[salt]

Spottedfeather padded back home with her new apprentice beside her. Her paws tingled with excitement but her heart cried worry. She took her time going back to camp to let Elder get use to his new surroundings. Glancing at home one in a while she did not want to think twice about this at all. She knew she was doing the right thing! Starclan would not have dropped him right in front of her if he wasn't a cat with a healing gift.

Looking around to see if anyone was in the forest she found it was quiet. must be a stay in the camp day. Stopping a few feet before they headed into camp she turned to Elder and mewed, "Now.. let me do the talking unless you are spoken to. You will look at my leader in the eyes as you speak to him, give him the same respect you wish for him to give you. You let your nerves get in the way then the clan will never let you live it down. Make sure you don't do anything thats too threatening or make my leader look at you and not welcome you. either way if he doesnt I accept you and you will become my apprentice.''

The medicine cat smiled sweetly to the loner and took in a few deep breaths before they started to head into the camp.

posting order!!
Me, Dark, Fawn

[Deleted]

The forest was peaceful, and it calmed the anxious cats nerves. Leaves coated the ground, and an icy wind whipped through them, sending the leaves swirling around. The silence confused Elder at first. It seemed that there were no cats around. Groaning, he realized, 'Which means that all of them will be there at camp.' His nerves got even worse when that latest thought passed through his mind. The fact that almost all the cats would be there annoyed him, The one day that I don't want them to be here! I wish it had just been the leader... What's his name? Oh yah. The leader's name was Lionstar. Oh well! Nothing I can do about it. He cleared the thoughts out of his head, and kept following Spottedfeather.

Spottedfeather seemed to be leading him slowly toward the camp, and the loner silently thanked her. The thought that he was about to join a clan baffled him. Letting his thoughts wonder helped him relax. Elders nerves were gone until they got to camp. When they got close to what he could guess was camp, she stopped and spoke to him. He was very anxious, and it had obviously showed, for Spottedfeather tried to reassure him it would be ok. Follow her advice, Elder took a deep breath in and let it go, releasing his anxiety. He let is courage fill him, along with his happiness. He smiled at Spottedfeather, and said "I am ready." Then Elder followed her into the camp. 

[Fawn]

[STYLE= background-color: #000000; width:400px; font-family:times new roman; font-size:11px; letter-spacing:2px; border-top: solid 20px #000000; border-bottom: solid 20px #000000; color:#C49FC2;]When Daybreak Seems So Far Away
REACH FOR MY HAND.[/style][STYLE= width:400px; background-color: #0A0A0A; font-family:Arial; font-size:11px; text-color:#424242; text-align:left; line-height:11px; letter-spacing:2px; color:#424242;]

Leafbare was a time of work and worry for most Clan leaders. Very much hauling his own weight, the regal looking golden tom had not returned to camp with no less than five pieces of prey; two scrawny squirrels, a fat dormouse, a vole and a rather plump crow. Though 'crow' was not usually on the menu, food was food, and Lionstar for one thing was not going to be picky now that it was more or less leafbare. Casting a dark amber gaze upon the trees he passed by, Lionstar noted their bareness, the empty, hollow appearance of trees with no leaves and only naked branches left behind. The scarcity of foliage always made him feel... weird, in a superstitious sort of way.

Perhaps because they were TreeClan, and not any other Clan, Lionstar always viewed the empty, dead-looking trees as a bad omen for his Clan as a whole. He could remember hating winter as an apprentice - wandering off into a quiet, snowy world was not something he'd ever enjoyed. Depositing his fresh kill upon the pile, the lion-like tom, his winter coat having already come in, had thoughts of snow and scarce prey driven from his mind by the presence of Spottedfeather - and a young stranger.

Not willing to jump to conclusions, Lionstar walked over to the pair, his gaze sweeping from the smallish brown tabby and white tom, to the she-cat that had accompanied him to the Moon Tree. He didn't smell or look injured. Not saying anything, Lionstar's face was expressionless, though his eyes betrayed his curiosity, attention all going to the Medicine Cat. A subtle incline of his chin was Spottedfeather's cue to speak.

