allowed her a moment to take it in, then cautiously backed away. Giving a small smile over his shoulder, Snailkit waved his tail goodbye before padding back into the starry abyss.

hxneysuckle Starfall

[Starfall]

Next came a beefier tom, his body covered in scars, maw torn up, yet he wore a bright smile. As the kit that went before him made his way back, he paused and beamed down at the small feline. "You did a very good job!" he praised before continuing on his path. Once closer to Duskfeather he gave her a curt dip of the head. "Nice to meet you! I don't think we've met when I was alive! But I'm Doeflame." he announced.

The Brown tabby sheepishly looked down at his paws, shuffling them. "You probably haven't heard of me, but you should know my wonderful sister!" he laughed. "But enough about a Former medicine cat, lets focus on a new Leader! I'm here to give you the life of Resilience!" he paused for a moment, locking eyes with the molly standing in front of him. "No matter what gets thrown at you, always get back up and get ready to take on something that could be even worse! Prove to your opponents that you can take what they dish out." he huffed, a proud smirk plastered on his face for a few seconds before he stepped forwards.

"So with this life I give you the ability to stand back up again and again and again." he said as he pressed his nose against hers. Flashes of pain coursed through what he shared with her, waves, after waves, after waves. But pride was glowing behind them, pride and joy. Hopefully she too could feel it.

Once finished, he shot her a grin and made his way back, a little bit of a skip in his step.
hxneysuckle pathos

[ameko]

Within the small crowd of StarClanners, a large brown and white she-cat materializes, rising to her paws just as Doeflame retreats to join the others. In slow, careful strides, Laurelbrook approaches Duskfeather and gazes into the soon-to-be leader's eyes. "Hello, Duskfeather. I'll be giving you your next life." Moments later, and she glances off to the side, smiling faintly.

"I've been in StarClan a great while, so you wouldn't know of me—but it makes me glad to see ThunderClan with a strong and courageous cat as its head." She pauses, taking a deep breath.

"As the next leader of ThunderClan, you can't be business all the time. In the storms of day-to-day life, it's easy to get swept up in the waves. No matter how well you lead, the Clan will be run into the ground should you not give yourself time to relax—to connect with your clanmates on a deeper level.

"With this life, I give you serenity. Use it to stay clear-headed and peaceful, no matter the outward circumstances." The starry warrior looks back at Duskfeather. Not waiting any longer, she presses her noses against the torbie's head and closes her eyes.

Though no vision accompanies Laurelbrook's words, a pleasant, warm feeling will begin to grow within Duskfeather. As she pulls back, the warmth will grow hotter, the pressure building exponentially, until it feels suffocating--burning. Then it will disappear, quick as it came, and all that will be left is comfort. Resolution.

"Don't let panic overwhelm you. Trust yourself, trust your Clan, and know that all will be well. Give yourself time to rest." With her last words hanging in the air, Laurelbrook turns to join the StarClan members.

[ hxneysuckle, next life is open! ]

[Arie]

The silvery appearance of another starclanner appeared, making her way to Dustfeather slowly, with the grace of a cat long dead. She reached the new leader of Thunderclan and stared at the she-cat.

"I am Eaglefeather, a former elder of Thunderclan where I lived many many moons ago. I feel blessed to be chosen to give you this life, your 7th."
Looking deep into Dustfeather's eyes the female began to speak slowly but powerfully, "Dustfeather I give you a life for appreciation. Appreciate the impact a single piece of prey can have on the clan or the birth of a new member. Appreciate the work that the elders do when they teach the code or the hardship the mother's undertake when raising their kits. Everyone does something for a reason, and therefore learn to appreciate it - the rain in a dry season, the sun after a cold and frozen leafbare. Simple appreciation of yourself and your clanmates is a vital gift for a leader and I hereby give it to you."

"But most off all, appreciate yourself. Learn to feel when you're doing something good and give yourself a pat on the shoulder. You won't be all bad at this my dear."

Leaning forward she touched her nose to the she-cat in front of her, the soon to be leader of her former clan. The life that rushed through Duskfeather at this moment was easy and painless but Eaglefeather nodded in pride anyhow.

She then padded back to the ranks of the starry cats that surrounded the female and blended back in with the rest.

- hxneysuckle Ever

[Ever]

The thin Russian blue than was next in line stepped out on shimmering paws. Eversong approached the new leader, expression serene and calm. She had no relation to this leader but had come to pass on her virtue that had led her to peace and restfulness in the end of her life. After all, it was this attribute that had allowed her to remain hopeful and paid out in the end.

"You have had a difficult journey here." She said calmly
though the others hadn't commented on it. It was true. The new leader had gone about a different approach and would have consequences within the clan to face for her actions. Though with the help of the whose words and attributes given to her by the Starclan warriors, she would persevere in her goals. Her emerald hues were ice with the light of afterlife as she continued. "I have come to gift you a life that every great leader needs until their last breath. Use it wisely to help soothe your ambition when it is not the right time, to help you cope with the brash and immature properly and to handle the stubbornness of the elders with great care. Patience. It takes great patience to properly execute a good leadership, everything has the right time and place yo be done and said. Without patience, quick actions can be made that will affect the morale of the clan in difficult times."

Eversong touched her nose to Duskfeather's forehead to pass on the life. It was one of pain and sorrow, of carefully planned and awaited decisions. A life that burned with hope and finished with the calmness of a well planned and timed decision. Duskfeather's leadership was beginning with a decision made in a moment, a leap to power taken more quickly than her clan and Flintstar had expected. With this life it aught not to continue in that mannerism. Duskfeather's old life was far behind her now as she became a new cat entirely.

Eversong stepped back, remaining silent with a look of longing and sadness. Her life had brought back her own memories that pained her still. However, she recollected herself quickly and stepped back in the line of cats with a serene expression. Now it was Flinspirit's turn to finish this ceremony.

hxneysuckle RedHead

[RedHead]

Flintstar— no, Flintspirit again, was grateful for Burningstar’s words. And grateful that he’d been able to relinquish his lives with no pain. It had been a swift, quick process, almost freeing.
The former leader had then stepped away, awaiting his turn to give Duskfeather a life. He was actually quite excited that he had this opportunity to, even being still alive. He had plenty of time to think long and hard about what life he would give Duskfeather, so when it was his turn, he was ready.

Stepping up to the she-cat, Flintspirit smiled down at her, tail flicking behind him ever so slightly. “You’ve been the most efficient deputy that I as a leader could’ve asked for. And I only wish that you continue to lead with that same effective effort you showcased as Thunderclan’s deputy.” He took a breath, then spoke once more, announcing the life he would give. “Duskfeather, i give you the life of truthfulness. Always strive to prove that you can be reliable and hold true to your morals and standards, even under the most strenuous pressure. Prove to your clan that they can trust you.” The black-furred tomcat leaned forward and pressed his nose to Duskfeather's head, feeling the life flow out of him and into her. It was such an odd feeling, but the powerful force that the life exerted was sook rushing into Duskfeather. This life he was giving her was something Flintspirit had always strived for himself. To be viewed as reliable in the eyes of his clanmates. “I wish you luck in your leadership Duskstar. And I will be there to help how I can.” Flintspirit then dipped his head and stepped back, coming to stand next to Duskstar, Thunderclan’s new leader.

hxneysuckle

[BEAR.]

With the final life transferred, Burningstar's voice broke the brief silence that engulfed the stars.

"I hail you by your new name, Duskstar. Your old life is no more. You have now received the nine lives of a leader, and StarClan grants you the guardianship of ThunderClan. Defend it well; care for young and old; honor your ancestors and the traditions of the warrior code; live each life with pride and dignity."

As his words faded, so did the world around them to signify it was time for them to wake up.

[ hxneysuckle ]

[lio]

Caution BILL.
Duskfeather could only close her eyes as the life passed through her. It was a foreign feeling, striking through her slowly, as though the life itself was remaining cautious. The Torbie's tail fluffed up and she swallowed, her mouth suddenly feeling dry. A vision formed within her mind- that of a red-brown tabby, a blood-spattered land. Chaos and screaming echoed in Duskfeather's ears, bringing her to gasp. As soon as the madness had formed, it was replaced by that of hesitation before she felt as though she were being crushed. Every action, every word that was said, it would determine how the Clan was viewed following such a dark time in history- the darkest time. In a heartbeat, she was ripped from the vision to see that the next StarClan cat had approached.
Intuition implimm
She certainly didn't recognize this queen, though as she saw the kit that the she-cat grasped, Duskfeather felt sadness course through her. The to-be leader's ears flattened and she felt the queen's nose touch to hers. That voice inside you is never going to fail you... She would remember that. The future which awaited her was not to be taken as a joke- she was to be the new ThunderClan leader, and their lives depended on each choice she made. And as the life soaked through every bit of her body, Duskfeather could barely hold back the tears that threatened to fall. The overbearing grief, and yet the sureness of the decision of which had to be made. The queen following her intuition.
Compassion FlameQueen
Duskfeather did recognize the next cat to step up- a ThunderClan tom, Flamepelt's father. She had never spoken to him much in his life, only having the occasional passing or being assigned to a patrol together. The she-cat's head nodded in greeting to the tom. She knew his daughter quite well given her... quite horrible choice in mates. Duskfeather's ears flattened at the thought of the kits Flamepelt held- she didn't trust them at all. They were the offspring of a violent tom, one who was murdered at his exile. She allowed her eyes to narrow, but she listened to Blazestorm closely. Her lids fell closed as he touched his nose to hers, the life bringing along a vision. Duskfeather sunk her claws into the starry land below her as boiling rage and mourning filled her, the image of what she could presume to be Blazestorm's death materializing within her mind. She opened her eyes again, rocking from side to side. Goodness, she was already so exhausted...
As Blazestorm stepped back, she nodded to him- she would do as he said. Surely Flamepelt would be glad to know her father was still looking over her from StarClan.
Sensitivity Fae
With the next cat to step forward, she almost choked with sadness. Snailkit. His death had been horrible, starving during the games. He had brought her to want to take leadership, to prevent any more deaths such as his from happening. Duskfeather allowed herself to bend down slightly, making it easier for the kit to touch his nose to hers. Each emotion that coursed through her brought her heart to beat faster. Exhaustion weighed down at her paws and yet she felt stronger all the same. She watched Snailkit fade into the stars, nodding to him with a remorseful expression- he shouldn't have died. He had been far too young to join StarClan's ranks. But it was too late now, and she could only use her leadership to prevent such events from happening further.
Resilience Starfall
She felt as though she should have remembered the next tom to approach, but she couldn't. The memory was fuzzy; if it was even there. Her tail flicked in greeting at the chipper tom's appearance. Duskfeather admired his attitude. Resilience- she would need it. Her demand for Flintstar to step down had torn the Clan apart, broken their trust in her. And so she would need to step back up, to rebuild her reputation and allow her Clanmates to believe in her once more. As his nose touched to hers, Duskfeather clenched her jaw, hissing with the waves and waves of pain that clawed at her body. She still found herself holding her head high, however, despite the urge to curl up and hope for the pain to end. Once her eyes opened again, the pain gone in an instant, the next cat had already stepped forward.
Serenity pathos
Duskfeather briefly observed the she-cat, a sense of familiarity coursing through her despite having never seen this warrior before. She was almost thankful that the life had not brought along a vision. Instead, the Torbie relished in the peaceful warmth that flooded her mind. If she wasn't already asleep, it surely would have lulled her to rest. However, the warmth began to grow into searing hot pain and Duskfeather was surprised she hadn't melted right then and there. It was suffocating- she couldn't breathe, she couldn't think. And yet, just as it had appeared, it was gone once more, leaving Duskfeather with the peace she had formerly held.
Appreciation Arie
With the former elder's life, she was grateful. It was easy and painless, with no vision to come along. Duskfeather couldn't help the sigh of relief that breathed through her lips. She allowed the appreciation of her home, the food she ate, the kits who were birthed and the deaths who were mourned, to flow into every nook and cranny of her spirit. A smile pulled at her lips and she nodded to Eaglefeather, a farewell and wish for the former elder's eternal rest.
Patience Ever
She was exhausted. Who knew that such a ceremony could be so tiring? Duskfeather allowed herself to remain strong, however. There were two more lives to go, and although she was ready to sleep for a moon, she would keep her head up, her chest puffed, her posture straightened formally. The Torbie'ss nose wriggled as the next she-cat walked up, waving her tail in greeting. The journey had been quite the difficult one, she couldn't deny. But she the one ahead would be far more difficult. Kitten steps would need to be taken, and with the life of patience, she could do so. The careful planning, the awaited decisions, they accompanied the pain and sorrow that struck Duskfeather's spirit. She would think before she acted, a thing she had not done before. But from now on, for the good of the Clan, she would do so.
Truthfulness RedHead
The final life, bestowed upon her by Flintspirit. Duskfeather shared a smile with the former leader, her deputy. Together they would allow ThunderClan to grow strong once more. She felt his nose touch to hers and accepted the life with closed eyes, the power, the determination to prove herself reliable to her Clan shaking her entire form. Duskfeather stayed still until the feeling fell into a faint tingle, her nine lives now giving her strength. The life ahead was not to be taken lightly, and she was ready to take on the burden. For the Clan, for Flintstar, for her family and her friends. She would prove herself to them once more. ThunderClan would be as powerful as it had been before.

With Burningstar's words, Duskfeather- no, Duskstar bowed her head thankfully. She was to lead ThunderClan now, with the blessing of StarClan and Flintspirit by her side. ThunderClan was now hers to protect.
And with that, the starry land around her faded, and she woke up in the Starcave with a gasp. Duskstar blinked away the blur within her hazel gaze and rose to her paws, stretching. It was time to face the Clan with her newfound lives, her newfound rank, her newfound name. She was now Duskstar, leader of ThunderClan. And so she turned to Flintspirit with a smile.
"Let's go home."

[wren]

How ironic was it? To be standing here after a moon of deciding that it had to be done, the reassurance perhaps that Mistyfern would take the plunge before him. Now that chance melted away in his paws like fresh snow. What a horrible and bitter way to have to go into it. He stood at the face of the cave with nothing but an awful weight like stones in his belly. It had been a day since Mistyfern had disappeared and the realization he was about to go on this medicine cat journey on his own was frightening. He had to learn everything on his own, speak to those whom he hated and be responsible for the lives of everyone in windclan. Great.

He slipped in quietly hoping the adrenaline was enough to spur him on without thinking twice. The stone was cold and the darkness enveloping him was nothing but discomforting. As he felt his way through the narrowing tunnel only guided by the sounds of dripping water. He couldn’t think, he wouldn’t think. The pounding of his heart in his chest was enough to chase away all reasonable thought. Feeling his breaths grow shorter he charged for the gleaming light and finally he burst into an open cave. The slick surface soaked with rain water and moss was a relief from the hard walked path of the slender cave entrance. He paused feeling the light adjust his eyes and the large jagged stone encased in a heavenly glow glared right back at him. It wasn’t quite as exciting as he hoped, it was well.. rather.. ominous and unsettling as opposed to beautiful.

He padded towards the stone feeling that numbness fill his heart and freeze him to the stone. Perhaps all reasonable thoughts came crashing back down onto his head in a moment. He stood stunned at the fact he’d brought himself this far without turning back. He grumbled under his breath. ”how funny.” he snorted under his breath and glanced down at his paws before chewing the inside of his cheek. Without a thought he suddenly took a staggering step forward only a toe length away from the small shimmering pool that bordered the stone. With an anxious breath he dropped into a crouch and jerked his muzzle forward against the pool. It was nearly instantaneous...

[ The Vision ]

There he was. Surrounded by the windswept moors of windclan. Beautiful and serene in its likeness. The sky was painted with beautiful orange, red, purples and blues. He didn’t feel that regular fear.. the one he knew he’d felt for the hours leading up to this. In fact he felt a rather.. calm feeling as the warm scents of springtime bathed his tongue in wonderful thoughts. Though.. was it not supposed to be some archaic ritual meeting the ancestors before him? He stood feeling the sweet grass caress his legs and the sky swirl above his head. ”hello...?” his voice echoed out into hollow existence falling on deaf ears. He was quiet a moment.. a desperate need to hear someone respond.. someone to join him out here. There.. the subtle ache of the ground beneath him...

He felt the air around him tighten and the sky above him bleed into dark reds.. it looked menacing.. far more menacing than it had been moments ago. Was this supposed to happen? The ground.. it began to tremble and before he knew it.. it began to fall away. The hills began to fall into the earth, swallowed by large waves churning and growling. Then.. there it was emerging from between the fractures of the earth.. its beady amber eyes and foaming muzzle. A coyotes head emerged soaked with blood of clanmates. He could not move.. he could not scream.. there was nowhere to go.. nothing to do but watch. Large knashing teeth reached for the crumbling hills taking chunks and bits from it. And there a mass of shadows speeding towards him.. cats.. cats.. windclan cats.. young and old. Like wind they came racing by him, some not making it and being swallowed by the waves.. by the head.. this couldn’t be happening.

[ The End ]

With a shriek blackness took over his vision and Coyotesnarl lurched backward from the pool of glistening water. Stumbling and tripping back onto his back. ”no.. no no...” he didn’t have time to think.. any rational thoughts was blurred out by the fear of what he’d seen. ”I must warn them.. I have to warn them.. I.. I have too..” scrambling to his paws he went tearing out of the den


Moonraven Shimm
[ just for reference !! ]

[BEAR.]

Thankfully at Thunderhowl's pace, it didn't take them long to make it to the Starcave.

"I have decided.." he rumbled lowly as he stopped outside the entrance. "It's about damn time you got your full name. You're gettin' to the point where you don't need your paw held anymore, and honestly-- that's a good stone-damned point to be at." She was pretty much handling most of the duties by herself at this point, which he was more than fine with-- he never wanted to be a medicine cat to begin with.

"You've been here before. Go in first."

[ Moon Lily ]

[Moon Lily]

BILL.

Irispaw's eyes widened as they approached the large cave, her pawsteps slowing. What...what was going on? She jolted after Thunderhowl as he padded further towards it, and realized this wasn't a joke.

"But..." She was lost for words. Her full name? But she still had so much to learn! She still had so many herbs she had to remember, and so many duties, and so many- she paused. Was she really going to reject this? She glanced at her feet, chewing her lip uncertainly.
"Okay." She mewed, mostly to herself. She should have been more excited for this, why wasn't she? It was what she had wanted.

Stepping through the stone walls once more, she felt her breath catch as darkness enveloped her. Glancing back at Thunderhowl, she padded through the tunnel, whiskers quivering at the dampness. As she trudged on, she occasionally stopped to check that she wasn't dead, and continued on. She gasped as light finally emerged, and she rushed towards it, eyes relishing the sight of the large crystal at the cave's center. It never failed to take her breath away.

[BEAR.]

"The first step to becoming a medicine cat is recognizin' you ain't never gonna be ready for everythin'."

Thunderhowl could see her uncertainty. He'd seen it many times over the moons, and it didn't faze him in the slightest. As she took the lead, he followed behind.

"Stand by the stone, but do not lay down. You will have a chance to visit StarClan after this, if you wish-- but the ceremony we do is done in the world of the livin'. Are you ready, Irispaw?"

[ Moon Lily ]

[Moon Lily]

BILL.
[She could be Iristhunder! I like both, you?]

Irispaw's eyes widened at his words, surprised at how wide he sounded. She smiled, eyes curving.
"Well then, I am definitely not ready." She mused, nodding to the golden tom. She felt her paws buzz with a mix of feelings, and she couldn't help but feel scared. This was so much responsibility...

She glanced at the stone for a while longer, then turned to Thunderhowl as he emerged. She tilted her head at his calmness. Huh. She paused after his words, glancing at the stone. She nodded, sitting down.
"I hope so, Thunderboy."

[BEAR.]

"I ain't a fan of StarClan, now, kid.. but, I ain't gonna be the kinda guy to--" he beckoned vaguely with his paw. ".. Ruin a ceremony 'cause I don't agree with it, so here it goes.

"I, Thunderhowl, a former medicine cat of ShadowClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of a medicine cat, and with your help she will serve her Clan for many moons.

"Irispaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan and to protect all cats equally, even at the cost of your life?"

Had Thunderhowl done what his instincts told him, he would have done a differently worded ceremony. But this wasn't about him-- Irispaw was not here to have her view on StarClan tainted by his experiences, and he would leave it be.

Didn't stop the words from being sour in his mouth, though.

[ Moon Lily ]

[Moon Lily]

BILL.

Irispaw felt her eyes widen in slight shock as he explained his status with Starclan. Didn't like it? Why? She quenched her curiousity for now. After all, interrupting a ceremony would look quite bad. And besides, it didn't seem like something Thunderhowl wanted to talk about.
"Alrighty!" She exclaimed, sitting up straight. She had no idea where this energy had come from- perhaps the hype had gotten to her.

Her eyes glittered in determination as he spoke, chest taking in even breaths. This was especially hard, due to her excitement. Trying not to hyperventilate and die of cheer, she kept her face blank as she could aside from a proud smirk. Puffing out her chest, she realized how hard saying two Starclan-forsaken words were. I do, I do, I dodidy do.
"Yessir!" She yelped out quickly. Eyes growing wide, she shook her head.
"I mean, I do. I do." She corrected, eyes narrowing.

[BEAR.]

"Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your true name as a medicine cat. Irispaw, from this moment you will be known as Irisflame. StarClan honors your courage and your spirit, and we welcome you as a full medicine cat of ShadowClan." Thunderhowl let these words settle for a moment, resting his muzzle on top of her head.

"Normally, all medicine cats would be present for this-- as would be custom, but the Clans have changed since I first walked this forest. As it stands tonight, Irisflame-- you are the first medicine cat to have earned her full name in many seasons. Be proud."

[ Moon Lily ]

[Moon Lily]

BILL.

Irispaw felt her pelt plate with excitement, meeting Thunderhowl's gaze steadily. This was it. Feeling her eyes blaze, she smiled widely. She was a full medicine cat. Reaching her muzzle to touch his, she inhaled deeply. She would make Shadowclan proud. "Thank you." She murmured, eyes closed. Stepping back, she paused. She'd kinda thought that she'd feel different after the ceremony, some sort of magic cat or something. Would it be too much to ask for magical healing powers. Relaxing her muscles, she glanced towards the crystal. The moon had since aligned with it, and was beginning to glow.

Irisflame looked towards Thunderhowl, smirking.
"Really? Wow, Thunderboy, you are old." She teased. But she held herself higher, and more confidently than she had. She was the first cat in seasons to earn a full name. Just thinking it made her flow with pride. She was...a full medicine cat. Gee, she'd said it before, but she was still convinced this was a dream. Turning to glance at the crystal, she nodded in Thunderhowl's direction.
"Shall we?" She asked, raising a paw in a gesture towards the large stone.

[BEAR.]

"You can." Thunderhowl shrugged, disinterested with dreaming with cats he disliked. He'd spent enough time there. "You should-- it's your ceremony, I reckon there might be somethin' interestin' in it for you." While she was sleeping, he figured he'd stay guard-- a little wary of the area after what Bearpaw told him about the dog a few moons ago.

[ figured you could have her dream if you wanted :heartbounce: Moon Lily ]

[Moon Lily]

[ BILL. - aw, thank you <3]

Irisflame gave a confused smile in Thunderhowl's direction, wondering what he held against Starclan. He didn't seem particularly friendly or enthusiastic with them during the ceremony. Maybe it had to do with the fact that he was really a dead cat, as he had said before. Wow, that gave her something to rub in other cat's faces! She was friends with a dead-but-alive cat, who was also her mentor! Now that she thought about it...that made her sound insane. Perhaps she'd lay off of that.
"Well, if you say so." She shrugged. Turning to the mighty stone, she smiled. She'd see her mother again. Eyes narrowed in determination, she lay down, touching her nose to the stone.

Irisflame blinked her eyes open, relishing the sight of the starry clearing. This was where her first dream with Starclan was. Eyes growing wide with nostalgia, she pricked her ears as a familiar honey-scent washed over her. Turning to see the grey-blue she-cat, she grinned.
"Slatecloud~" She purred, padding towards her. She had to hold back the fighting urge to run and nuzzle her. Standing a respectful distance away, she watched as her mother studied her with a smile upon her face.
"You've grown. Congratulations." Her mother mewed, resting her muzzle tenderly upon her daughter's. Irispaw closed her eyes contentedly. She wanted this to last for longer. "I'm proud of you." Slatecloud whispered, glancing down at Irisflame. Turning to see the fading landscape, she looked in panic at her mother. The old she just laughed, and shook her head.
"These never last long. Hold your tongue." She tutted, raising a brow. Irisflame felt her ears flatten in embarrassment. "Sorry - I just...I missed you." She murmured, looking to her paws. Slatecloud smiled sympathetically, then flicked the young cat's head with her tail.
"Tell Thunderhowl that he's done well. And hey- don't look at me like that. It's not your fault what happened." Slatecloud reminded her gently. Irisflame realized that her gaze looked guilty, and she was reminded of her mother's death. Her kitting...she lost too much blood. And her father would never forgive 'Dumb Iris' for it. Glaring bitterly at particularly nowhere, she nodded stiffly.
"I will. Thank you." She replied. With those words, the world faded into black.

Irisflame woke with a start. The stone was so, so cold. Shivering, she sat up, still thinking about what her mother had said. Smiling gently, she turned to Thunderhowl.
"My mom says that you've done well, if that helps with anything." She announced.

[wren]

The tabby tom was padding up the heel heaving massive breaths, since becoming medicine cat he wasn’t really out as much. Not running or hunting as he used to... his health was taking a heavy decline. He’d dropped by the riverclan border to pick up Otterstone on his way to the starcave and was struggling to actually keep up when he was actually supposed to show the way! He felt himself shiver and turn to look at the molly as they climbed the last hill towards the cave. “And we’re here.” he almost wheezed trying his best to keep his voice level.

He could remember being here alone a few weeks ago.. being terrified for his life. Vengeful against starclan for giving him horrible visions. He shivered and padded toward the thin opening... it smelled of him. Earth and puddles and moss.. yes that’s what it smelled like. Gross. He turned to the she cat stepping aside and waving his tail to allow her to enter first. “Doesn’t look like anyone else is here yet. You can go ahead inside. I’ll wait for them here.” he needed to catch his breath for a bit.. would’ve been embarrassing to have to do that next to the riverclan medicine cat.

CheetahPelt SilentLamb Moon Lily

[Leucos]

wren CheetahPelt Moon Lily
He started out as slow at first but made sure to be able to keep up. He was trying to take in the scenery since he's never been here in his life. But once he neared his final destination he sped up to keep up with the others, he felt the same exhaustion as coyotesnarl did. yeah this'll count as my work out for the night ...good starclan heart somewhat thumping in his chest . His pelt was warm and head a bit dizzy . Clearing his throat a few, he shook himself off and did his best to put on his normal everything's fine face, only for it to drop once he reached the entrance. He decided to take a breather and sit as he waited for irisflame. And otterstone. this ought to be interesting ..[

[CheetahPelt]

wren SilentLamb Moon Lily


Otterstone followed Coyotesnarl. She was tired, but less so then Lionwhisker and Coyotesnarl. She had built up her lung strength when she lost her leg, keeping her respiratory system strong during her time she couldn't move.



Breathing heavily, she smiled at the two toms. "So what is this place called?" She asked. She knew this was a sacred starclan place, Irisflame has proposed the idea, and all of the medicine cat's had agreed on it. It wasn't as murky as their last gathering place.



"I hadn't heard about all the Starclan stuff that medicine cat's had to do. I mean I knew about it but... I haven't thought about it." She meowed.

[Moon Lily]

wren CheetahPelt SilentLamb

Irisflame puffed her way up the large hills that ambled their way up to the Starcave. Stopping to take a few breaths, she coughed profusely. Her lungs had never agreed with her. Eyes narrowing in determination, she continued up the rocky hill. She had never been a very fit cat, due to the fact she had never been a warrior like the others, and hoped that would change over time. She really had thought that her last trip here, only a few days ago, would have helped, but no. Her lungs once more decided to claw at her. She should have taken tansy before she left. She had some in the bundles she was carrying, but wanted to save it for the others.

Emerging over the peak, she shimmied over to the others, sitting down almost immediately.
"Well, I'd say this meeting will help us get fit, huh?" She breathed between wheezes. Standing up, she shook out her fur, looking Otterstone's way. She smiled, eyes sympathetic. She had wondered whether cats had been here before. It seemed Otterstone hadn't.
"Welcome to the Starcave." She mewed. This would be her third time here, but she knew the crystal inside would still take her breath away.

She looked between the cats, eyes curved in amusement.
"What are you waiting for? Let's go!" She mewed, high-tailing it off towards the center of the cave. She sneezed a few times in the camp darkness, but smiled despite it. This, she knew, would be fun.

[wren]

Coyotesnarl watched as the other two medicine cats arrived, dragging themselves up and over the hill to join them at the foot of the caves gaping mouth. He felt the cold breath of the cave up against his back and that... discomfort settle like a stone in his belly. He wasn’t excited to go back in there. His first experience with the star cats wielded nothing but bad memories and birthed foul hatred for them.

As Irisflame explained the starcave to Otterstone he simply sat back and just watched before hooping up onto his paws. He didn’t want to seem weak among the lot of them... though he was unsettled to go back inside. No time for cowardice. the tabby turned and suddenly pushed his way into the dark tunnel. His tail tracking along the side of the stone walls that seemed to go on forever. He wouldn’t wait for the others.. he just needed to get through and get out of the cramped space. Though he felt his paw snag on something- a lose rock he’d knocked on his way out last time. “Mouse dung!” he yowled in frustration feeling a shooting pain up his foot. Great. “watch for the stupid rock” he mumbled pushing his way past it and finally into the great opening of the cave.

SilentLamb CheetahPelt Moon Lily

[Leucos]

CheetahPelt Moon Lily wren

Following the others in a single file, he felt the coldness wrap itself around him. It seeped into his fur causing a shiver to run down his spine. Yes it was creepy, but he felt....calm? Safe even. The musty smell helped aid in that factor. Though he jolted at coyotesnarl s yowl good starclan !! . He did laugh at himself though as the tom said it was a rock. Doing his best in the pitch darkness the golden medicine cat did his best to move around them. " so this is the starcave.....are we ever gonna speak to our ancestors at our meetings ?" he was very curious . And was kinda eager to get to that part!

[Moon Lily]

SilentLamb CheetahPelt wren

Irisflame chuckled in the camp darkness, her laughter bouncing off the walls. The grumpy Coyotesnarl would be some fun. He reminded her of Thunderhowl, honestly. And she needed a nickname for him! Uh, how about...grumpmeister? That would go well. Blueberry, Grumpmeister, Laddieboy, and Flirty Pants. Heh, those she'd remember. Avoiding the pointy rock, she almost hissed at it teasingly. She could hear Lionwhisker's voice loud and clear, despite the fact he was a cat away from her.
"Hm? Yeah! Well, first I have something to tell you guys." She mewed. Hopefully their ancestors would show up.

