Erin Hunter - Dawn

“Thank you,” he meowed. “I will come.”

Stormfur bounded up the rocks. “Firestar! There is a problem. RiverClan cannot leave today.”

Firestar’s ears twitched with alarm. “Why not?”

“Mudfur is dying. We can’t leave him alone.”

Frostfur stepped forward. “We’ll stay with him.”

“We can look after him until StarClan is ready to take him,” Speckletail agreed.

Stormfur looked them in surprise. “But he is not one of your Clan.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Frostfur told him. “We are staying behind anyway. We might as well do what we can for Mudfur.”

“The RiverClan camp is a lot more sheltered than this place,” Leafpaw mewed. “You will be safe from Twolegs if you keep within the reeds.”

“That’s true,” meowed Firestar. “We’ll bring Frostfur and Speckletail to the RiverClan camp, and if Leopardstar agrees, we’ll leave them with Mudfur while RiverClan joins us on our journey.”

“What’s happening?” Blackstar had approached the group.

“Mudfur is dying,” Firestar explained. “We must go to the RiverClan camp before we travel to WindClan’s territory.”

Blackstar curled his lip. “We’ll go ahead and wait for you at the edge of the forest.”

A croaking voice sounded behind him, and Leafpaw recognized Runningnose’s gray pelt. “I would like to say good-bye to Mudfur,” mewed the elderly cat. “I’ve known him since I was an apprentice.”

Blackstar looked at the old tom, and for the first time Leafpaw saw respect in his eyes. “Of course, Runningnose,” he meowed. “You go with ThunderClan. We’ll see you again at the edge of the forest.”

Firestar scanned the rock. “Has everyone had traveling herbs?”

“Yes,” Cinderpelt replied. “In fact, there are some left.

ShadowClan may as well have them. It’s not worth carrying them with us.” Her casual tone gave nothing away.

Leafpaw glanced at Littlecloud, whose tail twitched with excitement. “May we use them, Blackstar?” pleaded the young medicine cat.

“No point letting them go to waste,” Blackstar growled, and Littlecloud began handing out the bundles at once. The ShadowClan leader looked at Longtail, narrowing his eyes.

Leafpaw braced herself, expecting him to say that they couldn’t take a blind cat on such a long and dangerous journey.

But Blackstar only meowed, “The blind warrior can travel with us while you go to RiverClan. There’s no point taking him across the river and back again. I have warriors who can lead him through the forest.”

Firestar blinked gratefully at the ShadowClan leader.

“Thank you.” He touched Longtail with the tip of his tail. “Is that all right with you?”

Longtail nodded, and followed Blackstar down the slope to the waiting ShadowClan cats.

“Is every cat ready?” Firestar called to his own Clan.

Mews of assent sounded from across the rock, and the cats fell in behind Firestar as he led them down to the shore. The river was hardly more than a trickle, in spite of the ceaseless rain.

“Cinderpelt, Leafpaw, come with me,” Firestar ordered, halting beside the river. Runningnose, Frostfur, and Speckletail were already clambering after Stormfur, over the stepping-stones. “The rest of the Clan should wait here until we return.” He nodded at Brambleclaw, putting him in charge, and followed the elders across the river.

The reeds around the RiverClan camp were brown and brittle, their roots exposed. Leafpaw followed her father into the clearing and flinched as several cats spun around to look at the visitors with hostile surprise.

Leopardstar stood in the entrance to the medicine cats’ den, her eyes blazing. “What are you doing here? Didn’t Stormfur give you my message?”

“I did,” Stormfur meowed, hurrying to the center of the clearing. “But Firestar has come to suggest something.”

“Frostfur and Speckletail are staying behind,” Firestar explained. “They have offered to care for Mudfur.”

Leopardstar dipped her head. “That’s kind of them,” she meowed. “But it won’t be necessary. Mudfur is nearly with StarClan.”

Leafpaw jumped out of the way as Runningnose wheezed in shock and staggered toward the medicine clearing.

Cinderpelt followed, and Leafpaw padded quickly after them, glancing at the RiverClan leader as she went past. But Leopardstar let them go without a word.

Mothwing looked up as they entered the clearing. Her eyes were clouded with grief. “There’s nothing more any cat can do,” she told Cinderpelt. “He’s not in pain. I’ve made sure of that.”

Mudfur lay in the middle of the clearing. Rain dripped through the branches onto his matted flank, but he made no attempt to move into a more sheltered spot. Shadepelt, an elderly RiverClan she-cat, sat beside Mothwing, sadly watching the dying cat.

Runningnose padded forward and touched his nose to Mudfur’s shoulder. “Go swiftly to StarClan, my friend. We will look after your Clanmates.”

Cinderpelt leaned down and rested her muzzle on Mudfur’s pelt. As Leafpaw crouched to bury her nose in his fur, her throat filled with the unmistakeable scent of death.

Forcing herself not to draw away, she closed her eyes. At least you can be sure StarClan is waiting for you , she thought.

With a shuddering gasp, Mudfur drew his last desperate breath; his flank heaved once, then fell still forever as his spirit joined his warrior ancestors.

“He is with StarClan now,” Mothwing murmured.

Leafpaw blinked sadly at the unmoving heap of fur. This was one cat who would never see their new home, wherever it lay. How many more cats would not make it to the end of their journey?

“How will I manage without him?” gasped Mothwing, her eyes huge and scared.

“You’ll be fine,” Cinderpelt assured her. “And there will be time to grieve, but not now.”

Mothwing looked at her for a moment, then nodded and left the medicine clearing to tell her Clan that Mudfur was dead. Leafpaw waited until the RiverClan cats began to pad through the tunnel to pay their final respects, then hurried out into the main clearing.

Mothwing was sitting in the rain with her head bowed, water streaming from her whiskers. “I can’t believe he’s gone,” she mewed.

“He hasn’t gone far,” Leafpaw comforted her. “He’s with StarClan.”

“I hope so,” Mothwing murmured.

Leopardstar emerged from the medicine clearing and padded over to Firestar. “Shadepelt and Loudbelly will remain here with your elders,” she meowed. “They are too old to travel and wish to sit in vigil for Mudfur.”

Firestar nodded. “We will wait until RiverClan is ready to travel,” he murmured.

Hawkfrost and Stormfur padded toward Leafpaw and Mothwing. For once, Hawkfrost’s gaze was gentle as he rested his muzzle against his sister’s cheek.

“I never thought we’d be leaving anyone behind.” Stormfur sighed.

“Neither did I,” Leafpaw agreed, gazing at Frostfur and Speckletail. The image of Graystripe staring out from the monster’s belly flashed through her mind.

Leopardstar padded to the center of the clearing and looked around. “Is everyone ready?”

“We haven’t hunted today,” a RiverClan queen protested, wrapping her tail protectively around her kit.

“We can hunt on the way,” Leopardstar told her.

The moment had arrived. Silently, the cats began to head for the camp entrance. Frostfur and Speckletail sat in the clearing watching their Clanmates leave.