The mending den felt eerily quiet, and the two siblings stayed still for a moment after Palebriar passed, their first and last time being close to their mother as warriors.
"We need to tell Fernstar." Bearstrike said softly.
Yarrowbreeze nodded, unable to move or say anything. I thought I had more time... She thought ruefully. Maybe they could have become close, maybe the hate and anger would've faded... but it didn't. All that was left was anger, pain, and confusion.
The two siblings removed themselves from Palebriar's nest, and Beetlespots gave her condolences on their way out.
They trudged over to where Fernstar was sitting with the Tellers.
"Fernstar, Palebriar is dead." Bearstrike said quietly.
Fernstar turned abruptly, her green eyes filled with sadness. "Beetlespots came to tell me she may not make it while you two were with her. I had hope she'd pull through... I will call the cynn to mourn her, I am sorry." she murmured.
Fernstar leapt upon the Great Boulder and called the cynn together.
"We have lost a great warrior today, my cynn. Palebriar fell victim to an unfortunate accident, and has left us to join The Great Pool." Fernstar announced, her voice heavy.
The cynn murmured condolences quietly, and it was clear Palebriar was a cat who stirred up strong opinions among her cynnmates.
"She was found by Minnowpelt and Redstripe beneath a tree where she must have fallen. Unfortunately her injuries were too much for her to heal from. We will hold a vigil tonight for any cat who wishes to take part."
After the meeting the cynn dispersed, and Yarrowbreeze realized just how few friends Palebriar had among her cynnmates.
The only cats left in the clearing were Yarrowbreeze and her brother, Fernstar, Larkbelly, and Beetlespots, as well as Minnowpelt and Redstripe. The cats that found Palebriar shifted uncomfortably on their paws, almost as if they felt obligated to sit for the cat they had attempted to save.
"These are for you and Bearstrike." Beetlespots said as she dropped a bundle of fragrant herbs.
Yarrowbreeze thanked her and took a clump of lavender to begin pressing into Palebriar's pelt. Bearstrike joined her, clearly unmoved by the ritual. She's so cold... A shudder went down Yarrowbreeze's spine, and she felt the strong urge to curl up beside her mother to warm her up. She'll never be warm again.
She thought of her mother and pondered for a moment if she was looking down at her from The Great Pool already. The night sky shimmered above, silent but ever present.
"Palebriar, you were a courageous and determined warrior. May you find good hunting, swift running, and shelter when you sleep." Beetlespots recited, before pressing her nose to Palebriar's body.
"We will sit vigil with you tonight, and the Tellers will take her to the Blooming Grove at sunrise." Fernstar said comfortingly.
The night was cold and quiet, and Yarrowbreeze fought sleep with her cynnmates until the sun peeked over the horizon ever so gently.
Yarrowbreeze turned her head with bleary eyes to see Rosepuddle and Whiskerpelt padding over to Palebriar's body.
The cats who stood vigil watched as the Tellers carefully carried Palebriar out of camp.
"You should all get some sleep." Larkbelly instructed, "First the Gathering and then a vigil, I'm sure you are asleep on your paws."
Yarrowbreeze looked at her brother and then at Minnowpelt and Redstripe. All three looked about ready to fall over, and the group lumbered together to the Lower warrior den.
"Thank you for saving her." Yarrowbreeze nodded to the other siblings as they settled into their nests.
Minnowpelt licked her chest. "I thought she'd be okay..."
Yarrowbreeze felt pity for the pretty she-cat. "You did everything you could to get her back to camp. If it weren't for you she would still be out there."
Minnowpelt nodded and then turned around in her nest, clearly done with the conversation. Her brother gave Yarrowbreeze a reassuring glance before curling up to sleep.
Yarrowbreeze fell fast asleep as soon as she closed her eyes, the sound of her cynnmates around her bringing comfort and peace to her dreams.
The tantalizing scent of fresh-kill pulled Yarrowbreeze from her sleep, and she awoke to see a plump Mourning Dove sitting in front of her nest.
