Hello everybody, I'm back! I thought I might wait a week, but then decided that I have absolutely zeroself restraint so I'm going to burn myself out on this and get through as much as I feasibly can in as little time as I can with absolutely zero planning or a pre-conceived list of what cats are called or what clan they belong to. Don't judge me. This is exactly the same thing I did with my Zootopian Assassins story and that turned out all right! Minus the murder and mayhem and needs-to-be-redone Chapter 50. But enough rambling. I hope you liked the prologue, and I hope you continue to like what I put out. I don't know when I'll be active, or if I'll continue being active after I finish this story, but I willfinish this story even if I have to possess somebody after dying of dehydration and starvation trying to get it done. So without further ado, let's get on with the chapter!
The camp was abuzz with activity. Warriors returned from patrol, warriors went out on patrol. Some returned from the borders, some returned or set out to hunt. Near the nursery, Waspkit curled up in Cloverfoot's nest, resting as per Ivytail's orders. It had been three days since he had been allowed out of his den, and three days more since he had been stung. All seemed fine. He could see just as well as he could before. There didn't seem to be any risk of infection. Nothing was wrong.
Not unless one counted the pink tinge the corner of his eye had taken on, and which still refused to go away. Besides that, there wasn't anything different or odd about his recovery. It wasn't noticeable unless one was at least a tail-length or two away, but it was still noticeable. Ivytail was worried, but Waspkit couldn't understand why. There was nothing wrong with his vision, so what was the problem?
His ear twitched at the sound of light pawsteps approaching, the young tom raising his head and opening his eyes. Brownkit stood at the entrance to the nursery, Waspkit's eyes lighting up in joy when he saw his friend.
"I came to see if you were okay," the brown-furred tom said, stepping into the den cautiously. "Ivytail seems worried."
"Ivytail worries over the smallest scrapes," Waspkit replied, rolling his eyes. "It's his job to worry, anyhow. If he won't, who else will?"
Brownkit didn't respond for a moment, looking down for a moment. Waspkit's expression faltered, the tom standing and padding over. He leaned his head down, getting his friend's attention, then smiled reassuringly.
"You sure?" Brownkit asked, worry in his voice and eyes.
"I'm fine," Waspkit reassured. "Just a bit of...discoloration, I think he called it?"
"I think so."
"Yeah, and he already said it's not infected yet, so it probably won't be," Waspkit continued. "There's nothing wrong with my eye." Seeing Brownkit looking calmer, his ears perked up as an idea came to him. "Let's play!"
"What? No, we can't!" Brownkit replied, looking surprisingly scared at the prospect. "You're supposed to be resting!"
"That's right," Ivytail said as he stuck his head into the den. Waspkit shrunk, looking down dejectedly. The older tom chuckled. "But I suppose a game of mossball won't hurt." Both kits looked up at him, smiles touching their muzzles as they looked at each other with clear excitement.
"Thank you!" Waskpit exclaimed, Ivytail smiling down at him.
"I remember what it was like to be a kit," he replied, softly batting the red-furred tom's ears. "Not like I'm as old as Jaystar."
"I heard that," Jaystar's voice called from a short distance away, the sound of pawsteps reaching the ears of all three toms. Ivytail's eyes widened in mock fear, the kits laughing. "Waspkit, it seems you're well enough to conspire play time after being ordered to stay in your nest. If that's the case, I need to talk to you."
"Oh, uh...actually, now that you mention it, my eye is a little sore..." Waspkit said, clearly trying to get out of it.
"Well, in that case you should return to Ivytail's den," the she-cat replied, still outside the den. "I'm sure he'd be more than happy to have you help around with herbs for the rest of the day, after he puts more celandine juice on your eye."
"Oh, what do you know, I'm cured!" Waspkit said, hurrying out of the den and skidding to a stop in front of Jaystar.
"A miracle," she meowed dryly. Ivytail and Brownkit poked their heads out of the den, curious what was going on. She didn't acknowledge them. "How's your eye? Serious answer."