Song - I'll Be Right Here - by Ashes Remain
[/style][STYLE= background-color: #000000; width:400px; font-family:times new roman; font-size:11px; letter-spacing:2px; border-top: solid 20px #000000; border-bottom: solid 20px #000000; text-color:#424242; line-height:10px; color:#C49FC2;]When Hope and Peace Begin to Fray,
Still I Will Stand.
~
When the Rain Falls I Won’t Let Go
I’ll Be Right Here. [/style][STYLE= width:400px; font-family:Arial; font-size:7px; letter-spacing:3px; border-top: solid #000000 20px; border-bottom: solid #000000 20px; background-color:#000000; color:#424242;]TEMPLATE BY LISE FROM BACK TO NEVERLAND[/style]

[salt]

Not even taking a few steps into the camp she was already welcomed by her leader. He looked serious yet confused as to this new cat. Glancing at Elder she looked back at her leader and knew he wanted answers. Holding her head a little bit higher she started, "Lionstar. I bring you Treeclan's new.. medicine cat apprentice.'' Wonderful! Right? Conversation over yes? Sitting down she knew this was going to take some time. She was already set for the fifty questions her leader was going to throw at her. Yet she let her attention go back to her new apprentice and mewed, "Elder.. would like to introduce himself to you Lionstar.'' Letting her eyes grow soft she blinked at her to let him know it was okay to speak. Just remember what I told you.. she thought as she waited to see what this new cat was going to do let alone say.

[Deleted]

Walking into the camp for the first time Elder took in his surroundings. He saw different dens and also a huge rock pile. What caught his eye the most was a fresh-kill pile. The looked in awe at it, then saw someone approaching them and turned to see who it was. The cat had a beautiful golden pelt, and an attitude that was commanding. Elder decided that this was Lionstar. He looked at Spottedfeather, not knowing what to do, and was glad that she spoke. His suspicions of the cats status confirmed, he dipped his head towards the leader. He then looked him right in the eyes and said, "Hello, Lionstar. I am Elder." He spoke the words with confidence, hoping it sounded that way too. His introduction finished he wondered what he should do. He decided to do not speak or move and just wait and see what this conversation would hold.

[Fawn]

[STYLE= background-color: #000000; width:400px; font-family:times new roman; font-size:11px; letter-spacing:2px; border-top: solid 20px #000000; border-bottom: solid 20px #000000; color:#C49FC2;]When Daybreak Seems So Far Away
REACH FOR MY HAND.[/style][STYLE= width:400px; background-color: #0A0A0A; font-family:Arial; font-size:11px; text-color:#424242; text-align:left; line-height:11px; letter-spacing:2px; color:#424242;]

I bring you TreeClan's new Medicine Cat apprentice.

There was no disguising it. This was not what Lionstar had been expecting. His left ear flicked in the direction of Elder to show that he had acknowledged the younger tom's greeting - but his eyes were all upon Spottedfeather. "He's a loner, then." Elder carried no Clan scent, and judging by the questioning look the cat had cast around TreeClan's camp, it was likely he knew very little of Clan life and of the type of cats he was likely to meet here.

"How do you know he didn't come along for his own gain? Taking him in, teaching him how to heal wounds, sheltering him from the harshness of leafbare..." The leader's eyes snaked to Elder, again the golden warrior trying to see past the brown and white fur to the heart that lie beneath, his guard up, his emotions under wraps. "Unless you can be sure of his loyalties, this seems like a gamble, Spottedfeather." He didn't expect the younger cat to start pledging his allegiances to TreeClan, nor did he want him to. TreeClan was not a Clan where just anyone could waltz in and do as they pleased, so long as they swore they were loyal to TreeClan.

Considering the elders felt he was too young to be leader, and were watching him with eagle eyes and cold hearts, Lionstar had already been weary of the fact that his Medicine Cat was just as young. And now Spottedfeather had brought in an outsider as her new apprentice? Oh they'll be cursing my bones to the Dark Forest and back. Lionstar's ears folded back for a few seconds with the weight of his own cynicism, his thoughts on the elders and senior warriors.