"I figured you could use something to eat." Greywhisker purred.
Yarrowbreeze looked up at the silver tabby she-cat gratefully.
"You'll always be my apprentice, you know that?" she she-cat soothed. "I will always be here for you."
"I miss our training sessions," Yarrowbreeze reminisced, tucking into her meal.
Greywhisker tucked her paws beneath her and sat with Yarrowbreeze in the den. She plucked feathers from a wing as Yarrowbreeze ate.
"You should use these for your nest." Greywhisker suggested.
Yarrowbreeze looked down at the downy pile that her mentor created. It looked like a cloud had formed in the center of the den. "I may take a few, but if you don't mind I'd like to take these to the Tellers."
Greywhisker nodded, and Yarrowbreeze collected as many feathers as she could and walked over to the Tellers' Den. Rosepuddle looked content in her sleep, so she placed the feathers into a small crevice in the den and left her to rest.
Yarrowbreeze sat for a moment and watched as a border patrol returned to camp. Life felt normal, and a wave of guilt splashed Yarrowbreeze as she realized that she hadn't thought of Palebriar once since she woke up. For the star's sake! she chastised herself. She never acted like I was alive, why do I feel guilty for not thinking of her when she's not even here anymore? Her tail flicked in annoyance, sending a small dust cloud up near her paws.
"Mossjaw is kitting!" Berryclaw announced to the cynn. The ginger tom hurried into the nursery after Beetlespots to support his mate.
Bearstrike padded lazily out from the dirt place, clearly still exhausted from the previous night. But his eyes shone brightly, always one to anticipate new kits.
"You act like an Teller." Yarrowbreeze mrrowed with laughter at the sight of her brother, momentarily removing herself from her internal angst.
Bearstrike rolled his eyes and shoved his sister. "It's almost like I was raised by Tellers." he shot back.
Bramblestep padded up to the two warriors with her apprentice, Birchpaw. "We were wondering if you two would want to go on a hunting patrol, Birchpaw could use some good hunters to take notes from." the brown tabby inquired.
Bearstrike shook his head. "I'm sorry, I think if I tried hunting right now a mouse could walk into my paws and I'd fall asleep before I could kill it." the tom yawned.
Yarrowbreeze knew that as tired as he was, he really was anticipating the moment Mossjaw's kits were born.
"I'll go. Let me find another cat to go and then we can head out." Remarked Yarrowbreeze.
Bramblestep nodded and padded over to wait by the camp entrance with Birchpaw.
Yarrowbreeze looked around camp for a cynnmate to ask. "Sprucefur!" she called to a dark grey tom.
The tom turned to look at her with piercing yellow eyes. "Let me guess, hunting patrol?" he purred.
The two cats met back with Bramblestep and Birchpaw, and the patrol padded into the forest.
"Birchpaw, where do you think we should hunt?" Bramblestep asked.
Birchpaw looked anxious to be put on the spot in front of two warriors she hardly knew.
"We were all apprentices once, take your time." Sprucefur reassured the young she-cat.
"I... think we should hunt near the dried river bed?" She answered hesitantly.
"Why should we hunt there?" Yarrowbreeze pressed.
"W-well... it just dried up a quarter moon ago, so there's still small prey like snails for our prey to eat. So the prey is close to the riverbed right now." Birchpaw asserted nervously.
Bramblestep nodded approvingly. "Excellent job. Let's go."
The patrol walked quietly through the undergrowth, careful to not make too much noise.
"Do you hear water?" Sprucefur asked abruptly.
The group stopped and listened for a moment. Yarrowbreeze's ears twisted to the direction of the river. The sound of rushing water was clear.
"There's no way!" Stammered Birchpaw. "The river was almost completely dry last time we hunted over here!"
As the patrol padded closer to the river, the sound of the water grew to deafening heights. Terror shook through the cats as they got their first glimpse of what the river had become.
Birchpaw shrieked in horror. "It's FLOODING!"