Featherstar's Destiny

Chapter 12

"Dog!", Smokepaw yowled.  The gray apprentice shouldered Featherpaw aside and leaped at the dog with lashing claws.  Featherpaw hissed and jumped to her paws when he moved her away.  She lunged and lashed at the animal's muzzle and backed away.  A loud noise called out and Featherpaw flicked her ears in worry.    

Not another dog!   Featherpaw  yowled inwardly.  She breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed that it was Stormpaw.   Stormpaw yowled and the dog whipped around and chased after the dark gray tom. 

"Bring her back to the camp!", Stormpaw yowled. 

"And you get killed?", Featherpaw growled. She raced after the dog and lashed her claws out at the dog. She was still weak from her wounds from Willowclaw and her mind messed up her aiming and accuracy.  The dog growled and snapped at her ear.  It was about to bite her throat , when Stormpaw let a screech.  It left Featherpaw on the ground with new blood coming from her wounds.  Smokepaw widened his eyes in shock and raced towards her. 

"Help!", the gray tabby yowled.  

"What in the name of StarClan is going on here?", a voice asked.   

Breezeclaw appeared from the direction of the camp with Darkclaw behind him.  The dog looked up from chasing Stormpaw and yipped in fear when it saw the two newcomers.  With a battle cry, the two warriors chased the dog off of the territory.  Once the dog was gone, Breezeclaw padded up to the two apprentices who were huddling in front of Featherpaw's bleeding body. 

"How-", the black tom stopped when he saw Featherpaw for the first time. 

He yowled and pushed his nose into the apprentice's fur.  Darkclaw watched with wide eyes, while Stormpaw watched with fear scent coming off of him in waves.  Smokepaw sat down beside Breezeclaw and bowed his striped head.    

"What happened here?", a voice asked.   

Berrypelt was padding up to the cats with Oakpaw beside him.  Berrypelt  placed his herbs down and slowly walked up to Featherpaw with shaking paws. 

"Help me get her back to the camp. Don't just stand there like scared mice, pick her up", Oakpaw snapped. 

The cats looked at the medicine cat apprentice with shock in their eyes.  Breezeclaw finally shook his fur out as if to shake away his thoughts and helped the cats place Featherpaw across  Berrypelt's back.  Silvercloud met them at the entrance to the camp with wide scared blue eyes.   

"What happened? Featherpaw? Is she dead?", Silvercloud began to bombard the small patrol of cats with questions. 

Willowclaw, who was washing her mottled pelt , looked up with contempt in her eyes.   Tawnykit and Thornkit let out squeals of alarm and ran back to Dawnmist, who was sitting beside Lionfur in front of the nursery.  Stonepelt and Flickerstar raced up to the cats and sniffed the silver apprentice's pelt.  

"Move out of the way!", Oakpaw yowled.  

The cats stepped out of the way as the red-brown tom padded after  Berrypelt towards the medicine den.   Featherpaw was placed gently onto a soft bed of moss. 

"Come on Stormpaw", Darkclaw meowed and led the apprentice out of the den. 

"Will she be okay?", Silvercloud asked.  

Oakpaw looked up with a worried expression.  "I'm not sure." 

Featherpaw opened her eyes and looked around.  "What's going on?", she asked. 

Smokepaw looked at her with wide eyes and began to lick her happily.   "You're here", he meowed.

"I wasn't about to leave you", she sighed weakly.