[Deleted]

7 Moons. RainClan. Apprentice.

Rabbitpaw's breath came out in ragged wheezes, her mouth open as she laboured to get a lungfull as she lay groggily on her side in a nest. Even with her head tilted to try and keep her airway open, she was in considerable difficulty. Each time she fought between the urge to gasp, and the urge to breath as slowly as possible to avoid the inevitable coughing that would follow as the air somehow caught in her throat and sent her hacking for what felt like hours. The young she-cat's nose was crusted with mucous from her ever blocked and yet running nose, and she barely flicked her ear as a fly buzzed lazily around the den and settled on her head. She didn't have the energy for it, let alone the mental composure.

Another shiver ran through her, setting her cough off again with a wince of pain from the old-ache in her rips the turned to a stab when disturbed. She'd been coughing so much and so hard that she had started bringing up a little blood on occasion from the strain, not that she had really been able to notice much about it. Nothing felt entirely real, nor entirely worth her dwindling supplies of energy.

I'm so cold

She managed to piece together the thought as she shuddered again, fever radiating out of her fur like a furnace.

and thirsty... Great StarClan I'm thirsty...

But she barely moved, instead continuing her rasping breathing as her cough subsided again. She had lost track of how long she had been in the medicine den, or what had happened before. Squirrelpaw came and went from day to day, each time looking increasingly worried.

Where did he go?

She let her eyes move to glance around the room, and found her brother's form curled up not too far from her. The nervous tom had barely left her side at all these past few days, and had fallen asleep in a corner out of sheer exhaustion.

339 Words Fawn Amber Welp, she finally got into the med den xD

[Fawn]

Lotuswhisker

39 Moons, She-Cat, RainClan Warrior

------

She'd started feeling unwell shortly after going to her nest last night. Curling up beside Gullswoop and Willowbreeze, her content, restful sleep was disturbed by a slight cough in the back of her throat - and a sore headache that promised no lasting peace. Mindful of her Clanmates, Lotuswhisker had left the warriors' den shortly before dawn, tiptoeing past the large, silver tabby warrior, and her much smaller, more delicately boned sister.

I must've caught this from Bravebird, she mused, stopping by the camp stream to wet her parched throat. They were lucky to live so close to a natural water source; the apprentices did not have to go far to collect moss and soak them for the queens, kits and elders.

After the huge fuss Crowblaze and Ashflight had made about accidentally infecting the others, Lotuswhisker quietly set a path for Ottersplash's den, her whiskers twitching as she failed to stifle a long yawn. The sooner she got something for this sickness, the sooner she could go back to bed - and then start to feel better.

The unpleasant sickly odor of ill cats reached her as soon as she approached Ottersplash's home, though the tangy scent of plantlife, both fresh and stale, helped cover up some of the pungence. Lotuswhisker saw Squirrelpaw, the tom lying in the corner as if all the life had been driven clean out of him, and then saw why. His sister, Rabbitpaw, was doing battle with greencough if her raspy breathing and twitching paws were anything to go by.

Poor things!

Lotuswhisker pivoted and went back to the camp stream.

A few minutes later, she returned with enough soaked moss for the two kittens and Ottersplash. "Here, drink this." Oh StarClan she's burning up, Lotuswhisker felt a sharp stab of alarm as she gently nuzzled Rabbitpaw towards the moss.

Before she could ask for anything for herself, Ottersplash was already placing a bit of chickweed in front of her, looking exhausted. "Thank you." Lotuswhisker gazed at their healer gratefully, and then took a seat in the corner of the den, feeling a maternal drive to watch over the two 'paws.

Suddenly, Lotuswhisker felt a pair of sharp eyes digging into her pelt. Fur prickling, she looked to the den entrance and saw Crowblaze. He looked even crankier than normal. Crowblaze saw her looking and rolled his eyes; she broke eye contact quickly, able to sense his accusations.

This is your fault. And Bravebird's. His expression said. The big dark tabby tom had caught greencough as well. Taking notice of his apprentice, Crowblaze didn't wake him; instead, he took his own leaf of chickweed and went back out of the den. Lotuswhisker was grateful for it; it was getting crowded and stuffy in here.

Word Count: 428 WordsTags: @sparrowkeeper Amber Hellion (Gullswoop mention!) Notes:

XD bad break, Squirrelpaw.

