Chapter 10
Ivypool slid cautiously through the Dark Forest. It seemed positively1 crowded now, as busy as a disturbed anthil , with clusters of cats training in every clearing, racing2 along every path, and splashing through the sludgy river. Anxious not to be cal ed into a training session, Ivypool clung to the shadows, her senses alert for traces of one particular cat. Hearing voices, she dived into the middle of a clump3 of ferns, then poked4 her head out warily5 to spot Tigerheart and Mapleshade a few tail-lengths ahead.
Ivypool felt her heart begin to pound faster. She had been terrified of Mapleshade ever since the old she-cat had almost drowned her in the river in a socal ed training exercise. Now Mapleshade looked paler than ever; Ivypool’s eyes widened as she realized that she could see the tree trunks behind the she-cat’s misty6 shape.
But Mapleshade’s eyes stil burned as she leaned close to Tigerheart. “The Dark Forest wil rise up and stamp out the Clans7,” she told him, her voice a spitty, rasping hiss8. “StarClan wil bow down to us, and the warriors10 who chose not to join us wil be punished beyond the end of their lives.”
Tigerheart was listening intently, nodding as the old she-cat went on.
“Every cat who ever lived wil know—” Suddenly Mapleshade broke off, sniffing13 the air. “I smel fear,” she growled14. Ivypool’s heart almost stopped as the pale she-cat’s baleful gaze swept past the ferns where she crouched15, shivering. “Who has come here with insufficient16 courage to face their Clanmates?” Mapleshade swung her massive, scarred head around, stil sniffing. Then she hauled herself to her paws and stalked in the opposite direction from Ivypool, pushing through dead, slimy brambles.
“Snowtuft!” Mapleshade snarled18. “I might have known! You mangy pile of dung, get back into the fight and show some mettle19.” Ivypool winced20 at the sound of a heavy blow and a high-pitched shriek22 of pain.
Several heartbeats passed, and at last Ivypool realized that Mapleshade wasn’t coming back.
Swal owing her fear, she emerged from the ferns and padded up to Tigerheart. The ShadowClan warrior9 sat grooming23 himself, passing one paw over his ears; he glanced up casual y as she approached.
“Sneaking around, Ivypool?” he mewed.
“Just looking for you,” Ivypool replied careful y.
Tigerheart had seemed to lap up what Mapleshade was tel ing him; if he real y agreed with her about destroying al the Clans, he was a dangerous enemy.
“What’s this about Dawnpelt?” she asked.
Tigerheart’s gaze raked over her contemptuously.
“Are you worried I said something about what happened with Flametail? You shouldn’t be. I haven’t told Dovewing anything—not for your sake, but because I don’t want her to know what you did.”
“Only because I stopped you,” Tigerheart growled.
Ivypool’s claws worked in the cold, dark grass. “It was a test! What could I do?”
Ivypool knew that he was right. But there’s no way I can tell him. I have to hide the fact that I’m spying for ThunderClan. “So what’s al this about Dawnpelt?” she prompted.
Tigerheart hesitated. “Dawnpelt blames Jayfeather for Flametail’s death in the lake,” he meowed at last.
“That’s ridiculous!” Ivypool exclaimed.
Tigerheart shook his head, his hostility28 swal owed up in sadness. “You don’t know what it’s like to lose a littermate,” he told Ivypool. “You want to blame anyone, anything. Not just a crack in the ice.” Ivypool felt a claw-scratch of sympathy. I couldn’t bear it if I lost Dovewing. Then she reminded herself that Tigerheart had been listening to Mapleshade’s tirade29. She couldn’t trust him. He doesn’t deserve pity!
“I don’t know what Dawnpelt thinks she can do against ThunderClan,” she went on aloud. “Or maybe you’re thinking of bringing her here?”
“That’s not up to me,” Tigerheart replied.
“I’m sure you could put in a good word for her,” Ivypool suggested mockingly.
Tigerheart didn’t react. Before Ivypool could say anything else, the ferns parted again and Hawkfrost emerged into the open.
“There you are, Ivypool!” he hissed. “Come with me. You’re keeping the other apprentices31 waiting.” He turned and padded off without waiting for a reply.
