Chapter Thirteen
Dawnpaw hadn't slept for two days.
She didn't really know what was going on outside her little world of two. Every moment was consumed with a fearful vigil over her mother. Amberslash had tried to coax her out of the medicine den, but Dawnpaw refused to leave Larksong's side. The feverish she-cat had only been getting worse, and every labored breath shot fear straight through Dawnpaw's spine. Her mother couldn't die. She didn't know how she'd survive without her mother to help and guide her.
Her cloudy green eyes shot up as the sound of scuffling paws echoed into the cave. A knot of bodies hurried forward and dropped another cat into a waiting nest. Dawnpaw felt a sort of morbid curiosity. She padded forward.
"Brightpaw?" she whispered. Sandpelt shooed her back.
Her eyes hardened. "Does Sparkpaw know yet, or are you going to let him figure it out on his own?"
Sandpelt didn't answer. Dawnpaw slunk back to her mother, smoothing her pelt with a gentle brush of her tail. Hours began to tick slowly by again, broken only by Sandpelt bustling up to give poppy seeds to his patients. The symptoms were worse now—belly ache, troubled breathing, fever, hair loss.
If only this was something she could fight! The helplessness and fear were making her feel crazy. She didn't know how much longer she could stay in this stasis, caught between needing to act and knowing she couldn't.
A growl escaped Dawnpaw's teeth. She shot her mother one last glance and turned tail, streaking up to the exit of the cave.
The Clan was in a state of constant agitation. The hollow was a buzz of tense mutters… whispers of "we shared tongues just last night" or "StarClan had better send a miracle". Dawnpaw's tired eyes were locked on one place though, one place only, and the whispers slid off her pelt like grains of sand down the side of a dune. She didn't even realize she was running.
"Hawkstar!" she shouted. Her eyes took longer than they should have to adjust to the dim light of the leader's den, but it wasn't hard to make out the shape of the lanky leader curled up in his nest. His head raised slowly, his eyes—which looked as tired and bloodshot as her own— narrowed at the intrusion. Dawnpaw dug her claws into the sandy floor of the den.
"Hawkstar, someone has to act. Someone needs to stop this thing before more cats end up like Brightpaw, and my mother."
Hawkstar rose to his full height, forcing Dawnpaw to tip her head upwards. He leaned forward, and Dawnpaw could smell the rattlesnake on his breath as he replied, "You've seen Sandpelt. He's working as hard as he can."
"It's not good enough!"
Hawkstar hissed. "It's all we can do! Don't make the mistake of thinking you're the only one here who cares what happens to this Clan, Dawnpaw."
Dawnpaw turned, lashing her tail. "I can't believe you won't even send cats to search for a cure! That's what I'd do!"
"That's what you'd do, is it?" The deep growl was enough to make Dawnpaw pause. A sinking feeling told her that she'd gone a few pawsteps too far. Hawkstar advanced on her, his green eyes blazing with an anger that Dawnpaw had never seen before. "That's what you'd do? Dawnpaw, let me clear something up for you. You will never be in my position. You are immature, conceited, and reckless, and too impatient for your own good. Amberslash tells me that you can't hunt—how could you hope to take care of a Clan when you can't even feed it?"
Dawnpaw backed away, ears flat against her head, tail down, feeling each word like a blow to her heart. Hawkstar shook his head angrily, tail beating the air. "Take a good look at yourself, kit. Your place is out there, learning to be a proper apprentice, not here. Get out."
She turned and ran.
~O~
Moonlight had washed the color from the world by the time Dawnpaw found her way into the medicine den. She could see a dark shadow curled up near her mother—Thistlepaw. Good, she thought. Larksong shouldn't be left alone. She slipped right past the pair of them and into the deeper shadows. It only took her moments to find her way back to the Moonpool. The miraculous little bush standing guard over the pool seemed to shiver. A single white flower broke from its stem as Dawnpaw's lips touched the water.
"Featherfur!" Dawnpaw shouted. The warm sand and bright stars assured the apprentice that she was in the correct desert this time. The place was deserted on every horizon, however. Dawnpaw growled her frustration. First she was stymied in the waking world—the memory made her ears flatten to her head once again—and now StarClan itself was avoiding her! Couldn't they see that she just wanted to help her mother? Dawnpaw tipped her head up and howled "Featherfur!" to the starry sky.