She passed through the stone hallway, emerging after the scarred tom. She gave a mew of delight as she tested her eyes on the grand crystal in the center of the cavern. It wasn't turning blue just yet- she'd be able to teach them till Moonhigh. Turning to the Riverclan and Thunderclan medicine cats, she grinned.
"Its pretty cool, huh?" She mewed. Her heart still fluttered at the sight of the rock. Which sounded ridiculous.

[CheetahPelt]

Moon Lily SilentLamb wren

Otterstone was almost vibrating. Starcave! This was the place that leaders got their nine lives from Starclan!

She limped along after Lionwhisker, twitching her whiskers as she felt the air dampen. It was cold, a chill breeze whistling through the cavern. Never in her wildest dreams did she think she would be here, well maybe in her dreams of becoming Otterstar, but never as Otterstone the Riverclan medicine cat.

How the game of fate played.

Her ears perked at the voices and noises of the cats ahead of her, she was learning more about her fellow medicine cats all the time. The Windclan Tom she hadn’t spoken too yet was cautious and grumpy. Lionwhisker was upbeat and quiet and Irisflame was a brave and bubbly soul. An interesting mix, she almost purred.

As she rounded the corner her eyes landed on the grand crystal and her jaw d r o p p e d. Even though it wasn’t lit and glowing, her eyes traveled the surface of it.

“It’s beautiful.” More so then the crystalline waters of ice melt streams in spring time. “And we get to meet our warrior ancestors?” Her voice was barely a whisper, her eyes huge and glimmering.

[Leucos]

Moon Lily wren CheetahPelt

His ears flicked at Irisflames voice, intrigue and excitement growing even more. He raised his brow at otterstones whisper , he was confused at all the oohs and ahs. Until he saw it . The crystals presence and the light it provided blinded him a bit causing him to close his eyes and flinch. He had grown used to the darkness in such a small amount of time, though as he opened his eyes again, his eyes readjusted to the sight. Pupils enlarging along with his eyes Lionwhisker was speechless . How could something like this still exist? Truly majestic . so this is what all the jazz is about eh?...it lives up to the excitement "i....heh...uh..." he meowed as the corner of his lips turned into a smile. yeah this is worth being a medicine cat.

[wren]

Coyotesnarl spared no time padding across the open cave and taking a seat next to the stone. He’d never seen it lit up... the last time he was here was just to check it out. His tail curled over his paws and he watched as Lionwhisker and Otterstone mused over it. It was funny to watch... he’d been to scared to actually pay much attention to the rock itself. He didn’t care much for its beauty anyways.

“Don’t get your hopes up. Those stupid star cats can be cruel. My first time here I got a bad prophecy.. or omen or whatever you called it. I went racing out of here like a rabbit escaping a fox” he blinked a few times letting the information sink in.

“If you guys are going to visit them later tonight I suggest you get your thoughts out now... we don’t have much time. The moon will be out soon”

SilentLamb Moon Lily CheetahPelt

[Moon Lily]

wren SilentLamb CheetahPeltprint

Irisflame smiled in Flirty and Laddie's direction. They seemed awestruck by the rock. She felt her heart flutter in embarrassment. She must have looked the same way when she had first been here. That was so long ago... She remembered her squeaky excitement as a kit, and the price that filled her small belly as she gazed up at Tallmarsh. Oh, Tallmarsh. Where are you now? She mewed silently to her old mentor, eyes curved in nostalgia. She was snapped from her thoughts at the warning new of Coyotesnarl. She offered him a small smirk, shaking her head.

"Not everyone will have the same experience. It's their first time, let them enjoy it without hearing about the scary omens and things." She mewed, a touch of amusement in her mew. He still reminded her of Thunderhowl. The tone, the grump, even the loss of hope in Starclan. Smiling gently to herself, she began to unload her herbs. After all, they hadn't covered sicknesses yet, right? She hoped not. They'd covered tansy, borage, catmint, coltsfoot, feverfew...anything else? No.

Laying out some herbs, she recognized the ones that she had used later on. Chervil, comfrey root, juniper berries, chickweed. She'd squeezed these from the medicine den earlier on. She hadn't really known what they did at first, but she heard Thunderhowl talk, and she may or may not have self-experimented.
"Okay everyone! This'll be short, thanks to Mister Moon, but there are a few more herbs I learnt to help with sicknesses."

She waited for them to gather round, then she'd the herbs nervously. Away we go!
"Chervil! This thing you chew and so that you can stop bellyaches. But spit out the leaf afterwards, only the juice does something, apparently." She mewed, holding up a green, leafy stalk. She experimented with this after she'd swallowed the comfrey together was up next. She'd done intense experimenting.
"Comfrey root is this flowery root thing. Tastes interesting. You rub it into wounds or joints to soothe them. Trust me, it works." Her foot had felt much better after rubbing some of it on.
"Juniper berries! You can also eat them for belly aches. They can help with fevers too. But if you're not sick, they are a good traveling herb."
Let's just say she'd squeezed information out of cats for this one.
"And chickweed. This thing helps with greencough, but not super well." She finished, holding up the tall-stemmed plant.

And the moon was rising, which meant it was almost time. The stone began to glow softly, growing more intense as the moon aligned with it. The bluish light stretched across the cave, illuminating it.

[Leucos]

Moon Lily CheetahPelt wren
Taking a seat infront of Irisflame, he payed attention to her mini lesson. Or tried to. And he also chose to block out the stuff about bad omens. Iris was right it was his first time anyways . Though his head shot up at comfrey root. I could have used that !! .....instead of wasting those precious seeds... he felt dumb...Then again he didn't have any comfrey when he was in the den. "so for rubbing that stuff on there...it just works ? Even with fur in the way?......how?" may have been a dumb question but it did confuse him. Eyes jerking toward the crystal , he noticed the light spreading . Just...wow.. " next time will we be able to communicate with them?..." he asked his voice nearly a whisper.

[CheetahPelt]

SilentLamb wren Moon Lily


Otterstone nodded as Irisflame spoke. After Lionwhisker spoke she added her own question. "Is - what is it - comfrey? I think you said. Used for when elders are complaining." She chuckled a little. She had only had old Bumblingbee come in the den but... still.


When she say the golden tom infront of her light up with silvery blue light she narrowed her eyes, confused for a moment, before turning with a gasp. The chrystal was..... glowing? "It's even better this way." She said, mostly to herself.

[wren]

Coyotesnarl felt his ears pin to the back of his head being scolded by Irisflame. She was younger than he was! embarrassing. He could only stare at her briefly before turning away to stare at the other end of the cave. He hated that, he wouldn’t forget it either. “It’s always good to be cautious.” he reassured mostly himself as the young shadowclan medicine cat began to teach them about sicknesses.

As she spoke he found himself somewhat zoning out, the dull glow of the moon now suddenly becoming intense. He’d never seen it glow before... he turned to see the stone now alive with blue hues. Sure it was beautiful but it was.. just a rock placed in a lucky space. His tail wrapped around his paws and he looked it up and down waiting for the other two to get over it’s majesty. “Alright alright c’mere” he waved his tail for the other three to join him. Turning and facing the rock... it was quite overwhelmingly bright so he had to squint. “Get down here and lay down. You’ll want to be comfortable for this.. cause you’ll wake up with aching if you don’t get comfy. Once we’re all ready you lean forward and touch it with your nose” he paused “now don’t worry it won’t hurt you.. it’s just cold” he raised a paw and touched the cold smooth surface with a nod.

SilentLamb CheetahPelt Moon Lily

[Leucos]

wren CheetahPelt Moon Lily
Hearing otterstones comment he gave her a nod. It sure was. Though he did give a chuckle at the elder part . His fur tingled though as grumpysnarl invited them over, I wonder what I'll see! with that he padded over. Looking at the pool and back up at him he gave a nod. Laying down , making sure to give the others enough room, he also made sure to get comfy. Laying down with his hind legs tucked in, he placed his nose to the water. "how do we know if this worked??" he whispered . He truly didn't know what to expect .

[CheetahPelt]

Moon Lily wren SilentLamb


Otterstone limped up beside Coyotesnarl, eyes never leaving the beautiful stone. She squinted hard, the light refracting and reflecting in the huge crystal was almost blinding, Coyotesnarl's tabby coat was washed out silver from the light of the moon.



She settled between Lionwhisker and Coyotesnarl, tail curled tightly around her paws, shifting with anxiety. What if.... what if she wasn't meant to be a medicine cat? What if she didn't meet Starclan?


She leaned forwards, ready to touch her nose to the crystal when they were ready.

[Moon Lily]

wren CheetahPelt SilentLamb

Irisflame chuckled at Lionwhisker's surprise. Honestly, she'd been surprised herself. But, it worked. Comfrey was an odd herb. Honestly, any herb that magically worked was weird. Then, we're all of them...weird? Shaking her boggled mind, she purred.
"It's pretty weird, huh?" She exclaimed, grinning. She burst out into laughter at Otterstone's joke, eyes sparkling, "Starclan! The elders in my clan are so grumpy. They'd kill for this." She remarked, agreeing with the flirty she. She glanced at Coyotesnarl from the corner of her eye. He seemed to be zoning out. Hah. Probably embarrassed from her little scold. Or maybe...

She turned to the glowing stone. She felt a soft smile creep up the sides of her face. Hello, old friend. She mewed silently, feeling the blueish light embraced her. Ruffling her blue-grey fur, it sparkled silver as the light hit it. Mrrowing in wonder, she puffed out her chest. She'd leave the herbs behind- they'd be fine. Approaching the stone with the others, she smiled as its light invited them, one by one, to touch their noses to the stone. Turning to look at Coyotesnarl, she smiled in amusement at the others. Yadda yadda yadda. I'm going in.
"It'll work, trust me." She slipped through the light's milky folds, laying among the star-stuck bodies. Star-struck was a sutible word for this. They were meeting with Starclan. As she touched her nose to the cold stone, darkness enveloped her.
Starclan, rejoice.

[wren]

Coyotesnarl trotted up the hill, still of course out of breath, this time however he looked rather smug. Instead of the regular out of breath and flustered expression he wore on the “treacherous” journey up to the star cave he looked pleased, tired but pleased. He wasn’t particularly fond of all the medicine cats, especially Otterstone, she made him itch in a way no other cat would. However he was excited for the sheer fact Fawnsqueak would be in attendance. Not because he enjoyed Fawnsqueaks company, (though it was better than most) he was going to make a proposition.

Was he a meddler? Perhaps. It wasn’t his place to train an apprentice that wasn’t his. Though he knew it was threatening to Otterstone if he offered to help. He was curious how much the tom had actually received from the she cat since the last time they met. His tail curled in delight- it would stir up issues. Even if it was horrible to be excited for such drama he held no shame in it.

Padding up the hill finally he reached the back mouth of the cave, perhaps to avoid embarrassment he’d head in before anyone else got there. The tom plunged into the darkness this time alittle more cautious of loose stones. Making it towards the light finally the tom broke into the open cave taking a relieved breath.

Now he’d wait.

Moon Lily Wings CheetahPelt Dipper SilentLamb

[Moon Lily]

[ Wings wren Dipper SilentLamb CheetahPelt ]

Irisflame padded up the hill to the Moonstones, the Starcave in sight. Her chest contracted with every step, breath huffy and rasping as she fought to climb up the grassy slope. Close, she reminded herself, the simple word diving over and over again in her head as she reached the peak of the hill. Turning to look for Echokit, she called out to the silvery she with curiousity in her voice.
"Echokit? Speedy, you alright?" She mewed to the she-cat , her indigo gaze warm as she said so. Unfortunately, they couldn't stand around and chat. Turning to the mouth of the cave, Coyotesnarl's faint scent pulsing from the stone. He'd already gone inside. Stupid tom- it'd be pitch black in there at this time. Or at least dim. Beckoning Echokit closer with her tail, she began to pad into the dark, damp stone hallway. Water dropped into her nose, and she sneezed feebly.

"Just follow my scent, Echokit. I know you can't see, but it'll grow a bit brighter in a little bit." She murmured to the darkness behind her, hoping with all her life force that the kit was there and not just...black. Padding through the dark, she cursed at a few stray pebbles as she stood on them. But still, the dim journey paid off. As she emerged into a spacious cavern, a clear crystal greeted them. It was as big as a tree and gleaned with magnificence, never failing to take her breath away. She just hoped little Speedy would have the same reaction. Spotting a brown pelt sitting near the edge, she scampered over to him, eyes sparkling.
"Hey, Grumpmeister! How ya doing?" She purred, her indigo gaze bubbly and teasing. She loved teasing the tom- he reminded her so much of Thunderhowl. Hoping that Echokit had followed, she would gesture to the tom.
"Echokit, this is Grumpmeister, and Grump, this is Echokit."

[Wings]

Trotting leisurely along side Irisflame, the young she would dart into a bush or around a rock every so often. She needed to see everything. This would be her second time outside of camp, before this she had escaped with Falconkit and run into a Fox. Echokit hated the creatures and made sure to scent the air every so often so that she wouldn’t have to run into one again.

Now climbing up a grassy hill, Echokit turned around to see the scene behind them. It was so cool! And she could even scent the slight saltiness of the sea! Though to be fare, Echokit had no idea what it actually was and just thought the scent was weird and cool.

Hearing Irisflame’s call, the kit quickly turned around and scampered after her new mentor. “I’m good!” She smiled, slowing to a walk as they neared the mouth of the cave.

Coming closer to Irisflame, she looked up at the blue furred she with the frame flickering in her eyes, ‘we’re going in there?’ And, as Irisflame began to pad into the darkness, Echokit’s tail curled to her own silvery side as she practically bumped into Irisflame’s hind legs every so often. The dark gave her the shivers and the thought of light made her want to get through this even faster.
As the cave opened up, Echokit’s jaw literally dropped as she gazed at the huge crystal. Big as a tree and shone like nothing she’d ever seen before. Closing her mouth, Echokit trotted over to... Grumpmeister? “Uh, hi Grumpmeister?” The scarred Tom smelled weird, different from what she was used to so she guessed he was the medicine cat of one of the different clans.
Moon Lily wren Dipper SilentLamb CheetahPelt

[CheetahPelt]

wren Dipper Moon Lily SilentLamb Wings
——

Otterstone plugged to the top of the hill. Her favorite cat was there.

Otterstone had made a sour first impression, the few moons ago that she and Coyotesnarl had met. And their impressions of each other where only getting worse. At least hers was of him.

Coming to the top, she looked back. “Come along Fawnsqueak. This is the medicine meeting I was telling you about, remember? I can smell cats here already,” She meowed cheerfully, tail curling as she created the hill.

No cats greeted her like last time. The scents lead into the cave. She turned and smiled at Fawnsqueak. “I’m excited for you to see this! This is where we met Starclan. The cave is so beautiful.” She meowed, twitching her tail. “Come on in, don’t worry, it’s bigger on the inside.”

And she disappeared into the darkness.

Voices carried, echoing down the tunnel. Shadowclan and Windclan were there. Lionwhisker would be the last one there. She chuckled, at least it wouldn’t be her this time.

A new scent had accompanied Irisflame. Entering the cave all the cats came into view. There he was, his ugly mug on full display. “Coyotesnarl.” She greeted with a nod, her usually cheerful meow was flat and calm. She wouldn’t be cold to the Windclanner, he had helped Riverclan immensely.

Turning to Irisflame she smiled. “How are you Irisflame? Are things well in Shadowclan?” She turned her eyes to the small kit. “Someone new? Who is this?”

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak trailed after Otterstone solemnly, muzzle in a firm line as he kept gazing over his shoulder toward RiverClan's chunk of the forest that doubled as the particular spot he'd rather be tonight. It was nothing personal against the medicine cats, couldn't be when he hardly knew half of them, but he was a fish out of water at this meeting. It wasn't his element, nor his choice. They'd be better off conducting this without some outspoken criticizer of their higher power that his belief in was ambivalent, skeptical albeit distrusting at best. This night would've been a more productive teaching session than a traveling one, yet those thoughts were contained within himself.

In spite of his reluctance, it was nice to see the Starcave. Not much longer to go before he could be done with this: social hour with the living and dead was equally unappealing.

Dryly, he replied, "Yeah, real projects, those guys." The star cats ranked low on his list of lesser evils. "But honestly, the cave is kind of neat." If not for her pointing it out, he wouldn't have even recognized the beauty in his surroundings, too focused.

Uncertainty choked him he and Otterstone were confronted with the other medicine cats. ..And a.. baby. Oh stars above. Squinting into the darkness, the exit was nowhere to be found. Otterstone could ogle at the tiny cat but Fawnsqueak was disinterested, turning to Coyotesnarl with a lopsided smile that felt hollow in the presence of everyone else. It was better when it was just them. "Hi," he finally said after realizing he couldn't stare for that long without saying anything--the smile would just seem creepy. Almost shy, he scuffed the ground of the Starcave. "Um... had any fun spitting on your patients since the last time we chatted?" Fawnsqueak didn't give him a chance to respond. "...Did I do it right? Is that how the medicine cats are supposed to small talk?"

wren Dipper Moon Lily SilentLamb CheetahPelt

[Leucos]

wren Moon Lily CheetahPelt Wings Dipper


Smiling as the tom arrived last, he spotted echokit and gave a chuckle "who's this small fry? " he said in a playful tone. Then his eyes darted over to fawnsqueek. He's heard that name before..somewhere. wow...two clans already have apprentices....perhaps I should hurry up with that...but none I like... as a matter of fact that's what he was gonna ask coyotesnarl about.along with something else. He for some reason felt more comfortable asking a tom that question then the others who obviously have already chosen their apprentices.And the lad looked more experienced then the two she cats..
Or maybe he could...nah... Putting that at the back of his head he gave Fawnsqueek a smile and sat down. "sorry I'm a little late just a lot of stuff ,how should we start ? Or should there be introductions ?" hinting on the two new comers.

[wren]

He was enjoying the calm, though slowly growing bored of sitting there with his thoughts. Thinking about visiting again being made whole again and waking up like it was all a dream. One of his least favorite things to do. Perhaps they wouldn’t visit tonight and it would be a quick check in. Share few insights and head on home. That’s when he heard a pair of paw steps, glancing over his shoulder expecting to see perhaps Lionwhisker and Irisflame accompanied by each other, though the second set of steps sounded short and laboured. Like.. something small. His eyebrows knit together in thought before Irisflame emerged accompanied by the tiniest little snot he’d ever seen.

“Oh you’ve got to be kidding me” The toms ears flattened in annoyance. Though these meetings where but once a moon he’d enjoyed the “kit free zone” but now it followed him here. The toms glance fell on Echokit rather unamused with her choice. She looked small and... whatever he shouldn’t think negatively of it when it stood staring at him. “Oh ha ha” The sarcasm dripped from his voice “How’s babysitting Irisflame?” He snorted turning away and not caring to introduce himself to the little one. He was sure the blue she cat had done enough talking about the ugly tabby to fill echokits nightmares.

Otterstone emerged and boy did she look tense, though he could be reading her wrong as they shared a long stare and she broke it with a curt greeting. Overwhelmingly tame. Interesting. The toms tail curled in delight “Otterstone.”

There was the cat of the hour, Fawnsqueak, though he looked rather unimpressed at the motion of being here. No wonder, they were an underwhelming bunch of weird plant cats who could blame him. The scarred tom traced Otterstone before flicking back to Fawnsqueak noting his smile. It seemed forced. He offered his own, a curt sort of thing where he tried to only move the side of his face with fur to cover it. You know... to avoid any drooling if possible. The tom shuffled again adjusting so he was facing the warrior- er Medicine cat apprentice. “You know, we’re cats too right? We don’t just talk about patients and the latest in herb news” The tom said with a snort of a laugh. “You are trying to hard, just relax.” his tail gently rested against his shoulder as he tuned into their other conversation. Mindless babble about the other newbie.

Lionwhisker entered and only spared him a glance. His ears flattened going back to the gathering for a brief moment. You have something to ask me. His curiosity was boring a hole into the side of his skull and he’d nearly forgot! Now he had a chance to speak with him. No matter he’d wait until the end and he’d escort the thunderclan tom to thunderglade. He didn’t fancy heading back to his dusty den anyways.

Moon Lily Wings CheetahPelt Dipper SilentLamb

[Fawn]

"Oh, uh.. I actually prefer Fawnsqueak, if you don't mind," Fawnsqueak replied to being called a 'small fry', then his gaze drifted down to the kit.. apprentice thing, and he frowned. ..Oh. Oh. He'd meant her. Obviously. Well.. that was unfortunate. But at least it got his introduction out of the way. In the most awkward method possible, no less.

Moving on from that with a cough, he took comfort in Coyotesnarl's reaction to the shrimp because it was all too common that he was the odd one who refused to go completely mushy and gaga over miniature cats that wouldn't even stay that size. He didn't see what was special about them aside from their inferior sense of.. everything, but that wasn't as guaranteed to wear off. After the patients he'd been bound-by-duty to treat, he couldn't help the mutter of, "We're all kitsitters here, man."

Fawnsqueak raised an eyebrow as Coyotesnarl said they were cats. "I mean, literally all your names suggest otherwise, but.. sure." Lion, Otter, Coyote... Iris? A bit dryly and now with a more genuine smile, he added, "That's ..probably because herb news isn't nearly as lucrative as one would hope." If that was their only subject, it'd be over fast.

Wishing to push things along, Fawnsqueak cast a glance around the cave at each of the medicine cats as if to silently question what they were supposed to be doing next.

wren SilentLamb [just mentioning those who were directly interacted with, tryin to avoid mention spam lol :heartbounce: ]

[Moon Lily]

[ Wings CheetahPelt Dipper SilentLamb wren ]

Irisflame felt her indigo gaze flash in amusement at the attention that Echokit was getting, the small ankle-biter seeming tiny compared to the rest of them. Well, all of them except for herself. She was the size of her apprentice, but boy...her fighting spirit was much bigger than that. Feeling her chest puff out in determination, she inhaled deeply. It was ambitious, finding an apprentice this young, but Icestar had demanded so. And what Icestar said, she would do. Not only because it was her duty, but because she was honestly scared of what would happen if she didn't. She could handle a few bullies just fine, make a lot cry in a snap. But Icestar was something else. She'd never given her the liberty of knowing that, though, of course. But she'd still follow her demands like there was no tomorrow.
She would drape her tail around the silvery she-cat's shoulder reassuringly, a faint smile on her maw. Her eyes floated back towards the scarred tom, hoping he wouldn't...well, you know. Be a grump. But, as always, Coyotesnarl was quite the pessimist.
"Shut up, you old coon! She's much less a hassle compared to you." She snorted, her eyes narrowing with faint amusement.

As the other medicine cats began to flood in, Irisflame tilted her head on surprise. Another newcomer? She'd never seen the tom before... He smelt like Riverclan, which he would- he was Otterstone's apprentice, she presumed- but she couldn't recall anything else about him. He had a coat like a deer's, spots and everything. Probably something related to a deer, then... Deerspot? Deerear? Deer...boy. Deerboy he'd be for now. At Otterstone's greeting, she grinned, dipping her head.
"Let's just say that no one's being an idiot. How's Riverclan?" She mewed, her voice almost sheepish. There really hadn't been much excitement, and she didn't want to be the one to bring up the battle. How would she even-? She shook off that matter. It could wait.
At Deerboy's 'small talk' attempt, she broke out into bursts of laughter, her lungs contracting sharply with each bubble. Was that really what other cats though of them?!
"Well, some of them deserve it!" She exclaimed, her voice raised in mild protest, "But yeah, listen to Grump- we're not weirdos! Irisflame, nice to meet you." She introduced herself, dipping her head in a slight nod of greeting.

Smiling in Lionwhisker's direction, she nodded. It seemed Echokit had yet to be introduced, and she didn't want to steal it from the furball. She was a handful, she had to admit, but she was still worth talking to.
"Hey, Speedy, why don't you introduce yourself?"

[Wings]

At Coyotesnarl's rude response, Echokit's eyes flared with annoyance and a hint of anger. She had done nothing wrong to give the tom the right to act like that! Sure, she may of called him Grumpmeister but, she didn't know what his name was either way and that was what Irisflame called him. Though, she soon came to the realization that his name was Coyotesnarl. Seemed like a fitting name for a rude cat.

As more cats flooded in, Echokit saw that Coyotesnarl had gone over to another tom, who had white spots on his back and a bobtail.
As she watched the two toms talk, a voice caught her attention, drawing her away from her watch. She came to view a kind looking she, who was missing a leg. Before she could reply she heard 'who's this small fry?' She didn't exactly appreciate being called a 'small fry.' Sure she was small but proportionally she was a larger built she.
Before she could reply again, Irisflame ask her to introduce herself. Finally. Finally she could talk with out being cut off before she could even start! Giving a small smile to Irisflame, Echokit padded forward into the spotlight. "I'm Echokit!" She gave Lionwhisker and Otterstone both warm smiles. She smiled at Fawnsqueak too but, not as much as she did to the two more respectful cats. She was the medicine cat apprentice for stars sake and a young one too!
She continued to talk while she could. "I know that you're Coyotesnarl. A fitting name. But, I don't know you, you, or you!" She muttered under her breath about Coyotesnarl's name, it did fit him, and not because of his scar or anything like that, it's just his attitude. While she pointed to who she didn't know, Fawnsqueak, Otterstone, Lionwhisker, she smiled at them warmly.
Moon Lily wren Dipper CheetahPelt SilentLamb

[CheetahPelt]

Wings Moon Lily wren Dipper Silent Lamb


Otterstone listened to Fawnsqueak and Coyotesnarl before turning her attention to Irisflame. "Riverclan is doing well. But if you ask anyone, it's no thanks to me." She pursed her lips. She hurried on, not wanting to stay on the topic of the battle.



A mroow of laughter slipped out of her mouth as she listened to Irisflame. The younger she-cat made Otterstone happy, lifting her mood some.


Turning her gaze and attention again, she settled on the puffed up, excited she-kit. "Well, Hello Echokit. My name is Otterstone." She gave a small dip/nod of her head to the kitten, golden eyes gleaming.



Out of the corner of her eyes she caught Fawnsqueak again. Should she introduce him. Maybe not, but at least give him an explanation of being there.



"Not to take the shine off of Echokit, but I also gained an apprentice." Though it wasn't by choice, she thought. "Coyotesnarl has already been aquainted." She fought hard to keep the edge off her voice, but the end result was a rather steady tone of voice.

[wren]

Coyotesnarls ears flattened as Irisflame told him to shut his yap. That was a first, though he didn’t doubt the she cats ability to command a room he certainly wasn’t expecting it. To make matters ever worse.. he wasn’t even that old. Barely thirty one moons and people were treating him like he had a leg in the grave! “Go ahead and count me out of that nonsense.” The tom remarked under his breath at Fawnsqueaks comment. He’d rather be caught dead than having a shrimp for an apprentice. Tiny and all... stupid. Well not stupid- maybe stupid. He hadn’t spent enough time around the tiny things to know.

He’d felt out of place among the ranks of his comrades, them having wanted to serve their clans in a purposeful and meaningful way. In his case perhaps the quite opposite, a cry for attention or loneliness had crept up so slowly on him. Having asked Brightstar for the rank was a horrible mistake. Now he was stuck with three legged flirt face, the little pair of fireballs and the golden tom (he’d find a better code name for lionwhisker later), but hopefully Fawnsqueak would round out enough they’d get along. He didn’t seem too thrilled to be here either.

“You’ve got a dry sense of humour there fawn” The tom said with a half grin whiskers twitching in acknowledgment to his attempt. Yeah. They’d get along fine.

As Otterstone spoke up he felt that feeling of angsty excitement fill His chest, again, if it hadn’t been for fireball number two he would probably still be in a decent mood. “You aren’t going to mention how you got your apprentice?” The toms voice was cutting as he stood from Fawnsqueaks side and approached the stone tail lashing through the air. Being the antagonizer he was he’d only wish for an overreaction, though for her she seemed to be keeping her lid screwed on fairly tight. “Or Perhaps that’s a story for another time?” he barely gave the riverclan medicine cat a glance before he slipped down onto the jagged stone surrounding the somewhat glowing rock. That would be enough to settle the tension amongst them.

“Now are we visiting or what?”

Moon Lily Wings CheetahPelt Dipper SilentLamb

[Leucos]

wren Moon Lily Wings Dipper CheetahPelt


Laughing "sorry lad, I meant that fella " he then pointed to echokit who was finally speaking . Smiling " names Lionwhisker " he was gonna comment on a few other things but they went by quick! Somewhat of a whip lash for him. His head jerked to Coyotesnarl who was getting impatient by the looks of it. " yes yes, I think we should get a move on.. So, who wants to go first? I don't have anything too exciting ...although I did have two cats who fell out of a tree.."
Though he did have a few questions or so..

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak stared at the kit, an oblivious one at that but... honestly, he wasn't expecting much from the younger generation since they'd been nothing but repeated disappointments in his short lifetime. This cat--half his age--wasn't giving him hope for the future when she apparently hadn't even heard his introduction, or cared to listen to it. Not that he could blame her for that particularly. However, he wasn't about to have a repeat incident, so he told her, "Um.. I already introduced myself." Although he hadn't said it with animosity, he hoped that wasn't too... mean for a kit, he didn't know how to interact with them. They made already-difficult social situations worse.

It was weirdly a relief that Otterstone chose to move things along. "Yeah, that's... sort of me," he chipped in with an attempt at enthusiasm, smile lopsided. In commentary of his own lack of excitement, he snarked, "I would be jumping up and down and talking our ears off, but I'm not five." Surprising, he knew. He could look the part of a five-moon-old munchkin. But he did feel like he was getting older by the minute with this plant lover's social hour.

Fawnsqueak took the initiative to join Coyotesnarl at the shimmering stone after eyeing it suspiciously, disenchanted. StarClan dreams were a bit enigmatic to him (and typically useless), but if it made these guys happy, he'd join in this star-nap extravaganza. Although he settled down to sleep, he... waited.

And waited some more, because what was supposed to happen here, anyway? Fawnsqueak had never been skilled at resting when insomnia dug at his thoughts.


SilentLamb CheetahPelt Wings Moon Lily wren [tryin to move this along ;0]

[Moon Lily]

[ wren Wings CheetahPelt SilentLamb Dipper ]

Irisflame could feel satisfaction at Coyotesnarl's lack of reply at her snap, power rushing through her veins. She'd never had trouble whipping pelts into place, which came as a surprise to many. 'Look at the size of her!' Was a common misconception, one that usually came at a sorry price. She really did enjoy teasing Coyotesnarl, and although she could say undoubtedly that she was friends with the tom and would stick her neck out for him, it was a relationship, like many of the others, proved complicated. Looking away from the scarred tom, she instead looked to Flirty and Deerboy, confused.
"No thanks to you...?" Her gaze traveled to Fawnsqueak's brown orbs. Had something happened, something that has forced the former warrior into her guidance? Coyotesnarl's snarky statement caused her pelt to provoke uncomfortably with the thought of it, but she shrugged the feeling off, blue gaze growing round.
"A bravo to you, Deerboy. Congrats!" She purred, tail-tip flicking in a gleeful gesture. It was best to ignore the obvious tension between Flirty and Grump, as she was sure it would otherwise esculate.


