Scorchstar sat with Cinderfall and Brambledusk in his den, facing the two toms steadily. They were gazing at him and flicking their tails nervously. Scorchstar wondered what they wanted from him. No cat spoke, and he was beginning to grow uneasy of the silence. Finally, Scorchstar was the one who broke the silence.
"What is it that you two need?" Scorchstar asked.
"You plan to apprentice my kits today, no?" Cinderfall asked.
"Yes." Scorchstar nodded. "What about it?"
"Are you going to apprentice Mintkit?" Brambledusk inquired.
Scorchstar stiffened. He remembered the other day – Skyheart had raced into his den and begged Scorchstar to apprentice Mintkit, to show the other cats that he could be a warrior, that he could be a valuable mentor of the Clan. Scorchstar had shared every cat's hesitation, but he couldn't outright deny what Mintkit's mother wanted. Scorchstar nodded.
"To whom?" Cinderfall asked.
"Lilystream," Scorchstar replied quickly, having given this much thought, and had finally come to a mentor he think would fit Mintkit's needs. "I think she can help Mintkit out of his shell."
"Out of his shell isn't the problem," Brambledusk said. "He can't hear."
"Brambledusk, he's your nephew. Your kin, just as Iceheart and Frostpetal are." Scorchstar fixated his amber gaze on his deputy. "Don't tell me you don't love him as much as you love them?"
"Of course I do," Brambledusk said, his yellow eyes shadowed. "I'm just not sure being a warrior apprentice is the best thing for him. I don't want him to be hurt."
"Skyheart has asked me to make him an apprentice," Scorchstar repeated, his voice firm. "That's what I'm going to do."
Cinderfall chewed his lip, and Brambledusk let out a sigh. Scorchstar understood that they didn't want Mintkit to get hurt, but he had to do what Skyheart asked of him. Scorchstar got to his paws, flicking his tail to signal that this discussion was over, and then padded away out of the den. Just as he headed towards the Tall Rock, he spotted Mallowpaw's pale gray tabby pelt enter the camp with Sedgefall next to her. Scorchstar purred loudly at the sight of his daughter.
He padded over to the two cats. "You got back from the Moonpool late," he commented. "Welcome back, Sedgefall, Mallowpaw." Scorchstar touched his nose to Mallowpaw's.
"I'm not Mallowpaw anymore," the silver tabby cat meowed.
"What?" Scorchstar tilted his head.
"Sedgefall gave me my medicine cat name!" Mallowpaw said excitedly. "I'm Mallowleaf now."
Pride swelled in his heart as he gazed at Mallowleaf, remembering so many moons ago, when she was a tiny, mute kit who never spoke one word and barely moved. But now… She was a full-fledged medicine cat, serving her Clan with resolve and determination, just like Sedgefall and Violetheart before her. I'm so proud of her. I once thought she wouldn't live, and now she's going to be one of the best medicine cats the Clan has ever seen.
"Great job," Scorchstar purred as he nuzzled his daughter's cheek. "I'm so proud of you. I love you, Mallowleaf."
"I love you too, Father," Mallowleaf whispered.
"Go tell your siblings," Scorchstar meowed, flicking his tail towards Hawkfire and Redmoon who were sharing a rabbit near the nursery. "I'm sure they want to know." Just as Mallowleaf headed towards her siblings, Scorchstar leaped onto the Tall Rock and cleared his throat. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather underneath the Tall Rock for a Clan meeting!"
His Clanmates started to gather. Skyheart poked her head out of the nursery and her blue eyes shone as she ushered her kits outside the nursery. Turtlekit and Seedkit bounced excitedly on their paws, with Brambledusk supervising them. Skyheart was nudging Mintkit forward. Sandfall and Aspenstep watched their grandchildren proudly. Lightningtalon watched with narrowed amber eyes, while Iceheart and Hotaru joined Frostpetal at the edge of the crowd. Dovewillow stretched her limbs before joining Songbreeze and Lilystream in the gathering cats.
When Skyheart was in the middle of the clearing with her three kits, Scorchstar started to speak. "Today is a very special day in WindClan. I get to do one of my favorite things as leader - turn kits into apprentices. Today, they begin their journey to becoming a warrior, which is no easy feat. They will learn the ways that WindClan has hunted and fought for generations after generations, and they will learn the warrior code and how to be respectful and honorable cats. It is my great pleasure to call upon our ancestors to look down on these three young cats."
