PROLOGUE
PROLOGUE
The indigo sky stretched over themoorland, holding in the night’s chill.
Wind stirred the heather and set the hillside rippling. Between the low bushes, feline shapes, their fur slicked flat by the breeze, streamed down the slope.
Among them, a tabby queen kept pace with a young tom. “Are you sure you are ready for this?”
“I’m ready,” the tom answered, his green eyes flashing in the moonlight.
“You’re my eldest, Fallen Leaves,” the queen whispered. “The first of mine to face the ordeal.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“He was trained well!” a low voice called from behind.
“Even trainin’ can’t prepare a softpaw for rain!” growled another.
Fallen Leaves glanced up. “But the sky’s clear.”
“I smell rain on the wind, I tell you.”
Murmurs of alarm spread among the other cats.
“The sky’s clear!” Fallen Leaves insisted as he stepped out from the swath of heather and halted. The moon lit his ginger-and-white pelt. His Clanmates crowded at his heels, their tails flicking. Beneath his forepaws, the slope fell away steeply. Here, moons of wind and rain had flayed the moorland, peeling away the earth until the stone beneath lay bare, a wall of jagged rock amid the rolling heather.
“Good luck, softpaw!”
Fallen Leaves bounded down the cliff and landed lightly on the sandy earth at its base. His mother scrambled after him. “Take care!”
Fallen Leaves brushed muzzles with the queen. “I will see you at dawn,” he promised.
Ahead of him, a black gash opened like a wound in the cliff face. The fur along his spine lifted. He had never been inside. Only chosen cats entered the Cave.
He padded forward, feeling the darkness swallow him. There must be some light to show the way! He struggled to crush the fear thrashing in his chest like a landed fish.
The tunnel will take you to the cave, his tutor’s voice echoed in his mind. Let your whiskers guide you.
His whiskers shivered, alert to the slightest touch, steering him along the narrow passage.
Suddenly, pale light glowed ahead. The tunnel opened into a cave. Its arching walls glowed in the weak moonlight that filtered through a gap in the roof. The sound of rushing water echoed around the rocks.
A river? Underground?
Fallen Leaves stared at the wide stream that split the sandy floor in two. Its black water glimmered dimly in the half-light.
“Fallen Leaves?”
A croaking mew made the young tom jump. He jerked his white muzzle up to see who had spoken and his eyes narrowed as he saw a creature crouched on a high ledge, lit by moonlight pooled on the cave wall.
Was this Rock?
The creature’s pelt was like moleskin, the fur gone except for a few tufts along his spine, and his sightless eyes bulged like eggs. His long, twisted claws flexed on the smooth branch that lay at his paws. The branch was stripped of its bark and, even in this light, Fallen Leaves could see claw marks etched along it, a crowded series of straight lines scarring the pale wood.
This mustbe Rock.
“I can feel your surprise,” the blind creature croaked. “It pricks my pelt like gorse.”
“I—I’m sorry,” Fallen Leaves apologized. “It’s just I did not expect—”
“You did not expect a cat could grow so ugly.”
Fallen Leaves froze with embarrassment. Had Rock read his mind?
“A cat needs wind and sun to shine his fur and good hunting to trim his claws,” Rock went on, his mew rasping like stones on stone. “But I must stay close to our warrior ancestors; those who have taken their place beneath the earth.”
“And for that we thank you,” Fallen Leaves murmured respectfully.
“Don’t thank me,” Rock growled. “It was a destiny I was bound to follow. Besides, you may not feel so grateful to me once your initiation has begun.” As he spoke he ran a long claw over the lines scratched into the smooth branch. A second scratch crossed some lines, but not all. “The uncrossed lines mark the cats who went into the tunnels but did not come out.”
Fallen Leaves stared at the dark holes lurking like mouths at the edge of the cave. If they did not lead to air and safety, where did they end up? “Which tunnels did they go into?”
Rock shook his head. “I cannot help you. To become a sharpclaw, you must find your own way out. I can only send you on your way with the blessing of our ancestors.”
“Can’t you give me anyadvice?”
“Without light, you will have only your instincts. Follow them and if they are true, you will be safe.”
“What if they are not true?”
“Then you will die in darkness.”
Fallen Leaves squared his shoulders. “I’m not going to die.”
“I hope not,” Rock mewed. “You know you are not allowed to return to this cave? You must find a tunnel that leads straight back to the moor. Is it raining?” he asked suddenly.
Fallen Leaves stiffened. Should he mention the tingling in the air that hinted rain mightcome? No. Rock might tell him to go back the way he had come and wait until another day. He couldn’t put off becoming a sharpclaw any longer. He wanted to do this now. “The sky is clear,” he promised.
Rock ran his paw once more over the lines etched in the branch. “Then begin.”
Fallen Leaves eyed the tunnel beneath Rock’s ledge. It seemed larger than the rest, and appeared to slope upward. Up to the moorland, high above? This was the way he would choose.
Heart pounding, he leaped across the river and headed into the bone-chilling darkness.
By dawn I will be a sharpclaw. His pelt bristled.
引子
引子
荒原上方的天空一片靛蓝。夜幕中寒气笼罩了一切。
风吹过石楠丛，山坡上的植被泛起阵阵涟漪。低矮的灌木丛间，闪现出一群猫的身影。他们冲下山坡，风吹乱他们的皮毛然后又抚平了。
一只虎斑母猫跟一只年轻的公猫并肩奔跑着。“你真的准备好了吗？”母猫问。
“是的。”公猫回答。他那双绿色的眼睛，在月光下闪闪发亮。
“落叶啊，你是我的长子。”母猫轻声说道，“你是我的孩子中，第一个要经受这样严峻考验的。”
“我会没事儿的。”
“他训练刻苦，本领很强！”一个低沉的声音从他身后传了过来。
“可是嫩爪的训练内容，并不包括如何应对下雨！”又一个声音响了起来。
落叶看看天空：“可是天空很晴朗啊！”
“我告诉你吧，风中的气息告诉我，马上就会下雨了。”
其他猫也开始警觉地低声议论起来。
“天空很晴朗！”落叶倔强地又重复了一遍。他走出石楠丛，停下脚步，月光洒在他那姜黄色和白色相间的皮毛上。族猫们都聚拢到他的身边，尾巴来回摆动着。在他的前爪下方，斜坡陡然塌陷下去，变成了一处悬崖。长年累月的狂风骤雨不断地侵蚀着这片荒原，卷走了许多泥土，露出了底下的石头，在石楠丛里形成了一堵凹凸不平的石墙。
“祝你好运，嫩爪！”
落叶跳下悬崖，轻轻落在下方的沙质地面上，他母亲紧随其后：“小心啊！”
落叶跟母亲碰了碰鼻子。“天亮时，我会回来见你的。”他保证道。
落叶看到前方的悬崖上，有一条黑色的裂缝，好似一道巨大的伤口。他脊背上的毛竖了起来。他从没进过里面，只有被选中的猫，才能进入这个石洞。
落叶继续向前走着，感觉黑夜正在将他吞没。前方一定会有亮光的！他努力压制着内心不断升腾的恐惧，就像一条被钓上岸的鱼。
这条隧道会把你带到那个石洞的。老师的声音在脑海中回响着，用你的胡须为你指引方向吧。
落叶颤抖着的胡须，指引他沿着狭窄的通道前行。有胡须的帮助，落叶能发觉哪怕是极为微小的响动。
突然，前方出现了一道苍白的亮光。隧道正在逐渐变宽，形成了一个石洞。微弱的月光从石洞上方的裂缝里射进来，照亮了洞内的拱形洞壁。奔流不息的水声，在石堆间发出共鸣。
这里有一条地下河？
落叶注视着这条宽阔的河流，它把沙质的土地一分为二。黑色的水流在模糊的月光下，隐隐闪着微光。
“是落叶吗？”
一个沙哑的声音，把落叶吓了一跳。他抬起自己白色的鼻子，想看看究竟是谁在说话。朦胧中，他看到有一个身影，蹲坐在高高的地方。他眯起了眼睛，又仔细地瞧了瞧。渐渐地，那个身影被反射在洞壁上的月光照得清晰起来。
他是岩石吗？
他的皮毛很像鼹鼠的皮毛，只有脊背上有几簇毛，灰暗的盲眼突出如蛋。他那细长弯曲的爪子抓着一根光溜溜的树棍。那根树棍是剥了皮的，借助微弱的光线，落叶能清楚地看到浅色的木质上面布满密密麻麻的直线。
是的，他一定是岩石。
“我察觉到了你的惊讶，”这只盲猫嘶哑地说道，“它就像金雀花一样刺痛了我。”
“对……对不起，”落叶向他道歉，“我只是没想到……”
“你只是没想到，居然有猫长得如此丑陋吧。”
落叶尴尬地愣在原地。岩石难道能读懂自己的想法？
“风和阳光，可以使猫的皮毛保持干爽；狩猎，可以使猫的身体更敏捷，爪子更灵活。”岩石继续说道，他的声音就像石头互相摩擦发出的声音一样刺耳，“不过，我必须待在离我们的武士祖先最近的地方，它们就安息在这块土地下。”
“感谢你为此做出的一切。”落叶低声向他致意。
“不要谢我，”岩石大声吼道，“这是我命中注定的事。另外，等你再长大一些，可能就不会对我如此感激了。”说着，他用长长的爪子在那根布满划痕的树棍上重重地划下去。新划出的痕迹与树棍上的几条划痕交会，但并没有与剩下的划痕相交。“没能相交的几条划痕，代表的是那些进入却再没出来的猫。”
落叶注视着石洞边缘的黑暗小洞，它们像一个个张开的大口。如果它们的深处既没有空气又不安全，那么，它们通向哪里呢？“哪些隧道有猫进去过？”
岩石摇摇头：“我帮不了你。想成为‘利爪’，你就必须自己去找答案。我只能将我们祖先的祝福送给你。”
“你就不能给我一些建议吗？”
“没有光亮，你只能凭借自己的直觉了。你就让直觉做向导吧。如果它们是正确的，那你就安全了。”
“如果它们不正确呢？”
“那你就会在黑暗中死亡。”
落叶活动了一下肩膀：“我是不会死的。”
“如愿如此吧。”岩石说道。“你心里知道，你再也不能返回这个石洞了，对吧？你必须选择一条直接通往荒原的隧道。现在下雨了吗？”他突然问道。
落叶的身体一僵。他该不该告诉岩石，此时空气中的气息正在暗示一场雨即将降临呢？不行。岩石可能会让他原路返回，等雨停了再来。他想尽快成为一名“利爪”，现在就想。“天空很晴朗。”他对岩石说。
岩石的爪子又在树棍上划下一条痕迹：“那就开始选吧。”
落叶认真地注视着岩石所在的石台正下方的那条隧道。它看起来比其他的都大一些，里面似乎是一道通往荒原的上坡。应该是吧？他打算选择这条路了。
落叶穿过河流，向毛骨悚然的黑暗深处走去，心怦怦直跳。
天亮之前，我就会成为“利爪”了。他想着想着，身上的毛又竖了起来。嗯，但愿如此吧。
CHAPTER1
CHAPTER1
“Look out!” Lionpaw lashed his tail.“ShadowClan warriors behind us!”
Hollypaw whipped around, her black pelt standing on end. “I’ll take them!”
Lionpaw glanced at his brother. “Scent anything, Jaypaw?”
“More warriors coming!” the gray tabby warned. His blind, blue eyes were round with alarm. “Prepare for attack!”
“We’ll ambush them as they come through the camp wall!” Lionpaw ordered. He jerked his head toward Hollypaw. “Can you handle those three?”
“Easy!” Hollypaw rolled onto her back then sprung to her paws, claws glinting in the afternoon sun.
Lionpaw darted forward and crouched behind the prickly wall of thorns. “Quick, Jaypaw! Beside me!”
Jaypaw scooted over and dropped into an attack crouch. “They’re coming!”
A tabby warrior trotted through the entrance.
“Now!” Lionpaw screeched. He hurled himself at the warrior. Jaypaw scrambled between the enemy’s paws. With a grunt of surprise, the invader tripped and tumbled onto his side. Lionpaw was on him in an instant.
“Enough!” Squirrelflight’s sharp mew rang around the small clearing.
Lionpaw stopped pummeling Brambleclaw’s back with his hind legs and stared at his mother as she hurried through the gap in the bramble wall. “But we’re pretending ShadowClan are attacking!”
Jaypaw skidded to a halt. “We’d almost won!”
Brambleclaw got to his paws, shaking Lionpaw off. “Good ambush,” he purred. “But you know you’re not meant to be playing here.”
Lionpaw slid to the ground. “It’s the only good place to practice a surprise attack,” he mewed sulkily. He looked around the half-finished den; its bramble walls jutted out from the side of the warriors’ den. Once branches had been pushed over the top to form the roof, an opening would be made to join the old den with the new one.
Hollypaw padded toward them, leaving her imaginary foes behind. “We’re not getting in anyone’s way,” she pointed out. She fluffed out her fur against the wind. Newleaf sunshine had taken the chill from the hollow, but the afternoon had brought with it a breeze from the mountains that reminded Lionpaw that leaf-bare was less than a quarter moon behind them.
“What if every apprentice decided to practice their battle moves here?” Squirrelflight demanded. “The walls would be broken in no time and all Birchfall’s and Graystripe’s hard work would be wasted.”
“We need to expand the warriors’ den before you and the other apprentices become warriors,” Brambleclaw added. “It’s already too crowded.”
“Okay, we get the point!” Jaypaw lifted his chin. His fur was ruffled and bits of leaves were sticking out of his pelt.
“Look at you!” Squirrelflight licked Jaypaw roughly between the ears. “You’ve made yourselves filthy,” she scolded, “and we’ll be leaving for the Gathering soon.”
Lionpaw began to wash the dried leaf-dust from his chest before his mother started on him.
Jaypaw ducked away from Squirrelflight’s tongue. “I can wash myself, you know,” he complained.
“Leave them be,” Brambleclaw meowed to his mate. “I’m sure they’ll smarten themselves up before we leave.”
“Of course we will,” Lionpaw promised. There was no way he was going to let the other Clans see him looking like a hedgehog. This would be the first Gathering the three of them had attended together. “We’ve been looking forward to this for ages. Haven’t we, Jaypaw?”
Jaypaw flicked his tail. “Yeah, right.”
Lionpaw flexed his claws. Why did Jaypaw have to be grumpy all the time? This would be his first Gathering ever. He mustbe looking forward to it. He had missed the last two, once as a punishment and once because his medicine duties had kept him in camp. Lionpaw knew his littermate well enough to know how important it was to be able to do what the other cats did, despite his blindness—and that included going to Gatherings
“Hurry up! Out of here, before Firestar notices!” Squirrelflight ordered, herding her kits toward the gap in the wall. “Go and find something on the fresh-kill pile. You’ve a long night ahead.”
Lionpaw’s tail pricked with excitement at the thought of the Gathering. He could almost smell the pine scents of the island.
But Hollypaw’s eyes glittered with worry. “I hope the other Clans don’t pick on us again. Do you know if Millie’s coming? Perhaps she should stay behind this time.”
When Graystripe had returned to the Clan two moons ago, he had brought with him his new mate, Millie, a kittypet whom he had met while the Twolegs held him captive. He had trained her as a warrior and in return she had helped him make the long, perilous journey to the lake in search of his lost Clan. Her kittypet roots made her an easy target for the other Clan’s jibes, and she wasn’t the only ThunderClan cat who was taunted for not being Clanborn.
“Millie can take care of herself,” Squirrelflight pointed out.
“Besides, the contest seemed to have smoothed things over a bit,” Brambleclaw added.
“But for how long?” Hollypaw mewed. Lionpaw knew his sister had never been entirely convinced that the daylight Gathering would heal the rifts between the Clans. The four Clans had competed in friendly contests to test their skills, pitting their apprentices against one another in an effort to put aside growing distrust and border tensions. Lionpaw remembered the day for a different reason, though: He and the WindClan apprentice Breezepaw had fallen into an old badger set and nearly suffocated in choking sand before Jaypaw had found them.
“You’re always fretting about something,” Jaypaw snorted at Hollypaw. “It’s like living with an anxious owl.”
“Newleaf is here now,” Squirrelflight pointed out. “There’s more prey running around, so the Clans should be less prickly.”
Hollypaw glanced at Jaypaw. “Some cats are still prickly even with a full belly!”
“Hush.” Squirrelflight nudged her with her nose. “Go and eat.”
“I was only telling the truth!” Hollypaw started forward, but Jaypaw barged past her. She let out a yelp, glaring after Jaypaw, who was already halfway to the medicine den. “He nipped me!”
Lionpaw’s whiskers twitched. “You can fight off three ShadowClan warriors single-pawed,” he teased. “But one nip from your brother and you squeal like a kit.”
Her soft tail flicked his nose. “You’d have squealed, too!”
“I haven’t squealed since I left the nursery!”
Hollypaw narrowed her eyes mischievously. “How about I nip you and see how brave you really are?”
“You’ll have to catch me first!”
Lionpaw darted away, Hollypaw pounding after him. “Here!” He skidded to a halt beside the fresh-kill pile and tossed a mouse at Hollypaw as she caught up. “Nip this instead.”
The full moon floated in a clear blue-black sky. Ahead, the island rose from the lake, its trees lifting brittle branches to the stars.
Lionpaw walked beside Hollypaw, following his Clanmates along the pebbly shore. He glanced at Jaypaw again. His brother was padding beside Leafpool, nose twitching as he scented the unfamiliar ground. Occasionally, Leafpool’s flank would graze Jaypaw’s, steering him around sharp stones or protruding roots.
Should he warn Jaypaw about the tree-bridge? It was surprisingly slippery; Lionpaw had almost fallen off on his first crossing.
Hollypaw mewed beside him. “It’ll be good to see Willowpaw.”
“Willowpaw?” he echoed distractedly. There was only one apprentice Lionpaw was hoping to see at the Gathering: Heatherpaw, the pretty WindClan apprentice with smoky blue eyes. He let out a small sigh.
“What are you thinking about?” Hollypaw nudged him. “You’re moons away.”
“Er, Jaypaw,” he mewed quickly. “I was wondering if he could make it over the tree-bridge.”
“Don’t let him hear you say that,” Hollypaw warned.
Lionpaw suddenly felt cold water seep over his claws. Firestar had led them onto the marshy shore at the edge of RiverClan’s territory. Sandstorm picked her way after him. Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight padded beside Millie and Graystripe while Birchfall and Dustpelt followed, talking quietly. Hazelpaw was listening to her mentor while Berrypaw dodged from side to side, sniffing among the clumps of grass as though any moment he might flush out prey.
“This is RiverClanterritory,” Hollypaw hissed, reminding him that hunting on another Clan’s territory was forbidden.
“I know,” Berrypaw retorted. “But there’s no harm in looking.”
“So long as you just look.”
Graystripe let out a loud purr. “Firestar?” he called. “It sounds like Hollypaw’s preparing to challenge you for leadership.”
Lionpaw glanced at his sister. Was this the gray warrior’s gentle way of telling her not to be so bossy?
“She can challenge all she wants,” Firestar purred back. “I don’t think I have to worry until she gets a bit bigger.”
“Hey!” Hollypaw fluffed out her fur indignantly. “I was just telling him!”
Firestar halted among the snaking roots of the fallen tree that crossed the water between the shore and the island. The scents of WindClan and ShadowClan were fresh on the bark; they must be here already. Lionpaw pricked his ears. Faint mews drifted from the island. Sandstorm jumped up nimbly and wove her way between the stumps and knots until she reached the other side. One by one, the others followed. Lionpaw stood back as Hollypaw leaped after Hazelpaw.
“Aren’t you coming, Lionpaw?” she mewed, steadying herself
“Of course,” Lionpaw hissed back at her.
“He’s waiting to make sure I don’t fall in,” Jaypaw mewed from behind him.
“Only because I nearly fell in the first time,” Lionpaw explained quickly. “It’s tricky if you don’t know where to put your paws.”
Jaypaw reached up into the tangle of roots, feeling his way with his forepaws.
“Here,” Leafpool meowed, jumping up past him onto the trunk. “It’s not too high.”
Jaypaw lifted his nose and sniffed, judging how far away his mentor was. Then he pushed up with his hind legs and clawed his way onto the trunk beside her. Instantly, his forepaws slid from under him.
Lionpaw’s heart lurched as Jaypaw shot sideways. Leafpool darted toward him but Jaypaw had already dug his claws into the rotting bark and steadied himself, his tail lashing as he fought to regain his balance. Beneath him the dark water lapped at the shore. Lionpaw fought the urge to jump up and help as Jaypaw began to pad past his mentor and along the trunk. Leafpool crouched, tense and silent, ready to spring if Jaypaw slipped again. One slow paw step at a time, the blind apprentice felt his way along the bridge.
“Jump this way, Jaypaw!” Hollypaw called from the shore on the far side. “The sand’s a bit soft, but it’s clear.”
Jaypaw leaped down, landing a little clumsily, but straightened up at once.
Lionpaw felt a wave of relief.
“Hurry up, Lionpaw!”
Berrypaw was trying to push past him. Lionpaw leaped onto the trunk to block his way, but the tree trembled as Berrypaw leaped straight up after him.
“Come on!” Berrypaw urged.
Lionpaw felt his denmate’s breath on his heels, hurrying him forward. Clutching tightly with his claws, he scrambled along the tree.
“There’s no need to rush.” Brackenfur’s warning mew sounded a tail-length behind them. But Berrypaw kept pressing up behind Lionpaw.
“Stop hanging arou—”
The apprentice’s mew suddenly turned to a yelp. Lionpaw glanced back to see him sliding off the trunk, his cream pelt plummeting toward the black water.
Brackenfur lunged forward and grasped Berrypaw by the scruff. Berrypaw jerked and dangled, his paws churning the air, the tip of his thick, cream tail rippling the surface of the lake
“Hold still,” Brackenfur grunted through clenched teeth. Muscles straining beneath his pelt, the golden warrior heaved Berrypaw up onto the trunk. “I told you not to rush!”
Lionpaw blinked. Thank StarClan it wasn’t me!He turned and padded the rest of the way, glad that Berrypaw wasn’t still trying to shove past him. The fresh scent of RiverClan drifted from the shore; their patrol must have been heading down to the lake. Lionpaw scanned the edge of the water but saw no sign of them.
“Is everyone ready?” Firestar called as he, Berrypaw, Brackenfur, and finally Ashfur jumped down onto the beach.
The cats nodded. Firestar signaled with his tail, and the party began to head into the trees.
Lionpaw watched Hollypaw’s black pelt disappear into the bracken. His paws tingled with excitement as he prepared to spring after her. But Jaypaw wasn’t moving. He was just staring into the trees. Is he nervous?
“It’s only bracken,” Lionpaw reassured him. “Just push through. The clearing’s not far.” He rested his tail on Jaypaw’s flank and felt his brother’s muscles, strong and lean, beneath his pelt.
“Come on, you two!” Hollypaw came crashing back through the bracken. “Why are you dawdling?”
“Just planning our entrance.” Jaypaw flicked his tail and padded forward.
The brittle fronds of bracken scratched Lionpaw’s nose as he followed his littermates toward the clearing, but he could feel soft baby fern leaves curled under his paws. New leaves for newleaf.
“ShadowClan and WindClan are waiting in the clearing,” Hollypaw called over her shoulder. “But RiverClan haven’t arrived yet.”
“They’re on their way,” Lionpaw mewed. “I smelled them from the tree-bridge.”
Jaypaw lifted his nose. “You’re right.” His whiskers twitched. “But there’s something odd…”
Lionpaw opened his mouth and tasted the fresh scent of RiverClan again. It seemed the same as usual to him. “Probably just been eating too much fish,” he guessed.
“Let’s make sure we beat them.” Hollypaw urged them through the bracken and out onto the edge of the clearing.
As they emerged into the open, Jaypaw stiffened. “Are there always so many cats?” he whispered.
Lionpaw gazed at the warriors, apprentices, and medicine cat who crowded the clearing. It looked like an ordinary Gathering to him. Was Heatherpaw here?
“Hey! Kittypet!”
Whitetail, a WindClan she-cat, was rushing toward Millie. Whitetail’s apprentice, Breezepaw, hurried after her, ears flattened. Lionpaw unsheathed his claws, ready to defend his Clanmate.
“Hi, Millie!” Whitetail rubbed muzzles with Millie and twined her tail with hers as if they were old friends.
Lionpaw let his claws slide back in.
“Do they know each other?” Hollypaw gasped.
Lionpaw shrugged.
Breezepaw stared wide-eyed as his mentor stepped away from Millie and blinked warmly at her. “Thanks for the rabbit you gave us at the contest,” she purred. “You share like a Clan cat.”
Millie dipped her head. “It was a day for sharing,” she meowed.
“It looks like the contest did some good after all,” Hollypaw whispered to Lionpaw.
But another WindClan warrior, Tornear, was staring at Millie through narrowed eyes. He clearly didn’t like the sight of his denmate talking with a kittypet. Russetfur was watching, too, pelt bristling as she leaned forward to whisper something into a Clanmate’s ear.
Breezepaw didn’t say anything, just padded away from his mentor and pushed his way through the busy clearing. Berrypaw and Hazelpaw were chatting with a crowd of ShadowClan and WindClan apprentices. As Breezepaw joined them, Lionpaw’s pelt bristled with expectation. Was Heatherpaw’s pale tabby fur anywhere among the jumble of pelts?
He couldn’t see her.
“What are you so disappointed about?” Jaypaw asked.
Lionpaw stared at him. “D-disappointed?” Jaypaw always had an uncanny way of guessing what he was feeling. “I’m not disappointed!”
“A mouse on the moor could have heard your tail hit the ground,” Jaypaw mewed.
“I was hoping to see someone,” Lionpaw admitted.
Hollypaw flicked her ears anxiously. “Heatherpaw?”
“Well, youwant to see Willowpaw!” he retorted, his fur bristling at her accusing tone.
“It’s not the same.”
“Yes, it is!” Lionpaw protested. “We’re just friends.” As he spoke, he smelled a warmly familiar scent. Heatherpaw was racing across the clearing toward him.
“Lionpaw! You’re here!”
He felt his heart skip, then glanced nervously at Jaypaw. Was he listening to his heartbeat, too? As though burying prey ready to taste later, Lionpaw pushed his excitement away. “Hello, Heatherpaw,” he mewed coolly.
“You don’t sound very pleased to see me.” The WindClan cat’s ears twitched. “I’ve been on my best behavior all moon so that Crowfeather couldn’t possibly leave me behind.”
Lionpaw felt a flash of guilt about his lack of enthusiasm. Then anger pricked his paws. Why should he feel guilty? She was just a friend. “I’m glad you made it,” he mewed.
Hollypaw stepped in front of him and lightly brushed muzzles with Heatherpaw. “StarClan have given us fine weather again,” she mewed politely.
“You brought your brother!” Heatherpaw’s eyes shone as she noticed Jaypaw. Jealousy ran like cold water along Lionpaw’s spine. He wished she hadn’t been around to watch Jaypaw rescue him from the collapsed badger set.
He was almost grateful when Jaypaw snapped at her hotly, “Nobody broughtme! I came with my Clan!”
“Of course,” Heatherpaw mewed at once. “I’m sorry. I know you can travel by yourself. It’s just—”
“Jaypaw!” Leafpool’s call rescued Heatherpaw from her flustered apology. “Come and join us!” She was sitting with Barkface and Mothwing.
Lionpaw watched Jaypaw weave his way over to the other medicine cats. “Take no notice of Jaypaw,” he mewed to Heatherpaw. “He’s as grumpy as a badger.”
“Who’s grumpy?”
Lionpaw jerked around to see who had spoken. His heart plummeted when he saw Breezepaw padding toward them.
“You’re not going to waste your time chatting to these two, are you?” The black-pelted WindClan apprentice sat down beside Heatherpaw. “Ivypaw and Owlpaw have just challenged Berrypaw to a competition to see who can jump the highest.” He licked a forepaw and drew it over his ear.
“Why don’t you go and watch it, then?” Heatherpaw replied.
“Why don’t you come with me?” A challenging glint sparked in Breezepaw’s eye.
Lionpaw heard the ferns rustling and smelled a familiar tang. “RiverClan is here,” he mewed.
Hollypaw stretched up on tiptoe beside him to watch RiverClan file into the clearing.
Something seemed wrong. Their tails were down and their ears were flat back. Jaypaw’s words buzzed in Lionpaw’s ears. There’s something odd….
Hollypaw narrowed her eyes. “Leopardstar doesn’t look very happy.”
The golden tabby she-cat was touching muzzles with Firestar, but her tail flicked impatiently, her gaze flitting around the clearing.
“Hollypaw!” Willowpaw broke away from her Clanmates and hurried to greet Hollypaw. “I can’t stay.” The RiverClan medicine cat apprentice was out of breath. “I have to join Mothwing. But I just wanted to say hello.”
“Is everything okay?” Hollypaw asked. “With your Clan, I mean. It’s just that you all seem a bit—”
At that moment, Crowfeather padded over to join them. Lionpaw’s whiskers twitched with frustration. Would he never get a moment alone with Heatherpaw?
“Heatherpaw,” the WindClan warrior greeted his apprentice briskly. “Why don’t you go and talk to some of the apprentices from the other Clans? This is a good chance to get to know different cats.” His gaze flickered over Lionpaw and Hollypaw.
“Come on,” Breezepaw urged. “Let’s see if Ivypaw out-jumped Berrypaw.”
Heatherpaw glanced at Lionpaw, then shrugged. “Okay, then.”
Lionpaw’s tail stirred the needle-strewn earth behind him as he watched Crowfeather and Breezepaw guide her away.
“Let all the Clans gather beneath StarClan!”
Blackstar’s loud meow sounded from the Great Oak. The four leaders were lined along the lowest branch, silhouettes in the moonlight, their eyes shining in the dark. Lionpaw hurried after Hollypaw as she pushed her way in among her Clanmates and sat down beside Brackenfur. Lionpaw squeezed in front of her and sat beside Ashfur.
“Hey!” Hollypaw hissed. “Keep your head down. I want to see.”
Lionpaw ducked, suddenly realizing that he was larger than his sister now, outpacing her in size if nothing else as they grew with the passing moons.
“ShadowClan brings happy news,” Blackstar announced. “We have three new kits born to Tawnypelt.”
Meows of congratulations rose from the crowd, the loudest from Squirrelflight. “Well done, Tawnypelt!”
Blackstar went on. “They are named Flamekit, Dawnkit, and Tigerkit!”
The meows died in the throats of the older warriors at the name Tigerkit. Lionpaw blinked. How could Tigerstar still frighten them when he was nothing but a memory from long ago and far away? They were as superstitious as owls!
“If they’re Tawnypelt’s kits,” he whispered over his shoulder to Hollypaw, “they’ll be our kin!” It felt odd to have kin in another Clan. For the first time he tried to imagine how his father must feel about Tawnypelt. She was Brambleclaw’s sister, yet she had found her destiny with another Clan. Had he ever had to face her in a fight?
“Anything else to report?” Firestar’s voice jolted Lionpaw from his daydreaming.
“Did I miss anything?” Lionpaw glanced back at his sister. She shook her head, but her eyes were shaded with worry.
Blackstar had tucked his tail over his paws and was looking satisfied. Onestar turned his head from the ThunderClan leader, signaling he had nothing to say.
Firestar nodded. “All has been well with ThunderClan, too.” He turned to the RiverClan leader. “Leopardstar? You’ve shared no news.”
“There’s no news to share,” she meowed curtly. “The fish are returning to the edge of the lake. Hunting is good. My Clan is well.”
“I’m pleased to hear it,” Firestar replied.
“Then the Gathering is over,” Leopardstar declared.
The Clans began to pad away from the Great Oak as their leaders bounded down from the low branch. Lionpaw stretched, feeling cold from sitting still.
Hazelpaw nudged him with her muzzle. “Three new ShadowClan cats!” she mewed. “We’re going to have to train harder than ever!” She began to follow her Clanmates across the clearing.
Lionpaw hurried after her. “But they’re only kits.”
“Kits become warriors!” Hazelpaw reminded him.
Lionpaw felt Hollypaw pressing beside him. Her pelt was bristling. “Do you think we’ll ever have to fight them?” she whispered anxiously.
“Let’s not talk about fighting now.” Squirrelflight had joined them and overheard. “Three kits are a blessing to any Clan.” She was clearly pleased at Tawnypelt’s news.
Leafpool caught up, Jaypaw at her side. “I noticed Tawnypelt was expecting last time I saw her.”
Squirrelflight looked surprised. “You never mentioned it.”
“It was not for me to say when it still lay in the paws of StarClan,” Leafpool answered.
“Besides, it was none of your business!” A gruff mew startled the cats.
Lionpaw turned to see Rowanclaw, a ginger ShadowClan warrior, staring at them with narrowed eyes. He must be the father.
Squirrelflight returned his gaze. “Congratulations, Rowanclaw. You are blessed to have three healthy kits.”
Rowanclaw curled his lip. “Three healthy Clanbornkits,” he growled.
“That is only a blessing if they remain loyal to the Clan they were born to,” Squirrelflight pointed out sharply, letting her temper flare.
Rowanclaw let out a low growl.
Leafpool stepped between the two warriors. “There’s no need to argue.”
“He was only speaking the truth.”
Who said that?Lionpaw snapped his head around. Breezepaw!
The WindClan apprentice was standing beside his father.
Crowfeather was staring at Leafpool, his eyes glittering. “Don’t forget, Breezepaw, ThunderClan actually celebratesmixed blood.”
Leafpool jerked her head backward as though Crowfeather had raked his claws across her muzzle. She turned quickly and hurried away.
“He’s acting like there’s something wrong with ThunderClan!” Lionpaw unsheathed his claws, then felt his mother’s tail run along his flank.
“Come along, Lionpaw. Don’t forget the truce.” She pressed against Lionpaw and padded toward the edge of the clearing, steering him away from Crowfeather, Breezepaw, and Rowanclaw.
Lionpaw glared over his shoulder at the three cats, wishing he could ignore the stupid truce and rip a piece of fur from each of them.
“Lionpaw!” Heatherpaw was bounding toward him.
“What?” Lionpaw stopped and faced Heatherpaw. Squirrelflight paused beside him.
Heatherpaw gazed up at her. “Can I speak to Lionpaw, please?”
Squirrelflight’s ears twitched, but she nodded. “Don’t be long.” She padded into the bracken after Leafpool, Hollypaw, and Jaypaw.
“Please don’t be angry,” Heatherpaw begged. “Crowfeather’s always bad-tempered. It’s just his way. And Breezepaw thinks he’s a warrior already.”
“But you heard what they said about mixed blood in ThunderClan! They just can’t let it go, can they?”
“Maybe they can’t, but can we forget it?” Heatherpaw’s eyes were shining. “I’ve got a plan.”
“To get back at them?”
Heatherpaw’s eyes widened. “Of course not! They’re my Clanmates!” She flicked her tail. “My plan is something else entirely.”
Lionpaw tipped his head to one side. “What, then?”
“Instead of waiting till the next Gathering, why don’t we meet up before?”
“Before?” Lionpaw echoed in surprise. Wasn’t it against the warrior code to meet with cats from another Clan without permission?
“Tomorrow night,” she whispered.
“But how? Where?”
“At the boundary in the woods. Near the yew tree. We can slip away while our Clanmates are sleeping.”
“But—”
Heatherpaw’s whiskers twitched. “Come on! It’ll be exciting. And it’s not like we’d be hurting anyone.”
Lionpaw felt guilt and worry tug at his belly, but Heatherpaw’s blue eyes were sparkling at him hopefully. It did sound like fun. He could always say he’d been practicing his night hunting. And Heatherpaw was right. They wouldn’t be doing any harm, like stealing prey or spying. No cat would even know if they were careful about it. I’ll still be loyal to my Clan and I won’t fall behind in my duties.
He blinked at Heatherpaw. “Okay.”
第一章
第一章
“小心啊！”松鸦爪喊道，狮爪猛地抽了抽尾巴，“影族武士在我们身后呢！”
冬青爪猛地转过身，她黑色的皮毛竖了起来：“我去对付他们！”
狮爪瞥了瞥自己的弟弟：“松鸦爪，闻到什么了吗？”
“又有武士来了！”这只灰色虎斑猫发出了警告，他那看不见的蓝色眼睛睁得大大的，“准备进攻！”
“他们一穿过营地的荆棘屏障，我们就开始伏击！”狮爪命令着，然后扭头对冬青爪说，“你能对付一下那边的三个吗？”
“简单！”冬青爪蜷起身子，开始滚动起来，接着张开爪子，纵身一跃，爪尖在午后的阳光下闪着光芒。
狮爪冲了上去，在荆棘屏障后面蹲了下来。“快点儿，松鸦爪！到我身边来！”
松鸦爪赶忙跑过去蹲伏下来，摆出一副进攻的架势：“他们来了！”
一只虎斑公猫小跑着来到了营地入口。
“冲啊！”狮爪一边尖叫着，一边猛地扑向那只公猫。松鸦爪则飞快地钻到“敌猫”的两爪间。被攻击的公猫吓了一大跳，又被绊了一下，歪斜着扑倒在地。狮爪瞬间跳到他的后背上。
“你们有完没完？”松鼠飞尖厉的喊叫声，传遍了整片空地。
狮爪还在用后腿使劲儿蹬着黑莓掌的后背，听到叫声，立即停下来，转头看着自己的母亲。松鼠飞正从荆棘屏障的缺口处匆匆赶来。“我们在玩影族入侵的战斗游戏呢！”狮爪说道。
松鸦爪也停止了玩闹：“我们马上就要获胜了！”
扮演了影族猫的黑莓掌站起来，把狮爪从身上甩了下去。“你们刚才的伏击很不赖，”他说道，“不过你们不该在这里玩的，知道吗？”
狮爪滑到地面上。“可是这里是唯一一处适合练习突袭的地方了。”他一边不高兴地说着，一边环视着这座尚未竣工的巢穴：荆棘屏障从武士巢穴那边延伸出来，等到上面铺上树枝，搭好房顶后，还会再建一条连接旧巢穴与新巢穴的通道。
冬青爪跑到他们旁边，说道：“我们不会妨碍任何猫的。”她迎着风抖了抖皮毛。新叶季的温暖阳光带走了山谷中的寒意，但午后从山里吹来的微风让狮爪意识到，那艰苦的秃叶季刚刚过去不到一周而已。
“要是每位学徒都像你们一样在这儿练习战斗动作，那可如何是好？”松鼠飞大声说道，“照这样下去，用不了多久，荆棘屏障就要弄坏了，桦落和灰条的辛苦可就都白费了。”
“在你和其他学徒成为正式武士之前，我们需要扩建武士巢穴，”黑莓掌补充道，“现在那里已经很拥挤了。”
“好的，我们知道啦！”松鸦爪抬起了下巴。他的皮毛一片凌乱，上面还粘着好多叶子的碎片。
“你看看你！”松鼠飞使劲舔了舔松鸦爪两耳之间的部位，责备道，“身上搞得这么脏，我们一会儿还要去参加森林大会呢。”
狮爪没等母亲数落自己，已经开始清理胸口残留的枯叶碎片了。
松鸦爪躲开松鼠飞的舔舐。“我自己能清理，不用你管。”他抱怨道。
“别管他们啦，”黑莓掌对自己的伴侣说，“在我们出发之前，他们一定会把自己弄干净的。”
“当然了，肯定会的。”狮爪信誓旦旦地说道。他可不想让别的族群看到自己像只刺猬。这次森林大会，是他们三个第一次一起参加。“我们盼着这一天，已经盼了好久了。对吧，松鸦爪？”
松鸦爪弹了弹尾巴：“嗯，是的。”
狮爪伸了伸爪子，心想，为什么松鸦爪的脾气总是这么坏呢？这次是他第一次参加森林大会，他一定非常期待。他已经错过了两次，一次是因为被禁足了，还有一次是因为他要在营地里照顾病猫。狮爪非常了解自己的弟弟，知道他虽然看不见，但却渴望做到其他猫能做的一切事情——当然也包括参加森林大会。
“快点儿到这儿来，别让火星看见！”松鼠飞一边命令道，一边领着她的孩子们朝围墙的缺口走去，“去猎物堆找些猎物吃吧，今晚的森林大会非常漫长。”
一想到森林大会，狮爪就开始兴奋地不停抽着尾巴。他似乎闻到了小岛上松树发出的香气。
不过，冬青爪的眼睛里却闪着一丝忧虑：“我真希望别的族群别再找我们的麻烦了。谁知道米莉去了会怎样呢？或许她这次应该留在营地里。”
两个月前，灰条返回雷族的时候，带来了自己的伴侣——宠物猫米莉。他是在被两脚兽捉去时认识她的。灰条已经把她训练成了一位武士，她陪着灰条度过了那漫长而艰险的旅途并帮助灰条最终找到了族群。可是她宠物猫的出身，很容易成为其他族群攻击的目标，而且她并不是唯一一只因为不是在族群出生而被讥讽的雷族猫。
“这种事情，米莉可以自己应付。”松鼠飞说道。
“另外，上次的比赛似乎已经平息了各个族群的争议。”黑莓掌补充道。
“可是这种状态能持续多久？”冬青爪问道。狮爪知道，自己的妹妹一直都不相信，白日森林大会能解决族群之间的所有争端。四个族群进行了友好的比赛，检验了各自的技能。学徒们在竞争的氛围中，把各族群间日益增长的不信任，以及边界日益紧张的局势都暂时搁置了。此时，狮爪想起了那天自己经历的那件事：他和风族的学徒风爪一起掉进了废弃的獾窝里，差点儿窒息而死。是松鸦爪找到了他们，并把他们救了上来。
“你总是瞎操心，”松鸦爪嘲笑着冬青爪，“做你的同窝猫就像跟一只烦躁的猫头鹰待在一起。”
“新叶季已经来了，”松鼠飞说道，“猎物更多了，大家应该也不会那么爱惹是生非了吧。”
冬青爪看看松鸦爪：“有些猫就是这样的，吃饱了肚子还不满足，总爱发脾气！”
“嘘！”松鼠飞用鼻子推推冬青爪，“快去吃东西吧！”
“我只是说了真话而已！”冬青爪刚想走，松鸦爪却突然从她身边闪过。冬青爪发出一声尖叫，瞪了一眼已经朝巫医巢穴走去的松鸦爪：“他刚才咬了我一口！”
狮爪抽了抽胡须，讥笑她道：“你不是曾经独自应对过三位影族武士吗？怎么今天被弟弟咬了一口，你就像只幼崽一样，叫得这么惨呢？”
冬青爪用柔软的尾巴弹了弹狮爪的鼻子：“他咬你，你也会尖叫的！”
“自从离开育婴室之后，我就从没有尖叫过！”
冬青爪调皮地眯起眼睛：“让我咬你一口，看你究竟有多勇敢，怎么样？”
“那你得先抓住我啊！”
说完，狮爪嗖的一声跑开了，冬青爪在后面紧追不舍。“我在这儿呢！”狮爪在猎物堆前停了下来，等冬青爪追上去后，把一只老鼠扔向她，“别咬我，咬它，好不好？”
一轮满月在清澈的蓝黑色夜空中升起。前方，小岛浮现在湖面上，树木的枝杈伸向遥远的星空。
狮爪走在冬青爪身边，紧跟着族猫走过布满鹅卵石的湖岸。他又看看弟弟松鸦爪——他正在叶池身边走着，抽动鼻子，似乎嗅到了不太熟悉的气味。叶池不时碰碰松鸦爪的腹部，指引他绕过锋利的石头和突出的树根。
我需要提醒松鸦爪，前方倒伏树桥那里非常滑吗？狮爪想着。他第一次通过那里时，差一点儿就掉进湖里了。
冬青爪在他身边说道：“快要见到柳爪了，真好啊！”
“柳爪？”狮爪有些心不在焉地重复着。在这次森林大会上，他最想见的学徒只有一位，那就是石楠爪，有着一双蓝色眼睛的美丽的风族学徒。狮爪突然叹了口气。
“你在想什么呢？”冬青爪推推他，问道，“怎么感觉你魂不守舍的？”
“呃，我在想松鸦爪呢。”他赶忙说道，“我在想，他能不能顺利通过倒伏的树桥，抵达对岸。”
“这话千万别让他听到啊。”冬青爪警告道。
突然，狮爪感到自己的爪子被冰冷的水浸没了。火星已经领着他们来到了河族领地边缘那靠近湖岸的沼泽地上。沙风紧跟在他的后边。黑莓掌和松鼠飞在米莉和灰条身边走着，后面跟着桦落和尘毛，他们俩正在小声交谈着。榛爪正听着自己老师的教导，莓爪则跑来跑去，不停地在草丛间嗅着，好像下一秒他就能抓到一只猎物似的。
“这里是河族领地。”冬青爪低声提醒他，在别的族群领地上狩猎，是被严格禁止的。
“我知道，”莓爪回答，“不过我只是看看没关系吧？”
“当然，如果你只是看看的话。”
这时，灰条突然大叫起来：“火星，冬青爪好像准备挑战你的领导权威了。”
狮爪看看自己的妹妹，心想，灰条是在警告她，不要总是教训别的猫吗？
“随便她怎么样吧，”火星回应道，“我没必要担心她，她还太小。”
“喂，说什么呢！”冬青爪愤愤不平地抖了抖皮毛，“我只是提醒他一下而已！”
连接湖岸和湖心岛的倒伏树桥出现在火星面前，他停下脚步。树皮上还残留着风族和影族猫身上的气味，他们一定已经到了。狮爪竖起耳朵，隐隐听到有猫的叫声从岛上传来。沙风敏捷地跳了上去，穿过一丛丛树桩和节疤，慢慢走到了对岸。后面的猫也都一个个走了上去。冬青爪跟在榛爪后面跳上去，狮爪却往后退了退。
“你不过来吗，狮爪？”冬青爪稳住身体问道。
“我当然要过去了。”狮爪在她身后叫道。
“他正在等我先过去，确保我不会掉下去。”松鸦爪在狮爪身后说道。
“我只是想起来我第一次差点儿就掉下去了。”狮爪马上解释道，“要是你不知道把爪子放在哪里，那就麻烦了。”
松鸦爪摸到了纵横交错的树根，开始用前爪探路。
“这里，”叶池说着，走过他的身边，跳上了树桥，“这里没有多高。”
松鸦爪抬起鼻子闻了闻，估算着自己离叶池到底有多远。然后他蹬了一下后腿，攀上了树干，站到叶池身边。突然，他的前爪开始打滑了。
松鸦爪的身子歪向一边时，狮爪的心顿时提到了嗓子眼儿。叶池连忙冲向松鸦爪，不过这时候，松鸦爪已经把爪子插入腐烂的树干中，稳住了身体，不停地甩着尾巴来保持身体平衡。他的正下方，就是一波波拍打着岸边的黑色湖水。狮爪正想跳上去帮助他，可没想到松鸦爪已经超过了叶池，径自向前走去。叶池俯下身，安静而紧张地盯着他，万一松鸦爪再次滑倒，她好立即跳上去帮忙。松鸦爪虽然看不见，却依然慢慢迈着步子，一路摸索着前行。
“跳到这儿来，松鸦爪！”冬青爪在树桥的另一边喊道，“这里的沙子有点儿软，不过很干净。”
松鸦爪跳了下来，落地时的动作有些笨拙，不过他马上就站了起来。
狮爪悬着的心终于放下了。
“快点儿，狮爪！”
莓爪喊着，试图从后面超过他——狮爪跳到树干上时，挡住了他的去路。当莓爪也跳上去时，倒伏的树桥忽然开始晃动起来。
“快点儿走啊！”莓爪有点儿不耐烦了。
狮爪感觉到，莓爪的鼻息就在自己身后，像是在不停地催促他。他用爪子紧紧抓着树干，快步向前走。
“不用那么着急。”在他身后一条尾巴远，蕨毛的提醒声传了过来。然而莓爪依然在狮爪后面一直催促着。
“不要晃来晃去……”
莓爪的说话声突然变成了一声尖叫。狮爪回头一看，莓爪的爪子从树干上滑脱，他乳白色的皮毛正朝下方的黑色水流掉下去。
蕨毛冲上前去，咬住了莓爪的后颈。莓爪的身子在空中不住扭动，爪子来回摆动着，尾巴尖儿已碰到了湖面。
“别乱动！”蕨毛从牙缝里发出叫声，身上的肌肉紧绷着，慢慢将莓爪拉回了树干，“不是告诉你别着急吗？”
狮爪眨了眨眼。感谢星族，这次掉下去的不是我！他转过身，向前继续走，来到了桥的另一边，暗自庆幸没有猫在自己身后又推又催了。湖岸边传来了河族的清新气息，他们的巡逻队一定来过这里了。狮爪扫视了一遍湖岸，却没有看到他们的踪迹。
“大家都准备好了吗？”火星看到莓爪、蕨毛和走在最后的蜡毛都跳到了湖滩上，问道。
众猫们点点头。火星挥了挥尾巴，发出信号，于是猫群开始向森林深处进发。
狮爪看到冬青爪的黑色皮毛消失在蕨丛之中，便兴奋得脚爪痒痒，想跟上去。可是松鸦爪却没有动，只是盯着森林。他是紧张了吗？狮爪想。
“这里是蕨丛，穿过去就可以了，森林大会的地点离这里已经不远了。”狮爪一边告诉他，一边把尾巴放在松鸦爪的侧腹上，感到弟弟皮毛下的肌肉又瘦又发达。
“你们快点儿呀！”冬青爪从蕨丛的另一边又穿了回来，“在这儿磨蹭什么呢？”
“我们正在想，待会儿该怎么进场呢。”松鸦爪弹了弹尾巴，向前走去。
狮爪跟着弟弟朝空地走，蕨丛锯齿形的叶子一直蹭着他的鼻子，那些幼苗新长出来的嫩叶在他爪子下软软地卷曲着——这是新叶季里长出的第一批新叶啊。
“影族和风族猫已经在空地等着了，”冬青爪回头喊着，“不过河族还没到。”
“他们正在路上，”狮爪说道，“我在树桥那里闻到他们的气息了。”
松鸦爪抬起鼻子。“你说得对。”他抽抽胡须，说道，“但是有些东西不对劲儿……”
狮爪张开嘴，再次细细分辨河族清新的气息，可是没闻到什么异常。“可能是因为他们吃了太多的鱼吧。”他猜道。
“我们还是尽量避开他们吧。”冬青爪催促着。他们穿过蕨丛，来到空地边缘。
他们抵达会场时，松鸦爪惊呆了，他悄声说道：“每次来开会的猫都这么多吗？”
狮爪注视着所有在场的武士、学徒和巫医。这次大会跟前几次似乎没什么区别。可是，石楠爪在哪儿呢？
“你好啊，宠物猫！”
风族的母猫白尾朝米莉奔来。她的学徒风爪平贴着耳朵，紧随其后。狮爪见状，张开爪子，准备保护自己的族猫。
“你好，米莉！”白尾和米莉蹭蹭鼻子，尾巴紧紧地缠在一起，就好像老朋友见面一样。
狮爪收回了爪子。
“她们两个认识吗？”冬青爪有点儿吃惊。
狮爪耸了耸肩。
风爪看到自己的老师后退几步，用温和的目光看着米莉时，也有点儿惊讶，眼睛睁得大大的。“感谢你在上次的比赛中给了我们一只兔子，”她说道，“你有分享精神，很像族群猫。”
米莉低下了头。“那天的比赛就是提倡彼此分享的嘛。”她说道。
“看起来，上次的比赛的确给大家留下了美好的回忆。”冬青爪对狮爪耳语道。
然而此刻，风族武士裂耳却眯起眼睛盯着米莉。很显然，他并不喜欢看到自己的族猫跟宠物猫交谈。黄毛也在看着她俩，身上的毛竖立着，她俯身跟自己的族猫耳语着什么。
风爪什么都没说，只是从自己老师身边走开，回到了热闹非凡的大会会场。莓爪和榛爪正跟影族和风族学徒们聊天。当风爪加入他们时，狮爪的皮毛顿时兴奋地竖了起来，眼睛里充满了期待。石楠爪那浅棕色的虎斑纹皮毛，会出现在这一片混乱的皮毛中吗？
他看不到她。
“今天你好像很失望啊？”松鸦爪问道。
狮爪看着他。“失……失望？”松鸦爪总能猜到自己的心思，真是太不可思议了，“我可没失望！”
“连荒原上的老鼠，都能听到你刚才尾巴敲打地面的声音。”松鸦爪说道。
“我想见一只猫。”狮爪承认道。
冬青爪担心地弹了弹耳朵：“是石楠爪吗？”
“哼，你不是也想见柳爪吗？”听到她话中带刺，他生气地反驳着，毛也竖了起来。
“我跟你不一样。”
“得了吧！没什么不一样！”狮爪抗议道，“我跟她只是朋友。”他刚说完，就闻到了一阵熟悉而温馨的气息。石楠爪正穿过空地，向他跑过来。
“狮爪！你来啦！”
他的心怦怦直跳，紧张地看了一眼松鸦爪。难道他也听到了自己的心跳声？就像把猎物先埋起来，待会儿再慢慢品尝一样，狮爪抑制住自己内心的兴奋。“你好，石楠爪！”他冷淡地回应道。
“你见到我好像不太高兴啊。”她抽抽耳朵说道，“我这个月一直拼命表现，所以鸦羽才允许我参加森林大会。”
狮爪听了，立刻就为自己的冷淡态度感到了内疚。紧接着，又有一股怒气升起，刺得他爪子生疼。为什么我要内疚啊？她只不过是我朋友而已。“很高兴你能来。”他说道。
冬青爪走到狮爪身前，轻轻跟石楠爪蹭蹭鼻子。“感谢星族，今天又是个好天气啊。”她礼貌地说道。
“你把你弟弟带来了呀！”石楠爪的目光落在了松鸦爪身上。嫉妒像冰冷的水一样，沿着狮爪的脊背淌了下来。他真希望，石楠爪没看到松鸦爪把自己从倒塌的獾巢中救出的场景。
但是当松鸦爪愤怒地朝她大喊“没有谁带我来！我是跟我的族猫一起来的”时，狮爪的心情又好了起来。
“当然了。”石楠爪马上说道，“对不起，我知道你自己能行，只是……”
“松鸦爪！”叶池的喊声，把石楠爪从道歉的尴尬中解救出来，“过来和我们聊聊！”她此时正和青面、蛾翅坐在一起。
狮爪看着松鸦爪摸索着朝巫医走去。“别在意松鸦爪，”他对石楠爪说道，“他的脾气像獾一样暴躁。”
“你说谁暴躁呢？”
谁在说话？狮爪回头看到风爪朝他们走来，心情顿时坠到谷底。
“你不会打算把时间都浪费在跟这两只猫聊天上吧？”黑色皮毛的风族学徒在石楠爪身边坐了下来，“藤爪和枭爪刚才向莓爪挑战，看谁跳得最高。”他舔舔自己的前爪，摸了摸耳朵。
“那你怎么不去观战呢？”石楠爪又问道。
“你跟我一起去怎么样？”风爪的眼睛里闪过挑衅的光。
这时狮爪听到蕨丛沙沙作响，还闻到了一阵熟悉的刺鼻味道。“河族猫来了。”他说。
冬青爪踮起脚，伸展着身体，看着河族猫迈着整齐的步子进入了会场。
似乎有什么不对劲儿？他们的尾巴都低垂着，耳朵向后平贴着。松鸦爪的话在狮爪耳边响起来：“确实有些东西不对劲儿……”
冬青爪眯起眼睛说道：“豹星看起来很不高兴。”
那只金色的虎斑母猫和火星碰碰鼻子，可她的尾巴却不耐烦地来回甩动着，目光扫视着整个会场。
“冬青爪！”柳爪离开自己的同伴，跑过去跟冬青爪说话，“我不能多待，就是过来跟你打个招呼。”河族巫医学徒上气不接下气地说道，“我马上要去蛾翅那里了。”
“你一切都好吧？”冬青爪问道，“我是说，你的族群都还好吧？我觉得你们有点儿……”
就在这时，鸦羽走过来站在他们身边。狮爪失落地抽了抽胡须。难道自己就不能独自跟石楠爪多待一会儿吗？
“石楠爪，”风族武士轻松地跟自己的学徒打招呼，“你怎么不去跟别族的学徒们说说话呢？今天可是认识新朋友的绝佳机会。”他的目光扫过狮爪和冬青爪。
“走吧，”风爪催促道，“我们去看看藤爪是不是比莓爪跳得高。”
石楠爪瞥了一眼狮爪，然后耸了耸肩：“那好吧。”
狮爪看着鸦羽和风爪领着石楠爪走开了，尾巴气恼地扫了扫铺满松针的地面。
“所有族群都在星族护佑下相聚！”
黑星响亮的召唤声从大橡树那里传了过来。四位族长在最矮的树枝上排成一列，月光映照出他们的身影，他们的眼睛在黑暗中熠熠闪光。冬青爪在自己的族猫中穿行，来到蕨毛身边坐了下来。狮爪也快步跟上，挤到冬青爪前面，坐在蜡毛旁边。
“喂！”冬青爪嘶嘶叫道，“脑袋往下低一点，别挡住我！”
狮爪低下了头。他突然发现，自己的个头已经比妹妹大多了，而且长得也比她快些。在过去的几个月里，他也许在其他方面没有超过妹妹，但在个头上却是大大超过了。
“影族有好消息要跟大家分享，”黑星宣布道，“褐皮生下了三只幼崽。”
群猫发出此起彼伏的祝贺声，最响的声音是松鼠飞的：“干得好，褐皮！”
黑星接着说道：“他们分别叫小焰、小曙和小虎！”
听到“小虎”的名字，年长一些的武士都沉默下来。狮爪眨了眨眼，虎星已经成为一段记忆了，为什么还会让他们如此心惊胆战呢？他们跟猫头鹰一样，真是太迷信了！
他回头轻声对冬青爪说：“如果他们是褐皮的幼崽，那他们不就是我们的亲戚吗？”自己的亲戚住在别的族群，感觉真的很怪。狮爪第一次试着想象父亲是如何看待褐皮的——褐皮是黑莓掌的妹妹，可她却在另外一个族群里找到了自己的位置，并履行着自己的使命。如果未来两族发生战争，父亲该如何面对褐皮呢？
“还有什么要汇报的吗？”火星的声音，一下子把狮爪从沉思中拉了回来。
“我刚才错过什么了吗？”狮爪回头看看妹妹。冬青爪摇摇头，眼中露出了一丝忧虑。
黑星把尾巴卷起，放在爪子旁边，脸上浮现出满意的神情。一星把头从火星那边转回来，示意自己没什么可说的。
火星点点头：“雷族也一切都好。”他随后对河族族长说道，“豹星，你还没给我们分享河族的消息呢。”
“我们没什么可说的，”她简短地回答道，“鱼又回到了湖里，狩猎也很顺利，我们一切都好。”
“很高兴听你这么说。”火星回答道。
“大会到此结束吧。”豹星突然宣布道。
族长们跳下了树枝，各族的猫也随之开始散去。狮爪伸了个懒腰，感觉到寒意袭遍全身。
榛爪用鼻子碰碰他。“影族多了三只幼崽！”她说道，“我们应该更加努力训练啦！”说完，她跟着族猫穿过会场。
狮爪连忙跟了上去：“可他们只是刚出生的幼崽而已。”
“他们总会成为武士的！”榛爪提醒他道。
狮爪察觉到冬青爪在身边推着自己，身上的毛竖立着。“你觉得我们将来会跟他们打仗吗？”她焦急地轻声问。
“别谈论打仗的事了。”松鼠飞走了过来，很显然是听到了他们的说话声，“三只幼崽是给所有族群的礼物。”显然，她对褐皮生下幼崽感到很高兴。
这时叶池和松鸦爪也走了过来：“我上次见褐皮时，就已经注意到她怀孕了。”
松鼠飞露出惊讶的神色：“可你从没提起过这件事。”
“这是星族掌管的事，不应该由我来宣布。”叶池回答道。
“这件事跟你们没关系！”一阵嘶哑的说话声响起，惊动了在场的所有猫。
狮爪转过身，看到了姜黄色的影族武士花楸掌，正眯起眼睛盯着他们。他一定是三只幼崽的父亲吧。狮爪想着。
松鼠飞与他对视着：“祝贺你，花楸掌。你有了三只健康的幼崽，愿星族保佑你。”
花楸掌撇撇嘴。“是三只健康的在本族群出生的幼崽！”他咆哮道。
“忠于自己族群的猫，才配得上星族的赐福。”松鼠飞恼火地说道，语气中透着尖刻。
花楸掌又发出一声低吼。
叶池走到两位武士中间：“没必要为此争吵。”
“他只是说出了实情而已。”
刚才这话是谁说的？狮爪回头望了望，原来是风爪！
这位风族学徒正站在父亲身旁。
鸦羽盯着叶池，眼睛闪着光：“风爪，你别忘了，雷族并不排斥混血猫。”
叶池猛地回过头，就像鸦羽用爪子挠了她的鼻子。然后她快步离开了，没有再回头。
“他刚才的话是什么意思？好像我们雷族做错了什么事一样！”狮爪张开爪子，接着却突然感到，母亲的尾巴轻拂着自己的腹部。
“别冲动！狮爪，你忘了今晚是有停战协议的吗？”她推着狮爪从鸦羽、风爪和花楸掌身边走开，朝空地边缘走去。
狮爪回头看看那三只猫，真希望自己能无视那愚蠢的停战协议，扑上去撕掉他们的一块皮！
“狮爪！”石楠爪蹦跳着跑向他。
“怎么了？”狮爪停下来看着她，松鼠飞也停下了脚步。
石楠爪看着松鼠飞，说道：“请问我能跟狮爪说一会儿话吗？”
松鼠飞的耳朵抽了抽，但还是点头同意了。“时间别太长。”说完，她跟着叶池、冬青爪和松鸦爪走进了蕨丛。
“请你不要生气！”石楠爪恳求道，“鸦羽的脾气一直都这么坏，他就是那样。风爪也是，他总认为自己已经是武士了。”
“可你听到他们刚才关于雷族混血猫的言论了吧？他们就是揪着这一点不放，没完没了的！”
“也许是他们看不开吧。不过，我们还是把这件事先忘了，好吗？”石楠爪的眼睛闪着光，“我有个计划。”
“报复他们的计划吗？”
石楠爪睁大了眼睛。“当然不是了！他们是我的族猫啊！”她轻轻弹了弹尾巴说道，“是另外一件事。”
狮爪歪了歪脑袋：“是什么事呢？”
“距离下次森林大会还有一段时间呢，我们在这之前再见一面，怎么样？”
“下次森林大会之前？什么时候？”狮爪惊讶地重复道。未经允许，跟外族的猫见面，不是违反了武士守则吗？
“明晚。”她悄悄地说道。
“怎么见面？在哪里？”
“在森林里，边界线那边，靠近那棵紫杉树的地方。我们可以趁着族猫睡觉的时候，偷偷溜出来。”
“可是……”
石楠爪的胡须抽了抽：“来嘛！一定很好玩的。我们不会伤害到任何猫的。”
狮爪的心里感到既内疚，又担忧。但是看着石楠爪碧蓝的双眼期待地看着他，他无法拒绝。这听起来确实很有趣。要是有猫问起来，他说自己是去练习夜间狩猎不就得了嘛。另外，石楠爪说了，他们不会做伤害其他猫的事情，比如偷窃猎物，或者搞什么间谍活动。如果他们小心一点儿，没有猫会知道这件事的。我依然对族群忠心耿耿，我也绝不会逃避自己的职责。
他朝石楠爪眨眨眼睛：“好的，就这么定了。”
CHAPTER2
CHAPTER2
Hollypaw was dreaming. She was chargingthrough the forest as rain pounded the leaf-strewn earth. She could glimpse Willowpaw’s striped pelt through the trees. The RiverClan medicine cat apprentice was running fast, always a few steps ahead.
“Wait for me!” Hollypaw called. “There’s something I want to ask you.”
“I’ll tell you if you catch up!” Willowpaw called back.
Hollypaw pushed harder, her paws skidding on the mud, but Willowpaw stayed a tail-length out of reach.
“There’s something wrong with RiverClan, isn’t there?” Hollypaw yowled.
“I can’t hear you. The rain’s too loud.”
“Tell me what’s wrong!”
The rain pelted down more fiercely, rattling against the leaves and bouncing off the ground.
“Willowpaw!”
“I can’t tell you unless you catch me!”
“Slow down!” Hollypaw narrowed her eyes against the downpour. “Willowpaw?”
Willowpaw had disappeared.
Hollypaw was alone in the drenched forest.
She blinked open her eyes. Rain was battering the den roof, finding its way through the thick foliage of the yew branches and dripping into the nests. Hollypaw shivered and snuggled deeper into the moss but something wet was pressing against her.
Lionpaw’s pelt.
Hollypaw shoved him away. “Move over. Your fur is soaking.”
Lionpaw rolled back against her.
“Lionpaw!” She scrambled to her paws and stared at her brother. Dawn light was filtering through the branches, just enough to give color to the pelts of the sleeping cats. Lionpaw’s fur was drenched, as though he had spent the night out in the rain, though he was fast asleep now. Hollypaw sniffed him suspiciously. Perhaps he had just gone out to make dirt and slipped back into the den for more sleep.
She yawned and stretched, her tail shivering with the effort. She felt cold to the bone. Mousepaw, Berrypaw, and Honeypaw were asleep despite the rain. Poppypaw’s and Hazelpaw’s nests were empty but their scent was fresh; they must have gone out with the dawn patrol.
“Hollypaw?” Cinderpaw lifted her head and blinked open her eyes. “Did the rain wake you?”
Hollypaw shook her head. “Lionpaw did,” she mewed. “He’s soaking wet.”
“He’s been out in this?” Cinderpaw rubbed her eyes with a paw.
“It looks like it.” Hollypaw’s fur was starting to itch with curiosity. This wasn’t the first time Lionpaw had done something weird. He had woken her before dawn only a few days ago, slinking back into the den. He said he’d been out to make dirt, but his fur smelled of leaves, as though he’d been farther into the forest than just the dirtplace. Andhe’d snapped the answer back as though she was prying. She was sure he was up to something.
Cinderpaw’s belly began to rumble. “I wonder if there’s any fresh-kill on the pile yet?”
“There may be some left over from last night,” Hollypaw suggested. “Let’s go and see.”
She picked her way among the warm bodies of her sleeping Clanmates and peered out of the entrance. She could hardly see the fresh-kill pile. The dawn sky was dark with clouds and the rain was so heavy that mud danced over the clearing.
Cinderpaw squeezed up beside her. “Let’s make a dash for it.”
“Okay.” Hollypaw screwed up her eyes and darted out of the den.
Stormfur and Brook crouched beneath Highledge, sharing a soggy robin beneath the sheltering overhang.
“This weather’s too wet even for RiverClan!” Stormfur called in greeting.
Hollypaw paused, blinking the rain from her eyes. “Now I know how fish feel!”
Cinderpaw scooted past her.
“Don’t sit there like a startled rabbit, Hollypaw,” Brook urged. “Find shelter!”
Hollypaw hurried after Cinderpaw and sent up a spray of mucky water as she skidded to a halt by the fresh-kill pile. A few sodden pieces of prey lay plastered in mud. She picked up a sorry-looking mouse and carried it to the shelter of the brambles that crowded one side of the medicine den.
“Yuck!” Cinderpaw dropped a dripping wren on the ground and shook herself. Hollypaw flattened her ears as the spray showered her.
“Sorry.” Cinderpaw crouched and took a bite of her wren. “This tastes like mud!” she mewed with her mouth full.
At the entrance to the medicine den, the dripping brambles shivered and Leafpool hurried out, her jaws clutching a bundle of herbs. She dashed across the clearing and disappeared into the nursery.
“I hope Icekit and Foxkit are okay,” Hollypaw mewed.
“Daisy was sneezing last night,” Cinderpaw told her. “I think she has a cold.”
Hollypaw peered up through the brambles at the gray sky. “We’ll all have colds if this rain doesn’t stop soon. That, or webbed feet.” It had been nearly a half-moon since the Gathering, and it seemed to have rained every day.
The rest of the camp was beginning to stir. Thornclaw yawned as he padded around the clearing followed by Dustpelt. As Hollypaw swallowed the last mouthfuls of cold mouse, Firestar emerged from his cave on Highledge and surveyed the camp. Brambleclaw darted from the warriors’ den and bounded up the rockfall to meet him. The two warriors vanished into Firestar’s cave, their tails low against the rain that hurled against the cliff.
Mousefur peered out from the honeysuckle-draped bush that formed the elders’ den, before disappearing back inside with a snort of disgust. Graystripe padded from behind the warriors’ den, where he shared a makeshift den with Millie. His thick gray pelt was plastered against his body. He picked two birds from the fresh-kill pile and hurried back to his nest.
Brackenfur emerged from the warriors’ den and stretched, arching his tail and reaching out with his forepaws until his chest touched the ground. Then he straightened and shook himself, fluffing out his golden fur. “Hollypaw?” He peered toward her through narrowed eyes, rain streaming from his whiskers. “Is that you?”
Hollypaw padded out from the shelter of the brambles. “I was just eating with Cinderpaw,” she greeted him.
“Well, if you’ve got a full belly, you can come hunting with me.”
Hollypaw felt a surge of delight. Hunting would warm her up. “Can Cinderpaw come too?” she asked.
Cinderpaw shook her head. “Cloudtail asked me to clean out the elders’ bedding this morning.”
“I’ll bring you back a warm mouse if I can,” Hollypaw promised.
“One without mud, please,” Cinderpaw purred.
“Come on, Hollypaw.” Brackenfur was already racing for the camp entrance.
Outside, the forest floor was soaked, the dead leaves slimy and rotten underpaw, but Hollypaw soon began to feel warm as she chased Brackenfur up the steep slope and they headed into the forest. The rain was beginning to ease and for the first time that morning she opened her eyes wide. The trees ahead were thickening and the forest darkened where pines began to grow among the leafless trees. ShadowClan territory lay this way. Hollypaw thought of the new kittens—her kin—in the camp beyond the border. If they shared her blood, would they share her scent as well? Was it blood or Clan that decided scent? How would they tell whose marker was whose?
“Brackenfur?”
Brackenfur skidded on the wet leaves and turned to face her, his eyes bright. “Do you smell prey?” he asked hopefully.
Hollypaw shook her head. “I was just wondering…” She searched for the words to explain the unease that was nagging her.
“Yes?”
“Well, I was wondering…”
Brackenfur shook the rain from his whiskers. “What is it, for StarClan’s sake?”
“If the new kits in ShadowClan are my kin, do I still have to fight them in battle?”
“Of course, if they threaten your Clan.” Brackenfur turned away and started padding through the forest once more, his nose twitching as he hunted for scent among the wet undergrowth
Hollypaw hurried to keep up with him. “But what if my Clan threatens them and I don’t think it’s fair?”
“Why should we do that?” Brackenfur’s ears pricked and he dropped into a hunting crouch.
“But just say we did? Shouldn’t I feel some loyalty to kin?”
“A true warrior is loyal to her Clan above everything.” Brackenfur began to knead the ground with his hind paws; he had spotted something ahead and was preparing to pounce. But Hollypaw’s mind was hungrier than her belly.
“You can’t hurt cats that share your blood,” she argued. “Does that mean there are more important things than the warrior code?” She blinked in alarm. “If that’s true, then how do we know what’s right—”
“Hush!” Brackenfur’s hiss silenced her as a leaf trembled a fox-length away and a small brown shape shot away into the safety of its burrow.
Brackenfur sat up and stared crossly at his apprentice. “Why don’t you stop thinking about the warrior code and start following it? Your Clan is hungry and wet. You should be concentrating on feeding them, not on deciding what’s wrong and what’s right!”
Hollypaw’s tail drooped. He was right. She had scared off prey that could have fed her Clanmates. “I’m sorry,” she murmured.
“Now stop asking questions and find something to take back to camp!”
Hollypaw hunted even harder than usual and returned to the camp carrying three mice. Brackenfur led her through the thorn tunnel, a crow in his jaws. He dropped it on a fresh-kill pile that had already been restocked by another hunting patrol.
“You did well,” he congratulated her. She felt relieved that she had made up for losing him the mouse. “Now go and get dry in your den,” he advised. “I’ll take food to Mousefur and Longtail.”
The rain had stopped but the forest was still dripping. Hollypaw padded to the apprentices’ den. Inside, the nests were empty except for Lionpaw’s. Hollypaw could see his golden pelt rising and falling gently as he slept. How could he sleep the morning away while everyone else was busy looking after the Clan?
“Doesn’t Ashfur have any jobs for you?” she called irritably.
“Huh? What?” Lionpaw’s head shot up and he stared, blinking, at her. “Is it dawn already?”
“It’s halfway to sunhigh!”
Lionpaw leaped to his paws. His eyes were round with guilt. “Has Ashfur been looking for me?”
“I don’t know. I’vebeen out hunting,” Hollypaw answered pointedly. She began tugging at the damp bedding closest to her, pulling at it with her teeth and shaking it to let moisture out and fresh air in. “Why are you so tired anyway?” she asked, her mew muffled by the moss.
“I didn’t sleep well,” Lionpaw replied.
Hollypaw glanced at him, but he was staring at the ground, as if avoiding her gaze. “Is there something wrong, Lionpaw?”
“No,” he mewed quickly.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course!” His mew was tetchy.
Hollypaw felt a wave of sadness. They used to share everything, but now getting details out of her brother was like trying to pick fleas off a hedgehog. Unless they jumped out by themselves, there was no way she could reach them.
“Okay, okay! There’s no need to bite my head off!” She started plucking at the moss again.
Lionpaw padded past her. “I wasn’t biting your head off,” he muttered. “But sometimes it’s nice to be able to do stuff without being asked so many questions!” He stalked out of the den, leaving Hollypaw alone.
She sighed and let the moss she was working on drop to the ground. Perhaps Jaypaw knew what was up with Lionpaw. He always seemed to guess what shewas thinking. Perhaps he could do the same with Lionpaw. She headed for the medicine den and pushed her way through the brambles.
Jaypaw was sorting through herbs at the back of the cleft in the rock wall. “I’m busy,” he mewed without looking up. “Leafpool wants me to see what herbs we need before she gets back from the nursery.”
“Are the kits sick?” Hollypaw asked anxiously.
“Daisy has a cold,” Jaypaw replied. “Nothing serious, but with all this rain, Leafpool wants to treat it before it gets worse.”
“I wanted to talk to you about Lionpaw,” she ventured.
“Is he ill?”
“No.” Hollypaw sat down, wishing Jaypaw would stop messing around with the herbs and talk to her properly. “He’s just been so tired lately, and grumpy. Every time I talk to him he practically nips my whiskers off.”
“How should I know what’s wrong with him?” Jaypaw pushed a pile of dark green leaves together. Hollypaw tried to remember their name—she had, after all, trained as a medicine cat for a while—but she hadn’t a clue.
“It’s just that you usually know.”
“Youshare a den with him,” Jaypaw pointed out. “I’m stuck over here with Leafpool most of the time.” His voice prickled with resentment.
Hollypaw sat in silence for a moment. On top of worrying about Lionpaw, her dream about Willowpaw was still nagging at the back of her mind. But if Jaypaw wasn’t going to help her work out what was up with Lionpaw, there wasn’t much hope he would care what was bothering her RiverClan friend. And yet…
She decided to try coming at it sideways. Always a good hunting move when stalking tricky prey.
“Did you speak to Willowpaw at the Gathering?” she asked casually.
“Not much.”
“I think she’s worried you don’t like her.”
“Why do I have to like every cat I meet?” Jaypaw grumbled.
“Why do you have to dislike every cat you meet?” she shot back. “Willowpaw’s really nice. You don’t have to go out of your way to make her feel uncomfortable.”
“I don’t makeher feel anything.” Jaypaw turned back to his herbs. “She feels what she wants to feel.”
“Didn’t you think she was feeling anxious at the Gathering?” Hollypaw decided to press on. “Didn’t you think the whole of RiverClan was acting oddly?”
Jaypaw turned from his herbs. “Perhaps.” His ears were pricked as if Hollypaw had finally said something that interested him.
“So I didn’t just imagine it?”
“Imagine what?”
“That something’s troubling RiverClan?”
“Do youthink there is?” Jaypaw was leaning toward her now.
“I don’t know.” Hollypaw didn’t want to start a rumor that would make RiverClan look weak. It felt disloyal to her friend. And besides, it might not be true. “Do you?”
“I couldn’t tell.”
Hollypaw felt a wave of frustration. This conversation was going in circles!
“But I might be able to find out something when we go to the Moonpool,” Jaypaw went on.
Of course!The medicine cats would be traveling together to the Moonpool at half-moon. That was only a few days away. “If there is something worrying Willowpaw, will you tell me?” Hollypaw asked.
Jaypaw narrowed his eyes. “Sure. I know how I’ll be able to find out.”
Hollypaw’s pelt began to prick with unease. “I’m not asking you to spyor anything,” she mewed. “Just let me know if I’m right to worry….”
“Okay.” Jaypaw shrugged and began pawing at another pile of herbs.
“Hollypaw!” Brackenfur was calling her from the clearing.
Feeling slightly relieved, she hurried out of the medicine den. A small patch of blue had opened in the clouds above the hollow.
“We may as well do some training in the forest while the rain holds off,” Brackenfur meowed. “Cloudtail’s taking Cinderpaw out to explore and I thought we could join them. Get to know the territory a bit better.”
Cinderpaw came bouncing toward them, followed by Cloudtail and Birchfall.
“Firestar wants us to check out the old fox den,” Birchfall called. “Make sure those fox cubs haven’t returned.”
Hollypaw shivered. She still remembered the awful day when she and Jaypaw and Lionpaw had set out to chase the fox cubs from the den and had ended up being chased themselves. In his terror, Jaypaw had fallen over the side of the hollow and nearly died.
“Don’t worry, Hollypaw,” Cinderpaw whispered. “I’ll watch your tail.”
Hollypaw brushed gratefully against her friend as they padded out of the camp after the three warriors. “And I’ll watch yours.”
As they neared the narrow glade that sloped down to the den, Hollypaw sniffed the air. Her paws tingled. Fox!
“Young, female, but it’s stale,” Cinderpaw interpreted, nose twitching.
“How can you be sure?” Hollypaw asked in surprise. As far as she knew, Cinderpaw had never met a fox, and couldn’t know their scent well enough to distinguish all that.
Cinderpaw shrugged. “I just know,” she mewed.
“She’s right about it being stale,” Cloudtail meowed. “There’s been no fox here since leaf-fall.”
Hollypaw glanced at her friend. Cinderpaw sometimes said or did things that suggested she knew more than she let on. But holding back secrets was not like Cinderpaw. The gray apprentice was usually three paw steps ahead of herself and would rather leap in, whiskers first, than stop and think. Perhaps she had been here before and just forgotten.
Cloudtail was obviously wondering the same. “Have you been here with another patrol?”
Cinderpaw shook her head. “This is definitely the first time,” she mewed.
Cloudtail and Brackenfur exchanged glances, and Hollypaw guessed that they were as puzzled as she was.
An owl screeched far above the hollow, and Hollypaw rolled over in her nest, half-woken by the noise. She stretched her forepaws, feeling for the reassuring warmth of Lionpaw, and found emptiness.
She blinked open her eyes.
“Lionpaw?” she hissed under her breath.
No reply.
She reached farther into his nest, wondering if he had rolled to the far side but no, he was definitely gone.
“Are you looking for Lionpaw?” Poppypaw yawned from the other side of his nest. “He left the den a while ago.”
Hollypaw sat up, her heart racing. Lionpaw had gone missing once too often.
“Is something wrong?” Poppypaw’s eyes gleamed in the darkness.
“N-no.” Hollypaw didn’t want to arouse the suspicions of the other apprentices.
“Has Lionpaw gone to make dirt again?” Cinderpaw’s mew sounded behind her. “It must be that stale old thrush he ate.”
Hollypaw felt a wave of gratitude toward her friend. She was clearly covering for Lionpaw, stopping Poppypaw from answering any more awkward questions. The thrush had been perfectly healthy, caught fresh that day.
“I’ll go and check if he’s okay,” Hollypaw mewed.
She crept from the den and hurried as silently as she could around the edge of the slumbering camp, keeping to the shadows. Lionpaw’s scent led to the entrance, following the same furtive route. Let me find him making dirt,Hollypaw prayed.
Paw steps sounded behind her.
Hollypaw froze and glanced over her shoulder.
“It’s just me.” Cinderpaw’s mew sounded from the darkness, and the gray tabby stepped out of the shadows. “I thought you might want company.”
“Thanks.” If Lionpaw was really making dirt, there was no harm in Cinderpaw’s knowing, but if he wasn’t and, as Hollypaw feared, he was out in the forest, she would be pleased to have a friend with her.
One after the other, they squeezed through the small tunnel to the dirtplace.
“He’s not here,” Cinderpaw whispered.
Hollypaw sighed, her heart heavy. “No.”
“What do you think he’s up to?”
Hollypaw didn’t dare reply. She could guess why he might have left the camp under cover of night, but she didn’t want to believe it.
“His trail leads this way,” Cinderpaw announced, pointing with her nose up the lakeward slope.
Hollypaw’s belly tightened. The trail led up over the ridge and then around onto the moorland: WindClan territory. Perhaps he’s just exploring. Hope stirred in her chest, but beneath it, like a rock, lay the dark suspicion that he was meeting Heatherpaw.
“We’re going to follow him, aren’t we?” Cinderpaw was staring at Hollypaw, her eyes clouded with worry. Had she guessed, too? Surely not. How could she know?
“Perhaps it’s none of our business,” Hollypaw suggested feebly.
“Of course it’s our business! Our denmate is out there alone. What if something happened to him?”
“Is that the only reason you want to follow him—because he might be in danger?”
“No.” Cinderpaw sat down. “I think he may be doing something he will live to regret.”
Hollypaw was taken aback by her friend’s serious tone. “Do you know something I don’t?” she asked.
Cinderpaw shook her head. “It’s just a feeling I have. I can’t explain it. A feeling that Lionpaw is making a mistake that’s been made before, that should never be made, that only leads to trouble….” Her mew died away but her eyes were shining with emotion.
“Okay.” Hollypaw could not ignore the strength of her friend’s feeling. Nor could she ignore her own. All her instincts told her that Lionpaw was breaking the warrior code, and it was her duty as a Clan cat to stop him. She charged up the slope, sniffing the twigs and brambles for Lionpaw’s scent, following the path he had taken to the top of the ridge. Cinderpaw bounded after her and they quickly reached the edge of the trees. The ground sloped away in front of them, down to the shore where the lake sparkled in the moonlight. Hollypaw scanned the distant moorland, half hoping to see Lionpaw, half hoping she wouldn’t. If Lionpaw was roaming around at night, she wanted it to be on ThunderClan territory.
There was no sign of movement in the shadowy heather. Hollypaw plunged down the slope, following an old rabbit track through the coarsening grass. Underpaw the ground grew more peaty as they neared the WindClan border. Heather bushes sprouted on either side of the track as the slope flattened and the sound of water lapping the shore grew louder.
“Did you hear that?” Cinderpaw’s hiss startled Hollypaw.
She pricked her ears. A small hollow, ringed by heather, lay in shadow ahead of them. From it came the sound of voices. Hollypaw’s tail bristled as she recognized Lionpaw’s mew. He sounded happy; happier than she had heard him in days. She crept forward, keeping low, and ducked into the swath of heather that shielded the hollow. Setting the bushes rustling, she wriggled between the bare stems and peered over the top of the slope.
Her brother was charging after a ball of moss like an excited kit. He dived at it as it landed and, with a tremendous swipe, sent it flying back in the other direction. A lithe shape leaped up from the grass to catch it. Its tabby pelt glowed in the moonlight. Hollypaw’s heart sank like a rock. Heatherpaw!
“You don’t seem surprised.” Cinderpaw had slid in beside her and was peering down into the grassy dip.
Hollypaw shook her head. “I’m not.” Reluctantly she wriggled out from the heather. “Lionpaw!” she called.
Lionpaw and Heatherpaw froze, staring at each other in alarm. The moss ball fell to the ground.
“What are you doing here?” Hollypaw demanded.
Slowly Lionpaw tore his gaze from Heatherpaw’s and turned to face his sister. His eyes sparked with defiance. “What are youdoing here?”
“Looking for you!”
“Spyingon me!”
Hollypaw flinched. “You shouldn’t be here, playing with her!” She glared at Heatherpaw.
“Why not? She’s just a friend.”
“A friend from another Clan!”
“You’refriends with Willowpaw!”
“I don’t sneak off every night to see her.”
Lionpaw opened his mouth to object, but no words came out. Hollypaw knew she had won the argument. But her brother’s eyes did not concede anything. They shone with rage. He turned to Heatherpaw. “I’d better go.”
Heatherpaw dipped her head. “I know,” she sighed.
Hollypaw clenched her teeth as Lionpaw brushed muzzles with the WindClan apprentice. Did he really believe it was just friendship that brought him here?
Lionpaw padded up the slope and glared at Cinderpaw. “Did you have to tell the whole Clan?” he hissed at Hollypaw.
Cinderpaw flicked her tail. “I just came to make sure Hollypaw was safe,” she explained. “No one else knows.”
“And they won’t know,” Hollypaw added, “so long as you stay away from Heatherpaw.”
Lionpaw glared at her. “Is that a threat?”
Hollypaw backed away. She had never seen Lionpaw this angry. Even when they had quarreled as kits, there had always been a lighthearted twinkle in his eyes. But not now. His eyes were cold as stars.
“If you continue meeting Heatherpaw, I will have to tell Brambleclaw,” she insisted, trying not to let her voice tremble
Lionpaw bristled.
“There’s a good reason why the warrior code forbids mixing with cats from other Clans,” Hollypaw went on. “How can you be loyal to your own Clan when your heart lies in another?”
“Are you accusing me of disloyalty?” Lionpaw flattened his ears.
“I know you’d never be disloyal,” Hollypaw mewed. “But you’re making it difficult for yourself. That’s why you must stop this.” It was hard enough having kin in another Clan without deliberately making friends outside the forest. Weren’t Lionpaw’s Clanmates enough for him?
A low growl sounded in Lionpaw’s throat. He barged past Hollypaw and padded toward the trees. Hollypaw felt Cinderpaw’s tail run along her flank, smoothing her ruffled fur.
“He’ll get over it,” Cinderpaw promised.
“I hope so,” Hollypaw sighed. She knew she’d done the right thing, but she hadn’t expected Lionpaw to react so angrily, as if he believed that he’d done nothing wrong. Would he ever forgive her?
CHAPTER3
CHAPTER3
Jaypaw winced as grit from thetrail dug into his pads. At least they did not ache with cold. The stony path to the Moonpool was warming up as newleaf took hold.
Ahead of him, Leafpool chatted with Mothwing. Their mews were only just audible over the rush of water, because the stream that flowed beside their path was swollen by snowmelt from the distant mountains. It carried the scent of frost and rock, and below them, the level of the lake would be rising with the extra water.
Littlecloud and Barkface had taken the lead while Willowpaw trailed behind with Kestrelpaw. Jaypaw slowed occasionally in case the two apprentices wanted to catch up to him, but Willowpaw adjusted her soft step, and Kestrelpaw quickly matched it so that they were always a little behind.
It was a silent challenge but Jaypaw was content to walk alone. At least he could listen to snatches of the medicine cats’ conversation—who had recovered from greencough, who had sprained a paw, which herb best treated the mange that was currently running rife in the ShadowClan apprentice den. As he listened, he let his mind wander, feeling for what emotion lurked behind the words.
“I’ve tried comfrey for the itching,” Littlecloud sighed.
He blames the apprentices for not keeping their pelts clean in the first place.
“We didn’t think Morningflower would recover from greencough, but she has lived to see another newleaf,” Barkface confided.
But your anxiety tells me that you think it will be her last.
“Is Mousefur completely recovered?” Mothwing asked Leafpool
Jaypaw searched Mothwing’s mind, but only found the blankness that always seemed to shield her emotions. He flicked his attention to Willowpaw. If Hollypaw was right and RiverClan were in trouble, Willowpaw would be the one to betray it. Her mind was usually as open as the moorland. He concentrated on the RiverClan apprentice, sniffing out her emotions as though they were scent. Sure enough, unease enfolded her. Jaypaw tried to delve farther into her thoughts but it was as though she had wrapped herself in brambles. Thorny barbs drove him back. Frustrated, he gave up.
I’ll find out more when she dreams
The path had reached the steep rocks that walled the ridge. Conversation died as the medicine cats climbed, their words turning to breathless gasps as they bounded up rock after rock. Jaypaw scrambled ahead of Leafpool. He felt his mentor’s watchful gaze warm his pelt as he leaped onto a tricky ledge. Thankfully, she said nothing. He had been this way often enough to make it to the ridge without help.
As he hauled himself over the edge he was caught by the fresh scent of the Moonpool. Frost and rock and sky.
“Look how big it is,” Willowpaw breathed as she climbed up beside him.
“Meltwater,” Leafpool meowed.
“It’s wide enough to hold every star in the sky,” Kestrelpaw mewed.
There is room for all tonight,a whispering breeze sang into Jaypaw’s ears. The voices had come to welcome him. He wondered if they welcomed the others, too.
“Did you hear that?” he asked casually.
Leafpool’s gaze scorched his ears. “Hear what?”
“That’d be the wind,” Littlecloud explained.
“It sounds different up here because it’s echoed by the rock,” Barkface added.
Their matter-of-fact tone answered Jaypaw’s question. These cats heard only the wind. The voices spoke to him alone.
Jaypaw thought again of the prophecy he had heard in Firestar’s dream: There will be three, kin of your kin, who hold the power of the stars in their paws.His pelt prickled with excitement. This must be part of his power, the ability to hear things no other cat could.
Willowpaw shifted her weight from one paw to another. “Where shall we lie? The water has covered our usual places.”
Jaypaw heard Mothwing’s tail swish the air. “The rocks are flat over there.”
He followed Leafpool down toward the pool. The breeze stirred his fur, and the voices whispered in his ear again.
Welcome, Jaypaw. The stone beneath his paws was dimpled, worn into a pathway by countless paw steps.
Water suddenly lapped his paws. They were only halfway down the slope! Tingling with surprise, he followed Leafpool around the water’s far-reaching edge and settled on the rock beside her. He heard Leafpool’s breath stir the pool and then deepen as she fell into dream-sleep.
The other cats lay down, their fur brushing the rock, and soon the hollow echoed only with the sound of breath and wind upon water. Willowpaw was the last to settle. Jaypaw waited while she slid into sleep. Focusing on her mind, he leaned forward and touched the Moonpool with his muzzle.
Instantly, he was swept away in a torrent of seething water.
He struggled and flailed with his paws, his heart bursting with terror as he gasped for air. He looked up and saw a stormy sky clouding above him and all around, churning water that stretched to endless horizons. Then he saw Willowpaw’s head bobbing above the waves. She was swimming, her eyes filled with determination, her jaws clutching a mouthful of herbs as her paws churned. Jaypaw clutched at the water, struggling to keep his head above the surface. The water sucked at his hind paws, dragging him down. Water filled his mouth and nose. Splashing, coughing, he tried to claw his way back into the safety of consciousness.
He opened his eyes. He was lying on damp grass. Trees leaned over him, their leaves blocking out the sun, and ferns crowded around him. Jaypaw struggled to his paws and looked around. Was this Willowpaw’s dream or his own?
“You must hurry!” A husky mew hissed beyond the ferns. Jaypaw stretched warily onto his hind legs and peered over the ferns. A brown tom, stiff with age, was nudging Willowpaw forward. “You must leave,” he meowed.
“What about my herbs?” Willowpaw dug her claws into the grass. “You know I can’t leave them behind, Mudfur.”
“Take what you can, find the rest when you get there.”
“Get where?” Willowpaw’s voice sounded close to panic.
“There is no time for questions,” Mudfur mewed. “If you stay, the Clan will be destroyed.”
“But there’s nowhere to go!”
Jaypaw dropped back onto four paws. There wassomething wrong in RiverClan. Something very wrong.
“Spying again!”
Jaypaw spun around. He had heard this voice before, and it had lost none of its mocking sharpness.
“I don’t see how you can accuse meof spying,” he objected, “when you keep turning up in all my dreams!”
“But they’re not your dreams, are they?” Yellowfang stared at him, her amber eyes cloudy, her thick coat as unkempt as ever.
Jaypaw felt a rush of anger. “I’mdreaming, so it’s mydream!”
“Clever,” croaked Yellowfang, “but not honest. You intended to trespass on Willowpaw’s dream the moment you closed your eyes.”
“If you knew what I was going to do, why did you let me do it?” he demanded.
Yellowfang turned her face away.
“You can’t stop me, can you?” Jaypaw felt a rush of delight, like a bird escaping grasping claws. “I have the power of the stars in my paws!”
Yellowfang swung her head around and glared at him. “Do you really believe that?”
“Are you telling me it’s not true?”
“Just tell me this—what exactly do you have the power to do?”
Jaypaw stared at her.
“You have no idea, do you?” she pressed.
Jaypaw’s whiskers twitched. “Do you?”
Yellowfang blinked slowly but did not reply.
“I have this power for a reason!” Jaypaw insisted.
“Then find out what that reason is before you use it!” Yellowfang turned away. As she disappeared into the ferns, Jaypaw woke up.
Blackness pressed in on him. He was blind once more.
Beside him, Leafpool was stretching. “Did you dream?” she yawned.
“Yes.” Jaypaw scrambled to his paws and whispered in her ear, “About RiverClan.”
“Tell me once we have left the others.” She jerked away from him. “Mothwing! Is everything okay?”
What, in her dreams about hunting squirrels and chasing butterflies?Jaypaw had long since guessed that there was something wrong with Mothwing’s connection with StarClan, some secret that Leafpool shared but would not betray.
He heard grit skidding across the rock. Willowpaw had leaped to her paws. “Mothwing!” Jaypaw could tell the young cat was trying to stop her voice from trembling. “We have to go home at once!”
“What did you see in your dream?” Anxiety was pricking from Leafpool’s pelt; Jaypaw could feel it like lightning in the air.
They had left the others at the WindClan border and were heading up the slope toward the forest. The wind was chilly and carried the freshness of unfurling leaves. Jaypaw guessed that dawn was close.
“RiverClan is in trouble,” he announced. “I saw Willowpaw swimming in a huge lake, bigger than this one. She said RiverClan have to find a new home and she was talking to some old cat called Mudfur—”
“He was RiverClan’s medicine cat before Mothwing!” Leafpool gasped. “What was he doing in your dream? What was either of them doing…” Her voice trailed away and Jaypaw felt anger flare from her. “You went into Willowpaw’s dream, didn’t you?”
“Hollypaw told me to find out if RiverClan were in trouble.”
“Did she tell you to trespass on her friend’s dreams?”
“Of course not. Hollypaw doesn’t understand that stuff. She just wanted to know what was wrong, so I tried to find out.”
“As a favor to your littermate.” Leafpool’s mew was scathing. And yet beneath her anger Jaypaw could sense fear, which puzzled him. What was there to be scared of?
“StarClan letme do it,” he told her. “Why are you making such a fuss? The most important thing is that we know RiverClan is in trouble.”
“You shouldn’t be able to find things like that out so easily,” Leafpool murmured, half to herself.
“Just because you can’t do it, doesn’t mean it’s wrong,” Jaypaw snorted impatiently.
“That’s got nothing to do with it!” Leafpool snapped. “I’m worried it’ll be like last time.”
“When I dreamed about the dogs attacking WindClan?”
“When Barkfacedreamed about the dogs attacking WindClan!” Leafpool was fighting not to raise her voice. “StarClan shared with him so he could protect his Clan. You wanted to take advantage of their vulnerability.”
“Well, this time I’m just doing Hollypaw a favor,” Jaypaw mewed.
“Don’t tell anyone else what you’re doing,” Leafpool begged.
“Why not?” Jaypaw flexed his claws. “Why should I keep secrets about a gift StarClan has given me?”
Why was Leafpool so fond of secrets? Secrets about his gift, secrets about Mothwing and StarClan. He suspected there were even more secrets buried in his mentor’s heart, secrets that she guarded so closely he had never been able to glimpse them.
“Knowledge can be dangerous,” Leafpool warned.
Frustration clawed at Jaypaw’s belly. He lived his life in darkness; he longed for light and clarity, not shadows. He forced away his anger. Leafpool had lived too long with secrets. He couldn’t change her mind in a single night. But why did she have to drag him into her complicated world?
“We will tell Firestar about RiverClan, though, won’t we?” he prompted.
“We might as well.” Leafpool paused. “But please don’t mention how you found out.”
Jaypaw didn’t reply. It was just like the WindClan dream. He hadn’t cared then whether the other cats knew what he could do or not. He didn’t care now. But he didn’t like Leafpool making the decision for him. He hurried ahead, familiar now with the ground beneath his paws. They were almost back at camp. He broke into a run and heard Leafpool’s paws pattering on the fallen leaves behind him. She was right on his tail as he burst into the camp.
“Leafpool?” Firestar’s mew sounded from the Highledge. “Is something wrong?”
“I need to talk to you,” Leafpool called. She whisked past Jaypaw, heading toward the tumble of fallen rocks.
We need to talk to you!He followed her up to Highledge.
“Come inside.” Firestar led the two cats into his cave. Jaypaw could scent Sandstorm and hear the steady lapping of her tongue.
“Good morning, Leafpool.” Sandstorm paused from her washing. Her voice softened as she addressed him. “Good morning, Jaypaw.” A twinge of resentment stabbed his belly.
She still thinks I’m a kit.
“I had a dream—” he began.
“—about RiverClan.” Leafpool quickly finished his sentence. “Jaypaw dreamed they were in trouble. There seemed to be a problem with their home.”
Firestar’s tail swished over the ground. “Was there any message about ThunderClan?”
“ThunderClan wasn’t involved,” Leafpool meowed carefully.
“And there was no clear sign about what their problem is?” Firestar queried.
“Not exactly,” Jaypaw admitted.
“Then I don’t see what we can do,” Firestar concluded.
“Shouldn’t we try to help them?” Leafpool’s mew was brittle with surprise.
“If they need help, they’ll ask for it.” Firestar shifted his paws. “It’s none of our business.”
“Why not?” Jaypaw bristled with frustration.
“I haven’t forgotten the last time you came to me with a dream,” Firestar growled. “It’s not part of the warrior code to attack every Clan that seems weak!”
Jaypaw’s ears burned. “I never said anything about attacking them! We could help them.” If ThunderClan helped now, RiverClan would be in their debt.
“Perhaps we could pay them a friendly visit,” Leafpool suggested.
“No.” Firestar was firm. “We have our own Clan to worry about. I don’t know why StarClan can’t send you dreams about usinstead of announcing every other Clan’s problems!”
Leafpool took a step forward. “You could send a patrol though, just to see. If they stayed near the shore, it wouldn’t break the—”
“They live on the other side of the lake!” Firestar cut her off. “I think Onestar has had enough of our meddling. And Blackstar is always looking for an excuse to get even with ThunderClan. StarClan knows why! I’m tired of acting for the best and then finding I’ve only made ThunderClan the focus of every resentment and jealousy in the other Clans.”
Jaypaw felt disappointment pulse from his mentor. Her paws scuffed the earthen floor of the cave as she padded out. He followed her, scrabbling down the rockfall.
“Aren’t you going to argue with him?”
“I tried,” Leafpool sighed.
“But he has to listen to you! You’re the medicine cat.”
“He’s the leader.” Leafpool started to pad away. “I want to check on Daisy,” she meowed. “You go and sleep.”
Jaypaw flicked his tail. He wished his dream had been clearer. Then Firestar might have acted. Warm sunshine dappled his pelt as he padded toward the medicine den. He was tired after the long trek to the Moonpool. He needed rest before he could think of doing anything.
“Jaypaw, wait!” Hollypaw’s voice rang from the apprentice den. She skidded to a halt beside him. “Was Willowpaw there? Did you talk to her?”
“No.” Jaypaw wanted to sleep, not chat.
“She wasn’t there?” Panic edged Hollypaw’s mew.
“She was there. I just didn’t talk to her.”
“Did you find anythingout? Perhaps Mothwing told Leafpool something.”
“RiverClan is definitely in trouble,” Jaypaw mewed.
“What’s wrong? How can you be sure?” Hollypaw paced around him.
“I saw Willowpaw in a dream. She’s worried that she has to find a new home.”
“A new home!” Hollypaw froze. “That’s dreadful! What’s Firestar going to do?”
“Nothing,” Jaypaw reported. “He doesn’t want to interfere.”
“But he must!” Hollypaw gasped. “RiverClan is in trouble.”
“Firestar says it’s their problem.” Jaypaw’s pelt itched with annoyance as he remembered the way the Clan leader had dismissed him. Again
“So we have to stand by and watch?”
“Look, I’m tired.” Jaypaw began to pad toward the medicine den. “Go and argue with Firestar. He’s the one that makes the decisions.”
He left Hollypaw, feeling her gaze follow him across the clearing, sensing the indignation prickle from her pelt, hearing her shift her paws as she wondered whether to confront Firestar or not.
It wasn’t like Hollypaw to be so indecisive. Would she be more certain if he shared what he knew about the three cats who held the power of the stars in their paws? Not yetSomething held him back, some pleasure in saving the knowledge for himself, some fear that speaking his destiny out loud might change it.
Right now all he wanted to do was rest his aching paws and sleep.