Deciding to approach the crystal with the others, she watched the moon closely as it began to align itself with the gem, the shaft of light beginning to bring more into the cavern.
"What did the tree huggers expect they would do? Fly? Idiots." She laughed, eyes rolling at Lionwhisker's comment. The Thunderclan tom was friendly, as always. She began to settle down, tucking her legs beneath her to get comfortable. After all, she didn't want to wake up with cramps like she did last time. She beckoned for Echokit to sit next to her, the cave starting to slowly grow brighter with the blue light that had begun to fill the room. The soft shade whitewashed the whole lot of them, the environment looking drastically different than usual. Here they went. Touching her nose to the cold stone, she closed her eyes. The icy touch of the solid crystal sent shivers down her spine, chilling her before dropping her into


darkness.

[Wings]

[ wren Moon Lily CheetahPelt SilentLamb Dipper ]
--Echokit--

Giving a slight nod and smile to Lionwhisker and Otterstone, an 'oops' sounded in her head. "Oh, sorry!" Before she could even ask for his name again, they were shifting towards the gleaming crystal.
As the room lightened, the crystal felt like it was growing even brighter than it already was. And the blue pelt of Irisflamed turned silvery. She found it interesting, Stormlily had never let her out of the nursery at Moonhigh. Either way, she wouldn't of been able to see the moon shine down on any cat as she would be the only one there.

Echokit watched as the other medicine cats aligned themselves with the crystal, and her eye caught Irisflame beckoning her to her side. Trotting a bit forward and standing in front of it, she glanced over to see that Irisflame was laying down and had touched her nose to the stone. It was intimidating and she a bit scared of the unknown. Throwing those thoughts to the back of her mind, Echokit crouched down, glancing over to Irisflame frequently to see what she was doing. Same as always though, laying down with her nose touched to the crystal.
Finally settling down into a crouch, Echokit curled her plumed tail next to her before touching her nose to the crystal. Her first reaction was to pull back at the coldness of it but, for some reason she didn't. As the cold of the stone sent a chill down her body, she fell into darkness, nothingness.

[CheetahPelt]

wren
SilentLamb
Moon Lily
Dipper
Wings

Otterstone whipped her gaze to Coyotesnarl, eyes opening wide before flashing in anger. She bit back a snarl and a hiss, clenching her jaw tight. ”if you have something to say.” Otterstone meowed at the scarred tom. “I’d rather you say it straight.” She narrowed her gaze, watching the Tom move to the glowing stone before wrenching her gaze away.

She switched her gaze to Irisflame, gauging reactions around the board, just soon enough to catch her discomfort.

The tortie held back a sigh, turning her head to listen to Lionwhisker. Interesting! His story took the edge off of her anger, her frigid gaze warming slightly.

“Some cats don’t have the same amount of brains as birds do” she rolled her eyes, following the rest to the stone. she hmmed as Fawn took a seat by the stone, looking uncomfortable, she lay close to him. “Not a believer?” She said to soft for others to hear, her voice hinting with concern.

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak's pads tapped restlessly against the ground, waiting for something to happen and genuinely being disturbed when the other medicine cats seemed to basically pass out. It was creepy as all hell, their unconsciousness when touching the stone. The fur on the back of his neck was raised in utter alarm, how they passed out, were vulnerable to the world. Whatever they were taking to be able to get to sleep like that, he'd have to ask them to share.

Jolting when he heard Otterstone's voice as she'd slid in close to him, he blinked. "Oh. Uh.. No." His sputtered answer was vague at best, so he elaborated. "It's... complicated, I guess? I'm not a blind believer. They literally exist, I mean, that's kind of indisputable." Both his father and Lionstar had described a near-exact leader ceremony without ever speaking to each other, and his own experiences with Frostflight and Thunderhowl confirmed its existence. "But just because something exists... doesn't make it all-powerful or all-knowing, and it definitely doesn't make it benevolent." From what he could gather, StarClan just did not care what happened in its more tangible counterpart. "StarClan is..." Fawnsqueak paused on that, searching for the word, "It's mostly just a Clan of dead cats who weren't any wiser or compassionate than they were in life." So, yeah, it was beyond useless to him and if history had a say, certainly the cause of several bloody wars that their starry paws hadn't lifted to prevent.

However, he didn't consider that to be the reason he didn't fall asleep. "I don't... get why they, like, passed out," he said, rather forward. "Isn't that-- weird? To you? It's honestly..." Disturbing was on the tip of his tongue, highly concerning. Epilepsy must run in the medicine cat bloodline. "I never fall asleep that fast."


SilentLamb CheetahPelt Wings Moon Lily wren

[Leucos]

wren Dipper Moon Lily CheetahPelt

Watching everyone get comfy, Lionwhisker gave a smile atleast they found that amusing .... looking over at fawnsqueek as he spoke his beliefs. He gave a nod, he was surprisingly right. He didn't like starclan at first either , though at his question who he hoped was directed towards him.. "to be honest. Kinda. But once you get there, it's not so bad. And don't worry I had a few problems with starclan as a warrior myself " with that he padded over to the stone and layed down. " it you don't feel comfortable doing this, it's alright . No one said that you absolutely have to. " with that he put his nose to cold water and slower than the others . Fell into darkness.

[Fawn]

Rising from his spot, he began to pace the expanse of the small cavern while wishing this place was a little more roomy.

"I've been there," Fawnsqueak replied casually to the attempt at comfort, verging on quizzical. It was a little pretentious to assume only medicine cats had that experience of a StarClan dream, but Lionwhisker had been intending to be helpful, not insulting. "And it was pretty much like you'd expect, y'know?" Or maybe it wasn't since most cats had an unhealthy worship of StarClan, but Fawnsqueak would consider it.. mundane. It had been fine.

A nagging that he'd tucked away poked at him again. Perhaps... his experience had just been a dream, not StarClan. It was something he didn't quite understand how to determine when they felt no differently. If that was true, his jaded talk would be for naught and yet he actually hoped that was the case, yearned for something more interesting than what he'd experienced.

Tired of pacing with paws growing sore from the impact, he flopped down at the stone and expelled a soft huff.


SilentLamb [ but no need to reply to this <3]

[Leucos]

Dust

This was his ...fourth time ! Fourth time to the starcave , it was easier for him to keep up and not have to look like he's dying. Though his jaw hurt from holding the two mice that were dangling from it. He also made sure to keep pace with Condorpaw, funny...how was he supposed to do the 'ceremony ' thing when he already is an apprentice ? Maybe they were supposed to be accepted by starclan too...who really knew. Stopping at the cave entrance he sat down and placed the prey down as well, in case condor was hungry. Eyes glowing like emerald in the night he gave a smile at the little one.
"might wanna eat up , and what do you think?" he asked as his tail swished to the cave.

[Dust]

Condorpaw stomach had been flipping and flopping like mad the entire way there. From his lack of knowledge of the territory - and more importantly what was outside it... it was easy to tell the wide-eyed apprentice was anxious. Even now, he felt it hard to keep up his cocky, confident appearance as he strode along side Lionwhisker. Confusing smells and strange noises in the forest had him on edge, pelt bristling as he made sure to stay near by his almost mentor. His pace was brisk, each paw step feeling like he was walking on air. It felt weird knowing this was going to be official. As the pair made their way to the entrance of the cavern, Condorpaw simply stood in an awed silence, eyes wide as his head slowly tilted back to take in the full image. Blinking a few times, Condorpaw turned a hesitant gaze to Lionwhisker.. then to the mouse on the ground. His stomach turned at the sight,

"I feel kind of sick," He admitted in a whisper, before adverting his gaze back, "We really have to go in there? It looks so.. dark." And spooky.

NIGHTOWL

[Leucos]

Dust

Oh...that's disappointing ...But understandable. He gave a nod I'll just leave it out here then...He may be hungry later .. he hid the other mouse underneath some grass and dirt only to break into his mouse afterwards . Wiping his maw he gave a chuckle "it's not that bad, but yes we have to. You can even bite on my tail and I'll lead you that way? If your too scared .." how else were they gonna do the ceremony .

[Dust]

Puffing out his chest slightly, Condorpaw took in a deep breath. Through narrowed eyes, he marched towards the cave entrance. This was no time to act like some scared baby!

"I'm not scared! Let's just get moving!" His voice wavered as he gave the command, though he held his ground, fur bristling along his spine as he waited for Lionwhisker to take the lead.

NIGHTOWL

[Leucos]

Dust

He smirked. Ok Rising from the ground, Lionwhisker whirled back around to head in after condor. But. He pushed condor back with a forepaw and took the lead "might wanna let somebody who's been here before show you the way ey?" the apprentice could hurt himself or something. Besides..there's stupid tiny rocks you could stub your paw on. Or twist your ankle on... Wasting no more time he head on in.

[Dust]

Some of the air held in his lungs released as Condorpaw silently allowed Lionwhisker to take the lead. He wasn't going to argue with that one bit. Following quickly after the other, as he was not keen to be left alone in the dark, Condorpaw felt the walls begin to close in around - engulfed by the damp, stuffy darkness of the tunnel. While he wasn't necessarily trying to be a nuisance, Condorpaw stumbled after Lionwhisker, his mouth quickly searching and nipping around for Lion's tail.

NIGHTOWL

[Leucos]

Dust

He allowed his tail to gently swish across Condorpaws face which was a slight mistake cuz he felt a few of the nips. He didn't complain ,it just...felt weird. Then again he did offer it. It wasn't too long before a familiar swash of light could be seen on the side of the walls. Eyes squinting , he could slowly make out the giant sparkling gem. The moon wasn't completely full tonight ..But it was enough to give the gem life "Here we are " .

[Dust]

Thank the stars that they had finally made it, Condorpaw's nose was starting to itch like crazy - although with the suffocating darkness and lack of all other senses but touch and smell.. it wasn't the worst thing to even happen. Sucking in a long, hefty breath as the cave opened up around them, he stared in surprise at the sparkling rock.

"Woah!" Perking up slightly, Condorpaw strode up beside Lionwhisker to take in the view. "This is awesome," He commented softly, padding closer to inspect the strange glowing thing.

NIGHTOWL

[Leucos]

Dust

"she's a beauty ain't she?" he did quite like the gem. .or..rock? Whatever it was. Tail swishing the tom took a seat infront of the moon pool and condor. Head raised he looked up at the spot in the ceiling and saw that the moon was still present . "Cats of Starclan-" no. ..no. Why should they be the ones to have to accept him? He liked starclan...But not..LIKE LIKE! As in bend and break his back for them. There was a long pause after , what would be say? He didn't feel it was completely right to say starclan. But if this is what it takes to be official. Then ...so be it.
"Condorpaw, do you wish to follow the path of a medicine cat? " he started over.. It just felt best to.

[Dust]

Condorpaw stared at Lionwhisker, a bit dumbfounded as the cogs in his brain literally turned. Trying to search for an answer, his mouth hung open slightly, leaving room for another weird silence. Finally, he spoke up,

"Uhm.. Yeah. Yeah, I do?" It was less of an unsure answer and more a 'I'm not sure if this is how it goes, but I'm going to say this and hope for the best!'

NIGHTOWL

[Leucos]

Dust

"then come forward "

This was it....he had to think fast of what he was about to say. If he was being honest with himself ....his belly was heavy. Anxiety if that's what other cats call it? Which was odd considering he wasn't the type of cat to get anything like that. starclan or no starclan....starclan or no starclan?...he's now my apprentice anyways since Duskstar made it...official..

[Dust]

Condorpaw shuffled forward slowly, eyes resting expectantly on Lionwhisker as he held his break for whatever was about to come next.

"O-ok.." He'd meow quietly, settling down in front of the other.

NIGHTOWL

[Leucos]

Dust

"Starclan I present to you Condorpaw, he has chosen the path of a medicine cat. grant them your wisdom and insight so that he may understand your ways and heal his clan - " he paused on one part. It didn't settle with him. ..why their will? It should be condors will... " may you guide him " yeah, that's a nice way to end it. Starclans will Pfft.
" congratulations lad. Now wanna see Starclan itself ? We still have time " he offered .

[Dust]

The apprentice radiated with nervous excitement as Lionwhisker wrapped up the ceremony, offering the chance to.. see StarClan? Condorpaw's nose scrunched up in confusion,

"See them? I thought you could only see StarClan by dying? Isn't that where we go...? Wait, we aren't gonna die - are we?!"

NIGHTOWL

[Leucos]

Dust

He burst out laughing "no! No no no not at all!" he half wheezed. Poor thing! He shook his head " you see this pool of water infront of you right? Well when you touch your nose to it after you lay down. You'll be in starclan. Your physical body still in the real world of course."

[Dust]

The bristling apprentice seemed to only tense up more as Lionwhisker laughed at him, his cheeks puffed out with defiance as he piped up,

"Well, I wasn't sure!" Still, as he said it, Condorpaw glanced down to the pool with a curious glance. There was a part of him that was.. afraid? What if he didn't see anything? What if he saw too much? Sure, he had faith in the star cats... but believing and seeing were two different things. Slowly, the apprentice dropped down to his paws beside the water,

"I don't mind trying though..."
NIGHTOWL

[wren]

Coyotesnarl has not attended the gathering because of Twilightstar, not that he didn’t deserve punishment for what he’d done but nonetheless. It was important for him to know whenever these meetings happened. Not for the social aspect as he could probably go his entire life without seeing any of them, however it was moreso he needed medical opinion outside of himself. Like Oaksting for example and the white cough scare.

Coyotesnarl breeched the hill heading toward the mouth of the cave.

He’d have to thank Irisflame for the cantmint when she arrived. The tabby medicine cat pushed his way through the small tunnel. After having got over his fear of the cave the first time he realized the star cats couldn’t actually do things to him when he was awake. Full body apparitions were a kittens tale and nothing more. Feeling his way through the dark until he finally reached the open cavern.

NIGHTOWL Dust Moon Lily Wings CheetahPelt Dipper

[Wings]

[ Moon Lily wren Dipper Dust CheetahPelt NIGHTOWL ]
-Echopaw-

Echopaw had grown a lot since her ceremony and now was a bigger than Irisflame, and compared to others her age, she was huge. And even though she had long fur, underneath was a large bone structure, covered in muscles.

Padding through the territories behind Irisflame, Echopaw rolled her yes every now and again at either Irisflame lecturing or talking to her, or thinking about Dewpaw and how much of an idiot he is. Foxbite sometimes crossed her mind and her anxiety in the moment had turned to hard anger towards the dead tom, and it made her claw the ground as she walked. In other words, she had been particularly sour during the trip.

Climbing the hill was easy for Echopaw, and she easily passed her mentor. Only stopping to wait far up on either a small plateaued grassy area or the top.

Once Irisflame had neared the tom, Echopaw had padded off, plumed tail hovering above the ground while swishing back and forth. Stopping at the entrance to the darkness, the silvery she watched as Irisflame took the lead, she would of gone in herself but, as this was only her second time here, she would of gotten lost.
Following her smaller mentor, she emerged into the cave, gazing up at the crystal again. It was beautiful still, and she did appreciate that but, still all the sourness of Foxbite and Dewpaw still lingering in her mind and she went to sit a little ways away from Coyotesnarl and Irisflame. Giving her mentor a small glare while she began to groom her paw.
No one else had yet to arrive and she would be happy to see Otterstone and Lionwhisker again. Fawnsqueak she was neutral with just like Coyotesnarl.

[Dust]

[Condorpaw has NOT entered the Starcave yet!]

The apprentice would have followed Lionwhisker the whole way, his chest heaving with effort as the trek would have taken any and all energy out of him,

"What are we going back for?" He would half hiss, half wheeze, green eyes narrowed on his mentor,

"We already finished the ceremony, right?" Anxiety prickled in his belly at the thought - did Lionwhisker want to revoke his apprentice in front of Starclan?! Did he do something wrong?! The anxiety only seemed to make the trek worse, his feet dragging slower, heart pounding like it would explode out of his ears. It was clear Condorpaw wasn't going to calm down until he received some sort of reassurance from Lionwhisker. Regardless, the area around was looking familiar... perhaps he recognized it from last time? Were they getting close? Eh... all the woods looked the same anyway, so it was probably just his imagination. Still, the apprentice kept in line with his mentor, nervously awaiting their arrival.

NIGHTOWL

[Moon Lily]

[ wren Wings Dust NIGHTOWL CheetahPelt Dipper ]

Irisflame spent most of her trip ranting about the situations that they'd been out in, or more specifically ones that she herself had been. It was not the most entertaining thing to listen to, especially not when she mentioned Echopaw's behaviour and that she hoped it was addressed, but at least it wasn't the usual silence they walked in. Her apprentice still seemed a bit sour, to say the least, not saying a single word besides simple acknowledgements throughout the entire journey. It was quite petty of her to still be mad about the whole Dewpaw incident, and giving her mentor the silent treatment because of it. She puffed as the climbed the large, grassy hill, and shot Echopaw an amused glance as she swiftly padded ahead of her. She had no breath for a witty remark once they got to the top, so she left it. Still wheezing from the ascend, she wasn't glad when the dampness of the cave air triggered her lungs one again. The organs seemed to be getting worse, though it was likely because of the slow decline of tansy she had in their stores. Hacking a few times, she was able to lull the ugly cough back into a raspy breath before they entered the oh-so-sparkly cavern, which was a relief. She didn't want to be hacking and coughing away as her fellow medicine cats looked on in surprise. Entering with an air of quickly composed glamour, she grinned at...Coyotesnarl. At least she could have a nice talk to him before the others arrived.

Feeling her jaw slack into a gape as she noticed Echopaw's glare, she raised her brows and shot a look back, one that read 'what did I do?!'. She felt a frown settle into her maw, followed by her voice rather quickly.
"Oi, respect your elders, Speed Demon!" She mewed sternly, although the end curled into mild laughter as she broke into a soft grin. Shaking her head in amusement , she made her way over to Coyotesnarl. "Grump! My second favourite. I meant to talk to ya. How'd the whole catmint situation go?" She inquired, her face set into a happy beam. She really couldn't help it. The atmosphere in this sacred place had something so...peaceful about it. A sense of joy buried deep in its walls. She looked at the space ahead of her silently, zoning out in the slightest.

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak was in his head for the duration of the walk, that churning ball of unease and displacement returning, but daydreams were adequate in keeping his focus shifted. A numbing agent to reality had been especially useful as of late. And he was running through various scenarios, envisioning how this would unfold and the myriad of paths, how he'd inevitably mess up this time. It all seemed so pointless, so against what they were supposed to stand for. They called themselves medicine cats yet were doing this--essentially social hour among the stars, considering that's what they did: stand around and talk--rather than using what precious daylight they had to treat patients or actually learn. The role itself was beginning to feel terribly hypocritical after moons as a humanitarian warrior who'd been making a difference, or he liked to believe he did.

The benefits of patching up a wound lasted a moon, tops. The benefits of patching up a clan lasted a generation. As medicine cats, they.. addressed the symptoms and not the problem. A world where they became almost obsolete was oddly ideal. Nasty, snarky thoughts flashed through his mind as he stole a side-look at Otterstone, quickly retracted now that they'd reached the Starcave.

He didn't stop to acknowledge the stranger or Lionwhisker but carried on forward, feeling like it was an intimate moment that he didn't need to entangle himself in.

Entering the cave, Fawnsqueak navigated it with minimal missteps written off by clumsiness until he arrived within the cavern to see the three others. He blinked. Yeah, there they were. Unfortunately, "I am uncomfortable with our role and its ridiculous dependence on everlasting war" wasn't much of a jolly opener, nor was "help, my mentor might literally be a serial killer" so he.. awkwardly plopped himself down where he saw a space that wouldn't disrupt the conversation. Maybe he should get an early start on attempting to drift off, since he didn't have the insane ability to immediately be knocked unconscious by an immobile chunk of rock.

wren Wings Dust NIGHTOWL CheetahPelt Moon Lily

[Leucos]

wren Moon Lily Wings Dust Dipper CheetahPelt
"this is a medicine cat meeting . It'll try to happen after every clan meeting but sometimes it may not . It depends on the situation ." Lionwhisker explained as he stood by his apprentice . He spotted Echopaw and boy had she grown! She was huge! " Echopaw! I almost didn't recognize you! " though his head tilted at Irisflame . "you good there love?" he meowed before giving a friendly nod to the others.

[CheetahPelt]

Dipper NIGHTOWL Moon Lily Dust Wings wren

Otterstone padded along, pointedly ignoring the nasty look her apprentice threw her way, irritatedly staying silent through the whole ordeal. “Hello, hello. Sorry I’m late. I apolagize if we’re a bother on any Explanations.” Her meow was friendly. “Welcome to the medicine club, I’m Riverclan’s medicine cat, Otterstone. My moody apprentice is Fawnsqueak.” After a moment or so she purred with a twitch of her tail. “Well it was nice to say hello, I’ll see you both inside.” She padded inside of the cave, loudly announcing herself as she entered.

"Hello all!” Her meow was friendly, and she looked so much healthier then the last time she had seen them all. Her gaze moved around the cave, reflecting off Fawnsqueak to circle around to the knot of medicine cats. She padded over, waving hello with her tail. “Yes, hello. Nice to see everyone. I apolagize for being late.” Continuing on, like she hadn’t barged in late. “Echopaw, you’ve grown so much!” She smiled at the huge apprentice. Her gaze moved around the group. “Irisflame, it’s nice to see you.”


When her gaze came to the Windclan medicine cat, she didn’t quite smile, though her face was not angry as their last meetings. “Coyotesnarl.” She gave a small nod. “Looking well."

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak raised his head to blink at her, his grimace wavering. "It's.. not that I'm moody," he said, phrasing careful, "I just-- didn't think it was that appropriate, to.. y'know, insert ourselves into the conversation they were having, Otterstone." Irisflame and Echopaw had been chatting with Coyotesnarl, which wasn't any of his business unless they specifically asked him to partake in the discussion. Managing an empty laugh, he commented, "I seriously thought I was the one without the social graces." It was his awkwardness and uncertainty over what was situationally-called for that he had played it cautious -- not wanting to barge into anything uninvited or prematurely end the discussion by forcing himself into it.

To the others, he was more apologetic. "I'm sorry if she-- uh, we.. interrupted. We didn't mean to overstep any boundaries or barge into your discussion like that." Being old and semi-sane had Fawnsqueak more sympathetic, and besides, forgetting her manners was the least of their worries.

NIGHTOWL Moon Lily Dust Wings wren CheetahPelt

[CheetahPelt]

Fawnsqueak raised his head to blink at her, his grimace wavering. "It's.. not that I'm moody," he said, phrasing careful, "I just-- didn't think it was that appropriate, to.. y'know, insert ourselves into the conversation they were having, Otterstone." Irisflame and Echopaw had been chatting with Coyotesnarl, which wasn't any of his business unless they specifically asked him to partake in the discussion. Managing an empty laugh, he commented, "I seriously thought I was the one without the social graces." It was his awkwardness and uncertainty over what was situationally-called for that he had played it cautious -- not wanting to barge into anything uninvited or prematurely end the discussion by forcing himself into it.

To the others, he was more apologetic. "I'm sorry if she-- uh, we.. interrupted. We didn't mean to overstep any boundaries or barge into your discussion like that." Being old and semi-sane had Fawnsqueak more sympathetic, and besides, forgetting her manners was the least of their worries.

NIGHTOWL Moon Lily Dust Wings wren CheetahPelt

Otterstone pursed her lips and shook her head at Fawnsqueak. “I’m not barging in, I’m saying hello. It would be impolite to linger around the edges of a conversation. Like someone I know.” She gave a pointed look to the spotted tom, before turning away again. She may have inserted herself, but it would almost be rude not to, having a jellyfish in any conversation was just awkward!

(Sorry it’s short, I’m tired lol)

[Fawn]

Otterstone pursed her lips and shook her head at Fawnsqueak. “I’m not barging in, I’m saying hello. It would be impolite to linger around the edges of a conversation. Like someone I know.” She gave a pointed look to the spotted tom, before turning away again. She may have inserted herself, but it would almost be rude not to, having a jellyfish in any conversation was just awkward!

(Sorry it’s short, I’m tired lol)
((no worries!))

Fawnsqueak held his tongue on the disagreement. It wasn't what she said that made the difference--whether it was "hello" or "I hate you all" to start, it was saying something instead of politely waiting her turn. It was no inconvenience to just hold tight until the others were done speaking to address them, but Fawnsqueak imagined the disruption could interfere or cause them to become uncomfortable. It wasn't as if the greetings couldn't be held back a couple seconds.

Her "like someone I know" simply drew a sigh from him, and he sent another apologetic glance to the other medicine cats. It was intentional that he hadn't stirred their bad blood in front of them, and he guessed he didn't genuinely expect the same courtesy. "It might," he teetered, smile pained, "possibly be more... professional to save your shots at me until we're back in RiverClan. Consider it like, uh, a time to brainstorm them and then you can unload once we're somewhere more private? It's just, I don't really think these guys want to hear it." Fawnsqueak's cheeks were flushed from the secondpaw embarrassment of having to tell her this at all, a cat several moons his senior and his own mentor. Explaining that it wasn't appropriate to toss childish jabs at him in front of their peers was something a kit could understandably slip up with since they had no clue what was socially okay, but for a fully grown medicine cat...

Oh stars, it was going to be a long night.

[wren]

Coyotesnarl almost didn’t recognize the little- err large firecracker. Echopaw had doubled in size and stood a staggering two head above Irisflame. He almost couldn’t believe exactly what he was seeing. He swallowed awkwardly his eyes darting between the two she cats as if it wasn’t real. He jerked from his trail of thought to focus briefly on Irisflame. Both she cats seemed tense, he felt almost awkward sitting there.

”I meant to ask actually. Or I suppose I meant to thank you for it. I hadn’t got the chance to use it. I originally thought it could have been greencough but it appears I was mistaken. I’ll bring it up with the others once they have arrived.” he couldn’t identify the sickness, granted Thunderhowl had left patches in his knowledge. Though hopefully through experience the other medicine cats would know.

As he settled to examine the behemoth of an apprentice once more he was interrupted with chatter. Otterstone to be precise, unnaturally cheery for someone in the company of those who thought she was incompetent. Or well.. himself. His tail curled in a rather irritated way as she bathed in like a badger stepping over conversation and with that half assed greeting. He couldn’t help but feel slightly pleased the she cat had been drawn to be so curt with him. He’d left a longing impact from his last visit.

His eyes caught Fawnsqueak too, again the tom looked rather unamused being here. Honestly he couldn’t blame the poor thing either. Embarrassed by Otterstone and dragged to a meeting that held little significance other than a social event.

“Bickering? Oh starclan I would die to hear you two fight it out, nothing could please me more” his sarcasm dripped like venom from the tongue. “But sadly I actually have pressing things to bring up if that doesn’t infringe on your time table?” his eyebrow perked staring at Otterstone. He liked to see her squirm under pressure. With a flick of his tail that tense stare was gone and he returned his gaze to the gathered medicine cats ignoring the new comer. He would be introduced if Lionwhisker cared too.
NIGHTOWL Dust Moon Lily Wings CheetahPelt Dipper

[Dust]

Condorpaw still felt... unsure, but he would give way - even with all the strange smells and noises coming from the cave. Ugh, he hated going through the darkness. Following after Lionwhisker and into the cave, Condorpaw immediately felt his fur stand on end, bouncing up onto his tippy toes as he gained sight of the other cats around them,

"Intruders!" He would hiss quietly to his mentor, eyes wide as he scanned the crew... though it was easy to see his confusion as Lionwhisker began to greet them. With a grumble in his throat, Condorpaw tiptoed his way over to Lionwhisker, nudging his pelt,

"Why are we just sitting here talking, shouldn't we do something?!"

NIGHTOWL Moon Lily Dipper Wings wren CheetahPelt

[Wings]

[ wren Dust NIGHTOWL Moon Lily CheetahPelt Dipper ]
-Echopaw-

The silvery couldn't help but smile at Irisflame, it was impossible to stay mad at her for long. And her grudge on her mentor didn't last long either. Rolling her eyes softly again, her eyes flickered over to Lionwhisker. She liked him the most for sure, Otterstone was nice and all and she was neutral with Fawnsqueak and Coyotesnarl.
Standing up, she trotted over, smiling and it wasn't long before she noticed Lionwhisker's own apprentice. Who looked to be around her age but, she was of course bigger with her huge stature. "Hi Lionwhisker!" She smiled, slowing to a walk when she got close. Though, her gaze soon turned into a mixture of annoyed amusement. "Nice to meet you too." She snorted back. "I'm Echopaw, Irisflame's apprentice. You must be Lionwhisker's?"
She glanced over at Coyotesnarl, and gave an invisible wince remembering she had gave Dewpaw a good slash on the cheek. He had deserved it though, what ever punishment she had gotten.

[Moon Lily]

[ Dipper CheetahPelt NIGHTOWL Dust wren Wings ]

Irisflame grinned back at the silvery figure of her apprentice, the burden that had previously rested on her back evaporating. It felt good to know that at least the young she-cat felt like she was able to forgive her. The older she wasn't the sort that came across as a cuddly, cheery one. Being a cat that after on impluse, the forgiveness that she'd earned would often go extinct the moment she opened her maw.
"No, it's fine! Come around when you can, some of the Shadowclanners are complete idiots. ...but a new 'cough? Sounds interesting. Probably worth bringing up." Fluffing out her blue-grey pelt, she turned to spot more shadows fluttering around the den. She rotated further to classify them as the two Riverclanners. Ah, Flirt and Deerboy. Fawnsqueak seemed a bit out of it, his gaze distant and slightly clouded. He looked distracted by something beyond her comprehension, something she couldn't quite grasp by reading the emotions in his vacant face. It wasn't as if she could, anyway, due to her lacking in the empathy department. Features contorting into a small frown, she shook her head softly before she cleared her throat to speak.
"You okay, Fawn? You seem a little...you know." She commented, raising a thin brow. Exchanging a glance with Otterstone, she wondered if the old molly had anything to do with it. She paused a moment before beaming at the three-legged medicine cat, dipping her head in greeting."Nice to see you too, Otterstone." it was only seconds later that two new faces poked through the door, one the old face of Laddie, and the other the tentative face of a young apprentice. A new medicine cat apprentice? This was bound to be exciting. There seemed to be a new one every meeting, at this point. Sooner or later Coyotesnarl would have to choose his. It seemed Grump would be the last to do so, something she was sure he would take great pleasure in. She didn't see him as an apprentice-lover.
"Eh, I'm good enough. Things have been stressful." She shrugged, looking off to the side in a casual sense, "But yes, Echopaw is huge. She's already much taller than me, which isn't saying a lot, but still!" She exclaimed, head shaking vigorously in awe.

