Hollyleaf's Madness

Hollyleaf didn't sleep well last night. She constantly has nightmares and cats telling her that she will regret what she did. But the cat didn't discriminate. What did she do?

***

In Hollyleaf’s dream.

The cat woke up in a wonderful clearing. The sun shines brightly here, there is a lot of greenery all around, a lot of game. «It’s somehow too good here… What kind of heavenly place is this?» — thought Hollyleaf. Suddenly the weather gets worse. Dark clouds appeared surrounding this beautiful place, and someone began to approach Hollyleaf. A moment, and the cat recognized him… Her brother, Jayfeather?! Hollyleaf clearly did not expect to see him, especially after that near the Moon Lake: the moment when the cat attacked his, his brother, the situation in a fit of… Madness?! Hollyleaf is completely lost in herself… Suddenly the cat began to have flashbacks: Her happy childhood: she and her brothers play in the Children's Room. The kittens happily run around in circles, playing catch… Her initiation into armament: the cat is so jubilant that she almost woke up all the forest game… Her initiation into a warrior: Hollyleaf proudly sat through the night vigil… Was it all in vain? Jayfeather came close to Hollyleaf. He waited a moment and began: — Oh, Hollyleaf… You shouldn’t have started all this. I have to tell you that… You will soon pay for everything… I feel sorry for you, — the cat muttered coldly. Hollyleaf instantly pressed herself: «But she didn’t do anything! And in any case… She has long since repented for what she did!» — «But… Why… I didn’t do anything like that…» the cat suddenly trembled. Jayfeather was greatly taken aback by these words, but decided not to remind his sister of the crimes she had committed. — You know everything, Hollyleaf, — the healer said gloomily. — And for this you will bear the consequences… The weather became more and more frightening: the clouds became darker, as if reacting to the tension occurring among the cats. — No, please… I realized my mistakes! I won’t do it again… — Hollyleaf barely muttered, trembling with fear. — Too late! — Sparrow exclaimed briefly. After the cat said this phrase, a blinding flash flashed across several of Hollyleaf's cat tails. The dream began to seem hazy, and soon the cat woke up, breathing heavily from the fear that now lived in a dream. — What could this mean?.. — thought the cat. — Really… — throwing away these gloomy thoughts, the cat began to crawl out of caves. Outside the cave, there were clouds in the sky, and strangely enough, the sun was obscured by clouds, making everything quite dark now. The cat decided to take a walk in search of prey and wandered into the forest.

***

In camp ThunderClan

Jayfeather thoughtfully sorted through the herbs. While checking his supplies, the cat discovered that he needed to pick more Catnip. The healer, quickly removing the remaining herbs, arranging them in order, wandered towards the exit of his healing cave. The cat, going out into the light, inhaled air with its mouth: «It looks like it’s going to rain soon. We need to pick mint quickly!» thought the healer. Jayfeather fell silent for a while and tried to find Lionblaze's scent among the others in order to come to his brother. Not finding him, the cat became a little desperate and began to call out to his brother. — Lionblaze! — the healer exclaimed loudly. — Lionblaze! Where are you? — Sparrow asked out loud. The warrior heard his brother calling him, so he instantly ran to the healer. — Jayfeather? Did you call me? asked Lionblaze. — Yes! I need you… To keep me company in the forest. I need to collect catnip, — Jayfeather explained. — No problem! Let’s go, — Jayfeather’s guide, Lionblaze, walked next to his brother.

