Disclaimer: I do NOT own Warriors, Erin Hunter does. Now on with the show~
Firepaw and Heartseeker spent the rest of the day together, so much so that Sandspirit was starting to feel like a third wheel. When she stood up to leave, Firepaw barely reacted, initiating a play fight with her older sister. The pale warrior sighed before heading out towards the entrance of the camp, only to be stopped by Darkstripe.
"Sandspirit, I would like a favor of you. I saw that you were getting to know our new arrival. I need you to keep an eye on her. But later, right now I need her to join me in the medicine den. She needs to face what she's done to our leader head on. Could you get her, please, I'll be waiting for her with Yellowfang."
As Darkstripe turned back to Yellowfang's den, Sandspirit tilted her head, her gaze going back to Firepaw and Heartseeker. 'Bluestar was ripped down to the bone when I saw her. Did Heartseeker really do that?' she thought before groaning and thinking it best to put it out of her head for now and just do what Darkstripe asked her to.
Turning around and going back up the the siblings, she found the two quietly chatting. Heartseeker's ear flicked when she heard the ginger molly and turned her head slightly to her. "Yes, what is it?"
"Darkstripe wants you to meet him in the medicine cat den, I'll show you the way." When Firepaw started to protest, Heartseeker only smiled and lovingly placed her nose to the younger demon's forehead.
"I won't be long, little hunter. Not long at all. I won't disappear so there's nothing to worry about, see you later." Firepaw grumbled but let her sister go, watching as both Heartseeker and Sandspirit leave her alone.
XxXx
Heartseeker followed after Sandspirit, having figured out that Darkstripe was making good on his promise to have her watched. Why else would Firepaw's heart friend come back to them after just leaving? She looked around as she was being led, noting that there were many dens and tilted her head. So, these Folk really did all live together, just like the Folk at Firsthome. Heartseeker briefly wondered if these cats knew of Queen of Cats.
Just when she was about to ask of this, Sandspirit took them to a fairly big den that smelled of herbs and more strongly of blood. Heartseeker couldn't help but grin slightly despite herself. She knew where the bloodscent came from and the thought of slicing through Bluestar's flesh still had her claws twitching.
A battered old gray molly came out to meet them, along with Darskstripe and the gray female looked right at Heartseeker, her gaze not wavering in the slightest. The younger molly saw the swath of blue covering the bottom of this fela's left eye and she dipped her head, smiling slightly. Despite this one's age, she could still feel power in her body.
"Good dancing to you, wise hunter. Though from your scent I don't think that you catch many Squeakers." Heartseeker kept her voice light though she couldn't help but wonder how this fela was. Why was her scent and den covered in that of herbs?
Yellowfang smirked a bit at this tabby's tone and nodded to her and while the greeting was a little odd, she had more important things to focus on. "My name is Yellowfang and that's right. I gave up the way of the warrior to become a medicine cat. To heal my Clanmates and mend both mind and body, though there is only so much one can do it that sense. Some warriors are rather thick headed. "
She sniffed Heartseeker then turned to Darkstripe, tilting her head. "So, is this the one who shredded our leader down to the bone? I've got to say, she's quite the fighter. I haven't seen a wound that bad in quite a while. Though, she is from outside the Clans so it makes sense. Come on then, time to clean up your mess."
With that, Yellowfang beckoned Heartseker in and when she hesitated, thinking over what the older fela said. A healer, huh? She couldn't say she every heard of that before, her father didn't really go that far into telling her of the Clans. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to go in and maybe learn a thing or two. Still, she looked over at Darkstripe who nodded to her, his face completely calm and Heartseeker then followed after Yellowfang, wondering what she would learn.
XxXx
Yellowfang, despite her age, moved quickly in the den and was already replacing some cobwebs on Bluestar's shoulder with fresh ones when Heartseeker joined her. The tabby watched as the dark gray fela worked, surprised that something like cobwebs was holding back the bleeding.
Unconsciously, Heartseeker shuffled a little closer to Bluestar and bent her head close to the wound, giving it a curious sniff. She was only vaguely aware of Yellowfang watching her, the medicine cat's body poised to defend her new leader despite her feelings. But there was no need, Heartseeker soon moved away and sat licking a paw, her expression thoughtful.
"So, do you think she will live?" Heartseeker finally spoke, her voice calm and cool.
