Warriors what ifs: Reasons to Be A Medicine Cat (Discontinued)

Chapter 2 - Screams in the Night

Cinderpelt was walking through a misty forest, unsure as to what she was doing here.  Suddenly, she heard a soft whimpering.  Slowly, she crept toward the sound.  As she came closer, it turned into a strong wailing: "StarClan help me!" followed by the yowl of a cat in pain.

Cinderpelt tried to go faster, but she never reached the cat who cried out to her in pain. A flash of dark tortoiseshell fur blurred past somewhere in the undergrowth, but Cinderpelt couldn't identify the mysterious cat. "Quick! You're the only one who can hear her, Cinderpelt! You must go to her, or StarClan will be welcoming a new member!" Confused, Cinderpelt ran faster, but she never seemed to get anywhere. At one point, the yowling seemed to be coming from behind her, so she turned around and headed back the way she had come. She raced in whatever direction she could, searching for the cat who had called out.

Eventually, she awoke in her own nest with a jolt, but the wailing did not silence. Instead, it seemed to be sliding away in the distance, and she jumped to her paws. She stumbled out of the warriors den and rushed into Bluestar's den.

"Bluestar, Bluestar! Wake up, wake up!"

Bluestar sat up in her nest, blinking sleepily. "What is it Cinderpelt? What could possibly be so wrong that you just had to wa-" She broke off, ears pricked, listening intently to the now quite soft wailing which was slipping away into the night. Then she sprang to her paws.  "Cinderpelt, grab Fireheart, Graystripe, and Tigerclaw and bring them to me.  I need to explain what's happening."

Cinderpelt nodded, and raced out of Bluestar's den, prepared for a fight. She crept into the warriors den in a rush, tripping over other cats's paws constantly.  Some cats snarled in their sleep, while others just muttered things like, "Go away," or "Hey, I'm trying to sleep here," or maybe even "Stay back, you evil badger, or you'll get a swipe on the nose you won't forget,". Finally, no longer sure where in the den she was, Cinderpelt managed to stumble back out of the den, but the warriors Bluestar had asked for were still inside, fast asleep. No, seriously, FAST asleep, some of them were moving their legs in the motion of running while they slept. (Sorry, that wasn't a very good pun.) Anyways, Cinderpelt decided to whisper for them instead. "Fireheart? Graystripe? Tigerclaw?" Eventually, all four cats sat before Bluestar, waiting for what she would say to them.

"Ahem. I believe a cat is missing from ThunderClan's camp against their will. We must check all exits in the camp and search for scents leading in or out of camp. Got that?"

"Yes, Bluestar." All four cats spoke at the same time.

When they exited Bluestar's den, the distant wailing no longer sounded any louder than a whisper would right next to them. Graystripe and Tigerclaw headed to the main camp entrance, and Fireheart took Cinderpelt along to the dirtplace tunnel.

As they sniffed for cat scent, Fireheart suddenly froze, his fur bristling in alarm. "What is it Fireheart? Who's missing?"

Fireheart ignored her and desperately ran back into camp and straight into the nursery. "Sandstorm?" he whispered. He came bounding out of the nursery in terror, and raced over to the camp entrance. "Sandstorm! Sandstorm!!!! Where are you?! Please, please be okay! Oh, Sanstorm, I love you!"

Before long, they were all back inside Bluestar's den. "We will have to go by scent," said Bluestar. "These cats may be rogues, and their scents could cover hers."

Fireheart stepped forward. "But Bluestar why would they kidnap a queen so close to kitting of all cats? Why her? WHY, WHY, WHHHYYYYYYY?????!!!!!!!!"

"Fireheart, you must calm down or we'll never get anywhere. And remember, we can NOT wake the camp, unless there is great need. So, please be quiet in my den."

Fireheart dipped his head nervously. "Yes, Bluestar."

Suddenly, Tigerclaw spoke. "Bluestar, excuse me for interrupting, but it doesn't sound like a wise decision to send all of the most important cats along n this mission."

"You're right, Tigerclaw, I will stay here with the clan." Cinderpelt didn't join the debate, but from the look on Tigerclaw's face, she would guess that he had been implying for him to stay and Bluestar go. "Anyways, off you go."

The three cats hurried into the forest through the dirtplace tunnel, and began to twist and turn as they followed the scents of Sandstorm and a few mysterious rogues. At some point Cinderpelt realized they were heading out of ThunderClan territory and towards two-leg place, but she said nothing. They had been walking for so long that Cinderpelt's paws were numb when suddenly screeches of fury surrounded them. A huge black and white tom came bounding towards Cinderpelt out of nowhere.  Suddenly, he was upon her. He stuck his face in hers, his foul breath stinking of crow-food.

"This is BloodClan territory mouse-brains," he snarled. "Prepare to die, tresspassers!"