Moth Flight’s Vision

The Moonstone flared. Moth Flight flinched, slitting her eyes as light blanched the cave. Countless stars seemed to blaze before her face. Leaning forward, she touched her nose to the glittering stone.

The floor shifted beneath her paws. Her heart lurched as she felt herself swept sideways, whirling dizzyingly until suddenly she felt soft pasture beneath her paws. She opened her eyes into the half-light of evening. Pebble Heart, Dappled Pelt, Cloud

Spots, and Acorn Fur stood nearby, blinking at the rolling meadows and distant forest. They were in StarClan’s hunting grounds, on the breeze-blown hilltop, grass rippling around their paws.

Above them, a purple sky deepened to black as it stretched toward the distant horizon. She gazed at it, the stars blurring as she stared at them. They began to swirl like a flock of shimmering birds, spinning toward the ground.

Pebble Heart lifted his chin, his eyes wide in wonder.

Dappled Pelt’s fur pricked along her spine. Acorn Fur backed away as the stars circled closer. Moth Flight narrowed her eyes against the brightness as the grass sparkled and the stars slowed, coming to rest on the hilltop around them.

Blinking, she saw the light fade until she could make out the shapes of the StarClan cats.

Half Moon stepped from among them, her white pelt glistening. She stopped in front of Moth Flight and dipped her head.

Moth Flight tensed, trying to glimpse the expression in the StarClan cat’s dark green gaze. I scattered the petals of the Blazing Star, just as Micah told me. She knew what she wanted to say. She had given away her kits and she wanted to tell StarClan that it was the only thing she could have done. But the words she’d planned stalled on her tongue. “I had to!” she blurted as Half Moon met her gaze.

“We know.” Half Moon stared at her steadily. “You made the right choice.”

Moth Flight glanced beyond the white she-cat, hoping to glimpse Micah. He’d given his blessing to sending their kits to new homes, but she wanted to see him—she needed to read his gaze and truly know that he understood.

Before she could spot him, Half Moon spoke again. “Your greatest loyalty must always be to StarClan and your Clanmates.” Her gaze flicked to Acorn Fur. “The only way to ensure this is for you all to promise never to take mates or have kits.”

Acorn Fur’s eyes flashed indignantly. “That’s not fair! I can be loyal to you, and my Clanmates, and a mate and kits!”

Half Moon didn’t answer.

“I can!” Acorn Fur insisted.

A starry she-cat padded forward. Snow-white fur flecked her gray muzzle. “How do you know what it is like to be a mother?” she challenged Acorn Fur, her eyes flashing.

Acorn Fur snorted. “I’ve seen Star Flower with her kits. It’s not hard!”

The old she-cat’s tail twitched crossly. “I am Quiet Rain, mother of Gray Wing, Clear Sky, and Jagged Peak. I stayed behind in the mountains when they left the Tribe. But my heart cried out for them every day they were gone.”

Moth Flight shivered. Will grief torture me forever?

Quiet Rain went on. “My need was so strong that I spent my final days crossing unknown lands to see them. Only when I was sure they were safe in their new home could I give in to the sickness that made every step heavy with pain.”

Acorn Fur stared at her. “I’m not you! My kits will stay near me. I won’t have to worry about them!”

Quiet Rain gave a hollow purr. “Do you really believe that you’ll be able to ignore their cries to treat an injured Clanmate?”

She swung her head toward Moth Flight accusingly. “Haven’t you warned this foolish cat?”

“She’s not foolish!” Moth Flight stepped closer to Acorn

Fur. “I thought I could be a mother and medicine cat too. I had to experience it before I realized how impossible it was to give my heart twice over.” She blinked at Acorn Fur. “You must make your choice now, before you have kits. You mustn’t ever face the choice I faced. It will break your heart.” Her eyes prickled with sadness. “Choose now. Either care for your Clan, or take a mate. You can’t do both.”

Pebble Heart swished his tail. “What about us?” He nodded toward Cloud Spots. “We can’t be mothers.”

Half Moon tipped her head. “But you can be fathers. Do you think a father loves his kits any less?”

Gray Wing slid from among his Clanmates. “Pebble Heart,” he meowed gently. “Each medicine cat must make the same choice. Live like an ordinary Clan cat and take a mate. Raise a family if you like. But if you do, renounce your medicine-cat duties.”

Half Moon’s gaze flitted around the medicine cats. “We brought you closer to us than any of your Clanmates. One day your Clan may depend on what we share with you. We need to know you hear us. If you don’t, who will suffer?”

Pebble Heart’s eyes darkened. “Our Clan.”

Half Moon nodded. “Then choose.”

Pebble Heart shifted his paws, his gaze lingering on Half