Dark skies and a Death

Shallowlake sleepily opened his eyes and rose up. Yawning, he carefully plodded out of the warriors' den. The tom headed for the dirtplace, and once he exited the tunnel, Shallowlake yawned and stumbled. Swallowing a deathberry, his eyes snapped open and he stumbled to the medicine den. "H*sharp intake of breath*elp!" Shallowlake managed to choke out. Not caring if Cloverpaw let him in, he pushed through the entrance and collapsed on the floor. "D*breath*eathberr*breath*ies!" he hissed through clenched teeth.

OOC: Let's just say that Ripple is an apprentice, even though his ceremony is taking place.

The new apprentice Ripplepaw had awoken from a long sleep in his new den, and was on his way to the dirt-place when he saw his father by the medicine den. "Shallowlake?" The brown tabby frowned and padded towards the warrior. As he neared, he noticed something was wrong. "Father? Help! Cloverpaw!" Ripplepaw yowled as he saw deathberries in his fathers mouth. The apprentice immediately started attempting to paw the poisonous berries out, but it may have been too late.

Rainpaw heard her brother yowling. As she listened to the words, she trembled and leaped to her feet. Scrambling over the other apprentices, she hared out of the den to her father. "Dad!" she cried, joining Ripplepaw and attempting to paw the poisonous berries out of Shallowlake's mouth. "C'mon, C'mon, breath Shallowlake!" she mewed, not giving up hope that he'd live.

The tabby and white tom pried open his amber eyes and gazed at two of his kits. "G*breath*et your m*breath*other and sib*breath*lings!" he gasped. Shallowlake knew that this was his last breath, and he had to see Willowkit, Showerpaw, Sleekkit, and Shimmermist.

Stream paw came over. "Shallow lake!!!! What happened to him!?" She asked, confused. "Is he okay?!" She asked. She noticed death berry juice. "Oh gosh!" She looked for Shimmermist. "I'll go get help!" She told them.

OOC: I'm just gonna kill him now, okay?

Rainpaw looked around for something. "Ooh! I know! Yarrow!" she mewed. "Hmm... where is it?!" Rainpaw turned around to see a whole line of herbs. Seeing a plant with many white flowers, she picked it up. Rainpaw put it in her father's mouth, but gasped when Shallowlake jerked and twitched violently. "No!" she sobbed. The plant she'd given him was Water Hemlock.

Shallowlake hissed as something was shoved in his mouth. Assuming that was the medicine cat that put the herb in his mouth, he chewed and swallowed. His eyes snapped open, and he foamed at the mouth, his body jerking around. After a few minutes of this, he stilled and let out one last strangled cry. "Family..." he choked. Shallowlake was dead.

Stream paw watched as Shallowlake died. She looked at Rainpaw and Ripplepaw. "I'm so sorry..." She said. She helped bring the dead cat to camp, sadly.

OOC: He's in camp already, but thanks. :3

Rainpaw collapsed next to her father and sobbed into his already cold fur. "Father! Why did you have to leave?" she mewed pitifully.

OOC: So, basically Rainpaw kinda killed him? x3

With Shallowlake dead, Ripplepaw sunk down next to his father, his face caked with sadness. His now dull blue eyes closed slowly as he pressed his nose into his fathers fur and slowly lowered Shallowlake's eyelids with his long tail. "Father." Ripplepaw croaked and curled up against the lifeless body, knowing he should go and get his mother but decided to soak in the last of his father's body heat.

OOC: *le gasp* No! She would never do that! ;3 I guess, yah.

Rainpaw rose and sniffled. Running far away from her father out of guilt, her paws led her to the nursery. Coming back to her senses, she found her mother. "Mom! Dad's dead!" she croaked and sunk to her knees.

Snowpaw looked around and saw cats surrounding something. She tilted her head and saw Shallowlake. She yowled in alarm and ran to him. "Shallowlake!" She quickly nudged him and felt death cold. A bunch of tears flew out her eyes. She bent down to touch his flank with her nose. "What will I do without you? Who am I going to trust now?" He was her best friend, and now he's gone.

Stream paw nudged snow paw. "He's in a better place now." She mewed, trying to make snow paw feel okay. She looked at Shallowlake, grief flooding into her. She felt so bad for his family.... She couldn't bear it.

The grieving Ripplepaw opened his dulling blue eyes to scan Snowpaw. The smaller replica of his father sighed and lowered his eyelids. "He never got to see his kits become warriors." He croaked and sat up next to the apprentice who recently joined their mourn.

Rainpaw was too choked up to say anything. Padding back to her family, she realized something. "I killed him! I killed Dad!" she wailed, running out of camp. Coming to a stop by the river bank, she sighed. "I killed him!" she murmured angrily. "If only I wasn't stupid, and asked Cloverpaw if that was the right herbs instead, Shallowlake would still be here."

"It's not you're fault!" She called to Rainpaw. "It's not you're fault." Stream paw said again. She wished others would understand it's not there fault. They all lose the details! She sat sadly next to Shallowlakes body. She knew him well enough that might have been friends, at least. She didn't have many. "I'm so sorry about you're father." She said to Ripplepaw. Her head drooped and her face clogged with grief. It was horrible, for this, to happen.

Hearing his sister blame the incident on her, Ripplepaw stood up and bounded after her. "Rainpaw, It's not your fault, you didn't know what the herb did and no one can blame you for trying to help Shallowlake..." The tabby came to sit next to his sister, gentle brushing his thick tail down her flank to sooth her.