Honeypaw dug up as much of the comfrey root as she could. Her claws were clogged with dirt, but she managed to get a decent chunk. Sighing with relief, Honeypaw picked up the root in her teeth and went to find Pebblestep, hoping her mentor was having good luck with her own herb hunt.

She found Pebblestep not far from the river, pulling up a chunk of marigold. It was a formidable amount, but not nearly as much as they usually got. Pebblestep set the golden herb down and looked towards Honeypaw. "That's not bad." She mewed. "But all of the juniper is dead." She sighed. "I'm going to ask the other medicine cats at the gathering tonight if they're experiencing similar problems. I highly doubt that this is only affecting SunClan territory." Pebblestep sighed. "Let's just get back to camp."

Honeypaw nodded and picked up her comfrey root, following her mentor back to SunClan camp. It was late sunhigh and the Clan was preparing to leave for the gathering. Pikepaw, Sorrelpaw and Larkpaw were all excited as it was their first gathering. Dovepaw, Sedgepaw and Petalpaw, however would not be attending this gathering.

Honeypaw searched for Falconpaw, he was standing near Cherryleaf as she talked to Cloudspots and Briarrose about something. He looked like he was lost in thought as usual. Honeypaw hadn't had much time to talk to him lately, as she was incredibly busy with trying to stock the medicine cat den as full as possible. She prayed that he wasn't mad at her for it.

"Come on, Honeypaw." Pebblestep pulled her attention away from Falconpaw. "We have to organize our herbs before we leave." Honeypaw nodded and quickly followed Pebblestep to the medicine cat den. "Go and see what we all have." Honeypaw withheld a sigh. She counted every herb they had about five times today, she knew Pebblestep was nervous about what was going on, but counting the herbs they already had a million times wouldn't make the other herbs grow.

However, Honeypaw didn't complain. She padded to the herb store and began going over every single herb, including the comfrey and marigold they had brought back. They had to continue using herbs on Snakewhisker despite his urging them not to do so. Luckily, Pebblestep said that Snakewhisker would be back on warrior duties soon. Which was something he didn't look excited for, Honeypaw had no idea why.

When Honeypaw finished going over the herbs, she relayed all they had to Pebblestep once again. With the store neat and kept, Pebblestep and Honeypaw joined their Clan to leave for the gathering. Even as they left the camp, Honeypaw could see the panic written clearly on Pebblestep's face. Even now, she was running through herbs in her head. Honeypaw felt a surge of guilt. I shouldn't complain, this is a really bad situation and Pebblestep is worried. She wants to be sure of everything we do and do not have. Honeypaw dropped her head. Please, don't let this last long!

SunClan were the second Clan to arrive to the gathering after LichenClan. Pebblestep and Honeypaw quickly made their way to Roseheart was standing beside Mossleaf. The LichenClan medicine cat looked just as exhausted as Honeypaw and Pebblestep.

"Roseheart." Pebblestep called to the LichenClan medicine cat. Roseheart quickly padded over to the two of them. "Are your herbs dying as well?" She questioned.

Roseheart nodded. "I barely have anything, my store has never been so low. Not even when I was Barkclaw's apprentice." She dropped her head. "I don't know what to do about it."

"You're not alone." Pebblestep assured the medicine cat. "If both our territories are experiencing it, then we can be pretty certain that MoonClan and AshClan are as well."

It didn't take long for AshClan and MoonClan to arrive, Honeypaw sought out the medicine cats who quickly gathered with the others. "Are you all having a lack of herbs?" Ravenheart questioned, the old tom looked incredibly stressed. All of the medicine cats nodded.

"That's not the only issue that we have faced." Skyfeather spoke up. "A few days ago, two of our cats got sick from eating prey. The squirrel the caught was bloated. They're recovering but two more prey have been spotted looking the same. I suggest telling your warriors about it."

Pebblestep sighed. "Why is this happening?" She questioned. "This is worse than leaf-bare and it's only leaf-fall. How will the Clans survive if we don't have any herbs and prey is sick?"

"We will find a way." Ravenheart mewed, resting his tail on Pebblestep's shoulder. "I've seen countless, hard leafbares and the Clans always found a way. At the next half-moon we will get answers from StarClan. "

Honeypaw felt somewhat assured by Ravenheart's words, but she couldn't shake the fear in her heart. "The gathering is starting." Oneflight pointed out and the medicine cats joined their deputies. Honeypaw found herself sitting next to Blackpaw. The AshClan tom's icy blue eyes were distracted. He's probably just as worried as the rest of us. Honeypaw wished she could help.

It was Shadowstar who started the gathering, the black tom stepped forward. "MoonClan is proud to announce that Frostfire has given birth to three healthy kits." He mewed proudly, warm purrs spread throughout the forest but Honeypaw couldn't share it. They're healthy now, but how will they fare with a leafbare with no herbs?

"Other than that, prey is a bit slow but MoonClan is coping well." Shadowstar dipped his head and sat down. Dawnstar was up next, standing up and facing the Clans.

"Prey is also running decently for SunClan and we are proud to announce Dovepaw, Petalpaw and Sedgepaw as our newest apprentices." The Clans cheered, Honeypaw wished that the sisters were here to experience it. "We also welcome Earthpelt and Mudfall as warriors!" There was more cheering and Dawnstar sat down.

Riverstar was next. "AshClan welcomes Timberpaw, Dustpaw, Rabbitpaw and Leafpaw as apprentices." The AshClan leader purred and the Clans cheered. "Puddleclaw has given birth to two kits and Silvermoon has moved into the nursery as well." Riverstar's turn was finished and the final leader to speak was Jaggedstar.
"LichenClan joins the rest in welcoming new kits, Heatherwind has given birth to two kits as well. Prey is running well for us and we have nothing else to report." With that, the leaders stepped down.

As they cats of the Clans started to mingle, the medicine cats continued their earlier conversation about the herbs. "What herbs are you running low on?" Pebblestep questioned the others.

"Pretty much everything." Ravenheart sighed. "We have marigold, yarrow and some chervil but not much else. Even the moss is starting to look weak and thin."

"We have juniper and burdock," Skyfeather mewed. "It's honestly chervil that we need. Silvermoon will be kitting soon and I don't know if I'll have any to help her."

"If you need some, please don't hesitate to come to MoonClan camp." Ravenheart urged. "We have enough to spare for a queen."

"Thank you, Ravenheart." Skyfeather dipped his head. "That goes for the rest of you as well, about the only thing we have in surplus is juniper. If one of your cats gets sick from prey, you can come to our territory and get some of it. I'll make sure Riverstar knows."

"Thank you, both of you." Pebblestep mewed. "We have to help each other and the leaders need to know it. I know that they won't want to accept the help, but we have to make them put their pride aside for the sake of all Clan cats."