CHAPTER 4
“No, no!” Lionblaze called to hisapprentice. “If you climb up this side of the trunk I’ll see you and know you’re up there!”
Dovepaw slithered down the bark. The oak tree was shiny with rain. Drizzle2 had been soaking the forest all morning, the rainclouds so low that they seemed to drag over the treetops.
“Are you sure this is the right weather for a tree-fighting session?” Cinderheart queried3. She was sitting beside her apprentice1, Ivypaw. Both cats looked small, their fur plastered to their pelts5.
“It’s the best weather,” Lionblaze insisted. “If they can cling to the branches when they’re slippery, they’ll find it mouse-easy when it’s dry.”
ThunderClan cats were the best climbers among the Clans7 because they hunted their prey8 among densely10 growing, thick-leaved trees; Firestar had recently decided11 that it was foolish not to take advantage of that skill in battle. From now on, all battle training would include tree-climbing practice, as well as techniques for attacking from among branches.
“Now climb up again,” he instructed Dovepaw. “Imagine I’m a ShadowClan patrol.”
“Concentrate!” Lionblaze was in no mood for silliness. He was hungry and wet and frustrated14. What did training apprentices15 have to do with fulfilling the prophecy? Wait,Jayfeather had said. But Lionblaze was tired of waiting.
Cinderheart flashed Lionblaze a puzzled look. “I’ll guide them up the tree and tell them what to do,” she offered.
Lionblaze hesitated. He didn’t like the thought of Cinderheart climbing trees after the accident that had nearly crippled her as an apprentice.
She rolled her eyes. “We’ll be careful!” She nosed Ivypaw toward the trunk of the oak and watched her scoot up to the lowest branch. Then she nodded to Dovepaw. “You next.”
Dovepaw darted16 behind the trunk. She reappeared a few moments later on a branch above his head. “Didn’t see me that time!” she called.
He looked up, surprised by her speed. “Very good.”
Cinderheart was scrambling17 after them. “This is an excellent branch for dropping from.” She peered down at Lionblaze. “If you land squarely on his shoulders, he’ll break your fall, and the surprise will give you long enough to get in a few good moves before he realizes what’s happened.”
“Can I try it?” Ivypaw mewed eagerly.
“Let’s try climbing onto the next branch,” Cinderheart suggested.
“I’ll wander around,” Lionblaze offered.
“Concentrate on where your paws go,” Cinderheart warned the apprentices. Leaves rustled19 over Lionblaze’s head. “The bark’s slippery. Use your claws to grip. Watch out!”
Too late. Ivypaw slipped from the branch with a yowl of surprise and plunged20 down straight onto Lionblaze.
He staggered, hoping his broad shoulders had broken her fall. “Are you okay?”
The shock on her face brought a purr to his throat, banishing22 his frustration23. “I’m the one who’s supposed to be surprised, not you!” he teased.
“Careful, Dovepaw!” Cinderheart warned. “That branch is too narrow. It won’t hold your weight!”
Wood cracked high overhead.
Heart lurching, Lionblaze looked up. “Dovepaw!”
The gray apprentice was gripping a thin, broken branch halfway26 up the tree. “I can’t hang on!” she wailed27. Her paws were sliding down the narrow strip of wood.
“Try to land on the branch below!” Cinderheart called up to her as Dovepaw reached the tip of the branch and tumbled down onto the next. She scrabbled for a grip, yelping29 as she fell again.
“Keep your claws out!” Lionblaze yowled.
“I am!” Dovepaw cried as she slid from branch to branch like a pebble30 bouncing down a slope. “I can’t get a grip.”
Lionblaze relaxed. The branches slowed Dovepaw’s fall until she plopped out of the tree like a pigeon landing clumsily. She stood up and fluffed out her fur.
Lionblaze shook his head. “When Jayfeather told me it was going to rain today, he didn’t warn me it was going to rain cats!”
