"No- he can't have blackcough! He just can't!" Bearpaw wailed.
"I'm so sorry." Maplefern wrapped her tail comfortingly around Bearpaw's shoulders. He shrugged her away, and tried to reach the den Sparrowflight was in.
"No! You can't go in, it's too contagious!" Maplefern rushed to block Bearpaw's path. "I'm going to tell everyone in the Clan to have some tansy. It should stop the sickness from spreading." Maplefern took Bearpaw to the medicine storage and showed him the tansy leaves. "Distribute this to every cat in the Clan. We have an ample supply, and I know where a large patch grows if we ever run out." Maplefern hooked a tansy leaf with one claw, and laid it down in front of Bearpaw. "Eat only one leaf." Bearpaw grudgingly swallowed the bitter tasting leaf, and took a few more in his jaws. He gave one to each of the cats who had helped carry Sparrowflight to the medicine den.
"Can I go tell Sunstream, now?" Bearpaw asked, his eyes pleading.
"Yes, you may tell Sunstream." Maplefern waved him away with her tail.
"Sunstream?" Bearpaw called into the warriors' den.
"Yes?" A weak voice came from the back of the den.
"I have some bad news." Bearpaw traveled further into the den, looking for Sunstream. He found her at the very back, underneath one of the nests. "What are you doing?" Bearpaw asked, confused.
"It's freezing in here, so I'm getting warm." Sunstream's husky mew came from under the thick layer of moss.
"It's warm in here. Well, I have to tell you something." Bearpaw sat by where Sunstream was huddled up. Then, a familiar scent hit his nose. "Sunstream! You're sick too!" Bearpaw rushed over to his mother, and sniffed her ears. "We need to get you to the medicine den." Bearpaw began tugging at her scruff, but she pulled away. "It's too cold to leave the den." She mumbled under her breath.
"It's not cold! You're delirious! Get up! We need to get you to the medicine den!" Bearpaw tugged at her harder, knowing that he could not pull this full grown cat all the way to the medicine den.
"Let me sleep!" Sunstream suddenly jerked her head up, sending moss flying. She lashed out a paw, claws extended. Her blow hit Bearpaw on his nose, making it bleed.
"Sunstream!" Bearpaw staggered backwards, in astonishment. "The sickness is making you… you… not you." Bearpaw raced out of the den, trying to find Maplefern. "Maplefern! Mothstar! Sunstream has the sickness! She has blackcough! Maplefern!"
Bearpaw raced to the medicine den, finding Mothstar speaking quietly to Maplefern. Bearpaw gasped for air. "Sunstream has blackcough!"
"We know. We heard you yowling from the warriors' den." Mothstar dipped her head. "The sickness acts quickly. Half the Clan could be infected by now." Bearpaw looked forlornly at Mothstar, then at Maplefern. "Surely you can do something!" Bearpaw pleaded, a desperate look in his eyes. Maplefern sighed. "Sadly, the cure for blackcough takes time to work. Sparrowflight might not make it through the night. Take me to Sunstream, and I'll see what I can do." Bearpaw led Maplefern, who was carrying a load of herbs in her jaws, to the warriors' den.
"She's gone under a nest and is saying it's cold outside. When I tried to get her out, she scratched my nose." Bearpaw was on the verge of becoming hysterical. "Do something. Please."
Bearpaw watched as Maplefern slowly stepped into the den, calling softly, "Sunstream. Where are you? I have herbs to make you feel better." She's treating my mother like a kit. Although, my mother is acting like a kit. Bearpaw watched from outside the den. His pelt was hot, and he was starting to feel jittery. Bearpaw paced up and down in front of the den, until Maplefern came out. "She is not going to make it." Maplefern dipped her head sadly, and Bearpaw let out a cry. "Why do my mother and father both have to die!" He sank to the ground, weeping. Maplefern wrapped a tail over his shoulders. "It'll be alright. Wait-" Maplefern prodded at his pelt. "You have a fever. We should get you to the medicine den. Now."
When Bearpaw had settled into his nest in the medicine den, he began to feel uncomfortable. He squirmed, trying to find a cooler spot in his nest. Beside him, Sparrowflight and Sunstream were sharing a nest. His eyes began to feel heavy, and the next thing he knew he was back in the Dark Forest.
"Leave me alone-please!" Bearpaw yowled into the mist. Poisonmist materialized in front of him.
"Back for training, are you?" The dark tom asked in a teasing voice. "Your second day on the job, and you're already in a coma! Did you hit your head on the water?" Poisonmist stalked up to him, and poked him with a paw. "Your pelt feels hot as fire!" He remarked.
"I probably have blackcough." Bearpaw stated promptly. "Can you leave me to dream in peace, now? I have no interest in training!"
"I can't force you to train, but you'll regret not training one day." Bearpaw stood as tall as he could. "Send me back. I want to have a normal dream, for once." Poisonmist sat down.
"You'll be back, begging for training in a moon. Fine-you can go." Poisonmist flicked his black tail, and Bearpaw's vision spun. It turned dark, then he was suddenly crouching next to a stream in RiverClan's hunting grounds. This is more like it. He thought as he caught up a fish in his jaws.
Bearpaw soon forgot that he was in a dream, and was carrying a large load of fish in the direction of the camp. This will feed the whole Clan. He proudly stalked into camp, only to see a large, silver and blue warrior sitting in the middle of the clearing.
"Hello." The newcomer mewed in a friendly voice. "I am Riverstar."
"The founder of RiverClan?" Bearpaw took a step forward to see RiverStar better. He could make out starry mist coming from the founder's paws. He also noticed that he could see all the way through the starry warrior. "You're fading! I can see right through you!" Bearpaw gasped.
"A StarClan warrior cannot exist forever." Riverstar mewed in a calm tone of voice.
"Wouldn't you want to live forever in StarClan?" Bearpaw mewed.
"Not all cats want to be in StarClan forever. Most of us want to fade, but fading takes time. I am almost completely gone." Riverstar looked wistfully into the distance, and continued speaking. "I have come to warn you."
"Warn me about what?"
"I have come to warn you of the Dark Forest. Do not accept their training, for it will bring you sorrow more than victory and triumph." Riverstar looked solemnly into Bearpaw's eyes. "Those who train in the Dark Forest become separated from their Clan; their heads filled with dark intentions. Do not follow in the footsteps of Tigerstar and Poisonmist." As Riverstar finished, Bearpaw looked away from the tom's piercing blue gaze. "I swear by StarClan I will not train in the Dark Forest."
"I also have a prophecy for you." Riverstar's eyes seemed to fill to the brim with starlight, and he began to speak in a distant voice. "In the time Rain and Bear rule the Clan of water, darkness will strike. The Pool of Stars will leak. Shadow will pour from the trees, Wind will race, snarling from the earth, and Thunder will roar from the sky. RiverClan will fall, unless Bear rescues it from the darkness." The glow in Riverstar's eyes receded to a faint shimmer.
"What? RiverClan might die?" Bearpaw spluttered. "Why are you telling me this? Why not Mothstar!"
Riverstar dipped his head. "Mothstar is in StarClan. She caught the sickness while you were asleep. Spiderstrike is the new deputy, and Rainheart is currently receiving his nine lives."
"Send me back! I want to say goodbye to Mothstar before they bury her!" Bearpaw yowled.
"I will send you back. You've been asleep for five days. Do not be afraid, for the sickness has almost left your body completely. StarClan is with you."