5

After adding her shrew to the pile, Starpaw settled down to wait for Lakepaw. She probably wouldn't be back until past sundown, as Lakepaw did night border patrol. As Starpaw waited, Leafkit came over. She sat down next to Starpaw, and they sat in silence. Eventually Starpaw heard Leafkit purring softly.

Looking over to see what was amusing, Starpaw saw Leafkit's littermates playing around. Sweetkit was pouncing on leaves and adding them to a growing pile. Meanwhile, Brightkit tried to combat Sweetkit and steal her leaves.

"Want to join them?" Starpaw meowed.

Leafkit shook her head.

"No," she said, "I want to stay here. Besides, it's a little late to join in now."

Starpaw realized this was true. Both kits had a respectable number of leaves in their piles. Leafkit would be outnumbered.

"Are you excited for the Gathering?" Leafkit meowed suddenly.

"Of course I am," Starpaw purred.

Having nothing else to say, Starpaw and Leafkit sat together, watching the camp. As the sun crept down, and the camp became stiller, Starpaw couldn't help noticing how calm Leafkit seemed. Suddenly, as Silverpelt appeared in the sky, Lakepaw pushed through the barrier, along with Berrynose and Mousewhisker.

Berrynose was limping, and all three cats were breathing hard. As Lakepaw turned, Starpaw stared at a claw mark on her friend's shoulder.

"It's WindClan, again. They tried to cross the border," Mousewhisker meowed.

Starpaw stood quickly. "What can I do?" she asked. "Do we need to get Jayfeather?"

Berrynose tested his front paw and winced. "It's half moon," he meowed. "He's at the Moonpool."

"What do we do?" Starpaw asked. "He hasn't taken an apprentice!"

Leafkit appeared by Starpaw's side. She looked at Berrynose's leg, and the other cats' injuries."Your leg is broken. The other wounds are not as serious. The first thing we need," Leafkit meowed calmly, "is cobwebs, a stick, bindweed, marigold,and maybe some broom. Poppy seeds would also help. I'll get them"

Leafkit disappeared into the medicine den. "How will she know what's what?" Starpaw meowed. "And how did she know what to do?"

Lakepaw shook her head. "I don't know," she meowed slowly, "but I think Leafkit's been hanging around Jayfeather more. Maybe StarClan helped her."

Leafkit hurried back out. She flicked her tail, and the four cats followed her inside.