Darksong's secret.

Chapter 5

Darkpaw lifted his head drowsily, his breath was rasping in his throat and it burned like crazy. Thistledawn and Whitepaw were checking on the clan, treating them all for injuries and burns. Nightpaw bounded over to him.
"Are you ok?" She asked, sniffing him over "Your whiskers look pretty frazzled"
"Hm" He grunted, swallowing back the foul taste in his mouth.
"It's not my whiskers I'm bothered about" He croaked. Finally, Thistledawn padded over to him with a bundle of herbs in her jaws.
"How is your muzzle?" She asked.
"It's sore, but my throat hurts the most"
"I know, but I need to know if I need to put more ointment on your whiskers or not"
"Rain sticks to it tho" he complained.
"Do you want me to treat you or not?"
"I suppose another coat won't hurt" She decided, sounding softer this time.
"Now, you can have some honey for your throat" She meowed, padding over to where she had stored another mound of herbs.
"You lucky fur ball!" Nightpaw hissed, shoving him over playfully, then sat back on her haunches when Thistledawn came back over like nothing happened. The white-and-ginger she cat dropped a ball of moss with a stick substance on it. Darkpaw licked the moss hungrily, he had never tasted honey before, but the taste was pleasant. He noticed Halfsun leap onto a Boulder at the edge of the clearing.
"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here for a clan meeting!" He yowled.
"This morning, a patrol went to find what caused the fire last night" He paused, his green gaze raking the silent clearing. "It started in the old two leg place" The clearing stayed an eerie silence, and not a cat dared to speak.
"I will send another patrol out to search for Shellstar" He added. "Meeting dismissed" he said and jumped off the rock, and at once all of his warriors clustered around him. He lifted his broad head above the crowd and nodded to Darkpaw.
"I want you to show the patrol where you last seen Shellstar" the ginger and white tom ordered, and Darkpaw tried to retrace the path he had taken in his head.

He lead a patrol of his father, Brokentooth, Dawnflight and Magpiepaw. He kept quiet on the way, not wanting to talk to anyone, especially with the black and white Tom there. Despite his efforts, Magpiepaw began talking to him anyway.
"What was it like in the fire?" He asked.
"Horrible" Darkpaw muttered, his voice still a bit croaky.
"I wish I was there, it sounded cool."
"Just shut up and leave my alone" he hissed, padding ahead. Brokentooth bounded over to him.
"How do you feel?" His father asked.
"Fine, I just have a sore throat"
"Where did you last see Shellstar?" He asked. It was hard to recognise the forest he had once known, with the trees that remained standing stripped of their bark and leaves.
"Over there" he pointed to where the stone walls dropped into whatever remained of their camp.
"We climbed out of camp from there, and he was right behind me then, until we got to the bush, that was last I heard of him" he recalled, scampering over to the bare bush he had slid under.
"So he's got to be somewhere around here" Dawnflight murmured.
"I think we should split up" said Brokentooth.
"I agree, it will be quicker that way" Dawnflight agreed.
"I'll go to that side of the bush, just in case he ran along here" the white warrior said, and directed them all to a spot to search.
"Are you sure He definitely came out of camp?" Magpiepaw asked, as though he hadn't already told him enough times already.
"Of course I'm sure! I seen him behind me as I went through the bush" Darkpaw hissed.
"So he got out?" The older apprentice asked again. Was he doing that on purpose?
"I know what I saw!"
"Let's look around then" said Dawnflight.
"I'll check back up the way we came" Magpiepaw announced, trotting along the dirt path.
"I could look around the brambles, he might still be here"
The other two cats nodded and bounded off in opposite directions, leaving Darkpaw on his own in the clearing. It was hard to tell where he was, all of the trees just looked the same, so he couldn't tell which were oak or pine. He sniffed around the bush, pushing back the horrible memories of pushing through here when the fire seemed mouse-lengths from him. He padded around the remains of the bushes, when suddenly a yowl came from further away.
Magpiepaw? Was that fear in his voice?
Darkpaw raced towards the voice, and it wasn't long before his black and white pelt flashed through the trees.
"I found him!" The Tom screeched, nearly crashing into him
"Where?"
"Through the trees, get the others!" Magpiepaw ordered, instantly taking control of the situation. It didn't take long at all before the two warriors appeared in front of him.
"Did He find him?" Dawnflight asked.
"I don't know, he's through there" He lead them back the way he had came in swift paw steps. Magpiepaw met them where he had left off, and through the burnt twigs he could just make out a grey flecked pelt on the ground.

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"Shellstar?" Dawnflight called cautiously, craning her neck to see.
"Was He on his last life?" Brokentooth asked.
"Thistledawn will know, but we need to get him back to the clan first" the white warrior said, picking the limp body up by the scruff. Dawnflight lead the way back, with Brokentooth and magpiepaw carrying the body. Eventually, the part of the forest untouched by the fire came into sight, and a bit further down, the stream. He could just make out cats milling around the bank. Halfsun leaped across the stream in one bound once he seen the patrol.
"Is he dead?" The deputy asked.
"Was He on his last life?" Brokentooth meowed.
"I-I think he was" The ginger and white tom's voice shook as he stared blankly at the body, before turning to dawnflight.
"What was it like around camp? Is the fire out now?"
"It's a mess, but the fire has gone out" she replied gently.
"Right, let's take the clan back then. There's only so much prey we can find sticking to this bit of the territory" He murmured, quickly gathering the clan and leading them back to camp. Tension crackled in the air as they reached the part of the territory that the fire had reached. The trees had been stripped of their bark and leaves, and soon Darkpaw recognised their camp. The roots of the tree pointed up to the sky, with the rest of the branches blocking the bottom of the stone tunnel.