"I wonder who will mentor Mintkit!" Hawkfire hissed to Redmoon, a little too loudly. Skyheart's nostrils flared, and Scorchstar shot his daughter a burning glare. He couldn't blame her, though. He was sure all the cats shared the same question. Scorchstar cleared his throat and continued to talk.
"Seedkit, Turtlekit, Mintkit, please step forward," Scorchstar said, feeling his teeth chatter in the late leaf-fall temperature.
Seedkit and Turtlekit walked towards the Tall Rock, while Skyheart nudged Mintkit towards with a gentle shove. Mintkit gasped and looked up at Scorchstar. Scorchstar fixed his gaze on Seedkit, noting her spotted gray fur. "Seedkit, you are named after a brilliant warrior of WindClan who has passed on to join the ranks of StarClan. Seedfur would be so proud to know that her legacy will carry on in WindClan although she is no longer with us." Scorchstar felt a fresh wave of grief wash over him and he blinked slowly. "From this day forward, your name will be Seedpaw. You will earn your warrior name the same way our ancestors did: through rigorous hard work and showing loyalty and respect for your Clanmates."
Seedpaw gasped as Scorchstar glanced over at Wildheart. Wildheart's yellow eyes glowed as Scorchstar meowed, "Your mentor will be Wildheart. I have absolute confidence she will teach you well." Love for his mate swelled in his chest. It was time she had another apprentice. Wildheart walked over to Seedpaw and touched noses with her new mentor.
"I know this young tom cannot hear me, but my words are for the entire Clan." Scorchstar looked down at Mintkit, who looked terrified and confused. Is this right? He thought back to Brambledusk and Cinderfall's apprehensions, but then the image of Skyheart's desperate pleading flashed back into his mind. "This young kit has had to experience hardship in a very unique way. But I believe StarClan has not given him the gift of hearing for a reason. And I also believe there's no reason at all that Mintkit can't become a full warrior of WindClan. His unique perspective and life experiences can perhaps enrich us all." Scorchstar beckoned the kit forward with his tail and Mintkit willingly obeyed. "This kit shall be known as Mintpaw until he earns his warrior name. And I've chosen a very kind and patient cat to be his mentor. Lilystream, please come greet your new apprentice."
Lilystream's blue eyes glowed with joy as she walked over to Mintpaw. Mintpaw looked around, utterly confused, and Lilystream quietly nudged him to make him turn around. She touched Mintpaw's nose, and hesitation was written all over Mintpaw's face. Skyheart bit her lip as Lilystream led Mintpaw away into the crowd, and Skyheart joined them. Turtlekit was the last cat left. Her tortoiseshell fur shone in the pale sunlight as she gazed at Scorchstar.
"Turtlekit, you are a strong and determined young kit, and I can't wait to see where your paws take you." Scorchstar scanned the camp until his eyes focused on Iceheart. I need to make her feel included in the Clan. I need her to show me that she's a loyal warrior, ever since she left with Hotaru. "Iceheart will be your mentor."
Iceheart gasped with shock. Hotaru nudged Iceheart forward, and the silver-and-white tabby she-cat padded through the cats who parted to let her through. Iceheart walked towards Turtlepaw and touched noses with her. The warrior's blue eyes glowed, and she looked up at Scorchstar, mewing, "Thank you, Scorchstar."
Scorchstar nodded as cheers for the three apprentices rang through the camp. Scorchstar leaped down from the Tall Rock and landed with all four paws to the ground. He glanced up to see Redmoon and Hawkfire bounding over to him.
"Father, when are we going to get apprentices?" Hawkfire asked as she skidded to a halt.
"Yeah!" Redmoon complained. "First Iceheart and Frostpetal become warriors before us, now Iceheart becomes a mentor before us? What's the big deal?"
