First off - PLUSHIES FOR ALL THE REVIEWERS! -hands Thorntail and Graywhisker plushies- I took the liberty of duck-taping the hallow to Graywhisker's head for you. You can thank me later.
Anyways, thank you to all who reviewed! YAY!
Dragon-Star155- Bramblekit, eh? Hmmm...it WOULD be interesting to have a she-cat named Bramblekit! Thanks for the name!
Leafpool's Loyalty- -gasp- LOOK EVERYONE! It's...it's...it's the writer of the KidTribes! WOWEE! Thank you so much for the compliment! I know - and it will get bigger. I was originally (as I mentioned earlier) going to turn it into a trilogy...but most of my reviewers said not to...so I didn't...
Oceanwind- A Shadenight plushie? There might be one left... -shuffles through bag- There 'ya go! And here, you can have a Spottedstar plushie too!
Pearl.H.Sweden- Did I mention last chapter that I love the name Petalkit? I love the name Petalkit...I already thought of a Warrior name for that! Thank you so much! (It was suggested by another reviewers as well...but I can't remember their name...THANKS TO YOU TOO!)
NamelessNightmare- NO! YOU ARE UNWORTHY OF THE GRAYWHISKER AND THORNTAIL PLUSHIES! -hides them- No, I'm just kidding. Maybe. Here 'ya go, -hands plushies-
Thank you all for the wonderful supply of reviews - especially to my regular reviewers, Dragon-Star155, Rabbitstorm, NamelessNightmare, and PearlH.Sweden - and don't forget about Daklotles! If you guys like, you could all name one cat. They won't be ThunderClan (considering...the allegiances for ThunderClan are all done!)...but uh...they'll probably appear in a Gathering as a WindClan, ShadowClan, or RiverClan cat. I know, it ain't much...but I wanted to thank you SOMEHOW! Give me a name, gender, appearence - all that stuff...and then keep a lookout for them - if 'ya want. :)
The sleek gray tom slipped himself through the Gorse Tunnel, the cool moonlight dancing along his pelt, as his sapphire eyes flashed around the camp, his whiskers twitching with slight disappointment as Thorntail realized that it seemed that Rosethorn had turned in for the night.
Just like the rest of the Clan, he realized, as he noticed that no cat except for Badgerclaw – who was most likely the guarding the camp for the night – was in the clearing. They were most likely all curled up in their dens, dreaming of hunting mice, and overthrowing Streamstar to become leader of ThunderClan.
However, to make sure of Rosethorn's whereabouts – without embarrassing himself and waking up Ebonypaw by accident in the medicine cat's den, he trotted over to Badgerclaw, who flicked his ears in greeting as he approached.
"Hey, Badgerclaw," he meowed softly, "Do you know where Rosethorn is?"
Badgerclaw looked at him curiously, so Thorntail explained – in a lie – why he wanted to see the medicine cat. "I have a slight Cough; I wanted her to help cure it."
"Oh." The big ThunderClan tom shrugged his broad shoulders. "She's probably sleeping in her den. Where else would she be?"
"She's curled up with Applefur before," Thorntail pointed out, and Badgerclaw let out a chuckle. "They're as close as littermates…" the black and white tom muttered, before mewing, "Well, I checked on Applefur before she passed out. The only cat with her is Sandpelt."
Thorntail purred. "Thanks," he mumbled before stalking towards Rosethorn's den. He had to set things straight with the ginger she-cat. She clearly was bothered by Thorntail's comment on her likeness to Graywhisker, and probably needed comforting…and an explanation.
He slipped into her den, and scanned the darkness for his petite forbidden mate. Odd as it was, he noticed Ebonypaw, whose pelt blended in much better with the darkness of the night and den, before he noticed Rosethorn. Possibly because she appeared to have crawled out of her nest in her sleep, and was now sprawled out right by the entrance of the den. He stepped over her, and almost instantly noticed Rosethorn, who had her gently eyes closed as she dreamed.
He poked her gently with a paw. "Hey," he mewed softly so he wouldn't wake Ebonypaw up as well, "Rosethorn, wake up."
Rosethorn didn't seem to realize that it was him at first. With her eyes still closed – clearly still partly asleep, she mumbled, "For the last time, Beakpaw, your tail is not planning a coup against Streamstar. Go to sleep,"
Thorntail blinked in surprise, wondering how in the name of StarClan Beakpaw could think that his tail was planning a coup against Streamstar? He shook the thought away. Beakpaw's paranoia wasn't his problem.
