"Let's get going." Shadowstar spoke up once the elders had returned from burying Shorttail and Timberpaw. There was a heavy cloud of pain and sorrow that shadowed the four Clans, there were three cats on this journey who had died and cats were still sick. Honeypaw had stayed with the sick cats all night and a lot of them were already getting worse. Rainypelt was one of the worst, she was old and about as bad as Shorttail had been.
Now Timberpaw's sister, Rabbitpaw was sick and she was already coming down with greencough. Waking up to find both Timberpaw and Shorttail dead had been incredibly painful for all medicine cats involved. Honeypaw prayed that this twolegplace would have catmint and they could find shelter to let the sick cats recover. If we continue without letting them heal I fear that we'll lose all of them.
Honeypaw looked at her own sick Clanmates, Snakewhisker and Squirreltail. Larkpaw was still torn apart over the death of both Pikepaw and Sorrelpaw, Honeypaw couldn't imagine what would happen if she lost her mother as well. I have to keep Squirreltail alive, I can't watch Larkpaw be in pain any longer. Honeypaw watched Snakewhisker limp alongside Pebblestep, luckily he didn't seem to be as sick as the others. Sagekit also wasn't as sick as the others which Honeypaw was grateful for. Last thing we need is a dead kit, they give us hope.
Honeypaw was also thankful that Sagekit had been the only sick kit, all the others including the newly born ones had remained healthy. Thank StarClan for that. Timberpaw however had been quite young, younger than even Larkpaw.
Honeypaw joined up with Pebblestep and the other medicine cats, she tried to meet Blackpaw's gaze but he was staring at his paws. I know what it's like to lose a cat. Honeypaw thought back to Bramblepelt, not wanting to sleep due to his condition and waking up to find him dead. Blackpaw had wanted to stay up but the others, including Honeypaw had convinced him to sleep. I know what he's feeling, but I also know he wouldn't have been able to do anything anyway.
Letting Blackpaw be, Honeypaw walked beside Pebblestep as the Clans gathered to leave. The sick cats stayed near the medicine cats so they could keep an eye on any cat in case they look to be in any worse condition. Once every cat was accounted for, the Clans left their cave towards the twolegplace, Rainears and the rest of last night's patrol assured them that it wasn't far.
They hadn't been travelling for very long when Honeypaw sat the twolegplace through the trees. It wasn't very big, probably one of the smallest ones they had seen yet. Honeypaw hoped that they would be able to find shelter and catmint. The Clans were eager to reach the twolegplace, but the leader's had decided that they wouldn't go to deep into the twolegplace and only patrols would go deeper inside of them.
The Clans neared the edge of the twolegplace and Honeypaw instantly caught the scent of cats, and it was strong. "There's a lot of cats around here." Dawnstar spoke up. "Be on the lookout, hopefully they're just harmless kittypets but we could run into some aggressive rouges if we're not careful."
Nearly every cat was on alert, sniffing around them. They approached the twolegplace, Honeypaw could see a fence rising up close to them and the smell of cat grew stronger. There was a shuffling in the trees around them and suddenly every cat was on alert. "We can hear you." Riverstar called into the trees, her fur bristling. "Show yourself!"
Two cats stepped out of the trees, a red brown she-cat with green eyes and a gray tabby tom with icy blue eyes. "Sorry, we didn't mean to sneak up on you." The she-cat apologized, casting a glance at the tom next to her. "I've just never seen this many cats in one group before, we weren't sure if you were hostile or not."
"We're not hostile," Dawnstar stepped forward. "We're actually looking for help."
"We can try and help." The tom replied. "My name is Night and this is my friend Juniper." Honeypaw looked closer at the two cats, they both had colorful tendrils around their necks, she was pretty sure Seedclaw had called them collars. These two were both kittypets.
"It's nice to meet you," Juniper dipped her head. "What can we help you with?"
"We have cats sick with greencough and we are in search of some catmint, we also need a shelter where we can let them recover." Shadowstar explained. "Preferably not with twolegs." Night and Juniper exchanged a confused glance.
Seedclaw stepped forward, facing the kittypets. "We need catnip, it helps cure sickness that our cats have. If there's an empty barn around here we could stay at."