As noticeable tension grew between the two Riverclan medicine cats, she gave an irritated flick on her tail and drew herself up to fill height. She looked between the two, gaze stern.
"Both of you, be quiet! I don't know what your situation is, but this is the Thunderclan scrap's first meeting. First impressions are way off, everybody. And you're right, random-Thunderclan-apprentice-I-do-not-know, we shouldn't just be sitting here talking. Fawnsqueak, that was respectful of you to stay silent, but really, you can just come on over. And Otterstone, don't jarr him about it." She mewed, Her gaze flickering from face to face. They were both snapping at each other's necks like hungry dogs, for Starclan's sake! Nodding to Coyotesnarl, she squared her shoulders. "Right, pressing matters..." She parroted, settling back down. She tapped the earth with impatient claws, her blue orbs floating all over the place. She couldn't wait to just get this night over with. She had a warm nest waiting for her and a secret stash of honey back home with her name on it.

[Fawn]

Fawnsqueak's heart sunk at Coyotesnarl's response, but he couldn't reasonably expect anybody to extract a cry for help from his consoling of Otterstone. He didn't know who Coyotesnarl was addressing in his sarcasm--just him, just Otterstone, or both?--but he defaulted to the latter, biting the inside of his cheek. Yeah... this was not going well, despite his attempts to just-- have a normal evening, albeit a quieter one to avoid this mess. Inwardly, he reviewed what he'd said in a scan for bickering, most of his responses diffusions that'd apparently fanned the flames or came off incorrectly to the rest. What should've been a mundane (but pointless) meeting was turning into his thesis for dropping out of the next one, because if it was Otterstone alone, she probably wouldn't lash out as frequently.

Jaw set, he turned his gaze to the shimmering mineral and kind of wanted to just smash his head into the thing for numbing brain damage or maybe getting knocked straight into StarClan like the others had demonstrated last time. Guilt rippled through him for the implication that smacking his head into a stone was a better pastime than this, yet they'd both yield about the same results he supposed. Just the stone-thing wouldn't take as long.

Fawnsqueak tipped his head at... at Irisflame. That was her name, he was pretty sure. He was disheartened by her inconsiderate response, raised an eyebrow at it and couldn't help but wonder if she'd actually heard the exchange. Playing this off like it was an evenly-distributed immaturity on both sides was illogical and ...fairly offensive, downright insulting, however he was inclined to believe Irisflame's past interactions with Otterstone colored her to be inclined toward leniency. Fawnsqueak didn't have that benefit. All he got from her was his behavior operated on the same level of Otterstone's. It circled back to his previous thoughts of medicine cats and hypocrisy, and he wasn't impressed but thought better of calling attention to it with Irisflame's newly-acquired agenda to push the meeting as fast as possible despite her seemingly casual approach prior to this. He could get on board with that, no matter how flimsy it came across as to Fawnsqueak, and he waited with a blank expression for direction to either resume this social hour in StarClan or Lionwhisker's introduction of his guest.

CheetahPelt NIGHTOWL Dust wren Wings Moon Lily

[Leucos]

wren Moon Lily CheetahPelt Dipper Dust

Why was everybody so...different tonight? Was it because something has gone down at the gathering? His stomach had a uneasy feeling for once in his life..hopefully things got calmer once he got back home.
He smiled at Echopaw as She walked beside them "aye. You look like you can be a medicine cat already!" he meowed with a tail swish.
"and yes this is my apprentice ! His name is Condorpaw and we have already done his ceremony . We still have yet to go over training but the last few days have been a bit awkward .." he told Echopaw and irisflame. He highly doubted the others were interested right now..so he let them be.
"also condorpaw..these are your friends and colleagues ...not intruders ..heh...But good job at keeping your guard up!" he meowed.

[Dust]

God - this cat was HUGE! Even propped up on his tippy-toes, it still felt like the feline, who had introduced herself as Echopaw, towered over him. In fact, Condorpaw felt himself slowly retreating further behind Lionwhisker, especially as every cat in the general vicinity glanced towards him. His mentors confirmation that these were in fact """"friends"""" made his skin crawl with embarrassment. With a huff, the apprentice attempted to force his fur flat, head dipped down as he shuffled his way forward, mumbling under his breath,

"Yeah... I'm Condorpaw..." Narrowed green eyes shifted among the grouping of cats - his head spinning with all their yelling and what not. Condorpaw hadn't realized how dramatic some of these cats were! His tail battered the ground behind him upon hearing Lionwhisker's comment. It felt almost impossible for him to burn harder than he already was - but somehow it happened.

"Err.. Hello."

wren Moon Lily CheetahPelt Dipper NIGHTOWL

[Wings]

[ wren Moon Lily CheetahPelt Dipper NIGHTOWL Dust ]
-Echopaw-

Echopaw noticed Condorpaw's hesitance, or what seemed like hesitance. "Well... that's Irisflame, Coyotesnarl, Otterstone, and Fawnsqueak." She pointed to the different medicine cats respectively, turning back to Condorpaw. It would be nice to have someone her age here, even if she was a heck of a lot bigger that them.
Then, she turned around, beckoning the brown tom over with her plumed tail. She sat down in front of the huge crystal with her back to it. It's shine made her silver spotted tabby fur blue tinted and she smiled back over to Condorpaw. It was nice to finally meet a not-idiot tom her age.

[Dust]

Slowly, but surely, Condorpaw made his way from behind Lionwhisker, still keeping a cautious gaze on Echopaw, though it would shift as Echpaw introduced the other felines gathered around. Irisflame. She seemed nice enough, at least she had greeted him earlier... Coyotesnarl. Eugh. Condorpaw had to suppress a shudder at the ghastly sight of his face.. though there was a part of him curious to find out about his scar. Otterstone. One of the cats who had been yowling for some reason or another. Fawnsqueak. Condorpaw would raise a brow at their empty expression. Did they not want to be here?

Well, now that the introductions were done and over with, Condorpaw would glance back at his mentor with a bit of uncertainty before following Echopaw's beckon. A part of him still felt unsettled. These cats all smelled different, Irisflame and Echopaw especially putting him on edge. They both smelled like the cats that had attacked ThunderClan moons ago. Would they have been there...? Or approved of it? Leaning closer to Echopaw, Condorpaw would grumble quietly under his breath,

"What are they all yowling about anyway?"

wren Moon Lily CheetahPelt Dipper NIGHTOWL Wings

[Fawn]

With everything seemingly slowing to a crawl, Fawnsqueak was losing interest in the idle chatter, left without direction or what they were supposed to do next. This was already a collossal chunk of his evening that he felt could be spent on a more practical activity; after all, telling some patient that he'd sat around with the other medicine cats wouldn't be healing anything. In his boredom and the absence of conversation, he was starting to drift off into a light slumber, waking every now and then only to have heavy eyelids eventually crash down.

[Wings]

[ Moon Lily Dust Dipper NIGHTOWL CheetahPelt wren ]
-Echopaw-

Echopaw was happy when Condorpaw sat beside her. He seemed like a reasonable tom, unlike Dewpaw. As he spoke she gave a huff. "I generally don't know. Something about politeness." She gave him a quick smile before raising her voice above everyone else's. "Can we get this going? We've been here for awhile and all you guys have been doing is arguing."

[CheetahPelt]

wren Moon Lily NIGHTOWL Wings Dust Dipper

Otterstone’s ears grew hot at Irisflame’s comment. She stayed silent for a moment, awkwardly avoiding responding to Fawnsqueak. She watched the two apprentices for a moment before jolting a second. “Oh! I wanted to ask you lot about a set of herbs that I collected of late.” she raised her meow just slightly, enough to give it emphasis but not enough to really raise suspicion, hoping Fawnsqueak had heard during one of his minutes of irritating snoozing. She continued though. “Has anyone dealt with using willow for anything? Or dried oak leaves? Willow doesn’t really grow anywhere else, but oak leaves I thought someone might have used before.”

[Moon Lily]

[ wren -I think it's your turn! ]

[Wings]

Bump wren

[Wings]

[ Moon Lily Dust Dipper NIGHTOWL CheetahPelt wren ]
-Echopaw-

Echopaw was sick of just waiting for the adults to get going on things. Sitting up from her slowly sinking position, she looked over to Otterstone. "Irisflame and I usually just used Oak leaves for carrying herbs. I can't really think of any other uses for them. And Willow doesn't grow in ShadowClan territory as far I as I know."

[BEAR.]

[ It may be best to drop this roleplay since two of these characters are no longer medicine cats. Wings, Moon Lily ]

[Moon Lily]

[ BILL. -Yep! Will do. ]

Irisflame stared at the moon, oblivious to the tension around her. It had been covered with several shadows, probably angered by the snarks and snaps that had taken place tonight. It was far last Moonhigh, and if the moon wasn't going to show... Great stars, we need to get home. Echopaw's mother would probably be worried sick otherwise, not to mention the more important reason that she had a perfectly good nest waiting for her back home. Jolting around as Otterstone made a frail attempt to quell the unsteady air, she frowned.
"Oak is only used to transport things, as Speedy said. Willow...not sure. To heal cats, probably. But enough babbling." She gestured to the lake light coming from the cloud-covered moon, now low in the sky, "It's close to sunrise, and those clouds are preventing this meeting from progressing. If Condorpaw wants to have a meeting next time, I suggest we pull our asses out from disagreements and get on with it." It may have been harsh, but she was done with this. She was tired, annoyed, and had a hullabaloo of other emotion overwhelming her.
"C'mon Speedy, let's go. We're leaving. See you folks next time." And with that, she whisked her tail in farewell and stormed out via the passage.

[ CheetahPelt Dust NIGHTOWL wren Dipper Wings -see BILL.'s previous post. It also wasn't progressing, so this just makes it easier :heartbounce:]

[lio]

[ Slushie ]

It felt strange, returning here.

Her pawsteps didn't feel like her own as she led Buckbranch to the Starcave. Leading. Right. She wouldn't be doing that much longer.

Duskstar swallowed the lump in her throat and cast a thin smile over her shoulder, hazel gaze settling on Buckbranch. He would be a fine leader. If only she could truly make up for how she had treated him for so long.

Maybe they'd meet again. Maybe she'd return to ThunderClan some day. Who knew what would happen?

She couldn't dwell on that for long. Instead, the calico made her way into the cave, just barely able to do so without running into anything. Living with one eye still wasn't something she was used to, but she'd have time to work on that.

For now, she had to get through this ceremony without having a breakdown. At least the nagging voice of insecurity in her head was quiet.

The calico settled down with a flick of her tail, though she glanced toward Buckbranch once more.

"Are you ready?" Duskstar asked.

[dino.]

[ hxney ]

----Buckbranch----

The cave seemed dark and foreboding as he followed Duskstar inside. He cast a furtive glance over his shoulder, at the entrance. Then, with a deep breath, he turned and picked up his pace.

His heartbeat seemed too loud. It thrummed in his ears, against his chest, like it wanted to break out and run. Run from responsibility. Run from the fact that Duskstar was leaving and just abandon him to go on without it.

He returned Duskstar's smile with one of his own, though it seemed strained. Was this really what he wanted? To push her out, and take over? A voice whispered at the edge of his mind, Shush, you dummy, it's fine. She CHOSE this.

He took another deep breath, and another, to calm his pounding heart until he could feel it no longer. His paws seemed to move on their own, and even though his body told him "no", he could only give one answer in response to Duskstar's question.

"As I'll ever be," he whispered.

[lio]

[ Slushie ]
[ Don't forget to mention BILL. in your next post! ]

His confirmation led her to close her eye, hoping to fall asleep. It thankfully didn't take long for her to do so.

Duskstar opened her eyes to see the familiar landscape of stars surrounding her. The sight brought a small thought to appear in the back of her mind.

Would she still join StarClan after dying? Maybe becoming a loner would take away her chance of joining the ranks of the stars. Whatever the answer was... she didn't want to think of it right now. Duskstar simply flicked her tail and looked around, waiting for Buckbranch and the StarClanners to join her.

[dino.]

[ BILL. hxney ]

----Buckbranch----

His paws shaking, he settled down next to her and closed his eyes. He was exhausted from thinking, exhausted from worrying, and it didn't take long for him to slip into unconsciousness.

When he opened his eyes, he was standing beside Duskstar in a starry expanse. He scanned it carefully, his eyes wide with wonder. "It's beautiful." Silently he couldn't help but wonder who would be giving him his lives, if he would know them or even simply just recognize them or not.

Something sparked in his chest, a tingling sensation that spread throughout his body. This was it. This was what he'd been waiting for.

--------

Buckbranch's lives are open for anyone to give! I won't be responding to posts until all nine have been given, just to make sure it goes a little faster.

PLEASE try not to give him any traits he already has, and try to make them unique! His page is HERE (https://turtle23740q.wixsite.com/thefield/blank-page-8) for quick reference.

Life #1 and Life #9 are only available to BILL. and hxney, but all others are up for grabs!

[BEAR.]

[ sorry for this crabcake, he's pretty unhappy with everything :c ]

"You didn't listen to me."

Brokenstar's voice was a growl as he stalked out of the bushes, glaring at the duo that had awoken in the stars. "I told you, Duskstar, when you were losing your last life that you needed to pick it up and be there for your Clan and you didn't even try."

There was no excuses. No apologies could mend the damage she did. "I hope you have some shame. ThunderClan is worse off than WindClan was, and that's saying a lot!" He didn't break his pace as he neared them, directly going to Duskstar and getting in her face. "You're lucky you're doing this willingly." It was rough, maybe a little unnecessarily so but Brokenstar was furious she had disregarded his warning. Things might have been different had she made an attempt to prove herself to ThunderClan.. but she didn't. It broke his heart to see his Clan in such poor shape.

"Duskstar, you have come here to give your remaining leader lives to StarClan, to officially step down from the leadership of ThunderClan and pass the guardianship of your Clan over to Buckbranch.

"By the power of StarClan, I revoke the lives granted to you during your leadership ceremony. From this day forth your life as a leader is no more-- the only life you have remaining is the natural life of a warrior.

"Your decision to step down on your own accord shows your capacity to recognize you are not what ThunderClan needs, and with the authority of StarClan I grant you your new name. Duskstar, once more you shall be known as Duskfeather." He didn't want to give her any credit. He saw the shambles of the Clan, how Buckbranch and Rainywhisker took the brunt of the work for her. He was soured by her actions and her behavior. Brokenstar was aware of how terrible she felt, how broken she was herself, but the self-depreciative thoughts didn't heal all the damage that was done to their Clan.

"To follow the custom of a leader relinquishing their lives, Duskfeather: you will be giving Buckbranch his final life. This is the gift you are given, for recognizing your shortcomings and doing what you believe is best for the Clan. Use this life wisely. You will have some time to think about what you would like Buckbranch to have before you go. I recommend something he lacks, something that will guide him in the seasons to come."

Brokenstar was already stepping away, tail flicking irritably as he moved to sit a way from the circle of waiting spirits. "Duskfeather, join the spirits when you're ready. Buckbranch, step forward when you are prepared to get your lives." Brokenstar would not be giving one, but he would observe to ensure the ceremony was done properly.

[ Slushie, hxney ]

[dino.]

[ BILL. hxney ]

----Buckbranch----

His fur rose along his spine as the StarClan tom appeared in front of him. It was all he could do not to flinch at the scathing tone directed at Duskstar, even though Brokenstar held no anger toward him. When directed, he inhaled deeply and moved forward, squaring his shoulders to appear taller, more confident. He spared Duskstar - apparently now simply Duskfeather - a sympathetic glance as he did so, but he looked away quickly. If she looked hurt, he didn't want to see it.

[BEAR.]

"Well, what do we got here?"

StarClan certainly did a poor job of keeping the Dark Forest out of these ceremonies.

Mountaingrowl's approach was met with the reek of blood and rot, his sharp gaze rested on the scrawny form of Buckbranch and the beat up little girl beside him. "A little boy playin' warrior and his girlfriend. Oh, I'm surprised neither of you been driven out yet. ThunderClan must be that desperate, huh?" His voice rumbled with quiet laughter. He could see round four of ThunderClan being on fire already.

"So.. desperate for leadership they rely on the enemy sympathizer for guidance. Color me surprised, I'm proud of you for blusterin' your way this far. Maybe you'll be worth something after all."

The distance between them was closed as Mountaingrowl lowered his head to touch his muzzle to Buckbranch's forehead.

"A long time ago, you were some runt runnin' his mouth about things he ain't understand. Now you have a chance to be a tom.. and I reckon I can help you with that, huh?" His muzzle contorted in a smirk.

"I give you the life of ASSERTIVENESS. That's one thing about you tansies: you back down way too easily. Stand up for yourself, stand up for your Clan. Don't let anyone push you around, or you'll end up like Fireweed over there." He nodded shortly to Duskfeather, before he stepped away from Buckbranch.

"ThunderClan's in need of some real change, and fast. You can sink like the rest of 'em.. or you can float above it and actually make the Clan worth livin' in. What's it gonna be, daisy?"

Letting this linger, Mountaingrowl gave Duskfeather a short wink before he moved to return to the collection of spirits. "Maybe you should hit me up some time, Prairie Fire. I'll show you how to have some fun."

[ Slushie, hxney ]

[The Kitty.]

[ Slushie BILL. hxney ]

Leopardjaw
__________

From around the starry horde of cats, a brawny cashmere stepped forward from within the gloom, eyes glittering with the anticipation of what was currently awaiting her. A tom stood before her, Mountaingrowl and some other, unidentifiable tom beside him. And, oh god, it was Duskstar - er, Duskfeather, now - of ThunderCult. Well, that sucked, Leopardjaw supposed.

"Buckbranch," she greeted, her low voice gruff as usual. "I hope you'll be able to lead that little ThunderCult of yours, if I do say so myself - at least, I hope you'll do better than Charredface over there." The massive she-cat flicked her plume of a tail in the direction of the former ThunderCult leader.

"Anyway," she continued drowsily, "how about we get this over with so I can head back to my nap, now shall we?

"Buckbranch, I reward you - rather excitedly - with the life of tenacity. I hope you can use this reward to both the benefit of yourself and ThunderCu-Clan. This has been a pleasure."

[vellichor]

The pale cream cat watched with bright amber eyes as Duskstar and Buckbranch awoke. Another ThunderClan leader... he hadn’t noticed it back when he was alive, but lately, ThunderClan has been slipping... hopefully, Buckbranch would change that.

He stayed in the shadows as Duskstar was stripped of her leader’s name. He was proud that she’d acknowledged that she wasn’t what the slowly dying Clan needed. The forest didn’t need any more Clan merges.

The first life was given — assertiveness. The cat lashed his tail. The last thing the forest needed was for a leader to mistake assertiveness for aggressiveness. Icestar had already nearly destroyed ShadowClan that way, ThunderClan really didn’t need that. Amber eyes narrowed.

Once it was clear, he stepped out of the shadows, looking both Duskfeather and Buckbranch in the eye. "My name is Windystar," he announced, looking back and forth between the cats. "Assertiveness is great. Hell, you’re going to need that life. The path ahead certainly isn’t going to be all flowers and clear skies."

"But you must know, there’s a difference between assertiveness and aggression. In order for ThunderClan to thrive once again, you will NEED to know that difference. You must not put a target on your Clan’s back, as Icestar did to mine..." he growled, feeling upset. No Clan should have to go through that.

"I give you the life of wisdom. Use it well in the times ahead."

Slushie hxney

[Madelaine]

[ BILL.; hxney; Slushie; ]

In the shadows came a small black and white molly. The difference between the other two cats she wasn't part of the dark forest. The molly looked at Buckbranch with her good eye. Her lower one looked at the ground.

"Buckbranch I have come to give you your next life. I give you the life of good judgement. Try and make good judgement of cats or they might not all respect you.", she meowed. Willowrose pressed her small nose to his to give him the life. She stepped back to allow the next cat to come up.

[stag]

*Riverwhisker appeared he may not be Thunderclan but he at least wanted to do something with the new leader,He was in Starcan and not the Darkforest at Least*

Buckbranch,I may not be thunderclan but with this I give you your 5th life,I give you the life of Bravery,with this life use it to protect your clan.May you live longer than most and may you lead Thunderclan with a iron paw

*The starey Riverclan warrior touched his nose to Buckbranchs forehead then faded away*
BILL. hxney Slushie

[sootsplashed]

Blazestep was waiting quietly, watching the tortoiseshell tom get lives from other cats. "Hello, Buckbranch," He mewed as he stepped forward, now directly in front of the to-be leader.

"I may not be from ThunderClan, but I have come to give you a life." The ginger tom smiled slightly. "I know you will be a great leader, and use all of your lives wisely in the best hopes for your clan. That being said, this life is for strength to overcome fear." The tabby touched noses with Buckbranch, and silently padded away.

[ Slushie ]

[Elementals]

~Sproutpaw~

Sproutpaw glanced at the other cats who had given Buckbranch his lives. It was strange to be helping a to-be leader receive a life. Sproutpaw had never done it before but she was willing to help out for the sake of Thunderclan. Even though she was able to watch her siblings, it still made her a bit sad to have to see life beat them up sometimes. She waited for her turn which came very soon. The molly padded forward and cleared her throat.

"I am Sproutpaw, the sister of Pineapple and Seedcrush. I have watched Thunderclan from time to time. I can see that you will be a great leader so keep on trying. I give you a life to have an open mind. You may find surprising things you have never known to be there at all but were waiting for someone to uncover them." Sproutpaw spoke as she touched noses with them to make sure the life went through.

When she believed her job was done, Sproutpaw joined the others who were done giving the lives to Buckbranch. It still was surprising to give a life which would be a process she would never figure out the magic to.

{ Slushie }

[Abyssopelagic]

A small dark grey kit without a tail appeared to Buckbranch. He looked up to the larger tom, an aged look despite the young age he passed at.

"I gift to you the life of Insight. May your fore sight and intuition guide you accordingly. Be always aware of the state of your clan."
The small kit, named Fizzletwist in his final moments, padded foward and stretched out his neck to press his nose to Buckbranch's to pass on his life to the new leader before padding back with the other cats, eyes still watching him.


BILL. Slushie hxney

[lio]

[ Slushie BILL. ]

Duskstar, Duskfeather... no, she was to simply become Dusk after this. A mere loner hiding away from the hatred she would face if she had returned to the Clan. Brokenstar's words cut deep into her, causing the calico to flinch. He was right, though. Every last syllable spoke of only the truth. She was horrible. She was stupid. She was useless. She wasn't good enough for the Clan.

Her hazel eyes- it would always be weird, having both eyes in her dreams- had zoned out, only to snap back to the present when she noticed Mountaingrowl speaking toward her. The flirtatiousness of his words caused her to grimace, nose wrinkling in disgust.

No thanks.

And with Leopardjaw's words, she had to bite her tongue to keep from cursing the she-cat out.

Dusk shook away the negativity that had settled over her and focused on the lives ceremony. Assertiveness, tenacity, wisdom, good judgement, bravery, strength to overcome fear, open mindedness, insight,

Oh. It was time for her life now.

She tentatively stepped forward, ears flattening with nervousness. This final life would signal the start of both of their futures. Buckbranch as the leader of ThunderClan, and Dusk as... a loner. It hurt her heart to leave, but... this was for the better. Buckbranch would lead the Clan to greatness, fixing all she had destroyed, and she would live somewhere away from the Clans.

A sigh left her lips before she forced a smile to curl upon them, looking toward Buckbranch with a sad glint in her eyes.

"Buckbranch, you were the deputy of ThunderClan before I took your place. I then forced Flintspirit from his position of leadership, only to cause more failure to fall upon the Clan. My time as leader has done the opposite of what I had promised when I received my lives.

I always acted on my emotions rather than sitting to think of what would be best. I allowed them to control me rather than controlling them, and that led to many mistake being made. And so, Buckbranch, with this life, I give you Reasoning. Think with logic when making decisions for the Clan, and for yourself."

Dusk gently pressed her nose to his forehead, feeling the life surge through her and into him. A faint tingling sensation was left behind when she stepped away.

"It is your duty to fix what I had broken. To make things right. Make this second chance count, and don't follow in my pawsteps, okay? I believe in you, and maybe one day we will meet again. Make ThunderClan the home I could have only dreamed of making it.

Be a better leader than I could have ever been... Buckstar."

With hopeful smile, Dusk dipped her head and stepped back, then raised her snout and began to call his new name.

"Buckstar! Buckstar! Buckstar!"

[JackHunt_17]

Wait, what happend to Duskstar? Slushie

[Cobra]

[ Slushie hxney - Sorry, I don't know if they're taken...Feel free to ignore this! ]

~~Vixenwhisper~~

The golden queen approached the new ThunderClan leader. She dipped her head. "Hello, Buckbranch-for now, Duskfeather." Vixenwhisper eyed them carefully. They were ThunderClan-but a life was a life. He needed them in order to become a true leader. A true leader.

"Buckbranch, I give you a life for judgement. Use it wisely to judge cats, to watch them. To know them." Vixenwhisper held her breath. Was it right? It seemed like a pretty good life...She touched her nose to his, sending a surge of ice-cold pain through him. Along with it she sent images of cats, dozens of them. You don't know who to trust.

Vixenwhisper stepped back, nodding to the two cats.

[BEAR.]

The chanting faded, the ring of spirits vanished until it was only the three left. Then two, as Duskstar disappeared back to return to the waking realm.

In the silence sat Brokenstar, hunched over as he stared at the newest leader of ThunderClan through half-opened eyes. For once, he looked his age-- an older cat, exhausted by time and regret.

"When I lead ThunderClan," Brokenstar informed him quietly, "I neglected my duty as a leader to keep my Clan safe preemptively. I picked an inexperienced deputy who was unprepared to handle what the world would throw at her, and when I passed and she took over, she failed to defend ThunderClan from the first evil era.. the chain of darkness my son caused.

"I'm not going to pussy-foot around with you, Buckstar. The reason I'm telling you this is ThunderClan has had.. a lot of bad leaders. For as many ups as we get, we get five more downs and our Clan struggles to recover.

"This is.. this is your opportunity to stop the cycle. Be the leader ThunderClan has always deserved. Don't be like everyone else before you. It's going to be tough, and it's going to suck at first.. but take a leaf out of that Twilightstar's tree. You can do this."

[ Slushie ]

[dino.]

[ hxney BILL. ]

----Buckstar----

The appearance of Mountaingrowl startled him. He hadn't been expecting the giant tom to be here, so long after they had last interacted, especially because of their last interaction. He eyed him warily as the life was given, and gave Leopardjaw several sharp looks throughout her little spiel, then relaxed as he stepped back and the others came forward.

Assertiveness, tenacity, wisdom, good judgement, bravery, the strength to overcome fear, an open mind, insight, and finally...

His eyes drifted shut as she tried to apologize. It was all in the past, all in the past. Hadn't he told her that before? Then she was pressing her nose to his forehead. He felt all jittery, as if he were quaking, yet when he cracked an eye open to look at his paws, they were still.

Reasoning. He blinked up at her as she pulled away, feeling the final life rush through him, hearing his name. His new name. Buckstar. A shudder of exhilaration shook his body, and he gave her a small smile.

"I'll try my best. I promise."

He watched until Duskfeather had vanished completely, and then he turned his gaze to Brokenstar. His eyes scanned the older cat's form, and he lifted a paw to step forward. But the old leader's voice made him pause.

"Like I told Duskfeather," he responded in a murmur, "I'm going to try my best. I know I won't be perfect. I know that I'm going to make mistakes. But I'm going to build off of them, not let them swallow me. And I'm going to fix what Duskfeather left behind." He turned a paw over, looking at his unblemished pads, remembering that in the waking world they were burnt and blistered.

"ThunderClan will not be consumed by failure," he continued, his voice stronger now. "I'm going to make sure of that."

With that, he began to fade, until the starry landscape and everything within it had sunken into darkness. Then he opened his eyes, and the Starcave was in front of him once more.

He rose to his paws and glanced over at Duskfeather. "I'm ready to go back if you're... if you're ready to leave."

[lio]

[ Slushie ]

Dusk was sitting upright in the cave as she awaited Buckstar's awakening, a sad smile resting on her face. This would be her goodbye. After this, she would be a loner, living off on her own without a Clan to back her up. Though... the Clan hated her anyway. She was not an accepted leader, and albeit leaving behind her own mess for Buckstar to clean up, she believed in him to be able to do so.

As his voice reached her ears, the calico turned her head to look at him. He was now her superior. He was the leader of ThunderClan. Maybe... maybe he was even her only friend. If he would even accept her as one.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and stood, stepping toward him.

"I'm ready."

Dusk stopped before she passed him, taking a split second to think before awkwardly stepping towards the new leader and burying her face into his shoulder. She stayed like that for a few moments, relishing in the feel of another cat's fur for the last time. It was highly unlikely she'd meet anyone out as a loner. Anyone who'd... actually like her, at least.

Her tail twitched as she stepped back once more, offering a thin smile of farewell.

"Make sure to tell Linnetwing that I'm safe, and that I'll miss her. Maybe- Maybe one day I'll return to visit. But now-- now I'm a loner. Dusk, the fierce loner of the Outskirts, how spooky," she chuckled quietly, "In all seriousness, I know you'll be a wonderful leader, Buckstar. Make the Clan proud."

With that, Dusk pressed her nose to his cheek before walking from the cave, disappearing before he could follow.

[dino.]

[ hxney ]

----Buckstar----

Buckstar returned her smile, though it felt to him as though it were strained and maybe even a little sad. He thought he would have been glad to see her go, after how she had treated him, but no - his own words echoed within his mind as he lifted a paw to walk toward the entrance of the Starcave. "What's past is past."

The sudden embrace froze him in his tracks, his breath hitching in his throat. He wanted to ask what she was doing, but a quiet voice told him that this wasn't the time, and with a shaky breath he reached up with a forepaw and wrapped it around Duskfeather's shoulders.

When she stepped back, he let her go, and although his smile grew a little wider, it still looked sorrowful. Perhaps a bit regretful. "I'll tell her. I'll make sure she knows. And I wish you luck, wherever you decide to go. If you decide to return someday... you'll be welcome back with open arms."

His eyes closed as her nose brushed his cheek. "Goodbye, Duskfeather," he murmured.

Then, once she had vanished from sight, Buckstar turned in the direction of ThunderClan and disappeared into the brush.

[Moon Lily]

[ NIGHTOWL Siren Bliss @Pidgeon Rainquail elysian -sorry for the later starter, I've been busy!]