"It's not Beakpaw, it's me, Thorntail." He mewed softly, and at this, Rosethorn slowly blinked open her eyes. "Wha-" before she could finish her sentence, Thorntail cut her off.
"I never meant to get you mixed up with Graywhisker," he meowed softly as Rosethorn slowly gathered herself up into a sitting position. Her eyes rounded as he spoke, and Thorntail almost doubled back. It was going to be harder to say this than he had expected – he had imagined Rosethorn digging her muzzle into his fur like she apparently liked to do…so he wouldn't have to look into her round, beautiful…pleading eyes. That more or less begged for him to say the right thing. "But…if that's how you felt, and were hurt by it…I'm sorry," he apologized, he expected Rosethorn to break him off, but she didn't, and just went on looking at him. Tom, I made her mad. He thought bitterly – at first. Then he realized that Rosethorn wasn't mad at him – she probably just wanted to hear everything he had to say before speaking her own mind. "To be honest…" he meowed carefully, fully aware that he was suddenly treading in dangerous territory by telling Rosethorn the truth about his feelings about her – but she deserved it. She was a good cat, and just needed everything flat out. "I don't even know if I do see you as a substitute for Graywhisker," he sighed, and shook his head, "You can call me a mouse-brain, but I really don't know." Thorntail lowered himself down slightly, so he could level his gaze with the smaller cat, Rosethorn, "I can't explain it right now…I'm just so calm when I'm with you…and it feels so good." Thorntail blinked, as he realized something. "Is that not good enough?" he asked. "Maybe I'm just saying what's easiest." Rosethorn was still silent, and Thorntail blinked. "Rosethorn?" he asked, touching her shoulder gently with his tail.
"I can't explain this all either," Rosethorn finally sighed, twitching her tail, and Thorntail noticed that the medicine cat's voice was cracking with pain, "I…I just want you to be honest, Thorntail. I want you to stop avoiding the truth,"
Thorntail felt a rush of relief that he had, in fact, told Rosethorn the truth about his feelings about her, and he let out a purr. "Look, Rosethorn, if you need me for anything, you just have too…" he trailed off, as he heard Ebonypaw let out a squeak of surprise as she awoke and found the big gray tom in the den with her.
The black cat instantly leapt to her paws, and rushed over to the two cats, and Thorntail sustained a purr at how full of energy young Ebonypaw was. However, he suddenly felt a jolt of fear. How much had Ebonypaw heard? And how long would it be before every scrap of prey in ThunderClan territory heard about his and Rosethorn's…relationship – even thought it was in danger.
However – Ebonypaw seemed to know nothing, and she just nodded at Thorntail. "What's he doing here?"
Rosethorn seemed to stumble for an answer, so Thorntail told the young apprentice just what he had to Badgerclaw. "I have a cough, and I decided I should see Rosethorn before it turns into Whitecough or worse."
"Yes," Rosethorn purred, and nodded at Ebonypaw. "Ebonypaw, what do we use to treat cough?"
Thorntail watched as Ebonypaw's green eyes rounded as she thought. However, her thinking seemed to do nothing, because she ended up shrugging her shoulders. "I don't remember…"
"That's because I haven't taught you yet," Rosethorn purred good-naturedly. "We use tansy leaves. I showed you what they were earlier, Ebonypaw, could you get some for Thorntail?"
"Uh, sure, Rosethorn." Ebonypaw mumbled softly, and Thorntail noticed Rosethorn flinch in surprise – and Thorntail could understand why. Rosethorn had told him how cheerful and upbeat Ebonypaw was – what was bothering the young cat?
Ebonypaw disappeared into the far reaches of the den that Thorntail knew was where medicine cats kept their herb stocks, and almost instantly she had returned with her mouth filled with brilliant yellow flowers – they were slightly dried out, possibly because they would have had to have been collected before Leaf-bare began.
Ebonypaw dropped them at Thorntail's feet, and Thorntail muttered thanks, and flashed a glance at Rosethorn, hoping that he wouldn't have to eat medicine cat he didn't need to.
She blinked at him. "Just leave it outside the den, and I'll recollect it later." She mumbled. "I want to see what's bothering Ebonypaw."
