"Coriander."

A voice, soft and young, whispered in her ear. "Coriander, wake up."

Coriander growled and rolled over. "I'm asleep."

"Wake up!"

Grumbling, she opened her eyes to see Ranger standing next to her, his sable fur outlined in the moonlight. The puppy looked uncharacteristically nervous, his brown eyes wide with apprehension. Coriander furrowed her brow and sat up. "What's the matter, Ranger?"

"It's Mama. I think she's sick." Ranger glanced towards the clearing entrance. "She got up and left. She thought I was still asleep, but I followed her. She started walking off, but then she stopped and she..." He stopped, swallowing uncomfortably.

"What?" Coriander demanded, feeling uneasy. "What happened?"

Ranger grimaced. "She threw up."

Coriander stiffened and stood up. Sadie is definitely sick. "Stay here, Ranger," she ordered. "Grace and I will go find your mother."

"I wanna go with you!" Ranger barked, jumping up.

"Shh!" Coriander hissed. "You'll wake everyone up. And no, you have to stay here. We can handle this."

Ranger slumped back, a sulky look on his face. "Fine."

Coriander couldn't help but feel that he would completely ignore her command. Still, Sadie was what was important right now. She hurried over to where Grace was curled up in her bed and gently shook her with a paw. "Grace, wake up, quick."

The healer opened one eye drowsily. "Coriander? What is it?"

"Sadie is sick, and she left the clearing. We have to go find her," Coriander explained quickly.

Grace scrambled to her paws immediately at the sound of a sick dog. Blinking sleep from her eyes, she followed Coriander to the clearing entrance. "Why did she leave the clearing?"

"I don't know," Coriander responded, throwing a warning look over her shoulder at Ranger, who was lingering by the healer's den. "Ranger woke me up and told me he saw her leave. He said he followed her and he saw her vomit."

Grace's eyes widened slightly. She quickened her pace as they caught Sadie's scent and the two healers bounded down the grassy slope of the meadow towards the lake. Coriander spotted the she-dog standing by the lake, her head bent as she lapped up the silver water. "Sadie!" she called, running towards her.

Sadie jumped in surprise and spun around, relaxing when she saw who it was. "Oh, it's you," she woofed. "What are you doing out here?"

"I think we should be the ones asking that question," Grace replied calmly. "Why did you come out here in the middle of the night?"

"I was thirsty," Sadie answered. "I just needed to get a drink."

"Oh, stop it!" Coriander growled. "We know you're sick! Why are you trying to hide it from everyone?"

Sadie didn't respond at first, blinking slowly. Grace stared at her expectantly. Finally, the collie sighed and hung her head. "I suppose I've been feeling a little under the weather lately," she mumbled. "I didn't want Ranger to think anything was wrong with me... And it's not that bad, really. Just some diarrhea... and I've been very thirsty lately."

"And you've had no appetite, you've been less energetic, and you're vomiting," Coriander added, concerned frustration in her voice. "Hiding a sickness from everyone is not going to help Ranger anyway!"

Sadie once again didn't respond, and Grace shook her head. "Come back to the hollow with us," she said gently. "Get a good night's rest, and we'll find you some remedies in the morning."

Sadie nodded mutely and followed Grace and Coriander back to the hollow. Ranger was expectedly waiting for them, asking as many questions as ever, but Sadie shushed him and brought him back to their sleeping area.

"Do you know what she has?" Coriander asked Grace as they walked back to the healer's den. "Is it serious?"

"I don't know yet," Grace replied, settling in her bed at the back. "It could be any number of things. We'll give her a full assessment tomorrow morning and I'll look at some possible remedies."

Coriander nodded and laid down in her own bed, just inside the entrance. Worry stronger than ever clenched in her stomach. How long had Sadie been hiding symptoms from them? What if her disease was serious? Heaving a long sigh, she shut her eyes, reminding herself that Grace was very experienced and would undoubtedly have something to give her.

~

As soon as they awoke the next morning and the patrols had been sent out, Grace began her examination of Sadie, asking enough questions to rival Ranger. Coriander attempted to keep the rambunctious pup in line while also paying attention to what Grace and Sadie were saying.

"How long have you been feeling sick?" Grace asked. "Did this start recently?"

Sadie shook her head, her face thoughtful. "Honestly, I've had bouts of this ever since I was a trainee. The lack of energy, not feeling hungry, and a little depressed. It never lasted very long, though, so I never thought much about it."

Grace nodded slowly, her eyes narrowed in thought. "And what are all the symptoms you've been experiencing lately?"

"Aside from those, I've had some diarrhea and I've needed to relieve myself more often," Sadie began. "You heard about the vomiting... It's only happened a couple times. And I've been really, really thirsty, and very shaky."

"Hmm..." Grace's face remained creased with thought. "I've never heard of that specific set of symptoms, but I think I've got some herbs that will help. You rest here in the healers' den; Geneva can watch Ranger, and I'll put together a poultice for you."