Irisflame panted heavily as she scaled the last few stretches of the hill, her sides heaving. It had been a while since she'd had this much exercise. Pausing for a breather, she gazed further up, where Icestar and Ebonyflame likely were. Her oddities put her at a slight disadvantage, one that didn't help in the least when travelling. Just a few...more...tail-lengths. Even her mind was exhausted from the hours of labour it had taken to arrive at the Seastones. The Starcave meeting awaited them, and the moon seemed eager to get started.
She nearly collapsed at the summit, catching herself mere kitsteps away from the ground. It was almost surprising she hadn't fallen unconscious as Talonstone had done. Standing up shakily, the blue-grey medicine cat tottered over to the beginning of a tunnel, ducking through the mouth and into the dim passage.
"You two...follow me." She breathed, flicking her tail in motion for the leader and medicine cat apprentice to follow. It felt strange, attending the Starcave meeting in the presence of Icestar. Intimidating, almost. If this was how she felt around her leader, she couldn't imagine how the other medicine cats would feel. She prayed to the stars the two Windclan rookies wouldn't remember their first meeting as their worst one. Which led onto the more pressing question- why was Icestar here?

The passage grew more spacious as they grew closer to the cavern, and she stepped out of the tunnel with a grin. The dazzling crystals that welcomed them never ceased to amaze her. The clear gems glittered with a brilliance that could not be described in words and towered higher than most twolegs. It was there precious treasures that allowed them to commune with Starclan. Moving aside so that the others could join her, she nodded to Icestar, and then Ebonyflame.
"The rest of us herb-spitters'll be here soon, and the meeting with Starclan will start at Moonhigh." She explained to Ebonyflame, knowing that Icestar had likely been told this before due to her leader's ceremony. She felt temptation pull at her, the question she so wanted to ask imprinted in her mind. Why are you here, your Icy highness?

[vellichor]

Snailswirl plodded forward, weariness settling in their heavy paws. It was late... the stars were gorgeous, but the oaks and pines blocked them out. Not being able to see the moon and stars overhead made the tabby uncomfortable. How any cat could stay a night, let alone a lifetime in a forest was unimaginable. The undergrowth and roots had been targeting their paws all night, it seemed. Snail had tripped and stumbled more times than they cared to recall. But they were finally approaching, and... they weren’t alone. ShadowClan, much stronger than the remnants of their old territory. It was just Itisflame, they hoped. Though... there was more than one scent. Maybe she’d gotten an apprentice? Or maybe Echopaw or... whoever had returned. That was good news... right?

At the top of a hill, there was a silhouette. "Irisflame...?" they whispered, mostly to themself and Coldamber. They were certainly glad they weren’t doing this alone. Maybe they’d been wrong about scenting more than one ShadowClanner. With a small nod to Coldamber, they’d begin to scale the hill. It was... quite the climb, to be honest. About halfway up, Snailswirl felt their labored breathing become more wheezy. Oh, no. Not again. Their stupid breathing acting up. After what seemed like forever, the medicine cat flopped on top of the hill, wheezing. "I... I’m fi... fine..." they panted, desperately trying to get air back into their lungs. This happened sometimes: after running awhile, after running really fast, even after a particularly difficult battle training session. And so, it seemed, after scaling a hill. Great.

Once they felt comfortable enough to get up, Snailswirl struggled to their paws. It seemed their legs wanted to give out, too. Awhile of being in the medicine den seemed to do that to a cat. "We should.. follow the scent..." they spoke, feeling less breathless. Finally, they were feeling somewhat normal. As darkness enveloped them, Snail found themself wanting to feel Coldamber. To know they weren’t alone. Even a brush on their tail or a stir of breath on their side. This was... kind of terrifying, to be honest. They had no idea what to expect.

Until they felt air! Fresh air stirred their whiskers and they felt the tiredness evaporate. Light! Light up ahead. Very dim, but something! "C’mon," they whisper-spoke, feeling excitement fizzle though their veins. Stars filtered in fro above and shiny crystals sparkled along the walls. They didn’t even see the others at first, so lost in the dazzling spectacle. It wasn’t until they shook out their pelt and realized, embarrassed, that they had an audience. They greeted the cats as they saw them. "Irisflame, uh... hello... and you must be the medicine cat apprentice...?" still feeling embarrassed, they looked down at their paws for a second and then up. Something... someone else.... caught their eye. Her scarred, dark pelt and her piercing eyes...

"Coldamber, get back!" to their knowledge, the loner turned queen turned medicine cat didn’t know any fighting moves. It looked like they’d have to play protector. The medicine cat was more important, technically, than the apprentice anyway. Claws now unsheathed and fear radiating off of the tabby, they backed against a wall. No way out. This had to be a trap. Retaliation, of sorts. Irisflame seemed nice. But hey, maybe they were just bad at judging cats.

Of all the Clans, ShadowClan did seem to have the most reason to kill another Clan’s medicine cats. Well, Snailswirl wouldn’t go down easy.

NIGHTOWL Moon Lily Siren Bliss Pigeon Rainquail

[Abyssopelagic]

Coldamber tripped often, with the roots and tangles deciding the tri pod of a cat was a perfect target. In the less hazardous parts, she tried to help Snailswirl. Or she pretended to help them, really she wanted the extra support, leaning in eachother, but it helped the both of them out, so it wasn't entirely selfish, right?

When they reached the mountain, a part of her felt dread pang through her spine. How was she supposed to climb that? With 3 legs? Was this their way of trying to kill her?
She stayed behind Snailswirl, pushing him upwards if needed before scampering up herself. The fact she had most of her fourth leg helped.

She had barely stepped into the Cave with Snailswirl when they freaked out and told her to get back. She did, unsure about why they insisted.

Pigeon Moon Lily Siren Bliss NIGHTOWL elysian

[Madelaine]

[ Moon Lily; Rainquail; elysian; Pigeon; NIGHTOWL; ]

---Ebonyfang---

The tom padded after his mentor, keeping up with her and Icestar. He scented the other medicine cats and gave them a respectful nod. Ebonyfang looked at Snailswirl. "Yes I am.", he meowed, giving her a friendly smile. He knew that medicine cats were nearly friends, so he might as well be friendly.

The large black tom had heard stories of the medicine cats talking to their ancestors this way. He wondered who he'd meet. Hopefully it wasn't his father. He may not have known Crowtail, but he hated his guts. Ebonyfang ignored the thoughts of the rogue.

[pidgeon]

At last. The moon was high in the sky as the ShadowClan leader padded along beside the medicine cats. She was going to get answers, no matter what it took. If StarClan was going to turn their backs on her, then she would seek them out. Hunt them down. Whatever it took. Being leader was supposed to mean a strong connection to the stars. How could you do this? How could you let this happen? Icestar cursed her ancestors internally. Her ears pricked when she scented other cats, and she flickered her gaze to the moon.

Right. It was the half moon. The medicine cats would be meeting tonight, of course. Why hadn't she thought of that? No matter, she huffed. As much as she disliked the thought of being around all of these other clan cats, she would not let her strength waver even for a second. At least she'd get to witness Ebonyfang's introduction to the other medicine cats. She was interested in his response, and the other's reactions to Icestar's doppelganger kin.

Just crippled weaklings who couldn't handle serving as warriors. Her father's words echoed in her head, and she rejected them. The leader may have been callous, but she had respect for medicine cats. She once had admired their connection with StarClan. But tonight it felt like a personal blow. She wouldn't disrupt their meeting--no, she had no interest in whatever these cat's dead friends had to say. She would not be partaking. Icestar was going searching on her own. She stepped into the glistening cave, moonlight glinting off the crystals into her orange eyes, and took a seat a bit farther away from the group, acknowledging that she was not a part of it.

Siren Bliss Moon Lily Rainquail NIGHTOWL elysian

[Leucos]

Moon Lily Pigeon elysian Rainquail Siren Bliss
( Srry guys I had school )

Arriving horribly late, Lionwhisker wormed his way to the others. Sighing , the old tom gave an apologetic glance to every one. Though he froze once he saw...Icestar . His ears folded back as he took his seat and gave a cold glare.After a minute or two he had to remind himself of who she really was...He gave an uneasy nod afterwards only to look back at his comrades "I'm sorry I'm late...I had some matters I needed to attend to..." more like sleeping in was the case , he just didn't want to admit it. Though he gave a smile to Irisflame and the newbies " I've not seen you in a while the gathering didn't do much. And congratulations again you three! I hope you choose to stick around " he meowed with a lift of his chin.

[Moon Lily]

[ elysian Rainquail Siren Bliss Pigeon NIGHTOWL ]

Irisflame's gaze danced towards the crystals, wondering just how soon the moon would align with its frosty shards. It was easier to look at them rather than Icestar anyway. She glimpsed at the kin through the half-light, a small fizzle of amusement bubbling within her at the fact that they looked like twins in the dark. That was bound to rile up some confusion. Her gaze shifted to Icestar momentarily, who remained silent even as she heard the faint patters of arrivals in the passage. Why...?
Shaking her crippled paw to avoid pins and needles, she swiveled around to face the Windclan newbies. Offering them both a soft smile as they entered, she realized that they were both too spellbound by the gemstone to notice. It was hard to walk into the cavern before glueing your eyes to the precious rock. It just gave her more time to work on her grin, which was very out of practice.

"Heya, rookies. Coldamber and Snailswirl...yeah?" She asked tentatively, hoping that she'd gotten their names right the first time they'd met. It was unlikely that she'd been mistaken, but always good to check. As they padded over, she marveled at the crystal-made sunspots dancing along the walls. The entire cavern would be filled with light once the moon decided to show its face.

The atmosphere was instantly changed as she heard a gasp and the small quiver of claws being unsheathed. Oh, for Star's sakes! And this was why you never took your leader to medicine cat meetings. Honestly, Icestar should have been more aware of the fear she could bring. But the leader continued to sit in her dank corner with her customary cold gaze. She'd look like an angry stone if it wasn't for her piercing orange orbs. That was the one thing she and Ebonyflame did not have in common. Besides the numerous scars.
Turning bemusedly to the frightened medicine cat, she offered a fake smile.
"Do you mind putting those little gems away? I have no idea why she's here, but I can tell you this is not some ambush." Irisflame reassured tightly, although her tone sounded far from it. To be honest...she was nervous as hell. This was her first meeting without Coyotesnarl or Otterstone- there would likely be a better dynamic without her, but still- and it didn't seem like Fawnsqueak or Lionwhisker were coming. She'd give them a few more minutes, but Moonhigh was fast approaching.
"Okay. Let's just sit down and chill. The boys still haven't come yet, and we have all the time in the world- and speak of the Devil." She remarked, grinning as Lionwhisker made his way into the dim-lit cavern. And, like the others, with a wariness that could only be blamed on Icestar.
"Your Icy Highness, these are the medicine cats, Herb-spitters, this is Icestar. Now that we've had a formal introduction, let's be friends just for tonight and get this meeting done and dusted."

[Abyssopelagic]

Coldamber's eyes flitted to Snailswirl. Was that what he had been afraid of? The Shadowclan leader?
She didn't know whether or not this was something that was frowned upon, but surely leaders of all cats had just as much right to visit the star cats?
She gently brushed herself against her partner's shoulder, hoping they would realize she wasn't afraid and they were hopefully in no danger.
She padded up to Irisflame and dipped her head.
Hello Irisflame. Is this one your new apprentice?"
She nodded to Ebonyfang. He looked..... quite similar to the Shadow leader. Relatives, maybe? Either way, it was hardly any of her business.
She bowed to him in turn.

Coldamber wanted to hopefully sneak a second or two with Irisflame to ask about how they were doing since they had been wrongfully driven off by Windclan. She wanted to offer help, but what could she do that the other Medicine Cat wouldn't already know?
Was it even her place to help them? Would it be seen as disloyalty or betrayal?
Her head spun uncomfortably and she had to sit, lest she would fall flat on her ass in front of all these important cats.

Moon Lily Pigeon elysian Siren Bliss NIGHTOWL

[pidgeon]

Icestar was well aware of the shift in tension in the room due to her presence. She imagined it wasn't always this tense at these meetings, even though these were all cats from different Clans. Her gaze met each of the medicine cats individually, and it wasn't until they had all arrived that she decided to speak at all. She didn't like to repeat herself.

"I have my reasons for being here, and none of them concern you," the ShadowClan leader meowed gruffly. "I assure you I'm not here to fight you or steal your secrets. I'll be having my own, separate meeting with StarClan tonight." What she would not tell them was how furious she was with her ancestors. She was going to give quite an earful to whoever would listen. Whoever she could find.

The moon would be overhead very soon.

Moon Lily Siren Bliss NIGHTOWL Rainquail elysian

[vellichor]

Snailswirl
—————

Snailswirl listened as murmurs of confusion rose around them. They were on edge, gaze never straying from the huge ShadowClan leader. As she explained her purpose here, the tabby’s ears flattened. It seemed they had no use being worried. They would sheathe their claws, but keep one eye on Icestar at all times. They didn’t trust her. Feeling a brush on their shoulder, Snail looked at Coldamber. She seemed convinced they were okay.

Still, a nagging feeling wormed into their gut.

As the moon slid into view, it caught the light of the crystals. Though they could just barely see it, the crystals all around them glittered with light. Was... was this it? The moon wasn’t even in full view but... this took their breath away. Wow. Icestar temporarily forgotten, they turned and examined a few crystals, waving their paw over them to see if it blocked out the light. This was... amazing.

Rainquail NIGHTOWL Pigeon Moon Lily Siren Bliss

[Madelaine]

[ Moon Lily; Pigeon; Rainquail; NIGHTOWL; elysian; ]

Ebonyfang looked at all the medicine cats. They had every right to think this was an ambush, but all Icestar cared about right now is getting answers from Starclan. "yeah I'm the new medicine cat of Shadowclan.", he meowed with no emotions

[Moon Lily]

[ NIGHTOWL -your turn! Take your time :heartbounce:]

( elysian punkscape Siren Bliss Rainquail )

[Moon Lily]

[ NIGHTOWL Siren Bliss elysian Rainquail punkscape ]

Irisflame watched as the faces of the medicine cats lost some tension, yet maintained just enough that they all appeared cautious. She couldn't blame them. Icestar's was far from the fuzzy, cuddly type, not to mention that she'd launched attacks on each of the clans present. Which was far from a good impression. Forcing a good-natured smile on her face, the blue-grey medicine cat nodded to a confused-looking Coldamber, who seemed to be trying as hard as she could to make this while thing seem relatively normal.

"Yes, he is." She mewed awkardly, her voice coming out all over the place and ending abruptly. She was no good with other cats. She either came across as an idiot, a stuck-up ass, a nervous wreck, an emotional sulk, and on good days a relatively sane being. These traits made her wonder how she'd ever gotten the role in the first place. The she-cat caught the look on the Windclan medicine cat's face, as if waiting for something, and furrowed her brow in confusion. But Icestar's voice thundered from beside her before she could utter a word.
"Okay! So now we know nobody's going to go around killing each other. Great. Uh...right." She paused momentarily, lost in her another awkward silence before the sight of the moonshine brought her vengeance. "It's almost moonhigh, so try not to get blinded by the bright light that'll be in here in about... Three...two...one...and now!"

As if on command, bright days of milky blue light flooded the cavern, dancing across the walls and many shades of pelt as if it were an overeager kit trying to touch everything. Stepping forwards with squinting eyes, she knelt down beside the large, brilliant display.
"Touch your nose to the gem." She instructed sternly, nodding to the group of cats behind her. Inhaling, Irisflame pressed her nose to the white shard. Her vision was flooded with the white of snow before she fell into darkness.

[Whoever's replying next, please do post in starclan!]

[Undertaker]

Moon Lily [I had the time so posted a started instead, reply whenever you are free, I'm in no hurry.]

Who knew making a camp would take so much time. The broad shoulder, dark tabby she-cat looked up at the sky. To light to see the moon now, Dawnstripe grumbled to herself, dropping her head back down. She bunched up the firm muscles in her body while peering into the open mouth of the cave. She remained undaunted the eerie appearance and would have liked to have strolled right in, but she still held some respect for tradition.

The leader took a seat, looking over her shoulder for the medicine cat. Even though Dawnstripe neither liked nor trusted the cat, Irisflame was the ShadowClan medicine cat until Dawnstripe found a more suitable cat to take over the role. Since none of the cats in her clan have proven trustworthy, Irisflame would be keeping her rank, and Dawnstripe would have to tolerate her.

"Could you move a little faster. I don't have all day." She growled impatiently, hackles raised, and tail lashing, loudly behind her. There wasn't a speckle of doubt that StarClan wouldn't be giving her all nine of her lives. There was no cat fiercer or more deserving than her. It had to be some sign when her mother gave her the rank of deputy right before she passed. Dawnstripe's claws scratched at the rock as her traitor sister's faces flashed in the back of her mind she'd get what is coming to her in time. Dawnstripe was expecting to speak briefly with her mother. Perhaps the former leader had some idea on which rat she could place a deputy and not fear having her throat slit open when she slept.

[Moon Lily]

[ Undertaker -ah, thank you! and so sorry for the wait <3]

Irisflame placed a tentative paw into the chilly cavern, her eyes adjusting to the dim environment. The faint outline of the moon was only just visible. It was almost hard to imagine the hidden brilliance of the celestial body, which was concealed behind clouds. She felt at peace...which was strange. She was in the presence of perhaps one of the most ruthless cats she'd ever met, in near complete darkness. Nothing could go wrong there. And yet the tranquil sensation that rolled through her was stronger than any before. She would be alright. They would both be, with luck. But that all depended on how happy Starclan was with the newest leader of Shadowclan. Perhaps surprises were in store for them.

Taking a careful seat by Dawnstar's side, the medicine cat met her irritated gaze. It was best to regard it, and move on. Too bad she couldn't tease her as she would have done to Icestar. She was walking on thin ice, and she was hardly ready to break through. At least she hadn't done anything completely stupid yet. Raising a silent brow in Her Majesty's direction, she muffled a soft snort.
"As much as I'd like to, I'm afraid the rest of me disagrees." She mewed simply, her tone curt. Honestly, could she not see the medicine cat was at a disadvantage? Her lame foot still ached horribly from the journey. Deciding to leave this be, the medicine cat flinched as an overwhelming amount of milky light cascaded from the large crystal before them, causing her to turn away squinting.
That was their cue to go.

"Press your nose to that gem. It's completely hygenic- I can assure you no one has died from it."

[Undertaker]

Moon Lily punkscape
Dawnstripe snorted in disgust as she watched the medicine cat move like a slug, finally gracing the leader with her presence. Yet another reason for her to get rid of the she-cat. She might have all that knowledge, but her snail-like pace would slow Dawnstripe's plans down. She had much to accomplish and didn't feel like wasting her time.

She had to turn her glower away from Irisflame as the bright light lit up the area. She bypassed the natural urge to shut her eyes and got to her paws after the medicine cat explained what she had to do. Walking up to the crystal, she plopped herself down and reached her nose out, pressing it against the stone.

The world went spinning, driving the immense brown warrior to shut her eyes as a wave of nausea attacked her. Reopening them, Dawnstripe quickly assesses the situation knowing her consciousness was no longer in the cave. She didn't bother looking around at her surroundings, instead, she scoured around for cats.

[pidgeon]

Icestar had been awaiting her arrival. She had been watching over the Starcave closely since her passing, and when Dawnstripe would open her eyes, she would be in the forest of StarClan. Icestar figured it would be better to meet her in StarClan than in her own territory. The full-time starcats would probably like that better anyways.

"You've come at last," The former leader meowed gruffly, face twisted slightly with annoyance. "I suppose there was a lot to do. Your choice in camp is not what I'd have gone with, but it is safe and sheltered nonetheless. You have done well so far." Icestar padded forward to see eye to eye with her daughter.

"The star-cats are not all approving of your leadership," She conceded, a warning edging her voice. "But as long as I walk the skies, they will accept you. A leader's word is law, and I gave you your position rightfully, within the confines of the warrior code." And she would personally fight anyone who said otherwise. "I will be giving you your final life, as is customary of the previous leader. Your ceremony has begun." She would talk more with her afterwards. She did have important things to say, but they could wait until after Dawnstripe was officially a Clan leader. Icestar took a step back, allowing the first cat to come forward and give a life.

Undertaker Moon Lily

[Undertaker]

Dawnstripe's eyes flickered over to her mother as the she-cat's arrival. She had several questions to ask the former leader. She paid no heed to the annoyance she found in her mother's face, gritting her teeth, the leader did her best not to retort about her choices about a camp. Had she always been this judgemental when she was alive?

'Why do we wike her again?'

'Mother knows best, we should not press.'

As the point was made Dawnstripe turned her anger to a different source. Of course, a bunch of dead halfwits thought she was incompetent. If they had not approved of her, they should have spoken out when they had a chance. They had no choice but to take her now. Her distasteful reunion with Icestar became a little less bitter seeing as her mother was so keen on keeping her as the leader. That could be for several things though, stubbornness, pride, it was hard to say with Icestar.

She gave a small nod of acknowledgment at Icestar's last words. Sadly, Dawnstripe didn't trust her mouth, so it was better to keep it shut. She took a few paces away from Icestar and sat down, waiting for them to step forward.

[This Ceremony is Open for Anyone to give her lives.]

I'm looking for StarClan cats to just outright reject Dawnstripe as a leader, refusing to give her any lives. There will be Dark Forest Cats to replace them.

I will take no more than 8 StarClan rejections. Doesn't need to be eight but that is the limit. Number your rejections, please.

I need 6 Dark Forest Cats to give her some lives. I don't care what the lives are, try to make sure they are Dark and Unique. I have no problem if you post twice, once as StarClan cat and the other as a Dark Forest Cat. Here is Dawn's page. (https://ivoryokami.wixsite.com/mysite/dawnstar)

Life #8 is reserved for BILL. Wolverine and Life #9 belongs to punkscape Icestar.

I will be doing two separate mass responses, one to the rejections and another after Dawn gets all her lives. StarClan cats will go first and after getting rejected, Dawn will be drawn to the Dark Forest to get her lives.

[wren]

Daisyshade felt her heart ache, the deep kind of unsettling feeling that rattled the very soul. Somebody had come to visit them that perhaps didn’t belong here. The former riverclan deputy moved quietly through the expansive forest of starclan territory. Nobody else seemed to have noted this cats appearance but she supposed if she could get them to leave or reason with them there was no need for any kinds of arguments or reinforcements.

The orange and white tabby finally reached the cave that acted as a halfway point for the living and the dead where upon first inspection the burly shape of a she cat became lit up by the stone.

The molly felt a deep stir of un settlement in her belly noting that Icestar had appeared. This must be Dawnstripe. As much as she supported the growth of cats and... well the development of poor character which she hadn’t quite got to herself she felt no confidence in Dawnstripe.

“Why do you come here Dawnstripe” her voice was cool and held a sort of confidence, since she was now impossible to harm she felt no need to pad on the side of caution. “I think you would know that no lives will be given to you from us” she gestured to the starry ranks of cats she would hope to appear in the next few moments.

“I deny you the life of courage”

and with that she retracted

Undertaker

[duckie]

Dustpool
__________

Much of Dustpool's days were spent wandering the starry land but today she felt herself wandering towards the Starcave. It was time for another lives ceremony. She caught the tail end of the interaction with Icestar - and subsequently Daisyshade - and sneered. This was supposed to be ShadowClan's new leader? Icestar's little pawn. A way to drive the clan from beyond the grave. She shook her head.

"No half-witted dictator will be gaining a life from me." she hissed, before stepping back. Dustpool wouldn't leave. Not just yet. She wanted to see how this dumpster fire was going to go.


[ Undertaker ]

[Cobra]

// Undertaker

Braveheart walked slowly over to the new leader of ShadowClan, shaking her head as the two other cats denied Dawnstar of her lives. Well, Dustpool hadn't, but Daisyshade had. The large orange tom felt a purr growing in his throat, and he keeled over with obvious laughter. "I'm sorry," he grinned. "It's just...these idiots? Denying you of your rightful place of leader. Dawnstar, you're brilliant." Braveheart let his tail snake over the ground, and kept grinning. This will be fun.

"Dawnstar," he announced. "I give you a life for security. If you ever think that somecat is invading your privacy, trying to become you, or trying to control you, you thrash them. You let them know who's boss. You secure your home, your Clan, your life." Braveheart paused, the purr still coming through. And," he rumbled, his voice going quiet. "You kill them." He touched his nose to the new ShadowClan leader's, and stepped back.

Braveheart wanted to see how it went.

[Abyssopelagic]

Halfstone suddenly felt.... a disturbance to his usual peaceful days.
It felt achingly familiar to when a Leader came foward to recieve their lives, but this felt.... darker, more sinister. Wrong. Corrupted.
He approached, curiosity morbidly piqued.
He saw Icestar, a cat he never cared for in life, but seeing her daughter and the horrible leader she would be, he retracted, fear and horror widening his eyes.
He looked to Dustpool and Daisyshade, openly denying her and his heart settled. But as Braveheart stepped foward and gave Dawnstripe a life, he hissed, irritated.
No, no, no,n o, no.
He turned to Icestar. How could she stand by her choice in her?
"She will be more treacherous and hated than you. No doubt she will cause as much death and hurt as when you were alive. You were punished for the way you ruled. Do you want the same for Dawnstripe?"
He hoped the use of Dawnstripe's name would shake the former leader, if nothing else, if she wouldn't listen.
She wrought death to many. He would not stand by it.


[[Hope y'all don't mind? punkscape ; Undertaker ]]

[marshy]

Pebblepool followed behind Halfstone and also was disappointed in this new leader. She had hope for Icestar a long while ago, but that hope had long since drained. To be honest, she was glad Icestar was dead. She deserved it. Anyway, Dawnstripe. She gave a long sigh before starting. "Dawnstripe I- You know what?" With a sudden change of tone she continued. "I fully don't believe you'll be a good leader. I fact, I feel you'll be a terrible one as Halfstone said. You will not be getting a life from me." She spat.
"I deny you the life of Perseverance." She then stepped back to let the next cat go." Undertaker

[ChillCat]

Mothshade stepped up from behind Pebblepool. Dawnstripe is going to be a terrible leader. I had hope watching her as a deputy and warrior, but now I see that hope made me blind. She will bring nothing but death ad destruction to Shadowclan.

"You won't be a good leader, you won't protect Shadowclan, and you don't care for anyone but yourself. I deny you the life of justice." Mothshade was done with disloyal cats. Undertaker

[Wildstripe]

Swiftheart loket upon the she-cat with a scornful look in his eyes. If this pile of fox dung ever became a leader, Shadowclan would der dark times. “Dawnstripe, you have the power and will to become a leader, but you miss the sense of the Code and you are a simple sadist. I deny you the life of Protection.”

[Undertaker]

[This Ends The Rejections]
Dawnstripe muscles stiffened as rather cold and offputting air radiated from her. She wasn't comfortable with dead strangers coming up and judging her. Yet that is what they began to do starting with the first tabby she-cat who came and asked her literally the dumbest question. It was so ridiculous that Dawnstripe didn't even bother answering, just sighed and rolled her eyes. The first cat was far too pitiful for Dawnstripe to bother getting worked up over. "Courage? It's no wonder you're dead." Dawnstripe laughter came from her low in her belly, loud and full. "I wouldn't even accept just a lousy life like that, courage, hahahahahaaaaa." If all the StarClan cats were going to be like this, Dawnstripe was going to be extremely entertained the whole time.
wren

The second she-cat that came told her more or less of the same. It was a little more irksome the second time around considering the dead cat actually had the gull to insult her. "Dictator?! What in the world have I done that deserves such a title?" A smile grew on her face, but it lacked any mirth. The dimwit part did rub her the wrong way. Dawnstripe decided not to focus on that. "Do you even know what you're talking about or are you just going with the flow?" Who gave these cats any right to judge whether she was fit to lead or not. Besides the mild ruffle of her tail, Dawnstripe remained mostly unphased.
wnder

The next tom didn't even come up and speak to her, sad sap. Instead, he turned his attention to her mother and tried to get her to side with him? It was extremely hard for her to keep her maw such when she heard what he said. Icestar could handle herself, but Dawnstripe just couldn't help herself. "Punished! My mother did nothing wrong, she was a great leader as so many cats in the clan like to rudely tell me." Dawnstripe didn't like being compared to Icestar. Her mother did the same thing with her and Hailstorm, it was infuriating. She'd have to deal with it, for now, soon enough she'd carve a place for herself in the clan. "My sister is spineless, pathetic, and a murderer. Yet it appears you condone her actions and call it a punishment as if my mother did something wrong or deserved such a death. You are perfectly fine with Hailstorm murdering whoever she pleases, causing pain and hurting ShadowClan, but can't deal with a little death from me?" Who did this cat thing he was to say such a thing. Dawnstripe's just could not even... she turned her attention away from both cats as another one stepped forward, having the audacity to acually talk to her instead of around her.
Rainquail

It was getting bland and she felt like she was deal with a bunch of whining kittens. That small spark of anger was snuffed out in second, she couldn't bother getting upset with mice."I wouldn't take such a crappy life even if you threaten to destroy ShadowClan." Perseverance, damn did these lives get worse and worse. There was no boldness, nothing worth her attention, no lives that made her want to make any of these losers to rethink their actions.
.:The Nightmare King:.

Did this cat think she was some kind of hero? It seemed like you only got lives in StarClan if these cats deemed you 'holy' enough. They wanted cats who did the 'right' thing, not the ones that would do the 'necessary' thing. It felt like most of them didn't even have their facts right. They were just spewing whatever came to mind so they could be selfish hypocrites and not give her lives. "Justice, EWWWWWW!" Dawnstripe stepped away from the fifth cats, wrinkling her nose as if she had some disease. "You'd have to kill me to take a life like that." If these were the kind of cats that got to StarClan, Dawnstripe didn't want to be here when her life was over. She felt bad if her mother got stuck with these rambling morons.
ChillCat

If Dawnstripe was being truthful, she couldn't stand listening to this dribble any longer. She was done with these goody four paws, they were gross and feeble. Every single life they might have offered would have had her running for the hill. Dawnstripe didn't want their lives, and she certainly wouldn't be begging for them. "Mother, I wouldn't waste your breath on this." Dawnstripe snarled, turning away from the cats. These cats lacked any drive or passion, there was no point. She'd figure something else out. "They have nothing I want, nothing that will help ShadowClan, they're softer than kittypets." Why did they even worship such bellyachers, Dawnstripe was going to have to change that shortly.
punkscape

Dawnstripe didn't bother waiting for her mother's response, instead, she began padding off, ears raised as she swore she heard whispers telling her that what she sought was this way. The leader stopped, noting that beyond this forest everything seemed so much darker. That's right, she did have the dark forest. Surely they would accept her, understand her, know that only she was fit to take Icestar's place. It was her destiny. Just when she stared forwards, her ears twisting catching the paw steps following her. She was expecting the bulky form of her mother, instead, it was that she-cat that had insulted her, calling her stupid, earlier.