Thorntail purred. "Okay…" he mumbled, and slipped out of the den – after scooping up the yellow flowers.
…
Rosethorn watched as Thorntail left, her heart aching. There was so much they still had to talk about…but they couldn't speak in front of Ebonypaw, and what's more…something appeared to be wrong with her apprentice.
"Ebonypaw," she asked curiously, "Are you alright?"
The black cat mumbled something that might've been an answer, and Rosethorn asked her to speak a little louder. Ebonypaw hesitated, before answering, "I had a dream."
"You did?" Rosethorn echoed, surprised. She hadn't presented Ebonypaw to StarClan at HighStones yet. Were her warrior ancestors already using the young cat to walk spiritually in the forest?
"Yeah…" Ebonypaw mumbled, shuffling her paws slightly embarrassed. She stared up at Rosethorn, her green eyes round and worried, and Rosethorn felt a shiver – what had the dream been about to have her apprentice so shaken? "But…uh…I bet it was just a plain 'ol regular dream. You said StarClan don't send no apprentices dreams until they meet at Moonstone."
"I said StarClan don't usually send apprentices dreams until they meet at Moonstone," Rosethorn corrected. She softened her sapphire gaze, "What was the dream about, Ebonypaw?"
Ebonypaw hesitated, as if unsure if she should tell her mentor or not. "Before…I do…promise you won't get mad at me?" she asked, and Rosethorn nodded. Whatever it was, it wouldn't be any of Ebonypaw's responsibility.
"And…" Ebonypaw blinked, "When…if…the dream comes true…it won't be my fault, right?"
Rosethorn had to keep herself from shaking. StarClan had shared something with her apprentice…that was very important – and, from the sound of it, it was a Warning.
"It won't be," Rosethorn promised, and Ebonypaw closed her eyes.
"Okay…" she mumbled softly. "In my dream…I don't know why, but I was looking at flowers…roses," Rosethorn blinked at that detail. Roses? "But I could only look at them," Ebonypaw added quickly, "Because whenever I or any cat got to close, we'd get jabbed by the roses' harsh thorns." Ebonypaw's eyes rounded; as she went on, "The thorns defended the roses from everything!" she meowed. "Nothing could touch those roses – not the smallest bug!" Ebonypaw shook her head violently, "And…and then I smelled smoke… and I looked over my shoulder…and saw…a stream of fire rushing towards me! I looked back at the roses, and…and all the thorns slithered away! They abandoned the roses once something that they couldn't defend them from came…and then…unprotected…the roses became engulfed in flames, and…and they burned up, Rosethorn!" Ebonypaw started to shake. "I'm scared, Rosethorn! What else could it be about, than you? The roses – and thorns! Rosethorn!" Ebonypaw let out a pitiful kit-like mew. "Are you going to die, Rosethorn? Is that what my dream means? Is it?"
For a heart-beat Rosethorn couldn't speak. Of course, Ebonypaw would think that it meant Rosethorn and Rosethorn alone…but Rosethorn wasn't sure if she was the only cat that StarClan was speaking of. The thorns – that were defending the roses from all dangers – were Thorntail! He defended Rosethorn from everything, it seemed! And…if Thorntail was the thorns… What did that mean? Would Thorntail eventually…abandon her? And to what? What was the fire? Was it a metaphor for another cat's name? If so, who? What did it mean?
"Ebonypaw, don't worry about it." Rosethorn forced herself to sooth her apprentice. "Don't worry about it." Blinked sweetly at the young cat. "It could mean anything."
Ebonypaw dipped her head – though she still looked doubtful. "Okay…" she murmured softly, and turned her back on Rosethorn to trot back to her nest. "Goodnight,"
"Goodnight," Rosethorn choked out, her mind still on Ebonypaw's dream. She couldn't help but wonder if Ebonypaw's gut instinct was right – and that when Thorntail abandoned her…if it would end in her demise.
…
Thorntail was much more cheerful to run through the forest with the sunlight glittering on his pelt instead of the moonlight. He couldn't help but think of how lucky he was that when he asked Sandpelt if he could just hunt a bit on his own, that she had let him and not put him on any patrols. Sandpelt, next to Swiftfoot, was probably his favorite deputy yet! Robinwing had blamed him for the rain, and Spottedlight…well, she had been a traitor. Cute though.
