Ch.3

"Songpaw?" Wingpaw scrambled down the tree. "SONGPAW!" Wingpaw nudged her sister.

Songpaw let out a groan, still unconscious.

"Go get Dovesong!" Skyfeather screamed at her apprentice, with Herontalon desperately nudging the pale gray she-cat.

Songpaw leapt over the roots of the tree before entering the leafy forest of her clan, she whisked past the Apprentices' Tree and past the Warriors' Holes until she made it to the clearing and spotted the leafy entrance to Dovesong's den.

"Dovesong!" she gasped to the gray she-cat.

"Is everything alright?" Dovesong was old and had this high pitched voice. "You seem worried and all," Dovesong laughed.

"Yes! My sister! Songpaw! Remember? She's hurt! She fell out of the tree that was so high!" Wingpaw had to gasp between on her sentences.

"I see," Dovesong mewed in her high pitched voice. "Your sister Songpaw fell out of Eagle Oak."

"Do something!" Wingpaw desperately clawed the ground.

"Okay, little one, don't be so worried, the worse thing that could happen is that she could break a leg!" Dovesong laughed. "I need some of dock and perhaps poppy seeds, come along now my little one,"

Wingpaw growled, Dovesong was not taking her seriously!

Dovesong walked off at a steady trot to Eagle Oak.

"Remember that time when you were Wingkit, Wingpaw? When you had a thorn in your paw? Compared to your father's wound on his neck, you made it seem like a fox bitten off you paw!" Dovesong gave another of her hearty laughs.

They finally made it to Eagle Oak.

"Aw, the little kit is hurt!" Dovesong examined Songpaw, whose hind leg was at an odd angle and her forepaw seemed twisted.

"Here, I bind the little beauty of Featherberry's with dock and Blackwing's daughter!" Dovesong turned to face Wingpaw with a cross look. "Do something more than stare at your sister! Give her some of these, she ain't breathing right,"

"How many?" Wingpaw desperately clawed the ground, hearing the unsteady breaths of Songpaw right next to her.

"These are poppy seeds," Dovesong shook her head. "I need an apprentice before I retire, anyhow daughter of Blackwing, give her one,"

Wingpaw, paw trembling and eyes closed, Wingpaw managed to put a poppy seed on the back of her sister's throat, suddenly she felt something black engulf her and she felt dizzy and when she opened her eyes again, she saw Songpaw right in front of her, swallowing the poppy seed.

"The dang paw's twisted!" cursed Dovesong and then glared crossly at Herontalon. "You let Featherberry's beauty climb these trees and fall out of them Herontalon?"

"Um…" Herontalon was hesitant, he was a young warrior and picking a fight with the senior medicine cat seemed like a bad idea.

"Featherberry's not going to be a happy cat," sighed Dovesong, she was Featherberry's mother and the clans hadn't started the soon enough so that Featherberry was born, though Wingpaw had heard many cats disagree to Dovesong being medicine cat, but her mother had explained at Dovesong's openness to the world and her observing qualities and gifted ability as a medicine cat.

"What are you doing?" Dovesong barked at Skyfeather and Herontalon who were staring at Songpaw whose hind leg was forced into regular position. "Do something more then stare at Featherberry's beauty, help me carry her!" Though a great medicine cat, Wingpaw knew how crabby Dovesong could be.

"Yes Dovesong," Herontalon did a quick dip of his head and he gently grabbed Songpaw in his teeth with Skyfeather helping him.

They managed to carry Songpaw to the medicine cat to the medicine cat den and on the way Herontalon told him that Dovesong called him "Geesefur's nature" when he was Heronpaw.

"Nice," commented Wingpaw. "She calls me Blackwing's daughter and she calls Songpaw, Featherberry's beauty,"

Herontalon snorted.

"Oh my baby!" cried Featherberry as she spotted the limp Songpaw in Herontalon's and Skyfeather's jaws.

"She broke a leg," Wingpaw quietly told her mother.

Featherberry buried her muzzle into her daughter's fur and when Dovesong snorted at her, Featherberry quickly removed her muzzle.

"You can place her here," Dovesong ordered and Herontalon and Skyfeather placed the helpless Songpaw on the ground.

"Wingpaw come here,"

Wingpaw head down and tail down reluctantly walked up to Featherberry, whose blue gaze was choked with emotion.

"Everything that happened had nothing to do with you Wingpaw," Featherberry whispered to her.

Wingpaw was choked up in tears. "I'm not sure if she'll be fine," Wingpaw buried her head into Featherberry. "Dovesong, well, she's…"

"She's my mother," purred Featherberry. "Come with me,"

Wingpaw followed Featherberry and they walked into the night sky of BirdClan territory and she saw a tunnel, but Featherberry ducked into it.

"It's alright! Follow me little Wingpaw," Featherberry called from the cave.

Wingpaw nervously followed her mother into the cave and they came out in lush open moorland, stars marked the sky.

"Where are we Featherberry?" whispered Wingpaw and she blinked up into the night black sky.

Featherberry didn't answer. "Do you know who your father is?"

"I…I know I was named after him," Wingpaw admitted. "His name was Blackwing but that's all I remember about him,"

Featherberry looked at her. "He looked just like you, jet black paws, white pelt, but you had my eyes," Featherberry sighed avoiding her gaze. "Me and Blackwing thought you would have green eyes, just like him,"

"Featherberry you look unhappy, what's wrong?" asked Wingpaw, tipping her head to a side.

"Blackwing was injured in a FireClan raid," whispered Featherberry. "But it wasn't a FireClan warrior who injured him, it was someone in our clan,"

Wingpaw's eyes turned wide. Who would do such a thing?!

"Dovesong saw what happened and the wound on his neck was nasty, but he died," Featherberry cried.

"You mean, Dovesong killed him?" Wingpaw cried out in disbelief.

"No, no, no," Featherberry waved her tail impatiently. "Forget I said someone in BirdClan killed Blackwing

Wingpaw had to protest. "But you said…"

"And I said never mind, after that," Featherberry irritably told her, then her voice grew soft. "Protect Songpaw okay?"

Wingpaw felt frozen in place. Did she know the prophecy?

"Protect her, something bad is going to happen," Featherberry broke into a whisper. "I just feel it in my blood, whatever happens and if you are torn between me and Songpaw, save your sister."

Wingpaw swallowed. "Okay Featherberry,"