CHAPTER 20
Brambleclaw stood in the clearing andwatched the hunting patrols leave through the thorn tunnel. The dawn patrol had already left, and the early-morning mist was beginning to clear. Above the trees the sky was a pale, distant blue, promising1 a warm day later. Soon the sun would rise.
The tabby tom glanced around, anxious to make sure that all duties were being covered. The fresh-kill pile was low, but the hunting patrols would take care of that. Daisy was yawning at the entrance to the nursery, watching her kits3 play fighting in front of her. Leafpool crossed the camp to the elders’ den4, where Mousefur had just emerged, scratching her ear vigorously with one hind5 paw. Every cat looked sleek6 and well-fed; even slender Leafpool had grown quite plump. The famine in their old home had become nothing more than an unpleasant memory.
Behind Brambleclaw the branches of the warriors7’ den rustled9; he glanced back to see Ashfur slipping between them and stopping to give his pelt10 a quick grooming11.
Brambleclaw padded up to him. Whitepaw had gone with her mentor12, Brackenfur, on hunting patrol, so the apprentices13 wouldn’t be training together today.
“Where’s Birchpaw?” he asked. “This would be a good time for a training session.”
Ashfur narrowed his eyes. “I can mentor my own apprentice,” he meowed. “I’ve arranged to give him an assessment14 today, actually.”
“Yes, that’s fine,” Brambleclaw replied. “Remind him about the fox traps, just in case.”
Ashfur stalked off toward the apprentices’ den without replying. Birchpaw emerged when his mentor called him and listened to his instructions, paws working impatiently in the ground. Then he headed for the camp entrance, stopping for a brief word with Thornclaw as the brown warrior8 emerged from the tunnel with fresh-kill in his jaws15. At last Birchpaw left, bounding away with his tail in the air. Ashfur gave Brambleclaw another resentful glare before he followed.
Brambleclaw told himself he could have been a bit more tactful; even so, if Ashfur’s attitude didn’t improve, he was going to find himself collecting mouse bile for the elders’ ticks.
Suddenly he froze. He had become so caught up in his deputy’s duties that he had almost forgotten about meeting Hawkfrost. Sunrise was not far off; he was going to be late. He headed for the thorn barrier, only to halt, groaning16 inwardly, when he heard Squirrelflight’s voice behind him.
“Hey, Brambleclaw! Where are you going?”
Brambleclaw turned to face her as she came bounding across the clearing toward him. Squirrelflight hadn’t been assigned to any of the early patrols. She wouldn’t understand why he didn’t want to spend time with her, since he wasn’t going on a patrol either.
“Where are you going?” she repeated as she came up to him. “Hunting? Let’s go together.”
“I have to—” Brambleclaw began awkwardly. He broke off as Daisy’s three kits, Berrykit in the lead, dashed across the clearing and disappeared behind the brambles that screened Leafpool’s den.
“Those bad kits!” Squirrelflight exclaimed. “Remember the mess they made last time? I’d better check that Leafpool is there.”
She raced off. Silently thanking StarClan, Brambleclaw slipped out through the tunnel and headed into the forest at a run, making for the lake.
The sun had risen by now, and the trees were casting long shadows over grass that glittered with dew. Cobwebs shone on every bush. There was no sign of other cats; he had made sure that the hunting patrols went to other parts of the territory.
He paused at the edge of the forest; he heard the gentle lap of water a couple of tail-lengths away and glimpsed its dazzling surface through the thick ferns. Opening his jaws, he tasted the air. He thought he could pick up RiverClan scent18, and an unexpected trace of ShadowClan, but he couldn’t see his half brother. “Hawkfrost?” he called cautiously.
No reply. Brambleclaw spotted19 a thrush a fox-length or so in front of him, dragging a worm out of the ground. It reminded him that he hadn’t eaten that morning, so he dropped instinctively20 into the hunter’s crouch21. In the same heartbeat something heavy crashed down on him, sending him tumbling over. He let out a yowl of alarm and the thrush took off with a loud stuttering cry. Flipping22 over to face his attacker, Brambleclaw stared up at Hawkfrost, who was gazing down at him with a glimmer23 of amusement in his ice-blue eyes.
Hawkfrost shrugged25. “It doesn’t matter. I’m allowed to be here as long as I stay close to the lake.”
Brambleclaw scrambled26 to his paws and smoothed his ruffled27 fur with a couple of licks. Hawkfrost was right, but he would still have some explaining to do if any of his Clanmates spotted him talking to his half brother. He wished he had Hawkfrost’s confidence, but he reminded himself that he was Clan17 deputy, and the RiverClan warrior’s equal in every way.
As they sat close together beneath the arching fronds30, Brambleclaw picked up the scent of ShadowClan again. He wrinkled his nose. “You have ShadowClan scent on you,” he mewed.
Hawkfrost narrowed his eyes. “I must have picked up their reek31 on my way across their territory,” he growled32. “Never mind that. We’re wasting time.”
Brambleclaw nodded and took a deep breath. He hoped he could find the right words to let Hawkfrost know his doubts about Tigerstar’s vision, without letting him think he was any less committed to becoming leader of his Clan. “This idea of Tigerstar’s, that we take over ShadowClan and WindClan,” he began, “I’m not sure it will work. StarClan has decreed there should be four Clans33.”
