Chapter 23
Alternative Title: Backhanded WardshipHow does a cat massage a cat's flank? Knead her with her claws? Stroke her with her tail?
Well aren't you special.
How does his fur swish? Some of you may have heard of "on ice" or "
in space" versions of entertainment. This is the "under the sea" version. Graystripe's long fur waves like seaweed. But of course.
Hold the phone. For one thing, if Graystripe's still weak from the journey, his malkin should be too - but of more importance, why is he "still weak"? Hasn't it been long enough? He arrived at the Gathering way back in Chapter 10 ("Gathering, Googly-eyeing, and Gloating"). Oh wait, right, he broke all four limbs and a tail on that journey. Carry on.
Strange. Where Ten comes from, we think of greetings as things like "Hello" and "Good morning" and "How are you?". Questions like "Is that all you could find?" don't fall in that category. Did Firestar say something else that the Erins didn't record, or is this a standard greeting for BlunderClan cats?
Note that in the past, warriors have buried extra prey to come back for later. Can cats hold more than one animal in their mouths at once? If not, why is Firestar shocked, unless he's already assuming they don't have more prey buried elsewhere that they couldn't fit in their mouths?
His pelt, not his tail? mm... you know, living beneath the Atlantic Ocean would explain why they're not in Britain anymore. Then again, it wouldn't explain the lake.
Good question.
Is that even possible?
Because he is a behind, his unease begins at his behind.
Good, that anger has learned to keep itself clothed.
What would she be angry about? She might be embarrassed or resentful of Jerkface ditching her, but why outright mad?
Why is there foul bedding? Did somebody crap in it? Or do these cats never bathe?
Why do they even
have "bedding"?
Jerkface "suddenly" feels a pelt on page 318.
Do the Erins not reread what they write?
Kudos to Jerkface for caring about someone other than himself for once.
How good is moss as an insulator?
Jerkface finds Poppypaw dying and... falls asleep beside her. This brings him to the forest of StarClan, where he tries to talk her into leaving.
No it wasn't. He didn't risk anything.
Why not? He doesn't seem like the modest sort.
Poppypaw starts talking about the dream once they're awake.
This is the stock phrase for comforting someone by way of assuring them that something in a dream didn't really happen, or won't happen, or wouldn't have happened if it had been reality. Jerkface is assuring her that this dream, in which he prevented her death, was not real. It's supposed to be him denying involvement and all that, but think about it from Poppypaw's perspective. "Don't worry, in reality, I wouldn't try to save your life" ...?
Not so much his fault as the fault of the poor wording.
Were there mysterious circumstances surrounding Poppypaw's non-death? Most warriors (including Sorreltail) wouldn't know much about medicine cat practices, no? Yet here she's making it sound as if she knew he did something unconventional and unusual to save her daughter. How would she have guessed that?
Or is "I don't know how you did it" a normal thing to say to medicine cats?
Cousin incest wouldn't be so bad in a Clan (in some cultures, you try to marry within the family) of feral cats, but a mother advancing on her son is still disturbing.
Do the Erins even have an editor anymore? More space between her speaking and the statement that she had been quiet would have made this less egregious, but it was
two sentences ago.
Also, has she mentioned that paws don't hold much by way of volume?
While Leafsue is speaking on page 324, StarClan "suddenly" starts murmuring all over the place.
What, are they supposed to move again?
Good question. StarClan sure could work on its communication skills, eh?
