Fuzzypaw flitted in and out of consciousness, listening to thunder boom overhead. At one point, she woke up, but all she remembered was coughing up a mouthful of water.

      Water? Why am I spitting out water? She remembered thinking.

      Whenever she was unconscious, her fitful sleep was disturbed by weird dreams. Most were of a stormy stretch of water. In those dreams she was usually underwater, and her lungs had flames coming out of them. She guessed that meant they felt like they were burning, but since they were dreams, she didn't feel any pain.

      The weirdest dream was of a mouse flying away from her, then coming back as a snake and hissing, "I'll push you into the river. Just get on my back." For some reason, she got onto the snake's back, and woke up just before it threw her in the river.

* * *

      Fuzzypaw woke up from a dream about water falling on her head. She opened her eyes, one by one. She gasped at what she saw.

      A fuzzy looking, four eyed, two nosed, three eared, and two mouthed ginger and white she-cat was looking straight at her!

      She blinked her heavy eyes once, twice, and looked again. The cat turned into Patchtail! "Where am I?" Fuzzypaw asked Patchtail, her voice croaking.

      "Shhh." Patchtail's voice was soothing. "You're in the medicine den. Now, tell me where it hurts."

      Fuzzypaw was suddenly thirsty. "All over," she rasped. "Need water."

      Patchtail had started to turn around to get some wet moss when Moonpaw scrabbled through the entrance to the medicine den, knocking down a stack of herbs.

      As Patchtail rushed to clean it up, Moonpaw mewed, "Sorry, I was having trouble climbing the tree."

      "Tell Snowtail to teach you to climb as soon as possible." Patchtail's whiskers quivered in amusement.

      Moonpaw suddenly became shy. "Actually, about that...I...I want to...I mean, may I...er, I need to..."

      Patchtail let out a mrrow of laughter. "You want to become my apprentice? Sure, as long as Spottedstar agrees, I'd love to have you as my apprentice," she went on without waiting for an answer.

      Fuzzypaw was shocked. Become a medicine cat? Why would Moonpaw want to do that? She'd always wanted to be a warrior...hadn't she?

      Moonpaw gave a little hop. "Thanks! That would be great!"

      Patchtail touched her tail tip lightly to Moonpaw's shoulder. "Now as your first unofficial medicine cat apprentice task, would you mind getting Fuzzypaw some moss soaked in water? You know where the river is, I'm sure."

      Fuzzypaw watched Moonpaw leave, dazed. She was still staring after her sister as Patchtail came over to examine her.

      "Hmm..." the medicine cat murmured. "Looks as though the waves tossed you around by the rocks. You've got some bruises." She dropped a mouthful of herbs at Fuzzypaw's feet. "Here. Eat these."

      As Fuzzypaw obediently gulped the herbs down, she heard a scratching, scrambling noise. Moonpaw burst through the entrance to the medicine den, scattering the same pile of herbs she'd overturned before. Patchtail hurried to clean it up, sighing, and Moonpaw dropped a dripping wet bundle of moss to speak.

      "I think I did better that time. I really think I'm learning how to climb."

      Patchtail mumbled something sarcastic. Moonpaw quickly glanced at her new mentor, then brought the moss to Fuzzypaw.

      "Thanks," Fuzzypaw mewed hoarsely. She lapped up the water thirstily, trying to get every last drop. "So, why did you become a medicine cat?"

      "I...well, I didn't like seeing you suffer and not be able to do anything about it," Moonpaw mewed quietly.

      "But you did do something about it! From what I remember, you were the one who took me back to camp!" Fuzzypaw's eyes widened.

      "You- you wouldn't understand," her sister told her, lost in the memory.

      Fuzzypaw looked around the medicine den. She could understand why her sister wanted to be here. It was roomy, for a den, and at the same time, cozy.

      Patchtail finished stacking herbs and padded over to her. "You look a little tired, Fuzzypaw. Why don't you get some rest?" Fuzzypaw had been so preoccupied she hadn't realized her eyelids were getting heavy. She blinked heavily and yawned. Her head felt like stones were weighing it down. "I'll take that as a yes," Patchtail mewed.

      "Mmm hmm," Fuzzypaw mumbled, closing her eyes and laying her head on her paws.

      Patchtail was teaching Moonpaw about poppyseed. "Obviously Fuzzypaw doesn't need it. Poppyseed makes cats slee-"

      Their words slurred and bended, and Fuzzypaw succumbed to sleep before they finished the sentence.