Because of Sandpelt's lenience, he would have no trouble tracking down Owlpelt – who was most likely still in ThunderClan territory…the little runt never gave up – and have him escort him to the RiverClan camp, so he could follow through with Rosethorn's advice and stop running away from Shadenight – and meet her head on.
He was relieved to see the small brown RiverClan tom in SunningRocks. He couldn't help but realize how lucky Owlpelt was that no cat had bothered to come to SunningRocks yet – they would've chased out the cat before the RiverClan tom could squeak 'mouse.'
Thorntail quickly told Owlpelt of his illegal mission of the day, and he sighed as Owlpelt's amber eyes widened with delight. "Really, you'll see Shadenight?" he purred, when suddenly something seemed to dawn on him. "What about Rosethorn?"
Thorntail was startled that the cat knew about his and Rosethorn's relationship, but he didn't comment on it and instead answered his question, "She told me that I was running away from Shadenight…I didn't think I was running away…" he mewed honestly, "But when Rosethorn said that…well…I realized that she might be right."
…
"Thanks for coming, Thorntail," Listeningecho's voice was brisk, as the RiverClan deputy's cold blue eyes rested on his gray pelt as he and Owlpelt stepped into the RiverClan camp.
Thorntail shrugged, and looked around curiously. Several RiverClan cats had come out to meet him, though he noticed that Duststar wasn't among them. "Where's your leader?" he asked recalling that Duststar hadn't been informed of the deputy's plan to get her daughter out of the Warrior's Den.
"He's out hunting with the senior warriors," Listeningecho answered calmly, flicking her tail dismissively. "He won't be back until Sunhigh."
"In other words, you organized this without his permission."
Listeningecho didn't have an answer to that, and simply flicked her tail towards the RiverClan warrior's den. "Shadenight's holed up in there," she meowed. "Get her out Thorntail…"
"Fine," Thorntail sighed, and nervousness rose in his chest. He wasn't looking forward to speaking to the black she-cat. He started to trot towards the den, when suddenly Puddlespots rounded in front of him. He stared, startled at the blue-gray she-cat.
"Just get her out, Thorntail." Puddlespots growled, her eyes glowing with mischief, "She just needs to be two tail-lengths out. From there, I can pounce on her and claw some sense into her."
Thorntail purred. "You got it," he promised, and slipped into the den.
It didn't take him long to find the beautiful ebony-colored she-cat curled up in a nest in the corner of the den. She was alone in there – the other warriors were all mature, and were probably either guarding the camp, training their apprentices, hunting, or patrolling. Like good warriors.
"Hey, Shadenight." He cooed, touching her shoulder gently with his tail. He was startled to see how quickly the she-cat leapt to her paws, and buried her muzzle into his chest.
"Great StarClan, get a hold of yourself!" Thorntail snapped. "Your poor Clan is worried sick about you." Except Puddlespots, who clearly had a bone to pick with the pretty she-cat. "And your mother…" he began, but Shadenight cut him off sharply, with a squeal.
"I hate my Clan!" she hissed. "And my mother the most! She won't let me come see you…"
Thorntail almost pointed out that her mother was right to keep them apart, but didn't. Instead, he meowed softly, "That's just because you're edgy."
Shadenight didn't have an answer to that, and instead buried her muzzle deeper into his chest.
"You're so spoiled," Thorntail continued, "You know, I don't really have a Clan to call my own…and I lost my mother so young…"
…
"What?" Rosethorn looked up sharply from the herbs she was examining. "You think we should?" she asked Applefur curiously.
"It'll be fun!" her friend purred, rolling onto her back, and letting out a purr, and Rosethorn purred at of such a large cat rolling around on the Nursery floor like a kit. "You, me, Blackshadow, and Thorntail!" Applefur nodded as she said it. "The four of us will all go out into the forest, and look for some names for my kits! We'll say that you're coming…just 'cause you're my best friend, Thorntail…'cuz…c'mon!" Applefur chuckled. "He's the 'father." Rosethorn recalled that the Clan still thought that Thorntail was fathering Applefur's kittens. "And Blackshadow because we need another able-bodied warrior to watch over us."
Rosethorn chuckled lightly. It did sound like fun, just to run around in the forest, searching for something that looked nice to name the kits after.
