Hollyleaf's Madness

Several days have passed since the death of Leafpool, ThunderClan's honorary medicine cat. The clan was in complete despair. However, one special Thundercat can prevent many disasters and murders. Only he will be the hope of all clans and many cats…

***

Jayfeather was awakened by a loud noise coming from the center of the camp. He hissed irritably. As it turned out, the culprits of such a stormy rumble were three kittens. They ran away from their den and began to frolic. The only trouble is that one of the kitness ran into the forest. What could be waiting for him there…? Adult cats nervously wandered around the camp and screamed, looking for the fugitive. Unfortunately for them, this kitten was not in the camp… Firestar looked around the entire clearing. The tension grew, and so he exclaimed loudly: — We urgently need to assemble patrols to search! — The leader glanced at the cats. — Brambleclaw, Lionblaze, Dovewing! You are the first patrol! Run! And Graystripe, Squirrelflight, and Birchfall are the second patrol! Hurry up! We need to find this missing kitten as quickly as possible… — said Firestar.

***

The patrols searched for a long time. The first three went deep into the forest. Suddenly, they heard a mad scream and rustling of bushes. Some unknown shadow rushes even deeper into the forest. Brambleclaw nodded at this to Lionblaze and Dovewing, and they slowly and quietly followed the sound and this unknown cat. The cats walked not far behind the shadow. For a moment, Brambleclaw thought he smelled the suffocating smell of a corpse… Maybe it was the game rotting…? The cat looked first in one direction, then in the other. Suddenly, he saw something small, gray, lying motionless on the grass. The deputy could not believe what he was seeing. Lionblaze and Dovewing approached him. All three cats stood in a stupor. They don’t understand how you can deal so cruelly with a harmless little kitten…? The baby lay unconscious. The ears were abnormally down and the mouth was open very wide. Apparently, it was he who screamed heart-rendingly before his early, harsh death. His stomach was wildly torn open, making many of his insides visible. Bloody eyes. It looks like they were walked over several times with extended claws… The paws were helplessly tucked under the small body. Brambleclaw moved forward towards the corpse. He tried to move the kitten to the side, and suddenly noticed with horror that the grass had strongly absorbed the baby’s blood, which did not stop flowing when the body was moved. While the deputy carried the baby in his mouth, enough feline, suffocating blood flowed into his mouth that he reflexively wanted to cough up. Brambleclaw barely managed to lay the kitten down on the grass as carefully as possible, and then began wildly coughing up the baby's blood. As Brambleclaw cleared his throat, he asked Dovewing to warn the Clan about this terrible crime with the kit. The cat felt terribly sorry for the baby and his mother. She will be very sad, especially because of how her kitten was treated… The deputy thought for a bit, and a little later he decided to continue walking further towards his camp.

***

Brambleclaw, drooping, carried the baby's corpse to the camp. When the cats saw the kitten, and even completely bloodied, no one hoped that the baby was even alive. The cats were very frightened, groaned, and some screamed in horror. It was hard to see a dead, mutilated kitten… Jayfeather, sensing the smell of death, quickly ran up to the deputy. Brambleclaw put the baby in the center of the clearing, and stepping back, froze, hearing absolutely nothing. The cat was very terrified. The medicine approached the kitten and began to sniff it. There was a dead, grassy smell coming from him, which combined with the smell of mother's milk. But suddenly, Jayfeather smelled a completely different smell, which was not like the other smells of this kitten…

***

On the night of the same day

Jayfeather woke up. He was very tired that day: he calmed the mother of a dead kitten, and later buried it. Suddenly the medicine remembered that today was a half moon, and therefore he had to go to a meeting of medicine's Hissing irritably at himself, the cat stood up from his bedding and walked towards the exit of his den. Immediately, as Jayfeather began to walk towards the exit from the camp, Lionblaze approached him, asking him a question along the way. — Jayfeather? Where are you going? The warrior asked with interest. — It’s already night… — How to where? I'm going to a medicine's meeting! — The cat muttered briefly. — Shall I go with you? What if… — Lionblaze was worried about his brother. — Ugh… Let's go. — Without resisting, Jayfeather hissed.

