Swiftfire's Promise

Chapter 15

Flowertail

A shriek rippled through camp, jolting Swiftfire awake.

Dewtail! He thought, scrambling to his paws and sleepily shaking the frozen sweat from his pelt.

All of the cats in the Warriors den, which was not a lot, began blinking awake. Thick fog hung outside, and the chilly air sent cold drafts of wind inside the tightly woven up den. Swiftfire caught Gorsetail standing up wearily in the corner of his eye.

"That sounded like Flowertail," he mumbled and Mudsplash nodded besides him.

"But Dewtai-" Swiftfire began but the WindClan deputy was already nudging past him.

Another scream reverberated from the nursery and Swiftfire shook his head, snapping himself out of his sleep-like trance. It wasn't Dewtail.

Still, memories of his siblings being born were aroused in his mind, and Swiftfire gave a small smile.

Mudsplash pushed through a now semi-crowded den entrance, the cats that had slept in were now standing in front of the Warrior den exit in confusion.

"That's Flowertail! She must be kitting!" Mudsplash growled excitedly, not minding that the Leaf-bare wind was ruffling his fur the wrong way.

"Kitting?"

"Flowertail?"

"The WindClan queen?"

Hushed meows murmured, and Puddlesplash smiled excitedly, "I hope they're okay, it is Leaf-bare after all," she meowed, and small murmurs of agreements rose from the crowd.

Swiftfire looked outside. He was more shocked that it wasn't snowing them the fact that Flowertail was finally kitting. He watched Ravenpaw run out of the apprentices den, his tail-tip flicking excitedly and Swiftfire couldn't help but smile seeing that all of the WindClan cats finally had something to be grateful for.

The ears of all of the ThunderClan cats pressed against their heads as a painful shriek erupted from the nursery. Swiftfire could hear Darkeye frantically working to make the process as efficient and painless as possible, followed by the loud splintering of wood as Flowertail's kits were born.

Yet nothing could have prepared him for what happened next.

Another scream came from the nursery, Flowertail's. But it wasn't the same 'I'm giving birth' scream. It was more of a sob, fear mingled in it as one more cry of sadness echoed from the nursery.

The cats in the warrior den whispered-yelled to each other frantically.

"What happened?"

"Has something gone wrong?"

"Oh no..."

Swiftfire watched as Ravenpaw backed away in fear, his hackles slightly raised and ears glued against his head. Mudsplash let out a sob as Gorsetail's head bent in loss.

Something had gone wrong. Something terrible.

Silence swept over the cats and even Lionstar came out, sitting right outside his den and watching, eyes wide in terrified shock.

Swiftfire flinched as he saw Lionstar's wide-eyed gaze settle on him, his matted and ragged pelt flat. The scent of sickness was so strong as he stepped out that Swiftfire winced. But something else now lingered in the air.... Something bitter and salty.

Blood.

That scent was carried in the stiff wind and shook every cats' fur. What had happened?

Swiftfire trampled out of the den, running to Ravenpaw... Who looked as if he had just see a ghost.