"The Clan's in a good healthy state…" Rosethorn mewed thoughtfully, "I doubt they'd need me in camp for much…I could probably come…but what about Blackshadow and Thorntail? They'll probably have to patrol."
"Sandpelt and I have become pretty close, considering we're sharing a den with one another and no one else," Applefur pointed out. "Plus she likes Thorntail. I'm sure she could work around them in setting the patrols."
Rosethorn let out a purr of amusement. "I guess we'll do it then. Does Blackshadow know?"
Applefur nodded. "Yeah…we just need…" Applefur stopped mid-sentence, as Thorntail stepped into the den – probably looking for Rosethorn.
Applefur squeaked as she noticed him, and almost instantly poured out her plan to the gray cat. Rosethorn watched her mate carefully – and to her surprise, Thorntail didn't look as excited as she had thought he would be.
"Today?" he asked. He hesitated, before meowing, "I uh…no, I can't."
"Are you set on a patrol?" Applefur asked curiously. "I'm sure another warrior could cover for you."
"No…it isn't a patrol." Thorntail lowered his gaze down to his paws, and Rosethorn's curiosity rose. It had been three sun-rises since he had gone to RiverClan to usher Shadenight out of the den…so…what was the gray cat up to?
"What is it if you aren't patrolling?" Applefur's voice had a hard edge to it, and Rosethorn could almost taste her friend's anger in the air – especially when Thorntail didn't answer.
"Don't tell me," Applefur snarled, curling her upper lip, "You're sneaking off to see Shadenight…aren't you?"
"No," Thorntail answered, shuffling his paws, and Applefur asked, "Then what?"
Thorntail didn't answer, and Rosethorn's heart plummeted. Had Thorntail realized that he loved Shadenight?
"I'm right, aren't I?" Applefur hissed, her hackles rising, "You're sneaking around to see her – that's pathetic Thorntail! Pathetic and low!"
"Applefur-" Rosethorn began, but Thorntail stopped here with a flick of his tail.
"The snow's melting." Thorntail answered his voice low and soft.
"Great excuse, Thorntail!" Applefur meowed sarcastically, with a roll of her eyes. "What'll be your excuse for tomorrow? The sun's shining?"
Rosethorn couldn't help but wonder why Thorntail was determined not to go hunting for names with his friends that day. Was he really seeing Shadenight? She doubted it…but…
Thorntail's gaze flickered down to his paws, and Rosethorn was almost positive then, that his secret – whatever it was – wasn't that he was sneaking off to see Shadenight.
"The last time the first snow of leaf-bare began to melt…" Thorntail mumbled, "Was the day my brother died."
Rosethorn almost stumbled back in surprise – and words started to tumble out of Applefur's mouth so fast that they sounded like gibberish. Finally, her friend composed herself, and stated, "Well, I feel like a piece of fox-dung." Probably because of what she had just said to Thorntail, she realized. "Excuse me," before Rosethorn could object, Applefur slipped out of the Nursery, leaving Rosethorn and Thorntail alone.
"Sorry to be such a downer," Thorntail mumbled softly.
"Not at all," Rosethorn meowed, flickering her gaze down to her paws. "Are you just going to guard the camp all day and honor him?"
Thorntail shook his head no, and answered in an odd (for him) soft tone of voice, "I was going to go to his grave…" he mumbled, "But I don't remember where it is."
Rosethorn blinked in surprise at that…hadn't Thorntail ever visited Graywhisker's grave before? She visited her father's – Crimsonspirit's – grave…all the time. She knew that Graywhisker was probably buried somewhere in RiverClan territory…and considering Thorntail was of ThunderClan now it might be difficult for him to visit the grave…but surely when he was still in RiverClan he visited!
"…Duststar gave me the right to visit Graywhisker's grave…whenever…" Thorntail continued, "But…I still don't remember where it is."
Rosethorn hesitated before she commented. Thorntail's eyes were wide, and seemed to be staring at nothing as he spoke – they were just…staring. She wasn't sure if Thorntail was…well, aright. However, instead of commenting, she meowed, "Haven't you ever been to his grave?"
