The bright sun shone overhead, casting RiverClan into a lazy mood. The hunting patrols had been done, and the river was now still and undisturbed by the movement or ruckus of fishing cats. The patrols had been done, the prey had been caught. Another day had gone by in the camp, no cat hinting at any troublesome activity.

That is, except for Poolripple. The medicine cat was working diligently to find a cure for Mistrose's sick condition. The symptoms that the senior warrior was giving off frightened Poolripple. To add to her stress, the clan had noticed Mistrose's lack of participation in clan life. It only served as more annoying pests when Poolripple would head out of her den and hear the clan whispering about her. The anger began to slip through, and tended to make Poolripple more snappy.

Especially towards Pebblefall. Currently the gray tom was attempting to sort out the different herbs and put them back into the storage. With the lack of skill and knowledge, Pebblefall's paw ended up scattering the herbs across the den floor, mixing up all of the piles that he had worked on to keep organized. The tom began to frantically pick up the herbs, but only succeeded in scatter them even more with his bushy tail that swept them away with one single flick. The RiverClan medicine cat stood there in horror, not quite sure what to do.

"Stupid herbs, just stay still for a bit!" Pebblefall growled, snatching up some catmint that had been blown away. Poolripple saw his paw crush some other herbs and tail flick even more herbs away. "For StarClan's sake!" Pebblefall cursed, and scattered even more herbs.

"Stop it!" Poolripple snapped, her anger unleashed, causing her apprentice to freeze. All he had to do was collect the herbs! Why can't he do that!? The medicine cat marched forward, careful not to crush any herbs as she came face-to-face with Pebblefall. "Get out," she snarled through her gritted teeth, ripping the herbs that Pebblefall had already collected. Her fur was beginning to rise up on her back, but she forced it down to look calm. She'd have to clean up his mess once again.

"But-"

"Get out now!" she snarled, raising an unsheathed paw. The apprentice showed no fear of her threat, but before Poolripple could attempt a small swipe, Pebblefall had already leaped over the herbs, landing away from them and turning tail to flee out of the medicine cat den and away from the medicine cat's rage. The medicine cat apprentice backed away from the den, and tried to hide his face as his clanmates gave him curious glances.

Pebblefall looked around the camp to find a cat he could hang out with. It could take his mind off of Poolripple, and going back in there would be a grave mistake. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he trotted off towards Sandwhisker. Relief flooded through him in waves, having the chance to talk to his best friend after so long.

His brown tabby friend perked his head up as he heard the paw steps of Pebblefall. Sandwhisker broke out in a smile, and Pebblefall settled himself beside his friend.

"Hey, haven't seen you in awhile, since you're sticking your nose in the herbs all the time," Sandwhisker joked, and Pebblefall playfully slapped him with his tail. "What's she been making you do now?"

Pebblefall was ready to answer, but what should he tell him? The goldenrod situation? Ravenpaw? Pebblefall looked at Sandwhisker, who was waiting patiently for him to answer. I trust him not to tell it to the whole clan, right?

Leaning closer to his ear, Pebblefall whispered. "The goldenrod is running low now." Sandwhisker didn't respond quite yet, Pebblefall assumed he was waiting for more description of the problem. "Me and Poolripple went searching for it to help Mistrose, but the last of it has died off. Now we don't know what to do and Poolripple's even more crankier than usual."

"Try hiding that to the whole clan!" Sandwhisker hissed back. "If they found out, you know that Spottedstar wouldn't be able to handle it all, and even worse, Poolripple would get even more stressed."

"And that means more lectures," Pebblefall sighed, irritated. "I just screwed up recently, and she told me to leave. I figured that I might as well spill something to someone."

"What are you going to do, then?" Sandwhisker asked, keeping his voice lower as a cat passed by the two. "What if the clan finds out about the shortage?"

"Well, it's not a shortage, it's completely gone. Nothing is left," Pebblefall corrected.

"Does Spottedstar know?"

"I don't think so, so telling her to bargain with the other leaders might not be such a good idea," Pebblefall responded. His friend nodded in agreement. The medicine cat apprentice leaned back and glanced at the camp.

Should he tell Sandwhisker about Ravenpaw?

Before Pebblefall could begin, his grouchy mentor stormed out of the den and headed over to them. Sandwhisker leaned back, and Pebblefall scrambled up to his paws. "P-Poolripple!" he exclaimed. His mentor looked like she had calmed down a bit, but the fire of her fury was still burning.

"Come on," she ordered sharply, dropping down some traveling herbs. Without giving any more detail, she turned her back on the two of them. At first, Pebblefall did nothing, only stared blankly after her. Sandwhisker, too, was still. "Did you hear me?" Poolripple snapped. "It's time to go to the Moonpool. Hurry up."