"Listen, Iceheart and Frostpetal became warriors because they killed a dog on their own," Scorchstar explained to his kits. "That's all there was to it. And I made Iceheart a mentor because I need her to prove her loyalty to me, after the whole debacle with Hotaru. You two will get your turn. I promise." Scorchstar rested his chin on Hawkfire's head. For the first time, he finally saw how big they had grown. Hawkfire was bigger than her mother now, with a lithe figure and tall limbs, while Redmoon nearly rivaled Scorchstar in size. They're so big, Scorchstar thought. I remember when they were just kits in the nursery.
"Okay," Hawkfire sighed. "But who will be the next kits?"
"Maybe Iceheart." Scorchstar shrugged. "We'll see. Just focus on your duties for now, won't you?"
"All right." Redmoon shook out his fur and walked away where Harewhisker was ordering patrols. Just as Scorchstar followed his kits' pawsteps, a familiar dark ginger figure appeared at the entrance of the camp. Scorchstar let out a low growl in his throat as he realized that she was trying to appear undetected. Anger boiled in Scorchstar's blood as he bounded over to his sister, appearing right in front of her so she couldn't slink into camp unnoticed. Russetstripe blinked in surprise, staring at Scorchstar with wide green eyes.
"I've had just about enough of this," Scorchstar snarled. "I don't know what you're doing at night, but it better not be what I suspect it is!" He rose over Russetstripe, the fur on his hackles bristling. "Why do you leave camp at night?"
"Do you not trust me?" Russetstripe growled.
"At this point? No, I don't!" Scorchstar felt his tail lash. "You're never here at night, and then in the day it's like I'm looking a cat I don't recognize. You're constantly in a bad mood, there's always a scowl on your face. Whatever you're doing at night, it's clearly not making you happy!" He leaned closer into Russetstripe. "Are you meeting Runningflame at night?"
"Why would you think that?" Russetstripe snarled.
"Wildheart has found your scent near the RiverClan border," Scorchstar growled. "Don't think I haven't noticed the way you look at him during Gatherings. When you go where you think nobody can see you."
"You're out of your damned mind," Russetstripe hissed at him. "But, of course, since Wildheart said it, you'll definitely believe it."
"I've seen it with my own eyes!" Scorchstar barked at her.
"Seen what?" Russetstripe turned on her heel and glared at him, curling her lip. "Me talking to another cat? By all the gods, that must be a crime."
"Wildheart said—"
"Then choose Wildheart's side." Russetstripe flattened her ears. "Apparently everything she says is the word of StarClan."
"At least I can trust Wildheart." The words flew out of Scorchstar's mouth before he could take them back. Russetstripe stepped back, her green eyes horrified, and Scorchstar cursed himself that second. "Wait, Russets—"
"ThunderClan cats!" A howl split through the clearing, and Scorchstar looked over at the camp entrance to see two cats walking in, alone without no guard. Scorchstar immediately recognized the pale golden pelt of Briskheart, followed by a silver tabby with black stripes and a white chest. Scorchstar unsheathed his claws and arched his back, walking over to meet them. Harewhisker was at his side, and he could see his deputy's claws flexing back and forth.
Briskheart met Scorchstar's gaze steadily. Scorchstar let out a low growl as he remembered the last time he had seen this cat – in the midst of a bloodied battle, where Scorchstar had lost a life and Brookfeather had died. Anger boiled in Scorchstar's pelt as he glared at the golden tom.
"What are you doing here?" Scorchstar growled.
Briskheart's voice was soft and steady as he meowed, "We need Sedgefall's help."
"Sedgefall's help?" Scorchstar echoed.
"There is a sickness in our Clan," the silver tabby she-cat said, her blue eyes wide with despair. "Our medicine cat, Frostcloud, is being called by StarClan, and when she leaves, we'll have no medicine cat left. So…"
"Icefrost," Briskheart murmured gently. Icefrost looked at the tom, and Briskheart continued on from there. "I realize that there is bad blood between our Clans. But there has never been any bad blood between Frostcloud and Sedgefall."
"Why didn't Frostcloud herself come?" Scorchstar asked, feeling the hostility melt away to be replaced with pure curiosity. He didn't think that these cats were lying, but he wasn't quite eager to help the cats who had nearly destroyed WindClan twice now. But there was no sense of malice in Icefrost or Briskheart's eyes, just a quiet pleading.
"She's preparing for the journey to find the herbs," Briskheart replied. "Icefrost and I are going with her, alongside Rootstar and a few other cats."
