Life 2:7
Windclan was in overall high morale as they cleared out their refuge camp. A leftover hare was being caried by one of the warriors. Barkface had his herbs all bundled up and tied to his tail, though he did take some time to trace the Wander mark one last time in reverence. While Tallstar was organizing the warriors based on who would scout and protect the main body, Snakepaw was hanging back with Graystripe and Fireheart. Graystripe himself was a bit tense at the apprentice. He didn't know when Fireheart found time to possibly even meet a Windclan cat.
"So… How did you meet Snakepaw anyways?" Graystripe tensely questioned, somehow sensing that this was a sensitive topic.
"I… Don't know how to answer that." Fireheart began before Snakepaw cut him off.
"Don't worry. I got this. Since we're leaving anyways, I'm sure the spirits here won't mind me asking them one last favor." Snakepaw answered. In an instant, a strange feeling of focus condensed in the area. It was familiar to Fireheart, having seen something similar at The Place Where We Touch The Stars. Graystripe, meanwhile, tensed up at the sudden effect.
"What's going on?" Graystripe mewed, feeling like he was on some kind of hallucinogenic trip seeing as even grass somehow had exquisite detail he's never notice normally.
"Don't worry. That's just the spirits helping us out. Normally I can't tell a cat like you, but with their help I can. Now, please don't try to refute what I say at all, or it'll all be for nothing." Snakepaw mewed, looking Graystripe directly in his eyes.
Graystripe, somewhat frightened by the apprentice, gave a shaky nod. He'd listen. Whatever was happening was too supernatural to be just a prank.
"This is not my first life. I died when Shadowclan raided the Thunderclan camp alongside Lionheart and Rosetail." Snakepaw stated.
Graystripe's eyes widened. They hadn't said anything about the death of Lionheart and Rosetail to Windclan. How Snakepaw knew that was impossible… unless he wasn't lying. There had been a dead apprentice from that battle, but for the life of him, Graystripe could not recall his name or even what he looked like. "How?" Graystripe confusedly mewed.
"Right now, you're probably attempting to recall the memory of that day. There was an apprentice that died, but you can't recall their name or face. This is not a case of your memory failing you. This is instead an effect of my anomalous nature. I am unable to permanently die. When I do, I get reincarnated into a different clan, always at just the age to receive my apprentice name. Everyone recalls me but never in any detail. Then, when I die, they forget me. There are some exceptions. Those Starclan interact with or those bound to prophecy tend to be immune to the memory effect. Fireheart here was immune when I showed up in Thunderclan." Snakepaw mewed in a serious tone.
"Then… Does that mean I'm just going to forget all this later?" Graystripe questioned.
"Why do you think I asked for the aid of spirits? They were making you immune to the effect. You won't forget now. I'm sure at some point on this trip, Tallstar will want a Q and A session with me, so feel free to join." Snakepaw dismissed, knowing Graystripe still held many questions.
"Just one more! How was Fireheart immune?" Graystripe queried.
"Fireheart here is a cat of prophecy. At least, that's my guess. Unless he's been meeting Starclan as often as a medicine cat, prophecy is the likely answer. It's the one I'd bet prey on, especially with how xenophobic Thunderclan is." Snakepaw answered.
"Xenophobic? Bluestar was pretty nice to me when I joined. How was that xenophobic?" Fireheart questioned.
"You're not getting the bigger picture here. Bluestar let you in because you were a cat of prophecy. I don't mean to ruin your thoughts of Thunderclan, but they've got a very good reason for being xenophobic. The reason is simply that they share a large border with the Twoleg Place. Rogues have a tendency to wander in given the prey population, and on top of that they're territorial. There's plenty of battles in Thunderclan's history of rogues and kittypets running lethal raids on Thunderclan. They don't have any compulsion to mercy, so yes, Thunderclan has to be xenophobic to some level for security reasons." Snakepaw stated in a level tone.
"That can't be right. If that's true, Thunderclan would be willing to brutalize a rogue or kittypet just to scare them off?" Fireheart tensely asked.
Snakepaw let out a sigh, knowing this was one of those cases where morality gets a bit dubious. "It's called a necessary evil. I've borne witness to many of these necessary evils. In this case, terrorizing one kittypet or rogue has an overall wider net good than evil. While it may ruin one cat's life, it discourages others from making the same mistake, leading to overall less bloodshed. I'm sure that when you were a kittypet, you heard plenty of tales about how monstrous and murderous the forest cats were. It's not entirely hyperbole. The fear keeps outsiders from treading in, from Thunderclan attacking them. In turn, Thunderclan receives fewer attacks from outside forces. It is a logical and practical practice, but it is morally questionable."
Fireheat sat in silence, processing what Snakepaw just told him, somewhat unwilling to believe he'd learned, and yet at the same time knowing it to be true. He was the only cat in the clan from outside. Those stares he got as an apprentice suddenly made a lot more sense when he considered the fear Thunderclan had in outsiders as well. Fireheart hadn't been privy to many of Thunderclan's tales of rogue attacks, but they all had the same key notes. The rogues were always without honor and went straight for lethal attacks. It made sense why they distrusted him if that was their overall view of outsiders.
"I can't believe I never noticed. Now that I think of it, even now some Thunderclan cats still space themselves from me. What can I even do about that?" Fireheart asked.
"Honestly, the biggest cure for fear is exposer. You've got yourself a best friend and tight support network with Bluestar, so it's time to take a little risk. If I remember correctly, Runningwind is a friend or close acquaintance with near everyone in the clan. You already know him, so he'd be a good cat to get you introduced. One you definitely want to get your paws on is Darkstripe. A cat like him is hard to turn, but if he backs you, he'll be willing to damn himself for you, as is the way of a Stripe." Snakepaw mewed, gesturing at the air as he talked about Darkstripe.
"What does the name Stripe have to do with anything?" Fireheart questioned.
"You know, I think Tallstar should help me on answering that. The short answer is that the suffix of a warrior name describes the personality or appearance of a cat. Stripe is one that connects to personality. We can discuss the symbolism of name suffixes as we walk." Snakepaw answered, gesturing around them.
Graystripe took notice that Windclan was now all packed up and ready to move. The scouts had already run ahead and planned the route for the day. Tallstar nodded to the trio, encouraging them to join him for the journey.