Dovepaw brightened as she saw the glimmer31 of amusement in his eye. “I’ll do better this time,” she promised, dashing back to climb the tree once more.
Lionblaze padded away through the trees. He could hear the leaves rustling32 overhead as Cinderheart guided them from one branch to another.
While he was waiting for their “surprise” attack, he decided to hunt. With leaf-fall setting in, any extra prey would be welcomed in camp. He sniffed33 among the rain-soaked roots of the oak. Fresh squirrel dung made him wrinkle his nose. He climbed silently around the wide trunk, moving snakelike over the roots twining from the ground. The scent35 dipped between them and ran a few tail-lengths along a dried streambed fracturing the forest floor.
Lionblaze froze.
Rooting beneath the oak’s dripping branches was a fat gray squirrel. Its back was toward him and it was so intent on nibbling36 a nut that it didn’t even pause to sniff34 the air as Lionblaze dropped into a hunting crouch37.
Whiskers stiff, tail just skimming the leafy ground, Lionblaze crept closer. A tail-length away he paused, waggled his hindquarters, and pounced38. The squirrel struggled in his paws for a moment until he snapped its spine39 with a fast, clean bite. Pleased, he sat up with the fresh-kill hanging from his jaws40.
A swish sounded above him. He looked up, his mouth full of squirrel fur. Two shapes dropped, landing one after another on his shoulders. He spat41 out the squirrel as his legs collapsed42 beneath him.
“We did it!” Dovepaw’s triumphant43 mew sounded close to his ear.
Lionblaze shook her off, letting Ivypaw slither from his back. “Deafening the enemy,” he meowed, his ears ringing. “Great strategy!”
Cinderheart scrambled down the trunk, looking pleased. “You didn’t have a clue we were up there, did you?” She glanced at the squirrel lying at his paws. “Nice catch, by the way.”
“Can we try it again?” Ivypaw begged.
Ivypaw leaped for the tree, but Dovepaw had stiffened45 and was staring, ears pricked46, into the trees.
She’s heard something!Lionblaze could see anxiety darkening his apprentice’s eyes.
“You climb with Ivypaw,” he told Cinderheart quickly. “There’s a hunting technique I’ve been meaning to show Dovepaw.”
“Can I learn it too?” Ivypaw called.
“One at a time is easier,” Lionblaze lied. “I’ll show you another time.”
Ivypaw shrugged47. “Okay.” She leaped up the trunk and disappeared into the branches with Cinderheart.
Beckoning48 with his tail, Lionblaze guided Dovepaw away from the oak. “What did you hear?” he demanded once he was sure they were out of earshot.
“Dogs!”
The fur rose along Lionblaze’s spine. “In the forest?”
Dovepaw shook her head. “In WindClan territory.”
“That’s okay. Twolegs use dogs to chase sheep up there,” Lionblaze explained.
But Dovepaw’s eyes were still round. “They’re not chasing sheep; they’re chasing cats.” She stared in alarm at Lionblaze. “We have to help them.”
“No.” Lionblaze was firm. “WindClan cats are used to it. Don’t forget they can outrun rabbits if they want. They’ll be fine.”
“But Sedgewhiskeris one of the cats being chased!” She froze, her eyes suddenly wild. “One of the dogs has caught up to her! It’s biting her!”
Lionblaze stiffened. “Where are her Clanmates?”
Dovepaw frowned. “They’re with her….” She spoke49 slowly, describing the scene as it happened. “They’re attacking the dog.”
Lionblaze let out a sigh of relief. “Then Sedgewhisker will be safe.”
Lionblaze’s heart sank. He’d been waiting for something like this to happen. Dovepaw was clinging to the friendships they’d made on the long journey; Sedgewhisker had traveled with them to destroy the beavers’ dam. Dovepaw had to understand that they were back in their own territories now. “We’re home,” he told her. “Your loyalty51 lies with your own Clan6. You can’t be as close to Sedgewhisker or the others as you were before.”
