Chapter 3

"Fernmist!"

"Fernmist is dead!"

"Oh, StarClan no!"

Dawnblossom awoke with a jolt in the medicine den to the calls.

Beechwhisper blinked sleepily next to her, confused on what was going on. "What?"

"Fernmist is gone!" Dawnblossom burst out of the medicine den, Beechwhisper following close behind. "Is it true?" She asked Cedarleaf, gasping for breath.

Cedarleaf only nodded, sadness in her eyes. "He died from infection overnight. We couldn't have saved him."

Dawnblossom glanced out at the clearing, seeing the pale gray tabby tom's body splayed out on a stone near the bramble rock, his green eyes closed. She slowly padded up to him, whispering, "good bye Fernmist. May you find swift running, good hunting, and shelter where you sleep in StarClan."

Duststar bolted out of his den. He ran next to his father's body, and crouched down, tears welling from his amber eyes. Everyone backed up to give him space except for his mother, Redstorm. They both groomed his pelt one last time, and sent Cloudysnow, Mistythorn, Birchskip, and Speckleclaw to bury Fernmist's body.

…

The next day, Beechwhisper was back on small patrols, but Ravenfur told him not to go anywhere near the snakes. If he did, he could be in grave danger.

Dawnblossom, Shadeflower, Duststar, Thornfur, Duskfoot, Redstorm, Jayfang, Tulipflower, and Lightleaf were all going to the SunnyClan border in attempt to drive out the snakes. The rest of the Clan were staying at the camp in case of emergencies, except for Cloudysnow, Speckleclaw, and Birchskip, who went hunting near the Great Cedar.

Dawnblossom's paws itched to get revenge on the snakes for killing Fernmist and hurting her mate, Beechwhisper. She waited for Jayfang and Duststar to give the signal, and then leaped near the rocks marking the SunnyClan border. Six garter snakes emerged from the holes beneath the rocks, hissing and baring their sharp teeth. Dawnblossom braced herself, and then leaped onto one of the snakes, grabbing it by the head, closing it tight so that it couldn't bite her, and gave a killing bite, rage blazing through her as she wondered if this was the snake that killed Fernmist or hurt Beechwhisper.

"AcornClan! Retreat! We can fight these later, we just must not lose anymore cats." Duststar yowled. AcornClan backed away, and fled into their territory, and back to camp.

…

Dawnblossom awoke next to Beechwhisper in the medicine den. Shadeflower was prodding her awake, gently so she didn't wake Beechwhisper up.

"You are on the dawn patrol. Jayfang sent me." The gray she cat whispered.

Dawnblossom sighed and slowly rose to her paws. She lightly walked out of the medicine den, to find Jayfang and Tulipflower waiting for her. "Where's the rest of the patrol?" She asked.

"Thornfur and Duskfoot are coming." Jayfang meowed, gazing at the warrior den, shifting his weight back and forth impatiently.

When Thornfur and Duskfoot finally emerged from the warrior den, Jayfang mewed, "okay, let's go!" They followed the AcornClan deputy outside camp, and towards the Great Cedar.

Jayfang stopped, and tasted the air. Dawnblossom did the same, wondering what he was looking for. He turned around and said, "snakes are not here, but prey should be plentiful. Let's hunt, and go back. Tell me if you find any signs of snakes."

Dawnblossom headed for the roots of the Great Cedar, glancing briefly at the claw marks on the tree from Stormstar and Thrushfeather. She shuddered, remembering that gathering. Cats yowling, arguing, and her just there feeling helpless.

She finally refocused, and thought about prey. She was going to catch something for Beechwhisper and the medicine cats. She knew that squirrel was Beechwhisper's favorite prey, but didn't know about Shadeflower, Ravenfur, and Cedarleaf, so she focused on squirrel first.

After waiting a while near the Cedar, she finally scented a squirrel up in the tree. She sheathed her claws, careful not to scratch the bark as she climbed. She was as fast as a hare running in open grass, barely slipping here and there due to not having her claws unsheathed. She used the dips and crevices in the tree to climb, instead.

Finally, she had the squirrel cornered, and pounced. Giving the killing bite, she climbed back down the tree, to find Thornfur and Duskfoot staring at her in awe.

After a moment of silence, Thornfur finally said, "That was amazing! How did you do it?"

"Did you scratch the tree?" Duskfoot asked.

Dawnblossom shook her head and mewed, "I used the crevices in the tree to climb. And just speed and balance."

The cats went back to hunting, here and there gazing at Dawnblossom in amazement.

By the end of the patrol, Dawnblossom had caught the squirrel, two mice, and a vole. She held her head high on the way back, excited to show the Clan her catches.