Squirrelpaw has been infected with greencough
Squirrelpaw - SICK - DEADLY _{healthy Newleaf 31st}

[Deleted]

7 Moons. RainClan. Apprentice.

A scuffling drew Rabbitpaw's wandering attention as she turned her eyes slowly to the entrance of the den. Had someone been there? She couldn't tell. Perhaps she was hearing things and it was a sign that she was going to slip into another feverish dream. The she-cat shuddered again unhappily, drifting for a while as she considered the irony of her position. She was finally getting to spend all her time in the medicine den, but instead of being able to curiously stick her nose in everything she had the misfortune of being a patient instead.

Ugh...

She moaned internally, starling slightly as she felt wet moss pressed against her mouth. When had Lotuswhisker got here!? The apprentice sipped on the water gratefully, trying to hide her sheepish alarm that she had been too out of it to notice the warrior's coming. She wasn't sure how long she spent on the water, but the drink revived her a little, and she managed to croak out a brief word.

"Thanks."

She mewed, hoping that Lotuswhisker was still nearby to thank. Her nose was so gummed up that she couldn't smell a thing, and her woozy cotton-filled head wasn't exactly helping her make sense of her surroundings. The warrior seemed to swim into her vision however, and she forced a smile at her to try to seem optimistic.

~~~

Squirrelpaw awoke to the sound of his sister's voice, glancing around himself anxiously as he swam back into the waking world. He could just about smell Crowblaze nearby, though he didn't fully trust his slightly runny nose, and he hoped the warrior wasn't looking for him.

Please don't try to make me go training

But the dark tom was nowhere to be seen, and Squirrelpaw padded closer to Rabbitpaw with a respectful dip of his head to Lotuswhisker.

"Thank you for the water Lotuswhisker."

He purred gratefully, glancing sheepishly to see if Ottersplash was looking before clambering into Rabbitpaw's nest with her. She was burning hot, but his sister seemed to slump gratefully against his fur as if she had been freezing, and the little tom couldn't help but brush her head comfortingly with his tongue. The movement brought on a flurry of light coughs from his own little chest, but he paid it little heed.

"I reason I've spent so much time with her that I've already got it, so what's the harm?"

He joked half-heartedly to Lotuswhisker, prompting Rabbitpaw to let out an exhausted but affectionate.

"Mousebrain."

420 words Fawn LOL poor Squirrel xD

[Fawn]

Lotuswhisker

39 Moons, She-Cat, RainClan Warrior

------

Rabbitpaw's suffering broke her heart, but it was Squirrelpaw's dogged dedication and love for his littermate that kept her from focusing too much on the former. Emitting a soft purr, Lotuswhisker didn't fend off the mothering instincts the pair of kittens provoked in her, and instead moved closer to the two. Reasoning they would both feel better with some grooming, Lotuswhisker gingerly curled up beside Rabbitpaw and Squirrelpaw, and began rasping her tongue softly over the apprentice's tabby striped fur while she rested.

"You'll both be back in the apprentices' den before you can 'trout'," Lotuswhisker mewed, gently tending to a finicky bit of fur behind Rabbitpaw's ear. This kind of sibling closeness on display brought back powerful memories of growing up with Willowbreeze, her sister. They weren't as close as they'd used to be, and Lotuswhisker mourned the loss of such a strong bond. She would have done exactly what Squirrelpaw had done - stayed in the medicine cat's den while her sister recovered - if this had happened to a young Willowpaw.

They were all they had left, now. An absent father, an exiled mother. Yet the sisters remained.

The heat coming off of Rabbitpaw's pelt was worrisome, and Lotuswhisker kept an eye out for Ottersplash, wanting to bring it up with him the next time he had a second or two to spare. When either kitten started coughing, Lotuswhisker would reach over and gently knead their chests and back, trying to loosen whatever sickness was plaguing their young bodies. She didn't know if it truly helped in the way of medicine, but it had always made her feel better when her mother had done it for her.

As she worked, Lotuswhisker sent a silent prayer to Starclan for a moment's peace for Rabbitpaw. She knew from the elders' tales that greencough could be one of the most unpleasant things a cat could go through; Lotuswhisker considered herself lucky that so far, all she had was a sore throat - but a kitten's body could be hit much, much harder.
It would be so much easier to fend off illness if Rabbitpaw could just get a good night's sleep.

And Squirrelpaw too, the valiant little tom. It didn't seem like pessimism to imagine Squirrelpaw the one coughing and Rabbitpaw sitting vigil, but only a matter of when. That's why queens had to isolate their sick kits from the healthy ones so quickly; illness spread so fast between siblings.

Word Count: 377 WordsTags: @sparrowkeeper Notes:

XD She wants to adopt them both like right now.