The Light in the Dark (Open)

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((Horrid name, I know!))

Swiftpaw slumped towards Highstones... alone. Moonspirit wasn't here anymore, leaving him as the only medicine cat. How would he manage without her? Sure, he hadn't really been that close to her, but still...

When Highstones came into sight, the black and white tom paused. His whole body was shaking in fear. what was he getting himself into? The place seemed so... frightening... But this was no time to be scared. He had to gather his courage and keep pressing forward.

Swiftpaw sheepishly entered the darkness of Mothermouth. It seemed darker then he remembered-was it just him, or not? he pressed himself against the walls and padded forward.

In no time at all, he approched the Moonstone. It's glittering briliance lit up the area. All of his fears were washed away as he pressed his mussle to the cold stone and let sleep wash over him.

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The form of a young medicine cat had settled in a large clearing within StarClan's hunting grounds with her tail curled around her paws. She was waiting for the young tom to fully appear in front of her. The she-cat of course knew why he was coming- to receive his full name and rank as WindClan's medicine cat. Normally this would be a happy occasion, one of the proudest moments of a medicine cat's life. She remembered her own very fondly. However, their two situations were very different.

Now, Dappledfrost's eyes were clouded with sorrow. Moonspirit was gone, soon to join the others amidst the stars. After the siamese she-cat had lived as ThunderClan's medicine cat, she and Moonspirit had become close, as Dappledfrost had made it her own job to keep an extra close eye on the remaining medicine cats. Moonspirit had confided in her the secret of her coming kits, and the brown-tan medicine cat had tried all she could to watch over the litter. But now the queen was dead, along with half of her kits. So, no, she was not looking forward to granting this tom her place. But that was selfish thinking. This was about Swiftpaw now.

As the tom finally came into view, Dappledfrost dipped her head to the WindClan cat. "Greetings, Swiftpaw. My name is Dappledfrost. You would not know me, as I was the last ThunderClan medicine cat. But I am here now to start your life as a full medicine cat to WindClan." She gave a small, friendly smile. No matter the situation, this would still be a big night for the tom. "Now, are you ready to accept that role?"

(( OOC: What do you want his full name to be? ))

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Swiftpaw looked around where he'd woken up. Or at least, seemed to have woken up. It was beautiful here. Starclan's hunting grounds...

He leapt at the sound of a voice. She-cat... The urge to, well, try to seduce her was overwhelming, but he had to resist it. This was a Starclan cat. Imagine the conciquences for hitting on a dead cat... And a medicine cat, at that!

"Dapplefrost..." he repeated. "The name sounds somewhat familiar." He gulped at her question. This was it. "Yes. I am."

((Um, Swiftheart? Swiftbreeze? If those don't work, you can come up with one...))

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The immediate thoughts that Dappledfrost picked up from the tom were almost alarming. Were those really the thoughts going through his head? The she-cat twitched her whiskers in hesitation of what her next course of action should be. But, of course, there was no option. WindClan needed a medicine cat, however he acted. And with any luck, she'd interpreted wrong, or he was just being foolish. With luck.

She turned her attention back to the ceremony. "Very good. Now, then..." The medicine cat stood from where she had sat and padded calmly over to where the younger tom had appeared. Her blue eyes closed for a moment as she recalled the words she'd use to make Rainwing a proper medicine cat, then prepared the words in a somewhat different sort of way to fit the situation.

"I, Dappledfrost, medicine cat to StarClan, once medicine cat to ThunderClan, call upon my fellow ancestral Clanmates to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of a medicine cat, and with our help he will serve his Clan well for many moons". Dappledfrost then looked back down to the apprentice with a pondering look in her eyes. "Swiftpaw, do you promise to uphold the ways of a medicine cat, to stand apart from rivalry between Clan and Clan, to protect all cats equally, and to put the welfare of your Clan first, even at the cost of your life?"

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"Yes," Swiftpaw said, bowing his head in respect. However hard he tried, he couldn't stop his body from shaking. Fear? Worry? It was some emotion he could place his paw on. So what was it...?

Anticipation...?

Yes, that had to be it! But why? The black and white tom squeezed his eyes shut, hoping that the she-cat wouldn't notice his shaking limbs. He even didn't bother to rise his head.

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Dappledfrost nodded in approval, though not without noticing the quake that went throughout the tom's body, and the way he kept his head lowered. How queer, she thought to herself, but pushed it away. Her attention span had never been too long, or very cooperative, for that matter. Her old mentor had called it a good trait for a medicine cat. Her mother had always nagged at her about it.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your true name as a medicine cat. Swiftpaw, from this moment you will be known as Swiftbreeze. StarClan honors your intellect and ability, and we welcome you now as a full medicine cat of WindClan." The dark siamese then lower her neck to rest her muzzle on the top of the new medicine cat's head, just as any living mentor would have done beside the Moonstone. The she-cat then pulled back and smiled again at the black and white tom. "Congratulations, Swiftbreeze," she purred.[/i]

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As Dappledfrost finished speaking, Swiftpaw looked up. No, not Swiftpaw anymore. Swiftbreeze. He smiled at the name. What a wonderful name it was... Well, to him anyways.

"Thank you so much," he saw, grinning from ear to ear.

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Dappledfrost's smile grew a little wider, and she dipped her head to the newly-promoted tom. The look on his face was so familiar. She'd seen it on many apprentices- Her own, Tigerpaw and Rainwing, Moonspirit, and Miraclefur. Always that same face. "StarClan will always watch over your pawsteps. Now, go back to WindClan. They'll be waiting for you." The medicine cat then let her tail gently swish from side-to-side, willing the young tom to disappear from the clearing, and to awaken back in the world of the living beside the Moonstone.[/i]