"Ugh, it's fine!" Waspkit said, unable to keep his annoyance down. He blinked apologetically. "Sorry. But it's like I told Ivytail. I can see just fine. He can't find anything wrong with it, aside from the-"
"The discoloration is to be expected," Ivytail interrupted, Jaystar looking over at him. "It happens when an eye is irritated. It should have cleared up by now, though."
"So aside from some discoloration that refuses to go away, he's perfectly fine?" Jaystar questioned, Ivytail nodding. "Then I see no reason to keep him cooped up in the nursery. I'm not so ancient I don't remember what it's like to be a kit. Full of energy, few ways to get it out."
Ivytail shrunk under his pelt, averting his gaze.
"You were a different litter from Cloverfoot, right?" Brownkit asked, Jaystar nodding.
"I was," she answered. "But I still considered it my job to watch out for her, before I became leader. I am still her older sister, after all. And you always watch out for your kin, so long as it doesn't interfere with your duties."
"But...what if you were in a battle," Brownkit began, "and Cloverfoot was being attacked. You could save her, but doing so meant you couldn't order a retreat. And if you ordered the retreat, you would have to leave her behind?"
Jaystar's expression softened. "I would do everything in my power to get to her," she answered. "However, there comes a point where your clan must come before your kin. It's not fair, but that's just how it is. And if I had to choose between my sister and the safety of my clan, I would have no choice but to choose my clan."
Both kits looked at each other, then nodded.
"However," Ivytail interjected, his tone soft, comforting, "the lake territories are peaceful. It's unlikely there will be a battle any time soon."
"Ivytail's right," Jaystar said. "Besides, kits shouldn't be thinking about that kind of thing. Why don't you two go play?"
"Okay!" Waspkit said excitedly, more than happy to get away from the subject. "Come on, Brownkit!"
"Stay away from the camp walls!" Ivytail called after them. It wasn't clear if the kits heard him, but he had to assume they had. He sighed, Jaystar mrowing in amusement. Brackenfur padded over from the fresh-kill pile, two mice danging from his jaws by their tails.
"I'll join you in a moment," Jaystar said, the tom nodding and moving towards their usual spot.
"You could have done worse," Ivytail commented, inclining his head after Brackenfur.
"Like Cloverfoot?" Jaystar asked, the tom blinking in confusion. "I know you know who she was seeing. I'm not an idiot."
"Of course not, Jaystar," he said. "But...well, I don't. I have some suspicions, but I'm not sure about any of them."
"Meet me and Brackenfur in my den after sundown," she said after a moment of thought. "We'll discuss it there." She stood to join Brackenfur where he lay down, waiting for her with the mice.
"Is it really any of our business?" Ivytail questioned, the she-cat turning to look at him with a surprised expression. "She's not in danger. She's not being threatened. She's made no remarks about leaving. It's entirely possible she realized she made a mistake and just wants to move on from it. It benefits nobody bringing it up."
Jaystar was silent for a long moment, looking towards where Cloverfoot rested under the shade of the rock path up to her den, watching Waspkit and Brownkit playing. Her sister had a content smile on her muzzle, eyes sparkling with love for her kit. Seeming to sense the gaze on her, she looked up and met Jaystar's gaze. She blinked in greeting, then looked back to the kits.
Jaystar turned back to Ivytail. "I know that," she admitted. "But I have to know."
"Why?" the medicine cat questioned, tilting his head.
"So I know what to expect if some tom comes strutting into camp asking to meet his kits," she answered. "Whether that might happen or not, I want to be prepared."
"Fine," Ivytail conceded, nodding his head. "I'll join you and Brackenfur after sundown."
"Thank you," Jaystar said. "I know this might be hard for you."
"It's like you said," the tom replied, licking a paw and running it over his ear. "The clan comes first. Whether we like it or not."
The she-cat nodded, turning away and padding towards Brackenfur. She crouched down beside him, the two starting to eat. Ivytail watched them for a moment, then turned and padded towards the fresh-kill pile and grabbed himself a squirrel before heading towards his den.
The half-moon was high in the sky by the time Ivytail arrived at the moonpool, finding the other medicine cats sitting around, waiting for him.
"What do you know, the Thundercat decided to show up," Snakepelt, the Shadowclan medicine cat, meowed.
