Twilightmoon's Silence

Chapter 68

Twilightpaw paused to lick her tired pads. She had started to trek the long path that led to the Tribe Squirrelflight had talked about so fondly about. 

I wonder if they'll welcome me, She thought. Squirrelflight said that they were very cautious.

What if I came for nothing? What if they turn me away because I'm not from around here? What if they don't want me here?

Twilightpaw looked up as she heard a screech. A large bird with wings bigger than her swooped down straight at her, cruel talons gleaming in the white snow. Twilightpaw ran a moment too late; its claws dug into her fur and she let out a slight gasp of pain as she felt them pierce her side. Blood trickled down onto rocky snow-covered ground, and the eagle flew up. 

The calico she-cat flailed her legs helplessly in the air. She was already a tail-length away from the ground, and the eagle's sharp claws were dug in firmly into her body. She fell limp as more blood gushed out of the wounds. 

"Let her go!" A sudden yowl sounded, but Twilightpaw was too weak to look. Her eyes were already closing as black crowded her sight. Unexpectedly, the eagle let out a sharp shriek and Twilightpaw felt its talons loosen its grip. The huge bird lurched, and she fell to the ground with a thump.

"Come on, Night! Help me see whether she's alright." An unfamiliar tom's voice echoed through her head. She felt him sniffing at her pelt and wounds.

I'll need some oak leaves, horsetail, and goldenrod to treat these, Twilightpaw thought faintly. And definitely a lot of cobwebs.

"She could be one of the rogues," A she-cat argued, snapping her out of her thoughts. "We shouldn't help one of them after they killed so much of us."

"I know the smell of those rogues as soon as it touches my nose," The tom growled. "And this young cat doesn't have their stench."

"I guess you're right, Crag." The she-cat sighed. Her voice became gentler and closer to Twilightpaw's ear. "Are you alright? Do you think you'll be able to walk to the waterfall?"

Twilightpaw nodded slowly, and blinked away the cloudiness. 

It seemed that she'd found the Tribe after all.