第二章
第二章
冬青爪做了个梦。她梦见下雨了，雨水打在铺满叶子的地面上，她正在森林里奔跑，透过一片片树林，可以瞥见柳爪带着条纹的皮毛。这位河族巫医学徒也跑得飞快，就在她前面数步之遥。
“等等我啊！”冬青爪喊道，“我有事情要问你。”
“只要你追上我，我就告诉你！”柳爪喊道。
冬青爪用尽全力追上去，爪子在泥水里打着滑，可仍然追不上她——柳爪依然跟自己保持着一条尾巴远的距离。
“河族是不是出什么事了？”冬青爪大喊道。
“我听不见你说话，雨声太大了。”
“告诉我，到底出了什么事？”
雨下得越来越大了，雨点重重地拍在树叶上，打在地上的雨滴，又猛烈弹了回去。
“柳爪！”
“你不追上我，我就不告诉你！”
“你慢点儿！”大雨让冬青爪几乎睁不开眼睛了，“柳爪？”
柳爪消失了。
在被大雨浸透的森林里，只剩下冬青爪。
她猛然睁开眼睛。雨点拍打着巢穴的顶部，透过紫杉树厚密的枝叶，噼噼啪啪地落在巢穴里的地面上。冬青爪打了个冷战，使劲地往苔藓深处钻了钻。这时，她感觉到有湿湿的东西挤压着自己。
原来是狮爪的皮毛。
冬青爪将他挤开：“一边儿待着去，你的皮毛都湿透了。”
一会儿，狮爪又滚过来靠着她。
“狮爪！”她站了起来，盯着自己的哥哥。黎明的曙光正透过树枝照进巢穴，给熟睡中的猫的皮毛抹上一层颜色。狮爪的皮毛湿漉漉的，好像他一整晚都在外面的雨中。不过现在，他睡得很沉。冬青爪有些疑惑地闻闻他身上的气味。或许他刚到外面排便了，然后又偷偷回到巢穴，继续睡觉了吧。
她打个哈欠，伸个懒腰，甩甩尾巴，感到一阵寒意浸入骨髓。鼠爪、莓爪和蜜爪都在这雨夜里睡得很香。罂粟爪和榛爪的窝已经空了，不过里面还残留着她们身上的气息——她们一定是跟着黎明巡逻队一起出发了。
“冬青爪？”炭爪抬起头，睁开眼睛，“是雨声把你吵醒了吗？”
冬青爪摇了摇头，说道：“是狮爪。他浑身上下都湿透了。”
“雨这么大，他跑到外面去了？”炭爪用爪子揉了揉眼睛。
“好像是的。”冬青爪顿时好奇起来。狮爪已不是第一次做出这么奇怪的事情了。就在几天前，天还没亮，他溜回巢穴时，就把她吵醒过。他说自己是去排便处了，但是他的身上全是树叶的味道，似乎他去了更远的森林里，而不是排便处。而且他回答的速度特别快，好像生怕她再打探什么。因此冬青爪断定，他一定是去做别的事情了。
炭爪的肚子开始叫起来：“不知道现在猎物堆里还有没有什么东西了？”
“应该会有一些昨晚剩下的猎物吧，”冬青爪说道，“我们去看看。”
她穿过熟睡的族猫温暖的身体，悄悄走出巢穴，但却几乎看不见猎物堆。黎明时分，飘着云朵的天空依旧漆黑一片，雨下得太大，在空地上溅起一片片泥点儿。
炭爪也挤了过去，来到她身边：“我们来一场雨中冲刺怎么样？”
“好啊。”冬青爪眯起双眼，嗖的一声冲出了巢穴。
暴毛和溪儿正蹲在高石台下，分享一只湿漉漉的知更鸟。
“这天气太潮湿了，就算是河族猫也受不了啊！”暴毛向她打着招呼。
冬青爪停了下来，眨了眨眼睛，把雨水从眼睛里弄出来：“我现在终于知道鱼儿在水里是什么感觉了！”
炭爪从她身边飞奔而过。
“冬青爪，别坐在那儿，像吓呆了的兔子一样！”溪儿催促道，“去找地方避避雨吧！”
冬青爪跑去追赶炭爪，身后溅起一片泥水。她在猎物堆旁停了下来——泥水里只有几只湿透的猎物。她捡起一只已经面目全非的老鼠，带着它来到巫医巢穴旁边的黑莓丛下面。
“好恶心啊！”炭爪把一只淌着雨水的鹪鹩扔在地上，抖了抖皮毛，水珠溅了冬青爪一身。冬青爪气得耳朵平贴了起来。
“对不起。”炭爪躺下来，咬了一口鹪鹩肉。“这味道和泥巴一模一样！”她一边吃一边说。
巫医巢穴入口，湿漉漉的黑莓丛抖动了几下，叶池从里面冲了出来，爪子里握着一把草药。她飞速穿过空地，钻进了育婴室。
“但愿小冰和小狐没事儿。”冬青爪说道。
“黛西昨晚不停地打喷嚏，”炭爪告诉她，“我觉得黛西是感冒了。”
冬青爪透过黑莓的缝隙，抬头看着灰色的天空。“要是这雨不马上停下来，我们都会感冒，脚掌也会慢慢退化成鸭蹼的。”距离上次森林大会已经有半个月了，从那时候到现在，似乎每天都在下雨。
营地里其他地方也开始喧嚣起来。刺掌打了个哈欠，在空地上踱着步子，尘毛紧随其后。冬青爪咽下最后一口冰冷的老鼠肉。这时火星从高石台上的洞穴里走了出来，俯视着营地。黑莓掌从武士巢穴里冲出来，跳上落石堆，去见族长。两位武士低垂着尾巴，躲避着崖壁上流下的雨水，迅速消失在火星的洞穴里。
鼠毛从金雀花丛围成的长老巢穴里向外窥探着，接着又回到了自己的窝里，厌恶地喷了喷鼻息。灰条从武士巢穴后方自己和米莉的临时巢穴里走了出来，厚厚的灰色皮毛紧贴着身体。他从猎物堆里挑了两只鸟，然后赶忙又跑回巢穴里。
蕨毛从武士巢穴里走出来，伸伸懒腰，甩甩尾巴，向前伸出前爪，伸展身体，直到胸部触碰到了地面。接着，他挺起胸，抖了抖自己金棕色的皮毛。“冬青爪？”他眯起眼睛看着她，雨水顺着胡须滴滴答答地滚下来，“是你吗？”
冬青爪从黑莓丛下走出来。“我正和炭爪吃东西呢。”她向他打着招呼。
“哦，如果你吃饱了，可以跟我一起去狩猎。”
冬青爪顿时高兴起来，狩猎可以让她的身体暖和些。“炭爪能跟我们一起去吗？”她问道。
炭爪摇摇头说：“云尾让我今天上午清理长老窝里的铺垫。”
“如果可能的话，我会带一只热乎点儿的老鼠给你吃。”冬青爪承诺道。
“请给我带一只没有沾上泥巴的。”炭爪说道。
“快点儿，冬青爪！”蕨毛已经快步向营地入口跑去了。
营地外的森林地面都湿得透透的，被雨水泡烂的枯叶在爪子下又黏又滑。冬青爪追随着蕨毛爬上陡坡，进入森林，不一会儿，她的身体就变得暖和起来。雨也逐渐变小了，天亮以来，她第一次把眼睛睁大了。前方的树木变得密实起来，掉光叶子的树木中间开始出现松树，使得森林变暗了。他们走的这条路是通往影族领地的。冬青爪心里一直想着影族营地里三只新出生的幼崽——那是她的亲戚。既然他们和自己有着血缘关系，那他们和自己是不是连身上的气味都是一样的呢？气味是由猫的血统，还是所在的族群决定的？又该如何分辨不同猫的气息呢？
“蕨毛？”
蕨毛在潮湿的叶子上滑了一下，停下来，转过头，眼睛闪着光芒。“你闻到猎物的气息了？”他充满希望地问着。
冬青爪摇了摇头。“我只是在想……”她在脑海中寻找着恰当的词语。
“怎么了？”
“呃，我只是在想……”
蕨毛把胡须上的雨水甩掉，问道：“星族啊，你到底有什么事？”
“如果影族新出生的幼崽是我的亲戚，那我跟影族作战的时候，还要跟他们作战吗？”
“如果他们对雷族造成了威胁，当然要与他们作战了。”蕨毛转过头，继续往前走着。他在湿漉漉的低矮灌木丛里搜寻着猎物的气息，鼻子不停抽动着。
冬青爪连忙跑上前去，追上他：“但是如果雷族对他们构成了威胁，我也认为我们这么做是不对的，那该怎么办呢？”
“我们为什么要这么做呢？”蕨毛的耳朵突然竖了起来，蹲下来，做出了狩猎姿势。
“我只是假设一下而已。难道我不该对自己的亲戚忠诚吗？”
“真正的武士，是要永远忠诚于自己的族群的，族群利益至高无上。”蕨毛开始用后爪抓挠着地面的泥土——他察觉到前方有什么东西，正准备猛扑过去。然而冬青爪对答案的渴求，甚至超过了对食物的渴望。
“一只猫是不能伤害和自己有血缘关系的猫的，”她争辩道，“这是不是说明，还有比武士守则更重要的东西呢？”她不解地眨眨眼，“如果刚才我说的是真的，那么我们该怎么知道哪些是对的……”
“嘘！”蕨毛让冬青爪安静下来。他看到，离他们一个狐狸身长的地方，有一片树叶抖了一下，一个小小的棕色身影钻进了地洞里。
蕨毛坐了起来，生气地盯着自己的学徒：“你为什么只想着武士守则，而不替我盯着猎物呢？现在族猫们又饿又冷，你应该把精力放在如何让大家都吃饱上，而不是考虑那些不知所谓的对和错！”
冬青爪的尾巴耷拉下来。蕨毛说得对，自己刚才把可以让族猫们填饱肚子的猎物吓跑了。“对不起。”她低声喃喃道。
“不要再问问题了，快去抓些猎物带回营地！”
冬青爪比平常更加努力地寻找猎物，最后返回营地时带着三只老鼠，蕨毛也抓住了一只乌鸦。他俩一同穿过荆棘通道，把猎物放在猎物堆上。另外一支巡逻队也满载而归，猎物堆重新变得高大起来。
“你干得不错。”蕨毛夸奖道。冬青爪松了口气，她终于为自己犯下的过失做了补偿。“你回自己窝里，把皮毛弄干吧，”他说道，“我去把猎物带给鼠毛和长尾。”
雨停了，但是森林里的树木依然滴滴答答地淌着水。冬青爪朝学徒巢穴走去。里面除了狮爪的窝之外，别的窝都空空荡荡。冬青爪看到，狮爪那金色的皮毛随着睡觉时的呼吸声时起时伏。大家都在忙着为族猫服务，为什么他会若无其事地睡到这个时候？
“蜡毛没给你什么事做吗？”她暴躁地喊道。
“你说什么？”狮爪的脑袋突然抬起来，眨眨眼，盯着她，“天已经亮了吗？”
“已经快中午了！”
狮爪马上跳了起来，眼睛睁得圆圆的，充满了愧疚：“蜡毛是不是一直在找我啊？”
“我不知道，我刚狩猎回来。”冬青爪生气地说道。她开始整理离自己最近的已经湿了的垫草，用牙齿把它从窝里拽出来，不停地抖动着，让潮气散发出去。“对了，你为什么这么疲倦啊？”她嘴里含着苔藓，费力地问狮爪。
“我没睡好。”狮爪回答道。
冬青爪看狮爪，但狮爪却盯着地面，似乎在有意避开她的目光。“狮爪，出什么事了吗？”冬青爪问道。
“没有。”他想都没想，马上回答。
“你确定吗？”
“当然了！没有！”他突然暴躁地吼道。
冬青爪突然感到一种悲哀涌上心头。他们曾经无话不谈，但现在，想了解自己哥哥的心事，就好像从刺猬身上挑跳蚤一样困难。除非他自己愿意说，否则，她永远也不会知道。
“行啦，行啦！总不至于对我发脾气吧！”她说完，又开始低头清理苔藓了。
狮爪从她的身旁走过。“我没对你发脾气啊，”他低声喃喃道，“不过，有时候问那么多无聊的问题，是很讨厌的！”他走出了巢穴，只留下冬青爪一个。
冬青爪叹了口气，爪子中正在整理的苔藓也掉在了地上。或许松鸦爪会知道狮爪到底怎么了吧。他经常能猜到她自己在想什么，可能对狮爪也一样吧？于是她穿过黑莓丛，朝巫医巢穴走去。
松鸦爪正在石壁缝隙的后面整理草药。“我没时间，”他连头都没抬，“叶池去育婴室了，她让我检查一下，看我们需要采集哪些草药。”
“幼崽们生病了吗？”冬青爪焦急地问道。
“黛西感冒了，”松鸦爪回答道，“不太重。不过刚下了场大雨，叶池怕她的病恶化，想提前预防一下。”
“我想和你谈谈狮爪的事情。”她斗胆对松鸦爪说。
“他病了吗？”
“没有。”冬青爪坐了下来，满心希望松鸦爪能停下爪下的活儿，跟她好好说会儿话，“最近他一直很疲倦，而且脾气也不好。每次我跟他说话，他都想冲上来拔掉我的胡须。”
“他出了什么事，我怎么会知道？”松鸦爪一边说，一边把一大堆深绿色的叶子聚在一起。冬青爪试着回忆这些草药的名字——毕竟她曾经做过一段时间的巫医学徒——不过她怎么也想不起来了。
“你平时总是无所不知的。”
松鸦爪说道：“你是跟他住在一块儿的，我却成天被困在这里，跟叶池待在一起！”他的声音里透着极度不满。
冬青爪坐在那里，一时间不知该说什么。除了为狮爪的事情担忧之外，她曾做过的关于柳爪的梦也依然在困扰着她。但是，如果松鸦爪连狮爪的事都不愿意操心，那他就更不会关心她的河族朋友了。可是……
她决定迂回前进——这是一种巧妙的跟踪猎物的方式，每次使用都十分有效。
“上次森林大会上，你跟柳爪说过话吗？”
“没说几句。”
“我想，她很担心你不喜欢她。”
“我为什么一定要喜欢我碰见的每只猫呢？”松鸦爪嘟囔道。
“那你为什么一定要厌恶你碰见的每只猫呢？”她反问道，“柳爪是只很不错的猫。你真的没必要刻意让她感觉难堪。”
“她怎么感觉的，跟我有什么关系。”松鸦爪转过身，继续整理草药，“她爱怎么感觉，就怎么感觉呗。”
“你难道没发现，她在森林大会上一直都很焦虑吗？”冬青爪决定继续问下去，“你不认为整个河族的表现都很奇怪吗？”
松鸦爪又转过头来。“或许吧。”但是他的耳朵竖了起来，好像开始对这个话题感兴趣了。
“所以说，我的猜想没错吧？”
“猜想什么？”
“河族在为某些事情担忧啊。”
“你也这样认为？”松鸦爪把身子靠近了冬青爪一点儿。
“我不清楚。”冬青爪不想传播让河族脸上无光的谣言，这对自己的朋友也是一种背叛。另外，这还只是猜测，并没有证据可以证实。“你感觉呢？”
“我不会说出来的。”
冬青爪顿时感到失望。对话陷入了死循环！
“不过我们去月亮池的时候，我可能会找到一些线索吧。”松鸦爪接着说道。
是啊！每隔半个月，所有巫医都要一起去月亮池的，距离下次的时间只有几天了。“如果柳爪有什么正在担忧的事情，你能告诉我吗？”
松鸦爪眯起眼睛：“可以。我知道自己该如何找到答案。”
冬青爪身上的毛开始不安地直竖起来。“我不是让你去窥探什么，”她说道，“我只是想让你告诉我，我的担心是不是对的……”
“好的。”还没等她说完，松鸦爪就耸了耸肩，开始整理另一堆草药了。
“冬青爪！”蕨毛的声音从空地上传来。
她感觉自己的心情终于放松些了，于是连忙冲出巫医巢穴。山谷上方的云朵终于散开了，露出了一小块蓝色。
“现在雨已经停了，我们也要到森林里训练了。”蕨毛说，“云尾要带炭爪去森林，我想我们可以一起去。借此机会，你也能对我们的领地有更深的了解。”
炭爪蹦跳着向他们而来，后面跟着云尾和桦落。
“火星让我们去查看一下那个废弃的狐狸巢穴，”桦落说，“然后确认一下，上次那些狐狸幼崽是否回来过。”
冬青爪不禁打了个寒战。她依然记得那次自己、松鸦爪和狮爪把狐狸幼崽赶出巢穴，最后反被狐狸幼崽追得四处逃跑的难堪经历。当时松鸦爪吓得要命，结果从山谷边上摔了下去，差点儿死掉。
“别担心，冬青爪！”炭爪轻声说道，“我会让你毫发无伤的。”
她俩跟在三位武士身后走出了营地，冬青爪心存感激地蹭着炭爪的皮毛，说道：“我也会保你平安无事的。”
当他们接近通往狐狸巢穴的狭窄斜坡时，冬青爪闻了闻空气中的味道，突然爪子颤抖了一下。有狐狸的气息！
“年龄不大，是雌狐，不过味道不新鲜，应该已经离开很久了。”炭爪一边抽动着鼻子，一边解释。
“你怎么会这么确定呢？”冬青爪惊讶地问道。据她所知，炭爪从没见过狐狸，不可能这么熟知狐狸的气息，怎么会分辨得这么清楚呢？
炭爪耸了耸肩。“我就是知道啊。”她说道。
“她说得对，这气息已经很长时间了。”云尾说道，“自从落叶季开始，这附近就再没有狐狸出现过了。”
冬青爪看了看自己的朋友。有些时候，炭爪说话做事都显得要老成一些，不过守着秘密不说可不是炭爪的性格。这位灰色皮毛的学徒是个行动派，通常都是行动赶在脑子前，她宁可跳进去用胡须试探，也不会停下来思考。或许，她忘了自己之前曾到过这里吧。
很明显，云尾也在想着同样的问题：“你和别的巡逻队来过这里吗？”
炭爪摇摇头。“这绝对是我第一次来这里。”她说道。
云尾和蕨毛交换了一个眼神，冬青爪猜想，他俩此刻一定跟自己一样困惑。
山谷上方的天空，一只猫头鹰在尖叫着。冬青爪被猫头鹰的叫声吵醒了，在自己的窝里翻了个身。她把前爪伸过去，想感受一下狮爪身上透出的暖意，结果却发现那里空空如也。
她睁开了眼睛。
“狮爪？”她低声唤道。
没有回答。
她又把爪子向窝的深处伸了伸，还是没有狮爪的踪迹。狮爪肯定是离开了。
“你是在找狮爪吗？”罂粟爪在自己的窝里打了个哈欠，“他离开巢穴已经有一会儿了。”
冬青爪坐了起来，心怦怦直跳。狮爪这样悄悄溜出去已经好多次了。
“出了什么事吗？”罂粟爪的眼睛在黑暗中闪着光芒。
“没，没什么事。”冬青爪不想因为这件事，让其他学徒起疑。
“狮爪难道又去排便处了？”炭爪的声音在她身后响了起来，“他一定是吃了那只腐烂的画眉，结果拉肚子了。”
冬青爪对炭爪的举动感激不尽。很明显，她是在给狮爪打掩护，让罂粟爪不再问更多难以回答的问题。另外，狮爪吃掉的那只画眉没问题，非常干净、新鲜。
“我去看看他现在怎么样了。”冬青爪说道。
冬青爪快步溜出巢穴，在依旧沉寂的营地边缘转悠。她尽量走在阴影里，以防被别的猫发现。从狮爪留下的气息分辨，他竟然和冬青爪走的路线相同，鬼鬼祟祟地去了营地入口。“但愿我找到他时，他真的是在排便。”冬青爪祈祷着。
忽然，她身后响起了脚步声。
冬青爪一怔，回头看了看。
“是我。”黑暗中传来了炭爪的声音。接着，这只灰色皮毛的虎斑猫从阴影中走了出来，“我想你应该需要有个伴儿吧。”
“谢谢了。”如果狮爪真在排便处，那让炭爪知道了也无妨；但如果狮爪真的如冬青爪所担心的那样走出了森林，那她真的希望能有位朋友陪着自己一起去。
她们一前一后穿过狭窄的通道，来到排便处。
“他不在这里。”炭爪轻声说道。
冬青爪叹了口气，心情突然变得沉重起来：“是的，不在。”
“那你认为他能去哪里呢？”
冬青爪不敢回答。她隐约猜到了狮爪借着夜色的掩护离开营地的原因，但是她不愿意相信。
“他身上的气味飘向这边了。”炭爪一边说着，一边用鼻子指着通往湖边的那个斜坡。
冬青爪心里一紧。狮爪的气味越过了山脊，然后飘到了荒原上，那里可是风族的领地啊。或许他只是随便逛逛吧。她心里怀着这样的希冀，但潜意识里却忍不住怀疑，狮爪应该是偷偷摸摸去见石楠爪了。
“我们是要去跟踪他，对吧？”炭爪盯着冬青爪说道，充满了担心。难道她也猜到是怎么回事了？不可能吧。她怎么会知道？
“或许，这和我们没关系。”冬青爪无力地说道。
“这当然和我们有关啦！我们的族猫独自在陌生的地方，要是发生了不测怎么办？”
“这就是你要跟踪他的唯一原因吗？就因为他可能处于危险之中？”
“不是。”炭爪坐下来说道，“我想，他可能正在做一些将来会让自己后悔的事。”
冬青爪被炭爪刚才严肃的语气惊呆了。“你知道什么我不知道的事吗？”她问道。
炭爪摇摇头。“我只是有这种感觉罢了，不知该如何解释。我感觉狮爪正在犯一个曾经出现过的错误，一个永远都不应该再犯的错误，一个只会带来麻烦的错误……”炭爪说话的声音逐渐变小，但眼睛里仍流露出激动的神情。
“我知道了。”冬青爪被炭爪的情绪感染了，而且她自己也有同样感受。冬青爪的直觉告诉她，狮爪已经违反了武士守则，而作为雷族一员，她有责任阻止狮爪的这种行为。她立刻冲上了斜坡，嗅闻着每根树枝、每处黑莓丛，跟随着狮爪的气息，沿着他走过的小路，攀上山顶。炭爪紧随其后。她们很快来到了森林的边缘。前方的地势开始向下倾斜，一直通向湖边。湖泊在月光下闪着粼粼的波光。冬青爪扫视着远方的荒原，心里充满矛盾——既希望看到狮爪，又希望他不在这儿。如果狮爪一定要在夜里闲逛，他也完全可以在雷族的领地上逛啊！
冬青爪在石楠丛的阴影里没有发现什么线索。她冲下斜坡，穿过一片踩上去十分粗糙的草地，沿着一条由兔子踏出来的破烂小径向前走去。随着她们越来越接近风族边界，爪子下土壤的质地正变得越来越像泥炭。小径两侧的石楠已开始萌发嫩芽，斜坡逐渐变得平缓起来，湖水拍岸的声音也越来越响亮。
“你听到什么了吗？”炭爪的嘶嘶声把冬青爪吓了一跳。
冬青爪竖起耳朵仔细听着。前方的一处阴影里，有一个石楠丛环绕的小小谷地，说话声正从里面传出来。冬青爪分辨出是狮爪的声音，尾巴直竖了起来。他的声音听起来很愉悦，过去几天，她一直没听到他这么愉悦地说话。冬青爪悄悄俯下身，向前方靠近，钻进了挡住谷地的那丛石楠。冬青爪在光秃秃的茎秆间像蛇那样扭动着身子前行，蹭得石楠丛沙沙作响。她来到斜坡顶端，偷偷观察着下面的情况。
自己的哥哥正追赶着一个苔藓球，像一只兴奋过头的幼崽。当苔藓球即将落地时，他来了一个俯冲，使劲拍打了一下，球朝反方向飞了回去。一个体态轻盈的身影从草丛里突然跳出来，接住了苔藓球，那虎斑条纹的皮毛在月光下发着光。冬青爪的心像石头一样轰然下坠。真的是石楠爪！
“你看起来并不怎么惊讶啊。”炭爪悄悄来到她身边，也朝下方的草地偷窥着。
冬青爪摇摇头。“没什么可惊讶的。”她有些烦闷地从石楠丛里探出身子，大喊了一声：“狮爪！”
狮爪和石楠爪吓了一跳，互相对视着，苔藓球也掉在了地上。
“你在这里干什么呢？”冬青爪问道。
狮爪缓缓把视线从石楠爪身上移开，转身看向自己的妹妹。他的眼睛闪着光，像在宣示自己不会屈服：“我还想问你呢！你在这里做什么？”
“我在找你啊！”
“你居然暗中监视我！”
冬青爪向后退了退。“你不该出现在这里，不该跟她在一起玩儿！”她的眼睛瞪着石楠爪。
“为什么不行？她只是我的朋友而已！”
“她可是别的族群的猫！”
“你还是柳爪的朋友呢！”
“可我不会每天晚上都偷偷溜出去，跟她见面！”
狮爪张开嘴想继续反驳，却找不出合适的词。冬青爪清楚，自己取得了这场辩论的胜利。然而，她哥哥的眼神告诉她，他不会做任何让步，而且他已经被激怒了。狮爪转身对石楠爪说道：“我得走了。”
石楠爪低下头。“我明白。”她叹了口气说。
冬青爪看着狮爪和那位风族学徒互相蹭着鼻子，气得牙齿咯咯直响。难道他真的以为，是友情驱使自己来到这里？
狮爪爬上斜坡，瞪了一眼炭爪，对冬青爪嘶叫道：“你非得把这件事跟全族的猫说吗？”
炭爪弹了弹尾巴，解释道：“我来这儿，只是为了保证冬青爪的安全。除了我们俩，没有猫知道这件事。”
“他们也永远不会知道，”冬青爪插话道，“只要你今后离石楠爪远些。”
狮爪瞪圆了眼睛：“你是在威胁我吗？”
冬青爪的身体不由自主地后退着。她从没见狮爪这么生气过。以前他们也经常像幼崽一样争吵，可狮爪的眼里总是闪着愉悦的光芒。但是现在，他的眼睛却如同寒冰一般冷。
“如果你继续跟石楠爪见面，我就不得不向黑莓掌汇报了。”冬青爪坚持道，她尽力不让自己说话的声音颤抖。
狮爪全身的毛都竖了起来。
“武士守则禁止跟其他族群的猫交往，那是有原因的，”冬青爪接着说道，“你的心一直牵挂着一只外族群的猫，又怎么能对自己族群忠心耿耿呢？”
“你是在指责我对雷族不忠吗？”狮爪的耳朵平贴了起来。
“我知道你之前没有不忠过，”冬青爪说道，“不过你正将自己陷入两难境地。你必须停止这种行为。”跟自己有血缘关系的猫生活在别的族群里，这已经够为难的了，狮爪居然还这么轻率地跟外族猫交朋友？已经有那么多族猫陪伴他了，他还不满足吗？
狮爪的喉咙里爆发出低沉的吼声。他冲过冬青爪身旁，朝森林的方向走去。冬青爪感觉炭爪的尾巴轻扫着自己的腹部，将自己那因生气而奓开的皮毛抚平。
“他会迈过这道坎的。”炭爪保证道。
“但愿吧。”冬青爪叹了口气。她清楚自己刚才做的是对的，不过她也没料到狮爪的反应会如此激烈，好像他坚信自己并没做错任何事一样。他会原谅冬青爪吗？
第三章
第三章
小径上的粗砾石扎到了松鸦爪的爪垫，他痛得缩了缩爪子。不过还好，至少它们不再冰冷刺骨了。随着新叶季的来临，通往月亮池的石头小径也变得逐渐温暖了。
在他的前方，叶池正跟蛾翅交谈着。她们的声音被水流声盖住，他只能隐约听到一些。这条小径下方的溪流，带来了霜和石头的气息。由于远方山中的积雪逐渐融化，水位开始暴涨了。湖面的高度，也随着溪水的涌入而不断上升。
小云和青面在最前面走着，柳爪和隼爪跟在后面。松鸦爪不时会放慢脚步，好让这两位学徒追上自己。不过柳爪的步伐却随之放慢了，隼爪又始终跟着她的节奏，结果他们总是比他稍微落后一些。
这是一场无声的对抗，但松鸦爪却很享受独自行走的感觉。至少他可以听到巫医们谈话的只言片语——谁的绿咳症治好了，谁的爪子扭伤了，哪种草药治疗最近在影族学徒巢穴里暴发的皮炎最有效。松鸦爪一边听着，一边下意识地关注着这些话背后隐藏的情感。
“我已经试过用紫草来治疗瘙痒了。”小云叹了口气说道。
他是在责备学徒们不注意身体卫生吧。
“我们之前觉得晨花的绿咳症不会好转，但是没想到她居然活着看到了新叶季的到来。”青面说道。
不过你说话时的焦虑出卖了你，你认为这是她此生最后一个新叶季了。
“鼠毛完全康复了吗？”蛾翅问叶池。
松鸦爪开始在蛾翅的脑海中搜索。可跟往常一样，他只发现一片空白，这空白似乎把她内心的真实想法都遮蔽起来了。于是他把注意力转移到柳爪身上。如果冬青爪的猜测是对的，河族真的有麻烦了，那么柳爪就是突破口。她的内心一直都像辽阔的荒原一样敞开着，松鸦爪开始把注意力集中在她身上，像分辨猎物的气味一样分析着她的情感。松鸦爪努力探索她此刻的想法，但是她好像把自己的情感封在了荆棘丛里，让他无法接近。最后，松鸦爪沮丧地放弃了。
等她做梦的时候，我就能发现更多的线索了。松鸦爪心想。
小径延伸到了围绕山脊的陡峭岩石处，巫医们停止交谈，开始奋力向上攀登，上气不接下气地翻越一块块岩石。松鸦爪跑到了叶池前面，他能感觉到，每当自己跳上一处难以攀爬的岩壁时，叶池就会投来令他倍感温暖的关切目光，而且没有说多余的话。这令松鸦爪心存感激。这条路他已经走过好多次了，现在不用别的猫帮助，他都能顺利地爬上去。
他一爬上岩壁，便闻到了月亮池清新的气息——那是霜、石头和天空的味道。
“看，现在它还真大啊！”柳爪也爬了上来，在他身边喘着粗气说道。
“是雪水造成的。”叶池说道。
“它好宽阔啊，几乎可以容下天空所有的星星呢。”隼爪说道。
今晚来的猫，都会有位置的……一阵如歌声般悦耳的耳语声传入松鸦爪的耳朵里，欢迎着他的到来。松鸦爪想，这些声音是否也在欢迎其他猫呢？
“你听到了吗？”他装作漫不经心地问道。
叶池的目光好像要灼焦他的耳朵似的：“听到什么？”
“应该是风声吧。”小云解释道。
“这里到处都是岩石，所以风声是有回音的，听起来跟别处不一样。”青面补充道。
他们煞有介事地回答着松鸦爪的问题。这些猫只能听到风声，刚才的话只是说给他听的。
松鸦爪又想起自己在火星梦中听到的那预言：“你的族群里有三只猫，是你的至亲，他们掌握着群星的力量。”他的皮毛兴奋地竖起来。这一定是自己掌握的神秘力量中的一种吧——可以听到其他猫听不见的声音。
柳爪把身体的重心转移到另外一只爪子上，说道：“我们该躺在哪儿啊？池水把我们以前躺的地方都淹了。”
松鸦爪听见蛾翅的尾巴在空中抽动的嗖嗖声：“那边的石头很平坦。”
他跟着叶池走下斜坡，朝月亮池的方向行进。微风吹拂着他的皮毛，刚才的说话声又在他耳边响起：“欢迎你，松鸦爪。”他爪子下的石头坑坑洼洼，那是无数猫爪经年累月踩出的爪印。
突然，池水碰到了松鸦爪的爪子，而他们才刚刚走到半山腰。松鸦爪十分惊讶地跟着叶池沿着向外扩展了不少的池岸朝前走，最后在她身边的岩石上躺下来。他听到叶池的呼吸在水面荡漾着，接着，叶池进入了梦乡，呼吸声变得更加深沉。
其他猫也躺了下来，皮毛摩擦着身下的岩石。不一会儿，整个山谷里，便只有众猫的呼吸声和风吹动水面的声音回荡着。柳爪是最后一个躺下来的，松鸦爪一直等到她睡着。他把身子向前探过去，用鼻子碰了碰池水，集中精神关注着柳爪的内心世界。
很快，松鸦爪就被汹涌的水流卷走了。
松鸦爪挣扎着，爪子不停地胡乱抓着，觉得自己快透不过气来了，心恐惧得怦怦狂跳。他抬起头，看到乌云笼罩着天空——一场暴风雨即将降临，狂风疯狂地搅动着自己四周漫无边际的水面。他看见柳爪的脑袋在风暴掀起的波浪中沉浮着。柳爪正在水中游泳，目光坚毅，脚掌向前挥动，口中还衔着一捆草药。松鸦爪在水里扑腾着，努力让脑袋露出水面。水流吸住了他的后爪，把他朝水下拖去，接着水灌进了他的嘴里和鼻子里。他拍打着水面，不停地咳嗽着，试图把自己带回到安全的意识中。
他睁开眼睛，发现自己正躺在一片湿漉漉的草地上。树枝挂在头顶上方，树叶遮住了阳光，周围是一片片香薇丛。松鸦爪挣扎着站起来，朝四周看着。这到底是柳爪的梦，还是自己的呢？
“你要快点儿啊！”香薇丛那边传来了沙哑的声音。松鸦爪小心翼翼地伸直后腿，从香薇丛往外偷偷看着。一只身体有些僵硬的棕色老猫，正推着柳爪往前走。“你必须离开这里。”他说道。
“那我的草药怎么办？”柳爪把爪子插进草地里，“泥毛，你是知道的，我不能丢下它们。”
“能带多少就带走多少吧，不够了，到了那里再找。”
“你让我去哪里啊？”柳爪的声音听上去有些惊慌。
“我现在没时间回答你的问题，”泥毛说道，“如果你拖延下去，整个族群就会灭亡。”
“可是没有地方可去啊！”
松鸦爪四肢移动，退了几步。河族真的有麻烦了，而且是非常大的麻烦！
“你又在偷看了！”
松鸦爪转过头去。他听到过这个声音，这次再听的时候，他感觉这声音已经没有了之前的讥讽和尖刻——是黄牙的声音。
“我不明白，为什么你要指责我偷看呢？”松鸦爪反驳道，“你自己还不是经常出现在我的梦里？”
“可这不是你的梦，对吧？”黄牙瞪着他。她琥珀色的眼睛里雾蒙蒙的，身上厚厚的皮毛跟以往一样，还是那么蓬乱。
松鸦爪顿时十分生气：“我正在做梦啊，所以这当然就是我的梦了！”
“你很聪明，”黄毛哑着嗓子说道，“但你不诚实。你闭上眼睛后，就一直想闯进柳爪的梦里去。”
“如果你知道我要做什么，那为什么不阻止我呢？”他问道。
黄牙把脸转开了。
“你阻止不了我，对吗？”松鸦爪突然高兴起来，好似鸟儿挣脱了猫的爪子，“我掌握着群星的力量！”
黄牙转过头望着他：“你真的相信这话吗？”
“你是说，这不是真的？”
“你先告诉我——你拥有这种力量后，究竟想做什么？”
松鸦爪直视着她。
“你也不知道，对吧？”黄牙逼问道。
松鸦爪抽动着胡须：“那你知道吗？”
黄牙慢慢地眨眨眼，却没有说话。
“我拥有这种力量，一定是有原因的！”松鸦爪坚持道。
“那就要先找到这个原因，再去使用这种力量吧！”黄牙说完就转身走开了。当她消失在香薇丛里时，松鸦爪醒了。
松鸦爪的四周一片黑暗——他再次陷入黑暗之中。
叶池在他身边伸着懒腰。“你又做梦了吧？”她打了个哈欠，问道。
“是的。”松鸦爪站起身来，在她的耳边轻轻说道，“是关于河族的。”
“等我们离其他猫远些时，再告诉我是怎么回事。”说完，叶池就从他身边走开了。“蛾翅！一切都还好吧？”叶池问道。
都还好吧？在梦里捉松鼠、追赶蝴蝶算不算好？松鸦爪很早以前就怀疑蛾翅与星族的关系出了问题，而叶池是知道这个秘密的，但她却并不想泄露出去。
这时，松鸦爪听到爪子滑过岩石的声音。柳爪跳了起来，喊道：“蛾翅！”松鸦爪察觉到，这只年轻的猫正努力不让自己的声音颤抖，“我们必须马上返回营地了！”
“你在梦里看到了什么？”叶池的语气听起来十分焦虑。松鸦爪感到，叶池的这份焦虑，就像划过天空的闪电一样。
他俩在风族边界跟其他猫分别，然后走上斜坡，向森林里进发。凛冽的寒风，夹带着迎风飘扬的叶子的清新气息。松鸦爪猜想，天马上就要黑了。
“河族有麻烦了。”松鸦爪说道，“我看到柳爪在一个巨大的湖里游泳，比这里的湖还要大。她说河族必须找到一处新家园，她和一只叫泥毛的老猫说话……”
“他是河族的前任巫医，蛾翅就是他的学徒！”叶池深吸了一口气说道，“他来你的梦里做什么？他们俩为什么会出现在你的梦里……”她说话的声音逐渐变大，松鸦爪感觉叶池的胸中燃起了一团怒火，“你是进到柳爪的梦里了，对吧？”
“冬青爪让我去弄清楚，河族是不是有麻烦了。”
“她让你擅自闯入她朋友的梦里了吗？”
“当然没有，冬青爪不懂这些。她只是想知道河族出什么事了，所以我才想找到答案的。”
“你认为你只是在给你的伙伴帮个忙罢了，是吧？”叶池严厉地说道。然而，除了气愤外，松鸦爪还感觉到，叶池的内心其实充满了恐惧，这令他困惑不已。叶池有什么可惧怕的呢？
“是星族让我这么做的，”他告诉叶池，“你为什么如此大惊小怪？最重要的是，我们已经知道河族有麻烦了。”
“你不该这么轻易地发现真相。”叶池低声喃喃着，就像在自言自语一般。
“你认为自己不能做的事，就都是错误的吗？”松鸦爪不耐烦地哼了一声。
“跟这个没关系！”叶池大喊道，“我担心这次的事情，可能会跟上次一样。”
“你指的是，上次我梦见狗袭击风族的事情吗？”
“我说的是青面梦见狗袭击风族的事情！”叶池强忍着没有提高声音，“星族跟他分享了信息，所以他可以保护自己的族群。而你呢？只是想利用他们的弱点而已。”
“好吧！这次，我只是想帮冬青爪一个忙。”松鸦爪说道。
“千万不要把你做的这些事告诉其他任何猫。”叶池用恳求的语气说道。
“为什么？”松鸦爪伸缩了几下爪子，“为什么我要保守星族赋予我天赋的秘密呢？”
为什么叶池对“秘密”这么敏感呢——关于自己天赋的秘密，还有关于蛾翅和星族的秘密？松鸦爪怀疑自己老师心里有更多的秘密。她把这些秘密埋藏得太深，使自己无法一探究竟。
“有时候知道得太多是很危险的。”叶池警告道。
松鸦爪感到沮丧万分。他自出生以来就生活在黑暗中，非常渴望看到明亮而清晰的世界，而不是重重的阴影。但松鸦爪还是忍住了心中的火气，叶池已经保守这些秘密这么多年，他不可能在一夕之间改变她的想法。可为什么叶池非要把自己也拖到她那个纷繁复杂的世界里呢？
“我们应该把河族的这件事通报给火星，是吧？”松鸦爪提醒道。
“我们或许应该告诉火星。”叶池停顿了一会儿，“不过，你不要提自己是如何知晓这件事的。”
松鸦爪没有回答。这就像关于风族的那个梦。他并不在意其他猫是否知道自己能做什么，或者不能做什么，直到现在也是如此。但是他实在不愿意让叶池替自己做决定。想到这里，松鸦爪加快了脚步——他对爪子下的地面已经很熟悉了。快到营地的时候，松鸦爪突然加速奔跑起来，叶池踩踏在落叶上的脚步声紧紧跟着他。当松鸦爪冲进营地时，叶池几乎同时冲进了营地。
“叶池？”火星的声音从高石台上传过来，“出什么事了吗？”
“我要跟你谈谈。”叶池说完，越过松鸦爪，朝落石堆的方向飞奔而去。
我们俩要跟你谈谈！松鸦爪想着，赶忙跟着叶池爬上了高石台。
“进来吧。”火星领着他俩进了自己的洞穴里。松鸦爪闻到了沙风的气味，听到她的舌头有节奏的舔舐声。
“叶池，早上好！”正在清洗的沙风停了下来，跟叶池打着招呼。问候松鸦爪时，她的声音变得更温柔了：“早上好，松鸦爪。”他顿时感到不快：她依旧把我当幼崽看待！
“我做了一个梦……”松鸦爪开口说道。
“是关于河族的梦。”叶池的反应很快，马上接过了松鸦爪的话，“松鸦爪梦见他们有麻烦了，好像是他们的营地出了问题。”
火星的尾巴在地上扫了扫：“他的梦里有没有关于雷族的信息呢？”
“这个梦与雷族无关。”叶池小心翼翼地说道。
“也没有明确迹象表明，河族的问题究竟是什么吗？”火星问道。
“没有确切的消息。”松鸦爪承认道。
“那我就不知道我们到底能做什么了。”火星决定道。
“我们难道不该帮助他们吗？”叶池有些惊讶地问道。
“如果他们需要帮助，就会向我们求助了。”火星挪了挪爪子，“如果他们不来求助，那就不关我们的事。”
“为什么不关我们的事？”松鸦爪懊恼地问道，全身的毛都竖了起来。
“我没有忘记你上次带着梦境来找我的事，”火星咆哮道，“乘他族虚弱，攻击他们，这可不是武士守则的一部分！”
松鸦爪气得直冒火。“我没说过要攻击他们！我们应该帮助他们。”如果雷族伸出援手，河族难道不会心存感激吗？
“或许，我们可以对他们进行一次友好访问。”叶池建议道。
“不行。”火星坚决地说道，“我们还是多关注一下自身安危吧。我真搞不懂，为什么星族不在梦里给你们多传递一些我们族群的消息，却总是告诉你们别的族群要发生什么事！”
叶池向前迈了一步：“但你可以派出一支巡逻队去看看，只要他们待在靠近湖岸的地方，就不会违反……”
“河族住在湖的另一边！”火星打断了她的话，“我觉得一星已经烦透了我的干预，还有黑星，他也一直在寻找雷族的把柄。只有星族才知道为什么会这样！我可不想雷族做尽好事，结果最后却变成了其他族群憎恨和嫉妒的目标。”
松鸦爪感到叶池很失望。叶池步履沉重地走出洞穴，松鸦爪跟在她身后，走下了落石堆。
“你不和他争辩一下吗？”
“我已经试过了。”叶池叹了口气。
“可是他必须听你的，你可是我们的巫医啊。”
“他才是族长。”叶池一边说一边向前走着。“我要去看看黛西了，”她说道，“你去睡觉吧。”
松鸦爪弹了弹尾巴。他真希望自己的梦能再清晰一点儿，那样一来，火星就可能采取行动。他朝巫医巢穴的方向走着，温暖的阳光在他的皮毛上投下点点光斑。经过去月亮池的长途跋涉，松鸦爪已经很疲惫了。他需要先休息一下，然后再去想自己可以做些什么。
“松鸦爪，等一下！”冬青爪的声音从学徒巢穴里传出来，她跑到松鸦爪身边，停了下来，“柳爪去月亮池了吗？你跟她说话了吗？”
“没有。”松鸦爪现在只想睡觉，不想说话。
“她没去啊？”冬青爪的声音里透着一丝惊慌。
“她去了，只不过我没跟她说话。”
“那你找到什么线索了吗？或许蛾翅已经告诉叶池一些事情了呢。”
“河族的确有麻烦了。”松鸦爪说道。
“到底怎么了？你为什么这么确定？”冬青爪围着松鸦爪走来走去。
“我在梦里见到柳爪了，她正在为寻找新家园而发愁。”
“新家园？”冬青爪愣住了，“那就太可怕了！那火星打算做些什么？”
“什么都不做，”松鸦爪复述道，“他不想干涉这件事。”
“可他必须做点儿什么啊！”冬青爪深吸了一口气，“河族有麻烦啊！”
“火星说，这是他们自己的问题。”想到火星再次对自己的话不予理会，松鸦爪就特别生气，皮毛都感到痒痒的。
“我们就只能旁观了吗？”
“我跟你说，我现在很累。”松鸦爪说完就朝巫医巢穴走去，“你去跟火星说吧，他才是最后做出决定的猫。”
松鸦爪从冬青爪身边离开，感到她愤慨的目光一直盯着自己穿过空地，还听到她摩擦爪子的声音——她一定是在犹豫，要不要去找火星。
松鸦爪想，优柔寡断可不是冬青爪的做事风格啊。如果他把他们三只猫掌握着群星力量的事实告诉她，冬青爪会不会更果断些呢？不行，时机还没到。松鸦爪的内心里涌动着一种复杂的心情，既对自己独自占有真相感到一丝兴奋，又害怕一旦把它说出来，自己的命运将会发生天翻地覆的变化。
现在，他唯一想做的一件事，就是让爪子休息一下，睡个好觉。
CHAPTER5
CHAPTER5
Lionpaw stiffened when he saw Hollypaw’seyes flash in the darkness, even though they had closed by the time he reached his nest. Hollypaw had been watching for him to slip back into the apprentices’ den.
“It’s okay,” he hissed into her ear. “I only went to make dirt.” He flexed his claws. Why did he have to explain every movement to her? She rolled over without replying. He curled down into his nest, his back to Hollypaw.
Outside the moon was high, the sky clear, the wind warm. He longed to sneak out of camp and meet Heatherpaw. Shedidn’t watch him with that narrowed gaze like she was waiting to prove he was a traitor to his Clan. Sheknew they were just playing, not swapping Clan secrets. Lionpaw closed his eyes, anger like a hard knot in his belly, and buried himself in sleep. He began to dream.
Hollypaw blinked at him. Her eyes shone from the darkness of a burrow. They were full of warmth and excitement as they had been when they played as kits. Lionpaw crept closer to the entrance. What was she doing in there?
“Hollypaw?”
“I’m going to get you,” she mewed teasingly.
So that was it.
A game.
Lionpaw crouched and crept closer. Hollypaw twitched her whiskers mischievously, her amber eyes glittering in the darkness
Lionpaw’s blood turned to ice.
Amber?Hollypaw’s eyes were green!
Lionpaw stepped backward. The eyes had lost their playful glint. They fixed him with a vicious stare. This wasn’t Hollypaw. A growl sounded from the burrow. Fox! Lionpaw tried to run but his paws seemed to have turned to stone. Snarling, the creature shot out at him, teeth bared and red with blood.
Lionpaw woke and leaped to his feet. Pale light filtered through the branches of the den, speckling the sleeping cats.
Hollypaw’s head shot up. “Are you okay?”
“Just a nightmare,” Lionpaw panted.
Hollypaw leaned toward him. “What about?”
“A fox,” Lionpaw breathed.
“There are no foxes in here.” Cinderpaw padded from her nest and blinked encouragingly at him.
Lionpaw bristled. Wasn’t anywhere safe from this prying pair? He barged past them. “I’m going to get some food,” he mewed, stalking out of the den.
Brambleclaw was watching the camp from Highledge. Firestar must be on patrol, Lionpaw guessed. Jaypaw was washing himself beside the halfrock that jutted from the earth on the farside of the clearing. He paused as Lionpaw crossed the camp.
“Are you okay?” Jaypaw tipped his head to one side.
“I had a nightmare, that’s all,” Lionpaw grumbled. He padded to the fresh-kill pile, picked up a small, stiff mouse and carried it back to Jaypaw.
They shared it in silence. At least Jaypaw didn’t seem to want to poke his nose into everything Lionpaw had done in the last moon.
“Lionpaw!” Ashfur padded out of the warriors’ den. “We’re training with Brackenfur and Hollypaw in the hollow this morning.”
Oh, great! Can’t I ever get away from her?
The thorn barrier trembled as an early hunting patrol raced into camp. Firestar and Sandstorm were both holding prey in their jaws. Spiderleg and Mousepaw each carried a mouse, and Whitewing gripped a plump thrush between her teeth.
“Is everything all right?” Brambleclaw called down.
Firestar dropped his prey on the fresh-kill pile. “All quiet and as you can see, the prey is running.”
Berrypaw was already at the fresh-kill pile, sniffing the thrush Whitewing had dropped. He picked it up and carried it to the nursery.
“Hi, Jaypaw.” Hollypaw was bounding across the clearing with Cinderpaw. “Any food left?”
“You can eat later, Hollypaw!” Brackenfur was pacing up and down in front of the camp entrance. “Training first.”
Lionpaw gulped down the last of his mouse, feeling a twinge of satisfaction. Hollypaw had probably been gossiping about him. Serves her right if it means she goes hungry.He got to his paws and hurried toward Brackenfur. Ashfur bounded across the clearing to join them.
“I’m starving!” Hollypaw complained, catching up.
“We’ll hunt after battle training,” Brackenfur promised.
The golden warrior darted through the tunnel. Lionpaw fell in beside Ashfur, leaving Hollypaw to hurry after them. They padded to the training hollow in silence. Sun was slanting through the bright green leaves, and the air trembled with birdsong. Lionpaw saw Hollypaw lick her lips.
Ashfur sat down in the center of the hollow, his tail whisking over the mossy ground. “Today, we’re going to be thinking about how other Clans fight—their strengths and weaknesses, and the best way to exploit them.”
“So, what strengths do the other Clans have?” Brackenfur prompted.
“RiverClan can swim,” Hollypaw mewed, “which means they can approach from water.”
“WindClan is well camouflaged and small, so they are hardest to detect,” Lionpaw offered.
“Unless they’re upwind,” Hollypaw pointed out, “in which case their rabbity scent gives them away.”
Lionpaw bristled with indignation. Heatherpaw didn’t smell rabbity.
“What about ShadowClan?” Ashfur asked.
“Well, they are just evil,” Hollypaw growled, “so you never know how low they’ll stoop in any attack. That makes them unpredictable.”
“And weaknesses?” Brackenfur pressed.
“ShadowClan is weak because they think they are braver than they actually are,” Hollypaw mewed. “And RiverClan is so well fed that they’re slower than us.”
Lionpaw shifted on his paws, searching for something to say. Hollypaw was answering everything first.
Ashfur glanced at him. “What about WindClan?”
Lionpaw’s mouth turned dry. Ashfur’s gaze seemed to be boring into him. Had Hollypaw told her mentor about his meetings with Heatherpaw? Lionpaw started to panic as he realized that all three cats were staring at him, waiting for his answer. His paws began to itch. Come on! I know this!
Hollypaw rolled her eyes. “Lionpaw thinks WindClan has no weaknesses.” Her accusation made his ears burn with embarrassment. Why was she being so obvious? Was she reminding him she had the power to get him into big trouble?
Anger rose in his throat. “That’s not true!” he hissed.
“What’s not true?” Brambleclaw came padding down the slope toward them, Berrypaw at his side.
Lionpaw lifted his chin. “Hollypaw’s accusing me of favoring WindClan!”
“Why would she do that?”
“I was just teasing,” Hollypaw mewed. “Lionpaw’s being touchy. He had a nightmare.”
Lionpaw lashed his tail. Was Hollypaw determined to make him look like an idiot? He’d show her! “WindClan is fast, but not as strong as us because they don’t have any trees to climb on the moorland,” he growled, glaring at her.
“Good.” Brackenfur nodded. “You seem to know the basics. Let’s practice some moves. First, let’s try one that will work on a RiverClan cat.”
Brackenfur darted under Ashfur’s belly and nipped him on his hind leg. Ashfur rounded on him ready for the counterattack, but Brackenfur had already shot out of reach. Ashfur leaped toward him but Brackenfur rolled out of the way, sprang to his paws and launched himself onto Ashfur’s back, unbalancing the gray warrior and sending him rolling onto his side. The two warriors jumped to their paws, shook the earth from their pelts, and turned to face their apprentices.
“Now you two try it,” Ashfur meowed.
“Lionpaw.” Brackenfur touched Lionpaw’s flank with his tail. “You be the RiverClan cat because you’re bigger and more powerful. Hollypaw, you try and unbalance him like I did with Ashfur.”
Hollypaw nodded. “Don’t make it easy for me!” Her eyes were shining with determination.
“Don’t worry, I won’t,” Lionpaw hissed through gritted teeth. Didn’t she know how much she was annoying him?
He felt her dart underneath him, felt her teeth graze his hind leg. But he wasn’t going to let her get away as easily as Ashfur had done. He dropped his whole weight onto her before she could scamper free, then grasped her with his paws and tugged her over onto her side.
“Hey!” she squealed. “That’s not how you’re meant to do it!”
“You should have been faster!” Lionpaw spat, and began raking her spine with his hind claws while he gripped her shoulders with his forepaws.
“You’re hurting me!” Hollypaw shrieked, struggling to free herself.
“Lionpaw, stop!” Brambleclaw’s sharp command made Lionpaw freeze. Hollypaw slid from his grip and scrambled to her paws. Brambleclaw was staring down at Lionpaw, his eyes blazing. “This is training! We don’t want any cat hurt!”
Lionpaw got to his paws. “Sorry,” he mewed. “I got carried away.”
Hollypaw was lapping at the scratches Lionpaw had given her. He felt a wave of guilt for letting his temper get away from him. He hung his head. “Sorry, Hollypaw,” he murmured. The rage that had been seething in his belly all morning faded away. “I’m really sorry.” He glanced nervously at his father, expecting anger, but Brambleclaw’s eyes were filled with concern.
“Will you two train Berrypaw and Hollypaw this morning?” The ThunderClan deputy directed his request at Ashfur and Brackenfur. “I’m going to take Lionpaw hunting.”
His pelt burning with shame, Lionpaw followed his father out of the training hollow. He braced himself for a lecture, but Brambleclaw only padded silently through the trees.
“I shouldn’t have let my temper get the better of me,” Lionpaw blurted out, deciding to get straight to the point. “But she’s been bugging me all morning.”
Still Brambleclaw said nothing.
“I know that’s no excuse,” Lionpaw went on. “It won’t ever happen again.”
“I know,” Brambleclaw meowed. He stopped and gazed at Lionpaw. “It’s so unlike you.” The tabby warrior sighed. “I’ve always relied on you to take care of your littermates.”
Lionpaw hung his head. He had let his father down.
“Is something worrying you?” Brambleclaw asked. “Something…” The tabby warrior paused. “…troublingyou?” he meowed at last.
Lionpaw knew he couldn’t tell his father about Heatherpaw and how Hollypaw had stopped him from meeting her. “It’s just…” He trailed off. How could he explain his anger? “It feels like Hollypaw doesn’t trust me to be a loyal warrior.”
Brambleclaw nodded. “I know what that’s like.” He began padding through the trees again. Puzzled, Lionpaw hurried after him.
“Being Tigerstar’s son has meant I’ve had to win the trust of every ThunderClan cat over and over,” Brambleclaw went on quietly. “So I know how frustrating it is when you have to prove something that shouldn’t need proving.”
The leafy forest floor sloped upward before them and they sank their claws into the sweet-smelling earth to help them climb.
“The trouble is that everyone only saw evil in Tigerstar. They forgot what a bold and brilliant warrior he was.”
Lionpaw pricked his ears. Was Brambleclaw defendingTigerstar?
“I haven’t forgotten how Tigerstar betrayed his Clan,” Brambleclaw meowed, as if he had noticed Lionpaw’s surprise. “But we all have strengths and weaknesses. It must be sad to be remembered only for your weaknesses. I hope I’ll be remembered for my strengths instead.”
“Of course you will be,” Lionpaw mewed. His fur prickled at the thought of his father being nothing but a memory. “Every cat in the Clan respects you.”
“I wish that were true.”
“What do you mean?”
“I think there may be one Clanmate who wishes me harm.” The words came in a whisper.
Lionpaw’s heart lurched. “Who?”
Brambleclaw shook his head. “It’s not important. Forget I said anything.”
“But if there’s some cat you don’t trust—”
Brambleclaw cut him off. “If you want to be remembered for your strengths, you must work on them. And if that means proving yourself to those who doubt you, then do it. You can’t force Hollypaw to believe in you. You have to show her that you are worth believing in.”
Lionpaw felt weariness weighting his paws. Why should he have to prove himself to Hollypaw? I haven’t done anything wrong!
Crack!
A stone clattered against the wall of the camp and thumped onto the ground outside the apprentices’ den.
Lionpaw lifted his head and blinked in the darkness. Was a rabbit foraging near the top of the hollow?
Crack!
Couldn’t be a rabbit. The first clatter would have sent it fleeing into the forest.
Curious, Lionpaw got quietly to his paws. He glanced at Hollypaw. She was sound asleep. Thank you, Brackenfur!Hollypaw’s mentor had taken her hunting deep into the forest. She had come back exhausted, her paws sore, but happily carrying three mice.
Lionpaw slipped past her nest and ducked out of the den.
Crack!
Thump!
A pebble landed near his paws. He skittered backward and looked up cautiously. Two round eyes shone at him from the top of the cliff, then blinked.
Someone was spying on the camp! Should he tell someone? He glanced around the empty moonlit clearing. No cat stirred. He didn’t want to wake anyone until he was sure there was danger. He would look foolish if he called the alarm because some inquisitive fawn had discovered the hollow. He would investigate first and call the alarm if there really was any danger.
Whitewing’s pelt glowed at the camp entrance. She must be on guard. If there was trouble he could call to her.
Lionpaw slipped around the edge of the clearing and pushed his way among the brambles beside the medicine den. He knew he could climb the cliff behind them. Reaching up through the prickly branches he felt the first ledge with his paws and hauled himself up. Then, moving carefully so as not to send grit showering down, he scrabbled up from ledge to ledge until finally he pulled himself onto the grass at the top. Panting a little, he began to creep around the edge of the hollow.
“Lionpaw!” A soft mew hissed from beneath the ferns ahead. He froze as Heatherpaw slipped out from beneath the arching fronds. “Thank StarClan it’s you.”
“Did you drop those pebbles?” Lionpaw stared at her in alarm. What if she were caught here? “Is everything okay?”
“I had to see you!”
He felt a glow inside his chest. She was even braver than he thought. But he had to get her away from the camp. “Follow me,” he hissed. He hared off lakeward down the slope. But Heatherpaw didn’t follow.
“Come on!” Lionpaw begged, skidding around and looking back.
Her eyes were shining. “Don’t go that way! I’ve got something to show you!” She turned and ducked away under the ferns
Lionpaw hurried after her. “Where are we going?”
“Wait and see!”
She seemed to be heading toward the old fox den. Lionpaw slowed down. “Be careful!” he warned.
“It’s okay,” she told him. “There aren’t any foxes.” She paused in front of the thick brambles that crowded the bottom of a steep slope. “Wait here.”
She dived beneath them, and Lionpaw watched her tail disappear into the dense foliage, making the bushes tremble. Where was she going? An owl called in the branches above his head. Lionpaw fluffed out his fur and glanced around nervously.
“Here!”
Lionpaw looked up the steep slope and saw Heatherpaw blinking at him from the entrance to a small tunnel. “What are you doing in there?” It looked like a rabbit burrow.
“You’ll never believe what’s inside! Come on!” Heatherpaw scooted backward into the darkness.
Paws pricking, Lionpaw squirmed under the brambles, wincing as their barbs tugged his fur. He heaved himself up the slope, out of the thorny tangle, and paused at the burrow entrance. “Heatherpaw?” he called, his heart pounding.
“Come inside!” Her mew echoed strangely from the shadows.
Lionpaw squeezed in after her.
The tunnel was pitch-black. Crouching, he wriggled forward, damp earth pressing against his pelt. What was Heatherpaw up to? This place was hardly big enough for a rabbit, let alone a cat. Suddenly, he felt space around him, cold air washing over his fur. The tunnel had widened. Relieved, he straightened up and padded forward until he felt Heatherpaw’s breath on his cheek.
“It leads to a cave!” she mewed. “There are loads of tunnels under this part of the hill, and one of them leads right to WindClan territory.”
“How in StarClan’s name did you find it?”
“Breezepaw sent me to catch mice between the rocks just over the top of the moor, not far from camp. I chased one down into a crack and realized that the crack opened into a tunnel. When I went inside I found that there were tunnels leading everywhere.”
“Weren’t you frightened of getting lost?”
“I explored slowly at first, making sure I got to know each route really well before trying another. And then I found one that led to a cave. It’s amazing. There’s a hole in the roof where the light comes in. Then I found a way into your territory!” Her mew was triumphant. “Isn’t it wonderful?”
Lionpaw could hardly believe his ears. “A tunnel from our territory to yours!” he gasped. “That’s fantastic! If there was an attack or a fire, ThunderClan could use it to escape—”
“No!” Heatherpaw’s mew was sharp with frustration. “We mustn’t tell anyone else. Don’t you see? This can be ourplace!”
“Our place?”
“We can meet here without anyone ever finding us! Even Hollypaw won’t guess where you’re going.”
Lionpaw’s whiskers twitched. Now he could meet Heatherpaw as much as he liked and no one would ever know! “That’s a great idea! You’re brilliant, Heatherpaw.”
She purred and rubbed her muzzle quickly along Lionpaw’s cheek, then turned away. “Follow me. I’ll show you the cave.”
Her paw steps disappeared into the darkness. Fear surged in Lionpaw’s belly. He fought the urge to rush back out into the forest, and began to follow Heatherpaw. The blackness pressed in on him and suddenly he realized how Jaypaw must feel. He sniffed, searching for scents of fox, or rabbit or even badger, but smelled only damp earth. It was stale and musty as though no creature had walked here for moons.
“How come no one else uses this place?” he wondered.
“I guess no one’s been lucky enough to find it.” Heatherpaw’s mew echoed eerily up ahead.
“Someone must have discovered it before.”
“I’ve never smelled anything here except rock and water.”
Uneasiness tugged at Lionpaw’s pelt. “But it seems unlikely that we’re the first—” Suddenly, the tunnel brightened and opened into a large cave. Lionpaw stopped dead and stared around in astonishment. The rocky walls were lit by moonlight filtering through a small hole in the roof, just like Heatherpaw had said. The floor was smooth, dusty stone, rippled here and there as if giant paw prints had left their shape. And most amazing of all, a river wound across the floor and flowed away into a low, broad tunnel, disappearing into shadow.
A river underground? How could that be?
“Isn’t it brilliant?” Heatherpaw leaped up onto a rocky ledge. “It’ll be like our own camp! We could be DarkClan. I’ll be the leader and you can be my deputy!”
“Deputy? What if I wanted to be leader?” Lionpaw objected, scrabbling past her onto a higher ledge.
“I found the place, so I’m leader!” Heatherpaw jumped at him and knocked him off his perch.
Purring, Lionpaw landed lightly on the floor of the cave. “Okay, Heatherstar,” he mewed. “What’s the plan?”
“Lionpaw, wake up!”
Lionpaw felt a soft paw nudging him in the ribs. He jerked his head up, surprised to find rock walls surrounding him. Then he remembered. He was in the cave. Heatherpaw was sitting beside him, her eyes bleary with sleep.
“Look!” She jerked her head toward the gap in the roof. “We dozed off.” The sky outside was pale with early morning light.
Lionpaw leaped to his paws. “I must go home!” He stared anxiously at the many tunnels opening around the walls of the cave. “Which one leads to ThunderClan?”
Heatherpaw padded to a narrow tunnel near the river’s edge. “This way.” She flicked her tail toward a wider tunnel in the facing wall. “I head up there.” Her eyes glittered. “Will you come again tonight?”
“Yes.” Lionpaw could hardly wait. “If I can get away.”
Heatherpaw’s farewell echoed behind him as he hurried away down the tunnel. His denmates must have noticed he wasn’t in his nest. How would he explain it this time? Hollypaw was bound to be suspicious. He had to come up with a reason to be out of the camp this early or there was no chance he would be able to meet Heatherpaw that night.
The tunnel grew narrower around him and something brushed his pelt. It must be the walls closing in. Had Heatherpaw remembered the right route? Panic started to rise in his chest. What if he couldn’t find his way out again? Something else brushed his pelt. It didn’t feel like earth. It felt softer, like the pelts of cats pressing against his. Alarm shot through him. He began to run, hurtling into the blackness, fear crushing the breath from him.
Light glowed up ahead. Desperation and relief made his legs weak as he shot out of the hole. Dawn light flooded his eyes, making him blink as he glanced furtively around. No sign of any patrols. Ducking down, he scrabbled under the brambles and began to run for home.
I can’t go back empty-pawed!The thought brought him sliding to a halt.
A sparrow flitted overhead. No one can complain if I feed my Clan.Lionpaw dropped into a hunting crouch. Still as a rock, he watched the sparrow flutter to the ground and waited as it hopped closer, fighting the urge to spring until it was within reach. The leaves rustled as it bobbed nearer. Lionpaw kneaded the ground with his hind paws. One more hop…
Got you!Springing forward quick as a snake, Lionpaw killed the bird with one swipe. He picked up the limp body in his teeth and bounded toward the camp.
“Hello, Lionpaw.” Whitewing was still guarding the entrance. “I didn’t see you go out.”
Lionpaw’s mew was muffled by his mouthful of feathers. “I went through the dirtplace tunnel.” His tail pricked at the lie, but he had no choice.
“Looks like someone’s going to have a nice early breakfast,” Whitewing commented.
“Mmmm.” Lionpaw nodded, whisking past her into the camp.
Hollypaw was lying beside the halfrock with Jaypaw. She looked up as Lionpaw entered the camp. Flicking his tail at her, he dropped his catch on the pile.
“You must have been up early,” Jaypaw mewed as he clambered onto the smooth halfrock and began to wash.
“The birds make so much noise, I’m surprised you can sleep through them,” Lionpaw replied, thinking fast.
Hollypaw narrowed her eyes. “After the hunt Brackenfur took me on yesterday, I’d have slept through anything.”
Lionpaw wiped a paw over one ear. Inside, his stomach was a hard knot. He hated lying. He wasn’t doing any harm by playing with Heatherpaw. But he knew his Clanmates wouldn’t see it like that.
I’m loyal to my Clan, Lionpaw told himself. I shouldn’t have to prove it.
But still, the bitter taste of his lie stung in his throat.
CHAPTER4
CHAPTER4
“I’m still really tired,” Jaypaw complained.
Leafpool was leading him down to the lake. “But sunhigh’s the best time to collect mallow, when the leaves are dry.”
Jaypaw yawned. His paws were still sore and he felt as if he’d hardly closed his eyes before Leafpool nudged him awake. At least the day was warm. There was no chance of newleaf being driven back by the long claws of leaf-bare now. The sunshine striking through the new foliage was hot enough to make his pelt itch as they padded through the trees. Birds called to one another, and far off he could hear the shrieks and splashes of Twolegs playing in the water. Jaypaw shivered, remembering his fall into the lake when Crowfeather had rescued him. He wasn’t going to get his paws wet again if he could help it.
Water babbled nearby. He had only been this way once before. A brook ran down out of the forest and into the lake. Like the stream that led up to the Moonpool, it carried the scent of the mountains. Leafpool led him along the edge, weaving around the trees that lined its path. The grass felt soft and cool on his pads and he was sorry when Leafpool veered off the grassy bank and down onto the pebbly shore.
“The lake’s higher than I’d hoped,” she meowed, stopping. “We won’t be able to collect all the herbs I wanted, but I can see a clump over there.” She darted away toward a sweet scent, and Jaypaw began to pad after her.
Suddenly, in the forest behind him, leaves fluttered and paw steps beat quick and light on the forest floor.
A squirrel!
Tiny paws skittered along the bank of the stream behind him and scrabbled up a tree, rustling its leaves. Then splashing. A hunting patrol was plunging toward him, down the shallow stream.
“Did you hear where it went?” Birchfall’s excited mew sounded from the trees.
Jaypaw flicked his nose toward where the squirrel was leaping along a low branch.
“I’ll get it!” Pebbles rattled and water splashed as Mousepaw scooted from the stream and up the tree trunk. Jaypaw ducked and blinked as shards of bark sprayed him, gouged out by Mousepaw’s eager claws. The branch overhead creaked, and Jaypaw heard a surprised squeal.
But it wasn’t the squirrel. It was Mousepaw.
The apprentice tumbled off the branch and crashed onto the pebbles beside Jaypaw.
“Fox dung!” Mousepaw scrambled to his paws, embarrassment flashing from his ruffled pelt.
“Catch it?” Jaypaw inquired.
Leaves rustled above them as the squirrel made its getaway.
“Nice try!” Spiderleg called from the stream.
“Next time, I’ll get it!” Mousepaw called back to his mentor.
The scent of the stream had confused Jaypaw, but as the ThunderClan patrol clambered out, shaking water from their paws, he recognized their distinctive smells. Ashfur and Lionpaw were with Birchfall, Spiderleg, and Mousepaw.
Lionpaw bounded down onto the shore. “Hi, Jaypaw.”
“Good morning for hunting,” Jaypaw replied, flicking his brother’s pelt with his tail.
“Mmm.”
Jaypaw stiffened, curious. Lionpaw was distracted, his mind not entirely on the hunt.
“What are you doing down there, Jaypaw?” Birchfall called from the bank.
“I’m helping Leafpool collect herbs,” Jaypaw told him, nodding toward Leafpool, who was farther down the shore scuffling among the mallow stems.
“What’s she doing?” Lionpaw asked.
“Digging up mallow,” Jaypaw told him. “Can you see any more of it about?”
“There’s a clump of it by an old stick over there.” Lionpaw nudged his brother in the right direction. “Look out though, there are lots of twigs and lumps of wood washed up on the shore. Don’t trip.”
“Come on,” Ashfur called impatiently. “Let’s get back to the hunt!”
“Can you manage?” Lionpaw wound around Jaypaw.
“Of course!”
“Okay. See you later.” Lionpaw bounded away, making the pebbles clatter.
Jaypaw listened to the patrol disappear back into the trees, envying his brother a little. In this weather, hunting would be way more fun than gathering leaves. He turned with a sigh toward the patch of mallow Lionpaw had spotted. He could smell it now, its sweet rose scent warmed by the sun. Carefully, he picked his way over the shore, avoiding the rubbish left washed up by the floodwater. He stretched out his nose, touching a mallow leaf and sniffing deeply.
His front paw bumped into something hard. Was this the stick Lionpaw had mentioned? He leaned down to sniff it and felt it smooth on his nose. The bark had been stripped away, the wood beneath it bone-dry. It could not have been in the water long, or it still would be sodden despite the newleaf sunshine. Jaypaw ran his paw over it. The exposed wood felt sleek beneath his pad.
He could feel something odd, too: scars scratched across the branch, too neat and regular to be natural. Some of them were crossed by other lines, like two paths going in different directions.
“What’s that?” Leafpool’s voice close behind him made him jump. He had been so absorbed that he hadn’t heard her approach.
“A stick.” With an effort, he rolled it from beneath the mallow plant where it had lodged. “Look at the lines.”
She sniffed it. “No scent,” she commented. “From by the lake, I expect.”
“But the lines feel strange,” Jaypaw prompted. “They’re too even.”
“You’re right,” Leafpool agreed. “I wonder what made them? A fox, maybe a badger?”
“They’re too fine to be badger or fox marks.”
“Perhaps it’s some Twoleg thing,” Leafpool suggested. She flicked her tail. “Come on. I’ll dig up some roots from this plant to add to the others I’ve collected.”
Jaypaw could smell the fishy stench of lake mud on her paws.
“You start stripping off some leaves,” Leafpool went on. “If we’re lucky, they’ll dry before the next rain.”
Why wasn’t she more interested in the stick? They had never come across anything like this before. Reluctantly, Jaypaw slid his paws from the branch. His pads felt warm where they had been touching it. He stripped a pawful of leaves from the mallow plant while Leafpool dug around a root and plucked it from the waterlogged earth with her teeth.
“Let’s get this stuff back to camp,” she meowed. “I left the other roots over there.” She bounded away and Jaypaw picked the leaves up with his teeth and began to head up the beach.
He paused. What about the stick?He couldn’t leave it lying where it was. It might get washed away. He dropped the mallow leaves, turned back, and began to roll the stick up away from the waterline with his paws.
“We can’t carry that home as well,” Leafpool meowed, returning to his side. The roots she was holding in her teeth muffled her mew.
“But we can leave it somewhere safe.” I want to come back and look at it again.
“Okay, but hurry. I want to lay the leaves out while the sun’s still warm.”
Jaypaw tugged at the stick, rolling it over the pebbles and heaving it past the lumps of wood and rubbish that cluttered the shore. At last, panting, he felt grass brush his pelt. He had reached the bank that edged the stream. He felt around until he found a gap behind a twisted root and shoved the stick into it, hoping it would hold fast if the water rose more. A spark of anxiety flickered in his chest at the thought of losing the stick to the lake.
“Come on.” Leafpool sounded impatient.
Jaypaw darted back to pick up the leaves he had dropped and followed her into the trees. His paws felt heavy and unease fluttered in his chest. Leaving the stick felt wrong. He wanted to understand why.
I’ll be back,he promised.
第四章
第四章
“我还是好累啊！”松鸦爪抱怨道。
叶池正带他向湖边走去：“但中午才是采集锦葵的最好时间，只有这时候它们的叶子才是干燥的。”
松鸦爪打了个哈欠。他的爪子依旧酸痛，感觉像是还没闭上眼就被叶池弄醒了。新叶季已经到来，秃叶季一去不返。他们穿过森林时，阳光透过新生的树荫照射下来，晒得他的皮毛都有些烫了。鸟儿呼朋唤友地鸣叫着。松鸦爪还能听见远处两脚兽们在水里玩耍时发出的尖叫和泼水声。松鸦爪想起自己掉进湖里被鸦羽救起的经历，不由打了个冷战。这次他会当心，可不能再把自己弄得湿漉漉的了。
潺潺的水流声不绝于耳。松鸦爪只来过这里一次。这条小溪从森林里绵延流出，注入湖里。就像通往月亮池的那条溪流一样，带着山间的气息。叶池领着他，沿着溪边的小路在树木之间穿行，踏过柔软而清爽的草地。当叶池掉转方向，离开这片土地，走上铺满鹅卵石的湖岸时，松鸦爪心中竟然有一丝不舍。
“这湖的水位比我预想的要高很多。”叶池停下来说道，“我们采不齐所有需要的草药了，不过我看到那边还有一小丛。”说完，她循着草药的香气跑了过去，松鸦爪紧随其后。
突然，他身后的森林里，树叶发出沙沙的响声。紧接着，从树林的地面传来又轻又快的爪子落地声。
是松鼠！
松鼠沿着松鸦爪身后小溪的堤岸掠过，然后爬上一棵树，弄得树上的叶子晃动起来。接着水花四溅，一支巡逻队正蹚着浅浅的溪水，朝他的方向赶来。
“你知道它跑哪里去了吗？”桦落兴奋的声音从森林里传来。
松鸦爪用鼻子拍了拍——那只松鼠正在一根低矮的树枝上跳来跳去。
“我去抓住它！”鼠爪从溪水中跑过去，跳上树干，弄得水花四溅，鹅卵石哗啦啦作响。接着松鸦爪感觉一大片树皮碎片劈头盖脸地落下来——那是满怀期待的鼠爪抠出来的。松鸦爪忙低头躲开，眨了眨眼睛。突然，头顶上的树枝咯吱咯吱响了起来，接着他听到了一声惊叫。
这不是松鼠的叫声，而是鼠爪的。
这位学徒从树枝上掉了下来，摔在松鸦爪旁边的鹅卵石上。
“狐狸屎！”鼠爪尴尬地站起来，全身的毛都奓起来了。
“抓到它了吗？”松鸦爪问道。
头顶的叶子再次沙沙地响起来，松鼠已经逃走了。
“不错的尝试！”蛛足的声音从溪水那边传来。
“我下次一定会抓住它的！”鼠爪对他的老师喊道。
溪水的气息一度让松鸦爪感到困惑，但随着雷族巡逻队员爬上了岸，抖落了他们爪子上的水珠后，他辨识出每只猫特有的气息——蜡毛、狮爪、桦落、蛛足和鼠爪一起来狩猎了。
狮爪纵身一跃，跳到湖岸边：“嗨，松鸦爪。”
“早上好啊，你们来狩猎吗？”松鸦爪一边回应着，一边用尾巴轻轻拂过哥哥的皮毛。
“嗯。”
松鸦爪突然僵住了，感到有些好奇。狮爪心不在焉，心思并没有完全放在狩猎上。
“松鸦爪，你在这里做什么啊？”桦落的声音从湖岸边传了过来。
“我正帮叶池采集草药呢。”松鸦爪一边说，一边朝叶池那边点了一下头。叶池正在远处的湖岸上采着锦葵，口中衔着好多锦葵的茎秆。
“她在干什么？”狮爪问道。
“采锦葵，”松鸦爪告诉他，“你看见哪里有吗？”
“那边的老树棍旁有一丛。”狮爪推推自己的弟弟，告诉他准确的方位，“不过你要小心，湖岸上有许多细树枝和木头，不要被它们绊倒了。”
“快走吧，”蜡毛不耐烦地喊道，“我们还要去狩猎呢！”
“你自己能行吗？”狮爪绕着松鸦爪转了一圈，问道。
“当然！”
“好的。那一会儿见。”狮爪跑开了，爪下的鹅卵石哗啦作响。
松鸦爪听着巡逻队渐渐在森林中远去的声音，心里开始有点儿嫉妒哥哥了。在这种天气里，狩猎可比采草药有意思多了。他转过身去，叹了口气，朝狮爪刚才指给自己的那片锦葵丛走去。现在松鸦爪能闻到它们的气息——那芳香如玫瑰的气味，带着阳光的暖意。松鸦爪小心翼翼地在湖岸上走着，绕开被洪水冲上岸的垃圾。他探出鼻子，触到了一片锦葵叶子，使劲儿嗅了嗅。
松鸦爪的前爪碰到了一个硬硬的东西。难道这就是狮爪刚才提到的“树棍”吗？他弯下身闻了闻，又用鼻子碰了碰，察觉到它的表面很光滑，上层的树皮已被剥去，下层的木质部分特别干燥。它一定很长时间都没被水浸湿了，否则，即便是在新叶季的阳光照耀下，它也不会变得如此干燥。松鸦爪的爪子在棍上划过，那暴露在外的木头很光滑。
但同时，松鸦爪也觉察到了一些奇怪的东西：它上面有许多划痕，排列很整齐，很有规律，不像是自然形成的。其中有些划痕跟其他的线条相交，好像两条通往不同方向的小路。
“那是什么？”叶池的声音突然从身后传来，吓了松鸦爪一大跳。他一直注视树棍上的划痕，连她的爪子落地声都没听见。
“一根树棍。”松鸦爪费力地把它从锦葵下面弄出来，“看，上面还有划痕呢。”
叶池凑上前去闻了闻。“没什么气味，”她说道，“应该是湖水冲过来的。”
“可是这些线条感觉很奇怪，”松鸦爪说道，“它们的排列太工整了。”
“你说得对，”叶池表示同意，“是谁刻上去的呢？狐狸还是獾？”
“狐狸或獾刻的记号，不可能这么精细。”
“或许是两脚兽刻的吧，”叶池一边猜，一边弹了弹尾巴，“行啦，别管它了。我要从这棵锦葵下挖一些根出来，添加到我之前采的草药中。”
松鸦爪闻到，叶池的爪子上有湖里淤泥的腥味。
“你先摘些叶子吧。”叶池接着说，“如果运气好，下一场雨到来之前，它们就会变干的。”
为什么她对那根树棍如此漠不关心呢？他们可从来没发现过类似的东西啊。松鸦爪有些不情愿地把爪子从树棍上拿开，他感到接触树棍的爪垫有一丝温暖。松鸦爪从锦葵上摘下一把叶子，叶池把它根部的土挖开，然后用牙齿把它从那被水浸湿的土壤里拔出来。
“我们把它带回营地去吧，”叶池说，“我把其他的根放在那里了。”说完她就走开了。松鸦爪用牙齿衔起叶子，沿着湖滩向前走去。
突然，他停住了。那根树棍该怎么办？他不能让它在原地躺着，因为过不了多久它可能就会被水冲走。他放下锦葵叶子，转过身，用爪子把那根树棍滚离水边。
“我们不能把它带回家。”叶池返回到松鸦爪身边说道，她嘴里衔着锦葵根，说话声有些含混不清。
“但是我们可以把它放在安全的地方啊。”松鸦爪一边回答，一边在心里想，有空的时候回来再看看它。
“好的。不过要抓紧时间啊，我还想要趁着阳光还足，把叶子摊开晒一晒。”
松鸦爪推着那根树棍，在鹅卵石上滚动着，越过湖岸上的木头堆和片片垃圾。最后，气喘吁吁的他察觉到，有草叶蹭着自己的皮毛——他已经来到了那条溪流的岸边。松鸦爪四处搜寻着，在一根弯弯曲曲的树根后面找到了一处缝隙，把树棍塞了进去。但愿水位涨上来的时候，它也能被卡住。他真的很担心洪水把这根不同寻常的树棍冲走。
“快走吧！”叶池有点儿不耐烦地催促道。
松鸦爪连忙跑回去，叼起锦葵叶子，跟着她走进了森林。当他越走越远的时候，他感觉自己的爪子变得沉重起来，心情也变得不安起来。他有一种感觉，自己把树棍留在那里是一个错误。他很想弄明白为什么会有这种感觉。
我会回来的。他暗暗下定了决心。
CHAPTER7
CHAPTER7
“Ow!” Birchfall snatched his paw awayfrom Jaypaw.
Jaypaw sighed. “If I don’t get the thorn out it’s going to hurt a lot more!”
Tentatively, Birchfall held out his paw again. Jaypaw leaned down and grasped the fat end of the thorn between his teeth. “It’s not that big,” he muttered out of the side of his mouth.
“That’s because most of it is buried in my paw!” Birchfall complained. “It’s amazing I made it back to camp at all.”
Jaypaw braced himself and gave a fierce tug.
“Ow!” Birchfall leaped away, then hopped noisily around the medicine den.
Jaypaw dropped the thorn, spitting to get rid of the taste of blood.
“I told you it was huge!” Birchfall meowed triumphantly.
Jaypaw touched it with his pad. The curved barb felt like a claw. “Not exactly deadly, though,” he mewed.
Birchfall lapped at his wound. “You’re not very sympathetic for a medicine cat.”
“I’m here to healyou. If you want sympathy, go to the nursery.” Jaypaw padded to the back of the den. Warriors!They might be brave in battle, but one thorn and they squealed like kits. He picked up a mouthful of marigold and began to chew the leaves into a pulp. A poultice would make sure Birchfall’s paw didn’t get infected.
Suddenly, he stiffened. Paws were pounding toward the camp. He tasted the air. Hollypaw’s fear-scent hit the back of his throat.
“Here, wash this into the cut!” He dropped the pulp at Birchfall’s paws and pushed through the trailing brambles that screened the den from the rest of the camp.
Hollypaw exploded into the camp. “Cinderpaw’s fallen out of the Sky Oak!”
Jaypaw gasped. “I’ll fetch Leafpool!” He pelted for the nursery where she was tending to Foxkit’s cold.
But Leafpool was already racing out. “Cinderpaw?”
Jaypaw skidded to a halt, narrowly avoiding her. She stopped, trembling, in the middle of the clearing. Horror pulsed from her like blood from a wound. No, not again!Her silent plea sliced into Jaypaw’s thoughts, as clear as if she’d cried out loud.
“You have to come at once!” Hollypaw wailed.
“What’s happened?” Firestar pounded across the clearing. Paw steps sounded on every side as the Clan came running to see what was wrong.
“Cinderpaw was helping Mousepaw down the Sky Oak and she fell!” Hollypaw’s words came in great gulps.
“Leafpool, go to her!” Firestar ordered.
Come on!Jaypaw willed his mentor to move, but she seemed rooted to the spot, her terror blocking out every other thought. “What herbs will we need?” he prompted. He could feel Hollypaw trembling behind him.
“Poppy seeds?” he pressed when Leafpool didn’t answer.
Just as panic threatened to overwhelm him, Leafpool snapped out of her daze. He felt her mind clear, like rain lifting. “Poppy seeds, yes. Rushes and cobweb to bind any broken legs, and thyme for the shock.”
“I’ll fetch them,” Jaypaw offered.
“Please hurry!” Hollypaw begged.
“Who’s with her?” Leafpool demanded.
“Mousepaw, Ashfur, Cloudtail, and Brackenfur.”
“Good. She’ll need carrying.”
Jaypaw pushed past Millie and Graystripe and raced to the medicine den, his tail bristling. He barged past Birchfall standing, fur spiked, in the entrance and darted to the herb storeroom. Lapping up several poppy seeds, he tucked them safely under his tongue, then grabbed a sprig of thyme and quickly wrapped it up in a fat wad of cobweb along with a pawful of rushes. He picked the bundle up in his jaws and hurtled back into the clearing.
“Got everything?” Leafpool asked.
Jaypaw nodded.
“Hurry!” Hollypaw called. She led them out of the camp at a run.
The forest floor felt soft beneath Jaypaw’s pads. Hollypaw plunged up the slope, Leafpool on her heels. Jaypaw ran after them, every sense alert, dodging the trees only by a whisker.A bramble tugged at his paw and he stumbled forward, dropping his bundle.
“Here, I’ll carry that!” Leafpool turned and swiftly picked up the rushes before speeding away again. Jaypaw hurried after her, keeping close, following her paw steps as she weaved through the forest.
“I see the Sky Oak!” Hollypaw called. Her paws beat faster against the ground. “Watch out for the fallen tree!” she warned.
Her paw steps fell silent as she leaped over the log and landed with a thump on the other side. Leafpool followed her. Jaypaw didn’t hesitate. Tensing, he leaped as high as he could, praying he had timed it right. He felt the rotting bark of the fallen tree brush his paws as he sailed over and landed lightly on the ground beyond.
“Over here!” Hollypaw had reached the others. Jaypaw felt Brackenfur’s panic flash like lightning from his pelt. He could hear Ashfur pacing around the Sky Oak, could sense Mousepaw trembling.
“She’s still breathing!” Cloudtail called.
“Good!” Leafpool dropped the bundle. Jaypaw crouched beside her as she leaned over Cinderpaw. He could hear the injured apprentice’s breathing. It was quick and shallow. He touched her flank with his nose. She was as limp as a dead mouse. His belly tightened.
“She’s in shock!” Leafpool pronounced. “Lick her chest while I give her the thyme.”
Jaypaw spat out the poppy seeds and began to lick Cinderpaw. Her heart beat rapidly beneath his tongue. He smelled the herbs as Leafpool tore open the bundle and chewed the leaves into a pulp that she could drip into Cinderpaw’s mouth.
“Is she going to die?” Brackenfur’s mew trembled.
“I won’t let her,” Leafpool snapped.
The medicine cat moved around to Cinderpaw’s other side. “Lick more gently now,” she ordered. Jaypaw began to lap Cinderpaw delicately, relieved to feel her heart slowing. He could hear Leafpool sniffing Cinderpaw’s body, examining her. Suddenly, the medicine cat stiffened.
“What’s wrong?” Jaypaw whispered.
Leafpool backed away as though stung by a wasp.
“What’s the matter?” Brackenfur surged forward, nearly knocking Jaypaw over.
What had frightened Leafpool so much? Jaypaw stopped licking, and searched her mind. He felt dread there like darkness, threatening to overwhelm her. What could be so bad?
“Sh-she’s broken a hind leg,” Leafpool gulped.
“We can bind it with the rushes,” Jaypaw suggested.
Leafpool didn’t reply. Not again!
Fear and bewilderment sparked from Brackenfur. “She won’t die of a broken leg, will she?”
Leafpool didn’t move. Jaypaw focused on her mind, saw an image of a gray cat limping, felt grief sear Leafpool’s heart.
“Here!” Jaypaw tugged one of the rushes free. He jabbed it at Leafpool. She jerked and then took it. Jaypaw felt a wave of relief as she laid it beside Cinderpaw’s broken leg and took another. He passed her the cobweb, and she carefully began to bind the rushes to Cinderpaw’s leg. “We need to secure it until we can get her back to camp,” Leafpool muttered. “Then I can set the break properly.”
When she had finished, Leafpool sat up. “Ashfur, Cloudtail, you help Brackenfur carry her back to camp. Make sure her leg moves as little as possible.”
Cinderpaw let out a soft moan as Brackenfur, Cloudtail, and Ashfur lifted her.
“Careful!” Leafpool gasped.
Jaypaw could hear her paw steps dancing around the warriors, pushing aside brambles, fear sparking from her pelt. “Watch those roots! Take her around the fallen tree! Avoid that dip! Hold her more steadily!”
Hollypaw pressed against him. She was trembling. “I thought she was dead,” she murmured.
“She’s going to be okay,” Jaypaw reassured her. “She’s got a strong heart. And it’s only her leg that’s broken.”
“Onlyher leg!” Leafpool’s sharp mew took him by surprise. “A warrior needs four good legs!”
Hollypaw pressed her muzzle to Jaypaw’s ear. “I’ve never seen her so upset,” she whispered.
Jaypaw shook his head. “Me neither.” He leaned against Hollypaw, letting her guide him through the undergrowth. He wanted to focus his attention on Leafpool. He could feel panic, anger, and regret seething in the medicine cat’s mind. Why?She hadn’t pushed Cinderpaw out of the tree. It was just an accident.
Why did Leafpool feel so responsible?
Cinderpaw’s fur swished against the sandy floor as the three warriors laid her gently down in the medicine den.
Sorreltail was in the den already, plucking at the ground with trembling paws. Grief and fear crackled from her pelt. Poppypaw and Honeypaw fidgeted beside Hollypaw, breathing in frightened gulps.
“Thank you,” Leafpool mewed briskly to Brackenfur, Cloudtail, and Ashfur. “Leave us now.”
“But—” Brackenfur began to protest, but Sorreltail interrupted him softly.
“I’ll stay with her.”
The brambles rustled as the tom followed Ashfur and Cloudtail out.
Jaypaw bent down and licked Cinderpaw between her ears. She was unconscious again. “We’ll take care of you,” he promised. He felt Hollypaw’s gaze on his pelt.
“You’d better go too,” he advised her. “Firestar’s waiting.” He could sense the ThunderClan leader’s heavy presence outside the den. “He’ll want to know what happened.”
“You will make her better?” Hollypaw mewed.
“We’ll try.”
As Hollypaw padded from the den, Leafpool murmured to Sorreltail, “I’ll do everything in my power to make her well.”
“I know you will.” Sorreltail’s voice cracked with grief, but Jaypaw could still hear affection in her mew. She had been Leafpool’s best friend since before he was born.
Sorreltail’s breath ruffled Cinderpaw’s pelt. “May StarClan protect you,” she whispered.
“She will be all right, won’t she?” Honeypaw’s frightened mew sounded beside Sorreltail.
“Don’t let her die!” Poppypaw sobbed.
“Come on,” Sorreltail encouraged them. “Let’s go and see Brackenfur. He’ll need company.” She guided her kits out of the medicine den, leaving Jaypaw alone with Leafpool.
With the other cats gone, Jaypaw could feel Leafpool’s anxiety buzzing like a swarm of bees. Suddenly, Cinderpaw stirred.
Leafpool swished her tail over the young cat’s flank. “Don’t be frightened,” she soothed. “You are safely back at camp. You fell from the Sky Oak and you’ve hurt your leg. But we’re going to fix it.” Desperate hope flared in her mind, but her voice remained calm. “What were you trying to do? Did you think you were a bird? Did you think you could fly?”
Her mew was as gentle as a mother’s. Jaypaw had never wondered if Leafpool felt sad she would never have kits of her own.
Cinderpaw let out a soft moan, then her breathing deepened. She was unconscious once more.
“Come on, Jaypaw,” Leafpool mewed, suddenly brisk. “Let’s get this leg set. First, we need to take this binding off.”
Jaypaw began to help Leafpool to gnaw through the cobweb, releasing the rushes.
“Now, we need fresh rushes.” Leafpool darted to the back of the cave before Jaypaw could move and fetched three fresh rushes and another wad of cobweb. “If we place those two there, and hold another one here—”
Jaypaw reached out to help, but felt her paw already pressing the rush gently to Cinderpaw’s hind leg while she used her teeth to wrap cobwebs around it. “This should hold it tight.”
Jaypaw started to feel as if he wasn’t needed. Was Leafpool showing him what to do, or just talking herself through it? “Shall I get some comfrey?” he offered.
“What?” Leafpool sounded distracted. “Yes, yes. Good idea.”
Jaypaw collected a mouthful of leaves and began chewing them into a pulp. He could still hear Leafpool fussing over the dressing. “A bit more cobweb here should hold it just right,” she murmured.
Cinderpaw twitched and let out a small whine.
“Perhaps we should leave her to rest,” he ventured. “There’s nothing more we can do for her now.”
In an instant he felt Leafpool’s hot breath on his face. “There’s everythingwe can do for her!” she hissed.
Alarmed, Jaypaw backed away, ears flattened.
Anger flamed from Leafpool’s pelt. “We can’t let Cinderpaw lose the use of her leg!”
“I—I—” he stammered.
Leafpool backed off and Jaypaw felt guilt flood her mind. “I’m sorry, Jaypaw. I shouldn’t have snapped. You’ve been a great help.”
But you didn’t let me do anything. Jaypaw bit back the words, wary of antagonizing her again.
Leafpool turned away. “I must go and talk to Sorreltail and Brackenfur.” The brambles rustled as she pushed her way through them. Jaypaw stayed where he was. What had gotten into his mentor? He knew she cared deeply for her Clanmates, but he’d never seen her angrythat a cat had been hurt before. It was as though healing Cinderpaw was the most important thing she’d ever have to do. Was it because Cinderpaw was her friend’s kit?
He checked Cinderpaw’s heart, pressing his ear to her chest. It was beating too rapidly, her breathing too quick. He settled down beside her and let his warmth spread into her body. Speeding up his breath to match hers, he closed his eyes.
He was standing at the top of a ravine. Thick woodland crowded every side, and far below, trees and bushes hid the ground from view. Is this part of StarClan’s territory?Fear clutched his heart. Was Cinderpaw dying? Had he been brought here to save her the way he’d done with Poppypaw?
A gray shape caught his eye below. Cinderpaw was leaping from boulder to boulder, down the ravine. She disappeared into the lush greenery.
Jaypaw started to panic. I mustn’t let her out of my sight!He scrambled over the edge of the ravine, following the path Cinderpaw had taken, fighting to keep his balance on the tumble of rocks because he was unaccustomed to using sight to guide him. At the bottom, a dense wall of gorse blocked his way. Just in time he spotted the tip of Cinderpaw’s tail disappear into it. He raced after her and found an opening in the gorse. He slithered through and found her standing in a sandy clearing at the bottom of the ravine. Bushes and ferns circled it protectively and at the far end, a jagged rock blocked the way out.
“Cinderpaw?” Cautiously, Jaypaw padded toward her, tasting the air. It didn’t smell like StarClan territory, but there were definitely some scents that he recognized. A tree stump near the edge of the clearing seemed to smell of Firestar and Graystripe. The bramble bush beside him carried the scents of Dustpelt and Thornclaw.
Cinderpaw gazed around, wide-eyed, her tail twitching with pleasure. “It’s just as I remembered! I haven’t been here for such a long time.”
What did she mean? This wasn’t ThunderClan territory. How could Cinderpaw have been here? It didn’t even feel like anywhere near the lake. The wind sounded different as it rustled the leaves in the trees at the top of the ravine. The air tasted warmer, filled with a damp fustiness that Jaypaw had never scented before.
“Look here!” Cinderpaw was padding over to the huge rock. “This is Highrock.”
Then she turned and bounded over to the bramble bush that smelled of Thornclaw. “And this is the warriors’ den. The elders’ den is over there.” She flicked her tail toward a fallen tree. “And over here”—she raced across the clearing to another bush—“is the apprentices’ den. I used to sleep herebefore…” Her mew trailed away, her eyes growing misty. She blinked. “Then I moved to Yellowfang’s den.”
Yellowfang!The name seared Jaypaw’s ears. Yellowfang had been ThunderClan’s medicine cat before Cinderpelt. She was with StarClan now, and it seemed to Jaypaw that her main duty was to butt into his dreams. He could picture her, yellow eyes sparking, matted pelt bristling with impatience….
“Come and see!” Cinderpaw’s mew interrupted his thoughts.
An eerie feeling pricked his tail as she led him through a narrow tunnel to a much smaller clearing. A rock towered at the far end, split down the middle by a cleft big enough for a den.
Cinderpaw gazed wistfully into the shadowy cave. “Yellowfang kept her herbs in there.”
“Yellowfang’s dead,” Jaypaw mewed. “She’s in StarClan now.”
Cinderpaw looked at him. “Of course she is! Where else would she be?”
“I don’t understand. Why are you acting as if you lived here too?”
“Because I did. Many moons ago, before we left the forest.”
“But you never lived in the forest!”
“Once I did.” Cinderpaw’s blue eyes sparkled with starlight. “But I have returned to tread a different path, the path of a warrior.” She looked warmly at him, and when she spoke her voice seemed deeper, more wise, as if she’d aged in front of him. “Tell Leafpool that she has nothing to fear. I will recover this time. And tell her that I am proud of her. She has learned more than I could ever have taught her.”
Jaypaw’s pelt bristled. Vivid images were thronging in his mind: a young gray cat running through an unfamiliar forest, a monster screeching off a Thunderpath, agony piercing her hind leg, blood and the wails of her Clanmates; memories of learning herbs, limping after Yellowfang, of kits born in a river of blood, of fear and the forest being ripped apart by monsters, of a long hard journey through snow and ice and of snarling, vicious black-and-white creatures, jaws snapping, hungry for revenge and for death….
Jaypaw took a gulp of air, his paws unsteady beneath him. “You’re Cinderpelt, aren’t you?”
He awoke with a gasp, his pads wet, his tail fluffed out. He jerked his head up, darkness filling his vision once more.
“Jaypaw?” Leafpool’s breath stirred his fur. “Were you dreaming?”
Jaypaw struggled to his paws and leaned over the injured apprentice lying next to him. Cinderpaw’s breathing was light and steady.
“Jaypaw?” Leafpool prompted. “You were dreaming, weren’t you?”
“Yes.” Jaypaw tried to catch his breath. The violent visions he had seen still flickered in his mind, red with blood and pain and fear.
“Will she get better?” Leafpool asked quietly.
“Yes.”
Leafpool let out a relieved purr.
“She has been here before,” Jaypaw whispered.
Leafpool touched his flank gently with her tail. “I thought so,” she breathed. “She’s Cinderpelt, isn’t she?”
“She led me to the old ThunderClan camp,” Jaypaw explained. “She seemed so happy to be there.” He paused, suddenly aware of Cinderpaw’s body resting beside them. “Do you think she knows?”
“No, not in her waking world,” Leafpool murmured. “And we shouldn’t tell her.”
“Why not?”
“It’s enough that StarClan have let her come back and tread the warrior’s path she always dreamed of following.”
Jaypaw pricked his ears. “Didn’t she wantto be a medicine cat?” Then I am not the only one.
“She only became a medicine cat after a monster crippled her. After the accident, there was no chance she could be a true warrior, so she served her Clan in a different way.”
“But wouldn’t she be happy to know that she is fulfilling her dream now?”
“If StarClan wants her to know, they will tell her.” Leafpool’s mew grew serious. “We should not try to shape her destiny.”
“Do you think telling her would change it?” Jaypaw’s mind began to race. Did Leafpool believe that destinies could be changed like that? Did that mean he was right to keep the secret of Firestar’s prophecy from Lionpaw and Hollypaw? If he told them, would it make them act differently?
“Leafpool?” Cinderpaw stirred beside them. Her voice was hoarse.
“I’ll fetch you some water,” Jaypaw offered. He found a wad of moss and soaked it in the shallow pool at the side of the den.
“Here.” He offered it, dripping, to Cinderpaw. She lapped at it eagerly, then murmured something he couldn’t make out. He leaned closer.
“I’m hungry,” she croaked.
He heard Leafpool purr with amusement. “That’s more like the old Cinderpel—” She corrected herself. “Cinderpaw. I’ll fetch her something from the fresh-kill pile.”
As Leafpool padded out of the den, Jaypaw heard Cinderpaw trying to stretch beside him. “Ow, my leg.”
“It’ll get better. You need to rest now.”
“Where am I?” she murmured groggily.
“You’re exactly where you belong.” Jaypaw ran his tail along her flank. “In ThunderClan.”
CHAPTER8
CHAPTER8
“I name you Lionclaw, warrior ofDarkClan!”
Lionpaw flexed his claws as Heatherpaw called down to him from the highest ledge in the cave. Moonlight, streaming through the gap in the roof, fell silver on her pelt.
She leaped down and touched her nose to his. “Congratulations.”
Lionpaw’s fur tingled.
“But first”—Heatherpaw’s blue eyes flashed in the half-light—“you have to prove yourself a warrior by outrunning me.”
“That’s not fair!” Lionpaw flicked his tail. “WindClan cats are really fast; everyone knows that.”
“If you want to be a DarkClan warrior, you’ve got to be as fast as me.”
“In that case”—Lionpaw launched himself at her, stretching his paws around her to soften her fall, but pinning her to the ground—“you’ve got to prove you’re as strong as me!”
“Hey! That’s cheating! You didn’t warn me!” she mewed.
“The leader of DarkClan must be prepared for anything.”
“Like this?” She slithered from his grasp, darted behind him as fast as a blink, and grabbed his tail gently but firmly between her teeth.
“Hey!” he yelped, trying to reach around and swipe her away. She dodged and he found himself swiping at thin air, his tail still held firm. He twisted the other way, trying to reach her, but she dodged again. He could hear a rumbling in her throat and her whiskers were twitching.
She let go. “You looked so funny flapping your paws around! Like a fledgling just out of the nest!”
Lionpaw stared at her, happiness welling in his chest. Just the sight of her blue eyes and soft fur made warmth surge beneath his pelt. “I wish you were in ThunderClan.”
She shuddered. “Under all those trees and closed in by stone walls? No, thanks! Besides,” she went on, “we don’t need to live in the same Clan when we’ve got this cave all to ourselves.” She reached out a paw and batted something from the fur behind his ear. “Just a burr.” She flicked it onto the ground.
“Thanks.”
Heatherpaw was right about the cave. Lionpaw knew he wouldn’t want to live on the moorland any more than she’d want to live in the forest. This cave was the perfect solution. They’d been meeting here for half a moon now, and none of his Clanmates suspected a thing. Not even his nosy sister.
“I wonder where some of these other tunnels lead?” Heatherpaw leaped over the river and began to sniff at one of the openings.
Lionpaw jumped after her. Dank, stale air seeped from the tunnel and he shivered.
“Do you think one leads into ShadowClan territory?” Heatherpaw wondered.
The fur along Lionpaw’s spine lifted. “I hope not.”
“We could explore.”
Lionpaw backed away. “There’s no hurry. We have enough fun here.” He glanced around the cave. Getting here still made his paws quiver. There was something spooky about the tunnels and he was always relieved to find Heatherpaw waiting for him in the moonlit cave.
Heatherpaw’s eyes sparkled. “There might be all sorts of terrible creatures down there with big teeth and sharp claws—”
Lionpaw nudged her. “Shut up!”
She darted away. “Come on!” she called. “You still have to prove you’re a warrior!” She crossed the river with a graceful leap.
Lionpaw dived after her. As he landed, his hind paws slipped backward into the dark water. The splash echoed around the cave. Lionpaw’s heart lurched as he felt the strong tug of the current and he scrambled forward, shaking droplets from his paws.
“Careful,” Heatherpaw warned. “I don’t want to lose you.”
Lionpaw gulped at the thought of being dragged away into the tunnels by the river. Seeking comfort in Silverpelt, he glanced up at the gap in the roof. The sky outside was lightening. “We have to go.”
Heatherpaw sighed.
“Tomorrow night?” Lionpaw mewed hopefully.
“Can’t.” Heatherpaw wove around him, brushing her light tabby pelt against his. “I have a training assessment the day after. I don’t want to be too tired.”
“Okay.” Lionpaw shrugged; he understood. She had to put her Clan first. But he would still miss her.
“Bye.”
They hurried away, each to their separate tunnel. Lionpaw was relieved that he knew the path well enough now to be able to run all the way. Jaypaw would be surprised to know how fast his brother could race through the blackness, using only his whiskers to guide him. He burst from the entrance, relieved to smell fresh air once more.
This ismy part of the forest!He wriggled happily under the brambles and pulled himself out the other side. The older warriors acted like they had created ThunderClan territory because they had brought the Clans to the lake, but Lionpaw knew that they hadn’t explored every paw step of it yet. The fact that he knew about the cave proved that there were still places left to find. It would be the young cats who would do that, who would make this land their own.
Through the leaves he could see that the star-studded sky was growing pale. He began to race through the forest. He had to get home before the camp woke.
“Greetings, Lionpaw.” A deep mew sounded in his ear and fur brushed his flank.
Lionpaw bristled with alarm. He glanced sideways and saw the faint outline of a cat keeping pace with him. Am I dreaming?
“We have been watching you.” The outline shimmered beside him—a huge tabby tom with amber eyes which shone in the half-light. The tom’s massive shoulders seemed strangely familiar.
Something brushed his other flank. Lionpaw turned, his heart pounding. Another shadowy cat was running beside him—a second tabby tom with ice-blue eyes, but the same massive shoulders.
“W-who are you?” he stammered.
“We are kin,” answered the amber-eyed tom.
Lionpaw glanced anxiously from one to the other. “Are you from StarClan?”
“We were warriors once,” the blue-eyed tom growled.
Lionpaw’s tail pricked. “T-Tigerstar? Hawkfrost?” Why had they come to him?
Hawkfrost stiffened, jerking his huge head around to stare away into the forest. “Someone’s coming,” he warned.
Lionpaw ducked behind a hazel tree.
Paw steps beat the forest floor—real, solid paw steps. As Lionpaw crouched, hardly daring to breathe, Spiderleg raced past, stirring the air so that it tugged at Lionpaw’s pelt. The long-limbed black tom bounded away, disappearing into a swath of ferns.
Lionpaw crept out from behind the hazel. “Tigerstar?” He glanced around. “Hawkfrost?”
The ghostly warriors had gone.
“Wait!” Lionpaw called in a whisper. “Come back.” He had to know why they had chosen to appear to him.
The ferns rustled where Spiderleg had disturbed them. Then the forest fell silent, except for the call of the birds, heralding the dawn.
Lionpaw crept, yawning, through the dirtplace tunnel. The camp lay in silence. Relief flooded his paws. Then guilt. Away from Heatherpaw’s side he was suddenly aware how sneaky he was being. No cat was up. No sign of the dawn patrol preparing to leave yet. He shouldn’t feel so pleased that he’d be able to creep to his nest unnoticed and get some much-needed sleep. He scooted around the edge of the clearing, clinging to the shadows, then slipped into the apprentice den. Stepping lightly, he began to tiptoe toward his nest.
“Lionpaw?” Hollypaw lifted her head. “Is that you?”
Panic seared his paws, then irritation. “Yes,” he hissed.
“Where are you going?” she yawned.
Lionpaw hesitated. He couldn’t use the dirtplace excuse again. She’d think he was ill. “Dawn patrol,” he answered quickly.
Hazelpaw sat up groggily and blinked. “I thought I was doing that with Honeypaw?”
“I’m coming too,” Lionpaw mewed, “just for the experience.” His pelt burned. So many lies!
Hollypaw tucked her nose back under her paw. “Rather you than me,” she murmured.
“We’d better get a move on.” Hazelpaw prodded Honeypaw. “Wake up, sleepyhead. It’s time to go.”
Lionpaw glanced longingly at his nest, his paws as heavy as stones, but Hazelpaw was already brushing past him, leading the way out of the den. He padded after her, leaving Honeypaw stretching in her nest.
“You’re up early, Lionpaw.” Sandstorm, sitting by the entrance with Dustpelt, looked surprised to see him.
“I wanted to join the patrol,” Lionpaw mewed.
“Good for you.” Dustpelt looked up at the clear dawn sky. “It’s going to be a great day for hunting. I think I’ll take Hazelpaw out again once we’ve checked the borders.”
Birds twittered noisily at the top of the ravine. Lionpaw stifled a yawn and stretched.
“Are you ready, Honeypaw?” Sandstorm asked. Her apprentice was stumbling from the den, blinking the sleep from her eyes.
Honeypaw nodded.
“Come on, then.” Sandstorm padded out of the camp.
Back out in the forest, Lionpaw gazed longingly at every patch of moss, wishing he could lie down and rest. He trotted after the patrol, trying not to trail too far behind as they followed the ShadowClan border, renewing the scent markers.
“All clear here,” Dustpelt meowed at last.
Great, now we can go home!
Sandstorm sniffed the air. “Let’s check the WindClan border.”
Lionpaw’s heart sank.
The patrol turned and headed back through the forest. Lionpaw felt his eyes glazing with tiredness. Suddenly, a movement caught his eye. Far off through the trees, something was stirring.
Tigerstar!He scanned the forest, but it was only a fern flickering in the light breeze. Why had they come that morning? Tigerstar had said they’d been watching him. They must know I’ve been meeting Heatherpaw.His paws tingled. Did they think he was doing something wrong? But they had warned him about Spiderleg. Perhaps they only wanted to help him. But why?
The patrol neared WindClan’s territory. A small gully marked the border, a stream trickling at the bottom between tangled ferns and brambles. Beyond it, the forest stretched farther before opening onto the moorland. Dustpelt stopped to mark a tree. Honeypaw clambered down into the gully for a drink, disappearing beneath thick brambles.
Hazelpaw stiffened. “Look!” she mewed, staring over the border.
Breezepaw and Harepaw were pelting toward the stream. Ahead of them raced a squirrel, its tail bobbing. The WindClan apprentices weaved skillfully through the thick undergrowth; it was strange to see them hunting in woodland.
Dustpelt padded to Sandstorm’s side. “Why are they hunting here?”
“It istheir territory,” Sandstorm pointed out
“But WindClan don’t eat squirrels!” Honeypaw had scrabbled up from the stream, alerted by Hazelpaw’s warning.
Dustpelt narrowed his eyes. “Yes, I thought they only hunted rabbits.”
Two more WindClan pelts appeared. Tornear and Whitetail were watching their apprentices from the edge of the moor.
“A hunting party so near to our border?” Dustpelt’s mew was sharp with suspicion.
“They’re still heading for us,” Hazelpaw warned.
Breezepaw and Harepaw pelted after the squirrel; their eyes were fixed on their quarry.
“They’re not slowing down,” Dustpelt warned.
“They won’t cross the border on purpose,” Sandstorm reassured him.
“But they might do it accidentally,” Dustpelt replied. “The stream’s hardly visible here.” He dropped into a crouch and crept to the edge of the gully, ducking behind the brambles that covered it.
Breezepaw’s and Harepaw’s pads thumped the ground as they hurtled nearer. They still weren’t slowing.
“Stop!” Dustpelt reared up and yowled across the stream at the WindClan apprentices.
Breezepaw and Harepaw skidded to a halt, their eyes wide with alarm. The squirrel leaped the gully and disappeared up a tall birch.
“What in StarClan’s name are you doing?” Tornear’s angry mew rang through the trees. The WindClan warrior broke into a run, racing down to the border with Whitetail on his heels.
“How dare you frighten our apprentices?” Tornear halted at the edge of the gully and glared at Dustpelt.
“They were about to cross the border!” Dustpelt arched his back aggressively.
“How do you know?” hissed Breezepaw.
“You weren’t even slowing down!” Dustpelt accused him.
“I’d have caught the squirrel in one more stride!”
Lionpaw curled his lip. “You were nowhere near it!”
Breezepaw bristled. “Was too!”
“Everyone knows WindClan can only catch rabbits!” Lionpaw spat back. “ThunderClan are the best squirrel hunters.”
“Not anymore!” Harepaw squared his shoulders beside his denmate. “Every WindClan apprentice has special training in the woods so we don’t have to rely on rabbits anymore.”
Sandstorm’s eyes grew round. “Really? Why?”
Tornear turned his glittering gaze on her. “It’s none of your business!”
