Dreamsplash chuckled, "agrred." she said, "well, you didnt do any new damage to your paw, it is just sore because you didnt rest it like you should have." she scolded gently, "now dont try leaving camp again soon or you could do some real damage. It would take it much longer to heal. I'll give you some poppy seeds so you can sleep if you would like. The pain might be gone when you wake up"

___

Birdfall shrugged, "same difference."

___

Feralwind shrugged, "I guess I would cross that bridge when I got there." he said, "and just stay alive, day by day."

___

Moonsong tilted her head, "Tigerstar has been talking to Snakepaw?
" her voice was suprised, not a common feeling for her, since she heard and smelled everything.

___

Windpaw flicked his ears and widened his eyes, "No way! Thats Finchtail! she was captured by twolegs moons ago! Shes back!" he said happily to Lionpaw.

((XD thought you might like this

xCLICKx

))

Oakfeather only shook his head, growing gradually more comfortable around Dreamsplash. "I'm fine to sleep on my own, thanks." He blinked and added, "Mind if I stay in here?" He added with a hearty chuckle, "I might be tempted to wander off again."

~

Poppypaw smirked, then said, "Can you do that again? I've never seen how to catch a bird before...only mice, voles and rabbits..."

~

"Uh-huh," Limefeather said, sitting down on her nest without saying anything else. Her fur was standing on end.

~

"I heard he and Dreamsplash arguing," he said simply. "He gave away that they'd both been seeing Tigerstar, but his words were odd." He tried to think of his exact words. " 'I don't let him control me' he had told Dreamsplash, and then left camp in a hurry. I didn't stop him."

He frowned. "So our medicine cat is being Tigerstar's puppet..."

~

"yay!" Lionpaw said rather sarcastically. "Right, I have to go find..." She paused trying think of a name. "Erm...Sablepaw!" She trotted towards the apprentice's den. "Bye!" 

Dreamsp[lash laughed, "well, if you are going to stay here, make yourself useful, you can help me sort herbs, there was a draft in the back, and it scattered a bunch of my harbs around." she said, "thats why I was so fat back in my den when you got here, I was fixing it." she purred.((Teh dreamsplash had getten rid of Tigerstar >:D ))

____

Moonsong flicked her ears, "that explains Dreamsplash's bipolar moods. Tigerstar is controling her body. I've heard of him telling cats what to do in their dreams, but never controlling their entire body." she shurred and subconciously slid a little closer to Wolfstar for pretection, "Imagine if that was Cougarfeather or another of the stronger warriors. They could do some real Damage. Thank StarClan Dreamsplash is such a small cat." she said.

____

Ferlawind tilted his head, "if you don't mind my asking, who is Snakepaw and Poppypaw's father?" he asked.

____

Birdfall laughed, "thats something for your mentor to teach you, not me." he said.

____

"See you later then." Windpaw purred.

____

Wishpaw padded out of camp to think on her own. A rabbit was in the bushes not far off, nibbling at its lower leaves. She Sprang forward, giving chase. The rabbit darted through some rocks and Wishpaw followed, then froze in her tracks. She found herself face to face with a very large, and very mean-looking adder. She crouched low to the ground in fear and slowly backed away, to scared to cry out for help. The adder locked eyes ith her. Its toung flitted in and out of its mouth.

____

Adderstrike fidgeted uncomfterbly as Finchtail talked to all her old friends. Finchtail noticed this and faked a yawn, "well, its been a long day, And I would like a nap." she purred, "come on Adderstrike, I want to have the nest next to yours."

Adderstrike fidgeted again, "I don't sleep in the warriors den." he muttered, "I sleep in the forest."

Finchtail smiled, "well then show me where you sleep." she purred. Adderstrike nodded and led the way out of camp.

Snakepaw was awoken from his nap by a rustle in the leaves below. Peering down, he spotted Wishpaw and a large adder. she was backing away, but it didn't seem to be leaving. 

He sprung from the low branch he was on, paws carrying him towards the two. He was breathing heavily as he broke through the trees; they had seemed much closer from where he was laying.

The adder pulled his head back, fangs showing, and unthinkingly, Snakepaw lunged forwards. Claws p*censored*ing through air, his teeth met their mark. He sunk them into the snake's neck, but the snake wasn't going to go down without a fight.

It lunged, it's jaws closing around his leg. It's grip released almost immediately as the life faded out of the snake, but Snakepaw released a yowl of pain as it's fangs sunk into his flesh.

He stumbled backwards, startled, with his ears pinned to his head. "Ermph," he mumbled to Wishpaw. "Sorry, for, ermph, intruding..."

~

 Poppypaw frowned at him. "But I've been an apprentice for almost TWO moons, and he's never taken me out before," she complained. "Couldn't you at least teach me how to catch a bird?"

