Warriors: Stripeblaze's Path

Chapter four

Stripepaw smiled for the first time in days as he padded alongside Mosssting on their way to the Moonpool. He was looking forward to becoming a true medicine cat apprentice, and meeting the other medicine cats, and speaking with StarClan! Then a thought crossed his mind. What if I see Stormfeather and Whiteshade? He started to make up scenarios in his head about what would happen, and how it would happen. He was so wrapped up in his world that he hadn't noticed that Mosssting had stopped. Stripepaw bumped into the back of his mentor, knocking him forward. Mosssting turned around and glared at Stripepaw.
"Watch your paws!" he growled. Stripepaw hung his head.
"Sorry," he mewed. He looked up and saw another cat, and old, light grey she-cat, talking with Mosssting. She dipped her head to Stripepaw.
"Hello, you must be Mosssting's new apprentice! I'm Rainsplash, the RiverClan medicine cat," she meowed. Her voice was croaky with age. Her muzzle was a few shades lighter than her pelt, showing that she was growing old. Stripepaw drew in her fishy, yet sweet, scent. Her leaf-green eyes were soft and kind as they gazed upon Stripepaw. He smiled shyly at her then looked back down at his paws, which were starting to be buried in snow.
"Leapwing and Birchpoppy had better hurry up, or we'll be icicles when they get here!" Rainsplash exclaimed. Mosssting chuckled and looked at her.
"I'm sure they'll be here soon," he reassured her.
Stripepaw jumped as he heard voices behind him. He turned around and saw a beautiful golden tabby she-cat with a small red-and-brown tabby tom padding beside her.
"This is Birchpoppy and her apprentice, Mousepaw," Mosssting meowed. Birchpoppy dipped her head to Mosssting.
"Evening, Mosssting. I see you've finally gotten an apprentice!" she remarked with a chuckle. Mosssting nodded.
"This is Stripepaw, he's quite excited, as you can see," the ThunderClan cat replied sarcastically, flicking Stripepaw as he shivered and trembled in the cold. Birchpoppy smiled and gave a mrrrow of laughter.
The five cats stood there for a while, waiting for Leapwing and Greypaw from ShadowClan. Their pelts had frost clinging to them and their noses were starting to turn blue.
"This is ridiculous! We need to go. They can catch up with us later, they know the way," Rainsplash meowed with impatience. Mosssting nodded in agreement.
"Well, I suppose you're right," Birchpoppy sighed, and the medicine cats started to make their way up the hill towards the Moonpool. A rustling sounded behind them and a mottled grey she-cat with stunning light blue eyes bounded over to them.
"I'm, s-sorry, I'm, l-late," she panted. "I-I had to r-run all the way, from ShadowClan," she meowed, taking breaths between her words.
"That's fine. Where's Leapwing?" Rainsplash asked, concern laced in her voice.
"She's sick," Greypaw replied. "She wasn't strong enough to make the journey, so I came alone."
Rainsplash nodded and padded to the front of the group and led them to the Moonpool. The three apprentices trailed behind the older cats. Mousepaw and Greypaw stood close to each other, chatting away, while they left Stripepaw behind them by himself. He noticed that Greypaw towered over Mousepaw, and was even the same height as the older cats. She must've been close to getting her medicine cat name. Suddenly, she cocked her head around and smiled at Stripepaw.
"C'mon! Join us," she meowed sweetly. Stripepaw smiled awkwardly and padded up to them. "What's your name?" she asked when he caught up.
"Stripepaw. You?"
"I'm Greypaw, and this is Mousepaw," she meowed, flicking her tail at the red-and-brown tabby. Stripepaw dipped his head to both of them. Mousepaw flicked his grey ears in return. The scent of wind and rabbits coming from him was very prominent, and Stripepaw felt like backing away a little bit.
"So, what made you decide to become a medicine cat?" Greypaw continued. Stripepaw sighed and told her the story of how his parents had drowned just a few days before, and how he loved to help in the medicine den. By the time he was finished talking, his eyes were glistening with tears. Greypaw placed her fluffy, mottled grey tail on his shoulder.
"I'm so sorry to hear that," she meowed with sympathy. "You know, I have an interesting story as well. My mother is Goldenlake, who was once a RiverClan warrior. Her father is Flowingstar. But she fell in love with Mistyair, a ShadowClan cat. Then, when she found out she was having me and my brother, she left to join my father. None of my Clan mates accepted me, or even liked me. So I decided to become a medicine cat to earn their respect. I never realised how much I would love it!" Her face lit up as she told her story. Stripepaw smiled at her. Forbidden love was always a great story to him, but it broke the warrior code. She smiled back at him, then looked over at Mousepaw.
"Tell him about you!" she meowed. The red-and-brown tabby rolled his eyes and smiled.
"Well," he began, "I originally was training to be a warrior. But I soon realised that it wasn't for me, so I asked Ebonystar if I could become Birchpoppy's apprentice, and she said yes! So here I am," he meowed happily. Greypaw giggled sweetly and looked back ahead at the path.
Stripepaw followed her gaze and gasped as he saw the entrance to the Moonpool. He followed the older medicine cats and smiled as they came to the beautiful pool. The cats surrounded it and all looked down into the water, before Mosssting cleared his throat and looked up at the stars.
"Stripepaw, is it your wish to enter the mysteries of StarClan as a medicine cat?"
Stripepaw was taken by surprise as his name was called, but quickly snapped to attention. "It is."
Mosssting nodded.
"Then come forward," he meowed. Stripepaw smiled and stepped forward. "Warriors of StarClan, I present you with this apprentice. He has chosen the path of a medicine cat. Grant him your wisdom and insight so that he may understand your ways and heal his Clan in accordance with your will." Mosssting beckoned him toward the Moonpool. "Drink," he instructed.
Stripepaw smiled and nodded, before sitting down beside the pool and lapped a few drops from it. The other cats all smiled at him.
"Stripepaw! Stripepaw! Stripepaw!" they all chanted. Everyone did the same as Stripepaw and sat down beside the pool, trying to doze off. Stripepaw could hardly keep still because he was so nervous. He quickly shook his head and placed his chin on his paws, waiting for sleep to pull him in.

