MINKNOSE

In the sudden absence of Jellyfishstar, Minknose had been left to step up. She hadn’t felt ready, but, does one ever really feel ready for these things? With the mystery of what had happened to Jellyfishstar still hanging in the air, there was an air of unease that lay over Shoreclan like a thick coat of snow… It was palpable, so thick that it could be cut with an unsheathed claw.

Minknose wandered through her thoughts as she padded toward the Moon Springs, the place where her ceremony would take place. She felt a patter in her chest, something she wasn’t quite accustomed to, a sensation that she had felt only a few times in her life — the first had been when she was a kit, the second when she had been in her apprentice ceremony… and then, when she had been named as Deputy of Shoreclan by Jellyfishstar. She pined a little for the old leader, but she also knew that she did not have the luxury of agonizing over it. The clan needed a strong leader, and while Minknose did not think herself quite ready or even really worthy of the title… she knew it was her duty to step up into place. She lay her ears back slightly, glancing over towards the Medicine Cat, her only companion from the point she’d padded out of camp, and started the journey towards the Island earlier in the evening.

The moon was beginning to hover in the sky, peeking over the tops of the trees in the distance — a watchful eye looking over them as they padded along.

’I have to do this — it’s my duty,’ she repeated the little phrase to herself over and over and over again. It was a comfort in its own little way, but ultimately, there wasn’t much that was a comfort to the tabby at the moment. The patter of anxiety in her chest made her feel like it was hard to breathe.

What if no cats came to her in her dreams? What if no one was willing to give her her lives that she would need to lead the clan? Her mind spiraled away from her, racing with thoughts in a dizzying swirling whirlpool of ‘what ifs’ that threatened to make her lose her footing. She paused mid-step for a moment and shook her head. Now was not the time to get too into her head — now was the time to stand strong.

Minknose drew a deep breath, lifted her head, arched her tail slightly, and began padding along again.

Soon, they reached the Island, and then the Moon Springs, hidden away within the foliage.

Minknose looked towards the moon, now in the center of the sky. She drew a deep breath to steady herself before she dipped her head to the moon and the stars surrounding it before she crouched beside the pool. Gently, she lapped a few sips of the water up. She curled up beside the pool and slowly waited for sleep to take her.


It didn’t happen as fast as she’d thought it would, and after a while, she blinked her eyes open. She turned towards her companion to say something, only to find herself alone beside the pool. She sprung to her paws, turning a circle — maybe she’d looked in the wrong direction, that had to be it! She did a double take, however, as a pelt was seen moving through the foliage across from her. Blinking a couple of times, Minknose squinted — the fur looked faded, almost transparent… That wasn’t normal.

The figure that emerged was familiar, and painfully so. Minknose’s ears flattened against her head, her gaze lowering slightly.

”Minknose, do not look so happy to see me,” a familiar voice said, warmer than it had ever truly been in life. Minknose blinked, looking up. ”I’m much happier now than I ever was in life. Do not worry — I have no anger now.”

Her mother, Hazeltail, approached her, pressing her nose against Minknose’s own. Both of their tabby-clad tails twitched, mirror images of each other for a moment, aside from the fact that her mother held a grey tone to her starry pelt, while Minknose’s fur was brown.

”We’ve been waiting for you, wondering when you might come to see us,” Hazeltail said before she turned her gaze toward the foliage. More figures emerged some that Minknose recognized, some that she did not.

”I don’t know all of them,” she commented quietly. ”I thought I was supposed to know everyone.”

”Not necessarily, Minknose. But they all have something to say to you,” Hazeltail said. ”We don’t have long. Let’s get on with this, okay?” Minknose nodded, slowly lowering herself into a seated position, curling her tail around her paws.