"I'm so sorry," Ivytail said. "I was discussing something with Jaystar and Brackenfur and I forgot it was the half-moon."
"Waspkit?" Featherfern, the Windclan medicine cat, asked. Her apprentice, Moorpaw, looked at Ivytail with wide eyes. She was enthralled, as ever.
"Y-yes," the tom answered hesitantly. "They were asking who I suspected might be the father."
"You think it was another clan cat?" Streamsplash, the Riverclan medicine cat, asked.
"With fur like that?" his former apprentice, Minnowpelt, responded sarcastically. "It has to be a loner or a rogue."
"All evidence points to that, yes," Ivytail admitted, hanging his head.
Surprisingly, it was Snakepelt that seemed to realize how the discussion was making him feel. His tail rested comfortingly on his shoulder, the Shadowclan tom blinking reassuringly.
"We should do what we came here to do," he said, retracting his tail. The other medicine cats nodded.
"Yes, let's," Featherfern said. The medicine cats took their places around the moonpool, leaning down and pressing their noses to the cool water.
The half-moon was lowering towards the trees by the time all the medicine cats awoke. Ivytail had been the first, receiving no visions or warnings from Starclan. The only thing he'd seen had been some clanmates who had died, and all they'd exchanged were greetings. If he was being honest, he was relieved.
The other medicine cats had experienced similar dreams, which further relieved the tom. Snakepelt approached him, nudging him with his shoulder. "So, Thundercat, when are you going to get an apprentice of your own?" he asked playfully, Ivytail chuckling.
"Just as soon as you do," he replied.
"Bah!" the older tom responded, shaking his heads. "I got plenty more moons in me before I gotta train a wide-eyed brat."
"Hey!" Moorpaw exclaimed, all the other medicine cats expressing amusement. It took her a moment to realize he had said it jokingly, at which point she visibly relaxed and even managed to let out a mrow of laughter.
"No, but seriously, Snakepelt has a point," Featherfern said. "Starclan above, I can't believe I said that."
It was the Shadowclan tom's turn to exclaim "Hey!" indignantly. Moorpaw snickered.
"I don't know," Ivytail said, shrugging. "Whenever there's a cat I think is right for the role."
"What the Thundercat said," Snakepelt said, preempting any similar questions directed at him. "But, and I can't believe I'm saying this, I'll concede that I should be looking for one sometime soon."
"We should head back," Minnowpelt said, the other medicine cats looking at her. "Sun will be coming up soon. I'd like to be in my nest before it does."
"I have to agree with...what's the term, fish-face?" Featherfern asked playfully, Minnowpelt rolling her eyes.
"Yes," she answered.
"Yeah, I have to agree with fish-face," Featherfern finished. "Some of us have a longer trek than others. We should be mindful of that."
"You're right," Ivytail said, nodding. They all stood and started walking down the path that lead to the lake and the Thunderclan border with Windclan. The walk was made with small talk for most of the time, but near the end Snakepelt looked at Ivytail.
"How is Waspkit, anyway?" the tom asked, drawing the attention of the other medicine cats.
"Oh, uh...he's fine," Ivytail said, caught off guard by the question. "I mean, he got stung in the eye recently, but he's made a full recovery."
"Nothing wrong with his vision?" Featherfern asked, tilting her head curiously.
"Nothing," Ivytail answered. "A bit of discoloration around the area of the sting, but that's to be expected. It just refuses to go away, for some reason."
"It's not infected, is it?" Moorpaw asked worriedly.
"No, wound's clean," Ivytail said. "For all intents and purposes, Waspkit is perfectly healthy."
"That's good to hear," Snakepelt said, Ivytail humming in response. Featherfern, Streamsplash, and Minnowpelt split off with a farewell, heading for their camps, and Snakepelt soon split off to walk along the lake back to Shadowclan territory.
Ivytail returned to camp a short while later and immediately made his way to his nest, closing his eyes and getting comfortable. 'Snakepelt was oddly interested in Waspkit' he thought to himself. 'Can't blame him, though. He's been a curious cat for as long as I've known him, and Waspkit is certainly a curiosity.' Sleep took him soon after, and he went to sleep content and unworried for the first time in moons. Whether that would last, though, remained to be seen.