Please Don't Stop Talking[C]

Each cough sent Softpaw's head swirling, each sneeze pounding in her head like a fox's jaws clamping shut around her eyes. The pain had become unbearable, but the feeling of her own stomach eating away at itself had become even worse. It didn't help that nothing she ate would stay down, but she just couldn't take the hunger any longer.

The molly had vacated her nest only long enough to procure a piece of prey from the pathetically small fresh-kill pile, though as she made her way back she couldn't help but eye a tiny molly. Crocusfrost had been spending a lot of time with this one, had she ever mentioned her name? Rockpaw? No, that's not right. Emberpaw? That's gotta be it. She looked way too small to be an apprentice. Softpaw pitied the poor thing. Emberpaw was in just as bad shape as she was, and that whimpering did nothing to ease Softpaw's heavy heart. Wait, no not heavy. It was just beating too fast. The floor fell out from below Softpaw and the apprentice came crashing to the ground, her rat finding its way onto Emberpaw's nest. The spotted molly grumbled out a profane curse. She wanted to get back up and go on her way, but that just felt like too much effort at this point. "Emberpaw, pass me that rat will you?" Everything other than her own name would be lost to Crocusfrost's ward, but hopefully she was smart enough to understand.