CHAPTER 5
Where’s Jaykit?
Jaykit usually slept beside him, but there was an empty space there now.
Then he remembered.
Lionkit felt sickness surge in his belly5 as he pictured Jaykit lying limp at the side of the clearing. He’s going to be okay, he reminded himself.
But in the clearing, watching Leafpool and Brambleclaw crouch6 by his body, Lionkit had thought that his brother was dead. A shiver ran down his tail. He nudged Hollykit, who was still sleeping beside him, her black pelt almost making her invisible in the darkness. “It’s cold without Jaykit.”
“He’ll be back soon,” she murmured, not opening her eyes.
“He’s only on the other side of the clearing, and he’ll be back in a day or two.” Hollykit rolled over. “Go back to sleep.” Within moments her breathing deepened and she was asleep again.
He closed his eyes but the image of his brother lying in the clearing filled his mind again. It was my idea to leave the camp.Jaykit could be dead, or the fox cubs10 could have chased them into the hollow. What a mess!
Lionkit got to his paws. He needed fresh air to clear his head.
He peered through the shadows to where Daisy slept. Her long, creamy fur blended into Ferncloud’s dark gray pelt. Ferncloud’s whiskers were twitching11 as she dreamed, her two kits12 snuggled against her flank. Neither queen would be pleased at being woken just so he could ask permission to leave the den3; besides, he’d be back before they woke.
With a flick13 of his tail, he picked his way past Hollykit and squeezed through the prickly entrance.
Cold night air stung his nose, and the frosty ground made his paws ache as he padded around the edge of the camp. Prey14 scents15 drifted from the forest. A bird chattered16 an alarm call far away. He glanced up at Silverpelt, spread across the inky sky. He was glad StarClan had let Jaykit stay down here with his Clanmates. Perhaps he could look in on his brother. Leafpool would be asleep by now.
Lionkit kept to the shadows, painfully aware that he was not supposed to be outside the nursery without permission. As he crept along the stretch of thornbush that sealed the camp, his heart seemed to pound in his chest loud enough to wake his Clanmates. When he scanned the clearing, Lionkit realized with a start that he was not the only cat awake so late. A shape was stirring on the other side of the clearing. The lithe19 outline of a cat peeled away from the shadows, followed by another.
Lionkit ducked under a branch, relieved to find a small space inside the prickly barrier where he could hide. He peered through the twigs20 at the emerging shapes: Dustpelt and Spiderleg were padding side by side into the pool of moonlight that lit the center of the camp.
“Good,” Dustpelt meowed.
Lionkit strained his ears, listening. Frozen leaves crackled beyond the camp wall. He felt the thorn barrier tremble as Stormfur and Brackenfur pushed their way through the entrance tunnel into the camp. The moonhigh patrol had returned.
Dustpelt hurried toward them. “Anything to report?”
“All quiet,” Stormfur replied.
Lionkit pressed himself further into the thorns. He could always say he had slipped out only to make dirt, but he was not ready yet to be sent back into the nursery.
Brackenfur held a mouse between his teeth. He dropped it. “It’s good to be out hunting again,” the golden tabby purred.
“Did you patrol the new border at the edge of the clearing?” Spiderleg asked.
Brackenfur nodded. “ShadowClan has marked it well,” he meowed. “But there’s no sign they strayed onto ThunderClan territory.”
Dustpelt narrowed his eyes. “They’d better not. It’s bad enough Firestar gave them that piece of land in the first place. If I catch any ShadowClan cat on the wrong side of the border I’ll rip his fur off!”
“They dared before Firestar gave them the territory,” Spiderleg pointed23 out. He glanced at the scar on Brackenfur’s flank, a reminder24 of one of the vicious quarrels the two Clans25 had fought over the stretch of open ground on either side of the stream running down from the Twoleg clearing. ShadowClan had always laid claim to the territory, and Firestar had finally granted it to them at the last Gathering26 to save further blood being spilled over a stretch of land that was too bare to offer good hunting.
“It wasn’t worth fighting over,” Stormfur commented. “Firestar was right to give it up.”
Dustpelt snorted. “ThunderClan has never given up territory before!”
“No,” agreed Brackenfur.
Spiderleg turned in an agitated27 circle, tail lashing28, but Brackenfur went on. “However, the land was too exposed, and the Twolegs will be there soon, once it’s greenleaf.”
“And ThunderClan is more used to hunting in the forest,” Stormfur added.
“Firestar still shouldn’t have given it up so easily,” Spiderleg insisted.
Lionkit watched nervously29 from his hiding place as Spiderleg glared at Stormfur. The long-limbed black warrior was more hotheaded than his father, Dustpelt. But Stormfur refused to be intimidated30.
