Eclipse/Chapter 4

"She's fine. Nothing will stop her from becoming a warrior."

— Leafpool to Cloudtail about Cinderpaw in Eclipse, page 60

Eclipse
Chapter number:	4 (of 25)
Page numbers:	49-61
Point of View:	Jaypaw
Chronology

Below contains in-depth information for chapter four of Eclipse. If you are looking for a shorter summary of the entire book, please check the main article.

Chapter Number: 4 (of 25)

Page Numbers: 49-61

Chapter description

Jaypaw's PoV

Jaypaw wraps up the honeycomb in a rhubarb leaf while Leafpool is out collecting catmint. He's about to tie it up in bark strips when he hears a squeal. The medicine cat apprentice recognizes the squeals as Toadkit's, and runs to the den entrance just as Daisy dashes in. The queen tells Jaypaw that her kit had been chasing after a bee and jumped right into some nettle patches. Jaypaw is relieved that it's just nettle stings and nothing too serious. He sniffs Toadkit while Daisy complains about Firestar not cleaning the patches up, saying she knew it would be trouble one day. Jaypaw points out that nettles aren't deadly, and tells the kit to stay still.

Toadkit complains about it hurting, so Jaypaw goes to fetch some dock leaves for the stings. He trips over Daisy's tail in the process, but continues and chews up the dock leaves after finding them in the cleft of the rock. Jaypaw is about to apply them on Toadkit's ears when the kit bats it away and into a pool of water. Frustrated, he starts heading back to the pile of dock leaves, stating that the quicker the ointment was put on, the sooner the stings would stop hurting.

Jaypaw trips over Daisy's tail again, and is annoyed as he tells her to go check on Rosekit. After a few moments, she finally leaves him alone in the den with Toadkit. The medicine cat apprentice chews up the dock leaves again, and after putting some pressure on him, applies ointment on Toadkit's stings. The kit prepares to go for Jaypaw's tail, but the blind tom quickly turns around, stopping him. He fetches more pulp, and gives some to Toadkit, instructing for him to rub it on some of the stings. Jaypaw helps him, and after a few moments, the stings are all tended to. The apprentice makes a mental note to give a poppy seed to Daisy before bedtime, so the kit can sleep through the itches.

He hears the brambles rustle at the den entrance, and scents Leafpool coming in with some catmint. After dropping the herb, she checks Toadkit and praises Jaypaw for using just the right amount of dock. She tells him to give the kit a poppy seed so he can sleep through the itches, and Jaypaw holds back a sharp reply. He knows that, unlike his littermates, he will have to listen to Leafpool instructing him on what to do, even after he receives his Clan name.

Toadkit thanks Jaypaw for helping him and then leaves the den. The medicine cat apprentice promises Leafpool that he'll give the kit a poppy seed before he goes to sleep, but she doesn't reply. He can feel uneasy energy coming off of her, and realizes she's worried about something, but he can't tell what. Jaypaw apologizes for not finishing wrapping up the honeycomb when he sees her doing it, and she points out that Toadkit needed tended to.

Jaypaw realizes that she's tired from working twice as hard while he was away in the mountains. He offers to get the herbs from in the cave and see what they need. Leafpool announces that they need more mallow and catmint, and Jaypaw realizes they don't have deathberries. He asks her if they should get some for cats that fall extremely sick, but she disagrees, saying she doesn't teach those things, and that she believes it's up to StarClan to decide when a cat dies. She passes Jaypaw some comfrey and tells him to sort through it and throw out any old stalks.

As he's doing so, she asks him about the mountains and Tribe. He says that the Tribe was odd and didn't know how to fight off the invaders. The apprentice goes on, meowing that he saw the Tribe of Endless Hunting in the Cave of Pointed Stones. Leafpool asks what they were like, and he says they were a bit like StarClan, but they couldn't help the Tribe of Rushing Water with the invaders. Leafpool states that sometimes even their ancestors can't help them. Jaypaw then talks about Stoneteller being both a leader and a medicine cat. Leafpool replies that it's a lot of responsibility and can sometimes be lonely.

Jaypaw wonders if she knows about the prophecy, but comes to the conclusion that she wouldn't be able to keep a secret like that. He tries looking into her mind, but fails, but he notices that something is troubling her. The medicine cat apprentice offers to his mentor her some fresh-kill, but she refuses, and instead tells him to put the comfrey away. While he's in the cleft, Cloudtail walks into the den. Leafpool asks the white warrior if he's injured, and he replies no, but comments that he's worried about Cinderpaw. He asks the medicine cat if she's ready for her assessment, and Leafpool pauses for a moment.

Jaypaw is able to enter her thoughts: she's a remembering a cold leaf-bare in the old forest. Cinderpelt looks thin, and a cold breeze comes along. A young Leafpool offers to bring her some fresh-kill, but the former medicine cat tells her no, saying it needs to be saved for the warriors and apprentices who need to have their strength for more hunting. Leafpool argues with her, pointing out that if the Clan came down with greencough, she'd need the strength to take care of all of them. Cinderpelt still objects, meowing that she can't go very far with her crippled leg, especially during leaf-bare, so she can survive on less food. Jaypaw can read what the former medicine cat is actually thinking: that if she didn't have her crippled leg, she could still go out and hunt with the others.

Leafpool answers Cloudtail, breaking Jaypaw out of the memory, and tells the warrior that Cinderpaw will be fine. The white warrior is still worried, but Leafpool keeps telling him confidently that his apprentice is ready, and nothing will hold the she-cat back from becoming a warrior. Cloudtail asks her if she'd like to come eat with him, and she agrees. After they've left the den, Jaypaw walks out of the rock cleft. He realizes that Leafpool was acting unusually bright, as if she was hiding her doubts. Jaypaw picks up the coltsfoot, and walks back into the store, hoping that his mentor is right about Cinderpaw's injury.

Characters

Major

• Jaypaw
• Leafpool
• Toadkit

Minor

• Daisy
• Cloudtail
• Cinderpelt

Mentioned

• Rosekit
• Stoneteller
• Cinderpaw
• Honeypaw
• Poppypaw