Warriors: Frecklesky's Heart

[ 6 ]

Frecklesky sat there for moons, blindly staring off across the marsh as guilt ripped her heart to shreds.

How could I be so insensitive?

That thought alone drove her for a loop. She scarcely cared for another cats' feelings; only Fallowstep's and Firewatcher's—Firewatcher, not so much, but he was still a friend, and sometimes she cared about how she made him feel. But never did a cat's emotions matter as much as this kittypet's. And she'd only seen her twice.

She growled to herself, pushing herself to her paws and grabbing the frog she'd caught. Her pelt felt dry, the mud having hardened under the hot sun, and it made her journey much harder than it should've been as she forced herself back in the direction of camp. She didn't bother searching for Elmshine or Roseclaw. Those two would do just fine without her, and she doubted they'd miss the dark cloud of presence.

She pushed into camp with a sigh endlessly rattling in her chest. Lingering warriors paused to stare at her—why wouldn't they? She was just a blob of seething, dried mud at the moment.

She deposited the frog onto the fresh-kill pile. It was meagre at best, staring up at her with only a few scrawny bodies that would barely feed the Clan. The apprentices aren't working hard enough, she thought. She flicked her whiskers and turned towards the medicine den. Fallowstep's den.

Frecklesky swallowed the lump in her throat and crawled forward, shoving through the sheet of lichen and emerging into the hollow stump. "Fallowstep?" She quietly called out as her eyes rapidly adjusted to the darkness.

Relief washed over her as she spotted her sister's familiar pale ginger pelt. The she-cat's green eyes flashed, but she was already busy, pasting a wrap of cobwebs around Railclaw's wounds.

"One moment," she called over, her soft voice twisted with a hint of sadness. She turned her attention back to the tom, who winced as she pressed firmly to his injuries. "Be sure to regularly wash your wounds for me, would you? The horsetail was old, so it won't be as effective."

Railclaw nodded stiffly. "Okay, thank you, Fallowstep."

Fallowstep nodded briskly, watching anxiously as the tom padded away, brushing past Frecklesky on his way out. She breathed a heavy sigh, turning over to her sister. She glanced up and down as she swiftly moved over.

"Great StarClan, what did you do to yourself?" Fallowstep muttered, yanking a clump of mud from Frecklesky's fur. She sighed as the tortoiseshell failed to respond, tightening the air with her silence. "Okay, okay. I'm sorry I was so harsh with you the other day. I sometimes forget how easily you lose your temper."

Frecklesky growled softly as another dried chunk of mud was torn out. She thought of Thunderpath, how the pretty kittypet had tended to her fur without any tugs at all. Her gentle, working paws, simply gone now, just because Frecklesky couldn't keep her temper in check.

"It's fine. I was out of line."

Fallowstep huffed. "Out of line or not, you're my sister. I should be looking out for you, not shunning you." She leaned forward, giving her sister an affectionate lick across the cheek. "Well, that's the best I can do. How are you feeling?"

Frecklesky shrugged absently. "Could be doing better."

Fallowstep sighed. "Is this about Firewatcher?" She meowed. "You should try to talk to him, you know. He really cares about you. This is hurting him as much as it's hurting you."

Frecklesky picked mindlessly at the ground, rolling a stone between her paws. "I doubt he wants to talk to me," she grumbled.

She thought of the fury Thunderpath had expressed as she left. She wouldn't want to talk to herself, either.

Fallowstep nudged her shoulder reassuringly. "Don't say that. He wants to talk to you more than you know." Her eyes glittered with an ethereal kindness.

"You really think so?"

"Of course I do," Fallowstep pressed. "I know so."

Frecklesky heaved a long, rattling sigh. "Okay, I'll try to find him, I guess. Thank you."

Fallowstep nodded, turning her eyes back to the herb store. Fallowstep followed her gaze, her heart clenching at the sight of the helpless, empty shelves, still stained with the shattered remains of destroyed herbs.