“We gave up nothing but a piece of barren land that was too close to Twoleg territory!” he hissed31.
“You sound like Brambleclaw.” Dustpelt curled his lip. “He only agreed with Firestar’s decision because any cat knows he’d rather face a pack of dogs than a Twoleg!”
“Brambleclaw sided with Firestar because it was a wise decision, not because he was scared of Twolegs!” Stormfur retorted.
“Was it wise to stand before all the Clans and announce that ThunderClan can no longer defend its boundaries?” Spiderleg meowed hotly. “ShadowClan has no right to set one mangy paw on ThunderClan land!”
“Well, it’s ShadowClan land now,” Stormfur concluded.
Spiderleg glared at him. “Of course, you don’t care how much territory we give up,” he snarled33. “You’re not a ThunderClan cat!”
Lionkit flinched34. Stormfur had fought off the invading ShadowClan warriors35 as fiercely as any cat. He watched closely, waiting to see how the gray warrior would react. But Stormfur only stared back at Spiderleg, his eyes wide with shock.
Brackenfur stepped between them, his eyes glinting anxiously in the moonlight. “It doesn’t matter if we disagree,” he meowed. “The decision has been made.”
“But now ShadowClan will think they can take whatever they want from us!” Spiderleg objected.
“Firestar made it clear that he was doing ShadowClan a favor when he let them take the land,” Brackenfur reminded him. “He left no cat in any doubt that he was acting36 out of wisdom rather than weakness.”
“Then why did Onestar and Leopardstar look so interested?” Dustpelt snapped. “It was obvious they thought ThunderClan couldn’t defend their territory.”
“What if WindClan decide they want a piece of the forest on the other side?” Spiderleg chipped in. “Onestar hasn’t exactly been a friend of ours since he became leader.”
“But he’s still going to be looking out for his Clan17,” Dustpelt argued. “If he thinks we’re weak he might see a chance to expand his territory.”
“Can you imagine Firestar giving up any prey-rich part of our territory?” Stormfur asked.
Dustpelt glared at him for a moment, then dipped his head. “No,” he conceded.
“And we don’t have to worry about RiverClan,” Brackenfur pressed. “We share no boundaries with them, and Leopardstar’s been pretty quiet since Hawkfrost died on our territory.”
“Does any cat really know what happened to Hawkfrost?” Stormfur asked.
“Only that Firestar found his body while he was on patrol with Brambleclaw and Ashfur,” Spiderleg meowed.
Lionkit did not fully18 understand. He had heard Daisy and Ferncloud talking about Hawkfrost, the former RiverClan deputy who had died on ThunderClan territory, impaled38 on a wooden spike39 from a fox trap. No one was sure what the RiverClan warrior had been doing there. Lionkit had tried to ask his father once about Hawkfrost—after all, Hawkfrost was Brambleclaw’s half brother and therefore Lionkit’s kin7—but Brambleclaw had been reluctant to answer. The only information he would give was that Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight had carried the dead RiverClan warrior back to his camp as they would have done with any fallen warrior, and that he had been mourned by his Clanmates.
As Lionkit strained to hear whether the warriors’ conversation would reveal anything new, he felt the thorn barrier rustle40 around him. He realized with a jolt41 that he was right beside the small entrance that led to where the cats made their dirt—the same entrance that he, Jaykit, and Hollykit had sneaked42 out of in search of the fox cubs. Alarmed, Lionkit sniffed43 the air. Mousepaw was squeezing his way back through less than a tail-length away.
He shrank further back into the shadows, but he could not escape Mousepaw’s sharp nose.
“Lionkit?” Mousepaw hissed into the darkness.
Lionkit wondered for a moment whether to bury himself deeper in the barrier, but he didn’t like the look of the thorns, and besides, his pride would not let him. “I’m in here,” he confessed.
Lionkit held his breath. Would the apprentice46 give him away? They had been denmates for a while in the nursery, but Mousepaw might side with the warriors now.
“I’m just on my way back to the den,” Mousepaw told Dustpelt. A moment later he squeezed into Lionkit’s hiding place. “Aren’t you supposed to be in the nursery?” he whispered.
Lionkit flicked47 his tail crossly. He was grateful that Mousepaw hadn’t given him away, but he hated being treated like a feeble kit1. “I couldn’t sleep,” he grumbled48. “I’m used to having Jaykit around.”
“Why were Dustpelt and Stormfur arguing?”
“They were talking about Firestar’s decision to give ShadowClan the bit of land by the river,” Lionkit explained. “Dustpelt accused Stormfur of not being a real ThunderClan warrior.”
