It was a warm day in Riverclan's territory beside the lake. The sun glinted off smooth-flowing river-water, while stones were heated by its bathing light.

All that day, Riverclan was bustling with activity. Cats pulled out weeds from around camp at Lagoonstripe's instruction, and tidied up the leaf-littered den entrance. Cats went in and out of camp on their assigned patrols, bringing in prey and hauling out debris, trying to clear the clutter that was gathered around the medicine cat's den. Cats hauled moss and collected cobwebs, cleaned out the old herb-shelves, and offered Tinyflame good will in being chosen by Starclan.

My sister is the new medicine cat.

And Starclan had stayed true to their word. The sign had arrived when they'd least expected it.

Crescentsky recalled the heart-pounding moments between that clamorous thunderclap and Emberfawn pointing out the small burning flame. It extinguished itself a few minutes after, all the while keeping contained to one blade of grass underneath the watchful eyes of all the
clan cats.

Warriors were visiting Tinyflame and congratulating her long after sunset. They asked her littermate a lot of questions, like how she was going to be trained, and whether she would revert back to her apprentice name or not, or if she'd start sleeping in the run-down medicine cat's den tonight. Tinyflame looked overwhelmed.

But really, what I'm concerned about is whether she wants to be one or not.

Crescentsky was proud to know that her sister had the opportunity to fill such an important role. But she hadn't gotten the chance alone to ask her, 'Do you really want to be a medicine cat?'

And she found that she couldn't find the answer in her sister's blank expressions. Tinyflame looked disconnected, as if she herself didn't even know how to feel about it yet.

Maybe she's hiding it.

Crescentsky thought she saw her littermate's face twitch in anger once or twice, but then it turned emotionless again.

Jadestar's distruptances had been put on hold, for now. The tortishelle she-cat had withdrawn herself, tidying up some of the den walls around camp but still appearing stiff and resentful in her body language. Trufflefur and Rainstrike were sitting a couple of fox-lengths away from one another, and Crescentsky could tell that it annoyed the Skyclan leader, but that she didn't want to make another show of herself.

Something still has to be done about her and Sootface, if they keep arguing against us. 

"Congratulations once again, Tinyflame." Emberfawn said as he approached behind Oatpaw and dipped his head.

Crescentsky was hardly listening to him. She shifted uncomfortably, the pain in her haunch causing a powerful nausea to roll inside her belly.

"I think you'll be amazing at the role."

Racoonstripe came up behind Emberfawn just then, joining him at the shoulder. "Can you treat my ripped dewclaw? It was torn on a riverstone this morning, and it hurts."

Tinyflame gave an awkward shrug, glancing at him.

"Not yet. I can after Starclan teaches me how to heal you in my dreams, though." She looked nervous at that.

"Are you excited?" Crescentsky probed. "Or...?"

"Oh- um, yes. It's just..." she glanced at Raccoonstripe and Emberfawn, as if she didn't want to continue speaking in front of them.

"I'll tell you later."

"Okay. I have something to you later, too." Crescentsky laid down after that, pressing her belly against the cool grass.

It's not hot out tonight, and yet I feel uncomfortably warm. And ugh, my forehead hurts...

Emberfawn settled beside Cheetah, who was eagerly listening to Rainstrike talk about the lightning strike.

Rainstrike left out the part about the arguing, though. Cheetah began pouting after Rainstrike finished explaining the experience.

"Mouse-dung, I missed it! Lagoonstripe and Racoonstripe did, too. We were late coming back from the sunhigh patrol, since Racoonstripe ripped his claw.

But wow, now both of my friends are super important to the clan." Her mouth curled into a grin while her tail flipped. "That's neat, isn't it?"

"What do you mean, super important? Nothing has changed about Crescentsky. She hasn't been made a medicine cat." Rowanpaw asked with resentment in her tone. She was observing the exchange with slitted eyes a few paces away from them. The chestnut she-cat was stripping the flesh from a fish spine, picking at it meticulously with her claws.

"Besides, Tinyflame was only made a medicine cat because she's the smallest and weakest cat in the clan. For a Riverclan warrior, she's kind of puny."

Crescentsky snarled a warning. You can say whatever you like about me, but keep your jaws shut about Tinyflame!

"Oh, uh-..." Cheetah rushed to explain herself.

