He was roused from his sleep by the medicine cat's perky mew.
"Here you go, Brownpaw! Lap them on up while I put this poultice on!"
Brownpaw looked down at the small pile of crumbling herbs in front of him while the medicine cat began rubbing a stinging pulp on to his flank.
"These are completely different from yesterdays." He mumbled suspiciously.
Echofrost, the medicine cat, squirmed a bit.
"Well, I ran out of those, and you know the storms have made it impossible to get more. So I switched. Now you're getting Chervil and Dandelion." She returned to covering the poultice to his flank.
Brownpaw pushed the herbs away from him. "Echofrost, this is the third time you've run out of herbs. It's Leafbare. Don't waste them on an injured apprentice when Rowanstar might get Green cough, or something."
"Brownpaw, don't be that way! You are just as important as anyone else I possibly use these herbs on. Now, I'll leave you alone for a bit, just as soon as you finish those up."
Reluctantly, he swallowed the bitter leaves under the medicine cat's stern gaze. Echofrost pushed a moss ball of snow and water towards him, and he drank eagerly.
"Well, I'll leave you now. Rushpaw said she'll be coming over to visit just as soon she gets back from hunting."
Brownpaw nodded, and Echofrost pranced out of the den, leaving him with his thoughts until Rushpaw came.
As soon as she was gone he lifted up a bit of his bedding ad pulled out some of the herbs he had saved, swallowing one or two furtively.
The first time Echofrost had run out of herbs it had dawned on him that he wouldn't make it through at the current rate.
He had been terribly injured in his first battle, a fight between two starving clans for a strip of territory that still had prey.
The second sunrise he had spent in the medicine den, a blizzard came, slamming the clans with heavy snow, sleet and wind.
Every one had been stuck in camp for a quarter moon. Prey was beyond scarce, and herbs and fresh bedding were hard to come by.
There had been many blizzards, with all able-bodied cat running out to hunt and gather in the lulls in between.
All the other cats reassured him he would be fine, visiting him in the dim medicine den, but he saw the worry in their eyes.
His wound would be bad even in the brightest Greenleaf, but when herbs were almost non existent and the much-needed prey was burrowed underground, it was awful.
A cat with dirty claws had come at him, kicking and hissing. Brownpaw had landed a few minor hits, but not before his opponent had torn a gaping wound into his flank.
His mentor had carried him back to camp, and he'd been there ever since.
His thoughts were interrupted by a sandy brown cat entering the medicine den.
"Hi, Brownpaw! I brought you some prey!"
Rushpaw dropped the scrawniest looking mouse he had ever seen in front of him. It wouldn't fill a kitten's belly.
"Share it with me! you're probably hungrier than I am."
Rushpaw's face clouded, but she dropped down next to him.
They devoured it in a few short bites.
Several times Rushpaw opened her mouth, as if to say something, but didn't.
Finally, she said, "Well, nobody else has died since we last talked."
"That's nice."
He knew the other cat wanted to cheer him up, but he wasn't in his usual good mood. He hadn't really since the battle, but he normally could put on a brave face.
Rushpaw seemed to notice. "Hey, something's bothering you."
He sighed. "Echofrost ran out of herbs again."
"Oh. Well, I'm sure she'll find another treatment."
Oh, that's not the problem. The problem is she'll keep running out until I die or someone else does.
But he wouldn't say that. Rushpaw was sweet, as optimistic as he used to be.
So instead he just curled up and rested his head on her.
She began grooming him, skirting around his wound. He was relaxed, Rushpaw was his friend. He had once even hoped she might become more than a friend. Now he didn't believe that was an option.
A yowl was heard from the far side of camp, towards the leaders and the elders dens. Rushpaw stood apologetically.
"I better go see what that was. I'll come back if I get the chance." With that she scurried out of the den.
Brownpaw sighed, returning to his former position.
He cold still hope. Even if it was unlikely Echofrost would have enough herbs to keep him stable, and prey would run well before he lost all of his weight, It was possible.
If he cold just hold on to that, keep saving herbs, keep doing everything he could, maybe he would make it through.