Pebblefall rolled his eyes before following her. He leaned down and chewed up the herbs quickly. Bidding Sandwhisker farewell, he raced after the calico she-cat and out of RiverClan camp.

"What about Mistrose?" Pebblefall dared to speak to her.

"I left Mallowshine in charge of her. Gave her the basic instructions on the herbs she needed to use and when to change them," she replied sharply, without taking a breath. Pebblefall walked in silence as they continued towards the Moonpool. The edge of RiverClan territory slowly came into view. It seemed like it took forever just to reach the end of it.

If it takes this long to get to the end of the territory, how long is it going to take to get to the Moonpool? Pebblefall wondered. The two cats journeyed down the marshy grass of the RiverClan territory. Pebblefall kept his mouth shut as his mentor weaved through the tall grass with ease. With the sun forcing uncomfortable heat on them, walking seemed like he was running for miles.

Slowly but surely, the sun began to chip away his energy as he stepped into a small puddle. Pebblefall lifted his soggy paw in disgust, scrunching his face before heading onward. The closer they got towards ShadowClan territory, the more that Pebblefall felt his legs begin to shake. Sure, ShadowClan has a reputation for being quick and fierce, but they're just like the other Clans in the forest.

Pebblefall gulped before setting a paw into the thicket of shadows. As they passed through the uncharted territory and mysterious scents flooded around them, Pebblefall began to quicken his pace to keep up with Poolripple. The medicine cat showed no fear of stepping into another Clan's territory.

Braving up his courage, he let his voice come out. "Poolripple? Why are we leaving at sun-high? Why not at night?"

"I want as much time with StarClan as I can afford," Poolripple replied simply. By the tone of her voice, Pebblefall guessed that she had gotten enough time to cool herself down after his last mistake in her den. Still, he didn't dare to challenge his luck anymore. "With the goldenrod problem, I hope that they'll give us the information we need, and I want to ensure that we have plenty of time."

Pebblefall's ears began to fill with the sound of water. He turned his head to the right, and through the thick trees blocking his view, he could see the familiar rushing water from the lake. His muscles relaxed, relief that something from his home was near him. Poolripple stopped in her tracks, and he nearly crashed into her.

She whipped her head around at him, casting him a soft glare. Pebblefall instantly straightened up, careful not to get on her bad side. What was going on? What did she---

As if they read his mind, four cats emerged from the forest, the lead tom standing in front of the other three cats. From the quick glance that Pebblefall snagged, there was at least one apprentice in the bunch. Poolripple sighed, relaxing.

"Poolripple," the tom stated, and the medicine cat nodded. His eyes landed on Pebblefall, and the apprentice remained quiet under his sharp gaze. "Pebblefall?"

"Y-yes?" he croaked out.

"Sorry to intrude," Poolripple butted in, standing in front of her apprentice. Pebblefall stumbled back, a little bit angered that his mentor stepped in. Then again, she probably only wanted to make sure he didn't screw up in front of the ShadowClan patrol. "We'll be leaving soon, Thicketstorm."

"What are you doing, leaving so early?" he questioned, his expression unchanging the whole time. Pebblefall peeked out from behind Poolripple. "It's not dusk, so it brings me to wonder why you are leaving this early. Is something the matter?"

"It's RiverClan's business," Poolripple answered. Again, she remained her calm self in front of the ShadowClan warrior.

"If it involves ShadowClan---"

"It doesn't."

"If it does," Thicketstorm growled, slowly unsheathing his claws. Pebblefall's warrior instincts coursed through him once again. He stepped out from Poolripple's side and stood beside her. Thicketstorm still didn't take any notice at him. "If ShadowClan has to suffer from it, things will not settle well."

"Fine. We'll take our leave, then." Poolripple turned around, signaling for them to leave. Pebblefall turned around, careful not to anger the ShadowClan warrior in any way. They left ShadowClan territory and slowly began to approach the Moonpool. The rest of the way there, Pebblefall remained silent to Poolripple.

His mentor seemed more relaxed, pausing near the edge of the pool. Pebblefall stared into its clear water. He had heard stories from her about visiting StarClan through his pool, but he had never seen it for himself. Pebblefall leaned over, in hopes that he could look closer, but she pulled him back.

"Listen, it's not that hard. Just touch your nose to the pool and soon enough, you'll be in StarClan." She took a deep breath. "The Moonpool is a sacred place of our ancestors. Long ago, when we first moved into this new forest, we had a problem finding a new place where we could go to find a connection to StarClan. That's when we found the Moonpool. We must respect our ancestors, as they once had to go through our struggles when they were alive. This is a place of rest for them."

How long is she going to continue rambling on? Pebblefall thought.

