Chapter 16
Dovewing stood motionless in the clearing while around her the cats split up into their patrols. Her mind was whirling.
No wonder Hollyleaf wasn’t part of the prophecy, she thought. She killed a cat!
Ivypool came over, her fur fluffed up with excitement and her blue eyes showing the same confusion that Dovewing felt. “I can’t believe this!” she murmured.
“Ivypool,” Dovewing mewed hesitantly, “have you ever seen Ashfur in the Dark Forest?” Her bel y clenched1 as she waited for her sister’s reply; she knew how defensive2 Ivypool could be if any cat questioned her about her visits to the Place of No Stars.
But Ivypool merely looked thoughtful. “I wouldn’t know him if I saw him,” she admitted. “But I don’t think I have. At least, no cat has ever pointed3 him out to me.”
“He was horrible to Squirrelflight before he died,” Dove-wing reflected. “But maybe he got to go to StarClan because he died so terribly.” Before she got the last words out she was aware of Brambleclaw looming5 over her, his amber6 eyes gleaming with annoyance7.
“Stop gossiping,” he ordered. “Ivypool, I thought I told you to join Sandstorm’s border patrol.
Dovewing, you’re in a training session with me, but Firestar wants to see you first. You’l find him in his den8.”
Ivypool scuttled9 off, and Dovewing turned toward the Highledge. Climbing the tumbled rocks, she wondered briefly10 why Firestar wanted her. The answer wasn’t difficult to guess. WindClan!
Dovewing reached the Highledge and approached the entrance to the den. “Firestar?” she cal ed, looking in.
Firestar was sitting in the shadows at the back of his den, on his nest of moss11 and bracken. His green eyes gleamed in the dim light. He beckoned12 Dovewing with his tail. “Come in.” When Dovewing was sitting beside him, Firestar went on. “I asked you to come because of your special senses,” he began. “I expect you can guess why.”
Dovewing dipped her head. “You want me to tel you what’s going on in WindClan.”
“That’s right,” Firestar meowed with a nod. “If you can.”
Pride surged through Dovewing as she sent out her senses and settled down to listen, tucking her forepaws under her chest. This isn’t sneaking13 around, she thought. I’m truly using my powers to protect my Clan4. She let her senses range across the border stream and over the moor14 until they were focused on the WindClan camp. Onestar was standing15 in the middle of the shal ow scoop16 in the ground, with some of his senior warriors18 clustered around him.
“I can see their camp. Onestar is there with Crowfeather and Sedgewhisker,” she reported to Firestar. “Ashfoot just joined them. And there are a couple of cats I don’t know.”
“Is Onestar speaking?” Firestar asked. “Can you hear anything?”
Dovewing nodded, concentrating hard as the WindClan leader’s words faded in, as if he were approaching from a long distance.
“. . . trouble with ThunderClan,” Onestar meowed.
“Border patrols need to keep a special lookout19. If you pick up their scent20 on our side of the stream, I want to know about it.”
“That’s almost word for word what I said to ThunderClan,” he murmured. “Has Onestar mentioned Sol at al ?”
Dovewing kept listening, but the WindClan leader had gone on to give Ashfoot instructions about hunting patrols.
“Not a word,” she replied to Firestar.
“Then either he doesn’t know what Sol is planning,” Firestar mewed, “or he’s being very careful about what he says. At any rate, it doesn’t sound as if the attack wil happen anytime soon. Can you see Sol?” he added.
Dovewing cast her senses out again, careful y searching the WindClan camp, then widening her focus to take in the whole of the WindClan territory as far as the horseplace. Sweeping23 back toward the ThunderClan border, she encountered one of the tunnel entrances and tried to penetrate24 the tunnels, but after a few fox-lengths the weight of stones and earth blocked her from continuing.
Returning to reality in Firestar’s den felt like coming back to the surface after sinking for a long time into dark water
“Not a trace,” she replied to Firestar’s question.
“He doesn’t seem to be in WindClan, unless he’s down one of the tunnels. My senses don’t work too wel underground.”
Firestar nodded thoughtful y, not speaking.
“I suppose it’s too much to hope that Sol has gone away?” Dovewing suggested after a moment.
“No, he’s stil here,” Firestar assured her. “He has a score to settle with the Clans—I just don’t know why.”
When Firestar dismissed her, Dovewing ran lightly down the tumbled rocks to find Bumblestripe waiting for her.
“Brambleclaw went ahead with the others,” the young warrior17 explained. “He asked me to wait for you and show you where we’re going to train.”
