PurrBox walked back to the cave with Sandy, holding two small sparrows.

Winter was very close, so these were probably the last birds he'd catch that year.

He placed the birds on the prey stash as they entered the cave. They'd decided to stay up during the day instead of night and see if that would help with their small prey stash.

It had a little, but with winter growing closer, prey had begun to hide.

Sandy placed a hawk on the prey stash. She'd managed to catch it near the mountains.

PurrBox sat by the pool with River. He looked at the gray cat. He was staring down into the pool, his ears back.

PurrBox nudged his friend with his nose. "Hey, what's wrong?"

River looked at him. His blind eye almost matched the crystal blue of his other eye. He shook his head. "I-it's nothing."

"It's not nothing, Riv." PurrBox had come up with that nickname the day before and so far River had said nothing about it.

River sighed. His ears were completely flat against his head. He looked back down at the water. PurrBox wished he could read River's mind. He knew something was wrong but River wasn't telling him.

PurrBox batted the cat playfully. "Come on, Riv! You can tell me!"

River shook his head. "You wouldn't understand," he whispered.

He left the cave quickly. PurrBox tried to race after him but when he stepped outside, River was gone. PurrBox looked around but didn't see him.

PurrBox sighed. He knew something was wrong.

But how would he help?

PurrBox shook his head. Maybe if he got some herbs he could clear his mind.
He walked off through the meadow. He gathered a few herbs. Fleabane, thyme, coriander, cilantro, chervil and some cobwebs.

He wanted to find some catnip but he guessed that only grew in the city which Panther currently had control of.
PurrBox brought the herbs back, placing them in a corner where their herb stash was. He saw River had come back with a rabbit. He placed it on the prey stash.

"Riv, I know you aren't ok. Will you talk to me please?" PurrBox asked.

River shook his head. "I'm fine, Purr."

But PurrBox knew he wasn't.

***

PurrBox slept in his bed. He had trouble sleeping and when he woke up he felt like his eyes were still closed.
He stretched, reaching his paws out in front of him.

He walked outside. The moon shone high above him. He looked around and saw River climbing up the mountain.
His heart raced as River stumbled and almost fell. He was high in the mountains.

"River!" PurrBox cried.

A cat was up there with River, encouraging him to carry on.

The cat was a graceful tortoiseshell queen. She stayed a few feet in front of River, just out of his reach.

"Pepper!" River cried faintly. "Wait!"

The stone cracked beneath him. He scrambled for a hold on the mountain. PurrBox tried to move but he couldn't get his paws to go forward.

And just as he fell PurrBox woke up.

He scrambled to his feet and just before he reached the entrance he heard a loud thump outside.

PurrBox felt anxiety rise dangerously high inside him. He raced outside and to the area where he saw River, limp beside the cave.

A tortoiseshell cat stood beside him. Her whiskers twitched when she saw PurrBox's face and she faded away before PurrBox could attack. Instead, he crouched by River's side.

PurrBox looked at the smaller cat. A small pool of blood wet the grass beneath him. His breathing was short and shallow. PurrBox yowled a cry for help, turning to the cave and hoping Crystal or Nightlight or someone who could heal had heard.

He saw Nightlight come out with Hawk beside her. Both cats' eyes widened and Hawk raced towards him while Nightlight went back inside. A few of the others came out as well. Chloe and Coffee were instantly beside River.

PurrBox curled beside River, sticking his muzzle into the cat's fur. "You'll be ok," he mumbled. "I promise you."

He was alive but barely. There was a small spark of hope. Maybe he'd live if Nightlight got to him in time.

"Move," Nightlight said to PurrBox.

PurrBox moved over as Nightlight carefully flipped River over. A long gash on his side from the rock and fall had turned his gray fur crimson red with blood. PurrBox looked down at his paws as Nightlight put some chervil and cobwebs on his wounds.

PurrBox's dream had been real? But... how?

The cats dragged River to the herb stash to help Nightlight heal him faster.

River's breathing was not promising, only getting slower and shallower as time went on.

When Nightlight had done everything she could do, she let the three cats closest to him see him. PurrBox crouched near his head. The scar on his eye looked like nothing compared to what he looked like now.

"Don't die," PurrBox said. "You can't die."

River took another short, shallow breath.

"PurrBox, he's lost a lot of blood," Nightlight explained. "I don't know... I don't think he'll survive."

PurrBox whirled toward her. "No! Don't say that!" he cried. "He won't die! You can't give up on him! Not yet..."

His voice cracked with the last two words. He turned back to River.

"Please don't die, Riv," PurrBox said. I love you, he wanted to add. But he didn't.

He buried his face in River's fur. He would've stayed like that all night if Nightlight hadn't pulled him back.

"Go hunt, PurrBox," Nightlight said.

PurrBox hesitated. "Fine."

***

He stalked the rabbit, slowly approaching it. He was almost close enough to pounce on it when a hawk swooped down and caught it first.

PurrBox jumped into the air, barely sinking his claws into the hawk. He pulled it to the ground as he fell back to the earth.

He'd actually caught a hawk!

For the first time he'd caught something bigger than ravens or sparrows.

He felt proud, ready to go show River when he got back to the cave.

But then his tail drooped as he remembered River was still in the cave, healing from the fall.

PurrBox sighed and dragged the hawk back to the cave.