Dovepaw stared at him. “Why not?”
Her blue eyes flashed. “How can you be so cold?”
“I’m not being cold!” Lionblaze insisted. “Things have changed.”
“Ihaven’t changed,” Dovepaw snapped. “I’m the same cat I was on the journey upstream.” She kneaded the ground with her front paws. “What’s the use of knowing what’s happening far away if I can’t do something about it?”
“Maybe you should figure out how to limit your senses to ThunderClan territory,” he suggested.
Dovepaw looked at him as though he’d grown another head. “The prophecy is bigger than the warrior code, right?”
“So my powers aren’t just for ThunderClan’s benefit, are they?”
Dovepaw glared at him. “So am I loyal to the prophecy, or the warrior code?” The fur fluffed around her ears. “You and Jayfeather had better make your minds up before I decide myself.” Without waiting for an answer, she pelted55 back to the oak and disappeared up the trunk after Cinderheart and Ivypaw.
Lionblaze watched her go, his heart sinking. He was only just beginning to understand Jayfeather’s abilities; now he was faced with another cat whose powers were beyond anything he could imagine. Stretching his ears, he strained to listen as hard as he could, but all he could hear was rain pattering on the dying leaves.
Ivypaw’s mew sounded from high in the oak. “This branch keeps bobbing in the wind.”
“Just hang on tight,” Cinderheart advised.
“It’s making me feel sick!”
Lionblaze’s own power was far simpler. He could fight in battles, unscathed, fearless and stronger than any opponent. Did thatseem strange and frightening to his Clanmates? He knew Hollyleaf had always felt uncomfortable about his readiness to fight, as though she didn’t quite believe he wouldn’t get hurt.
But then, she had no power of her own. She was never one of the Three.
And he hadbeen hurt once. Tigerstar had drawn56 blood in their last dream encounter. Lionblaze glanced behind him, the fur lifting on his shoulders. Was the dark warrior watching him now? Ferns swished beside him and he swung around, uncurling his claws.
“Sorreltail!” He couldn’t hide the relief in his voice. “Are you looking for Cinderheart?”
Sorreltail shook her head. “I’m joining Graystripe’s hunting patrol. Jayfeather just told me that my shoulder’s healed.” The tortoiseshell warrior had wrenched57 it a few days earlier when her paw had caught in a rabbit hole. “Is Cinderheart with you?” She followed Lionblaze’s gaze up to watch her daughter beckoning Ivypaw farther out along a branch. Cinderheart was balancing skillfully as the branch swayed beneath her paws.
Pride glowed in Sorreltail’s eyes. “I never thought I’d see the day when she’d be strong enough to climb trees like a squirrel.” She sighed gently and watched a moment longer before pulling her gaze away. “Leafpool healed her so well. She was a wonderful medicine cat.”
There was an edge to her mew. Did she blame Lionblaze for Leafpool’s decision to leave the medicine den9 and become a warrior? His pelt itched13. It wasn’t his fault Leafpool had thrown everything away by breaking the warrior code! She was the one who’d had kits58 with a cat from another Clan and then lied about them!
He held his tongue as Sorreltail headed away; then, remembering Sedgewhisker, he called hopefully, “Where are you hunting?”
“By the WindClan border.”
Good.If the WindClan cats were really in trouble, the hunting patrol would notice; Graystripe could decide whether to help them or not.
As Sorreltail disappeared through a dripping wall of fern, Lionblaze scraped dirt over his catch and padded to the bottom of the oak. “How are you doing?” he called to his Clanmates.
“They’re doing very well.” Cinderheart landed lightly beside him, Ivypaw and Dovepaw dropping down after her. “I think we can try something harder.”
Ivypaw pricked her ears.
“Let’s teach them to cross from one tree to another,” Cinderheart suggested.
“Yes, like squirrels.”
