Millie's Death

Chapter 3

"Keep stretching!" Leafpool meowed. "Come on! You can do it, Briarlight!"

Briarlight stretched out her forepaws as far as they could possibly go, until they shook.

"Good! You're all done your exercises for today, Briarlight." Leafpool mewed.

Briarlight collapsed into her nest, only to sit up again when she heard pawsteps padding quickly into the medicine den. It was her sister and brother, Blossomfall and Bumblestripe.

"Hi!" She meowed cheerfully to her siblings.

Bumblestripe and Blossomfall had waves of anger and distress coming off of them. "What's wrong?" Briarlight was starting to get worried.

Blossomfall glanced at Leafpool and Jayfeather, who were sorting herbs near the back of the den.

"We need more yarrow and poppy seeds," Jayfeather mewed.

"I'll gather some later today," Leafpool told her son.

"You don't want them to hear?" Briarlight glanced the medicine cats.

"Come outside the den, and we'll tell you there," Bumblestripe was already padding to the den entrance.

Briarlight heaved herself to her forepaws and then dragged herself out of the den. "What's up?" She asked.

"We were spy-watching Graystripe and Millwo-Millie. Millie told him her name is really Millwood."

"Millwood?" Briarlight was confused. "That kind of sounds like a warrior name."

"A warrior name?" Bumblestripe hissed. "No! Don't you understand, Briarlight? she lied to us! She's exactly like Squirrelflight, only worse!"

"What? She's not exactly like Squirrelflight at all! Squirrelfight lied about being Jayfeather, Lionblaze, and Hollyleaf's mother. Millie didn't lie about that; she didn't lie about anything!"

"Yes, she did!" Blossomfall growled. "What sick, crazy cat would lie about their own name?"

"How did Graystripe react to this?" Briarlight asked. "Let me guess-he was perfectly okay with it? You're overreacting!"

"Graystripe was not perfectly okay with it!" Blossomfall hissed. "He went crazy over it, telling her that he didn't love her and all."

"What?!?" Briarlight was shocked. How could her own father tell her mother he didn't love her at all just because of her name?

"Look!" Bumblestripe waved his tail to the thorn barrier, where Graystripe just appeared, and shrew in his jaws.

"Still hunting for the Clan, Graystripe?" Sorreltail asked from where she was sharing a vole with her daugher, Cinderheart.

Graystripe nodded as he dropped the vole on the pile, then padded to the elders den. His eyes gleamed with fury.

"See?" Bumblestripe mewed.

Briarlight growled,"I can't believe that you all hate your own mother, and Graystripe hates his mate just because of her name! Millie is short for Millwood, isn't it?"

"Well, yeah, but-"

"No! If you don't love your mother just because she hasn't told you that her name is just short for something else, then....then you can eat fox dung!"

Blossomfall and Bumblestripe stared at her wide eyed, then Blossomfall whiped away to the warriors den. Bumblestripe sighed, then padded after her.

Briarlight was about to drag herself back to her nest when she saw Millie padding through the thorn barrier. She looked so sad. She didn't deserve to be treated like this.

"Millie!" Briarlight called.

Millie glanced up at her daughter, hope sparkling in her eyes. As Millie padded to her, Briarlight noticed her glance a the warriors den, where Bumblestripe was padding into. He stuck his head out and shot Millie a furious look.

Millie sighed as she approached Briarlight. "Do you hate me too?"

"No, of course not!" Briarlight gasped. "Graystripe, Blossomfall, and Bumblestripe don't know what they're meowing about. Millie is short for Millwood, so it is your name. My father, sister, and brother are wrong. Your name is perfect, and I love it."

"Oh, Briarlight, you don't know how much that means to me. I love you so much." Millie's voice was filled with emotion.

"Would you like to share some prey with me?" Briarlight asked. "I don't think Graystripe will be eating with you for a while now."

Millie sighed. "Yes, but later today. It's only just past sunhigh, and we both already ate this morning."

Briarlight nodded. "Okay. You should go back to the elders den now and rest."

"But Graystripe..."

"Just ignore him, mother. Don't let him get to you."

Millie nodded, then, with a sad wave of her tail, she padded away to the elders den.

Briarlight sighed, then dragged herself back to her nest. Leafpool was sitting next to it. "I heard everything." She meowed. "You're right about Blossomfall, Bumblestripe, and Graystripe to be wrong about Millie. And it was very nice of you to comfort her."

"Thanks, Leafpool," Brairlight purred as she settled into her nest. She glanced at Jayfeather, who was soaking herbs in the pool of water at the back of the den. "What do you think, Jayfeather?"

Jayfeather didn't say anything for a few heartbeats, which made Briarlight think that he was choosing his words carefully to say something kind and thoughtful.

Could she be more wrong?

"Whatever," the blind medicine cat grunted. "I don't care. Blossomfall, Bumblestripe, and Graystripe and being really stupid, but I don't like Millie anyway, so..."

"Jayfeather!" Brairlight gasped. "How could you say that?"

He just shrugged.

Briarlight thought that she really liked Jayfeather for a long time. Now she though she didn't even know him. How could he be so rude to my family?