"Your Clan leader is leaving too?" Scorchstar echoed, his eyes wide. ThunderClan was losing both their medicine cat and leader for an undisclosed period of time? Are they out of their mind?
"Now do you see why we're here?" Icefrost asked.
Scorchstar clenched his lip. He didn't want to give them Sedgefall. Sedgefall was WindClan's medicine cat – what would happen if something horrible happened to WindClan while Sedgefall was gone? Well, we do have Mallowleaf… Scorchstar sighed. "You need to talk to Sedgefall."
"May I see her?" Briskheart asked.
"Yeah." Scorchstar led Briskheart to the rock that made Sedgefall's den, but much to Scorchstar's surprise, Sedgefall was already at the entrance with a bundle of herbs in her jaws. She dropped them to the ground and padded over to Briskheart and Icefrost, lowering her head respectfully.
"You have an issue in your Clan," Sedgefall said, "and you need my assistance."
"Y-yes." Briskheart looked faintly surprised. "How did you know?"
"I received a message," Sedgefall replied.
"From… who?" Icefrost inquired.
"The wind," Sedgefall said. Icefrost and Briskheart exchanged uncertain glances, but they didn't seem willing to press any further. Scorchstar felt a lump in his throat as he gazed at Sedgefall, begging her to stay. Sedgefall turned to face Scorchstar. "These cats need my help. I must go."
"But… we need you, Sedgefall," Scorchstar said.
"I will not be gone long," Sedgefall meowed. "Mallowleaf will be the acting medicine cat in my stead. She is just as skilled as I am, and I have faith in her." A small smile spread on Sedgefall's face. "Do you?"
"I do." Scorchstar nodded and glanced at Mallowleaf, who was exiting the medicine den, gazing at her mentor. The silver tabby pressed her nose to Sedgefall's shoulder, a soft pleading in her demeanor, and Sedgefall licked her apprentice's head gently. Scorchstar could hear a pair of pawsteps behind him and he looked over to see Russetstripe. The ginger she-cat faced Sedgefall and Briskheart.
"Can I come?" she asked. "If you really have that many cats leaving to go on that journey, I'm sure you'll need an extra pair of paws. I'm willing to help."
Briskheart and Icefrost exchanged uncertain glances. Then Briskheart nodded after a few moments of thinking. "I guess. I don't think Rootstar will see that as a problem."
Scorchstar stared at his sister, feeling his eyes widen. "Um?"
Russetstripe whirled on Scorchstar and growled under her breath, "You said you can't trust me, right?" she hissed.
"Wait, I didn't—" Scorchstar was taken aback by the anger blazing in Russetstripe's eyes. He sighed, realizing it would be futile to fight with her. Maybe they needed some time apart to heal from their recent arguments. But she's my sister. I don't want to let her go. Something told him that Russetstripe wouldn't take no for an answer. "All right."
"Thank you very much," Briskheart said, lowering his head deeply to Scorchstar. Icefrost copied his movements. "ThunderClan will be in your debt."
"Yeah." Scorchstar's gaze was focused on his sister as she helped Sedgefall carry the mountain of herbs. Sedgefall bade farewell to Mallowleaf and Sedgefall before leading the way out of the hollow. Russetstripe did not look over her shoulder as her tail twitched from side to side. Briskheart and Icefrost were the last cats behind them, and they all disappeared into the moorland.
Harewhisker padded over to Scorchstar, brushing his long, thin tail down Scorchstar's shoulder, as if trying to comfort him with unspoken words.
"Was that a good idea?" Scorchstar asked Harewhisker, his gaze still focused on where his Clanmates had disappeared. "Sedgefall has always had a special connection with our ancestors, and I can't stop Russetstripe from going, but something scares me about this."
"We can't let another Clan die out," Harewhisker said slowly after a few moments, the last of his words drawling.
"But what if Sedgefall or Russetstripe gets sick?" Scorchstar fretted.
"We'll just have to bring them back, then," Harewhisker decided.
"I have faith that my daughter will fulfill her duties while Sedgefall is gone," Scorchstar mewed. "But Sedgefall is such a special cat to each and every one of us. I can't imagine life without her calm wisdom." He stared at the camp entrance where the medicine cat and the three warriors had just been.