"I'm not sure about any barns but I think that Harvey has some catnip in his garden." Night explained. "He lives over on the far side of the twolegplace, it's the old looking brown house at the end. It has a big tall white fence, there's a hole in the side where you can get it. Harvey is usually laying on the top of it."
"Thank you." Dawnstar dipped her head. "We'll try and find it."
"So," Night interjected. "Are you like, wild cats or something?" He tilted his head.
"We're warriors," Riverstar explained. "We used to live in a forest far from here but it began to die so we had to move. We live in four different Clans usually but we're travelling together to find our new home."
"So you live in the wild and hunt?" Juniper questioned.
"Yes we hunt and patrol our territories, we live in the forest and take care of each other." Timbertail "But we really have to get going, we have very sick cats including a sick kit."
"Then you should hurry." Night urged. "We hope you find your new home!"
"Thank you." Shadowstar dipped his head and the Clans walked around the outskirts of the twolegplace.
"At least we met some nice kittypets." Crowfur mewed to Rainears. "I was worried we'd meet some rogues or dogs. Last thing we need right now is a fight.
"You're right, let's just hope this Harvey is as nice as they were and he will give us some of that catmint." Rainears added. "And hopefully he knows somewhere we can stay." Honeypaw nodded along with the two she-cats, hoping that they would have everything they needed despite the uncertainty clawing at her chest.
The Clans walked around the edge of the twolegplace until they found the old brown house that Night had described along with the tall white fence. On top of the fence was a brown tom sunning himself.
"Excuse us!" Dawnstar called up to the cat, he lifted his head and revealed a face lined with white fur and pale amber eyes. "Are you Harvey?"
"I am Harvey." He called back. "Who are ya'll? I ain't never seen this big a' group of cats before."
"My name is Dawnstar, this is Shadowstar, Riverstar and Timbertail. We're four Clans of warriors who are travelling to find a new home. We're looking for shelter and for some catmi--catnip to treat some sick cats that we have. We were told by two kittypets named Night and Juniper that you'd be able to help."
Harve narrowed his eyes, then nodded jumping down from his fence. "Sure, I'd like to help. My garden is overgrown with catnip since my housefolk is too old to pick it. Maybe if I give some of it to ya'll it will keep the nosy cats outta my garden."
"Thank you so much, you have no idea how much this means to us." Shadowstar dipped his head.
"I ain't never turn down cats in need. Why don't some of you follow me inside to get some of that catnip for ya."
"The medicine cats should go." Timbertail suggested and at his word, Honeypaw and the other medicine cats padded through a hole in the fence. They stepped inside the garden which was filled with the mouth watering scent of catmint. Harvey wasn't joking when he said his garden was overgrown with it. There was a smaller gray fence with catmint growing through the gaps. Hope flooded Honeypaw's heart. There's enough here for every sick cat! She had to stop herself from jumping with joy.
"Thank you so much for sharing this with us." Pebblestep mewed. "You have no idea how much this means to us."
"Nah, I get it." Harvey mewed, guiding the medicine cats to the plant. "I have no use for it, I have my housefolk to care for me but I know the struggle of living in the wild. Take as much as y'all like."
The medicine cats did just that, gathering as much catmint as they could carry. Honeypaw wanted so desperately to enjoy it for herself, but she wouldn't dare. This is for Sagekit, and Rainypelt and Squirreltail. They all need much more than I do.
Harvey led them out of the garden and back to the four Clans. The leaders looked on in hope and awe as they saw how much catmint the medicine cats had. "Now, what did you say about needin' a shelter?" Harvey questioned.
"We need a place to stay while we let our cats recover." Timbertail explained. "Do you know of any place like that?"
"As a matter of fact I do." Harvey nodded. "There's a big empty barn not far from here, towards the mountains. The housefolk who used to live there left it long ago. There should be more than enough room for every single one of you.
"Thank you so much." Shadowstar dipped his head.
"However, I should warn you about something," Harvey added. "It's close to a den of coyotes."
"What are coyotes?" Dawnstar questioned.