~

Limefeather was thrown off by his question. "Oh." she said, startled for a moment. "I'm guessing a lot of cats are wondering that by now..." She added on, as a conclusion, "Chestnutclaw. The young tom that died, along with Wolfstar's last apprentice, in the badger incident."

~

"Size doesn't define the warrior's abilities," Wolfstar said, wisdom shining in his pale blue eyes. "Snakepaw; he is quick, agile and easy to hide. Dreamsplash; her knowledge of herbs is more deadly than her claws." He added on, "And of course, the famous Scourge from the days of Tigerstar and Firestar. He killed a cat with nine lives in one blow..."

~ 

Oakfeather nodded. "I'll help you while I'm here," he said, curling up in his temporary nest. "But I hope you don't mind me taking a nap first.."

~

Lionpaw slid into the apprentices den and curled up in her nest, purring, as she explained everything to Sablepaw, who hadn't been able to sleep very well.

~

Wispaw stared in shock for a moment, then blijnked as her mind figured out everything that had happened, "It...it bit you! You need to go to Dreamsplash! Its venom will kill you!"

___

Birdfall shrugged, "my mentor never really taught me either. I kind of just learned how to do everthing on my own."

___

Feralwind nodded, "I remember him, he was almost the same age as me." he said.

___

Moonsong shuddred again, "Well, lets just hope Dreamsplash can get it under control quickly, because if Tigerstar is controlling her, then he knows everyhting she knows, and he could easily poison any of us." she said, closing her eyes.

___

Dreamsplash nodded, "go ahead." she said, padding to the back of her den and beginnign to find all the tiny Poppy Seeds where they had been scattered among all of her other herbs.

"I'm fine," Snakepaw mumbled, tail tip twitching as he peeked down at his leg. Blood soaked through his fur uncomfortably, making the silver band glisten strangely. "I'll be oka-" he was cut off as his skin started to burn, like fire was pulsing through his veins.

~

Poppypaw frowned. "Oh. I'm sorry then, for complaining..." She smiled at him hopefully, feeling her heart give a strange kick in her chest. 

~

Oakfeather nodded, and started to slip into a light sleep with a hearty purr that wasn't out of character for him.

~

Limefeather nodded, a small smile on his face. "He told me about you once," she said with a light chuckle. "He said you were a good friend." She added on with a distant look in her eyes, "He said that a few days before he died, actually..."

~

Wolfstar shrugged. "There's nothing we can do but wait; and keep an eye on Oakfeather, as he seems to be the only patient she currently has..."

~

Wishpaw pinned her ears back in fear, "Come on, lets go to camp." she said.

____

"YOu better be." Birdfall teased, flicking her ear with his tail.

____

"really?" Feralwind asked, tilting his head, "well. I am pretty awesome." he said, puffing out his chest arrogantly.

____

Moonsong raised an eyebrow and opened one eye, "year. you keep your eye on him, I will jsut ask him how he is feeling." she purred.

"Is that a challenge?" Poppypaw teased back, smirking.

~

Wolfstar nodded, then asked out of the blue, "Do you think I look like Oakfeather? Besides the color of our fur, of course? I've been told many times that i do, but..."

~

limefeather only rolled her eyes. "Don't let that ego get bigger than your butt, Feralwind," she teased.

~

"Yeah," Snakepaw gasped as he tried not to yowl or hiss in pain. "Good idea." Pain flared up his leg, shooting flames through his body. He felt dizzy, but he kept a steady, almost jogging pace up. He would get back to camp. He would live. And if he didn't? He could accept that.

He had saved Wishpaw, and that's all that really mattered. 

 Bridfall shrugged," 'dunno. Is it?" he asked, raising one eyebrow."

____

Moonsong laughed, "says you to the blind cat. Other than sight. THe two of you do have a similar scent, like me and cougarfeatehr, or Adderstrike and Feralwind. Like siblings. But definately soo similar as to be from the same litter. Like Mine and my little brothers, Wolf That Howls Alone, the one who became a kittypet. I never had a doubt that the two of you were siblings. I jkust never wanted to ask."

____

Feralwind scowled, "do you know that you are the second cat to call me fat today?" he complained.

____

Wishpaw dashed into camp and to Dreamsplash's den, "Snakepaw was bit by an Adder." she said simply.

Dreamsplash flicked herears and began to gather the necessary herbs immeadeately. She wrapped them all in a dock leaf and dashed out of her den and over to the apprentice. She set the herbs in front of him, "eat them quickly, the longer you wait, the more of a cahce there is of you dying." she looked at the wound, there had to be a way to cut off the blood flow so the vemon would stop traveling through his body. She ran back to her den and grabbed some cobweb to wrap it with, and stopped on her way back to Snakepaw to bit of a long, sturdy stalk of gr*censored*. She wrapped the wound in cobweb, then wrapped the gr*censored* around his leg above the ound, "I-I've never treated a snakebite before, not even when I was an apprentice." she admitted.

