Well... it may have taken a month (Seriously? A month?? The "last updated" date LIES.) but at least it came out a LITTLE sooner than it has been... . What can I say? Being a freshman is surprisingly hard~ *sighs*

Okay, enough with my complaining and onto the review replies! ^-^

Warriors-Skywing: *fills your room with plushies* 8D Heehee. Thanks so much for reading! : D You rock ^-^

Macey-the-Invisible: HA Rainwhisker IS a meanie head! And you'll see MORE of him in this chapter! :D Thank ya for readin'! *huggles*

Chat et Chocolat: Nice new name!!! xD Cat and chocolate? AWESOME 8D And yes, Rainwhisker, so suspicious~ xD Thanks for readin"!

cometdancer49: Awww, thankies!! Your comment means so much :'D *cries* Heehee. :3 Thanks for reading!! :D

Well, without further ado, folks, onto the story~

Chapter 10

Take Care

"How are you feeling?" came the soft voice from behind me. I jumped slightly, being caught in mid-thought. I turned to see Leafpool, busy making some kind of poultice with herbs. We were alone in the medicine den.

"Fine," I replied loosely, glancing down at the few scratches I had obtained from the battle two days before.

"You heal quickly," remarked the medicine cat, a hint of amusement in her delicate voice. I gave a small chuckle and faked a grin before turning back to where I was looking.

I was sitting by the entrance of the den, and right outside it was sprinkling lightly. There was a fresh, cool feel in the air, and though it wasn't raining hard, some were already beginning to find shelter. I closed by eyes, breathing in the scent of a clean drizzle.

I'd only been here for a few days, but already I felt as if I knew many of the Clans' secrets. Leafpool had told me about StarClan, the supposed Clan of spirits of cats who had died. They worshipped this Clan like a god, following its every word. Apparently, each halfmoon, the medicine cats of all four Clans go to the... (what was it called? The Moonpool?) to "communicate" with these spirits.

What a load of crap.

But what caught my attention was that every leader obtained nine lives from StarClan. Meaning, they would have to go through nine different deaths (old age being an exception) before they're really gone. With that said, I immediately came to the conclusion that killing Firestar would be much harder than we had all originally planned... But, since Leafpool had gotten excited and kept on going and going with all this precious information, she let something slip. She was talking about how many months ago, some group of alley cats attacked, trying to take over. But this is where the interesting part came in-- Tigerstar, a cat born in ThunderClan until he was exiled and became the leader of ShadowClan, was the one that led these... well, rogues into battle. But Tigerstar had apparently broken a promise to this leader of the rogues... Scourge. And so, Scourge killed him, ripping out all nine lives from his mangled body. And it only took one fatal blow to the stomach.

How interesting.

"I'm going to stretch my legs, if you don't mind," I murmured, trying to keep my voice as friendly as possible. Leafpool smiled; it was obvious it wouldn't take much to earn her trust.

"Go ahead. I think your friends are out there, too, talking to some of the warriors."

Bowing my head slightly, I got to my paws and walked out, the soft sprinkle greeting me. I closed my eyes and lifted my head to the sky, letting the mist-like rain fall on my skin. I blinked and from where I was, I could see the sun far-off in the sky, just emerging from the clouds. I flicked my tail and quickly scanned the clearing; Squirrelflight, the spitting image of her father, Firestar-- she even had the same green eyes-- was talking to Spiderleg, the long-limbed black tom. Despite everyone having two parts to their names, I found them relatively easy to remember.

Mourn and Ross were chatting with Sandstorm and Cloudtail, that one white tom who apparently was the nephew of Firestar. I've even heard rumors they were both house cats who joined the Clan with little knowledge of how to survive.

And look how far they've come.

Good, I thought as I made my way over to the little group, placing a wide grin on my face. Conversation with them is good.

"Hi," I greeted cheerfully, taking a seat next to my brother, who smiled at me.