“Is it so you can invade our territory?” Dustpelt paced the borderline, lashing his tail.
Whitetail stepped forward, her ruffled fur smoothing. “We have woodland in our territory,” she meowed evenly. “It makes sense to use it. And we don’t want to be dependent on one sort of prey anymore. The elders still speak of the hunger WindClan suffered when Twolegs started poisoning the rabbits before the Great Journey.”
That made sense. Lionpaw let his claws curve back into their sheaths. But it still felt odd to think of WindClan hunting ThunderClan prey.
Harepaw was nodding. “And there are sheep on the moorland now, with Twolegs and their dogs—”
Tornear silenced his apprentice by flicking his tail across his mouth. “That’s none of ThunderClan’s business either,”he snapped. “So long as we stay on our side of the border, we can hunt what we like.”
“But squirrels don’t know about the border. They cross over it. You’d be eating our prey.”
“If it’s on WindClan territory it becomes our prey!” Tornear snapped.
“Squirrels have always been ThunderClanprey!” Dustpelt stopped pacing and let the fur stand up on his neck.
“Is that part of the warrior code?” sneered Tornear. He took a step forward, his eyes glittering.
Dustpelt dropped into a crouch, ready to spring. Blood pounded in Lionpaw’s ears. He unsheathed his claws again; his tiredness forgotten, he was more than ready to show these pushy WindClan cats what happened to warriors who dare invade ThunderClan’s hunting grounds.
“Leave it,” Whitetail murmured to her Clanmate. “This isn’t worth losing fur over.”
Tornear dragged his gaze from Dustpelt and looked at Whitetail. Lionpaw held his breath, then Tornear nodded. “Okay. For now.”
Dustpelt watched through narrowed eyes as the WindClan cats turned and padded away along the border, deliberately not hurrying.
“Come on.” Sandstorm flicked her tail toward home.
Dustpelt didn’t move. “Not until they’ve left the trees.”
Sandstorm sat down and began to wash her face. “You three may as well see if you can find any prey to take back while we’re waiting.”
Lionpaw reluctantly stopped watching the dawdling WindClan patrol and followed Honeypaw and Hazelpaw over to a patch of brambles.
“Do you think WindClan are planning to invade?” Hazelpaw whispered.
Honeypaw’s eyes stretched wide. “What makes you think that?”
“Chasing squirrels is what forest cats do. But they’re moorland cats,” Hazelpaw mewed. “It’s a bit suspicious.”
“Well, Dustpelt’s acting like they are,” Lionpaw commented
Honeypaw glanced back over her shoulder. “But why would they want to take our territory?”
“Perhaps the Twolegs and their dogs are more of a problem for WindClan than we realized,” Lionpaw suggested.
“They coped with it last newleaf,” Hazelpaw pointed out.
Foreboding clawed at Lionpaw’s belly. “It might be worse this time.”
“Anything to report?” Firestar called down from Highledge as the dawn patrol padded into camp.
“WindClan are hunting in the forest,” Dustpelt answered.
“In ourforest?” Firestar leaped down from the ledge.
Lionpaw padded quickly to the fresh-kill pile and dropped the mouse he had caught, then hurried back to join Dustpelt. He was ready to defend his Clan’s prey from any marauding WindClan cats, but what if one of those cats was Heatherpaw?
“Lionpaw!” Hollypaw stopped him halfway. “What’s going on?”
Jaypaw was with her; his ears pricked with interest.
“WindClan were at the border,” Lionpaw explained. He glanced at the patrol.
The ThunderClan leader had reached Dustpelt and Sandstorm. He was lashing his tail, clearly disturbed by Dustpelt’s news.
“They haven’t crossed the border,” Sandstorm explained.
The tip of Dustpelt’s tail twitched. “They almost did.”
Brambleclaw emerged from the warriors’ den. “What’s going on?”
“Two WindClan apprentices near our border,” Sandstorm meowed. “They were chasing a squirrel and nearly crossed the stream by mistake.”
Hollypaw bristled. “A squirrel!”
“They should have known better,” Dustpelt growled. “Unless they’re so used to crossing the stream by mistakethey don’t notice anymore.”
“There was no scent of WindClan in our territory,” Sandstorm reminded him.
“But why is WindClan chasing squirrels?” Brambleclaw demanded. “They hunt rabbit.”
Hollypaw hissed into Lionpaw’s ear, “Exactly!”
“Not anymore.” Hazelpaw kneaded the ground. “Breezepaw said that all the WindClan apprentices are being trained to hunt in woodland now.”
Brambleclaw stiffened. “We must remark the borders!” he meowed.
“We’ve already done that,” Dustpelt told him.
Sandstorm sat down. “Let’s not make a big thing about this. It was just two young cats—”
Dustpelt cut her off. “Hunting ourprey!”
“We should be on our guard,” Brambleclaw advised. “It needs to be reported at the next Gathering.”
Firestar plucked at the ground. “Did any WindClan cats cross the border?”
“No,” Sandstorm replied.
“And there was definitely no scent of WindClan cats on our side of the stream?” Firestar pressed.
“None.”
Dustpelt snorted. “The rain might have washed it clean.”
“Or they’ve never crossed the border,” Firestar pointed out. “I can’t tell WindClan what to hunt on their own territory.” He turned away. “We’ll leave it for now and see what happens.”
Jaypaw narrowed his eyes. “Not again!” he muttered.
Lionpaw glanced at his brother. “What do you mean?”
“Firestar didn’t want to help RiverClan either,” Hollypaw explained. “Even though Jaypaw dreamed they were in trouble.”
“How are the Clans going to respect us if we never do anything?” Jaypaw complained.
Lionpaw frowned. “Does it matter? So long as none of them cross our borders.”
“But there must be balance,” Hollypaw protested. “If one Clan is too weak, we should help them; if one is too strong, we must react so we look strong as well.”
Jaypaw scowled. “I don’t know about balance,” he mewed. “It just seems like Firestar’s wasted another chance to make ThunderClan look as if we can take care of ourselves.” Flicking his tail, he padded away.
Hollypaw stared after him. “What do you think, Lionpaw?”
Lionpaw stiffened, suddenly picturing Heatherpaw chasing a squirrel toward the ThunderClan border. Was Hollypaw wondering the same? “What do I think about what?” he stalled.
“Should Firestar challenge WindClan at the next Gathering?” Hollypaw tipped her head to one side. Her clear green gaze was curious. Lionpaw shifted his paws, uncertain what to think about his leader’s decision. If Firestar ignored every problem, ThunderClan might look weak. But the thought of fighting WindClan made his stomach churn. How could he go on meeting Heatherpaw if their Clans were at war?
Suddenly, a breeze ruffled his fur and a voice murmured in his ear. Be honest, Lionpaw. Don’t be afraid of the things you desire. You know what you think
Lionpaw’s belly twisted with guilt, but Tigerstar was right. He knew exactly what he thought. A battle with WindClan was the last thing he wanted.
“We should leave WindClan alone,” he mewed.
CHAPTER6
CHAPTER6
Hollypaw yawned and stretched in theden entrance. The early morning sun felt warm on her paws. She looked over her shoulder. Lionpaw was still asleep in his nest.
Cinderpaw was already at the fresh-kill pile.
“Anything there?” Hollypaw called to her friend.
“Only a mouse.” Cinderpaw pawed it uncertainly. “A bit stale, but not too bad.”
Hollypaw padded toward her. “Perhaps we should see if Daisy wants it for the kits first.”
“No, thank you!” Daisy was sunning herself outside the nursery while Ferncloud’s kits tumbled around her. “They can wait for the dawn patrol to return and have something warm and fresh.”
“I don’t mind eating a stale mouse!” Foxkit offered.
“No,” Daisy mewed, “you’ve got a cold. Only warm food for you.”
“But I’m hungry!”
“Greedy, more like!” Icekit teased. The fluffy white kit cuffed her brother around his ear. He turned on her at once and pounced. She squealed and pummeled him with her hind legs.
Daisy moved her tail out of the way as they rolled past her. “It’ll be a relief when they move into the apprentices’ den,” she mewed. Hollypaw knew that she didn’t mean it. Ferncloud would move back to the warriors’ den, and Daisy would be alone in the empty nursery. She’d always made it clear she wasn’t cut out to be a warrior but, without kits to nurse, what would she be? Hopefully the spring would bring a new litter.
“Hollypaw! Cinderpaw!” Leafpool was looking out from the elders’ den. “Come and clean out the bedding in here.”
“Okay!” Cinderpaw bounded over to her, abandoning the mouse
“I’ll get fresh moss!” Hollypaw knew that Leafpool kept a fresh stock beside the medicine den. She raced to grab a wad of it, then carried it to the elders’ den.
The honeysuckle that trailed over the elder bush where Longtail and Mousefur slept was bright with new leaf. Fresh tendrils swayed in the light breeze. Buds were forming that would flower come greenleaf and fill the hollow with a wonderful smell. Hollypaw ducked inside and dropped the moss. Cinderpaw was already busy scrabbling through the bedding, bundling out stale bits.
Leafpool looked up from where she was crouched at Longtail’s side. “Longtail has an infected tick bite.” The tangy aroma of herbs filled the den. “I’m putting a poultice on it, but I want the bedding freshened up so he doesn’t get another one.”
“Okay.” Hollypaw nodded.
Mousefur sat up stiffly. “Good to see newleaf again.”
Longtail winced as Leafpool washed more herbs into his wound. “The forest smells good,” he meowed. “I’ve been thinking about going out.”
Hollypaw blinked in surprise. Since he had lost his sight, Longtail rarely left camp.
“Only if I can come with you,” Mousefur croaked. “You’ll need someone to keep an eye out for foxes.”
“Foxes!” Hollypaw tucked her tail close to her.
Cinderpaw tossed a wad of moss toward the entrance. “Foxes aren’t that bad.”
“Aren’t that bad?” Hollypaw gasped. “What about the ones that chased me? They almost had my tail!”
“You were only a kit,” Cinderpaw pointed out. “They wouldn’t seem so scary if you met them now.”
Hollypaw wasn’t convinced.
“Foxes are just a nuisance,” Cinderpaw went on. “It’s badgers you have to watch out for.” The gray tabby’s eyes grew wide. “Theyare terrifying.” The fur along her spine rippled. “I hope I never meet another one as long as I live.”
“Anotherbadger?” Hollypaw sat up. “You’ve never even met one.”
Cinderpaw tipped her head to one side. Confusion clouded her gaze. “You’re right.” She reached out and tugged some stale moss from beside Mousefur. “I must have dreamed it.”
Cinderpaw could be so mouse-brained!
As Hollypaw began to reach for fresh moss, she noticed Leafpool staring at Cinderpaw. The medicine cat’s mouth was open as though frozen mid-lick. What had surprised her so much? It wasn’t the first time Cinderpaw had been muddled.
Longtail started to fidget. “Have you finished, Leafpool?”
“No.” Leafpool bent her head quickly. “Hold still, I’m nearly done.”
Firestar’s call sounded from outside the den. “Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath the Highledge.”
“A Clan meeting?” Mousefur narrowed her eyes. “I hope everything’s okay.” She got slowly to her paws. Hollypaw glanced at Cinderpaw, excitement fluttering in her chest. Had something happened? She darted out of the den ahead of the others and saw Firestar leaping down the tumble of rocks from Highledge.
The fresh-kill pile was well stocked. “The dawn patrol’s back,” Hollypaw whispered to Cinderpaw as her friend caught up. “Perhaps they’ve brought news.”
Stormfur and Brook settled at the edge of the clearing. Graystripe and Millie padded out from behind the warriors’ den. Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight sat down in the shadow of Highledge while Lionpaw padded after Ashfur and settled beside his mentor. Daisy stayed by the nursery, whisking Icekit and Foxkit back with her tail as they tried to see what was happening.
Once the Clan had settled, Firestar sat down in the center of the clearing. He gazed around, his eyes shining.
“Doesn’t look like anything bad,” Hollypaw murmured to Cinderpaw.
“There is something I’ve wanted to do for a while,” Firestar began. “And now that newleaf is here it seems like a good time for new beginnings.”
Hollypaw leaned forward excitedly.
“It is time Millie became a ThunderClan warrior!”
Hollypaw froze. Millie had been a kittypet when Graystripe had met her. He’d given her some warrior training and she’d helped him on the long journey back to his Clan. But did that make her a warrior? Hollypaw didn’t even know if Millie believed in StarClan.
Mews of approval rippled around the edge of the clearing.
“About time!” Whitewing called.
Birchfall kneaded the ground. “She has the heart of a warrior!”
Hollypaw stared at them in surprise. Surely it wasn’t that simple? The daylight Gathering had helped to smooth the ruffled fur of the other Clans, but making a kittypet a warrior? Wouldn’t that stir up hostility again? Millie was a good hunter and had proved her bravery and loyalty in battle, but to make her a ThunderClan warrior…
“Millie.” Firestar beckoned the striped gray tabby.
She stepped forward, chin high. Hollypaw couldn’t help admiring her. And yet she had never trained as an apprentice. How could she possibly have a warrior name? Hollypaw felt her chest tighten with anxiety.
“You have fought bravely in battle,” Firestar meowed. “You have made sure the Clan has been fed through a bitter leaf-bare. No cat here doubts your loyalty or your skill. You have earned the warrior name I give you.” He paused for a moment. “From this day on you shall be known as—”
“Wait!”
Mews of surprise rippled among the Clan as Millie interrupted Firestar.
She gazed steadily around the cats, her blue eyes glowing. “I’m privileged to be considered a ThunderClan warrior,” she meowed. “I could ask for no greater honor. And I am grateful to Graystripe for rescuing me from my life as a kittypet.” She blinked warmly at her mate. “If I’d stayed my whole life as a Twoleg companion, it would have been only half a life. But—”
Graystripe stepped forward. “Millie?” His eyes were clouded with anxiety. “You’re not going to leave, are you?”
“Never.” Millie padded toward him and brushed her muzzle against his. Then she turned back to Firestar. “You can rely on my loyalty until the day I join StarClan, and you must believe that I will live and die to protect ThunderClan. But I don’t want to change my name. I have always been Millie, and I see no shame in it.”
A shocked silence gripped the Clan. Ashfur flicked his tail. Sandstorm narrowed her eyes, studying the former kittypet. Brambleclaw’s whiskers twitched.
Graystripe lifted his chin. “Millie is right. It doesn’t matter what she’s called. It only matters how she acts, and I know that she will always put the Clan first.”
Hollypaw watched Firestar, wondering what he would do. The ThunderClan leader shifted his paws uneasily, glancing from Graystripe to Millie.
Suddenly, another mew sounded. “May I speak?”
Hollypaw spun around. Daisy was padding forward. The cream-colored queen slid between Spiderleg and Birchfall and stepped into the center of the clearing. Hollypaw pricked her ears. Daisy had never spoken at a Clan meeting before.
“I am glad Millie has chosen to keep her name,” the she-cat began. Her soft mew trembled a little. “I am no warrior, but I am a ThunderClan cat. I stay in the nursery rather than hunt and fight because that is what I do best. I care for our young as though each kit were my own. This is my gift to the Clan, but I do it in my own chosen name.”
“She is right!” Brook stepped forward. “My loyalty lies with ThunderClan, but I would never give up the name given to me by the Tribe.”
Stormfur padded forward and ran his tail along his mate’s flank. “Is there any cat here who would not trust Millie or Daisy or Brook to fight on their side?” He stared challengingly around the Clan.
“No!” Graystripe led the call and Brambleclaw, Cloudtail, Whitewing, and the others quickly took it up. Daisy’s kits, Berrypaw, Hazelpaw, and Mousepaw cheered loudest of all.
Hollypaw watched uneasily.
Suddenly, Thornclaw’s mew rose above the others. “Stop! What would the other Clans say if they could see us now?”
Dustpelt nodded. “ShadowClan has already tried to take territory from us because we are no longer a pure forest-born Clan.”
Spiderleg narrowed his eyes. “Naming ceremonies are part of the warrior code. Can we ignore them and still keep the respect of the other Clans?”
Hollypaw swept her tail over the ground. Dustpelt and Spiderleg were right. Millie, Daisy, and Brook were important to the Clan, but unless they accepted all the customs of the Clan, how could they truly be part of it?
Firestar’s eyes flashed. “Silence!” he snapped. “Don’t forget you’re talking about your Clanmates! I invited Daisy, Brook, and Millie to join ThunderClan because they make us stronger.” He glared around the clearing. “You are happy to eat their fresh-kill and to have them fight beside you. Do you want me to throw them out because they have the wrong names? Do you want the other Clans to tell us what to do?”
“Of course not!” Graystripe meowed.
“Millie and Brook arewarriors already,” Brambleclaw put in. “Names make no difference.”
That’s not true!Hollypaw dug her claws into the earth. They had not had proper naming ceremonies; the Clan was ignoring a ritual that had been followed for countless moons. What would StarClan think?We must live by the warrior code!She stared at Thornclaw, willing him to speak, but he only dipped his head to their leader.
Firestar blinked at him and turned once more to Millie. “You may keep your name. We have seen your courage in battle and your skill at hunting. You are ThunderClan now. May StarClan recognize you as a true warrior.”
“ThunderClan! ThunderClan!” Birchfall began the chant and the others quickly joined in. Hollypaw watched in silence, noticing Dustpelt and Thornclaw exchange anxious glances.
“Don’t you feel like cheering?” Squirrelflight had weaved her way to Hollypaw’s side.
Hollypaw’s whiskers quivered. “What if StarClan doesn’t recognize her as a true warrior?”
“Do you really think StarClan is narrow-minded?” Squirrelflight murmured.
“We have the warrior code for a reason and this goes against it.” Hollypaw’s fur rippled along her spine. “Brambleclaw should have spoken out. He knows how important it is to follow the code.”
Squirrelflight smoothed Hollypaw’s fur with her tail. “Brambleclaw is Clan deputy. He must support Firestar.” Her green eyes glittered. “And don’t forget that Firestar was a kittypet once.”
“But he still took a warrior name!” Hollypaw mewed hotly. “He followed the warrior path and trained as an apprentice.” The cheers were dying away as the cats began to return to their duties. He never tried to change the warrior code!
“Hollypaw!”
Brackenfur’s mew jerked her from her thoughts. He was standing beside Cloudtail and Spiderleg. Their apprentices, Cinderpaw and Mousepaw, were pacing back and forth.
“It’s time we assessed your progress,” Brackenfur told her. “I want you, Cinderpaw, and Mousepaw to go hunting. Catch as much prey as you can.”
Squirrelflight’s eyes glowed. “An assessment already?”
Hollypaw forgot her unease, excitement pulsing through her pelt. At last she would have a chance to show everything she had learned.
Brackenfur flicked his tail. “Don’t forget I’ll be watching, out of sight.”
“Good luck!” As Squirrelflight padded away, nerves fluttered in Hollypaw’s belly. What if she let Brackenfur down?
No!She wouldn’t let that happen.
Mousepaw and Cinderpaw hurried to join her.
“I don’t know who I want to impress more—Cloudtail or Brackenfur!” Cinderpaw glanced anxiously at the two warriors. Brackenfur was her father.
“I’m going to show Spiderleg that I really can catch a squirrel,” Mousepaw vowed.
“You may as well start now.” Cloudtail padded over. “You must each hunt alone. We’ll be keeping an eye on you, so do your best.”
“Of course we will!” Hollypaw promised.
Cinderpaw shot away, Mousepaw hurrying after her. Hollypaw caught up with them as they raced through the thorn tunnel, each pushing to be first out. Hollypaw had never hunted alone before. Her whiskers twitched with anticipation.
“Where are you going to hunt?” she asked as they burst out of the camp.
“I’m hunting by the stream near the ShadowClan border,” Cinderpaw announced. “There’s always prey there.”
“It’s a bit open, isn’t it?” Hollypaw mewed.
“I’m good at jumping,” Cinderpaw reminded her. “Even in the open, the prey won’t see me coming till it’s too late.”
“I think I’ll stick to the undergrowth,” Hollypaw decided. “I prefer stalking my prey.” She glanced at Mousepaw. “What about you?”
“I’m with you,” he announced. “Undergrowth is easier. But once I’ve caught a couple of mice, I’m going to get a squirrel.”
“Come on, then!” Cinderpaw charged up the slope away from the camp.
Hollypaw and Mousepaw sped after her, leaves fluttering in their wake. As they neared the stream, Cinderpaw veered away toward the bank. Hollypaw headed for a small dip where the ferns grew thickly, and Mousepaw bounded away in the other direction.
Hollypaw halted at the edge of the dip. Steadying her breath, she dropped into a hunting crouch and crept down the slope. She wound her way through the thick fern stems, careful not to set any of them rustling. Is Brackenfur watching me already?she wondered as she drew herself forward, one slow paw step at a time. Don’t think about that. Concentrate on the hunt.She focused her senses on the foliage ahead, opening her mouth slightly to taste the breeze. Rabbit scent hung stale in the air, but the smell of mouse was fresh. Good!She halted and pricked her ears. The ferns were shivering up ahead. Narrowing her eyes she peered through the lush stalks and saw a small brown shape dart across over the leafy earth. A shrew! It began rooting among the leaf litter.
She crept closer.
The shrew stiffened.
Mouse dung!Her tail had brushed against a leaf.
The shrew glanced around.
Don’t move!Hollypaw held her breath and pressed her tail to the ground.
The shrew began rummaging again.
Good! It’s busy looking for food.
Moving as slowly as a snail, Hollypaw drew herself forward. The shrew went on rummaging. One more paw step!
A twig cracked beneath her paw. The shrew darted away. Hollypaw sprung and shot out her forepaws, catching the shrew in her claws before it had time to escape. One quick nip to the back of the neck and it was dead. Heart pounding, she carried it to the roots of a beech and buried it quickly before turning back for her next catch.
Before long she had caught another shrew and a mouse. As she safely buried the last of her catch beneath the beech, she saw golden fur flash among the brambles at the top of the slope. How long had Brackenfur been watching her? She hoped he was impressed.
Ferns rustled and Mousepaw exploded from the woods behind her
“I’ve caught my two mice,” the gray-and-white tom declared. “Now for that squirrel!”
“Shh!” Hollypaw snapped. “You’ll scare the prey away!”
“Sorry.” Mousepaw flicked his tail. “Are you still hunting?”
“I think I’ve got enough,” Hollypaw conceded.
“Any sign of Cinderpaw?” Mousepaw asked. “I hope she’s done okay.”
“I’ve done fine!” Cinderpaw emerged from the ferns, four water voles dangling by their tails from her jaws. She dropped them next to Hollypaw. “Can I bury them with yours?”
“Won’t they get mixed up?”
“Cloudtail already knows what I caught.”
“Have you spoken to him?” Hollypaw was surprised. Mentors weren’t meant to help in an assessment.
“Of course not,” Cinderpaw assured her. “But I could see him watching the whole time. It’s hard to hide in anything but snow with a pelt as white as his.” She purred with amusement.
“Mousepaw’s still determined to catch a squirrel,” Hollypaw told her.
“Really?” Cinderpaw stared at the gray-and-white tom in surprise. “Didn’t you get enough mice?”
“I got plenty,” Mousepaw mewed indignantly. “I just want to show Spiderleg I can catch squirrels, too.”
“There are usually some upstream,” Hollypaw suggested.
“I think I’ll climb the Sky Oak,” Mousepaw announced.
“No way!” Cinderpaw looked amazed. “It’s the tallest tree in the forest!”
“There’ll be squirrels in other trees,” Hollypaw cautioned. Mousepaw was Daisy’s kit, born outside the Clan, and keen to impress his Clanmates. But surely after the latest Clan meeting, he shouldn’t feel he had anything to prove.
“I’m going to climb the Sky Oak!” Mousepaw insisted. “I’ve been practicing and I want Spiderleg to see how good I am now.”
“Wow,” Cinderpaw breathed, “that’s brave!”
“Come on.” Mousepaw darted among the trees. Cinderpaw, kicking up leaves, scooted after him. Hollypaw glanced once more at the beech to make sure she would remember where she had buried her catch, and raced after them.
At the base of the Sky Oak, Hollypaw gazed up through the branches. The trunk seemed to stretch up forever, the blue sky glinting between the bright green leaves. Mousepaw was staring up too, and Hollypaw felt sure she saw his tail tremble.
“You’re scared,” Cinderpaw teased.
Hollypaw dug her claws into the earth. Don’t dare him into doing something he doesn’t want to do.“Why not just catch a few more mice instead?” she suggested. “There’ll be plenty around here.”
The fur along Mousepaw’s spine was spiked like a hedgehog. “No. I’m going to catch a squirrel,” he muttered determinedly. He sprang up and stretched out his forelegs to grip the wide trunk with his claws. Dragging himself upward, he managed to clamber onto the lowest branch. “There!” he called. “Easy.” He looked up, searching for his next perch.
Hollypaw suddenly heard paws pounding toward them.
“Mousepaw!” Brackenfur hurtled out of the trees. He was panting and his eyes were wide with alarm. “Get down!”
Spiderleg skidded after him. “Leave him alone!” he snapped at Brackenfur. “If he wants to do it, let him!”
Cloudtail padded out from the trees. “I thought we weren’t meant to help—” He stopped when he spotted Mousepaw scrambling up to the next branch.
“I really think you should tell him to come down,” Brackenfur advised.
“Are you saying my apprentice isn’t good enough?” Spiderleg flattened his ears.
“He’s still young,” Brackenfur argued. “I wouldn’t let Hollypaw climb it.”
“Hollypaw’s not been training as long as Mousepaw,” Spiderleg pointed out.
“Look, it’s easy!” Mousepaw called. The branches were close together now and he was leaping nimbly upward.
“Not too high,” Spiderleg cautioned. Even he was beginning to look worried as Mousepaw hopped from branch to branch.
Leaves rustled just above him. A squirrel was scrambling up the tree.
“Look!” Cinderpaw called excitedly. “There’s one!”
Mousepaw darted after it. Hollypaw’s neck began to ache from looking up. She could see leaves shivering far above as the squirrel kept climbing, staying just a few tail-lengths ahead of Mousepaw, almost as if it were enticing him upward.
Be careful, Mousepaw!
Suddenly, the squirrel leaped out of the Sky Oak and landed in the tree next to it, sending twigs showering down.
Mousepaw froze.
He was so far away he looked the size of a mouse. But even from this distance, Hollypaw could see that his fur was bushed out from nose to tail-tip. The gray-and-white apprentice was terrified.
“Good try. You may as well come down,” Spiderleg called encouragingly.
“I can’t!” Mousepaw’s mew came out as a squeak. “I’m stuck!”
Brackenfur sighed. “What are we going to do now?”
“I could go up after him,” Cloudtail offered. Every cat knew he was one of the best climbers in the Clan.
“He’s not going to get down by himself,” Spiderleg agreed.
“I’ll fetch him!” mewed Cinderpaw.
“Wait!” Hollypaw yelped as the gray apprentice began to scramble up the tree trunk.
“Get down at once!” Brackenfur hissed at his daughter.
Cinderpaw paused on the lowest branch. “But I can see an easy route to get him down,” she argued.
Cloudtail exchanged worried glances with Brackenfur.
“I’ll go slowly,” Cinderpaw promised when they didn’t say anything. “And if I feel like I’m getting too high, I’ll stop.”
Brackenfur nodded. “Okay, but be careful.”
Cautiously, Cinderpaw began to climb the tree, taking her time between jumps, making sure that she only reached up a little at a time. Hollypaw watched, her mouth dry. She’ll be all right,she told herself again and again.
She felt Brackenfur trembling beside her. He was watching Cinderpaw with round, frightened eyes.
“She’s nearly reached him,” Cloudtail reported.
Cinderpaw was only a few branches from her denmate now. Mousepaw was watching her, his fur slowly flattening.
“It’s okay, Mousepaw,” Cinderpaw called up to him. “There’s nothing to be frightened of.”
Hollypaw held her breath as Cinderpaw began to guide Mousepaw down, one branch at a time.
“That’s it,” Cinderpaw mewed. “The next branch is really close. Just make sure you grip with your claws and you’ll be fine.”
The two cats were easier to see now, getting closer and closer to safety with every uneasy jump.
They’re going to make it!
Suddenly, a bird shrieked and flapped out of the tree just below them. Mousepaw squealed in shock and slipped from the branch.
Quick as a flash, Cinderpaw lunged forward and reached for him. She caught him and hauled him back onto the branch, her hind legs scrabbling for a hold. Mousepaw grabbed at the branch and clung to the bark, his tail lashing in panic.
Relief flooded Hollypaw.
Then she saw Cinderpaw wobble. The gray tabby’s hind paws were slipping over the back of the branch. Her forepaws churned desperately at the air. With a yelp she slid over the edge and fell. Hollypaw stared in horror as Cinderpaw dropped through the leaves like a stone and landed with a sickening thud.
“No!” Brackenfur’s mew cracked as he darted forward. “Cinderpaw? Cinderpaw!” He crouched over the limp body lying awkwardly on the ground.
“Get Leafpool!” Spiderleg hissed in Hollypaw’s ear.
Hollypaw glanced once more at her friend’s twisted body before hurtling away through the trees. Cinderpaw can’t be dead!
She mustn’t be dead!
CHAPTER9
CHAPTER9
The full moon rippled on thesurface of the lake while clouds billowed on the horizon, gray against the blue-black sky.
Hollypaw shivered as she trekked around the shore to the Gathering. A cold wind was ruffling her pelt the wrong way, tugging at her downy fur. She ducked between Squirrelflight and Brackenfur to hide from the chill.
“It’ll be warmer on the island,” Squirrelflight promised, flattening her ears against the breeze.
Spiderleg and Mousepaw padded ahead, Dustpelt, Brambleclaw, and Squirrelflight beside them, while Thornclaw kept pace with Whitewing, brushing close against her as though shielding her from the wind. Firestar and Sandstorm headed the party while Lionpaw trailed behind with Ashfur and Leafpool. As they followed the edge of the lake, small waves slapped the shore and farther out, foamy crests glowed in the moonlight.
“Get off there!” Brambleclaw’s impatient command rose above the wind.
Hollypaw slipped out from her sheltered spot to see who he was yowling at.
Berrypaw was padding along a log lying in the shallows. A gust of wind whipped in from the lake, flattening Hollypaw’s whiskers against her face. Through narrowed eyes she watched as Berrypaw lost his balance and fell with a splash into the water. He fought his way to his paws and, shaking the water from his creamy pelt, raced back up the shore to join his Clanmates.
Brambleclaw cuffed him around the ears. “That was a mouse-brained thing to do!”
Berrypaw sneezed.
“And don’t think you’re missing any training if you’ve caught a cold!”
The sour smell of horseplace tainted the breeze as the cats neared the end of WindClan territory. The pebbly shore was narrow here, and the wind was blowing spray over it. Firestar led the party up onto the soft grass, skirting the fence. Beyond it the horses were whinnying in their field. Hollypaw felt a shiver of unease as she gazed at the great dark shapes shifting beyond the fence. Perhaps they don’t like the weather either. The squally wind promised rain, and plenty of it.
Thud!
A horse stamped its foot close to the fence. Whitewing yowled in surprise, leaping sideways in alarm. She careered into Mousepaw, sending him tumbling down onto the pebbly shore.
“Watch out!” he spat, scrambling to his paws.
Whitewing stared down at him, appalled. “I’m sorry.”
Why is everyone so jumpy and cross?Hollypaw gazed around at her Clanmates. Few words had passed between them since they had left the camp. Their fur was spiked against the wind, their tails flicking. She felt uneasy herself. Ever since WindClan had been discovered hunting squirrels, there had been rumors of prey-stealing and revenge and worries about invasion. Hollypaw wasn’t convinced that WindClan’s strange behavior had to end in battle. The warrior code didn’t say what Clans could and couldn’t hunt. But she hated the tense atmosphere. And she was still worried about RiverClan.
There had been no news since Jaypaw’s dream at half-moon. She was desperate to speak to Willowpaw tonight, but her paws pricked with anxiety. What if things were so bad RiverClan didn’t come at all?
Lionpaw brushed against her as she followed Brambleclaw down the sandy bank, back onto the shore. “I wish I’d stayed in camp with Jaypaw,” he mewed.
She glanced at him. That didn’t sound like Lionpaw. He looked sleepy.
“Are you okay?” Didn’t he even want to see if Heatherpaw was going to be there?
“Just tired,” he mewed. “Ashfur’s been training me hard.”
Part of her was relieved by his lack of interest in the WindClan apprentice. He must have put his friendship with her behind him at last. But still, it was strange that he’d rather be stuck in camp than going to a Gathering.
Dustpelt halted in front of them, ears pricked. “WindClan!” he warned.
Hollypaw saw a swarm of dark shapes moving against the heather, heading down to the shore. “Do you think Firestar will mention the squirrel-hunting tonight?”
Lionpaw shrugged. “Who knows?”
The WindClan cats streamed onto the shore a little ahead of ThunderClan, and headed onto the marshy shore of RiverClan territory. Hollypaw wrinkled her nose as muddy water squelched between her claws. Firestar had veered closer to the water, hurrying his Clan forward so that they pulled ahead of WindClan
“Squirrel thieves!” Dustpelt muttered, glancing sideways at the WindClan cats.
“Squirrel thieves!” Berrypaw echoed more loudly.
The insult rippled through the ThunderClan party until it rang above the blustering wind. Hollypaw tensed. They couldn’t fight tonight! She glanced warily at the WindClan cats. Tornear’s eyes blazed in the moonlight; Breezepaw curled his lip in a menacing scowl. But Onestar padded calmly on, eyes fixed on the fallen tree ahead. He reached it first but signaled with his tail for his Clan to step back. They watched with glittering eyes as Firestar led ThunderClan past and jumped onto the tree-bridge.
Firestar gazed down at the WindClan leader. “Thank you, Onestar.”
Onestar dipped his head.
The ThunderClan cats filed across the tree-bridge. When Hollypaw’s turn came to scramble up through the tangle of roots, she caught the first scent of RiverClan. It was strong, fresh scents mixed with stale. They’re here!Relief washed her pelt. Things couldn’t be too bad if they’d made it to the Gathering. She picked her way along the gnarled trunk and leaped down onto the shore. Kneading the sand beneath the pebbles to keep warm, she waited for Ashfur and Leafpool to follow.
“Is everyone over?” Firestar meowed.
Brambleclaw nodded; Firestar signaled with his tail and plunged into the undergrowth. Hollypaw darted after him into the brambles. I must speak to Willowpaw!A barb stabbed her nose, but she pushed on into the softer ferns and emerged ahead of her Clanmates.
The clearing was packed! Gray pelts glowed in the moonlight like stones among tortoiseshell and brown pelts. Striped fur mingled with mottled. Large toms, slender she-cats, lithe young cats. Some sat in groups exchanging hushed words, some lay at the edges gazing warily around. Small cats wove around larger cats, some so small Hollypaw could hardly believe they were old enough to be apprentices.
She sniffed the air. No sign of ShadowClan.
“How come there are so many RiverClan cats here?” Lionpaw had caught up to her. He sounded out of breath.
Hollypaw shook her head. Her pelt was bristling with unease. Every cat in the clearing was RiverClan.
“Some of them are a bit old to be here.” Lionpaw was staring at a thickset tabby tom, whose muzzle was specked with white whiskers. A dark tabby she-cat sat beside him, her fur matted as though she could no longer wash herself properly.
“Swallowtail!” A very young cat was hurrying toward the elderly she-cat. Its eyes were wide with fear. “I can’t find Graymist or Sneezekit.”
“Don’t worry, Mallowkit.” Swallowtail swept her tail around the little cat. “Your mother will be back in a moment. Sneezekit’s probably with her.”
“Did she say kit?” Lionpaw asked in surprise.
Hollypaw didn’t reply. She was staring at Willowpaw. The RiverClan apprentice was laying out some herbs in front of a heavily pregnant queen. Alarm flashing in her paws, Hollypaw zigzagged through the busy clearing to Willowpaw’s side. “What’s going on?”
Willowpaw looked up, her eyes filled with panic. “Hollypaw!”
“What in StarClan has happened?”
Before Willowpaw could answer, WindClan burst into the clearing. Mews of surprise rippled from them as they squeezed among the RiverClan cats.
“Graymist? Graymist?” A tiny tortoiseshell kit was wailing in the middle of the chaos.
“Sneezekit! What are you doing away from your mother?” Swallowtail darted forward and plucked up the tiny kit in her jaws. She winced as though the weight were too heavy for her stiff limbs and padded back to Mallowkit.
“Why are there kits and elders here, Willowpaw?” Hollypaw turned back to her friend.
“We had to—”
Firestar’s mew cut her off. “Leopardstar, what’s going on?” The ThunderClan leader was padding toward the Great Oak, where Leopardstar sat among the roots.
Onestar was hurrying across the clearing. “It looks like you’ve brought the whole of RiverClan!” he growled.
Leopardstar blinked. “I have.”
“What?” Onestar stumbled to a halt beside her, eyes wide.
Hollypaw leaned forward. What had happened to RiverClan?
Blackstar’s angry mew sounded from the edge of the clearing. “What’s going on here?”
ShadowClan had arrived.
Firestar plucked at the earth. “Let’s start the meeting. Then we can all find out.” He leaped onto the lowest branch of the oak, Leopardstar following. Blackstar and Onestar climbed up beside him. Below, the Clans jostled as they struggled to find space to settle.
Willowpaw stayed beside the pregnant cat.
“Is everything all right?” Hollypaw hissed.
“Join your Clanmates.” Willowpaw pawed at the ball of herbs, avoiding her friend’s gaze. “Please!”
Hollypaw nodded and fell in behind a group of RiverClan warriors padding toward the oak. Their heads were high, their tails flicking fretfully. A gray RiverClan queen pushed past her, heading in the other direction.
“Sorry!” Hollypaw swerved out of the way, but the queen didn’t seem to notice her.
“Graymist! You’re here!” Swallowtail’s mew was filled with relief as the queen reached her. The kits hurried to greet their mother, but Graymist shooed them back and followed Swallowtail to a clump of ferns where RiverClan elders and kits were already sheltering. Their eyes glowed warily from the shadows.
Hollypaw hurried to join her Clanmates. Berrypaw flinched as she squeezed past him. “Watch my tail!”
“Careful!” Dustpelt warned as she stepped on his paw.
“Sorry!” Hollypaw slid gingerly around Lionpaw, making sure she only put her feet on solid ground.
“Did you find anything out?” he hissed.
“No.”
“Just sit down and keep quiet,” Brackenfur ordered.
Hollypaw blinked a silent apology and looked up at Leopardstar.
The RiverClan leader gazed steadily from the oak. A kit wailed and was quickly silenced. “We have a small problem on RiverClan territory,” Leopardstar began.
Small?Hollypaw’s heart pounded. Then why are you all here?
“We’ve had to leave our camp.”
“Leave your camp?” Blackstar’s eyes glittered with interest.
“Only for a short time,” Leopardstar meowed quickly. “We’re sorting the trouble out. We shall move back as soon as it’s fixed. Until then we’ll be staying on the island.”
What about Gatherings?Hollypaw glanced up anxiously at Silverpelt. Gatherings were governed by the warrior code; they took place on land shared equally by the Clans. Surely this broke with the tradition laid down by their ancestors?
“Where are you hunting?” Onestar stared accusingly at the RiverClan leader.
Russetfur stood up, the fur pricking along her spine. “There can’t possibly be enough food on the island for the whole Clan.”
Leopardstar glared at the ShadowClan deputy. “We have the lake!”
“Is that enough?” Crowfeather called. “What will you do when you have fished out the shallow waters around the island?”
Mistyfoot bristled. “We’re not eating rabbit, if that’s what you’re worried about!” The RiverClan deputy curled her lip as though rabbit was the last thing she’d dream of swallowing.
“What about Gatherings?” Firestar gazed calmly at Leopardstar.
“We hope to be back in our camp by the next full moon,” Leopardstar meowed.
“And what if you’re not?” Blackstar demanded. “It’s not fair if you outnumber every other Clan at the Gatherings.”
Thornclaw stood up. “No cat ever lived at Fourtrees,” he pointed out. “It was special to all the Clans, like Mothermouth.”
Leopardstar met his gaze. “We would not be doing this if we had another option.”
“What if you can never return to your camp?” Onestar’s claws scratched the bark underneath him. “Where will you go then?”
“Will you move to new territory?”
“Will you invade another Clan’s land?”
Anxious mews sounded from the clearing.
Leopardstar’s gaze swept the cats. “You are worrying about something that will never happen!”
Blackstar’s tail was twitching. “But what if it does?” he hissed.
“Three territories can’t support four Clans!” Onestar meowed.
Smokefoot, a ShadowClan warrior, lifted his chin. “One Clan will have to go!”
Silence gripped the clearing. Nervous glances flashed from one cat to another.
Hollypaw’s belly tightened. Could one Clan really be driven from the lake? No!There had to be four Clans! That was the way it was meant to be.
“We have to believe Leopardstar,” Firestar’s mew rang over the clearing. “We must give RiverClan a chance to return to their territory.”
“At least until the next Gathering,” Sandstorm put in. The Clans muttered, but no cat argued.
Firestar nodded. “If RiverClan is still living on the island next full moon, we can decide what to do.” He stared at the other leaders. “Does that seem fair?”
Blackstar nodded curtly.
Onestar flicked his tail. “I guess,” he muttered.
“Then it’s settled.” Firestar gazed out over the Clans. “ThunderClan has little to report. One of our apprentices was wounded, but she is recovering well.” He glanced at Onestar. “And newleaf has brought plenty of prey to the forest.”
Hollypaw dug her claws into the earth. He’s hinting about the squirrels
Onestar narrowed his eyes. “WindClan is healthy. And prey is running well on our lands too.”
Hollypaw felt Berrypaw’s breath ruffle her ear. “He said prey, not rabbits,” he whispered fiercely.
“Why doesn’t Firestar mention the squirrels?” Spiderleg hissed.
“Is he too scared to speak?”
Hollypaw jerked around to see which ThunderClan warrior had muttered the question. Thornclaw was glaring at Firestar.
But he’s right not to stir up more trouble! There’s enough tension here already.
“Blackstar?” Onestar was prompting the ShadowClan leader. “Anything to report?”
“A few Twolegs by the lake,” Blackstar revealed. “But none near our camp.”
“Good.” Firestar nodded. “If there’s no other news, I think we should leave RiverClan in peace.”
Whispers rustled through the uneasy crowd, but Firestar jumped down from the Great Oak. Leopardstar followed him. The Gathering was over.
Hollypaw felt a wave of relief as she watched WindClan and ShadowClan disappearing into the undergrowth. She hurried back to Willowpaw. “What’s really going on?” she demanded. “Why did you leave your camp?”
Willowpaw’s mouth was full of herbs. “I can’t talk now,” she mumbled. “Not with every cat listening.”
“I understand.” Hollypaw could see the desperate plea in her friend’s eyes. “I’ll come back later. You can tell me then.”
Willowpaw spat the herb pulp onto the ground. “Please don’t get into trouble!”
“I won’t,” Hollypaw promised. She hadto hear the whole story. Firestar might be able to help RiverClan. The future of the Clans could depend on what she could find out. She spotted Brackenfur disappearing into the undergrowth with Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight. Lionpaw was beckoning to her with his tail.
“I’ve got to go.” Hollypaw touched her muzzle to Willowpaw’s cheek before darting away.
“Did she say anything?” Lionpaw asked as she reached him.
“No, not really.” Hollypaw began to hurry through the ferns. Her heart ached for her unhappy friend.
They caught up with their Clanmates at the tree-bridge. WindClan and ShadowClan were already padding away on the far shore
“What does this mean for ThunderClan?” Mousepaw was asking anxiously as he scrabbled onto the trunk.
Squirrelflight jumped up behind him. “Nothing.”
“How can you be sure?” Spiderleg stopped in the middle of the bridge.
Dustpelt narrowed his eyes. “If RiverClan can’t stay in their own territory, they might try to invade WindClan or ShadowClan. If that happens, none of the borders will be safe.”
“But we’re over on the other side of the lake!” Mousepaw mewed. “It won’t affect us.” He followed Dustpelt through the branches and hurried in his paw steps along the trunk.
“I just hope you’re right,” Dustpelt muttered darkly.
“I suppose this explains why WindClan has started training their apprentices to hunt in woodland,” Spiderleg growled.
Hollypaw shivered. Could he be right? Was WindClan planning to invade ThunderClan territory?
“Lionpaw!” Ashfur’s urgent call woke Hollypaw. She looked up from her nest. Lionpaw was already halfway out of the den.
“Is something wrong?” she asked. Most of the nests were already empty; only Honeypaw slept on.
“Battle training!” Lionpaw replied over his shoulder.
Hollypaw got to her paws and stretched. Brackenfur hadn’t called for her. Perhaps she’d get a chance to visit Cinderpaw before training.
Outside she could hear paw steps hurrying and excited mews. Everyone seemed very busy this morning. Intrigued, Hollypaw padded from the den. The sun was only just beginning to creep into the hollow, but the clearing was buzzing like a nest of bees. The fresh-kill pile was well stocked. Mousepaw and Berrypaw were practicing battle moves by the halfrock. Graystripe and Millie were dragging brambles toward the half-finished den. Firestar was talking with Thornclaw and Brambleclaw below the Highledge.
Outside the elders’ den, Mousefur was stretching in the sun. Longtail sat beside her, his face lifted to the sky. “Hollypaw? Is that you I smell?” the blind warrior called across the clearing.
“Yes.” Hollypaw went over to him.
“I hear trouble’s coming.” Longtail dug his claws into the ground. “I wish I could help defend my Clan.”
“There’s no trouble,” Hollypaw answered quickly. “RiverClan just has a few problems, that’s all.”
“Sounds like there’s going to be a new marking-out of territory,” Longtail went on. “I’d like to see any Clan try to take a piece of what belongs to us!”
He’s enjoying this!Alarm bristled along Hollypaw’s spine. She was relieved to see Brackenfur padding toward her. Surely he would be too sensible to be caught up in all this talk of battle?
“We’re going hunting,” he announced.
Good! Something normal.
Brackenfur went on. “If there’s going to be a battle, we need to be well fed.”
Hollypaw stiffened. Not Brackenfur, too!“Can I visit Cinderpaw before we leave?”
“Go ahead,” Brackenfur agreed. “But don’t be long.”
Hollypaw padded across the clearing and poked her nose through the trailing brambles that covered the medicine den entrance. “Can I come in?”
Cinderpaw was sitting up in her nest, her rush-bound hind leg stuck out awkwardly in front her. She was reaching forward to chase a ball of moss around the edge of her nest with her forepaws.
Leafpool was soaking dried horsetail stems in the pool at the side of the den. She looked around. “Hi, Hollypaw!”
Hollypaw thought she detected relief in the medicine cat’s mew. She pushed through the brambles.
“I’m glad you’re here. Cinderpaw could do with some company.” Leafpool glanced at her fidgeting patient. “She’s finding it hard to keep still.”
Cinderpaw patted the moss ball so that it flew across the den and landed beside Hollypaw. “Toss it back so I can catch it!” she pleaded.
“Don’t you dare!” Leafpool leaped over and grabbed the ball in her teeth. “You’ve got to keep still if you want your leg to mend straight!”
Hollypaw purred with amusement as Cinderpaw rolled her eyes. Then she noticed Jaypaw at the back of the den. He was busily wrapping up herbs in leaf parcels and piling them against the den wall. He seemed totally absorbed in his task and didn’t look up to greet his sister.
“What are you doing, Jaypaw?” she called across the den.
“Preparing herbs,” he muttered. “What does it look like?”
“That’s a lot of herbs.” Hollypaw could smell horsetail and marigold. She remembered enough of her medicine training to know that he was preparing for combat wounds. She felt sick. It seemed as though the whole Clan had accepted a battle was coming.
“What’s up?” Cinderpaw called from her nest.
Hollypaw padded to her side. “Has anybody told you what happened at the Gathering?”
Cinderpaw shook her head. “Leafpool and Jaypaw were whispering about something when Leafpool got back, but they haven’t said anything to me.”
“RiverClan is living on the island!”
Cinderpaw’s eyes widened with shock. “Livingthere?”
“They can’t use their camp for some reason and all the other Clans think they’ll have to find new territory.”
Cinderpaw gasped. “But that would mess everything up.”
“I know.” Hollypaw glanced at Jaypaw, still busy at the back of the den. “And it seems as if everyone is expecting a fight.”
Cinderpaw plucked at the moss in her nest. “I just hope I’m better in time to join in,” she mewed.
Hollypaw stared at her crossly. “There doesn’t need to bea battle!”
“But if everyone wants one—”
Hollypaw cut her off. “Everyone’s just scared about what RiverClan will do. If we can help RiverClan, then everything will go back to normal.”
She padded out of the den and stared around the clearing. Foxkit and Icekit were play-fighting outside the nursery; Longtail and Mousefur were drawing battle plans in the sandy earth. Firestar was still talking with Brambleclaw.
She couldn’t let her Clanmates get caught up in a battle before they had tried to find a different way to solve the problem. If she could just find a way to help RiverClan, maybe there would be nothing left to fight about.
第五章
第五章
看到冬青爪在黑暗中闪烁着的眼睛时，狮爪的身体一僵。就算他回到自己的窝里时，冬青爪的眼睛已经闭上了，他还是心有余悸。冬青爪一直在等着他偷偷溜回学徒巢穴。
“我没事儿，”狮爪在冬青爪耳边轻轻说道，“我就是去排便处了。”他不安地挪了挪爪子，心想，为什么自己一定要事事都向冬青爪汇报呢？冬青爪翻了个身，没有回应。狮爪爬回自己的窝里，背对着冬青爪。
外面，月亮已高高升起，夜风暖暖地吹着。狮爪真想再次溜出营地，跟石楠爪相会。石楠爪不会用那种谴责族群叛徒的眼光盯着自己。石楠爪也明白，他俩只是去那里玩耍，而不是要泄露彼此族群的秘密。狮爪闭上眼睛，气鼓鼓地在窝里睡着了。不一会儿，他就开始做梦了。
冬青爪朝他眨眨眼，那双眼睛在黑暗的地洞里闪着温暖和兴奋的光芒，就跟儿时他俩一起玩耍的时候一样。狮爪爬到洞口处，心想，冬青爪究竟在干什么呢？
“冬青爪？”
“我会抓住你的！”她开玩笑地说道。
原来如此。
只是在做游戏啊。
狮爪蹲伏下来，又往前爬了几步。冬青爪调皮地抖抖胡须，在漆黑一片的洞里，她那双琥珀色的眼睛闪着点点微光。
狮爪的身体顿时变得冰凉。
什么？琥珀色？冬青爪的眼睛不是绿色的吗？
狮爪向后退了退。这时那双眼睛不再是玩闹的样子，而是凶狠地盯着他。那不是冬青爪！一声吼叫从洞里传来。是狐狸！狮爪想赶快逃跑，但是他的爪子却突然变得像石头一样沉重。洞里的那个家伙张开血盆大口，吼叫着向他扑了过来。
狮爪一下子跳了起来，惊醒了。微弱的光线从巢穴上方的枝条缝隙透进来，在熟睡的猫身上投下点点光斑。
冬青爪抬起头，问道：“你没事儿吧？”
“刚才做了个噩梦。”狮爪喘着粗气说道。
冬青爪凑到狮爪身边：“梦见什么了？”
“我梦见一只狐狸。”狮爪让自己的呼吸平稳一些后说道。
“放心吧，这里没有狐狸。”炭爪从窝里爬了出来，用安慰的目光看着他。
狮爪的毛竖了起来。这两只猫可真是爱管闲事！“我出去找点儿吃的。”他说着就走出了巢穴。
黑莓掌在高石台上俯视着整个营地。狮爪猜测，火星一定是去巡逻了。空地的另一端，松鸦爪正在高耸的半边石旁梳洗身体。当狮爪走过他身边时，松鸦爪停了下来。
“你没事儿吧？”松鸦爪歪歪脑袋，问道。
“我刚做了个噩梦，仅此而已。”狮爪低声咕哝道。他走到猎物堆旁，叼起一只已经变硬的小老鼠，走到松鸦爪身边。
他俩一起安静地吃着猎物。至少松鸦爪不会刨根问底，问狮爪上个月做了什么。
“狮爪！”蜡毛从武士巢穴里走了出来，“我们今早要跟蕨毛和冬青爪一起训练。”
星族啊，我永远也摆脱不了她了！
这时荆棘屏障沙沙作响，早上出发的巡逻队回到了营地。火星和沙风嘴里都叼着猎物，蛛足和鼠爪各自带回一只老鼠，白翅嘴里衔着一只很肥的画眉。
“一切都还顺利吧？”黑莓掌问道。
火星把自己的猎物放在猎物堆上：“我们去的地方一切都安静如常，而且你看，猎物还是不少的。”
黑莓掌来到猎物堆旁，闻了闻白翅带回来的那只画眉。他把那只画眉叼起来，向育婴室走去。
“嗨，松鸦爪。”冬青爪和炭爪正一起穿过空地，“现在还有吃的吗？”
“冬青爪，你待会儿再吃吧！”蕨毛在营地入口旁来回踱着步子，“我们得先去训练。”
狮爪吞下了最后一片鼠肉，心里生出一种满足感。冬青爪刚才一定又在说他的闲话了，那就让她一直饿着吧！狮爪站起来，跑到蕨毛身边。蜡毛也跑过来，准备一起出发。
“我要饿死啦！”冬青爪一边抱怨，一边跟了上去。
“我们先进行战斗训练，然后再去狩猎。”蕨毛承诺道。
这位金棕色皮毛的武士快速穿过通道。狮爪紧跟在蜡毛身边，冬青爪快步跟上。他们一行静悄悄地来到进行训练的谷地。阳光从亮绿色的叶子中间斜照进来，鸟儿婉转的歌声在空中回荡。狮爪看到冬青爪舔了舔自己的嘴巴。
蜡毛在谷地中央坐下，尾巴在铺满苔藓的地面上扫来扫去。“今天我们来探讨一下其他族群如何作战，搞清楚他们各自的优势和弱点；再思考一下，我们如何利用他们的弱点在战斗中取胜。”
“那么，其他族群都有什么强项呢？”蕨毛问道。
“河族会游泳，”冬青爪说道，“这说明，他们可以从水中发起袭击。”
“风族善于伪装自己，并且体形也很小，所以他们最难被发现。”狮爪说道。
“如果他们在上风向时，就不是这样了，”冬青爪说道，“他们像兔子一样的气味，会暴露他们的行踪。”
狮爪气得全身的毛都竖了起来。石楠爪闻起来可不像兔子。
“影族呢？”蜡毛问道。
“嗯，他们是很邪恶的，”冬青爪大声说，“所以你永远不知道他们会用怎样卑劣的手段进攻。这让他们变得不可预测。”
“他们的弱点呢？”蕨毛接着问道。
“影族的弱点是，他们过高地估计了自己的英勇。”冬青爪说道，“河族猫都不愁吃的，所以他们行动的速度比我们慢。”
狮爪动动爪子，想着说些什么，可冬青爪总是抢在他前面。
蜡毛看了看狮爪：“那风族呢？”
狮爪突然感觉嘴巴干得说不出话来，蜡毛的目光似乎将他看穿了。难道冬青爪已经告诉他的老师自己跟石楠爪见面的事情了？当狮爪意识到在场的所有猫都注视着自己、等待着答案时，他开始有点儿心慌了，爪子也开始抖起来。快点儿说啊，我是知道答案的！
冬青爪转转眼珠，说道：“狮爪认为，风族是没有弱点的。”她的话让狮爪感觉尴尬，耳朵像着了火一样难受。为什么她要说得这么露骨？她难道是在警告他，她有能力让他陷入大麻烦吗？
狮爪气得大喊起来：“你说得不对！”
“哪里不对？”黑莓掌走下斜坡，莓爪也跟来了。
狮爪抬起下巴：“刚才冬青爪指责我偏袒风族！”
“她为什么要这么做呢？”
“我只是开玩笑而已，”冬青爪说道，“狮爪太敏感了，因为他刚刚做了个噩梦。”
狮爪猛地抽动着尾巴。冬青爪是想让他看起来像个白痴吗？要是不露两招，她还真要把自己当傻子了！“风族的速度很快，不过战斗力没有我们强，因为荒原上没有树，他们平常不练习攀爬。”他一边大声说着，一边死死地瞪着冬青爪。
“很好。”蕨毛点点头，“你应该知道一些基础的战斗动作吧，我们来练习一下，先来试试怎么跟河族猫较量吧。”
蕨毛突然冲到蜡毛身下，咬住他的后腿。蜡毛转过身体，准备反攻，但是蕨毛早已跳到了很远的地方。蜡毛再次朝他扑了过去，蕨毛迅速滚向一边，然后身子一纵，跳到蜡毛的后背上。蜡毛的身体一下子失去了平衡，跌倒在地上。接着两位武士站了起来，抖了抖皮毛上的泥土，转身面向他们的学徒。
“你们俩现在来试试吧。”蜡毛说道。
“狮爪。”蕨毛用尾巴碰了碰狮爪的腹部，“你体形大些，而且更强壮，你来当河族猫吧。冬青爪，你要试着让他失去重心，就像我刚才对蜡毛做的那样。”
冬青爪点点头。“可别让我赢得太容易哦！”她的眼睛里闪着坚毅的光。
“别担心，我不会的。”狮爪咬牙挤出这几个字。难道她真的不知道他早就被激怒了吗？
狮爪发觉冬青爪突然冲到自己身下，用牙齿咬住了自己的后腿。不过他可不想像蜡毛对蕨毛一样，如此轻松地让冬青爪逃开。他不等冬青爪跳开，就把全身的重量压在她身上，然后死死抓住她，把她翻了个底朝天。
“喂！”冬青爪尖叫道，“你的动作不对，不该这样！”
“你的动作应该再快些！”说完，狮爪用前爪抓住冬青爪的肩膀，后爪开始在她的背上使劲儿抓起来。
“你把我弄疼啦！”冬青爪发出尖叫，使劲儿想挣脱开。
“狮爪，住手！”黑莓掌厉声喝道。狮爪停了下来。冬青爪挣脱狮爪的爪子，爬了起来。黑莓掌紧紧地盯着狮爪，两眼冒着火：“这是训练！我们可不想弄伤任何猫！”
狮爪也站了起来。“对不起，”他说道，“刚才我太投入了。”
冬青爪舔舐着狮爪给她身体上留下的抓痕。一阵内疚浇灭了狮爪的怒火，他垂下了脑袋，“对不起，冬青爪。”他低声喃喃道。狮爪心中燃烧了一早上的怒火终于熄灭了。“我真的很抱歉。”他紧张地看了看父亲，这时黑莓掌的眼里已经没了愤怒，有的只是担忧。
“今早训练莓爪和冬青爪的任务就交给你俩了，好吗？”雷族副族长给蜡毛和蕨毛布置了任务，“我要带狮爪去狩猎。”
狮爪身上的毛尴尬地竖起来，跟着父亲离开了谷地。他做好了被黑莓掌训斥一顿的准备，不过黑莓掌却什么也没说，只是平静地在森林里穿行着。
“我刚才不该被怒火冲昏头，”狮爪脱口说道，他决定有话直说，“可从今天早上开始，冬青爪一直在招惹我。”
黑莓掌依然没有说话。
“我知道这不是理由，”狮爪接着说道，“这种事情今后不会再发生了。”
“我知道。”黑莓掌终于开口了，他停下脚步，注视着狮爪，“你刚才的表现，简直就不像是你。”这位虎斑武士叹了口气，“我还指望你能好好照顾族猫呢。”
狮爪垂下了头，他知道自己让父亲失望了。
“你在担心着什么事情吗？”黑莓掌问道，“是不是有一些……”他停顿一下，接着说道，“……事情，在困扰着你？”
狮爪清楚，不能告诉父亲关于自己和石楠爪的事，还有冬青爪如何阻止自己见她的事。“只是……”他说话的声音变得特别小。该怎么解释自己会发怒呢？“我只是感觉，冬青爪不相信我会成为一位忠诚的武士。”
黑莓掌点点头。“我知道这种感觉是什么样的。”说完，他继续向前走去。狮爪一脸困惑地跟了上去。
“我是虎星的儿子，这就意味着，我必须要获得所有雷族猫的信任。”黑莓掌小声说道，“所以，当你必须要证明一些本不需要去证明的事情时，那种感觉真的很难受。”
茂密的树木开始向坡上延伸，他俩把爪子插进芳香的泥土里，准备向上攀爬。
“大家只看到了虎星邪恶的一面，但他们都忘了，其实他也是一位勇敢而聪慧的武士。”
狮爪竖起耳朵。黑莓掌是在为虎星辩护吗？
“我没有忘记虎星是如何背叛自己的族群的，”黑莓掌说道，他似乎注意到了狮爪脸上惊讶的神色，“不过我们每只猫身上都既有长处，也有弱点。如果大家只记着一只猫的弱点，那真的很可悲。我希望将来，其他猫记住的是我的优点，而不是缺点。”
“当然了。”狮爪说道。一想到自己的父亲总有一天会化为尘埃，成为族群记忆的一部分，浑身的皮毛就刺痛起来，“雷族所有的猫都尊敬你、爱戴你。”
“希望如此吧。”
“你这话是什么意思啊？”
“我想，我们雷族可能有些猫在盼着我走霉运。”他悄悄说道。
狮爪的心头一紧：“是谁？”
黑莓掌摇摇头：“算了，这不重要。忘了我说的话吧。”
“可是，如果你不信任他们……”
黑莓掌打断了狮爪的话：“如果想让大家记住你的长处，那你就要努力让它们更突出。如果你要证明给那些怀疑你能力的猫看，那就尽快付诸行动。你不能强迫冬青爪去信任你。你必须让她知道，自己是值得信任的。”
狮爪顿时感到步伐沉重起来。为什么一定要向冬青爪证明什么呢？我又没做错什么事情！
咔嚓！
一块石头撞在营地的围墙上，接着，掉在了学徒巢穴外的地面上。
狮爪抬起头，在黑暗中眨了眨眼。是兔子在山谷上方觅食吗？
咔嚓！
肯定不是兔子。如果是兔子，刚才的响声，早已把它吓得逃回森林去了。
狮爪好奇地悄悄爬起来，看了一眼冬青爪。她睡得正香。谢谢你，蕨毛！冬青爪的老师带她去森林深处狩猎了。她抓到了三只老鼠，心里非常高兴，但也非常疲倦，爪子弄得生疼。
狮爪蹑手蹑脚地从她的窝旁走过，溜出了巢穴。
咔嚓！
咚！
一块圆石落在狮爪的爪子边。他迅速退了回去，小心地向上看去。一双圆圆的眼睛正在悬崖上盯着他，还眨了眨。
有猫正在偷窥营地！他应不应该告诉其他猫呢？狮爪在月光照耀下的空地上四下张望。刚才的声音并没有惊醒其他猫。在不确定是否有危险时，他不想叫醒任何族猫。如果只是因为一些无害的小动物闯入山谷就发出警报，那岂不是太愚蠢了。他应该先调查一番，如果确定危险真的存在，再去通知大家也不迟。
白翅的皮毛在营地入口处发着微光——她一定是在站岗。如果真有什么危险，可以叫她。
狮爪从空地边缘悄悄走过，然后钻进了巫医巢穴旁的黑莓丛。他知道自己可以爬上后面的悬崖。他穿过长满刺的树枝，用前爪摸到了第一个落脚点，爬了上去。接着，狮爪小心翼翼地向前移动，生怕爪子下的砂砾滚落。他沿着一层层岩石前行，终于来到悬崖顶端的草地上。狮爪喘了会儿气，开始沿着山谷的边缘向前走去。
“狮爪！”前方的蕨丛下传来温柔的呼唤。狮爪看到石楠爪从拱起的锯齿状叶子中溜出来时，顿时愣住了。“感谢星族，原来是你啊。”
“刚才是你扔鹅卵石下去的吗？”狮爪警觉地盯着她。万一她被抓住该怎么办啊？“你还好吧？”
“我必须要见你一面！”
狮爪心里一热。她比自己想象的还要勇敢。不过他现在必须带她离开营地。“跟我来。”他一边轻声对她说，一边快速跑下斜坡，朝湖边奔去。但石楠爪却没有跟上前。
“快点儿走啊！”狮爪停下来，回头望着她乞求道。
石楠爪的眼睛不停地闪烁着。“别走那边！我带你去看一个东西！”她转过身，低头钻进香薇丛里。
狮爪赶忙跟在她身后：“我们这是要去哪里啊？”
“一会儿你就知道啦！”
她好像是朝那个废弃的狐狸巢穴的方向走。狮爪放缓脚步，警告她道：“小心！”
“没事儿的，”她告诉他，“那里没有狐狸。”她在一处陡坡下方茂盛的荆棘丛前停了下来，“在这里等一下。”
石楠爪钻进荆棘丛。狮爪望着她的尾巴渐渐消失在枝叶中，只留下沙沙作响的荆棘丛。她到底要去哪里啊？忽然，一只猫头鹰在头顶上方的树上叫了一声，吓得狮爪浑身的毛都奓开了，他神情紧张地四处望着。
“看这里！”
狮爪朝陡坡上方望过去，看到石楠爪在一处小洞穴的入口朝自己眨着眼睛。“你在上面干什么呢？”狮爪问道，那里看起来像是一个兔子洞。
“你一定不相信里面有什么东西！快上来！”话音刚落，石楠爪就转身跑进了黑暗中。
狮爪在荆棘丛下扭动着身体向前爬行，荆棘带钩的刺不停剐擦着他的皮毛。他慢慢爬上斜坡，钻出荆棘丛，在洞前停了下来。“石楠爪？”他喊着，心嗵嗵直跳。
“到里面来！”她的声音在幽暗的深处回荡，听上去有点儿奇怪。
狮爪跟着她钻了进去。
通道里又深又黑。狮爪蹲下来，匍匐前进，潮湿的泥土紧贴着他的皮毛。石楠爪究竟要干什么呢？这个地方太狭窄了，连兔子都钻不进来，更别说猫了！突然，他发觉前方开阔起来，一股冰冷的气流扫过他的皮毛。狮爪终于松了一口气，他站直身子，向前走去。直到他感觉到石楠爪的呼吸扑打在自己的脸颊上。
“这里通向一个洞穴！”她说道，“山里有很多隧道，其中一条可以直接通到风族领地！”
“伟大的星族啊，你到底是怎么发现它们的啊？”
“风爪让我去荒野那边的石头堆里抓老鼠，那儿离我们营地并不远。我发现了一只老鼠，就开始追，追进了一道缝里，才发现这道缝是一条隧道的入口。我进到了里面，发现里面有好多条隧道，可以通往任何地方。”
“你不担心自己会迷路吗？”
“一开始我的行动很慢，我确认自己对某条隧道非常熟悉之后，再去另一条隧道看看。不久我就发现，其中一条隧道是通往一个洞穴的。这太奇妙了。洞穴的顶端有一个小洞，光可以照进来。随后，我又找到了一条通往你们雷族领地的路！”她的话语中充满了胜利的喜悦，“是不是很神奇啊？”
狮爪简直不敢相信自己的耳朵。“有一条从我们雷族通往你们那里的隧道吗？”他深吸了一口气，“难以置信！如果有动物袭击，或者有火灾发生，雷族就可以通过这里逃生了……”
“不！”石楠爪的声音里充满了不满，“我们绝不能告诉其他猫。你难道看不出来吗？这里可以成为只属于我们的地方！”
“只属于我们的地方？”
“我们在这里见面，任何猫都不会发现我们，连冬青爪也猜不到你去哪里了。”
狮爪抽抽胡须。从现在开始，他就可以和石楠爪想什么时候见面就什么时候见面了，还没有猫会知道了！“这个主意真不错！石楠爪，你太聪明啦！”
石楠爪高兴地叫了一声，用鼻子快速蹭了蹭狮爪的脸颊，然后走开了：“跟我来，我带你去看看那个洞穴。”
她的脚步声渐渐消失在黑暗中，狮爪感到一阵恐惧袭来。不过他努力打消了转身回去的念头，开始跟着石楠爪继续向前。黑暗将他吞没了，狮爪突然明白了松鸦爪的感受。他一边走一边嗅闻着，寻找着狐狸、兔子或獾的气息，不过他能闻到的只有潮湿的泥土气息，还充斥着一股腐败发霉的味道，似乎已经好几个月没有动物来过这儿了。
“为什么会没有动物占据这里呢？”他有些想不明白。
“我猜，应该没有谁像我这么幸运，发现这儿吧。”石楠爪的声音在头顶上方回响着，感觉有一丝怪异。
“肯定有谁以前发现过这儿。”
“我在这里从没闻到过动物的气味，这里只有石头和水。”
狮爪感到一阵不安。“但我感觉我们不是第一批来到这里的……”话音未落，突然，前方亮了起来，一座巨大的洞穴赫然出现在眼前。狮爪停下脚步，看着周围，惊讶得说不出话来。正如石楠爪所说，月光从上方的小洞透下来，照在洞穴四周的岩壁上。平整的地面上，分布着布满灰尘的石头，好似一个个巨大的爪印。最奇怪的是，居然有一条河在地面蜿蜒着，流向低处一个宽阔的隧道，然后缓缓消失在黑暗中。
这是一条地下河吗？这怎么可能呢？
“怎么样？这里不错吧？”石楠爪跳上一处岩壁，“这里像专属于我俩的营地一样！我们给这个族群起名叫‘暗族’吧，我来当族长，你当我的副族长！”
“副族长？可我想当族长啊！”狮爪表示反对。接着，他爬到了比她的位置更高的一处岩壁上。
“是我发现了这里，所以我就是族长！”石楠爪跳到狮爪那里，把他撞落下去。
狮爪不满意地叫了一声，轻盈地落在洞穴的地面上。“好吧，石楠星，”他说道，“你接下来计划做什么？”
“狮爪，快醒醒！”
狮爪感到有一只柔软的爪子正在推他的肋部。他猛然抬起头，惊讶地发现自己四周都是岩石。接着他才想起刚才发生的事情，自己就在这个洞穴里。石楠爪在他身边坐着，眼睛蒙蒙眬眬的，充满了睡意。
“快看！”她冲着洞穴上方的小洞歪了歪脑袋，“我们刚才睡着了。”洞外的天空已经开始泛白，露出清晨的亮光。
狮爪忽然跳了起来。“我必须得回去了！”他焦急地望着岩石墙上的一个个隧道入口，“哪一条是通往雷族领地的呢？”
石楠爪来到河边一处狭窄的隧道前。“就是这条。”说完，她又用尾巴指指对面一条宽一些的隧道，眨眨眼睛说道，“我要从这儿走啦。今晚你还会来吗？”
“会的。”狮爪几乎快等不及了，“如果我能溜出来的话。”
狮爪马上钻进了隧道，石楠爪跟他告别的声音，在身后回荡着。他的族猫们一定已经发现自己又出去了。这次该怎么向他们解释呢？冬青爪一定又要怀疑了。必须尽快想出一个离开营地的理由来，否则自己就再也没有机会在晚上见到石楠爪了。
走着走着，隧道开始变得越来越窄，有什么东西正擦着他的皮毛。一定是四周的石壁吧。石楠爪给自己指的路对吗？想到这里，狮爪开始慌了。要是自己找不到出去的路，那该怎么办啊？这时又有一个东西碰到了他的皮毛，感觉不像泥土——比泥土更软，就像是猫的皮毛。狮爪突然警觉起来。他跑起来，向黑暗深处猛冲了过去，心里害怕极了。
前方出现了一道光线。走出洞穴时，从绝望到解脱的突变使他的双腿都变得酸软了。黎明的晨光涌进眼睛里，狮爪眨眨眼，望着周围的世界——没有发现巡逻队的任何踪迹。他俯下身，穿过荆棘丛，朝营地的方向奔去。
我不能空着爪子回去啊！想到这儿他停了下来。
一只麻雀飞过头顶。我去抓一只猎物带回去，总不会有谁说我了吧。狮爪做出一个准备狩猎的蹲伏动作。他像石头一样沉稳，看着那只麻雀落在地上。他按捺住急切的心情，静静地等待着，麻雀跳得更近了，周围的叶子开始沙沙作响。狮爪后肢蹬挠着地面，等着它再往前跳一下……
抓住你了！狮爪纵身跃起，快得像蛇一样，一下就把那只麻雀杀死了。他用嘴巴把那个软绵绵的小东西叼起来，向营地跑去。
“你好啊，狮爪。”白翅依然守在营地入口，“我没看见你出去啊。”
“我刚才从排便通道出去的。”狮爪的嘴里满是鸟的羽毛，说话声有些含混不清。他痛恨自己撒了谎，尾巴直竖起来。但他知道自己别无选择。
“看样子，某只猫将会享用一顿美味的早餐啦！”白翅说道。
“嗯。”狮爪点点头，从她身边走过，进入了营地。
冬青爪和松鸦爪在半边石旁边躺着。当狮爪进来时，冬青爪抬起了头。狮爪向她晃晃尾巴，把猎物扔在了猎物堆上。
“你一定很早就起来了吧？”松鸦爪一边说，一边爬上光滑的半边石，开始梳洗起来。
“鸟叫声那么大，你们居然还能睡着，真想不到。”狮爪回答道，大脑飞快地转动着。
冬青爪眯起眼睛：“昨天我和蕨毛去狩猎了。我很累，睡得很沉，什么也听不见。”
狮爪的一只爪子挠了挠耳朵，感觉自己的胃都要拧成一团了。他最恨说谎了。他只是跟石楠爪一起玩玩而已，并没做什么坏事，可是他清楚，族猫们并不这么认为。
我对雷族是绝对忠诚的，我不必刻意做什么去证明我的忠心。狮爪告诉自己。
不过，说谎的苦涩感觉，仍然刺得喉咙一阵难受。
CHAPTER10
CHAPTER10
Jaypaw heard the brambles swish. “Hollypaw’sgone?” He blinked. Hollypaw had only been in the den a few moments.
“She must’ve remembered something she had to do.” Cinderpaw sighed.
“Oh.” Jaypaw went back to wrapping his marigold and horsetail poultices in leaves, preparing for a battle that might never happen. Why hadn’t StarClan warned him? It was not like they were shy about interrupting his dreams.
Suddenly, he felt his pelt begin to warm under Cinderpaw’s gaze. She was staring at him, her mind tingling with curiosity. Irritation made his claws itch. How long was she going to stay here? She was obviously bored and Jaypaw missed the peace and privacy of the empty medicine den. He turned and faced her. “Something wrong?” he asked.
“No.” Cinderpaw sounded oddly thoughtful. “I just think I had a dream about you, and you could see.”
Jaypaw’s ears twitched. She remembered her dream! How much? The camp in the ravine? Being Cinderpelt? He waited for sparks of alarm to flash from Leafpool’s pelt, but the medicine cat was busy soaking horsetail stems in the pool, her mind focused on her task.
Jaypaw padded forward. “What was I doing in your dream?” he asked casually.
“I don’t remember. I was just surprised you could see.” Cinderpaw fidgeted in her nest.
“Where were we?”
Cinderpaw hesitated. “Some bit of the forest, I think. You were following me and…”
“And what?” Jaypaw leaned close to her.
“I don’t remember.”
Jaypaw flicked his tail. What would happen if Cinderpaw worked out she had been Cinderpelt? Surely all the old medicine cat’s memories must be buried somewhere in the apprentice’s mind?
“Time for Cinderpaw’s medicine,” Leafpool called from the pool.
“Okay.” Excitement sparked in Jaypaw’s belly. This could be his chance to find out if any trace of Cinderpelt remained.
He darted to the back of the cave, ignoring the comfrey that would help Cinderpaw’s bones to heal, and picked up some of the sweet-smelling mallow leaves instead. The mallow would do nothing but soothe her belly. If any of Cinderpelt’s knowledge lingered inside her, she would know it was the wrong medicine and say something.
“Here you are,” he announced, dropping the mallow leaves in her nest.
“These smell nice,” Cinderpaw mewed.
“It’s mallow,” Jaypaw told her. He nudged them closer. “Great for broken bones.” He searched her mind for any doubt, but nothing stirred except gratitude.
“Thanks, Jaypaw.”
“What are you doing?” Leafpool whisked past and snatched the mallow leaves away. He felt suspicion pricking in the medicine cat’s pelt as she brushed against him. “You should be giving her comfrey.”
“I must have picked up the wrong leaves,” Jaypaw lied.
“Be more careful next time.” Irritation flashed from Leafpool. She didn’t believe him. Had she guessed he had been testing Cinderpaw? “Get back to making poultices,” she snapped. Her voice softened as she spoke to Cinderpaw. “Sorry, Cinderpaw. It’s not like Jaypaw to be so distracted.”
Jaypaw padded mutinously away to the back of the den. It was so unfair! Leafpool had no patience with him these days, and yet she put up with Cinderpaw’s boredom and fidgeting with unending kindness. He flicked his tail petulantly at the stems soaking in the pool. “Is that horsetail ready yet?” He knew full well that they’d need soaking overnight for the juices to be fully restored.
“Of course not!” she meowed. “Use the ones I soaked yesterday!”
“Okay!” He hooked a soggy stem from a nearby pile and began to gnaw crossly at one end.
Leafpool padded over to join him. Comfrey scent filled the air as she collected a few leaves for Cinderpaw. “What’s the matter with you?” she hissed.
“What’s the matter with you?” he snapped back.
“I’m not the one giving Cinderpawthe wrong medicine.”
“I only wanted to see if she would know the difference.”
“She’s Cinderpaw, not Cinderpelt!”
“But there must be something there.”
“If there is, it’s not up to us to find it!” Jaypaw felt Leafpool’s breath on his cheek. “We have to let Cinderpaw find her own destiny!”
“What’s wrong with helping her along? Surely Cinderpaw deserves to know that she’s been sent back by StarClan to be a warrior.”
“If StarClan wants her to know, they’ll tell her,” Leafpool mewed.
“So you’re happy to leave it in the paws of StarClan.”
“Of course!” She sounded shocked. “And so should you.”
Jaypaw went back to chewing. The stem’s bitter juice made his whiskers twitch. Why was Leafpool so totally in awe of her ancestors? He’d met them; they seemed no different from cats who were still alive. Did Leafpool really think that dying made a dumb cat wise? They could walk in other cats’ dreams, but so could he. That didn’t mean he knew the answer to everything.
“Jaypaw!” Cinderpaw’s mew rang around the den.
Jaypaw blinked open his eyes. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” Cinderpaw sounded wide awake. Jaypaw lifted his muzzle and sniffed. It smelled as though dawn had only just arrived. Couldn’t she sleep a little longer? Or at least let himsleep a little longer?
“Leafpool’s gone to check on Foxkit,” she mewed. “I thought we could have a game while she’s gone.”
Jaypaw struggled to his paws, yawning. He could feel the lively energy coming off Cinderpaw in waves.
“I wish I could move my leg,” she complained. “I feel fine apart from that.”
“You have to keep it still if you want it to mend properly,” Jaypaw told her.
“I know, I know.” Cinderpaw sighed. “But I’m so bored!”
Jaypaw felt a wave of sympathy for her. Newleaf had set the forest atwitter and the scent of fresh life called out like a friend begging to play. Something whistled through the air and bounced softly off his shoulder. A moss ball.
“Okay,” he conceded. “But you’re not allowed to move from your nest. I’ll throw it to you.”
“But you can’t see me.”
“Yes,” Jaypaw agreed. “But since you never shut up I can always hear exactly where you are.” He hooked the moss ball up with his paw and lobbed it at her.
Her nest scrunched as she stretched to catch it.
I must throw it lower next time
The moss ball hissed through the air once more. Judging its distance exactly, Jaypaw leaped and dived, rolling over as he caught it.
“Wow!” Cinderpaw purred. “Impressive.” She was suddenly still. “What’s it like?”
Jaypaw tipped his head to one side. “What’s whatlike?”
“Being blind.”
“What does it feel like being able to see?”
“I don’t know, I guess it feels normal.”
“Well, being blind feels normal to me.”
“But isn’t it hard not being able to tell where everything is?”
“But I cantell.” Jaypaw appreciated Cinderpaw’s honesty; most other cats acted like if they didn’t talk about his lack of sight, he’d forget he was any different. “Everything smells or makes a sound, and sometimes I get a”—he searched for the right word—“a senseof things.”
“So you never get frustrated?”
“Only when I get treated like I’m different,” Jaypaw replied. “I don’t feelany different, so it’s really annoying when anyone makes a fuss about my blindness. It’s like they feel sorry for me when there’s nothing to feel sorry about.”
He flicked the ball into the air, then swiped it toward Cinderpaw. Her nest rustled under her.
“What in StarClan?” Leafpool’s furious mew sounded at the entrance. She darted across the den and whisked the moss ball into the pool, then rounded on Jaypaw. “What are you doing, making her stretch up like that?”
“It was my idea!” Cinderpaw mewed at once.
Leafpool ignored her. “You should have known better!”
Jaypaw bristled. “I told her not to move from her nest.”
“That’s not good enough! Her leg must heal properly!” Leafpool’s mew dropped to a whisper. “She musttrain as a warrior this time.”
“Why must she?” Anger exploded in Jaypaw’s chest. “Why would it be such a disaster if she had to take a different path?
Ihad to!”
Leafpool froze for a moment, then slowly replied, “You are blind.”
Jaypaw’s rage fell away. Did Leafpool think he was a lost cause? Did she only fight to save the cats who could be saved? He turned away from her, too wretched to say anything.
Leafpool hurried away to Cinderpaw’s nest and began fussing with her cobweb binding.
Jaypaw padded out of the den. He could hear the Clan, busy in the clearing. Graystripe and Millie chatted to each other as they wove the roof of the new den into place. Lionpaw was chasing Foxkit and Icekit around the nursery. Ferncloud was sharing tongues with Dustpelt below Highledge.
I’m more than just a blind medicine cat!Jaypaw flexed his claws.
I’ll show them!
The brambles swished behind him.
“We need to fetch herbs.” Leafpool’s mew was matter-of-fact, as though nothing had passed between them. He searched her mind for some lingering anger or guilt, but her thoughts seemed to be carefully shielded. “The marigolds should be flowering by the lakeshore,” she went on as she led him out of camp.
Jaypaw didn’t speak. He sulked in silence as they trekked up the slope and over the ridge. As they emerged from the trees, a chilly wind cut through his fur. It smelled of rain.
Leafpool headed down the grassy slope to the shore. “I can see some.” She veered into the wind.
Jaypaw narrowed his eyes as it blasted his face. This was a pointless journey. “You know we’ve already got a pile of marigold in the den, don’t you?”
Leafpool slowed her pace to match his. “If there is to be a battle, we must be prepared,” she told him. “Our first duty is to heal the Clan.” Jaypaw felt her willing him to speak. “Don’t you think?” She sounded anxious.
Grudgingly, he let himself be drawn into conversation. “Yes,” he conceded. “But what about sharing with StarClan? That’s part of our duty too. Why didn’t they warn us a battle was coming?”
“StarClan doesn’t always tell us everything that’s going to happen.”
“Do we just have to wait until we’re told?” Jaypaw bristled with frustration. “We can walk among them in our dreams. Surely we can find out for ourselves?”
“Are you questioning the wisdom of StarClan?”
Jaypaw bit back his reply—that he couldn’t figure out why being dead made StarClan so wise.
“There’s more to being a medicine cat than sharing with StarClan,” Leafpool went on. “You still don’t know every herb, for example.” She halted and sniffed loudly. “What’s this one?”
Jaypaw tasted the air. A sharp tang bathed his tongue. He reached down and touched small soft leaves. Tight flower buds bounced against his nose.
“Do you recognize that?” Leafpool prompted.
“Feverfew,” Jaypaw mewed. “Good for aches, especially headaches.” He turned away, adding, “But it’s no good to us now because the flower won’t be out for another moon.” Why was she treating him like a mouse-brained idiot? How many times did he have to prove himself?
Another scent caught his attention. Something tastier than feverfew. He dropped into a hunting crouch. The grass ahead was shivering and he could hear a tiny snuffling. The image of a vole formed in his mind; he could see it as clearly as if he were dreaming. It was trembling.
Quick as a flash, Jaypaw shot forward, diving through the grass, paws outstretched. The vole darted sideways, but Jaypaw veered and cut off its escape route. It careered into his paws and he hooked it easily, killing it with a sharp nip. Padding back to Leafpool, he dangled his catch under her nose.
“Very good,” she meowed.
He flung it at her paws, the morning’s frustrations suddenly swamping him. “Now do you believe that I don’t need eyes to see?”
He waited for anger to flash from her, for her sharp rebuke to sting his ears. Instead, he felt her tail sweep his flank, gentle as a breeze. “Oh, Jaypaw,” she sighed. “I have alwaysbelieved in you.”
Emotion swelled from her, sentimental and oppressive, filling his mind like a sticky cloud. Taken aback, he edged away and darted down onto the shore. Ahead, a stream was babbling as it flowed out of the forest and into the lake. This was where Mousepaw had lost the squirrel. And it was where he had found the stick. He hadn’t realized that they had come this far around the lake.
His paws tingled with excitement.
The stick.
He picked his way over the shore, careful not to trip on the twigs and Twoleg rubbish washed up by the lake. A large drop of rain landed between his shoulder blades. He shook it off, ducking as another hit his nose. He could smell the stick now, its strange scent calling to him like a kit mewling for its mother. He hurried to where he had left it tucked behind the tree root and dragged it out onto the shore. He wanted to run his paws over it again, feel the scars in its smooth surface. His pads felt warm as they stroked it, his heart suddenly as full as a well-fed belly.
“Is that the same old stick you found last time?” Leafpool had caught up to him.
Jaypaw nodded.
“Why are you so interested in it?” Leafpool was puzzled.
“It feels important!” He rested both paws on the wood, as smooth as spider’s silk. A gentle murmuring filled his mind, like softly lapping waves. His paws traced the etching on the wood. They lingered on the uncrossed marks, and he felt sadness spike into his pads. These marks are untold stories
Rain was spattering on the leaves overhead and splashed in great drops onto his back.
“We should get back,” Leafpool decided.
“What about the stick?”
Thunder rolled in the distance. Wind whipped in off the lake, buffeting and pushing like a bad-tempered badger.
“We must get back to camp.” Leafpool sounded worried. “I can see the storm clouds coming. We shouldn’t be out in this.”
Jaypaw’s fur bristled. He felt lightning prickle in the air. A blast of wind pushed him sideways, knocking him away from the stick.
“Come on!” Leafpool urged.
Waves were pounding the shore now, beaten in by the rising wind.
“What about the stick?” Jaypaw called.
But Leafpool was already hurrying away. “Come on!” she ordered.
There was no time to drag it back to the safety of the root. The wind was tearing at his fur, blowing back his ears. Pelting rain stung his eyes. Ducking down, Jaypaw darted after his mentor and raced back to the safety of the camp.
The rain had stopped but the wind still roared above the hollow.
Jaypaw lay in his nest and listened to the forest creaking high above the medicine den. The leaves swished like waves upon a shore. But Jaypaw hardly heard them. His ears were filled with whispering. His claws itched as he imagined the earthy scent of the stick. He rolled over in his nest and flattened his ears, but the whispering still breathed in his ears. He stretched out and pummeled restlessly at the moss underneath him.
“Why don’t you go for a walk?” Leafpool murmured from her nest. “Before your fidgeting wakes Cinderpaw as well.”
“Okay.” Jaypaw sat up. His paws ached to be outside. He wanted to touch the stick once more.
He pushed his way through the brambles. Outside, the wind was stirring up the restless scents of newleaf so that the whole forest seemed to be swaying and fidgeting with impatience. Instinctively, Jaypaw knew that the sky was clear and the moon was shining. He could feel its cold light wash his pelt. As he headed for the camp entrance, the thorn barrier quivered.
“Jaypaw?”
Lionpaw was squeezing though the dirtplace tunnel.
“Hi, Lionpaw,” Jaypaw greeted him curiously. His brother’s pelt pricked with guilt and alarm. And it smelled of the wind.
He’s been out in the forest!
“I was just making dirt.” Lionpaw was lying.
Jaypaw narrowed his eyes. Does every cat in the Clan have secrets?“I was just going out.” He sensed weariness in his brother’s paws and decided to test him. “Will you come with me?”
“If you want,” Lionpaw mewed warily.
He feels too guilty to refuse
Birchfall hailed them from the camp entrance. “Who’s there?”
“Only us,” Jaypaw called back. He padded toward the thorn tunnel. “We’re just going out into the forest.”
Birchfall purred. “A midnight adventure,” he meowed. “That reminds me of my apprentice days.” He sounded wistful, even though he’d been a warrior for only a few moons. Jaypaw didn’t say anything; Birchfall always liked to pretend he was vastly wise and experienced compared with apprentices but Jaypaw hadn’t forgotten the fuss he’d made over getting a thorn in his paw.
The warrior stepped aside, and Jaypaw felt the wind whisk down the tunnel. He beckoned to Lionpaw with his tail. “Coming?”
Lionpaw followed Jaypaw through the barrier.
“Watch out for foxes!” Birchfall called after them.
Jaypaw shivered. The memory of the fox springing from the undergrowth while he and Brightheart trekked through the forest made his belly tighten.
“Don’t worry,” Lionpaw reassured him. “I can handle foxes now.”
They padded up the slope and onto the ridge.
“Where are we going?” Lionpaw asked.
“The lake.”
Lionpaw made no comment. No interest sparked from his pelt. Jaypaw could feel a dark cloud hovering in his brother’s mind, absorbing every other thought like quicksand. He tried reaching into it but felt nothing but uncertainty.
As they left the trees and headed down the grassy slope, the wind whipped at Jaypaw’s ears and whiskers. He lashed his tail, excited by the stormy weather and the thought of touching the stick once more. He could smell the lake now and pictured it—a vast Moonpool, ruffled and reflecting a shattered moon.
The scents of RiverClan, WindClan, and ShadowClan clashed and mingled on the breeze. Was there really going to be a battle?
“Do you think WindClan is planning to invade us?” he mewed.
Lionpaw pressed against him, steering him around a rabbit hole. “It wouldn’t make sense.” Jaypaw thought he heard hope in his brother’s mew. “It’s RiverClan they should be worried about, not us.”
“But what about the squirrel-hunting?”
“Why shouldn’t they hunt squirrels? The woods belong to them on that side of the gully.” Lionpaw sounded more like a warrior than an apprentice; as though he knew something Jaypaw didn’t.
As their paws crunched on the pebbles around the edge of the lake, Lionpaw hesitated. “Why are we here?”
“I left something here,” Jaypaw explained. “I need to drag it into the trees. I want to keep it safe from the lake.”
“What?”
“A stick.”
“A stick?”
“Yes!” Jaypaw sniffed the air, hoping to detect its scent. “It has markings on it.” His tail pricked with anxiety as he smelled nothing but windblown water. “I left it here.”
“What does it look like?”
“No bark,” Jaypaw mewed. “Just smooth wood. With lines scratched into it.”
“Okay,” Lionpaw mewed. “You check where you left it. I’ll search the top of the shore in case the wind’s carried it up there.”
Jaypaw hurried to the place where he had abandoned the stick. His heart began to pound. He was certain it was gone, and not just because he couldn’t scent it. There was a dark emptiness in his chest that told him the stick was no longer here.
He was right.
The pebbles were bare.
Fighting the fear that jabbed his belly, Jaypaw zigzagged over the shore, sniffing at the pebbles, trying to trace where the stick had gone. Why had he let the storm chase him away? He should have made sure the stick was safe before he ran home like a fox-hearted coward!
“Have you found it?” Lionpaw’s mew was muffled by the wind
“No!” Jaypaw felt panic rising in his chest. He couldn’t have lost it.
“Is this it?” Lionpaw called suddenly.
Jaypaw charged toward his brother. He tripped over a piece of driftwood, bruising his paw, but he ignored the pain and limped desperately toward Lionpaw.
He knew even before he reached it that it was not the stick. “Where are the scratches?” he snapped. “I told you, it hasscratches!”
“Okay, okay!” Lionpaw flashed with resentment. “I’m just trying to help.”
“I have to find it.” Jaypaw wandered away, stumbling over the pebbles and debris. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. He felt as if he had let someone down, though he had no idea how or who. His paw was throbbing now but he didn’t care. Had the lake reclaimed the stick?
He headed down the beach until water lapped his paws and paddled into the shallows. He had to find the stick. Cold water rippled against his belly fur. It dragged at his paws as he waded deeper. He remembered falling from the cliff, sinking, floundering beneath the waves. Crowfeather had saved him then, but the fear of the lake had stayed with him. It screamed at him now, warning him to turn back.
Jaypaw!
A voice rang in his head. Something tugged his fur, drawing him farther out. The waves lapped over his spine and he lifted his chin to keep it dry.
This way!
With each paw step he had to reach down farther to feel the pebbles. But he had to find the branch.
Suddenly, his paw knocked something beneath the water.
That’s it!
Taking a great gulp of air, he ducked his head beneath the waves and grabbed the end of the branch in his teeth. Tugging desperately, he began to drag it up the beach. He let go and took another gulp of air before diving again to grab the branch. He dug his paws into the pebbles, scrabbling to get a grip. The stick was so heavy! He pulled and pulled, his lungs bursting as he tried to drag it out of the water.
Suddenly, it moved more easily. Almost weightless, the stick began to float toward the shore; Jaypaw only needed to guide it with his teeth. Relief surged in his paws as his head finally broke the surface. He gasped and coughed, still gripping the stick in his teeth, water dripping from his whiskers
He had reached the shallows.
“What in StarClan were you doing?” The branch slapped down in the water as Lionpaw let go of the other end. “I saw you disappear under the water and I thought you were trying to drown yourself. Then I realized you were dragging this! I don’t know how you thought you were going to get it out on your own.”
The water lapped around the stick. Jaypaw ran his paw over it, searching out the scratches. He wished the stick was not so big, that he could take it back to camp with him. “Look,” he breathed, running his paw over the marks.
“You half drown yourself in the middle of the night for a stick with claw marks on it!” Water sprayed from Lionpaw as he shook himself. “You’re crazy.”
“I’m not,” Jaypaw snapped hotly. “It’s important.”
Thank you, Jaypaw. We’ll be remembered as long as you guard us
“Come on,” he mewed. “Let’s get this tucked under a root and get back to camp.”