"I told you that I don't want any of your lives, I don't want to hear your nonsense either."

[Abyssopelagic]

Halfstone turned to Dawnstripe, eyes lowering and brows furrowed.
She didn't know. Of course she didn't. She was alive.
"The punishment I speak of has nothing to do with your sister. I don't speak for the rest of the dead, but I don't care what Hailstorm has done. She lives still and she is not the one looking for lives. Your mother isn't allowed to live among either skies, in Starclan or the Dark Forest. This is what I had referred to."
He continued to stare indirectly at Dawnstripe.
Now he was intrigued, only if to find out how one or the other would react. Dawnstripe to the information or Icestar that he was spilling secrets that weren't his own.

[[I don't plan for him to be here much longer, so you may have most of the rest of the ceremony in peace]]
Undertaker

[duckie]

Dustpool
__________

The elder starclanner sat back as this charade continued. Cats lining up to deny Dawnstripe her lives, only to have her laugh in their faces. She shook her head. What a mess this was. Something about the interaction as a whole rubbed her the wrong way but, in particular, the way Dawnstripe and Icestar regarded each other sparked a sense of familiarity. That was not exchange of a healthy mother-daughter relationship, it was that of a leader and their right-hand man.

It reminded her of her sisters.

She climbed to her paws - ignoring the stares of those who remained - and moved to follow. Dustpool held her ground and met Dawnstripe's yellow gaze with her own sharp green stare. She would not be intimidated by Icestar's little pawn. She would not back down.

"I've been up here too long to watch you walk over there," she nodded towards the darkened edges of the forest, "and gain your lives from a bunch of stars-damned traitors without lifting a paw to do anything about it. I know how this goes. You'll go back to ShadowClan with one StarClan life if I have any say in it."

She stepped forward and placed her nose to the leader's forehead, "Dawnstripe - with this life I give you independence. Use it to think for yourself and make your own decisions. Don't give power to those cats who would wish to whisper orders in your ear and foist their own influence."


[ Undertaker ]

[marshy]

Pebblepool hissed in disgust. This cat thought brute force was the only way to run a clan. How selfish, How awful. Pebblepool only had to hope this cat would pass quickly by the claws of another cat. She was rooting for Lionstar, as she knew Riverclan would not take kindly to Dawnstripe in the slightest. (Just wanted her to have a reaction!)

[Wings]

[ Undertaker ]
-Sagefeather-

Sagefeather, as always had been starving. That little wretched kit killer had done this to her. Had killed her! Had set up her little beautiful Dovekit’s death, and Deerstride’s! She should of just thrown the horrid creature into the river, let it down in it’s mirsery as it went here, in her place. She would of been in StarClan if it weren’t for Dovekiller!
Her pristine claws dug into the ground, retracting as she calmed herself into a more... ladylike stature. And through the dark mysterious forest, she felt something. Something very different. Not of feeling the small twinge in the air as a another sinner, unlike herself, arrived for their endless starvartion. Oh how those Staridiots were so... lucky. The word rang through her mind, oozing of venom. To be frank, Sagefeather was quite close to the misty boarder between the sunning lands her dear Dovekit was in and the misery she lived in. Always so... oozy, the ground never felt right. But, following that sense, of would you say, power? Yes. Power.
After seeing some StarClanner give the to-be leader a life, she pinned her ears. What kinda of life was that? Pitiful if you asked her. So now, coming out of the darkness of this.. dark forest, [the thought of her being in the dark forest dripped venom in her mind once more] Sagefeather could only look Dawnstripe up and down once. Examining the leader that would soon rule over that Dovekiller. The thought sent a spiral of happiness into her body. Doetuft, getting what she deserved. Her punishment for being such a burden to either of the clans she had belonged to. When Duskstar had tried to make her a warrior too early, Sagefeather had seen that as a chance to influence Doetuft, or was supposed to be Doelight. But, the chance had passed when she had journeyed to ShadowClan. Enough of that, the bare skin on her back, clearly from a monster of sorts, felt s trill of skin scrunch up and then relax. “Well, well, well. StarClan wouldn’t give you any lives?” She mocked the she-cat with a pouty face before padded forward closer. “Well except for that, what ever you call it. A meh life if you ask me.” She flicked her tail to where the StarClanner had disappeared. “Hmm, well. I’ll give you something that will actually help you. You seem to... how should I put it? Think with your claws? Yes well, while claws can do physical damage,...” She lifted a paw, pristine claws unsheathing for her to look at. ”Manipulating your enemies will do much more.” Sagefeather looked up at Dawnstripe with a grin and glinting dijon eyes. “You may think you can manipulate others, and even if you don’t, your way of dealing with your enemies is... undesirable for a leader of your stature. So, I give you the life of Manipulation.” She came closer, whether the she-cat liked it or not and gave her the life. Closing her eyes at she touched her nose to the she-cat’s forehead. Flashes of images, quickly Dovekit’s death, when she was scooped up by a hawk. Then to Doetuft’s [who was Doekit at the time] misery that she so deserved. Along with the pain that she caused her so called ‘daughter’ in her dreams after she had died from that wretched monster. All so enjoyable, all so deserved. But, it was all so blurry. Impossible to make out the actual cats, only the events. The death by hawk, the monster of her own death vaguely, the endless tormenting. All so blurry. Sagefeather wished it could be more clear so Dawnstripe could kill that Kitkiller once and for all. But then, she wouldn’t be able to torment her as well. Hopefully something good for herself would happen.
Pulling back away from her, she grinned, “Use this wisely, make it so your enemies feel mental pain, something that you can’t just num with that mangled witch’s herbs. And then combine it with those...“ She motioned to her paws. “...claws of yours. With them, you will be unstoppable!” Her black tail lashed, with her teeth bared with ambition in a smile. Before pulling back to see what other idiots who actually were mean’t to be here for eternity. What stupid useless lives they would give in comparison to what she gave.

[Terrestrial]

~Twilightheart~

Black paws slowly approached Dawnstripe, following the molly's scent as she waddled. Twilightheart's clouded gaze stared blankly, her once long and silky black fur matted. It'd been seasons since her death, too long to the point where she couldn't remember how she ended up in the Dark Forest!

Finally the elderly molly arrived to stand before Dawnstripe. Black lips parted as a rather raspy voice escaped "Dawnstripe, I'm sure you recognize me from the mischief I caused during life but that is not why I stand in front of you today- Pausing briefly Twilightheart began to collect her thoughts before speaking once more "I give you a life of deviance, use this well to create chaos among the other foolish Clans."

With those words Twilightheart rose to her paws, once again relying on her other senses before waddling away into the ranks of the Dark Forest cats.

Undertaker

[Mango]

Undertaker

Lobsterbreathe stepped out from the shadows staring down Dawnstripe,” You look weak and forgiving...I give you a life of ruthlessness, may you never think twice about murdering a traitor like that queen and warrior. You play with your food to much, look where that got you, one escaped the other one, won’t be as fun to kill.“ he growled softly before standing up and reaching forward to touch her nose.

[ChillCat]

(idk if I'm allowed to reply again, but Ghostflight has so much potential and i don't want to waste it)

Ghostflight padded up to the conversation. When she got there, she noticed the new Shadowclan leader getting her lives. How lucky. She padded up behind the previous cat and took Dawnstripes attention. "I see those pitiful Starclan cats wouldn't give you lives. You weren't alive when I was around, but maybe the elders have passed down stories of the kit stealer." Ghostflight thought for a minute before saying, "I don't want anyone to go through the pain I have, so I give you a life of ferocity to make Shadowclan great." She touched noses with the new leader. She was going to watch Dawnstripes progress with enthusiasm. Undertaker

[Starfall]

Dovewillow
Undertaker
[Life of Determination]
The tall feline stalked forwards as a few of his other Dark Forest companions did. Face lighting up as he poked his head out, a soft smile plastered on his maw. "They don't know what they're missing out on. You're stubborn. I like that." he hummed, fully stepping out to where he could be seen now. He was a dusted grey tom with deep blue eyes. Fur was silky, incredibly well kept.

"I give you the life of Determination. Don't let some self proclaimed all knowing spirits tell you what to and what not to do." the Tom stated, a gleam in his eyes as he reached forwards to touch noses. "Keep squashing your enemies and all those who oppose you. You pave your own destiny."

[Dovey]

Undertaker
As Scratcheye came out, he let out a hiss of approval. "Starclan doesn't need to give you lives." He streched his claws. "I give you the life of revenge. Seek it, and your wrongs will be put more than right!" Scratcheye's life was far better than the life of justice. EWWW. Dawnstripe was right to not accept any of those.

[BEAR.]

Wolverine always took pleasure in participating in these foolish little ceremonies. Watching a Dark Forest cat who clearly did not belong here attempt to give a weak, unnecessary life. The mere fact StarClan was too mouse-hearted to involve themselves in this. He was eager to exploit that tonight.

"Granddaughter." His voice rumbled through the shadowy forest as he stepped forward, thrusting his face into hers. Hot, rancid air blew at her - the smell of blood and rot. "Tonight, you will make history. StarClan has forsaken you: those cowards refuse to give you their patronage. They stood by and let your mother die in order to preserve peace, and they are trying to skirt their responsibility to give you the lives you are rightfully owed. One little mouse giving you a life means nothing when the rest scattered to the wind. They think you will destroy ShadowClan.. but all you have done, dear girl, is set the foundation for one of the greatest leaderships in the forest. You should be nothing but proud of your accomplishments and abilities.

"I gave your mother the life of power, but that is something you already possess. You hold a strength unmatched by any leader." Wolverine's muzzle twisted into a smile. "But there are several small storms brewing in your Clan. Ones you will need to crush - before they rise up to overthrow you." A warning, one she would hopefully heed and respond to accordingly. "The life I give you.. is the life of VIGILANCE. Keep watch, and your leadership will flourish for many seasons to come. Allow your guard to waver, and you will crumble."

He gave her a small wink before he moved to reclaim his spot among the dark spirits.

[ Undertaker, punkscape ]

[Moon Lily]

Irisflame met the dark-furred she’s gaze with stone eyes, emotionless compared to the golden orbs swimming in disgust. Disgust… What a vile emotion. She smothered the sudden urge to spit at Dawnstripe’s paws and cry a furious ‘you self-centred, senseless tyrant! You disgust me’. But unlike the molly before her, the medicine cat had the sense to respect a high rank. She shot an icy glare in the leader’s direction as she settled by the brilliant stone, eyes burning with a fire that could only be matched by the intensity she felt for Maggotfather. Thank the stars Dawnstripe was already facing the gem. She allowed the flames to wither into embers as she approached the blinding light herself. She couldn’t stay mad in the face of The Tyrant. Sunspots gathered on her fur, like the speckles of the big cats that the elders so often spoke of.

Her delicate maw met the cold crystal tentatively, a frosty sensation rippling through her veins.
And then?
Darkness.

The medicine cat was used to the nausea that would follow. The feeling that the world had gone into disarray as soon as she’d touched the precious rock. Deep blue orbs fluttering open, she huffed in amusement as she noted the empty hollow, not a sign of footsteps padding over to meet them. It seemed that Tyrant would not be awarded the position after all. No sooner had she thought so when Icestar emerged from the freakishly tall pines, looking valiant as ever. A pang of grief squeezed at her stomach as her eyes hovered over the former leader. Hailstorm must have been crazy if she thought Dawnstripe was a better choice- why would she kill Icestar if she thought otherwise? She dipped her head respectfully in the direction of the two kin, struggling to keep her features free of the overwhelming anger rumbling through her.
“I’ll be waiting for you over here.” She murmured, hobbling to stand in the shadow of a particularly tall pine.

The ceremony took ages. It was fun the for the first few rounds of rejection. She relished the look of fury that would appear on Dawnstripe’s face, her maw creased in anger. But as time progressed, and the leader appeared to only have obtained a meagre amount of lives, boredom began to take hold. It felt like hours had passed since they had first laid eyes on the star-lit clearing. It probably had been. Would these Star-cats grace us with a few more lives to get this over with? She growled silently, watching the slow crowd with an irritated stare. It seemed Tyrant felt the same way. Wait. Was that…? Interest crept onto her previously unanimated face, renewed energy burrowing into her system. She came a few steps closer. Sagefeather. Her beloved, honourable and completely innocent aunt. NOT. So this was the cat Doetuft had described to her on so many occasions, the one who had made her cousin’s life hell. She didn’t have to look twice to see the spinning madness in her eyes. Seriously, how did this cat ever think she would have made a good mother? A good mate, at that. Shuddering, she turned back to retreat into the shadows once more. A sudden raspy sentence slammed her in the back, threatening to spill her carefully contained anger. Mangled witch. OH, I’ll give you mangled witch, you old coon! Her claws unsheathed to grip at the dirt before she thought better of it. She couldn’t harm these cats. They were already dead. And it wasn’t as though she was dumb enough to interrupt a leader’s ceremony by jumping at some imp.

And so the ceremony continued. It wasn’t so bad. She was hardly surprised when a few shady Dark Forest cats came along to spice things up. Despite the desperate urge to step forwards and shout that she was supposed to get her lives from Starclan, not the Dark Forest, she plastered her mouth shut. She could only imagine what could happen if she interfered with The Tyrant’s ceremony. Recounting each life silently, she tried to remember how many Dawnstripe had left. …six…seven…eight. One last life. Her ocean gaze pierced Icestar, who she was certain would give Tyrant her final life. Wasn’t that the rule? The former leader was always the last one. But this ceremony had held so much uncertainty…

Anything could happen.

[ Wings punkscape Undertaker]

[pidgeon]

Icestar gave her father a cold and hateful stare the whole time he was gifting Dawnstripe her eighth life. She appreciated that he approved of her daughter's leadership, but seeing him treat Dawnstripe with kindness where she had only received bitterness, it left a bad taste in her mouth. Finally his turn was over, and it was time for the ex-leader to step up.

"Do not let this go to your head, child," was the first thing she said. "Yes, your lives are being given to you mostly from the other side. But don't assume that dictates the way you should lead your Clan. I give you the life of common sense. Use it to see the obvious and know when it's time to play nice. And you will need to play nice, if you wish to repair my...mistakes." She uttered the word "mistakes" as if it were poison, as she hated admitting she did anything wrong at all. Icestar padded forward to touch her nose to her daughter's head and bestow the life upon her.

"And with this life, I hail you by your new name: Dawnstar. Your old life is no more. You have now received the nine lives of a leader, be it from a different source than expected, and I grant you guardianship of ShadowClan. Defend it well. Strengthen the weak. Embrace the strong. Never let go of your pride, but learn how to control yourself." Taking a step back, Icestar's orange eyes met her daughter's diligently.

"You will hear from me often. I wish to tell you that I've set up the possibility of an alliance for you, as a final gift. Do not let it go to waste--I am practically sending this right into your paws. ThunderClan will soon be in desperate need of ShadowClan's help. I want you to take advantage of that, but for Star's sakes play nice. ShadowClan will not survive while all of the Clans are our enemies. If you do not, you will crumble it to the ground. Do you understand?" Her tail flicked back and forth as she gauged her daughter's response. She would likely have questions, and this would be the time to have them answered. Icestar knew there wouldn't be much time left before Dawnstar would awaken.

Undertaker

[Undertaker]

Dawnstripe was itching to walk away, but she was willing to hear the cat out. These star-damned traitors were a better bet then the soft-bellied cats in StarClan. The large feline didn't quite understand the sudden change in mind, but Dawnstripe was not overly interested in more dull lives. Yet it did not seem like she was going to get a choice in the matter as Dustpool forced the life upon her. She flinched when the cat touched her head yet ultimately held still, drawn in by the life.

It was an extremely uncomfortable feeling as if she didn't belong in her own skin, being demanded to accept something she didn't want. Still, it could have been worse. Independence, she could work with that. It wasn't completely unbearable. "You are quite infuriating, but you seemed to have more sense than the rest of the dunderheads. You recognize that I'm the only one fit for leading ShadowClan." Arrogance dripped from every little word that left her maw. "Be grateful I even bothered accepting it." Dawnstripe swiftly left the StarClan's territory with those half-heart words, engulfed by blackness.
wnder

Sanity had told her to be kind since the cat had changed her mind, Dawnstripe didn't do kind. StarClan might be full of kittypets and mice, but they had their uses. Dustpool could come in handy in the long run. So she'd try not to be too horrible with her until she proved useless. The absence of light in the forest made Dawnstripe feel right at home. ShadowClan thrived in the darkness, it might have been silent if Madness had started kicking up a fuss. Yowling and shouting in excitement. It seemed to like the dark forest.

She didn't have to go far. before she came upon some huge ginger tom stepped out of the shadows. Dawnstripe was uncertain how believable his words were, but still, they were pleasing to the ears. This life was strange, security? It was better than anything the StarClan cats gave her so there was that.

She proved herself more eager to touch noses with orange tom than she had been with the snappy mouse. There was pain, but it was nothing intolerable. Her muscles spasms. in her back, even so, she stood her ground proudly accepting her second life. "Naturally, I'll kill whoever and whatever stands in my way. No one can take what I was born to have."
Mando

'He undewstands, a wittle death nevew huwt anyone. Dey are gonna die anyway.'

Sanity might have said something that but they were drowned out by Madness's cackling. Dawnstripe didn't have the time to figure out why since another cat was already taking the last one's place.

She had no clue who this cat was, she didn't know the majority of the cats that came up to her. A noticeable muscle twitched in her jaw at the mocking tone. Dawnstripe withheld her instinctive urge to retort, teeth grinding as the cat went on about stuff she was only half-listening to. Her full attention was returned when they finally got to her the life of manipulation. She wasn't thrilled with the life, preferred to use her claws, and manipulation took time that she didn't overly enjoy wasting. Even so, she'd took it without a word of thanks, a life was a life. The Dark Forest spirits had more sense than StarClan. This life may prove useful to her somewhere in the future.
Wings

The next black cat was quicker and straight to the point. Dawnstripe didn't bother commenting about not knowing who she was. Worms were beneath her notice. A slight smirk lifted the corners of her mouth at the life of deviance. This cat seemed to just want her to cause chaos, that was fine with her. Dawnstripe was certain she'd be kicking up quite the dung storm with time. She barely gave a dip of her chin for the life and looked forward to the next cat. It was clear from her bristle tail, that she was exceeding impatience to get this done and out of here.
Terrestrial

Oh! This cat she had some faint memory of. He was the dungface that caused a stir at a gathering. Her tail went ramrod straight, the left side of lip lifted slowly revealing a fang. She didn't like being called weak. When she returned here she'd have to make sure to seek this cat out and show him just how weak she was. The comment about food playing had her lowering her hostility to just giving him a strange look. She wasn't WindClan, her didn't eat cats. Whatever, she'd debate about just straight up killing cats instead of keeping them around to entertain Madness.
"Watch your back." Was all she hissed after receiving his life. She'd have to get him to take back the weak insult the next time they met.
Zesty Mango

Why did these cats think she'd remember them? If they wanted to be remembered for some evil deed, make sure it was big and something worth remembering. Killing a few cats wouldn't do much, now massacring a whole clan. That was something worth remembering. As the she-cat went on, Dawnstripe stood up and took a few steps away from her while unsheathing her long claws. "Are you daft?!" That dirty sneer was plastered on her face. "I'm not taking that life. It's might actually be worse than the mice. You're a pitiful, sad excuse for a Dark Forest cat." She didn't belong here. "Disgusting, no wonder you lost your kits. Someone as pathetic as you are is nothing more than a failure. Take your worthless life and get out of my sight." What a loser.
ChillCat

The cat was pretty tall, his smile made her want to drag her claws across his face. Creepy weirdo. Did it look like she cared whether he liked her or not, she wanted her life and nothing else from him. He was strangely groomed for an 'evil' cat. He didn't seem like he fit in with the others here. She'd happily reject him if he attempted to give her a ridiculous life. Determination, yet another life she was uncertain about. But like the others who convinced her to use the life well, his parting words assisted her in seeing the use in the life. The way everyone kept talking about enemies made her believe that she was going to have a great deal of them. Acceptable, she'd put every single one of them in their place. She gave a barely seen tip of her head, these cats should be honored to give her a life, thanking them was a waste of her breath.
Starfall

Yet another tom, his life brought a full fledge grin to her maw. She'd have her revenge on all and any who wronged her with or without the life. Still, it pleased her to get an actual life for it. Dawnstripe might have dipped her head a fraction lower than with the other cats, revenge was going to be her favorite life.
Star Wolf

Granddaughter?! Her attention swung warily over to the big tom that abruptly crowded her bubble of space. Beyond the mild grimace, she was unphased by the cat's presence. He had the most lovely foxbreath. She had never seen nor met this cat, yet he claimed to be her relative. Mother wasn't speaking up so Dawnstripe concluded it must be true. Icestar didn't speak to her much if at all about her father. It was an interesting surprise meeting the tom here. What did he do to get here?

Now it might be simply the fact that she knew he was related to her, but the praise coming from his maw did make her feel something. It didn't sound hollow or empty coming from him. Strength, unmatched by any leader?! Did he mean that she was stronger than even her mother?! That grabbed her attention like claws hooking through flesh. Dawnstripe's ego just grew three sizes that day. She pushed her pride to the side in favor of listening about storms brewing in her clan. Dawnstripe knew cats were after her head and rank, but now she had a reason to hunt them down. There was so much work to do once she returns to her clan.

"Thank you, Grandfather." Dawnstripe didn't mind showing appreciation to him. His life and warning were worth it. She'd need to start working on gathering her own forces, not that she couldn't handle it herself, but having cats to do her bidding would be nice. If her grandfather could warn her of any incoming problems, Dawnstripe really wouldn't need StarClan at all. It might have been nice if he weren't so cryptic, although, hunting her prey down would be less pleasant if she knew was going after.
BILL.

After what felt like an eternity, her mother stepped up. The first thing out of her maw was chastising. Dawnstripe pinned an ear back and scowled in returned, Mother still managed to make her feel like a rookie apprentice straight out of the nursery. She couldn't bask in Grandfather's praise without Mother's approval, clearly. Common sense? She was joking, right? This was going to be Dawnstripe least favorite life. Only Icestar, and potentially, Hailstorm, could rain on her parade like this.

There we go with the play nice, Sanity had told her that too. She felt she had done a decent job of playing nice at the start, but that was only because she had one life and she wasn't keen on losing it before she could get her new ones. Yet now Icestar wanted her to continue playing nice and clean up her mistakes? Damn it all! She. Didn't. Want. To. Play. Nice. She couldn't eradicate WindClan by playing nice... could she?

She allowed that train of thought to keep on chugging along while she repeated her new name a few times in her head. Dawnstar, she liked it. The newly christened leader held her head high as her mother prattled on. So there was more to this than just leading it, she still had to defend the clan, and figure out how to control her darker impulses, Mother also wanted her to play nice! Even in death, the things she had to do to keep her mother happy. She'd have to visit the Dark forest often, Grandfather seemed to be the only one who recognized how great she was. Mother always wanted her to do more and more and more for her. It was easier getting praise out of Grandfather.

Settling into her new name like her own fur, Dawnstar rose and found Irisflame sitting off to the side looking bored. Dawnstar had forgotten all about her. Icestar wasn't done talking to her though, so she held off on calling out to Gimpy. It was on the tip of her tongue, Dawnstar wanted to ask if she'd be hearing from Grandfather as well, yet thought better. It was barely there, she could still catch the small tension between the two. Dawnstar would ask about their relationship another time.

The world alliance had her twisted her expression into one of contempt. ShadowClan could be strong without any additional help. Icestar had pissed off all the other clans so it wasn't like Dawnstar wanted to get into an alliance with any of those backstabbers. Plus who would be dumb enough to call upon them for help? ThunderClan, of course, those morons would be stupid enough to do the same thing twice.

Her expression remained unhappy with all of this, still, she spoke with great reluctance. "Fine, I'll play nice for you." Despite how upset she was, Dawnstar still sought her mother's approval. Mother was still Mother, her and Dawnstar supposed if Grandfather was genuine, they were the only cats she had to trust in this world. They should not steer her wrong...

"I will not let ShadowClan fall, yet, if you're so worried you're personally setting up alliances from beyond the grave, I'll heed your words. I'm not liking it though." She hissed falling back on to old habits. "Anything else? You're fading." Dawnstar could feel bits of her conscious stir from slumber. It was time for her to go.
punkscape Moon Lily

[Dovey]

Undertaker
"Lead your clan well, Dawnstar," Scratcheye left.

[ChillCat]

"Why you-you-you piece of fox dung! Are you so proud you won't accept my life? I'll have you know I killed countless cats to get back at Starclan and this is how I'm repaid? When you show up here-mark my words you aren't going to Starclan, you'll be screwed." Fine. Whatever. If Dawnstar didn't want her life she could go around with only 8. She would die sooner and Ghostflight would feel her claws in Dawnstar's fur. Undertaker (Im not mad its totally cool but man is dawnstar picky)

[pidgeon]

Undertaker

As Icestar realized she was fading, she blinked knowingly at her daughter. She cast a glance at Irisflame, one that was not hostile. Almost...nostalgic. She missed being alive.
"Respect your medicine cats. They will be of great aid to you in your leadership. I have chosen them well. And you would be wise to choose a deputy as soon as possible, but be wary of who you choose. There is mutiny brewing amidst ShadowClan. Not all of my supporters were honest, but there are a few clear choices. I trust you to find the right one." Icestar repeated the point that Wolverine had made, drawing attention to that fact. She looked upon Dawnstar's fading tabby form and felt pride surge in her chest.

"Lead well, Dawnstar. I will be here when you need me." She dipped her head to the new leader as she faded away.

[Moon Lily]

[ punkscape Undertaker ]
(I'm not sure if you still need another life, but I'm here if you do!)

Irisflame shuddered in apprehension. Her conscience refused to cut the alarms blaring in her head, the ringing that so blatantly signalled how wrong this was. Dawnstar was going to lead Shadowclan. The Tyrant was going to lead her clan. And nothing was stopping her. Azure blues pinned on the great she-cat, she held her breath as an identical dark pelt stepped across the clearing to meet her. Icestar...please be sensible. The silent plea seemed to have been heard. In an impossible moment, the former leader's life kindled a flame. A small, hopeful flame.

Common sense. The medicine cat smothered a grin. This would be something unexpected for Her Tyrannical Majesty. Hopefully, she would use the life wisely- the molly would need it if she wanted to lead. Jumping to attention as Icestar swung around to face her, the blue-furred she-cat puffed out her small chest. The she-cat's surprisingly soft gaze was met with a warm look of her own, pooling with a variety of emotions.
In truth, the leader's death had hit her harder than expected. Yes- she could be cold and snarky and cruel. But she truly cared. She was wise and just. And...she had even been a friend, at times. Attempting to bury the grief collecting in her chest, she nodded to Dawnstar. The clan would be asking after them if they were gone for too long.

"Let's go." She murmured, approaching the newly-appointed leader. Hah.

This would be an adventure.

[ Zesty Mango The Ink Demon Dipper @elysian Rainquail ]
(sorry for being so late with this! if you don't want to attend the meeting, VM me and ignore the mention <3)

Irisflame could feel the steady itch in her feet as she scaled the hill, muscles feeling as though they had been plagued with all the evil and pain in the world. She really needed to get out more often. Her breath rattled in her throat, now achy and sore. Stars...you'd better be grateful. She dragged herself the last painful lengths. Hugging the summit as if she could slide back downwards any second, she nodded to Ebonyfang. "You...hah...you okay...Ice-clo...ne?" She gasped. Her lungs needed a vacation after this.

Coughing as she inched her way through the musty passage, she squinted through the shadows. Moonhigh was fast approaching. It had felt like ages since their last proper Starcave meeting, even though she had just been there with Dawnstar a quarter moon ago. The last two had been called off due to heavy clouds streaking the moon. An omen? ...Nah. She couldn't take every darned thing as though it meant chaos and destruction. Pace quickening as the narrow hallway began to open up, she found herself staring into the vastness of a cavern. Their cavern. The precious milky stone in its centre stood grandly, as usual, and despite the silence of the space, it felt so...alive.

They had to get this over with. Ebonyfang's official apprentice ceremony had been called off last time, and she was sure she had to do some sort of fancy formality with the two Windclanners. Sometimes she hated being the only one left of her original peers- she couldn't complain about apprentices or reminisce about her past anymore. And she was stuck officiating all the ceremonies. I should run away and go on a retreat at this point. Of course, she was joking. But maybe a little holiday in the territories would be nice.

"The others better hurry up. The moon isn't waiting any longer and we're going in without them otherwise."

[vellichor]

// Moon Lily The Ink Demon Dipper Rainquail Zesty Mango

Snailswirl
________

The tabby’s breath rattled ever so slightly in their throat. It echoed rhythmically with their pawsteps. They breathed: in, out, in, out. With every few pawsteps, in time. This, as they had learned over the moons, minimized the discomfort and severity of the wheezing and breathlessness. Though, they had to admit, the journey from the RiverClan camp was far easier than that from WindClan. Not only was the water-loving Clan closer, but their territory was less hilly.

What really drove Snailswirl forward this night was the anticipation of seeing Coldamber again. They had been away far longer than they wanted, and had learned, unfortunately, almost nothing. In fact, they hadn’t learned almost nothing, it was just nothing. Homesickness crashed over them like a wave, their pawsteps faltering for a few moments. They wanted to sleep in their own nest, in their own den, the sounds of Coyotesnarl’s droning snores and Coldamber’s soft breathing. They longed for the sounds of home, but knew they couldn’t go home yet. The only thing that the medicine cat had brought, a pearly shell from Stagpaw, sat beside their nest in RiverClan. A reminder of who they were doing this for. Their Clanmates.

Snailswirl was climbing the hill now, their breathing becoming more rough. They knew what to expect this time; it wouldn’t be as bad. Finally, arriving at the top of the hill with shaky legs and ragged breaths, the tabby scented two cats. Two ShadowClanners. Leading into the tunnel. With a few more deep breaths, and hey entered. Following the scents, they walked forward until — "—mmph!" the ShadowClan scent became so strong that they did a double take to avoid bumping into some cat. And ended up bumping into a wall.

"Oh! Ugh. Yep, that’s a wall. Well, uh, with that, how are you guys doing?"

