Chapter 18

Jayfeather's POV

I dragged Mistcloud into the medicine cat den and put her on the nest next to mine. I went to the back of the den and grabbed different herbs. Our kits,Tailkit,and a she-kit I didn't recognize ran into the den after me. I heard them crawl into the same nest as her.

"Mistcloud...Wake up..."Rainkit said,softly crying.

I ran back to my mate and chewed up the marigold into a pulp,then spread it on her torn neck. I heard her shift her weight as she woke up.

"Jay...Jayfeather...It hurts..."she whispered,her voice filled with pain.

"I know. This'll help."I murmured as I put more marigold on her neck.

She whimpered. I dabbed my paw in a few poppyseeds,and shook one in her mouth.

"M-make it stop,Jayfeather!"she wailed.

"Swallow the seed,Mistcloud."I said,rubbing her chest to help her breathe.

Mistcloud's POV

I opened my eyes and swallowed the seed. The kits and Splotchkit were crowded around my body.

"Mistcloud,stay still,and don't move your neck."Jayfeather said,placing a paw on the back of my neck.

He pressed lightly on it.I guessed he was checking to see if my neck was injured,apart from the front of it,which still had the ripped fur and skin. It hurt a lot,but I caught myself before I shrieked. I didn't want to overwork him.

"Mistcloud,if you're in pain,you've got to tell me."Jayfeather sighed.

"Okay,it hurts a lot!"I blurted out.

He sighed again.

"This will hurt more,but I need to check if you broke your neck."

Jayfeather flipped me on my scratched stomach,then unsheathed his claws.I edged away from him bit by bit. The kits squealed in protest and pushed me back to his paws.I sighed and relaxed my neck muscles. Jayfeather put his paw on my neck and dug a claw into the middle of it,where my spine was. I felt it,but it didn't hurt.

"Why didn't that hurt?"I said.

"It means you didn't break it."he said,taking his claw out of my neck,and putting more pulp on my wound.

I sighed and watched him put cobwebs on it. Then,he tended to my other wounds;on my stomach,my tail,and my hind leg. When he finished,Leafpool came in the den,carrying both herbs in her jaws,and a bewildered look on her face.

"Why is half of ShadowClan in the hollow and Mistcloud in here,looking like her throat was ripped out?"Leafpool asked,setting the leaves on the ground and speed-walking to the nest I was in.

"Because they're waiting to hear about me,and my throat was almost ripped out."I said,wincing from the pain.

Then,Leafpool started a chain of questions.

"Who did it?"

"Russetfur."

"Why?"

"I forced her off of Brambleclaw."

"She was attacking him?"

"Yes."

"What did she do to you?"

"She attacked me and nearly bit my throat in half."

"Why-"

"Leafpool!Enough questions!"I exclaimed,then winced again.

She sighed and walked back out of the den. I twisted my head and looked at Jayfeather's flank. I saw the scars he had gotten,and I purred softly. He turned his head back at me,looking like he could see me. I licked my paw,then reached up and wiped the dried blood off his grayish-pink nose. Then,I turned to looked at the kits. Rainkit,Wolfkit,and Sunnykit were on the other side of the den,watching me with big eyes-they wanted milk. I sighed and rolled over on my side. They eagerly ran to my belly and started suckling. Tailkit and Splotchkit ran over too,but they curled up by the others and fell asleep.

I yawned and looked up at Jayfeather.

"G'night."I said as I drifted off.

Mistcloud's dream

"StarClan again?"I grumbled as I padded around in a forest.

I pricked my ears and listened for the sound of a cat,and I parted my jaws to drink in the scents of the forest. I heard cats talking not too far away.

"Bone,are the cats ready?"I heard a cat say.

I padded closer and peered through a bush. A black-and-white tom was sitting in front of...Darkstripe?

The black-and-white tom nodded.

"Yes,Scourge."

I stifled a gasp.

Scourge? But,he died in the battle at the forest!

I stepped back quickly,and heard a crunching noise. My eyes widened in horror as I realized I had trodden on a leaf.

"Did you hear that?" 'Scourge' said.

I heard rustling,then Bone,the black/white tom,came through the bush. He looked around,and grinned when he spotted me.

"C'mere you."he growled.

"Eep!"I squeaked as I tried running away.

Bone's grin got wider. He ran up to me and snagged his claws on my pelt,then he dragged me over to Scourge.

"Ahhh. Mistcloud,is it?"Scourge said,as Bone forced me to sit down in front of the tom.

I tried growling but it got caught in my throat,and I fearfully nodded instead. He looked at me for a second,then said,"You might as well know,as you can't stop us,"

"I am Scourge,as you might've heard. But,you know me as Darkspirit. When I died,my spirit was passed along into the body of a newborn Clan kit. Over the generations,I've been reincarnated into different Clan bodies,all newborn kits,all sorts of different sizes.I've had different names,and the one I've recently obtained suits me better then the past ones. However,my true name shall always be Scourge."

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