Lionblaze’s tail drooped60. He wasn’t a natural climber. “We could teach them battle moves instead,” he suggested hopefully. “There are plenty they don’t know yet.”
“Firestar wants us to practice tree hopping,” Cinderheart reminded him.
We’re cats, not birds!Lionblaze always felt big and clumsy in trees. He’d rather be on the ground, fighting. Why sit up in the branches like a bunch of owls61, watching the enemy, rather than tackling them head-on like warriors62?
“Come on. Let’s start in this maple63.” Cinderheart flashed him a determined64 glance. She knew he didn’t like tree climbing. “In the old territory, Longtail swears he once crossed from the Great Sycamore to camp without touching65 the forest floor.”
“How far was that?” Dovepaw sounded impressed.
“About the same as from here to the hollow,” Cinderheart meowed.
Lionblaze snorted. How do you know?Cinderheart had been born by the lake, like him. She had never seen the old territory!
“I bet I could do that,” Ivypaw boasted. She swarmed66 up the trunk of the maple, eyes half closed against the rain dripping down through the branches. Cinderheart followed, Dovepaw on her tail.
Lionblaze stared up, wishing that the rain would stop. It was going to be hard enough without slippery bark. Sighing, he heaved himself up the trunk, digging his claws deep into the bark to stop himself from sliding down.
Cinderheart was waiting on the lowest branch, while Ivypaw and Dovepaw were already halfway to the end.
“We won’t even have to jump this one,” Dovepaw reported over her shoulder. The branch wove into the lowest branches of a neighboring willow67.
“Perhaps we should take a different route,” Lionblaze called to her. The willow had slender branches. “That might not take our weight.”
“Yourweight, you mean!” There was a sharpness in Dovepaw’s reply. She was still angry with him for not helping68 Sedgewhisker. Lionblaze let it pass, though irritation69 pricked his pads.
Cinderheart nodded toward the willow. “It’s an old tree.” Dovepaw and Ivypaw had already crossed into its branches. “It’ll be strong enough.”
She was right. Lionblaze padded through its boughs70 easily, relieved to find them wide and sturdy. “Slow down!” he called. Dovepaw and Ivypaw were rushing on ahead, as though each wanted to be first to make it back to camp without touching the forest floor.
Dovepaw was balancing at the tip of the willow’s longestbranch. An ancient oak sprouted71 beyond it, gnarled and twisted with age. “I’m going to try this one,” she mewed over her shoulder.
“The bark’s very rough,” Lionblaze warned. “It looks old. There may be cracks in the branches you can’t see.” He quickened his pace, leaping past Cinderheart. “Wait until I’ve checked it!”
Too late!
Dovepaw was already leaping onto a branch of the oak. It cracked as she landed, snapping like a dry twig72, and, with a yelp28, she plummeted73 downward.
It was only three tail-lengths to the soft forest floor and she landed on her paws. But Lionblaze knew what was coming next.
“Look out!” He leaped from the willow, skidding74 across the forest floor and grabbing Dovepaw by the scruff.
“What?” she squawked as he dragged her backward. A moment later the ancient oak branch came crashing down.
Lionblaze screwed up his eyes, shielding Dovepaw with his body. When the branch had stopped rocking he turned on her angrily.
Dovepaw lifted her nose and sniffed. Then she turned and stalked away.