[Mango]

Moon Lily The Ink Demon eerie elysian Rainquail Dipper Starfall
(Starfall Rps Frostbreeze’s guard who basically has to go anywhere Frostbreeze goes—in case you missed it, Frostbreeze is TC’s mc. Hasn’t been announced at clan meeting but Buck already appointed her)

Frostbreeze angrily stomped after Coldamber to this Starcave. She had no interest in being a medicine cat, and to make this worse, her guard was tagging along. She pretended like Sageflurry was her body guard when in reality Sageflurry’s job was to protect others from her. She couldn’t wait to have a word with Starclan and demand they make her a warrior again without the consequence of dawn patrol every morning. She stepped into the den and was hit by the same scent she recognized at the gathering, she glared at all the medicine cats and gave a hrumph realizing she had to introduce herself,” Frostbreeze. Thunderclan’s medicine cat, until I can make Starclan to change there mind and make me a warrior again. ” she grumbled. She already knew there names as everyone knew who was the leaders, deputies, and medicine cats of the clans. She gave an eye roll to her guard and shrugged,” That’s my body guard, Buckstar thinks I’m valuable and keeps me protected. Stand outside and keep on watch for badgers or foxes trying to get in here, whatever your name is, Agedworrier or something...“ she ordered not really having any authority over her guard.

[Madelaine]

[ Moon Lily; Zesty Mango; eerie elysian; ]

Ebonyfang padded beside his mentor as they walked up to the Starcave. It sure was nasty out. He didn't know what it meant and hoped it didn't mean anything bad. They needed at least a moon in peace. "Yep I'm right behind you.", he meowed. 'In case you need me,' he thought. He wouldn't dare say it out loud. He had much too respect to say anything like that. Plus he didn't want to get smacked.

The large black tom made it to the meeting place and glanced around. There were no signs of any of the others. He settled down to wait for them to show up. It was almost a few moments before two cats showed up. One he had met the last time and a totally new cat.

Ebonyfang dipped his head to Snailswirl, but to Frostbreeze he wasn't sure how he felt about her. When she started speaking like she didn't even want to be a medicine cat. Than why was she. Sure he had been a warrior for about five minutes, but at least he took his job seriously.

"I doubt thats true. Buckstar doesn't seem like that kind of cat to see you as a cat to protect.", he meowed towards Frostbreeze. Why did starclan choose cats who didn't even want the role. If that was the case he wouldn't want to spend too much time with her.

[Starfall]

Sageflurry
Moon Lily The Ink Demon Dipper Rainquail Zesty Mango eerie elysian
(She won't have any posts once the meeting actually starts n what not! I'll post replies with her until than. Once the meeting starts I will not post until it's finished and Mango's had Frostbreeze leave the cave.)

Frankly, she couldn't really believe that Starclan themselves had chosen this particular Warrior to be their Medicine Cat. But she wasn't one to question how her ancestors worked. What really bugged the molly, however, was how annoyed Frostbreeze seemed to be. It was a gift from Starclan, and it was a blessing to be chosen for such a role. Yet here she was, whining about it.

The whole walk there the Calliby held up the rear, staying silent the whole walk there. She found walking up the hill easy enough, pausing for her group on little rocks and tree stumps. Once they were there, and met up with other Medicine Cats she dipped her head in greetings. To be perfectly honest she felt as though she really wasn't supposed to be there...and she really wasn't. It was a sacred ritual that was meant only for the Medicine Cats. Yet here was a Warrior.

"Babysitter." she corrected as Frostbreeze spoke up, all those thoughts she had leaving her. "Buckstar believes all of his clanmates to be valuable. I'm here to pull your head out of your own ass when the time comes." she stated. "Like now. If she causes trouble let me know, I'll pull her out of there...once the ritual's done. Also. Since I'll practically be a burr in your side for a few moons to come. It's Sageflurry. Don't forget the oldest one between the two of us here is you, by the way." it wasn't really a request, Sageflurry's tone of voice was stern as her bi colored gaze looked over at the other Thunderclanner.

She was going to politely see herself off, but than a Shadowclanner spoke up, to which the molly swiveled her head and gave the stranger a stern, but deadpanned, gaze. "Buckstar care's for all of us...not that you'd know any better. So before you just throw out statement's like that I'd suggest you observe the happenings around you first." she said as she walked towards a rather large boulder. In a quick motion she was seated on top. "I will be staying out here. If I'm needed, call for me. If not, I will leave once Frostbreeze leaves. Thank you."

[Abyssopelagic]

The journey to Starcave from ThunderClan was no less easier than it was from WindClan. Coldamber didn't fall or trip, thankfully, as she knew she would hear about it from Frostbreeze to the end of time.
Probably the only thing that kept her going was the promise of seeing Smailswirl, that little bit of home to keep her same among all the weirdness in ThunderClan.
Once the final stretch of the journey came to view, the very mountain she previous had trouble getting up, she sprinted on ahead, clambering up.
Once she reached the top, she anxiously waited for Frostbreeze and Sageflurry, she eventually learned the guard's name from passers by giving a short greeting to her.
If they needed help towards the top, Coldamber helped Sageflurry, but really didn't touch Frost.

She practically ran into the cave, eyes scanning for a familiar pelt. Once her eyes set on them, she began to head on over, ignoring Frostbreeze's lies.
She immediately bumped into Snailswirl.
Oh, how she missed them.

eerie elysian Zesty Mango Starfall The Ink Demon Moon Lily

[Moon Lily]

[ eerie elysian The Ink Demon Rainquail Zesty Mango Starfall]

Irisflame jolted from her unanimated stance, snapping to attention as a distant patter echoed through the cavern. The others would be arriving sooner than she'd thought. This, of course, was a good thing considering the impatient swiftness of the moon. Starclan would see them tonight, and she would present the newbies with formal titles. It sounded so...definite. Everything seemed definite at the moment. An inevitable fate. Her orbs glinted like the gem in the darkness. The pawsteps and the rasping sound of her laboured breathing were the only sounds that separated them from silence. Silence that would be truly chilling if allowed. But the noise forbid it from emerging, and so it strayed into the darkness like a sulking kit.

The Windclan medicine cat- Snailswirl, right?- materialized from the rank tunnel, their heathery scent pounding at her nostrils. It had been so long since she'd smelt that scent. Even under the surprising appearance of a fishy Riverclan scent, too, it was unmistakable. Her heart throbbed painfully. Pops... She trapped the thought before it could wander farther. This wasn't a pity party for her miserable haunches- it was a meeting that signified peace between the four clans of the forest. And Stars was it tiring.
Bristling as the cat decided to hug the wall, she snorted in amusement. They were just like the other Shadowclan cats, going around and hugging at things that would harm them. She couldn't help letting go an unhelpful comment.
"Hey, Slick. I'm offended- would you rather hang out with the rock?" Her teasing tone lilted with amusement, concealed laughter noticable beneath it.

The rare exchange of a smile was wiped clean off her face as the most self-centered, arrogant, idiotic cat she had ever met waltzed into the cavern like she owned the place. Thunderclan scent radiated from her pelt in waves. Ah, of course. Of course the stuck-up brat is a Thunderclanner. The now-Shadowclanner may have been born there, but there was no part of her heritage she despised more. A growl rumbled from her throat. Drawing herself up as talk as she could manage, she padded over to the loudmouth. She would learn a thing or two from acting like some haughty, oh-so-honourable nuisance.
"Oi! Learn some manners, Wretch. The only reason that body guard of yours is here is because Bucky obviously thinks you're too stupid to take care of your own behind." She sniped, her tone dripping with irritation. She was done. She was done dealing with these cats, who believed they were gifted and superior. Ebonyfang had opted for a nicer comeback to her announcement, which left her feeling even more infuriated. The molly shouldn't be able to get away with her behaviour. She gawked at the cat who introduced herself as Sageflurry, and the wretched creature as Frostbreeze. The warrior seemed entirely nonchalant. Which, she must admit, she admired. She wouldn't have made it two pawsteps without ripping the Wretch's face clean off.
"Nice to meet ya, Sageflurry. You more than the other one. At least you can be polite. Or excellently fake being it. Thank you, anyway." She mewed, forcing the sounds that had appeared in her last words to flatten.

Coldamber's appearance helped somewhat with her overwhelming fury, and she shot the she-cat a tense smile. This would not be an enjoyable meeting. She found herself hoping the Wretch would be rejected. She didn't want to spend the rest of her career working with...that.
Whisking away what she could of the anger- which was not a large amount- the medicine cat stepped forwards, just a kithop away from touching the milky crystal. Light began to leach from the figure, flossing the cave with a bluish glow. The medicine cat squinted through the blinding light. The moon had reached its peak in the sky, its milky rays wrapping around the previous rock like a loose hug.
The meeting would commence.
"Lie down and touch your noses to the stone. And don't whine, we haven't got time for that. Chop chop!" Her mew was sharper than she had intended, but it would get the message across.

As her nose met the radiant stone, cold raced through her veins.

Nausea...dark...darker...

Darkness.

[vellichor]

// Zesty Mango Spoopy Star Moon Lily The Ink Demon Rainquail

Snailswirl
________

As Irisflame spoke to them, the tabby let out a chuckle. “I think it’s more like the rock wants to hang out with me,” they responded, matching her teasing tone.

The woodsy scent of ThunderClan overpowered the den as a figure stomped in. A glare swept around the cave as Frostbreeze introduced herself. Hmmph, they could see why she had the prefix Frost. Well, it was a good thing she was so determined to become a warrior. They didn't quite fancy working with her. And she had a bodyguard? ‘That’s odd. Maybe the cat is here to guard us from her.’ Just as the thought ran through their head, the other ThunderClanner spoke up. They couldn't help but let out a snort of amusement at the calliby’s words. That seemed more like it.

Ebonyfang dipped his head toward them, and they responded similarly. They may not know the ShadowClan medicine cat apprentice very well, but that didn't mean they had to take on a “Frostbreeze” kind of attitude.

As their green eyes adjusted to the miniscule light in the cave, they began to see the glows of the cats around them. Frostbreeze’s was a vivid purple-blue, a color that they had come to realize was something like disgust. Well, that seemed about right. Ebonyfang’s took on a light reddish hue. They wanted to say that was annoyance? Ebonyfang and Irisflame’s auras practically mirrored each other. As another cat streaked in, a burst of pale green and yellow hit them. Those colors were good, right? It seemed so, because that very cat was Coldamber.

With a happy noise that they couldn't quite stifle, they very nearly collapsed when they recognized Coldamber. Oh, how they had missed her. Though she smelled like... ThunderClan? Oh. She was probably there to help or something. They hoped. ThunderClan couldn’t steal Coldamber. Snailswirl needed her too much.

Irisflame’s words jolted them back to reality, and a glow, soft at first, then increasingly bright, filled the cavern. They hadn’t actually seen this happen before. And it took their breath away. The tabby stepped backwards, eyes wide with wonder. This was... beautiful. With a quick shake of their head and one last glance at Coldamber, they stepped toward the glowing stone. First, they felt cold spread across the delicate skin of their nose. Then, darkness threatened to overtake them. Instead of fighting it, something inside the medicine cat told them that it was okay. This darkness was good.

They hoped they were right.

[Madelaine]

[ Moon Lily; eerie elysian; Rainquail; Zesty Mango; Spoopy Star; ]

Ebonyfang ignored Frostbreezes guard and padded after his mentor. The tom watched everyone place their noses to the glowing stone. It was absolutely beautiful. He felt his heart begin to warm up and he let out a soft smile. He looked at all the medicine cats and laid down, pressing his nose to it It was cold at first, but he soon got used to it. Ebonyfang closed his eyes and let the darkness of sleep take him somewhere other than here.

[Mango]

Moon Lily The Ink Demon eerie elysian Rainquail

Frostbreeze glared at the other medicine cats, specifically the Shadowclanners before flopping down in annoyance and closing her eyes surprised as she drifted off to Starclan. Her rage at the other medicine cats seemed further away as she fell asleep on the cold stone floor.

[Sunnystripe]

Sunnystripe went into he entrance of the Starcave. He wanted to share tongues with his lost love, Venomtooth, who had died from a vicious River clan warrior trespassing on Thunderclan territory. When he had a dream with her, before he could even speak, he felt every one of his muscles frozen, and he felt every bit of pain Venomtooth felt in the battle, but, besides the pain, he felt a calm, accepting feeling deep inside the pit of him. Maybe Venomtooth had known it was her time to go before her little battle? And then, she said "Sunnystripe. Be careful. Great trouble is going to meet you." She stopped to touch noses with him, and then whispered her deadly omen to him " Water reflects sunlight, Sunnystripe. Be careful. Don't make the same mistake I did. " then, Sunny stripe was sent back awake by Starclan. What did she mean? A wave of panic swept through Sunnystripe as he noticed what it meant. The water was meaning riverclan, and the sunlight meant him! Riverclan was able to beat Sunny stripe in some way! But how?

[monsterflower]

monsterflower slowly walked into starcave flicking her tail

[Abyssopelagic]

Too short, Coldamber's reconnection with her friend ended as the need to continue the ceremony pressed on. Frostbreeze needed to be recognized fully as a Medicine Cat before she could return home, after all and once Snailswirl was done in RiverClan, they could have all the time to reconnect.
She knew this, yes. Very deep in the back of her mind, but she was bursting with questions about how RiverClan and his traing were and to fill him in on ThunderClan.
She sighed very deeply, regretful, as she pressed her nose to the stone, cold, almost as icy as she had felt in her dream about Frostbreeze.
Perhaps she would see another vision rather than a dream.

eerie elysian The Ink Demon Moon Lily Zesty Mango

[BEAR.]

No going back now.

"It's weird." Lionstar was following the same path he took with Fallenstream all those moons ago, through the territory past Cattail Pond and up the cliffs. "I've only done this once but it feels like I know it better than the back of my paw." After his leadership ceremony, he had no reason to return here - but the path was vivid to him, like he had followed it a million times before.

It didn't take long for the cave to emerge as the trees melted away into a small glade, and Lionstar paused outside the entrance. "Once we're inside, you'll want to go to that shiny rock and give it a little smoochen. It'll whisk you away into nightmare land and the Star Cats will be with you shortly. I'll be right behind you."

[ wnder ]

[duckie]

Sootflare
__________

Sootflare followed along quietly and closely, almost directly in the leader's footsteps. He didn't want to... interrupt Lionstar's experience - he seemed to be reliving memories he didn't quite expect to - and he needed the time to psyche himself up for what was about to happen. All this time as deputy had gone just fine. There was no anxiety about it. So why now? Why was this the time his chest constricted and throat tightened up? Why was his tongue dry and body going stiff?

He paused at the cave entrance, glancing between Lionstar and the dark cave ahead. Right. This was real. This was happening. He nodded and stepped forward. Just one paw after the other. When he spotted that 'shiny rock' Lionstar mentioned, his breathing hitched but he kept walking, only stopping when his face was nearly touching the crystalline surface.

Kissing the rock felt like a very Lionstar was to mess with him. Taking a deep breath, he pressed his nose against the surface, and, for a moment, nothing happened. He began to wonder if he actually had to kiss the rock. However, the question was soon wiped from his mind as he fell the ground, sprawled out in a cold, hard sleep and woke up in a place entirely other.

It probably would've been good to lay down first.


[ BILL. ]

[BEAR.]

Lionstar was right behind Sootflare as they entered the cave, the light of the crystal stone illuminating an otherwise dark hole. His disappointment when Sootflare didn't actually kiss it was palpable - it would have been funny to see him get wrecked by nothing happening.

Still.. watching him fall over was pretty entertaining, and Lionstar chuckled as he joined his unconscious body by the Starstone. "I always thought you'd be smart enough to lay down first, Father."

Looking down at him, Lionstar's pelt itched with apprehension. It was the first time this entire trip he doubted himself and his choices. Did he want to give up his power..? In a way, not really. There was nothing that could compare to the authority of being in charge. Of commanding not only his Clan, but his family.

No going back, he had to remind himself as he brought himself down into a golden bun and pressed his nose to the stone.

★★★★★★

The world melted away, and he found himself standing beside Sootflare in a celestial glade. He knew this place, quite well actually, and the hair along his back bristled when a familiar tabby approached.

Behind him, a half ring of eight unidentifiable cats.

"Lionstar, Sootflare." Headless-star's voice rang throughout the clearing. A clear, deep voice that might of been soothing for some, but it made Lionstar's blood run cold. "Of all the paths that could have been taken, the one that led you here has been the most unexpected. Perhaps we have you and Fawnsqueak to thank for that." Headless-star's words were directed to Sootflare. "You have done well to serve RiverClan, Sootflare. Few long-term deputies have the honor of getting to this point. You have the admiration of your Clan and us.

"And for you.." his attention now rested on Lionstar. "Who would have expected the oh-great Lionstar to willingly step away from power? When we first spoke, I anticipated you would destroy my Clan irreparably like you did all those moons ago.. but it appears you may have grown after all."

The distance between them closed, and Headless-star's muzzle pressed against Lionstar's forehead. "Your time as a leader is no more." The starting words made something inside Lionstar burn, an uncomfortable itch he couldn't shake. "By the power of StarClan, I revoke the lives you gained during your leadership ceremony." And like that, the wind was sucked out of him - a burning blast of pain that came with the sensation of being ripped apart. "The only life you have remaining is the natural life of a warrior." Lionstar sank to the starry ground, shaking from the pain of having his remaining lives torn from him. It felt worse than death - like his soul was sucked out of his body in fragments.

As he lay immobilized on the ground, Jerknohead continued. "Your willingless to step aside for a more qualified cat has shown your care for RiverClan.. it is refreshing to see you not blindly grab for power. With the authority of StarClan, I grant you your new name. From this moment forth, you will be known as Lionstorm. Let us hope your decision to resign will remain so." Somehow, Lionstar-- Lionstorm -- Lionstarm? had an inkling of what he meant. He could remember a spray of blood and Headless-star by his paws, motionless. The knowledge he had taken charge of a new Clan.

But that was a vague memory Lionstorm didn't care for, and he shrugged it aside as he struggled to get back to his paws. The pain was faded into a dull ache, a sensation something was missing. But he was here, so.. there was that. The whole 'soul-sucking' thing really did a number on him. He felt exhausted, like most of his energy had been zapped out by the mean Star Cats.

"Sootflare, step forward. Lionstorm, for your resignation, you have been given the ability to give Sootflare his final life - use it wisely. When you are ready, take your spot beside the final spirit."

[ wnder ]

[duckie]

Sootflare
__________

Knowing where he was going to end up dulled the shock ever so slightly and yet, still, the environment that met him as he woke was something to behold. The air was crisp, clean - sharper, almost - and everything... glittered. Not obnoxiously, but in such a way that everything shifted as you glanced around, leaving you dizzy. The stars, too. A clear night sky above. Beautiful.

He quickly climbed to his paws and was soon aware of the form of Lionstar appearing next to him. What a sight. The sight of a starry feline approaching quickly brought Sootflare to attention, giving a curt nod as he was addressed. He was able to relax ever so slightly as Hawkstar's gaze turned to Lionstar, but only for a moment. He tensed in turn with his leader as the lives were taken and instinctively shifted to press his flank against the tom's, helping him sink slowly to the ground.

He did not rise again until Lionsta- Lionstorm did, and turned back to the star cat in front of him.

Sootflare, step forward.

A heartbeat's hesitation passed before he did as he was told, the sounds around reducing to a dull ringing in his ears. This is it. No backing out now.


[ BILL. ]

[duckie]

[ THIS LEADER CEREMONY IS OPEN FOR ANYONE TO OFFER A LIFE ]

[ I want Sootflare's life to be significant and relevant to him! Please avoid basic lives such as courage,
strength, etc... and be mindful of the lives already given in order to avoid overlap!

Feel free to skim his page (https://shortestofstacks.weebly.com/sootflare.html) for ideas and overall, be creative and have fun!

The only life reserved is #9, for Lionstar to give. ]

[Dovey]

// wnder
A stary, half faded small shape appeared. "HI!" The kit mew'd. "I'm Sweetkit!" Sweetkit smiled.
With this live I give you Faith and hope, to see the little spark in the future, the star on the darkest night, and seeing that everyone and everything has a up side, and a happy side," She had to get up high to reach him. Sweetkit tapped him on the nose before tripping and falling over.

[Madelaine]

[ wnder; ]

Willowrose stepped forward and looked at Sootflare with her good eye. The molly had once resided in Windclan and until she joined Riverclan before she died. She wouldn't go through all of that with him. The molly looked over at Lionstorm, remembering when he took her into his clan. It was odd to see him like this, but she knew he knew what he was doing. Willowrose turned back to Sootflare.

"My name is Willowrose and I have come to give you the life of Father's love. I want you to love all of your clanmates as if they were your own. They need you more than anything and they need t be able to trust that you care for them. In life I didn't have a caring mother and those who don't need your very guidance and love.", she meowed. Willowrose took one more glance at Sootflare and Lionstorm before stepping back.

[-Ash-]

wnder

A starry kit stood in the crowd, but didn't step forward. Ashkit had no life to give to Sootflare. Instead, a ginger elder walked forward. "Sootflare. Good job on not failing, I'm glad Lionstar- er, Lionstorm- finally managed to pick a good deputy." She smiled a little. One moment she had been asleep on the floor of the medicine den, and the next she was here. "I'm Mapleleaf, an elder you probably don't know. With this life, I give you trust. Place trust your Clanmates, Sootflare, and in yourself. A good leader should be able to count on every single one of his Clanmates. Trust them until you you are given a good reason not to." The skinny elder touched her nose to that of the to-be leader. "Good job coming this far, and good luck." With that she walked back to the crowd of cats.

[vellichor]

// wnder

Windystar
________

It had been seasons since he had seen, let alone spoken to Lionstorm. The yellow tabby had been loud and brash and reckless, and annoying. Oh, so annoying. But he had proven himself a good leader for RiverClan, and earned his respect. He was unsure of how Lionstorm felt about him, but it probably wasn’t great. He wasn’t here for Lion, though. He was here for Sootflare.

the fluffy cat stepped forward, amber eyes meeting the deputy’s. "Sootflare. I’m going to cut right to the chase: I’m giving you the life of confidence. More specifically, self-confidence. You’ve been deputy for seasons, you’re going to do great as leader. You start to doubt yourself, and you’re done." With a quick glance at Lionstorm again, he half-joked, "Maybe you could steal some of his self-confidence. Stars know he has enough to go around." With that, he touched his pale nose to the black and white cat’s head, and stepped back. Waiting for another cat to go.

[plum]

A shimmering pelt comes into sight from the band of stars that formed their miniscule portion of the night sky. She had the lithe build of a WindClanner and walked very confidently, and at her heels was another- A kit who only casted looks from behind their mother’s legs. When the she-cat stops before Sootflare, she offers him a gentle smile. Although they hadn’t yet touched noses, StarClan seems to feel a little warmer. “Greetings, Sootflare,” she meows, her tone low in pitch, soothing. Sootflare probably would not be able to place his paw on what exactly it was, but there was something that might have seemed familiar about her- if he were in the place to even notice it.

“I have had my eyes on you for some time now,” the she-cat goes on. “You are a formidable tom with much promise for the future. I am glad Lionstar saw this in you, and I am pleased to be here to grant you a life tonight.”

Behind her, the little kit’s expression grows overshadowed with something akin to mischief. They crouch and begin to play with their mother’s tail, which had been brushing the starstained grass. The mother pauses and looks down at her kit, frowning momentarily before giving herself a befuddled shake and returning her attention to Sootflare.

“You’re a good, dedicated tom. And your Clan thanks you for it, I am sure. But in striving to be everything you can be for those who look to you for shelter and guidance and strength, you can lose yourself. You can lose sight of everything going on around you in this moment as you concentrate on your goals, on your future. You musn’t allow your worries and ambitions to blind you to the rest of your life- The sunshine, the sea breeze, the passing looks of your Clanmates. Some of whom you may have been fond of but have passed up those opportunities in the moment,” she adds slyly.

“Stop, Sootflare, and take note of these little things in your life when they show themselves to you. The life I give to you, a gift I pass along now that I no longer need it, is my sense of respite. Remember to sit back and take notice of the beauty you often look past in pursuit of sometimes needless hard work. Let your Clan show you what they can do, and discover what it’s like to see your world while at rest for the first time.” With another warm smile, Starkpelt leans forward to enact the time-old tradition of touching noses with the tom. When they touch, Sootflare is filled with the very warmth that seemed to spread around the two. It grows warmer, fuller, and finally seems to burst into a bright blooming sun. At his back, he may get the sense of a gust of wind that surrounds him and almost seems to push him forth with strength like a tidal wave- it is a feeling that would fill every one of his senses with desire and, at the same time, immense peace. The concept of relaxing was oddly exhilarating, huh.

Stepping back then, Starkpelt observes the to-be leader of RiverClan for a moment. She nods to him curtly, then turns to move away. The kit behind her stays, however, and peers up at Sootflare inquisitively. It is the first time that he hasn’t followed his mother when interacting with others.

“You know my sister!” The little kit exclaims. Although fully alert and capable, he was small. Very, very small. If he hadn’t been a StarClan cat, he’d still have his eyes shut and be incapable of walking alone. “You’ve talked to my sister!” Now aware that the kit hadn’t come away with her, the she-cat stops to watch the interaction. “I’m going to talk to her, too!”

The tom-kit proclaims. He never says anything more than that, and before the she-cat can move to prevent it, the StarClan kit dashes away through the undergrowth and leaves the ceremony. Stunned for another heartbeat, Starkpelt says nothing, but looks again at Sootflare and dips her head one final time before stepping back among the others who had gathered for this wonder of life.
[ wnder ]

[Cobra]

Echobreeze sighed.

It had been too long - too long since she'd died. She had disappeared.. what was it? Five moons ago? It seemed too long to be possible. Echobreeze couldn't believe it. Five moons since she'd been with Blazeclaw. Five moons since she'd been pregnant. Five moons since she died.. And now she was walking with two cats she'd known in her life. Lionstar - Lionstorm now - and Sootflare.

Sootflare.

Sootflare was the one who wouldn't let her swim. She'd been wanting to her whole life, and she'd finally gotten the chance to. Echobreeze had been so excited. Then Sootflare pushed her down, told her she couldn't cause she was pregnant. That was the first time she'd wished she wasn't, the first time she wished she could be free of kits. Wished she could run, learn to swim without those "burdens" that they called beautiful.

Anyways, she had a life to give and she had to do it now. Echobreeze knew that this was the perfect chance - tell Sootflare what he had done wrong, give him a change, gift him a life to try to fix it.

Here we go.

"Sootflare," she announced, stiffening. "My name is Echobreeze, and I'm almost positive you don't know me. Or remember me. But anyways. I have places to be and cats to see." Echobreeze stepped forward staring solemnly into Sootflare's eyes. "I give you a life for temperance, for holding your rage back. Use it well, Sootflare." The silver she-cat walked back into the shadows, giving Sootflare a nod.

wnder BILL.

[marshy]

Another leader? Are the clans serious? Pebblepool was a bit baffled on how many leaders there had been recently.. Twilightstar, Dawnstar(ew), Buckstar and now Sootflare? I mean, he seems like a perfect pick from how he acts. But she would miss Lionstar as leader.. well not really. Its not like she knew him or anything but Sootflare.. Sootflare seemed cooool. Anyway She was definitely just gonna sit back and relax for this one. She'd already given Twilightstar a life and told Dawnstar to buzz off. And could she even give a life to a Riverclan cat? She was a Windclanner after all. Maybe she could and just was too dumb to realize. She watched as different cats gave Sootflare his lives. All of them seemed useful enough. She wished she had a rabbit or something but nevertheless she kept watching.

[Abyssopelagic]

Halfstone padded foward. Lionstar wasn't among them, so he must have stepped down. He was glad the leader would get a chance to live his life without it being cut short. Or former.
He approached Sootflare.
"As Lionstar has been good to RiverClan, so have you and you will continue to do good for your Clan. I grant you the life of integrity. I've seen what's going on with Shadowclan, and now more than ever should you hold to your morality and judge as you see fit."
He leaned foward to touch his nose to Sootflare's forehead to transfer the life. He hoped it was a good one, and that it would serve him well.

wnder

[Starfall]

Foamflower
Life #8
wnder
She watched as each cat stepped forwards and gave a meaningful life. The chubby molly had thought long and hard about which life she would want to give, and whether or not it would be takin into account with the new Leader. After a long drawn in breath she stepped forwards. The mottled feline flicked her tail, star dust fluttering every which way.

"A new leader. It really is a surprise, but a welcome one." she hummed. "Hello Sootflare...it took me a second to think about the life I want to give you, and how you may take it, accept it or otherwise." she trailed off and looked down, shuffling her paws.

"With this life, I give you the life of Clarity." she paused. "Stand out. Show the star's who you are and what you stand for. Be different and be different with honor. Listen to those who give ideas that are different, and listen to those who believe in different beings. It's how we grow." the Alabaster feline took a breath.

"Diverge yourself from your opponents. Live each moment like it's your last. I'd joke that you only have one life...but that's not the case anymore is it?" She giggled. With that, the Queen propped herself up, and touched the tom's forehead. Once finished, she hopped down, bowed her head, and stepped back towards the circle of Starclanners.

[Madelaine]

[ Rainquail; :Grimmlin:; elysian; Zesty Mango; Rani; ]

Ebonyfang padded out of the shadowclan camp alone. He really missed Irisflame beside him, but he was confident that he would do fine. The shadowclan medicine cat looked up to see that the sun wasn't almost down. The half moon was almost visible. He found it quite beautiful, but he soon got rid of the thought.

The large black tom knew exactly where he was going. It wasn't his first time, so he followed the right path. Ebonyfang found himself getting closer to the starcave. It had a different feeling, but he didn't mind at all. Once he got there he sat down, seeing that none of the others were here. Oh well there was no rush. Not yet anyway.

[duckie]

Sootflare
__________

Standing there and waiting for the first StarClanner to step forward felt like an eternity. Seconds stretched out into infinity - the only sound his heart pounding in his ears. He barely noticed Sweetkit shifting towards him but he gave her his full attention as she began to speak. Faith and hope. A positive outlook. Something he could use, he supposed. Sootflare bent down to allow for her giving-of-lives to go a little smoother and would have laughed at her little tumble if it weren't for the jolt it sent through his body. A shocking sort of pain that felt like it permeated every fiber of his being.

Was this what every life was going to feel like? Was this what Lionstorm felt as the lives were ripped from his body?

Before he had time to recover, Willowrose stepped forward. Life of a father's love. Great. Now Lionstorm would have even more reason to call him Sootdad. Another jolt. This time - worse. Incrementally more intense. This was going to be a long process.

The next cat was familiar. Mapleleaf. An elder in RiverClan. Had they not... been living not too long ago? How had he not heard of this passing? Had it only been this morning? He didn't have time to contemplate those questions before he was, yet again, rocked to his core. It felt like a fire was burning in his chest and yet he felt... calm. Like this was the right choice. The right path to be on.

Self-confidence. Certainly, something he lacked on the trip leading him here. Now, however, it seemed to subside. There would be slip-ups. Mistakes made. But he had practice, support, and friends. Lionstorm, Fawnsqueak, Aspensky, ... Dayheart. They would all see him through.

