A Clear Mind (DARKETH)

[Darketh[the not so kind]]

Lionpaw put his head down for a moment. "Do you want to go on a hunt with me?" He asked looking towards Minnowbird and Sootpaw, then quickly looked away.

[dove]

Honeypaw looked at the other two cats, and then looked at Lionpaw. My, the word is going to get around fast. She thought. She quickly pushed the thought aside and look at the camp entrance, then turned to Lionpaw again. "Sure." She mewed a bit enthusiastically.

[Darketh[the not so kind]]

Lionpaw nodded and turned to Minnowbird and Sootpaw. "Could you tell our mentors where we are?" He asked the two warriors. "Where do you want to hunt?" He then asked Honeypaw, and walking to stand beside her.

[Fallentear ||]

Sootpaw nodded to Minnowbird, feeling himself flush in embarrassment at witnessing the two cats' declarations of love. Scooting away, he nodded maybe a bit too furiously at Lionpaw before turning and padding away. As Minnowbird was beside him, he meowed to her. "So I take it you don't have an apprentice if things are going so slowly?" Sootpaw was glad to have found a friend in the medicine cat, and wondered why she wouldn't already have a cat to train.

After all, what young cat wouldn't want to be as aloof and respected as a medicine cat? Sootpaw, of course, would never be cut out for such a job. He was quite squeamish, and far too shy to be able to be connected to so many cats. And besides, he had a factor of nervousness and uncertainty that would never do for interpreting signs from Dreamclan. But nonetheless, he was curious about that art of medicine in one way or another.

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[dove]

Honeypaw purred. "It doesn't matter. I'll follow you wherever you go." She mewed sincerely, but not quite literally. She lifted a hesitant paw, waiting for him to lead.

Minnowbird purred. "No. I do not have an apprentice yet. But DreamClan will reveal when it is time for me to have one." Her eyes glowed with new secrets she would soon have to forget. She knew her time was coming soon, and that she would become a warrior once more. She truednt to the other two apprentices. "I will tell them" She mewed. She turned back to Sootpaw. "Why are you so interested in the duty of a medicine cat?" She asked. Being a medicine cat has made her calm, efficient, and quite curious. Her question wasn't meant to be rude, nor harsh. Just a simple question that needs a simple answer.

[Fallentear ||]

Sootpaw's tail twitched as he sat beside Minnowbird. The other two were leaving, so he decided to settle and chat for a while...or try to without stuttering like a nervous kit. Looking up at the medicine cat, he shrugged as casually as he could. "Well...I don't really know. It's just I don't know why someone wouldn't want to be a medicine cat. They're so respected, and they are known by everybody. They could never be invisible, you know? Even...say for example....a cat like me, could make aquantainces as a medicine cat. Besides, they help the clan more than any warrior ever could. What could be more honorable?"

Pausing, he noticed that she was looking at him with curiousity gleaming in her eyes. He added, with a slight stutter, "N-not like I could ever obtain such an amazing position. No, I think I'm just cut out to be an ordinary warrior that serves his clan faithfully till the end of his days." He hadn't realized how lame this really was until he said it out loud.

He pretended to look around the clearing with interest, to keep his eyes off of Minnowbird's. He had a habit of always looking cats in the eyes when he spoke to them, but this sometimes made him more nervous.

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[Darketh[the not so kind]]

Lionpaw nodded and started to walk from the camp's entrance. "Let's go where our paws and noses guide us." He suggested as he took in the scent of all that was around him. It couldn't be helped that Honeypaw's sweet scent also driffed in his path of smell, as he scented a little longer than he needed to. "I don't smell anything right now." He said, after he had finally stopped smelling.

[dove]

Honeypaw purrred. "Okay." She mewed. She looked up at the sky, and then at Lionpaw. "The sky is the limit, our hearts beating as one be our voice, and our moment cherished." She mewed, sounding breathless and breezy. "Shall the sunset rise and turn the sky blood red and we'll be together; not a care in the world." She stopped, letting the gentle breeze caress her cheek and listen to the winds pick up the loose sand all around her.

Minnowbird purred in amusement. "No one is ordinary." She purred. "Everyone has a purpose, and everyone has a destiny. I was merely a fallen warrior; I was crazy and was afraid. Then I became a queen. Now, with my kits growing up, I have become medicine cat. I did not expect that." She looked at Sootpaw intently. "You might have a grater destiny than many, but you must search for it, and not wait for it. IF you wait, it will pass you by, and it will forever be lost."

[dove]

OOC: Should we continue this somewhere else, Darketh?