Thorntail hesitated before answering, as if deep in thought. "No…" he mumbled at last, "Because I always thought it wasn't real – his death…his grave…everything." Thorntail blinked a few times. "It never seemed like Graywhisker was dead." Thorntail paused. "In fact…I don't remember anything…that happened after his death…I don't have any recollection of it. Or…or the day he died,"
Rosethorn gazed at her mate sadly. She knew that Thorntail meant that he couldn't remember anything shortly after Graywhisker's death – he didn't mean that he didn't remember joining ThunderClan. Maybe…Thorntail was acting so funny; it was quite possible that he had forgotten what a Clan was.
Thorntail was usually bouncing around the camp by now. Seeing him so quiet – and slightly depressed, was starting to wear on Rosethorn, a lot, so she meowed, "How about we go to RiverClan territory and look for the grave?" she asked, trying to make her voice sound cheerful. "I bet they're like ThunderClan, and bury most of their dead in the same place." ThunderClan buried most of their fallen right outside of the camp, so that both in the spiritual sense of StarClan and the physical sense of their body, they were still with their birth-Clan. RiverClan's camp was an island, however…so she wouldn't know where they put most of their dead. Thorntail might know the general area though – he was a RiverClan cat at first.
"You're come with me?" Thorntail asked, and Rosethorn blinked, realizing that Thorntail had never invited her to come.
Rosethorn sighed, "Oh…I'm sorry…I suppose it's rather private, isn't it?"
Thorntail didn't answer, and just stared blankly at her, his blue eyes round. Finally, he meowed, "Sure." He looked around. "Let's go,"
Without waiting to see if Rosethorn had heard him, Thorntail slipped out of den. The scarlet she-cat hesitated for a moment, before padding after him.
As she stepped out into the clearing, she realized that Thorntail and her couldn't have chosen a more opportune time to slip out of camp and run out to RiverClan territory. Streamstar was lounging outside of the HighRock, munching on a squirrel beside Swiftfoot and Sandpelt, talking about some important matter or another…and besides them, the only other cats that were in the clearing were Shrewtail, his apprentice – Onepaw, and Rosethorn's own apprentice, Ebonypaw. All three cats looked busy – Shrewtail seemed to be re-teaching Onepaw the Warrior Code – at first Rosethorn wondered why, until she heard the warrior emphasize the fact that you are not to steal prey from other the other Clans – especially ShadowClan. And the medicine cat apprentice, Ebonypaw had her muzzle in the fresh kill pile, possibly searching for the best piece.
Hoping to leave before any cat – especially Ebonypaw who would probably badger her the most about the matter – noticed what was going on, Rosethorn briskly led Thorntail straight to the Gorse Tunnel, which would take them up the ravine and out…
"Hey,"
Rosethorn's heart plummeted. Who else would stop them, but Shrewtail – the cat who seemed to have some sort of grudge against Thorntail since the beginning of time – and he'd probably carry it until the end of time as well.
Shrewtail trotted towards them – with his brown tabby of an apprentice, Onepaw, following closely behind. "Where are you two going?"
Rosethorn didn't answer – and left it up to Thorntail to answer, considering the gray tom seemed to love to tug on Shrewtail's fur…but to her surprise, Thorntail didn't say anything, and just stared blankly at the ThunderClan warrior before him.
Rosethorn flattened her ears at how odd Thorntail was acting, but then realized that he was probably just depressed. Shrewtail seemed disturbed however, that Thorntail wasn't throwing some clever retort back at him, and he glanced at Rosethorn easily. "Is Thorntail sick?" he asked curiously.
"Yeah," Rosethorn lied between her teeth – she hated lying to her Clanmates! Especially since they all seemed to respect her so much now that she was a full-medicine cat.
"So…you're…" Shrewtail narrowed his eyes, "Taking him out of the camp?"
"He has a cough," Rosethorn meowed, and Shrewtail scoffed. "I don't see how taking him out of camp is going to help cure his cough – what are you really doing?"
Rosethorn struggled to search for a decent answer – but luckily, before she could back herself into a corner of lies, another cat came to her rescue. And who else, but her own little Ebonypaw?
"Rosethorn's the best medicine cat this forest has ever seen!" the small black cat hissed rushing to her side almost instantly. "If she thinks that it'll help Thorntail to get out of the camp for a little while…who are you to argue? You're just a warrior!" Shrewtail looked dumbfounded that the medicine cat apprentice had just exploded at him. Rosethorn herself was shocked. Ebonypaw was such a timid, playful cat! Where the heck did she learn to stand up to warriors like that? I've been sending her to look after Applefur too much, Rosethorn thought, with a shake of her head.