If Spottedfeather is serious about this, then we'll put him on probation. He can stay for a moon, but he'll have to hunt for himself and take care of himself, but not here. He can stay in the territory, not in camp. That seemed fair. After all, what if this Medicine Cat apprentice decided this life just wasn't for him? Then he would leave and take all of TreeClan's secrets with him.

There was no way Lionstar would allow such a thing.

Song - I'll Be Right Here - by Ashes Remain
[/style][STYLE= background-color: #000000; width:400px; font-family:times new roman; font-size:11px; letter-spacing:2px; border-top: solid 20px #000000; border-bottom: solid 20px #000000; text-color:#424242; line-height:10px; color:#C49FC2;]When Hope and Peace Begin to Fray,
Still I Will Stand.
~
When the Rain Falls I Won’t Let Go
I’ll Be Right Here. [/style][STYLE= width:400px; font-family:Arial; font-size:7px; letter-spacing:3px; border-top: solid #000000 20px; border-bottom: solid #000000 20px; background-color:#000000; color:#424242;]TEMPLATE BY LISE FROM BACK TO NEVERLAND[/style]

[salt]

A growl came up when her leader spoke about this cat coming for his own gain. "He didn't ask to be part of this clan Lionstar. I wanted him to be. If you hadn't noticed but I have two injured apprentices in my den with queens nursing and cats getting splinters and my list can go on forever. It doesnt kill to have a little extra help now does it?'' She challenged her leader with a long glare before she turned to Elder and mewed, "He has a gift Lionstar. I know a medicine cat when I see it.'' She turned back to her leader and mewed, "Loner, Rogue or Rainclan cat why judge from where they have came from. If the cat is useful to help the clan get stronger why turn that cat away?'' Raising her eyebrow she fell quiet for a bit and finished, "He sleeps in my den. Everything else is your rule.''

[Deleted]

Elder tensed and wanted to spit back a retort, but decided not to. He was quite offended that Lionstar would think he was using this invitation as a free pass. Angered at this he forced himself to listen to what else the leader had to say. The leader looked hard at Elder and he stared right back. He realized that Lionstar seemed quite stressed, curious about this, he decided to ask Spottedfeather later if something had happened recently. 

Spottedfeather began to speak, and he relaxed. The she-cat seemed to be on his side, which was nice to know. It confused him why so many cats were sick. Elder thought that the clan cats would be very healthy. But that was forgotten when Spottedfeather spoke about his talent with medicine. He was filled with pride by her compliment about his medicine skills. Elder smiled and looked over at Spottedfeather. Then he turned his attention back to Lionstar. When Spottedfeather finished he decided he should probably say something. Selecting his words carefully, he started, "I hope that you can come to trust me, Lionstar. I wish your clan no harm, I just want to help. Spottedfeather told me that I have potential, so I want to use this skill." He spoke with dignity and hoped that his confidence showed. He also hoped that Spottedfeather wouldn't mind he spoke without be asked to.

[Fawn]

[STYLE= background-color: #000000; width:400px; font-family:times new roman; font-size:11px; letter-spacing:2px; border-top: solid 20px #000000; border-bottom: solid 20px #000000; color:#C49FC2;]When Daybreak Seems So Far Away
REACH FOR MY HAND.[/style][STYLE= width:400px; background-color: #0A0A0A; font-family:Arial; font-size:11px; text-color:#424242; text-align:left; line-height:11px; letter-spacing:2px; color:#424242;]

No, it doesn't hurt to have a little extra help, but why couldn't that extra help be CLAN BORN? Why Spottedfeather had to reach outside of her own Clan to find a cat worthy of being her Medicine Cat apprentice, who would take on as a full Medicine Cat should fate intervened and take Spottedfeather before her time. He understood she was acting with her heart, but Lionstar wished she would stop and act with her head for just a few minutes.

