Chapter One, Part Four

“Catch anything?” Brightheart’s calm and content mew lurched Lilypaw out of her dark thoughts.

            Leafpool quietly answered, “No.”

            Thornclaw shrugged. “If that’s what you’re cross about, you’ll live.”

            “Let’s head back to camp,” Brightheart, the patrol leader, decided thoughtfully, flicking her tail at the daydreaming Lilypaw. “It’s alright. Thornclaw and I caught a squirrel each, so Graystripe will have something too.”

            When they arrived back at camp, they found Bramblestar arranging the group of cats to go to the Gathering early.

            “Millie, Lilypaw… Foxleap and Snowpaw… Spiderleg, Birchfall, Whitewing… Ivypool, Dovewing, Bumblestripe… and Blossomfall. Squirrelflight, Jayfeather, Briarlight too of course.”

            Lilypaw smiled at hearing her name. She couldn’t wait to go to her first Gathering! It almost made her forget all about the issue with Seedpaw.

            Speaking of Seedpaw… Lilypaw thought, glancing around. Millie had told her she could eat anytime now that the sky was darkening, and the queens, kits, and elder had eaten from the days’ catches. However, Lilypaw decided to wait and finish off more important matters first.

            The dark tabby stuck her head inside the apprentices’ den, craning her neck to see in the dim light. “Seedpaw?” she asked uncertainly, padding in more.

            Lilypaw could make out an aphotic, shaded figure sitting on its haunches and sobbing silently, body shuddering. Its pointed ears and the whiskers growing out the sides of its face indicated that the form was indeed a cat.

            “Seedpaw, it’s Lilypaw. Please speak to me,” Lilypaw insisted, advancing nearer to the cat, who she confirmed to be her sister because of the familiar scent that bathed her tongue.

            But Seedpaw didn’t respond, not even from a prod. “Seedpaw, are you alright? Seedpaw, talk to me! Please!” Lilypaw cried in alarm, shoves getting harder and voice rising with each word.

            Suddenly, another blackish, caliginous silhouette appeared beside Seedpaw. It ambulated toward Lilypaw, and as it approached closer to her, she noticed stars glimmering and shimmering in its fur- this was a cat too.

            “Lilypaw.” A voice spoke, and the starry cat paced to face her. Lilypaw saw it was a spirit from StarClan. The cat’s smell was very recognizable, but Lilypaw didn’t recall seeing this cat before. Only one description she had been told of before matched this she-cat’s- it was Honeyfern!

            “Lilypaw, you need to leave Seedpaw alone right now,” Honeyfern rambled on, voice soft and soothing like honey going down a warrior’s sore throat.

            For some reason, Lilypaw didn’t even bother to protest- she didn’t feel like objecting. In fact, she was starting to feel quite sleepy.

            Honeyfern padded at her, and Lilypaw realized lazily that she was backing into her nest. Her older sister lashed her tail, and that forced Lilypaw to plop down in her nest. Honeyfern stared at her, and Lilypaw’s eyelids became heavy and started to droop very low.

            “You will sleep. Leafpool’s advice will not work at this time- you can talk to Seedpaw later. Sweet dreams, Lilypaw,” Honeyfern finished before blackness surrounded Lilypaw and the creamy tabby returned to StarClan.

            Lilypaw and Millie bounded, side by side, out of camp, sandwiched between Snowpaw and Spiderleg.

            “I see you took a pre-Gathering nap,” Millie remarked at the dark tabby’s yawns, simpering slightly as she and her apprentice trotted onward. Snowpaw snorted next to Lilypaw, and Spiderleg simply stared straight ahead at the back of Birchfall’s tabby-striped head.

            Lilypaw shrugged, stealing a gasp of crisp, fresh air from the mountains to power her aching muscles. She wasn’t about to tell her Clanmates how Honeyfern put her to sleep. It was strange- according to stories told to her and Seedpaw by Cinderheart and Poppyfrost, Honeyfern was a nice, sweet, lovely cat, but the way that her older sister had lured Lilypaw into the dream world was strange and ominous- exactly the opposite of the tales.

            Perhaps she is angry deep down inside and wants revenge for her death? Honeyfern died almost instantly when she was bitten by a snake a while ago before Lilypaw and Seedpaw were born. Honeyfern was protecting Briarkit, now Briarlight, who later got injured anyway. The creamy tabby and Berrynose were in love, and soon after she died, Berrynose took another mate, Honeyfern’s sister Poppyfrost, and they had kits: Molefoot and Cherrystem. Lilypaw was told that Honeyfern and Berrynose were planning to have kits around the time of her death.

            Lilypaw pushed it away when Millie murmured in her ear, “There it is.”

            The dark tabby glanced up and felt excitement pulse in her paws and the blood roar in her ears. How truly awesome the Gathering Island was! Trees dotted the distant lone chunk of land near the banks of the lake, but one great tree was the most distinctive part of the Island.

            “It’s amazing,” she breathed in reply to her mentor.

            Millie nodded. “I’ve been here before, but it looks especially interesting at this time of night. We’re here a little bit earlier than usual.”