第六章
第六章
在巢穴入口，冬青爪慵懒地打了个哈欠，伸了个懒腰。清晨的阳光晒得爪子暖烘烘的。她回头看了看，狮爪还在窝里睡觉。
炭爪已经在猎物堆旁边了。
“有什么吃的吗？”冬青爪问自己的朋友。
“只有一只老鼠。”炭爪犹豫着扒拉了一下，“有点儿不新鲜了，不过还可以凑合着吃。”
冬青爪向她走了过去：“或许我们应该先去问问黛西，看幼崽们是否要吃些东西。”
“不必了，谢谢！”黛西正在育婴室外面晒着太阳，香薇云的幼崽们正在她身边蹦来跳去，“等黎明巡逻队回来再说吧，幼猫们要吃些暖和和新鲜的东西。”
“不太新鲜的老鼠也行，我不介意的！”小狐说道。
“不行！”黛西说道，“你感冒了，只能吃暖和的食物。”
“可我现在很饿啊！”
“你啊，就是太贪嘴了！”小冰嘲笑道。这只毛茸茸的幼崽轻轻拍了拍弟弟的耳朵。小狐马上转身，朝她扑了过去。小冰尖叫着用后腿踢小狐。
看到两个小家伙朝自己滚来，黛西赶紧把尾巴移开。“等他们搬到学徒巢穴后，我就会轻松很多了。”她说道。冬青爪清楚，其实黛西心里并不这么想。香薇云不久就会回到武士巢穴，到时候育婴室里就只剩黛西一个了。她总说自己不适合做武士，问题是，如果族群里没有需要照顾的幼崽了，她还能做什么呢？希望新叶季能给她带来新的幼崽。
“冬青爪！炭爪！”叶池从长老巢穴里探出头来，“快过来清理一下窝里的垫草吧。”
“好的！”炭爪赶紧把老鼠扔下，朝叶池跑了过去。
“我去找一些新鲜的苔藓！”冬青爪知道，叶池在巫医巢穴旁边储存了很多新鲜的苔藓。她连忙跑过去，取了一团，然后把它带到长老巢穴里。
长老巢穴附近灌木丛上的金银花丛，已经长出了亮闪闪的新叶，一根根的卷须在微风中轻轻摆动。花朵已经含苞待放，在不久后的绿叶季就会开放，到时候，整个山谷都会充满芳香的气味。冬青爪钻进巢穴，把苔藓放下来。炭爪已经开始清理铺垫了，她把发出怪味的部分都掏了出来。
蹲伏在长尾身边的叶池抬起了头。“长尾被虱子咬到的地方感染了。”整个巢穴都弥漫着草药的刺鼻气味，“我已经在感染处涂上了药糊，不过我还是想给他换换铺垫。这样一来，他就不会再被咬了。”
“好的。”冬青爪点了点头。
鼠毛拖着僵硬的身子坐了起来：“能再次看到新叶季，真好！”
叶池用更多的草药清洗着长尾的伤口，长尾疼得直缩身子。“森林的气息真好闻，”他说道，“我一直都想出去走走。”
冬青爪惊讶地眨眨眼睛。自从长尾丧失视力之后，他就很少离开过营地。
“我要是能陪你去就好了。”鼠毛嘶哑的嗓音响了起来，“你需要一只猫帮你留意有没有狐狸出没。”
“狐狸！”冬青爪吓得赶忙夹紧了尾巴。
炭爪把一团苔藓扔向巢穴入口：“狐狸并不像你们想的那么可怕。”
“它们还不可怕啊？”冬青爪深吸了一口气，“你忘了那次追着我到处跑的那几只狐狸吗？它们差点儿把我的尾巴咬掉！”
“当时你还只是一只幼崽，”炭爪说道，“如果你现在遇见它们，就不会觉得它们有多可怕了。”
冬青爪还是不相信她的话。
“狐狸不过就是有点儿讨厌罢了，”炭爪接着说，“你需要加倍小心的其实是獾。”这只灰色的虎斑猫说着说着，眼睛开始睁大，毛顺着脊背立了起来，“它们真的很可怕。我真希望这辈子都不会再遇见另一只獾。”
“另一只獾？”冬青爪坐起身说道，“可你从来没见过獾啊！”
炭爪歪歪脑袋，眼睛里充满了困惑。“你说得对。”她伸出爪子，从鼠毛的窝里拽出了几团发霉的苔藓，“我一定是做梦时见过。”
炭爪怎么会这么鼠脑子啊！
冬青爪往窝里铺新鲜苔藓的时候，注意到叶池正注视着炭爪。这位巫医的嘴大张着，好像被冻住了。是什么事情让她如此惊讶呢？炭爪说出如此没头没脑的话，已经不是第一次了。
长尾开始变得坐立不安：“叶池，你弄完了吗？”
“还没呢。”叶池迅速低下头，“别乱动，马上就好了！”
火星的召唤声从巢穴外面传来：“请所有能独自狩猎的猫，到高石台下集合！”
“族群又要开会了？”鼠毛眯起了眼睛，“我真心希望一切正常。”她慢慢地站了起来。冬青爪看了一眼炭爪，心中满是兴奋。发生什么事了吗？她抢先一步冲出巢穴，看到火星正从高石台跳到下面的落石堆上。
猎物堆又满满当当的了。“黎明巡逻队已经回来了，”冬青爪悄悄对刚赶上来的炭爪说道，“或许他们带来了什么消息。”
暴毛和溪儿已经坐在了空地边缘，灰条和米莉从武士巢穴的后方走出来。黑莓掌和松鼠飞在高石台的阴影中坐下，狮爪跟在蜡毛后面走过来，坐在了老师的身边。黛西在育婴室旁甩动着尾巴，把要出去看个究竟的小冰和小狐拦了回去。
所有雷族猫都集合完毕，火星走到空地中央坐下来。他扫视着四周，眼睛闪闪发光。
“好像不是什么坏消息。”冬青爪低声对炭爪说道。
“有件事我已经想了好久了，”火星开始说话了，“现在新叶季已经来临，正是一切事物迎来新开始的好时机。”
冬青爪激动地向前探了探身子。
“是时候让米莉正式成为雷族的武士了！”
冬青爪的身子瞬间僵住了。当灰条第一次遇见米莉时，米莉还是一只宠物猫。灰条对她进行了一些武士训练，米莉则在灰条返回雷族的漫长旅途中，为他提供了帮助。但这样就能让米莉成为武士吗？冬青爪甚至都不清楚米莉是否信仰星族。
猫们赞同的声音在空地上回荡。
“是时候了！”白翅大声喊道。
桦落用爪子揉着泥土，说道：“她有一颗武士的心！”
冬青爪一脸惊讶地看着他们。事情肯定不会那么简单吧？白日森林大会刚刚平息了族群间的矛盾，可这次，让一只宠物猫当武士，难道不会再次引起他们的反对吗？米莉是一个优秀的猎手，在战斗中，也用实际行动证明了自己的勇气和忠诚，可是这样就让她成为雷族的武士，总感觉有点儿……
“米莉。”火星召唤着这只浅灰色皮毛的虎斑猫。
她抬起下巴，向前迈了几步。冬青爪忍不住开始羡慕她了——米莉甚至没有参加学徒训练，居然就要有武士名号了！冬青爪顿时感到内心非常焦虑。
“在战斗中，你的表现非常神勇，”火星说道，“而且在你的协助下，雷族成功渡过了秃叶季的难关。没有猫会怀疑你的忠心和能力。你是靠自己的努力，赢得了我要授予你的武士名号。”他停顿了一会儿，接着说道，“从今天起，你的名字就叫……”
“等一下！”
米莉打断了火星的话，猫群中爆发出一片惊诧的叫声。
她不慌不忙地扫视着在场的所有猫，那双碧蓝的眼睛闪着亮光。“火星能够让我成为一名雷族武士，我倍感荣幸，”她说道，“这是我所能渴望的最高荣誉，我也很感激灰条能把我从宠物猫的生活中拯救出来。”她温柔的目光投向自己的伴侣，“如果我一辈子都待在两脚兽那里，做它们的宠物，那么我的一生将是不完全的。不过……”
灰条向前迈了几步。“米莉？”他的眼睛里布满了愁云，“你不会离开这儿的，对吧？”
“永远不会。”米莉走到他身边，跟他蹭了蹭鼻子。然后她转身对火星说：“我会一直对你和整个族群忠心耿耿，直到我加入星族的那天为止。你必须相信，为了保卫雷族，我愿意随时付出自己的生命。不过我不想改自己的名字。我一直以来都叫米莉，我不认为这个名字有什么不妥。”
猫群突然安静下来，大家都惊呆了。蜡毛甩了甩尾巴。沙风眯起眼睛，端详着这只曾经的宠物猫。黑莓掌也抽抽胡须。
灰条抬起下巴：“米莉说得对。她叫什么名字并不重要，如何做才更重要。我了解她，知道她一定会把族群的利益放在第一位。”
冬青爪看着火星，不知道他会怎么做。这位雷族族长有些不自在地来回移动着爪子，看看灰条，又望望米莉。
突然，另外一个声音响了起来：“我可以说两句吗？”
冬青爪回过头去，看到黛西正走过来。这只乳白色皮毛的母猫从蛛足和桦落之间钻出来，走到空地中央。冬青爪竖起了耳朵。黛西还从未在族群大会上发过言。
“米莉选择保留自己的原名，我很高兴。”这只母猫开口说道，她温柔的声音有些颤抖，“我不是武士，但我是雷族的一员。我选择留在育婴室，而不是去狩猎、战斗，因为这是我最擅长做的事情。我照顾幼崽，将他们视作自己的孩子，这也是我对雷族所做的一种贡献。但自始至终，我都没改变过自己的名字。”
“她说得对！”溪儿向前迈了几步，说道，“我会一直对雷族忠心耿耿，不过我不会放弃部落给予我的名字。”
暴毛向前走了几步，用尾巴轻拂着自己伴侣的腹部。“在场的族猫，有谁怀疑米莉、黛西和溪儿对雷族的忠心吗？”说着，他挑衅地看着族猫。
“没有谁会怀疑！”灰条第一个喊了出来，紧接着黑莓掌、云尾、白翅和其他所有猫马上应声附和起来，黛西的孩子莓爪、榛爪和鼠爪的叫声最响亮。
冬青爪不安地注视着眼前的这一切。
突然，刺掌的声音响了起来：“大家都别说了！如果其他族群现在能够看到我们，他们会怎么说？”
尘毛点点头，说道：“影族已经试图夺取我们的领地了，理由就是我们再也不是血统纯正的森林族群了。”
蛛足眯起眼睛，也说道：“武士守则里规定，命名仪式是必须举行的。如果我们无视武士守则，其他族群会继续尊重我们吗？”
冬青爪的尾巴在地上扫来扫去，心想，尘毛和蛛足说得对。米莉、黛西和溪儿对雷族固然重要，但是如果她们不能遵守雷族的传统，又怎么能真正成为雷族的一员呢？
火星的眼睛闪烁着。“安静！”他大喊了一声，“你们不要忘了，我们讨论的是自己的族猫！我邀请黛西、溪儿和米莉加入雷族，因为她们能让我们更加强大。”他注视着整个空地，“你们吃着她们捉来的猎物，与她们一起并肩作战，一定非常高兴吧？只是因为她们的名字跟我们的传统不符，我们就要把她们驱逐出去吗？你们真的要让其他族群教我们如何处理这种事？”
“当然不是了！”灰条喊道。
“米莉和溪儿已经是武士了，”黑莓掌插话道，“名字不同又有什么关系！”
你们说得不对！冬青爪的爪子深深地插进泥土里。雷族没给她们举行过正式的命名仪式，雷族现在的做法，已经无视了漫长岁月中形成的族群传统！这会让星族怎么想？我们必须依照武士守则行事啊！她盯着刺掌，希望他能站出来说几句话，不过刺掌却低着头，什么都没说。
火星看看刺掌，又转身对米莉说道：“你可以保留原来的名字。你作战时的英勇，还有狩猎时的技巧，我们都有目共睹。你早已是雷族的一分子了，希望星族也能把你当作真正的武士。”
“雷族！雷族！”桦落开始欢呼起来，其他猫也欢呼起来。欢呼声响彻整个空地。冬青爪一言不发地看着这一切，注意到尘毛和刺掌互相交换了一个眼神——他们的眼中都充满了焦虑。
“你难道不觉得应该欢呼吗？”松鼠飞来到冬青爪身边问道。
冬青爪的胡须颤了颤：“如果星族不承认她是真正的武士，那该怎么办？”
“你真的认为星族的心胸会如此狭隘吗？”松鼠飞低声问道。
“武士守则是我们做事的准则，这件事违反了它的规定。”冬青爪脊背上的皮毛泛起层层涟漪，“刚才黑莓掌应该指出这一点的。他心里清楚，遵守武士守则对我们来说有多重要。”
松鼠飞用尾巴轻抚着冬青爪的皮毛。“黑莓掌是雷族的副族长，他必须服从火星的决定。”她那双绿色的眼睛闪着微光，“还有，你别忘了，火星也曾经是宠物猫。”
“可他有一个武士名号啊！”冬青爪生气地说道，“他跟别的武士一样，是先成为学徒，再经过训练才成为武士的。”这时欢呼声逐渐消失，猫们重新回到各自的位置上。火星从没试图修改武士守则。冬青爪对自己说道。
“冬青爪！”
一个声音打断了她的思绪。冬青爪回头一看，是蕨毛。他正站在云尾和蛛足身边，他们的学徒炭爪和鼠爪在周围来回跑动着。
“我们要考核一下你们的训练效果了，”蕨毛告诉她，“你、炭爪和鼠爪去狩猎吧，抓的猎物越多越好。”
松鼠飞的眼睛亮亮的：“现在就要开始考核了吗？”
冬青爪已经忘了之前心中的不安，取而代之的是一阵兴奋。至少，她还有机会展示一下自己学到的东西。
蕨毛尾巴轻轻一弹：“你们别忘了，我会在你们看不到的地方观察你们！”
“祝你们好运！”松鼠飞说完就走开了。冬青爪此刻又紧张起来，要是自己让蕨毛失望了怎么办？不！她绝对不会的！
鼠爪和炭爪快步跑到冬青爪身边。
“我都不知道应该表现给谁看了，是云尾，还是蕨毛？”炭爪担心地望着那两位武士。蕨毛是她的父亲。
“我要让蛛足看看，我真的能抓到松鼠了。”鼠爪信誓旦旦地说。
“你们现在可以开始了，”云尾走过来说道，“你们必须分开狩猎。我们会看着你们的，所以大家都要尽力做到最好。”
“我们一定会的！”冬青爪承诺道。
炭爪马上跑走了，鼠爪紧随其后，冬青爪也跟了上去。他们快速穿过荆棘通道，个个都不甘落后。冬青爪胡须微微颤动，满心期待着——她还没独自狩猎过呢。
“你们要去哪里狩猎？”当他们都冲出营地时，冬青爪问道。
“我要去影族边界附近的小溪，”炭爪大声说道，“那里的猎物很多。”
“可那儿太开阔，没什么遮蔽物，对吧？”冬青爪说道。
“我很擅长跳跃，”炭爪提醒着她，“就算是在空地上，猎物们也不会轻易发现我。可它们一旦被我发现，就成为我的战利品了。”
“我想我还是在灌木丛里找猎物吧，”冬青爪决定了，“我喜欢偷偷接近猎物的感觉。”她一边说，一边看了看鼠爪，“你呢？”
“我跟你一起去，”他说道，“在灌木丛里寻找猎物比较容易。我要先抓两只老鼠，再抓一只松鼠。”
“那就快点儿行动吧！”炭爪冲上了营地旁的斜坡。
冬青爪和鼠爪也飞奔上去，他们飞跑时带起的风，让落叶飞舞起来。在距离溪流不远的地方，炭爪改变方向，朝湖岸走去；冬青爪向一处香薇茂盛的洼地走去；鼠爪则朝跟冬青爪相反的方向前行。
冬青爪在洼地边停下。她稳住呼吸，做出准备狩猎的蹲伏动作，悄悄走下斜坡。冬青爪在密密麻麻的香薇茎秆间小心穿行着，尽量不让它们发出响动。蕨毛现在正在看着我吗？她一边向前慢慢走着，一边想。还是不要再想了，全神贯注于狩猎吧！她聚精会神地望着前方一片茂密的叶子，微微张开嘴，嗅着微风中的气息——空气中有腐烂的兔子肉的气味，不过还有新鲜的老鼠味儿。太好啦！冬青爪停下爪子，竖起耳朵，香薇的叶子在头顶颤动着。她眯起眼睛，朝茎秆外面偷偷观察着。远处铺满叶子的地面上，一个小小的、棕色的东西嗖的一声蹿了过去。是一只鼩鼱！过了一会儿，它开始在叶子里不停地翻找着什么。
冬青爪悄悄地靠近。
那只鼩鼱突然绷紧了身体。
老鼠屎！该不会被它发现了吧？冬青爪的尾巴碰到了叶子。
鼩鼱四下张望着。
千万别动啊！冬青爪屏住呼吸，将尾巴紧贴在地面上。
鼩鼱又开始在叶子中间翻来翻去了。
太好了！它在忙着找吃的，没发现我。
冬青爪慢慢靠近，简直像蜗牛一样。离鼩鼱只有一爪子远了，鼩鼱还在继续翻找着。
突然，一条细树枝在她的爪下折断，发出了响声。鼩鼱转身就逃。冬青爪赶忙跳起来，张开前爪，一下子就抓住了它。冬青爪在它的脖子后面使劲儿一掐，就杀死了它。她的心怦怦直跳，把猎物叼到一棵山毛榉的树根处，迅速埋了起来，然后转过身，准备去捕捉下一个猎物。
不一会儿，她又抓到了一只鼩鼱和一只老鼠。她小心地把它们都埋在树根下面。这时候，她看到斜坡顶端的黑莓丛里，一团金棕色的皮毛突然一闪。蕨毛已经观察她多长时间了？她真心希望，自己今天的表现能给他留下深刻印象。
这时，附近的香薇丛沙沙作响。冬青爪回头看到鼠爪正从身后的森林里冒出头来。
“我已经抓到两只老鼠啦，”这只灰白色皮毛的公猫叫道，“现在我要去捉松鼠啦！”
“嘘！”冬青爪急忙说道，“你会把猎物吓跑的！”
“对不起。”鼠爪摇动尾巴，“你还要继续狩猎吗？”
“我想我抓的猎物应该够了。”冬青爪宣布道。
“你看到炭爪了吗？”鼠爪问道，“我希望她也捉够了猎物。”
“当然！我已经完成任务了！”炭爪出现在香薇丛里，嘴里衔着四只田鼠的尾巴，田鼠在她胸前摆来摆去。她把猎物扔在冬青爪旁边，问道：“我把它们跟你的猎物埋在一起，怎么样？”
“不会搞混了吗？”
“云尾已经知道我抓到什么了，不必担心。”
“你已经跟他说了？”冬青爪十分惊讶。要知道，在考核的过程中，老师不能为他们提供任何帮助。
“当然没有了。”炭爪对她说道，“不过，我看他一直在看着我呢。像他那样长着一身雪白的皮毛，除非在雪地里，否则很容易被发现。”她半开玩笑地说着。
“鼠爪下定决心，想抓一只松鼠呢。”冬青爪告诉她说。
“真的吗？”炭爪一脸惊讶地盯着那只灰白色皮毛的公猫，“你抓的老鼠不够吗？”
“我抓的老鼠足够了，”鼠爪有些愤愤不平，“我就是想让蛛足看看，我也能抓到松鼠。”
“溪流上游那里，经常有松鼠出没。”冬青爪建议道。
“我想爬上天空橡树。”鼠爪宣布道。
“别开玩笑了！”炭爪听了大吃一惊，“那可是森林里最高的树啊！”
“其他树上也会有松鼠的。”冬青爪提醒着他。鼠爪是黛西在雷族外生的幼崽，一直以来，他都热衷于在雷族的猫面前表现自己。可是经历了刚刚结束的族群会议，他应该不会觉得自己必须向大家证明什么了吧！
“我就是要去爬天空橡树！”鼠爪坚持道，“我这段时间一直在训练，我想让蛛足看看，我现在有多厉害。”
“哇，”炭爪深吸一口气，“你好勇敢啊！”
“快点儿吧。”说完，鼠爪就开始在林中飞速穿行起来。炭爪紧随其后，身后扬起一片片叶子。冬青爪又看了一眼山毛榉，记住了自己埋藏猎物的地方，然后也跟着他们跑开了。
到了天空橡树下面，冬青爪抬起头，望着那一层层密密的树枝。它的树干似乎一直向上延伸，没有尽头。天空透过亮绿色的叶子，闪着蔚蓝的光。鼠爪也向上看着，冬青爪此刻感觉到，他的尾巴正在不住地颤抖。
“你害怕了吧？”炭爪嘲笑他道。
冬青爪把爪子深深插进土里，心想，还是不要用这种办法刺激他，让他做不该做的事。“要不我们再去抓几只老鼠吧，”她建议道，“这附近肯定有很多。”
鼠爪脊背上的毛像刺猬一样全竖了起来。“不，我就是要抓松鼠。”他一边坚定地低声说着，一边跳起来，张开前爪，抓住粗壮的树干，费力地向上挪动着身子。不一会儿，他就爬上了最低处的那根树枝。“看到了吧！”他朝下面喊着，“很容易！”接着他向上望去，寻找着下一个落脚点。
这时，冬青爪突然听到有爪子落地声传来。
“鼠爪！”蕨毛从森林外面跑了过来，上气不接下气，眼睛因吃惊而瞪得大大的，“你快下来！”
蛛足跟在他身后。“你别管他！”他对蕨毛大喊着，“他想爬，就让他爬吧！”
云尾也从森林里走了出来。“我想我们是不该帮忙的……”他停下脚步，看到鼠爪已经爬到了另一根树枝上。
“我真的认为你应该让他下来了。”蕨毛建议道。
“你是说，我的学徒不够优秀？”蛛足的耳朵平贴了起来。
“他还太小，”蕨毛争辩道，“我就不会让冬青爪去爬这棵树。”
“冬青爪训练的时间没有鼠爪长！”蛛足说道。
“你们看，多容易啊！”鼠爪大叫着。那里的树枝比较密集，他开始向上跳跃，动作十分敏捷。
“别爬太高了啊！”蛛足提醒道。看到鼠爪飞快地在树枝之间跳跃，蛛足脸上也流露出了担忧的神情。
这时，鼠爪上方的树叶沙沙作响。一只松鼠出现在他的头顶。
“快看！”炭爪激动地喊，“上面就有一只！”
鼠爪开始追赶松鼠。冬青爪一直抬头盯着看，看得脖子都疼了。她看到松鼠一直向上爬，树叶抖个不停，它和鼠爪间一直保持着几条尾巴长的距离，看上去那只松鼠正在引诱他向上爬。
一定小心啊，鼠爪！
突然松鼠纵身一跃，离开了天空橡树，跳到了旁边的一棵树上，细枝上的碎屑纷纷落了下来。
鼠爪愣住了。
他爬得太高了，从下面看起来就像老鼠一样小。可就算如此，冬青爪依然能看到，他全身的毛都竖了起来。这位灰白色皮毛的学徒吓坏了。
“你做得不错，可以下来了！”蛛足告诉他。
“我下不去了！”鼠爪忽然尖叫起来，“我被卡住了！”
蕨毛倒吸口气：“现在我们该怎么办呢？”
“我可以上去看看他出什么事了。”云尾说道。所有猫都知道，他是雷族猫中攀爬水平最高的。
“看样子，他不能自己下来了。”蛛足点头同意。
“我去把他接下来！”炭爪喊了起来。
“等一下！”看到这个灰色皮毛的学徒开始顺着树干往上爬，冬青爪大叫了一声。
“马上给我下来！”蕨毛对女儿咆哮道。
炭爪在最低处的树枝上停下来。“可我看到有一条可以让鼠爪轻松下来的路。”她争辩道。
云尾和蕨毛用焦虑而担忧的目光相互看了一眼。
“我的动作会很慢的，放心吧。”看到他俩并没说什么，炭爪马上做出了承诺，“如果我感觉自己爬得太高的话，我会马上停下的。”
蕨毛点点头：“好的，不过你一定要注意安全。”
炭爪开始小心翼翼地向上爬，每跳一次都稍稍停顿一会儿，不让自己前进的幅度过大。冬青爪注视着她，紧张得连口水都干了。炭爪不会有事的。她在心中不停地重复着这句话。
此时，冬青爪感到站在身边的蕨毛身体颤抖着。他睁大了眼睛，看着炭爪向上爬，眼睛里充满了恐慌。
“她离鼠爪越来越近了。”云尾说道。
炭爪此时跟自己的伙伴仅隔几条树枝的距离了。鼠爪望着她，身上的毛慢慢平顺下来。
“没事儿的，鼠爪，”炭爪朝他喊道，“没什么好怕的！”
炭爪开始指引鼠爪下树——他们慢慢地踩着树枝，每挪动一爪子都十分谨慎。冬青爪大气都不敢喘。
“对，就这样，”炭爪说道，“下一根树枝离得特别近，只要用爪子抓住它，就没事儿啦。”
冬青爪他们已经可以看清他俩了。虽然每挪动一步都很艰难，但他们马上就能脱险了。
快成功了！
突然，一只鸟尖叫了一声，从他俩下方拍打着翅膀飞了出来。鼠爪一惊，号叫了一声，身子从树枝上滑了出去。
刹那间，炭爪像一道闪电一样冲上前去，抓住了他，把他拽了回来，炭爪后腿倒挂在树枝上。鼠爪紧紧抓住树枝，身子紧贴在树干上，尾巴不住地乱摆，已经被吓坏了。
冬青爪终于松了一口气。
紧接着，她看到炭爪的身子晃动起来。这只灰色虎斑猫的后爪正在滑出树枝，前爪绝望地在空中乱晃着。突然，她发出一声尖叫，从上面掉了下来。冬青爪惊恐地望着她像石头穿过天空橡树茂密的叶子，重重地落在地上，发出一声闷响。
“不！”蕨毛呼喊着奔了过去。“炭爪？炭爪！”他伏在炭爪已经瘫软在地的身体上，大声唤着她的名字。
“快去叫叶池来！”蛛足对冬青爪喊道。
冬青爪又看了一眼朋友那不住扭动的身体，然后飞速穿过森林，向营地冲去。炭爪不能死！她不会死的！
CHAPTER11
CHAPTER11
“For StarClan’s sake!” Ashfur bounded fromthe ferns and glared angrily at Lionpaw. “How did you miss it?”
The wagtail, which had whisked away from Lionpaw’s outstretched paws only moments earlier, perched on a branch above the training hollow and called an alarm before fluttering away into the trees.
Lionpaw hung his head. He should have caught it, but his paws felt like stones. “Sorry.” The midnight trek to the beach with Jaypaw had left him exhausted. He quivered with irritation. He had left Heatherpaw early last night so he could catch up on his sleep. Why had Jaypaw dragged him out to the lake instead of letting him rest?
“You’re lumbering around like a badger today,” Ashfur scolded.
Spiderleg and Mousepaw padded out of the ferns with Honeypaw and Sandstorm.
“More like a hibernating hedgehog!” Mousepaw teased.
Lionpaw glared at his denmate.
Honeypaw flicked her tail at Mousepaw. “It wasn’t long ago you missed a squirrel,” she reminded him.
Lionpaw’s ears grew hot. He didn’t need Honeypaw to defend him.
“Honeypaw’s right.” Spiderleg nudged Mousepaw’s shoulder with his muzzle. “And your climbing could use some practice.”
Mousepaw flattened his ears. “Well, let’s go practice, then!”
“You’d better not try the Sky Oak!” Honeypaw called out as the two cats headed for the trees. Mousepaw’s tail quivered with annoyance as it disappeared into the undergrowth.
Sandstorm turned to her apprentice. “Come on, Honeypaw, we’ll see if there are any mice around the old beech.”
“Can we come too?” Ashfur looked pointedly at Lionpaw. “I don’t think we’ll find many birds around here now.”
“Of course.” Sandstorm bounded up the slope out of the hollow and then headed into the trees. Ashfur hurried to catch her up.
“Don’t worry,” Honeypaw whispered, falling in beside Lionpaw. “I missed a sparrow yesterday.”
Lionpaw snorted and hurried ahead of her, bristling.
The ground beneath the beech was littered with empty husks. This was a great place for hunting mice attracted by the ready supply of beechnuts. Lionpaw pushed ahead of Honeypaw into the ferns that ringed the open ground beneath the tree. Ashfur and Sandstorm were waiting for them, sat beneath the arching fronds.
“Let’s hope we manage to catch something here,” Ashfur meowed. “We don’t want the Clan to go hungry.”
“They won’t!” Lionpaw snapped. Why couldn’t Ashfur give him advice instead of pointing out his mistakes?
“Look!” Honeypaw jerked her head toward the clearing. A mouse was sitting between the snaking roots of the beech, a nut between its forepaws. It was busy nibbling at the shell. “That’ll be easy to catch.” She blinked encouragingly at Lionpaw. “It doesn’t even know we’re here.”
“Why don’t you catch it, then?” he hissed.
Honeypaw’s eyes clouded. “I thought you might want the chance.”
“I don’t need help!” Lionpaw snapped. Did she think he was a helpless kit?
Honeypaw dropped her gaze and he felt guilty. She had only been trying to help. He turned and peered out of the undergrowth. He’d catch the mouse to show her he was sorry.
But it had gone.
Something else was stirring the leaves only a few tail-lengths away. Lionpaw dropped into a hunting crouch. Willing away the tiredness that made his limbs feel as heavy as wet wood, he began to creep forward. The leaves moved again and a tiny nose peeked out. Tensing every muscle, Lionpaw prepared to leap.
“Keep your tail down!” Ashfur hissed.
Lionpaw pressed his haunches down harder to the ground. Then he darted forward.
He wasn’t fast enough. The vole scuttled beneath a root. Lionpaw glanced at Ashfur, expecting some comment, a word of advice or even disappointment, but his mentor turned away without saying anything.
Brambleclaw looked up as Lionpaw followed Ashfur into camp. The ThunderClan deputy’s eyes narrowed as Ashfur dropped two mice and a sparrow onto the fresh-kill pile. Lionpaw had nothing to offer.
“Prey still running?” Brambleclaw padded over to them.
“There’s certainly plenty around,” Ashfur commented.
Lionpaw waited for Ashfur to tell Brambleclaw how useless he had been today. He blinked in surprise when Ashfur meowed, “Lionpaw’s hunting is coming along fine. He just needs to work on his crouch.”
Why didn’t he tell Brambleclaw the truth? Had Ashfur given up on him? Or was he being soft on him because his father was deputy?
Brambleclaw cuffed Lionpaw softly around the ear. “I thought you’d mastered the hunting crouch before you left the nursery.”
Didn’t anybody care?Irritation pricked his paws. He had been floundering for days, but nobody had mentioned it. Why weren’t they taking his training seriously? With all the talk of battle, surely it was more important than ever that he was doing well. He glanced at Brambleclaw, but the ThunderClan deputy was already padding away with a mouse in his jaws.
“You might as well have something to eat too,” Ashfur meowed. “It’s been a long morning.”
“What about training?”
“Rest first.” Ashfur began to head across the clearing. “We’ll do some battle training later.”
It looked as if Ashfur really had given up on him. Maybe his mentor thought training was a waste of time. Lionpaw felt a flash of indignation, but it died as he stared wearily at the fresh-kill pile. He was too tired to eat. All he wanted was to curl up and sleep. He headed for the apprentice den, ducking beneath the low branch of the bramble bush. With a sigh of relief, he coiled down into his nest and closed his eyes.
“Lionpaw!” Berrypaw’s voice woke him. “Time for battle training!”
Lionpaw struggled awake like a drowning cat fighting its way to the surface. Berrypaw was standing over him, shaking his shoulder with a paw.
“Okay, okay!” Lionpaw mewed. “Put your claws away! I’m awake.” He shook Berrypaw away and heaved himself to his paws. A fog filled his brain, and his body felt as though it was weighted down with boulders. His nap had only made him feel more tired.
“Ashfur and Brambleclaw want us to do some battle training together.”
Lionpaw sighed.
“What’s the matter?” Berrypaw leaned forward. “You normally can’t wait to try and beat me.” His whiskers twitched. “Are you scared?”
“No!” Of course he wasn’t scared. I just want to sleep!
He stumbled out of the den after Berrypaw and blinked in the afternoon sun. Ashfur and Brambleclaw were already waiting by the camp entrance. They nodded at Lionpaw and headed out of camp.
Slow down!Lionpaw felt hardly awake as he hurried after Berrypaw and the two warriors. He stumbled through the forest in a daze of tiredness, tripping over brambles and stifling yawn after yawn. He half slid down the slope into the mossy training hollow where Berrypaw was waiting with Ashfur and Brambleclaw. Stretching his claws, Lionpaw padded to join them. He shook himself, hoping to jerk himself awake, but a numbing fog still clouded his mind.
“Let’s get started,” Brambleclaw meowed. “Berrypaw, I want you to pretend you’re defending your territory.” He flicked his tail. “Lionpaw, attack him.”
Berrypaw dropped into a crouch, hackles bristling and tail lashing. His eyes were narrowed to slits and his chin glided back and forth over the ground like a snake’s.
“Come on, Lionkit!” he teased.
Anger flashed in Lionpaw’s pelt. Without thinking he rushed at Berrypaw, his sleepy paws stumbling over the ground. He hurled himself at his denmate, forelegs splayed. Berrypaw reared up and caught him under the chin, flinging him backward. Before Lionpaw could roll out of the way, Berrypaw sprang on top of him. Lionpaw struggled but the other apprentice’s weight pinned him to the ground.
Berrypaw looked up triumphantly at Brambleclaw. “That was easy!”
As his attention slipped, Lionpaw darted out from underneath him. He butted Berrypaw’s creamy flank with his head, but Berrypaw hardly flinched. Instead, he rounded on Lionpaw and swiped at him with a forepaw. Lionpaw only just managed to duck in time. What now?His mind was sluggish with sleep. Working on instinct, he dived beneath Berrypaw’s belly and tried to leap up and unbalance him. But he hadn’t bargained for Berrypaw’s greater weight. Berrypaw merely dropped on top of him and squashed him to the ground.
Lionpaw, defeated, went limp. Every move he had made had been badly thought out. Berrypaw stepped off Lionpaw and sat down beside Brambleclaw, curling his tail over his paws.
Ashfur stared down at his apprentice. “Was that the best you could do?”
Lionpaw shot to his paws, his ears burning. He was wide awake now, his body tingling with anger. “It’s not my fault you taught me all the wrong moves!”
Shock flashed in Brambleclaw’s eyes, but Ashfur’s gaze remained calm. “Do you think anyonewould believe I taught you that clumsy display?”
“Well, if you had it would be the first thing you’ve taught me today!”
Thatmanaged to ruffle Ashfur’s pelt. The gray warrior’s eyes blazed.
Brambleclaw stepped forward. “A warrior never blames his Clanmates for his own mistakes, Lionpaw.” He turned to Ashfur. “I think you need to speak with your apprentice. Come on, Berrypaw. Let’s carry on training over there.”
The fur along Ashfur’s spine quivered as he watched Brambleclaw pad to the other side of the clearing. Lionpaw suddenly felt cold as his anger slid away. He had gone too far. “I’m sorry,” he mewed.
Ashfur swung his head around and glared at Lionpaw. “I have tried to make you the best apprentice in your den,” he growled, “but lately it’s been like training a slug. You only seem to hear half of what I tell you and the things you do hear, you forget. You used to have an instinct for hunting and fighting, but it’s gone and I don’t know where.”
Lionpaw’s whiskers trembled. He couldn’t deny that he had been distracted lately, but he thought no one had noticed. “I promise I’ll try harder.”
“You’ll have to if you don’t want to get left behind in the apprentice den and watch Foxkit and Icekit become warriors before you!”
“I will!” Fear squirmed in Lionpaw’s belly, not of Ashfur, but of failure. Everything had come so easily before. The idea that he might struggle to keep up filled him with dread.
“Good.” Ashfur nodded curtly. “Let’s start again.”
Lionpaw squared his shoulders. “Okay.”
“We’ll try the badger defense.”
Lionpaw blinked. “B-but that’s one of the hardest.”
“I know.” Ashfur crouched. “Watch carefully.” He reared up and leaped forward, high enough to clear a badger’s back. He landed without dropping onto his forepaws and spun around so fast that Lionpaw marveled at how he kept his balance. Then he ducked down, back onto four paws, and twisted to the side, snapping his jaws as though clamping them into a badger’s hind leg.
“Now you do it,” he ordered. “And don’t forget, a badger is twice as big as a cat, so make the leap as high as you can. You don’t want to end up on its back. If it rolled over, it could crush you.”
Heart pounding, Lionpaw reared up. He tried to leap forward, but lost his balance and fell to one side, slamming his forepaws onto the ground.
“Again!” Ashfur demanded.
Lionpaw pushed himself up and tried to leap forward once more. This time he managed to spring a little way, but he toppled over and fell down onto four paws again.
“Put more power into your jump,” Ashfur meowed. “Most of your strength is in your hind legs—use it!”
“But I can’t get my balance,” Lionpaw protested.
“Then keep trying until you can!”
“Ashfur!” Brambleclaw called from the other side of the clearing. “I want to try out a double attack on Berrypaw. Can you come and help?”
Berrypaw was ready to take on twowarriors? Lionpaw’s pads tingled with jealousy. They’ll never let me try that!
Ashfur narrowed his eyes. “Keep practicing,” he commanded and bounded away to join the ThunderClan deputy.
Lionpaw felt despair drag at his paws. Why had Ashfur given him something so impossible to practice? Was he trying to make him look even more useless? Halfheartedly, he reared onto his hind legs. He staggered even before he tried to jump, the forest swaying in front of him. Frustrated, he dropped onto four paws. I’ll never get this!
“Of course you will!” A pelt brushed his, nudging him so roughly that it sent him sprawling across the wet moss.
Lionpaw scrambled crossly to his paws. “What are you—?” He broke off.
Brambleclaw, Ashfur, and Berrypaw were still on the farside of the clearing.
Who pushed me?
“Keep your eyes fixed on something in front of you,” a voice growled. “It’s the only way to keep your balance.”
Lionpaw stared in alarm. Two eyes burned against the background of the forest. A hazy outline moved like mist against the ferns.
“Tigerstar!” Lionpaw glanced nervously toward his Clanmates. Could they see him?
“Only you can see me.” Tigerstar seemed to read his mind. “I’m not here as far as they’re concerned.”
“Why areyou here?” Lionpaw shivered.
“To help you.” Tigerstar narrowed his eyes. “It looks like you need it.”
Lionpaw felt hot with shame.
“I’ll be the badger.” Tigerstar crouched in front of him.
Lionpaw frowned. How would he be able to tackle this ghostly warrior? He could hardly see him.
“Try it!” Tigerstar commanded. “And don’t forget to keep your eyes on something solid.”
Lionpaw took a deep breath and stared at a birch at the edge of the clearing. Concentrating hard, he reared onto his hind legs. He was balancing! He tensed the muscles in his hind legs and sprang up and over Tigerstar, landing behind him. He turned and began to feel himself falling to one side. Tigerstar shifted fast as a snake and pushed him back up so that he could complete the turn. Lionpaw regained his balance, ducked, and twisted to nip Tigerstar’s hind leg.
“Not bad.” Tigerstar dodged away. “But you won’t always have me to prop you up.”
At least I was better than before!Lionpaw padded back to his starting place while Tigerstar crouched in front of him again. This time he tensed every muscle in his body before pushing up with his back legs and leaping forward. He landed perfectly and ducked, baring his teeth to nip Tigerstar’s hind leg.
But Tigerstar was already up and pacing. “That’s more like it,” he growled. “But you should slash out with your forepaw as you spin. That way, you could scratch the badger as well as bite it.”
Lionpaw’s heart was pounding with excitement. He hadn’t felt this awake in days. “Let’s try it!”
He managed it perfectly the first time.
Tigerstar dodged to avoid being raked by Lionpaw’s fast forepaw slash.
“Much better!”
“How are you getting on?” Ashfur’s call made Lionpaw jump. He spun around guiltily, and saw his mentor padding toward him. He glanced nervously over his shoulder.
Tigerstar was gone.
Ashfur narrowed his eyes. “You have been practicing, haven’t you?”
“Yes,” Lionpaw mewed quickly.
“Show me.”
Lionpaw performed the move even better than he had with Tigerstar. He finished in a perfect crouch and glanced up at Ashfur. His mentor’s eyes were glowing. “You might make a warrior, after all.” He beckoned to Brambleclaw with his tail. “Come and watch this.”
Brambleclaw bounded to join them, Berrypaw on his heels.
“You be the badger, Berrypaw,” Ashfur ordered.
Berrypaw crouched, and Lionpaw reared up and leaped over him. He spun and flicked out a claw that parted Berrypaw’s fur, then finished by grazing Berrypaw’s hind leg with his teeth.
“A badger wouldn’t stand a chance!” Ashfur meowed proudly.
“He could have jumped higher,” Berrypaw mewed.
“It would have slowed him down,” Ashfur argued.
“Brambleclaw?” Lionpaw was itching to know what his father thought. “Was it okay?” A troubled look seemed to be clouding the ThunderClan deputy’s gaze.
Brambleclaw blinked. “It was great,” he meowed. He turned to Ashfur. “Did you teach him the move with the claw?”
“No, he came up with that by himself.”
“Did you?” Brambleclaw’s gaze seemed to burn into Lionpaw’s.
Lionpaw nodded guiltily. Had his father recognized Tigerstar’s move? “Did you like it?”
“It’s a nice touch.” Brambleclaw stroked his tail along Lionpaw’s flank. “Let’s get back to camp.”
The ThunderClan deputy padded out of the mossy clearing, his striped tail disappearing into the ferns. Berrypaw made a face at Lionpaw before following his mentor into the undergrowth
“Are you coming?” Ashfur meowed.
“In a moment.” Lionpaw wanted to see if Tigerstar would come back. He wanted to know why the dark warrior was taking so much interest in him. Jaypaw was the one who spoke with their ancestors. As Ashfur slipped into the ferns, Lionpaw scanned the clearing. There was no sign of Tigerstar, not even a scent. The tabby warrior had vanished.
Lionpaw shook away the doubt pricking in his pelt. He should be grateful. Tigerstar seemed to care more about his training than his mentor did.
“Thanks, Tigerstar,” he whispered into the trees, and followed his Clanmates home toward camp.
第七章
第七章
“嗷！”桦落大叫一声，把爪子从松鸦爪那里抽了回去。
松鸦爪叹了口气：“要是我不把刺拔出来，还会更疼的！”
桦落害怕地再次伸出爪子。松鸦爪弯下身子，用牙齿咬住刺的末端。“刺不太大啊！”他低声从齿缝里挤出一句话。
“那是因为它扎进去太深了！”桦落抱怨道，“我能坚持走回营地，真是个奇迹。”
松鸦爪使劲儿往外一拽。
“嗷！”桦落一下子蹦得老高，疼得在巫医巢穴里又跳又叫。
松鸦爪把拔出来的刺扔到一边，又把嘴里的血腥味儿吐干净。
“我都跟你说了，这根刺特别大！”桦落又大声嚷嚷起来。
松鸦爪用爪子摸摸那根刺。上面那弯曲的钩子，摸上去感觉很像猫的爪子。“是挺大的，不过总不会要了你的命吧。”他说道。
桦落舔舔自己的伤口，说道：“作为一位巫医，你可真是没什么同情心啊。”
“我是来给你治病的。如果你需要同情，那就去育婴室吧。”松鸦爪说完，朝巢穴后面走去。武士们啊！他们在战场上可能很英勇，可仅仅一根刺，就让他们疼得像幼崽一样尖叫。他嘴里塞满了金盏花，开始把它们咀嚼成糊，这药糊可以让桦落受伤的爪子免受感染。
突然，松鸦爪的身体一僵。一阵急促的爪子落地声从营地外面传来。他闻了闻空气中的气息，立即察觉到了冬青爪内心传来的恐惧。
“来，把这个涂在伤口上！”松鸦爪把那团药糊扔在桦落的爪子边，穿过遮蔽着巫医巢穴的黑莓丛，来到空地上。
冬青爪飞奔而来，说道：“炭爪从天空橡树上摔下来了！”
松鸦爪倒吸了一口气。“我去找叶池！”他跑向育婴室，叶池正在那儿治疗小狐的感冒。
叶池已经冲出了育婴室：“炭爪怎么了？”
松鸦爪急忙停下来，差一点儿就撞到她身上。叶池停在空地中央，身体颤抖起来。恐惧如同从伤口喷涌而出的鲜血，在她心中肆虐。不！不要再这样！她心中无声的祈祷冲进了松鸦爪的大脑，就和她大声喊出来一样的清晰。
“你赶快走啊！”冬青爪哭叫道。
“发生了什么事？”火星穿过空地过来了。全族的猫都跑了过来，想看看究竟出了什么事，爪子落地声响彻了营地。
“炭爪帮鼠爪爬下天空橡树时，从树上摔下来了！”冬青爪上气不接下气地说道。
“叶池，赶快去看看！”火星马上命令道。
她怎么了？松鸦爪希望老师赶快采取行动，可是她却站在原地一动不动，似乎恐惧已经占据了她的全部身心。“我们需要什么草药啊？”松鸦爪不停地催问着，同时也察觉到站在自己身后的冬青爪身子抖得厉害。
“是罂粟籽吗？”看到叶池还是没有回答，松鸦爪的语气加重了一些。
就在松鸦爪也开始变得紧张时，叶池忽然缓过神来了。他感到她的思维清晰了好多，就像云开月出的感觉一样。“对，是罂粟籽。”她说道，“灯芯草和蛛丝可以包扎断腿，百里香可以治疗惊吓。”
“我马上去找。”松鸦爪说道。
“快些啊！”冬青爪恳求道。
“谁跟她在一起呢？”叶池问道。
“鼠爪、蜡毛、云尾和蕨毛。”
“好的。他们可以帮忙抬着她。”
松鸦爪从灰条和米莉身边冲过去，奔向巫医巢穴，尾巴直立起来。他又从站在巢穴门口、毛发竖起的桦落身边冲过去，来到储存草药的地方。他找到一些罂粟籽，用舌头小心地卷起来，然后拿了一些百里香，抓了一爪子的蛛丝和一团灯芯草。松鸦爪把这些东西卷成一卷，叼在嘴里，飞快地跑回空地。
“都带齐了吗？”叶池问道。
松鸦爪点点头。
“快！”冬青爪一边大喊着，一边带领他们跑出了营地。
松鸦爪感到，爪子下的森林地面非常柔软。冬青爪爬上斜坡，叶池紧随其后。松鸦爪跟在她俩身后，全部感官都高度警惕，小心翼翼地穿过一棵棵树木。突然，一处荆棘把他绊倒在地，口中的那团草药掉了出来。
“让我来！”叶池转过身，迅速抓起那团灯芯草继续往前跑去。松鸦爪紧紧跟在她身后，继续在森林里穿行。
“我看到天空橡树啦！”冬青爪一边喊，一边加快了脚步。“小心那棵倒着的树！”她提醒道。
冬青爪从倒下的树上跃了过去，咚的一声落在木头另一边的地上，然后便停了下来。叶池也跟着跳了过去。松鸦爪没有半点儿犹豫，不过心里还是有点儿紧张。他使劲儿信跳起来，心里祈祷着，希望自己起跳的时机选得不错。他轻巧地落在另一边，察觉到爪子下腐烂的树皮后，才意识到自己成功了。
“在这边！”冬青爪来到蕨毛他们身边。松鸦爪察觉到，蕨毛心里的恐慌犹如一道闪电划过天空，猝然向自己袭来。他听到了蜡毛在天空橡树周围来回踱步的声音，也感受到鼠爪的身体在不停地颤抖着。
“炭爪还有呼吸！”云尾喊道。
“太好了！”叶池放下那团草药。松鸦爪蹲伏在叶池身边，叶池俯身观察着炭爪。松鸦爪能听到受伤的学徒发出的急促而微弱的呼吸声。他用鼻子碰碰炭爪的腹部。炭爪的身体软软的，和一只死老鼠没什么两样。松鸦爪不由得心里一紧。
“她休克了！”叶池大声说道，“你过来舔她的胸脯，我来喂她百里香。”
松鸦爪把罂粟籽吐掉，开始舔炭爪的身体。她的心脏在松鸦爪舌头的舔舐下，快速跳动着。这时他闻到了草药的香气——原来叶池已经打开了那团草药，开始咀嚼叶子，将它们做成药糊，待会儿再放入炭爪口中。
“她会死吗？”蕨毛的声音颤抖着。
“我不会让她死的。”叶池坚定地说道。
巫医来到炭爪身体的另一边，命令松鸦爪：“现在轻轻地舔。”于是松鸦爪开始更加缓慢细致地舔舐炭爪的身体。当炭爪的心跳开始变得平缓时，他悬着的心终于落地了。松鸦爪听到叶池嗅着炭爪身体的声音——她正在仔细检查着炭爪的身体。突然，这位巫医的身体僵住了。
“她怎么了？”松鸦爪轻声问。
叶池向后退了几步，像是被黄蜂蜇了一样。
“怎么了？”蕨毛冲上前去，差点儿把松鸦爪撞倒。
什么事情会让叶池如此害怕呢？松鸦爪停下来，在叶池的脑海中搜寻着答案。他察觉到一片恐惧的阴云，像夜幕一样笼罩着叶池。到底发生了什么糟糕的事情呢？
“她……她的一条后腿断了！”叶池吸了一大口气说道。
“我们可以用灯芯草把断腿接上啊！”松鸦爪建议道。
叶池没有回答。不要再发生这样的事了！她心里祈祷着。
蕨毛的心里既害怕又困惑：“她……她不会因为腿断了就死掉吧？”
叶池一动不动。松鸦爪集中精力搜寻着她的内心，突然看到一只灰猫一瘸一拐走着的画面，察觉到一股悲伤的情绪撕扯着叶池的心。
“给！”松鸦爪找出一束灯芯草，然后用它戳了戳叶池。叶池的身子猛地一抖，接了过去。叶池把一束灯芯草放在炭爪的断腿旁，松鸦爪感到心情轻松了一些，接着又递给她一束。松鸦爪接着又把蛛丝递过去，叶池开始仔细地把灯芯草绑在炭爪的腿上。“在把她带回营地之前，我们先这样应付一下，”叶池低声说，“回到营地我才能做进一步处理。”
过了一会儿，叶池把断腿绑好，坐了起来：“蜡毛、云尾，你们俩帮蕨毛把她背回营地，尽量不要移动她的那条断腿。”
当蕨毛、云尾和蜡毛将炭爪抬起来时，她轻轻发出了一声呻吟。
“小心些！”叶池深吸一口气说道。
松鸦爪听到叶池在武士们周围走动、帮他们把黑莓丛推开的声音，觉察到叶池的心里依旧满是恐惧。“小心那些树根！看到倒伏的树要绕着走！别走洼地！抬她时要稳一些！”叶池不停地嘱咐着。
冬青爪靠在松鸦爪身上，身体依旧不住地颤抖。“我一开始还以为，她已经死了呢。”她低声喃喃道。
“她一定会没事儿的。”松鸦爪向她保证道，“她的内心很强大，只是腿断了而已，其他地方都没事儿。”
“别说了！什么只是腿断了！”叶池厉声说道，把松鸦爪吓了一跳，“武士可是需要四条完整而健康的腿啊！”
冬青爪把鼻子贴在松鸦爪的耳朵上。“我还从没见她如此不安过。”冬青爪轻声说道。
松鸦爪摇摇头说道：“我也没见过。”他靠在冬青爪身上，让她领着自己穿过低矮的灌木丛。他要把自己的注意力都集中在叶池身上，他在叶池的心中探查到了慌张、气愤和悔恨等情绪。这是为什么呢？让炭爪掉下来的又不是她，这只是一个意外。
为什么叶池会如此自责呢？
三位武士小心翼翼地抬着炭爪放到巫医巢穴里，炭爪的皮毛摩擦得地面发出沙沙的响声。
栗尾已在巢穴里等待许久，她颤抖的爪子紧抓着地上的泥土，心里满是悲伤和恐惧。罂粟爪和蜜爪在冬青爪身旁坐立不安，紧张地喘着粗气，心里也十分焦躁和害怕。
“谢谢大家，”叶池对蕨毛、云尾和蜡毛说道，“现在你们可以走了。”
“可是……”蕨毛想留下来，可是栗尾温柔地打断了他。
“我会跟她待在一起的。”
黑莓丛沙沙作响，蕨毛跟着蜡毛和云尾走了出去。
松鸦爪弯下身子，舔舐着炭爪两耳之间的部位——她又昏过去了。“我们会照顾你的。”他保证道。这时他感到冬青爪正盯着他看。
“你最好也离开这里，”他建议道，“火星在外面等着呢。”松鸦爪能感觉到巢穴外面传来的雷族族长心情沉重的气息，“他一定想知道，究竟发生了什么事。”
“你们会让她好起来的，是吗？”冬青爪问道。
“我们会尽力的。”
冬青爪离开巢穴时，叶池轻声对栗尾说：“我会竭尽全力治好她的。”
“我知道你会的。”栗尾的声音里满是悲伤，不过松鸦爪仍然从中觉察到了某种特别的情意。在他出生前，栗尾就已经是叶池最好的朋友了。
栗尾呼出的气息，让炭爪的皮毛泛起一片涟漪。“愿星族保佑你。”她轻声说道。
“她一定会康复的，对吧？”蜜爪惊恐的声音在栗尾身旁响了起来。
“不要让她死掉啊！”罂粟爪啜泣着。
“行了，”栗尾安慰着她们，“我们还是去看看蕨毛吧，他需要我们的陪伴。”她领着幼崽们离开了巫医巢穴，只留下了松鸦爪和叶池。
大家都走了，松鸦爪又察觉到，叶池内心的焦虑感陡然升腾起来，像一群飞舞着的蜜蜂。突然，炭爪的身体动了动。
叶池的尾巴轻轻扫过她的腹部。“别害怕！”她安慰道，“你现在已经安全回到营地了。你从天空橡树上摔下来，伤到了腿，不过我们会把它治好的。”叶池的心中充满了绝望，但她的话音依旧平静，“你当时想要做什么？你是不是以为自己是一只鸟，能展翅飞翔了呢？”
她说话的声音像母亲一样温柔。松鸦爪之前从没想过，叶池会不会因为自己永远不能生幼崽而悲伤。
炭爪发出一声轻微的呻吟，接着她的呼吸又开始变得低沉——她又陷入了昏迷。
“来啊，松鸦爪！”叶池的声音突然变得严厉起来，“我们帮她接腿吧。首先，我们把这些裹伤的东西拿掉。”
松鸦爪帮叶池把蛛丝咬断，解开灯芯草的结。
“现在，我们需要新鲜的灯芯草。”还没等松鸦爪动身，叶池就跑到巢穴后面，拿来了三根新鲜的灯芯草和蛛丝，“我们把这两根放在这里，然后把这根放在这里……”
松鸦爪过去帮忙，可这时叶池的爪子已经把灯芯草轻轻按压在炭爪的后腿上，然后用牙齿将蛛丝缠在上面，一边做，一边说：“这样绑会牢固些。”
松鸦爪感觉自己待在这儿有点儿多余。叶池刚才的话，是在说给自己听，还是自言自语？“我是不是该去拿些紫草呢？”他问道。
“你说什么？”叶池回过神来，“哦，好的，好的，这主意不错！”
松鸦爪收集了一大把紫草叶子，开始把它们咀嚼成糊。此时他依然能听到叶池说话的声音：“如果蛛丝再多一点儿就好了，这样就不会让灯芯草脱落了。”
炭爪的身子抽动起来，轻轻地发出一声哀叫。
“或许我们应该让她独自好好休息一下，”松鸦爪说道，“现在我们能做的，都已经做完了。”
瞬间，他察觉到叶池滚烫的呼吸拍打在自己的脸上。“不！她现在离不开我们！”叶池嘶嘶地叫道。
松鸦爪吓了一跳，他向后退了退，耳朵耷拉下来。
叶池怒气冲冲：“我们绝不能让炭爪的腿残疾！”
“我……我……”松鸦爪开始结巴起来。
叶池说完，后退了几步。这时，松鸦爪感受到了她心里的愧疚：“对不起，松鸦爪。我不该对你大喊大叫，今天你已经帮了我很大的忙。”
可你并没让我做任何事情啊。松鸦爪这么想着，却没有说出来，生怕再次激怒她。
叶池转过身去，说道：“我现在必须要找栗尾和蕨毛谈一谈了。”说完，她钻出黑莓屏风，黑莓丛在身后沙沙作响。松鸦爪站在原地，一动不动。老师到底在想什么？他很清楚，叶池一直都十分关照族群的同伴，但他从没见过她因为一只猫受了伤而如此愤怒和不安，就好像治疗炭爪是无比重要的事。这是不是因为，炭爪是自己最好的朋友的幼崽呢？
他把耳朵贴在炭爪的胸脯上，检查着她的心跳。炭爪的心跳依然很快，呼吸的频率也特别快。松鸦爪在她的身边躺下来，让自己身上的暖意传遍她的全身。他也跟着加快了呼吸速度，闭上眼睛。
松鸦爪站在一处峡谷的顶端，四周被茂密的林地包围着。他向下看去，一片片树木和灌木丛把地面覆盖得严严实实。这里是星族的领地吗？松鸦爪突然害怕起来。难道炭爪真的要死了？他自己出现在这里，意味着他要像上次救罂粟爪那样来拯救炭爪吗？
这时，他的下方出现了一个灰色的身影。炭爪在石头上蹦来跳去，沿着峡谷向下奔去，很快便消失在茂盛的绿色草木中。
松鸦爪顿时惊慌起来。我绝不能让她离开我的视线！于是，他沿着峡谷的山脊爬了下去，在荆棘覆盖着的乱石中尽力保持着身体的平衡，循着炭爪跑过的那条小路行进。峡谷底部，一道金雀花丛形成的高墙挡住了他的去路。就在这时，松鸦爪看到炭爪的尾巴尖儿消失在墙缝里。他赶忙追上去，发现在金盏花丛里面有一个缺口。他悄悄钻进去，看到炭爪正站在峡谷底部一处铺满沙土的空地上。这里被灌木丛和香薇丛层层包围着，远处，一块嶙峋的石头堵住了出口。
“炭爪？”松鸦爪警觉地一边朝她走，一边嗅闻着空中的气息。这里不像是星族的领地，不过他的确辨识出了一些气息。空地的边缘有一个树桩，闻上去似乎有火星和灰条的气息。他身边的黑莓丛里有尘毛和刺掌的气味。
炭爪回过头，睁大了眼睛，尾巴兴奋地扫来扫去：“这里跟我记忆中的一模一样，我好久没来这里了。”
她这话是什么意思？这里不是雷族的领地。炭爪怎么会来过这里呢？这儿甚至都不是湖边的某处地方。峡谷顶端的林间传来的风声也完全不同。这儿的空气更温暖，透着一股潮湿的霉味，松鸦爪从没闻过这种气味。
“看这里！”炭爪爬上了那块巨大的石头，“这就是高岩。”
接着她转过身，跳进了带着刺掌气味的荆棘丛：“这里就是武士巢穴。长老巢穴在那边。”她用尾巴指了指一棵倒伏的树，“那边呢……”她说着穿过空地，跑到另外一处灌木丛旁，“这里就是学徒巢穴了。我在这里睡过觉……”她说话的声音越来越小，眼睛也变得暗淡起来。她眨了眨眼，接着说道：“后来，我就搬到黄牙的巢穴住了。”
黄牙！这个名字在松鸦爪的耳朵里爆裂开来。黄牙是炭毛之前的雷族巫医。她现在已是星族的成员了，而且在松鸦爪的眼里，她的主要任务就是时不时闯入自己的梦里来。他不会忘记，她黄色的眼睛闪着光、蓬乱的皮毛不耐烦地竖起来的样子。
“快来看啊！”炭爪的说话声打断了他的思绪。
她领着他穿过一处狭窄的通道，来到一片更小的空地上。松鸦爪的心中升起一种怪异而恐怖的感觉。空地的尽头，一块石头高高耸立着，中间的部分被劈开了，形成一个宽大的缝隙，足够建起一座巢穴。
炭爪伤感地望着笼罩在阴影下的洞穴，说道：“黄牙把草药都藏在这儿了。”
“可黄牙已经死了啊，”松鸦爪说，“她现在是星族的成员了。”
炭爪看看他：“她当然是星族的成员啊！不然她还会去哪里呢？”
“为什么你表现得好像在这儿住过似的？”
“因为我的确在这儿住过啊。那是我们离开森林之前的事了，距离现在已经很长时间了。”
“可你从没在森林里住过啊！”
“我住过的。”炭爪蓝色的眼睛闪着点点星光，“不过我这次回来，选择一条完全不同的道路——也就是武士的道路。”她温柔地望着松鸦爪，声音听起来沉稳而睿智，好像她的年岁比松鸦爪大一样，“你告诉叶池，不必那么害怕。我这次一定会痊愈的。我一直为她感到骄傲，她学到的东西，远远超过我教给她的。”
松鸦爪身上的毛竖了起来，脑海中浮现出一幕幕鲜活的画面：一只在陌生的森林中奔跑的年轻灰猫，老雷鬼路上尖叫着的怪物，她的后腿撕心裂肺的剧痛，族猫的鲜血和哭喊声……还有学习草药知识的过程，在黄牙身后一瘸一拐行走的情景，在血流成河里出生的幼崽，被魔鬼摧残得四分五裂的森林，冰天雪地里漫长而艰难的跋涉，黑白皮毛的动物发出邪恶号叫，它们为了报仇雪恨，牙齿发出咯咯的声音，要跟对手决一死战……
松鸦爪突然深吸一口气，爪子开始不安地挪动着：“你是炭毛，对吧？”
这时，松鸦爪被这个梦惊醒了，爪垫上全是汗，尾巴不停地抖动着。他猛然抬起头，眼前又是一片黑暗。
“松鸦爪？”叶池的呼吸声在耳边响起，“你刚才做梦了吗？”
松鸦爪挣扎着站起来，俯身在身边的这位受伤的学徒上方。炭爪的呼吸很轻，但是很稳。
“松鸦爪？”叶池催促道，“你是不是做梦了？”
“是的。”松鸦爪稳住自己的呼吸说道。刚才充满血腥的暴力场景依然在他脑海中闪现着，鲜血、痛苦和恐惧充斥着他的内心。
“炭爪会好起来吗？”叶池悄悄问道。
“会的。”
叶池发出一声轻松的呼噜声。
“她以前来过这里。”松鸦爪轻声说道。
叶池用尾巴轻柔地抚摩他的腹部。“我也这样认为，”她叹了口气说道，“她其实是炭毛，对吧？”
“她带我到废弃的雷族营地去了，”松鸦爪解释道，“到了那里，她看起来特别高兴。”他停顿了一会儿，突然意识到炭爪的身体就在他们身边安静地躺着，“你说，她自己知道吗？”
“应该不会吧，至少她醒过来之后，肯定就不会知道了。”叶池喃喃道，“而且我们不应该告诉她这个。”
“为什么呢？”
“星族让她回到这里，追寻她一直梦想的武士之路，这已经足够了。”
松鸦爪竖起了耳朵。“她不想再当巫医了吗？”这样一来，我就不是唯一一位这样想的巫医了。他想道。
“她在被一只怪物弄伤，变成残疾后才成为巫医的。那次事故过后，她就没机会成为真正的武士了，只能以另外一种方式为族群服务。”
“但是如果知道自己的梦想正在实现，她肯定会高兴的，是吗？”
“如果星族想让她知道，它们会告诉她的。”叶池的语气变得严肃起来，“我们不该影响她的命运。”
“你认为把这件事告诉她，就会改变她的命运吗？”松鸦爪的大脑开始快速转动起来。叶池难道相信，这样做真的会改变一只猫的命运？她的意思是不是说，自己不跟狮爪和冬青爪说出火星梦里关于他们三个的预言是正确的吗？如果他告诉了他们这个秘密，他们今后的行为方式会因此改变吗？
“叶池？”炭爪的身体在他俩身边颤抖起来，说话声也有些沙哑。
“我给你取些水来。”松鸦爪说道。他找到一团苔藓，并把它在巢穴旁浅浅的水池里蘸了几下。
“来，喝点儿水吧！”他把滴着水的苔藓放在炭爪嘴边。炭爪急切地张开嘴舔舐着，然后含糊地说起话来。松鸦爪听不清她在说什么，于是凑上去仔细听着。
“我饿了。”她哑着嗓子说道。
松鸦爪听到叶池发出一声欢快的呼噜：“这可太像炭毛……”突然她意识到有什么不妥，马上纠正道，“我说的是炭爪。我去猎物堆给她取些吃的。”
叶池走出巢穴时，松鸦爪听到炭爪伸展身体的声音。突然，她叫了一声：“哎呀，我的腿！”
“它会康复的。你现在需要休息。”
“我现在在哪儿？”她晃着脑袋，低声喃喃道。
“在你应该在的地方，”松鸦爪用尾巴蹭蹭她的腹部，说道，“雷族营地。”
CHAPTER12
CHAPTER12
“Watch out!”
Graystripe’s warning was muffled by the bramble stem clasped in his jaws. Hollypaw hopped backward as the trail of brambles swished past her. Millie scurried by, trying to guide Graystripe’s prickly load safely across the clearing.
“I thought the den was finished,” Hollypaw mewed to Hazelpaw, flicking her tail at the addition to the warriors’ den. Its walls were thick and its roof pressed firmly into place.
Why do they need even more brambles?
“It’s not for the warriors’ den.” Hazelpaw shook her gray-and-white head. “They’re reinforcing the nursery.”
Hollypaw’s heart sank. Why was everyone so sure there was going to be a battle?
Ferncloud began shooing Foxkit and Icekit away from the nursery while Graystripe and Millie wrapped the brambles around the already densely tangled bush.
Hazelpaw nodded toward the fresh-kill pile where Mousepaw was choosing his midday snack. “Are you coming?”
Hollypaw shook her head. She wasn’t hungry. Anxiety had been churning in her belly since the Gathering. Besides, she was hunting with Brackenfur later; she could eat then. She watched Hazelpaw pick a mouse from the pile and settle down beside Mousepaw, their fluffy gray pelts merging into one.
Suddenly, the honeysuckle quivered and Brightheart rushed from the elders’ den. The one-eyed cat was snapping instructions over her shoulder. “Quick, this way!”
Longtail shot out behind her, Mousefur limping after him.
“I don’t see why we have to practice,” Mousefur coughed. “I know the drill.”
Brightheart halted at the bottom of the tumble of rocks. “You need to know it by heart in case there’s an attack at night.”
Longtail paused beside Brightheart. “Dark or light, it makes no difference to me.” His sightless eyes sparkled teasingly
Mousefur padded stiffly past him. “I’ve been in this camp long enough to know the way.” Hollypaw could hear her begin to wheeze as she clambered up the rocks toward the safety of Highledge. Longtail followed closely, nudging her forward whenever her paws slipped. Greencough had left Mousefur weaker than any cat would admit—Mousefur especially. It wasn’t fair to make her drill like this, especially for a battle that might never happen.
Thornclaw and Whitewing padded past Hollypaw. Thornclaw glanced at her. “Shouldn’t you be helping reinforce the defenses?”
“I’m training with Brackenfur soon,” Hollypaw explained.
“Good.” Thornclaw halted beneath Highledge where Stormfur and Brook were sharing tongues. “We need our apprentices sharp.”
Brook looked up. “Are you so sure the battle will happen?” There was anxiety in her husky mountain mew.
“We can’t be too careful,” Thornclaw growled.
Stormfur sat up. “It doesn’t make sense,” he meowed. “Why would WindClan attack us?”
“Yes!” Brook’s eyes brightened. “RiverClan’s the one they’re going to have trouble with.”
“What happens to RiverClan will affect us all,” Whitewing meowed.
Thornclaw flicked his tail. “If RiverClan is driven from their territory, where will they go?”
“They’ll need to settle somewhere,” Whitewing pointed out.
Stormfur sighed. “None of the borders will be safe.”
Hollypaw’s pelt pricked with anxiety. How could the four Clans survive if RiverClan lost their territory?
“Hollypaw?” Brackenfur was heading toward her.
“Are we going hunting?”
“Change of plan.” Brackenfur nodded toward Mousepaw and Hazelpaw. “We’ll be battle training with your denmates instead.”
Battle training!
He started to hurry away. “I’ll meet you at the training hollow.”
Hollypaw padded halfheartedly to the camp entrance. She didn’t want to train for a battle that might lead to the end of four Clans living around the lake. Stormfur’s words rang in her ears: None of the borders will be safe
She had to stop this!
She turned and almost crashed into Mousepaw. His green eyes were shining. “Did Brackenfur tell you?”
Hazelpaw clawed the ground behind him. “We’re battle training!”
Hollypaw stared at them. “Go ahead without me,” she whispered.
“What are you doing?” Mousepaw asked.
“It doesn’t matter,” she mewed. “I’ll catch up with you when I’ve finished.”
“But what will we tell Brackenfur?”
Hollypaw didn’t answer Hazelpaw’s anxious question. She had already pushed past her denmates and was halfway across the clearing. Brackenfur had stopped to talk with Stormfur. Hollypaw quickly ducked behind the elders’ den.
“Imagine thinking I couldn’t find my way up to Highledge.” She heard Mousefur’s croaking mew from inside. “They’ll have us practicing washing next.”
“Well, at least we’re ready now,” Longtail mewed soothingly.
“I was bornready!” Mousefur grumbled.
Hollypaw’s pelt bristled with anticipation as Brackenfur finally nodded to Stormfur. “See you later.” The golden warrior headed away toward the camp entrance.
Hollypaw slipped out from behind the honeysuckle and scurried up the rocks to Highledge. “Firestar!” She rushed into the cave, blinking against the sudden darkness.
Firestar’s eyes flashed in the shadows. Sandstorm was plucking the feathers from a sparrow carcass on the other side of the cave.
“What is it, Hollypaw?” Firestar sat up straight.
“You can’t just let it happen!” Hollypaw mewed.
Sandstorm padded to Firestar’s side. “Let what happen?”
“The battle that everyone’s preparing for!”
“The battle might not happen.” Firestar meowed calmly. “There’s nothing wrong with being prepared.”
“But why are we getting ready to fight WindClan when we should be helping RiverClan?” Hollypaw stepped forward, her paws trembling. “When I spoke to Willowpaw at the Gathering, she was so upset! All the RiverClan cats were. They need our help. But all we’re doing is getting ready to attack WindClan!”
Firestar curled his tail over his paws. “I have no intention of attacking WindClan,” he meowed. “But we must be ready if they attack us.”
Hollypaw couldn’t understand how Firestar could be so stupid. “WindClan won’t attack. It’s RiverClan who is in trouble!”
“If RiverClan is forced into WindClan territory, then WindClan may try to take some of ours,” Firestar explained.
“RiverClan would never want to live on the moorland!” Hollypaw’s whiskers quivered. “They’d want to stay by the lake where they can fish.”
Sandstorm leaned forward. “Clans can adapt to anything if they have to.”
Firestar nodded. “Look how WindClan is getting used to hunting in woodland.”
Hollypaw angrily flicked her tail. “Why don’t we try to solve the problem before it turns into a fight?”
Firestar lifted a paw, warning her to calm down. “RiverClan must be allowed to solve their own problems.”
“But what if they can’t?”
Paw steps sounded outside. Hollypaw glanced around to see Leafpool padding into the cave.
“I thought I heard you in here.” The medicine cat blinked at Hollypaw.
Firestar dipped his head to Leafpool. “Hollypaw’s worried about the battle.”
Fresh frustration flared in Hollypaw’s pelt. “There doesn’t have to bea battle!”
“Of course there doesn’t,” Leafpool assured her. “When I spoke to Mothwing at the Gathering, she said that RiverClan was dealing with their problem. But if they can’t solve it, we have to be ready.”
“But if we helped them,” Hollypaw mewed, “then they’d be okay.”
Leafpool shook her head. “We must trust RiverClan to sort it out themselves.”
“Leafpool’s right,” Firestar meowed. “Besides, helping RiverClan would mean crossing WindClan territory.”
“Or ShadowClan’s,” Sandstorm added.
Leafpool ran her tail down Hollypaw’s flank. “And that would only make things worse, wouldn’t it?”
Hollypaw shied away from Leafpool, bristling. She didn’t need to be soothed, like a kit having a bad dream! Why couldn’t they take her seriously?
“Isn’t Brackenfur waiting for you?” Sandstorm prompted.
“You mustn’t fall behind with your training,” Firestar reminded her.
Hollypaw turned and stamped out of the cave. Pebbles clacked under her paws as she bounded down the rocks to the clearing.
“Wait!”
Hollypaw glanced backward.
Leafpool was hurrying after her. “I can see you’re upset.”
Hollypaw turned on her. “Why won’t any of you listen?”
“You must remember,” Leafpool soothed, “we all have more experience than you. You have to trust us to know what’s right.”
“StarClan would want us to help RiverClan,” Hollypaw mewed.
“You can’t be sure of that.” Leafpool blinked. “I know you’re worried about Willowpaw, but you’re training to be a warrior now. It’s not appropriate to have such close friends in other Clans.”
Hollypaw glared at her. This isn’t about Willowpaw. This is about the future of all four Clans!She searched Leafpool’s gaze and found only a gentle concernI’m wasting my breath!
“Go and find Brackenfur,” Leafpool suggested. “He’s heading for the training hollow.”
“I know where he is,” Hollypaw hissed through gritted teeth
“I’m sure he must be expecting you.” Leafpool touched Hollypaw’s cheek with her nose, then padded away.
Hollypaw flexed her claws. If she could find out exactly what was happening in RiverClan, perhaps thenshe could convince Firestar to help, and the Clans wouldn’t need to fight.
She had to talk to Willowpaw.
She darted through the entrance tunnel, thorns scraping her pelt. Outside the camp, she glanced around. No one was there. She hurried into the trees, away from the training hollow, and headed up the ridge toward the WindClan border.
“Squirrel!”
Birchfall’s excited yowl pierced the air. Hollypaw dived into a patch of ferns, pressing her belly to the ground. Paw steps were pounding toward her. She peeped through the green fronds and saw Birchfall and Ashfur skidding down the slope. Lionpaw was racing behind them, his tail fluffed out. She ducked back into the foliage and held her breath. The ferns rustled around her as the patrol whisked past less than a tail-length away.
Hollypaw screwed her eyes shut. Don’t let them see me!
Heart pounding, she heard their paw steps fade into the forest. Relief washed her pelt and she crept from her hiding place and started up the slope. Ears pricked and nose twitching, she ran over the top of the ridge and headed down, out of the trees, and across the bumpy grass to the WindClan border. Her paws trembled as the tang of WindClan hit her nose. This border had been recently marked.
Hollypaw scanned the heather-swathed slope that rose up to the high moorland.
No sign of any patrols.
Tail trembling, she padded across the scent line. Rain was beginning to fall from the dove-gray sky. It’ll help cover my scent, she thought, relieved as the drops began to soak her fur. She padded through the heather, heading downhill toward the lake, and scrambled down from the peaty earth onto the pebbly shore. Keeping low, she scooted to the water’s edge. Just to be on the safe side, she waded through the shallows. The water would disguise her scent even more. She shivered with cold as the waves lapped her belly fur, but at least WindClan wouldn’t suspect a ThunderClan cat had trespassed on their territory.
The rain fell harder, hissing against the surface of the lake. Droplets streamed from her whiskers. Hollypaw glanced toward the moorland rising from the shore, praying that, if a patrol appeared from the heather, her black pelt would appear only as sodden driftwood against the gray water. She saw reeds begin to dot the shore up ahead; she was nearing RiverClan territory. She quickened her pace. She could hide more easily among the rushes. Pebbles turned to mud beneath her paws and she smelled the strong scent of RiverClan. Padding out of the shallows she crept into the reed bed, thankful to be out of the water and hidden by the towering rushes.
Suddenly, a yowl sounded ahead.
Hollypaw froze and sniffed the air. Fresh warrior scent. A hunting party?
She dropped into a crouch, trembling with cold and fear as she spotted the stone-colored pelt of Mistyfoot through the reeds. The RiverClan deputy was stalking something. Hollypaw backed away as Mistyfoot drew nearer. She pressed herself against the earth, hoping that her drenched pelt was too wet to betray her scent.
Suddenly, Mistyfoot sprang forward, paws outstretched. A moment later she straightened, her whiskers twitching with triumph and a water vole dangling from her jaws. Hollypaw sighed with relief as the RiverClan deputy turned and padded away. Mistyfoot looked thin and her usually glossy pelt was dull. Clearly, RiverClan was going hungry.
Hollypaw waited a few moments before she began to pad on gingerly. The island was not far ahead now, the tree-bridge distinct on the shoreline. How would she cross it without being seen? She stiffened herself against the anxiety that nagged at her bones. I’ve come this far…. Slipping from the cover of the reeds, she darted over the marshy shore and dived among the tangle of roots at the foot of the tree-bridge. Pressing herself into them she scanned the shore, blood pulsing in her ears. She sniffed the air.
No sign of any cat.
Cautiously, she clambered up through the roots and hauled herself onto the tree-bridge. Keeping low, she crept along the trunk, gripping the slimy bark with her claws. Hardly daring to breath, she pricked her ears, listening for an alarm call. She reached the other side, shaking with relief, and slid down through the branches onto the shore.
Which way now?
This wasn’t a Gathering. She couldn’t just push through the undergrowth and head for the clearing. How was she going to find Willowpaw?
Hope tingled in her paws when she realized that, not far along the shore, the beach was overtaken by undergrowth. The trees reached the water here, their roots snaking into the lake, and ferns and brambles tumbled over the lip of the island.
Hollypaw took a deep breath and raced across the small stretch of open beach. She dived under the cover of a clump of ferns. The fronds spilled into the water, forming a tunnel around the edge of the island.
Where in StarClan is the medicine den?Hollypaw prayed she would detect Willowpaw’s familiar scent soon. But what if it led her inland, toward the heart of RiverClan’s new camp? She crept through the fern tunnel, clambering over tree roots and hauling herself through clumps of bramble, her paws occasionally slipping off the muddy bank and into the cold lake.
Suddenly, the undergrowth ended. Rocks stretched ahead of her, rough and flat and black against the water. They reached into the lake, forming a small causeway that ended in a rocky outcrop, jutting up from the water. Hollypaw lifted her head, ears pricked, and tasted the air. She could hear the sounds of RiverClan drifting from the center of the island: queens talking, kits mewling, an elder complaining about ticks. No sound of warriors or apprentices, though. Hollypaw frowned. At the Gathering, the island had been teeming with RiverClan cats. Where were the rest of them now?
No time to worry about that!
Where was Willowpaw?
Hollypaw shivered. She was freezing. Her wet pelt clung to her. She was far from home. Panic started to rise in her chest. What if she couldn’t find her friend?
Then she heard a squeal. A kit was wailing somewhere up ahead. “That hurt!”
The soft mew of a queen soothed it. “It’ll only hurt for a bit.”
Hollypaw could smell herbs. Someone was treating the kit with marigold!
She crept out onto the rough, flat causeway, following the scent. It was coming from the rocky outcrop. Crouching lower than ever, Hollypaw slithered around the edge and peered through a gap in the stones.
“We’ll need more marigold soon.”
Willowpaw!
The RiverClan medicine cat apprentice was crouched in a hollow in the heart of the outcrop, crushing leaves against the rough stone floor with her paws. “The kits keep getting pine needles stuck in their pads.”
Mothwing sat on a ledge nearby, licking herbs into the mewling kit’s paw. A white she-cat held the kit in her paws as it struggled against Mothwing’s lapping tongue.
“Try to keep her out of the pine needles, Icewing,” Mothwing advised.
“It’s not easy,” the queen sighed.
“I know,” Mothwing agreed. “I’ll come back to the nursery with you and sweep some of the needles away from the entrance.”
The queen lifted the kit by its scruff and began to carry it, still mewling, out from the sheltering rocks and along the causeway that led back to the island. Mothwing followed her.
When she was sure there was no other cat close enough to hear, Hollypaw hissed through the gap in the rock. “Willowpaw!”
The medicine cat apprentice froze. “Who’s that?”
“It’s me, Hollypaw!”
Hollypaw quickly clambered back around the jutting rocks and slipped into the hollow beside Willowpaw. There was more space inside the outcrop than she had imagined. It was a cave, hollowed out by countless moons of wind and water, protected from the wind and rain by a low roof.
Willowpaw crouched at the back, her eyes round with shock. “What are you doing here?”
“I promised I’d come,” Hollypaw reminded her.
“Does anyone know you’re here?”
Hollypaw shook her head. Then she tensed. Mothwing’s scent was wafting into the cave.
“Hollypaw?” Mothwing’s mew was sharp.
Hollypaw spun around.
“I came back for poppy seeds.” The RiverClan medicine cat was standing in the cave entrance. Her bones looked sharp beneath her pelt. “Hollypaw! What are you doing here?”
“I had to do something!” Hollypaw mewed desperately. “ThunderClan are getting ready to fight WindClan. Everyone’s scared about what will happen if RiverClan is driven out of its home.”
Mothwing looked at her. “RiverClan is not going to be driven out of anywhere.”
“How can you be sure?” Hollypaw gazed back at her thin frame, unconvinced. “You’re half starved, and you’re still living on the island.”
Willowpaw brushed against her. “It won’t be for long.”
Hollypaw glanced at the rows of herbs carefully stacked against the cave wall. It looked like RiverClan was planning to be here for some time. “But you’ve brought everything from your old camp,” she pointed out.
The RiverClan medicine cat sighed. “You’d better show her.”
“Really?” Willowpaw looked surprised. “Now?”
Mothwing nodded. “Just don’t let yourselves be seen.”
Willowpaw nodded and streaked from the cave. Hollypaw hurried after her, pelt ruffled with curiosity. She followed Willowpaw across the tiny causeway and back around the shoreline.
“Let’s swim across to the mainland,” Willowpaw mewed. “It’ll be easier to stay out of sight.”
Hollypaw’s wet fur spiked in alarm. “I know I’m soaked, but there’s no way I’m swimming!” The tree-bridge lay only a few fox-lengths ahead of them.
“Okay, okay,” Willowpaw mewed impatiently. “But we’d better disguise you somehow. Your scent’s seeping through.” She scanned the shoreline, whiskers twitching. “Follow me.”
The medicine cat apprentice pushed her way among some clumps of grass that grew half in, half out of the water. “Here.” Before Hollypaw could complain, she scooped up a pawful of brown muck and smeared it over Hollypaw’s pelt.
Hollypaw gagged. “What’s that?” The goo clung to her fur, sticky and smelly.
“Otter dung,” Willowpaw mewed. “It should hide your ThunderClan scent.”
Hollypaw coughed. “You’re kidding!”
“You can wash it off later,” Willowpaw hissed. “Just be quiet and keep still.”
She smeared another few pawfuls along Hollypaw’s flank. Hollypaw began to wish she had never come. Then Willowpaw reared up and scanned the shore on both sides of the lake.
“Quick!” She scrambled across the beach and up onto the tree-bridge.
Hollypaw followed, swallowing the nausea that rose in her throat at the smell of the otter dung. “Are you sure this stuff will disguise me?” she hissed as they crossed the bridge. “It’s so strong, I bet ThunderClancan smell me.”
“Certain.” Willowpaw leaped down from the tree, crossed the shore, and dived into a forest of reeds. Hollypaw followed, struggling in the soft ground. Mud clung to her legs and coated her belly fur. Willowpaw seemed to be hopping among the clumps of reeds, staying free of the mud. Hollypaw watched her closely and began to follow her path exactly, relieved to find that, so long as she kept to her friend’s paw steps, she kept her paws and belly dry.
At last the ground became firmer and Hollypaw felt grass underpaw. Willowpaw was leading her up a slope. There were trees here and the undergrowth grew thick and lush. The slope grew steeper until Hollypaw found she was scrambling up a red sandy cliff. She followed Willowpaw as the RiverClan apprentice leaped up and up, using rocks that jutted from the earth to haul herself higher. At last the two cats clawed their way onto the grassy bank at the top. Panting, Hollypaw looked down. The lake shone far below, glimmering through the fresh green leaves.
“Where are we going?” Hollypaw panted.
“You’ll see in a moment.” Willowpaw headed up the bank and disappeared into a swath of long grass.
Hollypaw hurried after her.
“Look.” Willowpaw had stopped.
Hollypaw crept to her side as Willowpaw gently parted the grass. She peered through. Below them, a wide stream followed the line of the slope. An island rose in the middle, parting the water abruptly so that eddies swirled where the stream was forced to divide. The island was crowded with small trees and bushes, green amid the rolling brown water.
“That’s our old camp,” Willowpaw explained.
Hollypaw heard the clatter of rocks and stiffened. “What’s that?”
“The warriors are working.”
“Working?” Hollypaw blinked.
Suddenly, she spotted the pelts of RiverClan warriors and apprentices weaving through the grass on either side of the stream. On the near side, she recognized the apprentices Pouncepaw and Minnowpaw. They were helping Reedwhisker and Voletooth to shift stones, pushing them toward the stream and tipping them over the edge so that they fell with a loud splash into the water.
“What are they doing?”
“Blocking the stream to make it deeper and wider,” Willowpaw replied.
Blackclaw, a muscular, broad-shouldered black tom, called from the far side of the stream. “Hurry! Grab what you can!” He stood near the water’s edge, calling orders to warriors who were bravely leaping across the channel with wads of mossy bedding dangling from their jaws.
“We need to rescue as much stuff as we can,” Willowpaw explained. “The pine needles on the island are no good for making the nests weatherproof.”
“But why are you doing all this?” Hollypaw couldn’t understand what was going on. The old camp looked safe enough, almost as well protected by the divided stream as ThunderClan was by the cliffs of stone.
A warning yowl sounded upstream and Minnowpaw came hurtling down the bank. “They’re coming!”
Every RiverClan cat instantly dropped whatever they were carrying or pushing and scrambled away from the island, heading down toward the lake.
Hollypaw’s fur bristled. “What’s the matter?”
“You’ll see,” Willowpaw mewed.
Tramping through the grass, along the far side of the stream, came a gang of Twoleg kits. They were sweeping jagged branches through the grass and mewling loudly to one another. As Hollypaw watched, the largest of the kits hopped from the shore and onto a stone that barely broke the surface of the stream, then onto another and another. Balancing precariously on one leg, it leaned toward the island, and began to poke the bushes with its stick. The other kits yelped their approval and encouraged him by waving their hairless paws in the air.
Hollypaw stared at her friend in dismay.
Willowpaw lashed her tail. “Now do you see why we had to leave?”
第八章
第八章
“我将你命名为狮掌，你现在是暗族的武士啦！”
石楠爪站在洞穴最高处对狮爪喊话，狮爪伸缩了几下爪子。月光透过洞穴顶部的缝隙照进来，石楠爪的皮毛上泛起点点银光。
石楠爪跳了下来，跟狮爪碰了碰鼻子：“祝贺你。”
狮爪兴奋得身上的毛都竖了起来。
“不过，首先——”石楠爪蓝色的眼睛在昏暗的光线中闪烁着，“你必须要比我跑得快，以此来证明，你已经成为了真正的武士。”
“这不公平！”狮爪摇摇尾巴，“风族的猫跑得都特别快，这一点所有猫都知道啊。”
“如果你想成为暗族武士，你奔跑的速度就必须跟我一样快。”
“如果是这样——”狮爪突然猛地向石楠爪扑去，伸出爪子把她轻轻放倒在地，顺势把她按在地上，“你要证明，我俩的身体一样强壮才行！”
“喂，你这是耍无赖啊，你都没事先通知我！”石楠爪叫道。
“身为暗族族长，必须要准备应对一切情况。”
“像这样吗？”话音刚落，石楠爪突然像蛇一样，摆脱了狮爪的控制，蹿到他身后，一下子用牙齿牢牢咬住他的尾巴，但是力度却很轻。
“喂，你干什么呢！”狮爪大叫着，用尽全力要把石楠爪甩开。石楠爪不停地躲闪着，狮爪发现，自己刚才正在空中傻乎乎地乱抓，尾巴依然被紧紧地咬着。于是狮爪变换策略，朝另一边扭动着身体，伸出前爪，努力想要抓住石楠爪。可是石楠爪又成功躲开了。狮爪听到她喉咙里发出了呼噜声，看到她的胡须不停地颤动着。
最后石楠爪终于松开了狮爪：“你刚才用爪子到处乱抓的样子真好玩啊！就像刚飞出巢的雏鸟！”
狮爪注视着她，心中充满了欢喜。只要看一眼她那双蓝色的眼睛和柔软的皮毛，狮爪就会感到全身暖融融的。“我真希望你是雷族的一员啊。”他说道。
石楠爪打了个哆嗦。“还是别！我可不想待在那片树丛下，被石墙围起来！”她接着说道，“我们既然都有了自己的洞穴了，就不用住在同一族群了吧！”石楠爪伸出一只爪子，在狮爪耳朵后的皮毛上抓到一个东西。“是一根刺。”她一边说，一边把它弹到地上。
“谢谢了。”
石楠爪刚才的话很有道理。狮爪清楚，自己实在不想在荒原上待着，而石楠爪也不愿住在森林里。这处洞穴刚好成了他们见面的最佳地点。这半个月以来，他俩一直约在这儿见面，他们的族猫都没有起过疑心，连狮爪那好管闲事的妹妹都没怀疑。
“我想知道其他的隧道都通向哪里。”石楠爪跳过河面，开始嗅着其中一个隧道的入口。
狮爪也跟着她跳了过去。一股潮湿陈腐的气息从隧道里飘了出来，狮爪不禁打了个冷战。
“这其中会不会有通往影族领地的隧道呢？”石楠爪非常好奇。
狮爪脊背上的毛竖了起来：“但愿没有吧。”
“我们可以找找看啊。”
狮爪向后退了几步。“着什么急啊。我们在这里还没玩儿够呢。”他看看洞穴的四周。每次来到这里，他都会心惊肉跳。他总感觉洞穴里有什么可怕的东西，但一看到在月光中正等着他的石楠爪，就马上放下心来。
石楠爪的眼睛闪着光芒：“里面可能会有各种可怕的生物，它们有巨大的牙齿、锋利的爪子……”
狮爪戳了她一下：“别说了！”
她猛地跑开了。“跟上！”她喊道，“你还需要证明自己是武士呢！”说完她跳过河面，在空中划出一道优美的弧线。
狮爪又跟着她跳了过去。落地时，他的后爪突然滑进了深色的河水里，水花四溅的声音在洞穴内回响着。狮爪感到水流强大的冲击力，心跳得厉害。他赶忙挣扎着爬上了岸，抖掉了爪子上的水珠。
“小心些，”石楠爪提醒他道，“我可不想失去你！”
狮爪一想到刚才差点儿被河水冲进隧道里，就感到一阵后怕。他抬起头，透过洞穴顶部的缝隙，看到了天上的银毛星带，想从那儿找到慰藉。此时，外面的天空泛起了亮光。“我们必须走了。”
石楠爪叹了口气。
“明晚我们能再见面吗？”狮爪一脸期待地问道。
“不行。”石楠爪在他的身边转着圈儿，用她那浅色的皮毛蹭着他的身体，“我后天要去参加训练考核，我不能让自己太累了。”
“好吧。”狮爪耸耸肩说道。他明白，石楠爪必须把自己族群的利益放在第一位，不过这并不妨碍他想念她、喜欢她。
“再见。”
他俩朝着通往各自族群领地的隧道跑去了。狮爪终于熟悉了回家的那条小路，心情也放松了许多，于是他跑了起来。要是松鸦爪知道他哥哥只靠着胡须的指引就能在黑暗中奔跑，一定会大吃一惊的。不一会儿，狮爪就冲出了隧道，再次嗅到新鲜的空气，心情变得十分愉悦。
这片森林是属于我的啦！狮爪兴奋地穿过黑莓丛，从另一边钻了出来。就因为年长的武士把族群带到了湖边，开始了新的生活，他们就都趾高气扬的，就好像他们缔造了雷族领地一样。不过狮爪很清楚，他们的足迹其实并没有走遍这里的每寸土地。实际上那个洞穴就没有其他猫知道。继续探索这片土地的任务，将会落到年轻一代身上，这片土地终将属于他们。
透过茂密的叶子，狮爪看到，繁星点点的天空开始泛起鱼肚白。他加速穿过森林，好在族猫都醒来前赶到家。
“早上好啊，狮爪。”他的耳边突然响起一个低沉的声音，接着一团皮毛蹭了蹭他的腹部。
狮爪警觉地竖起了毛。他朝身边瞧了瞧，看到有一只猫正在跟他并肩而行，可他却看不清到底是谁。难道我是在做梦吗？
“我们一直在注意你。”那个身影在他身边发出微弱的亮光——这是一只体形巨大的虎斑公猫，他那琥珀色的眼睛在幽暗的夜空中闪着光，宽大的肩膀看上去很熟悉。
又有什么东西蹭着狮爪腹部的另一边。他的心怦怦直跳，转过身，看到另外一只猫在他身边奔跑着——又是一只肩膀宽大的虎斑公猫，只不过眼睛是蓝色的，还放着冰冷的光。
“你……你们是谁？”狮爪结巴着问道。
“我俩是你的至亲。”那只琥珀色眼睛的公猫说道。
狮爪满脸困惑地望着他俩：“你们来自星族吗？”
“我们曾经是武士。”蓝色眼睛的公猫大声说道。
狮爪的尾巴翘了起来：“你们是……虎星和鹰霜？”他俩为什么来找他呢？
鹰霜身体一僵，转过他那颗硕大的脑袋，望向森林深处。“有猫过来了。”他警告道。
狮爪马上躲到一棵榛树后面。
一阵沉重的脚步声从森林里传过来。狮爪蹲下来观察着，大气都不敢喘。原来是蛛足。他飞快地跑了过去，带起一阵风，吹动着狮爪的皮毛。这只四肢修长的黑猫转眼间就消失在一片香薇丛中。
狮爪从榛树后面爬出来。“虎星？”他一边望着四周一边喊，“鹰霜？”
刚才那两位如鬼魂一般出现的武士，居然消失了。
“等等啊！”狮爪轻声喊道，“回来！”他想知道，为什么他俩会出现在自己的面前。
蛛足进入香薇丛里，叶子发出沙沙的响声。紧接着，整片森林又重归寂静，只有阵阵鸟叫迎接着又一个黎明的来临。
狮爪打着哈欠，穿过通往排便处的通道。整个营地一片安静。他的心情放松了下来，紧接着却感到了一阵愧疚——他突然觉得自己的行为像一个贼。所有猫还都在沉睡着，黎明巡逻队还没有准备出发的迹象。此刻，他真想赶快神不知鬼不觉地溜回自己的窝里，美美地睡上一觉。于是，他躲在暗处，沿着空地边缘向前猛地跑了过去，然后悄悄钻进学徒巢穴，蹑手蹑脚朝自己的窝走去。
“狮爪？”冬青爪抬起了头，“是你吗？”
狮爪突然一惊，紧接着开始生起气来。“嗯。”他哼了一声。
“你要去哪里？”她打了个哈欠，问道。
狮爪有些犹豫，这次他不能拿上排便处做挡箭牌了，否则冬青爪会以为自己得了什么病。“我要去加入黎明巡逻队了。”他马上回答道。
榛爪摇晃着身子坐起来，眨了眨眼睛：“我记得，是我跟蜜爪一块儿去巡逻的吧？”
“我也去，”狮爪说道，“想增长一下见识。”他感觉自己的皮毛像烧着了一样发烫。唉！我怎么会撒了这么多谎！
冬青爪把鼻子重新塞回到爪子下，低声喃喃道：“你去吧，我可不想去。”
“我想我们该出发了。”榛爪用爪子戳了戳蜜爪，“瞌睡虫，快起来了，该走了。”
狮爪疲倦地望着自己的窝，爪子像石头一样沉重——真想躺下去啊！可是榛爪已经冲过他的身边，奔向巢穴外面。狮爪马上跟在她的后面，蜜爪还在窝里伸着懒腰。
“你起来得好早啊，狮爪！”沙风跟尘毛在巢穴入口坐着，看到狮爪吃了一惊。
“我要加入黎明巡逻队。”狮爪说道。
“这对你很有益处。”尘毛抬头望望清晨澄澈的天空，“今天会是一个狩猎的好天气。巡查完边界，我想带榛爪再出去转转。”
山谷上方，鸟儿们叽叽喳喳地叫着。狮爪把哈欠憋了回去，伸了个懒腰。
“蜜爪，你准备好了吗？”沙风问道。此时，她的学徒刚走出巢穴，不停地眨着惺忪的睡眼。
蜜爪点点头。
“那就快点儿吧！”沙风说完，走出了营地。
狮爪再次回到了森林里，他的目光总是离不开那些生长着苔藓的地面。真想马上躺下去，好好休息一下啊！他跟在巡逻队后面，朝影族边界的方向走着，尽力不让自己被大家落下太远。这次的巡逻任务，是要在边界重新留下雷族的气味标记。
“这儿没什么问题了。”最后尘毛说道。
太好了，终于可以回营地了！
沙风闻闻空中的气息：“接下来我们去风族边界看看。”
狮爪的心情顿时跌到了谷底。
巡逻队掉转方向，开始穿过森林。狮爪感觉，自己的眼睛已经累得睁不开了。突然，一阵骚动引起了他的注意。在远处森林中，有东西在动。
是虎星！狮爪扫视着整个森林，却只看到一丛香薇在微风中摇曳。虎星为什么会在清晨出现在自己身边呢？虎星说过，他一直观察着自己，那他就一定知道自己和石楠爪约会的事。想到这里，他开始不安起来。难道他认为自己在做什么不该做的事吗？可是他又提醒自己提防蛛足。或许他只是想帮自己一个忙吧。不过他究竟为什么要这么做呢？
巡逻队离风族领地越来越近了。风族的边界是一个小小的溪谷，一条小溪流在谷底穿过片片香薇丛和黑莓丛，流向远方。森林向远处一直延伸到开阔的荒原。尘毛停下来，在一棵树上做了标记。蜜爪要爬到下方溪边喝水，消失在浓密的荆棘丛中。
榛爪突然呆住了。“快看啊！”她一边喊，一边将目光投向边界的另一边。
风爪和兔爪正向小溪跑来。他们正追赶着一只尾巴来回摆动着的松鼠。这两位风族学徒在茂密的灌木丛里敏捷地来回穿梭着。他们居然在森林狩猎松鼠，真的有些奇怪。
尘毛走到沙风身边，问道：“他们为什么在这里狩猎啊？”
“这里是他们的领地。”沙风回答道。
“可风族不吃松鼠啊！”蜜爪被榛爪的警告声惊到了，从小溪边爬了上来。
尘毛眯起眼睛：“是啊，我还以为他们只捕捉兔子吃呢。”
这时又有两只风族猫出现了——裂耳和白尾站在荒原边缘，注视着自己的两位学徒。
“他们在我们的边界附近狩猎，这距离也太近了吧！”尘毛警惕的声音里满是疑惑。
“他们还在朝我们这边跑呢。”榛爪警告道。
风爪和兔爪依然在松鼠后面穷追不舍，他们的眼睛紧紧盯着这只猎物。
“他们根本就没有放慢速度啊！”尘毛说道。
“放心吧，他们不会故意穿过边界的。”沙风说道。
“可他们一不小心就会越界的，”尘毛又说，“这儿的小溪几乎看不见。”说着他蹲下身子，悄悄爬到溪谷边缘，躲藏在覆盖着整片溪谷的黑莓丛后。
风爪和兔爪的跑动声越来越近，也越来越响。他们依然丝毫没有慢下来的迹象。
“站住！”尘毛用后腿站立起来，朝小溪对岸的两位风族学徒高喊着。
风爪和兔爪猛地停下来，眼睛睁得大大的，充满了警惕。那只松鼠跳过溪谷，消失在一棵桦树的树冠里。
“星族啊，你们到底在做什么？”裂耳愤怒的声音在森林中响起。这位风族武士突然朝边界冲了过来，后面紧跟着白尾。
“你们竟敢吓唬我们的学徒？”裂耳在溪谷边缘停下来，双眼瞪着尘毛。
“他们俩就要穿过边界了！”尘毛弓起背，做好了随时应战的准备。
“你怎么知道的？”风爪嘶嘶叫道。
“你们奔跑时都没有减速！”尘毛斥责他道。
“我只差那么一点儿，就抓到那只松鼠了！”
狮爪撇撇嘴：“别逗了，你离它远着呢！”
风爪的毛竖了起来：“我离它很近！”
“大家都知道，风族猫只会抓兔子！”狮爪讥讽道，“我们雷族猫才是狩猎松鼠的能手。”
“不再是这样了！”风爪旁边的兔爪绷紧了肩膀，“现在每位风族学徒，都在森林里接受特殊训练，所以我们不再只抓兔子了。”
沙风睁圆了眼睛：“真的吗？那是为什么？”
裂耳犀利的眼睛看着沙风：“这跟你有什么关系！”
“你们训练这个，是想要侵占我们的领地吗？”尘毛在边界线上来回走着，不住抽打着尾巴。
白尾向前迈了一步，身上原本竖着的毛变得平顺起来。“我们的领地上也有森林，”她平静地说，“我们有必要利用起来，而且我们也不想只依靠单一的猎物了。我们族群的长老至今仍时常提起，大迁徙之前，两脚兽毒杀兔子，结果给风族带来了严重的饥荒。”
听起来的确有点儿道理。狮爪收起了爪子。然而一想到风族开始狩猎雷族的猎物，还是觉得特别奇怪。
兔爪点点头：“现在荒原上已经有羊群了，还有两脚兽和它们的狗……”
裂耳用尾巴碰了碰兔爪的嘴巴，让他闭上嘴。“这不关他们雷族任何事，”他大声说道，“只要我们不越过边界，我们想狩猎什么，就狩猎什么。”
“可是松鼠不知道边界是什么东西。如果它们越过了边界，你们是在吃掉本该属于我们的猎物。”
“如果它在风族的领地上，那它就是我们的猎物！”裂耳厉声说道。
“松鼠一直都是雷族的猎物！”尘毛停下脚步，脖子上的毛全都竖了起来。
“武士守则里有这种规定吗？”裂耳嘲讽地向前迈了一步，眼睛里闪烁着光芒。
尘毛下意识地蹲伏下身子，准备发动攻击。狮爪的耳朵里有热血在涌动。他又一次张开爪子，疲惫顿时烟消云散。狮爪已经准备好让这些固执的风族猫看看，侵犯雷族领地的外族武士会是怎样的下场。
“算了吧，”白尾对裂耳低声说着，“不值得为这种小事儿损失皮毛。”
裂耳的目光从尘毛身上挪开，望着白尾。狮爪屏住呼吸，神情紧张。接着裂耳点点头说：“好吧，今天就放过他们。”
当风族猫转身离开边界时，故意做出不紧不慢的样子，尘毛眯着眼睛一直盯着。
“我们走吧。”沙风朝着营地的方向甩了甩尾巴。
尘毛没有动：“等会儿，我要看着他们离开森林！”
沙风坐下来开始洗脸：“你们三个去看看有什么猎物可以带回去，我们在这儿看着。”
狮爪不情愿地把目光从磨磨蹭蹭的风族巡逻队身上移开，跟着蜜爪和榛爪走进一片黑莓丛。
“你们有没有觉得，风族正计划侵略我们的领地呢？”榛爪小声问道。
蜜爪睁大了眼睛：“你为什么会这么想？”
“只有住在森林里的猫才会追松鼠，可他们住在荒原啊。”榛爪说道，“这很可疑。”
“嗯，尘毛刚才的举动，似乎是在说明风族已经有这种想法了。”狮爪说道。
蜜爪回头望了望狮爪：“可他们为什么总惦记我们的领地呢？”
“或许，两脚兽和它们的狗对风族的威胁很大，只不过我们没意识到而已。”狮爪猜测道。
“上一个新叶季，风族不就应对得很好吗？”榛爪说道。
狮爪的心中有一种不祥的预感：“这次恐怕事情还会更严重。”
“有什么需要汇报吗？”当黎明巡逻队回到营地时，火星的声音从高石台上方传来。
“风族在森林里狩猎呢。”尘毛回答道。
“在我们领地上的森林里吗？”火星一下子从高石台上跳了下来。
狮爪飞快地跑到猎物堆旁边，把自己抓到的老鼠扔在里面，又连忙往尘毛身边跑去。他已经准备好保护族群的猎物不受风族猫的抢掠，可如果石楠爪也在他们当中，那该怎么办？
“狮爪！”冬青爪挡住他的去路，“发生什么事了？”
松鸦爪也跟在她身边，他的耳朵竖了起来，也想知道发生了什么事。
“风族在我们的边界附近活动。”狮爪一边解释，一边看了看巡逻队的队员们。
火星来到了尘毛和沙风身边。这位雷族族长不停地甩着尾巴，显然他被刚才尘毛带来的消息弄得心神不宁了。
“他们没越过边界线。”沙风解释道。
尘毛甩甩尾巴尖儿：“可他们差点儿就越过了。”
黑莓掌走出武士巢穴：“发生什么事了？”
“两位风族学徒靠近了边界，”沙风说，“他们在追赶一只松鼠，差点儿就无意中越过小溪了。”
冬青爪一惊：“松鼠……”
“他们本应该小心一点儿，”尘毛大声说道，“除非他们已经习惯了经常‘误闯’我们的领地。”
“可是为什么风族猫会追松鼠呢？”黑莓掌问道，“他们不是狩猎兔子的吗？”
冬青爪在狮爪耳边低声说道：“就是嘛！”
“情况已经变了。”榛爪抓挠地上的泥土，“风爪说，现在所有的风族学徒都在接受森林狩猎训练。”
黑莓掌愣住了。“那我们必须重新在边界上做标记了！”他说道。
“我们不是已经做完标记了吗。”尘毛告诉他。
沙风坐下来说道：“我们还是别小题大做了，就是两只年轻的猫……”
尘毛打断了她：“可他们在狩猎我们的猎物啊！”
“我们需要提高警惕！”黑莓掌提议道，“下次森林大会上，我们需要跟大家提一下这件事。”
火星的爪子抓挠着地面，问道：“那风族猫到底越没越过边界线呢？”
“没有。”沙风回答道。
“那么，我们这边的溪岸没有风族猫的气息，对吗？”火星接着问。
“没有。”
尘毛哼了一声说道：“可能是雨水把他们的气息都冲掉了。”
“他们很可能从没越过边界线，”火星说道，“他们自己要捕捉什么，我们说了也不算。”他一边说，一边转过身去，“这件事就算过去了吧，我们静观其变。”
松鸦爪眯起眼睛。“可不要再有下次了！”他低声喃喃道。
狮爪看看自己的弟弟：“你说这话什么意思？”
“河族的事情，火星也不想帮忙。”冬青爪解释道，“松鸦爪之前梦到过他们有麻烦了，可这又有什么用呢？”
“如果我们什么都不做，其他族群又怎么会尊重我们呢？”松鸦爪抱怨道。
狮爪皱皱眉：“这有什么关系吗？只要他们不越过边界就行。”
“可是各族群间要保持力量的平衡啊，”冬青爪说道，“如果某个族群力量很薄弱，那我们就要帮助他们；如果某个族群力量过于强大，我们就必须采取行动，证明我们不比他们差。”
松鸦爪生气地说道：“我不懂什么平衡不平衡的，我只知道火星又错过了一个证明雷族完全可以保护自己的好机会。”说完他甩着尾巴走开了。
冬青爪凝视着松鸦爪离去的身影。“你觉得呢，狮爪？”她问道。
狮爪愣在那里，脑海中突然浮现出一幅石楠爪追着一只松鼠，奔向雷族边界的画面。难道冬青爪也想到了这一点？“我觉得什么？”他迟疑地问道。
“火星会在下次森林大会上责问风族吗？”冬青爪歪着脑袋问道，她那碧绿而清澈的眼睛里充满了好奇。狮爪动了动爪子，对于火星的决定，他有些无所适从。如果火星对所有的问题都视而不见，那么雷族一定会被大家看作软弱可欺。可如果跟风族开战，会更让他难受。一旦开战，他就不能再跟石楠爪见面了！
突然，一阵微风吹乱了他的皮毛，一个声音在他的耳畔响了起来：你要诚实，狮爪。不要担心自己的欲望。你心里清楚自己在想什么。
狮爪的心里感到十分愧疚，虎星的话是对的，他清楚自己在想什么。他最不想看到的，就是雷族和风族之间发生战争。
“我们还是别理风族了吧。”他回答道。
CHAPTER13
CHAPTER13
“It was Blackclaw’s idea to pushthe stones into the stream,” Willowpaw explained as they picked their way down the sandy cliff.
Hollypaw put her head on one side. “But that will stop the water flowing.”
“Exactly, so the stream above gets deeper and wider, and the island will be better protected.”
Hollypaw was impressed. “But will it be enough to keep the Twoleg kits away?”
“Once the stream’s flooded, we’re going to put up barricades of gorse.” Willowpaw stopped to catch her breath. “The Twolegs aren’t trying to hurt us. I think they’re just playing.” She bent her head to wash the red sand from her pads. “They’re like our kits. If we make it too hard for them to get near the island, they’ll give up and play somewhere else.”
“And then you can move back to the island!” Hollypaw guessed. RiverClan had no intention of moving onto WindClan territory. Her paws tingled. She couldn’t wait to get back to her own camp and tell Firestar. WindClan’s borders were perfectly safe, and they’d have no need to try to take any of ThunderClan’s territory. There wasn’t going to be a battle after all!
Willowpaw bounded down the rest of the slope and wove in among the reeds.
Hollypaw hurried after her. “But why didn’t Leopardstar just tell the other Clans what was going on?”
“And look weak because we’d been driven out of our home?”
“But the other Clans might have helped.”
“RiverClan can sort out their own problems!”
Hollypaw lowered her gaze. “I didn’t mean to say that you couldn’t, but—”
Willowpaw’s pelt was bristling. “It’s hard living on the island. There’s not enough fish because the boats scare them away, and we can’t hunt in the rest of our territory until we get rid of the Twoleg kits. The Clan is hungry and hungry warriors don’t win battles.”
Hollypaw remembered Mistyfoot’s dull pelt and the way Mothwing’s bones jutted out on her hips and along her spine.
“Do you really think Leopardstar can trust the other Clans not to take advantage?” Willowpaw went on, pushing her way through a clump of marsh grass. “We need all our strength to rescue our camp from the Twolegs.”
“I won’t tell ThunderClan that you’re hungry,” Hollypaw promised. “Only that you’ll be back in your old camp soon and there’s no reason to think you’ll have to leave your territory.”
Willowpaw blinked gratefully. “But first you have to get home,” she reminded her. “Your Clan must be wondering where you are.”
Hollypaw felt a twinge of guilt. Had her Clanmates noticed she was missing yet? “I’ll just go back the way I came.”
Willowpaw stretched up on her hind legs and peered above the spiky grass. “The shore’s quiet,” she announced, dropping down onto four paws. She began to weave through the marsh toward the firmer ground inland, where bushes and ferns crowded the shoreline.
“Let’s head up there,” Willowpaw suggested. “It’ll be easier to hide.” Her eyes sparkled mischievously. “And the otter dung will stop any cats from noticing your scent.”
“Wasn’t there anything else you could have used?”
“Tansy might have worked,” Willowpaw admitted. “But our supplies are a bit low.” She pushed her way past a clump of ferns, and Hollypaw padded after her.
They followed the shoreline until Hollypaw began to smell the scent of horseplace. “We’re near WindClan territory,” she whispered. “You can leave me here.”
Willowpaw’s eyes clouded with worry. “Not till we reach the border.”
The brown fences around the horseplace loomed larger and the ferns began to thin out as the lush foliage of RiverClan’s territory gave way to WindClan moorland. Willowpaw paused behind a stunted bramble bush at the edge of a stretch of open grass lay. “There’s the border.” She pointed with her tail.
The wind raced down from the moors, tugging at Hollypaw’s pelt. She could smell the WindClan scent-line only a few fox-lengths ahead.
Willowpaw rested her tail-tip on Hollypaw’s shoulder. “Promise you’ll be careful.”
Suddenly, stones clattered on the shore. Willowpaw whipped around.
A RiverClan patrol was haring toward them.
Hollypaw stiffened, fear shooting through her like lightning. Then she felt Willowpaw’s teeth grab her scruff and drag her behind the bramble.
“Did they see us?” Hollypaw whispered, trembling.
“I don’t know.” Willowpaw flicked her tail over Hollypaw’s mouth. “Keep quiet!”
Hollypaw peered through the leaves. Reedwhisker headed the patrol, his apprentice, Pouncepaw, racing behind him. Voletooth was at Reedwhisker’s heels with Minnowpaw at his side. The young she-cat’s dappled fur was slicked back by the wind, her whiskers blown against her cheeks, running as though her life depended on it.
“Are they hunting?” Hollypaw asked.
Willowpaw glanced around the empty shore. “Hunting what?”
“Well, are they coming for us?”
“Doesn’t look like it,” Willowpaw replied as the patrol streaked past the bramble without even looking at it.
Hollypaw realized that the RiverClan cats’ eyes had been stretched wide with terror. Her pelt bristled. “Something’s wrong.”
Willowpaw hissed, flattening her ears. “Look!”
A rough-haired black-and-white dog was hurtling after the RiverClan patrol. Its eyes were wild, its lips drawn back to show shining white fangs.
“The horseplace dog!” Willowpaw yowled. “Run!” She pelted after her Clanmates.
Before Hollypaw could move, the black-and-white dog spotted her and skidded toward her, howling with excitement. Hollypaw shrieked and shot after Willowpaw. Her claws threw up clods of soil as she tore over the grassy slope. The RiverClan patrol had swerved off the beach and was racing up the slope toward the WindClan border.
Reedwhisker’s eyes widened when he saw Willowpaw. “Stay near us!” he ordered. He raced up the slope, dodging a gorse bush and leaping a low clump of heather.
Willowpaw pelted after him. She screeched over her shoulder at Hollypaw. “Hurry up!”
Hollypaw pushed harder against the peaty soil. She skidded after the RiverClan cats through a thick swath of heather and out onto the grassy slope.
“Stop!” Reedwhisker gave the command and Hollypaw scrambled to a halt with the others. Panting and terrified, she glanced over her shoulder.
The dog stood by the fence at the bottom of the slope and gazed around, tongue lolling. Then it shook itself and squeezed under the fence. Hollypaw watched it trot across the field, heading for the Twolegplace.
“It must be going home,” she guessed.
“Shh!” Willowpaw gave her a warning look but it was too late.
“What are youdoing here?” Minnowpaw’s shocked mew made Hollypaw jump.
Reedwhisker stared at her, his black pelt bristling. “You’re a ThunderClan cat, aren’t you?” His stern gaze flashed accusingly at Willowpaw.
Minnowpaw wrinkled her nose. “And why do you smell so bad?”
Voletooth padded toward her and leaned in close, his tabby muzzle only a whisker from Hollypaw’s. “Are you spying on us?”
Hollypaw backed away. “No, no, I wanted to see if I could help!”
“Help?” Reedwhisker stared at her in disbelief.
“It’s true!” Willowpaw padded, tail trembling, between her Clanmates and Hollypaw. “She’s here by herself. She was worried about me after the Gathering. She just came to see if—”
“Mouse dung!” Reedwhisker’s yowl cut Willowpaw off. The black tom was staring up the slope, his eyes round with dismay.
A WindClan patrol was streaking toward them.
Hollypaw tasted the air. The musky scent of WindClan bathed her tongue. The dog had chased them right across the border.
“Should we run?” Minnowpaw whispered, her tail stiff with fear.
“There’s no use.” Voletooth sighed. “We’ve come too far.”
“We’d better just stand our ground,” Reedwhisker meowed.
Pouncepaw stepped closer to Minnowpaw.
As the WindClan patrol neared, the deputy Ashfoot flicked her tail. Crowfeather, Heatherpaw, Whitetail, Tornear, and Breezepaw fanned out. Hollypaw felt Willowpaw’s pelt brush against her flank as the WindClan cats slowly encircled the patrol. Their eyes were blazing.
“What are you doing on WindClan land?” Ashfoot demanded.
Reedwhisker met her gaze, the fur on his shoulders twitching. “We were being chased by that mouse-brained dog from the horseplace.”
Crowfeather stepped forward. “Where is it now?”
Voletooth nodded toward the Twolegplace. “It went home.”
“And we’re meant to believe that?” Tornear sniffed the air, his whiskers quivering. “All I can smell is dung!”
Hollypaw wished she could sink into the ground. WindClan were angry enough without finding a ThunderClan cat among the intruders. What if they thought RiverClan and ThunderClan had formed an alliance? There would be a battle for sure, and it would all be her fault.
Hollypaw fought her rising panic. Breezepaw was staring at her. She lowered her gaze, praying he wouldn’t recognize her, finally grateful for the otter dung that disguised her black pelt and drowned her scent.
“What happened to you?” Breezepaw’s eyes glittered with contempt. “Don’t they teach RiverClan kits to wash?”
Rage surged in Hollypaw’s throat. She wanted to spit at the arrogant fox-face. But at least he didn’t seem to know who she was.
“Get off our land!” Ashfoot hissed. “You may have lost your own territory but you’re not having ours!”
Voletooth bristled, baring his teeth. “We haven’t lost our territory!”
“Then why are you here?” Tornear demanded.
“Looking for prey?” Crowfeather hissed.
Reedwhisker lashed his tail. “No!”
Hollypaw tensed. Every cat was bristling, ready to leap. She unsheathed her claws. This was not her Clan, but she would fight if she had to.
Pouncepaw hopped forward, his short tabby tail flicking angrily. “We wouldn’t eat rabbit if we were starving!”
Ashfoot hissed. “Get off our land now!”
Tornear and Whitetail moved apart to let the RiverClan cats through.
Slowly, Reedwhisker and Voletooth began to back away. Pouncepaw and Pebblepaw turned and padded uneasily past the WindClan cats. Hollypaw hurried after them, keeping her eyes fixed on the ground.
“There’ll be extra patrols along the border from now on!” Ashfoot called after them.
“And they’ll be battle ready!” Tornear growled.
They walked slowly to the border, refusing to be rushed by the threatening hisses from the WindClan patrol. Hollypaw crossed the scent-line with a shiver of relief. But this isn’t my territory!
“I have to get home,” she whispered.
Reedwhisker rounded on her. “No, you don’t! You have to explain what you’re doing here!”
“I did explain!” Hollypaw retorted. “I was worried about Willowpaw.”
“There’s no way we’re letting you set one paw on WindClan territory now,” Voletooth mewed. “You’ll have to come back to the island with us.”
Despair dropped like a stone in Hollypaw’s belly. She gazed across the lake. Night was falling and the ThunderClan forest looked like shadows against the distant hills. She scanned the shoreline, hoping to see the familiar shape of one of her Clanmates—Jaypaw was always fiddling around by the water—but it was too dark and too far to see anything clearly.
“Okay,” she sighed.
“But first you can wash off that awful-smelling dung!” Reedwhisker ordered.
He walked her down to the lake and stood at the edge while she splashed around in the freezing water. Willowpaw waded in to help, rubbing Hollypaw’s pelt with her paws until it was clean.
Shivering with cold, Hollypaw padded back along the marshy shore after the RiverClan patrol. Willowpaw walked beside her.
“Sorry if I got you in trouble,” Hollypaw whispered.
