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Like I've said, just PM me anytime now! I took care of a few problems, thanks to Mudfur6246! If you haven't read her guide to Warriors, read it now! It rocks major cheese! (Sorry, that's my new saying)
Jayfeather itched in his sleep. He kept twitching, vivid memories sweeping through sleep.
Trying to set Dustpelt's crushed legs…Brambleclaw falling to his death…Feeling Nightcloud's broken, beat body under his paws when he went to show Kestrelthroat…Hearing Leafpool's shriek in pain and then nothing when she was thrown by the dog…Hazeltail's sweet, innocent body…cute up and bruised from that cursed dog…
"Hazeltail!" Jayfeather gasped, waking up immediately. He remembered the gentle gray and white she-cat, and how hurt she was…
Jayfeather stood where he was, stretching. He let out a yawn, and he realized that it still very early in the morning. The sun's warmth hadn't reached his den, and the air was still chilled. He could tell sunrise was close, but not there quiet yet.
Jayfeather padded over to Leafpool, and he listened to her breathing. It was slow with the ease of sleep, but it came heavy and hard. Like she was struggling for the air, like it wouldn't come. This made Jayfeather anxious, since he thought that his mother would be a bit better by sunrise.
I hope she didn't crack anything inside the bones. She might not be able to walk, just like Dustpelt…if she even does make it.
Jayfeather's head whipped around when he heard that another cat was with him. He saw Hazeltail curled up in her little ball, but no other cats.
Strange, he thought, padding over to his love, crouching over her to rasp his tongue across her ears, it sounded like there was another-
Jayfeather's ears pricked again, and he got the strange feeling again, so he slowly raised his head. Thunderfang was standing in the mouth of his den.
"Hello," His deep voice rumbled, "How are you?"
"I-Isn't it too early to be done with your vigil?" Jayfeather got up from over Hazeltail, when he realized that Thunderfang was staring at him when he was practically on top of her.
"Actually, Thornclaw came and got me. It is sunrise, but there are storm clouds out today. He said that we are letting all the cats sleep in today. After yesterday's battle, we all need the rest." Jayfeather nodded absently, pawing some of the stray herbs around Hazeltail from the past night. Thunderfang cleared his voice,
"I am assuming that you were just checking that she-cat?" He asked, eyeing Jayfeather. He could feel the intensity from the large cat's eyes, and he tried to not cower.
"Her name is Hazeltail," Jayfeather mumbled, gaining some of his dignity, "And yes, I was cleaning her. Her wounds need to stay clean. She got a bad front paw strike from one of the dogs. Raked her ear up badly," He flicked his tail at the torn ear, and he could feel Thunderfang's sympathy for the small she-cat.
"Yes, well," Thunderfang said absently, "I just wanted to see how you were. I couldn't help but notice that you were close to both of these cats," Jayfeather's ears burned. Was it that obvious, with him and Hazeltail? "Don't worry," He said, almost reading his thoughts, "I think I'm the only one to notice."
"I'm fine," Jayfeather lied easily. Medicine cats were good at that, usually, "But I am worried a bit, mostly about Leafpool. She got really broken up."
Thunderfang nodded, "I haven't seen this much blood in a while." Jayfeather felt a twinge of pain, and he unconsciously reached into Thunderfang's mind, pulling at his memory on Thunderfang's mind.
There were many cats, fighting, ripping at each other. There was blood everywhere, dead bodies that no one buried. There was darkness in each of the cats' hearts. They all lived in a dark forest, where fighting was the only way to live.
There was a small thicket with a small opening. Jayfeather smelled different cats and he walked over to the thicket, peeking inside.
Thunderfang was with his family. There was a beautiful white she-cat with her tail wrapped around two tiny kits, a black and white one, and a small amber one, just like Thunderfang. He was looking down at them, their pureness and innocence. He felt a swelling in his heart, and he lovingly looked at his mate,
"They are beautiful Flurry," He whispered, "Just like you. They will grow up to be fine fighters."
"But," Flurry whispered back, "They don't deserve that. They deserve so much more, Thunder. I want them to be peaceful, and live with other cats. To not have to learn to fight at such a young age."
"I know, dearest," Thunderfang whispered again, "But what else can we do?" Flurry looked down at the helpless two kits, and she silently shrugged,
"I'm going to go hunt," Thunderfang said, "Stay here, and yowl out if some cat comes by. I will be here then."
Thunderfang came towards Jayfeather, who ducked back out of the small den. There was a chilled breeze, but Thunderfang ignored it. He sniffed the air, and he lowered into a hunting crouch. He silently stalked through the bushes, and then quickly pounced onto a large vole.
Jayfeather had to admit, even though this was a dark place, Thunderfang had it pretty good. It was easy and free, no warrior code. He only had to worry about other cats.
Thunderfang looked happy with his catch and he kicked dirt over it until later. He opened his mouth to smell the air again, and continued on. Jayfeather followed him faithfully, seeing where the memory went.
Thunderfang continued to look for food and Jayfeather got a bit bored. He knew that this much time wouldn't have passed when he let go of the memory, but there had to be more. There had to be.
