The Fourth Apprentice

Chapter 23

Jayfeather groaned as he forced his eyes open on darkness. Poppyfrost’s scent was all around him and he felt her tongue rasping busily at his scratches.

“Jayfeather, please wake up!” she begged. “Please! I can’t carry you back to the hollow on my own.”

“Wha…?” For a heartbeat Jayfeather couldn’t remember where he was, or why his Clanmate was panicking.

“Oh, thank StarClan!” Poppyfrost exclaimed. “You’re not dying! I’m so sorry I caused all this trouble,” she went on, giving him rapid licks between words. “I had no idea Breezepelt had followed me all this way.”

Breezepelt…all this way…Jayfeather realized that he could hear the gentle sound of the waterfall cascading into the Moonpool. The memory flooded back, of his battle against Breezepelt and the mysterious cat who had joined in the fight against him. And the cat who had come to his rescue. If it wasn’t for Honeyfern, I’d be crow-food.

Jayfeather struggled groggily to his paws. “I’m okay, Poppyfrost. Stop fussing.” How much does she know? he wondered. Did she see the other cats in the battle?

“But you’re not okay!” Poppyfrost still sounded distraught. “You have a really deep scratch down this side.”

“Yeah, I’ve got Breezepelt to thank for that,” Jayfeather mewed. “It’s a good thing he didn’t bring any other cats with him,” he added, wondering if Poppyfrost would mention Breezepelt’s ally.

Poppyfrost shuddered. “I know. I couldn’t believe that he would attack a medicine cat. You were so brave, Jayfeather, fighting him off all by yourself.”

Relief tingled in Jayfeather’s paws. She didn’t see the others. But there was still something she needed to know.

“Honeyfern came to me just now,” he told her.

Instantly he felt the sharp stab of the she-cat’s emotions: a mixture of hope and fear.

“Did she…did she speak to you?” Poppyfrost asked nervously.

Jayfeather nodded. “She told me that she’s delighted that you’re with Berrynose. And she said that she’ll watch over your kits.”

“Really?” Poppyfrost’s voice softened to a purr. “Oh, I’m so glad!”

“Oh, and she told me that Berrynose really loves you,” Jayfeather added.

Poppyfrost’s purr faded. “I wish I could believe that…” She sighed. “But I don’t see how Honeyfern could possibly know.”

Jayfeather stifled an exasperated hiss. “She’s a StarClan cat. She knows lots of things that you don’t.” He stopped himself from adding, mouse-brain.

“I suppose we’d better get back to camp,” Poppyfrost mewed. “I’ll help you, Jayfeather.”

“I’ll be fine, thanks.”

But as he struggled up the spiral path he became more aware of the throbbing pain in his side. His legs felt as weak as a newborn kit’s, and by the time they reached the line of thornbushes he had to lean on Poppyfrost’s shoulder.

They limped slowly down the path that led back to the forest, taking frequent rests along the way. Even though he was exhausted and in pain, Jayfeather’s mind was still working, and he began to realize just how strange it was that Breezepelt had followed Poppyfrost to the Moonpool.

Why? She never crossed into WindClan territory, and even if she had, the right thing to do would have been to chase her off. And why did Breezepelt threaten to kill her? He doesn’t hold any grudge against Poppyfrost. She’s not half-Clan, and she didn’t have anything to do with the lies Leafpool and Squirrelflight told.

Jayfeather let out a sigh. There was a lot that he didn’t know, but he needed to find it out, and quickly. The appearance of the cat he hadn’t recognized troubled him deeply.

“Are you okay? Do you want to rest again?” Poppyfrost asked.

“No, I can keep going.”

Warmth on his pelt told Jayfeather that the sun had risen, though a damp wind was sweeping over the moorland, flinging the occasional spatter of rain. The air felt heavy. His pelt prickled. There’s a storm coming. As they reached the WindClan border, Jayfeather kept tasting the air for Breezepelt’s scent, in case he was waiting to ambush them on their way home. But all he could pick up was the scent from the WindClan markers: strong and fresh, as if a patrol had been by not long before.