Suddenly, Ebonypaw seemed to realize something, and she flicked her emerald gaze onto Rosethorn. "…wait…You told me the best cure for cough was tansy – and rest." She mewed. "Why are you taking Thorntail out of the camp?"
Rosethorn sighed. How could she lie to her own apprentice? She decided not to, and instead mewed to Shrewtail, "I uh…excuse me. Ebonypaw," she meowed turning to her apprentice, "Follow me, I have to tell you something." She started to trot a few tail-lengths away so she could speak to Ebonypaw in private, when she realized that she had forgotten about Thorntail. She tossed a glance over towards him – he was still standing beside Shrewtail - and she assumed that he would probably be alright.
"Ebonypaw," she meowed lowering her voice so Shrewtail and Onepaw wouldn't overhear, "There's something I forgot to tell you about being a medicine cat."
"Is it how to treat infections?" Ebonypaw asked curiously, "You taught me that, Rosethorn. You use," Rosethorn cut her off with a flick of her tail. "This goes beyond herbs and medicines." She meowed to the young black she-cat.
"Does it have to do with StarClan?"
"No…" Rosethorn meowed carefully, "It has to do…with…well…" she decided to give an example. "Ebonypaw, who are your best friends in all of ThunderClan?"
"Aquapaw and Morningpaw," Ebonypaw answered – without hesitation, and Rosethorn nodded. She had had her suspicions that Ebonypaw would be the closest with her siblings.
"Okay. Say…Aquapaw needed your help, with something important."
Ebonypaw blinked, "You mean like…she fell in a ditch or something?" Almost instantly, Ebonypaw poured out what she would do in that specific situation, but Rosethorn's gaze seemed to tell her that she was incorrect, because she trailed off in the middle of 'treat her with'.
"I'm not talking about anything like that, Ebonypaw." Rosethorn mused – though she was impressed that Ebonypaw knew what to do if Aquapaw fell into a ditch almost instantly. "I'm talking about…oh, StarClan what am I talking about?" Rosethorn blinked once or twice, and Ebonypaw cocked her head to one side – probably about to explode with curiosity. "If…if Morningpaw…eh…died," Ebonypaw's eyes widened as Rosethorn said this – clearly horrified at the thought of losing one of her best friends – and her sister, but Rosethorn went on, "And Aquapaw was all depressed about it…would you comfort her?"
"Of course!" Ebonypaw burst out instantly.
"Even…if to do that…you had to enter another Clan's territory?" Rosethorn realized how uncreative she was as she asked her apprentice this hypothetical question that was oh-so much like Rosethorn's position now. Ebonypaw stared at her blankly, and Rosethorn clarified, "Not to live – just to…visit for awhile."
At her question, Ebonypaw hesitated for a moment, as if unsure how to answer. Finally, she sighed, "Probably…" she blinked. "Am I a bad cat? For breaking the Warrior Code like that?"
"No," Rosethorn sighed, shaking her head. "Sometimes, you have to do things like that…And you don't tell any cat."
Suddenly, it seemed to dawn on Ebonypaw what this whole conversation was about. "…what's wrong with Thorntail?" she asked.
"Nothing for you to concern yourself with," Rosethorn mewed coolly. "All you need to know is that he has a cough – alright?" Ebonypaw nodded, and Rosethorn purred, and touched her apprentice's shoulder with her tail. "Good. You're a great apprentice, Ebonypaw. You'll make a fine medicine cat."
Before Ebonypaw could answer, Rosethorn skirted over towards Thorntail. "Let's go," she breathed – and she flashed a cool glance at Shrewtail, before she slipped out of the camp with her mate.
…
"Whenever I visit my father's grave," Rosethorn meowed cheerfully, as the two cats padded through their territory, "I usually bring a piece of prey with me – usually his favorite, and eat it there…when I was a kit, he told me if I did that by any cat's grave, their spirit in StarClan would be able to taste it too." She shrugged, embarrassed. "I be it's not true, but I always remember the story he told me, and I get a squirrel, and eat it by his grave…What kind of prey did Graywhisker like?"
Thorntail's whiskers twitched, and didn't answer for so long that Rosethorn was starting to think that he couldn't hear a word she was saying – until he answered, "I don't remember."