"I just that Crescentsky's so like, great ya know? She traveled around the lake to look for the other clans and survived. She saved us once on the Starclan journey, too. When she thought it would be safer to swim the roughest waters of the Windclan border stream, it was the right call. We lost sight of the wolves and found each other later that night."

By this point Rowanpaw was seething. She broke the fish spine in two, then got up and stomped away.

"Whatever," Tinyflame hunched her shoulders and turned away, while Emberfawn stared after Rowanpaw's retreating haunches disparagingly.

Then the young tom said, "She's weird."

Cats kept coming to sit beside and chat with Crescentsky and Tinyflame, so that they still didn't get the chance to speak alone.

Crescentsky tried not to stress out over it. Hopefully their luck would hold out for another day, and she could get another night's sleep without needing to defend the camp.

If she did have to, she didn't know what she would do. There were religiously two cats posted outside the camp walls each night, and Lagoonstripe would not assign her until her wounds healed.

Which wasn't looking good...

I'd have to switch in front of the guards, or tell them to run into camp and leave me. That certainly isn't likely to work... Great Starclan, I can't wait for us to confess these secrets.

She could already feel the giant weight partially lifting from her shoulders. Whatever happened, happened. At least they wouldn't have to lie anymore.

Her head still throbbed. Ugh, my body feels like a piece of carrion on the Thunderpath.

Sootface broke into her thoughts.

"I knew it would be a she-cat chosen. Most of the time she-cats are chosen by Starclan as medicine cats. It's because they have a softer and gentler nature, whereas toms are more protective of their clan and kin."

Alpinefog rolled his eyes. He had a hind-limb stretched out and was grooming it. The grey tom paused in his licking in order to speak.

"That means nothing. Toms have been medicine cats for seasons. And each cat has their own individual personality."

"You're talking out of your ears. Based off what I've seen, Jadestar is more protective and fierce than you," Crescentsky added her input.

There wasn't much that Sootface could think of to say in defense of himself, so he just muttered "I was just saying that most of them are."

I need to lie down again. My leg hurts badly tonight. Crescentsky got up, keeping the injured hind-limb tucked underneath her belly.

She tried to keep it that way as she padded past her clanmates, but it was difficult. The stench of infection was wafting up and around her flanks.

A hot, searing pain radiated from the core of her infected injury and all the way up through her pelvis. Crescentsky spasmed at the agony, nearly dropping right in front of the other cats and curling in on herself.

The nausea came after she had settled in the den. She didn't get sick, which was good since she couldn't bear to stand up again anyway, but her stomach kept hurting.

I hope it's not too late for my hind-leg, like it was too late for Houndspots's wound. Crescentsky had been walking with a permanent limp for days now. She wondered if it would ever heal, if it was possible for her sister to learn the ways of a medicine cat quickly enough.

Well, I'm not going to pressure her or ask for treatment like all of the other cats were. How could she, when it was clear that Tinyflame had none of the answers herself?

Crescentsky wanted so badly to console her littermate, to speak to her about her decision to spill all of their secrets to the clan now, and to ask her if this was the path that she wanted.

But it might jeopardize Tinyflame's chance at becoming a medicine cat. So I have to know if she really wants it. If she wants me to tell the whole clan.

But ugh, I can't ask her right now!

The moon had already chased away the sun, and Tinyflame was still stuck outside talking to the other cats.

Tomorrow, then. Crescentsky thought, thrusting her muzzle underneath a forepaw and trying to fall asleep quickly.

I'll talk to her tomorrow. I'll figure out how she feels about all this, and what our next course of action is.

That night Crescentsky's wound festered with a vengeance. No matter how was she laid, she couldn't get comfortable.

And even after she did fall asleep, it woke her up several times after that. Yet never at a time that Tinyflame appeared to be awake.

Crescentsky bit back the whimpers of agony that threatened to slip from her muzzle. She didn't want to wake the entire warriors den, let alone her sister.

Tinyflame might be sharing with Starclan in her dreams right now. Even if I was lying here dying, it would be wrong to wake her.

And so she regretfully settled back into her nest each time, choosing to suffer rather than wake her sleeping littermate.

"Crescentsky, is that you again?" Sootface lifted his huge blocky head.

"Can't a cat get some Starclan-forsaken sleep around here? Stop moving around, or get out of the den!"

(BTW 5 chapters until The End)