𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐃 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐏𝐇𝐄𝐂𝐘 ──── 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘰𝘯.

𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚡𝚒𝚒𝚒.

DOVEPAW STRETCHED HER leg out again. A rush of joy entered her. She was able to stretch it out normally again! Would Badgertooth let her return to medicine cat duties when he saw this? She looked around eagerly for her mentor, but he was nowhere to be found. She sighed, deflating a little. She sank back into her nest in her disappointment. She wanted to be up and walking again, and maybe even see Spottedsong and Dawnsplash if it was even possible.

"Hello, Dovepaw." Badgertooth came into the den, his blue eyes bright. His jaws were full of the green leaves that once belonged to daisies. "I found the best spot where daisies grow, that Hareleap and Brownfur have been complaining more and more about the aches in their joints." He put down the herbs next to the herb store in their own pile. "These will last us moons!"

Dovepaw stifled a meow of amusement at Badgertooth's enthusiasm. He was always so excited about herbs or anything related to it that he was always so happy when it came to herbs, or even StarClan. For example, at the time when Mapleleaf showed him the Moonpool, he came back and looked as excited as a kit out of the nursery for the first time. "I have something to show you," she told him.

"Oh, yeah? What is it? I hope you haven't been outside of the den," Badgertooth responded.

"I promise I haven't. I can move my leg normally again! I was hoping I would be able to go back to my normal responsibilities now, if not later," Dovepaw meowed.

"Let me see," Badgertooth instructed.

Dovepaw nodded. With ease, she stretched her leg all the way out, then looked at Badgertooth expectantly. Badgertooth nodded approvingly and stepped forward to run his paw over it. "Make sure I don't push it down," he instructed. He pushed down lightly on her leg, but Dovepaw didn't let him. "Good. I'm sure you're able to go back to your regular responsibilities today."

Dovepaw felt a rush of excitement. "That's great!"

Badgertooth's eyes glittered with joy for his apprentice. "For your first task, I would like you to put the daisy leaves in their spots. If there's no more room left, make room."

"Okay." Dovepaw slipped out of her nest and to the meager pile of daisy leaves. She began to put them in their assorted spots. "Are Spottedsong and Dawnsplash doing okay?" she asked Badgertooth, glancing over her shoulder at her mentor.

Badgertooth hesitated. "Something happened yesterday. I didn't have time to see what it was about, but I believe it was about Spottedsong. I heard Mousetail talking to Lynxstar after she was gone for a while. I heard things like 'Spottedsong' and 'MoonClan'."

"MoonClan?" Dovepaw wondered what that meant. "What does MoonClan have to do with anything?"

"I don't know. But I think that whatever happened to Spottedsong was related to MoonClan," Badgertooth told her, his voice heavy. "I'm afraid she's not in prison. She might have run away."