“Okay, thanks,” Dovewing mewed. It felt comfortable to head across the clearing beside Bumblestripe.
“What did Firestar want?” the gray tom asked.
“Are you in trouble?”
“No, it was just . . . stuff.” However much she liked Bumblestripe, she couldn’t tel him what Firestar had asked her to do. That would take a whole moon to explain!
Dovewing shrugged26. “It was no big deal.” Leading the way through the thorn tunnel, she realized that she wanted to push her special powers to the back of her mind when she was with Bumblestripe. She just wanted to be an ordinary cat.
It’s a nice change from when I was with Tigerheart!
Then I always had to be listening to make sure no other cats found us.
Brambleclaw had taken the rest of the group to a smal clearing on the ShadowClan side of the territory, not far from the dead tree. Hol y and elder bushes lined the rim27 of a shal ow dip, which was fil ed with long grass and ferns.
When Dovewing and Bumblestripe arrived, Brambleclaw was sitting at one side of the hol ow, watching Toadstep and Blossomfal as they stalked around each other. Without warning, Blossomfal darted28 in, skil ful y hooked Toadstep’s legs from under him, and delivered a blow to his hindquarters before leaping back out of range.
“Wel done,” Brambleclaw meowed. “You’ve got that move perfectly29, Blossomfal .” Toadstep scrambled30 to his paws and shook scraps31 of fern out of his pelt32. “She sure has!” Brambleclaw looked up as Dovewing and Bumblestripe padded down the slope to join the others. “Good, you made it. Now I’m going to show you a new move.”
“Great!” Blossomfal exclaimed, bounding over to Bumblestripe. “Come on,” she urged him, “let’s work on it together.”
Bumblestripe looked briefly embarrassed. “Er . . .
sorry, but I’m going to partner with Dovewing.” Blossomfal ’s ears shot straight up in surprise.
“Excuse me, but who’s your littermate?” she muttered. “You could show a little loyalty33, you know.” Dovewing was slightly shocked at Blossomfal ’s hostility34. Why is it such a big deal? “I don’t mind if you partner with Blossomfal ,” she told Bumblestripe.
“No, Blossomfal ’s being ridiculous,” Bumblestripe retorted. “Of course I’m not being disloyal if I partner with you.”
“Do you mind?” Brambleclaw rose to his paws and padded over to them, his strong shoulders thrusting the ferns aside. “Stop twittering like a lot of starlings and let’s get on with it.” Blossomfal spun35 around, stuck her tail in the air, and stalked across the clearing to Toadstep.
“I’l demonstrate the move first, and then you can try it yourselves,” Brambleclaw meowed. “Dovewing, you’re a WindClan cat. Come and attack me.” Instantly Dovewing let out a yowl and hurled36 herself at the Clan deputy. Brambleclaw reared up on his hindpaws, his forepaws stretched out with claws sheathed37. As Dovewing tried to duck under his guard and claw his exposed bel y, he flipped38 backward, away from her. She lost her balance, and as she tried to recover Brambleclaw leaped on her and braced39 his forepaws on her bel y.
“Like that,” he purred, stepping back to let her get up.
Dovewing rol ed over and sprang up to see the Clan deputy watching her with a faint trace of pride in his amber eyes.
“That’s bril iant!” she panted. “Let’s try it.” First Brambleclaw made them practice the backflip until they could do it and land squarely on their paws. When he was satisfied and let them work with their partners, Dovewing was surprised at how strong and agile40 Bumblestripe was.
It’s been a long time since I trained with him, one on one like this. He’s so bulky, I’d expect him to be slow. . . .
As Bumblestripe flipped neatly41 away from her attack, Dovewing’s paws skidded42 out from under her. She flopped43 onto her side; while she was struggling to get up Bumblestripe sprang toward her and reached out with one forepaw to touch her gently.
“I win, I think,” he mewed, his eyes narrowed with amusement. “Paws belong on the ground, not in the air.”
Huh! Dovewing thought, stung. When Bumblestripe attacked her, she backflipped on the opposite side, catching44 him unawares. The gray tom missed his footing and landed hard among the ferns, his paws flailing45.
“Why don’t we watch each other?” Blossomfal suggested when al four cats had practiced the move several times. “We might pick up some helpful tips that way.”
Brambleclaw nodded. “Okay. You and Toadstep go first.”
Watching the other pair, Dovewing noticed how good Blossomfal was already, both in attacking and performing the new move. She had worked out how to stay balanced, and knocked her weight into Toadstep before he could recover from the backflip.