Suddenly, Thunderfang stopped. He slowly turned back towards Jayfeather. He knew that Thunderfang couldn't see him, but those dark amber eyes were deep and piercing, seeing through him.
"Who's there?" Thunder called out, "Come out here!"
"Gladly," A dark whisper replied, and a black she-cat leaped out of the trees, and onto Thunderfang. "Shadow!" He hissed, and he struggled underneath the cat, and then a loud shriek ripped through out the air, and Thunderfang struggled harder.
"Flurry!" He cried out, "Flurry, hold on!" He pushed the she-cat off of him, and belted towards his den. Jayfeather ran after him, along with the she-cat and two other toms. Jayfeather saw a few cats running away from the thicket and he heard Thunderfang's roar in fury. Jayfeather pushed harder, and he burst out of the trees into the small home of Thunderfang's family.
There was blood, Jayfeather could smell it. Jayfeather saw white fur stained red, especially around the neck. He went over to where Thunderfang was bent over his mate, whispering her name,
"Flurry, don't go. Oh, Flurry…"The white she-cat raised her head to lick Thunderfang's cheek,
"Thunder, take care of the kits, don't let them die. Take…" Her breath was getting labored, "Them…to…Petal…my…sister…she…will…take…care…of…" She took one last deep breath, "I love you Thunder, and don't forget that. Please…take…care…of…our…family…" Flurry sighed, and she stopped moving. She was dead. "Flurry!" Thunderfang cried to the sky, "Oh, Flurry! Don't leave me here! What about Scorch? What about Mint? What about me!?" He cried out again, a pitiful wailing sound. Jayfeather felt a sweeping guilt. If he had been there for real, he might have been able to save Flurry.
"Flurry, Flurry…" A mimicking tone came from behind Thunderfang and Jayfeather. They both turned to see Shadow and five toms behind her. One had blood on his paws, and Jayfeather could tell that Thunderfang was eyeing him with loathing.
"Shadow," Thunderfang's voice was a deadly whisper, "Why? What did I do to you?"
"It wasn't you," Shadow's voice was dismissive, "That she-cat stole food from me once, and I told her she would get her reward for doing so. And I did what had to be done."
"We had two kits!" Thunderfang roared, stepping closer now, "You black hearted fox-"
"Now, now," Shadow said, "You might want to go find that Petal if you want your kits to live that long." She turned around and walked off. The toms followed her, but the large brown one with blood on his paws stayed behind,
"Sorry, pal," He said, "Have to do what the boss says." He too turned to leave, but he howled in pain.
Thunderfang was on top of him in seconds. Jayfeather stayed back, even though he was in no danger. It frightened him to see the two cats fighting so ruthlessly, so deathly.
"Tell your boss," He hissed, raking his claws on the brown tom's back, "That I am not afraid to kill either," And with that, Thunderfang sank his teeth into the brown tom's throat, and he dropped, dead.
Thunderfang got off of the limp body, and went back to his thicket. There were his two kits, squealing for their mother. Thunderfang curled up next to them, trying to comfort them as Flurry would have,
"Hush," He whispered, "You must be strong. I promise this to you, Shadow will pay."
Jayfeather could feel that the memory ending and he let go of it. He had seen almost too much.
Thunderfang was still staring at him blankly, not seeing him. Jayfeather cleared his throat, and Thunderfang's eyes focused again,
"Well, um…Yes, I will go to sleep now," Thunder nodded his head, and made a hasty retreat. Jayfeather turned to Hazeltail again,
I will never let that happen to her, he thought determinedly, Ever.
Jayfeather realized several things about Thunderfang with that memory. He once had a family that must have died before he came to ThunderClan. Second, he wasn't afraid to kill. Third, he must have hate stored in his heart. He scared Jayfeather a bit, but Jayfeather still trusted him. He felt that he had to.
He looked at Leafpool, and checked her again. Her breathing was shallow now, not a good sign. Jayfeather started to worry more now, and he prodded Leafpool,
"Leafpool," He whispered quietly, "Are you okay?" It took a moment for Leafpool to open her eyes and see Jayfeather. She still looked asleep, but then she opened her jaws, as if to speak.
But that's not what came out. There was a horrible shriek, and she coughed up blood. Her howling continued to ring, and Jayfeather could tell that this was not going to end well.
Lionblaze's head shot up. There was a loud shrieking in the camp, like a cat being tortured. He saw other cats' heads pop up, hearing the noise also. He caught Hollyleaf's eye and she nodded.
It was Leafpool, it had to be. He stood and rushed out of the den, trampling his den-mates. He vaguely was aware that Squirrelflight and Hollyleaf were behind him, rushing for the medicine cat den.
Oh no, Lionblaze shouted in his head, Oh, no, no, no….
Even though he didn't know it, Lionblaze had feelings for Leafpool. She was his mother, even if he didn't know for a while. There was a bond, unbreakable between mother and kits.
Lionblaze say Crowfeather in the medicine cat den first. He had gotten there before anyone else, and he was hastily watching over Jayfeather's shoulder.
