[Hellion]

[smear:ffffff]Swanfeather[/smear:343B4F]

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living

87 Moons || Medicine Cat of RainClan || She-Cat

Startled awake, Swanfeather sat upward the fading sensation of water against her back was gone before she was fully awake. Glancing up at the ceiling of the share den, she found no water dripping down. It was determined then that the water feeling had been a dream but typical to her dreams now she couldn't remember it. Uncurling herself from her nest the aged black-pointed she-cat stifled a groan of pain. The joints in her hips had gotten increasingly worse and no amount of poppyseed made a dent in her overall pain. Biting down on her tongue, Swanfeather forced herself upright but stumbled still. It seemed that her legs were shaky, likely from the pain, and making maintaining balance almost impossible. Glaring down at her once black paws, now grey, she gave a huff and forced herself to stand. Against biting down harshly on her tongue to hold back the yelp of pain that surged through her, Swanfeather turned to Dewpaw.

Fixing her sleeping apprentice with a gaze to ensure the young she-cat hadn't woken, Swanfeather made slow movements to her herb storage. Pulling down a large portion of ragwort leaves, Swanfeather made quick work to crush them before realizing that she lacked juniper berries, an important component in her regiment for pain management. Scanning the various nooks and crannies they stored herbs, Swanfeather found the berries and almost cruel distances away. She could make it to them but she barely trusted her limbs to work. Regretting that she'd have to wake Dewpaw, Swanfeather gave herself a moment to compose herself. Push away the obvious signs of pain before clearing her throat.

"Dewpaw, wake up please. I need your help," Her tone was flat and it took a great deal of focus to ensure her pain didn't break through her words.

I dreamed that love would never die

WORDS || williams || SWAN WILL TALK ABOUT HER DEATH. JUST PREPARING DEWPAW FOR THE END!

[williams]

dewpaw,

Dewpaw wasn't even sure what she was dreaming. There was a sense of peace from the images, she knew that, but the exactness of them was lost as her mentor's voice appeared. Her eyes fluttered open, blinking to clear the strings of sleep away from her thoughts to focus. "I'm up," She mumbled into her chest fur, flattening it with a quick tonue swipe as she got to her paws.

Before her eyes even swept the den, Dewpaw threw out her questions. Half-awake, her mind had been drilled into a correct response by Swanfeather, her lightness in sleep a product of this training. Being woken up at this time meant something was wrong and both medicine cats were needed to assist. "What do you need from me? Someone hurt? I can chew up the herbs. Sorry I didn't hear them come in, I'll work on that." Then she scanned the area, and just saw her mentor. Dewpaw blinked in confusion, then frowned in worry. "What's wrong?" Genuiune care flooded her voice, an urgency to help her mentor snapping her brain awake.

she worry

200

Hellion

***

[Hellion]

[smear:ffffff]Swanfeather[/smear:343B4F]

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living

87 Moons || Medicine Cat of RainClan || She-Cat

Swanfeather allowed Dewpaw a moment to fret and gather herself. If she wasn't in her current state of pain she'd try to ease her apprentice's franticness by letting her no one was hurt. Instead she waited it out, doing her best to ignore the pain until Dewpaw's question chimed.

"Just a rough night for me. I need those juniper berries and I can't reach them without straining," She explained, flicking her tail to point out the storage. "Please grab me three," She added and waited for Dewpaw to do so.

Berries in her mixture, she devoured it before settling down, waiting for the medicine to kick in. It would be impossible for her to sleep until it all kicked in, so she settled and watched Dewpaw for a moment. Then with a clearing of her throat, she waited for Dewpaw to look at her.

"I can't hide my pain from you anymore Dewpaw and I want you to be as prepared as possible. I won't make it to newleaf so it is important you train hard in Leaf-fall. Ask all the questions you can because soon I won't be around to answer them," Her voice was stern, not different then her normal tone but there was a hint of sorrow in her words. Perhaps she was sad about leaving Dewpaw or maybe it was fear, unsure of where she was headed once she left.

I dreamed that love would never die

WORDS || williams || NOTES

[williams]

dewpaw,

Dewpaw obidently got her mentor's requested berries, the sleep banished so quickly that her head swam. As she returned, the young cat sat down, curling her paws underneath as she waited for Swanfeather's next words. Concern filled her gaze, unsure what was going on that her mentor would need herbs and why she hadn't known this before. She's her own cat, Dewpaw chided herself, She doesn't have to tell me everything. But is this bigger than that?

The explanation though, sent fear down her spine, the fur fluffing in response. "I knew that you were going to die, I mean-" She let out a little huff, shaking her thoughts to be organized. Her voice continued, softer with her eyes staring at the floor for just a moment. "Death happens, and of course you're going to leave me one day." I'm scared. Dewpaw brought her gaze back up to Swanfeather, the blue depths shining brighter and brows low from worry. Am I ready to be without you?" The words came silently in her head, sparking pain in her heart. In this moment, Dewpaw felt still like that small apprentice, staring up at her new mentor with stars in her eyes and love in her heart. She had grown from that memory. She was almost as tall as her mentor, her fur silky from its kittish fluff, her frame lean and swift in the water like all Rainclan cats. She had experienced death, joy, and learned so much. But she was still that memory too, using her mentor's words to guide her. But can I continue that without her? came the thought again, Dewpaw's shoulders tensing. I'm not sure I can.

notes

283

Hellion

***

[Hellion]

[smear:ffffff]Swanfeather[/smear:343B4F]

I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living

87 Moons || Medicine Cat of RainClan || She-Cat

Swanfeather let her eyes close. She focused her breathing and let the growing comfort of the herb find their way to all her aches and pains. She didn't open them until Dewpaw spoke and even them they were slits, the blue of them barely visible.

"I have lived a long time. I've made so many bad choices. I've ruined lives but I did one thing right. I picked you for an apprentice, I am proud of you Dewpaw," She meowed shifting slightly so her tail could touch Dewpaw's chin.

"You have grown so much in our time together and I know you will continue to grow without me. StarClan shines upon you now," She added, her voice fading as the herbs worked to ease the pain enough for her to get some rest. In the morning if Dewpaw brought up their conversation she'd blame the herbs. "Go back to sleep, dream with StarClan for me,"

I dreamed that love would never die

WORDS || williams || Angsty!

[williams]

dewpaw,

"I did one thing right." Dewpaw felt her eyes scrunch, the world blurring with unspent tears. The pride she had for her mentor, for her path in life. She leaned into the touch, a shaky and stuttery purr filling their small den. "Dream with Starclan for me" She nodded, eyes closed to avoid anything spilling out through their blue depths.


Slowly, Dewpaw stood, clearing her throat of the emotions that clogged it. "Let's both get back to our nests, here, lean on me." She guided the pair to the back, pausing their trek to reshape the nests to their original shapes. As her mentor settled in, Dewpaw watched for a moment. Her thoughts couldn't form words to the emotions she felt. She had been given a very important bit of her mentor, she realized. Trusting someone with a weakness was, incredible. Dewpaw blinked rapidly as more tears formed, dripping down the end of her muzzle.

She circled down into her nest, making sure their sides were firmly touching. As she settled her head onto her paws, she heard a small huff of fondness, though she might have imagined it too. Her heart caught in her throat. She didn't know how to go on without her mentor, but she had time to figure out how to.

"Thank you for chosing me." She whispered into the dark, her words soft as the breeze as her own consciousness faded. The adrendaline was wearing off rapidly. "I won't let you down."

fin

250

Hellion

***