"Hey, Dusk," purred Sandstorm kindly as Cloudtail gave me a small nod.

"You like the rain, too, huh?" mewed the tom, looking up at the clouds. "Although it's more like mist, now." I smiled slightly and dipped my head in agreement.

"We were just telling Sampson and Ray about ShadowClan," Sandstorm murmured, a frown creasing over her face. "You remember them from a few days ago, right?"

"Of course," I replied in a low voice. "They just... barged in."

"They claim they're starving," Cloudtail cut in, narrowing his eyes. "But we've seen them at Gatherings. I bet that they even have more food than the other Clans!"

"Oh, right, aren't there four Clans in all?" I asked, tilting my head. "What are the others called?" I kept my voice light and curious as I darted my gaze from him to Sandstorm.

"WindClan and RiverClan are the others," explained Sandstorm. "We border WindClan; they live on the moors. RiverClan borders them and ShadowClan; they live in this marshy area."

"Hmm," I said thoughtfully, before getting to my paws. I flashed the cats an apologetic smile; "I'll be right back," I mewed. "Call of nature." I grinned slightly before making my way up the stone walls and slipping through the thorn barrier. And once I was alone, I let loose a sneer as I glared back over my shoulder into the direction of the camp.

There was a different feeling out in the forest, now that I was alone. There was barely a noise, only the very soft splatters of raindrops and the occasional rustle of the bushes. Everything felt fresh and new. I walked a bit deeper into the woods, letting loose a sigh as I closed my eyes and letting my paws guide me over the dirt and leaf-covered ground. Which obviously wasn't a good idea, because a few moments later, I ended up tripping over a large root.

"Tsk," I hissed after landing in a small puddle of mud. Muttering something under my breath, I got back to my paws, vexingly shaking my dark pelt the best I could.

It was then that I heard a soft whimper. I pricked my ears and started looking around, alert. But when I didn't hear it again, I gave a small chuckle. "I must be going crazy," I murmured. "All this missions stuff must be affecting my mind." I smirked slightly, but then froze when I heard it again, a bit louder this time. It was definitely... a cat.

"Hello?" I called, pausing, listening for it again.

"...Help..."

The fur on the back of my neck began to rise as I hesitantly began following into the direction of the plea. The voice sounded weak, and I could tell that someone around here was in pain. After pushing my way through several clumps of bracken, I saw him. A golden-brown tabby tom was laying sprawled out on the ground, his amber eyes dull and half-closed with pain.

"Thornclaw?" I meowed in surprise. "What..." Then, I saw it. He was laying on his side, and fastened around his two front legs was some sort of metal clamp. It held firmly onto him, digging into the skin near the top of his arms, by his chest. Blood was running from where it was, and already some of it had dried and was crusted around in his fur.

"What the hell?" I breathed, moving forward to get a better look at it. "What...?"

"It's a fox trap," Thornclaw replied, his teeth clenched together in pain, and then he let out a small, strained yowl as an apparent throb surged through him. "I was hunting... and I sprang out at a mouse... But I landed in this trap; I-I didn't see it because it was covered in leaves... That's how it caught both my le--" He broke off into another yelp, louder this time, and he clamped his eyes shut as if that would make everything go away. In the back of my mind, I was rolling my eyes, but if we were to be accepted into this Clan, I'd have to help him.

"Hold on," I murmured, leaning over him as I inspected the trap. I could see that it was pretty deep in his skin, and I cringed just slightly, thinking of the pain he must be in. And it surprised me that I even took that into consideration. "I'll get you out."

There were two metal parts that clashed together-- Alright, I thought as I put a paw on each piece. I just have to pry them apart... I gave it every bit of strength I had; I began heaving them apart, mashing my teeth together in the process. I let out a grunt of strain until finally I could see the metal separate. It was only a little bit at first, and I had to be careful not to close it on myself. I kept prying them away from each other until there was enough room that the warrior could free himself.