***

By the moon lake

Jayfeather arrived at the meeting later than the other three medicines. By the way, there were Feather, the medicine of the ShadowClan, Mothwing, the medicine of the RiverClan, and Barkface, the medicine of the WindClan. All the medicine looked in surprise at Lionblaze, who was walking next to Jayfeather. They looked at each other. Feather asked Jayfeather a question. — Greetings, Jayfeather! Why is Lionblaze coming with you? And… Why didn't Leafpool come? — He looked with interest at the newly arrived cats. Jayfeather noticeably shrank, remembering that — She’s… Dead, — the Thunder medicine barely said. — And Lionblaze is coming with me just in case — the cat hissed. All the medicines except Jayfeather instantly dropped, sympathizing with the Thundercats. Later the cats came to the Moon Lake. The medicines began to lie down at the edge of the water to talk with the Star Spirits.

***

Talking with Star Spirits.

When the medicines opened their eyes, they did not understand what was happening: all four were in one, common dream. The cats began to talk about this, when suddenly the Star Cats, who had once been the leaders of each of the four Clans, came to them. Bluestar, nodding to the other leaders, began to tell the healers the prophecy: «Beware, Clans! A dark, menacing warrior is approaching. He will shed a lot of other blood! But only one cat from ThunderClan will be able to put pacify him», — The former ThunderClan leader pronounced the prophecy a little worriedly. Jayfeather accidentally remembered Hollyleaf. He started thinking, «Hmm. Hollyleaf… Wait?! Are you kidding! Is she really the threat to all Clans?! Exactly! I smelled exactly her scent on the kitten… I urgently need to report this to Firestar!» The medicines said goodbye and later went to their Clans. Lionblaze walked behind Jayfeather so that in case of danger he could protect his brother. Suddenly the warrior heard an unknown rustling in the bushes. Looking a little nervously in the direction of the noise, the cat found nothing. What if he just wasn't watched attention? Having tensed a little, the cat continues to follow the medicine. Again there is a rustling sound, but this time in the grass. What is it?! Is someone watching them? Calm. And, as if out of nowhere, a stranger jumps out at Jayfeather, who outwardly resembles a panther due to his color. He loudly growls at the medicine. Lionblaze immediately ran up to Jayfeather and threw the stranger off his brother. The stranger, having fallen from Lionblaze's blow, rose sharply and rushed straight at the warrior. The stranger's eyes flashed with fire: He only wants to kill. For a moment, Lionblaze looked at the stranger. He suddenly stood up in a stupor. The warrior recognized this «stranger» as…Hollyleaf?! But why did she attack her brothers?! Has she gone crazy?! — Hollyleaf… Is that you?! — Lionblaze asked confused. — What are you doing?! She seemed to return from a state of madness to reality. She's, realizing what she had done, shuddered and looked around in fear. Hollyleaf, scared to the core, could only whisper. — I… I didn’t want to… I don’t know what’s happening to me… — the cat muttered quietly. — I… I'm crazy! —Having said this much louder, she laughed madly. — All I do is kill cats! Just for fun! — The cat grinned angrily. — And don’t you dare get in my way! — She growled A moment later, Hollyleaf disappeared into the grass. The two cats, left alone, were suddenly taken aback. They didn’t recognize the current Hollyleaf as their kinder sister at all. Lionblaze broke the silence. —It’s good that I went with you… — the cat muttered nervously. — That's for sure, — The medicine reluctantly admitted this. — Okay… Let's quickly go to the camp. — Lionblaze said, walking towards the forest.

***

In the camp

Jayfeather and Lionblaze arrived at their camp. — Lionblaze… Thank you for coming with me to the Moon Lake… – the medicine muttered awkwardly. — Do not thank! I wouldn’t forgive myself later if something happened to you, — Lionblaze answered. The cats went to their dens.