Dreams of Blood (Dark Storm #1)

Chapter Five

The next half moon passed without incident, and Larkpaw grew in skill in confidence. She learned quickly, and even after a few days could identify more than half of the herbs in the medicine den by scent, though she still had no idea what most of them were used for. Maplefrost taught her to treat a few simple wounds, mostly just thorns in paw-pads and the like, and to look for signs of coughs or infections. The medicine cat said it would be a moon or so before she would let Larkpaw really get into using herbs- after all, in order to treat an injury or illness, she must first identify it. And so that's what she did: memorized lists of symptoms and some basic herbs, and every now and then removed a thorn.

Still, she would never complain. It was tedious but she knew it was necessary, and she could tell that she was getting better at remembering what herbs she had been taught. Each time she removed a thorn it got easier, and her patient winced less (except for Tigerpaw, who always seemed to have thorns in her paws, and who always whined and moaned when they were taken out). She was excited for the upcoming Gathering, where she would get to meet the other four Clans besides the medicine cats. She couldn't wait to boast about her new skills- or at least, that's what she intended, though she knew that realistically she probably would hardly be able to get a word out. Even so, as the Gathering drew to only a few days away, she could hardly contain her excitement. Tigerpaw and Nightpaw were not quiet about their jealousy, and Ashpaw and Rainpaw complained that even they hadn't gotten to go to a Gathering yet. Larkpaw supposed it was just one of the perks of being a medicine cat.

It was with this prideful anticipation that Larkpaw had fallen asleep curled next to Maplefrost one night, three days before the Gathering. Her dreams were chaotic and colorful, but pleasant- moonlight in the forest, dappling the grassy floor of the massive hollow she had only barely glimpsed from the foliage above. Unfamiliar cats and scents, all sizes and colors and Clans. Larkpaw wove between them, greeting cats she knew and some she didn't.

Suddenly, the pale apprentice heard yowling from somewhere else in the hollow. She perked her ears and craned her neck, looking for the source, but none of the other cats seemed to notice. I thought fighting was forbidden here? she thought, circling in place as she looked for the commotion. "You don't hear that?" she asked a she-cat standing next to her. Suddenly, she realized it was Maplefrost.

"Larkpaw, wake up!"

Larkpaw scrambled into a sitting position, heart pounding with the shock of the sudden awakening. For a moment she was confused, not sure if she was still dreaming. There were too many cats here, too much commotion. Surely this was still the Gathering in her dream? But the scent of herbs walked over her, and her pelt bristled as another scent did as well, one she had become familiar with even during her brief training: blood. More than she had ever smelled before, washing over her in pungent waves, threatening to overwhelm even the strong scents of the herbs.

"What's happening?" Larkpaw demanded, hopping to her paws, but Maplefrost was no longer at her side. She had slipped into the clearing, the other cats parting quickly to let her through. In the darkness, Larkpaw thought she could recognize the shapes of Ambercloud, Flowerfoot, and Oaktail. They stood around three more cats who laid in motionless heaps on the grass, blood staining their fur. The pattern of light and dark fur on one of the cats she immediately recognized as well.

"Rainpaw!" she exclaimed, her voice somewhere between a shocked whisper and a cry of anguish, but none of the older cats paid her any mind. She looked closer, and could tell that the other two cats were some of the older apprentices: Patchpaw and Mousepaw.

"Larkpaw, quickly, get cobwebs," Maplefrost ordered from the clearing. "Ambercloud, come put pressure here. Oaktail, press there." Larkpaw scrambled back into the den, snuffling blindly along the wall until she found the crevice where the cobwebs were stored. Not knowing how many she needed, she grabbed the entire bundle gently between her teeth and hurried back outside.