Yellowfang smirked at that and turned her back to count juniper berries, making a mental note of how many she had left. "She will, though I'm sure she will have a limp for a good while."
Heartseeker didn't react to that and only looked at Bluestar again, her eyes suddenly narrowing. "If she hates demons so much, why is she even here? Why doesn't she just leave?"
"She was born here, she is ThunderClan and she is the leader. She can't leave even if she wanted to. But she wasn't aware of how many demons there were in the Clan. We have reasons for staying hidden. The Clans, or should I say the non demon cats of the Clans, hate us. They are afraid of our strength and the fact that we prey on them so they do anything to drive us out or even kill us, though they soon found that that is rather hard to do."
"Then why are you still here?" Heartseeker pressed, a tiny hint of a snarl in her voice. Yellowfang looked down to see the tabby's claws glinting in the light but she made no comment.
"Because there of those of us for were born in the Clans and we were taught loyalty. Even if there are some who hate us, those bonds are not so easily severed. But perhaps it's more accurate to say that we have ones in the Clans that we want to protect. It's for that reason we stay and put up with the other cat's insults and mistrust."
Narrowing her eyes even more, Heartseeker looked down at Bluestar, and quick as a flash, her claws were at her throat. However, just as quickly, Yellowfang slammed into her, away from Bluestar. Her fangs digging hard into Heartseeker's neck, making the younger choke. Her hind claws were pressed hard against the tabby's belly, beads of blood staining her fur, while Yellowfang's eyes bored deep into the younger demon's.
Just as quickly as she attacked, Yellowfang hopped off Heartseeker, though she didn't sheath her claws. She looked up just as Darkstripe and Sandspirit came in, looking worried and agitated. "What happened?" the deputy demanded, staring at Heartseeker with mounting anger brimming in his eyes.
"Nothing," Yellowfang muttered, licking the blood from her fangs. "I was just showing this young one an example of Clan loyalty. I think she got the message."
Darkstripe looked over at the still down Heartseeker and nodded, still unsure but Yellowfang and looked at him as much as she was able. "Don't worry, young'un, I can handle myself. These bones still have plenty of fight in them!"
With that, Darkstripe finally left and Yellowfang turned to Heartseeker, prodding her hard in the ribs with her claws, her eyes turning to flint as the younger molly moved. "I may not like her, but as I told Darskstripe, I am still loyal to her and this Clan. I will not let you kill her!"
Heartseeker groaned softly and carefully shook her head, wincing as blood still flowed down her neck. "I understand," she croaked, making sure to move as far as she could from Bluestar. Yellowfang snorted at that before going to get some cobwebs and other herbs to help the tabby.
Heartseeker was set on licking her own wounds and eyed the herbs with a bit of hesitation but after Yellowfang bit into one of the leaves to prove that they were okay, she was soothed and allowed the healer to work.
"So, do you know why you're here?" Yellowfang asked after she had finished patching Heartseeker up. When the younger cat, weary of her, only shook her head instead of talking, Yellowfang out of a soft laugh.
"Well then, I won't leave you in suspense. You need to be punished for hurting our leader, so our deputy decided that in order to atone for that, you will take care of Bluestar."
Heartseeker was sniffed at the herb/cobweb mixture that Yellowfang slathered on her wound but her head shot towards the old fela once she was done speaking. "What?!"
"That's right." Yellowfang gave a mocking purr, her tail waving. "You need to fix what you broke, do to say and both Darkstripe and I both decided that this would be the best time to do that."
Heartseeker opened her mouth to say something but no sound came out. She could only look down down at Bluestar as Yellowfang then moved to patch the leader's wounds. Heartseeker watched, still trying to find the words until Yellowfang broke through her thoughts. "We thought it would be better if it was someone from the outside, someone Bluestar didn't know, that could help her. We want her to see that while we are demons, we are not her enemies."
"And you think having the one injure her also be the one to nurse her back to health is a good idea?" Heartseeker finally replied, looking at the older demon and shaking her head.
"You have a point and we did discuss but it's the best shot we have. If Bluestar turns over a new leaf than maybe it will help the rest of the Clan turn a better attitude towards us."
Heartseeker bowed her head at that, closing her eyes to think. What could she say to that? On the one paw, it really wasn't her problem. If she really wanted to, she could refuse and walk away. But on the other, her beloved sister was here, they had just found each other again and she did not want to leave Firepaw's side so soon.