"Dawnpaw." The cream apprentice whirled around. Sure enough, her mother's dead littermate, Brightpaw's mother, was standing before her eyes.
"Featherfur, you need to help me, please. I need to know what to do!"
Featherfur rolled her amber eyes and turned her back on Dawnpaw. The apprentice couldn't even believe her eyes for a moment. Sand sprayed behind her as she sprinted to catch up.
"Where are you going? The Clan needs help! Larksong and Brightpaw need help!"
Featherfur stopped abruptly and shoved her face into Dawnpaw's. The apprentice cringed and flattened her ears. "Did you hear nothing of what Hawkstar told you, Dawnpaw?"
Dawnpaw took a tentative step back. Featherfur kept pace, eyes flashing. "You've been listening to too many elders' stories. It probably hasn't occurred to you that you might not be the hero of this particular tale. You've slipped so quickly from being a promising apprentice to being a burden. You need to stop expecting special treatment. You need to stop trespassing where you don't belong."
Dawnpaw found herself flat against the sand for a second time that day. How was it that a few cats' words could leave her feeling cracked wide open? Featherfur turned to leave.
"Is that it then? StarClan is going to do nothing?"
Featherfur glanced coolly at Dawnpaw one last time. "Just because you were not chosen does not mean we're doing nothing, Dawnpaw. It's time for you to grow up, fast."
A blaze of white hot light blinded Dawnpaw…
…and suddenly she was awake. She had never felt so cold, or so alone.
She leaned over and retched.
~O~
Thistlepaw had come into the medicine den after his patrol to find Dawnpaw missing and Larksong alone. He'd curled up next to her, licking her forehead once, dismayed by the heat radiating from her body. Brightpaw was curled up in a nest not far away, stirring restlessly and pawing at her stomach. He didn't notice the shadow unpeeling from a crevice in the wall as he went to fetch Sandpelt.
The call from outside startled him. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the HighRock for a Clan Meeting!" Sandpelt was suddenly awake and Brightpaw's sleepy mutters had turned to outright moans as she woke up. Larksong kept on sleeping like the dead. "That's a bad thought," Thistlepaw muttered.
"You should go." Sandpelt looked tired and overwrought, and Thistlepaw wasn't about to argue. His steps were delicate as he padded up through the den and into the gray predawn light.
Hawkstar was up on the HighRock. His pelt was ruffled—whatever sleep he'd gotten hadn't been peaceful.
"StarClan has given me a sign," he declared. The Clan broke into a cacophony of mutters. Hawkstar had to fight to be heard. "They reminded me that we have a kit who recently reached six moons and is in need of a mentor. Nightkit!"
Thistlepaw could see the little kit's sleepy eyes widen. The little black bundle of fur stumbled forward, trying to smooth the white bib on her chest as she did. Hawkstar stared gravely down at her. "Nightkit, from this day forward, you will be known as Nightpaw. Sandpelt will be your mentor. I know that the two of you will do wonders to ease the troubles of our Clan."
The mutters resumed again. Nightpaw glanced around nervously, ears flat. It was obvious that this was not how she'd imagined her apprentice ceremony would go. The quiet was suffocating.
"Nightpaw! Nightpaw! Nightpaw!"
The entire Clan turned as one to find the source of the cheering. Dawnpaw lifted her chin, green eyes unfathomable, and raised her voice even louder. Thistlepaw nodded and joined in, and slowly the Clan filled the hollow with cheers.
They died away quickly, however, and when they were done the Clan quickly dispersed, leaving Nightpaw to scurry into her new mentor's den. No matter how hard Thistlepaw looked, he couldn't find Dawnpaw. She'd vanished into the air, like a ghost. The black tom lashed his tail once and turned back to the apprentice den, hoping to catch at least a little bit of sleep.
He didn't even have energy left to worry about the way Dawnpaw's eyes had burned as the new apprentice had hurried away.
So this one is a little shorter than usual, but I think I ended it right where I wanted to. I'm trying to pick up the updates and pack as much writing in this week as I can, because a week long vacation starts Monday, and after that things get really busy- but hey, c'est la vie.
As usual, please review!