"Have you ever seen foxes?" Dawnstar nodded. "They're like foxes but bigger and meaner. They'll kill cats without a second thought. They're scary, but they have a horrible scent that you'll be able to detect easily. If you stay in the barn and don't go too far behind it you should be okay. If you think they're nearby, hide in the barn and wait for them to leave."
"Are you sure we'll be safe?" Riverstar mewed, concern lining her voice. "Coyotes sound dangerous."
"They're dangerous alright but if stay in that barn you should be safe, they're more active at night so just be wary. Like I said, you'll smell 'em before you see 'em." Harvey added, sitting down.
"Are you sure we should go there?" Violetfur questioned Shadowstar. "Those coyotes seem dangerous."
"I think if we follow his advice we should be fine." Shadowstar mewed. "We don't have much of an option, it's close by and it will allow our sick cats to get some rest."
"I think we should go." Riverstar chimed in.
"Me too." Dawnstar added and Timbertail agreed as well. "Thank you for all your help, Harvey." Dawnstar purred. "It's invaluable to us, and I hope you know how much we appreciate it."
"I do, I just wish ya'll save travels. Hope ya'll find what you're looking for." The Clans bid farewell to Harvey and hurried in the directions of the mountains. They moved as quickly as the could, Honeypaw could feel the biting cold of snow approaching. They weren't far from the twolegplace and Harvey's home when they spotted the barn.
Night was approaching and none of them wanted to be caught out by the coyotes, so they hurried to the barn. Once the reached it, the leader's sent in some warriors to check it for any other animals inside. Honeypaw tried to smell for the coyotes but she couldn't scent anything other than the catmint.
The warriors cleared the barn and the rest of the Clans went inside. Honeypaw took a moment to look around, it was large and empty with plenty of room for every cat here, even for them to separate a little.
However, the medicine cats didn't take much time to look around. Inside the barn was large piles of hay that they made into nests for the sick cats and started treating them with catmint. Honeypaw gave a few leaves to Snakewhisker. "Thank you." He purred with a dry throat and quickly ate the leaves before settling down to sleep. The first cats to get the catmint were Rainypelt and Sagekit. Once every cat was treated, the medicine cats started helping build nests for every other cat.
"How are Sagekit and Stormheart?" Puddleclaw asked Skyfeather a few taillengths away.
"Too soon to say but Sagekit wasn't as sick as some of the others," Skyfeather replied. "I think she'll be just fine after a few days and Stormheart is strong, he'll recover as well."
"Thank you so much." Puddleclaw nuzzled her brother. "We're lucky to have you as a medicine cat."
"It's my pleasure." Skyfeather dipped his head and watched Puddleclaw return to Hailkit who had already fallen asleep in her new nest. Honeypaw watched as Haresong approached Skyfeather as well, they hadn't spoken since their earlier argument about Timberpaw's death.
"Skyfeather," She said sheepishly. "I want to apologize for what I said earlier, I was just so upset. Timberpaw was so young, I wish he didn't have to die."
"I wish he didn't either," Skyfeather lowered his head. "Blackpaw and I did everything we could to save him, but the sickness was just too great, but now that we have catmint Rabbitpaw will make a full recovery. I know I can't bring Timberpaw back but I can keep Rabbitpaw alive."
"I know, thank you." Haresong dipped her head. "It was so hard losing Grasstail in the battle against Thornstar, he never even knew about his kits." She flattened her ears. "I hope he's taking care of Timberpaw now."
"I'm sure he is, Haresong." Skyfeather rested his tail on Haresong's shoulders. "Go get some rest, I'll let you know first thing in the morning how Rabbitpaw is doing."
"Thank you." Haresong dipped her head and turned back, joining Dustpaw and Leafpaw in a nest. Honeypaw felt touched by the moment, for the first time in moons things were looking up for the Clans. Honeypaw watched Larkpaw and Rosewind curl up with Brackenpelt, surely relieved that Squirreltail would recover.
Honeypaw curled up in a nest beside Pebblestep. Blackpaw's nest was just beside hers, he was close enough that she could feel his warmth. It made Honeypaw's heart beat a little faster. She closed her eyes, dreaming of a beautiful new future with her Clanmates.