Warrior Cats: Spider

Chapter Ten

The fur on Cloudleap's scruff was damp and cold in Seedscatter's mouth as he dragged the younger tom from the den. Whatever warmth had once existed within the now-lifeless body was gone. With a shiver, Seedscatter came to the grim conclusion that his sister's mate had been dead for a long time. 

Seedscatter found himself struggling with Cloudleap's body as he backed out of the den. The dead weight pulled him down, especially after such a hard summer. I shouldn't complain; FieldClan's cats are all weak, he chided himself. Some more than others...

What had gone wrong? Cloudleap had looked to be in good health, and he had seemed at ease as of late. Seedscatter couldn't imagine how the last night's rain could have so easily sapped the strength from his clanmate's body.

His head hung low, Seedscatter dropped Cloudleap in the center of camp, shrinking away to let the crowd surge forward. His clanmates were quick to fall onto the white cat. Those closest to him wailed, while others murmured from the outskirts of the ring, circling to get a better look. Shrewtoe sat across from Seedscatter. He met her unreadable gaze for only a moment before guilt tore his eyes away.

Seedscatter didn't know how to react. Death had followed him around like bees flock to a hive; they would swarm in to add new weight to his conscience and leave before he could do anything to stop them. He didn't think there was anything that could surprise him anymore. All he felt now was the sting of guilt.

To his left, Petalpatch buried her nose in her son's fur. Brackenpaw was stuck to her like a burr, despite being made an apprentice already. Seedscatter wondered if the brothers had even moved out of the nursery yet. 

Thistleflower sat close to Stoneclaw, their pelts brushing in a mutual attempt at comfort. The young couple whispered quietly, clearly subdued.

Blackpaw sat with his brother, running his tail up and down his brother's back, who remained unresponsive as he stared at his paws.

Seedscatter hadn't seen a vigil since he was a 'paw, having been confined to the medicine den when he assumed Yellowfeather and Owltail had recieved theirs. He didn't realize how effected the clan would be; Cloudleap had been left in FieldClan as a kit by his mother, and didn't have any familial ties except to Goosewing, Maplekit, Silkkit, and Windkit. 

He should have said something when he had first found out. Seedscatter had known, and yet he had kept his muzzle shut. How many others had acted similarly? Did Shrewtoe herself have a clue as to what was going on? Did Nutpaw? Goosewing? Grief weighed heavily on his shoulders, but it wasn't for Cloudleap's death. It was for his own mistakes and how they had impacted the clan; he couldn't bring himself to mourn deeply for the loss of his clanmate.

"StarClan has forsaken us!" came Goosewing's cry from the center of the circle. Seedscatter found her immediately, and a sharp wave of panic coursed through him. He hadn't even thought about how Goosewing would react.

Seedscatter parted his jaw, ready to speak up and intervene, when another voice piped up. "It was his time." Shrewtoe stood, a statue in the sea of quivering FieldClan cats. "You cannot blame the ancestors for what has befallen Cloudleap."

Venom laced Goosewing's expression, and the crowd parted to let the two she-cats speak face to face. Whether they feared Shrewtoe's composure or Goosewing's rage, Seedscatter couldn't tell.

"How dare you?" Goosewing hissed, her fur spiking to match the fury with which she lashed her tail. "You dare to place the blame on his shoulders? Where were you, when Cloudleap was alone and... and dying? You claim to be a medicine cat, and yet you, Shrewtoe, fail to live up to more than your name: shrew." There was silence following the queen's accusation. Shrewtoe's demeanor did not change.