Chapter 31
Sup bros! See, told you that the wait wouldn't be much longer! And here we go, the end of the cliffie I left you guys with! Enjoy!
HOLLYLEAF
"What are you doing here?" I asked in shock. I hadn't expected to see this cat in a long time.
"Well, hello, Hollyleaf," the cat replied. He sat down, and drew his tongue over his paw. "Lovely evening, isn't it?"
"Don't be like that," I snarled. "You were supposed to help us with the prophecy, Sol."
Sol looked hurt. I knew he was lying. He was good at that.
"I didn't expect such anger from you, Hollyleaf," Sol replied casually. "Maybe from Lionblaze... But not you."
"Why didn't you tell us anything?" I growled. My claws were out, and my hacles were raised. I wasn't going to tolerate this cat anymore. His once charismatic voice now rubbed my skin raw.
Sol looked up, annoyed. 'It's not my fault you never showed up. But I'm still feeling... gracious. I'll tell you about the prophecy now-"
"No," I interrupted. "Not without my brothers."
"It's now or never."
I stopped dead in my tracks. I should get them, I thought to myself. But by the time we got back here, Sol would be long gone.
"Fine," I said. "Tell me what you know about us."
Sol grinned maliciously. "Good. I'm glad you came to your senses."
I glared at Sol. This was a charismatic, evil cat. I could tell by the way he smiled, by the way he talked to me. I didn't know what he wanted to do to the Clans, but I could tell that it wasn't good.
"As you know, Lionblaze can fight without getting hurt in battle. Jaypaw can see in others' dreams, and read their thoughts. And the third can see and hear things far, far away. They will band together when the Clans need them most, or darkness will blot out the light of the stars forever."
I could tell now that Sol wasn't lying. I could hear the truth in every word he spoke. However, something he said bothered me.
"But I can't hear or see things far away... How could I not have discovered my power? And why did you not call me by name?"
Sol looked shocked. "You mean you don't know?"
My heart began to pound in my chest. "Know what?"
Sol looked deep into my eyes. Amber met emerald, and the world around us seemed to melt. It could have been a few heartbeats, or several moons.
"Hollyleaf, you aren't a part of the prophecy.
LIONBLAZE
I sighed contentedly. The fresh-kill pile was high, there had been no intrusions on our borders, and the sickness had stopped spreading. Firestar's method had worked. There were no sick cats in the camp. Now the problem was getting the catmint to the old nest in time, before any cats died.
I closed my eyes and listened to the sounds of the forest. The birds were calling out to each other, the mice were scurrying above the hollow, and all of the other cats were heading to their dens for the night.
All was well.
Suddenly, I heard a crashing sound from the forest. I shot up, ears pricked. My hackles were raised, and my claws came out. Ever since the Great Battle, all cats were more alert. And since half of the Clan was missing, we were taking no chances.
The crashing continued, and then stopped a few fox-lengths away from the hollow. I seized my chance and shot up through the thorn tunnel.
"Who's there?" I snarled, claws out. I saw where the intruder had been. The brambles were crushed where they had broken through. I took a deep sniff, and tried to identify the scent. But all I smelled was a strong ThunderClan scent.
Maybe I was just tired. I crawled back through the bushes, and this time to the warrior's den. I poked Graystripe; it was his turn for guard duty.
After he took up his position, I fell into my nest. The crashing sound had shaken me up, but I pushed the thought away as I would a bad dream.
After all, how bad could it really be?
I awoke to the sun shining in my eyes. I groaned and rolled over, but stopped when I bumped into something.
Cinderheart had taken a spot next to me. I shivered as I realized that the chill was piercing through my ruffled fur. I shook out my fur, and, with one last look at Cinderheart, stepped outside.
I looked around, knowing that the chill would be burned off by the sun. I saw Brambleclaw going up to his nest; his shift had been after Graystripe's. I looked over at the fresh-kill pile. The prey on there would be crowfood soon. I picked a blackbird off of the top and began eating.
As I ate, I noticed Jaypaw coming out of the medicine den. He went over to the warrior's den, and then came over to me.
"Lionblaze, have you seen Hollyleaf? I need to talk to both of you."
I shook my head. "Sorry, Jaypaw. I haven't seen here since yesterday. She's not in the den?"
Jaypaw snorted. "If she was, would I be asking you right now?"
I rolled my eyes. 'Yeah, yeah. Save it for StarClan. She probably just spent the night iut in the forest, okay? She'll be back. Don't worry about it."
Jaypaw relaxed. "Okay, whatever. I had a dream last night. About catmint, and where to get it."
I looked up, shocked. The blackbird fell out of my mouth. "Really? Was it a sign from StarClan?"
Jaypaw nodded. "An old ThunderClan medicine cat came to me. She told me where I could find enough catmint to cure the whole Clan!'
I jumped up eagerly. "Well? Where is it?"
Jaypaw looked down sheepishly. "Well, that's the problem. It's in WindClan."
I reeled back as though I had been struck. WindClan... Heatherpaw. She would be there. I couldn't risk it.
"No," I growled.
Jaypaw looked schocked. "Wait- what?"
'You heard me," I snarled. Find someone else to go. I'm never going to WindClan, ever!"