And if she could give her loved nest-sibling a truly loving environment free from internal strife, then she would do it. Taking a deep breath, Heartseeker opened her eyes and looked straight at Yellowfang. She then gave her answer without a shred of doubt.
"I'll do it."
XxXx
Darkstripe had walked away at Yellowfang's insistence that she had things handled with the rogue they picked up, but his tail lashed and his fur spiked the further he got away. Eventually, he stopped and looked back to the medicine den, trying to see with anything was amiss. But then, it was hard to tell anything from this distance.
He was so focused on the medicine cat den, he didn't notice Lionheart sneaking up on him with a playful smirk. That is, until the felt the larger warrior pin him lightly to the ground and touch his nose to Darkstripe's.
"Lionheart! What are you doing?" Darkstripe gasped out, though his surprise quickly turned to merriment as he tried to bite at Lionheart's ear, only for the golden warrior to move away.
"You seemed out of it so I thought it would be fun to pounce on you. Are you okay?" The large demon smiled some more as he got off Darkstripe and helped him to his paws. The two stayed close together until Graypaw interrupted by clearing her throat, smirking at the two of them.
Darkstripe ducked his head and shuffled his paws at the apprentice while Lionheart simply shook his head in good humor and spent his apprentice off. "Oh, go and do whatever it is you apprentices do. Have some time to relax, Graypaw, you earned it."
The smaller half-demon chuckled to herself before running off, going to join Firepaw and Ravenflight in a playfight while the two older warriors settled closer to each other.
"I'm worried, about that demon I brought in the Clan. I know she is Firepaw's sister and Firepaw herself has proved that she can adjust to Clan life but..."
"You must trust your own judgement, Darkstar. I know you only want to do what is right, and no matter what your choice is, I and the rest of my brothers are behind you." Lionheart reassured him, giving the dark furred tabby's cheek a comforting lick.
Darkstripe purred softly at that but his whiskers twitched as he did so. "I told you before, don't call me Darkstar."
Lionheart only smiled, "Of course, Darkstar."
XxXX
Bluestar stirred and painfully woke up, her neck and shoulder felt like they were on fire. As she picked up her head and looked around, she saw the tabby molly who attacked her speaking quietly to Yellowfang, who was patting a pile of herbs between them.
Bluestar hissed loudly and tried to rise to her paws, but her shoulder throbbed painfully and her legs buckled, and yet she fought through the pain and tried to crawl over to the tabby. Yellowfang was by her side in an instant, placing a paw on her uninjured shoulder while the tabby silently stood and looked slightly above her head, Bluestar noticed this and hissed even louder before trying and failing to get to her paws again.
"Bluestar, enough!" Yellowfang growled at her, pinning her harder as Bluestar continued to struggle. "She's here to help you! You don't have to be afraid!"
"Help me?! She nearly tried to kill me! I don't want her anywhere near me!" Bluestar yowled, glaring hatefully at Heartseeker who remained quiet.
The demon then moved forward, bowing her head towards Bluestar and choosing her words carefully. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I hope that in time, you will find it to forgive me. I hope to show myself better to you by helping to mend your hurts and easing your pain. Please, great hunter, I wish to atone."
Bluestar was about to try and claw at this demon who hurt her but looking at Yellowfang and feeling her neck and shoulder throb once again, the blue-gray molly reluctantly turned her head away with a growl.
"I don't want you anywhere near me! There's no way a demon like you can prove to be better, not in this lifetime or the next!"
"Darkstripe has already agreed to let her stay and he was the one to decree that this demon help you." Yellowfang muttered softly, giving Heartseeker a tiny nod. Bluestar's eyes widened at this and she growled louder.
"Who is Darkstripe to decide such things?! Does he intend to put my life in danger?! No, I will not have it! I am the leader, I decide what is right and what goes on in my Clan! You! Get out of my sight! Get out! Out! OUT!"
Heartseeker didn't need any further prodding. She swiftly left the den and didn't look back. It seems that Darkstripe's plan had failed before it even had a chance to begin. Heartseeker shook herself then headed off to where her sister and her friends were playing. Despite what Yellowfang had said, Heartseeker didn't think she would want to stay for much longer. As she watched her sister play, she wondered if she would ever truly understand why Firepaw wanted to be a part in a place like this.