Warriors: Losttail's Prophecy

Ch.16

(Cat above is Ferretclaw)

Losttail looked up from where she was sorting herbs. Berryseed came into the den carrying a leaf that had small traces of honey on it.

"Do we have lavender or borage leaves?" He asked.

"No. Why?" Losttail answered, rummaging through the herb piles.

"Stormkit and Parsleykit have fevers." Berryseed mewed. "I just gave them honey for their throats."

"They're coughing too?" Losttail asked. "We don't have tansy."

Berryseed padded over and began to sort the herbs. "Can you go look for some and lavender or borage? I'll stay and make sure they don't get worse until you get back."

Losttail nodded and made her way across the clearing and through the gorse tunnel. She padded through the forest, the ground was cold and covered by snow, before coming to a small bush with small purple flowers. Leaf-bare had grown harsh, resulting in a few of their clanmates, including Stormkit and Parsleykit, to catch fevers and coughs. She bent down and nipped at the stems and packed the lavender into a bundle.

She continued to slipped through the forest until she stopped to collect a couple of plants with round yellow flowers. She wrapped up the tansy and tied the two bundles together.

She was about to head back to camp when suddenly she could distant yowls of cats and a growl from something else. She picked up the two bundles and sprinted toward the sounds. She came to a clearing with a small rock. She leapt on top of the rock, her eyes widened.

Rabbitstar, Ratfang, Ferretclaw , and Patchpaw were fighting a badger. Ferretclaw reared back a leapt at the black and white animal. With one massive, hook-clawed paw, it struck the white and brown warrior, sending him crashing to the ground. Ratfang ran and stood in front of the now motionless tom.

Patchpaw, who already had a small gash on his back leg, got behind the badger and clawed and bit its himdlegs. The badger whipped its head around. Kicking out strongly, it threw him off, and Patchpaw rolled into the the snow.

StarClan, help them! Losttail pleaded. Rabbitstar dodged one of the badgers paws and leapt for its blunt head. Losttail watched in horror as, in one swift motion, the badger knocked Rabbitstar out of the air with a blow to his head. The ThunderClan leader fell to the ground and his body began to shake. He's losing a life!

The badger reared onto its hindlegs, ready to attack the defenseless leader. Losttail looked over to where Ratfang was still standing over Ferretclaw. She gazed at the dark gray warrior, hoping he would help Rabbitstar.

But before she or Ratfang could react, a flash of black leapt from the bushes. A black cat attached himself to the badgers head and began to claw at its malignant eyes. Losttail felt her fur prickle. She recognized the cat; It was Thane!

Thane began to claw the badger's flank. Drops of scarlet blood fell onto the forest floor. The badger growled and, once it shook Thane off, it turned and lumbered off back into the bushes.

Losttail leapt from the rock and headed to meet the wounded cats. Thane look up her as she approached them. He had a small scratch above his left eye, a small gash in his shoulder and hindleg. Before she could speak to him, she heard Patchpaw's panic mew.

"Rabbitstar! Why won't he get up?!" He yowled.

Losttail padded over and placed a gentle paw on his shoulder. "He lost a life. He'll be alright."

Losttail was about to check the leader when he heard Ratfang say, "Losttail, look."

Losttail turned. Ferretclaw had blood seeping from his hind leg and shoulder, and a torn ear. On one side of his face the fur was torn away, and there was blood where his eye should have been.