***

The weather had already completely deteriorated: it began to rain heavily. Hollyleaf caught some mice while in the Thundercats territory and began eating the mice. Suddenly the cat heard approaching steps, and quickly finished the game, she disappeared into a small hole. Pricking up her ears and taking a closer look, the cat noticed… Lionblaze and Jayfeather! «Why do they catch my eye so often?» — the cat thinks. The brothers passed very close to Hollyleaf. Suddenly Jayfeather stopped. — Hey, Lionblaze, wait… I can smell Hollyleaf, — the healer whispered to Lionblaze. Hollyleaf immediately panicked when she heard this, and goosebumps ran down her body. «What happens if they see me?» — the cat reasoned. Jayfeather began to slowly tilt his head towards his sister, which, in general, was quite creepy. The cat slowly approached the cat. — Is he really blind?! — Hollyleaf was surprised. — He sees no worse than unbliend cats!. But suddenly Jayfeather turned in the other direction. Hollyleaf breathed a sigh of relief, but it seemed… It sounded very loud. The cats immediately turned to the she-cat, and Lionblaze couldn't believe his eyes: Hollyleaf had been hiding here all this time! — Hollyleaf! What are you doing in ThunderClan's territory? — asked Lionblaze. — I… Um… I'm leaving soon! — Hollyleaf said. After the words spoken by the cat, the thunderstorm began to send out its flashes directly to the ground. Hollyleaf sensed something was wrong… Instantly curled up with fear, she looked around worriedly: the storm was raging! — Hollyleaf, you should leave before… — Okay, okay, I'm leaving! — Without allowing Lionblaze to finish, the cat answered. — And also… I’m sorry for what I did… — the cat said, drooping. Hollyleaf ran away from her brothers like a bullet. The rain dripped onto her dark fur, causing it to stick together a little. But before the cat had time to run away, a dazzling, white flash of lightning appeared at a distance of an outstretched paw, right in front of her… The black cat's body lands with a thud right on the wet ground. The brothers immediately ran up to her, but it was already too late. The cats dragged their sister's corpse under a low tree to bury her soon. After the lightning struck the cat, the weather began to calm down. The thunderstorm had almost stopped and the rain began to subside. — Lionblaze… — Sparrow broke the silence. — We need to tell Firestar about this… — Let’s go… — the warrior whispered quietly.

***In the camp

The brothers finally reached the tribe. They entered Firestar's cave. — Firestar! May I come in? — asked the warrior. — Of course, Lionblaze! Come in, — the leader nodded approvingly. The cats that came in were very depressed. There was horror in their eyes. — What brought you to me this time? — Firestar asked interestedly. — Hollyleaf…— Jayfeather exclaimed gloomily. The leader instantly felt goosebumps all over his body, in anticipation of something bad. — She… Her… Um, — Jayfeather said stuttering. — She was killed by lightning... —Lionblaze answered for his brother. Instant. All the cats in the cave were instantly taken aback. Everyone was shocked by this news. What none of them expected, and what was most unlikely, happened. — Aww, — Firestar mumbled. — I feel sorry for her, even considering what she did... Please accept my condolences, — the leader replied. — Then we need to get to Clan together again to talk about it. Thanks for the information, you can go… Lionblaze and Sparrow immediately came to the Stone Cornice so as not to waste time. Firestar came out and walked towards the Stone Cornice. — Let all the cats who are able to hunt on their own gather under the Stone Cornice! — he anxiously called all the cats. All the cats immediately gathered at the cornice. — Thundercats! I have two news for you: one is bad, and the other is good… Let's start with the good… — Firestar quieted down a little before continuing. — Now we can safely walk in the forest… The bad news… Hollyleaf is dead. Her murder by lightning, — the cat stopped instantly. The cats, surprised and empathetic, were extremely surprised by this information. Despite what this cat was like, you can sympathize with her at least a little.

***

Hollyleaf woke up in a strange place: it was not as heavenly as the place from her dream, but it was not too terrible either. It's quite cozy here. The only strange thing is that besides Hollyleaf, there are no other cats here… But maybe she will find them? The cat began to wander towards the half-covered forest. There were no other animals here! Why did she come here? There was deathly silence in the forest, only occasionally, leaves fell from the trees, causing a slight rustle to be heard. Hollyleaf began to slowly go crazy. Suddenly, Star Spirits began to approach the cat. They quickly surrounded Hollyleaf, preventing her from going anywhere. — Hollyleaf! — Bluestar stepped forward from the circle. — StarClan does not accept you into its ranks! You've committed too many murders! — the cat exclaimed loudly. — B-but… I… I'm sorry for… what I did. But… understand me! — Hollyleaf asked. — What will happen to me…? The star cats were taken aback, wondering what to answer. — You will live in the Dark Forest, — Bluestar answered briefly. — W-what…?! — Hollyleaf instantly became alarmed. — Why…? — You have committed too many murders, and you will be punished for it, — the former Thunder leader also answered coldly. Instantly the spirits began to dissipate and gradually disappeared. — NOOO! Do not leave me! — Hollyleaf shouted.

But they didn’t listen to her. The Starcats have disappeared forever.

Suddenly Hollyleaf began to feel sleepy. The cat, without wanting to, fell asleep.

***

Hollyleaf opened her eyes again. — How long it will be going on?! — the cat was indignant. She looked around. Hollyleaf didn't know exactly where she was now. Hollyleaf looked around: the atmosphere around her was gloomy. — Really… I'm in the Dark Forest?! But… this can't be! — she turned around in panic.

It's right. She found herself in the Dark Forest. A place from which there is no exit. The place where cats go after they've made too many mistakes in their lives…