Silverwing's Story: Unraveled

Chapter One

Silverwing woke with a start, bolting upright. Her heart was still racing, and her head was spinning. Was that a prophecy Soulsilver just gave to her? When the shadows grow, only silver can save the light. What in StarClan did that mean? Taking a deep breath, Silverwing tried her best to decipher what the StarClan she-cat told her, but couldn't make any sense out of it.

Sharptail yawned and slowly sat up from his curled position in his nest. "It's time to get up already?" then he noticed the shock in Silverwing's eyes, and immediately changed his emotion into concern. "Silverwing, is something wrong? What did I miss?"

Silverwing shook her head to clear her thoughts, not that it helped at all. "I... I had a weird dream."

"What happened?"

"Um," Silverwing looked around, trying to come up with a quick excuse. Sharptail would think she was mousebrained if she told him she just received a prophecy. "It was about a mouse... that was trying to hunt a rabbit."

Sharptail eyed her strangely. "Okay, then... that made you jump ten cat-lengths out of your nest?"

"It was... very violent," Silverwing said, knowing her voice sounded dishonest. Sharptail gave her another dubious look before rolling his eyes. "Whatever. Come on, let's get some fresh-kill and hopefully join a patrol."

Silverwing nodded and heaved herself to her paws. With a swish of her tail, she followed Sharptail's soft pawsteps out of their new den and into the clearing beyond. She squinted her eyes at the dazzling sunlight that hit her like a wave. Not a single cloud was in the sky, and the sun was halfway up the blue ocean above. The birds were singing as loud as ever, but none of the winged creatures could easily be seen above the sheer cliffside which formed the camp walls. Silverwing enjoyed waking up every morning to be greeted by their joyful chirps, but it didn't seem right. She could feel the hole inside her grow each time she thought of Sparrowsong, and how she didn't even attempt to help her during the battle. She told me to stay back; I couldn't disobey her! She thought. But no matter many times she told herself that, it wouldn't seal the endless pit that kept growing larger.

Pushing her thoughts to the side, Silverwing picked a thrush from the fresh-kill pile before Sharptail could decide what to take. Beckoning him with her bushy tail, she padded to a shady area in the clearing. It would be nice to warm her pelt underneath the morning sun, but she couldn't bring herself to do so. The dreary cloud that consumed her had disappeared for a brief moment when she received what might be a prophecy, but as soon as she exited the warriors den, it returned. She couldn't get over Sparrowsong, and everyone was continuing with normal Clan life as if the golden she-cat never existed.

As Silverwing tucked her paws underneath her, Sharptail padded over and settled himself beside her, beginning to lap her pelt in long, comforting strokes. She glanced up at her brother, reached up and licked his ear in thanks before lowering her head again and taking a bite from her thrush. She used one of her white forepaws and pushed their meal toward Sharptail, allowing him to tear into the bird with his teeth, ripping off about half the prey and giving Silverwing the rest. He licked his lips and sank his teeth into the prey, taking his first bite of the thrush.

Meanwhile, Silverwing stared down at her prey emotionlessly, not having much of an appetite, but after a few more heartbeats, she forced herself to begin eating again. She felt like gagging a few times; not because it tasted awful, but because she didn't feel hungry in any way. But she knew she had to eat or else she wouldn't have any energy, and she would eventually die of starvation.

"Silverwing?" the silver she-cat glanced up at her brother, her expression remaining neutral, and then lowered her gaze to look at her meal again. But he continued anyway, "Are you going to be alright?"