"Will she be okay?" He asked, devastated, "Will she?"
"I don't know!" Jayfeather hissed, annoyed, "She just started to scream! If I knew what was wrong I would have taken care of it earlier!"
Crowfeather didn't take any notice to Jayfeather's harsh words; he only tried to get closer to Leafpool.
"Don't leave me, Leafpool! What about me? Don't leave me!" At Crowfeather's words, Jayfeather flinched. Lionblaze couldn't tell why, but they hit him strong. Maybe because he could hear Crowfeather's misery, or because he knew that Hazeltail was hurt too, and he would rather die than have her die.
"Crowfeather, step aside so I can get a closer look at her," Jayfeather ordered, regaining himself. Lionblaze watched his brother try to shove their father out of the way, but Crowfeather didn't move. Lionblaze came up to the two toms and gave Crowfeather a ruff shove. Leafpool's cries continued as Hollyleaf and Jayfeather tried to find out was wrong with her. Firestar and Sandstorm had come to the den, and Lionblaze could hear cats outside of the den. There was a wailing from outside, but from misery, not pain.
"He said move it," Lionblaze said, pushing his father away. Crowfeather let out an angry snarl, and he flashed out a sheathed paw at Lionblaze, hitting him on the side of the face,
"Don't you dare touch me kit." Crowfeather snarled. Lionblaze hated how his father referred to him as kit. He wasn't a kit anymore, even if he was Crowfeather's kit, "Now get out of my way."
Lionblaze held his ground as Crowfeather tried to get past him. Firestar came up next to Lionblaze and put his tail of Crowfeather's shoulder,
"Crowfeather," Firestar said calmly. Crowfeather turned his wild blue eyes towards his leader, and Lionblaze saw them calm slightly, but only to fire back up at Firestar's words, "Calm down. She will be-"
"Don't you dare tell me that she will be fine! Can you hear her scream? She is in pain! She is dying over there! My mate is dying!"
Firestar turned to Lionblaze, "Go and stay by your mother. I will handle Crowfeather."
"Handle me?!" Crowfeather shrieked as Lionblaze turned around and saw his mother, withering on the ground. She really was in a lot of pain, and Jayfeather and Hollyleaf were staring at each other, their faces contorted with horror.
"W-What is it?" Lionblaze said nervously, "Is she going to…die?"
They exchanged looks again, even though Jayfeather couldn't see his sister, "Lionblaze…she's got internal bleeding."
Crowfeather gasped, and Lionblaze turned to see him struggling harder to get to Leafpool, who's screaming had subdued to whimpers now.
"No!" He shrieked, "Oh, no! Don't say that! No!" He tried to push past Firestar, but he was shoved back again. Sandstorm came up to Jayfeather,
"Are you sure? How can you tell?"
"I am sure," Jayfeather said, confirming all of their fears, "Her coughing up blood, the large tender spot on her side, I'm sorry for all of us. She will not make it. She will be dead in a matter of moments." Lionblaze's heart sank. His mother was going to die, and she was so young…so much more life ahead of her…
"NO! THAT CAN'T BE!" Crowfeather roared, and he finally pushed past Firestar, mostly because he was in shock about his daughter. Crowfeather rushed to Leafpool's side, whose eyes were getting cloudy, fuzzy, not recognizable.
"Leafpool," He whispered, "I'm here, it's okay, I'll stay with you…I won't leave…"
"Crow…Crowfeather," She whimpered, "It's…my…time…" Lionblaze saw the light fading out of her amber eyes, and he believed her for the most of it.
"No, it can't be, you can't leave me!" Crowfeather cried, burying his nose into her fur, "No…"
"Yes…Crowfeather…" Her voice was drifting now, "I…can…feel…the…bleeding…It's…my…time…" She sighed, and closed her eyes, "Oh…Spottedleaf…"
"She's seen her escort," Firestar whispered, "She's going to StarClan now," As he finished his words, Leafpool's breathing slowed, and then stopped altogether. She was dead. Lionblaze could feel that everyone in the den was horrified, and there was an eerie silence in the whole camp.
Lionblaze didn't believe it. His mother was...dead... how could that have happened? How could StarClan let that happen? Now all that they had of Leafpool was a memory. A short memory as their mother, only knowing her love for a short period of time. Only knowing her happy as a medicine cat for about one day...a sad memory...
"Oh…no…" Crowfeather whispered, in defeat. But his eyes blazed now, "Leafpool, I will meet you in StarClan soon. Wait for me, I will be there." Crowfeather stood, and burst out of Jayfeather's den. It took all of the cats a moment to realize what he meant.
I will meet you soon…I will be there? Oh my StarClan…he's going to…
Lionblaze was the first one to figure it out,
"He's going to kill himself!"
Hey, how did you guys like it? If you look hard enough, you can see some foreshadowing in there. Oh, and don't forget, Mudfur's guide! Go read and review it! It is a huge help!
Hey, what do ya'll think should happen next? OH, and the poll results are in. I know what to do...
-Lightningstreak123