Warriors: High Tides

Chapter 18

"Leave him," Ice said with a growl. "He's better off with the city cats anyway."

Bramblefoot huffed softly, following her new friend. She was thinking; they were to found the New Clans in a timely fashion. Perhaps, with Gorsewhisker leaving, StarClan had signaled for them to stay.

They caught a few bits of prey; some mice, a couple of rats (yuch!), and a few twoleg remnants of meats in the shining silver stones.

As they walked back, Bramblefoot thought back to Sun. The handsome black tom, the successor to the Stoneteller position. I'll miss him, she thought sadly. He was such a nice cat.

She looked at Ice, thinking. He, too, was handsome; but not so as Sun. She sighed and shook the thoughts out of her head. I'm a Medicine Cat. I shouldn't be thinking like this.

"Something wrong?" Ice asked in concern, flicking his tail.

"No, I'm fine," Bramblefoot meowed.

As they approached the den, Thistlepaw exited the den expectantly. "Hey," She meowed happily. "You got prey! And so much of it!"

Bramblefoot smiled widely. "I know!" She laughed, setting it down. "Eat up, Thistlepaw, and take some in to Waspwhisker! Enjoy this!"

Thistlepaw grinned widely and took two plump rats, taking them into the den. Waspwhisker yowled in delight from within, sounding happier than she ever had in the moon Bramblefoot had known her.

"You guys had a shortage of food in the Valley, huh?" Ice meowed sadly.

"We lost many," Bramblefoot sighed. "Unborn kits, apprentices, elders and queens..." She sighed, dipping her head. Would the cats lost by the famine follow us from above? She wondered.

Then something hit her: Will I be able to converse with our Warrior Ancestors? She'd never considered that before. The Moonpool wasn't nearly as close as it had been with ThunderClan's landscape, where the trail was literally the thing splitting ThunderClan and WindClan.

She took a mouse for herself and stepped into the den, curling up. "Leave some for Rookheart and Ivystream," She called out to Ice.

"Got it!" Ice grinned as he stepped in, twitching his brown tail. Bramblefoot silently remarked how odd he looked; his fur was cinnamon-brown, but toward his nose, ears, paws, and tail, it grew dark brown like her own tabby stripes. And his eyes were sky blue.

Together they sat and waited politely for Rookheart to return. When he did, he yowled in delight at the prey and took up a small rat, sitting among them.

"Where's Ivystream?" Ice asked worriedly, flicking his tail.

"She wanted to check something out," Rookheart explained. "She promised to be back soon, since she wanted to see if something was edible or not."

"She knows where we are," Waspwhisker purred confidently. "Let's eat!"

"Don't you think we should thank StarClan first?" Thistlepaw asked. As Ice shuffled, she added, "And the Tribe of Endless Hunting?"

"Yes, we should," Rookheart nodded with a smile, looking up at Bramblefoot. "Shall you lead the prayer?"

Bramblefoot felt her heart skip as she was put on the spot. How do you pray to StarClan formally? As she looked at all the cats, from different lands, she decided it was, indeed, her duty. She was the only Medicine Cat; closest cat to StarClan.

"May S-... our Ancestors protect us as we explore this new land, and found our new Clans," She meowed, soft and respectful. "We have taken you on a long and hard journey through strange skies. We want you to bear with us in the coming Moons. We made this journey for all those we lost in famine; from the smallest fetal kit to the eldest cats in the Clan, we respect and remember you, even those that feel bitter and cheated. Keep this food untainted, keep our cats safe - and keep our Birth Clans and Tribe fed."

Everyone let out a soft mrrow of agreement, and Bramblefoot found herself relieved that Ice hadn't been offended by her words.

"Now can we eat?" Waspwhisker asked sheepishly.

"Dig in," Bramblefoot nodded with a broad smile, and watched as her accompaniments dug into the meal. She bent and took a hulking bite out of her mouse, her belly tightening with bliss as the food slipped down her throat. We hunted almost all of the mice in ThunderClan's territory! she thought, savoring the foodstuffs. It was so filling...

"Maybe we should just rest here for a while," Waspwhisker purred happily, rolling on her fat belly. "My kits are sleeping at last."

Bramblefoot smiled softly, laying down. "Of course," She meowed.

And just like that, the world slowly turned black....