Poppyfrost jumped, interrupting his train of thought.

“What’s the matter?” he growled, his neck fur rising.

“Sorry, it’s nothing,” the she-cat replied. “I saw a flash of lightning over the trees, and it startled me, that’s all.”

Jayfeather forced his fur to lie flat again. Are you a scaredy-mouse kit? he scolded himself. You’ll be frightened of falling leaves next!

But the danger was real, even if it wasn’t hard on his paws right now. Jayfeather’s pelt prickled as he wondered whether the cats of the Dark Forest were watching him now. The Dark Forest, the Place of No Stars, where the spirits of cats who had not been welcomed by StarClan walked alone…

Is that where the strange cat came from? It wasn’t Tigerstar or Hawkfrost. And what did Yellowfang mean? Was she warning me there will be a war between the cats of the Dark Forest and StarClan? And if there is, will the Clans have to fight?

Jayfeather let out a sigh. “I need a rest,” he muttered, sinking into the grass beside the stream. Battered and weary, he wondered how he ever could have imagined that he had the power of the stars in his paws.

Where are Lionblaze and Dovepaw? he wondered. I hope they’re safe, and on their way home.

Sunhigh was long past by the time Jayfeather and Poppyfrost staggered back into camp. As soon as they emerged from the thorn tunnel, Jayfeather heard paw steps racing from the nursery; Berrynose’s scent, sharp with anxiety, swirled around him.

“Where have you been?” the warrior demanded. Jayfeather heard the rasp of his tongue as he licked Poppyfrost’s ears. “I’ve been worried out of my fur!”

Poppyfrost broke into a puzzled purr. “It doesn’t matter. I’m back now.”

Berrynose pressed himself close to her side. “I couldn’t bear to lose you, too,” he murmured.

“Don’t worry.” Poppyfrost’s voice shook a little. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Yes, you are. You’re going back to the nursery right now.” Berrynose nudged her. “I’ll bring you some fresh-kill, and then you’re going to rest.”

Jayfeather stayed where he was as their paw steps retreated. Daisy and Ferncloud came out of the nursery to greet Poppyfrost, and Berrynose guided her inside, still scolding her gently.

Berrynose is a real pain in the tail, and yet he gets two apparently sensible she-cats padding after him, Jayfeather thought with a shake of his head. Weird.

Turning away, he limped across the clearing to his den, but as he settled down in his nest he knew he wouldn’t sleep. He felt as restless as the trees clattering their branches above his head. There’s a storm coming, and more than rain and thunder. The forces of the Dark Forest are rising…

Finally, after squirming around in his nest, failing to get comfortable or to put his worries out of his mind, Jayfeather decided to go down to the lake and find his stick. Maybe Rock knows something about the battle.

On the way out of his den he encountered Cinderheart, who was padding across the clearing toward the thorn tunnel.

“Thanks for bringing Poppyfrost back,” she mewed, touching his ear with her nose. “We were all so worried.”

“You’re welcome,” Jayfeather mumbled, just wanting to get away.

But Cinderheart stopped him as he tried to move off. “Are you okay?” she queried, her voice growing sharper with anxiety. “You seem…sort of upset. And—oh!” She gasped. “You’ve got an awful scratch down your side.”

“It’s nothing,” Jayfeather muttered.

“Nonsense!” Cinderheart meowed. “You’re a medicine cat; you know very well it’s not nothing. Come on. You’d never let any of us leave camp without having that treated.”

Taking no notice of Jayfeather’s protests, she herded him back into his den and headed for the storage cleft. A moment later she came back with a bunch of chervil leaves in her jaws. “This should stop any infection,” she announced, beginning to chew them up.

When the poultice was ready, Cinderheart’s paws moved deftly and confidently as she plastered it on Jayfeather’s side. He let out a sigh of relief as the throbbing pain ebbed.

