Post by nøx on Nov 19, 2011 21:45:44 GMT -5
" until the end .. we do pretend .. theendtheendtheend "
Raintail huddled in the narrow entrance of her den, attempting to exude the calm, all-knowing peace that Sunsplash, her mentor, had taught her was a medicine cats' bane and privilege, alike. If only it were true.
Her bright white and soot grey pelt blended with the pocked granite and shriveled lichen entrance of her den, shadowed all through the day. Day light never extended as far as this. She shivered a little and tucked deeper into the drift of fallen brown pine needles that piled at the edges of camp. The faint breath of Leaf-bare still hovered. She wished she were half as calm as she pretended to be.
' How little they truly know of a medicine cat's struggles, ' Raintail often thought to herself ever since Sunsplash joined StarClan.
It was his face that haunted her dreams now.
"The boundless storm is coming,
Crucial blood will be shed.
Only the sharpest lives will be spared ..."
The prophecy. Every night, it seemed, she was pulled into StarClan's world to be warned of grave danger ahead.
Raintail flicked her skinny, grey-striped tail sharply. She was frustrated ... annoyed. Worst of all she felt as though she were betraying not only Rowanstar and ShadowClan, but every cat of every clan.
' Crucial blood .. why would StarClan deliver such a prophecy if they did not want the medicine cats to speak of it? ' Raintail tormented herself. This question was not hers, alone, however. Every medicine cat wondered the same and all of their paws were held firm by StarClan. All Raintail could do was watch. And wait.
Well, the gathering would be soon. Maybe some thing ... some ONE would be revealed to her then. Raintail would be there. It was her first gathering since Sunsplash had died, her second to attend alone. He had been gripped with green cough last time and had stayed behind. His absence was prominent in her life. He was the only cat she really ever knew and who knew her, who treated her as more than just the medicine cat; the most popular cat in the clan when she was needed, ignored the rest of the time.
Raintail sighed and squeezed out into camp. ShadowClan was quiet. Rowanstar had already left on patrol with an agitated air. Well, she always seemed to have ants in her pelt for one reason or another. That was nothing unusual.
Raintail padded across the clearing, watching every cat equally. Her job now. She had learned quickly as Sunsplash's mentor that, frequently, the medicine cat had to come to the warrior. She had always wanted this. Never had she questioned her instinctual yearning to be a medicine cat. Until now. The prophecy echoed back and forth in her mind.
' Only the sharpest lives .. the sharpest ... '
What could it mean? She wished she could talk to another medicine cat. She had no one to share her worries with. She should tell Rowanstar, she knew, but StarClan had warned against speaking of it.
Raintail sighed heavily. If something didn't happen, and soon, she would surely jump out of her pelt. She only hoped her unease wasn't obvious to the clan.
' Stay calm, ' she told herself harshly.
Raintail's stomach rumbled and she blinked in surprise. When was the last time she had eaten? It seemed like a full moon ago. She sighed again. Certain death loomed from every shade and shadow, yet life still went on. She changed direction lithely and headed for the freshkill pile, trying to focus on the moment.
Raintail hissed in surprise as a sharp sudden gust of angry wind, damp with icy droplets, lifted her easily off her paws.
"The boundless storm is coming!" [/i]
Me: Raintail
You: OPEN
Theme: "Siren Wine", The Autumns
Word Count: 642