“I’ll be okay,” Willowpaw pressed against her and the two friends, still dripping from the lake, shared their warmth.
Hollypaw’s pelt prickled under the curious gaze of the RiverClan cats as she followed Reedwhisker into the island clearing. Gradually, the camp went quiet as they drew closer to the Great Oak. She tried to stop her paws from trembling when she saw Leopardstar squeeze out from among the giant roots at the bottom of the oak.
“Don’t be scared,” Willowpaw murmured in her ear. “Leopardstar’s always fair.”
Hollypaw lifted her chin and faced the RiverClan leader as bravely as she could.
Leopardstar’s eyes glowed in the twilight. “Reedwhisker tells me you’ve been spying on RiverClan territory,” she accused.
“I was just trying to help,” Hollypaw explained. “ThunderClan is worried that WindClan will attack us if you’re forced into their territory. Everyone’s preparing for battle. I just wanted to stop it.”
Leopardstar blinked. “That’s a big ambition for such a small apprentice.”
Offended, Hollypaw fluffed out her fur.
Were Leopardstar’s whiskers twitching?
“I presume Willowpaw has shown you enough to put your mind at rest?” meowed the RiverClan leader.
“Just the old camp—” Hollypaw stopped herself too late. She had betrayed her friend.
Leopardstar’s gaze flicked to the RiverClan medicine apprentice. “You took her all the way there?”
Willowpaw dipped her head. “I only wanted to reassure her.”
Leopardstar sighed. “Well, Hollypaw,” she meowed, “you had better stay here on the island.”
Hollypaw’s heart lurched. “But my Clan will be worried about me.”
“You should have thought of that before you came here.” Leopardstar gazed around her Clan. The RiverClan cats had gathered under the oak tree, their ears twitching with interest. “We can’t spare the warriors to escort you home and even if we could, I don’t want to antagonize WindClan or ShadowClan by crossing their territory.”
“But the warrior code says I can safely travel two fox-lengths from the lake,” Hollypaw pointed out.
“If it was time for a Gathering, I would agree,” Leopardstar argued. “But as things stand, our neighbors would want a very good reason for finding RiverClan or ThunderClan scent on their land.” She narrowed her eyes. “Plain nosiness is not good enough.”
“But—” Hollypaw desperately searched for another argument. She had to get home before her Clanmates thought something dreadful had happened to her.
Leopardstar turned away. “You can stay with Mothwing and Willowpaw until it is safe for you to return.”
“Come on.” Willowpaw nudged her. “Let’s get warm and dry in the medicine cave.”
Paws heavy as stone, Hollypaw followed her friend to the edge of the island and over the causeway to the rocky outcrop.
Mothwing was waiting with a pile of herbs beside her. “I thought I told you not to be seen,” she greeted them.
Willowpaw lowered her head. “Sorry.”
Mothwing pawed the herbs toward them. “Eat these,” she ordered. “They’ll help warm you up.”
Hollypaw’s belly rumbled. She’d prefer a fresh, juicy mouse
“It’s all we have to spare at the moment,” Mothwing told her.
Hollypaw leaned down and began to chew one of the leaves. It was sticky and warmed her tongue as she chewed it. “What is it?” she whispered to Willowpaw.
“Dried nettle, smeared with honey,” Willowpaw replied.
“Not bad.”
When they had finished eating, Willowpaw led her to a mossy nest at the back of the cave. They washed themselves dry and squeezed together onto the soft bedding. Hollypaw was grateful for Willowpaw’s warmth. The cave was drafty and rain was starting to batter the rocks and hiss over the lake. She yawned, suddenly feeling bone-tired. “You know Leopardstar is just keeping me here because I know too much,” she murmured.
“Yes.” Willowpaw laid her tail across her friend’s paws. “But would Firestar act any differently?”
Hollypaw sighed. “I guess not.” She closed her eyes. How long would she have to stay here? She was going to be in big trouble with her Clanmates when they found out she was being held by RiverClan, suspected of being a spy.
第九章
第九章
满月的光辉照射着波光粼粼的湖面，在蓝黑色的夜空中，远处地平线上，灰色的云朵不停地翻滚着。
冬青爪走在湖岸边，朝森林大会的会场行进。一阵冷风迎面而来，吹拂着她柔软的皮毛，她忍不住打了个寒战，马上躲到松鼠飞和蕨毛中间，以躲避刺骨的严寒。
“到了岛上就会暖和些的。”松鼠飞说道，耳朵也被风吹得平贴了起来。
蛛足和鼠爪在前面走着，尘毛、黑莓掌和松鼠飞跟在旁边。刺掌和白翅并肩行走着，他紧紧靠着她的身体，为她遮挡着寒风。火星和沙风走在最前面，狮爪、蜡毛和叶池走在最后。他们走过湖边时，微波拍打着湖岸，片片水沫在月亮的照耀下闪着光。
“快过来！”黑莓掌不耐烦的声音在风中响了起来。
冬青爪探出头，想看看黑莓掌在吼谁。
莓爪正在浅滩的一段木头上走着。一阵疾风从湖面吹来，将冬青爪的胡须吹得贴到了脸上。她眯起眼睛，看到莓爪突然失去了平衡，扑通一声掉进了湖里，随后又挣扎着爬上了湖岸，把水珠从他那奶油色的皮毛上甩掉，接着跑回大部队里。
黑莓掌轻轻拍打着他的耳朵，说道：“做这种傻事，真是个鼠脑子！”
莓爪打了个喷嚏。
“你不要以为感冒了，就不用参加训练了啊！”
众猫离风族领地的尽头越来越近，从马厩传来的酸臭气息逐渐变得浓重起来。铺满鹅卵石的湖岸也变窄了，狂风卷起波浪，不断拍打着湖岸。火星带领大家沿着篱笆，走过柔软的草地，听到了马们在里面的阵阵嘶鸣声。冬青爪看着倒映在篱笆上的那些巨大黑影，心里不安地颤抖起来。或许，它们也不喜欢这样的天气吧。狂风大作就是要下雨的预兆，而且，这将是一场大雨。
“砰！”
靠近篱笆的地方，一匹马突然重重地跺着地面。白翅惊叫一声，警觉地跳到一边。她无意中撞到了鼠爪，一下子把他撞飞在铺满鹅卵石的湖岸上。
“你小心些啊！”鼠爪站了起来，大叫道。
白翅惊恐地望着鼠爪：“对不起啊。”
为什么大家都这么狂躁易怒呢？冬青爪扫视着大家，心想。自从离开营地，一路上几乎没有猫讲话。他们的皮毛都被风吹得蓬乱不堪，尾巴都在胡乱摆动着。她感到有些不安蔓延着。自从上次发现风族开始捕捉松鼠后，族群里都在议论着诸如风族盗猎、反击复仇、阻止侵略等话题。冬青爪不相信，风族的这一举动会因一场战斗而终止。武士守则里并没有规定每个族群可以狩猎什么、不可以狩猎什么。不过，她实在不喜欢这种紧张的氛围。同时，她还在为河族的事情担忧不已。
松鸦爪上次在梦中梦见河族的事情，已经过去半个月了，却没有任何新的消息传来。冬青爪决定今晚无论如何都要找柳爪谈谈，不过她的心里还是非常焦虑。万一情况十分糟糕，河族不来参加森林大会，那该怎么办呢？
冬青爪跟着黑莓掌走下沙质湖岸，回到湖边。这时狮爪过来了，他蹭了蹭她的皮毛，说道：“我真希望自己和松鸦爪一起留在营地里。”
冬青爪看了他一眼。这话听起来可不像他说的，他看起来似乎很疲惫。
“你还好吧？”他难道不想看看石楠爪今晚是不是也来参加大会了吗？冬青爪有些好奇。
“我就是累了，”狮爪说道，“蜡毛带我训练，太辛苦了。”
冬青爪听到这里，心里轻松了一些。狮爪好像已经对石楠爪——那位风族学徒失去了兴趣。他一定已经不再把他俩之间的友谊看得那么重要了。不过这次他居然宁愿在营地里待着，也不想参加森林大会，还是有些可疑。
尘毛在他俩前面停了下来，竖起耳朵，说道：“风族来了！”
冬青爪看到，旁边的石楠丛中闪现出一群暗色的身影，往下朝湖岸奔来。“你觉得今晚火星会提到风族狩猎松鼠的事情吗？”
狮爪耸了耸肩：“谁知道呢！”
风族猫涌向湖岸边，距离雷族并不远。紧接着，他们朝河族领地那遍地沼泽的湖岸走去。走在泥地上，泥水在爪间扑哧作响，冬青爪不禁皱起了鼻子。火星带领大家转向更靠近湖岸的地方，并开始奔跑起来，试图赶上那群风族猫。
“偷松鼠的贼！”尘毛用余光瞥着风族猫，小声说道。
“偷松鼠的贼！”莓爪用更大的声音喊道。
辱骂声迅速在雷族的猫们中传开，不一会儿，这声音开始在狂风中不停回响着。冬青爪心里紧张极了。不管怎样，今晚他们都不能开战！她小心翼翼地望着这些风族猫。裂耳的眼睛在月光下闪着怒火；风爪噘起嘴，露出挑衅的神情。不过一星依然镇定地向前走着，眼睛直视着前方倒伏的树桥。他第一个抵达那里，却用尾巴示意风族猫后退。火星带领雷族猫经过他们身旁，率先上了桥。风族猫双眼放光，注视着雷族猫的一举一动。
火星从桥上俯视着风族的族长，说道：“谢谢你，一星。”
一星向他点头示意。
雷族猫一只接一只通过这座倒伏的树桥。当冬青爪穿过纷乱的树枝登上树干时，突然闻到了河族的气息——很强烈，很清新，但也混杂着一些陈旧的气味。他们终于来了！冬青爪的心情终于彻底放松下来。如果他们能来参加森林大会，就说明事情没有之前想的那么严重。冬青爪小心翼翼地走过凹凸不平的树干，跳到另一边的湖岸上。她揉搓着鹅卵石下面的沙土取暖，并等着蜡毛和叶池跟上来。
“大家都过来了吗？”火星问道。
黑莓掌点了点头，于是火星用尾巴示意大家进入灌木丛，冬青爪也跟着钻了进去。我必须找柳爪谈谈！一根刺戳了一下她的鼻子，可她毫不在意，继续穿过柔软些的香薇丛向前穿行，不知不觉走到了族猫们的前面。
空地上已经坐满了猫。灰色猫们的皮毛在月光下闪着光芒，在玳瑁色和棕色皮毛的猫中间，显得格外耀眼。各式毛色的猫们聚在一起——有体形巨大的公猫、身材苗条的母猫，还有体态轻盈的年轻猫。一些猫聚在一起低声交谈，还有一些在空地边缘警觉地四下张望着。小一些的猫在大猫身边跑来跑去，有些猫实在是太小了，冬青爪无法相信他们是学徒。
她闻闻空中的气息——没有影族的踪迹。
“为什么河族今天来了这么多猫啊？”狮爪追了上来，上气不接下气地问冬青爪。
冬青爪摇了摇头，身上的毛不安地竖了起来。她这才发现，空地上的猫居然都是来自河族！
“有些猫也太老了吧。”狮爪盯着一只又矮又壮、胡须都斑白了的虎斑公猫说道。一只深色的虎斑母猫坐在他身边，她的皮毛特别凌乱，似乎是太老了，已经无力梳洗自己。
“燕尾！”一只非常年轻的猫匆忙向那只母猫跑来，睁得大大的眼睛里放出恐惧的光，“我找不到灰雾和小喷嚏了。”
“别担心，小锦葵。”燕尾用尾巴轻拂着这只小猫的身体，“你母亲马上就会回来的。小喷嚏很可能跟她在一块儿呢。”
“她刚才是说了‘小’吗？”狮爪惊异地问道。
冬青爪没有回答，她正盯着柳爪看。这位河族学徒正在一只即将分娩的猫后身前整理草药。一丝警觉迅速传遍了她的脚爪。冬青爪马上穿过猫群，来到柳爪身边。“发生什么事了？”她问道。
柳爪抬起头，眼睛里流露出慌乱的神情：“冬青爪！”
“星族啊，到底发生什么事了？”
还没等柳爪回答，风族猫突然像潮水一般涌入空地。他们从河族猫中间挤过去时，不由发出阵阵的惊叫。
“灰雾？灰雾？”在一片混乱之中，一只小小的玳瑁色皮毛的幼崽哭叫着。
“小喷嚏！你没跟你母亲在一块儿啊？你在那里做什么呢？”燕尾飞速冲到前面，用嘴把幼崽叼了起来。她痛得缩了一下身体，似乎她那僵硬的肢体已经承受不住小喷嚏的体重了，但她还是把他带到了小锦葵身边。
“柳爪，为什么这里老的、小的都有啊？”冬青爪转过身，问她的朋友。
“我们必须……”
火星的声音打断了她。“豹星，出什么事了？”雷族族长一边问，一边向大橡树走去。豹星正坐在橡树的树根间。
一星连忙穿过空地，大吼道：“你是不是把全体河族猫都带来了啊？”
豹星眨了眨眼说道：“是的。”
“什么？”一星大睁着眼睛，在她身边停下了脚步。
冬青爪向前探了探身子。河族到底出什么事了？
这时，从会场的边缘传来了黑星气愤的喊声：“这里发生什么事了？”
影族猫也抵达了会场。
火星抓了抓爪子下的泥土。“我们开始开会吧，这样就能快点儿搞清楚了。”说完，他纵身一跃，跳到橡树最矮的那个树枝上，豹星紧随其后。黑星和一星也随着爬了上去。大橡树下，各个族群的猫来回推搡着，最后终于找到位子，坐了下来。
柳爪待在那只怀孕的母猫身边。
“一切都还好吧？”冬青爪低声问道。
“你去找你的族猫吧。”柳爪拍拍团成球的草药，避开了朋友的目光，“求你了！”
冬青爪点点头，跟在河族武士后面，朝大橡树走去。虽然河族猫都高扬着脑袋，但尾巴却烦躁不安地来回抽动着。一只灰色皮毛的河族猫后挤了冬青爪一下，朝与大家相反的方向奔去。
“不好意思！”冬青爪给她让路，可是这只母猫似乎并没有注意到她。
“灰雾！原来你在这儿啊！”当这只母猫过来时，燕尾悬着的心终于放下了。灰雾的幼崽都跑向自己的母亲，但灰雾却把他们全都赶开了，跟着燕尾来到河族长老和幼崽藏身的香薇丛里。阴影中，他们的眼睛都闪着警觉的光芒。
冬青爪跑回雷族猫聚集的地方。当她挤过莓爪身边时，莓爪突然缩了缩身子：“喂，你踩到我的尾巴了！”
“看着点儿！”她又踩到了尘毛的爪子，尘毛大声警告她。
“对不起！”冬青爪小心翼翼地溜到狮爪身边，确保每一步都不会踩到别的猫。
“你发现什么了？”狮爪问道。
“没有。”
“快坐下吧，保持安静。”蕨毛命令道。
冬青爪眨了眨眼睛，表示歉意，然后抬头看着豹星。
河族族长投来坚毅的目光。一只幼崽哭叫起来，但立刻就被其他猫制止了。“河族领地上出了一点小问题。”豹星开口了。
小问题？冬青爪的心怦怦直跳，所以你们全部的猫都来了？
“我们必须离开自己的营地。”
“离开你们的营地？”黑星的眼睛里闪出好奇的光芒。
“只离开一段很短的时间，”豹星马上说道，“我们正在着手解决这个问题，等问题彻底解决后，我们就马上搬回去。这段时间，我们全族都会待在这个岛上。”
那森林大会该怎么举办呢？冬青爪焦虑地抬头望着天空中的银毛星带。武士守则里对森林大会的举办地有着明确规定——必须在陆地上举行，所有族群共享这块陆地。显然，河族这么做违反了猫族祖灵所立下的规矩。
“那你们在哪儿狩猎呢？”一星气哼哼地瞪着河族族长。
这时黄毛站了起来，脊背上的毛竖着：“岛上不可能有足够的食物，来供养整个河族。”
豹星直视着这位影族副族长：“我们还有这片湖泊！”
“那样就行了吗？”鸦羽大声说道，“当你们把这座岛周围浅水区的鱼都抓光了之后，你们怎么办？”
雾脚的毛也竖了起来：“如果你们担心我们是否会狩猎兔子，那我明确地告诉你们，我们不吃兔子！”河族副族长撇撇嘴，摆出一副即使挨饿也不吃兔子的表情。
“那森林大会该怎么办？”火星平静地望着豹星。
“我们希望下次满月之前，能回到自己的营地去。”豹星说道。
“如果你们没能回去呢？”黑星问道，“如果你们来参加森林大会的猫比其他族群多出太多，那就太不公平了。”
这时刺掌站了起来。“以前可从没有猫在四棵树那儿生活过，”他说道，“这里对所有族群猫来说，都是一个特别的地方，就像母亲嘴一样。”
豹星和刺掌的眼神交会在一起：“如果我们有别的选择，我们是绝不会这么做的。”
“如果你们永远也回不到自己的营地了呢？”一星的爪子不停地抓挠着身下的树皮，质问道，“那时候，你们又会去哪里呢？”
“你们会搬到新的领地去吗？”
“你们会侵犯其他族群的领地吗？”
空地上传来此起彼伏的质问声，大家似乎都异常焦虑。
豹星的目光扫过下面的猫，信誓旦旦地说道：“你们所担心的事情，永远不会发生！”
黑星抖抖尾巴。“不过如果真的发生了呢？”他问道。
“三个族群的领地无法养活四个族群！”一星说道。
影族武士烟足扬起下巴说道：“那样一来，我们当中的一个族群就必须离开了！”
整个空地突然安静下来。大家都你看看我，我看看你，神情十分紧张。
冬青爪心头一紧。必须有一个族群要离开这里吗？绝对不行！四个族群的猫必须要在一起！一直以来就是这样的，不应改变！
“我们要相信豹星，”火星的声音响彻会场，“我们必须给河族一个机会，让他们重新回到自己的领地上。”
“是啊，给他们一些时间，至少应该等到下次森林大会之前。”沙风插话道。在场的猫们都嘀咕着，却没有谁反对。
火星听了，点点头说道：“如果河族到下次满月时，依然还住在这座岛上，那我们再决定接下来该怎么做。”他一边说，一边注视着其他几位族长，“你们觉得这样公平吗？”
黑星勉强点点头。
“我想可以。”一星弹弹尾巴，低声说道。
“那就这么定了。”火星一边说，一边望向在场的猫们，“雷族没什么可通报的。我们有一位学徒受伤了，不过她现在正在康复中，状态不错。”他看了看一星，“新叶季到了，森林里的猎物也开始多起来了。”
冬青爪把爪子插进泥土里。火星这是在暗示风族狩猎松鼠的事情呢。
一星眯起了眼睛：“风族很好，我们领地上的猎物也都非常丰富。”
冬青爪这时突然察觉到耳边出现了莓爪的呼吸声。“他说的是猎物，不是兔子呢。”莓爪的声音虽轻，但语气却很凶狠。
“火星为什么不提松鼠的事呢？”蛛足嘶嘶着说道。
“他不敢说吧？”
冬青爪赶忙四下看了看，想看看到底是谁这么说。她看到，刺掌正怒目圆睁瞪着火星。
可是火星不愿挑起更多的争端，他的做法是对的。这里的局势已经够紧张了。冬青爪心想。
“黑星？”一星催促着影族族长，“你有什么要通报的吗？”
“湖边出现了一些两脚兽，”黑星说，“不过我们领地附近倒是没有。”
“很好，”火星点点头，“如果没有其他事情，我想还是散会吧，让河族在这里好好待着吧。”
群猫神情不安，议论纷纷。但是火星已经从大橡树上跳了下来。豹星紧随其后。森林大会就此落下帷幕。
冬青爪看着风族和影族猫都消失在灌木丛里，心里感到一阵轻松。她赶忙跑到柳爪身边。“到底发生了什么事？”她问道，“你们为什么要离开营地呢？”
柳爪的嘴巴里塞满了草药。“我不能说，”她硬挤出几个字，“这里猫太多，我怕他们听见。”
“我明白。”冬青爪看到朋友的眼中流露出绝望的神情，“我晚点儿再来，到时候你再告诉我吧。”
柳爪突然把草药糊吐在了地上，说道：“求你了，不要给自己惹麻烦！”
“我不会的。”冬青爪承诺道。她觉得自己必须知道整个事情的来龙去脉。火星或许能够帮助河族的。族群的未来很可能取决于自己的发现。冬青爪看到蕨毛、黑莓掌和松鼠飞都消失在了灌木丛里，狮爪也在用尾巴召唤她，让她赶快离开。
“我必须走了。”离开之前，冬青爪用鼻子碰了碰柳爪的脸颊。
“她说什么了吗？”当冬青爪来到狮爪身边时，狮爪问道。
“没说什么。”冬青爪快速穿过香薇丛。一想到自己朋友刚才悲哀的神情，冬青爪的心就开始痛起来。
他们在倒伏树桥旁追上了雷族的大部队。风族和影族已经在湖岸边走得很远了。
“这对雷族来说，意味着什么呢？”鼠爪爬上倒伏树桥时，焦急地问道。
松鼠飞也跳了上去，跟在他身后：“没什么。”
“你怎么会如此肯定呢？”蛛足在树桥的树干上走到一半，停下来问。
尘毛眯起眼睛：“如果河族不能在自己的领地上待下去，他们很可能就会侵略风族和影族。这种事情一旦发生，所有族群的边界就都不会安全了。”
“可是我们的领地在湖的另一边啊！”鼠爪说道，“应该不会影响到我们。”他跟随尘毛穿过树枝，迈着小步，在倒伏树桥上匆匆往前赶去。
“我真希望你说得对。”尘毛阴沉地低声说道。
“我想，这就是风族学徒们在森林里训练狩猎的原因吧。”蛛足大声说道。
冬青爪身体一颤。他说得对吗？难道风族真的计划侵占雷族的领地了？
“狮爪！”蜡毛急促的喊声将冬青爪从睡梦中惊醒。她从自己窝里抬起头，看到狮爪已快跑出了巢穴。
“发生什么事了？”她问道。周围几乎所有的窝都已经空了，只有蜜爪还在睡觉。
“我们要开始战斗训练啦！”狮爪转过头回答道。
冬青爪爬起来，伸伸懒腰。蕨毛还没有叫她，或许在训练开始之前，她还有时间去看看炭爪。
这时，冬青爪突然听到外面传来急促的脚步声和激动的说话声。这个早晨，大家似乎都异常忙碌。冬青爪感到有点儿好奇，她走出巢穴想看个究竟。初升的太阳刚把光芒投射在大地上，整个空地上已是熙熙攘攘。猎物堆满满当当的，鼠爪和莓爪正在半边石旁练习战斗动作。灰条和米莉正把一丛刺棘拖向他俩正在建造中的巢穴。高石台下，火星正在跟刺掌和黑莓掌交谈着。
长老巢穴外面，鼠毛在阳光下伸展着身体。长尾坐在她身边，脸朝向天空。“冬青爪？我闻到的是你的气息吗？”这位看不见的长老的声音传了过来。
“是的。”冬青爪跑到他身边。
“我听说我们有麻烦了。”长尾把爪子插进泥土里，“我希望自己还能为保卫雷族做一些事情。”
“没什么大问题。”冬青爪很快回答道，“只是河族有点儿小麻烦要处理而已。”
“我好像听说，边界要重新划定了。”长尾接着说道，“我倒是想看看，哪个族群胆敢从我们这里夺取一寸土地！”
他还真是好战！冬青爪有些惊诧。当她看到蕨毛朝自己走来时，心情轻松了一些。至少蕨毛不会对打仗的话题有太大的兴趣吧？
“我们要去狩猎。”蕨毛说道。
太好了，蕨毛总算是正常的！
蕨毛接着说：“如果战斗即将来临，我们需要先吃饱才行。”
冬青爪身体一僵。这是怎么了？连蕨毛也这样了！“出发之前，我能先去见见炭爪吗？”
“去吧，”蕨毛同意了，“不过时间别太久啊。”
冬青爪穿过空地，钻过黑莓丛，来到巫医巢穴入口：“我可以进去吗？”
炭爪在窝里坐了起来，那条用灯芯草捆绑着的后腿，笨拙地伸出窝外。她此刻正使尽全力，用前爪去抓窝旁的一个苔藓球。
叶池正在水池旁边，把干燥的马尾草茎秆润湿。她抬起头来：“嗨，冬青爪！”
冬青爪觉得巫医的声音非常平静，于是便挤开黑莓丛，走进巢穴里。
“你能来，我真高兴。炭爪还是需要猫陪着啊。”叶池看了一眼烦躁不安的病号，“她总是一刻都闲不下来。”
炭爪拍拍那团苔藓球，它一下子飞了起来，落在冬青爪身边。“你把它扔过来，我接住它！”她恳求道。
“不行！”叶池弯下身子，用嘴叼起那团苔藓，“如果你想让腿快点儿康复，就不要乱动！”
炭爪不满地翻了个白眼，逗得冬青爪低声笑起来，接着她注意到了巢穴后方的松鸦爪。松鸦爪正忙着把草药包在叶子里，并把包好的草药一捆捆地堆在墙边。他似乎非常专注于自己的工作，来不及抬头跟姐姐打招呼。
“松鸦爪，你在干什么呢？”冬青爪问道。
“准备草药呗，”他低声喃喃道，“要不然你以为我在干吗呢？”
“草药真的好多啊！”冬青爪闻到了马尾草和金盏花的气味。她突然想起自己做巫医学徒时参加的训练，松鸦爪这是在为战斗中的伤员准备草药。她突然感到一阵难受。整个雷族似乎都已经默默地达成共识：战争即将来临。
“发生什么事了？”炭爪在自己窝里喊着。
冬青爪来到炭爪的身边：“有没有谁告诉你，森林大会上发生了什么事？”
炭爪摇了摇头：“叶池回来之后，和松鸦爪一直在低声谈论着什么，但是他们都没有告诉我。”
“河族住在岛上了！”
炭爪惊讶地睁大了眼睛：“住在岛上？”
“不知道什么原因，他们不能住在自己的营地里了。所有其他族群都认为，他们不得不寻找新的领地。”
炭爪深吸了一口气：“可是这样一来，所有族群的秩序不就都乱了吗？”
“我知道。”冬青爪看了看依然在后面忙碌着的松鸦爪，“而且现在似乎大家都认为，战争已经逼近了。”
炭爪摆弄着窝里的那团苔藓，说道：“我只希望自己赶快好起来，到时候能为雷族而战！”
冬青爪生气地盯着她：“战争根本没有发生的必要！”
“不过，如果大家都希望打一场呢？”
冬青爪打断了炭爪的话：“大家只是担心河族下一步的行动而已。如果我们能帮助河族，那么所有的一切都会恢复正常的。”
说完，她走出了巢穴，望着整片空地。小狐和小冰在育婴室入口玩着打仗的游戏；长尾和鼠毛正在沙质地面上划拉着作战计划；火星依然在跟黑莓掌交谈着。
她不能让族猫为战斗做准备，他们真应该想出另外一种方法来解决问题。如果她能够想出方法来帮助河族，或许就没必要打仗了。
CHAPTER14
CHAPTER14
Rain pattered on Jaypaw’s pelt ashe crossed the clearing. He held a bundle of watermint and juniper berries in his jaws and their pungent scent filled his nose.
Millie trotted beside him. “I told him not to eat another sparrow!” She stopped beneath Highledge where Graystripe was groaning.
“How was I supposed to resist?” Graystripe gasped. He let out another low moan. “It’s been moons since there’s been so much prey.”
Jaypaw dropped his bundle of herbs. He rested a paw on Graystripe’s round belly as he lay fidgeting with pain.
“Keep still.” Jaypaw felt the hardness beneath Graystripe’s flank. “You’ve just given yourself gas.”
“I told you so,” Millie meowed.
Jaypaw rolled the juniper berries toward Graystripe’s muzzle. “These will help,” he mewed. “Then eat the watermint.”
“I thought a warrior would know that you have to start slowly after leaf-bare,” Millie went on. “All those moons on an empty belly. You can’t just stuff yourself as soon as the prey starts to run. You have to get used to it.”
“Don’t go on,” Graystripe pleaded.
Millie’s tongue lapped Graystripe’s pelt. Jaypaw felt her affection for her mate like warm air around him. His whiskers twitched with amusement. It was funny to hear a warrior being lectured by a kittypet. But she’s a warrior now,he reminded himself quickly.
Paw steps hurried into the camp. Jaypaw tasted the air. Mousepaw and Poppypaw. From the mossy scent on their pelts, he could tell they had been in the training hollow.
“Have you seen Hollypaw?” Poppypaw called as she bounded toward Highledge.
Jaypaw felt Poppypaw’s anxious gaze burning his pelt. It darted away, awkwardness pricking from the apprentice.
“I didn’t mean see,” she corrected herself quickly. “I meant hear or scent—”
“She means, do you know where she is?” Mousepaw’s impatient mew chipped in.
Jaypaw’s pads tingled. He hadn’t seen Hollypaw since this morning. He let his awareness spread around the camp, feeling for her presence in the same way he would grope for poppy seeds among the herb store. Nothing. No sense of Hollypaw in the camp or near it. He shook his head.
Graystripe scrambled to his paws. “How long has she been missing?” he demanded.
“She was supposed to be training with us, but she didn’t turn up,” Poppypaw mewed.
“Brackenfur figured she’d been kept in camp for some reason,” Mousefur added. “So we just did the training without her. We thought she’d be here when we got back.”
“But she’s not!” Poppypaw’s shrill mew rang around the camp.
Brackenfur came bounding from the thorn tunnel. “She’s not here?”
Spiderleg and Ashfur were on his heels.
“Her scent is in the tunnel, but it’s stale,” Ashfur reported.
“She must have left camp when I told her to,” Brackenfur guessed.
“But she didn’t make it to the training hollow,” Spiderleg concluded.
Jaypaw felt the interest of their Clanmates pricking around the clearing.
Brightheart hurried over. “Perhaps she’s hurt!”
“Who’s hurt?” Sorreltail called.
“No one’s hurt!” Graystripe explained. “But Hollypaw seems to be missing.”
Jaypaw was starting to get squashed by the warriors pressing around him. Thornclaw and Whitewing had joined them.
“Perhaps WindClan has captured her!” Thornclaw declared.
Alarm flashed from the warriors and apprentices.
Cloudtail pushed his way to the front. “Why would they do that?”
Jaypaw smelled Brook’s mountain scent. “Has WindClan ever taken hostages before?” she asked.
“No, but they’ve never hunted squirrels before either!” Dustpelt pointed out.
Sorreltail gasped. “I hope they don’t hurt her!”
Jaypaw felt torn between alarm and irritation. Everyone was panicking far too quickly. But what if Hollypaw hadbeen captured?
Only Brook remained calm. “It wouldn’t make sense for WindClan to give themselves an extra mouth to feed.”
“But they have extra prey now that they hunt in the forest,” Brightheart meowed.
“They might think it’s worth it.” Sorreltail’s voice was taut with worry.
“We should send a patrol to rescue her!” Thornclaw announced.
Brambleclaw joined his Clanmates. “Rescue who?”
Jaypaw felt relief wash his pelt as he sensed Squirrelflight at his father’s side. She licked him between the ears. “What’s going on, Jaypaw?”
“Hollypaw’s missing.”
Squirrelflight stiffened. “Since when?”
“I spoke to her at midday,” Brackenfur explained. “She was supposed to come to the training hollow, but she never arrived.”
“WindClan must have captured her!” Brightheart meowed.
“Do we know that for sure?” Brambleclaw asked.
No one replied.
“Well, in that case, let’s not assume the worst,” the ThunderClan deputy urged.
“Knowing Hollypaw, she’s just gone off by herself,” Squirrelflight meowed.
Jaypaw nodded. Hollypaw had wandered off more than once when she needed time to think.
“But would she deliberately miss training?” Sorreltail fretted.
“She’s never missed it before.” Firestar’s mew sounded above them. He was on Highledge. The cats shuffled backward to look up at their leader. Jaypaw was relieved to have some space but he could feel guilt and anxiety flooding from Firestar. What did he have to feel guilty about?
“We can’t assume that WindClan have taken her,” the ThunderClan leader went on.
“But we know they want to attack us,” Thornclaw called. “This might be their way of provoking a battle.”
Worried mews rippled around the Clan.
“We don’t know for sure they want to attack,” Firestar reasoned. “And as Squirrelflight pointed out, Hollypaw is perfectly capable of going off by herself. She’s always been independent. Don’t forget she went fox-hunting when she was still a kit!”
Firestar’s mew was light but Jaypaw could sense the leader’s thoughts churning. Meanwhile, his Clanmates’ ruffled pelts began to smooth. Of course Hollypaw was all right. Disappearing for the day was just the sort of thing she’d do. Jaypaw wasn’t convinced. Firestar knew more than he was letting on. He tried to probe the ThunderClan leader’s mind, but a fretful cloud obscured any clear thoughts. Perhaps he should just ask him outright? Jaypaw shrugged away the idea. Firestar clearly wanted to keep his fears to himself.
Jaypaw slipped past Brook and Brightheart and headed toward the medicine den. As he neared it, he heard the brambles at the entrance rustle. Leafpool had just darted inside. She must have been listening. He padded into the cave, a little taken aback by the wave of emotion flooding from Leafpool’s pelt.
“Is it true?” Cinderpaw’s anxious mew sounded from her nest. “Has Hollypaw disappeared?”
“You know Hollypaw,” Jaypaw soothed. “She’s probably gone off to think.”
“I guess.” Cinderpaw’s nest rustled as she settled back down, but Jaypaw could sense the tension in her muscles.
Across the den, alarm pulsed even more fiercely from Leafpool
“What’s the matter?” he hissed, hurrying to his mentor’s side. He focused on her thoughts and found her mind chaotic with worry and guilt, just as Firestar’s had been. They both knew something!
“I spoke to Hollypaw before she left the camp,” Leafpool admitted quietly.
Jaypaw pricked his ears. “Did she say where she was going?”
“No, but she was upset.” Leafpool’s voice was hoarse. “She’d just asked Firestar to help RiverClan.”
“And he said no,” Jaypaw guessed, remembering how Firestar had reacted to his dream.
“She couldn’t possibly believe she could help RiverClan by herself!” meowed Leafpool.
“Hollypaw wouldn’t be that mouse-brained,” Jaypaw agreed.
“But maybe she thought that if she couldn’t reason with Firestar, she might be able to convince Onestar not to fight,” Leafpool went on reluctantly.
A dark pit seemed to open in Jaypaw’s stomach. Hollypaw always thought the world was neatly divided into right and wrong. And if she thought Firestar was making a mistake, she might be stubborn enough to try and mend things on her own. He shook the thought away. She wouldn’t be that reckless. Would she?
He felt Leafpool’s paw pressing his. “You must try to dream!” she meowed. “You have to find out where she is!”
Her urgent plea set his fur bristling with indignation. Not so long ago she’d begged him to keep his dreams a secret; now she wanted him to use them to find Hollypaw. Was this all he was to her? A quick way to get answers from StarClan when she wanted them, and a danger to the Clan when she didn’t?
“Please!”
“I’m not tired!” Jaypaw objected. “I can’t just dream when I like.”
“Just close your eyes and try,” Leafpool begged.
“I’ll dream when I’m ready!” he snapped.
He padded toward the entrance and felt Leafpool’s pelt brush against his. She was blocking the way!
“You have to try now!” Leafpool hissed.
Jaypaw’s pelt bristled. “But she’s probably just gone off by herself for a bit.” What was wrong with Leafpool? She sounded more worried than Squirrelflight!
Cinderpaw’s nest rustled. “Is something wrong?”
Leafpool turned to reassure her patient. “Don’t worry,” she soothed. “Keep still and rest your leg.”
So that was what she was worried about. Not Hollypaw. Just her precious patient. Jaypaw’s ears burned with rage. He pushed past her and stamped out of the den.
The camp was calmer now. Firestar had jumped down from Highledge to talk to Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight.
“The sunset patrol can keep an eye open for any trace of her,” Firestar was meowing. “We’ll see what they report and then send out a search party.”
“I want to be on the sunset patrol,” Squirrelflight meowed at once.
“And the search party,” Brambleclaw added.
“Of course,” Firestar agreed. “You must lead them both.”
Jaypaw let his ruffled fur relax. A search party was much more sensible than Leafpool’s desperate plea for dreams. She was as edgy as a deer these days. If Hollypaw didn’t turn up, then of course he’d try and use his powers to find her, but he wasn’t going to sleep all afternoon just because Leafpool ordered him to. He wanted to get away from her, away from the camp, away from everyone. He began to squeeze through the thorn tunnel.
“Where are you going?” Squirrelflight called after him. Anxiety was pricking from her pelt. Was she worried about losing another kit? One that every cat believed couldn’t take care of himself?
“For a walk.”
“Don’t be long.”
I’ll be as long as I like!Jaypaw headed into the trees. The damp air promised rain, and the forest smelled musty. He found his paws heading up the slope toward the lake. He sniffed eagerly for the scent of the open water, quickening his pace as he topped the ridge and headed down and out of the trees. This route would take him straight to the shore where he had left the branch. He began to hurry, whiskers twitching, paws following the familiar path down to the shore.
He scrambled down onto the beach and paused. Unlike the forest, which never seemed to change, the ground around the edge of the lake was always different. The pebbles seemed to shift so that they never felt the same underpaw, and debris came and went, washed up, then washed away again. Jaypaw loved the challenge of the shore. Just so long as he could steer clear of the water. He padded cautiously forward, muzzle outstretched, sniffing for driftwood or rubbish that might trip him. But his mind was fixed on the stick, hopefully still tucked safely behind the tree root. He weaved his way toward it, his heart beating faster as he neared it. He reached out a paw. It was there! Still safe.
Happily, he dragged it from its hiding place and ran his paws over it, feeling the warmth of the wood and welcoming the jarring ripples as his pads bumped over the scratches. The swishing of the waves and the murmuring of the wind drifted away. He was aware only of the branch beneath his pads and the sharp etches cut into it. A voice breathed in his ears, too soft to hear. It was husky like the voice of an old cat and it seemed to be listing names, as though counting them off. Jaypaw felt his heart quicken as his paw neared the end of the branch. The uncrossed scratches lay there. His belly tightened. He strained to hear the voice. But when his paw touched the first uncrossed mark the voice choked and fell silent.
Disappointed, Jaypaw lay down beside the stick and rested his cheek on the smooth wood. He closed his eyes, soothed by the lapping of the lake, and began to dream.
Sandy earth shifted beneath his paws. He blinked open his eyes. A wall of jagged rock loomed ahead of him. Rolling heather rippled behind him in the wind. The sky overhead was black, studded with stars. At the top of the rock wall, he saw cats silhouetted against the night sky. None looked familiar and when he sniffed the air, Jaypaw recognized the scent only from those he had smelled at the Moonpool, when ancient Clans had brushed pelts with him on the paw-worn path to the pool.
Suddenly, one cat broke away from the others and bounded down the steep slope, a young tom with muscular shoulders beneath his sleek ginger-and-white pelt. A she-cat scrambled after him. The others remained at the top, their tails flicking nervously.
“Take care,” the she-cat called, landing lightly on the sand.
The tom brushed muzzles with her. “I will see you at dawn, I promise.” He turned to face the cliff and, for the first time, Jaypaw realized there was a crack in the rock immediately behind him.
The tom padded toward it. Jaypaw tried to step out of the way but the tom stepped through him as though he wasn’t there. As their spirits crossed, Jaypaw felt a shudder of foreboding. This cat had never entered the rock before. He was frightened. As his tail disappeared into the shadows, Jaypaw’s belly fluttered with excitement. He had to know where the cat was going. Quickly he slipped in after him.
Darkness swallowed him and for a moment Jaypaw wondered if he had woken up and was blind once more. But then he heard the soft pad of the tom’s paws ahead and Jaypaw sensed space opening into the hillside, a narrow passageway that led straight into the rock.
Fear spiked the air. Yet determination rippled out from the tom’s pelt too. The pounding of his heart seemed to make the air around them tremble and it grew louder as the tunnel opened into a cave. Pale light glowed overhead, streaming through a small gap in the roof. The arching walls were filled with more openings; the tunnels must spread like roots beneath the moor. Rushing water echoed around the rocks. Jaypaw saw with surprise that there was a river cutting through the cave and flowing away into yet another tunnel, the water black as night.
“Fallen Leaves?”
Jaypaw jerked his head up. An old cat was calling to the tom from a high ledge near the moonlit gap. Fallen Leaves?
The tom jumped.
“I can feel your surprise,” the old cat croaked.
Jaypaw stared at the ancient cat. Its pelt was nothing but a few tufts of fur, its eyes were white and bulging and stared sightlessly down.
I hope my eyes don’t look like that!
Fallen Leaves knew this cat would be here—Jaypaw could sense understanding and recognition between the two cats—but the young tom had clearly not expected him to be so ugly.
The old cat ran a paw over something smooth and pale—a bare branch clasped beneath his twisted claws.
Jaypaw stiffened. My stick!He strained to hear what the ancient cat was saying.
“…I must stay close to our warrior ancestors; those who have taken their place beneath the earth.”
“And for that we thank you,” Fallen Leaves murmured.
“Don’t thank me,” the old cat growled. “It was a destiny I was bound to follow. Besides, you may not feel so grateful to me once your initiation has begun.” He ran a long claw over the lines scratched into the branch.
Fear pulsed from the young tom and swept Jaypaw like an icy wind. What was he so afraid of? Jaypaw looked back up at the ledge.
The old cat was shaking his head. “I cannot help you. To become a sharpclaw, you must guide yourself through these tunnels and find your own way out. I can only send you on your way with the blessing of our ancestors.”
A sharpclaw?Was that like a warrior? Jaypaw suddenly understood the young tom’s fear and his determination. It wasn’t just the darkness he faced, but his future.
“Is it raining?” the old cat asked suddenly.
Jaypaw saw Fallen Leaves stiffen.
“The sky is clear.” But Jaypaw sensed doubt flicker in the young cat’s mind.
The old cat ran his claw once more over the lines etched in the branch. “Then begin.”
Fallen Leaves leaped across the river and headed into the tunnel that opened beneath the old cat’s ledge. Jaypaw bounded after him, relieved that he could see. He wouldn’t want to cross the river blind. He shuddered as he imagined falling in and being sucked into the tunnel. Forcing away the thought, he followed Fallen Leaves into blackness once more.
This way leads up!
Jaypaw felt the realization cross Fallen Leaves’s mind as clearly as if he’d said it out loud. Jaypaw weaved after him through the darkness. The rocky tunnel was smooth beneath his paws. What had made it so slick? It wound upward, narrowing and then widening, turning first one way, then the other.
Jaypaw’s breath quickened. He could hardly believe he was walking with an ancient Clan cat, watching him cross the border from kithood to cathood. The surface of the moor couldn’t be far away now, and then Fallen Leaves would be safe. Safe and a sharpclaw, just like he wanted. A puddle of moonlight splashed the floor ahead of them; Fallen Leaves dashed through it, glancing up. Jaypaw followed and saw a narrow gap above them, too high to reach.
Suddenly, the tunnel narrowed and began to slope downward.
Downward? But they’d nearly reached the open moor!
Doubt bristled in Fallen Leaves’s pelt, but Jaypaw sensed him push it away. The tunnel twisted and Fallen Leaves’s pelt brushed the wall as he swerved to follow the snaking passageway. Jaypaw was impressed how this cat coped with the darkness, much better than any ThunderClan cats would; he must have been trained to find his way with scent and touch alone.
The slope continued downward. Fallen Leaves halted, and Jaypaw sensed uncertainty. The tunnel ahead split. Which way should he take? Fallen Leaves padded slowly into one, then backed up. Jaypaw felt the tom’s tail slide through his formless body. He jerked as it sent a jolt of doubt like lightning through his fur. He scrabbled backward. The young tom was losing his nerve.
Fallen Leaves darted forward, hurrying on once more. He had chosen the other tunnel, though it sloped downward. Jaypaw could smell heather; Fallen Leaves was following the scent of fresh air. Hope flashed in Jaypaw’s chest. This must be the right way. He saw another pool of moonlight flood the tunnel in front of them. Could they get out here?
Fallen Leaves quickened his pace. Jaypaw felt hope flare in the young tom and then plummet as he reached the moonlight. Jaypaw looked up. The hole was wide but a long way out of reach. And in the shaft of moonlight, drops of rain flickered, spattering down into the tunnel.
Alarm blazed from Fallen Leaves’s pelt. It swept away his disappointment like a cold wind clearing mist. He was scared of the rain! He shot onward, moving faster now, bumping into the sides of the tunnel more often in his desperation to find a way out. Jaypaw skidded as he followed Fallen Leaves around a sharp bend. The tunnel floor was growing slippery with raindrops. He flicked his tail, recovering his balance, frightened he might lose sight of Fallen Leaves.
The floor was growing wetter and wetter. Rain dripped faster through each hole they passed. A storm must be battering the moor above.
Suddenly, Fallen Leaves skidded to a halt. The tunnel had stopped at a smooth gray wall. He spun around and raced through Jaypaw.
Jaypaw’s fur stood on end.
Fallen Leaves was struggling to keep his terror under control. He raced away, veering down an opening in the side of the tunnel, and Jaypaw’s claws skittered over the floor as he turned and pelted after him. The tunnel dipped sharply. Jaypaw gasped as water lapped his paws. He followed Fallen Leaves as the tunnel began to slope upward, but still the water came, rushing down the passage, washing up against Jaypaw’s belly.
The tunnels were flooding!
Fallen Leaves swerved through a new opening. It was narrower than the previous tunnels, and the walls pressed in on either side. A hole let in a glimmer of light, but it was too far up to climb out.
Fallen Leaves skidded to a halt. Jaypaw could smell peaty water and hear it sloshing ahead. He peered through the darkness and saw Fallen Leaves recoiling, his forepaws engulfed. The tunnel sloped down sharply in front of him and disappeared into water so deep it lapped the roof. Jaypaw turned around even before Fallen Leaves began to double back. He was leading now, scrambling back the way they’d come. Perhaps they could make it to the cave!
Fallen Leaves ran faster, clearly remembering the route, pulling past Jaypaw and taking the lead.
Please StarClan, let him find the cave!
Blood pounded in Jaypaw’s ears. Unbridled terror pulsed from Fallen Leaves.
Jaypaw heard a roaring. Wind surged behind him, tugging his fur as it swept over him. He glanced back over his shoulder and saw water skidding toward them, splashing around the walls and roof.
Hurry!Jaypaw was running for his life.
Fallen Leaves glanced backward too, his eyes shining with terror. For the first time, he seemed to see Jaypaw.
“Save me!”
As Fallen Leaves cried out, the water lifted Jaypaw, swallowing his tail, his belly, and finally engulfing all of him so that he was tossed and swirled by cold clutching waves. Water filled his ears, his eyes, his mouth, and he struggled against it, not knowing which way was up, lost in the darkness, drowning. His sight faded, his ears roared, and he let his body go limp.
Jaypaw blinked open his eyes, gulping for air, and leaped away from the branch. Rain was pelting down, drenching his fur, and waves pounded the shore, driven across the lake by a fierce wind. He wanted to go home, back to the shelter of the camp.
Fallen Leaves!
Gingerly he reached out for the branch, feeling for the last uncrossed mark.
Now he knew what it meant. Fallen Leaves had gone into the tunnels, but he had never come out.
第十章
第十章
松鸦爪听到黑莓丛沙沙作响。“冬青爪走了吗？”他眨眨眼问道。冬青爪只在巫医巢穴里待了一小会儿。
“她一定是有急事要做吧。”炭爪叹了口气说。
“哦。”松鸦爪一边回应着，一边继续将金盏花和马尾草的药糊包进叶子里，为一场可能永远都不会发生的战争做着准备。为什么星族没有在梦里警告过这件事呢？它们可是很喜欢闯进他的梦里说三道四的！
突然，松鸦爪感到炭爪正在注视着自己，看得他皮毛发烫，头皮发麻。没错，炭爪在很好奇地看着他！松鸦爪心头忽然起了一股无名火。她到底要在巫医巢穴里待多久啊！显然，炭爪已经感到很无聊了，而巫医巢穴也失去了平静和隐秘，这真让松鸦爪怀念。于是，他转身看着她问：“你怎么了？”
“没什么。”炭爪若有所思地回答，“我只是突然想起，我曾经做过一个梦，在梦里你能看见东西。”
松鸦爪的耳朵抽动了起来。炭爪居然想起了她的那个梦！可是她会想起多少呢？那个峡谷里的营地？她变成炭毛的事？他等待着叶池流露出惊恐，但叶池正蹲在池塘旁边，全神贯注地把干燥的马尾草茎秆润湿。
松鸦爪走上前，装作漫不经心地问道：“我在你的梦里做什么呢？”
“我想不起来了。我只是见到你能看见东西，感到很惊讶。”炭爪在窝里坐立不安起来。
“当时我们在哪里啊？”
炭爪迟疑了一会儿，说道：“应该是在森林里边吧。你跟着我，还有……”
“还有什么？”松鸦爪凑上前去，离她更近了。
“我记不得了。”
松鸦爪摇摇尾巴。如果炭爪知道到自己就是炭毛，将会发生什么事呢？难道所有老巫医的记忆都会埋藏在学徒们的意识中吗？
“炭爪该吃药了。”叶池的声音从水池边传来。
“好的。”松鸦爪突然兴奋起来。他觉得这是个机会，可以设法查清炭爪身上是否还有炭毛的痕迹。
他冲到洞穴的后方，拾起一些气味浓郁的锦葵叶子——他故意没有拿能帮助炭爪骨头愈合的紫草。锦葵除了能缓解肚子胀，没有其他功效。如果炭爪的脑海中留存着炭毛的一些医药知识，她就会知道不该用这种草药，并指出来。
“给你。”松鸦爪说着把锦葵扔在炭爪的窝旁。
“这些草药真好闻啊！”炭爪说道。
“这是锦葵，”松鸦爪一边告诉她，一边用鼻子把锦葵叶推到她身边，“这种草药治疗骨伤很管用呢。”他搜寻着炭爪的脑海，看是否闪现出一丝怀疑，不过那里除了感激之外，什么都没有。
“谢谢你，松鸦爪。”
“你在干什么？”叶池急忙跑过来，夺走了锦葵叶。当叶池冲过他的身边时，松鸦爪察觉到叶池的脑海中闪过一丝疑惑。“你应该给她紫草！”叶池说道。
“我一定是拿错草药了。”松鸦爪撒了个谎。
“下次一定要小心啊！”叶池有些生气，她不相信松鸦爪的话。她是否已经猜到自己在试探炭爪呢？“你赶紧回去做药糊吧。”她厉声说道。然而，当她转过身对炭爪说话时，声音却立刻变得柔和起来：“对不起，炭爪。松鸦爪平时可不是这么粗心大意的。”
松鸦爪不情愿地回到巢穴后方。这太不公平了！叶池这几天一直都对自己没什么好脸色，却总是非常和善地对待炭爪，就算炭爪再怎么烦躁不安，叶池也会报以无限的耐心。松鸦爪不耐烦地用尾巴指了指泡在水池里的马尾草茎秆。“这些马尾草可以用了吗？”他心里非常清楚，这些草药要浸泡一整晚才能让茎秆重新充满汁液。
“当然不能！”叶池说道，“你还是用我昨天泡过的那些吧！”
“好！”他气鼓鼓地从旁边的一堆草药中找出一段湿漉漉的茎秆，开始狠狠地嚼了起来。
叶池走过来帮忙。因为她给炭爪收集了一点儿紫草叶，整个空气中满是紫草的气味。“你刚才是怎么回事？”她嘶嘶地问道。
“我还想问你呢！”他厉声反驳道。
“我可没有把错误的草药给炭爪。”
“我只是想看看，她是否能分清这两种草药的不同。”
“她是炭爪，不是炭毛！”
“可她身上总会有一些炭毛的影子。”
“如果真的有，那也不是我们能找到的！”松鸦爪察觉到，叶池呼出的气息喷到了自己的脸颊上，“我们必须让炭爪掌握自己的命运！”
“那我们帮帮她，又有什么不对？炭爪自己应该知道，她是被星族送回来，并且成为一位武士的。”
“如果星族想让她知道，它们自己会告诉她的。”叶池说道。
“你的意思是，你准备放任不管，一切都让星族处理了？”
“当然！”叶池的语气像是受到了惊吓，“你也不要管！”
松鸦爪只好开始咀嚼草药。那茎秆的汁液特别苦，苦得他胡须不停地抖动。为什么叶池如此敬畏那些祖灵呢？松鸦爪见过它们，那些猫看起来跟活着的猫没什么区别。难道叶池真的相信，死亡会让一只愚钝的猫变得更聪明？它们可以进入别的猫的梦境，可他也具备这种能力。可那并不能说明，他就知道所有问题的答案啊。
“松鸦爪！”炭爪的喊声响了起来。
松鸦爪睁开眼睛：“你还好吗？”
“我很好。”听起来炭爪已经完全醒了。松鸦爪抬起鼻子闻了闻。黎明才刚刚降临，她难道就不能多睡一会儿？她不想睡，也得让别的猫多睡一会儿啊！
“叶池去看小狐了，”炭爪说道，“我想趁她不在，我们来玩个游戏。”
松鸦爪挣扎着站起来，打了个哈欠。他能感觉到，炭爪又恢复了受伤之前生机勃勃的状态。
“真希望我的腿能动啊！”她抱怨道，“我感觉除了腿之外，其他地方都好了。”
“如果你想让腿快点儿好，那就不要乱动。”松鸦爪告诉她。
“我知道，我知道。”炭爪叹了口气，“可我感觉真的很无聊啊！”
松鸦爪顿时对她产生了一种同情。新叶季的森林生机无限，各种新鲜的气息召唤着她，好像一个朋友在不断催促她出去玩一样。这时，有东西从空中飞了过来，轻轻地从松鸦爪的肩头滑落。是一个苔藓球。
“好吧，”松鸦爪终于做出了让步，“不过，你不许离开自己的窝，我会把这个球抛给你。”
“可你看不见我啊。”
“是的，”松鸦爪承认道，“不过你一直在不停地说话，我可以通过你的声音，准确判断你的位置。”说完，他用爪子钩起苔藓球，朝她抛了过去。
炭爪的窝里窸窣作响，她伸长爪子，接到了那个球。
看来我下次投掷时，应该再低一些。
苔藓球又嗖的一声飞了过来。松鸦爪准确地判断出了它的方位，纵身一跃，翻了个跟头接住了它，然后轻巧地落在地上。
“哇！”炭爪发出一阵呼噜声，“太棒了。”这时她突然一动不动地问道，“感觉怎么样？”
松鸦爪歪歪自己的脑袋：“什么意思？”
“看不见的感觉怎么样？”
“能看得见的感觉怎么样呢？”
“我不知道。我猜，没什么特殊的感觉吧。”
“呃，那么看不见对我来说，也没什么特殊的感觉。”
“不过，不能知道万物是什么样子，不是很糟糕的事吗？”
“可我知道啊。”松鸦爪很欣赏炭爪的诚实与直率。其他猫大都认为，如果他们不谈论他目盲的事，他就能忘记自己的目盲。“世间的万物都会散发气味，发出声音，而且有时，我会有——”他在脑海中搜寻着可以表达自己意思的词汇，“一种‘物觉’。”
“所以，你不会感到沮丧，对吗？”
“只有别的猫对我区别对待时，我才会不愉快。”松鸦爪回答道，“我并不觉得自己有什么不同，所以当其他猫对我看不见这事说三道四时，我就会非常生气。他们的所作所为，好像在可怜我。可我并没有任何值得可怜的地方。”
松鸦爪把苔藓球再次抛向空中，朝炭爪的方向丢过去。炭爪的窝又开始窸窣作响。
“星族哪，你们在干什么？”叶池暴怒的声音从巢穴入口传来。她冲了过来，把苔藓球扫进水池，然后责备起松鸦爪来，“你这是在干什么？就让她那样动来动去？”
“这是我的主意！”炭爪立刻说道。
叶池没有搭理她：“你应该更知道这一点的！”她继续训斥松鸦爪。
松鸦爪身上的毛竖了起来：“我告诉过她了，不要离开自己的窝！”
“这样也不行！她的腿必须彻底痊愈！”叶池的声音突然轻得像是在喃喃自语，“这一次她必须成为武士。”
“为什么？”一股怒火突然在松鸦爪的体内升起，“为什么她不做武士就会是一场灾难，而我做不成武士就是理所当然的？”
叶池怔了一会儿，然后慢慢地回答：“你看不见。”
松鸦爪的怒气居然有些消退了。难道叶池一直都认为，他是无可救药的吗？她平常只拯救那些有希望救活的猫吗？松鸦爪转过身，不再理睬叶池。他心里十分难受，一句话也不想说。
叶池赶忙跑向炭爪，大惊小怪地检查起炭爪蛛丝包扎的断腿来。
松鸦爪走出了巢穴，他听到族群的猫在空地上忙碌的声音。灰条和米莉一边闲聊，一边修建他俩新巢穴的屋顶；狮爪正在育婴室附近追逐着小狐和小冰；香薇云正在高石台下跟尘毛交谈着。
我不只是一位看不见的巫医！松鸦爪活动着爪子。我要证明给他们看！
这时，他身后的黑莓丛沙沙作响。
“我们要再采一些草药。”叶池的声音听起来很平静，好像他俩之间什么都没发生过。他开始搜寻叶池的脑海，看是否还有愤怒或内疚的痕迹，可是她的内心似乎被刻意遮蔽起来了。“湖岸边的金盏花应该已经开了。”她带着松鸦爪走出营地时，继续说道。
松鸦爪什么也没说。他俩爬上斜坡，翻过山脊，松鸦爪一直都默默地生着闷气。当他们走出森林时，一阵寒风吹乱了他的皮毛。风里带着雨水的气息。
叶池走下长满草的斜坡，来到湖岸上：“我看到一些金盏花了。”她掉转头，迎风走去。
疾风阵阵，刮在松鸦爪脸上，他不由得眯起了眼睛。这次采药之旅简直是漫无目的，到处乱转啊。“你不知道我们巢穴里有一大堆金盏花吗？”
叶池的脚步慢了下来，跟松鸦爪保持着一样的速度：“如果战斗不可避免，我们就必须做好准备。我们的首要任务就是治疗雷族猫。”松鸦爪察觉到，叶池正期待自己能说点儿什么。“你不这样认为吗？”她的话语听起来有些焦急。
尽管很不情愿，但松鸦爪还是强迫自己开了口。“你说得对。”他承认道，“不过跟星族分享信息也是我们的任务。为什么他们没有告诉我们，战斗要来了呢？”
“星族不会告诉我们所有即将发生的事。”
“难道我们只能傻傻地等它们来告诉我们吗？”松鸦爪生气地竖起了毛，“在我们的梦里，我们可以和星族一起行走。我们肯定能自己找到答案吧？”
“你难道是在质疑星族的智慧吗？”
松鸦爪欲言又止——他想不明白，为什么死亡会让星族变得睿智起来。
“除了跟星族交换信息外，巫医还有很多职责，”叶池接着说道，“比如说，你到现在还没有熟悉所有草药呢。”她停下了脚步，使劲儿地嗅起来，“这是什么？”
松鸦爪闻了闻空气中的气息，一股强烈的气味进入体内。他弯下身子，触碰到了几片小而柔软的叶子，一个花骨朵触到了他的鼻子。
“你认得它吗？”叶池问道。
“这是小白菊，”松鸦爪说道，“可以治疗疼痛，对头痛尤其有效。”他转过身接着说道，“不过现在不是采集它们的好时候，因为花朵还要再等一个月才会开放。”为什么叶池对自己像对待鼠脑子的白痴一样？他还要证明多少次，才能让叶池相信自己的能力不比别的猫差呢？
这时，另一阵气味引起了他的注意。这种气味比小白菊的气味更好闻。他下意识地做出狩猎的动作。前方的草地簌簌作响，他听到一阵细微的鼻子颤动的声音。他的脑海中浮现出田鼠的形象，他可以像在梦境中一样看到它。此时，田鼠正在草丛中颤抖着。
松鸦爪像闪电一样，突然弹了出去，扑向草丛，张开了爪子。那只田鼠忙向旁边逃去，但松鸦爪猛地掉转方向，截住了它逃窜的去路。田鼠昏头昏脑地撞到松鸦爪的爪子下，他轻而易举地抓住了它，一使劲儿杀死了它。松鸦爪回到了叶池身边，嘴里叼着刚刚捕获的猎物。
“干得漂亮！”叶池说道。
松鸦爪把猎物扔在叶池爪子边，忍了一整个早上的怨气又涌了上来：“现在你信了吧？我不需要眼睛，也能看见东西。”
他等着叶池再次发怒，等着她再次责备自己。可是他却感到叶池的尾巴如微风般轻抚着自己的腹部。“噢，松鸦爪，”她叹了口气说道，“我一直都是信任你的。”
叶池的心中突然升起一阵情感，伤感而又压抑，像一团浓雾笼罩在松鸦爪的心头，松鸦爪困惑不已。松鸦爪吃了一惊，什么也没说，突然跑向湖岸。前方，一条溪流从森林深处缓缓流淌出来，最后注入湖中。这里就是鼠爪追逐松鼠，结果跟丢了的地方，也是他找到那根树棍的地方。他这时才意识到，他俩已经沿着湖岸走了这么远了。
松鸦爪突然感到一阵兴奋。
哦，那根树棍。
他沿着湖畔小心翼翼地走着，尽量不让自己踩上细密的枝条和被湖水冲刷上岸的两脚兽扔下的垃圾。突然，一滴大大的雨滴落在肩膀上，松鸦爪把它抖掉了。他俯下身子。紧接着，另一滴雨又落在鼻子上。他已经闻到了树棍的气息——那奇怪的气息引诱着他，好像幼崽被母亲身上的奶水味吸引住了一样。他赶忙跑到自己藏树棍的树根后面，把它拽出来，放在湖岸上。松鸦爪把爪子放在树棍上面，仔细抚摸着光滑表面上的道道划痕。他的爪垫碰到那些划痕，感到一阵暖意袭来，心里莫名地有一种满足感，如同吃饱后的感觉一样。
“那就是你上次发现的树棍吗？”叶池追了上来，说道。
松鸦爪点点头。
“你为什么对它这么感兴趣？”叶池有些想不通。
“我觉得它很重要！”他把两只爪子都放在树棍上，轻轻抚摸着，它的表皮就像蜘蛛吐出的丝一样光滑。此时松鸦爪的脑海中响起了一阵轻柔的呜咽声，好似轻拍的水浪。他的爪子在划痕上来回游走着，在没有线条交会的划痕处停下来。这时他感到了一阵悲伤，刺得他爪子生疼。这些记号的背后，一定隐藏着未知的故事。
雨大颗大颗地落在头顶的树叶上，浅起了水花，又打在他的后背上。
“我们该回去了。”叶池这时说道。
“那这根树棍怎么办？”
远处传来隆隆的雷声，从湖面吹来阵阵狂风，呼啸着，好像一只脾气暴躁的獾。
“我们必须马上返回营地。”叶池有些担心地说道，“我看到风暴来了，我们不该在这里久留。”
松鸦爪身上的毛竖了起来。他察觉到闪电划破天空的气息。忽然一阵强风把他吹了个趔趄，树棍也滚到了一旁。
“快点儿走吧！”叶池催促道。
狂风卷起波浪，不断地拍打着湖岸。
“那树棍怎么办？”松鸦爪说道。
叶池已经快速地跑开了。“快走啊！”她命令道。
已经没有时间把它重新塞到树根后面了。狂风掀起他的皮毛，灌进他的耳朵，倾盆大雨刺痛了双眼。松鸦爪俯下身，跟着叶池跑回到安全的营地。
雨停了，可狂风依然在山谷上方呼啸着。
松鸦爪在窝里躺着，听着巫医巢穴外的树木被风吹得咯吱作响。叶子发出的沙沙声，好似湖水拍打着湖岸。可此时松鸦爪的耳朵里，却另有一种轻轻的耳语。一想到那根树棍上的泥土气息，他的爪子就蠢蠢欲动。他在窝里翻了个身，合上了耳朵，但那耳语声依然没有消失。他挺直身子，不安地握紧爪子，击打着身下的苔藓。
“你为什么不出去走走呢？”叶池的声音从窝里传来，“你这样子会吵醒炭爪的。”
“好吧。”松鸦爪坐了起来。他早已急不可耐，想跑出营地再摸摸那根树棍。
他挤出了黑莓丛。外面，狂风夹杂着新叶季各种躁动着的气息，整个森林似乎也变得不安起来。凭着直觉，松鸦爪清楚此时天空晴朗，月光普照。他能感觉到，冰冷的月光洒在皮毛上，激起了阵阵寒意。当他朝营地入口走去时，荆棘屏障颤抖起来。
“松鸦爪？”
狮爪从通往排便处的通道里钻了出来。
“嗨，狮爪！”松鸦爪跟他打着招呼，同时感到有些好奇。哥哥身上的毛竖了起来，透着一丝内疚和惊慌，身上还带着刚从森林中刮来的风的气息。
原来他去森林了！
“我去排便了。”狮爪撒谎道。
松鸦爪眯起了眼睛。是不是每只雷族猫心中都有秘密呢？“我想出去转转。”他察觉到狮爪很疲惫，于是决定试探一下他，“你要跟我一起去吗？”
“当然，如果你愿意的话。”狮爪小心翼翼地回答道。
看来他是因为心虚，不好意思拒绝我。
当他们走到营地入口时，桦落叫住了他们：“谁在那里？”
“就我们俩，”松鸦爪一边回答，一边朝荆棘通道走去，“我们想去森林里转转。”
桦落应了一声：“哦，大半夜的出去探险啊，这让我想起了我当学徒的日子。”他开始怀起旧来，尽管他成为武士也就是几个月以前的事情。松鸦爪没说什么。桦落喜欢在学徒们面前装出一副经验丰富、充满智慧的样子，而松鸦爪恰好知道，他因为爪子扎进一根刺而痛得哭天喊地的情形。
这位武士闪到一边，让出路来。松鸦爪顿时感到，一股强风顺着通道刮了进来。他用尾巴示意了一下狮爪：“我们走啊？”
狮爪跟着松鸦爪穿过了荆棘屏障。
“小心狐狸！”桦落在他们身后喊着。
松鸦爪心里一紧，之前的那段经历依旧让他不寒而栗——上次他和亮心穿过森林时，被一只从灌木丛蹦出来的狐狸袭击了。
“别担心，”狮爪安慰道，“现在我自己就能对付狐狸。”
他俩爬上斜坡，登上山脊。
“我们要去哪里？”狮爪问道。
“湖边。”
狮爪没有再说话。他似乎没有什么兴趣。松鸦爪觉察到哥哥的内心笼罩着一片阴云，如同流沙一样，把他的所有想法都吸得干干净净。他试着想钻进去看个究竟，不过除了一丝疑惑不定之外，什么都看不到。
他们穿过森林，走下草坡。风又开始不停地吹拂着松鸦爪的耳朵和胡须。他甩甩尾巴，心里居然因为暴风肆虐的天气而感到兴奋——他终于又能摸到那根树棍了。此时松鸦爪闻到了湖水的气息，他想象着它的样子——那是一片比月亮池还大的水面，波光粼粼的湖水映着月亮的影子。
河族、风族和影族的气味在风中交混。战斗真的要发生了？
“你认为风族正在计划入侵我们吗？”松鸦爪问道。
狮爪紧紧靠着他的身体，引导着他绕过一处兔子洞。“这是无稽之谈。”松鸦爪觉得他从狮爪的话语中听到了一种期望，“他们需要担忧和防备的是河族，而不是我们。”
“但是狩猎松鼠那件事，你怎么看？”
“他们为什么不能狩猎松鼠呢？溪谷另一边的森林是他们的领地，他们想做什么就做什么呗。”狮爪的口气听起来更像一位武士，而不是学徒，就好像他知道一些松鸦爪不知道的事情一样。
当他们踏上鹅卵石遍地的湖岸时，狮爪突然犹豫起来：“我们来这里做什么？”
“我在这里留下了一件东西，”松鸦爪解释道，“我要把它重新埋到树根下面，不让湖水把它冲走。”
“是什么东西？”
“一根树棍。”
“树棍？”
“是的！”松鸦爪闻闻空气，满心期望能嗅到树棍的气息，“它上面有一些标记。”可除了水的气息，他什么都没有嗅到。他的尾巴焦急地翘了起来。“我记得，我就把它放在这儿了。”
“它是什么样子的？”
“没有树皮，”松鸦爪回答道，“表面很光滑，上面有些划痕。”
“好的。”狮爪说道，“你去原先的地方查看一下，我去湖岸前面看看，风有可能把它吹到那里了。”
松鸦爪赶忙跑到丢下树棍的地方，心脏开始怦怦跳动起来。他确定那根树棍已经不在那里了，并不只是因为他闻不到它的气息，而是因为他的心里有一股强烈的感觉告诉他，那根树棍已经不在了。
他是对的。
周围的鹅卵石都光秃秃的。
松鸦爪感到一阵恐惧。他在湖岸上跌跌撞撞地走着，不停地嗅着鹅卵石，奋力搜寻着树棍的踪迹。为什么他当时会如此草率，只因为风暴的到来就匆匆离开了呢？他本该把树棍稳妥地藏好，然后再像胆小鬼一样逃回家去啊！
“你找到它了吗？”狮爪模模糊糊的声音从风中传来。
“没有！”松鸦爪心里慌乱不堪，他不该丢下那根棍子的。
“是这个吗？”狮爪突然叫了起来。
松鸦爪马上朝哥哥跑去。突然，他被一块浮木绊倒，伤到了爪子。不过他顾不上身体的疼痛，拼命朝狮爪跑了过去。
还没到狮爪身边，松鸦爪就知道狮爪发现的根本不是那根树棍。“划痕在哪里？”他大叫道，“我不是告诉过你吗？上面是有划痕的！”
“好，好！”狮爪也生气地高喊着，“我只是帮帮忙而已。”
“我必须找到它。”松鸦爪走开了，在鹅卵石和垃圾中跌跌撞撞地找着。对不起，对不起啊！他感觉自己像是让谁失望了一样——尽管他根本不清楚自己做了什么，让谁失望了。松鸦爪的爪子钻心地疼，但他却毫不在意。难道是湖水把树棍带走了？
松鸦爪一直朝湖岸走去，直到湖水没过他的爪子，水花四溅，他才停了下来。他必须找到那根树棍。冰冷的湖水拍打在他腹部的皮毛上。他朝湖的深处蹚过去，湖水开始拖拽他的爪子。松鸦爪忽然想起那次他从悬崖上掉入湖里，一点点下沉时在水下不停挣扎的感觉。虽然鸦羽救了他一命，不过对湖水的恐惧，仍在他的记忆中无法抹去。现在，恐惧又在尖叫，警告他快点儿返回。
松鸦爪！
他的脑海中突然响起一个声音。有东西抓住了他的皮毛，拽着他向远处漂去。湖水浸没了松鸦爪的脊背，他高高地抬起下巴，不让它沾到水。
到这里来！
每前进一步，他都感到爪下的鹅卵石更深一些。但他一定要找到那根树棍。
突然，他的爪子碰到了水面下方的一个东西。
就是它！
松鸦爪赶忙吸了一大口空气，然后把头埋进了水面，用嘴咬住树棍的一头，拼命地朝湖岸的方向拖去。可这时松鸦爪的气息不够了。于是他放开它，再次探出水面，深吸了一大口气，再次钻进水里，咬住树棍。他把爪子伸进鹅卵石里，稳住身体。这树棍真重啊！松鸦爪拼尽全力拽着，把它完全拉出水面时，他感觉自己的肺马上要炸了。
突然，他感觉树棍没那么重了，甚至几乎失去了重量。树棍开始朝湖岸漂去，松鸦爪只要用牙齿控制它漂流的方向就可以了。松鸦爪的脑袋浮出水面，心里也终于松了口气。他不停地大口吸气，不住地咳嗽，但牙齿仍死死地咬住树棍，水珠不断地从胡须上滴落下来。
终于，他回到了浅滩。
“看在星族的分上，你到底在做什么？”狮爪帮忙拽住了树棍另一头，让它离开了水面，“我眼睁睁地看着你消失在水面上，还以为你要投湖自尽呢！然后我才意识到，原来你是去找这玩意儿了！我真想不明白，你为什么非要独自去找这东西呢？”
湖水在树棍旁边哗哗作响，松鸦爪立刻把自己的爪子放在树棍上，寻找着那些划痕。他真希望树棍没这么大，如果它再小一些，他就能把它带回营地去了。“快看！”他深吸了一口气，用爪子不断抚摸着那些划痕。
“你大半夜的闯进湖里，差点儿淹死自己，就为了找这根被爪子抓过的木棍？”狮爪抖动身体，水花四溅，“你疯了吧？”
“我没有，”松鸦爪生气地吼道，“它真的很重要。”
谢谢你，松鸦爪，只要你一直保护着我们，我们就不会被遗忘。那个声音又传了过来。
“走吧，”他说道，“我们把它卡到树根下，然后赶紧回营地吧。”
第十一章
第十一章
“星族啊！”蜡毛从香薇丛中跳出来，生气地瞪着狮爪，“你为什么没抓住它啊？”
一只鹡鸰从狮爪的爪子下逃脱，落在训练谷地上方的树枝上，向同伴发出了警告的鸣叫，之后又消失在森林中。
狮爪低下头。他本来已经抓住那只鸟了，只不过他的爪子当时突然变得像石头一样僵硬。“对不起。”昨天半夜跟松鸦爪一起去湖边的旅程，让他疲惫不堪。他的身体颤抖着，心里不断抱怨着。昨晚他早早地跟石楠爪道别，就是为了回去能好好睡一觉。为什么松鸦爪硬要拉着他去湖边，不让他休息一下呢？
“怎么搞的？你今天爪子沉重得简直就像一只獾。”蜡毛责备道。
蛛足和鼠爪从香薇丛中走了出来，蜜爪和沙风也跟来了。
“我看，他更像正在冬眠的刺猬！”鼠爪打趣道。
狮爪狠狠瞪了鼠爪一眼。
蜜爪朝鼠爪甩了甩尾巴。“不久前你还让一只松鼠逃脱了呢。”她提醒道。
狮爪的耳朵顿时变得火辣辣的。他不需要蜜爪为自己辩护。
“蜜爪说得对。”蛛足用鼻子轻轻推了一下鼠爪的肩膀，“另外，你的攀爬技术还需要再练习。”
鼠爪的耳朵耷拉下来：“那我们现在就去练习吧！”
“你可别再去爬天空橡树啊！”当这两只猫朝森林奔去时，蜜爪喊道。鼠爪听了这话十分生气，尾巴直抖。他俩的身影顷刻间消失在灌木丛中。
沙风对自己的学徒说：“蜜爪，来吧，我们看看这棵老山毛榉树附近有没有老鼠可抓。”
“我们可以一起去吗？”蜡毛生气地看着狮爪，“我想这附近不会再有太多鸟了。”
“当然可以。”沙风跳上谷地外面的斜坡，朝森林方向进发。蜡毛急忙跟了上去。
“别担心，”蜜爪来到狮爪身边，轻声安慰道，“我昨天尝试抓一只麻雀时也没成功。”
狮爪不耐烦地哼了一声，一下子跑到她前面去了，浑身的毛倒竖着。
山毛榉树下方的地面上，到处都是空的坚果壳。这里最适合捕捉前来偷吃山毛榉坚果的老鼠。狮爪抢先蜜爪一步，钻进环绕着那块树下空地的香薇丛。蜡毛和沙风在支棱成拱形的蕨叶下面坐着，等着他们回来。
“希望我们能在这儿有所收获吧，”蜡毛说道，“我们可不想让雷族同伴们忍饥挨饿。”
“他们绝对不会的！”狮爪大声喊道。蜡毛为什么不给他一些具体的行动建议，而只是喋喋不休地指出自己的错误呢？
“快看！”蜜爪猛地转向空地的方向。一只老鼠正在山毛榉如蛇般蜿蜒的根部坐着，前爪拿着一颗坚果，忙着咬坚果的外壳。“看起来很好抓。”她朝狮爪眨眨眼，投去鼓励的目光，“它甚至都不知道我们在这儿呢。”
“那你自己为什么不去抓？”狮爪问道。
蜜爪的眼神黯淡下来：“我还以为你需要一个能证明自己的机会。”
“我不需要任何帮助！”狮爪大声喊道。难道她还觉得我是无助的幼崽吗？
蜜爪垂下了眼帘，狮爪突然感到有点儿内疚。她只是想帮自己的忙而已。他转过身向灌木丛外面望去，他准备把那只老鼠抓住，用来向蜜爪表达歉意。
可是老鼠已经不见了。
在距离他们几条尾巴远的地方，又有什么东西让叶子沙沙作响。狮爪马上做出蹲伏动作，准备捕捉猎物。体内曾经让四肢沉重得如同湿木头的疲倦感突然消失了，他开始向前慢慢潜进。此时叶子又开始晃动起来，一只小鼻子从里面探了出来。狮爪绷紧身上每寸肌肉，准备一跃而起。
“把你的尾巴放下来！”蜡毛发出嘶嘶的声音。
狮爪把后半身紧贴在地面上，紧接着猛扑了过去。
可惜他的速度不够快，叶子堆里的田鼠逃到树根下，躲了起来。狮爪看向蜡毛，期待他能给些评论，无论是建议还是责备。然而他的老师却转过身，什么都没说。
当狮爪跟着蜡毛回到营地时，黑莓掌抬起了头。这位雷族副族长看着蜡毛把两只老鼠和一只麻雀扔在猎物堆里，眼睛顿时眯了起来。狮爪这次一无所获。
“猎物还多吗？”黑莓掌朝他们走了过来。
“那边真的有很多猎物。”蜡毛说道。
狮爪等着蜡毛告诉黑莓掌，自己今天的表现有多差劲。可是却听到蜡毛说：“狮爪狩猎的表现很不错，他只是需要多多练习蹲伏动作。”狮爪惊异地眨动着眼睛。
蜡毛为什么不告诉黑莓掌实情呢？难道蜡毛已经放弃他了？或者是因为他的父亲是副族长，所以他才对自己这么宽容？
黑莓掌轻轻地拍拍狮爪的耳朵：“我还以为你离开育婴室之前，就已经掌握了狩猎蹲伏动作的要领了呢。”
难道大家都不在意吗？狮爪生气地竖起了毛。在过去的几天里，他一直都在漫不经心地闲混着，却没有任何猫开口提过。他们为什么不把他的训练当回事呢？眼下大家都在谈论打仗，这当然比他训练得如何更重要。他看看黑莓掌，谁知这位副族长却已经叼起一只老鼠走开了。
“你也该去吃点儿东西了，”蜡毛说道，“整个上午的时间长得很呢。”
“那训练怎么办？”
“先去休息吧，”蜡毛也走开了，“我们一会儿再进行战斗训练。”
看起来蜡毛真的已经不想再管他了。他的老师可能认为，训练他是在浪费时间。狮爪感到愤怒，然而当他看到猎物堆时，这种愤怒立刻被疲惫感取代了。他实在太累了，吃不下任何东西。现在他只想好好睡一觉。狮爪俯下身，钻过黑莓丛，回到了学徒巢穴。他轻松地舒了一口气，蜷缩在窝里，闭上了眼睛。
“狮爪！”莓爪的声音把他吵醒了，“战斗训练的时间到了！”
狮爪挣扎着醒了过来，感觉自己就像在水里不停扑腾的、即将溺死的猫。莓爪站在他的身边，用爪子摇着他的肩膀。
“好吧，好吧！”狮爪说道，“把你的爪子拿开！我已经醒了。”他甩开莓爪，硬撑着站起来。此刻狮爪的脑子里一片混乱，整个身子像被大石头压倒了一样。刚才睡的那一小觉，反而让他感到更累了。
“蜡毛和黑莓掌想让我们一起进行战斗训练。”
狮爪叹了口气。
“你怎么了？”莓爪俯过了身，“你不是一直都想跟我较量一下，恨不得立刻打败我吗？”他的胡须抽动了几下，“怎么害怕了？”
“我没有！”狮爪当然没有害怕。我只是想睡觉而已！
狮爪不情愿地跟着莓爪离开了巢穴。午后的阳光刺得他不禁眨了眨眼睛。蜡毛和黑莓掌已经在营地入口处等着了，他们向狮爪点了一下头，然后离开了营地。
慢一点儿啊！当狮爪紧紧跟着莓爪和那两位武士时，感觉依然处于半梦半醒的状态。他摇晃着疲惫的身体，穿过森林和片片黑莓丛，忍住了一个又一个哈欠。他踉跄着滑下斜坡，滚进了铺满苔藓的训练谷地。莓爪、蜡毛和黑莓掌已经在那里等着他了。狮爪活动活动爪子，走到他们中间。他使劲儿抖动着身子，想把困意尽快赶走，可是这一切都无济于事。
“我们开始吧！”黑莓掌说道，“莓爪，你现在扮演保卫族群领地的角色。”他说着一甩尾巴，“狮爪，你去攻击他。”
莓爪蹲伏下来，脖颈上的毛竖立着，甩着尾巴。他的眼睛眯成一条缝，下巴像一条蛇似的，前后滑动着。
“过来呀，小狮！”他的话语中带着一丝嘲讽。
狮爪气得毛都竖了起来。他想都没想，就贸然朝莓爪扑了过去，疲惫的四肢跌跌撞撞地拖在地上。他的前腿张开着，身子砸向了莓爪。莓爪用后腿站起来，抓住狮爪的脖子朝后一掷。不等狮爪的身体翻滚起来，莓爪就纵身一跃，反扑到他的身上。狮爪挣扎着想逃脱，可是莓爪却把他死死地压在地上。
莓爪抬头看着黑莓掌，眼里流露出胜利者才有的骄傲：“这真是太容易了！”
见莓爪分了神，狮爪马上就从他身下逃脱了。狮爪用脑袋猛地向莓爪乳白色的腹部撞去，可莓爪却几乎纹丝不动，反倒突然对狮爪发起了反击，将一只前爪挥向狮爪。狮爪一低头，刚好躲了过去。现在我该怎么办？狮爪想着。可他的脑子里依旧是一片困意。他本能地钻到莓爪肚子下，试图跳起来让莓爪的身体失去平衡。可狮爪却没料到，莓爪比他估计的重得多。莓爪又落在他身上，再次狠狠地压住了他。
狮爪被打败了，腿似乎也瘸了。他做的每个动作都很糟糕。莓爪放开狮爪，走到黑莓掌身边坐下来，把尾巴盘在爪子周围。
蜡毛盯着自己的学徒：“这就是你最好的表现？”
狮爪爬起来，耳朵如火烧一般难受。他现在终于完全清醒了，身上每根毛都散发着愤怒的气息：“你教给我的动作都不对，所以我失败了，这不是我的错！”
黑莓掌的眼睛里充满了震惊，但蜡毛的目光依旧平静：“你觉得哪只猫会相信，你刚才那些笨拙的动作是我教的？”
“好啊，如果你真的有什么妙招，今天就赶紧教给我吧！”
这句话把蜡毛惹怒了，这位淡灰色皮毛的武士眼睛里全是怒火。
黑莓掌上前一步：“狮爪，一位武士是绝不会因为自己的过错而责备同伴的。”说完，他又对蜡毛说道：“我想，你应该跟你的学徒谈谈了。来吧，莓爪，我们去那边训练吧。”
蜡毛看着黑莓掌走到空地的另一边，脊背上的毛不住地颤抖。在怒火平息后，狮爪平静了下来，觉得自己刚才的话说得太过分了。“对不起。”他说道。
蜡毛转头注视着狮爪，大声说道：“我尽力想让你成为最优秀的学徒了。不过最近几天，你训练的时候好像一只鼻涕虫。我告诉你的话，你好像只能听进去一半。但听进去的那一半，后来你也忘得一干二净。你曾经有非常好的狩猎和战斗天赋，可现在却都不见了。真不知道你到底怎么了。”
狮爪的胡须颤抖着。对于他最近心不在焉，他并不否认，不过他认为没有猫注意到这点：“我保证，我会更加努力的。”
“如果你不想落在其他学徒后面，并且让小狐和小冰在你之前成为武士的话，那你就必须加倍努力了！”
“我会的！”狮爪的内心升起一种恐惧——不是害怕蜡毛，而是害怕失败。在这之前，他所经历的一切都太顺利了。想到自己要拼尽全力，才能赶上其他学徒，狮爪不禁感到恐惧。
“很好。”蜡毛点点头，“我们重新开始吧。”
狮爪挺直了肩膀：“好的。”
“让我们来试一下如何抵挡獾的袭击吧。”
狮爪眨眨眼：“但……但这是最难的科目之一。”
“我知道。”蜡毛蹲下来，“你要认真看啊。”说着他用后腿站起来，向前纵身一跃，高度足以越过獾背。落地时，蜡毛居然没用前爪着地，而是飞快转了个圈。狮爪看呆了，他真想知道蜡毛是怎么做出如此高难度的动作，还能保持平衡的。这时蜡毛又俯下身去，四爪着地，身子向一边扭动，双颚猛地咬合，就好像咬进了獾的一条后腿似的。
“现在你来做一遍！”他命令道，“别忘了，獾是猫的两倍大，所以跳得越高越好。不要以为跳到它的背上，就万事大吉了。如果它一下子翻过身，会把你压扁的。”
狮爪的心怦怦跳着，用后腿站起来。他努力向前方跳着，可身体突然失去了平衡，倾斜着摔倒了，前爪重重地砸在地面上。
“再来！”蜡毛大喊道。
狮爪挣扎着站起来，再次试着跳了起来。这次他不想跳得太远，可惜又摔倒了，四只爪子“咚”地落在地面上。
“跳跃时再多用一点儿力，”蜡毛说道，“你身体的大部分力量都在后腿上——要充分利用它！”
“可是我掌握不好平衡。”狮爪说道。
“那就练到掌握了为止！”
“蜡毛！”黑莓掌的声音从空地另一边传来，“我想让莓爪练习一下双重攻击，你能帮一下忙吗？”
莓爪已经开始练习应对两位武士同时进攻的技巧了吗？狮爪心里十分嫉妒。他们从没让我试过这个！
蜡毛眯起眼睛，对狮爪说：“你继续练习吧。”然后就跟雷族副族长一起，朝空地另一边走去。
狮爪的心被绝望感填满了。为什么蜡毛让他练习这么难的科目呢？他是想让大家都知道狮爪是个废物吗？他心不在焉地再次用后腿站了起来。这回，他甚至还没来得及跳跃，身子便已经摇摇晃晃了，森林也开始在他眼前不停地晃动。狮爪沮丧地放下了四肢。完了！我永远也学不会了！
“你当然能学会的！”一团皮毛突然从他身旁掠过，还猛地推了他一下，推得他在湿漉漉的苔藓地面上翻滚起来。
狮爪愤怒地站起身来：“你在做什么……”他突然呆住了。
黑莓掌、蜡毛和莓爪依然在空地的另一边。
那么刚才是谁推了我一下呢？
“目光集中在前方的某个东西上，”一个声音喊了起来，“这样你就可以保持平衡了。”
狮爪惊恐地四下张望着。森林深处，有一双眼睛正在闪光。一个模糊的身影，像一团薄雾在香薇丛中移动。
“虎星！”狮爪神情紧张地看向自己的族猫。他们也能看见虎星吗？
“只有你能看见我。”虎星似乎能读懂他的想法，“他们都看不见我的。”
“你为什么会出现在这儿啊？”狮爪的身体颤抖起来。
“我是来帮你的，”虎星眯起眼睛说，“你似乎需要帮助。”
狮爪面露羞愧。
“你把我当成一只獾吧。”虎星在狮爪前方蹲伏下来。
狮爪皱了皱眉。他怎么对付得了这位幽灵一般的武士呢？他几乎都看不到虎星。
“试一下！”虎星命令道，“别忘了，把目光集中在前方的东西上。”
狮爪深吸了一口气，目光直视着前方空地边缘的一棵桦树。他竭尽全力集中精神，用后腿站立起来。他终于能保持身体平衡了！他将后腿的肌肉绷紧，一跃而起，越过虎星，然后落在了虎星的身后。狮爪转身时，突然感觉身体正朝一侧倾斜。这时，虎星像蛇一样飞快地冲过来，将狮爪推了回去，让他完成了转身动作，恢复了身体平衡。他低下头，扭动着身体，去咬虎星的后腿。
“干得不错！”虎星连忙躲开了，“不过我不可能一直都扶你一把。”
至少我做得比以前好多了！狮爪回到自己发起攻击的位置，虎星再次在他前方蹲伏下来。这次狮爪把全身的肌肉绷得更紧了，再次用后腿站立起来，朝前方扑去。他完美地落地、低头，然后张开大口，朝虎星的后腿咬去。
然而虎星站起身再次闪开了。“越来越像样儿了！”他大声赞赏道，“不过在旋转身体时，你应该同时伸出前爪，发动攻击。这样一来，你咬住獾的时候，还可以用力抓它。”
狮爪的心兴奋地跳动着。这几天来，他从未感到如此清醒过。“我们再来试试！”他恳求道。
他第一次完美地完成了这个动作。
虎星连忙闪到一旁，避开狮爪快速而凶猛的前爪攻击。
“这次好多啦！”
“你练得怎么样了？”蜡毛的声音突然响起，吓了狮爪一大跳。他忐忑地转过身，看到老师正朝他走来。他紧张地回头望了望。
虎星已经不见了。
蜡毛眯起眼睛：“你刚才一直在练习，是吗？”
“是的。”狮爪马上回答道。
“让我看看你练习得怎么样了。”
狮爪一气呵成地完成了动作，甚至比刚才跟虎星一起练习得还要好。结束时，他完美地蹲伏在地，抬头看着蜡毛。他老师的眼睛里流露出欣喜的神情。“你一定会成为优秀的武士的。”他用尾巴召唤着黑莓掌，“你快来看啊！”
黑莓掌跑了过来，莓爪紧随其后。
“莓爪，你现在假装是獾！”蜡毛命令道。
莓爪蹲伏下来。狮爪用后腿站起来，从莓爪身上跃了过去。狮爪猛地转身，同时伸出一只爪子，掠过莓爪的皮毛，然后张开大口，咬住了莓爪的后腿，完成了整套动作。
“这样一来，獾根本就躲不过去！”蜡毛自豪地说道。
“他应该跳得再高些。”莓爪说道。
“跳得再高些，攻击速度就会变慢了。”蜡毛反驳道。
“黑莓掌？”狮爪急切地想知道父亲的想法，“你觉得怎么样？”可他看到黑莓掌的眼睛里，满是疑惑。
黑莓掌眨眨眼睛。“你真的很棒！”接着他又转身对蜡毛说，“你是不是教过他用前爪攻击的动作？”
“没有，都是他自己想出来的。”
“真的？”黑莓掌犀利的目光直视着狮爪，似乎要灼透他的皮毛。
狮爪内疚地点点头。难道父亲已经辨认出，那个动作是虎星教给自己的了？“你喜欢吗？”
“真不赖！”黑莓掌用尾巴蹭蹭狮爪的腹部，“我们回营地吧。”
雷族副族长离开了长满苔藓的空地，那带有条纹的尾巴消失在香薇丛里。莓爪朝狮爪做个鬼脸，跟着老师走进了灌木丛。
“你不跟我们一起走吗？”蜡毛问道。
“马上就走。”狮爪想看看虎星会不会回来。他真想知道，为什么这位幽灵武士对自己如此感兴趣。按理说，松鸦爪才是那个能跟祖灵们对话的猫。当蜡毛钻进香薇丛时，狮爪扫视着那片空地——没有虎星的踪影，连气息都没有——这位虎斑武士已经彻底消失了。
狮爪感到内心原有的疑虑变淡了许多——他应该感谢虎星，因为，他似乎比老师更关心自己训练的情况。
“谢谢你，虎星！”他朝着森林的方向轻声说道，然后就跟着族猫们返回了营地。
CHAPTER15
CHAPTER15
Lionpaw leaped and twisted in theair, diving forward as he landed with his claws raking the ground.
Perfect!In battle, that would have beaten even the fastest ShadowClan warrior. Did you see how well I made the turn, Tigerstar?
Tigerstar had only taught him the move that afternoon. Lionpaw had mastered it quickly. He sat back on his haunches now, panting, and sniffed the air. Heatherpaw’s late.
The cave was dark, the moon hidden by the rain that had been falling since sundown. Jaypaw had returned to camp just after dark, drenched to the skin. The mouse-brain had fallen asleep by the lake! Leafpool had hurried him away to dry off in the medicine den. There was still no sign of Hollypaw. The search party had followed her scent down to the shore where it bordered WindClan territory, and now Thornclaw was even more convinced that she had been captured by a WindClan patrol.
“Did you think I’d forgotten about you?” Heatherpaw’s mew sounded from the tunnel entrance.
Lionpaw leaped to his paws happily. “You’re late!”
“Sorry.” Heatherpaw was out of breath. “I caught Gorsetail’s kits following me. I had to take them back to camp.”
“They didn’t go near the tunnel entrance, did they?”
“No, but it was close.” Heatherpaw flicked her tail. “They kept themselves well hidden. I didn’t spot them till it was almost too late.”
Lionpaw’s pads pricked. What if their secret had been discovered? “I nearly didn’t come myself,” he confessed.
Heatherpaw widened her eyes. “Why not?”
“Hollypaw’s missing.”
“Missing?”
“A search party followed her trail as far as—” Lionpaw stopped. He didn’t want to let Heatherpaw know that Hollypaw might have crossed the WindClan border. Anxiety spiked his belly. He couldn’t be honest with her without feeling like a traitor to his Clan. The realization stung. At least she might give him some clue about where his sister had gone. “Have you seen her?”
Heatherpaw shook her head.
Lionpaw gazed into her blue eyes. “Are you sure?”
Heatherpaw blinked. “Of course I’m sure!”
Guilt tickled in his tail. Heatherpaw wouldn’t lie to him. Clearly WindClan hadn’t captured Hollypaw after all. Lionpaw narrowed his eyes. How could he tell his Clanmates without letting them know how he had found out?
“What are you thinking about?” It was Heatherpaw’s turn to sound suspicious.
“I was just wondering where Hollypaw could be,” Lionpaw lied.
“She’ll be okay,” Heatherpaw mewed, winding around Lionpaw. The touch of her fur soothed him.
“It’s just odd that she didn’t come back before dark.” It had been strange creeping out of the apprentices’ den without having to worry if Hollypaw had one eye open. He had felt guiltily relieved that he didn’t have to have an excuse ready in case she’d asked him where he was going.
“I bet she’ll be back at first light,” Heatherpaw mewed.
“I hope so.” Lionpaw sighed.
“So what have you been doing while you were waiting for me?” Heatherpaw sat back with her head on one side.
“I was practicing some new battle moves.” He plucked the ground excitedly. “Watch this one!”
Flicking his hind legs into the air, he spun around on his forepaws and leaped backward, then reared up and raked the air with each paw before tucking his head down and doing a neat forward roll.
“Impressive!” Heatherpaw pricked her ears. “Did you make it up yourself?”
“Yes.” Lionpaw couldn’t tell her that Tigerstar had taught him. She’d never believe him.
“It’d be perfect for a DarkClan warrior,” Heatherpaw mewed. “Teach me how to do it!”
Lionpaw demonstrated the move again and Heatherpaw copied him
“Nearly,” he mewed. He crouched in front of her. “Try again, but this time aim your paws at me.”
She flicked out her hind legs, spun, and reared at him. Lionpaw dodged as she lashed out with her paws, shouldering her away before she could dive into the roll. She fell sprawling onto the cave floor.
Lionpaw’s heart lurched. He had forgotten for a moment that he was stronger than her. He darted to her side and pressed his muzzle against her cheek. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?” Tigerstar’s training had made him even quicker and tougher than before.
“You only caught me because you knew what my next move was going to be!” she mewed. She twisted away from him and gave her shoulder a quick lick. “I just hope I never have to go into battle against you.” Her eyes glowed with affection as she looked back at him. “Not that I ever could.”
Lionpaw blinked. She was staring at him expectantly. Did she want him to make the same pledge? He couldn’t do that, not when it meant promising to be disloyal to his Clan. “We’ll just have to hope we never have to,” he mewed, glancing away.
“Dawn’s coming.”
Lionpaw stretched and blinked open his eyes. Heatherpaw was sitting beside him, looking up at the gap in the roof where the sky was growing pale. He got to his paws, feeling his muscles protest. Teaching Heatherpaw the battle moves he’d learned from Tigerstar had tired him out. It seemed like only a few moments since they had dozed off.
“We’d better go,” Heatherpaw told him.
“Will you meet me here tonight?”
Heatherpaw flicked her tail. “Of course, even if Crowfeather makes me run to the top of the moor and back again in our training session.” She pressed her nuzzle against Lionpaw’s cheek, then trotted away toward her tunnel. “See you later.”
Lionpaw’s paws tingled. “Bye.” He headed in the opposite direction and raced for the open air.
The forest was damp, washed by a light rain. Lionpaw wriggled under the brambles and headed home through the half-light of early dawn. The trees and bushes cast eerie shadows across the pale forest floor. A light wind rustled the leaves.
“Traitor!”
Lionpaw halted and jerked around, fur spiking.
A familiar outline shimmered against the ferns.
“Tigerstar?”
“What do you think you’re doing?” It was Hawkfrost. Lionpaw looked for Tigerstar but Hawkfrost was alone. His eyes blazed as he padded toward Lionpaw.
“What do you mean?” Lionpaw protested. Hawkfrost knew about his nightly visits to the tunnels. Why was he challenging him now?
Hawkfrost curled his lip. “You were teaching battle moves to the enemy!”
“Heatherpaw’s not an enemy!” Lionpaw retorted. “She’s my friend!”
“She belongs to another Clan!” Hawkfrost hissed. “That makes her an enemy! What if she uses the moves you just taught her against you one day?”
“Heatherpaw would never do that!”
“Wouldn’t she?”
Lionpaw stiffened, trying to imagine facing Heatherpaw in battle. Surely she wouldn’t take advantage of him like that? “I thought you and Tigerstar didn’t care about me seeing Heatherpaw.”
“We liked your independence,” Hawkfrost growled. “We assumed it was just a harmless kit-friendship.”
“It isharmless!” Lionpaw bristled. “But it’s not just a kit-friendship! It’s more important than that. That’s why I know she’d never use those battle moves against me!”
“Then you’re a mouse-brain!” Hawkfrost snarled. “I thought you wanted to be a great warrior!”
Lionpaw lifted his chin. “Of course I do!”
“Then why can’t you see what those tunnels mean?”
Lionpaw blinked. The tunnels meant he could meet Heatherpaw without upsetting his Clan.
Hawkfrost snorted. “You don’t understand anything, do you?”
“I do!”
“Then why haven’t you figured out that those tunnels could be used for a surprise attack on WindClan?”
“Why would we want to attack WindClan?”
“The same reason WindClan might one day use the tunnels to attack ThunderClan!”
Lionpaw stared at Hawkfrost. He wasn’t making any sense to his tired ears.
Hawkfrost rolled his eyes. “What if you need more territory or extra prey?” he meowed slowly, as though explaining a battle move to a kit. “Would you wait at the border for a passing WindClan patrol and beg for it?”
“But we have enough territory and enough prey,” Lionpaw argued.
“Things change!” Hawkfrost snapped. “Clans change! Look how different WindClan is now that they have Onestar as leader. ThunderClan is terrified of them!”
“No, we’re not!”
“Really?” Hawkfrost pricked his ears. “Then why is Firestar too scared to ask them what’s happened to Hollypaw?”
Lionpaw’s eyes grew round. “Do youknow?”
“I know enough not to sit around the camp sending fruitless search parties to the borders and no farther!”
“Tell me!”
But Hawkfrost had turned away.
Lionpaw padded after him. “Where is she?”
“Let the great Firestar find her!” Hawkfrost glanced over his shoulder. “Meanwhile you’d better think about whether you want to be a warrior or whether you plan to live your life as a loner. Because if your Clanmates find out that you’ve kept the tunnels a secret from them, that’s what you’ll become!”
“No!” Lionpaw felt sick. That couldn’t be true! He stared after Hawkfrost. “Come back!”
The tabby warrior’s outline shivered and disappeared. Lionpaw was alone again.
His heart felt like a stone in his chest. He had taught Heatherpaw battle moves. She might not use them against him, but what about his Clanmates? Suddenly weary, he padded through the trees and headed down the curve of the hollow, toward the camp. Thanks to Tigerstar’s training, he had begun to think that he would achieve his ambition to become a great warrior after all. Now he felt like a fox-hearted traitor. What if WindClan did use the tunnels to attack and had the advantage because ThunderClan knew nothing about them? He would have betrayed his Clanmates just so he could see Heatherpaw. Was their friendship really worth that?
As he trailed miserably toward the thorn barrier, he saw it quiver. Paws were thundering through the tunnel. Lionpaw flattened his ears in surprise as Dustpelt exploded from the entrance, fur bristling. On his heels were Ashfur and Stormfur. Lionpaw leaped out of the way as they raced past him. Thornclaw, Hazelpaw, and Poppypaw pelted after them.
“Come on, Lionpaw!’ Hazelpaw called as she whisked past.
Alarm set the blood pounding in Lionpaw’s ears. He fought off his weariness and chased after his Clanmate, panting as he caught up with her.
“What’s going on?” He was fighting for breath, summoning up the dregs of his energy to keep up.
“Two WindClan apprentices chased a squirrel right over the border.” Hazelpaw swerved around a fern. “They caught it and killed it on ThunderClan territory. The dawn patrol saw them do it! They sent Mousepaw back to fetch us. The WindClan cats are saying it was their prey, no matter where they caught it!”
Lionpaw’s spine bristled. How dare they? It was bad enough they were hunting squirrels at all! He pulled ahead of Hazelpaw and caught up with Ashfur. The gray warrior glanced at him. “Where were you? I looked in the apprentices’ den when the alarm was called, but you weren’t there.”
Lionpaw stared ahead. What could he say? “I—I went out early,” he mewed.
Ashfur narrowed his eyes.
“I couldn’t sleep,” Lionpaw offered.
Screeching split the air.
Through the trees, Lionpaw could see the pelts of his Clanmates. He recognized the angry yowling of Spiderleg and saw Brook’s pelt streak across the forest floor. Brightheart was wrestling with Whitetail. Tornear, Ashfoot, Owlwhisker, and Weaselfur screeched and hissed, their claws flashing in the dawn light. The ThunderClan cats were outnumbered by the WindClan patrol.
As Dustpelt hurtled from the undergrowth, Spiderleg spun around in surprise and relief. “Thank StarCl—”
His yowl was cut off as Tornear knocked him to the ground. Ashfoot reared up behind the ThunderClan warrior and sunk her claws into Spiderleg’s shoulder. Brook was grappling with Owlwhisker. The mountain cat screeched in pain as the pale tabby tom pinned her to the ground and let Weaselfur clamp his jaws around her tail.
Dustpelt pointed his nose to a gap in the trees where the ground sloped down toward the stream that marked the border. “Spread out and drive them down there!” he ordered.
Thornclaw swerved toward Ashfoot. He butted the WindClan warrior with his head, knocking her away from Spiderleg. As Spiderleg scrambled to his paws, Thornclaw reared up and hurled himself at Ashfoot again. Sending leaves and earth spraying across the forest floor, Spiderleg spun and dived at Tornear.
Dustpelt darted in the other direction, skidding around Brook and flying at Weaselfur. The brown WindClan warrior let go of Brook’s tail and turned to face Dustpelt, darting beneath his forepaws. Dustpelt dug his claws into the earth and held his ground, wrestling Weaselfur to the floor while Brook turned and knocked Owlwhisker flying with a back-kick.
“Let’s take those two!” Poppypaw nudged Lionpaw and flicked her bushed-out tail toward Harepaw and Breezepaw, who were swiping at Brightheart as she wrestled with Whitetail.
Lionpaw nodded. “I’ll take Breezepaw,” he hissed. He pelted forward and flung himself at the black apprentice.
Caught off guard, Breezepaw rolled onto the ground. Lionpaw leaped on top of him, using his hind legs to brace himself as he slashed out with his forepaws. But Breezepaw was quick. He ducked out of the way, leaving Lionpaw flailing at thin air. Lionpaw spun in time to see Breezepaw lunge at him. Remembering Tigerstar’s move, he flicked his hind legs into the air, spun on his forepaws, and leaped backward, then reared up and raked Breezepaw’s astonished face with each paw, before tucking his head under and doing a neat forward roll.
Satisfaction flooded him. Did you see that, Tigerstar?
Then he froze. He had spotted a pale tabby pelt among the fighting cats.
Heatherpaw?
His heart lurched. He looked closer and sagged with relief when he saw that it was just Owlwhisker hurtling away from Brook. Suddenly, his ear burned; Breezepaw had caught him with a thorn-sharp claw. Lionpaw’s ear grew wet as blood pulsed from the wound. Angrier than ever, he hurled himself at Breezepaw. The WindClan apprentice fell backward and Lionpaw reared up to rake him with his forepaws, but Breezepaw rolled neatly out from under him.
“Not fast enough,” the WindClan apprentice sneered.
Suddenly, Hazelpaw streaked past and butted Breezepaw with her head. The WindClan apprentice fell over, winded, and Lionpaw raked his claws down his flank.
“Never stop to gloat!” Hazelpaw hissed at Breezepaw and clamped her teeth into his tail.
Yowling, Breezepaw scrambled to his paws and kicked Hazelpaw away with his hind legs. He stared into Lionpaw’s eyes. “Can’t take me by yourself?”
“Do you want to bet?” Lionpaw leaped at him, grabbing Breezepaw’s head between his forepaws and using his hind paws to sweep his legs from under him. Another Tigerstar move! The WindClan apprentice rolled down the slope and disappeared over the edge of the gully.
Ashfur had Weaselfur pinned to the ground a tail-length away. The WindClan warrior managed to struggle from his grasp, but Ashfur caught him under the chin with a well-aimed blow that sent him sprawling back against a clump of brambles. Weaselfur screeched in pain and, struggling to free himself from the thorny branches, scrabbled backward onto WindClan territory.
Brook was driving Owlwhisker steadily down the slope, balancing on her hind legs while she aimed slash after slash at his retreating muzzle. Poppypaw clung to Whitetail’s back while Brightheart raked the ears of the WindClan warrior.
Harepaw was already fleeing across the stream, with Hazelpaw yowling after him. “Run back to the nursery, Harekit!”
“Retreat!” Ashfoot ordered.
Tornear looked up from pummeling Thornclaw’s back with churning hind paws. At once Thornclaw slithered from his grasp and scrambled to his paws, aiming a vicious blow at the tabby’s head. Tornear reeled, hissing, then turned back, eyes narrowed with rage. But the other WindClan cats had already fled.
