Into The Light
Chapter 7
"Noooooo!"
Starpaw dove forward, her paws scooping away the fresh dirt in panic. She had to get them out before it was too late. After a few seconds, her paws his something soft. Fur! She sheathed her claws and dug frantically, soil flying everywhere. Her paws hit the fur again and she latched on, heaving her littermate upwards. Sunpaw's head appeared, then his broad shoulders, then his front leg. This was going too slowly! Moonpaw could be suffocating and she had no Idea what had happened to Lightpaw and Darkpaw. "Help!" She screeched. She sunk her teeth into Sunpaw's scruff and gave one last heave. He practically flew out of the ditch one out behind her. She glanced back. Sunpaw started coughing. She sighed with relief, then turned her attention back to Moonpaw. She had no idea how much longer her sister could last without air. Her paws scrabbled frantically, clawing away rocks and bits of moss. Leafpool came charging over from the south. When she saw Starpaw, she skidded to a halt. Her sharp eyes swiftly assessed the situation and she crouched beside Starpaw and began to dig. After what seemed like hours, Leafpool let out a gasp. "I found them!" Starpaw scooched over and together the cleared away the rest of the dirt, revealing Moonpaw's silver fur. Leafpool bent and grasped Moonpaw's scruff, hauling her away from the set. Sunpaw blinked a few times, them came over to see if she was OK. Starpaw laid her ear to Moonpaw's chest. Nothing. She let out a wail of terror. Leafpool's eyes widened. She bent over Moonpaw and began to paw the dirt out of her mouth. Starpaw leaned against Sunpaw, shivering. Moonpaw coughed. She took a breath. Then let it out. Then she began coughing again. Starpaw sighed in relief and began to nuzzle her littermate fiercely. "I thought you were dead!" She wailed. Sunpaw came over and licked Moonpaw's head. "You can't go to Starclan yet. We won't let you." He purred. Moonpaw's began to purr too. "Starpaw was right. We should've listened to you.' " It's all right."Starpaw replied, too relieved to be upset. Sunpaw jerked his head up. "Wait, if Starpaw was right about this..." He glanced at Leafpool, who was pacing urgently. "Are Darkpaw and Lightpaw okay?" Leafpool's eyes widened in surprise. "They got stuck in a tree and won't come down... How did you know?" Moonpaw's straightened. "They could fall while we're all standing here twittering like birds, Where are they? We need to go!" Leafpool nodded. "I'll show you the way." She said with an impatient flick of her tail. She bunched her muscles and sprang forward down the path she had come.
When they reached the edge of the hickory grove, Starpaw's ears pricked up. "I can hear them! Follow me!" Leafpool glanced doubtfully at Sunpaw and Moonpaw. They just nodded and followed their littermate.
Moonpaw's POV:
When they caught up with Starpaw, she was next to a bramble bush, and looking strait up. "They're up there" Moonpaw cast her eyes skyward and sure enough, Lightpaw was clinging to a swaying branch with his eyes shut tight and his tail lashing about wildly. She glanced critically at the hickory tree in front of her. It was a shagbark, which was good for climbing because it's bark was easy to grip. It was also the tallest tree in the grove, but Lightpaw was only halfway up. I can climb that. She thought before launching herself onto the bark and skittering upward.
Starpaw's POV:
Starpaw was just about to call up to Lightpaw to try to get him to back up when she felt Moonpaw's muscles bunch beside her. She barely had time to register it when a flash of silver caught her eye. Moonpaw was climbing the tree! In just a few jumps, Moonpaw was almost at where Lightpaw was stuck. She held her breath. Moonpaw made another awesome jump. She landed softly right next to Lightpaw. The branch shook a little and Lightpaw squealed in fright. She knew that Sunpaw would never let him live that down. Moonpaw was whispering to Lightpaw, convincing him that it would be all right. He slowly stood up. The branch began to sway wildly. He shrieked. Moonpaw whispered to him again. He nodded and began to back up. Poppyfrost and Darkpaw, in a tree nearby, watched anxiously. When they were almost at the trunk, he slipped. Moonpaw lunged for his scruff, but it was too late. He fell, wide eyed, down towards the brambles below. Starpaw flinched and closes her eys. She opened her eyes again just in time to see Moonpaw leap from the tree. She watched in horror as her littermate l to the forest floor. At the last minute, a strong gust of wind blew them away from the brambles and onto the soft forest floor. She stared in shock for a minute before rushing to help. Lightpaw had dislocated his hind leg, but Moonpaw seemed to be fine. She had a bruise on her side, but that seemed to be all. How could she have fallen from that height and gotten nothing but a bruise? She pushed the thought away and turned her attention to Lightpaw. A dislocated leg was an easy fix. She trotted over and picked up a stick from nearby. She tried to crush it in her teeth. It didn't break. Satisfied, she brought it over to Lightpaw and told him to bight down on it. When he did so, she grasped his hind leg firmly in her jaws and gave it a sharp jerk. Click. It slipped back into place. "Come on, let's get you back to camp." She mewed. She would ask Jayfeather about Moonpaw's bruise after she had given Lightpaw some poppy seeds. Poppyfrost and Darkpaw scrambled down their tree to join the band of cats as they headed back to camp.