The next cat was not someone he knew but... oddly familiar all the same. As she talked, Sootflare scanned the molly's face, body, movements. Who else carried that gaze, that disposition? This life was not so painful. Instead, he felt warmth. Comfort. For a moment he was left in a daze, but snapped back to reality as a kit ran forward to address him. His sister? A glance thhe StarClanners and realization dawned upon him. The warmth, the breeze - it all gave visions of the moors. WindClan. And who did he know in WindClan? Eldersky.

"Wait-" he meowed, the word coming out strangled, but before he knew it she had retreated and the next warrior was stepping forward. He sighed. Perhaps they would have time to talk later.

His mood sank further as he recognized the molly in front of him Echobreeze. The dim-witted molly who had nearly drowned in shallow water. He knew in her manners that she was not pleased with him. The feeling was mutual. He took her life in stride, and made a point to straighten himself up as she moved back and another took her place. His breathing was ragged now and he was glad this was soon to be over.

Halfstone. A life of integrity. Some of the cats in their clan could do with that. He hoped it wouldn't ever come to a point where he would ever become so twisted as to have to rely on that life. But he was glad to have it.

Life number eight. Second to last. A life of clarity. He gave a curt nod after the life was given and resisted the urge to crumple to the ground and sleep for the next couple of moons.

There was only one more to give and he turned to face his former leader. He had no idea what Lion would give him but he was ready.

"Lionstorm." he mewed, closing the distance between them. He let out a shaky sigh and offered a smile, "I'm ready when you are."


[ Daisy the Icewing Siren Bliss Trouble elysian implimm Cobra Rainquail Starfall BILL. ]

[BEAR.]

Watching the wave of cats come and go like the ebbing tide was an unreal experience to Lionsta--orm. It left him wondering if this was how it was for Fallenstream, though it must have been a little different since his lives weren't ripped out of him.

Lionstar -- Lionstorm didn't even have all of them and it hurt like hell.

He made a point of ignoring the specifics of the cats who came and went, his stomach twisting in mild anxiety. Was this the right choice? Maybe he should disrupt the ceremony, reclaim some of his lives - RiverClan still needed him, the lack of power was maddening, he needed--

And then it was his turn, and Lionstorm let out a ragged breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Sootflare.."

What could he give him? Most of the lives were bland, boring, classless. They'd make for a tasteless leadership. But that did give an idea as he pressed his muzzle against Sootflare's forehead.

"As we speak, the world around us is changing and shifting. Our allies and enemies today may not be so tomorrow, and the Clan that follows us may turn on us in a heartbeat. Chaos is always waiting around the corner, and you need to be prepared to handle this disorder as it comes.

"The life I grant you is CONTROL. The world around you may be set ablaze, but you will be one with the flames. Work with the fire, and you can control it. Turn it upon your enemies and watch them be consumed."

His mind went to ShadowClan, on both the fires he set upon them. The singed forest and the demolished barn. The distant screams as cats escaped the blaze. Both raids they successfully won against them, beating back the scum and making it difficult for them to recover.

All the times he exiled or killed a cat to remain in control of the situation. To prevent something from getting much, much worse. Lionstar loved chaos, but most importantly - he loved being the one to make it happen. He didn't like it forced upon himself.

Would Sootflare see this? He didn't know.

"You are responsible now for the well-being of our Clan, and you need to be the one to keep it together. You will have help, but ultimately everything that happens is your call. Loosen your grip, and you will be met with madness."

Lionstorm stepped back, doing his best to not sag after the burst of energy that transferred between them. He rested his burning gaze on his former deputy. "I hail you by your new name, Sootstar." He couldn't remember all the words but it didn't matter. "You have been granted the guardianship of RiverClan, and I trust you will defend and rule our Clan with pride and dignity."

Already, the world around them was beginning to fade. "It is time for us to return home." Whether Sootstar wanted to address the Clan himself or have Lionstorm do it was up to him.

[ wnder ]

[duckie]

Sootflare
__________

The last life was the worst of all. The pain that wracked his body felt like it was going to tear him apart - but he forced himself to stand tall and keep the smile on his face. He was going to be strong for this one. Push through it. For Lion. For himself. For every screw-up and every moment of doubt.

Sootflare hung onto every word. Focusing on Lionstorm's face and what he was saying was the only thing keeping him from crumpling to the ground. To say this was the end of an era felt too... final. But perhaps it was right. The time of Lionstar was over and it was time for someone new to step forward.

Control.

Self-control, discipline - whatever you wanted to call it. That was what stood between him and the dirt.

Guardianship of RiverClan was.. a lot, to be frank, but he would do his best. Anything less than would be a failure and a disgrace to his new rank.

Lionstorm tried to step back and put some distance between them but Sootstar followed, half-collapsing into the warrior's should and pressing himself into his fur.

"Sorry, bud," he meowed with a shaky laugh, "This was a little harder than I thought it would be. I'm... glad we could do it together."

Sootstar.

Was it really real?

He would soon wake up in the StarCave and have it all confirmed but, for now, he relished the moments as they faded. The closeness, the warmth. He needed it right now.


[ BILL. ]

[BEAR.]

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Though his pelt itched with mild discomfort at being touched - when was the last time he really had physical contact with anyone? Lionstorm took a moment to savor the warmth as the world around them melted into nothingness.

He came to on the floor of the Starcave, blinded momentarily by the glow of the crystal, and he shook his head as he glanced away toward Sootstar's crumpled form. The entire ordeal had him feeling sore and tired, but their journey wasn't over yet. "Hey, Sootstar. We should head back before it gets too late."

There was a meeting to call.. and a Clan to address.

[ wnder ]

[duckie]

Sootstar
__________

Dragging himself up from the dirt and rock, Sootstar barely registered that he was being addressed. Every inch of his body ached and he was eager to get home and collapse in the warrio-... Right.

He wouldn't be sleeping there anymore. He would have his own den now. Alone.

"Right." he grunted, shaking some of the loose soil out of his pelt. There was still a clan to get back to, "Lead th-... Actually, nevermind." Apparently the dirt in his fur wasn't the only thing that needed shaking out. This was going to take a while to get used to. Taking the lead, Sootstar set his sights on home.


[ BILL. ]

[Mango]

[ Rainquail; :Grimmlin:; elysian; Siren Bliss; Rani; ]

Frostbreeze padded into the cave and was surprised to realize she wasn’t late. She saw Ebonyfang and dipped her head,” Bonylame. Is Tulipfire or whatever her name getting too old to come?” she teased giving a lash of her tail. She was referring to Irisflame.

[vellichor]

// Rani :Grimmlin: Zesty Mango Rainquail Siren Bliss — quick note for rani n grimm, snail’s got asthma, so the hill probably won’t be as bad for your characters (:

Snailswirl
________

Well, it took just about forever and a day, but the tabby found themself facing that stupid hill again. "The Cave’s just up this hill. Warning in advance: it’s pretty damn steep." They had dropped some formality due to the sheer prescience of this massive hill, and the toll it would ultimately take on their breathing. Nevertheless, they began to climb. As their pawsteps slowed and their breaths quickened, Snailswirl found themself struggling for air. But they were so close.... so close...! With a gasp and a flop, they reached the peak. Hoping and praying the newbies were still behind them, they took a few moments... seconds..., okay, maybe a minute to catch their breath. WHEW. "Just i... in here. Follow... me." It felt embarrassing to dread that stupid hill and to nearly be bested by it, but they couldn’t control their breathing. Unfortunately. Falling into a familiar path, they nearly ran smack dab into... great. "Hey there..., Frostbreeze. Ebonyfang. And... where’s Irisflame?" green eyes rounded in concern.

[Rani]

It would probably be more polite for the apprentice to wait for the full medicine cats to go before entering the starcave but the kid was too excited to wait. So by the time that poor Snailswirl was halfway up the hill and defiantly before they could react he’d hot footed it to the top and peaked his narrow head over to peer into the cave. And spotting Frostbreeze and Ebonyfang hesitated and promptly turned around again. He didn’t mind Ebonyfang much, slowly and steadily warming to the only other tom of the group despite his suspicion but even Ebonyfangs company wasn’t enough to make him want to withstand the breeze head without a sufficient buffer. So he turned and headed down the hill again to easily catch up with Sparrowskip and mutter “Shadowclan and thunderclan are already here.” Sticking close to his mentor to postpone the inevitable until they crested the hill. He did however shoot a concerned glance between Sparrowskip and the gasping older cat when the windclan cat collapsed for breath for a bit.

“Hello again. Nice seeing you Ebonyfang. Frostlady.” He kept his greeting short but still as full of snark as usual before softening his questions to Snailswirl “So what’s the deal with this place? We can talk with the dead or something? How does that even work?” He did try his best to keep the scepticism from his voice and ask as respectfully as possible but it was rather hard. He never believed in starclan or even thought much on it and the idea of such mystical power like the ability to communicate to those long gone seemed.... fantastical at best, horrible manipulation or delusion at worst.

:Grimmlin: elysian Zesty Mango Rainquail Xmas Bliss

[marshy]

Sparrowskip wondered why it was so much trouble for Snailswirl to get up the hill compared to him and Snakepaw. But he figured it be a bit rude to ask so he kept his maw shut. He was glad to see the familiar faces of the medicine cats. Even if he'd only pet them once. He corrected Snakepaws... name for Frostbreeze. In a stern but very quiet voice. "Hi Ebonyfang! Nice to see you too Frostbreeze." He made sure to give a thankful nod to Snailswirl before he sat down with the other medicine cats. Rani elysian Zesty Mango @Siren Bliss

[Mango]

:Grimmlin: Rani elysian Xmas Bliss

Frostbreeze flicked her tail to Snakepaw, I guess I can perform the ceremony before we speak to Starclan...since I am the best medicine cat.” she offered. She could care less that Ebonyfang was the one suppose to perform the ceremony, since they were the senior medicine cat, and Snakepaw’s mentor also needed to be accepted by Starclan.

[Madelaine]

[ Zesty Mango; :Grimmlin:; Rani; ]

Ebonyfang looked at all the medicine cats as they arrived. He was ready to get this started and as the senior medicine cat he would give the ceremonies. He was just about to say something when Frostbreeze said she would. He began to grow inpatient. "You ain't doing any of that. The last time I checked I was the senior medicine cat here. I give the ceremonies.", he snapped. Ebonyfang looked at the two Riverclan medicine cats. "Sparrowskip and Snakepaw step towards the cave. Once we're inside I will start your ceremony.", he meowed, flashing a look at Frostbreeze. Teh shadowclan medicine cat waited for the two to go inside.

[vellichor]

// Rani :Grimmlin: Zesty Mango Xmas Bliss

Snailswirl
________

Embarrassment had crept through them as they had struggled up the hill, while the RiverClanners found it rather easy. Embarrassment, as well as a touch of jealousy. Stars, they wished their lungs were... functional.

Well, their question went unanswered. But they figured Irisflame had retired or been... well, hopefully retired. With that, they went in, leading the way down the tunnels. Even though they had only been here a few times, Snail knew the way easily. They found themself arriving just as the moon struck the stone, filling the cavern with shimmering moonlight. Only stopping to gawk for a moment, they huffed and hurried toward the stone. Without hesitation, they spoke to the new medicine cats. "Touch nose... to stone." They were still, unfortunately, recovering from that cursed hill. They touched their nose to the cold stone, and sleep dragged them down.

This would be the first good night of sleep they’d had in days... ahh. They awaited the Star Cats.

[Rani]

Snakepaw snickered openly at Ebonyfangs hard shutdown of Frostbreeze even if he didnt believe in any of this so far. He was growing to like the shadowclan medicine cat a little too much in his mind given the animosity between the clans he needed to up his suspicion... Or he could just sneer at Frostbreeze when Sparrowskips back was turned. Yeah he was going for the second option.

Waiting for the other cats to turn away Snakepaw blatantly looked the thunderclan cat up and down, then he narrowed his eyes and did it again, and then the cherry on top of the cake he choked down silent laughter as he looked away even as his lip curled in distaste. There you pretentious windbag try and one up that display of silent contempt. Sure she really hadnt done anything to Snakepaw to warrant this but everything about Frostbreeze rubbed him the wrong way and with all this ~starclan blessed rituals and ceremonies~ one thing had to give and Sparrowskip would probably flay him if it got out how much of a strange shared insanity this whole thing was.

Still even with his short interlude in sass he gave a nod and stepped inside, following his mentors lead.

:Grimmlin: Zesty Mango elysian Xmas Bliss

[marshy]

Wait they needed a ceremony?? Well, Sparrowskip guessed that made sense.. He was trying to figure out what Snakepaw had against the Thunderclan medicine cat. But he decided to leave it alone. He walked into Starcave along with the other medicine cats. Rani Zesty Mango elysian Xmas Bliss

[Mango]

:Grimmlin: Rani elysian Xmas Bliss

Frostbreeze gave a snort to Ebonyfang, it was interesting. All the clans disliked Shadowclan and most the medicine cat’s favorite medicine was Ebonyfang. They shouldn’t have liked Ebonyfang,” Don’t get lost Bonymangy” she teased to Ebonyfang as she put her stone to the nose to drift off. It was strange, she loved calling Ebonyfang, Bonymangy for some reason she had no idea why. She used the word mangy, because it was the best insult she could make out of the word fang. Sleep tight Gailwhirl she thought as she drifted off, referring to Snailswirl...she’d never settled on an insulting name that she liked for them.

[vellichor]

[just throwin this in here for prophecy purposes]

Snailswirl
________

The air around them felt deathly cold. The tabby cat opened their green eyes, widening them in shock. They were in WimdClan territory! And it was broad daylight! And there was about a few mouselengths of snow underpaw! What was happening? Was this a dream? Their teeth chattered as the cold dug into their fur. If this was a dream, it was a horribly realistic one.

They did the only sensible thing — trot towards camp. They knew camp was at least a little warmer than this frozen wasteland. The medicine cat’s paws were beginning to freeze. Brrrr. They disliked leaf-bare. The snow was fun for about 5 minutes, then it was just sad and miserable. As they created the ridge to camp, they were met with a horrid scent. All too familiar coughing plagued their ears.

Greencough.

Coldamber must need them! What were they doing out here? Snailswirl jogged and struggled through the snow as quickly as the could. They headed toward the medicine den, until more coughing caught their ear. From the warriors den? Their ears flattened. This was going to be worse than they thought.

That was when Snail noticed the fresh-kill pile.

Or, rather, the lack of it.

Suddenly, there was screaming. Wails of anguish. Cats too weak to go hunt in the bitter cold left to starve on the moors. Dozens of sick cats, the dreaded Greencough spreading through WindClan. Coldamber, Twilightstar, Breezefeather, nowhere to be found. It was practically a death sentence.

Tears pricked at their eyes, and they tried to blink the tears away. That was when the scene vanished. Replaced by darkness, along with a few glittering stars. Their heart was racing. Snailswirl felt a presence, as if they weren’t there alone. In the same instant, foreboding words whispered themselves in the cat’s ear.

"Preparation is key to the Wind. Remember, history tends to repeat itself..."

[jayfeather21]

Jaykit knew this was a place of medic. cats but if he did what they did maybe he could speak with starclan, His questions could be answered? His dreams explaned? he had to try. The medic cats had left a strong scent trail and he had followed it, after he saw them fall into a deep sleep he crepted and did what they had done moments before, He fell into a sleep he could not explain.

[Abyssopelagic]

Coldamber hurried to the Starcave, questions swirling in her head. She needed answers. She need guidance.
She couldn't make this choice alone.
Once the Cave was within sight, she slowed just enough to avoid slipping down the side of the slope.
Once within the Cave, she slowed to a hurried walk, muscles sore and lungs aching.
She laid in the normal spot to commune with the ancestors before letting herself relax and drift away.

BILL.
((Sorry it's rushed))

[BEAR.]

[ no worries! Rainquail ]

The longer he wandered the realm of the dead, the more complicated and confusing it seemed.

Like now. Foxbite had only just been walking through the dreary forest he'd grown accustomed to, when the scene changed entirely.

He was in WindClan's camp, just outside the little nook they called the medicine cat's den. Beside him was a pale gray she-cat he didn't recognize, and before them..

It was a grisly sight, and it faintly reminded Foxbite of the fateful night when the scent from the fields caused cats to snap. The open space of WindClan's camp was painted in blood, bodies scattered indiscriminately throughout the camp.. the faces of cats he didn't really recognize (was that Dimtail? he wasn't sure) staring up toward the Breezerock sightlessly, expressions frozen in the panic of their final moments. Prowling the camp were cats he knew from ShadowClan - but their names evaded him.

And above the carnage, sat a very familiar tabby figure on the Breezerock. Foxbite knew Dawnstripe had become leader, but for this to happen.. he was unnerved!

"I'm guessing you're real, then." He spoke to the she-cat he didn't know. She smelled of home but lacked the scent of death and despair that their illusioned companions carried. Well.. not that he could call WindClan home, he was a traitor in more than one way. "For this to be a vision.. good Stars, what have you gotten yourself into?"

[Abyssopelagic]

Coldamber's brows furrowed at the cat before her, not taking much note of her surroundings. What was especially odd was his scent, smelling of both WindClan and ShadowClan, but more predominantly of the latter.
Perhaps he had called both Clans home at one point, before her time there it seemed.
"More than I can handle, it seems. I am Coldamber, WindClan's Medicine Cat."
It almost seemed that introduction were unnecessary, but out of courtesy, she stuck to hers.
"Days ago, our leader Twilightstar went missing. My search party was confronted by Dawnstar, ShadowClan's leader, who said she.... had important business with our deputy. I did not trust her, so instead of bringing her to him, I sent a warrior to fetch him."
She paused. It was so strange that so much had happened in a single day.
"And she killed him very shortly after he arrived. She is now demanding we give her our territory and merge with ShadowClan in return for our leader. I..... some of the warriors I consulted would rather refuse, to let her keep Twilightstar, but I cannot run the Clan, I'm a Meducine Cat for a reason....."
Coldamber stopped herself before she blabbed for too long.
"I needed.... someone else to consult, who wasn't emotionally attached. Or attached by pride."
The ancestors seemed like a decent neutral party.

BILL.

[BEAR.]

"Coldamber." Foxbite repeated her name, curious to the unusual combination but not against it in the slightest. It was pretty. "I.. am Foxbite, but WindClan knew me as Foxpudge. My absence from WindClan must pre-date you: I don't recall seeing you around." A good thing, perhaps. When he was in WindClan things weren't .. good. At all.

He knew Twilightstar, and his ears twitched at the news. "Dawnstar is.. many things, Coldamber. When I knew her, I would have thought her to be nothing but one of the strongest and fiercest warriors of ShadowClan. She.. When every other cat faltered, she didn't hesitate to take out major threats toward her Clan-mates." He could feel the ghost of her claws and teeth through his skin, and he shivered.

"You said Twilightstar is her hostage. Your deputy is dead. WindClan is effectively leaderless -- regardless of the efforts you try to take. You're no warrior, Coldamber." He could see it - she lacked muscle where it mattered, and he wondered if she had any training outside of medicine. "I'm not going to piss around with you: there aren't many choices you can take and whatever you decide to do, cats will die. It's just.. a matter of which one will give WindClan a better chance of bouncing back.

"You can fight Dawnstar's demands, but you lose the best leader WindClan has had in ages. Trust me, I've lived through almost all of them in recent history." Dapplestar, Blazingstar, Brightstar. His mother alone ran the Clan for almost an eternity - and she sucked. "Actually, it's even worse than that. You lose Twilightstar, you have to scramble to find a new leader to handle the Clan's crisis, and chances are Dawnstar will raid you for not listening. From what you said, she's gotten ruthless.. and I can't imagine her taking kindly to disobedience.

"Your other option, is to comply with her demands. I cannot tell you if she'll keep her word about Twilightstar, but I can tell you this will give you time. WindClan has always persevered through hardships, and the Clan can continue even under the rule of a tyrant. When Twilightstar first became leader, she wanted us to keep our heads down and act like we weren't a threat while our strength was rebuilt. If you do this.. you can gather your thoughts, prepare, and see what you're up against before you make a move. Some cats might be lost along the way.. but the overall losses will likely be reduced."

Of course, this was all just speculation based on what he knew. Things might go a lot differently from what he could imagine, but he hoped bringing up Twilightstar's original plans might stir some ideas for the medicine cat. Stars knew she needed something to work with - even if his thoughts weren't helpful.

[ Rainquail ]

[Madelaine]

Later on after the clan meeting Ebonyfang decided to go on and get Bouncepaw's official ceremony to starclan. He brought along Shrewstep to be an escort. He was the only cat he really trusted beside himself. Bouncepaw would have to gain his trust first. The Shadowclan medicine cat moved up to the cave before stopping. He turned around to look at the two cats. "Shrewstep your more than welcome to come in with us or you can just stay out here. Bouncepaw once we get in I'll be doing your full ceremony to introduce you to Starclan.", he meowed. Ebonyfang didn't wait for them to answer before going right into the starcave.

[ gs29513; Fletcher; ]

[gs29513]

Shrewsteps day had been getting better and better. Becoming a warrior, and getting to go to the Starcave? This had to be some kind of awesomeness record. He was still suspicious of the promise of Bouncepaw, and had been eyeing him strangely as they made their way to the home of Starclan. Taking a step back to let Bouncepaw go first, that much he was willing to concede, he followed the other two cats in before settling down to the side. He might know some herbs, but he had no intention of talking to Starclan. They were real, but he doubted they would want him hanging around. Instead he was content to stay to the side near the entrance, to keep an eye out for anything that might sneak up on the medicine cats. Fletcher Angelique

[Fletcher]

[ Angelique gs29513 ]

Bouncepaw

Bouncepaw was fidgety, hopping slightly from left to right as they walked. He attempted to strike up a few conversations with Shrewstep, but his voice ended up trailing off at the end of each sentence.

He did manage to get one thing out, though, "Congratulations on becoming a w-w..warrior! You must be very skilled to impress Dawnstar like that!"

After they'd arrived, Bouncepaw took his place next to Ebonyfang, listening closely, nodding in lieu of speaking to show he was listening.

[Madelaine]

Ebonyfang stopped once he got further into the cave. He was just ready to get this thing going so they could get back the next morning. Once they stopped talking he could continue. The medicine cat swished his tail to silence them.

He glanced up at the roof of the cave to pretend to look up at the sky. "Bouncepaw, is it your wish to enter the mysteries of Starclan as a medicine cat?", he asked. Ebonyfang looked directly at his apprentice.

// gs29513; Fletcher; \\

[Fletcher]

[ Angelique gs29513 ]

Bouncepaw

Bouncepaw followed Ebonyfang's gaze, staring up at the ceiling. His heart was pounding so hard, he almost thought it was going to burst. It was in that moment, he found a solemn moment of peace.

He untensed his muscles, took a breath, and closed his eyes.

"It is. More than anything. For me, and for my clan..."

[Madelaine]

[We'll stop mentioning Shrew until we need them :) ]

Ebonyfang just looked at Bouncepaw with his expressionless face. He was actually quite proud f himself for choosing him. He just hoped he'd continue to be good. He couldn't afford to have his cousin not trust his word. It would mean he would be demoted. He didn't want that. He worked way to hard for this.

"Then step forward.", Ebonyfang meowed.

// Fletcher; \\

[Fletcher]

[ Angelique ]

[ Angelique Rani \

Bouncepaw

He held his breath for another beat before taking a few steps forward, unsure of what to expect. He tried to remain calm but felt little pin picks of nervousness begin to spark on his pelt.

He kept silent, regardless, though.

[Madelaine]

Ebonyfang watched as he stepped forward, his whiskers twitch with anticipation. There was no expression on his face, but he was surprised how willing Bouncepaw was. He was starting to think he made the right choice. He looked back up.

"Warriors of Starclan, I present you with this apprentice. They have chosen the path of a medicine cat. Grant them your wisdom and insight so they may understand your ways and heal their clan in accordance of your will.", finished Ebonyfang. He felt good for this being his first time performing one of these. He has proven he doesn't need help. He needed himself.

One day he would fully trust Bouncepaw, but right now he had to prove himself. "Now find somehwere to rest and starclan will guide you in a dream.", he meowed. Ebonyfang curled up himself and drifted off to sleep in hope to talk to someone.

// Fletcher; \\

[Fletcher]

[ Angelique ]

Bouncepaw

Bouncepaw remained silent, though took in every word, every movement- every change in the air that he could feel. He could almost sense his ancestors surging through him, encouraging him.

He took a few paces forwards, to the side, back, and then down. Bouncepaw curled up into a tight ball, closed his eyes, and dreamt...

[Madelaine]

Ebonyfang woke up from his dream. He was very irritated. That dark forest cat didn't tell him anything. What a waste of a dream. The medicine hoped that Bouncepaw's one was better. He was the reason why he was here. If no starclan cat talked to him it meant he wasn't approved. Well he would know if that was the case.

// Fletcher; \\

[Fletcher]

[ Angelique ]

Bouncepaw

Bouncepaw did wake up, he looked so peaceful for a brief moment, almost as if he were a different cat entirely. After fully coming too, though, he regarded Ebonyfang and jumped to his paws, arching his back in a quick stretch, "Oh g-good morning!" he sputtered, regardless of if it was actually morning or not, "I think I went to S-Starclan, I talked to a really nice cat, she used to be a medicine cat apprentice...she said that she was proud of me, too...Did you dream, too?"

[Madelaine]

Ebonyfang turned to his apprentice when he started talking. At least he had a dream. It was great to know starclan approved. He was pretty sure Bouncepaw would do alright. "Oh yes I dreamed. Not really big on telling others what happened though.", he meowed in his emotionless voice. Ebonyfang looked over at Shrewstep. "We might want to head back to camp.", he meowed.

// Fletcher; gs29513; \\

[gs29513]

As the medicine cats stirred, Shrewstep shook himself quickly in an attempt to look less like he had spent the whole time they were here squirming in a mixture of awkwardness and the desire to try and visit Starclan with the medicine cats. He hadn't, but his fur was a bit dirty from all the brushing up against cave walls as he paced in a circle, keeping an eye out for anything that might have learned cats came here and sat unconscious for a long time. Yes, let's do that. he mewed, his tail already whisking out of sight as he headed out into the light. Angelique Fletcher

[Fletcher]

[ Angelique gs29513 ]

Bouncepaw

Bouncepaw nodded his head in respect, not asking Ebonyfang any further questions. He quickly scampered over to Shrewstep, attempting to strike up another conversation. He asked a lot of quickfire questions, "Hello! Were you bored? H-how long were we gone? Did you feel weird?" he chattered, tail happily sticking up.

[Abyssopelagic]

Well, Foxbite had certainly given her a lot to think about. It did.... follow what she had already planned to do, though for different reasons than he had listed, but she at least now had justification.
"I suppose it makes sense, what you're saying. My warriors won't like it, but I can only hope they understand I have everyone's best interest at heart."
Coldamber dipped her head to him.
"Thank you, but I must go now. I don't believe I have much time left here."
BILL.

[Twilight Wing]

A mysterious cat with dark brown fur padded into the star cave.It was pitch black and cold,then a single beam of moon light illuminated the cave lighting it up as if the hole silverpelt came down to rest.The mysterious cats silver markings blazed like cold fire,and her green eyes darted around the cave in amazement.She had traveled far in search of a true home.Suddenly she felt tired and was drawn to a large crystal that stoon in the middle of the cave she stumbled towards it,soft pelts pressed against her sides wispy and quiet voices ushered her on.She lay against the stone that was glowing fiercely the voices grew louder,she then touched the stone with her nose,the voices stopped icy claws gripped her and everything went dark as she was plunged into a deep sleep.

(OPEN)

[Mango]

Angelique Fletcher Rani Rainquail implimm Moon Lily
( Figured it’s about time for another mc meeting, and Moon lily mentioned something about Iris teaching everyone here so I mentioned moon as well)

Frostpaw stalked into the cave and glanced around. Good I’m here first at the medicine cat meeting, at least I look punctual, wouldn’t want to be late like Shadowclan and Windclan always is, and for once we beat Riverclan here. Shame Sparrowskip always comes, it’d be fun to squish Snakepaw but, Sparrowskip strikes me as a snitch, oh well she thought as she impatiently waited for the rest to arrive, she had left a bit early so she had no idea in Grainyflicker was coming on not, she just didn’t want to be the one stuck in camp caring for all the patients tonights.

[Rani]

The young tom knew he shouldnt be here alone alright he knew. It was dangerous, he wasnt even ten moons, he was technically an apprentice (not that it really counted for anything given the duties he had on the daily), and there was no real reason to believe he'd actually find anything here but... The whole argument with Sparrowskip was a big one this time and his mentor had just vanished afterwards, it'd been days and his scent was starting to go stale from the camp. They'd gotten into arguments before so he didnt want to believe the worst possibility here (he was mean sometimes yes but his words couldnt just drive someone away from the clan alone right) and ever a master at denial as he was Snakepaw was checking all of his options. Sparrowskip might be here the tom was religious he might have come here to pray or something and Snakepaw wouldnt have to go to Sootstar about his worries....

Snakepaw didnt even really believe in his justification though. It didnt stop his hopes from rising seeing a cat in the cave and rapidly fall again when it was Frostpaw (and only Frostpaw) but he sort of expected the outcome. A malestorm of emotions were flooding the tom and unsure how to deal with any of them he reached for the easiest one, anger.
"I'd say 'look what the fox dragged in' but thats probably too insulting to foxes isnt it? I dont think even those mangy horrible things would want to so much as touch you and they eat crowfood Ive heard. I do have to ask how in the world did you end up as medicine cat at all? You must have some supreme herb knowledge to make all of that worth it." He snarked gesturing to all of her "Though it would be entirely fair to chalk the whole thing up to some sort of cataclysmic mistake on everyones part. Tell me are you here to beg ~starclan~ to make you useful for once, it'd be useless but maybe give you hope."

He felt better already spitting all his vitriol that was festering in his chest at a target. But not good, not really.
Angelique Fletcher Zesty Mango Rainquail implimm Moon Lily

[Madelaine]

Ebonyfang went on ahead of his apprentice. He should know the way from his official ceremony. Of not he would find him. The tom looked over at Frostpaw And Snakepaw, who was already to hear. He wasn't last. With him Shadowclan wouldn't be last. "Good evening Frostpaw.", he meowed. The shadowclan medicine cat looked away to wait for Bouncepaw.

// Zesty Mango; Rani; Rainquail; Fletcher; implimm; Moon Lily; \\

[Fletcher]

Angelique Rani Zesty Mango Rainquail implimm Moon Lily

Bouncepaw

Bouncepaw had a pleasant walk, he'd taken a bit longer to get there partly because of his small size and odd eye. He eventually shuffled his way over and eagerly trotted over to the others. He plopped down, taking a seat next to Ebonyfang and giving a proud nod towards all the other medicine cats. He wanted to try and look professional, so he refrained from bursting into conversation like he usually did.