“This isn’t finished!” Tornear leaped the gully and halted beside his Clanmates. They huddled together, scratched and bleeding, flanks heaving, and stared furiously at the ThunderClan cats.
“Stay on the moor from now on!” Dustpelt hissed.
Ashfoot glared at the dark brown tabby warrior. “Firestar gave us these woods! If you have a quarrel about us hunting on them, take it up with him!”
Dustpelt flexed his claws. “I’ll take it up with any WindClan cat—warrior or apprentice—that I catch hunting ThunderClan’s prey!”
Lionpaw fluffed out his fur and hissed at Breezepaw. “No more squirrels for you!”
Breezepaw lashed his tail. “Don’t be so sure!”
Thornclaw leaned toward the border. “Go home!” he snarled.
Dustpelt bristled, blood staining his muzzle. “This isn’t the end.” He turned and, muttering angrily, led his Clanmates limping into the trees. “Is anyone badly hurt?” He swung his head around to look at them.
“My tail hurts,” Brightheart meowed. “But it’ll mend.”
Lionpaw licked his paw and ran it over his scratched ear. He could feel the nick that split the top. He would carry this battle scar forever, he thought proudly.
“Brook?” Dustpelt narrowed his eyes at the mountain cat. “That looks like a nasty scratch on your flank.”
“It’s not deep,” Brook reassured him, though fresh blood was still welling at one end.
“I’ll take her back to camp,” Stormfur offered.
Dustpelt nodded. “Thornclaw, Spiderleg, and I will remark the border. The rest of you go back with Stormfur.”
“Can I stay and help?” Lionpaw asked.
“You look like you’ve had enough for one day,” Ashfur told him.
Lionpaw dropped his gaze. Did his lack of sleep show that much? Reluctantly, he followed Stormfur and Brook as they headed into the trees.
Hazelpaw caught him up. “Wasn’t that great?”
“I feel like a real warrior now.” Poppypaw fell in beside them.
“Me too!” Lionpaw felt a sudden surge of happiness. Hawkfrost was wrong if he thought Lionpaw would never make a great warrior!
As the patrol headed down into the hollow, Brambleclaw shot out of the thorn tunnel to meet them. “Did you drive them off?”
“It was easy,” Stormfur meowed.
“No serious injuries?” Brambleclaw asked.
“Just some scratches.” Brightheart flicked her tail and winced.
Brambleclaw touched Lionpaw’s head with his muzzle. “That ear looks sore.”
“It’s okay,” Lionpaw assured him.
“Lionpaw fought like a warrior,” Stormfur meowed.
Lionpaw lifted his chin as Brambleclaw ran his tail along his spine. “I’m sure he did,” the ThunderClan deputy purred.
“Is he hurt?” Squirrelflight was plucking the ground impatiently as the patrol padded into the clearing. She hurried to Lionpaw’s side at once, and Lionpaw shied away. Don’t make a fuss,he thought.
“He fought like a warrior,” Brambleclaw told her.
Squirrelflight blinked at Lionpaw. “Good.”
“Brook’s got a scratch and Brightheart got her tail bitten,” Lionpaw reported. “But WindClan won’t be coming onto our territory for a while.” He hoped it was true. He was lucky that Heatherpaw hadn’t been in the WindClan patrol, but what about next time?
“Your ear looks pretty bad,” Squirrelflight fretted.
Lionpaw shrugged. “It’s nothing.”
“Better get it seen to anyway.” Squirrelflight nudged him toward the medicine den where Stormfur was guiding Brightheart and Brook through the bramble entrance. Reluctantly, Lionpaw followed them. He didn’t want Leafpool to heal his battle wound toowell in case it didn’t leave a scar that would show how well he had fought.
Fortunately, Leafpool and Jaypaw were already busy with Brook and Brightheart by the time he pushed his way through the brambles.
“I need more cobwebs!” Leafpool called to Jaypaw. Jaypaw spat out the poultice he had been licking into Brightheart’s tail and dashed to the back of the den. He returned with a mouthful of cobweb, which Leafpool pressed against Brook’s wound. A sodden red wad already lay on the cave floor.
“It will stop bleeding, won’t it?” Stormfur watched her anxiously.
“Yes,” Leafpool assured him. She pressed both paws on the wound. “Can you hold it like this?”
Stormfur nodded and placed his paws over Leafpool’s. She drew hers away and turned to inspect Brightheart’s tail.
“Oak leaf. Good choice,” she mewed to Jaypaw. “That’ll stop any infection. It’ll be healed in a few days.” She glanced back at Stormfur, who was staring at his paws as he held the cobweb to Brook’s side. “Any news of Hollypaw?”
“We didn’t get a chance to ask,” Brook admitted.
Leafpool sighed. “I suppose not,” she meowed. “I was just hoping they might have given something away.”
“WindClan hasn’t got her,” Lionpaw announced.
Leafpool pricked her ears. “How do you know?”
Lionpaw stared at the ground. “Well, surely, they would have told us if they had?” He glanced up at Leafpool. “Why else would they have her?”
“Then where is she?” Leafpool’s mew sounded desperate.
Lionpaw touched Jaypaw’s shoulder with his tail. “Can’t you ask StarClan?”
Jaypaw’s fur pricked, almost as if he were annoyed. “No.”
Leafpool snorted and padded to the back of the cave.
Lionpaw frowned. What was going on? “Why haven’t you asked them?” he pressed. “She’s our sister.”
“I haven’t had a chance yet.” Jaypaw lapped up another tongueful of oak leaf and began licking it onto Brightheart’s tail.
Lionpaw stared at his brother, his pelt itching with frustration. “Have youhad a chance?” he mewed, turning to Leafpool.
Leafpool, cobweb dangling from her jaw, padded to Brook’s side. She dropped the pale web at Stormfur’s paws. “It’s not always possible to speak with StarClan,” she explained. “If our warrior ancestors have something they want to share, then they’ll find a way.”
Was that the best they could do? Sit and wait? Lionpaw flexed his claws.
“Let me get something for your ear.” Leafpool padded back to her store of herbs.
“I could try and ask StarClan tonight,” Jaypaw whispered to him. Lionpaw felt even more puzzled. What was going on with these two? Didn’t Jaypaw want Leafpool to hear?
“This should help.” Leafpool brought back a poultice wrapped in a leaf. “Can you manage to rub this on yourself? Jaypaw and I need to check the rest of the patrol.” She padded out of the den, followed by Jaypaw.
“Do you want some help?” Brightheart was already pawing open the leaf and rubbing her pad in the poultice. “I’m sure Hollypaw will turn up,” she comforted, wiping the ointment onto Lionpaw’s ear.
Lionpaw winced as it stung. “Jaypaw will find out where she is,” he mewed hopefully. Weariness swept over him again. His night in the tunnels and then the battle had sapped his last pawful of energy. He ducked away from Brightheart’s paw. “I think that’ll be enough.”
“Yes.” Brightheart wiped her paw on her chest and turned to Stormfur. “How’s the bleeding?”
“I think it’s stopped.”
Lionpaw padded out of the den, his paws heavy as clay. He couldn’t wait to curl up in his nest and close his eyes. Worry pricked his drowsy thoughts. A warrior should always be battle ready. What if he’d been too tired to fight today?
“Lionpaw!” Ashfur was bounding toward him.
Lionpaw’s heart sank, but he twitched his whiskers and tried to look as bright as he could. “Do you want me to go hunting?” he offered.
“No.” Ashfur stopped beside him. “You look worn out. Get some sleep. You obviously need to catch up.”
Lionpaw stiffened. There was a hint of warning in his mentor’s mew. Did Ashfur suspect there was more to his exhaustion than an early morning run?
Lionpaw’s heart thumped in his chest. “I promise I’ll always be ready to fight!” he mewed. “I’m going to become the best warrior ThunderClan has ever known! Really I am!”
Ashfur’s whiskers twitched. “I’m sure you will.”
Lionpaw smelled mouse, warm and delicious. He blinked open his eyes. A piece of fresh-kill was lying on the moss beside his nest.
Honeypaw was standing beside it. “I thought you’d be hungry.”
Lionpaw stretched his paws till they trembled. “Is it late?”
“The sunset patrol has just got back,” Honeypaw reported. “They brought this.” She dabbed her paw at the mouse.
“Have the kits and elders eaten?” Lionpaw asked.
“Of course.” Honeypaw sat down. “Hazelpaw says you really taught Breezepaw a lesson.” Her eyes sparkled. “She says he ended up in the stream.”
Lionpaw got to his paws. “Yeah.” His heart warmed at the memory. “I don’t think any WindClan apprentices will be hunting in our territory for a while.” A chill ran down his spine. What if it had been Heatherpaw hunting with Harepaw instead of Breezepaw?
“Lionpaw?” Honeypaw was staring at him. “Are you okay?”
Lionpaw shivered. “Just tired,” he mewed, faking a yawn.
“Okay.” Honeypaw shrugged. “We’re at the halfrock if you want to join us.” She padded out of the den.
Lionpaw gulped down the mouse and padded into the clearing to join his denmates. He chatted with them, acutely aware of Hollypaw’s absence, his paws itching for the other apprentices to go to their nests. He glanced at the moon, slowly crossing the sky, misted by thin clouds. Heatherpaw would be waiting for him.
Berrypaw and Hazelpaw were the last to head for the den, their gray-and-white pelts glowing in the darkness. As soon as they disappeared, Lionpaw padded quickly to the dirtplace tunnel. Glancing over his shoulder to make sure the clearing was still empty, he slipped out of the camp.
His ear was stinging from the cold night air by the time he reached the tunnels. He padded inside, the usual eerie sense of foreboding clutching his belly. But this time it was worse. There was something he had to do, something really difficult, but he couldn’t see any other way. However much it hurt…Pushing his dark thoughts away, he followed the twisting passageway to the cave. Heatherpaw was already there. She hurried to greet him, rubbing her nose along his cheek. She smelled warm and sleepy, as though she had just woken up.
“Your poor ear!” she gasped when she saw the blood-encrusted wound.
“It’s fine,” Lionpaw mewed.
“Is that your only wound?” Her eyes glittered with worry in the half-light. “Breezepaw said he’d shredded you!”
Lionpaw stepped back. She should be worried about her Clanmates, not him. He felt more certain than ever that he was about to do the right thing.
Heatherpaw tipped her head to one side. “What?” Could she sense the guilt pricking in his pelt?
Lionpaw gazed at her. “We can’t meet anymore.”
Heatherpaw’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”
“We just can’t.”
“But we’re having fun. Why do we have to stop? We’re not hurting anyone.” She sounded desperate, her voice coming out as a squeak.
“I think you’re great, Heatherpaw,” Lionpaw mewed. He stared at his paws. Why did she have to make this harder? “But you need to find someone in your own Clan. I need to be the best warrior I can be, and I can’t do that if I’m here every night.”
Heatherpaw flinched as though he’d raked his claws across her nose. “It doesn’t have to be everynight.” Her mew was little more than a whisper.
It doesn’t matter how often we meet! I shouldn’t be here at all!“I was looking out for you in the battle today,” Lionpaw told her. “What if you’d been in that patrol?”
“You could have fought Breezepaw or Harepaw or—”
“Battles aren’t that simple, and you know it!” She must under stand!“I can’t pick and choose. I have to defend my Clan. I can’t be worrying about you all the time.” He watched her gaze cloud with grief and his heart twisted with pain.
“That’s it, then?” she mewed.
“Yes.” He wasn’t going to show how close he was to changing his mind, to agreeing to see her once a moon, or maybe twice, or three times…. This was what he had to do.
Anger flared in her eyes. “Fine!” she snapped. “I understand now.” She turned away and padded toward the tunnel. Before she disappeared into the shadows she glanced over her shoulder, her eyes brimming with pain. “I just hope being a warrior is worth it!”
CHAPTER16
CHAPTER16
Hollypaw wriggled against Willowpaw, trying toget comfortable. There was hardly enough moss in this nest for one cat, never mind two. And how could Willowpaw sleep so soundly with the water constantly washing against the rocks?
Rain sprayed the lake, dripping from the overhang, puddling on the floor. Through the entrance to the cave, Hollypaw could see the rocky causeway, slick in the darkness. She strained to see the ThunderClan shore far beyond it, but the air was murky and she could only just make out the shape of the distant forest against the cloudy predawn sky.
She had been in the RiverClan camp for two days. Leopardstar still insisted it was not safe for her to travel home, but every cat—Hollypaw included—knew she was being kept on the island to stop her from reporting RiverClan’s weakness to her Clanmates. She rolled over, her belly growling with hunger.
“Can’t you keep still?” Willowpaw sighed sleepily.
“Sorry.” Hollypaw’s heart ached. She was so far from home.
Willowpaw must have heard the sadness in her friend’s mew. She sat up and stretched, her eyes glowing sympathetically in the half-light. “You’ll be able to go back soon,” she promised.
“How soon?”
“The dams should be finished in a quarter moon,” Willowpaw mewed. “And we’ll be able to move back to our old camp. I’m sure Leopardstar will organize an escort for you then.”
A quarter moon!She couldn’t stay here that long! “But what about my Clan?”
“I know they’ll be worried,” Willowpaw commiserated. “But think how pleased they’ll be when you get back.”
And angry.Hollypaw’s heart sank as she imagined Brambleclaw’s pelt pricking with annoyance; Squirrelflight’s gaze, sharp with disapproval.
“You won’t say anything, will you?” Willowpaw’s eyes grew round. “You won’t tell them about the island and the Twolegs?”
“No, not if you don’t want me to.” Hollypaw could guess why Willowpaw was so frightened about the other Clans knowing how much RiverClan had suffered. It would take at least a moon for them to recover even if they did manage to rescue their old camp.
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
“Everything will be back to normal soon,” Willowpaw sighed.
“Yes.” Hollypaw felt the word catch in her throat.
Everything will be back to normal. She was no longer so sure that an end to RiverClan’s trouble would stop the hostility that had flared between the Clans. It was almost as if the long peace between the Clans had left the younger cats itching for battle and set the older warriors dreaming of past glories. She thought of the WindClan patrol she had faced with the RiverClan cats. They had bristled with so much aggression. They hadn’t wanted to hear RiverClan’s explanation. Could this hunger for battle simply vanish like mist in the sunshine?
The sky was lightening behind the clouds. Across the causeway, the cats were stirring on the island. Hollypaw could see pelts moving among the trees, pelts already as familiar as those of her own Clan. Graymist was leading Sneezekit and Mallowkit down to the shore to drink. Mosspelt was heading over the tree-bridge with Beechfur and Pebblepaw. Such a small dawn patrol! Hollypaw knew that most of the warriors’ effort was being channeled into recovering the old island camp.
Mistyfoot padded from the trees and crossed the causeway, a slender fish drooping in her jaws. She dropped it in the puddle at the front of the overhang.
Mothwing lifted her head at the splash and stretched in her nest. “Thanks, Mistyfoot,” she yawned.
Hollypaw knew it was unusual for the Clan deputy to deliver food to the medicine den. She was painfully aware that Mistyfoot had come to check whether Hollypaw had escaped in the night. But she was grateful that Mistyfoot had chosen such a tactful way to do it.
“It’s not much,” Mistyfoot meowed. “But it should see you through the day.”
Hollypaw’s belly growled. The whole day!Food was so scarce here that some of the warriors went to bed hungry; she was lucky to be fed at all. But thankful as she was that RiverClan were prepared to feed their unwelcome guest, she couldn’t get used to the strange tang of fish and she longed for the musky flavor of forest prey.
“Intruder!” Mosspelt yowled from the tree-bridge.
Graymist instantly began herding her kits back to the island clearing. Hollypaw stiffened, scenting the air.
ThunderClan!
Hope fluttered like a bird in her chest. She strained to see through the drizzle. The dawn patrol were circling a cat on the far shore. Squirrelflight!She recognized her mother’s pelt and felt the same surge of excitement she used to feel when, as a kit, Squirrelflight returned to the nursery after a spell in the warriors’ den.
“You’d better come with me,” Mistyfoot growled. She turned and padded back along the causeway. Hollypaw leaped after her, forcing herself not to race past the RiverClan deputy. Her paws fizzing, she trotted onto the island and followed Mistyfoot to the clearing.
Pebblepaw bounded from the undergrowth. “She’s come to get Hollypaw!”
Behind him, the ferns rustled and Squirrelflight padded calmly into the clearing, flanked by Mosspelt and Beechfur. Hollypaw tensed. Squirrelflight was alone. Would Leopardstar let them leave together? She glanced nervously toward the Great Oak and saw Leopardstar squeeze out from her makeshift den among the roots. The RiverClan leader was staring at Squirrelflight; Hollypaw could see uncertainty in her eyes and her golden pelt pricked along her spine.
“Leopardstar.” Squirrelflight halted in front of the RiverClan leader and dipped her head. “I have come to fetch one of our apprentices.”
Hollypaw wanted to race forward and brush muzzles with her mother, but Squirrelflight hadn’t even looked at her yet. She was staring steadily at Leopardstar. “I believe she strayed into your territory.”
“Strayed!” Leopardstar widened her eyes in disbelief. “She came to spy!”
Hollypaw’s ears burned. “I only wanted to help!” The words burst out before she could stop them.
Squirrelflight swung her head around and glared at her. Hollypaw shrank back.
Around the clearing, the RiverClan cats were watching, muscles tense, tails twitching.
“She is only an apprentice, Leopardstar,” Squirrelflight meowed. “She lacks the good judgment that I hope will come with experience. I promise she’ll be punished for breaking the warrior code, but ThunderClan can’t allow her to remain here.” Her mew was firm, the politeness only thinly masking an unspoken threat. Would ThunderClan really fight to bring her home? Hollypaw flexed her claws nervously. She couldn’t believe she might end up causing a battle after all this.
Leopardstar’s shoulders stiffened as she met Squirrelflight’s gaze.
Will she let me go?Hollypaw’s heart was racing.
Leopardstar turned to look at her. “Can I trustyou to show better judgment in future?”
She’s asking me to keep my mouth shut.“Yes!” Hollypaw nodded. “I made a mistake coming here, but I won’t let any cat suffer because of it.”
Leopardstar blinked slowly. “Then you may go home.”
“Thank you.” Hollypaw breathed a sigh of relief.
Around the clearing, uneasy mews rippled among the RiverClan cats.
“Thank you, Leopardstar,” Squirrelflight meowed. “I apologize on behalf of ThunderClan.” Hollypaw winced with shame. The tip of her mother’s tail was twitching. Squirrelflight was furious. Hollypaw padded to her mother’s side, staring at her paws. How embarrassing to be fetched home like a naughty kit.
Squirrelflight dipped her head and turned toward the ferns.
“Wait!” Leopardstar flicked her tail. “Mosspelt and Beechfur will accompany you to the border.”
Squirrelflight glanced back, eyes narrowed, and nodded curtly
Paws suddenly pattered over the clearing. Willowpaw was hurrying toward them. “Good-bye.” She brushed Hollypaw’s cheek with her muzzle. “Promise not to say anything,” she whispered.
“I promise,” Hollypaw breathed.
Willowpaw stepped back, glancing awkwardly at her Clanmates, who were staring at her. Graymist was curling her lip, and Heavystep, a stocky tabby elder, flattened his ears in disapproval. Mosspelt led the way into the undergrowth. Squirrelflight shooed Hollypaw ahead as Beechfur fell in behind them. They padded to the edge of the island and crossed the tree-bridge.
Hollypaw wanted to tell her mother how happy she was to see her, but it didn’t feel right to say that in front of their RiverClan escorts. She held her tongue until they reached the WindClan border. Squirrelflight hardly looked at her, checking only that she made it down from the tree-bridge without tripping and steering her away from the waves that gently lapped the shore.
“I’m really sorry!” The words exploded from Hollypaw as soon as the RiverClan cats had turned back.
Squirrelflight’s eyes clouded. “Don’t ever do that again!” she hissed.
“I won’t,” Hollypaw promised meekly.
Squirrelflight led the way along the shore, keeping within two tail-lengths of the water. “I dounderstand,” she meowed.
Hollypaw pricked her ears.
“I know what it’s like to have friends in other Clans.” Squirrelflight kept her gaze fixed firmly ahead. “To feel that there’s something stronger than your Clan calling you away from home.”
She must be talking about the Great Journey
“But”—Squirrelflight glanced at her—“trying to help RiverClan was a foolish idea. Thinking you could sort out the Clans’ problems on your own was very arrogant.”
Arrogant!Hollypaw felt stung. She hadn’t meant to be like that.
“Firestar told you ThunderClan wasn’t going to interfere. He’s older and wiser than you are. You should have obeyed him. You broke the warrior code in disobeying him. You put your Clan at risk.”
Hollypaw searched for words to defend herself, but suddenly she couldn’t. There was no way she could make her Clanmates understand that she’d only wanted to stop a battle.
“We had to drive a WindClan patrol off our territory while you were gone,” Squirrelflight added.
Hollypaw blinked. “Did they try and invade?”
“Not yet.” Squirrelflight glanced up at the moor. “But they chased a squirrel onto our land and claimed it as their prey.”
“On our side of the border?” Hollypaw could hardly believe her ears.
“Your brother helped fight them off.”
Hollypaw’s pelt bristled with alarm. “Is he okay?”
“Just a scratch on his ear.” Squirrelflight’s whiskers twitched. “I think he’s proud of it.”
“I wish I’d been there.”
“You shouldhave been there,” Squirrelflight meowed. “Your Clan needs you more than ever.”
Hollypaw remembered how close she’d come to fighting WindClan with the RiverClan patrol. Guilt gnawed at her belly. She should have been facing them with her own Clanmates.
“There’s the smell of battle in the air,” Squirrelflight went on.
“But RiverClan isn’t planning to invade WindClan territory!” She couldn’t explain about the trouble in their camp because she had promised Willowpaw and Leopardstar, but she had to try to keep the Clans from fighting.
“What RiverClan decide to do or notto do is none of our business,” Squirrelflight meowed. “Our concern is defending our own borders.”
How can you be so nearsighted?Hollypaw bit back the words.
Squirrelflight paused and gazed at her. “I know you think you were doing the right thing, but you are only an apprentice. How can you possibly understand? Your duty is to listen and learn and leave the decision-making to the warriors.”
Hollypaw’s paws itched with resentment. Why did being an apprentice mean that her opinion didn’t count? She lowered her eyes to hide her anger.
Squirrelflight clearly took this as a sign of obedience. “Good.” She began to hurry along the shore. The border was in sight and Hollypaw felt relieved to see it.
A thought suddenly flashed in her mind. She was surprised she hadn’t thought of it before. “How did you know I was with RiverClan?”
“Jaypaw had a dream,” Squirrelflight replied flatly. She didn’t seem surprised by her son’s uncanny abilities; Jaypaw was a medicine cat apprentice, after all. Hollypaw felt proud of her brother, but unease still pricked her paws. What must it feel like to have that sort of power? If he knew where she had been, did that mean he knew about the RiverClan camp? She wouldn’t breathe a word about it to Firestar, but would Jaypaw do the same?
The camp fell silent as Hollypaw followed Squirrelflight into the clearing.
Hollypaw heard Brightheart whispering to Sorreltail. “She’s back!”
Brook stopped washing and looked up. “Glad to see you’re safe.”
Stormfur nodded at her but said nothing. Dustpelt and Thornclaw only glanced at her before returning to their hushed conversation. Hollypaw knew she was in big trouble.
“Hollypaw!” Lionpaw raced from the apprentice den. He looked bright-eyed, as though he’d been asleep for ages. He weaved around her, purring. “You smell like fish!”
Jaypaw padded out of the medicine den and blinked, his blue eyes staring directly at her. Yet again Hollypaw had the unnerving sense that he could see her, even though she knew he couldn’t.
“You need to see Firestar,” Squirrelflight informed her.
Hollypaw’s fur tingled as her mother watched her climb the tumble of rocks to Highledge. Heart pounding, she stepped into Firestar’s cave. Brackenfur was waiting beside the ThunderClan leader. “Welcome back.” His mew was grim.
Firestar narrowed his eyes. “You’ve caused a lot of worry and effort at a time when the Clan can least afford it,” he meowed.
“I was only trying to—”
Firestar cut her off. “We don’t want to hear excuses. You broke the warrior code. I told you plainly that we were not going to interfere with RiverClan but you went there anyway. You abandoned your Clan when it needs its warriors and apprentices more than ever.”
“But I’ve found something out. You mustn’t fight WindClan!”
“Why not?”
Hollypaw scraped her claws over the rocky floor. “I can’t tell you.”
“Can’t?”
“I’ve made a promise.” Hollypaw’s tail twitched unhappily. “You have to trust me. There’s no need to fight.”
Firestar whisked his tail over the ground. “Do you really expect me to make decisions for the Clan based on that?”
Hollypaw opened her mouth, but what could she say?
“You will be confined to camp for a day,” Firestar went on. “It should be longer, but we can’t spare you right now. Patrols have been stepped up since the incident with WindClan, and you are expected to play your part in them. But you will be responsible for looking after the elders for the next moon. It’ll be up to you to make sure they are fed and their bedding is kept clean, and don’t think about asking your denmates for help. This will be your responsibility alone.”
Hollypaw dipped her head. The promise she’d made to Leopardstar stuck in her throat, but she was determined to honor it. She wasn’t going to have every cat who knew her accuse her of being disloyal. At least RiverClan didn’t treat her like a stupid kit—they even thought she might have been a spy. “Is that it?” she muttered.
Firestar flicked his tail. “You may as well start now. Mousefur and Longtail will be grateful for fresh bedding.”
“Okay.” Hollypaw turned and padded out of the den. Why couldn’t Firestar have more faith in her? Had hebeen to RiverClan? The Clan leaders only looked as far as the end of their whiskers. Well, let them!She’d just get on with her duties and keep her mouth shut. Angrily, she skidded down the rocky slope and stomped to Leafpool’s den.
She poked her head through the brambles. “Can I have some fresh bedding for the elders’ den?”
Leafpool was unwrapping the cobwebs from Cinderpaw’s leg.
“Hollypaw!” Cinderpaw mewed. “Jaypaw’s dream was right!”
“Of course it was right!” Jaypaw was sorting herbs at the back of the den. He turned to face Hollypaw. “I suppose Firestar’s put you on nettles and water for a moon?”
“Not quite.” Hollypaw’s whiskers twitched. It was good to hear Jaypaw’s grouchy mew again. “Thanks for sending Squirrelflight to find me.”
“No problem.” Jaypaw shrugged and then went back to his sorting.
Leafpool was staring at her with troubled eyes. “I’m glad you’re safe,” she meowed.
“I’m sorry I worried everyone,” Hollypaw replied.
“Don’t do it again.” Leafpool’s mew was suddenly fierce.
Hollypaw bristled. You sound like my mother!She’d had enough of being told off. “Moss?” she asked again.
Leafpool flicked her tail to the pile at the side of the cave. “Help yourself.”
Hollypaw took the biggest clump she could carry and padded to the elders’ den. There were worse punishments, she supposed
“Is it true?” Mousefur shifted out of the way as Hollypaw began sifting through the old bedding. “Were you with RiverClan?”
“Yes.”
“Did they treat you well?” Longtail leaned forward, nose twitching. “It smells like they fed you.”
“Yes.”
Mousefur wrinkled her muzzle. “I’ve never liked the taste of fish. Too watery.”
Hollypaw plucked a wad of dried moss and flung it toward the entrance.
Mousefur narrowed her eyes. “You’re very quiet for an apprentice who’s just had a big adventure.”
“What’s the point in talking?” Hollypaw flung another clump of moss. “No one wants to listen to an apprentice.”
“Was Firestar tough on you?” Longtail mewed sympathetically
“No.”
Mousefur flicked her tail. “It’s no use sulking,” she snapped. “You broke the warrior code. Did you think everyone would welcome you back like a hero?”
“No!” Hollypaw glared at her. “But at least I was trying to help. Everyone else just wants to fight!”
“We must defend our borders,” Longtail pointed out.
“We wouldn’t have to defend our borders if we talked to one another!”
“Talk?” Longtail’s eyes widened with surprise. “We’re warriors! We fight with tooth and claw, not words!”
“Wait a moment.” Mousefur leaned toward Hollypaw. “Why do you think talking will help? WindClan has made it clear that they want to steal our prey. They crossed our border once. They’re trying to steal our territory.”
“Why do you think they want to steal our territory?” Hollypaw challenged.
“Because RiverClan is planning to steal theirs!” Longtail meowed.
Hollypaw swished her tail. “Are you sure?”
“Of course! They’ve lost their land!” Longtail argued. “They have to go somewhere.”
They haven’t lost their land!Hollypaw wished she hadn’t promised RiverClan she’d keep quiet. “Everyone is jumping to conclusions!” she snapped. “We don’t know anything for sure. WindClan doesn’t know anything for sure. We’re all just guessing! We might end up fighting over nothing!”
Mousefur frowned. “And you think talking might stop the battle?” Her mew was thoughtful.
Hollypaw felt hope flicker beneath her pelt. Was someone listening to her at last? She gazed expectantly at Mousefur. “Can you get Firestar to think about it again?”
Mousefur didn’t reply directly. “You’d better fetch some more moss.” She began to spread out the pile Hollypaw had brought. “We’re going to need more than this.”
Hollypaw closed her eyes as the sweet flavor of mouse spread over her tongue. She crunched through a bone. Something worth chewing, at last. She lay beside the halfrock with Poppypaw and Honeypaw, newleaf sunshine warming her pelt. For the first time in days, she pushed away her worries about the coming battle and enjoyed the familiar scents of home.
“So what are they like?” Poppypaw lay beside her, idly hooking a freshly killed sparrow from one paw to another. “RiverClan, I mean?”
“The elders are grumpy, the warriors are bossy, and the kits are a nuisance,” Hollypaw replied with her mouth full. “Pretty much the same as us.”
Poppypaw purred. “Don’t let Brackenfur hear you saying that,” she warned. “You’re in enough trouble as it is.”
“Look!” Honeypaw sat up and stared at the medicine den. Leafpool was leading Cinderpaw slowly out into the clearing.
Cinderpaw was limping, hardly touching the ground with her injured leg, but the rushes and cobwebs were gone. Her leg looked thin, the fur pressed flat against the skin from being bound up so long, but her eyes were bright with excitement.
“Hollypaw!” Leafpool called across the clearing.
Hollypaw leaped to her paws, gulping down a last mouthful of mouse, and hurried to greet Cinderpaw. She flicked her tail over her friend’s ears. “You’re better!”
“Not completely,” Leafpool warned. The medicine cat’s eyes glittered with worry. “But she’s fidgeting around in the den so much, I thought she’d better get some fresh air.”
“Can we go out into the forest?” Cinderpaw mewed.
“No!” Leafpool bristled. She stared at Hollypaw. “I thought you could help Cinderpaw get some gentleexercise.” She emphasized gentleas though she were teaching Hollypaw a new word.
“Of course!” Hollypaw kneaded the ground.
“Stay in the clearing,” Leafpool ordered. She glanced at Cinderpaw. “And be careful!”
“She’s acting like a badger with sore stripes!” Hollypaw whispered as Leafpool padded back to the medicine den.
“I know,” Cinderpaw purred. “She worries too much. She thinks if I breathe too hard I’m going to be crippled for life.”
Hollypaw sniffed Cinderpaw’s leg. It smelled strongly of comfrey. “How does it feel?”
“Stiff and sort of delicate,” Cinderpaw mewed. “But it doesn’t hurt anymore. I just have to be careful.”
“Can you put weight on it?”
Cinderpaw slowly pressed her pad down onto the ground. She winced and then her face relaxed. “Not bad.” Gingerly she padded forward, then walked more easily to the middle of the clearing. Stretching out her forelegs she pressed her chest toward the ground. “It’s great to be outside again.”
Hollypaw hurried to the honeysuckle bush where she had left a pile of moss after cleaning out the elders’ den. She tore a small clump away with her teeth and rolled it into a ball.
“Can you still catch?” She tossed the ball across the clearing. Her heart lurched. What if Cinderpaw stretched up to catch it? Could her hind leg take the strain?
Cinderpaw let the ball land in front of her and hooked it up with a claw. “Not if you throw as badly as that,” she retorted. She tossed the moss ball back to Hollypaw.
Hollypaw leaped and batted it back. This time Cinderpaw lifted a forepaw and stretched up on three legs to catch the ball between her teeth.
“Nice one!” Hollypaw raced back to her friend.
“I’ve been practicing in the den with Jaypaw,” Cinderpaw mewed, dropping the ball at her paws.
“He’s been playing with you?” Hollypaw was surprised. Jaypaw always seemed so serious when he was in the medicine den.
“Sometimes,” Cinderpaw told her. “But only to keep me quiet.” She looked at the ground. “Actually, I don’t think he likes having me around.”
“Nonsense!” Hollypaw mewed. “How can a medicine cat resent his patients?” She butted Cinderpaw on the shoulder. But she could guess just how grouchy Jaypaw had been with Cinderpaw. If only he could hurry up and learn a bit of kindness from Leafpool!
“Can we play?” Foxkit and Icekit came hurtling from the nursery.
Foxkit swiped the moss ball away from Cinderpaw. His fluffy pelt glowed like autumn leaves in the afternoon sunshine. “Hey!” Icekit skidded past him, knocking the moss ball away. Foxkit lunged after her. “I got it first!” He tumbled her to the ground.
Hollypaw darted behind the squirming bundle of orange-and-white fluff and picked up the moss ball. “Now neither of you has it.” She flung it over the two kits, and Cinderpaw reached up with a forepaw and snagged it with a claw.
“That’s the trouble with being no bigger than a hedgehog,” Cinderpaw teased. “You can only catch worms!” She flicked the ball back over the kits’ heads for Hollypaw to catch.
Icekit and Foxkit leaped into the air, reaching for the ball as it flew over their heads.
“You’ll have to jump higher than that!” Hollypaw called.
“Not if you can’t throw it!” Foxkit dashed at Hollypaw and leaped onto her back. He scrabbled at her fur, making her stagger sideways.
Icekit grabbed the moss ball from her paws. “Trying to steal our prey!” she hissed.
Foxkit dug his claws into Hollypaw’s pelt. “Thief!”
“She must be a WindClan warrior!” Icekit cried, dropping the moss ball and throwing herself at Hollypaw. “Attack!”
“Help!” Hollypaw pretended to yelp in terror as she tussled with the two kits but, though she was playing, an icy chill shivered deep in her belly. Even the kits were ready to fight WindClan. The coming battle was waiting like a fox in the shadows.
第十二章
第十二章
“小心！”
灰条嘴里叼着黑莓枝条，他的警告有些含混不清。冬青爪听到，急忙向后一闪，黑莓枝条恰好擦身而过。米莉赶忙跑过来，帮灰条把满是刺的黑莓枝条安全地运到空地的另一侧。
“我还以为他们的巢穴已经完工了呢。”冬青爪用尾巴指指刚刚运过去的黑莓枝条，对榛爪说道。巢穴的墙壁很厚，屋顶也已经严丝合缝。为什么他们还需要那么多黑莓枝条呢？
“这不是给武士巢穴准备的。”榛爪晃着灰白色条纹的脑袋，说道，“他们在加固育婴室的入口呢。”
冬青爪的心情顿时跌到了谷底。为什么大家都如此肯定，战斗一定会发生呢？
香薇云把小狐和小冰赶到育婴室外，灰条和米莉把黑莓枝条放在育婴室外本来就已经非常密实的灌木丛周围。
榛爪朝猎物堆旁的鼠爪点头打了个招呼，鼠爪正在那里挑选午间餐。“你要来吃一点儿吗？”她问冬青爪。
冬青爪摇摇头，她并不饿。自从上次森林大会结束以来，她的心里就一直十分焦虑。而且，她一会儿还要跟蕨毛出去狩猎，到时候可以吃点儿东西。她看着榛爪从猎物堆里挑出一只老鼠，然后坐在鼠爪身边，从远处看，他俩那蓬松的灰色皮毛融为了一体。
突然，金银花丛颤动起来，亮心从长老巢穴里冲了出来。这只独眼猫回过头，焦急地朝后面喊着：“快点儿，这里！”
长尾跟着她冲了出来，鼠毛则一瘸一拐地跟在长尾后面。
“我真不明白，为什么我们还要练习啊？”鼠毛一边咳嗽，一边说，“我对这里已经很熟悉了。”
亮心在落石堆旁停了下来，说道：“你们要把路线牢记在心，万一半夜发生了战斗，你们也好有所防备啊。”
长尾在亮心身边停下来：“对我来说，白天和黑夜没什么区别。”他那双失明的眼睛闪过一丝自嘲的神色。
腿脚不便的鼠毛从长尾身边走过。“我在营地里待了这么久，知道每条路。”当鼠毛顺着岩石爬向高石台时，冬青爪听到她发出沉重的喘息声。长尾紧跟在鼠毛的身后，一旦鼠毛脚下打滑，他便在下边托着她。之前患上的绿咳症让鼠毛变得更虚弱了，就连她自己都没料到。让她参加如此艰苦的演练，尤其是为一场可能永远不会发生的战斗做准备，实在是难为她了。
刺掌和白翅经过冬青爪身边。刺掌看看她，问道：“你不去帮忙加固屏障吗？”
“我马上就要跟蕨毛去狩猎了。”冬青爪解释道。
“很好。”暴毛和溪儿正在高石台下互相舔梳皮毛，刺掌在他们身旁停下，说道，“我们需要让学徒们的思维和动作更敏捷些。”
溪儿抬头问：“你真的认为战斗会打响吗？”她沙哑的山区口音中透着一丝焦虑。
“我们一定不能放松警惕。”刺掌大声说道。
暴毛坐起来说道：“为什么风族要攻击我们呢？这实在说不通啊。”
“就是啊！”溪儿的眼睛顿时亮了起来，“有可能找他们麻烦的是河族，而不是我们。”
“不管河族发生了什么，最后总归会影响到我们的。”白翅说道。
刺掌摇摇尾巴说：“如果河族被迫离开他们的领地，那他们会去哪里呢？”
“他们总要在一个地方安顿下来。”白翅说道。
暴毛叹了口气：“这样一来，所有的边界都不会安全了。”
冬青爪焦虑得身上的毛竖了起来。如果河族失去了自己的领地，四个族群该怎么存活下去啊？
“冬青爪。”蕨毛朝她走过来。
“我们去狩猎吗？”冬青爪问道。
“计划有变。”蕨毛一边说，一边向鼠爪和榛爪点点头，“我们要同所有的学徒族猫一起，进行战斗训练。”
战斗训练！
这时，蕨毛已经急匆匆跑开了：“我在训练谷地等你。”
冬青爪朝营地入口走去，心情有些失落。她真的不想为战斗训练，这场战斗可能会让四个族群在湖边平静的生活结束。暴毛刚才的话还在她的耳畔回响着：“所有的边界都不会安全了。”
她必须阻止战斗的发生！
冬青爪转过身，差点儿撞上鼠爪。鼠爪那碧绿的眼睛闪闪发光：“蕨毛通知你了吗？”
榛爪在他身后抓着地上的泥土：“我们要进行战斗训练了！”
冬青爪瞪着他俩。“你们去吧，别管我！”她轻声说道。
“你要去干吗？”鼠爪问道。
“你别管啦，”她说道，“等我完事了，就去找你们。”
“但是我们该怎么跟蕨毛说呢？”
冬青爪没有回答榛爪的问题。她从族猫身边挤过，走到了空地上。此时蕨毛停下脚步，正在跟暴毛交谈着。冬青爪赶紧低头躲在长老巢穴后面。
“哎，他们居然认为我找不到去高石台的路。”她听到鼠毛沙哑的声音从巢穴里传来，“接下来，该训练我们怎么梳洗了吧？”
“总比措手不及好啊。”长尾安慰她道。
“我可不是刚出生的幼崽！”鼠毛咕哝道。
看到蕨毛终于对暴毛点头道别，说了声“待会儿见”时，冬青爪兴奋得毛都竖了起来。这位金棕色皮毛武士朝营地入口走去。
冬青爪从长老巢穴后的金银花丛里溜出来，迅速爬上高石台。“火星！”她冲进洞穴，眼前瞬间一黑，她急忙眨着眼睛。
火星的眼睛在黑暗中闪着光亮。洞穴另一边，沙风正在拔一只麻雀的羽毛。
“怎么了，冬青爪？”火星坐直了身子。
“你不能让它就这么发生啊！”冬青爪说道。
沙风走到火星身边，问道：“让什么发生？”
“大家都在为之准备的战争啊！”
“战争也可能不会发生。”火星平静地说，“不过做些准备总没有错吧？”
“我们本应该帮助河族的。为什么我们却要准备跟风族作战呢？”冬青爪向前迈了一步，爪子激动得发抖，“上次我在森林大会上跟柳爪说话时，她看上去心烦意乱！所有的河族猫都是如此！他们需要我们的帮助。但是现在我们却准备攻击风族！”
火星把尾巴卷起来放在爪子周围，说道：“我并不想攻击风族。不过如果他们攻击我们，我们必须做好应战的准备。”
冬青爪实在不明白，火星怎么会变得如此愚蠢：“风族是不会攻击我们的，跟他们有矛盾的是河族啊！”
“如果河族侵占了风族的领地，那么风族就有可能试图夺取我们的领地了。”火星解释道。
“河族决不愿意住在荒原上！”冬青爪的胡须不停地颤抖着，“他们想住的地方，是可以捕鱼的湖边。”
沙风向前探了探身子，说道：“在万不得已的情况下，所有族群的猫都会逐渐适应变化的。”
火星点点头说：“看看风族正在如何适应在森林狩猎，就会明白了。”
冬青爪愤怒地甩了甩尾巴：“为什么我们不试着去解决问题，而非要让它演变为一场战斗呢？”
火星抬起一只爪子，警告她安静：“河族必须自己处理他们的问题。”
“可如果他们不能自己解决呢？”
这时洞外传来了爪子落地的声音。冬青爪一回头，看到叶池走了进来。
“我听见你的声音了。”巫医朝冬青爪眨眨眼睛。
火星朝叶池点点头说：“冬青爪在为即将到来的战斗担忧呢。”
冬青爪的心里腾起一股怒火：“这场战斗是可以避免的！”
“你说得当然没错。”叶池安慰她说，“在森林大会上，我跟蛾翅交谈时，她说河族正在解决自己的问题。不过，如果他们实在解决不了，我们的确要做好准备了。”
“可是我们如果帮助他们，他们就不会有事儿了。”冬青爪说道。
叶池摇摇头：“我们必须相信河族，他们自己可以解决的。”
“叶池说得对。”火星说道，“还有，如果我们要帮助河族，就意味着我们必须要进入风族领地。”
“要么是影族领地。”沙风补充道。
叶池用尾巴轻拂着冬青爪的腹部，说道：“这样一来，事态会更加恶化，不是吗？”
冬青爪躲开叶池，身上的毛竖了起来。此时她不需要任何抚慰，大家都把她当作一只刚做完噩梦的幼崽了！为什么他们都不把自己的话当回事呢？
“蕨毛不是一直在等你吗？”沙风催促道。
“你不能耽误自己的训练。”火星提醒她道。
冬青爪转身走出洞穴，跳下落石堆，落在空地上。身后的落石哗哗作响。
“等等！”
冬青爪回过头去。
叶池急忙追了上来：“我看得出来，你心绪不宁。”
冬青爪问她：“为什么你们都不听我的话呢？”
“你必须记住，”叶池的语气平缓了些，“我们都比你经验丰富多了。你必须相信，我们知道什么该做，什么不该做。”
“星族想让我们帮助河族！”冬青爪说道。
“你说的这件事没办法证实。”叶池眨眨眼睛说，“我知道你担心柳爪，不过你现在必须通过训练成为武士，在别的族群有关系亲密的朋友是不合适的。”
冬青爪瞪着她。这件事跟柳爪有什么关系！这可事关四大族群的未来啊！她在叶池的目光里，看到的只是温柔的关心。我真是在白费口舌！
“去找蕨毛吧，”叶池对她说，“他已经去训练谷地了。”
“我知道他在哪儿。”冬青爪从咬紧的牙缝中间嘶吼道。
“他一定在等着你呢。”叶池用鼻子碰碰冬青爪的脸颊，然后走开了。
冬青爪活动了一下爪子。如果她能知道河族究竟发生了什么，或许就能说服火星伸出援手。这样一来，族群间的战争就可以避免了。
她必须找柳爪谈谈。
冬青爪飞速穿过入口，荆棘剐得她的皮毛生疼。她来到营地外面，四下张望着，发现一只猫也没有。她没朝训练谷地行进，而是快速钻进了森林，爬上山脊，朝风族边界走去。
“松鼠！”
桦落兴奋的叫喊声划过天空。冬青爪立即钻进一片香薇丛中，肚子紧贴在地面上。她听到有爪子落地声从远处传来。冬青爪透过碧绿的蕨叶，看到桦落和蜡毛从斜坡上走了下来，狮爪抖着尾巴，快步跟在他们身后。冬青爪忙往后缩，躲在了蕨叶后面，屏住了呼吸。这时，身边的香薇丛沙沙作响，巡逻队员们在离她不到一条尾巴远的地方飞奔而去。
冬青爪紧紧闭上眼睛。“千万不能让他们看到我！”她暗暗祈祷着。
冬青爪的心怦怦直跳。听着他们的爪子落地声逐渐远去，最后消失在森林中，冬青爪顿时感到一阵轻松，然后爬出蕨丛，沿着斜坡向上爬去。她竖起耳朵，抽着鼻子，越过山顶，又沿着下坡走出森林，穿过高低不平的草地，来到了风族边界附近。风族猫强烈的气味扑面而来，她的爪子不停地颤抖着。风族猫不久前刚在这儿重新做了标记。
冬青爪扫视着这片铺满石楠的斜坡，这条斜坡一直向上方绵延，通到远处的荒原。
这里没有任何巡逻队的踪迹。
尾巴微微颤抖着，冬青爪悄无声息地跨过边界。这时，雨水开始从灰色的天空中飘落。这雨可以掩盖住我的气息。冬青爪一边想，一边任凭雨水浸湿她的皮毛，心情也放松了些。她穿过石楠丛，下了山，朝湖畔走去。不一会儿，她就穿过了淤黑的地面，离鹅卵石遍布的湖岸越来越近。冬青爪放低身体，快速跑到水边。为了安全，冬青爪选择小心翼翼地蹚过浅水区，这样一来，湖水可以更好地掩盖她的气息。湖水不停地拍打着冬青爪肚子上的皮毛，她连着打了好几个寒战。不过这样也好，至少风族不会料到有一只雷族猫闯进了他们的领地。
雨越下越大，打在湖面上发出噼啪的声音。雨珠不断从冬青爪的胡须上滴落下来，她望望湖岸边那片高高的荒原，心里想着，如果有巡逻队从石楠丛里突然冒出来，自己的青黑色皮毛会不会被看成一段被水浸湿的浮木。冬青爪发现，前方湖岸边星星点点地出现了芦苇，她已经离河族领地越来越近了。冬青爪加快了速度。走进了前面那片灯芯草丛后，她发现这儿更能轻松地掩护自己。爪子下的鹅卵石逐渐变成了泥巴，这时她闻到了河族的刺鼻气息。冬青爪走出浅水区，爬进芦苇地。她很庆幸离开了水边，周围还有高高的灯芯草环绕着。
突然，前方传来一声吼叫。
冬青爪吓得身体一僵，闻到空气中传来武士的新鲜气息。难道有巡逻队过来了？
冬青爪赶忙蹲伏下来。透过重重芦苇丛，冬青爪看到雾脚岩石般的灰色皮毛，她不禁有些害怕，身体顿时变得冰凉，不由自主地颤抖着。这位河族副族长似乎在追踪着什么。冬青爪看到她朝自己这边过来，马上后退了几步，把身子贴在地面上，祈祷自己那湿漉漉的皮毛不要散发出气味，暴露了自己。
突然，雾脚张开爪子向前一跃。不一会儿，她直起身体，叼起一只田鼠，满心欢喜地抖抖胡须。看着这位河族副族长转身走开了，冬青爪这才松了一口气。雾脚看起来瘦了很多，她往日油亮的皮毛也失去了光彩。显然，河族正经受着饥饿的困扰。
冬青爪在原地待了一会儿，然后小心地继续向前。离那座岛屿越来越近了，她清晰地看到湖上的倒伏树桥了。怎样才能在不被发觉的情况下过去呢？冬青爪内心十分焦灼。我已经走出这么远了，那就别犹豫了吧……她钻出芦苇丛，冲过湿软的湖岸，一头钻进倒伏树桥交错的枝条中。冬青爪扫视了一圈湖岸，感觉热血在胸中沸腾。她闻了闻空中的气息。
没有猫的踪迹。
冬青爪谨慎地爬了出来，跳到倒伏树桥上。她压低身体，用爪子抓住湿滑的树皮，慢慢沿着树干向前行进。冬青爪连大气都不敢喘，耳朵竖着，听着任何可疑的响动。不一会儿，她就抵达了树桥的另一侧。她长舒一口气，跳到了岸上。
接下来该怎么走呢？
今天不是举行森林大会的日子，冬青爪是不能直接穿过灌木丛来到那片空地的。她该怎么找到柳爪呢？
当看到前方湖岸附近的浅滩被低矮的灌木丛覆盖时，冬青爪心里又燃起了希望。那些树的枝条垂向水面，根系伸进了湖水，岛的边缘地带也都布满了香薇丛和黑莓丛。
冬青爪深吸了一口气，迅速跑过那一小片开阔的浅滩，然后钻进一片香薇丛里。一片片宽大的叶子伸向水面，在岛的边缘形成一条长长的通道。
星族啊，河族的巫医巢穴在哪里？冬青爪祈祷着，希望马上搜寻到柳爪的气息。可是如果有气息把她指引到河族在岛上建立的新营地，那该怎么办？冬青爪穿过叶子形成的通道，爬过树根，又进入一片片黑莓丛。湖边湿滑，一路上，冬青爪的爪子不时打滑，好几次都触到了冰冷的湖水。
突然，灌木丛消失了，前方出现了粗糙而平坦的黑色岩石，形成了一处小小的湖堤，通往一片高耸在水面上的岩礁。冬青爪抬起头，竖起耳朵，再次闻了闻空中的气息。她听到河族猫的声音从岛中央传了过来：猫后们的说话声，幼崽们的叫声，长老们抱怨虱子的声音，但却没有武士或学徒们的声音。冬青爪疑惑地皱起了眉。开森林大会的时候，整座岛上可是挤满了河族猫的。现在，其余的河族猫都去了哪里？
哎，没时间去考虑这些了！
柳爪到底在哪儿啊？
冬青爪浑身冰冷，身体不停颤抖着。皮毛湿漉漉地紧贴在她的身体上。现在她已经远离雷族，心里开始恐慌起来。要是她找不到自己的朋友该怎么办？
这时，她突然听到从头顶上方传来一声尖叫。一只幼崽正在哭喊：“疼死我啦！”
接着，一只母猫轻柔的声音响了起来：“就疼一会儿，马上就好了。”
冬青爪闻到了草药的味道。有猫正在用金盏花给幼崽治疗！
冬青爪爬上那条粗糙而平坦的湖堤，循着草药的气味向前走着。这气味是从岩礁那边传过来的。冬青爪再次蹲下来，把身体压得特别低，悄悄绕到岩礁边，透过一处石缝，向里面偷看着。
“我们需要更多的金盏花。”
是柳爪！
这位河族巫医学徒正在岩礁里面的一处空地上蹲着，用爪子使劲儿在粗糙的石头地面上将金盏花叶压成碎片。“幼崽们老是被松针扎伤爪垫。”
蛾翅坐在旁边一处高台上，用舌头将药糊舔进一只正在号叫的幼崽的爪垫里。幼崽不停地挣扎，一只白色母猫用爪子按着幼崽。
“冰翅，今后尽量别再让她踩到松针上了。”蛾翅提醒道。
“这可不容易。”这只母猫叹息道。
“我知道，”蛾翅点点头，“我会跟你一起回育婴室，把入口处的松针都扫干净的。”
冰翅叼起这只依然号叫的幼崽后颈部的皮毛，离开岩石遮蔽的空地，走到那条通往岛屿的湖堤上。蛾翅紧随其后。
等确定周围没有猫能听到自己的声音时，冬青爪透过石缝喊道：“柳爪！”
河族巫医学徒顿时一怔：“谁？”
“是我，冬青爪！”
冬青爪迅速爬上嶙峋的岩石，溜进了空地，来到柳爪身边。石壁里面的空间比她想的还大。这是一座经过无数岁月风与水的作用而形成的洞穴，上面有一个低矮的顶层，遮挡着风雨的侵袭。
柳爪蹲在洞穴的后面，眼睛因为震惊而瞪得溜圆：“你来这里做什么？”
“我之前向你承诺过，我会来的。”冬青爪提醒她。
“别的猫知道你来这里了吗？”
冬青爪摇摇头。紧接着冬青爪突然紧张起来，因为她察觉到，蛾翅的气息飘进了洞穴里。
“冬青爪？”蛾翅尖厉的声音响了起来。
冬青爪转过身。
“我回来拿一些罂粟籽。”河族巫医站在洞穴入口说道，她全身的骨架在皮毛下显得十分突出，“冬青爪，你为什么会出现在这里？”
“我必须做些事情！”冬青爪的话语里充满了绝望，“雷族已经在准备与风族开战了。大家都害怕，河族一旦被迫离开他们的家园，可能会发生更糟糕的事情。”
蛾翅看着她说道：“河族不会去任何其他地方的。”
“你为什么这么确定？”冬青爪将信将疑地盯着她瘦骨嶙峋的身体，“你们现在都已经处于半饥饿状态，还会一直在岛上生活吗？”
柳爪蹭蹭冬青爪的身体，说道：“这种状态不会持续太久的。”
冬青爪看看堆在洞穴角落的一排排草药。看起来河族真打算要在这儿待上一段时间了。“你们已经把所有东西都从旧营地里带过来了啊。”她说道。
河族巫医叹了口气，说道：“你最好还是带她去看看吧。”
“真的吗？”柳爪露出惊讶的神情，“现在吗？”
蛾翅点点头：“不要被别的猫发现。”
柳爪点点头，快步走出洞穴。冬青爪紧随其后，心里十分好奇。她跟着柳爪穿过狭窄的湖堤小路，又回到了岛上。
“我们游到陆地上吧，”柳爪说道，“这样别的猫不容易发现我们。”
冬青爪湿漉漉的毛顿时竖了起来。“我现在浑身上下都湿了，实在不想游泳！”倒伏树桥就在前方，距离她们只有几个狐狸身长远。
“那好吧。”柳爪有些急躁地说道，“不过我总得想个办法，把你身上的气息掩盖住才行，这样你就不容易暴露了。”她一边说，一边扫视着湖岸，胡须不停抽动着，“你跟我来。”
柳爪钻进一处长在水中的草丛。“快来。”还没等冬青爪开始抱怨，柳爪已经用爪子挖起一把棕色的污泥，抹在冬青爪的皮毛上了。
冬青爪突然感到一阵窒息。“这是什么啊？”污泥糊在她的皮毛上，又黏又臭。
“这是水獭的屎，”柳爪说道，“它可以掩盖你雷族猫的气息。”
冬青爪咳嗽起来：“你是在开玩笑吧？”
“待会儿你就可以把它洗掉了。”柳爪低声说道，“现在保持安静，不要乱动。”
说完，她又将好几爪子污泥抹在冬青爪的腹部。冬青爪突然开始后悔来这儿了。紧接着，柳爪用后腿站了起来，扫视着湖的两岸。
“快走！”柳爪突然快步跑过去，爬上倒伏树桥。
冬青爪紧随其后，强忍住水獭屎的刺鼻臭气。“你确定这东西能掩盖我的气味吗？”当她俩在倒伏树桥上行走时，冬青爪问道，“这味道太刺鼻了，我敢打赌，就连我的雷族同伴都能闻到！”
“当然会了。”柳爪说着跳下倒伏树桥，穿过湖岸，钻进一片芦苇丛。冬青爪紧跟在她身后，在软塌塌的泥里费力地挪动爪子。淤泥紧紧裹住她的腿和腹部的皮毛，但是柳爪却轻松地在芦苇丛里蹦来跳去，丝毫不受淤泥的影响。冬青爪仔细地看着柳爪，也开始模仿她的动作。冬青爪高兴地发现，这样真的很有效——她的爪子和肚子都不会弄湿了。
地面开始变得坚实了。柳爪领着冬青爪爬上一处斜坡，这里树木茂盛，灌木丛也更加密实。冬青爪感觉，越往前走，斜坡就越陡。这时她才发现，自己正在攀爬一处红色的沙质悬崖。她只得继续跟着柳爪，紧紧抓住突出地面的石头，奋力向上攀援。最后，两只猫终于爬上了长满野草的崖顶。冬青爪一边喘着粗气，一边朝下看。湖泊在她的正下方，透过翠绿的叶子，湖水隐约可见。
“我们要去哪里啊？”冬青爪喘着气问道。
“一会儿你就知道啦。”柳爪继续沿着崖顶向前走，消失在浓密的草丛里。
冬青爪赶忙跟了上去。
“快看！”柳爪停下爪子。
柳爪轻轻地分开草叶，冬青爪悄悄走到她身边，朝前方看去。她们下方，一条宽阔的溪流顺着斜坡向下流去。溪流中间有一座小岛，一下子将溪水分成两股，激起了一个个旋涡。岛上长满小树和灌木丛，这块碧绿的土地在奔流向前的棕色溪水之间显得格外惹眼。
“那里就是我们以前的营地。”柳爪解释道。
这时，冬青爪听到岩石哗啦作响，身体顿时一怔：“那是什么声音？”
“是武士们工作时的声音。”
“工作？”冬青爪眨眨眼睛。
忽然，她看到河族武士和学徒们正在溪流两边的草地行走。在靠近她的这一侧，冬青爪辨认出了两位学徒——扑爪和鲦爪。他们正帮助芦苇须和田鼠齿挪动石头，使尽全力将它们推入溪流，石头入水时，水花四溅，发出扑通扑通的巨响。
“他们在做什么？”
“他们在堵截溪流，让水面更深更宽。”柳爪回答道。
黑掌——一只肌肉发达、肩膀宽阔的黑猫——正在溪流上游的岸边高喊着：“快点儿！能拿多少就拿多少！”他站在溪流边，朝着那些嘴里衔着一团团苔藓、勇敢地过河的武士下着命令。
“我们要尽可能地准备些东西，”柳爪解释道，“这座岛上的松针没办法为我们的窝遮挡风雨。”
“可你们为什么这么做啊？”冬青爪实在不明白，究竟发生了什么。原来的营地看起来已经足够安全了——被分开的溪流很好地保护着，就像雷族营地被石崖护卫着一样。
这时溪流上游突然传来报警的吼叫，鲦爪沿着溪岸飞速跑过来：“它们来了！”
所有河族猫都立刻丢下东西，匆匆忙忙逃离了这座岛，朝着湖泊的方向狂奔而去。
冬青爪身上的毛竖了起来：“发生什么事了？”
“一会儿你就知道了。”柳爪说道。
一群两脚兽的幼崽踏着草地，从溪流上游跑了过来。它们在草地上挥动着树枝，不住地叫着。冬青爪看到，体格最大的一只幼崽从溪岸上跳到一块刚露出水面的石头上，然后一块接着一块向前跳去。它小心翼翼地用一条腿找着平衡，突然，它的身体向小岛斜了过去，开始用携带的树枝戳着岸上的灌木丛。其他幼崽们见状，都大声欢呼起来，它们用没长毛的爪子在空中挥舞着，鼓励着它。
冬青爪惊恐地望着自己的朋友。
柳爪扫扫尾巴：“现在你知道，我们必须离开那里的原因了吧？”
第十三章
第十三章
“把石头推进溪流里，是黑掌出的主意。”当她俩一起走下沙质悬崖时，柳爪解释道。
冬青爪歪歪脑袋：“可那样做就能让水停止流动吗？”
“的确如此！溪水会变得更深更宽，形成一座天然屏障，这座岛也就更安全了。”
冬青爪仍有些疑惑：“可这样做，真的能挡得住两脚兽的幼崽们吗？”
“一旦溪水涨起来，我们就会用金雀花筑起屏障。”柳爪停下来喘了口气，“两脚兽们没有伤害我们，我想它们只是在玩耍罢了。”她低下头，清洗掉爪垫上的红色沙子，“它们就像我们的幼崽一样，如果我们设置了屏障，它们会觉得上岛很困难，就会放弃上岛而选择到别的地方去玩耍。”
“到那时，你们就能搬回岛上了！”冬青爪猜想道。这样看来，河族根本就没有侵占风族领地的意愿。冬青爪的爪子发痒，恨不得马上回到自己的营地，把这个消息告诉火星。雷族与风族的边界非常安全，而且风族也没有侵占雷族领地的想法。这样一来，大家臆想中的战斗根本就不会发生了！
柳爪快速冲下余下的斜坡，钻进芦苇丛里。
冬青爪紧随其后，不解地问道：“不过豹星为什么不直接告诉其他族群事情的真相呢？”
“因为我们是被迫离开家园的，这会让我们在别的猫眼里显得很弱。”
“或许其他族群可以帮助你们啊。”
“河族有能力解决自己的问题！”
冬青爪垂下目光：“我不是说你们不能，只是……”
柳爪浑身的毛都竖了起来：“岛上的生活很艰难。水里没有多少鱼，因为船把它们都吓跑了。如果我们不能摆脱两脚兽幼崽们的侵扰，就无法再在自己的领地上狩猎了。所有河族猫都饥肠辘辘，武士们都吃不饱，又怎么能赢得战斗！”
冬青爪想起了雾脚失去光泽的皮毛和蛾翅瘦骨嶙峋的身体。
“你真的认为豹星会相信别的族群会慷慨相助而不是趁火打劫？”柳爪一边接着说，一边奋力在长满杂草的沼泽中穿行，“我们需要拼尽全力，不让营地受到两脚兽幼崽的骚扰。”
“我不会告诉火星你们正忍饥挨饿，”冬青爪承诺道，“我只会告诉他，你们不久就会回到原先的营地，而且那些认为你们将会永远离开领地的想法，都没有依据。”
柳爪感激地眨眨眼。“不过你必须马上回雷族，”她提醒道，“你的族猫一定已经开始怀疑你去哪儿了。”
冬青爪顿时感到一阵愧疚。她的族猫想必已经注意到自己不见了吧？“好的，我会沿着我来时的路回去的。”
柳爪用后腿站立起来，透过高高的杂草望着沼泽外。“湖岸那里很安静。”她一边说，一边把前爪重新放回地面，开始穿越这片沼泽，朝着长满了灌木和香薇的地面走去。
“我们走那边吧，”柳爪建议道，“那里躲藏起来更容易。”她调皮地眨着眼睛，“而且没有猫会注意到你的气息，因为你身上有水獭屎。”
“除了这东西，就没有别的东西能起到同样的效果吗？”
“艾菊可能会管用吧，”柳爪坦白道，“不过我们现在没有多少艾菊了。”说着她钻出了香薇丛。冬青爪跟在她身后。
她们沿着湖岸一直往前走，冬青爪终于闻到了马厩的气息。“我们离风族领地很近了，”冬青爪轻声说道，“我可以自己走了，你回去吧。”
柳爪的眼睛里充满了忧虑：“我送你到边界吧。”
马厩周围棕色的篱笆已清晰可见，香薇丛变得越来越稀疏，河族领地那草木繁茂的风光，逐渐被风族荒原苍凉辽阔的景色所取代。柳爪在一处矮小的黑莓丛后面停了下来，黑莓丛就长在开阔草地的边上。“这里就是边界了。”她一边说，一边用尾巴指了指。
风从荒野上刮来，撕扯着冬青爪的皮毛。就在离她几个狐狸身长的地方，风族猫的气息扑面而来。
柳爪把尾巴尖儿放在冬青爪的肩膀上：“路上一定注意安全。”
突然，湖岸上的石头哗啦啦作响，柳爪迅速转过了身。
一支河族巡逻队正朝她俩奔来。
冬青爪身子一僵，恐惧如闪电般穿透了她的身体。接着，她感觉柳爪用牙齿叼住自己后颈部的皮毛，把她拖到黑莓丛后。
“他们看到我们了吗？”冬青爪颤抖着低声问道。
“我不知道。”柳爪用尾巴扫了扫冬青爪的嘴巴，“安静！”
冬青爪透过叶子向外面观察着。这支巡逻队由芦苇须率领，他的学徒扑爪紧跟在他身后。田鼠齿也紧随其后，旁边跟着鲦爪。这只年轻母猫带斑点的皮毛被风吹得向后摆动，胡须也紧紧地贴在脸颊上。她拼命地往前跑着。
“他们是在狩猎吗？”冬青爪问道。
柳爪扫视着那片空荡荡的湖岸：“有什么可狩猎的呢？”
“那——他们是冲我们来的？”
“看起来不像。”柳爪说道。巡逻队快速冲过黑莓丛，甚至都没往她们这边看一眼。
冬青爪这才注意到，这些河族猫眼睛圆睁，充满了恐惧。她身上的毛突然竖了起来：“一定有什么不好的事情发生了。”
“快看！”柳爪突然低声喊着，耳朵平贴起来。
一只皮毛粗糙、有着黑白相间条纹的狗，正追赶着河族的巡逻队。它的眼睛放出狂野的光，嘴大张着，露出白色的尖牙。
“这是马场的狗！”柳爪大喊道，“快跑！”她跟在自己族猫身后冲了出去。
还没等冬青爪反应过来，这只狗已经看到了她。狗兴奋地大吼一声，转身朝冬青爪冲了过来。冬青爪发出一声尖叫，连忙跟在柳爪身后跑了起来。她飞速冲上一处草坡，爪子掀起的泥土四处飞溅。河族巡逻队在湖边处掉转方向，朝通往风族边界方向的斜坡狂奔而去。
芦苇须看到柳爪时，眼睛一下子瞪大了。“离我们近些，别掉队啊！”他一边命令着，一边冲上斜坡，避开一片金雀花丛，跳过一片低矮的石楠丛。
柳爪紧跟在他的身后。她回头对冬青爪大叫：“快点儿！”
冬青爪在泥泞的地面上更加用力飞奔起来，跟着河族猫穿过一处茂密的石楠丛，爬上了一处草坡。
“停！”芦苇须突然下了命令，冬青爪和其他猫都停了下来。冬青爪喘着粗气，心里十分害怕，可她还是转过头望了望。
那只狗站在斜坡底部的栅栏旁边，伸出舌头喘息着。然后那只狗摇摇身体，从栅栏下面钻了过去。冬青爪目送着它穿过田野，朝两脚兽的巢穴跑去。
“它一定是回家了。”冬青爪说道。
“嘘！”柳爪示意她不要出声，但为时已晚。
“你在这里做什么？”鲦爪惊异的声音，把冬青爪吓了一跳。
芦苇须双眼直直地瞪着她，全身的黑毛都竖了起来。“你是雷族的猫，对吧？”他用严厉的目光盯着柳爪，似乎在责怪她。
鲦爪皱了皱鼻子：“你的身上为什么这么臭？”
田鼠齿朝冬青爪走过来，把他那带条纹的鼻子凑近闻了闻，与冬青爪的鼻子仅仅隔着一根胡须的长度，说：“你是来窥探我们的吗？”
冬青爪向后退了几步：“不，不是的。我来只是想看看，我是否能帮得上忙。”
“帮忙？”芦苇须用怀疑的目光盯着她。
“她说得没错！”柳爪抖抖尾巴，走到族猫和冬青爪中间，“冬青爪是自己来到这里的。上次森林大会结束后，她就一直在担忧我，这次她来就是为了看看……”
“老鼠屎！”芦苇须的吼叫声打断了柳爪。这只黑猫朝斜坡上面凝视着，眼神里充满了惊慌。
一支风族巡逻队正朝他们这里赶来。
冬青爪闻闻空中的味道。顿时，风族猫的气味填满了她的口鼻。刚才那只狗已经把他们追得跨过了风族的边界。
“我们应该逃走吗？”鲦爪轻声问着。她感到十分害怕，尾巴都变得僵直了。
“没用的。”田鼠齿叹了口气说道，“我们已经深入风族领地了。”
“我们最好还是待在原地吧。”芦苇须说道。
扑爪朝前迈了几步，靠近鲦爪。
风族巡逻队越来越近了，领头的是风族副族长灰脚，她的尾巴不住地摆动着，鸦羽、石楠爪、白尾、裂耳和风爪都四散开来。冬青爪感到柳爪的皮毛蹭着自己的腹部，这才反应过来，她自己，连同河族巡逻队，都被这些风族猫慢慢包围了。风族猫的眼里都发出恶狠狠的光。
“你们在风族领地上做什么？”灰脚高声问道。
芦苇须迎着灰脚的目光，肩膀上的毛颤动着：“我们是被马场的那只鼠脑子狗追到这里来的。”
鸦羽向前迈了一步：“狗现在在哪里？”
田鼠齿指指两脚兽巢穴的方向：“它跑回家了。”
“你们以为我们会相信吗？”裂耳闻闻空中的气息，胡须不停地颤动着，“我只闻到了屎的气味！”
冬青爪真希望自己能找个地缝钻进去。风族猫们还没发现这群河族的入侵者里混入了雷族猫。可即便这样，他们已经非常生气了。要是接下来，他们认为河族和雷族结成了联盟，那该怎么办？一场战斗就在所难免了，这一切都是她的错。
一股恐慌在冬青爪心中升腾起来。风爪此刻正盯着她。冬青爪连忙避开风爪的目光，心里祈祷着，他千万别认出自己来。这时冬青爪才真的感觉到，用水獭屎来掩盖住自己的黑色皮毛和雷族气息是多么的明智。
“你怎么回事？”风爪望望她，眼里流露出轻蔑的神色，“河族幼崽们都不会清洗自己吗？”
一股怒气顿时在冬青爪心中燃起，她真想在风爪那傲慢的长狐狸脸上啐一口。可是冬青爪忍住了，至少，风爪还没认出自己究竟是谁。
“快从我们的领地上滚出去！”灰脚低吼道，“你们可能已经丢掉了自己的领地，但休想占领我们的！”
田鼠齿的毛竖了起来，露出牙齿说道：“我们没有丢掉自己的领地！”
“那你们为什么会出现在这里？”裂耳质问道。
“在找猎物？”鸦羽嘶嘶吼道。
芦苇须尾巴猛烈抽动着：“不是的！”
冬青爪顿时紧张起来。每只猫都竖起了毛，做好了起跳进攻的准备。她也张开了爪子。虽然周围的猫不是自己的族猫，但如果形势需要，她依然会随时投入战斗。
扑爪向前跳了一下，那带有条纹的短尾巴气愤地抽来抽去：“我们就算饿肚子，也不会吃兔子的！”
灰脚低吼道：“立刻滚出我们的领地！”
裂耳和白尾身子一动，给河族猫闪出一条路。
芦苇须和田鼠齿开始缓慢向后退。扑爪和鲦爪也转过身，不安地走过这群风族猫身边。冬青爪赶忙跟上前去，低着头，目光一直没离开地面。
“从现在开始，我们要向边界附近派出更多巡逻队了！”他们的身后传来了灰脚的声音。
“而且巡逻队要时刻准备应战！”裂耳高喊道。
河族猫们慢慢地走向边界，看起来，大家似乎并没被风族巡逻队的威胁吓到。当冬青爪越过那条气味标记，突然觉得内心轻松了好多。可这里也不是我自己的领地啊！
“我必须要回家了。”她轻声说道。
芦苇须突然说道：“你不能回去！你必须告诉我们，你究竟为什么来到这里！”
“我刚才已经解释过了！”冬青爪回答道，“我只是因为担心柳爪才来这里的。”
“现在我们绝不会让你再踏上风族领地一步了，”田鼠齿说道，“你必须跟我们回岛上去。”
冬青爪感到绝望了。她凝视着湖的对岸。此时夜幕已开始降临，远山下，雷族所在的森林影影绰绰的。她又扫视了一圈湖岸，期盼着能看见自己族猫那熟悉的身影——松鸦爪总是独自在水边闲逛——然而这时天色已黑，看不清什么东西了。
“好吧。”冬青爪叹了口气，回答道。
“不过，你首先要把身上臭气熏天的泥巴洗掉！”芦苇须命令道。
说完，他领着冬青爪下到湖边，站在湖边看着冬青爪在冰冷的湖水里扑腾着。柳爪蹚进水里帮助她，用爪子揉搓着冬青爪的皮毛，直到清洗干净为止。
冬青爪冻得直打哆嗦，她慢慢地跟着河族巡逻队穿过那片满是沼泽的湖岸。柳爪走在她的身边。
“如果我给你带来了麻烦，对不起！”冬青爪轻声说道。
“没关系，我没事儿。”柳爪紧紧地靠着她。这两个好朋友虽然浑身湿漉漉的，但依然彼此分享着各自皮毛中仅存的一丝暖意。
冬青爪跟着芦苇须来到岛上的空地时，河族猫都向她投来了好奇的目光。冬青爪身上的毛都竖了起来。随着他们离大橡树越来越近，营地也渐渐归于平静。看到豹星从橡树底部那庞大的根系里钻出来时，冬青爪有些紧张，她尽力控制着不让爪子颤抖。
“别害怕！”柳爪在她耳边低声说道，“豹星一向都很公正的。”
冬青爪抬起下巴，尽量让自己面对豹星时，表现得勇敢些。
豹星的眼睛在淡淡的暮色映衬下闪着微光。“芦苇须告诉我说，你在窥探我们河族的领地。”她突然开口指责道。
“我只是想帮忙。”冬青爪解释道，“雷族担心，如果你们夺取风族的领地，那么风族就有可能攻击我们。现在，每只雷族猫都在为战斗做准备。我只是想阻止战斗爆发。”
豹星眨眨眼睛：“你这个小小的学徒，居然有如此大的抱负！”
冬青爪感到自己被羞辱了，浑身的毛顿时奓开了。
豹星的胡须是在抽动吗？
“我猜，柳爪已经带你看得够多了，这下你该放心了吧？”河族族长说道。
“只看到了你们的旧营地……”冬青爪脱口而出，但是她猛然意识到本不该说出来……她这样做，等于背叛了自己的朋友。
豹星的目光狠狠地盯着河族巫医学徒：“你带她去过那边了？”
柳爪低下头说：“我只是不想让她担心！”
豹星叹了口气。“这样的话，冬青爪，”豹星说道，“你最好还是待在岛上吧！”
冬青爪的心猛地一沉：“可族猫会担心我的安危。”
“你来这里前，怎么就没想到这一点呢？”豹星扫视着她的族猫。这些河族猫已经在橡树下聚集起来，他们的耳朵都好奇地抽动着。“我们现在很忙，不能派武士护送你回营地了；就算我们有时间，我也不想让风族或者影族把我们当成敌人，因为要送你回去就得穿越他们的领地。”
“可武士守则上说，我可以在离湖岸不超过两个狐狸身长的地方安全行走。”冬青爪说道。
“如果是参加森林大会的话，那当然没什么问题。”豹星回答道，“可是现在，我们的邻居如果在自己的领地嗅到了河族或雷族的气味，就需要一个充分的理由了。”她说着眯起了眼睛，“打探消息可不是什么好习惯。”
“可是……”冬青爪绞尽脑汁，想找出其他的理由为自己辩护。她必须在雷族猫开始担心自己发生不测前，尽快赶回去。
豹星转过身去：“你可以先跟蛾翅和柳爪待在一起，等到你能安全返回了再回去。”
“走吧，”柳爪推推她，“我们去巫医洞穴里面把皮毛弄干，暖和暖和身子。”
冬青爪的爪子像石头一样沉重。她跟着自己的朋友来到岛的边缘，穿过湖堤，又回到了岩礁那里。
蛾翅已经在那里等着她俩了，她的身旁还有一堆草药。“我想我已经告诉过你，不要被其他猫发现了。”她向她俩打着招呼。
柳爪低下头说：“对不起。”
蛾翅把那堆草药推给她们。“把这些吃掉吧，”她吩咐道，“它们可以让身子暖和一些。”
冬青爪的肚子咕咕作响，此时她最想吃的，还是新鲜的老鼠。
“我们现在只有这些东西可吃了。”蛾翅告诉她。
冬青爪弯下身子，开始咀嚼一片草药叶子。这叶子虽然口感黏糊糊的，但却让她的舌头变得暖和了许多。“这是什么啊？”她轻轻问柳爪。
“抹了蜂蜜的干荨麻。”柳爪回答道。
“味道还不赖。”
吃完之后，柳爪带她来到洞穴深处，那里有一个铺满苔藓的窝。她们在松软的铺垫上舔干了身体，挤在一起取暖。冬青爪感受着柳爪的体温，心里满是感激。这个洞穴通风条件不错，外面的雨水不停地拍打在岩石上，滴落在湖水里。冬青爪打了个哈欠，突然感到一阵深深的疲倦袭来。“你知道的，豹星把我留在这里，是因为我知道的东西太多了。”她低声说道。
“是的。”柳爪用尾巴轻拂着朋友的爪子，“不过换了火星，也会做出同样的决定吧？”
冬青爪叹了口气：“我想不会吧。”她闭上了眼睛。她还要在这里待多长时间呢？如果她的族猫发现自己被河族当成了间谍，困在了这里，那可就惹大麻烦了。
CHAPTER17
CHAPTER17
Jaypaw plucked at the moss inthe bottom of his nest, softening it before he curled up for a good night’s sleep. Cinderpaw was already snoring, worn out by her game with Hollypaw. She would be moving back to the apprentices’ den before long, and the medicine den would be quiet again. Good. Outside, the thorn barrier rustled. The last patrol was returning, their unhurried paw steps a signal that everything was fine.
Jaypaw heard water sloshing. Leafpool was soaking a wad of moss in the pool to leave beside Cinderpaw’s nest in case the apprentice woke thirsty in the night. “I think we should take a look at the catmint by the old Twoleg nest tomorrow,” she meowed. “I want to see if there’s much new growth.”
“Are we going to pick any?”
“Not yet.” Leafpool’s paws scuffed across the ground as she carried the dripping moss to Cinderpaw’s nest. “But I want to know whether there’ll be a good harvest this year.”
“There’s been enough rain.” Jaypaw tucked his nose between his paws and closed his eyes. “Good night.”
“Sleep well.” Leafpool’s nest crunched as she climbed into it and started washing. The gentle lapping of her tongue began to lull Jaypaw to sleep.
“Leafpool?”
Firestar’s mew woke him with a start. The ThunderClan leader was pushing his way through the bramble entrance. Jaypaw lifted his head, instantly alert and trying to sense what pulsed beneath their visitor’s pelt.
Unease
Leafpool jumped out of her nest. “What is it?”
“This concerns both of you,” Firestar meowed.
Jaypaw got up too, not bothering to pretend he hadn’t been listening.
“Is something wrong?” Leafpool whispered anxiously.
Firestar shifted his paws. “I want you both to travel to the WindClan camp tomorrow.”
“The WindClan camp?” Leafpool echoed. “Do you want us to speak to Barkface?”
“No.” Firestar was choosing his words carefully. “Onestar.”
“Why us?”
“Only you can make the journey. If I send warriors, they’ll be seen as a threat.”
“What do you want us to say to him?” Leafpool sounded puzzled.
“I need you to find out what’s going on in WindClan.”
A spying mission!Jaypaw felt a surge of excitement. He wants us to find out their weaknesses.But something wasn’t right. He could detect no scheming in Firestar’s mind. Only honest anxiety.
“I’ve just been speaking with Mousefur,” Firestar explained. “She seems to think Hollypaw is right and that all this talk of battle has grown out of gossip and guesswork. I need you to find out whether RiverClan has actually invaded WindClan territory.”
Jaypaw blinked. “What difference does that make?”
“If there’s going to be a battle with WindClan, I want it to be for a good reason,” Firestar replied.
Leafpool swished her tail over the ground. “But if they cross our border, isn’t that reason enough?”
“Yes,” growled Firestar, “but we might be able to stop them from crossing the border from now on.”
“They’ve already done it once and gotten away with it,” Jaypaw pointed out. He ignored Leafpool’s hiss of warning; apprentices weren’t meant to speak to the Clan leader in that way.
“That could have just been a mistake.” Jaypaw felt Firestar’s amber gaze warm his pelt. “Their apprentices would not be the first to stray onto another Clan’s territory.”
He means Hollypaw!
Firestar went on. “It makes sense for WindClan to invade us if RiverClan has taken their territory. But what if Onestar leads an attack just because he’s afraid that RiverClan might take his territory? Blood would be shed for no reason.”
“I don’t understand what you think wecan do.” Leafpool plucked at the ground. “If we find out that RiverClan hasn’t invaded, do you want us to ask Onestar not to fight? Won’t that make us look weak?”
Firestar stiffened. “You must make it clear that we are ready to fight if we have to,” he meowed. “I’d just rather fight a battle driven by real need, not empty fears.”
“But still, you want us to persuade Onestar not to attack us unless he has no other option?” Leafpool pressed. “Won’t we look like cowards?”
Anger flashed from Firestar’s pelt. “We’re not cowards,” he snapped, “but why should we fight pointless battles to prove it?”
Dawn was bright but cold. A pale sun peeped over the forest at the top of the hollow but Jaypaw could smell rain on the wind. He waited at the camp entrance while Firestar gave his final orders to their escort. Brambleclaw and Dusltpelt were going to accompany them to the WindClan border and wait for their return.
Leafpool pressed against him. Jaypaw could still sense doubt darkening his mentor’s thoughts. “Are you ready?” she asked.
“Yes.” Jaypaw’s tail twitched with excitement. There was more to being a medicine cat than picking herbs and looking after sick cats after all. The future of the Clan could depend on what he and Leafpool found out.
There will be three, kin of your kin, who hold the power of the stars in their paws.
“Come on, then.” Brambleclaw padded through the thorn tunnel. Leafpool headed after him and Jaypaw followed, leaving Dustpelt to fall in behind. He could feel the warrior’s dark pelt bristling with uncertainty. Dustpelt thought that Firestar was being hasty, that it was too soon to let WindClan know they would rather avoid a battle. Brambleclaw’s thoughts were harder to read, his mind clouded by doubt one moment, brightened by hope the next.
The patrol padded wordlessly over the ridge and down into the open moorland, which stretched into WindClan territory. Dustpelt was the first to voice his disquiet as they reached the border. “Are we just going to sit and wait for a WindClan patrol to ask us if we need help?” His mew was scathing.
“Yes,” Brambleclaw growled.
Dustpelt paced up and down, re-marking the bushes, irritation flashing from him so fiercely that it made Jaypaw’s fur stand on end. How humiliating to wait for permission from WindClan to go any farther.
“Perhaps Jaypaw and I should go on by ourselves,” Leafpool suggested. “That’s what we’d do if we needed to speak with Barkface.”
Jaypaw nodded. They were medicine cats. They might as well take advantage of their special freedom to travel.
“No.” Brambleclaw’s mew was firm. “You’re not going to speak with Barkface, and it’s too soon after our run-in with that WindClan patrol for you to walk into their territory without them knowing. My duty is to make sure you’re safe.” His fur brushed the grass as he sat down. “We’ll wait.”
Jaypaw sniffed the air. The sun was warming the earth and he could smell heather budding and young rabbits. Suddenly, he stiffened: A musky tang edged the wind. “WindClan cats are coming.” He recognized the scents of Harepaw and Tornear. There were two more cats with them. Their scents were familiar but he couldn’t yet name them.
“It’s Nightcloud.”
Jaypaw felt tension spiking from Leafpool as she identified the WindClan she-cat. He knew there was some connection between his mentor and Nightcloud, who was the mate of Crowfeather. He had felt it thicken the air between them before, but he had no idea what it could be. As he probed Leafpool’s mind, his paws pricked with surprise. Was that jealousy?
“Tornear, Harepaw, and Owlwhisker are with her,” Dustpelt murmured. “Not bad, though I would have preferred it if Tornear had stayed in his nest.” Dustpelt’s pelt tickled Jaypaw’s flank as the warrior fluffed out his fur defensively.
“Relax,” Brambleclaw ordered. “They mustn’t think we’re showing any sign of aggression.”
“Because we’re begging a favor,” Dustpelt muttered under his breath.
“Silence!” Brambleclaw hissed. Then he raised his voice. “Tornear!”
Hostility slammed against Jaypaw like a wave as the WindClan cats spotted the ThunderClan patrol. The air seemed to crackle around him and he tensed, suddenly afraid.
“What do you want?” Tornear’s mew was accusing.
Fur brushed heather as the WindClan patrol approached. Jaypaw sensed Brambleclaw squaring himself to meet the WindClan cats. “Leafpool and Jaypaw wish to speak with Onestar.” Brambleclaw’s mew was calm, neither hostile nor yielding.
Surprise pulsed from Tornear’s pelt. “What for?”
“They wish to speak with Onestar,” Brambleclaw repeated.
Jaypaw felt suspicion wake in the WindClan cats’ minds. He guessed they were looking at one another, wondering how to respond. Could they turn away medicine cats?
“JustLeafpool and Jaypaw?” Owlwhisker growled.
“We will wait here for them,” Brambleclaw assured him.
Silence hung in the air, like a hawk stalling before a dive.
“Then Owlwhisker and Harepaw will wait with you,” Tornear meowed slowly.
He’s going to let us cross the border!Jaypaw dug his claws into the grass, eager to get going.
“Can I trust you to see them safely to the camp and back?” Brambleclaw asked.
Tornear snorted. “Of course you can!”
“Leafpool,” Brambleclaw meowed, “if you’re not back by sunhigh, we’ll fetch a patrol and come looking for you.” His mew was thick with warning aimed at the WindClan cats.
“She’ll be back,” Tornear growled.
Jaypaw heard Leafpool’s fur brush the heather as she crossed the border. He padded quickly after her and pressed against her. It was exciting to be traveling to the WindClan camp, but he suddenly felt vulnerable. An icy chill swept his fur as clouds blocked out the sun.
“Keep your chin high,” Leafpool whispered. She let her pelt brush his all the way to the camp, guiding him over the unfamiliar ground. Jaypaw only stumbled once when Leafpool didn’t warn him in time about a trailing branch of gorse.
Soon he smelled brambles and a stronger scent of WindClan. He sensed space beneath him as the ground dipped away in front of them. They had reached the camp.
“Stay close,” Tornear warned.
Jaypaw walked step-by-step with Leafpool as the WindClan warrior led them into a swath of bramble, through a twisting, turning tunnel that led down into a hollow. He could hear Nightcloud’s breath behind him as she brought up the rear. Then wind stroked his whiskers; they were out of the tunnel. For a moment he felt overwhelmed by the jumble of scents that filled his nose and mouth: warriors, apprentices, kits, nursing queens, herbs, rabbit….
They must be in the center of the camp. A fresh wind tugged Jaypaw’s fur. Watchful gazes stabbed his pelt.
“It’s that blind cat from ThunderClan.”
“What are they doing here?”
“Shall I fetch Barkface?”
The WindClan cats were emerging from their dens. Jaypaw could feel curiosity, hostility, and even fear throbbing in the air.
Tornear was whispering to a young tom. Jaypaw strained to hear but before he could make out the words, the tom hared out of the camp.
“Onestar is out hunting,” Tornear announced. “You’ll haveto wait.” He raised his voice to address his curious Clanmates. “They’ve come to see Onestar!”
“Onestar?”
Alarm and suspicion rippled around the clearing. Jaypaw pricked his ears. This was not a Clan determined to expand their territory. They were frightened and confused. His belly tightened. Frightened cats were unpredictable. “Should we speak to Barkface instead and leave?” he murmured to Leafpool.
But Leafpool didn’t seem to hear. Her attention was flitting around the camp, as though she were searching for something or someone. Suddenly, an intense emotion sparked from her, almost making Jaypaw flinch. Excitement? Grief? Anger? He couldn’t tell.
“You look well, Crowfeather.” Leafpool’s calm mew didn’t betray the storm raging in her mind.
Jealousy spiked behind Jaypaw. Nightcloud’s pelt was bristling.
“What are you doing here, Leafpool?” Crowfeather’s mew was curt and quiet. What is he feeling?Jaypaw studied the warrior’s mind but found it barbed with wariness.
“Firestar sent us to speak with Onestar,” Leafpool explained.
“He’s not here.”
“We know.” Leafpool sat down.
Jaypaw felt the first drop of rain dab his nose.
The brambles rustled and a few moments later paws pounded into the clearing. Onestar. Jaypaw recognized Whitetail and Weaselfur with him.
“What’s this about?” the WindClan leader demanded.
“Firestar sent us,” Leafpool meowed.
“Why?” Onestar paced warily around them. “Are you in trouble?”
“No.”
“Then why come here?” Onestar halted so close to them that Jaypaw could smell the rabbit blood on his breath. “Does Firestar still think there’s some kind of special relationship between our Clans? Because there isn’t!”
“Firestar understands that.”
Jaypaw was impressed with how calm Leafpool sounded, even though he could feel her trembling against him.
“Firestar doesn’t want to shed blood over our shared border,” she went on.
“Why did he attack our apprentices, then?” Onestar’s tail swished through the air.
“WindClan warriors unsheathed their claws first,” Leafpool meowed. “We were only defending the border they crossed.”
“It was our prey!” Tornear hissed.
Yowls of agreement rose around the clearing.
“Not once it’d crossed the border,” Jaypaw hissed.
Leafpool’s tail brushed his mouth. She shifted, her pads squelching against the slippery earth. The rain was beginning to fall steadily. “We didn’t come here to argue!”
“Then why did you come?” Onestar growled.
“To talk.”
Tornear tore at the ground. “Was Firestar too mouse-hearted to come himself?”
“Firestar didn’t want to provoke you by sending a warrior patrol,” Leafpool explained. “He wants to soothe the situation, not inflame it.”
Crowfeather was circling them. “Then he shouldn’t have sent anyone!”
Anger surged through Leafpool; Jaypaw felt it hot against his pelt. “Not every cat hides from his responsibilities!” she hissed.
Crowfeather halted. “Are you saying that’s what I would do?” His whiskers brushed Jaypaw’s face as the WindClan warrior leaned in toward Leafpool.
“Get out of the way!” Onestar hissed, nudging Crowfeather aside. “What do you want to talk about?”
“Firestar wants to know if RiverClan has invaded your territory.” Leafpool was growing impatient. “Is that why you’ve been hunting so close to our border? Are you being forced into ThunderClan territory or do you simply want to take our land because you are foolish enough to believe you can?”
Jaypaw was shocked by her fierceness. He felt Onestar freeze; Leafpool had surprised the WindClan leader too. Angry whispers darted between the watching cats. The air seemed to crackle like greenleaf lightning as the rising wind drove the rain harder into the camp. Jaypaw tensed, waiting for Onestar’s answer.
“RiverClan has not invaded our lands,” Onestar began slowly. “But that doesn’t mean they won’t. Does Firestar expect us to wait until they do? Does he think we should sit around like fat voles waiting to be pounced on?”
“But you are not voles,” Leafpool snapped. “Why not defend your RiverClan border instead of threatening ours?”
“We will defend what borders we have to,” Onestar retorted. “And take what territory we need.”
“You don’t even know that RiverClan is going to invade,” Leafpool pressed. “Why threaten us?”
Tornear growled. “You sound like a blackbird singing the same song over and over again!”
“Barkface could speak to Mothwing at the next Moonpool gathering,” Leafpool suggested, her mew suddenly coaxing. “He can find out exactly what RiverClan intends. It may turn out you have nothing to be afraid of.”
“We aren’t afraid!” Crowfeather hissed.
“Then why won’t you listen to reason?” Leafpool pressed. “You are honorable warriors. Why let yourselves be driven by suspicion instead of truth?”
“Listen to her!” Weaselfur sneered. “Trying to steal time for her Clan with clever words.”
“WindClan fights with claws not words,” Tornear warned.
Jaypaw bristled. “It’s like trying to show worms to moles!” he hissed. “They’re too blind to see beyond their own noses.”
“We’retoo blind?” Weaselfur mocked.
“Wait!” Onestar ordered. “Perhaps she’s right. Perhaps we should give RiverClan a chance to explain what’s going on before we do anything.”
“A chance to invade, more like,” Tornear growled.
“You saw how desperate RiverClan looked at the Gathering,” Crowfeather argued. “And every patrol we see looks hungrier than the last. We can’t trust them!”
“But they haven’t invaded yet,” Onestar pointed out.
“They crossed the border,” Tornear reminded him.
“Only once.”
Jaypaw sensed the WindClan leader’s mind slow. He was thinking.
“We can’t let them drive us into unnecessary bloodshed,” Onestar murmured.
Suddenly, a panicked yowl split the air beyond the camp wall. The dripping brambles shook and a WindClan queen skidded into the clearing. “My kits are gone!” she screeched.
“Sedgekit?”
“Thistlekit?”
Alarmed mews filled the camp.
“Sedgekit, Thistlekit, andSwallowkit!” panted the queen. “All of them! Disappeared!”
“When did you last see them?” Onestar demanded.
The queen was fighting for breath. “I left them in the nursery and went to stretch my legs. They weren’t there when I came back, so I went looking for them. They’ve wandered out before, but not far. But this time there’s no sign of them. Their trail heads toward the RiverClan border and then just disappears. A hawk’s carried them off, I know it!”
“Calm down, Gorsetail.” Onestar was bristling but his mew was steady. “You can’t be sure. No hawk’s ever taken more than a single kit before. We must send out a search party.”
Suddenly, paws pounded through the entrance tunnel.
“Onestar!” Ashfoot pelted into the clearing. Jaypaw scented Breezepaw and Heatherpaw behind the WindClan deputy. “We’ve just seen a RiverClan patrol heading back into their territory.”
“They’ve been on our land!” Breezepaw spat.
“And there was rabbit blood where they’d been,” Heatherpaw added.
Terror flared from Gorsetail. “Are you sure it was rabbitblood?”
“What?” Confusion clouded Heatherpaw’s mind.
“My kits have disappeared!” Gorsetail wailed.
“You think the RiverClan patrol might have taken them?” Heatherpaw sounded horrified. Her thoughts began whirling like leaves caught in a wind. Jaypaw tried to read them but they were moving too fast. He only knew that at their center something dark hovered, a sense of blackness that made his blood turn to ice. She knew more than she was letting on
“You must leave.” Onestar had turned back toward Leafpool.
“You’re not going to attack RiverClan, are you?” Leafpool gasped.
“We’ll do what we must to get our kits back!” Onestar hissed.
“But you don’t know they’ve taken them,” Jaypaw objected. “A moment ago you thought it was a hawk.”
“That was before RiverClan crossed the border.”
“But they may have had good reason!”
Ashfoot growled. “To steal our kits!”
“But why—”
Onestar cut Leafpool off with a snarl. “Go home!” Jaypaw flinched as the WindClan leader leaned in close. “You can tell Firestar that it’s too late. You’ve wasted your time trying to protect RiverClan. We’ll attack at once!”
CHAPTER18
CHAPTER18
Lionpaw shivered. The rain had reachedright to his skin. He dropped his vole on the fresh-kill pile and shook the water from his pelt.
“Good hunting,” Ashfur congratulated him. “You’ve improved a lot these past days. It seems like your mind is on your training again.”
Lionpaw blinked at his mentor. It hadbeen a good hunting patrol. He, Ashfur, Stormfur, and Brook had caught nearly enough to feed the whole Clan and it was great to feel energetic again, a little faster, a little sharper than his Clanmates, as though StarClan guided his paws. But his heart still ached when he thought of Heatherpaw. He missed being a DarkClan warrior.
Stormfur tossed a wet blackbird onto the pile. “Something’s wrong.” The gray warrior glanced anxiously around the clearing. Beside him, Brook narrowed her eyes.
Cinderpaw was tugging twigs toward the thorn barrier where Cloudtail was stuffing them into gaps. Poppypaw and Mousepaw were hurriedly patching the nursery with fresh brambles. Their rain-soaked pelts were spiked, their tails bushed out. Thornclaw and Spiderleg were circling the edge of the camp, staring up through the rain at the walls.
Thornclaw flicked his tail toward a rift in the cliff face where the rocks jutted out. “We should reinforce the top there. It’s too easy for cats to climb down.”
Lionpaw’s belly tightened. He scanned the clearing. Had Jaypaw returned safely from his mission? He felt relief wash his pelt as he saw Jaypaw emerge from the dirtplace tunnel.
Leafpool was calling to him from the medicine den entrance. “We need more dock.”
“I’ll find some,” Jaypaw answered at once.
“Not by yourself,” Leafpool meowed.
Jaypaw nodded. “I’ll take Hollypaw with me.”
Lionpaw’s paws throbbed with unease. His brother normally bristled with rage at any suggestion that he couldn’t manage by himself. Now he accepted it without a murmur.
“Don’t go far from camp,” Leafpool warned.
“Lionpaw! Have you heard?” Honeypaw was charging toward him, her eyes stretched wide. “There’s going to be a battle!”
Lionpaw hurried to meet her. “When?”
“WindClan is going to attack RiverClan right now,” Honeypaw panted.
Lionpaw flattened his ears. “Has RiverClan invaded WindClan territory?”
Honeypaw shook her head. “RiverClan stole three WindClan kits,” she mewed. “WindClan are going to get them back. We have to be ready to fight!”
Lionpaw tensed. There weren’t many kits in WindClan right now. Could they be the same three who had followed Heatherpaw? “Are you sure RiverClan took them?”
“RiverClan was hunting in WindClan territory when the kits went missing,” Honeypaw told him.
“But it doesn’t make sense.” Lionpaw’s mind was whirling.
“Who cares if it makes sense?” Honeypaw trotted around him. “There’s going to be a huge battle anyway. Leafpool said so.”
Sorreltail was heading toward them, eyes clouded with worry. “You’re jumping ahead of yourself, Honeypaw,” she meowed.
“We have to be ready,” Honeypaw argued. “Who knows what WindClan will do next?”
Lionpaw backed away from the two cats, his heart pounding. Had RiverClan really stolen the kits? There was another way off the moor, one their Clanmates didn’t know about.
What if the kits had found the tunnels?
He jumped as a voice sounded behind him. “You should eat,” Spiderleg was stretching, flexing his muscles. “You must be ready for battle at any moment.”
“But WindClan is fighting RiverClan, not us!”
“Anything could happen,” Spiderleg growled. “RiverClan might chase WindClan off the moor. They might decide to accuse us of taking the kits instead. Leafpool told Firestar that WindClan is desperate enough to do anything.”
Lionpaw froze. I must find the kits! I must stop this!But what about his Clan? He ought to be thinking about defending them. He should be helping fortify the camp like Cloudtail and Cinderpaw, or joining a patrol to check the border. He couldn’t go off and search for kits. What if WindClan attacked while he was gone?
This battle will be a chance to prove yourself a true warrior!Tigerstar’s voice murmured in his ear. The kits mean nothing! Think of your Clan
But I am thinking of my Clan!Lionpaw shook his head, clearing Tigerstar’s voice from his mind. Cats would be injured. Some might die! He shuddered as he thought of Heatherpaw caught in the midst of the fighting. If the kits were only lost in the tunnels, the battle would be over nothing.
“Lionpaw!” Brambleclaw was padding toward him. “Get something to eat and help with the preparations. Firestar’s organizing extra patrols and the barrier needs to be strengthened.”
Lionpaw blinked at the ThunderClan deputy. His belly was churning. “I’m not hungry.”
Brambleclaw shifted his paws. “Are you scared?”
Lionpaw opened his mouth, searching for the words to explain.
“It’s natural.” Brambleclaw’s mew softened. “I used to worry about seeing my Clanmates wounded. But defending the Clan is part of the warrior code; it’s what we’ve all trained for. I know it’s tough but we’re doing the right thing in the eyes of StarClan.” He ran his tail along Lionpaw’s flank. “You have the makings of a great warrior, Lionpaw, and I’m proud of you. Just remember what you’ve been taught and stay sharp.”
“Do we really need to fight?”
“If your leader tells you to, then yes,” Brambleclaw murmured. “Firestar won’t lead any cat into battle unless he believes it’s the right thing to do.”
But Firestar doesn’t know everything. Lionpaw suddenly felt weary. If only he didn’t know about the tunnels. Then he could just do as he was ordered without question. Miserably, he nodded at Brambleclaw. “Okay.” He padded to the fresh-kill pile, sick at the sight of the prey piled there as though it were any ordinary day.
“Why can’t we fight?” Icekit’s small mew wailed across the clearing.
“I don’t want to wait here until WindClan come and shred us!” Foxkit hissed.
“You’d only get in the way,” Ferncloud told them sternly. She swept her tail over them, shooing them back toward the nursery. “The best way you can help is to hide inside your den till the danger is passed. Your time for fighting will come, but not this moon.”
Lionpaw watched Ferncloud nudge them through the nursery entrance. It wasn’t just Foxkit and Icekit who were in danger. He couldn’t possibly put his Clanmates at risk, not when there was something he could do about it. Narrowing his eyes against the rain, he veered away from the fresh-kill pile and headed past the medicine den. Slipping in among the dripping brambles he pushed his way through to the camp wall. He reached up to the first ledge and scrambled onto it. Ledge by ledge, he clawed his way to the top of the hollow, panting with the effort as he hauled himself over the top.
Crouching in the rain-soaked grass, he caught his breath and peeped over at the busy camp below. No one had seen him leave. His Clanmates were still busy pressing twigs into the thorn barrier, gathering in groups to plan patrols, their wet pelts bristling with excitement. He crept into the trees and began to run down the slope, heading toward the tunnel entrance.
Suddenly, voices sounded from behind a clump of ferns. Lionpaw squeezed between the dripping stems and peered out.
“Try to pick the juiciest leaves,” Jaypaw was advising.
Hollypaw sat beside him, stripping leaves from a small plant and piling them on the wet earth.
Jaypaw lifted his nose and sniffed. “Lionpaw?”
Lionpaw straightened and pushed his way out, shaking the drops from his pelt.
“What are you doing here?” Hollypaw’s green eyes flashed with surprise. “Do we have to go back to camp?”
Lionpaw shook his head. “I think I know where the kits are,” he blurted out.
Paw steps pounded on the forest floor nearby. Lionpaw ducked back into the ferns, crouching down among the stems. Hollypaw and Jaypaw stared after him in surprise, then glanced at each other as Thornclaw and Whitewing raced out of the trees.
“You two had better hurry,” Thornclaw meowed.
Lionpaw ducked down farther as Hollypaw glanced at the ferns where he was hiding, her eyes glittering with suspicion. Would she give him away?
Whitewing flicked her tail. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes.” Jaypaw’s answer was firm. “We’ve just got a few more leaves to pick and then we’ll go back to camp.”
“Good.” Thornclaw nodded. “We’re heading up to the ridge to see if there’s any sign of WindClan. We may be able to see if they’ve begun their attack on RiverClan from up there.”
Suddenly, Whitewing sniffed the air. “It smells like Lionpaw’s been here.”
“Yes.” Jaypaw plucked another dock leaf from the soggy plant in front of him. “He came to tell us to hurry up.”
“Has he gone back to camp?” Thornclaw asked.
“I suppose so,” Jaypaw replied.
“Don’t be long.” Whitewing padded to the fern where Lionpaw was crouching. He held his breath, praying that his golden fur wouldn’t show through the green leaves.
“Come on!” Thornclaw bounded up the slope toward the ridge. Whitewing turned and pelted after him.
“Why in StarClan did you hide?” Hollypaw demanded as Lionpaw slid out of the ferns.
“They mustn’t know what I’m up to,” Lionpaw whispered.
Jaypaw’s tail was twitching. “What areyou up to?”
“What’s this about the kits?” Hollypaw narrowed her eyes.
Lionpaw took a deep breath. “There are tunnels under our territory.”
“Tunnels?” Jaypaw’s fur stood on end.
“Yes. They lead onto the moor, to WindClan territory. You can travel right through if you want. The kits followed Heatherpaw to the tunnel entrance once. I think that’s where they might be.”
Hollypaw was staring at him in horror. “You’ve been meeting Heatherpaw! You told me you’d stopped seeing her!”
Lionpaw stepped backward. His sister was digging her claws into the earth as though she were trying to stop herself raking his pelt.
“You lied to me and you lied to your Clanmates!” she spat. “I always thought that you were the most loyal of us. And now you’ve betrayed your Clan!”
“I haven’t betrayed them!” Lionpaw mewed. “I’ve stopped meeting Heatherpaw now. We were just playing, but then I realized that—”
“That an enemy Clan knows a secret way into our territory!” Hollypaw snapped. “Were you ever going to tell anyone, or were you just going to sit and watch while your little friend led her Clanmates to our camp?”
Lionpaw glared at his sister. “I would never let that happen!”
“Calm down.” Jaypaw weaved between them. “It’s done now.” He swung his head toward his sister. “Lionpaw’s not the only cat who’s made mistakes this moon. You’re still in trouble for trying to help Willowpaw.”
“That was different,” Hollypaw growled. But she shifted her paws as she spoke.
“There’s no time to argue,” Jaypaw mewed. “Are you sure that the kits are in these tunnels, Lionpaw?”
“Not definite, but it seems the most likely place they’d be.” He glanced anxiously at Hollypaw. “Will you help me find them?”
Hollypaw’s tail quivered. “Okay,” she mewed. “I don’t want WindClan attacking RiverClan. Not when they’re so close to solving their problem.”
Lionpaw blinked. “What do you mean?”
The fur on Hollypaw’s spine rippled. “I promised not to tell.”
“Promised who?” Jaypaw demanded.
“Willowpaw and Leopardstar.”
“But we’re kin,” Jaypaw pressed. “We have to stop keeping secrets from one another. That’s not how it’s meant to be.”
Hollypaw’s eyes glittered with uncertainty. “Okay.” She took a deep breath. “RiverClan’s camp was being threatened by Twoleg kits. They’re making the stream around it deeper and wider to keep the Twolegs away. I saw it myself. They’re so close to making it work. They should be back in their old camp by the next Gathering.” Her paws were trembling. “I promised not to tell, but it doesn’t seem right. Everything’s gone wrong.”
“No, it hasn’t.” Lionpaw lifted his chin. “We’re going to stop the battle.”
“But how?” Hollypaw mewed.
“By finding the kits.”
Jaypaw padded to Lionpaw’s side. “Where are these tunnels? How do we get in?”
“Follow me.” Lionpaw headed into the trees. He broke into a run, checking over his shoulder that Hollypaw and Jaypaw were keeping up. They weaved after him, skidding to a halt on the slippery leaves beside him as he reached the bottom of the slope where the tunnel opened into the forest.
“Where is it?” Hollypaw squinted over the swath of brambles
Lionpaw flicked his tail toward the rabbit hole Heatherpaw had first disappeared into. “There.”
“That?” Hollypaw mewed in surprise. “No wonder no one’s ever noticed it before.”
Jaypaw was sniffing the air as though searching for something. His tail was quivering.
Lionpaw frowned. “Have you been here before?”
“I don’t think so.” Jaypaw’s ears twitched.