“But Stormfur’s nota real ThunderClan warrior, is he?” Lionkit pointed out, puzzled.
“You’d better not say that to his face!” Mousepaw warned.
“But he was born in RiverClan and lived with the Tribe.”
“Mousepaw!” Dustpelt’s voice sounded from the clearing.
Mousepaw shoved Lionkit further back into the bush. He stifled51 a squeak52 of pain as thorns dug into his pelt, and Mousepaw squeezed out from under the branches.
“I thought I smelled a mouse,” Mousepaw lied.
“Straying into the camp would be stupid even for a mouse,” Dustpelt muttered. “Go to your den. I’m sure Spiderleg won’t be pleased if you’re too tired for training in the morning.”
“Yes, Dustpelt.” Mousepaw dipped his head and padded quickly away.
Lionkit waited, thorns poking54 him, until Dustpelt and the other warriors headed to their den. It seemed foolish to risk going to the medicine cat’s den now. As soon as he was sure that no cat stirred, Lionkit dragged himself out from under the thorn barrier and crept back to the nursery.
Several thorns from the barrier had caught in his fur and were tangled55 in his pelt. They pricked56 him as he curled gingerly back into his nest. He closed his eyes and waited for sleep, but his conversation with Mousepaw echoed in his mind. It hadn’t occurred to him before how important it was to the warriors whether a cat was truly ThunderClan or not. His own place in the Clan had always been something he had taken for granted. He supposed that not every cat was lucky enough to be born in the forest, with the Clan deputy and Clan leader as kin. But he still didn’t understand why Mousepaw had taken the quarrel between the warriors so seriously. So long as Stormfur and Brook57 were loyal to ThunderClan, what else mattered?
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1
kit
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| n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物 | |
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2
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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3
den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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4
pelt
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| v.投掷，剥皮，抨击，开火 | |
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5
belly
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| n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛 | |
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6
crouch
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| v.蹲伏，蜷缩，低头弯腰；n.蹲伏 | |
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7
kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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8
weird
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| adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的 | |
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9
tug
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| v.用力拖(或拉)；苦干；n.拖；苦干；拖船 | |
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10
cubs
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| n.幼小的兽，不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 ) | |
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twitching
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| n.颤搐 | |
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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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13
flick
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| n.快速的轻打，轻打声，弹开；v.轻弹，轻轻拂去，忽然摇动 | |
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14
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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15
scents
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| n.香水( scent的名词复数 )；气味；（动物的）臭迹；（尤指狗的）嗅觉 | |
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16
chattered
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| （人）喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 )； 唠叨； （牙齿）打战； （机器）震颤 | |
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17
clan
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| n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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lithe
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| adj.(指人、身体)柔软的，易弯的 | |
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twigs
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| 细枝，嫩枝( twig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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22
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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23
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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reminder
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| n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示 | |
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25
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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26
gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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agitated
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| adj.被鼓动的，不安的 | |
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28
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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29
nervously
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| adv.神情激动地，不安地 | |
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intimidated
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| v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的 | |
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31
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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32
bristled
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| adj. 直立的，多刺毛的 动词bristle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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33
snarled
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| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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34
flinched
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| v.（因危险和痛苦）退缩，畏惧( flinch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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35
warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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badger
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| v.一再烦扰，一再要求，纠缠 | |
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38
impaled
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| 钉在尖桩上( impale的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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39
spike
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| n.长钉，钉鞋；v.以大钉钉牢，使...失效 | |
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40
rustle
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| v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声 | |
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41
jolt
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| v.（使）摇动，（使）震动，（使）颠簸 | |
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42
sneaked
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| v.潜行( sneak的过去式和过去分词 )；偷偷溜走；（儿童向成人）打小报告；告状 | |
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43
sniffed
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| v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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44
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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amber
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| n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的 | |
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46
apprentice
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| n.学徒，徒弟 | |
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47
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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48
grumbled
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| 抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声 | |
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49
flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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50
shred
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| v.撕成碎片，变成碎片；n.碎布条，细片，些少 | |
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51
stifled
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| （使）窒息， （使）窒闷( stifle的过去式和过去分词 )； 镇压，遏制； 堵 | |
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52
squeak
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| n.吱吱声，逃脱；v.（发出）吱吱叫，侥幸通过；（俚）告密 | |
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53
queried
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| v.质疑，对…表示疑问( query的过去式和过去分词 )；询问 | |
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54
poking
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| n. 刺，戳，袋 vt. 拨开，刺，戳 vi. 戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢 | |
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55
tangled
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| adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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56
pricked
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| 刺，扎，戳( prick的过去式和过去分词 )； 刺伤； 刺痛； 使剧痛 | |
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57
brook
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| n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让 | |
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