The Apprentice's Quest/Chapter 5

"This is the first time I've had an emergency, and I'm here on my own! What do I do?"

— Alderpaw's thoughts after hearing about Cherryfall's injury in The Apprentice's Quest, page 70

The Apprentice's Quest
Chapter number:	5 (of 24)
Page numbers:	68-76
Point of View:	Alderpaw
Chronology

Below contains in-depth information for chapter five of The Apprentice's Quest. If you are looking for a shorter summary of the entire book, please check the main article.

Chapter Number: 5 (of 24)

Page Numbers: 68-76

Chapter description

Alderpaw is treating Dovewing's sore throat with tansy, and she dips her head in thanks. She chews them up, remarking that she is starting to feel better already, and swallows them. Jayfeather praises him briskly with approval as he has been a medicine cat apprentice for a while now. As Alderpaw begins to clean up herbs, Squirrelflight pushes her way into the medicine den and asks if Leafpool was back from ShadowClan yet. Jayfeather replies back by saying she wasn't back and he doesn't know why she is helping out Littlecloud. He also says that since ShadowClan has so many apprentices, they should find one for Littlecloud. Squirrelflight tells him that he knows an apprentice needs to be the right kind of cat. She then asks him if he is busy as she and Bramblestar want to speak with him in the leader's den. Jayfeather tells Alderpaw to help Briarlight with her exercises. Squirrelflight and Jayfeather head out while Alderpaw tosses a mossball to Briarlight. He is astonished at how good she is at them, and how flexible she has become. Briarlight asks him how his training is going and the medicine cat apprentice meows that he doubts he will ever become a full medicine cat. Briarlight comforts him by telling him he'll be fine, as he'd been apprenticed for less than a half-moon. Alderpaw feels guilty about him moping, and thinking he had a tough life, while Briarlight couldn't even move her hind legs but never gave up.

A moment later, he hears his sister Sparkpaw crying for Jayfeather. She rushes into the den and asks where he is. She reports that her mentor, Cherryfall, got hurt by cutting her leg in the woods. Alderpaw freezes in shock, as he is uncertain what to do, but Briarlight helps out with telling Sparkpaw that Jayfeather was in the leader's den. Sparkpaw runs to get him and Alderpaw wonders if he should get any herbs and what the right ones are for this situation. He hears his sister outside calling for him again and he, Sparkpaw, and Jayfeather run out into the forest. Sparkpaw takes the lead and Alderpaw helps guide Jayfeather. His mentor asks him to get a move on, so he looks for the easiest way. The blind tom asks how Cherryfall hurt herself and Sparkpaw says that she, Cherryfall, and Sorrelstripe were going to go to Twolegplace to find Minty and Jessy. Cherryfall figured that maybe the two kittypets had something to do with StarClan's prophecy. Jayfeather thinks that it was a mouse-brained idea, and Sparkpaw defends her by saying it was worth trying. Jayfeather then says that they should have asked permission before wandering out of ThunderClan territory. Sparkpaw says that they never even left ThunderClan forest, and Alderpaw feels sorry for his sister, even though he thinks she's wrong. Sparkpaw leads them to a grassy hollow, and they spot Cherryfall and Sorrelstripe. Her mentor is lying down with one paw stretched out and Sorrelstripe pacing nearby. The two medicine cats go to her. They examine her wound and Alderpaw spots clear sharp Twoleg stuff close by.

Jayfeather asks his apprentice to bring cobwebs for the wound, and he hesitates. Sparkpaw spots an oak tree and thinks there may be cobwebs in there. The ginger she-cat is followed by Sorrelstripe to the tree, and Alderpaw is upset that he didn't think of that in the first place. After the two cats return, Jayfeather instructs his apprentice to press down on Cherryfall's leg to stop the bleeding. Alderpaw hands over the cobweb to his mentor to wrap it around Cherryfall's paw. The bleeding stops. They lead her to the medicine den, where Alderpaw arranges a nest for her. Cherryfall apologizes for being such a hassle. After removing the cobweb, they inspect the wound again to see no signs of further bleeding. Jayfeather gives Alderpaw comfrey root to chew up and put on Cherryfall's injury. His mentor tells that he is done for today and to get something to eat. Alderpaw spots Sparkpaw by the fresh-kill pile, and she invites him to share prey, a vole Sparkpaw caught, with her. After looking at the prey, the dark ginger tom confesses to his sister that he was shaken by seeing Cherryfall's wound. He states that he doesn't know if he'll ever be a medicine cat, but Sparkpaw tells him to trust himself as she was really impressed with how he treated Cherryfall. Beginning to eat, Alderpaw starts to feel better.

Characters

Major

• Alderpaw
• Jayfeather

Minor

• Dovewing
• Squirrelflight
• Briarlight
• Sparkpaw
• Cherryfall
• Sorrelstripe

Mentioned

• Leafpool
• Littlecloud
• Bramblestar
• Jessy (Unnamed)
• Minty (Unnamed)