Ivypool winced at being cal ed an apprentice30. But why should I care? she asked herself, shocked. Do I wish I were a Dark Forest warrior?
Padding after the dark tabby tom, Ivypool wondered if the Dark Forest had anything to do with Sol turning up. There’s something about Sol that I don’t trust. Especially with all the stories the elders tell about the time the sun vanished! Maybe the Dark Forest is plotting to hide the sun again.
Gathering her courage, Ivypool sped up until she was walking beside Hawkfrost. “Do you know Sol?” she asked, trying to sound casual.
“Sol,” Ivypool repeated. “The cat who arrived in ThunderClan five sunrises ago. He was here before, when the sun vanished.”
“Ah,” Hawkfrost mewed. “That was after my time in RiverClan, but I know what happened. What about him?”
“I just wondered if he had . . . er . . . ever been here.”
Hawkfrost paused, narrowing his ice-blue eyes as he gazed at her. “So, you want to know if Sol is a true Clanmate?”
“Yes,” Ivypool mewed, trying not to flinch33 under that freezing gaze. “Something like that.” The dark tabby tom hesitated before he replied, as if he were wondering how much to give away.
“Sol is a welcome presence in ThunderClan,” he meowed.
That means Sol is very bad news, Ivypool realized. Too scared to ask any more questions, she fol owed Hawkfrost until he halted at the edge of a stretch of marsh34. Four other cats were waiting there, bel y-deep in mud and bristly grass. Al of them turned as one, watching as Ivypool and Hawkfrost approached.
The sky was flushed with rose-pink the next morning as the dawn patrol set out. Drops of dew glittered on every stem of grass and sparkling cobwebs spread across the bramble thickets36.
Ivypool’s paws dragged as she forced herself through the forest. She was exhausted37 from the night’s training, and she was convinced that her fur stil smel ed of the stinking38 mud of the marsh.
“Stop sniffing,” Toadstep muttered. “It’s so annoying! Do you think you have greencough?”
“No, I just need to wash my fur,” Ivypool responded.
“Your fur is fine.” Mil ie, who was leading the patrol, glanced over her shoulder. “Concentrate on what we’re doing, please.”
Hazeltail, who had been scouting39 a few tail-lengths ahead, suddenly froze. A moment later she came creeping back through the long grass. “I heard a cat walking close to the border,” she murmured.
Mil ie gave her a brisk nod. “Ivypool, head that way,” she directed, flicking40 her tail at a narrow path around a clump of elder bushes. “I’l go this way.” Ivypool obeyed, setting down her paws with al the stealth she had learned in the Dark Forest as she skirted the elder clump, then ducking low to avoid brambles that trailed across the path. Soon she picked up the cat’s scent41 and the sound of its paw steps. It was heading confidently toward the border, seeming not to care whether any cat spotted42 it or not. Ivypool recognized the scent at once.
Sol!
She crept forward until she could see him brushing through the undergrowth. He halted as Mil ie appeared from his other side.
“Is everything okay?” the gray tabby she-cat cal ed.
For a heartbeat Sol seemed startled, then he recovered his poise43. “Am I being fol owed?” he meowed. “Look, I’m not stealing any prey44. You fed me too wel last night for that.”
“Then where are you going?” Mil ie prompted.
Sol arched his back and relaxed. “I thought I’d visit ShadowClan,” he explained. “Catch up for old times’
sake.”
“You won’t be welcome there,” Mil ie warned him.
“I had friends there.” Sol’s eyes flashed at her.
“And it was a long time ago. I come in peace!” Ivypool bristled45 with distrust, but there was no way she or Mil ie could stop him from going. Looking after him as he strode away, she muttered, “Maybe you can eat their fresh-kil , then.” Toadstep and Hazeltail arrived in time to hear what she said.
“That’s a bit unfair,” Toadstep protested.
“Yes,” Hazeltail agreed. “Don’t forget that Sol saved the apprentices from the fox. He must have changed.”
Ivypool stared at Sol’s vanishing hindquarters and wondered just how much he knew about the Dark Forest. Has he been sent here to stir up trouble?
When the patrol returned to camp, Ivypool spotted Firestar and Brambleclaw beside the fresh-kil pile.