"Your daughter is gifted," Harewhisker agreed. "Sedgefall would never leave her Clan behind. I trust her."
Scorchstar looked back at the Tall Rock. He heaved a sigh, knowing he would have to address his Clan again. The ginger-and-white tom leaped onto the Tall Rock and called the formal greeting for his Clan, and just as they had traveled for Skyheart's kits' apprentice ceremony, now they gathered for his meeting. He could see worry in his Clanmates' eyes – clearly some of them had seen Sedgefall and Russetstripe leave with the ThunderClan cats.
"Clanmates!" Scorchstar yowled. "Two ThunderClan cats have come to WindClan requesting aid for a sickness in their Clan. Sedgefall has opted to go and help them for a short period of time. She will be back—"
"ThunderClan?" Songbreeze spat out. "They accused us of killing Ravenfeather!"
"And helped Dapplestar in nearly destroying us!" Aspenstep lashed out his tail.
"We shouldn't have given them our medicine cat," Buzzardwing growled.
"Sedgefall is needed here!" Lightningtalon exclaimed.
"Sedgefall was the one who wanted to go!" Harewhisker exclaimed from the base of the Tall Rock. "Scorchstar did nothing wrong – he wanted Sedgefall to stay! But he let her go because she said she had to. She'll be back soon."
Scorchstar felt a flash of gratefulness at Harewhisker for defending him, but also there was a quiet seething that he had to be defended in the first place. "I understand your troubles, I do. But I don't think Sedgefall is in danger, and if ThunderClan is really sick, I can't let another Clan die out, no matter what they've done. The battle was over four seasons ago, as well. It's time to move on." Even though his fur pricked as he spoke those words, he was searching for a reason to allow Sedgefall to go to ThunderClan. Did I do the right thing? he thought grimly to himself. "Mallowleaf will be acting medicine cat while Sedgefall is gone."
"She's too young!" Skyheart exclaimed. "Can we trust her?"
Scorchstar fixed his icy glare on Skyheart. Although he understood that Skyheart was apprehensive – and rightfully so, she had a deaf kit who was just made an apprentice – he didn't want anyone to doubt Mallowleaf's skills.
"We can trust her," Cinderfall assured his mate, licking Skyheart's cheek.
Hawkfire's green eyes blazed as she looked at the questioning cats. "My sister is a fine medicine cat! She learned all of what she needs from Sedgefall, and she'll be amazing at her job!"
Wildheart curled her tail around her paws. "When Sedgefall is gone someday, we'll need to rely on Mallowleaf," she commented. "How is this any different?"
Skyheart seemed to relent as she leaned into Cinderfall's shoulder. Scorchstar let out a relieved sigh. "Anything else?" he asked his Clanmates. When no cat spoke, Scorchstar meowed, "All right. The meeting is at an end." He leaped from the Tall Rock and stretched out his paws.
Brambledusk padded over to Scorchstar. "How long do you think they'll be gone?" he asked, his tabby pelt billowing in the wind.
"I have no idea," Scorchstar confessed as Harewhisker walked over to him. "Briskheart mentioned that he, Icefrost, Rootstar, Frostcloud, and a few more warriors would be gone to search for the herbs."
"Damn." Harewhisker clicked his tongue. "That's a lot of cats gone. I guess Sunfire will be acting leader in his absence."
"It puzzles me why Rootstar and Frostcloud are leaving," Scorchstar mused. "Maybe Russetstripe will find out."
"Russetstripe?" Brambledusk looked puzzled.
"She went with them," Scorchstar replied, feeling his heart twist in his chest.
"Why?" Brambledusk's eyes widened.
"She wanted to," Scorchstar said. Before Brambledusk could say anything else, Scorchstar turned away, feeling guilt weigh heavy like a rock in his stomach. Russetstripe had left because she had felt betrayed by Scorchstar. He had told her point blank to her face that he trusted Wildheart and not her. That was so stupid of me to say. Scorchstar wanted to kick himself. He had wanted to talk Russetstripe into staying, but with the green fire that had burned in his sister's eyes, he knew that whatever he said wouldn't get through her. Whatever happens, I hope she's okay.
And I hope that letting Sedgefall go was the right decision.