Warriors: Frecklesky's Heart

[ 22 ]

Frecklesky was quickly distracted from her thoughts of Rachel by a newfound worry for her sister as Fallowstep delicately balanced on an old wooden fence.

"You should get down now," Frecklesky meowed anxiously, staring up at her sister with wide green eyes.

"No, I'm fine!" Fallowstep shot over her shoulder. "I haven't seen any catmint yet. Why don't you come with me? Two pairs of eyes are better than one."

Frecklesky groaned in reluctant agreement. Her stomach churned as she gathered her haunches beneath her and wriggled her rump. She sprang, sinking her claws fiercely into the wood's flesh as she scrambled up to the narrow top. She whipped her tail behind her as she struggled for balance, before finally the wood stopped trembling beneath her weight.

She grimaced at Fallowstep's bright smile. "Happy now?"

Fallowstep chirped a quick affirmation, before turning tail and cheerfully padding along the fence, moving with far too much comfort.

"So... how often have you done this?" Frecklesky asked, warily peering into the twoleg gardens as they passed. Snow fell from the fence as they steadily crept along the surface, trembling briefly under their weight.

Fallowstep tilted her head thoughtfully. "Oh, every once an a while. Most of the time I have Heronwing with me, but this time," her eyes flashed mischievously, "I have you."

Frecklesky swallowed a sudden rush of bile as she spotted a strange rounded face watching her from inside a twoleg nest. "And if a twoleg spots you?"

Fallowstep shrugged. "I haven't had to worry about that yet." Her ears flicked suddenly. "Oh, look!"

Without warning, she dropped onto the other side of the fence. Frecklesky yowled out in alarm, only to smooth her bristling hackles as she caught sight of her sister harmlessly nosing under a dead flowerbush.

Groaning, Frecklesky carefully slid down the length of the fence, her claws leaving stretching marks along the wood until finally she touched the strange, springy grass under the light dusting of snow.

"Catmint! See?" Fallowstep eagerly nipped away a few stems of the bristly herb, stuffing them merrily into her herb wrap. There was so much in fact, that she couldn't fit it all inside. "Could you take the rest of this for me? Hold it carefully so you don't snap the stems."

Unhappily, Frecklesky obeyed, leaning forward and clasping the herbs between her teeth. The flavor was mouth-watering, and it took a conscious effort not to nibble on it.

"Perfect," Fallowstep purred, swishing her tail cheerfully behind her. "I'd say that would be enough to last us through half of leaf-bare before it goes bad."

Frecklesky nodded in quiet acceptance, not quite attuned to her sister's calculations. With a flick of her tail, Fallowstep scooped the bundle of herbs into her jaws. The pale ginger she-cat quickly ascended the fence once more and continued along until they reached the garden they started at, dropping back to the ground and strolling back into ShadowClan territory.

Occasionally, she would drop her bundle and suck in deep breaths of the cold air, before spinning around and bolting in some odd direction. She'd periodically snip a few pawfuls of leaves and dying flowers off of various plants, while digging up the roots of others. At last, with the sun dipping towards the horizon, Fallowstep led her sister back to camp.

"Thanks for coming with me today," she mewed warmly, smiling over at her sister from the depths of her herb store. "I've missed spending time with you like this. And I'm sorry that... you know, that happened."

Frecklesky shrugged absently. "You need these, don't you?" She passed the deliciously flavored catmint over to her sister, who beamed.

"Yes! Thank you." She scooped it up and placed it neatly on the shelf, sorting them carefully with her paws. "You may leave now, if you'd like," she added quickly, her green eyes soft with sympathy. "I know how much you hate medicine cat stuff."

"I'll do that, then," Frecklesky backed away a few steps. "I need to go night hunting, anyways."

Fallowstep's expression darkened by just a smidge. "All right. Good luck, then."

"Thanks." Frecklesky backed out of the den and padded towards the camp entrance, dipping her head politely to Chiveclaw as she passed, before disappearing into the snowy wasteland that ShadowClan territory had become.