Warriors: Rosetail's Promise

C H A P T E R   4

“Well? What happened?” Ashenheart asked for the third time. She could be really annoying when bored to death in the camp.

“Nothing,” Dustclaw and Lilyfrost responded at the same time. Dustclaw continued, “We just saw four cats sleeping. Couldn’t identify any of them. We weren’t even sure that it was the same group.”

“You went to that giant tree to the north? Yeah, it was,” Ashenheart said quickly.

“You met one cat. We met four. We didn’t scent the cat the first time, so we don’t know if it was the same cat,” Lilyfrost said crossly, and a bit loudly. “Got it?”

“I’m not a mouse-brain!” Ashenheart exclaimed. “I’m just trying to help! Did any of them look like Viridian?”

“We couldn’t tell very well, it was practically moon-high and we were too far away!” Lilyfrost shouted, her brown pelt bristling. Lilyfrost got angry easily, but her yowl was worse than her bite.

“One of them looked slick and short-furred, like Viridian, so maybe it was the same cat you met,” Dustclaw offered.

“Maybe! I swear to StarClan, if I had gone, this mystery would be solved!” Ashenheart yowled toward where the sun would be if they were outside.

“All of you, shut up!” Ravenwing yelled over all of them. They all flinched at the big cat’s voice, but the point was served, so she quieted down. “Ashenheart, I know you’re the most restless warrior in SunClan, but you’re overwhelming Lilyfrost and Dustclaw, and most of all myself.”

Ashenheart’s tail drooped as she looked to the ground, ashamed. “Sorry,” Ashenheart said.

“I get it, being cooped up in here ought to make you itch for something to do,” Dustclaw sympathized.

“Can’t I leave now?” Ashenheart asked Ravenwing. “Exciting things are going on, and I’m stuck in here, why?”

“I just wanted to make sure the cuts didn’t get infected,” Ravenwing explained. She would have treated the leg for possible infection the day before, but SunClan’s resources were too low to waste them if they weren’t necessary. “I think you’re alright. You may go.”

Ashenheart walked out slowly, muttering “Thank you, StarClan” as she left. All the other cats watched her leave.

“Who ruffled her fur?” Dustclaw said, even though he knew the answer. He turned to Ravenwing. “Well, I’m getting hungry. I’ll be back afterward.”

“See you later,” Ravenwing said as Dustclaw left, Lilyfrost following silently. This left Ravenwing alone for a while. A while, meaning until Maplepaw walked in, a couple moments later.

“I thought you were back with Lilacpelt,” Ravenwing mewed, surprised at the ‘paw’s appearance.

“Well, I just wanted to stop in and check on our silent friend, but she’s apparently invisible now too,” Maplepaw said crossly as he walked into the back of the den. Why he hated Moonkit so much, Ravenwing couldn’t even guess. 

Ravenwing looked around, pretending like she didn’t notice that Moonkit wasn’t in the den. “Huh. Where did she go?” Ravenwing asked rhetorically. She knew Moonkit had left, but thought she was just wandering around camp.

“No idea,” Maplepaw said. This aroused Ravenwing’s suspicious side, but she kept it hidden. We have enough foes outside the Clan, no need for inside trouble too.

“You sure you don’t have any idea?” Ravenwing said jokingly.

“You mean, I hid or killed her? No! How could I do that? Just ask Lilacpelt!” Maplepaw was clearly scared of what Ravenwing was supposedly insinuating, which would be natural, except it wasn’t serious.

“Then in that case, you won’t care if I tell Frozentail, right?” Ravenwing asked, pointing her body toward the exit. “At least, voice my suspicions that Moonkit might have been taken.”

“I promise, I didn’t do anything to Moonkit,” Maplepaw said, struggling to calm down.

“I didn’t think so.” Ravenwing walked outside. “I’m at least going to look around camp for her. I hope she’s just wandering around.” She knew she wasn’t, unless she was sleeping in Cherrystar’s den.

“Need any help?” Maplepaw asked.

“No, not really,” Ravenwing said. She had to look quickly, yes, but if Moonkit was in the camp, there were not very many places she would be.

She started by going straight to Cherrystar’s den. Nobody was inside, not even Cherrystar. Then, she checked the nursery, figuring she might like to hang out around Dawnkit and her siblings since they were similar in age. Lilacpelt was in there with two of her kits, but no Moonkit.

“What are you looking for?” Lilacpelt asked, looking up from grooming Leafkit.

“Moonkit has disappeared,” Ravenwing said. “I was thinking she might be in here with Leafkit and the others.”

“Well, she was here. Mousekit ran off to show her something,” Lilacpelt remembered. “They went down to the giant maple tree in the south at around sun-high.”

Oh, of course, Ravenwing thought. That’s, what, a fox-length from where Ashenheart was wounded and Lilyfrost and Dustclaw found the loner family? She ran outside, but not before saying “Thank you” to Lilacpelt for the help. Ravenwing didn’t stop running until she reached the tree.

“Alright, Moonkit, Mousekit, come out, come out, wherever you are,” Ravenwing said as she looked around the tree.

Suddenly, something fell from above. Ravenwing narrowly dodged it and nearly clawed its pelt off before realizing it was a fallen Mousekit. “Okay, okay, sorry!” the young kit yelled.

Ravenwing sheathed her claws, feeling a bit mouse-brained. Moonkit bounded down from the tree and walked around to Ravenwing, a look of guilt on her face.

