“You came. [....] Has it been long? [....] I’m sorry. [....] For leaving you to raise our daughters. [....] You’ll be a wonderful father. I’m so happy Hailstar brought me back from Windclan. I’ve loved being with you and with Riverclan. [....] Oh, my precious love. Be brave for me, please. [....] Help me name our daughters. [....] Minnowkit. [....] Silverkit. They are lovely names.”
Um... so the prompt was "Hospital / flare-up / ice chips" but I wanted Warrior Cats, so it's a medicine cat den now.
Yeah, greencough or something.
Jayfeather keeps his powers I don't care.
Wrote this while listening to "Deltarune Chapter 2 OST: 28 - Acid Tunnel of Love" on loop, so that is sort of the right song to read it with if you are going to read it while listening to a song.
READ THE Ao3 VERSION PLEASE!! (Under my same username.) NOTHING IS CHANGED I JUST WANT YOU TO READ IT!
Tws: Sickness, animal death
Words: 1,947
Ivypool coughed and shivered, fear floating through her as she watched Jayfeather pad out of the storage room, his ears back and tail tip twitching. He opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again, sightless eyes staring into hers in an effort to read her. (But she didn’t need his powers to see what he was thinking, for the growing pit in her stomach had finally been realised.)
“We’re out of catmint aren’t we.” She whispered, turning his face towards the soft moss of her nest when Jayfeather only sighed in response.
“Yes,” he meowed, but, hesitating slightly, reassured her that he would ask the other medicine cats if they had any.
This reassurance worked, but only a little bit. The reason being that Jayfeather had already asked the other clans if they could spare any, (after their leader had lost a life to the horrible sickness) but received a no in response. (What worried Ivypool about this was the simple fact that if they wouldn’t share some of the lifesaving herbs for a clan leader, no one in their right mind would share it for one or two sick warriors.)
Jayfeather began to walk out of the den, tabby fur spiked slightly against the grey-blue sky. She turned to face him, but to her dismay, the sounds of leaves shifting was accompanied by painful coughing, and she could do nothing but curl into herself in any small attempt to keep the greencough from spreading.
Once she was done with the little coughing fit, she looked up to Jayfeather, jaws open slightly to ask when he planned to ask for that catmint. (For at this point, she was really starting to think that she might die from this. There isn't much a medicine cat can do without herbs, even if they do happen to be one of the best your clan has ever known.)
But she cut herself off, noticing the fluffing of his tail as he responded to her not-yet-asked question. “I don’t know when I’m going to ask!” he screeched, shaking with sadness as he dealt with both of their emotions, “I was going to ask to go now, but Bramblestar might not allow me to.”
Ivypool shivered. “Would he really do that?” She asked in a small voice, “He has to want what’s best for this clan right?”
Jayfeather nodded, still not facing her as he answered her not completely genuine question, “I’m sure he does but-” he sighed shakily, “Sometimes asking for help can be a sign of weakness.”
And with that, he padded out of the den, leaving Ivypool with the unspoken end to their conversation, and with that now spoken weakness… With that weakness comes war.
- - - - -
Jayfeather stood outside of the den for a moment, taking the time to block out his own emotions to focus on those he had just left in turmoil. She was afraid, but accepting. And, with a strike of horror, he caught that she was accepting of her death. No! He thought, I can’t let her die yet! I won’t let it happen!
And, with a swoosh of his tail, he raced across the clearing, leaping over sticks that he could not see, and only stumbling once when his paw caught the earth strange. Of course, the pelts he brushed past, and their owners, bristled slightly, because it’s never a good thing to see your medicine cat running as if chased by foxes towards the leader’s den.
“Bramblestar-” he panted, clawing his way into the leader’s den, and hearing the shifting of moss meet his words. “I need to speak with you.” He sniffed the air and caught the scent of another cat, one he didn’t have the time or care to identify, before continuing. “-In private, it’s about the…” he paused, not ready to send the whole camp into even more of a scandal than it was already, “...the sickness.”
He felt Bramblestar’s interest peak and heard him apologizing to the other cat, and telling them that they could come back to finish the conversation later. Jayfeather gave his chest fur a couple of embarrassed licks as he noticed that the other cat was feeling distinctly annoyed. But I know how important this is, he told himself, I can’t let their annoyance get it that way of that.
Standing straighter, he felt the cat brush by him, their pelt radiating small sparks of worry as they noticed the determined look he must have on his face. That was normally a good thing, a determined medicine cat, but with the context of all the horror that had been happening recently… Well, they had the right to be afraid.
The two cats stood for a moment, Jayfeather waiting for the previous visitor to jump down into the clearing and Bramblestar licking a stray bit of fluff on his shoulder in the effort to keep it down. Once both of these not exactly equally important tasks were completed however, then Bramblestar was ready to ask what was going on.
“What in Star Clan was so important that you had to kick her out in the middle of our meeting?!” The leader asked him, though his tone was more worried than accusatory. (Something that Jayfeather was happy to hear, it might give him a bit of good luck in the answer he was going to receive.)