"You seem to like robins the best," Rosethorn meowed distractedly, "Did Graywhisker like robins?"
At this, Thorntail let out a rumbling purr- and Rosethorn felt a jolt of relief that Thorntail was starting to act normal again. "Graywhisker and I didn't have anything in common – he hated robins."
"Well…then did he like fish?" Rosethorn asked, recalling that Graywhisker was a RiverClan cat and every cat in that Clan seemed to love fish more than they loved their own kits.
"I think he liked toads," Thorntail mewed suddenly, and Rosethorn almost stumbled to a halt. "Toads?" she echoed. "You mean…those slimy, brownish, green things that hop around ShadowClan territory?"
"Yeah…I think. He loved ShadowClan territory." Thorntail blinked, as he remembered, "Remember how I told you Graywhisker and I spent two moons in ShadowClan? He loved it there so much, that he wanted to stay. The only reason he came back to RiverClan, was because he wanted to be with me. I guess…he took after our father, in that right."
Rosethorn was about to mew an answer, but Thorntail cut her off with a flick of her tail. "Will a magpie do, I wonder?" he asked curiously, and he dropped low into a stalking crouch. Rosethorn suddenly noticed magpie-scent in the air. What a treat – in leaf-bare! Guilt sliced at her though, as Thorntail pounced on the black bird and killed it, as she recalled that she hadn't yet hunted for the Clan. Though…they were breaking the Warrior Code all the time now anyway – Rosethorn and Thorntail were…somewhat mates, Thorntail and her both had somewhat-friendly contact with RiverClan cats outside of a Gathering, and now they were somewhat-illegally crossing the border (Duststar gave Thorntail permission to visit the grave!) What would one magpie hurt?
Thorntail trotted along, with the magpie in his jaws, and Rosethorn decided to talk again – even though Thorntail would probably have trouble answering – considering his mouth was filled with the magpie, "It's so strange," she meowed, "I've never met Graywhisker, yet I feel like I'm going to the grave of some cat close to me."
Thorntail flashed her a curious glance, though he didn't say anything. Once again, probably because he had his mouth full.
As they entered RiverClan territory – and crossed the river using stepping stones, Thorntail looked around, curiously. "I know RiverClan usually buries their dead by the river…but…" he blinked, "I don't remember exactly where."
He shrugged his shoulders, and bent down to pick his magpie, "Well, I say we find the river, and search along it until we find many-a-grave, yes? From there, we can pick which mound of earth looks the most like where Graywhisker is buried…" he trailed off, and scooped up the magpie in his jaws, and suddenly Rosethorn was sorry she had brought up the prey-thing, because now she couldn't talk to Thorntail as easily.
"So…so you really don't remember the day Graywhisker died – at all?"
Thorntail flashed her a glance with an emotion that she couldn't name, and handed her the magpie – so he could answer without stopping, probably, "No," he meowed once Rosethorn had the bird in her jaws, "I remember seeing him run into the monster…and I remember seeing him dead…" Thorntail's voice was once again in that odd, soft tone – and Rosethorn was suddenly sorry that she had brought up the subject – but he continued, "And then I think I blacked out. The next thing I remember, is I was more or less interrogated by my Clanmates when the patrol and I all came back…I think I blacked out then," he sighed, "When I came to, the vigil and everything…it was over, and they had already buried him."
Seeing that Thorntail was done, Rosethorn handed him the magpie, so she could finally ask the question that had been nagging at her ever since Owlpelt had told her that Thorntail had said that he killed Graywhisker.
"Thorntail…" she mewed, "Is it true what you said? That you pushed Graywhisker?"
At first, Thorntail didn't answer – though he did stop in his tracks – and Rosethorn went on without him for a few pawsteps before she realized that she had lost him. She flashed a glance behind her, and saw that Thorntail had spat the magpie down to the earth, and his blue eyes were glaring into her own.
Finally, he answered, "Probably,"
OO...sinister! Anywho's, for all those who review THIS time, they will get a -da da da da da DA - Ebonypaw plushie! Thanks for reviewing! Oh, and if you review in the next five minutes after you read this, I'll also throw in a Robinwing plushie. I'll duck tape a hallow to her too. I know, Robinwing died long time ago, long time...but wasn't she fun while she lasted?