My Life, My Story

#10 Freeze-Time Is Coming

(Cat in picture is Cloudflower)

Silverpaw stretched, wincing as pain lanced through her shoulder. Blast this wound! She thought bitterly. Fuzzypelt had taken her out training yesterday, just after Vinetail’s retirement ceremony. She had landed wrong on her shoulder during battle training and had to stop for the day. Fuzzypelt then instructed her that she was not to do any sort of training or hunting that might injure her shoulder further. She sighed and heaved herself to her paws, giving her pelt a shake to loosen the bits of moss and feather stuck to her soft silver fur. She shivered and glanced around the medicine cats’ den ‘healing cave,’ as Juniperpaw called it, which was completely empty now that the warriors’ den was rebuilt. Fluffing up her pelt against the cold of the empty den she quickly limped down the short tunnel into the medicine cats’ clearing, where she found Fernshade and her sister, Juniperpaw, leaning over a pile of sharp-smelling herbs.

                “No, Juniperpaw.” Fernshade sighed, sounding a bit inpatient. “This is daisy, not ragwort. You should know that by now.” She added scornfully.

                “Sorry Fernshade.” Juniperpaw muttered. “I’ll go get the ragweed.” She stood up, tail and ears drooping, and padded off toward the side of the cave, where Cloudflower had moved the herbs so they were easier to access during all the fighting.

Silverpaw limped quickly over to Juniperpaw’s side. “What’s going on?” She asked her eyes wide with concern for her sister. “What’s bothering you?”

                Juniperpaw turned on her sister, lashing her tail with uncharacteristic anger. “What isn’t there to be bothered about?” She snapped, her lips beginning to curl back in a snarl. “Half our Clan is dead, and Shiningstar doesn’t even care enough to let us go sit a simple one night vigil. Shiningstar doesn’t care about anything but fighting NightClan anymore.” Her voice rose to a wail. “She says it’s to protect us but it’s not!”

                Silverpaw leaned forward and licked her sister quickly between the ears. “StarClan is watching out for us. NightClan could have wiped us out when they attacked our camp- easy. But they didn’t. They only wanted to warn us off. If Shiningstar realizes that, things will get back to normal.” She meowed, trying her best to reassure Juniperpaw.

                Juniperpaw shook her head helplessly and picked the few daisy leaves from the messy piles of herbs stacked at the edge of the clearing. “I just wish I could do something.” She sighed.

                Silverpaw gave her another encouraging lick. “You’re doing all you can.”

                I yawned loudly. I was glad Silverpaw and I had gotten to talk earlier that morning, before she had been rushed off to help mend the apprentices’ den, and I had been ordered by Cloudflower to finish the mixture for Sunstripe’s aching bones, then go out and collect as many herbs as I could.

                Hornetsting dashed up to me with a mouthful of snakeroot. “What about this?” The jet black warrior asked enthusiastically.

                I gave the herbs a quick sniff then motioned toward our growing pile. “Great. Try and find some more ragweed, we’ll need as much as we can get, if there are any more battles.”

                Hornetsting stiffened. “There had better not!” He growled. “If Shiningstar tries to send us into another battle, I won’t go.” He mewed angrily. “Gingerclaw was my sister, and she died because of these pointless battles.” I couldn’t help but find myself agreeing with the young tom, but I said nothing, and began to rake juniper berries off of a bush with my claws, careful not to burst any of the berries.