By accepting a loner as her apprentice, she was entrusting the future of TreeClan to a cat who was not Clan born, who did not have the ties, both blood and non-blood related, to the cats her as she did. He did not grow up in TreeClan. He was not a kitten, either. He was old enough to be a warrior, Elder could join the Clan, but would he ever fully engratiate himself into his new home?

Choosing to ignore the glare Spottedfeather was giving him rather than take personal offense, he glanced to Elder when he heard the sincerity in the young tom's voice.
Well now, you've got a decision to make. Trust Spottedfeather and in turn trust Elder, or nip this in the bud before it grows into something...potentially disasterous to your Clan? Lionstar's tail lashed behind him, the only visible sign that he was feeling displeased over this whole scenario.

At last, the golden tom spoke, giving a small nod to Elder to show that he acknowledged his words. "Take him to the Moon Tree, Spottedfeather. If our warrior ancestors approve of him as your apprentice, then I will allow you to do whatever you want with him."
Before the two could get overjoyed, however, Lionstar showed her the other side of the proverbial coin. "But, if StarClan does not deem him worthy, then I don't care how gifted you feel he is, you'll have to find an apprentice amongst your fellow TreeClanners, not outside of it."

He knew Spottedfeather was stubborn. But would she go against their ancestors? Even if StarClan said no, would she try to convince him Elder still deserved to be her Medicine Cat Apprentice?
We'll just have to find out. If he comes back as Elderpaw, then fine, I'll let this issue rest. If he comes back as he once was, then...
They'd have to work things out from there.

Glancing around for the TreeClan deputy, Smallshine, Lionstar wanted to confer this with her before he leaped onto the stump for any Clan announcements involving their...guest.

Song - I'll Be Right Here - by Ashes Remain
[/style][STYLE= background-color: #000000; width:400px; font-family:times new roman; font-size:11px; letter-spacing:2px; border-top: solid 20px #000000; border-bottom: solid 20px #000000; text-color:#424242; line-height:10px; color:#C49FC2;]When Hope and Peace Begin to Fray,
Still I Will Stand.
~
When the Rain Falls I Won’t Let Go
I’ll Be Right Here. [/style][STYLE= width:400px; font-family:Arial; font-size:7px; letter-spacing:3px; border-top: solid #000000 20px; border-bottom: solid #000000 20px; background-color:#000000; color:#424242;]TEMPLATE BY LISE FROM BACK TO NEVERLAND[/style]

[salt]

Scaring her is he? Spottedfeather kept her eyes on her leader and gave a small smirk. Elder was going to be her apprentice weather her leader liked it or not. She saw a gift in this cat and she was going to darn well show the clan this loner had a gift. "The sooner we then head out to the moon tree the better. You want to know your answer to see if he would be accepted by starclan then so be it but sadly we wont be finding out if you wish to keep us here and blab to us the rest of the night about my choices.'' Giving a soft blink she went on ,''We will leave tonight. I will go to my den and get us some traveling herbs and be on our way.

With that she gave her apprentice a look to tell him to stay here and she would be back in a moment. Padding past her leader with her head high she trotted to her den to gather some herbs for the two of them. She looked to her two sleeping injured cats and looked at Noblepaws face. It was healing quite nicely.. sadly those scars would always be there. Picking up her herbs she raced out of the den and outside of the camp and set the herbs down in front of the loners feet.

"I need you to eat these. They don't have the best taste but they will give you strength to get to the moonpool.'' She looked to her leader and mewed, "Keep a close eye on Noblepaw and Duskpaw for me. If you need to keep a warrior in there. They may stretch their legs for a bit but not allowed to train or go out of the camp. If they are hungry they are allowed to have one piece of fresh kill. If they ask for more do not let them.. the herbs they have been feed will not agree to their stomach if they have more then told. Other then that shey should be no problem..'' She then bent her head to eat the herbs she got herself and leaving just one herb behind she lifted her head and was ready to hit the moon tree whenever the loner was.