Mil ie padded straight across the clearing to join them, the rest of the patrol fol owing her.
“We met Sol while we were out,” she reported. “He said that he was going to pay a visit to ShadowClan.”
“What?” Brambleclaw sprang to his paws, his neck fur bristling46 and an angry look in his amber47 eyes. “The treacherous48 mange-pelt24! What is he going to tel them about ThunderClan?” Firestar calmly finished his mouthful of vole and twitched his ears at his deputy. “Take it easy, Brambleclaw. We’ve got no proof that he’s going to betray us. Anyway, what can he tel them that we would want to keep secret?”
“I stil don’t like it,” Brambleclaw muttered. “Every time I set eyes on Sol my paws itch21 and I want to claw his pelt off.”
Firestar blinked in surprise. “I don’t want to encourage Sol to stay here in ThunderClan,” he meowed, “but if we persecute49 him without reason, he could go to the other Clans and cause trouble.”
“I’m not afraid of Sol or the other Clans,” Brambleclaw growled.
“Neither am I,” Firestar told him. “But if we have a chance to keep our enemies close, let’s not turn that down.”
Some of the other cats had drifted up to listen.
Dovewing came up to Ivypool and gave her a prod50 with one paw. “What was al that about?” she asked.
Ivypool told her sister what Sol had said when they met him near the border.
“That cat is bad news,” Dovewing hissed. “Ivypool, do you know if he’s connected to the Dark Forest?” Ivypool twitched her tail. “I’m not sure. I’ve never seen him there, but when I asked Hawkfrost about him, he said he was pleased that Sol was here in ThunderClan.”
Dovewing’s neck fur began to fluff up, and her eyes reflected Ivypool’s own uneasiness. “That proves it’s bad to have him here,” she mewed.
Ivypool nodded. “But we can’t do anything about it as long as Firestar lets him stay. We’l just have to keep an eye on him. I’l tel you one thing, though,” she added. “Even if we find out he’s chased every fox in the woods out of our territory, I wouldn’t trust Sol a single mouse-length.”
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1
positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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clump
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| n.树丛，草丛；vi.用沉重的脚步行走 | |
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poked
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| v.伸出( poke的过去式和过去分词 )；戳出；拨弄；与（某人）性交 | |
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warily
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| adv.留心地 | |
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misty
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| adj.雾蒙蒙的，有雾的 | |
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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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hiss
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| v.发出嘶嘶声；发嘘声表示不满 | |
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warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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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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horrified
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| a.(表现出)恐惧的 | |
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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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sniffing
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| n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；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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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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crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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insufficient
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| adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的 | |
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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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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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mettle
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| n.勇气，精神 | |
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winced
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| 赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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itch
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| n.痒，渴望，疥癣；vi.发痒，渴望 | |
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shriek
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| v./n.尖叫，叫喊 | |
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grooming
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| n. 修饰, 美容，（动物）梳理毛发 | |
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pelt
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| v.投掷，剥皮，抨击，开火 | |
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gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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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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27
justify
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| vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护 | |
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hostility
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| n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争 | |
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tirade
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| n.冗长的攻击性演说 | |
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apprentice
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| n.学徒，徒弟 | |
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apprentices
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| 学徒，徒弟( apprentice的名词复数 ) | |
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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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33
flinch
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| v.畏缩，退缩 | |
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marsh
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| n.沼泽，湿地 | |
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terrain
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| n.地面，地形，地图 | |
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thickets
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| n.灌木丛( thicket的名词复数 )；丛状物 | |
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exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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stinking
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| adj.臭的，烂醉的，讨厌的v.散发出恶臭( stink的现在分词 )；发臭味；名声臭；糟透 | |
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scouting
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| 守候活动，童子军的活动 | |
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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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41
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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42
spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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poise
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| vt./vi. 平衡，保持平衡；n.泰然自若，自信 | |
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44
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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45
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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bristling
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| a.竖立的 | |
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amber
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| n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的 | |
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48
treacherous
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| adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的 | |
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persecute
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| vt.迫害，虐待；纠缠，骚扰 | |
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prod
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| vt.戳，刺；刺激，激励 | |
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