Stripepaw opened his eyes, expecting to see the glistening pool in front of him, but instead woke up in a starry clearing, with cats watching him from all sides. Their pelts were translucent and had stars laced through them, and Stripepaw knew where he was.
"StarClan," he breathed. He looked around anxiously, trying to find his beloved parents. He couldn't see them anywhere. He was about to give up when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He whizzed around and almost immediately started crying at the sight; Stormfeather and Whiteshade both looking at him with pride in their eyes. Stripepaw bounded forward and rubbed his nose into his mother's soft fur, relishing the feeling.
"Stormfeather, I've missed you so much! And Whiteshade," he meowed and nuzzled his father.
"We're so proud of you. We knew this was your destiny," the white tom meowed, affection in his mew. Stormfeather nodded in agreement, tears glistening in her eyes.
"We just wish we could be with you," she meowed. Stripepaw opened his mouth to talk but stopped when he noticed two little kits in front of him; a tabby she-cat and a white tom.
"Fernkit and Mousekit..." He trailed off. Stormfeather looked down at them.
"Kits, meet your brother, Stripepaw." She beamed with pride. The two kits hurled themselves at the grey tabby and tackled him to the ground.
"Our brother is a medicine cat!" Mousekit cried.
"That's awesome!" Fernkit mewed. Stripepaw wanted to cherish this moment forever, but the four cats started to fade away.
"No! Stormfeather! Whiteshade! Don't go!" he cried. But it was no use; they faded into the stars and he woke up thrashing beside the Moonpool. His face was damp with tears, but he wasn't sad. He knew this was his destiny. This was the path he was meant to take.

"Bye Greypaw! Bye Mousepaw!" Stripepaw bid farewell to his new friends as they padded back to their own territories. Mosssting said goodbye to the older medicine cats then called out to Greypaw, "Send my best wishes to Leapwing!" The mottled grey she-cat flicked her tail to signal she had heard him and continued on to ShadowClan.
Stripepaw padded silently beside Mosssting, staring down at his paws.
"So, you and Greypaw seemed to get along well," Mosssting meowed, breaking the silence. Stripepaw nodded.
"Yeah, she's nice," he mewed. "So's Mousepaw. He told me he was originally a warrior apprentice. And did you know Greypaw is half RiverClan?" he started to get carried away and meowed on.
"Yes, I already knew all those things," Mosssting interrupted. Stripepaw smiled bashfully and stopped talking.
Stripepaw decided to talk again as they neared the camp. "In my dream, I saw-"
"We don't speak about our dreams at the Moonpool," Mosssting cut him off.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Stripepaw mewed, stumbling over his paws. "There's still so many things I don't know about being a medicine cat!"
"That's alright, you'll learn," Mosssting meowed reassuringly. Stripepaw nodded and continued to pad through the snow-covered forest. The half moon was still shining brightly in the sky, turning his grey pelt to silver. It had stopped snowing while they were at the Moonpool and there were no clouds in the sky. New-leaf would be there soon.
Stripepaw was starting to feel drowsy when they finally made it back to camp. Browntail was sitting as the guard outside the camp, making sure there was no danger. He greeted the medicine cats with a curt nod and went back to watching for danger.
"Well I'm tuckered out," Mosssting mewed as he padded into the den. Stripepaw nodded and collapsed in his nest. It was so soft and warm, he had missed it all day. He hoped his dreams would be just as warm. But his sleep was interrupted as someone padded into the den.
"Mosssting!"
Stripepaw recognised the sweet voice of Rosekit and padded over to her.
"What's wrong Rosekit?" he asked her sleepily.
"I have a thorn in my paw!" she complained. The grey medicine cat finally emerged and looked at the pale grey kit.
"Ah, the classic 'thorn in paw', we'll sort this out," he croaked, padding over to Rosekit. "Hold out your paw, pad facing up," he instructed. The kit complied, showing her paw to the medicine cat. Mosssting turned to face Stripepaw. "Now, lick the area where the thorn is to loosen it, then grasp it in your teeth and pull."
Stripepaw nodded and licked Rosekit's pad carefully. He could see her wincing in pain as his rough tongue rasped over her sore pad. He felt bad, but clasped his teeth around the thorn, which was sticking out of her paw now. He hesitated a moment, then pulled back firmly. He felt the thorn dislodge itself and fly out of the kit's paw. She squealed in pain and started licking her paw rapidly. She looked up at Stripepaw with pained eyes.
"That hurt!" she squeaked.
"I'm sorry, but think of how much more it would've hurt if it was left in and you got an infection! That wouldn't be good," he meowed, trying to calm her down. She whimpered and nodded.
"I guess you're right," she mewed. She leaned up and licked his cheek, before disappearing out of the den and back to the nursery.
"How adorable," Mosssting mewed. Stripepaw glanced at him with a smile and settled back into his nest, curling up with his tail wrapped over his nose.

{Woah, I can't believe I managed to get two chapters up in one day! That's basically a record for me! I'm a slow writer so updates will be slow, but this story is really fun to write! I'll hopefully have it done by the end of Feb! Thanks for reading the story so far, I appreciate it!}