His half brother flicked34 the tip of his tail. “Like Tigerstar said, that was back in the forest. Listen, Brambleclaw. ShadowClan has always been a nuisance. Don’t you think life would be better for all of us if they settled down under a leader who could make sure they stuck to the warrior code? Don’t you think you could make a better job of leading WindClan than Onestar? Between us we could ensure that every cat in the forest was strong and happy. No more battles, no more quarreling over territory . . .”
“Well . . . maybe.” Brambleclaw couldn’t argue with the vision Hawkfrost set in front of him. It was true that strong leaders could rule the forest for the good of every cat. He remembered how the ShadowClan warriors had ignored Berrykit’s cries for help when he was caught in the fox trap. If I were in charge, he thought, no cat would ever watch a kit2 in pain without trying to help, no matter where that kit came from. He wanted every cat in the forest to be cared for, but more than anything, he wanted what was best for ThunderClan. “But—” A faint cry interrupted him. “What was that?”
The cry came again. “No!” Brambleclaw exclaimed. “That’s a cat in trouble. Come on!”
He dived out of the ferns and pelted36 along the shore in the direction of the cry. It came again, closer but fainter, a horrible choking sound. Brambleclaw leaped across the roots of a tree and found himself face-to-face with Firestar.
The ThunderClan leader lay on his side on a narrow path between close-growing ferns. His limbs jerked feebly and his eyes gazed at nothing. Foam37 flecked his muzzle38. Around his neck, half buried in his flame-colored fur, was a thin, shiny tendril, leading to a stick driven into the earth. Firestar was caught in a fox trap!
Brambleclaw leaped forward to help him, only to be thrust aside by Hawkfrost’s powerful shoulder.
“Mouse-brain!” the RiverClan warrior hissed39. “This is your chance, Brambleclaw. You’re deputy now. If Firestar dies, you’ll be Clan leader.”
Brambleclaw stared at him in astonishment40. What is he telling me to do?Then he realized that Firestar was trying to speak.
“Birchpaw told me . . . Blackstar waiting on our territory . . . Had to come alone . . .”
Hawkfrost’s eyes gleamed with triumph as he padded across to Firestar and bent41 down to whisper in his ear. “But Blackstar isn’t here. We are. You’re a fool, Firestar. You were too easy to trap.”
Brambleclaw felt the ground dip beneath his paws; he couldn’t grasp the details, only that the absence of Blackstar, and the ShadowClan scent on Hawkfrost, added up to something murderously evil. “You did this,” he said to his half brother. “You arranged for Firestar to be here, where there was a fox trap waiting.”
“Of course.” Hawkfrost sounded scornful. “I did it for you.”
Firestar’s sides heaved as he fought for breath. His gaze flickered42 from Hawkfrost to Brambleclaw and back again. Brambleclaw could see that unless he loosened the wire right away, his leader would lose a life—perhaps more.
Hawkfrost stepped back. “The brave ThunderClan leader,” he sneered43. “Not so powerful now, are you? Come on, Brambleclaw, finish him off.”
Brambleclaw felt as though his paws were frozen to the bare earth. Every hair on his pelt stood on end as he heard Tigerstar whispering in his ear: Kill him. No cat will know. You can be Clan leader. You can have everything you have ever wanted.
He staggered as Hawkfrost gave him a vicious nudge, his tail lashing44 angrily. “What are you waiting for? This is what we have wanted all along, remember? Kill him now!”
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1
promising
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| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
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kit
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| n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物 | |
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kits
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| 衣物和装备( kit的名词复数 )； 成套用品； 配套元件 | |
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den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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hind
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| adj.后面的，后部的 | |
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sleek
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| adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢 | |
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warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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rustled
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| v.发出沙沙的声音( rustle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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pelt
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| v.投掷，剥皮，抨击，开火 | |
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grooming
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| n. 修饰, 美容，（动物）梳理毛发 | |
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mentor
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| n.指导者，良师益友；v.指导 | |
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apprentices
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| 学徒，徒弟( apprentice的名词复数 ) | |
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assessment
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| n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额 | |
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jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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groaning
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| adj. 呜咽的, 呻吟的 动词groan的现在分词形式 | |
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clan
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| n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派 | |
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scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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crouch
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| v.蹲伏，蜷缩，低头弯腰；n.蹲伏 | |
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flipping
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| 讨厌之极的 | |
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glimmer
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| v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光 | |
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spat
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| n.口角，掌击；v.发出呼噜呼噜声 | |
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shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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scrambled
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
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ruffled
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| adj. 有褶饰边的, 起皱的 动词ruffle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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flicking
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| （尤指用手指或手快速地）轻击( flick的现在分词 )； （用…）轻挥； （快速地）按开关； 向…笑了一下（或瞥了一眼等） | |
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beckon
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| v.(以点头或打手势)向...示意，召唤 | |
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fronds
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| n.蕨类或棕榈类植物的叶子( frond的名词复数 ) | |
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reek
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| v.发出臭气；n.恶臭 | |
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growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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clans
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| 宗族( clan的名词复数 )； 氏族； 庞大的家族； 宗派 | |
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flicked
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| （尤指用手指或手快速地）轻击( flick的过去式和过去分词 )； （用…）轻挥； （快速地）按开关； 向…笑了一下（或瞥了一眼等） | |
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prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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pelted
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| （连续地）投掷( pelt的过去式和过去分词 )； 连续抨击； 攻击； 剥去…的皮 | |
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foam
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| v./n.泡沫，起泡沫 | |
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muzzle
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| n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默 | |
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hissed
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| 发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对 | |
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astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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42
flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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43
sneered
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| 讥笑，冷笑( sneer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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44
lashing
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| n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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