Alderheart pawed through the herbs on the gray stone slab in the medicine den. Comfrey, thyme, yarrow, catmint… how could there be so many? He continued sorting, scents clogging his nose and eyes.
A wail sounded from the outside of the den, and it wasn't a voice he recognized, either. He wandered outside, filled with wariness and a little fear. Once he reached the sun-splotched clearing, however, he was shocked by what was in front of him.
It was Velvet, bleeding and stumbling around through the dust.
"Velvet? What's happened? Are you all right? And what are you- you know what, not important, come with me."
Alderheart pushed his shoulder under the fluffy gray she-cat's. She leaned onto him and limped to his den. Cats began to emerge from their dens, looking curious at the racket.
"Alderheart? What's wrong with Velvet? And what's she doing here?"
Sparkpelt, his sister, asked that as she walked up. Her bushy orange pelt was slightly bristled at the sight of the kittypet. "I don't know why she's here, but she's obviously wounded and here for help." he muttered, straining his legs under Velvet's weight. The she-cat whimpered in pain.
"What's wrong? Why is Velvet here?"Bramblestar stormed up, looking more than a little displeased at the interruption to his nap in the warm sun. After all, it was leaf-bare, and days this nice were rare.
Alderheart gritted his teeth. "I. Don't. Know. I'm trying to heal her so I can figure that out." His father sighed. "Do it quickly, then." He turned away and padded back to the flattened grass that was shaped (quite hilariously) like a fat, sleeping cat. Alderheart continued the walk to the medicine den, trying to avoid further distraction.
"Travis… I don't want to play with the mouse toy…" mumbled Velvet, and Alderheart wondered, with a twinge of jealousy, who was...
You're a medicine cat, he reminded himself. No mate or kits. He carried the she-cat inside the den and laid her on the nest of cool moss that Briarlight had formerly owned. Of course, the moss had been changed and the bracken had reformed shape, but it was still Briarlight's nest. "Let me get you some marigold." he mewed, taking care to smooth out the lumps around her head. She moaned in agony as she bled into the moss.
Alderheart poked through the different leaves and berries until he found what he was looking for. "Ah! Here we go!" He chewed up the yellow flower and rubbed it gently into Velvet's various scratches. "Ouch, ow, is it supposed to hurt?!" she yelped, shocked by the pain. "Yes. It means it's working…" he mewed gently as her muscles tensed, then relaxed. He covered the scrapes and bites with cobweb and sat back. "There, you'll heal with time. Now can you tell me what or who did this to you?"
She sucked in her breath, and her eyes closed and opened. Her claws unsheathed and she let out a whimper.
"I… I… it was…"
