Warriors: Ashfur's Insanity

Chapter 22

Jaywing watched as her two kits played together, her eyes filled with love. She wished that Bumblestripe could see them, but for a strange reason, the tom had went hunting, and had never come back. Jaywing got to her paws. Back in the corner of the nursery was her mother. Her kits were quietly suckling.

Jaywing looked down at Sootkit and Mothkit. 

"I got you!" Mothkit mewed.

"No! Try and catch me again!" Sootkit mewed. The two kits tumbled over in a tangle of fur and paws.

"Sootkit, Mothkit," Jaywing interrupted.

Her two kits sat up quickly, looking their mother in the eyes. "Are we in trouble?" They asked.

Jaywing blinked and looked out of the den. "I've got to go do something. And don't do anything bad while I am," She meowed. She remembered when she had gone to the fresh-kill pile, and her two sneaky kits had played around in the medicine den, messing up a few herbs. And after that, they were forced to help clean up. 

Her kits were a half-moon old. And since her kits had been born, Bumblestipe had gone missing. Jaywing padded out of camp, her tail swiftly brushing the leaves. It was very close to leaf-fall. 

Jaywing halted as she smelled the mixed scents of Ashstar and Bumblestripe. They were very stale, but Jaywing followed the scents anyway. She came to a clearing. Then as she padded closer to a strange bush that looked out of place, she stopped dead in her tracks. The strong scent of death and blood choked her throat, and came around her in a foggy cloud. 

Panicking, she rushed forward, bristling. She rushed her paw under the branches of the bush and touched the cold, limp body of something. She drug out the body, and gasped in horror. Jaywing remembered that feeling that she felt last moon. She remembered the vision of blood and gray fur.

She shook her mate's dead body. "Bumblestripe! Wake up!" She pleaded. But the gray tabby tom didn't move, didn't blink open his eyes. She turned him over and saw that his throat had been slashed, and maggots were already eating into him. Jaywing gasped and backed away in horror. She felt half anger and half happiness building up inside her. He stopped caring about me, but he never stopped loving me.

Jaywing padded into Ashstar's den. "Did you kill Bumblestripe?!" 

Ashstar's eyes widened. "No!" He meowed. "I only went into the forest to talk to Bumblestripe. He said he wanted to hunt alone. Do you know who killed him? Was there ShadowClan scent?" He asked.

Jaywing hadn't thought about that. "I only picked up your scent and his!" She cried out.

Ashstar rose to his paws. "I'll go see if I find ShadowClan scent. And we'll know who to blame. Russetstar." 

Jaywing padded out of his den and towards the nursery. Her two kits were playing with her mother's kit, Bunnykit. And the other two kits, Wolfkit and Softkit, were curled up by Cinderheart, sleeping. 

"What's wrong, mother?" Mothkit asked as she got away from the fighting kits.

"Something bad has happened," Jaywing meowed. "But I don't think I should tell you."

"But-" Mothkit protested.

Jaywing flicked her ears. Cats gasped in horror as Ashstar came through the camp entrance. 

"What happened?"

"Why is Bumblestripe dead?"

"Who killed him?"

"Bumblestripe!!!"

Jaywing's two kits hid under her in terror. Cinderheart awoke in a sudden rush. "Oh no! What happened?" She mewed.

"ShadowClan happened!" Ashstar hissed. "Russetstar has killed Bumblestripe!"

Tawnypelt leaned forward to sniff Bumblestripe's dead body. "Wait!" She cried out. "He has Russetstar's scent and my son's scent!" 

"You mean Tigerpaw?" Ashstar mewed.

"Tigerpaw... and every other ShadowClan cat is starting to act weird and evil. Russetstar is controlling them! They'll do anything she says!" Tawnypelt meowed. "That's why I left."

"What do you mean?" Ashstar prompted her.

"She's so fierce! She'll kill any cat that doesn't follow her rules. I guess when I left, I just got lucky!" Tawnypelt meowed. 

Ashstar held his head down. "We'll grieve for him," He meowed. "But he has to be buried first. Otherwise we'll have no body to bury."

A moon had passed since Bumblestripe's death. I can't believe my father died. And I never even knew him really. Mothkit sat up. Well I wish I could just grow up already to get revenge. That's what I'll do! Russetstar will be my enemy. 

Mothkit walked back to her mother, and curled up to sleep. She had strange dreams. A silver tabby she-cat had come to her and said that she had a different destiny. And I don't know what that destiny it, Mothkit thought. But it doesn't seem like StarClan wants me on the path I want.