"Move your arms!" I hissed as I fought to keep the trap open. "I only have two paws!" Thornclaw gave a stiff, pained nod and brought his front legs out of the trap with quite a bit of effort. He let them collapse on the ground as he lay there, panting.

Cautiously, I let go of the trap, causing it to re-close with a loud snap. Breathless, I backed up and looked over at the tom. His arms looked to be in pretty bad condition.

"Can I look at your wounds?" I asked; I hadn't much medical knowledge, but I at least knew the very basics. He gave a silent nod and I padded over to him, leaning over to get a better look. I winced; where the clamp was was now dark red and glistening with his blood. I brought one paw up and carefully lifted one of his arms; he let out an involuntary growl as I examined beneath his front left leg.

"You're losing blood quickly," I commented, meeting his gaze before setting his arm back down and taking a small step back. "If you continue to just lie out here, you might pass out. I have to bring you to Leafpool." I paused to glance up at the sky; in all the action, I had forgotten that it was even still raining. But it was sprinkling even less now, and far-off, the sun was now completely emerged from the clouds.

Then, a rustle in the undergrowth. I whirled around, my back to Thornclaw as I watched a dark gray tom appear-- Rainwhisker. Tsk, I thought with irritation. It has to be him.

The warrior looked at me and raised an eyebrow. "What are you..." Then, suddenly, he noticed Thornclaw behind me, laying in a bloodied heap. Rainwhisker's eyes grew wide and I glanced down at my paws, noticing that they were coated with Thornclaw's blood from when I was examining his wounds. I flicked my tail in exasperation; this would send Rainwhisker off in just a train of imagination.

"What did you do!?" demanded the gray tom, narrowing his eyes as his fur began to rise. "Did you--"

"Calm down," I meowed quickly, trying to hide the annoyance in my voice. "I didn't do this. His front legs got caught in a fox trap. It's right there." I flicked my tail over to the metal clamp; Rainwhisker's fur fell flat, though he still didn't seem convinced.

"It's true," rasped Thornclaw, his eyes closed. "Dusk helped me from the trap."

Finally, after a few more moments of waiting, Rainwhisker nodded.

"Fine," he muttered, "I believe you."

"Good," I replied quickly. "Now help me get him to Leafpool." With a bit of effort, the two of us managed to hang Thornclaw over our backs, his legs sprawled out on either side.

And as we made our way back to camp in the thinning rain, Rainwhisker whispered in my ear, "I believe you, but I still don't trust you." I flicked my ear; God, what an idiot, I thought, but swallowed back a retort.

"I'm sorry to hear that," I murmured quietly. "But I can't blame you. I know I haven't been here too long, and I'm basically a stranger to you... but I want to help you." He didn't say anything more.

xTxRxUxSxTx

"He's asleep now," Leafpool told me and Rainwhisker as we sat in her den. There had been many curious cats who wanted to poke their noses in to see what was going on, but the medicine cat had quickly shooed them out. Now, Thornclaw lay in a soft bed of moss, his front legs covered in herbs. "It was lucky that you found him so soon, Dusk," she told me as she replaced the tom's bloodied cobwebs with fresh ones. "He must have been losing blood quickly.

I nodded. "I heard him call for help," I explained in a low voice. "I'm just glad that I was able to hear him." Rainwhisker stood a few feet away from me, saying nothing.

"You two can go," the medicine cat said as she began mixing up another poultice. "Thank you for bringing him to me."

I gave another nod and focused my gaze on Thornclaw. And at that moment, a brief wave of warmth came over me.

"Take care," I whispered before turning and stepping out to meet the sunlight.

Hmm... a little fillerish, maybe? . It was important, though :D Wait till you see what happens when... *shuts mouth* ;D

Reviewers get a Thornclaw plushie-- asleep in a little bed of moss ^-^ CC is my love 3

Till next time!

Pearly~