[Deleted]

It seemed that the leader was a bit conflicted. Elder hoped that his statement helped the decision. When Lionstar started to speak, he made it clear that he would not be welcome if Starclan did not approve of him. He hoped that Starclan would approve of him. Spottedfeather started to speak, and Elder focused his attention on her. She talked about how they would journey to Moontree. Then she went off towards what he guessed was the medicine den. This left him with Lionstar, he stared at his paws on the ground and then looked up at him. Studying the tense figure he tries to figure out why Lionstar does not want him to be the medicine apprentice. In the silence that follows Elder decided that since he was a from outside the clan he might seem like a threat to his clan. Understanding fills the cat, and feels like he is beginning to respect Lionstar.

Spottedfeather comes back with herbs in her mouth. She spits them out and says that he needs to take them to go on the journey to Moontree. So he picks them up and starts to chew. He almost spits them, and then Spottedfeather states that they might have a bad taste. You couldn't have said it a bit earlier?! He finished chewing them and swallows. He looks up at Spottedfeather and sees she has finished her herbs too. He says, "I am ready to go. By the way, what were those herbs that I just ate?"

[Fawn]

[STYLE= background-color: #000000; width:400px; font-family:times new roman; font-size:11px; letter-spacing:2px; border-top: solid 20px #000000; border-bottom: solid 20px #000000; color:#C49FC2;]When Daybreak Seems So Far Away
REACH FOR MY HAND.[/style][STYLE= width:400px; background-color: #0A0A0A; font-family:Arial; font-size:11px; text-color:#424242; text-align:left; line-height:11px; letter-spacing:2px; color:#424242;]

A conflicted sigh left the golden tom's mouth, Lionstar watching after Spottedfeather as she left to gather the herbs they would need for the trip. Snaking a glance to Elder, Lionstar quietly hoped that, for the sake of Spottedfeather's judgment, his personal peace of mind, and for the good of the Clan, that Elder came back Elderpaw.
With the instructions for Noblepaw and Duskpaw to ration their fresh-kill intake, Lionstar cataloged this precious piece of information away, intending to share it with whatever warrior he assigned the task of looking after the pair. He wouldn't do it personally - not because he didn't want to, but because he had a million other things that needed to be done. It would make sense to assign a queen whose kits had just left the nursery to such a task. He intended to hunt all day today in preparation for the coming snowfall and the scarcity of prey.

When Spottedfeather returned with the herbs and two began to chew them studiously in preparation, the golden leader had not yet moved from his spot, instead watching over them with a pensive stare. When they appeared ready for departure, Lionstar gave a regal dip of his head, mewing out with sincerity; "May StarClan light your path, Spottedfeather, and yours too Elder, even if you might not be a believer." Though he was honest in his words, a tiny claw of worry began to harden in the pit of his stomach. What if Elder didn't believe? Could they have a future Medicine Cat who didn't believe in StarClan?

The Medicine Cats were their living links to their divine ancestors, the ones who interpreted omens and were the harbingers, their tour guides on that which they did not understand. Careful to keep his countenance blank so as not to worry the other two - a little trick he mastered in his deputyship - Lionstar bid them farewell, his thoughts slowly beginning to shift to other duties. If Elder DID become Elderpaw...and he had to announce it at the next Clan meeting, all of their Clanmates were going to have a lot of questions.

Song - I'll Be Right Here - by Ashes Remain
[/style][STYLE= background-color: #000000; width:400px; font-family:times new roman; font-size:11px; letter-spacing:2px; border-top: solid 20px #000000; border-bottom: solid 20px #000000; text-color:#424242; line-height:10px; color:#C49FC2;]When Hope and Peace Begin to Fray,
Still I Will Stand.
~
When the Rain Falls I Won’t Let Go
I’ll Be Right Here. [/style][STYLE= width:400px; font-family:Arial; font-size:7px; letter-spacing:3px; border-top: solid #000000 20px; border-bottom: solid #000000 20px; background-color:#000000; color:#424242;]TEMPLATE BY LISE FROM BACK TO NEVERLAND[/style]