"Also, you should meet your StarClan mentor." With that, Poolripple turned around and looked down at the Moonpool. Taking a long breath, Poolripple let her shoulders relax at the presence of StarClan.

"Pebblefall, is it your wish to enter the mysteries of StarClan as a medicine cat?"

"It is," Pebblefall replied, after taking a few seconds to finally understand what she was looking for. Poolripple didn't say anything or give him a glare, so it looked like he did something right for once. She continued with the ceremony.

"Then come forward." Pebblefall stood nose-to-nose with her, and waited for her words to come out. "Warriors of StarClan, I present you with this apprentice. He has chosen the path of the medicine cat. Grant him your wisdom and insight so that he may understand your ways and heal his Clan in accordance with your will." Poolripple pointed her tail towards the Moonpool.

Pebblefall did as he was instructed and touched his nose to the Moonpool. In seconds, he felt himself fall into a slumber.

When he opened his eyes, he was no longer beside the Moonpool. Instead, he was in a much different forest than the one he was used to, trees taller than ones that he had seen. A single cat was sitting in front of him, a dark gray she-cat with white paws and chest.

Poolripple materialized beside him, giving him a small shock. She didn't say anything at first, then looked at the starry she-cat in front of them. "Featherdawn," she whispered. The she-cat smiled, but didn't say anything. "Pebblefall, this is Featherdawn, my StarClan mentor, and my mother."

Pebblefall nodded, but was more curious about the forest in general. This forest was nothing like the one in which he had met Ravenpaw. Plus, Featherdawn seemed to be the only cat here. Wouldn't Ravenpaw be here? Pebblefall had questions to ask, but knowing Poolripple, if he stepped a hair out of place, he'd suffer back at the camp.

"Hello, Pebblefall, it's a pleasure to meet you." Featherdawn said, stepping forward to touch noses with him. Pebblefall nodded, but didn't quite feel normal around the StarClan cat. "I'm sorry about the lack of StarClan cats here, but they are discussing the goldenrod situation."

Why do I feel strange around her? Pebblefall wondered, but kept his mouth shut as she began to explain more.

"Pebblefall, your StarClan mentor is busy, but you've already met him by now. Is that correct?"

"Yes, Featherdawn," Pebblefall replied. "However, I have a question, if I may." Poolripple shot him a glance, but didn't say anything.

"Of course."

"Why does this place look so different from where I met Ravenpaw?" he asked. "I thought StarClan looked the same."

Featherdawn seemed to ponder his question. Poolripple didn't say anything, but shot him a curious glance. The silence stretched on like a dreadful leafbare. Pebblefall began to narrow his eyes towards Featherdawn, not so sure she had an answer.

"It's because you didn't meet him through the Moonpool," she finally answered. "There is a difference between meeting a StarClan cat through a dream, and meeting one through the Moonpool. Where Ravenpaw met you, you were in only a small section of StarClan territory. While meeting me through the Moonpool, you see the true StarClan."

"Really?" Pebblefall asked, and she nodded at him. He didn't know what to feel after that. Should he be mad at Ravenpaw's absence? Or should he still be upset at him after the last fight? He had a sudden realization after recognizing the pang in his stomach.

I miss him. Ravenpaw was the one steady element left in Pebblefall's life since he became a medicine cat; everything else had been turned upside-down. And now, at this new phase in his medicine cat experience... he wasn't here. Pebblefall let his ears drop, and Poolripple stepped in.

"Featherdawn, do you have any advice regarding the goldenrod shortage? Is there a new patch growing somewhere we don't know of?"

"That is being discussed right now. If we did have any knowledge of a new goldenrod patch, we would let you know. We don't like seeing the clan we grew up in suffer, we're doing all that we can." Featherdawn's reply was much faster this time than when Pebblefall had asked a question. Poolripple didn't look happy, but didn't say anything of it. That began to bother Pebblefall as well. Was StarClan purposely making him question their ways?

"Thank you, Featherdawn," Poolripple said, dipping her head towards her mother. Still, Pebblefall narrowed his eyes at Featherdawn. Something about her seemed off. Just looking at her made him feel like something was going on that was meant to be hidden, but Poolripple seemed to trust her. Perhaps this was just what his first visit to StarClan was supposed to be like.

A sudden strong wind began to blow against the two medicine cats of RiverClan. Pebblefall dug his claws into the ground hoping to fight it, but that only caused the wind to blow stronger against his pelt. He fought to stay glued to the ground, but Poolripple was letting the wind push her away. Featherdawn stood still, unaffected by the wind.

Pebblefall opened his mouth to say something else to the StarClan cat, but he was blown away by the next gust of wind. He was sent flying in the air and back to the Moonpool.

When he opened his eyes, he was met with the familiar scene of the Moonpool, and Featherdawn was nowhere to be seen.

Written by Solstice
Edited by Moon