Dawnpelt's Anger

Chapter 4

She's just scared. Jayfeather told himself, drifting off to sleep.

~~~

Jayfeather awoke to hear birds chirping jubilantly in the trees. He got to his paws, feeling fully rested and ready to go. When he padded out of the tree hollow he felt the hot sun touch his pelt.

So much for getting up early.

Jayfeather lifted his nose, scenting for prey. He caught the scent of a chipmunk and weaved his way through the forest towards it. He struggled to remember all the techniques he had overheard the warriors use.

Keep the tail up, he remembered, And stay upwind of the prey.

He crept forward, keeping his ears trained on the sound of it scuffling among a tree root. He pinpointed the scent and leaped towards it, claws outstretched. He heard it squeal in terror and it dashed to the left. The squeal only made hunting it easier.

Jayfeather dashed after the noisy chipmunk and pounced on top of it, pinning it down with his claws. He nipped it's throat and felt satisfied at the snap of it.

I caught it! He thought, surprise and pride swelling through him.

He had forgotten how great it felt to hunt. He picked up the chipmunk and made his way back to the tree hollow.

"You caught a chipmunk!" Briarlight sounded impressed, "Nice catch!"

"It's quite scrawny." Dawnpelt commented, sniffing disdainfully, "Not a very clean catch either. Your claws pierced it all over."

"Stop complaining! Prey is prey, and Jayfeather is a medicine cat! He doesn't hunt as often as you!" Briarlight hissed defensively.

"I was just observing." Dawnpelt meowed, widening her eyes innocently, "We won't have much prey in the mountains. It's too cold."

Briarlight just growled and padded up to Jayfeather. "Want to share?"

"Sure." Jayfeather meowed, dropping the chipmunk.

"Have fun sharing." Dawnpelt snickered, "One bite each and it'll be gone."

Jayfeather ignored her comment and bit into the small chipmunk. He was beginning to question how they would survive the journey ahead.

A blind cat, a paralyzed cat, and a cat who I barely trust, on a long journey to the mountains, Jayfeather thought. They would be defenseless. And why does Starclan want Dawnpelt to come?

"Why are we going to the mountains?" Briarlight asked after swallowing a mouthful, "Does the tribe need help?"

"No. The ancient cats want me to go." Jayfeather replied, not wanting to mention the stick. It would seem pointless to her to journey so far just for a stick.

Dawnpelt snorted with disbelief but didn't say anything. When they finished the chipmunk, the three cats left the tree hollow and continued walking. Jayfeather felt exposed out in the open without the trees surrounding him.

No place to hide. He thought, sniffing for any strange scents.

They started heading down a grassy hill when Jayfeather heard they were approaching a Thunderpath. They stood at the edge of it, the terrible stench of the monsters hitting them.

Jayfeather could also pick up a trace of fear scent coming from Briarlight.

"We'll have to cross." Dawnpelt observed, pointing a cream paw at the mountain peaks far ahead, "It's the fastest way to the mountains."

Briarlight dug her claws into the rough earth. "I don't know if I can make it." She fretted.

"No one's getting hit." Jayfeather promised, trying to sound confident.

"Who's going first?" Dawnpelt asked, determination in her meow.

Jayfeather thought, then answered, "I think it would be best to all go at the same time."

"Alright." Dawnpelt replied, "Briarlight should probably be in the middle."

Jayfeather nodded with agreement and they flanked Briarlight on either side. They waited, listening for the roar of the monsters. The ground had stopped vibrating, and Jayfeather couldn't taste the smell of monsters approaching.

"Now!" Dawnpelt screeched, hurtling onto the Thunderpath with Jayfeather and Briarlight, their paw steps in sync.

Jayfeather pushed Briarlight with all his strength for her to move faster and Dawnpelt did the same. Jayfeather's heart hammered in his chest when he realized they weren't going very fast. Briarlight was having trouble dragging her hind paws on the hard, black ground. His heart nearly stopped when he suddenly heard a monster approaching quickly.

"Hurry!" he yowled, shoving Briarlight ahead of him forcefully.

He sprinted across the Thunderpath and slammed into Briarlight and they landed in some bushes at the other side of the path, Dawnpelt following. The three cats crouched, panting with exhaustion.

"We made it!" Briarlight meowed triumphantly.

"There's a lot more thunderpaths we'll have to cross." Dawnpelt warned her, "This is only the beginning."

The fresh scent of blood touched Jayfeather's nose.

"Are you hurt, Briarlight?" he asked.

"My hind legs are bleeding a little. It's nothing." She replied.

Jayfeather bent his muzzle and sniffed at it. It definitely wasn't nothing.

"We need dock leaves." He stated, heading out of the bushes and making his way across a small grassy area.

He smelled a farm up ahead with cows and horses grazing the field. In the field he could smell the fresh scent of dock.

"We're not going in there, are we?" Dawnpelt's voice startled him.

He could sense that Dawnpelt's pelt was prickling nervously.

"I'll go just to get the leaves." he replied, ducking under a wooden fence and walking through the tall grass.

Cows mooed around him, and Jayfeather forced his pelt to lie flat so that he wouldn't seem threatening. He picked his way carefully, keeping his distance from the large creatures. As he neared the tree he heard a shrill barking sound suddenly fill his ears.

Oh,no... He thought, dread searing through him.