WITHERING HERBS || A Warriors Fanfiction

|| chapter twenty six

Sunlight woke Owlpaw.

The branches were woven thickly together, grasses put delicately into the areas where too much sun would stream through. Though, little holes and small pinpricks of light speckled into the den, creating a warm patch on Owlpaw's dark brown fur. Warmth spread through him as he glanced up and flinching. His eyes were not adjusted to the light. Now that he thought about it, the sunlight wasn't even that bright; the night before had just been very dark.

He stood up and stretched, giving his dark brown pelt a quick washing. His warm golden eyes glanced out of the den. For the first time in a long time, he felt well rested and fine. Breathing in the sharp, cold air of leaf-bare, he squeezed through the entrance of the den, squinting as he gazed around camp.

Instantly, he spotted Sedgestorm, Flintpath, Hazelberry, and Stonestar all chatting. Their demeanors appeared brighter than he'd seen them. Well, not Hazelberry's. Curious, he trotted over.

"Owlpaw, you're finally awake," Stonestar meowed, nodding a greeting at the apprentice.

"Yeah, I am... is there a problem? Should I have been up earlier...?" Owlpaw asked.

Flintpath looked as if he were about to explode. His tail was bushed up.

Hazelberry glanced at the tom doubtfully, sighing, "He can tell you."

"Rosemary is the cure!" trilled Flintpath, "A few days ago, I was wheezing a lot and my chest felt tight... Hazelberry told me that I was most likely getting sick and she said there was nothing we could do. After she tested the rosemary on me, she said I was cured, and that meant that the rosemary was the cure too! Here, we saved a bundle to get rid of any sickness you have," the warrior nudged a small bundle of the herb to Owlpaw's white paws, continuing, "We have so much of rosemary because it's a death herb and we have so much of it stocked up... Sedgestorm and I are going to go and tell the other Clans soon, and we'll likely bring some of the rosemary to share with them in case they don't have any."

Owlpaw studied the herb, all kinds of emotions swirling inside of him. It had sharp edges and it looked like a pine needle. Suddenly, the memory of the morning when the herb told him to go to the Moonpool pricked freshly into his mind.

"That's the herb that came to me!" He exclaimed, turning the bundle over.

"Of course, of course..." murmured Stonestar.

Owlpaw ate some of the stalks swiftly. Swallowing the rest of the bundle up with a quick motion, he gazed around. The entire camp seemed to be a little happier.

"So... now what...?" asked Owlpaw.

Hazelberry was muttering something angrily to herself, though as Owlpaw spoke, she stopped.

"Hunt? Patrol?" she suggested.

Owlpaw huffed, "I want to go tell the other Clans too."

"Well, I'm hungry, and I cannot hunt. Stonestar is a leader, he has better things to do, and Sedgestorm and Flintpath are going to tell the other Clans. Looks like you're staying," growled Hazelberry, eyes narrowed.

"Please?" Owlpaw stared meaningfully at Stonestar.

"If Hazelberry says no... then I say no..." whispered Stonestar, clearly nervous. Hazelberry inched her way over to the leader, curling her tail around him. The plain gray tom flinched as she pressed against him.

Owlpaw couldn't believe his ears, "I... What? I can't go?"

"No, you can't!" hissed Hazelberry, "Now go hunt!"

"Fine," the apprentice spat, though his voice was not angry. He glanced at Sedgestorm and Flintpath, who were slowly shuffling away towards the entrance. Owlpaw rushed past them, his fur brushing against Flintpath's, as he shoved his way into the territory.

A cold wind curled around Owlpaw as the apprentice scented the air.

This is going to be a long day.

^~^~^~^

Owlpaw scraped away snow and dirt from a mound that he'd made earlier, revealing a small mouse.

Picking the creature up, he hooked it on his claw, shifting the rabbit that was clenched between his jaws. He had been lucky to find both pieces of prey in the first place. The apprentice could already picture what would happen when he returned with the rabbit.

Shivering, the tom began to head back to camp. The sun had drifted behind a group of clouds, leaving the world dark. The clouds were not dark, though they weren't exactly fluffy and happy either. The sky had started to turn peachy-pink, the color spreading quicker than a forest fire.

Soon, he came upon the camp. Jumping lightly over a lump of snow, he entered the camp.

Owlpaw glanced around. Nobody was outside of their dens and Sedgestorm and Flintpath were definitely not back yet. Hunger pricked at his belly as he dropped off both pieces of prey in the pile. Both of his catches sat atop a frost-covered, stale-looking vole.

With a huff, he pulled the vole out of the pile and took a bite of it. The stale creature's meat did not taste delicious and the frost that covered its pelt was not pleasant, however, the feeling of eating something forced Owlpaw to finish it off. He buried the bones of the creature, wholly aware that he had not been told he could eat. Patting the earth a little bit better over its bones, he glanced at the sky.

Assuming Hazelberry and Stonestar were both in their dens, Owlpaw padded into his own den, not used to the small entrance. He squeezed past the branches, which relentlessly scraped his pelt as he brushed by. Hissing, the tom pushed forwards and tumbled into his nest.

He situated himself as darkness began to settle around him. The sky was now black with speckles of light and a moon rose slowly up into the dark sky. It barely lit up the camp, much less the den.

Darkness surrounded him, shrouding the twitching of his tail and the flicking of his ear. He was too impatient. Sedgestorm and Flintpath needed to come back soon... They couldn't stay at the other Clans' camps; they were needed here.

Owlpaw tried to stay awake to greet them when they returned, but the tom found himself slipping into slumber.