Warriors: Hail In the Wind

Chapter 3

"Thank Starclan you're okay," Kestrelclaw sighed. She touched Doepaw's nose, a smile on her face. "If you had died, I would have tracked you to Starclan and killed you."

    "I don't doubt it," Doepaw sighed. She opened her jaws, breathing in her mother's scent. She wanted to curl right next to her just like she was a kit again and fall asleep. Her body ached and groaned underneath the cobwebs.

    "Sparrowfire..." Doepaw meowed softly. "He's... Really dead, isn't he?"

    "I'm afraid so," Mossheart sighed. "I'm so sorry, Doepaw."

    "I should have been able to mourn him. Everyone else in the clan got to. I want to say goodbye."

    "When you're strong enough, Hawkdrop can show you where he's buried."

    "Okay, everyone out now," Cheryheart purred. "I can't help anyone if this den is as active as the gatherings."

    "I can stay, right?" Hailpaw stated, sitting up next to Doepaw. "I mean, my shoulder still hurts something bad, and my head was knocked around badly."

    "Keep trying those tricks and your shoulder really will be hurting," Cherryheart laughed.

"What else am I suppose to do? I'm stuck in camp all day, there's nothing fun to do."

"Go search Brokenpelt for ticks, or tell the kits about the battle, I don't know. I need the room to treat Doepaw."

"Fine," Hailpaw groaned, moving toward the den exit. "I'll come back later, Doepaw, once Stormpaw's done for the day." Hailpaw padded out into the camp. Doepaw and the medicine cat were the only ones left in the den.

"How's your leg?" Cherryheart asked, crouching to sniff at it.

"A bit stiff," Doepaw answered.

"Let's see if you can stand. Come on." Doepaw let out a grunt, shifting her weight. She pushed herself up on her front legs, pulling her back legs in. She shifted her weight onto her injured leg. Her muscles collapsed into Cherryheart, who stood next to her.

"It's okay," Cherryheart stated. "Bonepelt gave you a tough bite there, it'll take a few tries to stand." Bonepelt. The Shadowclan cat she and Sparrowfire had chased out of the battle. Mentor and apprentice were standing among the trees as the white warrior pounced silently from the shadows, clawing away at Doepaw. She had been so sure Sparrowfire had helped her, he saw him. Doepaw pulled her leg back up, slowly putting her weight onto it. It shook and quivered, but stood. "Good job." Doepaw sat back down in the nest, licking her paw and rubbing it on her uninjured ear.     

"When will I be able to return to the apprentice's den?" Doepaw asked.

"Let's talk first," Cherryheart meowed. "Are you hungry?" Cherryheart turned out of the medicine den before Doepaw could answer. Was she just being nice, or was she just trying to get information out of her? It was never a good sign when someone wanted to 'talk'. Cherryheart returned with a mouse, dropping it at Doepaw's paws. The apprentice began to eat as Cherryheart sat down and asked "You saw Sparrowheart in the medicine den?" There it was.

"Last night," Doepaw grumbled. "I woke up and he was sitting next you to. He even pointed out my injured leg! I don't know why you're lying about this, did you just not save him? Was he brought here and you didn't save him?"

"Doepaw, Sparrowheart was dead," Cherryheart snapped. "He died before you were brought to camp. You saw him in Starclan. And I think you've seen others from there as well."

"You don't just see dead cats."

"I believe you can. I don't know why, but I believe Starclan has given you the ability to see them wherever they go." Was that even possible? Was Starclan always walking around? There was those two kits who kept parading around Graveheart when she was near the nursery. When Doepaw was a kit, she tried asking Graveheart who they were, but she acted like Doepaw was insane. There were always a few cats who would come near Twigstar or Rainspring or Cherryheart and whisper in their ears, then disappear in the gleam of the sun. Sometimes she'd talk to a few of those cats, and others would look at her like she'd been in the sun for too long.