___

Adderstrike slipped into camp and sat down next to his apprentice, "what happened?" he asked, "besdies that you got bit by a snake, I can smell that much. How did you get bit?" he asked.

Snakepaw motioned for Wishpaw to explain as he started to shake more violently. He felt like he was burning under his fur, and the world around him seemed to be swaying. Dreamsplash's work seemed to have prevented the venom from spreading, but the little that had slipped past was burning up his veins. "Limefeather-" he gasped, teeth rattling. "A-a-ask her, if you aren't sure."

~

Limefeather smiled. "You aren't really fat, you know." she said with a chuckle. "So don't let it get to you."

~

Wolfstar nodded. "Do you think it's a possibility?" he said. "Seeing as neither of us knew our parents, and we have similar smells?" He added on, "I already know for definate that Oakfeather and Limefeather are siblings; their smell is much to close to fake it." He frowned. "Does that mean I kicked my sister off her position?" He felt oddly guilty.

~

Poppypaw laughed, "Only if you want it to be." 

Feralwind laughed, "Sablepaw was teasing me earlier." he said, flicking his tail.

____

Dreamsplash dashed to the Elders den and skidded to a halt just inside the entrance, "Limefeather! I need your help. Its Snakepaw, he was bit by an Adder and I don't know how to treat it. It has been moons since a cat has even seen a snake, you never got to teach me how to cure the bites." she said.

____

Wishpaw looked at the ground, then at Adderstrike, then back at her pas, she shuffled them in the dirt, "It was my fault Adderstrike. I was chasing a rabbit, it ran into a group of rocks, and when I followed it, an Adder came out. Snakepaw saved me from it." she said.

Adderstrike nodded, "that was brave of you Snakepaw, but foolish. Next time you see a snake, dont attack from the front. Go from behind and grab it behind the head. Then it is defenseless. That is for both of you." he said, looking at both of the apprentices.

____

Moonsong sighed, "I don't know if that makes you wrong, or a bad brother, you were doing your job. And she broke the warriors code. Without it, there is no law of the forest." she said.

____

Birdfall laughed, "then I guess it is." he purred.

Limefeather was shocked for a moment, then narrowed her eyes in cold fury. Her son was going die because this idiot couldn't even do her job properly. "Well, maybe," she snarled angrily as she stood up, "If you hadn't gotten me fired, you greedy little mousebrain, this wouldn't be a problem, because I'd probably taught you by now."

She turned to Feralwind, "I'm sorry about this; I'll see you later." She then pushed her way past  Dreamsplash, and stormed into what used to be her den. She snarled at Wishpaw and Adderstrike, "Out, both of you. I need space." she added on harshly, "And one of you can fetch Wolfstar, who is probably with Moonsong. She can come too. Make yourselves useful."

She turned her attention to her son, who looked absolutely petrified.

~

"I guess," Wolfstar mumbled, sighing.

~

 Poppypaw smirked, "I like a challenge." This sentence brought her back to her arguement with Lionpaw over Windpaw. But that didn't matter anymore; Birdfall was her kind of cat. She didn't need Windpaw.

"I said," she snarled, unsheathing her claws angrily. "I need some space to work." She added on in a bitter-sweet voice, "Why don't you go play with Finchtail? She should be missing you by now, I think."

Snakepaw, still trembling, muttered, "J-just go, Adderstrike. I-I didn't want y-you here anyways..."

"Quick talking!" Limefeather snapped at him, sniffing the bandages on his leg. "You started off okay, Dreamsplash, by tying his leg, but you can't put cobwebs on the bite. You need to let the venom out somehow."

~

Wolfstar nodded, getting to his feet. "Come on Moonsong," he said with a sigh. "Seems we're needed,"

~

Poppypaw nodded,  and started to stalk towards the bird silently.

Adderstrike hissed angrily, "fine, I'll leave, but only because he told me to." he said, nodding to Snakepaw, he spun and padded out of the den, tail lashing.

____

Dreasplash nodded, "I'll keep that in mind." she said.

____

Moonsong rose to her feet and padded out of the den, padding out of Wolfstar's den and waited for him to head over to Dreamsplash's den.

____

Birdfall sat down to watch, tilting his head curiously.

Poppypaw paused, uncertain, and as the bird started to flap it's wings she sprung. Her claws snagged on its feathers, dragging it back down so she could bite down on its neck. A dull crack and a trickle of blood seeping into her mouth told her she had been successful.

~

Wolfstar padded into the den, an unhappy ex
pression on his face as he watch Limefeather work over the small apprentice.

Limefeather only nodded, pulling off the cobwebs. Blood and a translucent liquid leaked out of the wound. She poked at his leg gingerly, keeping her calm.

Snakepaw winced, going ridged from head to toe. The fire was gradually slowing and dulling, but it still hurt.

~