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1
apprentice
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| n.学徒,徒弟 | |
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drizzle
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| v.下毛毛雨;n.毛毛雨,蒙蒙细雨 | |
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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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pelt
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| v.投掷,剥皮,抨击,开火 | |
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pelts
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| n. 皮毛,投掷, 疾行 vt. 剥去皮毛,(连续)投掷 vi. 猛击,大步走 | |
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clan
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| n.氏族,部落,宗族,家族,宗派 | |
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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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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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den
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| n.兽穴;秘密地方;安静的小房间,私室 | |
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densely
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| ad.密集地;浓厚地 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的 | |
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12
twitched
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| vt.& vi.(使)抽动,(使)颤动(twitch的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
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itched
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| v.发痒( itch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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14
frustrated
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| adj.挫败的,失意的,泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 );挫败;使受挫折;令人沮丧 | |
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apprentices
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| 学徒,徒弟( apprentice的名词复数 ) | |
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darted
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| v.投掷,投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 );向前冲,飞奔 | |
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17
scrambling
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 );攀登;争夺;(军事飞机)紧急起飞 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的,直截了当的 | |
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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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plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 );暴跌;骤降;突降 | |
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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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22
banishing
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| v.放逐,驱逐( banish的现在分词 ) | |
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frustration
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| n.挫折,失败,失效,落空 | |
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ruffling
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| 弄皱( ruffle的现在分词 ); 弄乱; 激怒; 扰乱 | |
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embarrassment
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| n.尴尬;使人为难的人(事物);障碍;窘迫 | |
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halfway
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| adj.中途的,不彻底的,部分的;adv.半路地,在中途,在半途 | |
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wailed
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| v.哭叫,哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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yelp
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| vi.狗吠 | |
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yelping
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| v.发出短而尖的叫声( yelp的现在分词 ) | |
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pebble
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| n.卵石,小圆石 | |
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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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rustling
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| n. 瑟瑟声,沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的 | |
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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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sniff
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| vi.嗅…味道;抽鼻涕;对嗤之以鼻,蔑视 | |
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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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nibbling
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| v.啃,一点一点地咬(吃)( nibble的现在分词 );啃出(洞),一点一点咬出(洞);慢慢减少;小口咬 | |
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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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38
pounced
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| v.突然袭击( pounce的过去式和过去分词 );猛扑;一眼看出;抓住机会(进行抨击) | |
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39
spine
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| n.脊柱,脊椎;(动植物的)刺;书脊 | |
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jaws
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| n.口部;嘴 | |
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41
spat
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| n.口角,掌击;v.发出呼噜呼噜声 | |
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42
collapsed
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| adj.倒塌的 | |
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43
triumphant
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| adj.胜利的,成功的;狂欢的,喜悦的 | |
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44
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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45
stiffened
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| 加强的 | |
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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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47
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩(shrug的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
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beckoning
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| adj.引诱人的,令人心动的v.(用头或手的动作)示意,召唤( beckon的现在分词 ) | |
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49
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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50
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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51
loyalty
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| n.忠诚,忠心 | |
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warrior
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| n.勇士,武士,斗士 | |
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wary
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| adj.谨慎的,机警的,小心的 | |
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54
loyalties
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| n.忠诚( loyalty的名词复数 );忠心;忠于…感情;要忠于…的强烈感情 | |
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55
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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56
drawn
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| v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 | |
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57
wrenched
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| v.(猛力地)扭( wrench的过去式和过去分词 );扭伤;使感到痛苦;使悲痛 | |
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58
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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squeaked
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| v.短促地尖叫( squeak的过去式和过去分词 );吱吱叫;告密;充当告密者 | |
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60
drooped
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| 弯曲或下垂,发蔫( droop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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owls
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| n.猫头鹰( owl的名词复数 ) | |
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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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maple
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| n.槭树,枫树,槭木 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的;有决心的 | |
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touching
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| adj.动人的,使人感伤的 | |
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swarmed
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| 密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 ); 云集; 成群地移动; 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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willow
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| n.柳树 | |
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helping
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| n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的 | |
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irritation
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| n.激怒,恼怒,生气 | |
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boughs
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| 大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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71
sprouted
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| v.发芽( sprout的过去式和过去分词 );抽芽;出现;(使)涌现出 | |
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twig
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| n.小树枝,嫩枝;v.理解 | |
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plummeted
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| v.垂直落下,骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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skidding
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| n.曳出,集材v.(通常指车辆) 侧滑( skid的现在分词 );打滑;滑行;(住在)贫民区 | |
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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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