LostHope's Path

Chapter 3

"Mintpaw! The marigold already?"

"Honeykit's here too?"

"Parrotfur can you stop eating that ...!"

"Hey!"

"Thunderkit stop eating that-"

"When's she gonna get better?"

"No, not a word! Poor scrap."

"Fox dung!"

"So she has no idea who she is?"

"Shhh, Honeykit's still unconscious!"

"MY KITS!"

Honeykit thrust her sleep-sticky eyes open, and she saw through a blurry haze she was in the medicine cat's den, which was stuffed with cats, eyes blazing with fear and urgency. What happened? Why'm I here? Oh yeah. Fox...

She tried to bolt up, but felt a harsh, biting pain flare her front paw, which felt sticky and light and weird... and why was it swaddled in these yucky, bloody herbs? She glanced up and saw the very pale gray tabby shape of Mintpaw, the medicine cat apprentice, who glared at her and thrust a paw of herbs in Honeykit's mouth, not saying a word. Suddenly the ivy entrance to the den swished and Thrushkit, Dustkit, and Thunderkit caterwauled through the den. Thrushkit and Duskkit both had frozen leaves clamped in their jaws.

"We heard Fawnkit's head is cracked open!" Duskkit squeaked. Fawnkit! I hope she's okay...

"So we brought herbs-" Thrushkit dropped the bundle of frozen "herbs" with a mew.

"-and to check on her-" interjected Duskkit again.

"Um... thanks.... And NO she. Is. Fine, still unconsious....HEY, NO VISITORS!!!" Mintpaw screeched as Duskkit and Thrushkit ran into another nest with cats huddled around it far off in the milky, dark light, leaving Thunderkit there, who turned to Honeykit.

"Hi!" squealed the handsome kit. "Did you really fight..." Thunderkit lowered his meow, "...A fox?" He asked in an astonished whisper.

"What? Yeah, totally." Honeykit grinned from normal ear to fox-chewed-up-ear. "Of course you, Thunderbutt, wouldn't stand a chance!" She squealed, and Thunderkit cuffed her with his paw.

"Stop calling me tha-"

"Nah." Honeykit yawned, bemused. "Aren't you excited to finally become apprentices?" She squealed, her eyes shining like moons at the prospet of serving her Clan!

"Course!" mewled Thunderkit. "Who d'you want as your mentor?"

"I want Wolfstar!" Honeykit said, thinking of the strong, tough-as-nails she-cat who lead ShadowClan.

"Why? She's so mean!" meowed Thunderkit. "I want Dashblaze..."

Honeykit rolled her eyes. Of course he wanted the most beautiful cat in all the Clans, with her dark, ruffled black fur and beautiful green eyes that sparkled like leaves. She felt weird waves of emotion crashing over her as she looked at her own short, tangled, dark ginger fur strewn with patches of yellow, black, white, and gingery fur.

"Oh hey Thunderkit!" screeched Mintpaw happily, breaking Honeykit's thought... and Thunderkit run out in a haste.

"Huh. I've never seen him run." Honeykit meowed.

"That's weird. I only see him run." said Mintpaw, and Honeykit had to cover her mouth with a paw to keep from laughing as Mintpaw walked away scowling.

Honeykit winced again at her left paw, still mummified in a cobweb and herb cast crusty with bits of dried blood. She squealed in pain, and felt her eyes brim with tears of the sudden pain. Don't be such a baby, you're almost an apprentice! She reminded herself, the warrior code and thoughts of serving her clan still dancing in her head.

"Hey, it's okay," soothed a kind voice, and Honeykit blinked into focus, for a second forgetting she was hurt as she stared up at Cloverlark, the medicine cat who gazed down kindly with amber eyes. "The fox... " Cloverlark sighed, staring at the bundle that was Honeykit's leg. "After Fawnkit fell, you never got off the ice. The fox saw free, easy prey. It would've killed you if your father hadn't stopped it."

Honeykit felt her eyes widen. Would Tumblefoot, her never-around father, really do that?

"What 'bout my paw? Did it get a cut or something?" Honeykit grinned earnestly in spite of herself.

Her first battle scar! She flailed the bloody, gauzy paw around in a silly way, but stopped when she met Cloverlark's solemn expression. Why does she seem so... sad? Honeykit cocked her head.

"We need to talk Honeykit." She said softly, and to Honeykit's confusion Cloverlark began to unravel the mess of remedies wrapping Honeykit's leg. Ow! Stop! Honeykit wanted to scream as ghostly flames of pain snapped her leg.

And what Honeykit saw changed her life forever.

***

"My leg." She whispered. "It's-"

She fell silent, tears darkening her russety fur rapidly as she stared at the bloody stump that was now her... Leg? Stump? Paw?

"But thank StarClan it didn't devour you whole!" smiled Cloverlark cheerily, but stopped at seeing Honeykit's mute horror that froze on face.

"I'm so, so sorry." Murmured Cloverlark again and again, but Honeykit couldn't even hear those words, except the soft meow that followed. "And to think, you'd've made an amazing warrior."

"Would have?" Honeykit felt her meowing grow high. "I'm GOING to be a warrior! I'm about 6 moons old in a few days! And no one can tell me I can't!"

Why me? Why me? Why ME? She wanted to sob, Why me? but she knew it was revenge for not knowing that the branch was going to fall...

But at least Fawnkit's okay. Still unconsious but okay. And she's going to be a warrior...

The beautiful medicine cat stared as the kit struggled up, hobbling forward. Pain flared from every which way on her body, but she stumbled out of her nest, face-to-face with Cloverlark, wanting to scream and rake her claws across the medicine cat's perfect face and body, her FOUR paws, but nothing came out.

The entrance to the den swished again and a fluffy Thunderkit popped through the entrance. "Honeykit!" He squeaked, and then gasped seeing his fearless friend's mangled paw, the spark that had trembled like a fuse in her body all flickered out. "W-w-w-ha-"

The whole den stared and was silent as they saw the tiny kit, a bloody stump for a paw, with a bright yellow fire blazing in her eyes and she crumpled into a sob onto her fluffy friend's shoulder.