Why did he seem so afraid? There was no time to worry. Lionpaw squeezed under the brambles. “Follow me.” He pushed his way through; it was easier now after all his visits, although one or two fresh branches had grown since he was last here, and he ducked as they snatched at his ears. Jaypaw stayed close behind him, his nose brushing Lionpaw’s tail.
“The entrance is here.” Lionpaw scrambled out of the bushes and guided Jaypaw to the hole in the side of the hill. He stopped beside it and sniffed the familiar scent of musty air flowing from the tunnel.
Hollypaw scrabbled out of the brambles after them and stared doubtfully at the hole. Rain dripped from her fur and each ear was tipped with a quivering drop of water. “We go in here?”
Lionpaw nodded.
“What about the rain?” Jaypaw sounded wary.
“It won’t be raining inside the tunnel.” Lionpaw was puzzled; surely he’d be glad to get out of the downpour?
Jaypaw flattened his ears and sniffed at the entrance. “Have you been here before in the rain?” he asked suspiciously.
“No.” Lionpaw was getting impatient now. There wasn’t time for this. “We must find the kits before the battle starts.” He squeezed into the entrance and started to pad quickly along the familiar tunnel.
“Wait!” Hollypaw called from behind. “It’s too dark to see where I’m going.”
Lionpaw waited while Jaypaw and Hollypaw caught up with him. They were both moving cautiously, their paw steps pattering unevenly on the rocky floor. Surely Jaypaw should be able to travel through the tunnels more easily than the rest of them? He was used to darkness. “There’s a cave ahead,” Lionpaw reassured them. “There’s a gap in the roof so it’ll be lighter there.” He moved on, slower this time. He could hear Jaypaw sniffing the air, and Hollypaw’s fur brushing the walls.
“Do these tunnels really lead all the way to WindClan territory?” Hollypaw’s mew echoed eerily in the darkness. “Have you been that far?”
“No, only as far as the cave,” Lionpaw answered. Then he froze. He could smell familiar scents up ahead. WindClan!Had Heatherpaw already led a patrol into the tunnels?
Jaypaw’s breath stirred his ear fur. “You know there are WindClan cats ahead.”
“Yes,” Lionpaw sighed.
“Perhaps we should go back,” Hollypaw whispered. “We don’t want WindClan to realize we know about this place. It would ruin our advantage.”
“They probably know already.” Lionpaw’s heart felt as heavy as stone. Heatherpaw had betrayed their secret—he wouldn’t be surprised if she’d betrayed him as well. They hadn’t exactly been friendly the last time they met. He padded toward the dim light and stepped into the cave.
In the gloom, he could just make out Heatherpaw on the other side of the river.
Breezepaw was pacing the edge of the cave behind her, sniffing at each tunnel in turn. “I’ve lost their scent.”
“Lionpaw!” Heatherpaw sounded surprised.
Breezepaw spun, hissing, to face Lionpaw.
Heatherpaw’s gaze darted anxiously toward her Clanmate as she went on, “H-how did you know about this place?”
Lionpaw understood at once. She was pretending she had never met him here before. It was a sensible plan, but it felt wrong to act like strangers after they’d shared so much time here. “I found it a few days ago by accident,” he lied. Hollypaw and Jaypaw were creeping out of the tunnel behind him. “I was chasing a rabbit and it led me down a hole and I ended up here.” He flashed a warning glance at Hollypaw.
Breezepaw’s pelt bristled. “These tunnels lead into ThunderClan territory as well?”
“I didn’t realize,” Heatherpaw mewed, wide-eyed. “I’ve only been as far as this cave before.”
“What are you three doing here?” Breezepaw demanded.
Hollypaw padded in front of Lionpaw, lifting her chin. “When we heard that the kits were missing, Lionpaw guessed they might be here.”
“How did you know there was another entrance in WindClan territory?” Breezepaw flexed his claws.
“It was just a guess.” Lionpaw shrugged. “There are so many tunnels. They might lead to ShadowClan territory as far as I know.”
Breezepaw stared at him. The damp, stuffy air was thick with mistrust. “Is there any scent of the kits in your tunnel?”
“No,” Hollypaw replied, her voice taut.
“We followed their trail here, but it’s disappeared,” Heatherpaw explained.
Jaypaw had cautiously crept forward and was sniffing at the river. Its usually sleek surface was rippling as though blown by the wind, and dark water lapped over the edges, forming pools in the dimpled rock on either side. “Is the water always this high?” he asked.
“Only after it’s been raining,” Heatherpaw answered.
“Does it get higher?”
Heatherpaw tipped her head on one side, puzzled. “I don’t think so.”
Lionpaw felt hot with embarrassment. Why did Jaypaw keep fussing about the rain? He wanted to find the kits and get out of here.
Breezepaw paced around his Clanmate. “These intruders might as well go home,” he mewed. “We’relooking for the kits. There’s no need for them to help.” He glared at Lionpaw. “Why are you bothered about WindClan kits anyway?”
Hollypaw flicked her tail. “There’s going to be a battle over them, or haven’t you heard?”
“Can we stop chatting and get on with the search?” Heatherpaw snapped.
Breezepaw shot her an angry look. “What about them?”
“We may as well let them come with us,” Heatherpaw mewed. “How are we going to carry three kits by ourselves?” Before he could answer, she headed for the tunnel nearest her. “We have to find those kits before any of our Clanmates gets hurt.”
“I agree!” Hollypaw leaped the wide river and glanced back at Jaypaw. “The water is about two foxtails wide,” she told him.
Jaypaw crouched, preparing to jump. Lionpaw could see his paws trembling. Let him make it!He tensed, ready to dive into the rushing river if he had to, but Jaypaw sprang high over the river, clearing it with a tail-length to spare.
As Lionpaw jumped after him, Heatherpaw ducked out of the tunnel she had been sniffing. “They haven’t been this way.”
Lionpaw crept into another dark opening, tasting the air. No scent.
“This way!” Jaypaw was crouching in front of a narrow entrance, his whiskers twitching.
Hollypaw pushed past him and peered at the ground. “He’s right! There’s a paw print.”
Lionpaw squeezed past her to look. Sure enough, there on the silty ground was a tiny fresh print. “They went this way.” He glanced up and met Heatherpaw’s gaze. Fear glittered in her hazy blue eyes.
“Oh, Lionpaw,” she whispered. “What have we done?”
第十四章
第十四章
松鸦爪穿过空地，雨水噼里啪啦地打在他的皮毛上。他的嘴里衔着一捆水薄荷和杜松果，它们的刺鼻气味充斥着他的鼻腔。
米莉在他身边快步走着。“我都告诉他不要再吃另一只麻雀了！”她在高石台下面停住了，灰条在那儿不停地呻吟着。
“我怎么能抵挡住食物的诱惑呢？”灰条喘着粗气，又发出一声呻吟，“我都好几个月没见过这么丰盛的猎物了！”
松鸦爪把嘴里的草药扔在地上，把一只爪子放在灰条那撑得圆滚滚的肚子上。灰条疼得不住地在地上扭动身子。
“别乱动！”松鸦爪感觉灰条的腹部硬邦邦的，“你刚才吃东西时，吃进太多空气了。”
“我都告诉过你了，你就是不听。”米莉说道。
松鸦爪把杜松果放在灰条的鼻子下，说道：“这会让你好些的，然后再吃些水薄荷。”
“我还以为武士都该知道，秃叶季过后，食量要一点一点增加。”米莉接着说道，“虽然饿了好几个月，肚子都瘪了，可你也不能一下子吃那么多，必须慢慢适应才行。”
“不要再说了！”灰条恳求道。
米莉用舌头舔舔灰条的皮毛。他俩之间浓浓的爱意在周围温暖的空气中蔓延开来。松鸦爪的胡须开心地动了动。听一只宠物猫对一位武士说教，真是件好玩儿的事。不过，米莉现在也是武士了。松鸦爪马上提醒自己。
营地外面传来了急促的脚步声。松鸦爪闻闻空中的气息，是鼠爪和罂粟爪。他从他俩身上苔藓的气息得知，他俩刚刚从训练谷地上回来。
“你看见冬青爪了吗？”罂粟爪向高石台冲了过来。
松鸦爪感觉罂粟爪焦虑的目光正盯着自己的皮毛，但很快，这种焦虑就变成了尴尬。
“我不是说‘看见’，”她马上更正道，“我的意思是说听到或者闻到……”
“她是问你，你知道冬青爪去哪儿了吗？”鼠爪不耐烦地插话道。
松鸦爪的爪垫突然刺痛起来。从早晨到现在，他一直都没看见冬青爪。他用自己的感应能力，在营地的每个角落搜索着，就像在草药堆里寻找罂粟籽一样，寻找着冬青爪的踪迹。可无论是营地里，还是周围的什么地方，都没有冬青爪的踪迹。松鸦爪摇摇头。
灰条爬了起来。“冬青爪不见多长时间了？”他问道。
“她本来应该跟我们一起训练的，可她却一直没有来。”罂粟爪说道。
“蕨毛猜测她可能因为什么原因还待在营地里。”鼠爪补充道，“所以我们没等她，就去训练了。我们以为等训练结束回来的时候，就能在这儿看到她。”
“可她没在营地里！”罂粟爪尖厉的声音在营地里回响。
这时，蕨毛穿过荆棘通道赶了过来：“她不在这里吗？”
蛛足和蜡毛也跟了来。
“我们在通道里闻到了她的气味，不过已经是很久以前的了。”蜡毛汇报道。
“我告诉她去训练，她肯定已经离开营地了。”蕨毛猜想道。
“可她没到训练谷地去啊。”蛛足说道。
松鸦爪感觉空地周围的族猫们都十分紧张。
亮心快步跑了过来：“或许她受伤了吧？”
“谁受伤了？”栗尾喊道。
“没有猫受伤！”灰条解释道，“不过冬青爪似乎失踪了。”
武士们纷纷拥过来，把松鸦爪挤在了中间。刺掌和白翅也赶来了。
“风族可能把她抓起来了！”刺掌大声说道。
在场的所有武士和学徒都顿时警觉起来。
云尾挤到大家的前面：“他们为什么会这么做呢？”
松鸦爪此时闻到了溪儿身上那特有的山中的气息。溪儿问道：“风族之前有没有劫持过猫呢？”
“没有，不过他们以前也没捕捉过松鼠啊！”尘毛说道。
栗尾深吸了一口气：“真希望他们别伤害她！”
松鸦爪察觉到警觉和愤怒的情绪同时在猫群中升腾着。大家也太容易慌乱了吧！不过，如果冬青爪真的被抓了，那该怎么办？
只有溪儿依然非常镇定：“风族现在自己都吃不饱，又怎么会愿意多添一张嘴呢？这说不通啊。”
“可是既然他们已经到森林里狩猎了，他们一定会有多余的猎物了。”亮心说道。
“他们也许觉得这么做是值得的。”栗尾的声音里充满了担心。
“我们应该派巡逻队去救她！”刺掌大声说道。
黑莓掌赶了过来：“救谁？”
当松鸦爪察觉到松鼠飞在自己父亲的身边时，心情顿时轻松了许多。松鼠飞舔了舔他两耳中间的部位：“松鸦爪，发生什么事了？”
“冬青爪不见了。”
松鼠飞身体一僵：“什么时候的事？”
“我中午的时候还跟她说过话呢，”蕨毛解释道，“她本应该去训练谷地的，但一直没去。”
“肯定是风族把她抓起来了！”亮心说道。
“肯定吗？”黑莓掌问道。
没有猫回答。
“嗯，如果这样，我们也先别往最坏的方面想了。”雷族副族长说道。
“我了解冬青爪，她应该只是出去转转吧。”松鼠飞说道。
松鸦爪点点头。冬青爪需要时间思考事情时，经常自己出去闲逛，这种事已经发生不止一次了。
“可是，她会故意逃避训练吗？”栗尾有些焦躁不安地说。
“她从来没缺席过训练。”火星的声音在众猫上方的高石台处响了起来。大家都向后退着，仰望着自己的族长。松鸦爪周围的空间终于宽敞了些，他感到一丝轻松。但同时，他察觉到火星的心中充满了愧疚和焦虑。到底是什么事会令他感到愧疚呢？
“我们不能胡乱猜测，说风族抓了她。”雷族族长接着说。
“可我们知道，他们想对我们发动攻击。”刺掌大声说道，“冬青爪这件事，可能就是他们挑起战斗的一种方式。”
担忧的低语声在雷族众猫中传开。
“我们还不确定他们是否打算攻击我们，”火星争辩道，“就像松鼠飞说的，冬青爪很有可能就是想出去转一转。她一直都这样特立独行。别忘了，她还是幼崽时就去狩猎狐狸了呢！”
火星说话时的语气很轻松，不过松鸦爪却察觉到，族长思绪万千。火星的出现让族猫们的情绪渐渐平和下来。他们开始相信冬青爪肯定没事儿，失踪这种事情，她完全做得出来。可松鸦爪并不信火星的话。火星知道的事情，远比他透露出来的多。松鸦爪试着深入雷族族长的内心世界，却发现一团烦躁的阴云遮住了他所有明晰的思绪。或许自己应该直接去问问火星？松鸦爪很快便打消了这个念头。很显然，火星想把自己的恐惧深深藏在心里。
松鸦爪悄悄地从溪儿和亮心身边溜过，朝巫医巢穴走去。当他靠近那里时，听到入口处的黑莓丛沙沙作响。是叶池刚刚钻进了巢穴。她一定是听到了大家的交谈。松鸦爪走进里面，叶池身上散发出的汹涌情绪让他不由后退了几步。
“这是真的吗？”炭爪焦虑的声音从窝里传出来，“冬青爪不见了？”
“你是了解冬青爪的，”松鸦爪平缓了一下心情，说道，“她很可能只是想独自思考一下，所以才溜出去的。”
“我想是的。”炭爪说着又躺回了窝里。不过松鸦爪依然能察觉到她全身的肌肉都紧张得绷了起来。
穿过巢穴，叶池身上传来的不安更加强烈。
“你怎么了？”松鸦爪一边低声问着，一边快步跑到老师身边。他察觉到叶池心里充满了担忧和愧疚，就像火星刚才一样。他俩肯定都知道一些事！
“冬青爪离开营地前，我跟她说过话。”叶池轻声承认道。
松鸦爪竖起了耳朵：“她说过自己要去什么地方吗？”
“没有，不过当时她非常不安。”叶池的嗓音变得低沉起来，“她求火星去帮助河族。”
“火星拒绝了？”松鸦爪猜道。这时他想起当初火星听自己讲述那个梦时所做的反应。
“她该不会真的认为，单凭自己就能帮助河族了吧？”叶池说道。
“放心吧，冬青爪不是鼠脑子。”松鸦爪劝道。
“可是她可能会想，如果她不能说服火星，那么设法说服一星不向雷族宣战也是一样的。”叶池有些不太情愿地继续说道。
松鸦爪又气又急。冬青爪总是认为，世上的事，非对即错。如果她认为火星犯了错，就会固执地想要用自己的方式去改变它。不过松鸦爪马上抛开了这种想法。冬青爪不会这样胆大妄为的。她应该不会吧？
松鸦爪察觉到，叶池把爪子按在了自己的爪子上。“你要试着做个梦！”她说道，“你要找到她在哪儿！”
她这番急促的恳求令松鸦爪身上的毛竖了起来。不久前她还恳求自己，不要把关于他做梦的事说出去，现在她又想用自己的梦来找冬青爪。她收他做学徒，就为了做这些事？她需要的时候，自己就是她从星族那儿得到解答的捷径；但是当她不需要时，自己就变成了一种威胁？
“求你了！”
“我还不困！”松鸦爪断然拒绝了，“我不能想什么时候做梦，就能做！”
“你就闭上眼睛试试。”叶池哀求。
“我想做梦的时候，自然就会做梦的！”松鸦爪大声喊道。
他朝巢穴入口走去。他察觉到叶池的皮毛蹭着他的身体，她挡住了自己的去路！
“你必须现在试试！”叶池嘶嘶地吼道。
松鸦爪的毛竖了起来：“她可能只是出去转转而已，不久就会回来了。”叶池到底是怎么了？她怎么听起来似乎比松鼠飞还要焦虑不安！
炭爪的窝里传来窸窸窣窣的声音：“发生什么事了？”
叶池赶忙转身抚慰她的病号。“别担心，”她安慰道，“别动你的腿。”
原来这才是叶池担忧的原因。她并没在为冬青爪的事情犯愁，而是为了这只金贵的病猫。松鸦爪气得耳朵发烫。他从叶池身边挤过，咚咚咚跑出了巢穴。
现在，营地里更安静了。火星已经从高石台上跳了下来，跟黑莓掌和松鼠飞交谈。
“黄昏巡逻队可以顺路找找看，”火星说，“他们回来后，我们再根据他们汇报的情况，派出一支专门的搜索队。”
“我要参加黄昏巡逻队。”松鼠飞立刻说道。
“还有搜索队。”黑莓掌补充道。
“当然，”火星点头同意，“你来带领这两支队伍。”
松鸦爪身上奓开的毛平顺了下来。派出一支搜索队，比叶池求自己做梦更明智。叶池这几天像小鹿一样，神经特别敏感。如果冬青爪再不出现，他当然会竭尽全力寻找她，不过他肯定不会听叶池的话，去睡上一个下午。松鸦爪决定远离叶池，远离营地，远离所有雷族猫。于是，他开始钻过荆棘通道。
“你要去哪里？”松鼠飞的声音从身后传来，声音里充满了担忧。她在担心失去另外一个孩子吗，那个大家都认为没什么用的瞎猫？
“我随便走走。”
“别去太久啊！”
我想去多久，就去多久！松鸦爪钻进了森林里。周围潮湿的空气预示着很快就会下雨，整个森林弥漫着发霉的味道。松鸦爪爬上斜坡，朝湖边走去。他急切地嗅着从开阔的水面上传来的气息，登上山顶，走出森林，加快步伐往前走。这条路会直接引领他，到达上次藏树棍的那个地方。松鸦爪开始快跑起来，胡须不停地抽动着，沿着熟悉的道路，最后终于抵达了湖岸。
松鸦爪走到湖滩上，停下脚步。这里跟一成不变的森林完全不同，经常呈现出不同的景象。鹅卵石似乎总在移动，所以它们踩上去的感觉也是千变万化；垃圾经常被湖水冲走，又被冲回来。松鸦爪喜欢这片湖岸带给自己的种种挑战，只要不进入湖里，他觉得怎样都好。他小心翼翼地向前走去，鼻子不停地嗅着浮木或垃圾的气味，以免被它们绊倒。他的全部心思都在那根树棍上，他希望那根树棍依然安全地卡在树根的后面。松鸦爪在湖滩上穿行着，朝树棍藏着的地方走去，随着他离那里越来越近，他的心也越跳越快。松鸦爪伸出一只爪子摸索，那根树棍果然安然无恙地躺在原地！
松鸦爪高兴地把树棍拽出来，用爪子抚摸着它，感受着木头的温度和那些划痕。水浪拍打岸边的声音和风呜咽的声音都消失了，他只能感受到爪子下的树棍和上面的划痕。这时一个声音忽然在耳畔响起来，这声音太小太轻，他几乎听不清楚；而且这个声音非常沙哑，听上去很像一只老猫的说话声，说的应该是很多猫的名字——就像是在清点数目。当松鸦爪的爪子摸到树棍的末端时，他的心跳加快了——这里的划痕没跟其他线条相交。松鸦爪顿时紧张起来，他想再听听那个声音，然而当他的爪子摸到第一处未交叉的划痕时，那声音突然消失了，一切又重回宁静。
松鸦爪倍感失望，他在树棍旁边躺下来，把脸颊贴在光滑的木头表面。松鸦爪闭上眼睛，湖水泛起的波涛声让他的心平静下来，他很快进入了梦乡。
松鸦爪爪子下的沙土移动起来。他睁开眼睛，眼前隐约现出一片参差不齐的石墙。在他身后，一丛石楠在风中不住地摆动着。头顶的天空一片漆黑，繁星点点。他看到石墙顶端的夜空映出了几只猫的影子。没有一只猫是熟悉的。松鸦爪闻闻空中的气息，这才意识到，他只在月亮池边才闻到过这种气息。当时远古的祖灵们，在通往月亮池的那条坑洼不平的小路上，跟他皮毛相擦。
突然，一只猫离开了同伴，跳下了陡峭的斜坡。这是一只年轻的公猫，肩膀上的肌肉发达，一身姜黄色和白色相间的皮毛十分光滑。这只公猫的身后跟着一只母猫。其他猫仍待在石墙上，尾巴紧张地摇来摇去。
“小心啊！”那只母猫一边喊着，一边轻盈地落在沙地上。
那只公猫跟她蹭蹭鼻子。“我保证，黎明的时候会来见你。”说完，他转过身，脸朝着悬崖。松鸦爪这才发现，那只公猫后面的岩石上有一道裂缝。
公猫朝那道缝隙走了过去。松鸦爪想躲开，不过这公猫似乎没有看见他，直接从他身体里穿了过去。当接触到这只猫的意识时，松鸦爪察觉到一种不祥的预感。这只猫之前从来没有进入过这道缝隙，他很害怕。当他的尾巴消失在阴影里时，松鸦爪激动起来。他决定去看看这只猫去了哪里，于是赶快跟着溜了进去。
松鸦爪刚一进去，黑暗就将他吞没了。一时间，松鸦爪以为自己已经从梦中醒来，再次失去了视力。可过了一会儿，他听到前方传来那只公猫爪子轻柔的落地声。松鸦爪感觉空间正变得开阔起来，一条狭窄的隧道直接通向岩石内部。
空气中充满了恐惧的气息，但这只公猫却毅然决然地前进着。他的心跳声似乎让周围的空气都颤抖起来。他穿过隧道，来到一个洞穴前，心跳的声音也越发响亮了。头顶上方，一道苍白的光透过顶部的一道缝隙洒了进来。拱形的墙壁上，有许多洞口。洞口后面的隧道肯定像沼泽地下面伸展蔓延的植物根系一样。奔流的水声在岩石间不断回响。松鸦爪惊讶地看到，洞穴里居然有一条河流，正奔向另一处隧道，河水如深夜一般黑暗。
“是落叶吗？”
松鸦爪猛地抬起头。在月光照进来的缝隙旁边，有一只老猫站在一个石台上，呼唤着这只公猫。落叶？这是那只公猫的名字？
公猫吓得跳了起来。
“我知道你惊讶。”这只老猫沙哑着嗓子说道。
松鸦爪目不转睛地注视着这只老猫。老猫身上只有几小撮黏结在一起的毛，鼓胀着的白色眼睛无神地看着下方。
天哪，我自己的眼睛可千万别像他一样！
落叶知道这只猫一定会出现在这里——松鸦爪察觉到，这两只猫之间有一些理解和认同——不过，这只年轻的公猫显然没想到，老猫居然会长得这么丑陋。
老猫的爪子在一个表面光滑又暗淡的东西上抚摸着——他扭曲的爪子里，握着一根光秃秃的树棍。
松鸦爪顿时僵住了。那不就是我的树棍吗？他用尽全力，听着这只老猫在说些什么。
“……我必须待在离我们的武士祖灵最近的地方，他们就安息在这块泥土之下。”
“感谢你为此做出的一切。”落叶低声说道。
“不要谢我，”老猫大声吼道，“这是我命中注定的事。另外，一旦你再长大一些，可能就不会对我如此感激了。”说着，他用爪子在刻有线条的树棍上，划下了一道长长的爪印。
这只公猫突然害怕起来，就连松鸦爪也感到了刺骨的冰冷。他为什么这么害怕？松鸦爪又抬头看了看那处石台。
老猫摇摇头：“我帮不了你。想成为利爪，你就必须自己找到正确的隧道，走出这里。我能帮你的，只是在你上路时，将我们祖灵的祝福送给你。”
利爪？跟武士差不多？松鸦爪突然明白这只公猫为什么会如此恐惧，又为什么如此坚定。他面对的不只是黑暗，更是自己的命运。
“现在下雨了吗？”老猫突然问道。
松鸦爪看到，落叶的身体僵住了。
“天空很晴朗。”可是松鸦爪却察觉到，这只年轻猫的心里，有一丝怀疑闪过。
老猫又用爪子在树棍上划了下：“那就开始选吧。”
落叶跃过河流，跳进了老猫所在的石台正下方的那个隧道。松鸦爪跟了过去，因为他能看见，所以一点也不担心。要是看不见，他可不想过河。一想到会掉进河里，被吸入隧道中，他就一阵惊慌。松鸦爪不再多想，跟上落叶再次进入黑暗中。
这条隧道是通往上方的！
松鸦爪可以清晰地察觉到落叶心里在想什么，就好像落叶大声告诉了他似的。这座岩石构成的隧道十分平坦光滑。这是怎么回事呢？隧道朝上方蜿蜒着，时而狭窄，时而宽阔，而且经常变换方向。
松鸦爪的呼吸开始加快了。他几乎不敢相信，自己居然能和一只来自远古的猫一起行走，而且能目睹他从童年时代跨越到成年的全过程。沼泽地面已经越来越近，到了那里，落叶就会平安无事了，而且他会如愿以偿地成为利爪。一束月光照亮了他们前方的路，落叶抬头看看，开始快步奔跑起来。松鸦爪紧随其后，看到头顶上有一道狭窄的裂口，但那个裂口太高，他根本够不着。
突然，隧道开始变窄，而且向下方伸展。
他们只差一点点就要抵达开阔的沼泽地面了！这时候向下……
松鸦爪察觉到，落叶心里升起一丝疑虑，但很快就散去了。隧道开始七扭八歪起来，落叶的皮毛已经紧紧地蹭着墙壁了，但他继续沿着蛇形蜿蜒的路前行。松鸦爪看到他如此自如地在黑暗中行进着，不由十分钦佩。这只猫比所有雷族猫都做得更好，落叶一定接受过用气味和触觉寻找方向的训练。
斜坡继续向下。落叶停了下来，松鸦爪察觉到了他心中的困惑与不安。前方的隧道出现了岔路。他要走哪条路呢？落叶慢慢走到一处岔路口，然后又退了回去。松鸦爪感觉到，这只公猫的尾巴扫在自己隐形的身体上，他急忙朝后退了退。落叶开始慌张起来。
落叶再次向前方冲去，他选择了另一处向下的隧道钻了进去。松鸦爪闻到里面传来石楠的气息，落叶正循着这清新的气味前行。松鸦爪的心里燃起了一丝希望，这一定就是正确的路线了。他看到另一束月光洒进了隧道，照亮了前方的路。他们到底能不能走出去呢？
落叶加快了脚步。松鸦爪感觉，这只年轻公猫的内心同样燃起了希望。可是当这只公猫抵达月光照亮的地方时，突然失望起来。松鸦爪抬头看看，上方那个洞口很宽阔，但是太高，没法够到。在月光的照耀下，雨珠闪着点点光辉，滴滴答答地落进隧道里。
落叶的皮毛警觉地竖了起来。这种警觉像冷风吹散阴霾那样，驱散了他内心的失望，可随即又被恐惧感取代。他害怕的是雨水！他向前冲去，跑得更快了，好几次都撞在了隧道的内壁上，绝望地寻找着出口。松鸦爪跟着落叶绕过一处急弯时，不小心滑了一下。整个隧道的地面由于雨水侵入，变得非常湿滑。松鸦爪甩甩尾巴，重新掌握好平衡，心里有些害怕自己也许再也见不到落叶了。
地面越来越潮湿了，雨水从他们经过的每一处小洞里涌进来。上方的沼泽地，一定正经历着一场暴风雨的洗礼。
忽然，落叶停下了脚步。一道光滑的灰色墙壁把隧道拦腰截断。他猛地转过身，穿过松鸦爪的身体，跑开了。
松鸦爪身上的毛竖了起来。
落叶竭尽全力控制着内心的恐惧，飞速奔跑着，在前方一处开阔地掉转了方向。松鸦爪也跟着转过身，紧紧跟着他。这时，隧道突然急速向下，一股水流猛扑过来，拍打着松鸦爪的爪子。他深吸了一口气。隧道开始向上，但仍有水灌进来。水流顺着隧道冲过来，冲刷着松鸦爪的肚子。
所有的隧道都被洪水淹没了！
落叶赶忙又穿过一处新发现的洞口。这里比之前的几处洞口更狭窄，两边的墙壁带来强烈的压迫感。前方有一处缝隙，透着一丝微弱的光，不过距离似乎太远，无法触及。
落叶停下脚步。松鸦爪闻到一股混着泥炭的水的气息，也听到了前方水流滚滚而来的声响。他朝黑暗深处窥视着，看见落叶向后撤退，前爪已经被水流淹没了。落叶前面的隧道急剧向下，前方的道路已被洪水吞没，水位翻滚着，即将涨到顶端。还没等落叶掉头开跑，松鸦爪就赶忙转身跑了回去。这回松鸦爪变成了带路的那个，他俩飞速朝来时的路奔去。或许他俩还有回到最初出发的那个洞穴的可能！
落叶跑得更快了，显然他记起了来时的路线。他越过松鸦爪，又跑到了最前面。
星族啊，求求你们，让他找到出发时的洞穴吧！
松鸦爪开始慌乱起来，而落叶内心的恐惧已经一发不可收拾。
松鸦爪突然听到了巨大的轰鸣声。一阵强风从身后吹来，撕扯着他的皮毛。松鸦爪回头看去，洪水朝他们奔涌而来，拍打着隧道的墙壁和顶部。
快点儿啊！松鸦爪没命地向前跑着。
落叶也向后看着，眼睛里闪着恐惧的光芒。突然，他好像第一次看到了松鸦爪。
“救救我！”
落叶高喊了一声，一瞬间，洪水猛然卷起了松鸦爪的身子，吞没了他的尾巴、肚子以及全部身体。他被冰冷的洪水裹挟，水浪不停地摇晃、翻卷着他的身体。洪水灌满了他的耳朵、眼睛和嘴。松鸦爪在黑暗中迷失了方向，在水中挣扎着，但是一切都无济于事。他的身体开始在水中下沉，视力逐渐消失，耳朵里巨大的嗡嗡声此起彼伏，身子也失去了知觉。
松鸦爪睁开眼睛，忙从那根树棍旁边跳开，大口呼吸着空气。这场雨还没停，雨水浸湿了他的皮毛。一股劲风掠过湖面，掀起的波涛拍打着岸边。此时，他想回家，回到雷族营地那温暖的庇护所去。
可是落叶呢？
松鸦爪小心翼翼地摸向那根树棍，轻抚着最后一处未被线条所交叉的划痕。
他终于知道这意味着什么了。落叶进了隧道之后，再也没能出来。
CHAPTER19
CHAPTER19
“I’ll go first.”
Jaypaw hardly realized he had said the words out loud until he heard Breezepaw snort scornfully.
“You’re blind!”
“And you can see perfectly in the dark, I suppose!” Hollypaw snapped.
Jaypaw sensed Breezepaw bristle, but the WindClan cat didn’t argue. He was glad, because he was on the verge of turning tail and fleeing back along the tunnel to the forest, where rain pattered on leaves and earth and didn’t collect in cold stone tunnels to sweep away everything inside them…. All he could think of ever since he set foot in the first tunnel was racing for his life, terrified, with Fallen Leaves. Images filled his mind: the dark tunnel, the roaring of the water, the shock as the wave hit him and swept him up like a leaf caught in a storm, gasping for air and finding only water to breathe.
Don’t think about it!At least this time there would be no glimmers of light to distract him; instead he could focus on his instincts.
Lionpaw stepped out of the way to let Jaypaw pass. As Jaypaw brushed past him, he felt relief flooding from his brother’s pelt. He thinks I’ll do better in the dark than he will. I hope he’s right.Cold air blasted over him, making his whiskers tremble. But the breeze carried something else, whispers he felt rather than heard, flooding from deep inside the tunnel like the pulsing of blood in his veins. He padded into the tunnel, feeling the darkness swallow him up. This wasn’t darkness he was used to. Blind in the forest, he could feel the warmth of the sun on his pelt, smell the fresh tangs that flavored the air, hear the wind that rustled the leaves. This darkness was suffocating, musty, and cold, pressing against his fur and filling his nose and mouth. Nothing but blackness, thick as fur, soft as water, drawing him in.
The rock beneath his paws was covered in fine silt, the walls so narrow they grazed his pelt as he crept slowly forward.
“Can’t you go any faster?” Breezepaw’s mew was as jagged as the walls.
“Shh!” He tried to block out the fear pulsing from the other cats, and padded on, feeling the path slope downward, the tunnel widen, cold air jab his pelt as they passed under a slit in the roof. Was this really the right way? The draft flowing through the tunnel like water carried no kit scent, only forest air seeping through fissures in the roof.
Suddenly, a pelt brushed his flank.
Jaypaw bristled. “I’mleading, Breezepaw!” He barged the cat away.
“What are you talking about? I’m back here!” Breezepaw snapped from behind.
Hollypaw’s nose brushed his tail-tip. “There’s no one near you, Jaypaw.”
Surprised, Jaypaw tasted the air. A new scent bathed his tongue. Not a Clan scent, but still faintly familiar. He tasted the air again, his pelt pricking with unease as the other cat pressed against him, matching him step for step.
“I will walk with you, my friend, as you once walked with me,” the voice whispered in his ear.
Fallen Leaves!Jaypaw’s heart lurched. The memory of a great, black wave engulfing him made him stop dead. He fought the urge to turn and run, to pelt back to the cave and the forest and the safety of the open sky.
“I could not leave you here to walk alone, when you walked with me like a brother.”
Jaypaw blinked, trying to see. “Am I dreaming?”
“No,” Fallen Leaves whispered. “I have come to help. I know where the kits are.”
“Why have we stopped?” Breezepaw mewed crossly from behind.
Hollypaw’s nose flicked Jaypaw’s tail. “Are you okay?”
“Fine,” he told her, then he lowered his mew to less than a whisper, breathing the words so that only Fallen Leaves could hear. “Have you seen them?”
“I know where they are.” Fallen Leaves pressed his pelt to Jaypaw’s, urging him forward. “But we must hurry.”
Jaypaw resisted. “Why should I trust you? You couldn’t even get yourself out of these tunnels!”
“I have walked them ever since,” Fallen Leaves murmured sadly, “and I know them better than the moors above us.”
Jaypaw steadied his breath. “You’ve really seen the kits?”
“They are alive, but they are cold. We must hurry.”
Instinct alone might not be enough down here. Touching his tail to Fallen Leaves’s flank, Jaypaw let the tom guide him forward into a tunnel that branched to one side. The passage sloped steeply down; Jaypaw’s pads slipped on the floor. The rock was slick with rain.
“Are you sure you know where you’re going?” Breezepaw called.
“Can you still smell them?” Lionpaw asked anxiously.
“They went this way,” Jaypaw replied.
Fallen Leaves swerved again, nudging him toward another tunnel. “Duck!” he warned. Jaypaw dipped his head just in time, squeezing through a shallow gap.
“Keep down!” he warned his Clanmates as he wriggled beneath the pressing rock. The gap grew lower and lower until he was scrabbling on his belly.
“This feels like a dead end!” Hollypaw panted as she squeezed after him.
“It opens up in a moment,” Fallen Leaves promised in Jaypaw’s ear.
Jaypaw smelled the sweet scent of heather and felt rain on his face. There must be an opening in the roof ahead. He slithered out of the gap, relieved to feel space around him.
“Which way now?” Heatherpaw’s fur brushed the rock as she squirmed out after him.
“There are three tunnels,” Lionpaw told him.
Jaypaw tasted the air, but there was no scent of the kits.
“This way,” Fallen Leaves whispered. Jaypaw felt his whiskers brush rock on either side as he let Fallen Leaves guide him into another tunnel.
“How do you know we’re going the right way?” Breezepaw’s mew was sharp, but Jaypaw could sense the panic throbbing beneath his pelt. It came from every cat, filling the darkness with a suffocating dread that Jaypaw tried to block from his mind.
“I can smell them,” he lied. He mustn’t let their fear overwhelm him. Listen to Fallen Leaves!
The tunnel twisted and veered upward, then widened. Air filtered through a gap overhead. The patter of paw steps slowed behind him.
“I knew it was a dead end,” Heatherpaw sighed, stopping.
Jaypaw halted. A boulder was blocking the tunnel ahead. He sensed its unyielding bulk.
“We’ll never get past that,” Breezepaw mewed.
Rain pounded overhead, dripping through a gap into the tunnel and echoing off the rocks as Jaypaw sniffed the wet stone. He ran his nose along the boulder, following its smooth contours until his whiskers touched the tunnel wall. A tiny gap opened between boulder and wall, too small to squeeze through.
“Now what?” Breezepaw snapped. “Do you think you can lead us back?” He didn’t sound convinced. “Or did you just bring us here to show us this boulder? Let me guess, it’s a special StarClan rock and it’s going to tell us where the kits are.”
“Shut up!” Heatherpaw hissed at her Clanmate.
“Why?” Breezepaw snarled. “We’re lost underground! Do you want me to thank him?”
“Shh!” Hollypaw mewed suddenly.
“I’ll say what I like!” Breezepaw retorted. “Just because he’s your brother—”
“I can hear something!” Hollypaw hissed.
“What is it?” Lionpaw’s pelt was tingling with excitement.
Jaypaw strained to hear.
A tiny squeaking sound, just louder than the rain, echoed ahead of him.
The kits?
“Anyone there?” he called.
The squeak turned into an excited mewling.
They were behind the boulder!
Jaypaw felt Fallen Leaves breathe in his ear. “I told you I’d help you find them.”
“I think I can climb over it!” Lionpaw mewed. Jaypaw heard claws scrabbling against stone as his brother clambered over the boulder. Shallow water splashed faintly when he jumped down the other side.
“They’re here!” His joyful mew echoed around the tunnel. More claws scraped against rock as Hollypaw, Heatherpaw, and Breezepaw scrambled over to join him.
“Thank StarClan we found you!” Heatherpaw purred.
Paws splashed and a frightened mew answered her. “We couldn’t climb back over!”
“We thought we were stuck forever!”
“We’ll take you home,” Breezepaw reassured them.
“Go on, Swallowkit,” Heatherpaw urged. Tiny claws scraped stone and a soggy bundle of fur slid clumsily down onto the ground beside Jaypaw.
“Are you okay?” he asked. The rain was pounding harder. They had to get out quick.
“I’m fine but—”
Breezepaw’s mew interrupted her. “Your turn, Sedgekit.”
Fur brushed rock and another kit thudded lightly on the floor. Jaypaw reached out his nose to the newest arrival. “Are you hurt?”
“No.”
Jaypaw swept the two kits together with his tail, pressing against their sodden pelts to warm them.
Breezepaw landed beside him. Jaypaw stiffened. He was holding the third kit in his jaws. She was barely breathing and when Breezepaw laid her on the ground, she didn’t move.
“Thistlekit went to sleep and now she won’t wake up!” Swallowkit wailed.
Jaypaw pushed the trembling kits against Breezepaw and crouched beside the limp, wet body at his feet. She was cold, shivering with small convulsions. Jaypaw began to massage her body with his paws, trying to rub some warmth into her pelt.
Heatherpaw slithered back over the boulder. “Is she okay?”
“Help Breezepaw warm the other two!” Jaypaw ordered.
“We’re hungry!” Sedgekit’s mew was muffled by Heatherpaw’s fur.
“It serves you right for wandering off!” Heatherpaw scolded. She sounded cross but Jaypaw could feel her fearful gaze jabbing his pelt as he worked on Thistlekit. Rain dripped down harder through the gap in the roof. The silt had turned to slimy mud around his paws. He rubbed Thistlekit more urgently. He had to get them out of here.
Lionpaw and Hollypaw leaped down from the boulder.
“Do you know the way out?” Swallowkit asked, trembling.
“Of course we do,” Breezepaw declared. “We found our way in, didn’t we? Getting out will be even easier.”
He doesn’t believe that.
“We’ll get out,” Jaypaw mewed softly. He waited for Fallen Leaves to whisper encouragement but he only felt the quiver of the young tom’s tail against his flank.
Thistlekit began to cough and fidget beneath his paws. Warmth was seeping back into her body. She struggled to her paws. “You found us!” she gasped.
Hollypaw folded herself around the shivering kit. “Did you think we’d leave you in this horrible place?”
Surprise pulsed from the kit. “You’re from ThunderClan.”
“We’ve been helping your Clanmates to find you,” Hollypaw explained.
“You’ve caused a lot of trouble,” Breezepaw growled.
Lionpaw’s tail swished over the floor. “We can worry about that once we’re out.”
A noise like rushing air suddenly filled the tunnels.
“The rain’s getting harder,” Hollypaw mewed.
“That’s not rain,” Lionpaw murmured. “It’s coming from inside the tunnels.”
“Inside?” Sedgekit squeaked.
“What is it?” Breezepaw demanded.
Jaypaw felt sick. He knew what it meant. “The river is overflowing.”
Lionpaw darted to Jaypaw’s side, pelt bristling with alarm. “How do you know?”
Jaypaw closed his eyes. “I’ve heard it before. The tunnels are going to flood.”
Energy exploded from Lionpaw. “We’ve got to get out of here!” Swallowkit squealed as he snatched her up in his jaws.
“Breezepaw, Heatherpaw, take the other two,” he hissed out of the corner of his mouth.
“I’ll lead,” Jaypaw mewed. He had brought them here. He had to get them out. He pelted back along the tunnel. Fur brushed stone and claws skittered after him.
Fallen Leaves fell in beside him and matched the rhythm of his stride.
“You’ve got to get us back to the cave!” Jaypaw hissed.
“I will,” Fallen Leaves promised. The young tom’s paws made no sound on the tunnel floor as they raced onward, but his pelt was hot with fear and his mind flashed with memories that echoed in Jaypaw’s mind: paws churning through muddy water, struggling against currents too strong to fight, gasping for air and finding only water, disbelief as the world closed in and life ebbed from his body. He’s remembering how we drowned!
Jaypaw pushed on harder, ducking just in time to squirm under the low roof. He wriggled forward, the rock scraping his spine, his claws splintering against the stone. Struggling out the other side he paused, waiting until he heard the others emerge. The kits squealed with fear and pain as they were dragged over the rough stone.
“Nearly there!” Jaypaw encouraged. The tunnel was sloping upward now. Water washed his paws. One more twist, another turn. He could smell the scent of fresh air. He burst into the cave, hope springing in his belly.
We’ve made it!He could feel Fallen Leaves trembling with relief beside him.
Ahead, the river was roaring.
Lionpaw shot out behind him. “Take Swallowkit!” He thrust the kit at Jaypaw.
Jaypaw snatched her in his teeth.
“What’s he doing?” Hollypaw exploded from the tunnel with Heatherpaw and Breezepaw.
Jaypaw heard water splash as Lionpaw plunged into the river.
“Lionpaw!” he yowled, dropping Swallowkit. He strained to hear over the roaring of the water. “Can you see him?” he begged Hollypaw.
“He’s swimming!”
“He’s crazy!” Breezepaw gasped.
“I’m okay!” Lionpaw coughed as he struggled, splashing, from the far side of the river.
“How are we going to get the kits across?” Heatherpaw called.
“There’s no point!” Lionpaw yowled back. “The tunnel’s blocked!” Panic edged his mew. “The rain has washed soil into the entrance. There’s too much mud to dig through.”
“What about our tunnel?” Heatherpaw called.
Breezepaw bounded away as Lionpaw splashed back across the river.
“Blocked, too! Boulders have fallen from the roof!” Breezepaw called from the WindClan tunnel. “It’s like a waterfall in here. We’d never get the kits up it!”
“We have to try!” Heatherpaw screeched.
“I don’t think there’s enough space at the top to get through,” Breezepaw argued. Fear made him angry. “If a kit got swept down over the rocks, it might die!”
“We have to do something,” Hollypaw yowled.
Jaypaw pressed against Fallen Leaves, trying to read his thoughts, but the young tom’s flank seemed to be fading, and Jaypaw’s shoulder passed with a shiver through the soft fur. “Fallen Leaves?” he hissed.
“I’m sorry!” Guilt and grief hung like mist in the air. Jaypaw suddenly felt cold where the tom’s warm body had been. Panic gripped him and time seemed to slow. For a heartbeat Jaypaw glimpsed a pair of amber eyes.
“Wait!” he called. “Come with us!”
Fallen Leaves blinked, his gaze filled with sorrow. “It’s not my time to leave,” he mewed faintly and then he was gone.
Not again!
“Are we going to die?” Sedgekit’s terrified mew rose above the torrent.
Jaypaw’s mind whirled as he tried to work out some way to escape. Water sprayed his face as the river frothed and bubbled against the cave walls. Lionpaw pressed him back with the others until they were huddled on a narrow strip of earth, water snapping at their paws.
Help us!
Blood roared in Jaypaw’s ears.
Could StarClan hear him down here?
Suddenly, a silvery light glowed at the edge of his vision, like moonlight creeping across a night-black forest. Jaypaw looked up and saw a smooth ledge near the top of the cave. A cat was sitting there. It was the cat from his dream, with twisted claws, balding pelt, sightless bulging eyes. The cat who had sent Fallen Leaves into the tunnels to die.
The cat looked straight at Jaypaw.
Anger rose in Jaypaw’s chest. Have you come to watch us die too?
A shadow moved beneath the cat’s paws. He was rolling something toward the lip of the ledge. Something long and slender and smooth. Jaypaw’s fur stood on end. The stick from the lake!
Its markings were clear in the moonlight and, as Jaypaw stared in confusion, the cat lifted his paw and held a trembling claw over a row of scratches. Five long and three short. Jaypaw gasped. Those scratches weren’t there before!He had counted the marks so many times he knew them by heart.
Five warriors and three kits! He meansus!
Jaypaw stared, panic-stricken, into the old cat’s eyes. Are we going to die?
The cat bent his head to look at the stick before slowly lowering his claw and running it through the scratches. With a rush of hope, Jaypaw understood.
We’re going to survive!
The cat nodded.
A paw clapped him sharply on the ear. “Stop staring at nothing and help us think!” Breezepaw snarled.
The vision disappeared and Jaypaw was in darkness once more. He turned to the others, his pelt bristling with excitement. “There’s a way out of here!” he mewed. “I know it!”
“What is it, then?” Lionpaw demanded.
“I’m not sure,” Jaypaw admitted. “Let me think for a moment.”
“Thinking won’t move boulders!” Heatherpaw screeched. “We’re trapped!”
“We could wait till the cave floods and swim up to the hole in the roof,” Hollypaw suggested.
“It’s too small to escape through,” Breezepaw growled.
“And the kits might drown!” Heatherpaw pointed out.
Jaypaw shook his head. There was something at the edge of his thoughts. An idea he could sense but not reach. The stick!It had been here in the cave. But he’d found it by the lake. How did it get out?
Water splashed at his paws. He recoiled, then froze. He pictured the river reaching up to the stick, lifting it, washing it away. Of course! The river must flow out into the lake.
“We’ll have to swim!” he cried.
“Swim where?” Lionpaw spluttered.
“The river runs into the lake. It’ll carry us there!”
“But it disappears underground!” Breezepaw hissed.
“It comes out in the lake!” Jaypaw insisted.
“We’re not RiverClan. We can’t swim!” Heatherpaw wailed.
Lionpaw pressed against Jaypaw. “Will this really work?”
“There’s no other way.”
“If you say we must do it, then we have to trust you,” Hollypaw mewed.
“Youmight!” Breezepaw growled.
“If we don’t do something, we’re all going to drown!” Heatherpaw screeched.
Hollypaw kneaded the ground. “Let’s try it!”
Swallowkit squealed in terror. “I’m not going in the water!”
“We’ll hold you by your tails,” Lionpaw promised. “We won’t let go.”
“By our tails?” shrieked Thistlekit.
“If we hold you by your scruffs, we’ll swallow too much water,” Lionpaw mewed. “You’ll have to keep your head afloat by paddling with your forepaws like this.” Water spattered from his paws as he churned the air, showing the kits how to paddle.
“I’m scared,” Heatherpaw whispered.
“It’s going to be okay.” Lionpaw dropped onto four paws and pressed against the WindClan cat. Jaypaw was close enough to hear him whisper into her ear, “Our time together will be something I remember even when I’m with StarClan.”
Heatherpaw trembled. “There will be no borders between us there.”
Jaypaw blinked, startled by the emotion flooding between them. Then light flickered in his vision and he saw the old cat again.
Leave now!
He thought of all the cats who had ventured into this place; their fear and hope seemed to whisper in the air around him. The scratches on the stick had marked their fate. Did the new lines really predict the Clan cats would survive? He had to believe that they did.
“We have to go!” he ordered.
“Line up at the edge of the river,” Hollypaw instructed. “Lionpaw, you take Sedgekit, I’ll take Thistlekit, Breezepaw can take Swallowkit.”
“What can I do?” Heatherpaw asked.
“Hold on to my tail,” Jaypaw mewed. “We’ll help each other.”
“Okay,” Heatherpaw agreed. He felt her take the tip of his tail lightly in her teeth.
“I’m not going!” Swallowkit’s paws splashed through the shallows as she tried to make a run for it. She shrieked as Breezepaw grabbed her and dragged her toward him through the water. “Don’t worry, Swallowkit,” he soothed. “I won’t let go. There’s no way I’m going to let you drown.”
Swallowkit whimpered but didn’t try to escape again.
“Come on,” Lionpaw urged.
Jaypaw waded through the shallows. His paws throbbed with dread as he felt the tug of the river.
“Ready?” Lionpaw mewed.
“Yes!” Hollypaw answered.
Jaypaw tensed. “Jump!”
He hurled himself into the rushing torrent. Heatherpaw tugged on his tail as the water swirled her downstream. The current dragged him under and he was lost in his dream of drowning again, choked by the tumbling water with the bodies of cats all around him and his ears filled with roaring.
第十五章
第十五章
狮爪跳了起来，在空中扭动着身体，又俯身向前冲去，然后轻盈地落在地面上。
太完美了！在战斗中，这个动作可以击败速度最快的影族武士了。虎星啊，你刚才看到我的转身动作了吗？
实际上，虎星只是在那天下午教了狮爪这个动作，但狮爪很快就掌握了要领。狮爪现在蹲了下来，喘着粗气，闻了闻空气中的气息。石楠爪怎么还不来？她已经迟到了。
洞穴里非常黑，自从太阳下山后，雨就没停过，月亮也被乌云遮得严严实实。松鸦爪在天刚黑时回到了营地，全身都湿透了——这个鼠脑子居然在湖边睡着了！叶池见状，赶忙催促他在巫医巢穴里把皮毛舔干。而冬青爪却依然毫无踪迹。搜寻队已经循着她的气息沿湖岸一路寻找到风族的边界，现在，刺掌确信她被风族巡逻队抓走了。
“你是不是以为，我已经把你忘了呢？”石楠爪的声音从隧道入口传了过来。
狮爪高兴地跳了起来：“你怎么来晚了啊？”
“对不起。”石楠爪上气不接下气地说道，“我在半路上发现金雀花尾的幼崽在跟踪我，我不得不先把他们送回营地。”
“他们没有离隧道的入口太近，对吧？”
“没有。不过真的好险，差一点儿就让他们发现了。”石楠爪抽了抽尾巴，“他们把自己隐蔽得很好，我一开始都没注意到他们。幸亏我及时发现，不然可就糟糕了！”
狮爪突然神情紧张起来。要是他俩之间的秘密被发现了，那该怎么办啊？“我今天来时，差点儿也被跟踪了。”他坦白道。
石楠爪睁大了眼睛：“发生什么事了？”
“冬青爪不见了。”
“不见了？”
“我们的一支搜寻队循着她的气息，一直走到了……”狮爪停顿了一下。他不想让石楠爪知道冬青爪可能已经跨越风族边界的事。他的心中顿生焦虑。自己不能什么事情都跟她说，否则就会成为自己族群的叛徒。这种感觉真的让他很难受。不过他觉得石楠爪至少可以给自己一些关于妹妹去向的线索或信息。“你看到她了吗？”狮爪问道。
石楠爪摇摇头。
狮爪的目光注视着她那双碧蓝的眼睛：“你确定吗？”
石楠爪眨眨眼睛说道：“我当然确定了！”
狮爪有些内疚地甩甩尾巴。石楠爪是不会欺骗自己的。很显然，风族并没有抓走冬青爪。狮爪眯起了眼睛。自己该怎么告诉族猫这个消息，同时又不让他们知道自己获取消息的来源呢？
“你在想什么呢？”这回轮到石楠爪怀疑他了。
“我在想，冬青爪可能会去哪里呢？”狮爪撒了个谎。
“她不会有事儿的。”石楠爪说着上前蹭着狮爪的身体。她的抚慰令他紧张的心情平复下来。
“她没在天黑之前回到营地，这就令我感觉很奇怪。”狮爪这次悄悄地溜出学徒巢穴，终于不必担心冬青爪的窥探了。但是这倒让他有点儿不习惯了。他再也不用费尽心思地去编造理由来搪塞冬青爪的质问了。这让他松了一口气，不过同时，他又为自己会这么想感到愧疚。
“我敢打赌，她天亮的时候一定会回去的。”石楠爪说道。
“希望如此。”狮爪叹了口气说道。
“那你在等我的这段时间里，在干什么呢？”石楠爪坐了过去，歪着脑袋问狮爪。
“我在练习新学的战斗动作。”他兴奋地抓挠着地上的泥土，“你来看看这招！”
狮爪把后腿朝空中一蹬，用前爪支撑着地面，身体旋转起来，紧接着又向后跳去，后腿直立，前爪在空中猛击，然后头一低，来了一个干净利落的前滚翻。
“太棒了！”石楠爪竖起耳朵，“这套动作是你自己编的吗？”
“是的。”狮爪不能告诉她是虎星教的，就算说了，她也绝对不会相信。
“这对于暗族武士来说，简直太完美了，”石楠爪说道，“你来教教我吧！”
狮爪又做了一次这套动作，石楠爪在旁边模仿起来。
“你做得很不错嘛！”他一边说，一边在她的前面蹲了下来，“你再试一次，不过这次你的攻击目标是我。”
她把后腿朝空中一蹬，接着旋转身体，后腿站立，张开爪子朝狮爪扑去。狮爪一闪，不等石楠爪低头做前滚翻，狮爪已经用肩膀把她顶了出去。石楠爪四爪朝天，摔在洞穴的地面上。
狮爪的心猛地一颤。他居然忘记了自己比石楠爪更强壮些。他马上冲到石楠爪的身边，将自己的鼻子贴在她的脸颊上。“我没有伤到你吧？”虎星的训练，已经让狮爪的动作变得比之前更敏捷，身体也更坚韧了。
“你之所以偷袭成功，是因为你知道我的下一个动作是什么！”她转过身躲开了他，飞快地在自己的肩膀上舔了一下。“真希望我永远不会成为你战场上的敌手。”她回头看了看他，眼睛里充满了柔情，“我永远都不想这样。”
狮爪眨了眨眼。石楠爪正在满怀期待地直视着他。她也想让自己起同样的誓吗？他不能这么做。因为这个誓言意味着对族群的背叛。“我希望我们两个族群之间永远不会发生战争。”他一边说，一边移开了自己的目光。
“天已经亮了。”
狮爪伸了伸懒腰，睁开了眼睛。石楠爪坐在他身边，抬头看着洞顶的缝隙，外面的天空已经露出了鱼肚白。狮爪站了起来，忽然觉得身上的肌肉酸痛不已。昨晚狮爪教石楠爪从虎星那里学来的战斗动作，把他累坏了。他感觉他们只睡了很短一会儿。
“我们走吧！”石楠爪说道。
“你今晚还会在这里跟我见面吗？”
石楠爪甩了甩自己的尾巴。“当然了。就算训练时，鸦羽让我跑到荒原尽头再跑回来，我也一定会来。”她一边说，一边用鼻子蹭着狮爪的脸颊，然后朝通往自己族群方向的隧道走去，“回头见。”
狮爪的爪子动了动。“再见。”说完，他朝着相反的方向奔去，来到了外面。
经过小雨的洗礼，整个森林弥漫着潮湿的气息。狮爪在荆棘丛下穿行着，在清晨那微弱光亮的指引下，朝营地的方向行进。树林和灌木丛在苍白的地面上投下可怕的阴影。一阵轻风拂过，树叶开始沙沙作响。
“你这个叛徒！”
狮爪突然停下脚步，朝四周张望着，浑身的毛全都竖了起来。
在前方的香薇丛中，一个熟悉的身影出现了。
“是虎星吗？”
“你以为你自己刚才在做什么？”是鹰霜的声音。狮爪寻找着虎星的踪迹，却发现这里只有鹰霜。鹰霜的眼中露着凶光，朝狮爪走来。
“你什么意思？”狮爪问道。鹰霜知道自己每晚都去隧道的事情。这次他为什么要这样质问自己呢？
鹰霜撇了撇嘴说道：“你把战斗动作教给了敌人！”
“石楠爪可不是敌人！”狮爪反驳道，“她是我的朋友！”
“她是其他族群的！”鹰霜低声说道，“那她就是我们的敌人！万一她将来用你教给她的动作，来对付你呢？”
“石楠爪不会这么做的！”
“真的吗？”
狮爪愣住了，心里想象着在战斗中与石楠爪相遇的场景。她肯定不会用那个招式对付自己吧？“我还以为，你和虎星不会在意我跟石楠爪见面这件事呢。”
“我们喜欢的是你特立独行，”鹰霜大吼道，“我们还以为，你俩的关系只是纯洁的友谊，对族群没有危害。”
“我俩的关系的确不会造成什么危害啊！”狮爪身上的毛竖了起来，“可这不只是友谊，它比友谊重要得多。这就是我确信，她永远不会用那些战斗动作来对付我的原因！”
“如果你那样想，那可真是鼠脑子！”鹰霜咆哮道，“我刚开始还以为你想成为伟大的武士呢！”
狮爪抬起了下巴：“我当然想成为伟大的武士！”
“那你为什么就不明白这些隧道意味着什么呢？”
狮爪眨眨眼。这些隧道对他来说，就是他和石楠爪约会的地方，而且不会受到雷族的打扰。
鹰霜轻蔑地哼了一声：“你什么都不明白，对吧？”
“我明白！”
“那你难道不清楚，我们可以利用这些隧道去偷袭风族吗？”
“我们为什么要袭击风族呢？”
“这个原因跟风族有一天会利用它们来袭击雷族一样！”
狮爪注视着鹰霜。鹰霜的话，他疲惫的耳朵一点儿都没听进去。
鹰霜眼珠转了转。“如果你需要更多领地或更多猎物时，你会怎么办？”他缓缓地说着，就好像在给一只幼崽解释如何做战斗动作，“你会在边界上等着，向经过那里的风族巡逻队摇尾乞怜吗？”
“可是我们的领地和猎物都足够了。”狮爪争辩道。
“事物总会变化！”鹰霜大吼着，“族群也是会变的！你看看，自从一星成了族长后，风族的变化有多大。雷族现在怕他们怕得要死！”
“不，我们不怕他们！”
“真的吗？”鹰霜竖起了耳朵，“那为什么火星不敢问他们冬青爪的下落？”
狮爪睁大了眼睛：“你知道冬青爪的下落？”
“我当然知道很多。谁会像火星一样，自己在营地里待着，只派一帮没用的家伙去边界附近搜来搜去，都不敢再往前一步！”
“那你快告诉我冬青爪在哪里！”
但是鹰霜已经转身走开了。
狮爪连忙跟上去：“她在哪里？”
“让伟大的火星去找她吧！”鹰霜回头说道，“还有，你最好想一想，是想成为武士，还是想当个独行猫混日子。如果你的族猫发现，你守着隧道的秘密不告诉他们，他们就会把你驱逐出去，你马上就成独行猫了！”
“不！”狮爪心里十分难受。他说的不是真的，肯定不是！他注视着鹰霜的背影，“你回来！”
这位虎斑条纹武士的背影闪了一下，消失了，只留下狮爪在当地。
狮爪的心沉重得像一块石头。他已经把一些战斗动作教给了石楠爪，她可能不会用来对付他，可要是对付他的族猫，那该怎么办？想着想着，狮爪心里烦躁起来。他穿过森林，走下山坡，朝雷族营地走去。在此之前，狮爪已经有了成为伟大武士的雄心，这多亏了虎星对他的训练。可现在，他却觉得自己好像一个冷血的叛变者。要是风族真的利用那些隧道袭击雷族，占据了上风，而雷族却对此一无所知，那该怎么办？只是为了能继续跟石楠爪见面，他就要背叛整个雷族。他们之间的友谊，值得付出这样的代价吗？
当狮爪痛苦地走到荆棘屏障时，发现荆棘丛一阵颤动。里面的通道里传来一阵重重的爪子落地声。狮爪看到尘毛突然奓着毛钻出了入口，惊得他耳朵都平贴了起来。蜡毛和暴毛紧随其后。狮爪赶忙躲到一边，他们一行从他身边飞速掠过，后面还跟着刺掌、榛爪和罂粟爪。
“你也来啊，狮爪！”榛爪跑过他的身边时喊道。
警觉让狮爪血液沸腾，身上的疲惫一扫而光。他跟在族猫身后跑起来，赶上榛爪时，早已累得气喘吁吁。
“发生什么事了？”他上气不接下气，用尽体内残存的那点儿能量跟上榛爪。
“两位风族学徒追赶一只松鼠，越过了我们的边界。”榛爪一转弯绕过一丛香薇，“他们在雷族的领地上抓住并杀掉了它。黎明巡逻队亲眼看到的！他们派鼠爪回来叫我们赶紧过去。风族的猫竟然说，不管在是哪里抓到的，那都是他们自己的猎物！”
狮爪脊背上的毛竖了起来。他们居然敢这么做？他们狩猎松鼠已经够糟糕的了，居然还敢得寸进尺！狮爪加快速度，跑到榛爪前边，追上了蜡毛。这位淡灰色皮毛武士看看他，说道：“你刚才去哪儿了？警报发出时，我朝学徒巢穴里看了一眼，可你不在里边。”
狮爪的目光直视前方。他该怎么回答呢？“我……我出去得比较早。”他说道。
蜡毛眯起了眼睛。
“我睡不着觉。”狮爪又解释道。
突然一声尖叫划过天空。
透过树丛，狮爪看到了一簇簇皮毛——那是他的族猫们。狮爪听到了蛛足愤怒的号叫，看到溪儿快速奔过森林地面的身影。亮心正和白尾纠缠在一起。裂耳、灰脚、枭须和鼬毛都尖叫着，发出嘶嘶的声音，他们的爪子在黎明的曙光中闪着寒光。雷族猫的数量不及风族巡逻队的成员。
尘毛从灌木丛里冲了出来。蛛足转身看到了，心里满是惊讶和欣喜：“感谢星族……”
蛛足话还没说完，裂耳突然扑了上去，把他撞倒在地。灰脚在蛛足身后站起来，爪子狠狠地插进他的肩膀。此时，溪儿正与枭须打在一起。这只虎斑公猫把溪儿按在地上，鼬毛上前，张开嘴使劲儿咬住溪儿的尾巴，这只来自山区的猫疼得发出一声凄厉的尖叫。
尘毛用鼻子指了指森林中的一道豁口——那里有一处通往溪流的下坡，那条溪流正是边界的标志。“大家散开，把他们赶到那里去！”他命令道。
刺掌朝灰脚奔去。他用脑袋把这位正在攻击蛛足的风族武士撞翻在地，蛛足趁机爬了起来。刺掌站起来，再次扑向灰脚。蛛足则猛地转过身朝裂耳扑去，地面上尘土飞扬，落叶飘舞。
尘毛绕过溪儿，朝鼬毛扑去。这位姜黄色皮毛的风族武士松开溪儿的尾巴，转身面对着尘毛，冲尘毛前爪下方冲去。尘毛把爪子牢牢扎进地面，把鼬毛摔翻在地。与此同时，溪儿转过身，用后腿把枭须踹飞了。
“我们去对付那两个！”罂粟爪推了推狮爪，尾巴指了指兔爪和风爪——他俩正挥爪猛击与白尾搏斗的亮心。
狮爪点点头。“我去迎战风爪。”说完，他猛冲上去，朝那位黑色皮毛的学徒扑过去。
毫无防备的风爪被撞倒了，在地上翻滚着。狮爪跃到风爪头顶上方，用后腿支撑起身体，张开了前爪。不过风爪的反应十分迅速，一下子躲到一边，狮爪扑了个空。狮爪落到地上，转过身，看到风爪正朝自己反扑过来。狮爪突然想起了虎星教给自己的动作，于是他将后腿朝空中蹬去，同时用前爪支撑着地面，旋转着身体朝后方跳去，然后用后腿站立起来，用爪子在风爪惊呆的脸上猛抓了好几下，接着低下头，做了个干净利落的前滚翻。
他的心中顿时充满了满足感。虎星，你看到了吗？
紧接着，他的身体突然僵住了。在参加打斗的猫群中，他看到了一团浅色斑纹的皮毛。
是石楠爪吗？
他顿时心中一紧。他又仔细看了看，这才发现，原来是刚躲开溪儿的枭须。突然，他感到一阵火辣辣的疼，是风爪刚才用锋利的爪子抓了他一下，鲜血从伤口流淌下来，耳朵变得湿漉漉的！狮爪心中的怒火更盛了，他转过身朝风爪猛扑过去。这位风族学徒朝后方一闪。狮爪站起来，想用前爪去抓他，可是风爪灵巧地从他身下滚了出去。
“你的动作还是不够快啊。”风族学徒讥笑道。
忽然榛爪飞速冲过来，用脑袋朝风爪猛撞过去。风族学徒摔倒在地，呼吸有些困难。狮爪张开爪子，狠狠抓向风爪的腹部。
“我叫你得意！”榛爪一边责骂着风爪，一边用牙齿使劲儿咬住他的尾巴。
风爪顿时发出一声惨叫，挣扎着爬了起来，用后腿把榛爪踢开。他睁大眼睛瞪着狮爪：“你敢跟我单打独斗吗？”
“你想要试试？”话音刚落，狮爪又重新扑向他，用前爪死死地揪住风爪的脑袋，用后腿朝风爪身下扫去。这是虎星教给他的另一个动作！风族学徒滚下山坡，消失在溪谷边缘。
在离狮爪一尾巴远的地方，蜡毛把鼬毛按在了地上。这位风族武士拼命挣脱了出来，可蜡毛精准地打在了他的下巴上，一下子把他打飞出去，落在一片荆棘丛里。鼬毛痛得大叫一声，挣扎着从布满尖刺的荆棘丛脱身，狼狈地跑回了风族领地。
溪儿正在斜坡上与枭须对峙，她用后腿平衡着身体，前爪朝他的鼻子发起快速连贯的攻击，逼得枭须不断地朝坡下退去。另一边，罂粟爪死死地抓着白尾的后背，亮心趁机抓挠着这位风族武士的耳朵。
兔爪已经越过溪流逃走了，榛爪在他身后怒吼着：“小兔子，快点儿滚回育婴室吧！”
“撤退！”灰脚下达了命令。
裂耳正用后爪不断地击打着刺掌的后背。听到命令之后，他连忙抬起头来。刺掌趁机摆脱了他的控制，爬了起来，狠狠地朝这只虎斑猫的头部重击了一下。裂耳叫了一声，打了个趔趄，嘶嘶叫着，然后转过身，眼睛眯缝着透出愤怒的凶光。这时，其他的风族猫已经全都逃走了。
“这事儿没有完！”裂耳跳过溪谷，在自己同伴身边停下了脚步。他们聚在一起，每只猫都是遍体鳞伤，血流不止，胸脯不停地起伏着，用恶狠狠的目光怒视着雷族猫。
“从现在开始，你们要老实待在荒原上！”尘毛嘶嘶地叫道。
灰脚瞪着这位带有暗棕色斑纹的武士：“是火星把这片森林让给我们的！如果你们对我们在这里狩猎有异议，那就去找他理论啊！”
尘毛活动了一下爪子：“不管武士还是学徒，只要让我发现任何一只风族猫在狩猎雷族的猎物，我就绝不会轻饶他的！”
狮爪抖抖皮毛，对风爪嘶嘶叫道：“你们休想再抓到一只松鼠！”
风爪抽动尾巴：“话别说得太大！”
刺掌朝边界靠了靠，对着风族猫咆哮道：“滚回你们的营地去！”
尘毛的毛竖着，他的鼻子已经被鲜血染红。“这事儿不能就这么算了。”说完他转过身，生气地咕哝了几句什么，然后一瘸一拐地领着族猫朝森林深处走去。“大家伤得严重吗？”他回过头看着众猫问道。
“我的尾巴特别疼，”亮心说道，“不过应该很快就会愈合的。”
狮爪舔舔爪子，摸摸他被抓伤的一只耳朵。他摸到了耳朵尖儿上的一处裂口。狮爪自豪地想，这道战斗的伤疤将永远伴随着自己。
“溪儿？”尘毛眯起眼睛，看着这只山区来的猫，“你腹部的抓伤好像很严重。”
“伤口并不深。”尽管鲜血还在流淌着，溪儿却依旧镇定地回答。
“我会把她送回营地的。”暴毛说道。
尘毛点点头：“刺掌、蛛足和我重新标记边界，剩下的猫都跟暴毛回去吧。”
“我可以留下来帮忙吗？”狮爪问道。
“你看起来就像是一整天都在奔忙。”蜡毛对他说道。
狮爪垂下了头。难道他的困意很明显吗？他有些不情愿地跟着暴毛和溪儿走进了森林。
榛爪赶上了他：“刚才的战斗怎么样？很过瘾吧？”
“我现在感觉自己已经成为真正的武士了。”罂粟爪也来到他俩身边。
“我也是！”狮爪的心里突然涌起一阵自豪感。鹰霜错了，他竟然断定我永远不会成为伟大的武士，他大错特错了。
巡逻队员们下到山谷时，黑莓掌冲出荆棘通道来迎接他们。“你们把他们赶走了吗？”他问道。
“很容易。”暴毛说道。
“没有猫受重伤吧？”黑莓掌又问道。
“只是受了些抓伤。”亮心一边说，一边摇摇尾巴，身子不由一缩。
黑莓掌用鼻子碰了碰狮爪的脑袋。“你的耳朵应该很疼吧？”他问道。
“没事儿的。”狮爪回答道。
“狮爪作战时很英勇，像真正的武士一样。”暴毛说道。
当黑莓掌的尾巴拂过狮爪的脊背时，他抬起了下巴。“我就知道，他肯定会这样。”雷族副族长发出一声骄傲的呼噜。
“他受伤了吗？”松鼠飞焦躁地搓着地上的泥土，见到巡逻队走进空地，她立刻跑到狮爪的身边，狮爪却马上躲开了。就一点儿伤而已，不用大惊小怪。他想道。
“他作战时很英勇，像一位真正的武士。”黑莓掌告诉她。
松鼠飞朝狮爪眨了眨眼：“太好了。”
“溪儿受了一处抓伤，亮心的尾巴被咬了。”狮爪汇报道，“不过风族猫最近这段时间应该不会再出现在我们的领地上了。”他心里也希望自己说的是真的。石楠爪这次没在风族的巡逻队里，这让他感到庆幸，可下次呢？
“你的耳朵受伤好像很严重。”松鼠飞的话语里透着一些担心。
狮爪耸耸肩：“没什么的。”
“还是去看看比较好。”松鼠飞推着狮爪往巫医巢穴走去。这时，暴毛已经带着亮心和溪儿穿过了巫医巢穴前的黑莓丛。虽然狮爪心里有些不情愿，但还是跟着他们走了。他不想让叶池把自己的伤口完全治愈，因为他想把那道伤疤保留下来，作为自己英勇作战的证明。
幸运的是，当他挤过荆棘丛，进入巫医巢穴时，叶池和松鸦爪已经忙着处理溪儿和亮心的伤口了。
“我还需要一些蛛丝！”叶池对松鸦爪喊着。松鸦爪把嘴里给亮心尾巴涂抹用的药糊吐了出来，冲到巢穴的后面，用嘴巴衔回一束蛛丝，叶池把它紧紧地压在溪儿的伤口上。地上有一团用过的蛛丝，已经被血染红了。
“它是止血用的，对吧？”暴毛焦急地望着叶池问道。
“是的，”叶池一边回答，一边把两只爪子都按在伤口上，“你能像我这样按着这儿吗？”
暴毛点点头，把爪子放在叶池的爪子上。叶池把她的爪子移开，转过身去检查亮心尾巴上的伤口。
“用橡树叶是正确的，”她对松鸦爪说，“它会防止伤口感染。这样一来，伤口过几天就会愈合。”她又回头看了看暴毛，暴毛正认真地按压着溪儿腹部伤口上的蛛丝。“冬青爪有消息了吗？”她问道。
“我们没机会问他们。”溪儿承认道。
叶池叹了口气。“我猜也是，”她说道，“我还希望风族能主动透露一些消息呢。”
“风族没有抓她。”狮爪宣布道。
叶池竖起了耳朵：“你怎么知道的？”
狮爪注视着地面。“嗯，如果他们真的抓住她了，一定会告诉我们的吧？”他抬起头看着叶池，“他们把她抓住，又是为了什么呢？”
“那她到底在哪儿啊？”叶池绝望地问道。
狮爪用尾巴碰了碰松鸦爪的肩膀：“你去问问星族，好吗？”
松鸦爪身上的毛顿时竖了起来，似乎被激怒了：“不好。”
叶池哼了一声，走到洞穴后面去了。
狮爪皱了皱眉。到底发生了什么？“你为什么不去问问它们啊？”他逼问道，“冬青爪和我们可是亲兄妹啊。”
“我还没找到机会。”松鸦爪把一大口橡树叶朝亮心尾巴上的伤口舔去。
狮爪瞪了一眼自己的弟弟，气得浑身的毛竖了起来。“那你有没有试着跟它们联系呢？”他转身面对着叶池问道。
叶池衔着一团蛛丝，来到溪儿身边，把那团浅色的蛛丝扔在暴毛的爪子边，跟狮爪解释道：“我们不是任何时候都能跟星族联系上的。如果武士祖灵想跟我们分享一些事情，它们会通过某种方式让我们知道的。”
难道我们现在除了干等着，什么都不能做了吗？狮爪想着，活动了一下自己的爪子。
“我来找些东西，治一下你耳朵上的伤口。”叶池朝草药堆的方向走去。
“今晚我会试着去问问星族的。”松鸦爪悄悄对狮爪说道。狮爪此时却更加疑惑了。这两只猫究竟在搞什么鬼？难道松鸦爪不想让叶池听到？
“这个应该很管用。”叶池拿回来一包用叶子包好的药糊，“你可以自己把这个抹在伤口上吗？我和松鸦爪要去检查一下巡逻队其他猫的情况。”说完，她走出了巢穴，松鸦爪跟了出去。
“你需要帮助吗？”亮心一边问他，一边用爪子打开叶子，把药糊涂在爪垫上。“我相信冬青爪很快就会回来的。”她一边安慰着狮爪，一边把药糊敷在他的耳朵上。
伤口钻心地疼，狮爪的身体不由自主地抽动着。“松鸦爪会找到她的下落的。”他满怀信心地说道。这时，疲惫卷土重来。他在隧道里度过的那一晚，以及接下来的那场恶战，已经把他身体里的最后一点儿能量都消耗完了。他一低头，躲开了亮心的爪子：“药已经涂得够多了。”
“是的。”亮心在胸前抹抹爪子，转身问暴毛，“血止住了吗？”
“我想是的。”
狮爪拖着如黏土般沉重的爪子，走出了巢穴。他恨不得马上躺回自己的窝里，美美地睡上一觉。但这时忧虑又涌上狮爪心头，强迫他和困意做着斗争。武士应该随时准备应战，要是今天自己因为过于疲倦而不能参战，那将会是怎样的结果呢？
“狮爪！”蜡毛朝他跑了过来。
狮爪的心顿时一沉，不过他还是抽抽胡须，勉强打起了精神。“你要让我去狩猎吗？”他问道。
“不是。”蜡毛在他身边停下来，“你看起来很疲倦啊！去睡一觉吧，你需要好好恢复一下体力。”
狮爪身体一僵。老师的话里似乎有警示的意味。难道蜡毛怀疑，他之所以这么疲倦，不只是因为早晨的战斗？
狮爪的心扑通扑通地乱跳着。“我保证，我会时刻准备着战斗！”他说道，“我要成为雷族有史以来最优秀的武士！我一定会的！”
蜡毛的胡须动了动：“我相信你一定会的。”
狮爪闻到了老鼠那温暖可口的气息。他睁开眼睛，一只猎物正躺在窝边的苔藓上。
蜜爪正站在猎物旁：“我想你一定饿了。”
狮爪伸伸爪子，它们不由自主地颤抖起来：“天很晚了吗？”
“黄昏巡逻队刚回来，”蜜爪说道，“他们带回了这个。”她用爪子拍了拍那只老鼠。
“幼崽和长老都吃过东西了吗？”狮爪问道。
“当然了。”蜜爪坐了下来，“榛爪说你在战斗中狠狠地教训了风爪一顿。”她的双眼闪着光，“她还说风爪最后摔进了溪流里。”
狮爪坐直了身子。“是的。”一想起这些，他的心里就热血澎湃，“我想，风族的学徒们这段时间不会在我们的领地上狩猎了。”这时，一阵寒意顺着他的脊背升起。要是今天跟兔爪前来狩猎的是石楠爪而不是风爪，那会怎么样？
“狮爪？”蜜爪双眼直视着他，“你怎么了？”
狮爪的身体抖了抖。“没事儿，就是累了。”说着他假装打了个哈欠。
“好吧。”蜜爪耸耸肩说道，“如果你想找我们，就去半边石那里。”说完，她离开了巢穴。
狮爪狼吞虎咽地吃完了老鼠，然后来到空地上，跟他的族猫们会合。他跟他们聊天时，突然发现冬青爪还没有回来。此时，他真想让所有其他学徒都回到窝里待着。狮爪抬头看了看月亮被薄云遮住了，正在天空中缓缓移动。石楠爪一定已经在等他了。
莓爪和榛爪是最晚回他们巢穴的，他们的皮毛在黑暗中闪着微光。他们的身影一消失，狮爪就飞快地冲进了通往排便处的通道。他回头看了看，确定空地上没有其他猫，这才溜出了营地。
当狮爪抵达目的地时，耳朵已被夜晚的寒气冻得生疼。狮爪走进隧道，一种可怕的感觉再次涌上心头。他每次来这里都会有这种感觉，不过这次更厉害了。狮爪总觉得自己有一些事情必须要做，尽管会很艰难、很痛苦，但是不做不行……狮爪努力把脑子里阴郁的想法都清理掉，沿着弯弯曲曲的小路走向那个洞穴。石楠爪已经在那里等他了。一见到他，石楠爪马上跑了过来，用鼻子蹭着他的脸颊。石楠爪的气息那么温暖，却充满了困意，好像刚从睡梦中醒来。
“看你那可怜的小耳朵！”石楠爪看到那道已结痂的伤口时，深吸了一口气。
“已经好多了。”狮爪说道。
“你只受了这一处伤吗？”石楠爪的眼睛在昏暗的洞穴里闪着担忧的光，“风爪说他差点儿就把你撕碎了！”
狮爪顿时后退了一步。石楠爪应该更关心自己的族猫，而不是他。他更加确信，自己必须做那件该做的事情了。
石楠爪把脑袋一歪。“怎么了？”难道她能感受到自己内心的愧疚？
狮爪直视着她，说道：“我们不能再见面了。”
石楠爪睁大了眼睛：“你什么意思？”
“就是我们不能再见面了。”
“可是我们在一起很快乐啊！为什么要终止这段关系呢？我们又没有伤害到其他猫。”她的声音瞬间变得尖厉起来，并且充满了绝望。
“我真的觉得你很好，石楠爪。”狮爪一边说，一边盯着自己的爪子。为什么一面对她，这件事就变得如此困难呢？“可是你要在自己的族群里寻找你的另一半。我要成为最优秀的武士，可如果我每天晚上都来这里见你，我是实现不了这个梦想的。”
石楠爪猛地朝后退缩了一下，好像狮爪把她的鼻子抓伤了一般。“我们不必每晚都见面啊。”她的声音突然小得如同风的轻语。
这跟我们多久见一次没有关系！我本来就不该出现在这里！“在今天的战斗中，我一直在寻找你的身影，”狮爪告诉她说，“要是你在巡逻队里会怎么样？”
“你可以跟风爪或兔爪作战啊，还有……”
“战斗不是那么简单的事情，你是知道的！”她必须明白！“我不可能挑对手去进攻，我必须为我自己的族群而战。我不能时时刻刻担心你。”看到石楠爪被愁云笼罩的双眼，狮爪心如刀割般难受。
“那，我们就这样结束了？”她问道。
“是的。”狮爪不想让她看出，自己其实很想改变主意了，答应每个月见她一次、两次，或者三次……他必须做出不见面的决定。
突然，石楠爪的眼中燃起了怒火。“好吧！”她猛地说道，“我现在终于明白了！”说完，她转身朝通往风族领地的隧道走去。在走进阴影里之前，石楠爪回过了头，眼里流露出痛苦的神色：“我只希望，你的武士梦想值得你这么做！”
CHAPTER20
CHAPTER20
Water roared in Hollypaw’s ears asthe pale light of the cave faded from sight. The river dragged her into the tunnel, the current pulling her under. Her lungs screamed for air. She fought the urge to suck in water and kept her jaws firmly clamped around Thistlekit’s tail.
Rock scraped her ears and she felt air on her face as the river swirled her upward. She drew a quick breath before the river dragged her down once more.
A body brushed hers and was swept away. Thistlekit struggled, raking her nose with thorn-sharp claws. She resisted the urge to fight, trusting Jaypaw, letting the flood carry her, feeling stone graze her flanks as the water tossed her against the sides of the tunnel.
The roaring grew louder till she thought her ears would burst
Then peace.
The current let her go and the noise died away. She strained to see through the darkness. Was that light? Bright dots sparkled in the distance. Was StarClan waiting to welcome her?
Her head swam and blackness pressed in on the edges of her consciousness. She fought her way upward, frantically seeking the surface, praying that she wouldn’t find rock above her. With a final desperate effort she pushed up and up until she thought the whole world must be water.
Suddenly, she burst through the surface of the lake, startled by the chill of the wind as it swept her face and filled her nose and ears. They had made it! She gasped and spluttered, drawing in lungful after lungful of cold, wonderful air. Blinking water from her eyes, she saw that the dots were stars, glimmering through wind-torn clouds. The rainstorm was moving away.
Thistlekit thrashed in the water beside her, fighting to keep her head above water. Hollypaw grasped the kit with her forepaws, let go of her tail and grabbed her scruff, paddling with her hind legs to keep both their heads out of the water. She forced herself to relax, letting the water support her and working her paws in a steady rhythm that held them afloat. Thistlekit coughed and wheezed, trembling against her chest.
Hollypaw scanned the dark surface of the lake for the others. Joy sparked in her belly when she saw Lionpaw’s golden head bobbing a few tail-lengths away. Sedgekit was clinging to his back, eyes shining in the moonlight. Bubbles exploded near him, and Breezepaw burst to the surface with Swallowkit.
Jaypaw? Heatherpaw? Panic started to grip Hollypaw. Had they made it? She heard splashing behind her and she twisted around, dragging Thistlekit so fast he squealed with surprise.
Jaypaw and Heatherpaw were flailing beside each other, their paws spraying water as they fought to stay afloat.
“Jaypaw!” she called.
“We’re okay!” Heatherpaw coughed.
Hollypaw swam toward them, kicking out with her hind legs, surprised to find herself swimming like a RiverClan cat. “The shore’s over there!” She could see it not far off and, reaching Jaypaw, she nudged him toward it.
Heatherpaw was splashing toward Lionpaw. Why wasn’t the WindClan apprentice trying to help her own Clanmate? Then she realized that Lionpaw was thrashing in the water, ducking his face under. As he came up for a breath, she saw his eyes were wild with panic.
“Sedgekit’s gone!” he yowled.
Heatherpaw dived beneath the surface. Hollypaw held her breath, treading water as Lionpaw ducked under again. Had the current dragged the kit back down into the black, bottomless water?
Suddenly, Heatherpaw bobbed up, Sedgekit between her jaws. The kit’s paws flapped wildly. He was alive!
Lionpaw broke the surface, his eyes lighting as he saw Sedgekit. He swam to Heatherpaw’s side and grasped the kit’s tail between his teeth, and together they headed for the shore. Hollypaw swam beside Jaypaw, casting an eye back to make sure Breezepaw was still managing. The black WindClan apprentice was pounding through the water with Swallowkit’s scruff in his jaws and his eyes fixed on the shore.
Hollypaw’s muscles burned with exhaustion, but she didn’t dare stop moving. With Thistlekit’s fur blocking her mouth, every breath was a struggle, but she kept her gaze pinned on the shoreline and pushed on. At last, she felt pebbles graze her hind paws and, reaching down, touched the bottom with a forepaw. Thank you, StarClan!
Wading from the water, she dropped Thistlekit in the shallows and stood panting for a moment, struggling to get her breath back. Heatherpaw and Lionpaw already lay farther up the shore, their flanks heaving while Sedgekit crouched beside them, vomiting water onto the pebbles.
Pebbles clacked behind her as Jaypaw followed her out of the lake.
“How did you know it would carry us into the lake?” Hollypaw gasped.
“It…it made sense,” Jaypaw mewed between coughs. He splashed onto the beach, and Thistlekit stumbled after him.
Breezepaw was struggling out of the shallows a few foxtails along the shore. Swallowkit dangled from his jaws, her paws flailing as she fought to be put down.
“We’re all safe!” Hollypaw breathed. She padded to Lionpaw and Heatherpaw, her trembling paws slipping on the wet pebbles. “Are you two okay?”
Lionpaw lifted his head. “Only half-drowned.”
A purr burst from Heatherpaw. She flicked Lionpaw with her dripping tail and got to her paws. “We’d better get the kits back to camp.”
Hollypaw glanced up the beach. Brambles and ferns crowded the shoreline, the forest dark behind them. This was ThunderClan territory. “Let’s take them to Leafpool,” she suggested. “It’s nearer and we need to make sure they’re okay.” Sedgekit was still coughing up water. Thistlekit had collapsed beside him, and though her eyes were open, her breathing was rapid.
“Hollypaw’s right.” Jaypaw joined them. “They need treatment for shock.”
Swallowkit hurried toward them, Breezepaw at her side. “That was the horriblest thing I ever did!” She shook the water from her fur.
“You wait till you taste Leafpool’s medicine,” Jaypaw warned.
Breezepaw’s eyes glittered with suspicion. “Leafpool?”
“The ThunderClan camp’s closest,” Heatherpaw told him. “We should get them treated.”
Breezepaw stared at Swallowkit. There was blood on her fur where the rocks had scoured her pelt. “Okay,” he agreed.
Jaypaw pricked his ears. “Listen.”
Threatening yowls rang through the night air. Hollypaw stiffened as she recognized her father’s voice, countered by the menacing growls of WindClan cats.
“It’s coming from the forest border,” Jaypaw mewed.
Had their disappearance made things even worse? “There’s going to be a battle if we don’t get back soon!” Hollypaw gasped.
Lionpaw leaped to his paws. “We can show them the kits. If they know they’re safe, there doesn’t need to be a fight.”
“Are we going to the battle?” Swallowkit’s eyes grew wide as an owl’s.
“I can help fight!” Sedgekit mewed.
“There won’t be a battle if we get there quickly,” Hollypaw mewed. Sedgekit had no idea that he’d helped cause this mess, or that he’d be fighting some of the cats who’d just saved him. “Do you think you can make it?”
“Of course we can!” Thistlekit flicked her tail.
Jaypaw sniffed each kit in turn. “They need herbs,” he mewed doubtfully. Then he lifted his chin. “But it can wait a while.”
“Walking will warm them up,” Heatherpaw pointed out.
Hollypaw led the way up the beach. She scrambled up the bank and pushed aside a swath of ferns, holding back the fronds to let the others pass. Heatherpaw nudged Swallowkit up the slope while Breezepaw followed Thistlekit, pressing his muzzle against her flank to stop her stumbling. Lionpaw grabbed Sedgekit by the scruff and swung him up the steep bank, letting him drop beside Hollypaw. She pressed the ferns back as the kit padded past. He was staring up at the branches, eyes wide as though he’d never walked beneath trees before.
“What’s Jaypaw doing?” Lionpaw was staring at his brother on the shore.
Hollypaw narrowed her eyes. Jaypaw was crouched beside a stick.
“You stay with the others,” she told Lionpaw. “We’ll catch up with you.”
She darted back onto the beach. “Are you okay?” she called to Jaypaw.
He didn’t seem to hear her. He was staring at the stick, eyes closed like he was asleep. She padded closer, feeling as if she were intruding.
“All safe, just as you promised,” Jaypaw was murmuring, his muzzle pressed against the smooth, pale wood. “Thank you.”
“We have to go!” Hollypaw urged.
Jaypaw didn’t stir. “Go carefully, Fallen Leaves,” he whispered. “I hope you find your own way out one day.”
“Come on, Jaypaw!” They must hurry. The yowls from the border were growing fiercer.
Jaypaw lifted his head. “I’m coming.” He left the stick and padded to her side.
“What were you doing?”
“It’s not important,” Jaypaw replied, turning his sightless eyes on her. Hollypaw knew him well enough to guess that it was. Sometimes she wished she understood Jaypaw better. Lionpaw was easy. His friendship with Heatherpaw had broken the warrior code, but there was no mystery in his liking the pretty WindClan cat. But Jaypaw seemed to be guided by invisible paws, as though he walked in a secret world she could never be part of.
They caught up with the others. Hollypaw’s chest ached and her paws felt raw after the journey through the tunnels. How soft the forest floor felt on her pads after so much rough stone. Breezepaw pushed the pace harder and the kits had to scurry to keep up. Thistlekit tripped over a root. Lionpaw instantly scooped her up and she didn’t complain, hanging limp from his jaws, her eyes glazed with exhaustion.
Sedgekit was panting hard.
“I can carry you,” Hollypaw offered. The kit shook his head, too breathless to speak.
Suddenly, Swallowkit squealed. A bramble had snagged her fur. Jaypaw plucked it free with his teeth. Hollypaw’s chest tightened. It was cruel to make the kits travel so quickly through the forest. But they had to stop the battle.
“We’re nearly there,” she mewed.
The ground sloped down and Breezepaw broke into a run. Sedgekit and Swallowkit skittered after him.
An angry yowl echoed from the forest ahead. “I told you, we don’t have your kits!”
It was Firestar.
“Then where are they?” Onestar spat back. “RiverClan swears they don’t have them either. But they must be somewhere and we mean to find them.”
“Put one paw across the border and we’ll shred you!”
Hollypaw strained to see her Clanmates. Through the trees, she could make out Brambleclaw squaring up to Ashfoot on the WindClan side of the gully. Firestar stood shoulder to shoulder with his deputy. Thornclaw, Whitewing, Spiderleg, and Berrypaw were bristling behind them as the WindClan cats faced them, fur on end, lips drawn back in threatening snarls. Crowfeather was tearing at the ground beside Onestar and Ashfoot, claws unsheathed, while Owlwhisker and Tornear paced up and down behind them.
Heart pounding, Hollypaw swerved past the kits and chased after Breezepaw. Brambles sprang back in his wake, lashing her muzzle. She burst from the undergrowth just in time to see Breezepaw leap across the gully.
“Stop! We found the kits,” he yowled.
“There’s no need to fight!” Hollypaw stared anxiously over her shoulder, willing the others to hurry.
“Where are they?” Onestar demanded.
“They’re coming,” Hollypaw promised.
The warriors stared in astonishment as the undergrowth shivered and Heatherpaw nosed Sedgekit and Swallowkit out into the open. The kits stumbled to a halt and stood blinking in the moonlight. Lionpaw padded out of the brambles, Jaypaw following, and placed Thistlekit gently beside them.
“Where in StarClan did you find them?” Onestar’s eyes stretched wide.
Lionpaw’s fur was prickling along his spine. He glanced at Heatherpaw and stepped forward. “They found their way into—”
Hollypaw cut him off. “They were down on the shore,” she mewed. “They’d made themselves a camp to shelter from the rain.”
What was the point in giving away Lionpaw’s secret? The tunnels between the two Clans were blocked now. Any tactical advantage was lost and it would only get Lionpaw into trouble. She glanced at the others, silently praying that they would agree.
Heatherpaw nodded. “They were just inside the ThunderClan border, right down on the beach.” Her gaze fixed on Breezepaw. “Lionpaw, Hollypaw, and Jaypaw saw us looking for them and called us over when they picked up their scent.”
“What scent?” Onestar meowed. “We didn’t find one.”
Breezepaw blinked. “The rain must have washed it away,” he mewed.
Onestar beckoned the kits toward him with his tail. “Come here!”
Gingerly, Sedgekit, Thistlekit, and Swallowkit approached the border, ears flattened and tails down, and stopped at the edge of the gully.
“Why did you leave camp without permission?” Onestar growled across the gap.
Sedgekit lifted his chin. “We were exploring.”
“Exploring?” Onestar echoed. “We’ve almost fought battles with RiverClan and ThunderClan looking for you.”
Swallowkit hung her head. “We’re sorry.”
“We didn’t think,” Thistlekit added.
“It seemed like fun to build our own camp on the beach.” Sedgekit’s gaze darted toward Hollypaw with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. He had no idea how important it was that the tunnels remain a secret.
Lionpaw padded to the scent-line. “You said almostfought RiverClan?” he mewed to Onestar.
Hollypaw’s pelt rippled with hope. “There hasn’t been a battle yet?”
“We gave RiverClan till dawn to return the kits.” Onestar gave an exasperated sigh. “But now it looks like we need to apologize for falsely accusing them.”
“Apologize?” Tornear lashed his tail. “Don’t forget they crossed our border!”
“They were chased by a dog,” Onestar reminded him.
“That’s what they said last time,” Crowfeather growled.
“I smelled the dog scent myself,” Onestar snapped. “We have to trust what our eyes and ears tell us.”
Crowfeather bristled. “But they still might invade.”
Onestar narrowed his eyes. “Or they might return to their old camp as they’ve promised. We’ll find out at the next Gathering. Until then we patrol our borders as usual. And if we see that dog, we’ll teach it to stay on its own land.”
Hollypaw felt weak with relief. The threat of battle was over. The WindClan kits were safe. She noticed Firestar staring at her.
“It looks like you were right, Hollypaw,” he meowed.
She dipped her head. “It was never about being right,” she mewed.
Brambleclaw ran his tail along her flank. “You look exhausted. We should get you all home.”
“Yes,” Onestar agreed. He hopped across the border and lifted the kits, one by one, over the gully. “I’m sorry that our kits caused so much trouble.”
“We have kits of our own,” Firestar replied, a hint of warmth in his voice. “So we know what it’s like.”
Tornear snorted and grabbed Thistlekit by the scruff. He turned sharply and padded away through the trees. Owlwhisker picked up Swallowkit while Crowfeather lifted Sedgekit.
“Thanks for bringing us back!” Sedgekit squeaked as he was carried away.
Brambleclaw glanced at Jaypaw, who was hanging back beside the undergrowth. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Jaypaw assured him. He began to wash his tail.
Hollypaw blinked. Didn’t he care they had stopped a battle? It was as though his quest had ended the moment they’d left the lake.
“I’d better go too.” Breezepaw nodded curtly at Hollypaw and Lionpaw. “Are you coming?” He stared at Heatherpaw, who was lingering on the ThunderClan side of the border.
“In a moment.”
Breezepaw snorted and hurried after his Clanmates.
Heatherpaw padded to Lionpaw and entwined her tail briefly with his. “Thanks for helping.”
Firestar narrowed his eyes and Hollypaw stiffened. She stared at her brother, claws itching as she waited for his reply. One battle had been averted, but was another one still looming?
“We would have done the same for any cat,” Lionpaw mewed flatly.
Pain flashed in Heatherpaw’s eyes. “You’re going to be a great warrior, Lionpaw.”
Lionpaw watched as she leaped the gully and disappeared into the shadows. Then he blinked at Firestar, his eyes expressionless. “Are we going home now?”
Firestar nodded and began to lead his Clanmates away.
Hollypaw dug her claws into the soft, wet earth. Lionpaw had learned his lesson. The warrior code was more important than any friendship. It guided their paws in everything and it stopped more battles than it started. Jaypaw could get away with testing the code’s limits—he had his own mysterious relationship with StarClan—but she and Lionpaw were warriors. Without the code, they were nothing.
I’m not a medicine cat anymore. I can’t be friends with Willowpaw, not like we used to be. Obeying the warrior code is all that matters; if we do that, the Clans will be safe.
Muscles aching and paws weary, she followed her Clanmates into the forest. She could sleep soundly tonight.