“Blossomfal , that’s real y great!” she told her Clanmate. “You’l have to be a bit faster, Toadstep.” Toadstep nodded. “I’m working on it.” When it was her turn to demonstrate with Bumblestripe, Dovewing felt that they had both done pretty wel . She was surprised to see Blossomfal looking at her with a disdainful expression.
“Bumblestripe was fine, but Dovewing, you need to do a lot more work,” she meowed. “Your paws were al over the place. And you seem to have forgotten that you even have a tail. It’s there for balance, you know.”
Dovewing muttered something noncommittal, embarrassment47 flooding over her until every hair on her pelt burned. “Blossomfal wouldn’t have said that if you hadn’t chosen me as your partner,” she whispered to Bumblestripe. Trying to set her own hurt aside, she added, “I’m sorry if I’ve made things difficult between you.”
Bumblestripe rested his tail comfortingly on Dovewing’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, it’s not you causing the problem,” he mewed, glaring across the clearing at his sister.
“I think that’s enough for one session,” Brambleclaw announced. “Back to camp, al of you, and take your pick of the fresh-kil pile. You’ve al worked hard.”
“You should walk with Blossomfal now,” Dovewing murmured as the group moved off. “Littermates are more important than friendship.”
Bumblestripe paused and gave her a long look. “I was kind of hoping that what we have is more than friendship,” he mewed at last.
Dovewing stared at him, not knowing what to say.
To her relief, Bumblestripe didn’t press her. He just ducked his head and trotted48 off, catching up with Blossomfal and touching49 his nose to her ear.
Dovewing padded on; a moment later Toadstep bounded up to join her.
“What’s going on between you and
Bumblestripe?” he asked with a little mrrow of amusement.
Dovewing felt her neck fur beginning to fluff up, and forced it to lie flat. “Bumblestripe is a great cat,” she replied calmly.
As she spoke50, an image of Tigerheart popped into her head: the gleam of green eyes as he thrust his dark tabby head out of a clump51 of ferns.
Resolutely52 she pushed it away. That was different. I can’t think about him anymore, she decided53.
Tigerheart can’t be part of my life . . . but Bumblestripe could be.
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1
clenched
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| v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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defensive
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| adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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clan
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| n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派 | |
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looming
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| n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近 | |
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amber
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| n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的 | |
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annoyance
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| n.恼怒，生气，烦恼 | |
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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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scuttled
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| v.使船沉没( scuttle的过去式和过去分词 )；快跑，急走 | |
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briefly
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| adv.简单地，简短地 | |
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moss
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| n.苔，藓，地衣 | |
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beckoned
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| v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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sneaking
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| a.秘密的，不公开的 | |
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moor
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| n.荒野，沼泽；vt.(使)停泊；vi.停泊 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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scoop
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| n.铲子，舀取，独家新闻；v.汲取，舀取，抢先登出 | |
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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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lookout
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| n.注意，前途，瞭望台 | |
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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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21
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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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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23
sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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penetrate
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| v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解 | |
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envious
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| adj.嫉妒的，羡慕的 | |
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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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rim
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| n.(圆物的)边，轮缘；边界 | |
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28
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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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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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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scraps
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| 油渣 | |
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pelt
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| v.投掷，剥皮，抨击，开火 | |
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loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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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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spun
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| v.纺，杜撰，急转身 | |
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hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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sheathed
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| adj.雕塑像下半身包在鞘中的；覆盖的；铠装的；装鞘了的v.将（刀、剑等）插入鞘( sheathe的过去式和过去分词 )；包，覆盖 | |
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38
flipped
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| 轻弹( flip的过去式和过去分词 )； 按（开关）； 快速翻转； 急挥 | |
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39
braced
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| adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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agile
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| adj.敏捷的，灵活的 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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42
skidded
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| v.（通常指车辆） 侧滑( skid的过去式和过去分词 )；打滑；滑行；（住在）贫民区 | |
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43
flopped
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| v.（指书、戏剧等）彻底失败( flop的过去式和过去分词 )；（因疲惫而）猛然坐下；（笨拙地、不由自主地或松弛地）移动或落下；砸锅 | |
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44
catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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45
flailing
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| v.鞭打( flail的现在分词 )；用连枷脱粒；（臂或腿）无法控制地乱动；扫雷坦克 | |
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46
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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47
embarrassment
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| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
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48
trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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49
touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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50
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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51
clump
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| n.树丛，草丛；vi.用沉重的脚步行走 | |
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52
resolutely
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| adj.坚决地，果断地 | |
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53
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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