The darkness is cool, welcoming. I know it is beckoning me to come and give up my first life. Not today. I have a lot of life left in here, and I need to finish it. I back away into the blinding white, which I realize is pain.
Bam. Just like that, I'm back. Ashclaw is arguing with the WhiteClan warrior, who, though the same size as Ashclaw, cowers in shame. "Mallowtail?" I mew faintly, cursing my own weak voice. "Mallowtail?" Her face appears before mine. She helps me get up, tells me that Icefeather's in my den, that the WhiteClan warriors have left and that the medicine cats are working on wounds.
I try to start walking and immediately to my den, feeling an awful pain in a back leg. I sit down to look at it, groaning with discomfort.
Oh. A scratch starts deep in my paw, winding up my leg to my hindquarters. It's down to the bone-little pieces of white show through the mass of torn fur and dried blood.
Mallowtail notices my surprise. "It was the scratches from Icefeather plus the WhiteClan warrior that jumped on you."
I shrug. "It hurts badly, but otherwise-I mean, I can still walk. Kind of."
She shakes her head. "Robinpelt's making a poultice and a strengthener for your paw out of moss and crushed leaf pulp."
Testily, I ask, "And how is he going to keep this contraption of moss on my paw?"
Mallowtail brightens considerably. "On a border patrol, Barkpaw found sap from a tree that was incredibly sticky, and turned opaque when you rolled or smashed it. It stuck to his paws like... Nothing I've ever seen before! It comes off if you stay in water for a while, though."

My interest was piqued. "So it went from being clear to musty?"

She laughed. "No! It was like nothing I'd seen before. It went from being clear to being absolutely solid."

(Quick note: this substance they found is sap from cherry trees, which is sometimes called gum due to its stickiness and elasticity.)

"Interesting. We will have to collect some of this sap." I meowed. "Oh…" I groaned when I put my weight on my back leg. "I'll have to hop on three legs while this gets better."

I hopped to my den, seeing Icefeather curled up in the back, guarded by Applepelt and Cloudfur. I nod to both warriors and prod Icefeather.

She looks at me with disdain. "Here you have me, holed up in your den. What else do you want? To talk about how awful I am? Or maybe something else I don't know about? Something worthless, probably." She goes as if to claw me and both Applepelt and Cloudfur give her a hard look. Icefeather sighs and settles back down, as if in complete ease, although her entire body is tense, ready to spring.

Hyperactive Flametail and Mallowtail have joined me and Flametail, fiery and defensive as she is, is quite steamed, for she knows about the tension between Icefeather and I.

"Oh," she snarls, "So the facts that you have hated her and done nothing for her from the moment you were born and that she only tried to love you isn't worth talking about?"

"Flametail," I sigh, "Calm down."

"Calm down!?" she says, jumping up and down. "Calm down!? This piece of fox dung is insulting you and your clan-which means she's insulting me-and you expect me to calm down!?"

Mallowtail murmurs her agreement. "Flametail has a point, Firetail."

I shush both of them. "Icefeather, you are my sister. Not only are you my sister, but we should be the closest of all our siblings."

"Well, looks like that didn't happen," she meowed sarcastically.

"Icefeather," I say, my temper ending, "Why do you hate me?"

Icefeather glares at me. "Because! Because our parents always thought you were better than me. Because you're so perfect-"

I interrupt her. "Me? Perfect?"

"Yes, you."

I finally gave up. "You know what?"

"What?" she spat.

"I just-"

She interrupted me this time. "Know what? I have a destiny. I am in a prophecy. I am supposed to save WhiteClan and BlackClan and rename them IceClan, by the path of glory, blood, and battles. I was chosen by StarClan!"

"Some-one's a lun-a-tic…" Flametail meows in a singsong.

"Ugh." I sighed. I'm not up to being a leader today. "Mallowtail, you decide what to do with her. Take her back to WhiteClan, keep her here, do anything you want. Just make sure it doesn't result in death."

Mallowtail is obviously surprised at this change of power. "But…" she shakes her head. "Never mind."

I leave my den, grateful. "Thanks, Mallowtail." I head to the medicine den.

Mallowtail stays with Icefeather.

Flametail bounces out behind me, chasing a butterfly which is frantically flying away from her. "Aww," she meows.

I have to laugh at her kit antics. "Are you ever going to grow up?" I tease playfully.

"Nope!" she grins, running to catch up to me.

Together we head to the medicine den, Flametail helping support me. For a while, I can forget about Icefeather, and worry about myself and my Clan.