The Last Hope/Chapter 15

"For me, it's a trick of the marshes, but I knew you'd find an omen in it. That's why I showed you."

— Mothwing to Jayfeather about the smoldering reed in The Last Hope, page 170

The Last Hope
Chapter number:	15 (of 27)
Page numbers:	162-172
Point of View:	Jayfeather
Chronology

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

Chapter Number: 15 (of 27)

Page Numbers: 162-172

Chapter description

Jayfeather swallows down a small bunch of tansy in hopes of not catching any coughs or sneezes spreading like wildfire in ThunderClan. He asks Briarlight if she has finished her small batch of herbs, to which Briarlight complains why they taste so bitter. The blind tom answers her saying it stops rabbits and mice from eating them and destroying their supplies. Millie comes by the medicine den to check on her daughter, but Jayfeather forces her out in hopes of not getting Briarlight sick. Jayfeather takes a look at his storage and sees a low supply of tansy. He paws around the rest of his storage for mallow and thinks about Purdy's condition and how it will probably work the same as tansy. As Jayfeather leaves the medicine den, he orders Briarlight to let no one in or near the den. Briarlight asks him about her mother, but Jayfeather reassures her that she won't come by after he had stopped her the first time.

Jayfeather walks into the elder den, noticing the scent of fresh mice. He asks the elder tom is he has been hunting to which Purdy replies saying Mousefur was starving. Mousefur snaps at the tom, telling him that she isn't an excuse. Purdy admits that he has been inside the den for days and he wanted to stretch his legs. Mousefur sighs and asks Purdy if her company isn't enough. Purdy answered the old she-cat saying his stories weer probably too boring for her making Mousefur push out a chuckle. As Jayfeather placed the mallow in front of the two elders, he mentions that if they're so bored, they could spend time with the new kits arriving. Mousefur grunts and complains that kits don't know anything about respect. Purdy leans to Jayfeather and tells him Mousefur has been teaching Lilykit and Seedkit how to catch stray tails under the warrior's den. Jayfeather smiles and leaves the den to let the old friends mingle.

The medicine cat walks over to the nursery on the other side of camp and notices Cinderheart brushing through the thorns. He nudges his head inside and finds Cinderheart taking care of Ferncloud's bellyache. Jayfeather hesitates to see her acting as a medicine cat, but lets her continue because of her complicated history. He lets Cinderheart know there are extra herbs outside the medicine den if she ever needs them. Jayfeather walks out of the nursery and heads toward the apprentice's den where he can here Molepaw coughing. To his surprise, he hears his mothing taking care of the sickly apprentice. Leafpool concludes that Molepaw would probably need honey for his throat and consults to Jayfeather. Jayfeather agrees and tells her there will be honey wrapped in a leaf outside his den.

As he walks back into his den, Briarlight comments that his exploration around camp was quick. Jayfeather explains that Cinderheart and Leafpool and helping around. He grabs the honey for Molepaw's cough and collects a couple of chervil roots for Ferncloud's bellyache. As he peeks his head outside to place the medicine, a familiar scent runs across his nose: RiverClan. Poppyfrost and Brackenfur escort the cat to Jayfeather. He quickly notices that it is Mothwing. Lilykit and Seedkit run across camp to see the mysterious cat, but Jayfeather quickly pushes them away to see what was the matter. Behind the two medicine cats, Jayfeather hears Spiderleg complain about Mothwing and Jayfeather's status as medicine cats.

Mothwing urges Jayfeather to come with her back to RiverClan camp. Firestar emerges from his den and asks Mothwing if anything is wrong. The RiverClan cat denies and tells the ThunderClan leader there is an urgent matter to show him. Firestar is hesitant and tells the medicine cat Jayfeather is not allowed to cross the borders. Mothwing disregards the leader's claims and tells him that this is too important to acknowledge border rules. Firestar asks what is so important, but Mothwing starts pulling away telling him it is only something the blind tom will understand. Jayfeather apologizes to his leader and follows his friend to RiverClan territory.

As they cross the WindClan border, hope sparks in Jayfeather's chest, hoping that Mothwing has somehow found proof that she is, indeed, the fourth cat. A shout from the distance spooks Jayfeather, and he realizes that the yell was his father. Mothwing informs him that he is leading the patrol. Jayfeather tastes the air and finds Whitetail (WC) and Owlwhisker. Crowfeather tells the two medicine cats the Jayfeather is not welcome in their territory. Mothwing tells the black warrior that they are not in their territory, as they are only a tail's length away from the water. Crowfeather further explains it isn't full moon and there is no truce. Jayfeather is in disbelief how such an ill-mannered cat could be related to him. Mothwing keeps her temper and reminds Crowfeather taht they are both medicine cats, however Crowfeather points at the blind tom and reminds her that he isn't. Owlwhisker speaks up and tells the patrol to escort him back to his border. Whitetail bringsup that Jayfeather isn't doing any harm, so there wouldn'tbe any point. Owlwhisker tellsthe other warrior that Jayfeather is a murderer. the white she-cat snapped at her clanmate asking if he believes everything ShadowClan says. Mothwing insists that the WindClan acts lets them pass, but Crowfeather continues to press that Jayfeather is tresspassing. The golden medicine cat flares up at the warrior telling him to let them pass or he will have to fight a medicine cat. Crowfeather backs away in defeat and lets the two pass and they head to the RiverClan shore. Jayfeather mentions to his friend she should have been made a warrior, but Mothwing shrugs and tells him she's a medicine cat.

As they make their way across the RiverClan border, Jayfeather catches the scent of smoke. Mothwing brings him closer to the smell of smoke and ash and shows him a single smoldering flame in a bed of wet reeds. Mothwing tells Jayfeather this one single reed had been lit for days among the wet reeds. Jayfeathe announces that it has to be a sign and asks what Mothwing's thoughts. She replies that is must be a trick of the marshes, but she knew he would find a sign. Jayfeather asks her if Willowshine knows about the reed. Mothing shakes her head saying she isn't looking for signs the way Jayfeather is. The tom begins thinking of what this isgn must mean. He comes to the conclusion that the reed is like a tail with a flame, Flametail. He graciously thanked Mothwing for the sign and continued to think about the possibility of her being the fourth cat, or even Flametail. Mothwing asks if he knows what the burning reed means. Jayfeater answers in a agreement. He tells her that he must find Flametail. Mothwing envys Jayfeather's faith and his determination to find hope. Jayfeather denies this and runs back to ThunderClan camp on his own. Mothwing calls out to him, telling him she'll watch the flame and if it goes out, she'll know Jayfeather has succeeded.

Characters

Major

• Jayfeather
• Mothwing

Minor

• Briarlight
• Mousefur
• Purdy
• Lilykit
• Seedpaw
• Brightheart
• Cinderheart
• Molepaw
• Leafpool
• Poppyfrost
• Spiderleg
• Firestar
• Crowfeather
• Whitetail
• Owlwhisker

Mentioned

• Millie
• Ferncloud
• Brackenfur
• Willowshine
• Flametail
• Littlecloud