”Minknose, my daughter, I was never the happiest in life, and I know you have inherited some of my personality. For that, I apologize, because I have not made things easy for you in life. With this life, I give you happiness, so that you may bring joy and love to our clan.” Hazeltail said, after pressing her nose once more to her daughter’s forehead. Minknose blinked slowly, dipping her head slightly. For a moment, the two stared at each other with an amount of love that had never been present in their mortal lives together. But, Minknose was happy that they could share the moment, despite one of them having departed to walk amongst the stars. Hazeltail turned, being replaced by a tom cat that Minknose had never seen before.

“Minknose,” he said, pressing his nose to her forehead. ”I give you the gift of forgiveness, so that you may lead your clan without the weight of the past holding you back. The tabby stepped back, and as Minknose watched him walk away, she realized something — he had the same pelt as she did, even the same eyes. She did not quite have time to process, before another familiar face was coming forward — a large, long furred black-and-white tom that Minknose knew as her former mentor, Badgerclaw. He gave her a pleased look, before pressing his nose to her forehead.

“With this life, I give you the gift of hope, so that you may always be a ray of hope for your clan,” he said in his deep baritone voice. Minknose looked at him fondly, as he too was soon replaced by the next cat, yet another that she did not recognize. A she-cat that looked so similar to her mother.

“With this life, I give the gift of humor, so that you may always be able to laugh with your clanmates.” The grey tabby stepped back, looking proud for a moment before she turned and padded off. Minknose noticed that she was missing her tail, and smelled heavily of the sea and stars. Next, came a face that Minknose had imagined only from stories the elders had told when she was younger.

”With this life, I give you the gift of endurance, so that you may endure the challenges ahead of you as you lead the clan,” the cat that Minknose assumed was Shorestar said. Next, came a grizzled, rough-looking black cat, who Minknose had heard described as her grandfather.

“With this life, I give you the gift of humility,” he said in a rough voice. “So that you may lead like a true leader.” He turned, padding away as quickly as he came. Next, was a she-cat that Minknose recognized as Leopardheart, a friend that had been lost early in their warrior days.

“With this life, I give you the gift of friendship, so that you may always be a true leader and true friend to the clan.” She said, dipping her head before she too padded away to vanish amongst the small sea of pelts that had surrounded the pool and consequentially, Minknose.

“With this life, I give you the gift of fairness,” a small brown-pelted tom said, that Minknose vaguely recognized from her childhood. ”So that you may always lead with an air of fairness in your heart.” He too, vanished, as a face that Minknose recognized Newtstar stepped forward.

“With this last and final life, I give you the gift of instincts, so that you may always follow yours in the right direction.” Newtstar said. Minknose lifted her head, looking proud for a moment. Each life given had been uncomfortable, but not something unbearable. Minknose had half expected to see Jelllyfishstar amongst the pelts, but as she looked around, she did not see the bright-pelted cat amongst the ranks. Her eyes instead landed upon Newtstart as they did not step back.

“I hail you by your new name, Minkstar. Your old life is no more. You have now received the nine lives of a leader, and Starclan grants you the guardianship of Shoreclan. Defend it well; care for the young and old; honor your ancestors and the traditions of the Warrior Code; live each life with pride and dignity,” Newtstar said, raising their voice as if for all the stars above would be able to hear. A chorus of voices took up saying her new name.

“Minkstar! Minkstar! Minkstar!” They chanted in unison. Minknose, now Minkstar, allowed herself a look of pride, for just a small moment. She’d done it!

As the voices died down, the world around her began to grow darker, and slowly, she began to feel sleepy once more. With a small yawn, Minkstar allowed herself to lie down and closed her eyes. The scents of the cats around her faded as sleep took her.


She lifted her head once more, looking up towards the sky. The moon was nearly three-fourths across the sky now, having moved quite a bit from its position at its peak when she had initially drank from the pool. Minkstar slowly rose to her paws, her body feeling sore and achey as if she’d just run the whole of the territory in one go. She glanced around, her gaze falling once more upon the Medicine Cat. She gave a small twitch of her tail.

“It’s done,” she said quietly, sounding tired, but feeling quite elated, despite her earlier reservations of the whole situation.