“I’m sorry,” Ravenwing said. “I just was worried about you since you hadn’t shown up at camp since sun-high.”

“We were just climbing trees!” Mousekit said proudly. Moonkit nodded in agreement. “We saw those big cats Lilacpelt warned us about, but they didn’t see us from up high.”

“Did you see where they were going?” Ravenwing asked. Moonkit pointed her body back almost in the same direction Ravenwing had come from.

“How did you remember that? That was right when we got here!” Mousekit marveled.

“Thank you,” Ravenwing said. “Now come on, before the foxes come.” Moonkit seemed a bit confused at the figure of speech, but both kits followed the large medicine cat back to camp. When they got there, Ravenwing called the first cat she saw over. This was Goldenfur.

“Will you make sure these two kits don’t get into any more trouble?” Ravenwing asked the tom.

“Sure,” Goldenfur said.

“Aw, c’mon!” Mousekit wailed. “Why can’t I hang out with Graywolf?”

“Oh, so you actually like hanging out with our elder?” Goldenfur asked. “Well, just wait a couple moons and you’ll be checking him for ticks.” He chuckled. Mousekit’s eyes widened with fear. “C’mon, I’m just kidding. Everyone likes Graywolf’s stories,” Goldenfur reassured the kit.

“At least someone gets it! Dawnkit says the same thing you did!” Mousekit said.

“I’ll talk some sense into her,” Goldenfur said. “Come on.” The two soon-to-be-apprentices followed behind Goldenfur.

Ravenwing herself had other business to attend to. She walked into Cherrystar’s den, where there was a sleeping Clan leader. She was twitching in her sleep.

“I don’t want to know what it is that she’s dreaming about,” Ravenwing thought out loud. Of course, she didn’t realize she vocalized the thought until Cherrystar bolted awake.

“What in the depths of the Dark Forest are you doing?” Cherrystar asked fearfully.

“Just checking on you,” Ravenwing said. “You’re quite tired for it not even being sundown.”

“I was just napping!” Cherrystar practically screamed. She still sounded a bit tired.

“Aaaaand you had no sleep last night,” Ravenwing determined. It was obvious enough that Cherrystar didn’t object.

Then, Ravenwing saw a flicker at the edge of her vision. StarClan? Now? She chuckled at the thought of the weird time to visit as she turned.

It was not someone Ravenwing wanted to see.

Nettlewhisker.

“You see this?” Ravenwing whispered to Cherrystar.

“Y-Yeah…” she stuttered. “She w-was saying something when you woke me up…”

The caramel-furred cat was grooming herself as if a recently deceased medicine cat was a regular sight in SunClan.

“Uh...why are you here?” Ravenwing said after a moment. Nettlewhisker looked to Ravenwing with disgust.

“I was trying to ask the grown-up here about this cat you two keep complaining to us about,” Nettlewhisker spat. The StarClan cat looked at both of them as if the leader and medicine cat were kits.

“R-Rosetail?” Cherrystar said, visibly shaking as if cold. Have I ever reacted like that to our ancestors visiting? Ravenwing asked herself.

“Yes. You probably already figured this out, but we know absolutely nothing about the current whereabouts of Rose, except that she isn’t in StarClan. Or the Dark Forest,” Nettlewhisker added, glaring at Ravenwing as she said it.

“Well, neither do we,” Ravenwing said. “Cherrystar’s been paranoid that Rosetail’s gonna come back and kill SunClan, and I’ve only seen her in my dreams once, and she slit my throat.” Just speaking of it reminded Ravenwing of the pain as she woke up the day before.

“So this whole thing is a mystery. The only thing we know is that Rose is still alive and will attack soon, if your story’s true.” She almost bounded away until Ravenwing yelled to stop.

“What more could you ask that you can’t ask once the sun has set?” Nettlewhisker asked as she slowly turned to face Ravenwing. She had a point, Ravenwing knew that StarClan cats only stayed around in the regular world as long as they had to.

“Never mind,” Ravenwing said. Nettlewhisker walked away quickly and disappeared beyond the entrance to Cherrystar’s den. Ravenwing then promptly yawned and stretched.

“You’re always tired after talking to StarClan,” Cherrystar chuckled.

“For a moment,” Ravenwing said with a hint of annoyance at how well the older cat took the shock of a vision from StarClan. “And how good are you at taking your nightmares?”

“Well, considering you basically went to the Dark Forest the last time you had one…” Cherrystar trailed off.

“Oh, you want me to put deathberries in your poultice next time you need healing,” Ravenwing barely managed not to laugh. This was how they used to talk...before Nettlewhisker...Ravenwing didn’t continue that line of thought.

“Well, I mean, I do have six lives too many,” Cherrystar said playfully. “I guess that’s one way of handling it.”

“Probably not,” Ravenwing yawned again.

“Okay, I think you need rest,” Cherrystar said.

“I’m the medicine cat,” Ravenwing tried to joke. It didn’t sound very convincing. “But I agree. It’s gotta be close to sun-down.”

“Yeah,” Cherrystar said. “Goodnight.”

“‘Night,” Ravenwing yawned yet again as she left Cherrystar’s den. It was just after sun-down, just as Ravenwing had guessed. She walked into her den…

...and found Moonkit in her bed. She was awake, but trying to fall asleep.

“C’mon, Moonkit,” Ravenwing muttered. She picked up the kit, who merely sighed. Ravenwing set her down next to the bed, then laid down in it and went to sleep.