[Fallentear ||]

Minnowbird's words had been so captivating and mystical that his gaze had snapped back to her. His bright blue eyes widened as a cloud passed over the sun, shadowing the camp and seeming, oddly enough, to make him stand out more. He closed these bright orbs momentarily, processing what he'd heard. you might have a greater destiny than many, but you must search for it...If you wait...it will forever be lost... Her words swirled in his head as his eyes opened once more.

"Those are very wise words. I see why you became a medicine cat. To be so respected and intelligent as a medicine cat, and to be able to commune with Dreamclan as a messenger for your clanmates must be a great responsibility, but a great power as well. Some cats are cut out for a greater destiny, yes, but how am I to know if I am one such cat? I'm small, shy, and not very skilled either...but yet I have this urge to take care of my clan, and I believe I have the ambition to become something more. Minnowbird...would it be possible for a cat like myself to become a medicine cat apprentice?" It was clear now what he wanted as he looked the medicine cat straight in the face, his own appearing unnaturally confident.

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[dove]

Minnowbird did not reply at first. Her gaze became misty and her form became very intense.
After what seemed like an eternity, she blinked and her eyes have cleared. "I think you were meant to be BeachClan's next medicine cat." She looked down at him with her emerald shown eyes, with the faint sparkling dust of gold shimmering within them. "Yes. You could become medicine cat apprentice." After what she had heard from him, her eyes darkened slightly, and she hissed softly under her breath. "Being medicine cat is not always blessing. It sometimes can be a burden. The leader is there to guide the clan; the warriors use tooth and claw to guard the clan, the queens have kits, which will become future warriors, and the elders are there to pass on their knowledge and experience. Medicine cats are the healers. If one is injured, then he or she will do their best to heal. But we also have the connection to DreamClan, and that connection puts us apart from other warriors. And not just messengers; we are there to help our leader interpret signs. Don't be fooled. The duty of knowing things you may not want to know, or having the knowledge that everyone is relying on you is big and difficult, and is easily a burden to carry."

[Fallentear ||]

Sootpaw's eyes held a shadow of doubt for a moment. As he'd thought, being a medicine cat was a great power but a harsh responsibility as well. His paws quivered as he thought whether or not he was strong enough to be a medicine cat...being alone all his life? Having to keep knowledge that the whole clan needs to survive? Yes, that certainly was a big deal...but wasn't he already used to isolation? Yes, it was very true. He hadn't made any friends thus far, so a social factor wouldn't be involved.

Learning wouldn't be a problem either, for he'd always had an acute sense of hearing, and a space in his mind to store what he'd heard. That's what sometimes, unfortunately, made him such a good eavesdropper. His eyes narrowed to slits, and then closed tightly in thought. dreamclan he thought, sending a prayer up to the heavens. give me a sign that I am meant to be a medicine cat. I would give anything to have the strength to hold such a position, and protect my clan like they do. Just tell me...somehow...if I have the morale strength to do this...

Opening his eyes again, he found that they were turned to the bright blue heavens above. The clouds had cleared from the sun about halfway through his prayers, and no sign had come. Birds chirped, and all was silent for many long, uncomfortable minutes. Finally, Sootpaw sighed. "I guess I might not be cut out for it then. I'd be better off as a warrior anyways. Thanks for talking to me." Turning, he sulked off across the clearing, his tail hanging limply and nearly dragging in the dust. He sat down beside the brown, curling fronds of a long-dead clump of bracken. His head was bowed in disapointment. He'd really had his hopes set on being a medicine cat apprentice, after he'd realized how perfect it was for him.

Amid the silence, the clump of bracken next to him spontaneously burst into flame. Sootpaw gave out a soft cry of shock, leaping sideways away from it and pinning his ears back in surprise. A forest fire caused by the sun? He backed away slowly, taking a deep breath to call out to the clan, but some warm, pressing force was held across his muzzle, as if a cat had placed their tail there. He stood watching the plant smolder, his eyes traveling upwards to follow the path of tiny red embers into the wild blue yonder above. These sparks drifted slowly downwards, landing on the ground in a soft gray layer of ash.

Sootpaw closed his eyes, shaking his head. Beachclan would be terribly vulnerable in the protection around the camp burnt down. His eyes flicked open, determination flickering in their depths, but soon it was replaced by confusion; the fire was gone. Looking around, the cats of Beachclan were casually sharing tongues, some even staring at him curiously. After all, he'd yelled and leaped away from a harmless bunch of dead bracken and stood growling at it for a long few moments. He blinked rapidly, to make sure he wasn't dreaming. Stepping forward cautiously, he stretched out his neck to sniff the fronds. They didn't smell scorched at all.

He sat down, shaking his head as confusion and fear tumbled around within it like marbles in a shook jar. What in Dreamclan's name had just happened? Pawing at the ground at his feet, he realized that the soot from the fire was still there, and was still warm.

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