“Ivypool is sick.” He told Bramblestar bluntly, as if he didn’t already know, “And if your recent passing has taught us anything,” (Bramblestar flinched slightly.) “-this strand is strong. And I still don’t have any catmint to treat it.” (At that last part he looked from side to side and sniffed the air, making sure that no cat could overhear exactly what trouble they could be in.)
Bramblestar nodded uncomfortably, as if he knew what Jayfeather was about to say, and worse, knew he wouldn’t like the answer he received. However, the tabby medicine cat ignored this and instead took a deep breath. Then, he continued (though not after waiting a moment to figure out exactly what he was going to say), “I came here to ask you if I could ask the other medicine cats to spare some.”
Bramblestar opened his jaws to retort, but Jayfeather cut him off, “I know you don’t like having to show your clan’s weakness, but if we don’t share this particular weakness, the entire clan is going to die of greencough!” He flicked his ears, “And we both know the stores were destroyed by that recent frost, there is no way we will be able to cure ourselves without help. This sickness is simply too strong!”
He paused, reeling slightly from the unexpected terror radiating from the leader’s pelt, had he been too harsh? No. This was serious. And serious things demanded serious emotions. “You would know first paw how strong it is.”
Bramblestar flinched but did not answer, and as his emotions had now been blocked out, Jayfeather began to get worried. What if he didn’t let him ask for help? What would he do then? Of course, he knew the answer, he would go to the other territories to get the herbs, even if he had to beg. He wasn’t ready to just let his clan die like that! ...and, by the silence from the other, his leader knew this just as well as he did.
“Yes.” Jayfeather’s ears pricked up. “Yes, you may go to the other clans and ask for the herbs that you need.”
Jayfeather felt like yowling in joy, but was able to restrain himself long enough to dip his head respectfully and meow a quick, “Thank you Bramblestar.” before padding out of the den and into the cool leafbare air.
- - - - -
Ivypool cracked open her eyes, half restrained coughs having caused the moss of her nest to scatter as she slept, leaving her chilly in the light of a new day. She had noticed herself getting worse, and though she knew those realisations only made the fight harder, she couldn’t stop thinking about them.
Every day or two, Jayfeather would go to meet the other medicine cats, to ask them to please please please lend him some catmint. (Once she had heard him complaining that, honestly, it wasn't that hard to get some, and that “just one or two sprigs would do.” With no mind of course, to the fact that their clan had none at all.)
“Jayfeather,” She called, voice scratchy and tired from coughing, “Are you awake?”
There was a sound of shuffling leaves, “I’m here.” the medicine cat meowed, padding into her line of sight, “What do you need?”
“Could you get me-” here she broke off to hack her lungs out, “-some water p-please?”
“Of course.” he told her soothingly, and she watched as he dipped his head and picked up a ball of moss. (Subsequently carrying it to the pool in the back of the den, soaking it for a few moments, and then bringing it over.)
“Thank you,” she meowed, “I really need-” she coughed loudly, “-needed it.”
Jayfeather dipped his head again, sightless eyes full of sadness as he watched her drink. Calm floated on the air, and for a moment, ice cold water soothing her throat, Ivypool felt like all was okay again. But the moment the water was gone… that was the moment all the fears and sadness came back. Would she like Star Clan? …Would she even get to Star Clan?
“I don’t have much more time do I,” she asked bluntly, not looking at the medicine cat as she let her sadness flow free (with the occasional painful cough interrupting her), “It’s alright to tell me the truth. I already know.”
Jayfeather inhaled sharply, tail tip brushing the ground as he prepared an answer. (But she didn’t need his special power to tell was he was going to tell her.)
“You’re right.” He said quietly, padding over to the recently departed nest of her old denmate. (The owner of which she was hoping to be able to speak to soon. Even if they had to share tongues over Star Clan pre.) “I don’t have a way to fix this.”
She sighed and looked down, feeling all her emotions at once. Every hurt, every anger, every worry, every sadness… but also every smile, laugh, and friendship. She was lucky to have been born in Thunderclan. Lucky to have the life she was given. Lucky to help her clan survive battle after battle. Lucky to- she shivered- finally get to see her sister again.
“I knew it.” she whispered, blue eyes closing on stars.
- - - - -
“Jayfeather! Jayfeather!” Screeched Lionblaze, pelting into the den, “Mothwing gave us some catmint!” He dropped the plants onto the floor, panting slightly from his run across the territory, “We’ll be safe now!”
But, his brother only shook his head in response, blind eyes full of grief as he stared at the herbs. “Not all of us.”
Lionblaze inhaled sharply, suddenly noticing the still warm body lying in her nest. Grey and silver pelt still fluffed from the cold, and her last breath still lingered on the air.
“No-” He gasped, she couldn’t be dead, how could she be dead? She had been so young, so strong… “-she’s dead-”
Jayfeather wrapped his tail around Lionblaze’s shoulders and inhaled shakily. “But the rest of us have a chance not to be.” Lionblaze turned to his brother, meeting that sightless gaze with his own fiery one. “Tell Mothwing I said thank you.”
“I-” He shut his eyes, letting grief take him, “I will.”