Does Cinderheart ever wonder why she feels so comfortable in the medicine cat’s den? She knew exactly which herb to use and what to do with it. Will it ever be the right time to tell her that she used to be Cinderpelt?

Another pang of foreboding shook him. If there is a battle coming that involves every warrior since the dawn of the Clans, we’ll need all the medicine cats we can get.

Once Cinderheart was satisfied, Jayfeather headed out again, his pelt sticky with her poultice. Branches rustled above his head, and huge plops of cold water began to fall, splashing on his fur and flung against the trees by the rising wind.

“It’s starting to rain!” Foxleap’s voice came from among the trees, and a moment later a patrol caught up to Jayfeather, with Squirrelflight, Rosepetal, and Icecloud.

“Hey, Jayfeather!” Foxleap chattered on. “Isn’t this great? If it keeps raining, we won’t have to go get water anymore.”

An irritated hiss came from Squirrelflight. “Foxleap, now look what you’ve done! You’ve dropped your moss, and it’s all dirty. Stop getting so excited, and concentrate.”

“Sorry,” Foxleap meowed, though he didn’t sound at all subdued. “I’ll wash it off when we get to the water.”

Jayfeather padded beside the patrol until they drew closer to the lake. Then he veered off, heading for the place where he had hidden his stick, and dragged it out from under the roots of the elder bush. Dropping it into the shelter of the bank, he sat down beside it and ran his paws over the scratches.

The voices of the ancient cats were faint and far away.

“Rock…” Jayfeather murmured. “Were you at the Moonpool last night? Do you know what is happening in the Dark Forest?”

“Yes, I know.” A voice breathed in Jayfeather’s ear, sending a shiver through him from ears to tail-tip. “But I cannot stop it—and even if I could, I would not. This is a storm that needs to break, Jayfeather.”

Jayfeather’s ears twitched up in shock. “Why?”

“There have been too many lies,” Rock replied. “Too much pain has been caused among the Clans. Cats will have their revenge, and the oldest grievances will be settled.”

Jayfeather turned his head toward the voice, and he saw the hazy shape of the ancient cat, with his hairless body and sightless, bulging eyes.

“Did you know?” he demanded. “About Leafpool and Crowfeather?”

Rock let out a sigh that stirred Jayfeather’s whiskers. “Yes, I knew.”

Jayfeather sprang to his paws. “Then why didn’t you tell me? Don’t you know how much pain we went through?”

“It was not your time to know, Jayfeather.” The ancient cat’s voice was calm and matter-of-fact. “You had to be raised as a ThunderClan cat, trained in medicine by your mother, Leafpool. That was your destiny, Jayfeather.”

“It’s not the destiny I wanted!” Jayfeather snapped.

“There was no room for you to be half-Clan from birth,” Rock went on, as though Jayfeather hadn’t spoken. “No room for you to be rejected because your mother had broken the code of the medicine cats and the warrior code.”

Jayfeather stared at him, hardly able to believe what he was hearing. “So you lied, and every cat lied, for the sake of the prophecy?” Rage was building inside him until he was angrier than he’d ever been before in his life; he dug his claws hard into the ground to stop himself from raking Rock’s eyes out. “Do you think it was worth it? Do you? I thought you were my friend!”

Slowly Rock shook his head. “I am no cat’s friend. I know too much for friendship. Be glad that you will never be burdened with the knowledge that I have. My curse is to live forever, knowing what has been and what has yet to be, powerless to change anything.”

His outline began to fade. As it vanished, Jayfeather’s fury erupted. He felt around on the ground until he located a sharp stone. Then he snatched up the stick, balanced it across the stone, and brought his forepaws smashing down on one end. He heard the stick break, and splinters pierced his paws. Rock and the ancient Clans had betrayed him, too. Did no cat tell the truth, ever?

In the same heartbeat, thunder crashed out overhead, rolling around the sky. Rain cascaded down onto the lakebed. Jayfeather crouched under the bank, his jaws wide in a soundless wail, and wrapped his paws over his ears.