Sadie nodded. "Thank you."

Coriander stood up. "I'll go tell Geneva," she barked. "Come on, Ranger."

Ranger trailed after her, frowning. "Is Mama going to be okay?" he asked. "She's not going to... to..."

"Of course not," Coriander said quickly. "Grace is very smart. She'll have herbs to help Sadie, and she'll be just fine."

Ranger stopped and stared at Coriander, his eyes dead serious. "Do you promise?"

Coriander returned his gaze and nodded. "I promise."

"Okay." Ranger shook himself, seemingly banishing his brief serious demeanor and prancing ahead. Coriander smiled slightly and trotted up to Geneva, who was playing with Desmond and Kye, her and Picasso's pups.

"Hi, Geneva," Coriander woofed, swishing her tail in greeting. "Can you watch Ranger for a while? Sadie is sick."

"She is?" Geneva sat up, causing Desmond to slide off her back with a yelp. "What's wrong?"

"We're not completely sure yet, but it's probably not anything serious," Coriander said breezily, not wanting to worry the entire pack. "Grace and I are going to be working on her remedy. She'll be able to care for the little scamp again soon."

Geneva nodded. "Well, I'm glad to watch him. Tell her I hope she gets well soon!" she called after Coriander as she began to return to the other side of the hollow.

Coriander slipped inside the healers' den and saw Sadie lying in the back with her head on her paws and her eyes closed. Grace sat a short distance away, sorting through piles of herbs and occasionally adding one to a small mound at her paws.

"What have you figured out?" Coriander asked, coming up to sit next to Grace.

The fawn Corgi sighed. "Well, I have a few things that should help with her symptoms, at least. I have some oregano, which should help with her diarrhea, and some basil and rosemary to relieve some of her depression and lethargy."

"Can you do anything to boost her appetite?" Coriander inquired. "She's going to start losing weight if she keeps up not eating."

"No, I don't know of an herb that does that." Grace shook her head. "The best idea I can think of is giving her the best pieces of prey, to tempt her appetite. She's also dehydrated, which is why she's drinking more often. We'll need to keep a supply of water around here to make sure she has it when she needs it."

Coriander nodded. "That won't be hard. I could even take Ranger with me. It would burn off some of his energy, and he would be glad to do it if it helps his mother."

Grace's lips twitched in what was probably the beginning of a smile, but her eyes were still dark with concern as she looked at the leaves at her paws. She heaved another sigh.

Coriander narrowed her eyes. "Grace... you will be able to heal her, right?"

"I'll do my best, Coriander, I assure you, but... I can't promise anything."

"No." Coriander set her paw down firmly. "Sadie will be just fine." She has to be.

Grace smiled, her eyes twinkling. "Your optimism does not go unappreciated." She pricked her ears as the sound of barking and approaching pawsteps suddenly became evident. "The hunters must be back with the morning meal. Let's go get something to eat."

Coriander glanced at Sadie, who was snoring softly. "Should we wake her up?"

Grace shook her head. "No, let her rest. We'll save her a good, juicy piece though."

Coriander nodded and followed Grace out of the den, where Mississippi, Skipper, and Splash were dragging in their impressive catch of a young buck. Coriander also noted that many dogs were clustering around the border patrol party consisting of Torn, Alabretta, and Dynamite. The black tri-color Sheltie tensed. Could there be more Night Pack news?

The cluster of dogs around the patrol parted for Gabriel, who approached the defenders with a quizzical look. "How were things at the Night Pack border?"

"Well, their scent was strong on the 'new' border," Alabretta responded, no small trace of resentment in her voice. "We didn't see any of them, but some of the grass was broken and we caught the scent of some prey, so it seems they were hunting there."

"I don't see why you're waiting till the Hunter's Moon," growled Lightning, another defender. "I still say we should confront those filthy mutts now!"

"It's more serious than that," Speedwell put in. He and Lightning were brothers, but had sharply contrasted personalities; Lightning was bold and aggressive, while Speedwell was calm, cool, and collected. "Pawnee lied on his honor; the other packs need to hear about this too, and we don't need to start a war just yet."

Lightning merely gave a bad-tempered huff. Gabriel glanced at him and then barked, "Precisely, Speedwell. Now, we can discuss Night Pack later. For now, let's eat. Thank you, Mississippi, Skipper, Splash, for catching it."

The hunters dipped their heads in response and Gabriel said the blessing. Grace quickly slipped forward through the crowd to get a good piece for Sadie, while Coriander waited patiently at the back. She wasn't very hungry herself, although she knew she wasn't sick. We might need to conserve our food anyway, she thought, if Night Pack is stealing all of it. Merciful Hunter Dog, I hope things get back to normal soon.

Is it just me, or do all my chapters end the same? :/ *shrugs* I don't know. But hey, thanks for reading this chapter. Here. Have a cookie.