第十六章
第十六章
冬青爪在柳爪身边扭动着身子，想让自己更舒服些。窝里的苔藓，连供一只猫睡觉用都不够，更别提两只猫了。湖水不断拍打着岩石，发出震耳的响声。但即使如此，柳爪还是睡得十分香甜，冬青爪真想知道柳爪是怎么做到的。
大雨在湖面肆虐着。雨水从洞顶滴落到地面，发出啪嗒啪嗒的声响。冬青爪从洞口看出去，只能看到来时经过的那条湖堤横卧在夜色中。她想看看远处那块属于雷族的湖岸，可尚未破晓的天空依旧灰蒙蒙一片，她只能依稀辨认出远方那片森林的轮廓。
她已经在河族营地里待了两天了。豹星坚称她此时独自回去是不安全的，但是所有猫——包括冬青爪在内——都清楚，她之所以被困在岛上，是因为豹星为了防止她把河族虚弱的秘密报告给她的族猫。冬青爪翻了个身，肚子饿得咕咕响。
“你就不能安静地待会儿吗？”柳爪睡意未消，叹了口气问道。
“对不起。”冬青爪的内心十分痛苦——她离开自己的族群太远了。
柳爪一定是从冬青爪的话语里感受到了她内心的痛楚，于是坐起来，伸伸懒腰，眼睛在昏暗中闪着同情的光芒。“你很快就可以回去了。”她安慰道。
“还要多久？”
“再过一周，那些水坝应该就能建好了。”柳爪说道，“那时我们就能回到原先的营地。到时豹星一定会组织护卫队，护送你回去的。”
还要一周！她不能在这里待这么长时间啊！“可是我的族猫们该怎么办啊？”
“我知道他们都很担心你，”柳爪同情地说道，“不过你想想啊，等你回去时，他们会有多高兴啊！”
是啊，不过他们也会非常生气。一想到黑莓掌愤怒地竖起皮毛的样子，以及松鼠飞满是责难的尖锐目光，冬青爪的心情顿时跌入了谷底。
“你不会说出任何事的，对吧？”柳爪的眼睛睁得圆圆的，“你不会告诉他们岛和两脚兽们的事吧？”
“不会的。既然你不想让我这么做，我就绝对不会做的。”冬青爪猜到了柳爪为什么这样害怕。她是担心其他族群知道河族遭受了怎么样的境遇。因为就算他们设法返回了原先的营地，河族想要恢复元气，也至少需要一个月的时间。
“你能保证吗？”
“我保证。”
“很快，一切都会恢复正常的。”柳爪叹了口气，说道。
“是的。”冬青爪发觉，这个词突然在喉咙里哽住了。一切真的会恢复正常吗？冬青爪的心中，已经不再确信，只要解决了河族的麻烦，就会将各族群间燃起的敌意熄灭。族群间长久以来的和平，似乎已经使年轻一代的猫都渴望战斗的到来，老一辈的武士们也开始怀念起往日战斗的辉煌。冬青爪想到不久前，自己跟河族猫遭遇风族巡逻队时的画面。他们毛竖着，气势汹汹的。他们甚至都不想听河族猫的任何解释。这种对战斗的渴望，真的会像遮住阳光的薄雾一般消散吗？
天空中乌云密布，电闪雷鸣，在湖堤那边，有猫已经开始活动起来。冬青爪看到一团团皮毛在树丛间移动着，她对这些皮毛十分熟悉，简直如同自己的族伴一般。灰雾带着小喷嚏和小锦葵到湖岸喝水。藓毛带领榉毛和卵石爪一起朝倒伏树桥的方向走去。黎明巡逻队只有这么几只猫，好少啊！冬青爪知道，这些河族武士的大部分精力，都用在了修复旧营地的工作上。
雾脚从森林里走出来，穿过湖堤小路，嘴里叼着一条小鱼。她把鱼扔在洞檐下的水坑里。
蛾翅听到噼里啪啦的水声，抬起头，在窝里伸伸懒腰。“谢谢你，雾脚。”她打了个哈欠说道。
冬青爪知道，河族副族长亲自把食物拿到巫医巢穴里来，那是相当罕见的。很快她就意识到，雾脚是来查看自己是否在半夜里逃跑了，她的心情顿时变得非常糟糕。但她还是很感激雾脚采用了这种圆滑的方式。
“食物不多，”雾脚说道，“不过应该够你挺过一整天了。”
冬青爪的肚子又开始咕咕大叫。一条鱼吃一整天啊！这里的食物十分匮乏，一些武士甚至饿着睡觉。她有东西吃，还算是很幸运。尽管河族为她这位不受欢迎的客人提供了食物，也让她有些感动，但她还是不习惯鱼那强烈而刺鼻的味道。此刻，她更加怀念森林中的猎物那带有麝香的味道。
“有猫闯进来了！”藓毛的吼叫声从倒伏树桥那里传过来。
灰雾立刻把自己的幼崽召回岛上的空地上。冬青爪一愣，闻了闻空中的气味。
是雷族猫！
冬青爪心中顿时燃起了希望。她透过细密的雨丝仔细地看着。远处的湖岸上，河族的黎明巡逻队把一只猫围在了中间。是松鼠飞！冬青爪辨认出了母亲的皮毛。一股久违的兴奋涌上心头，这让她想起自己还是一只幼崽的时候，母亲从武士巢穴到育婴室来看自己的情形。
“你最好跟着我。”雾脚咆哮着。她转过身，沿着湖堤往回跑。冬青爪跟在她身后。她的心情十分急切，但依然强迫自己不要跑到河族副族长前面去。她无比兴奋地跑上那座岛，跟着雾脚来到空地上。
卵石爪从灌木丛里跳了出来：“她是来接冬青爪的！”
他身后的香薇丛沙沙作响。松鼠飞从容地走进空地，两边跟着藓毛和榉毛。冬青爪突然紧张起来。松鼠飞是独自前来的，豹星会放她们回去吗？她紧张地望着大橡树，看到豹星从她在根系中临时搭建的巢穴中走了出来。河族族长双眼直视着松鼠飞。冬青爪从她的眼睛里感受到一丝疑惑，她脊背上金色的毛也竖了起来。
“豹星，”松鼠飞走到她跟前停下来，向她点头致意，“我这次来，是要带回我们雷族的一位学徒。”
冬青爪真想冲过去，跟母亲蹭蹭鼻子。然而松鼠飞根本没有看她，而是用坚定的眼神盯着豹星：“我相信她是误闯入你们领地了。”
“什么？误闯？”豹星难以置信地瞪大了眼睛，“她是来刺探情报的！”
冬青爪的耳朵火辣辣的。“我是来帮忙的！”她忍不住脱口而出。
松鼠飞猛地转过头来，盯着冬青爪。冬青爪吓得朝后退了退。
空地四周，所有河族猫都睁大了眼睛，身上的肌肉都紧绷着，尾巴来回不停地抽动着。
“豹星，她只是一位学徒。”松鼠飞说道，“她还缺乏很好的判断力，我希望她会通过积累经验来提高这方面的能力。我保证，她会因为违反武士守则受到惩罚。不过雷族已经不允许她继续留在这儿了。”她的语气坚定而且有礼，却绵里藏针，透着一股威胁。雷族真的打算通过战斗的方式，把她带回去吗？冬青爪紧张地活动着爪子。她不敢相信，自己的举动竟然会引起一场战斗。
豹星绷紧了肩膀，盯着松鼠飞的眼睛。
她会放我走吗？冬青爪的心跳瞬间加快了。
豹星转身看着冬青爪，问道：“你能让我相信，你将来的判断力会更强吗？”
她在警告我不要乱说话。“我能！”冬青爪点点头说道，“我犯了一个错误，我不该来这里的。不过，我不会让任何猫因此而遭到不幸。”
豹星慢慢眨了眨眼睛：“既然如此，你可以回去了。”
“谢谢你。”冬青爪终于长舒了一口气。
空地四周，河族猫不安的话语声，回荡在空地上。
“谢谢你，豹星，”松鼠飞说道，“我代表雷族向你致歉。”冬青爪羞愧地缩了一下身子。松鼠飞的尾巴尖儿来回抽动着，看起来特别愤怒。冬青爪走到母亲身边，低头看着自己的爪子。这回自己就像一只因为淘气而犯错的幼崽一样，被领回家了。这真是太尴尬了！
松鼠飞低下头，转身朝香薇丛走去。
“等一下！”豹星甩甩尾巴，“藓毛和榉毛会护送你们到边界的。”
松鼠飞回过头，眯着眼睛，点了一下头。
突然，空地上响起了急促的脚步声，柳爪正急急忙忙朝他们跑来。“再见了！”她用鼻子蹭蹭冬青爪的脸颊。“你要保证不说出任何事。”柳爪悄声说道。
“我向你保证。”冬青爪深吸一口气说道。
柳爪朝后退了几步，不安地望着周围注视自己的族猫们。灰雾撇撇嘴，深色虎斑皮毛的长老燕尾因为不满，耳朵都平贴了起来。藓毛领着她们走进了灌木丛。松鼠飞把冬青爪赶到自己前面，榉毛跟在她俩后面。他们走到这座岛的边缘，经过倒伏树桥。
冬青爪真想告诉母亲，见到她自己有多高兴。可在河族的护送队伍面前，说这些有点儿不太合适。于是直到她们抵达边界时，她都一直缄默不语。松鼠飞一路上都没怎么看她，只是在她从树桥上下来时，看看她有没有绊倒，领着她避开下方不断拍打着岸边的水浪。
“真的对不起！”河族猫转身返回之后，憋在冬青爪心中许久的话终于说了出口。
松鼠飞的眼中满是阴云。“下次不要再这么做了！”她嘶嘶地说道。
“我再也不会了。”冬青爪顺从地发着誓。
松鼠飞领着她沿湖岸前行着，和水边保持着两条尾巴的距离。“我是理解你的。”她说道。
冬青爪竖起了耳朵。
“我知道在其他族群有朋友是什么感受，”松鼠飞的目光凝视着前方，“你会有一种强烈的感觉，除了自己的族群，似乎还有一些更重要的东西，召唤你离开自己的营地，到别处去。”
她指的一定是大迁徙。冬青爪心里说道。
“可是——”松鼠飞看了她一眼，“你要帮助河族的想法，是很愚蠢的。如果你认为，自己能独自解决所有的问题，那你就实在是自大了。”
自大！冬青爪感到一阵心痛，她可从没这么想过！
“火星不是已经跟你说了，我们雷族不会干涉他们的事吗？他比你年长，比你聪明。你应该服从他。可你没有，你违反了武士守则，让雷族陷入了危险的境地。”
冬青爪想说些什么给自己辩护，却突然什么也说不出。她觉得自己无法让族猫们相信，她去河族只是为了阻止战斗的发生。
“你不在的这段时间里，我们把风族巡逻队从雷族领地上驱逐出去了。”松鼠飞又说道。
冬青爪眨了眨眼：“他们是要侵占我们的领地吗？”
“还没那么严重。”松鼠飞抬头看了看眼前的荒原，“他们当时在追赶一只松鼠，追到我们的领地上，还说那是他们的猎物。”
“在边界我们领地这一侧？”冬青爪几乎不敢相信自己的耳朵。
“你哥哥帮着一起将他们赶走了。”
冬青爪紧张地竖起了毛：“他没事儿吧？”
“没事儿，他只是耳朵被抓伤了而已。”松鼠飞一边说，一边抽抽胡须，“我想他会以此为荣的。”
“真希望我当时也在。”
“你确实应该在，”松鼠飞说道，“当时雷族比任何时候都需要你。”
冬青爪猛然想起自己差点儿就跟河族巡逻队一起同风族作战了，心里突然感到十分内疚。她本该同自己的族猫并肩战斗的。
“空气中弥漫着战斗的气息。”松鼠飞接着说。
“可是河族并没有侵占风族领地的计划啊！”冬青爪不能就河族营地的事做出任何解释，因为她答应过柳爪和豹星，不把这件事说出去。可是她还是想尽力阻止族群间可能发生的战斗。
“河族决定做什么，跟我们没有关系，”松鼠飞说道，“我们关心的，只是保卫我们自己的边界。”
你们怎会如此目光短浅，只顾眼前呢？冬青爪忍住没有说出这句话。
松鼠飞停了下来，注视着冬青爪：“我知道，你认为自己做得对；可是你只是一位学徒，又怎么可能理解呢？你现在的任务就是多听、多学。至于制定决策的事，就交给武士们吧。”
冬青爪听了这话，气得爪子痒痒。仅仅因为是学徒，她的意见就不被重视？这到底是为什么？她垂下眼帘，极力掩饰着内心的愤怒。
很显然，松鼠飞把她的神情当作顺从的表现。“很好。”她说完开始沿着湖岸快步前行。很快她们就看到了远方的边界，冬青爪的心情终于放松了下来。
突然，冬青爪想起了一件事——她对自己之前居然忽略了它感到惊讶不已——“你是怎么知道我在河族那里的呢？”她问松鼠飞。
“松鸦爪做了个梦。”松鼠飞直截了当地回答。她看起来似乎对儿子怪异的能力并不感到惊讶，松鸦爪毕竟是一位巫医学徒。冬青爪为自己的弟弟感到骄傲，不过心里依然感到不安。拥有这种能力是什么感觉？如果松鸦爪知道她去了哪里，那是不是意味着，他也知道河族营地的事呢？她自己是不会跟火星提起这件事的，但松鸦爪呢？
冬青爪跟着松鼠飞走进空地时，整个营地陷入一片沉寂。
冬青爪听到亮心对栗尾小声说道：“她回来了！”
溪儿停下了梳洗，抬起头来：“看到你安然无恙，我真的很高兴啊！”
暴毛向她点点头，不过什么都没说。尘毛和刺掌只是看了她一眼，便又开始小声交谈起来了。冬青爪知道，这次她惹大麻烦了。
“冬青爪！”狮爪从学徒巢穴里跑了出来，眼睛闪闪发亮，好像睡了好久的样子。他围着她转着，发出了一阵呼噜：“你身上好大的鱼腥味啊！”
松鸦爪从巫医巢穴里走出来，他那双碧蓝的眼睛“直视”着她。冬青爪突然再次紧张起来，尽管她知道松鸦爪双眼是盲的，可她还是怀疑他能看见自己。
“你应该去见见火星。”松鼠飞提醒她。
松鼠飞一直目送着心情沉重的冬青爪爬上了通往高石台的落石堆。冬青爪走进火星的洞穴时，内心一片忐忑。蕨毛正在雷族族长身边等着她。“欢迎你回来！”他的话音里透着冷漠。
火星眯起了眼睛。“这段时间里你下落不明，雷族所有猫都在担心你、找寻你，耽误了很多其他事情！”他说道。
“我只是想……”
火星打断了她的话：“我们不想听任何解释，你违反了武士守则。我明确地告诉过你，我们不会干涉河族的任何事务，可你还是去了。在雷族最需要武士和学徒作战的时候，你却不见了踪影。”
“可我这次去，搞清楚了一些事情。你绝对不能攻打风族！”
“为什么？”
冬青爪的爪子划过岩石地面，回答道：“我不能告诉你。”
“这又是为什么？”
“我已经向其他猫许下了承诺。”冬青爪很不高兴地抽动着尾巴，“你必须相信我，打仗毫无必要。”
火星的尾巴扫过地面：“你真的以为，只凭你的一句话，我就会做出一个事关族群安危的决定？”
冬青爪张了张嘴，但此刻她又能说些什么呢？
“你会被禁足在营地里一天。”火星接着说道，“本来禁足的时间应该更长，不过现在的形势不允许。上次跟风族的冲突结束后，雷族巡逻队出巡的频率增加了很多，因此我们希望你能尽职尽责地工作。接下来的一个月，你就负责照顾族里的长老吧。你要让他们吃饱，确保他们的窝干净、整洁。要注意，你不能向族猫求助，必须独自完成。”
冬青爪低下了头。她对豹星做出的承诺就堵在喉咙里，但她还是决定遵守它。冬青爪不想让认识她的猫都谴责她言而无信。至少，河族并没把她当作一只愚笨的幼崽——他们居然还认为自己是个间谍呢。“就这些吗？”她低声说道。
火星甩了甩尾巴：“你现在可以开始工作了。如果你把鼠毛和长尾的窝清理干净，他们会感激你的。”
“好吧。”冬青爪说完，转身离开了洞穴。为什么火星就不能信任她呢？难道他去过河族？怎么族长们都如此短视呢？唉，不管了，随他们去吧！现在自己要做的是履行职责，少说话。她气鼓鼓地爬下落石堆，重重地迈着步子，来到叶池的巢穴里。
她从黑莓丛里探进头去：“你这里有新鲜的苔藓吗？长老巢穴需要一些。”
叶池正拆着捆绑在炭爪断腿上的蛛丝。
“冬青爪！”炭爪喊道，“原来松鸦爪的梦是真的！”
“当然是真的了！”松鸦爪正在后面整理着草药，他转过身，脸朝向冬青爪，接着说，“我猜火星一定派你去干一个月的清理和送水工作，对吧？”
“不完全对。”冬青爪抽抽胡须说道，又听到了松鸦爪那牢骚满腹的抱怨声，这种感觉还不错，“谢谢你让松鼠飞去河族找我。”
“不客气。”松鸦爪耸了耸肩，接着去整理草药了。
叶池注视着冬青爪，眼神透着忧虑。“你能平安无事，我真高兴！”她说道。
“让大家都这么担心我，实在不好意思。”冬青爪回答道。
“下次千万不要做这种事了。”叶池的声音突然严厉起来。
冬青爪的毛竖了起来。你怎么听起来像我的母亲啊！这没完没了的训斥，真是受够了！“你这里有没有苔藓呢？”她又问了一遍。
叶池用尾巴指指巢穴一侧的苔藓堆：“你想拿多少，就拿多少吧。”
冬青爪挑选了一团自己能搬动的最大的苔藓，朝长老巢穴走去。接下来还有更厉害的惩罚呢。她心想。
“这是真的吗？”当冬青爪开始清理窝中的旧苔藓时，鼠毛赶忙腾出了地方，问道，“你一直跟河族待在一起？”
“是的。”
“他们对你好吗？”长尾凑过来，鼻子不停地抽动着，“你身上的气息告诉我，他们给了你吃的。”
“没错。”
鼠毛皱皱鼻子：“我一直都不喜欢鱼的味道，太腥了！”
冬青爪扒出一团已经干结的苔藓，朝入口扔了过去。
鼠毛眯起了眼睛：“你这个小学徒，经历了这么大的惊险，为什么不跟我们讲讲呢？”
“说这些有什么意义？”冬青爪说着又扔掉了一团苔藓，“没有猫愿意听学徒说什么。”
“火星训斥你了？”长尾关切地问道。
“没有。”
鼠毛甩甩尾巴。“生闷气是毫无用处的，”她大声说道，“你违反了武士守则，难道还指望大家把你当作英雄来欢迎？”
“不是的！”冬青爪瞪着她，“可是至少我是在尽力帮助河族啊。可其他猫呢？除了想打仗，什么都不想！”
“我们必须保卫边界不受侵犯。”长尾指出。
“如果我们跟其他族群好好商议，那我们就不必保卫我们的边界了！”
“商议？”长尾露出惊异的表情，眼睛睁得大大的，“我们是武士！我们用牙齿和爪子去战斗，而不是语言！”
“等一下！”鼠毛走近冬青爪，说道，“你为什么认为商谈会解决问题呢？风族的种种举动，摆明了他们要偷走我们的猎物！他们上次擅闯边界的行为，就是铁证！他们的最终目的，是要夺取我们的领地。”
“你们为什么认为风族想夺取我们的领地呢？”冬青爪提出了质疑。
“因为河族正在计划夺取风族的领地！”长尾说道。
冬青爪抽打着尾巴：“你确定吗？”
“当然！因为他们已经失去了自己的领地！”长尾争辩道，“他们被迫搬到其他地方了。”
他们并没失去领地啊！冬青爪真希望自己当初没有向河族承诺保守秘密。“大家为什么这么草率就做出了结论？”她大喊道，“我们什么都不能确定，风族也是如此。我们只是胡乱猜测。这样下去，我们最终会因为一些根本不存在的理由而开战的！”
鼠毛皱皱眉。“你就那么相信商谈能阻止战争发生吗？”她若有所思地问道。
冬青爪心中燃起了希望，至少还有猫在认真听自己的话。她满怀期待地望着鼠毛，问道：“你能让火星重新考虑一下这件事吗？”
鼠毛并没直接回答。“你再拿一些苔藓来。”说着，她把冬青爪带来的苔藓摊开，“我们还需要更多呢。”
冬青爪的舌尖上，弥漫着老鼠肉甜美的味道。她闭上了眼睛，嘎吱嘎吱地咀嚼着一根骨头。哪怕只是嚼骨头，也能让她感到乐在其中。她跟罂粟爪和蜜爪躺在半边石旁边，新叶季的阳光晒得她的皮毛暖暖的。几天来，她第一次忘却了那即将到来的“战斗”带给自己的担心，尽情享受着营地熟悉的味道。
“你觉得他们怎么样？”罂粟爪躺在她身边，悠闲地用爪子玩着一只刚杀死的麻雀，“我是指河族猫。”
“长老的脾气都很暴躁，武士都很专横跋扈，幼崽都特别讨厌，”冬青爪一边吃着老鼠一边回答，“跟我们这边差不多吧。”
罂粟爪发出一声呼噜。“千万别让蕨毛听到这些，”她警告道，“你惹的麻烦已经够多了。”
“快看！”蜜爪坐了起来，注视着巫医巢穴。叶池正领着炭爪慢慢走到空地上。
炭爪一瘸一拐地走着，她那条受伤的腿依旧不敢碰触地面，不过绑在上面的灯芯草和蛛丝已经不见了踪影。她那条腿看起来十分纤瘦，由于绑的时间太长，腿上的毛紧紧地贴着身体，但她双眼闪闪发亮，透着兴奋。
“冬青爪！”叶池的喊声从空地另一边传了过来。
冬青爪跳了起来，咽下最后一口老鼠肉，赶忙跑过去向炭爪打招呼。她用尾巴轻拂着朋友的耳朵：“你好多了！”
“还没完全康复。”叶池提醒道，这位巫医的双眼依然充满了担忧，“不过她在窝里总是坐立不安的，我想，她还是出来透透气比较好。”
“我们可以去森林里走走吗？”炭爪问道。
“不行！”叶池的毛竖了起来。她看着冬青爪说道：“我希望你帮炭爪做一些低强度的练习，好吗？”她把重音放在“低强度”这个词上，好像在教冬青爪学习新词一样。
“当然！”冬青爪一边回应，一边抓挠着地上的泥土。
“就在空地上，哪儿也不要去。”叶池一边下着命令，一边看着炭爪，“一定要小心啊！”
“她简直像一只长着可怕条纹的獾！”看着叶池回到巫医巢穴，冬青爪悄悄对炭爪说道。
“我知道！”炭爪回答，“她真的有点儿担心过头了。她还认为，我如果呼吸太用力，就会终生瘫痪呢！”
冬青爪闻闻炭爪受伤的那条腿，上面还有刺鼻的紫草味道，便问道：“现在你的腿感觉如何？”
“有些僵硬，还有点儿站不稳。”炭爪说道，“不过一点儿也不疼了，多小心些就好。”
“你可以稍稍用力吗？”
于是炭爪缓慢地把爪垫按在地上，她的身体抽搐了一下，紧接着脸上露出放松的神情。“还不错嘛。”她小心翼翼地向前迈着步子，然后朝空地中间走去，步伐显得更加轻松了。炭爪的前腿伸展开来，让胸部靠近地面，兴奋地说道：“重新走出巢穴的感觉，真是太好了！”
冬青爪朝金银花丛匆匆走去，刚才清理长老巢穴时，她在那里丢下了一堆苔藓。她用牙齿撕下一小块苔藓，卷成一个小球。
“你还接得住吗？”冬青爪说着把球扔向炭爪。忽然，她的心猛地一颤，要是炭爪真的过去接球，她那条受伤的后腿能承受得了吗？
但是炭爪没去接，她眼睁睁地看着小球落在自己面前，然后用爪子钩了起来。“你扔球的技术太差，我肯定接不到。”说着她把小球扔给了冬青爪。
冬青爪跳了起来，用爪子把小球打了回去。这次炭爪抬起一只前爪，将三条腿伸展开来，一下子就用牙齿咬住了球。
“漂亮！”冬青爪跑回朋友的身边。
“我在窝里待着的时候，就一直跟松鸦爪练这个。”炭爪一边说，一边让球落在爪子里。
“他一直跟你玩？”冬青爪感到很惊讶。松鸦爪在巫医巢穴里，看起来总是那么严肃。
“有些时候会一块儿玩玩，”炭爪告诉她说，“不过他跟我玩，只是想让我变得安静些而已。”她看着地面，“实际上，我觉得他不喜欢我待在他身边。”
“别开玩笑了！”冬青爪说道，“巫医怎么会厌恶自己的病猫呢？”她一边说，一边拍拍炭爪的肩膀。但她能猜得出松鸦爪对炭爪不停发火的样子。如果他能尽快从叶池身上学到一点儿宽容，那该有多好！
“我们可以玩吗？”小狐和小冰从育婴室里冲了出来。
小狐迅速用尾巴把小球从炭爪那里抢了过来。他蓬松的皮毛闪着微光，好似午后秋日阳光里的落叶。“喂喂，你干什么！”小冰叫喊着冲到他身边，又抢走了小球。小狐在她身后穷追不舍。“是我先拿到的！”说着，小狐就将她摔倒在地。
冬青爪冲到这两个打闹在一起的毛球后面，把小球捡了起来。“现在你们谁也别想把它拿走。”说完，她把球扔了出去，小球嗖地飞过两只幼崽的头顶，炭爪用前爪轻轻一钩，接住了它。
“谁让你们还没有刺猬大呢！”炭爪嘲笑道，“你们只能抓抓虫子！”说完，她又把小球扔给冬青爪。
当球飞过头顶时，小冰和小狐向空中跳起，想要接住它。
“你们要跳得再高一些！”冬青爪高喊道。
“如果你不扔出去，我们就能接到了！”小狐冲向冬青爪，跳上她的后背。他胡乱地抓弄着冬青爪的皮毛，冬青爪的身体不停地晃动着。
小冰趁机从她爪下抢回小球，嘶嘶地说道：“你想偷我们的猎物！”
小狐把爪子插入冬青爪的皮毛：“你这个小偷！”
“她一定是风族武士！”小冰一边喊叫着，一边丢下小球，朝冬青爪猛扑过去，“冲啊！”
“救命！”冬青爪同这两只小猫崽扭打着，假装害怕地尖叫起来。虽然她知道这只是游戏而已，但一股寒意依然袭遍她的全身，令她止不住地颤抖。就连幼崽都在准备与风族作战。战争就像隐藏在阴影中的狐狸，正伺机而动。
CHAPTER21
CHAPTER21
Lionpaw’s muscles still hurt from therace through the tunnels and the long swim to the shore, but he couldn’t rest in the den any longer. He had slept till midday and Ashfur had refused to take him training until he’d had another good night’s sleep. But Lionpaw’s heart ached to the point of making him fidget and shuffle his paws in the dried-up moss in his nest. Finally, he gave up trying to get comfortable and pushed his way through the barrier of thorns, into the forest.
“You need to stretch your legs?” Brook’s mew surprised him. Lionpaw had been lost in thought as he padded out of the camp entrance. The evening sun was glittering through the trees as it sank toward the horizon.
“I’m bored with resting,” Lionpaw told her.
“You look better,” she commented. “Last night you looked like you’d been as far as the mountains and back.”
Lionpaw looked at his paws. “The kits were hard to find.”
“But you found them,” Brook reminded him.
“Yes,” Lionpaw murmured. He began to pad up the slope, treeward.
“I’ll watch for you!” Brook called after him.
“I won’t be long,” Lionpaw promised.
He headed for the tunnel entrance, weaving slowly through the trees. As he saw the brambles that guarded the tunnel entrance, the pang in his belly grew stronger. He wriggled beneath the prickly branches and climbed the slope, pausing in front of the small burrow where Heatherpaw had once called to him. He imagined her now, her blue eyes shining with excitement.
He would never see her again in that way. As a friend. As a fellow member of DarkClan with their own hidden territory. He couldn’t have all that and still be a loyal ThunderClan warrior.
He closed his eyes, imagining he could still smell her scent drifting from the tunnel entrance. He knew that was impossible. A mudslide blocked the way now. It marked the end of the most precious friendship he’d ever known.
“Good-bye, Heatherpaw,” he whispered into the tunnel, hoping the wind would carry his words through the darkness, picturing her waiting at the other end….
There will be no borders between us in StarClan. He remembered the moment they’d shared in the tunnels when he’d thought they might die. The intensity of it still throbbed in his paws. How could he turn his back on their friendship?
He had to.
So must she.
A half-moon hung in the sky as Lionpaw headed home through the shadowy forest. The wind brushed the treetops, and the ferns crackled as they slowly began to unfurl bright new leaves.
Fur brushed his flank.
Lionpaw jumped, tail bristling.
“We’re proud of you.” Tigerstar’s mew drifted on the evening air. Lionpaw turned his head and saw the dark warrior’s shimmering outline and his amber eyes glowing in the twilight
A second pelt brushed his other flank. Hawkfrost.
“You made the right decision,” the tabby warrior told him. He nudged Lionpaw with his shoulder, and Lionpaw shivered at his ghostly touch.
“I’ve lost my best friend,” he murmured. “I never thought I would feel so empty.”
“Friendship is worthless,” Tigerstar growled. “You have learned an important lesson, one that I could never have taught you. But I will teach you much more. There’ll come a day when you’ll be so powerful, you’ll have no need of friends. And when that day comes, I promise you will never regret that you chose to be a warrior.”
第十七章
第十七章
松鸦爪耐心地拨弄着窝里的苔藓，使它变得更加柔软，好让自己美美地躺上去睡个好觉。熟睡着的炭爪打着鼾，看来是跟冬青爪玩了好久，累坏了。她不久就会搬回到学徒巢穴了，到那时，巫医巢穴就会重归安静。太好了！他想着。外面的荆棘屏障沙沙作响。最后一支巡逻队回来了，他们的脚步不紧不慢——看来没发生什么要紧事。
松鸦爪听到了一阵水响——叶池正在水池边将一团苔藓润湿，把它放在炭爪的窝边。这样，炭爪半夜醒来如果口渴，可以喝一点儿里面的水。“我们明天应该去看看旧两脚兽巢穴旁的猫薄荷，”叶池说道，“我想去看看是否新长出来很多。”
“我们要去采集一些吗？”
“不用。”叶池一边回答，一边把浸了水的苔藓拿到炭爪的窝旁，“我只是想知道，今年的猫薄荷会不会长得很好。”
“最近下了很多场雨，应该长得不错。”松鸦爪把爪子放在鼻子上，闭上眼睛，“晚安。”
“做个好梦！”叶池的窝窸窣作响——她爬进窝里，开始清洗自己。她的舌头发出轻柔的啪嗒声，这声音伴着松鸦爪进入了梦乡。
“叶池？”
是火星的声音。松鸦爪一个激灵，醒了过来。雷族族长钻过布满黑莓丛的入口，走进了巫医巢穴。松鸦爪抬起头，绷紧神经，试图去感应这位来访者此刻的心理活动。
他嗅到了一丝不安的气息。
叶池从窝里跳了出来：“怎么了？”
“这件事跟你们俩都有关系。”火星说道。
松鸦爪觉得没必要装作没听见他俩的谈话，于是也爬了起来。
“到底发生了什么事？”叶池焦急地轻声说道。
火星不安地动动爪子：“我要你俩明天去风族营地一趟。”
“风族营地？”叶池重复道，“你是不是想让我去跟青面谈一谈？”
“不是。”火星认真地想了想，然后回答道，“是跟一星谈谈。”
“为什么要我俩去？”
“只有你们去才最合适。如果我派武士们去，他们会认为我们在威胁他们。”
“那么你要我们跟他们谈些什么呢？”叶池有些困惑地问道。
“我想让你们去看看，风族究竟发生了什么事。”
这是一项搜集情报的任务啊！松鸦爪突然兴奋起来。火星是让我们去侦察风族的弱点。不过他感觉哪里有些不对劲儿。他在火星的脑海中搜寻着，但并没发现他有什么隐秘的图谋，只有单纯的担忧。
“我刚刚跟鼠毛交谈过，”火星解释道，“她认为冬青爪的话有道理。目前谈论的关于战斗的一切都只是源于谣传与臆测，没有任何根据。我想让你们去看看，河族是否真的侵占了风族领地。”
松鸦爪眨眨眼睛：“这有什么区别吗？”
“如果我们一定要跟风族作战，我需要一个合适的理由。”火星回答道。
叶池的尾巴在地面上扫了扫，说道：“可是他们真的越过了边界，这个理由还不够吗？”
“他们的确越过了边界。”火星大声说道，“可是，我们可以从现在开始采取措施，阻止他们穿越边界，而不是发动战争。”
“他们已经越过一次了，而且没受到任何惩罚。”松鸦爪说道，他丝毫不在意叶池对他发出的警告的嘶嘶声——在叶池看来，学徒不可以对族长这样讲话。
“那次他们可能只是无意中犯了个错。”松鸦爪察觉到，火星那双绿色的眼睛，朝他投来温暖的目光，“再说了，风族的学徒也不是第一个擅自闯入其他族群领地的猫。”
他是指冬青爪？
火星接着说：“如果河族已经占领了风族领地，那么风族再来侵略我们，就是合情合理的了。如果一星仅仅因为担心河族会侵略他们，就向我们发动进攻，那情况就完全不同。无缘无故造成伤亡，是没道理的。”
“我不明白，你认为我们到底能做什么。”叶池一边说，一边搓着地上的泥土，“如果我们发现，河族没有侵略他们，你要让我们告诉一星，不要对雷族发动战争吗？难道这不会让他们看轻我们，显得我们很弱小吗？”
火星的身体一僵。“你必须让风族明白，如果战斗不可避免，雷族早已做好了准备。”他说道，“我只是想为实实在在的需要去打仗，而不是因为恐慌。”
“但你还是要我们去说服一星不要进攻我们，除非他别无选择，对吗？”叶池逼问道，“如果我们这样做，我们不会看起来像胆小鬼吗？”
火星暴怒起来。“我们不是胆小鬼，”他厉声喊道，“可是，我们为什么要通过一场毫无缘由的战争，来证明自己不是呢？”
黎明时分，微微泛着晨光的天空中透着几分寒意。太阳发出暗淡的光芒，透过山谷上方的森林。松鸦爪却在风中嗅到了一丝即将降雨的气息。他在营地入口静静地等着。火星此时正对护卫他们的武士下着最后几道命令。黑莓掌和尘毛将会护送他俩到风族边界，并在那里等他们返回。
叶池走过来，蹭蹭松鸦爪的皮毛。他能感觉到老师内心的疑惑。“准备好了吗？”叶池问道。
“准备好了。”松鸦爪的尾巴兴奋地甩动着。他的巫医生涯终于不再只有采集草药和照顾病猫这两项内容了。他俩这次旅程的发现，很可能会影响整个雷族的未来。
你的族群里将有三只猫，掌握着群星的力量，他们都是你的至亲。
“我们出发吧！”黑莓掌穿过刺棘通道。叶池跟在他的身后，松鸦爪跟在叶池身后，尘毛在最后面。松鸦爪察觉到了这位暗棕色皮毛的武士内心的不安。尘毛认为火星做事太草率，现在就让风族知道自己的族群不愿打仗未免太早了些。松鸦爪感觉，黑莓掌的内心更难读懂，因为他的内心一会儿被疑云笼罩，一会儿又燃起希望之火。
整个队伍越过山脊，又沿着下坡走进绵延至风族领地内的那片开阔的荒原，来到了边界旁边。这期间，没有一只猫说话。尘毛第一个表达了自己内心的不安。“现在，我们就在这儿坐下来，等着风族巡逻队过来问我们是否需要帮助，对吗？”他的话很尖刻。
“是的。”黑莓掌大吼道。
尘毛来回走着，给边界上的灌木丛重新做标记。他的身上传来十分强烈的怒气，让松鸦爪感觉自己的毛都竖了起来。在这儿等着风族允许他们入境，再继续前进，真是丢脸啊！
“或许松鸦爪和我可以自己走过去，”叶池建议道，“如果我们要找青面谈话，就是这么做的。”
松鸦爪点点头。巫医的身份特殊，有到处走动的自由。
“不行。”黑莓掌坚决地回绝了，“你们又不是去找青面交谈。而且，我们不久前刚和风族的巡逻队交过手。在这种情况下，如果你不事先通知他们就进入风族领地，实在太危险了。我的任务就是保证你们的安全。”说着，他坐了下来，皮毛拂过旁边的草叶，“我们还是等着吧。”
松鸦爪闻闻空中的气息。阳光晒在泥土上，暖融融的。他闻到了石楠花苞和兔子身上的气味。突然，他的身体一僵：一股强烈的麝香味随风飘来。“风族猫来了。”他辨识出了兔爪和裂耳的气息，另外还有两只猫跟着。松鸦爪很熟悉他俩的气息，不过他叫不出名字。
“是夜云。”
叶池识别出了那只风族母猫的气息，松鸦爪察觉到了叶池心里的紧张感。他以前就感觉自己的老师和夜云，也就是鸦羽的伴侣之间，有某种奇怪的情感。可松鸦爪弄不清楚，它到底是什么。当他开始深入探索叶池的内心时，心里顿时一惊。难道是嫉妒？
“裂耳、兔爪和枭须跟她一起来了。”尘毛低声说，“还不错，虽然我更希望裂耳乖乖待在自己的窝里不出来。”他一边说着，一边戒备地奓起毛，弄得松鸦爪的腹部痒痒的。
“放松，”黑莓掌命令道，“我们绝不能露出气势汹汹的样子，免得让他们误会。”
“噢，我们这次来，就是向他们摇尾乞怜的。”尘毛压着嗓子嘀咕着。
“安静！”黑莓掌低声喝道，紧接着他又抬高了声音，“裂耳！”
风族猫看向雷族巡逻队时，松鸦爪感受到一股强烈的敌意。他周围的空气似乎都瞬间凝固了，心里突然变得既紧张又害怕。
“你们来这里干什么？”裂耳大声呵斥着。
风族巡逻队朝前走着，皮毛摩擦着石楠丛。松鸦爪察觉到，黑莓掌挺直了身子，跟风族猫打起招呼。“叶池和松鸦爪想跟一星谈谈。”他的语气很平和，既不傲慢，也不卑微。
裂耳心里一惊：“谈什么？”
“他们俩想跟一星谈谈。”黑莓掌又重复了一遍。
松鸦爪感觉到，风族猫的内心充满了疑惑。他猜想，他们彼此面面相觑，不知该如何回应。他们难道会拒绝巫医进入领地？
“只有叶池和松鸦爪吗？”枭须大声吼道。
“是的，我们在这里等着他俩。”黑莓掌对他说道。
空气一下子凝滞了，就像是一只老鹰在空中盘旋着，随时准备俯冲时的感觉。
“那就让枭须和兔爪陪你们一起等吧！”裂耳慢慢地说道。
他允许我们穿过边界了！松鸦爪把爪子插进草丛里，迫不及待地准备出发。
“我可以相信你保护他俩平安抵达营地，再安全返回吗？”黑莓掌问道。
裂耳轻蔑地哼了一声：“当然可以！”
“叶池，”黑莓掌对她说，“如果你们在中午前还没回来，我们会派出另一支巡逻队来寻找你们。”显然他的这番话里，暗含着对风族猫的警告。
“她会按时回来的。”裂耳咆哮道。
穿过边界时，松鸦爪听到叶池的皮毛擦过石楠丛的声音。他快步跟着，身体紧贴着叶池的身体。通往风族营地的旅程让他兴奋不已，但紧接着他心里一惊。乌云遮住了太阳，一阵刺骨的寒意袭遍了全身。
“挺胸抬头。”叶池轻声对他说道。一路上，他俩的皮毛一直贴在一起，她以这种方式引导着松鸦爪，走过不熟悉的地方，朝风族营地前进。由于叶池没有及时告诉他前方有一根金雀花的枝条，松鸦爪被绊了一下，不过这种意外仅仅发生了一次。
不一会儿，松鸦爪闻到了黑莓的味道，以及更强烈的风族猫的气息。他感觉地势有一点儿向下倾斜，爪子下是一片开阔的空间——他们已经抵达了风族营地。
“你们跟紧了！”裂耳警告道。
松鸦爪跟着叶池，一步一步小心翼翼地走着。这位风族武士领着他们走进一片黑莓丛，穿过一条弯弯绕绕的通往一块山谷的通道。夜云跟在松鸦爪身后，他听到她的呼吸声从后方传来。紧接着，一阵风迎面吹来，拂动着他的胡须——他们已经走出了通道。刹那间，各种各样的气味扑面而来，瞬间填满了他的嘴巴和鼻子——武士们、学徒们、幼崽们、看护幼崽的猫后们，还有草药和兔子的味道……
他们肯定是到达了营地中心。又一股清新的风吹过，轻抚着松鸦爪的皮毛，一大群猫向他投来好奇的目光。
“这就是雷族那只瞎猫啊！”
“他们来这里做什么？”
“我要不要把青面叫来？”
风族猫都从各自的巢穴里走出来。松鸦爪察觉到，这里的空气中充斥着各种复杂的情感：好奇、敌意，甚至恐惧。
裂耳正跟一只年轻公猫低声说着什么。松鸦爪想试着去听听，不过还没等他听清楚，那只猫就风一般冲出了营地。
“一星出去狩猎了，”裂耳大声喊着，“你们要等一下。”接着他提高声调，对他那群好奇的族猫说道，“他们是来拜访一星的！”
“一星？”
空地上顿时响起了警觉与怀疑的话语声。松鸦爪竖起了耳朵。这个族群似乎没有扩张领地的野心，因为这些猫既害怕，又迷惘。他自己也有些紧张了：受惊的猫是不可预测的。“要不我们就跟青面聊一聊，然后就回去吧？”他悄悄对叶池说道。
可是叶池似乎没听到。她的眼睛环视着整个营地，好像在寻找什么东西，或者某只猫。突然，她的身上传来一阵强烈的情感，把松鸦爪惊得缩了一下身子。这种情感是兴奋、哀伤，还是愤怒呢？他一时搞不清楚。
“你看起来过得不错，鸦羽。”叶池故作镇定的语调，掩饰不住她内心世界刮起的猛烈风暴。
松鸦爪察觉身后有一股嫉妒的气息像火苗一样燃烧起来。夜云身上的毛全都竖了起来。
“叶池，你来这里做什么？”鸦羽的话语简短而平静。他在想什么？松鸦爪尝试着进入这位武士的内心，却只发现强烈的戒备。
“火星派我们来跟一星谈谈。”叶池解释道。
“他现在不在。”
“我们知道。”叶池说着坐了下来。
松鸦爪感觉一滴雨珠打在鼻尖上。
黑莓丛沙沙作响。不一会儿，重重的爪子落地声传到空地上。一星回来了。松鸦爪辨识出他的身边还跟着白尾和鼬毛。
“这是怎么回事？”风族族长问道。
“火星派我们来的。”叶池说道。
“为什么呢？”一星警惕地在他俩身边走来走去，“你们族群遇到麻烦了吗？”
“不是。”
“那你们为什么来呢？”一星停下了。他离他俩太近，松鸦爪甚至闻到，他的呼吸里带着兔子血的气息，“难道火星仍然认为我们两族之间还有着什么特殊关系吗？我明确地告诉你们，没有！”
“火星明白。”
令松鸦爪感到惊讶的是，即使叶池的身体在不停地颤抖，她的语气依旧平静。
“火星不想让我们两族的边界血流成河。”她接着说道。
“那他为什么要攻击我们风族的学徒呢？”一星的尾巴在空中甩得嗖嗖作响。
“是风族武士先进攻我们的，”叶池说道，“他们越过了边界，我们这么做，只是在防卫罢了。”
“可猎物是我们的！”裂耳嘶嘶地吼道。
在场的猫都爆发出赞同的吼声。
“他们擅闯边界可不止一次了。”松鸦爪也嘶嘶说道。
叶池的尾巴拂过松鸦爪的嘴巴，示意他别说话。然后她的身体动了动，爪垫在滑溜溜的泥土上发出扑哧扑哧的声响。天开始下起雨来。“我们来这儿不是吵架的！”
“那你们到底为什么来？”一星咆哮道。
“来跟你谈谈。”
裂耳抓挠着地面：“是不是火星太胆小，不敢自己来呢？”
“火星说，派巡逻队来，是向你们挑衅，所以他没有这么做。”叶池解释道，“他是想缓和局势，不想火上浇油。”
鸦羽在他俩身边来回踱着步：“这样的话，他就不该派任何猫来！”
叶池心中的怒火燃烧了起来，松鸦爪觉得这火焰已经快要烧到自己的皮毛了。“不是所有猫都那么不负责任！”她低声吼道。
鸦羽停下了脚步。“你的意思是说我不负责任？”这位风族武士凑到叶池跟前问道。他的胡须蹭到了松鸦爪的脸。
“你给我让开！”一星低声喝斥着，把鸦羽推到一边，“说吧，你想谈些什么？”
“火星想知道，河族是不是已经侵占了你们的领地。”叶池有点儿不耐烦了，“你们一直在离我们边界那么近的地方狩猎，是不是因为这个？你们是被河族逼到了雷族领地上的吗？还是说，你们已经愚蠢到，相信自己可以夺取雷族的领地？”
松鸦爪被叶池这突如其来的气势吓到了。他感觉一星的身体僵住了，看来她的这番话也惊呆了风族族长。在场观望的猫顿时发出一阵气愤的低语声。越发狂躁的暴风，裹挟着越来越密集的雨滴吹进营地，整片空地的气氛就像被绿叶季的闪电袭击了一样，令人生畏。松鸦爪紧张起来，等待着一星的回答。
“河族没有侵占我们的领地，”一星开始缓缓地说道，“不过这并不意味着他们以后不会。火星难道想让我们等着他们先攻击了，才出爪应对？他以为，我们会像肥田鼠似的坐以待毙吗？”
“你们不是田鼠。”叶池大声说道，“可你们为什么不去保卫自己跟河族的边界，却来威胁我们？”
“如果形势需要，我们会保卫自己的边界，”一星反驳道，“我们也会夺取土地，来满足自己的需求。”
“可你们都不确定河族会不会攻击你们，”叶池又说道，“又为什么要威胁我们呢？”
裂耳突然咆哮起来：“你怎么像只画眉一样，翻来覆去地唱一首歌？”
“下次月亮池大会上，青面可以跟蛾翅说说这件事，”叶池建议道，她的语气也随即变得柔和起来，“他会弄清楚河族真正的意图是什么。到那时，你们可能就会发现，你们根本就没必要害怕什么。”
“我们一点儿也不害怕！”鸦羽嘶嘶吼道。
“那为什么你们总听不进去道理呢？”叶池逼问道，“你们都是高贵的武士，为什么会被疑心蒙蔽，而不去寻求真相呢？”
“听听她都说了些什么！”鼬毛讥笑道，“只不过是用高谈阔论为自己的族群拖延时间罢了！”
“我们风族武士打仗靠的是爪子，不是嘴！”裂耳提醒道。
松鸦爪的毛竖了起来。“简直就像给鼹鼠吃虫子！”他低声吼道，“他们根本看不见自己鼻尖以外的东西！”
“什么？你说我们和你一样眼瞎？”鼬毛嘲笑着松鸦爪。
“等一下！”一星命令道，“或许她说得对。我们在采取任何行动前，都应该给河族一个解释的机会，让他们说清楚到底发生了什么事。”
“哼，什么机会？侵略我们的机会吧！”裂耳咆哮道。
“你也看见了，上次的森林大会上，河族猫们的表情有多绝望。”鸦羽争辩道，“而且我们每次见到的河族巡逻队，都比上一次见到的更饥饿。我们不能相信他们！”
“可他们还没有发动进攻啊。”一星指出道。
“他们曾经越过边界。”裂耳提醒道。
“就一次而已。”
松鸦爪察觉到风族族长已经渐渐冷静下来了，他在思索着。
“绝不能让他们把我们扯进无谓的流血冲突中。”一星低声说道。
突然，一声恐慌的尖叫声从营地墙外传了进来。被雨水浸润的黑莓丛晃动着，接着一只风族猫后快步跑进空地。“我的孩子不见了！”她尖声叫道。
“小莎草？”
“小蓟？”
风族猫惊慌的叫声充斥着整片营地。
“小莎草、小蓟还有小燕！”这只母猫气喘吁吁地喊道，“她们全都不见了！”
“你最近一次看到他们是什么时候？”一星问道。
猫后上气不接下气地说道：“我把她们放在育婴室，然后就去外面活动了一下筋骨。我回来后，就发现她们不见了，于是我就去找她们。她们以前也曾出去玩过，不过都在离育婴室不远的地方。可这次我却找不到她们了！她们的气味在河族边界附近突然消失不见了！我就知道，一定是老鹰把她们叼走了！”
“金雀花尾，你先冷静一下。”一星的毛竖了起来，不过他的语气仍旧镇定，“你一定是搞错了。老鹰一次最多只能叼起一只幼崽啊。看来我们必须派出一支搜索队了。”
突然，入口通道处传来沉重的爪子落地声。
“一星！”灰脚跑到空地上大喊。松鸦爪察觉到，风族副族长身后还跟着风爪和石楠爪。“我们刚刚看见一支河族巡逻队返回了自己的领地。”
“他们曾来过我们的领地！”风爪啐了一口，说道。
“他们经过的地方有兔子血。”石楠爪补充道。
金雀花尾突然变得极度恐慌：“你确定那是兔子血吗？”
“你什么意思啊？”石楠爪被问得有些糊涂。
“我的孩子都不见了！”金雀花尾哭号起来。
“你认为是河族巡逻队把他们带走了吗？”石楠爪的声音里也充满了恐惧。她的思绪也如同被风卷起的落叶一般，快速旋转起来。松鸦爪试着去解读它，不过它运动的速度实在太快。他唯一能确定的是，石楠爪混乱的思绪中有灰暗的东西在盘旋——可怕到足以让他的血液凝固。原来，她也隐瞒了一些东西。
“你们必须离开了。”一星转过身对叶池说道。
“你们不会去进攻河族的，对吧？”叶池深吸了一口气。
“我们会用尽一切办法，把我们的幼崽找回来！”一星嘶嘶地说道。
“你们也不确定，他是不是被河族带走的，”松鸦爪反驳道，“刚才你还以为是老鹰把他们叼走了呢。”
“那时，我们还不知道河族越过了边界。”
“他们这样做一定是有目的的！”
灰脚咆哮道：“是啊！他们就是来偷我们的幼崽的！”
“可是为什么……”
一星突然怒吼一声，打断了叶池的话。“你们回家去吧！”风族族长凑到他们身边时，松鸦爪吓得连连后退，“你们去告诉火星，已经来不及了。你们来不及保护河族了，不用再浪费时间。我们会立刻发起攻击的！”
第十八章
第十八章
雨水浸透了狮爪的皮毛，他不禁打了个寒战。他把自己捉到的田鼠放在猎物堆上，抖抖皮毛上的水珠。
“你狩猎的表现很不错，”蜡毛夸赞道，“这几天，你进步了很多啊。你的心思重新专注到训练上了。”
狮爪朝老师眨眨眼。刚刚的狩猎收获丰厚。他、蜡毛、暴毛和溪儿抓到的猎物，几乎能喂饱整个雷族。而且狮爪感觉到自己又精神抖擞起来，他做的每个动作，都比族猫们更迅速、更敏捷，就好像星族在指挥自己。不过当狮爪想到石楠爪时，心依旧会隐隐作痛。他时不时还会回忆起自己当暗族武士的那段日子。
暴毛把一只湿漉漉的画眉扔在猎物堆上。“总感觉有什么不对劲。”这位深灰色皮毛的武士焦虑地环视着整片空地。他身旁的溪儿也眯起了眼睛。
炭爪正拖拽着几条树枝，朝荆棘屏障走去。在那里，云尾用树枝填补着屏障上的缝隙。罂粟爪和鼠爪正忙着用新采来的黑莓刺修补育婴室入口，被雨水浸透的毛一绺一绺的，尾巴上的毛也蓬松着。刺掌和蛛足在营地边缘转来转去，透过细密的雨丝看着围墙。
刺掌用尾巴指指嶙峋崖壁上的一处裂缝，说道：“我们应该把悬崖顶部加固一下，猫从那里很容易爬下来。”
狮爪顿时紧张起来，他扫视着整个空地。松鸦爪执行任务回来了吗？当看到松鸦爪从排便处通道走出来时，他那颗一直悬着的心终于放了下来。
叶池在巫医巢穴入口对松鸦爪喊：“我们需要一些羊蹄叶。”
“我去采一些。”松鸦爪立刻回答道。
“你不要独自去。”叶池说道。
松鸦爪点点头：“我找冬青爪一起去。”
狮爪不安地缩了一下爪子。他这个弟弟平常一听到谁说他不能单独胜任某个工作，就会立刻气得奓毛。可现在，他居然没有丝毫抱怨就欣然接受了。
“不要去离营地太远的地方！”叶池警告道。
“狮爪，你听说了吗？”蜜爪一边喊着，一边朝他冲过来，双眼睁得大大的，“一场战斗就要开始了！”
狮爪赶忙跑过去：“什么时候？”
“风族正准备进攻河族呢。”蜜爪上气不接下气地说。
狮爪的耳朵平贴了起来：“河族已经侵占了风族的领地吗？”
蜜爪摇摇头。“河族偷走了三只风族幼崽，”她说道，“风族要把他们抢回来。我们必须做好战斗准备！”
狮爪顿时紧张起来。风族现在的幼崽可不多，他们是不是跟踪过石楠爪的那三只幼崽呢？“你确定是河族把他们带走了吗？”
“风族猫发现幼崽失踪时，河族猫正在他们的领地上狩猎呢。”蜜爪告诉他说。
“可这两件事之间有什么关系吗？”狮爪说着，脑子飞速转动起来。
“谁会在意有没有关系呢？”蜜爪一边说，一边在他身边转着圈儿，“不管怎样，一场大规模的战斗马上就会打响。叶池就是这么说的。”
这时，栗尾朝他们走过来，眼睛里充满担忧。“蜜爪，你是不是想得太多了啊？”她说道。
“我们必须做好准备，”蜜爪争辩道，“谁知道风族下一步会干什么呢？”
狮爪后退了几步，离这两只猫远一些，心扑通扑通直跳。难道真的是河族把风族幼崽偷走了？还有一处秘密隧道可以离开荒原，不过这条隧道只有狮爪和石楠爪知道。这三只幼崽不会是发现那里了吧？
一个声音在狮爪身后响起来，把他吓了一跳。“你该吃点儿东西了。”是蛛足，他一边伸展着身体、活动着肌肉，一边说道，“你一定要为随时可能发生的战斗做好准备。”
“可风族是在跟河族作战，不是我们！”
“什么事都有可能发生，”蛛足咆哮道，“河族很可能把风族从荒原上赶出去。他们还可能把幼崽失踪的责任推到我们身上。叶池告诉火星，说风族已处于孤注一掷的绝望状态了。”
狮爪的身体僵住了。我必须找到这些幼崽！我必须阻止这场战斗！可是族群怎么办？他现在应该考虑的是守卫族群的领地，应该像云尾和炭爪那样，帮忙加固营地，或者加入巡逻队，去查看边界附近的情况。在这个关键时刻，他不能临阵脱逃，去寻找别的族群的幼崽。要是他离开的时候，风族来进犯，那可如何是好？
这场战斗是证明自己是真正的武士的绝佳机会！这时，虎星的声音在他的耳畔响起。不要管那几只幼崽！好好为你的族群考虑一下吧！
可是，我一直都在为自己的族群考虑啊！狮爪摇摇头，将虎星的声音从脑海中清理出去。如果战斗爆发了，就一定会有猫受伤，甚至死亡！一想到石楠爪在战斗中苦战的情形，狮爪就不寒而栗。如果那些幼崽只是在隧道里迷了路，那么这场战斗就毫无必要了。
“狮爪！”黑莓掌一边喊着，一边朝他走来，“你去拿些吃的，帮忙做做准备工作。火星正在组建另几支巡逻队，我们营地的屏障也要加固一下。”
狮爪朝雷族副族长眨眨眼，心里有些难受：“我不饿。”
黑莓掌动了动爪子：“你害怕了吗？”
狮爪张开了嘴巴，似乎想解释些什么。
“有这种感觉很正常。”黑莓掌的语气变得柔和下来，“以前我看到族猫受伤，就会忧心忡忡。不过保卫族群是武士守则赋予我们的职责，也是我们接受训练的初衷。我知道这很难，不过在星族看来这样做是理所当然的。”他说着用尾巴轻拂着狮爪的腹部，“狮爪，你有成为伟大武士的所有潜质，我为你感到骄傲。你要把学到的所有知识与本领都铭记在心，时刻保持警惕。”
“可是我们真的需要打仗吗？”
“只要族长要你去打仗，就一定要打。”黑莓掌低声说道，“火星绝不会轻易带领族猫去打仗，除非他相信这么做是对的。”
可是火星并不知晓一切。狮爪瞬间觉得有些烦躁。要是他不知道有隧道那回事，该有多好啊。这样一来，他就会毫无怨言地执行族长的命令了。他难过地朝黑莓掌点点头：“好吧。”说完他走到猎物堆前。那里跟往日一样，堆满了各种各样的猎物，可狮爪今天看到它们时，却没有一点儿食欲。
“为什么我们不能去打仗呢？”小冰细小的哭叫声从空地另一边传过来。
“我也不想在这里待着，等风族猫闯进来将我们撕成碎片！”小狐也低声哀号道。
“现在你们上了战场，只会帮倒忙。”香薇云用严厉的语气告诉他们。她用尾巴轻轻扫过他们的身体，把他们朝育婴室驱赶着：“你们为雷族帮忙的最好办法，就是老老实实在育婴室里待着，直到危险过去。你们早晚都有机会参战的，但不是现在。”
狮爪望着香薇云推着两只幼崽走进了育婴室。他想，有危险的不仅仅是小狐和小冰，他绝不能让全体雷族猫去冒险，尤其是在自己可以做些什么的时候。狮爪在雨中眯起眼睛，掉头离开猎物堆，从巫医巢穴旁走过去，奋力穿过滴着雨水的黑莓丛，来到营地围墙下。他够到了围墙上第一个突起，一使劲儿爬了上去。就这样，狮爪一边喘息着，一边使出全身力气，一步步攀上悬崖，出了营地。
狮爪蹲伏在被雨水浸透的草丛里，平复了一下呼吸，向下窥视那片忙碌的营地。没有猫注意到他离开了。他的族猫们依然忙着把枝条塞进荆棘屏障里。在火星的安排下，他们集合在一起，组织起了巡逻队。他们被雨打湿的皮毛都兴奋地竖了起来。狮爪悄悄钻进森林，然后加快速度，跑下斜坡，朝隧道入口奔去。
突然，一丛香薇后面传来说话声。狮爪赶紧钻进被淋湿的茎秆深处，朝外面窥探着。
“尽量摘那些最鲜嫩的叶子。”松鸦爪建议道。
冬青爪坐在他身边，从一株小小的植物上摘下叶子，将它们一张一张地堆在潮湿的泥土上。
松鸦爪突然抬起鼻子，闻了闻气味：“狮爪，是你吗？”
狮爪直起身来，钻了出来，抖掉沾在皮毛上的水珠。
“你在这儿干什么呢？”冬青爪那双碧绿的眼睛里满是好奇，“我们必须要回营地了吗？”
狮爪摇摇头。“我知道那些幼崽在哪里。”他脱口而出。
附近的森林里传来了重重的爪子落地声。狮爪缩回香薇丛，在茎秆下面蹲下身子，躲了起来。冬青爪和松鸦爪一脸惊讶地看着他。当看到刺掌和白翅冲出森林时，他俩面面相觑。
“你俩最好快些。”刺掌说道。
冬青爪看了看狮爪藏身的香薇丛，眼睛里闪着怀疑的光。狮爪赶忙又藏得更深了些。她不会出卖他吧？
白翅摇摇尾巴，问道：“一切都还好吧？”
“是的。”松鸦爪沉稳地回答道，“我们再摘一些叶子就回营地了。”
“好。”刺掌点点头，“我们正要去山脊上，看有没有风族猫的踪迹。在那儿，我们没准能看到风族是不是已经对河族开战了。”
忽然，白翅闻了闻空气说：“好像狮爪来过这里，我闻到了他的气息。”
“没错。”松鸦爪一边回答，一边从面前那株湿漉漉的植物上摘下一片羊蹄叶，“他来通知我们尽快回去。”
“那他回营地了吗？”刺掌问道。
“应该是回了。”松鸦爪回答道。
“别在这里待太久啊。”白翅说着朝狮爪藏身的那处香薇丛走去。狮爪屏住呼吸，祈祷自己金棕色的皮毛可千万别在绿叶丛中露出来。
“快走吧！”刺掌跳上斜坡，朝山脊奔去。白翅转过身，急忙追了上去。
“星族啊，你到底为什么要藏起来？”当狮爪从香薇丛中溜出来时，冬青爪问道。
“他们不能知道我要做什么。”狮爪轻声回答道。
松鸦爪的尾巴抽了抽：“你要做什么呢？”
“和失踪的幼崽有什么关系？”冬青爪眯起眼睛，问道。
狮爪深吸了一口气，说道：“在我们领地的下方，有好多条隧道。”
“好多条隧道？”松鸦爪的毛顿时直立起来。
“是的。它们通向荒原，通向风族的领地。只要你想，就可以通过这些隧道去风族领地。那三只幼崽有一次就跟着石楠爪来到了隧道的入口。我想，他们很可能进入了隧道。”
冬青爪吃惊地盯着狮爪：“原来你一直都在跟石楠爪见面啊！你不是告诉过我不再见她了吗？”
狮爪向后退了几步。他的妹妹已经把爪子深深地插进了泥土里，好像在努力控制要抓挠他的冲动。
“你不光欺骗了我，也欺骗了整个雷族！”她厉声说道，“我一直都认为，你是我们几只猫里最忠诚的。可现在你却成了雷族的叛徒！”
“我没有背叛雷族！”狮爪说道，“我现在已经不再跟石楠爪见面了。我们一开始只是在一起玩玩，不过后来我意识到……”
“一个敌视我们的族群知道一条通往我们族群领地的秘密隧道！”冬青爪大声喊道，“你打算永远都不把这个秘密告诉族猫吗？还是只打算坐在那里什么也不做，看着你的小朋友领着她的族猫入侵我们的营地？”
狮爪瞪着妹妹：“我不会让这种事发生的！”
“冷静点儿，”松鸦爪挤到他俩中间劝道，“都别吵了。”他扭过头看着自己的姐姐，“狮爪并不是这个月里雷族唯一一只犯错的猫。你不是也因为帮助柳爪，给自己惹了一大堆麻烦吗？”
“这是两码事！”冬青爪一边大吼，一边不安地挪了挪爪子。
“我们没时间争吵了，”松鸦爪说道，“狮爪，你确定幼崽们在那些隧道里吗？”
“我不确定，可那里是他们最有可能去的地方。”他一边说，一边焦虑地望着冬青爪，“你能帮我找到他们吗？”
冬青爪的尾巴抖了抖。“好吧，”她说道，“我真不想看到风族攻击河族的场景，尤其是在河族只差一点儿就可以解决他们的麻烦的时候。”
狮爪眨眨眼：“你这话是什么意思？”
冬青爪背上的毛竖了起来：“我发誓不告诉任何猫的。”
“跟谁发的誓？”松鸦爪问道。
“柳爪和豹星。”
“可我们是你的哥哥、弟弟啊！”松鸦爪说道，“我们不该对彼此隐瞒任何秘密。”
冬青爪的眼睛里充满了犹豫。“好吧。”她深吸了一口气，回答道，“河族的营地正受到两脚兽幼崽们的威胁。河族正在把营地周边的溪流加深加宽，把两脚兽幼崽们挡在外面。我亲眼看到的。这项工程马上就要完成了。下次森林大会前，他们就会回到原先的营地。”冬青爪的爪子颤抖着，“我跟他们承诺不说出去的，但这种做法似乎不对。现在，一切都变得乱糟糟的难以收场了。”
“不，还没有。”狮爪抬起下巴说道，“我们会阻止这场战争的发生。”
“可是该怎么做呢？”冬青爪问道。
“只要把幼崽们找到就行了。”
松鸦爪走到狮爪身边，问道：“那些隧道在哪里？我们怎么进去呢？”
“你们跟我来。”狮爪说完，一头钻进了树丛里，奔跑起来。他回头看看，冬青爪和松鸦爪也紧跟在后面。当狮爪抵达斜坡底部时，他俩在湿滑的落叶上打着滑停在了他身边。隧道口正对着森林。
“你说的地方到底在哪里啊？”冬青爪从一处黑莓丛上看了过去。
狮爪用尾巴指了指一个兔子洞——那个洞是石楠爪第一次钻进去的地方，说道：“就在那里。”
“在那儿啊！”冬青爪惊讶地说，“怪不得以前没有猫注意过呢。”
松鸦爪嗅嗅空气，似乎在搜寻着什么。他的尾巴不停地颤动着。
狮爪皱皱眉：“你之前来过这儿吗？”
“应该没来过。”松鸦爪抽动着耳朵，回答道。
为什么他看起来那么害怕呢？不管怎样，都没时间犹豫了。狮爪钻进了黑莓丛中，喊道：“跟我来。”他以前多次来这里，所以虽然新长出了一些枝叶，但狮爪还是轻车熟路。松鸦爪紧紧地跟在他后面，鼻子碰上了他的尾巴。
“入口在这里。”狮爪爬出灌木丛，领着松鸦爪朝山腰的一个洞口走去。他停在了洞口旁，嗅到了隧道中涌出的熟悉的尘土味。
冬青爪跟着他俩钻出黑莓丛，满腹疑惑地注视着这个兔子洞。一滴滴雨珠从她的毛皮和耳朵上滚落下来。“我们要钻进这里面？”她问道。
狮爪点点头。
“可是现在在下雨！”松鸦爪的语气变得十分警觉。
“隧道里怎么会下雨呢！”狮爪有些奇怪，在里面躲开这场瓢泼大雨，他难道还不高兴？
松鸦爪平贴起耳朵，嗅闻着入口处。“以前下雨的时候，你来过这里吗？”他用怀疑的口气问道。
“没有啊。”狮爪变得有些不耐烦，时间已经不够了，“我们必须在战斗打响前，找到幼崽们。”说完，狮爪钻进洞里，沿着这条熟悉的隧道，快步向前走去。
“等一下！”冬青爪的声音从后面传来，“这里面太黑了，我看不见路。”
狮爪站在原地，等着松鸦爪和冬青爪慢慢跟上来。他们都开始小心翼翼地朝前走，慢慢地越过一处处坑洼不平的岩石地面。说起穿过隧道，松鸦爪应该比他俩更熟练吧？因为他已经习惯了黑暗的环境。“前面有一个山洞。”狮爪安慰道，“洞顶有一处裂缝，那里会亮一些。”他一边说，一边再次放慢脚步。他能听到松鸦爪嗅着空气的声音，还有冬青爪的皮毛蹭着隧道壁的声音。
“这些隧道真的能通往风族领地吗？”冬青爪的声音在黑暗中回响着，听上去有些怪异，“你到过这么远吗？”
“没有，我只到过山洞那里，”狮爪回答道。突然，他的身体一僵。他闻到前方传来一阵熟悉的气味。是风族！难道石楠爪已经领着巡逻队进入了这里？
松鸦爪的呼吸吹动着狮爪耳朵上的毛：“你知道前面有风族猫？”
“是的。”狮爪叹气道。
“或许我们应该回去了。”冬青爪悄悄说道，“不能让风族发现我们知道这个地方，否则，我们的优势就没了。”
“他们很可能已经知道了。”狮爪的心沉重得像压了一块石头。石楠爪没有保守他俩的秘密——如果她真的背叛了他，狮爪也不会感到惊讶。上一次见面时，他俩就已经变得不再那么友好了。狮爪朝那束微弱的光走去，进入了那座久违的洞穴。
在昏暗的光线中，他辨认出了站在河对岸的石楠爪。
风爪正在石楠爪身后的洞穴边缘来回跑着，反复嗅着每处隧道口的气息。“我闻不到他们的气息了。”他说道。
“狮爪！”石楠爪发出了一声惊叫。
风爪转过身，低吼着看向狮爪。
石楠爪焦急地看了自己族猫一眼，然后接着问：“你……你是怎么知道这里的呢？”
狮爪明白了，她在假装自己之前没在这里见过他！原来她早就想出办法来搪塞别的猫了！不过，毕竟他们在这里度过了许多美好时光，今天要装作一切都没发生过，这感觉实在非常糟糕。“几天前我偶然发现的。”他撒了个谎。这时，冬青爪和松鸦爪也爬出了隧道。“当时我在追赶一只兔子，它钻进洞里，我就跟着它来到这儿了。”他一边说，一边朝冬青爪直眨眼，示意她不要乱说话。
风爪身上的毛竖了起来：“这些隧道也通往雷族领地吗？”
“我还真没注意，”石楠爪一边说，一边瞪大了眼睛，“我之前最远只到过这个洞穴。”
“那你们仨在这里干什么？”风爪大声问道。
冬青爪走到狮爪前面，抬起下巴说道：“我们得知幼崽们失踪的消息后，狮爪猜，他们很可能会出现在这里。”
“你们是怎么知道这里有另外一个入口，会通往风族领地的呢？”风爪一边问，一边活动着爪子。
“我只是猜测。”狮爪耸耸肩回答道，“这里的隧道实在太多，据我所知，可能还会通往影族领地。”
风爪盯着他。四周潮湿闷热的空气中，顿时升腾起一种强烈的怀疑：“你们那边的隧道里，有没有幼崽们的气息呢？”
“没有。”冬青爪有些紧张地回应着。
“我们循着他们的气息找到了这里，气息却突然消失了。”石楠爪解释道。
松鸦爪警觉地向前爬去，嗅闻着河水的气息。平静的河面涌动着点点波纹，似乎有风吹过，黑色的河水不停拍打着洞穴边缘，溢出的水在两侧岩石的凹坑里形成了一个个小水洼。“这里的水位一直都这么高吗？”他问道。
“下雨之后才会变高。”石楠爪回答道。
“还会继续上涨吗？”
石楠爪把头歪向一边，一脸困惑地说道：“我不清楚。”
狮爪尴尬得满脸通红。为什么松鸦爪对下雨这件事总是唠叨个没完呢？他只想找到幼崽们的下落，然后赶紧离开这里。
风爪在石楠爪身边转来转去。“这些入侵者最好赶紧回去，”他说道，“我们在寻找风族的幼崽们，不需要他们的帮忙。”他一边说，一边瞪着狮爪，“你为什么总是这么关心风族的幼崽呢？”
冬青爪甩甩尾巴：“你不知道吗？他们或许就会引发一场战争。”
“大家能不能别闲聊了，赶紧去找他们好吗？”石楠爪突然喊道。
风爪生气地瞟了她一眼：“那他们怎么办？”
“我们可以让他们跟着一起去啊，”石楠爪说道，“我们俩没办法带着三只幼崽回去，对吧？”没等风爪回答，她就朝离自己最近的一处隧道跑去，“我们要在风族猫受到伤害前，把幼崽们全找到。”
“我同意！”冬青爪纵身一跃，跳过宽阔的河面，回头望了望松鸦爪。“这河面大约有两条狐狸尾巴那么宽。”她告诉他。
松鸦爪蹲伏下来，准备起跳。狮爪看到他的爪子突然颤抖起来。让他自己跳吧！狮爪十分紧张，他已经准备好在必要时纵身跳进湍急的河流救出弟弟，可是松鸦爪高高地跃过河面，落在对岸，落地的位置离河边有一条尾巴那么远。
狮爪也跟着跳了过去。石楠爪从自己搜索完的隧道中走出来，说道：“他们没来过这里。”
狮爪爬进另外一处黑暗的隧道入口，闻了闻，没有幼崽的气息。
“这边！”松鸦爪在一个狭窄的入口蹲伏着，胡须不住抽动着。
冬青爪从他的身边挤过去，检查着地面：“他说得对！这里有一个爪印。”
狮爪挤到她身边，看见满是淤泥的地面上有一个刚刚印上去的小爪印。“他们往这边走了。”狮爪抬起头，看到石楠爪的目光，她那双迷离的蓝色眼睛里流露出恐惧的神色。
“哦，狮爪，”她轻轻地说道，“我们到底做了一些什么啊？”
第十九章
第十九章
“我走前面！”
松鸦爪不假思索地随口说出几个字，直到他听到风爪轻蔑的哼声，才回过神来。
“你是只瞎猫啊！”
“那你能在黑暗里看清所有东西吗？”冬青爪厉声呵斥道。
松鸦爪感觉风爪的毛竖了起来，不过这次这只风族猫没有继续争辩。松鸦爪心里很高兴，因为他正打算转身沿着隧道逃回森林去呢。在森林里，雨水只会拍打在叶子和泥土上，并滚落下去；而在冰冷的岩石隧道里，雨水却会逐渐堆积、上涨，把里面的一切都淹没、冲走……自从踏入隧道起，松鸦爪的脑子想的就一直是他与落叶被洪水吓得拼命逃窜的场景，那些画面再次浮现在脑海中：漆黑的隧道，汹涌奔腾的水流，一波波水浪猛扑过来时的惊悚，像狂风吹卷秋叶一般将他抛向空中，又随之将他完全吞没，无法呼吸……不要再想它了！至少这次，他不会再被什么光亮分神了，他反而可以凭借本能找到出口。
狮爪朝旁边闪了闪，让松鸦爪走了过去。当蹭过哥哥的身体时，松鸦爪感觉到狮爪心里轻松了很多。“他认为我在黑暗环境中的表现，一定会比他更好。希望我真的能做好。”这时，一股冰冷的气流扑面而来，松鸦爪的胡须颤抖着。但他感觉这疾风似乎带来了一阵耳语，如血管里奔流的血液一般，从隧道深处朝他涌来，音量低到几乎听不到，但却有极大的震撼力。他走进隧道，四周的黑暗瞬间将他吞没了。松鸦爪并不习惯待在这种黑暗中。虽然在森林里，他什么都看不见，但是能感受到阳光照在皮毛上带来的温暖，嗅到弥漫在空气中的各种清新的气味，聆听微风吹拂叶子发出的沙沙声。但是这里的黑暗却是令人窒息的，充斥着发霉和冰冷的味道，压迫他的皮毛，渗进他鼻孔和嘴巴里。除了黑暗，还是黑暗，如毛发般浓密，又如水流般轻柔，正在将他缓缓淹没。
松鸦爪感觉爪子下的地面覆盖着一层细细的沙土，里面的空间十分狭窄，四壁不断蹭着他的皮毛，他吃力地慢慢向前爬着。
“你就不能走快一点儿吗？”风爪尖刻的话语，就像周围凹凸不平的石墙，压迫得松鸦爪透不过气。
“嘘！”松鸦爪努力不让其他猫心中的恐惧影响到自己，继续前进着。他感到爪子下的路开始向下延伸，隧道变得越来越宽。当他们走到洞顶上有一处裂缝的地方时，一股凛冽的风吹得松鸦爪的皮毛呼呼作响。这条路到底对不对啊？如潮水般涌动的气流中，没有任何猫的气息，只有森林的清新空气，从洞顶的缝隙中渗进来。
突然，一团皮毛蹭到了他的腹部。
松鸦爪的毛竖了起来。“风爪让开，我才是带路的！”他说着把这只猫推到一旁。
“你在说什么呢？我在后面！”风爪的喊叫声从队伍尾部传来。
冬青爪用鼻子蹭了蹭松鸦爪的尾巴尖儿：“松鸦爪，没有猫在你身边啊！”
松鸦爪一惊，闻了闻空气中的气息。一种新的气息流入他的鼻子。不是族群猫的气息，却似乎那么熟悉。他又重新闻了闻，身上的毛突然不安地竖了起来——那只猫再次蹭蹭他，跟松鸦爪肩并肩向前走着。
“我的朋友，我会陪着你走的，就像你曾经陪伴着我一样。”这个声音在松鸦爪的耳畔轻轻响了起来。
是落叶！松鸦爪的心顿时一沉。脑海中浮现出那巨大而黑暗的波浪，将落叶吞没的恐怖记忆，吓得松鸦爪突然停下了脚步。他强忍着转身穿过洞穴，跑回森林，回到开阔又安全的天空下的冲动。
“我不能让你独自在这儿行走。你当时像亲兄弟一样，陪我走过了那段路。”
松鸦爪眨眨眼睛，似乎想看到点儿什么：“我是在做梦吗？”
“不是，”落叶轻声说道，“我是来帮你的。我知道幼崽们在哪儿。”
“我们为什么停下了啊？”风爪生气地在后面喊着。
冬青爪的鼻子又蹭了蹭松鸦爪的尾巴：“你没事儿吧？”
“没事儿。”他告诉她道。接着他压低声音，用比一般的耳语声还小的、只有落叶才能听见的声音问道：“你见过他们？”
“我知道他们在哪里。”落叶把皮毛紧贴着松鸦爪的身体，推着他向前走，“不过，我们必须快些。”
松鸦爪有些不愿意：“我为什么要相信？你甚至自己都走不出隧道呢！”
“自从那次以后，我走遍了这里的每条隧道。”落叶伤心地喃喃道，“现在我对这里的熟悉程度，胜过头顶上的那片荒原。”
松鸦爪稳住呼吸，问道：“你真的见过那些幼崽？”
“他们还活着。不过他们现在很冷，我们必须快点儿行动。”
这时候光凭直觉似乎已经不行了。松鸦爪把尾巴贴在落叶的腹部，让这只公猫领着自己，向前经过一条岔道，进入另一个隧道。地势陡然下降，松鸦爪的爪垫在地面上滑了好几下，这里面的岩石被雨水浸润，光滑无比。
“你真的知道在往哪里去吗？”风爪大喊道。
“你还能闻到他们的气息吗？”狮爪焦急地问道。
“这就是他们走过的路线。”松鸦爪回答道。
落叶又掉转了方向，推着他进入了另一个隧道。“低头！”他警告道。松鸦爪刚好及时地低下了头，用力挤过一道狭窄的裂缝。
“大家把身体放低！”松鸦爪在一块岩石下方匍匐前进，警告着身后的同伴。越往前，这条裂缝就越狭窄，松鸦爪的肚皮紧紧贴着地面，艰难地往前爬着。
“这里是条死路吧？”冬青爪跟在他后面，难受得直喘气。
“再坚持一下，待会儿就好了。”落叶在松鸦爪耳边说道。
很快，松鸦爪闻到了石楠的香甜气味，感到雨珠拍在他的脸上。前方的洞顶一定有洞口。他扭动身子，钻出了裂缝，来到一片相对开阔的地方，心情也跟着稍微放松了一些。
“现在我们走哪条路？”石楠爪跟在松鸦爪身后钻了出来，皮毛蹭着旁边的岩石。
“这里有三条隧道呢。”狮爪告诉他。
松鸦爪闻闻空中的气息，然而这里没有幼崽的气息。
“走这里。”落叶轻声说道。松鸦爪继续让他领着自己进入又一个隧道里，他的胡须碰到了两侧的岩石。
“你怎么知道我们走的路是正确的呢？”风爪的语气十分尖刻，不过松鸦爪却感到风爪的心里越来越恐慌。恐慌从每一只猫身上传来，让这片黑暗又多了几分令人窒息的感觉。松鸦爪尽力不让这种感觉影响自己。
“我闻到了他们的气息。”松鸦爪撒了个谎。他绝不能让其他猫的恐惧影响自己。“我要听落叶的！”
这条隧道蜿蜒曲折，陡然上升，接着变得开阔起来。新鲜的空气透过头顶的裂缝渗了进来。松鸦爪身后噼啪作响的爪子落地声逐渐放慢了节奏。
“我就知道，这肯定是条死路。”石楠爪停了下来，叹息道。
松鸦爪也停了下来。一块石头堵住了前方的隧道，他感觉到石头非常大。
“我们肯定过不去。”风爪说道。
雨水在他们头顶上重重地落下来，顺着裂缝滴进隧道里，撞击在石头上，发出阵阵回音。松鸦爪闻闻潮湿的石头，然后沿着石头光滑的表面移动着鼻子，直到胡须触碰到了隧道壁，才停了下来。他察觉到在这块石头和隧道壁之间，有一道极为狭小的缝隙，他们根本挤不进去。
“现在怎么办？”风爪大喊道，“你觉得你自己能带我们走回去吗？”他的声音里充满了怀疑，“或者你是故意带我们来看这块石头的？让我猜一猜，这应该是一块特别的星族石，它会告诉我们幼崽们的下落。”
“你给我闭嘴！”石楠爪朝族猫嘶嘶道。
“为什么？”风爪大吼道，“我们在这地下迷路了！难道还要让我感激他吗？”
“嘘！”冬青爪突然示意他保持安静。
“我想说什么，就说什么！”风爪反驳道，“就因为他是你的弟弟……”
“我听到了什么声音！”冬青爪低声说道。
“什么声音？”狮爪的毛兴奋得直竖起来。
松鸦爪也伸长了耳朵，仔细听着。
一阵微弱的尖叫声，在松鸦爪头顶回荡，这声音比下雨声大不了多少。
是幼崽们吗？
“谁在那儿？”松鸦爪喊道。
尖叫声突然变成了兴奋的喵呜声。
幼崽们就在这块石头后面！
松鸦爪又听到了落叶那微弱的耳语声响了起来：“我跟你说过，我会帮你找到她们的。”
“我想我能爬过去！”狮爪说道。松鸦爪接着听到了爪子在石头上划过的声音——他哥哥说到做到，正在上面攀爬着。当狮爪从另一侧跳下去时，传来了一阵微弱的水花四溅的声音。
“她们在这里呢！”狮爪高兴的叫喊声响彻整个隧道。不一会儿，冬青爪、石楠爪和风爪也从石头上爬了过去。
“感谢星族，终于找到你们了！”石楠爪发出了兴奋的呼噜。
这时一阵爪子拍打水面的声音响了起来，一个受惊的声音回应道：“我们实在是爬不回去了！”
“我们还以为会永远困在这里了呢！”
“我们会把你们带回家的。”风爪向他们保证道。
“快上去吧，小燕。”石楠爪催促道。小爪子一点点在石头上攀爬的声音响了起来。一会儿，一团湿漉漉的小毛球笨拙地滑落到松鸦爪身旁的地面上。
“你还好吧？”松鸦爪问道。雨越下越大，他们必须尽快离开这里。
“我很好，不过……”
风爪打断了小燕的话：“该你了，小莎草。”
又一团小毛球擦着石头，轻轻落在地面上。松鸦爪把鼻子伸向这个“新来”的小家伙：“你摔疼了吗？”
“没有。”
松鸦爪用尾巴将这两只幼崽聚到一起，紧紧地靠着那两团湿漉漉的皮毛，让她俩感觉暖和些。
风爪也跳了下来，落在松鸦爪身边。松鸦爪顿时身体一僵。风爪嘴里叼着的第三只幼崽，已经几乎没有了呼吸。风爪把她放在地上时，她一动不动。
“小蓟睡着了，现在她醒不过来了！”小燕哀号道。
松鸦爪把这两只瑟瑟发抖的幼崽推到风爪身边，又在小蓟那瘫软而潮湿的身体旁边蹲下来。小蓟浑身冰凉，不停地颤抖着，还时不时抽搐一下。松鸦爪开始用爪子按摩她的身体，想给她的身体输送一些温暖。
石楠爪也从石头上滑下来：“她不要紧吧？”
“你快去帮风爪给那两只幼崽取暖！”松鸦爪命令道。
“我们饿坏了！”小莎草发出了叫声，却被石楠爪的皮毛挡了个严严实实。
“就该让你们饿着，谁让你们到处乱跑呢！”石楠爪斥责道。她的声音听上去很生气，可是松鸦爪在给小蓟按摩的同时，却感觉石楠爪一直担心地看着自己。雨越来越大，雨水顺着洞顶的裂缝，不断滴进隧道内。他爪子边的地面上，原本的沙土已变成黏滑的稀泥。松鸦爪的爪子揉搓小蓟身体的频率也越来越快，他必须把她们从这里带出去。
狮爪和冬青爪也从石头上跳了下来。
“你们知道出去的路吗？”小燕颤抖着身体问道。
“我们当然知道啦，”风爪大声说道，“我们这不是已经找到进来的路了吗？出去会更容易的。”
其实他一点儿都不相信自己的话。
“我们会出去的。”松鸦爪的语气很温柔。他等待着落叶给他鼓励的耳语声。但是这只年轻公猫只是用微颤的尾巴尖儿在他腹部上轻轻蹭着。
在他的揉搓下，小蓟咳嗽起来，身体开始动了，体温也上升到了正常的水平。她吃力地站了起来。“你们终于找到我们了！”她深吸了一口气说道。
冬青爪把这只颤抖着的幼崽搂到怀中：“难道你认为，我们会把你丢在这个恐怖的地方不管吗？”
这只幼崽的眼中露出一丝惊讶：“可你是雷族猫啊。”
“我们在帮助你的族猫寻找你们。”冬青爪解释道。
“你们惹了大麻烦。”风爪咆哮道。
狮爪的尾巴在地面上扫了扫：“等我们出去之后，再担心这些吧。”
突然，隧道里传来一阵狂风呼啸般的巨响。
“雨越来越大了。”冬青爪说道。
“那不是雨声，”狮爪低声喃喃道，“那是从隧道里面传来的。”
“里面？”小莎草尖叫道。
“是什么声音？”风爪问道。
松鸦爪感到一阵恐惧，他知道这声音是什么：“河水泛滥了。”
狮爪急忙跑到松鸦爪身旁，身上的皮毛警觉地竖起来：“你怎么知道的呢？”
松鸦爪闭上了眼睛：“我以前听过这种声音。隧道马上要淹没了。”
狮爪突然爆发出巨大的能量，他立即用嘴把小燕叼了起来。这时小燕突然发出尖叫：“我们赶快离开这里吧！”
“风爪和石楠爪，你们带上其他两只幼崽。”狮爪从嘴巴的缝隙挤出了一句话。
“我来带路。”松鸦爪说道。来时就是他带领大家的，因此，他也必须带领大家走出去。松鸦爪沿着隧道快步往回走，皮毛不断蹭着周围的石头。大家都紧紧跟在后面。
这时落叶来到了松鸦爪身边，再次跟他并肩而行。
“你一定要带我们回到洞穴那里！”松鸦爪低声说道。
“放心吧，我会的。”落叶答应道。他们一齐向前飞跑。这只年轻公猫的爪子落在隧道的地面上，一点儿声音都没有，然而他的内心依旧充满了慌乱与恐惧，脑海中浮现的记忆与松鸦爪刚进入隧道时的记忆形成了共鸣：爪子在泥水中不停挥动着，在强大的滚滚浪涛中不停地挣扎，但却无济于事，无法呼吸，最终沉入水下。当整个世界逐渐远离时，灵魂摆脱肉体时的不甘……他正在回想我们是如何被淹死的！
松鸦爪的爪子越走越快。他及时低下头，钻进了来时那条低矮而狭窄的缝隙，向前蠕动着身体，四周的岩石摩擦着他的脊背。他的爪子十分用劲，几乎要把石头抓裂了。当松鸦爪奋力从另一端爬出来时，他没有继续向前，而是等着下一只猫钻出来。当三只幼崽被狮爪、风爪和石楠爪在那粗糙不平的石头上拖拽着前行时，他们又痛又怕，都发出了凄惨的尖叫声。
“马上就到了，再坚持一下！”松鸦爪给大家鼓劲。整条隧道的地势又开始上升。他的爪子被水流不断地冲刷着。他扭了一下身体，又转过一个弯，终于又闻到了新鲜空气的气息。松鸦爪冲进了那个洞穴，心里重新燃起了希望。
我们成功了！松鸦爪感觉身边的落叶也跟着松了一口气。
前方，奔腾的河水咆哮着。
从身后传来狮爪的喊声。“松鸦爪，接着小燕！”他把幼崽抛给松鸦爪。
松鸦爪用牙齿衔住了她。
“他要去干什么？”冬青爪从隧道中探出头，石楠爪和风爪也跟着钻了出来。
松鸦爪突然听到水流扑通作响——狮爪跳进了河里。
“狮爪！”他放下小燕，高喊道。河水如猛兽般狂暴地号叫着。他努力竖起耳朵，搜寻着狮爪的声音。“你能看见他吗？”他用恳求的语气问冬青爪。
“他正在游泳！”
“他疯了吗？”风爪深吸了一口气。
“我没事儿！”狮爪一边在水里挣扎着、扑腾着，一边咳嗽着，很快游到河岸的另一边。
“我们怎么把幼崽们送过河呢？”石楠爪大声喊道。
“不行！”狮爪回应道，“这条隧道被堵死了！”他的声音听上去有些恐慌，“雨水把泥土冲进了隧道入口，这里有好多淤泥，根本就过不去。”
“从风族的那条隧道出去怎么样？”石楠爪又喊道。
“也堵死了！许多鹅卵石从洞顶滚下来了！”风爪的声音从通往风族领地的隧道里传出来，“这里就像一条瀑布。我们没法带幼崽们上去了！”
“我们必须试一下！”石楠爪尖叫道。
“我觉得上面没有足够的空间让我们过去。”风爪说道。他心里的恐惧让他说话的声音充满了火药味儿，“如果幼崽从岩石上滚落下来，那就死定了！”
“那我们总得做些什么吧？”冬青爪大吼道。
松鸦爪的身体紧贴着落叶，试着去探索落叶的想法。然而这只年轻公猫的身体似乎正在慢慢消失，松鸦爪的肩膀上传来一阵战栗。“落叶？”他低声呼唤道。
“对不起！”空气中，愧疚和悲伤的情绪，像薄雾一般升腾起来。松鸦爪突然感到，落叶原先温暖的身体一下子变得冰冷。一阵恐慌涌上松鸦爪的心头，时间在此刻也似乎变慢了。一瞬间，松鸦爪看到了一双绿色的眼睛。
“等一下！”松鸦爪高喊道，“你跟我们一起走吧！”
落叶眨眨眼，眼里充满了悲伤。“现在我还不能离开。”他的声音十分微弱，接着他就消失得无影无踪了。
不要啊，怎么又消失了？
“我们会死吗？”小莎草的惊叫声在湍急的河水上空回响着。
松鸦爪脑子飞速转动着，寻找着逃离的办法。汹涌的河水泛起泡沫，不停拍打着洞壁，水花飞溅到他的脸上。狮爪把他向后推了推，跟大家紧贴在一起，最终，他们都被困在了一条狭窄的土地上，河水不断拍打着他们的爪子。
救救我们吧！
松鸦爪的耳朵里血在奔涌。
在地下这么深的地方，星族能听到他的呼救吗？
突然，松鸦爪感觉眼前漆黑世界的边缘闪现出了一道银色的光，好似月光洒在一片夜幕笼罩的森林中。松鸦爪抬头望着，看到洞穴顶端有一处光滑的石台，一只猫正坐在上面。就是那只自己在梦中见过的猫，他长着扭曲的爪子、斑秃的皮毛和鼓起的盲眼。正是他让落叶进入隧道里，失去了生命。
这只猫直视着松鸦爪。
松鸦爪心中顿时升起一股怒火。“你是来看我们死去的吗？”
那只猫的爪子下，有一个阴影在移动着。他正在朝石台的边缘滚什么东西，那是一个细长而光滑的东西。松鸦爪的毛顿时惊得竖起来，它就是湖边的那根树棍！
树棍上的标记在月光下清晰可见。松鸦爪疑惑地望着那只老猫，只见他举起一只爪子，又颤抖着将另外一只爪子放在树棍上的一排划痕上：五条长的，三条短的。松鸦爪深吸了一口气。之前树棍上并没有那排标记啊！松鸦爪曾数过好多次，清楚地记得它们的数量。
那划痕代表五位学徒和三只幼崽！就是我们啊！
松鸦爪呆呆地望着老猫的眼睛，心里惊恐不安。我们真的要死了？
老猫低下头看着那根树棍，然后缓缓地放下爪子，拂过那排划痕。松鸦爪的心里突然闪过一丝希望。他明白了。
我们能活下来！
老猫点点头。
突然，一只爪子重重地拍在了松鸦爪的耳朵上。“别傻愣着了，快想想办法啊！”是风爪，他正大吼着。
幻象消失了，松鸦爪又什么也看不见了。松鸦爪转过身，身上的毛兴奋得直竖了起来。“我知道了！”他说道，“我有办法离开这里！”
“什么办法？”狮爪问道。
“我不确定，”松鸦爪承认道，“让我再想想。”
“你光靠想，就能挪动石头吗？”石楠爪尖叫道，“我们已经走投无路了！”
“我们可以等到洞穴被洪水吞没时，游到洞顶的裂缝那儿，就能钻出去了。”冬青爪建议道。
“不行。那裂缝太窄，我们没法逃出去。”风爪大声说道。
“而且幼崽们会被淹死的！”石楠爪也说道。
松鸦爪摇摇头。他的脑海中隐隐约约有了一个想法，却并不清晰。对了，那根树棍！它原来是在这个洞穴里的！可他后来却在湖边找到了它。它究竟是怎么出去的？
水流依然不断地拍打着他的爪子。松鸦爪往后退了退，接着一下子怔住了，好像想到了什么，脑海中浮现出河水涨到了树棍所在的位置，把它卷入水中冲走的画面。对啊！这条河一定是流向湖里去的！
“我们必须游泳！”他喊道。
“游到哪里啊？”狮爪慌张地问道。
“这条河通到湖里去，它会把我们带到那里的！”
“可这条河流着流着，就在地下消失了！”风爪低声吼道。
“之后它就回到地面，注入湖里了！”松鸦爪坚持道。
“可我们不是河族，不会游泳啊！”石楠爪哭叫道。
狮爪紧贴着松鸦爪的身体，问道：“这个办法真的管用吗？”
“没有其他方法了。”
“既然你已经说我们必须要这么做，那我们就信任你了。”冬青爪说道。
“也只有你才会信任他！”风爪再次咆哮起来。
“要是我们坐以待毙，那我们都会淹死的！”石楠爪尖叫道。
冬青爪搓搓地上的泥土，下定了决心：“我们试试吧！”
小燕害怕地尖叫着：“我不想跳到水里！”
“我们会拽着你们的尾巴，”狮爪承诺道，“不会放开的。”
“拽着我们的尾巴？”小蓟也尖叫起来。
“如果拽着你们后颈的皮毛，我们就会呛很多水的。”狮爪说道，“你们必须像我这样，用前爪在水里扑腾，让脑袋浮在水面上。”这时河水又涌了上来，水浪在爪子边拍打着。狮爪站起来，抬起前爪，在空中挥动着，向幼崽们示范扑腾的动作。
“我好害怕。”石楠爪悄声说道。
“不会有事儿的。”狮爪把爪子放下来，贴紧她的身体。旁边的松鸦爪清晰地听到狮爪在石楠爪耳边小声说道：“就算成了星族的一员，我也永远不会忘记我俩曾经在一起的美好时光。”
石楠爪的身体颤抖着：“到了那里，我们之间就再也没有边界的阻隔了。”
松鸦爪眨眨眼，他俩的这份感情令他惊愕不已。紧接着，在眼前的黑暗里，那道光又闪现出来，他又看到了那只老猫。
马上离开这里！
松鸦爪猛然想起以前曾进入这里冒险的猫，他们内心的恐惧伴着希望，在他的周围盘旋萦绕，窃窃私语。那根树棍上的划痕，昭示着他们最终的命运。而那几条新添的划痕，真的预示他们都会活下来吗？此刻，松鸦爪一定要相信他们会的！
“我们必须走了！”松鸦爪命令道。
“到河边站成一列，”冬青爪指挥道，“狮爪，你带着小莎草，我带着小蓟，风爪带着小燕。”
“我能做什么呢？”石楠爪问道。
“你紧紧咬住我的尾巴，”松鸦爪说道，“我们得相互帮助。”
“好的。”石楠爪同意了。接着，松鸦爪感到石楠爪用牙齿轻轻咬住了自己的尾巴尖儿。
“我不要下去！”小燕试着往河边跑去，但爪子踩在浅滩上，水花四溅。风爪上前抓住她，将她从水面拽到自己身边。小燕发出一声凄惨的尖叫。“别担心，小燕！”风爪安慰道，“我不会让你淹死的。”
小燕呜咽着，不过这次，她没再挣扎着试图逃脱。
“快点儿！”狮爪催促道。
松鸦爪蹚过浅滩，当爪子感受到湍急的水流那强大的冲力时，他的爪子恐惧得颤抖起来。
“准备好了吗？”狮爪问道。
“准备好了！”冬青爪回答道。
松鸦爪绷紧神经，喊道：“跳！”
话音刚落，他纵身一跃，跳进了滔滔河水。石楠爪刚一跃进水中，奔涌的河水就将她向下游冲去，但她紧紧地拽住松鸦爪的尾巴。水流将松鸦爪拖进水里，松鸦爪又一次迷失在差点儿被洪水吞没的那个噩梦里。翻滚的河水让他无法呼吸，周围全是猫的身体，耳朵里也充斥着咆哮声。
第二十章
第二十章
湍急的河水在冬青爪的耳边咆哮，山洞微弱的光芒也从他们的视野中消失了。河水把冬青爪拽进了隧道，将她朝水底拉扯，她无法呼吸。她使劲儿憋着气，不让自己吸入河水，嘴里紧紧地叼着小蓟的尾巴。
岩石剐到了冬青爪的耳朵，河水将她托了起来，她感到空气扑面而来，于是赶忙深吸了一口气，紧接着，急流再次将她拖入水下。
这时不知是谁的身体蹭着她，然后又漂走了。小蓟不停地挣扎着，用锋利的爪子挠着她的鼻子。冬青爪强忍着还击的冲动。冬青爪完全信任松鸦爪，于是任凭洪水裹挟着自己漂来荡去。一波水浪袭来，把她甩向隧道壁上，她感到石块划伤了自己的身体。
咆哮声越来越大，冬青爪感觉自己的耳膜都要爆炸了。
但是紧接着，一切归于平静。
湍急的水流变得平缓，咆哮声也消失了。冬青爪睁大眼睛，想在黑暗中看到什么。远处有许多明亮的点在闪烁着。那是光吗？难道星族正在等待她，欢迎她的到来？
冬青爪的脑袋一片眩晕，意识渐渐被黑暗笼罩。她奋力向上游去，发疯般地探寻着水面，心里祈祷头顶上不要再出现岩石了。她用尽最后一点儿力气，不顾一切地向上游，最后，她发现，整个世界就只有水了。
忽然，冬青爪的脑袋冒出了湖面，一阵疾风扫过她的脸，灌进鼻孔和耳朵，吹得她打了个寒战。他们终于成功地离开了隧道！冬青爪喘息着，不住咳嗽着，然后大口大口地呼吸起冷冽却美好的新鲜空气来。她眨了眨眼睛，把水珠甩掉，这才看清那些亮点原来是星星在被风吹散的片片云朵后面闪耀着。暴风雨已经过去了。
小蓟在冬青爪的身边使劲儿扑打着，挣扎着让自己的脑袋浮在水面上。冬青爪放开她的尾巴，叼着这只幼崽后颈部的皮毛，后腿在水里不停地划着，使她俩的脑袋都浮在水面上。冬青爪强迫自己的身体放松下来，利用湖水的浮力，在水中有节奏地划动着爪子，保持着悬浮的状态。小蓟在她的胸口颤抖着，不住地咳嗽，发出了呼哧呼哧的喘息声。
冬青爪扫视着黑黢黢的湖面，寻找着其他猫的踪迹。几条尾巴远的地方，狮爪金棕色的脑袋露出了水面，冬青爪心里高兴极了。小莎草紧紧趴在他的后背上，眼睛在月光下闪闪发光。突然，狮爪附近的水面上冒出很多水泡，接着风爪和小燕也冲出了水面。
松鸦爪和石楠爪呢？冬青爪有些心慌。他们离开隧道了吗？这时，她的身后传来噼里啪啦拍打水面的声音，冬青爪猛地回头看去。由于动作太快，差点儿把小蓟甩了出去，小猫崽大声惊叫起来。
松鸦爪和石楠爪并排游着。他俩都在水中摆动着爪子，努力让自己保持悬浮。
“松鸦爪！”冬青爪喊道。
“我们没事儿！”石楠爪一边咳嗽，一边回应道。
冬青爪朝他俩游了过去，她把后腿伸展开，向后蹬去。冬青爪惊讶地发现，自己这种游泳的姿势居然挺像河族猫。“湖岸在这边！”她看到那湖岸就在不远处，兴奋地喊着。冬青爪游到松鸦爪身边，推着他朝湖岸的方向前进。
石楠爪用爪子拍着湖水，朝狮爪游去。为什么这位风族学徒不去帮助她的族猫呢？紧接着冬青爪注意到，狮爪把脸埋在水下，爪子拍动着，好像在搜寻什么。不一会儿，狮爪的脑袋浮出水面，冬青爪看到，他的眼睛里充满了惊恐。
“小莎草不见了！”狮爪大吼道。
石楠爪立刻扎进湖里。冬青爪屏住了呼吸，焦急地在湖面划动着，这时狮爪又将脑袋探到水下。难道水流把小莎草又拖回那黑暗的无底深渊了吗？
忽然，石楠爪探出头来，嘴里叼着小莎草，这只幼崽的爪子发疯一般地挥舞着。幼崽没有死！
随后，狮爪也浮出水面，看到小莎草安然无恙，他的眼睛顿时闪出兴奋的光。他游到石楠爪身边，用牙齿咬住小莎草的尾巴，然后，他们一起朝湖岸的方向游去。冬青爪在松鸦爪身边游着，她回头望望后面，看风爪是否跟了上来。这位黑色皮毛的风族学徒嘴里衔着小燕后颈部的皮毛，眼睛盯着远处的湖岸，专注地划着水。
冬青爪的肌肉酸痛、疲惫不堪，然而她不敢停下来。她的嘴巴被小蓟的皮毛塞住，每呼吸一次都是一种折磨。不过她仍盯紧湖岸，奋力往前游着。冬青爪终于感觉到，有鹅卵石摩擦着自己的后爪。她用力向下伸伸前爪，最后触到了浅水区的湖底。感谢你，星族！
冬青爪蹚到湖滩上，把小蓟丢下，喘息了一会儿，总算缓过气来了。石楠爪和狮爪已躺在了远处的湖岸上，他俩的腹部都在不停地上下起伏着。小莎草蹲在他俩身边，把呛进肚子里的水都吐在鹅卵石上。
这时，冬青爪身后的鹅卵石咯咯作响，松鸦爪也跟着游上了岸。
“你是怎么知道那条河会带我们来到湖里的？”冬青爪一边喘着气，一边问道。
“这……这不是明摆着的嘛！”松鸦爪一边咳嗽，一边回答道。他扑通一声倒在湖滩上，小蓟在他身后也跟着摔了一跤。
风爪也拼命挣扎着离开了深水，在湖滩上爬了几条狐狸尾巴远。小燕在他的嘴里来回晃荡着，爪子不停地挥舞着，想让风爪赶快把自己放到地面上。
“我们都安全啦！”冬青爪喊道。她走到狮爪和石楠爪身边，颤抖的爪子在潮湿的鹅卵石上不时地打滑。“你俩还好吧？”
狮爪抬起头：“还好，才丢了半条命而已。”
石楠爪忽然发出了一声呼噜声。她用自己还在滴水的尾巴，轻拂着狮爪的身体，然后站起来说道：“我们还是尽快把幼崽们送回营地吧。”
冬青爪抬起头，看了看湖滩。岸边长满了黑莓和蕨类植物，后面就是黑漆漆的森林。这里是雷族的领地。“我们把她们带到叶池那里去吧，”她建议道，“那儿更近一些，我们需要确保她们没事儿。”小莎草依然在咳着呛在嗓子里的水，小蓟瘫软在她旁边，眼睛虽然还是睁着的，但是呼吸却十分急促。
“冬青爪说得对。”松鸦爪来到大家身边说，“她们受到了惊吓，需要检查治疗一下。”
这时小燕和风爪快步跑了过来。“这是我经历的最恐怖的事了！”她一边说，一边抖着皮毛上的水珠。
“等你吃了叶池配的草药，再说这句话吧。”松鸦爪警告道。
风爪的眼睛里充满了疑惑：“叶池？”
“雷族营地就在附近，”石楠爪告诉他，“我们应该带幼崽们去治疗一下。”
风爪注视着小燕，看到她的皮毛上有岩石碰撞造成的擦伤，还流了血，于是点头同意了：“好吧。”
松鸦爪突然竖起了耳朵：“你们快听！”
一声号叫突然划破了寂静的夜空。冬青爪辨认出那是父亲的声音，身体顿时僵住了。与黑莓掌的声音相对峙，风族那边也传来同样凶恶的咆哮声。
“这声音是从森林边界那里传过来的。”松鸦爪说道。
难道他们的突然消失，让局势更加恶化了吗？“如果我们不马上回去，两族之间就会发生战斗了！”冬青爪深吸一口气说道。
狮爪忽然跳了起来：“我们可以让幼崽们现身。如果风族知道幼崽们平安无事，就没必要再打了。”
“我们要去参加战斗吗？”小燕的眼睛睁得大大的，像猫头鹰的眼睛一样。
“我也要上战场！”小莎草说道。
“如果我们尽快赶到那里，就不会有战斗发生了。”冬青爪说道。小莎草并不知道，她是造成这场混乱的源头之一，如果战斗开始，她甚至会跟救了自己一命的雷族猫战斗……“你们还能继续走路吗？”
“当然能了！”小蓟摇摇尾巴说道。
松鸦爪挨个儿闻了闻每只幼崽的气息。“她们需要草药治伤。”他有些担心地说道，接着又抬起了下巴，“不过，等会儿再用药也没问题。”
“走路会让她们的身子暖和一些。”石楠爪说道。
冬青爪领着大家沿湖滩向前走着。她爬上湖岸，拨开一丛香薇，然后又扯住香薇叶让后面的猫先过。石楠爪推着小燕爬上斜坡；风爪跟在小蓟后面，用鼻子顶着她的腹部，以免她失足摔下去；狮爪用嘴叼起小莎草后颈部的皮毛，把她朝陡峭的湖岸上方扔，然后落在冬青爪的身旁。小莎草通过后，冬青爪这才放开了香薇叶。小莎草抬头注视着这些繁茂的枝条，眼睛大睁着，好像自己从未在树林中行走过一样。
“松鸦爪在干什么呢？”狮爪看着湖岸上的弟弟，问冬青爪。
冬青爪眯起了眼睛——松鸦爪正蹲在一根树棍旁。
“你跟其他猫先走吧，”她告诉狮爪，“我和松鸦爪会尽快追上你们的。”
说完，冬青爪冲回湖滩。“你还好吧？”她问松鸦爪。
可松鸦爪似乎并没听见，依然在树棍旁待着，眼睛紧闭，像是睡着了一样。冬青爪一点点靠近他，感觉自己像个偷袭者。
“你之前的承诺兑现了，我们都很安全。”松鸦爪低声喃喃着，鼻子紧紧地贴着那光滑的苍白木头表面，“谢谢你。”
“我们要走啦！”冬青爪催促道。
松鸦爪依然一动不动。“慢走，落叶，”他轻轻说道，“我希望有一天，你能找到出去的路。”
“快点儿啊，松鸦爪！”他们必须快点儿了。边界处传来的吼叫声，变得更加激烈了。
松鸦爪抬起头：“我来了。”他放下树棍，来到冬青爪身边。
“你刚才在干什么？”
“这不重要。”松鸦爪一边回答，一边用那双盲眼注视着冬青爪。这件事一定很重要。冬青爪猜想着。她很了解松鸦爪，有时候，她希望自己能更多地了解松鸦爪一些。狮爪的心思倒是很好猜，他和石楠爪之间的友情，虽然违反了武士守则的规定，但他喜欢那只美丽的风族猫是毫无疑问的，他自己也不会掩饰。而松鸦爪似乎一直被一双看不见的爪子指引着，在隐秘的世界中穿行，而冬青爪永远无法进入到那里。
很快，他俩追上了其他猫。经过这段漫长艰险的隧道之旅，冬青爪的胸口和爪子都隐隐作痛。她的爪垫被隧道中粗糙不平的石壁反复摩擦，这次终于又重新踏上森林中那松软的地面了。风爪的脚步越来越快，幼崽们不得不加速跟上。小蓟突然被一条树根绊倒了。狮爪马上跑过去，把她衔在嘴里。这次她一声不吭，没有抱怨，身子松垮着，眼睛里满是疲惫。
小莎草呼哧呼哧地喘着粗气。
“我可以驮着你。”冬青爪说道。这只幼崽摇摇头，她喘得厉害，连话都说不出来了。
突然，小燕惊叫了一声，原来一根黑莓枝挂住了她的皮毛。松鸦爪用牙齿把它拨开了。冬青爪的心顿时一紧。让这些幼崽在森林中这么快地奔跑，对她们来说实在很残忍。不过，眼下最重要的事情，是必须尽快阻止战斗的发生。
“我们马上就到了。”冬青爪说道。
地势逐渐下降，风爪突然跑了起来。小莎草和小燕也紧紧追了上去。
前方的森林里传来了一声怒吼：“我已经告诉你了，我们这里没有你们的幼崽！”是火星的声音。
“那她们去哪儿了？”一星质问道，“河族发誓，他们那里没有。幼崽们肯定去了别的什么地方，我们要找到她们。”
“你们要是胆敢踏入我们领地一步，我们就把你们通通撕碎！”
冬青爪真想赶快见到自己的族猫。她透过树丛依稀看到，黑莓掌正气势汹汹地与溪谷对岸风族领地的灰脚对峙着。火星跟自己的副族长并肩站在一起。刺掌、白翅、蛛足和莓爪在他俩身后，身上的毛都立着。对岸，风族猫的毛也奓开着，不断发出威吓的吼声。鸦羽在一星和灰脚身边，撕扯着地面，张开利爪，做好了进攻的准备。枭须和裂耳在他们身后走来走去。
冬青爪的心怦怦地跳个不停，她超过幼崽们，跟在风爪身后冲了下去。风爪冲过一处黑莓丛，反弹回来的黑莓刺抽打在冬青爪的鼻子上。她从灌木丛中冲出来时，恰巧看到风爪纵身跳过了溪谷。
“不要打！我们找到幼崽了。”风爪大吼道。
“没必要打仗！”冬青爪一边喊着，一边焦急地回头张望着，期盼着其他猫尽快出现。
“她们在哪里？”一星问道。
“她们马上就到。”冬青爪承诺道。
这时，灌木丛沙沙作响，石楠爪用鼻子顶着小莎草和小燕来到了空地上。武士们顿时都目瞪口呆。小猫崽们跌跌撞撞停下来，在月光下眨着眼。狮爪走出了黑莓丛，把小蓟轻轻放在她们身边。松鸦爪也跟着钻了出来。
“星族啊，你们到底在哪儿找到她们的？”一星睁大眼睛问道。
狮爪脊背上的毛竖了起来。他看了一眼石楠爪，向前迈了一步，说道：“她们去……”
冬青爪打断了他的话。“她们去湖边玩儿了，”她说道，“还自己搭建了一处营地来避雨呢。”
现在，泄露狮爪的秘密又有什么意义呢？连接两个族群营地的那条隧道现在已经被堵死了。隧道所带来的战略优势已经不存在了，揭开这个秘密只会给狮爪带来麻烦。冬青爪看看其他猫，心里默默祈祷着，希望他们同意自己的做法。
石楠爪点点头。“她们刚好跨越了雷族边界，就在湖滩那儿。”她一边说，一边看向风爪，“狮爪、冬青爪和松鸦爪闻到了幼崽的气息，恰好发现了我们，然后就叫我们过来了。”
“气息？”一星有些疑惑，“我们什么都没闻到啊。”
风爪眨眨眼睛，说道：“一定是雨水把气息都冲掉了。”
一星摇摇尾巴，召唤着幼崽们：“快过来！”
小莎草、小蓟和小燕耷拉着耳朵，拖着尾巴，小心翼翼地靠近边界，在溪谷边缘停了下来。
“你们为什么未经允许就擅自离开营地？”一星的怒吼声从溪谷另一侧传过来。
小莎草抬起下巴回答道：“我们去探险了。”
“探险？”一星反问道，“为了找你们，我们差一点儿就跟河族和雷族打起来了！”
小燕垂下了头：“很抱歉，对不起。”
“我们没想到会这样。”小蓟补充道。
“在湖滩上建造营地，真的挺好玩儿的。”小莎草一边说，一边看了看冬青爪，调皮地眨了眨眼睛。她根本不知道，保守隧道的秘密意味着什么。
狮爪走到边界旁边，问一星：“你刚才说，你们跟河族是差一点儿打起来吗？”
冬青爪立刻满怀希望地问道：“也就是说你们没打起来？”
“我们已经要求河族天亮之前交出幼崽。”一星有些恼火地叹气道，“不过现在看，我们要跟他们道歉，他们被冤枉了。”
“道歉？”裂耳抽动着尾巴，“别忘了，他们擅闯过我们的边界！”
“他们是被狗追到那里的。”一星提醒他。
“他们上次也是这么解释的。”鸦羽咆哮道。
“我当时真的闻到了狗的气息，”一星大声说道，“我们必须相信自己亲眼看到、亲耳听到的事情。”
鸦羽的毛竖了起来：“可他们依然有入侵我们的可能。”
一星眯起了眼睛：“也许他们还会像当初承诺的那样，回到自己原先的营地。等下次森林大会举行时，就会真相大白了。在这段时间里，我们仍然要像往常一样，继续巡查边界。如果发现了那只狗，我们会好好教训教训它，让它在自己的地盘好好地待着。”
冬青爪悬着的一颗心终于落了地，风族的幼崽们安然无恙，战斗警报也已随之解除了。她注意到火星正盯着自己。
“冬青爪，看来你是对的。”火星说道。
冬青爪低下了头：“之前谁都没认为我是对的。”
黑莓掌用尾巴拂过她身体：“你们看起来都累坏了，我们送你们回营地吧。”
“是啊。”一星表示同意。他跳过边界，把幼崽们一个接一个带回到溪谷的另一边，“实在抱歉，我们的幼崽给你们添了太多麻烦。”
“我们自己也有幼崽的，”火星回应道，语气中透着一丝温暖，“因此，我们理解你们的心情。”
裂耳哼了一声，叼起小蓟后颈部的皮毛，快速转过身，朝森林深处走去。同时，枭须衔起了小燕，鸦羽也把小莎草叼了起来。
“谢谢你们把我们送回来！”小莎草临走时尖声叫道。
黑莓掌看了看还待在灌木丛旁边的松鸦爪：“你没事吧？”
“我没事儿。”松鸦爪回答道。他开始梳理起自己的尾巴。
冬青爪眨了眨眼睛。他们几个阻止了一场战斗的发生，难道他认为这不值一提吗？自从离开湖边的那一刻起，他就一直心不在焉的。
“我也要走了。”风爪急匆匆地跟冬青爪和狮爪点头致意。他又看了看在雷族边界上徘徊的石楠爪，问道：“你跟我一起回去吗？”
“我等一会儿再走。”
风爪哼了一声，快步离开，去追赶自己的族猫了。
石楠爪走到狮爪身边，眨眼间将他俩的尾巴缠绕在一起，说道：“谢谢你的帮助。”
火星眯起了眼睛，冬青爪身体一僵。她注视着自己的哥哥，不安地等待着他的回答。刚刚避免了一场战斗，可别再惹出另一场战斗来！
“对任何猫，我们都会这么做的。”狮爪平静地回答道。
石楠爪的眼中流露出哀伤的神色：“狮爪，你一定会成为伟大的武士的。”
狮爪就这样看着石楠爪跳过溪谷，消失在远处的阴影里。然后，他面无表情地朝火星眨眨眼，问道：“我们现在可以回营地了吧？”
火星点点头，领着族猫们离开了。
冬青爪把爪子插入柔软而潮湿的泥土里。狮爪这次得到了教训。武士守则比任何一种友谊都重要，它是指导猫做事的准则，并且在大多数情况下，它会平息战斗，而不会挑起战斗。松鸦爪倒是可以不受武士守则的限制——因为他跟星族保持着一种神秘的关系。不过冬青爪和狮爪是武士，如果没有武士守则的约束，他们就什么也不是了。
我已经不是巫医了，所以我不能再像以前那样，跟柳爪做朋友了。遵守武士守则才是最重要的，如果我们严格遵守它，所有族群都会和平共处了。冬青爪想道。
冬青爪拖着一身酸痛的肌肉和四只疲惫的爪子，跟着族猫们走进了森林。今晚，她终于能美美地睡上一觉了。
第二十一章
第二十一章
隧道里漫长的跋涉，以及那段长距离的游泳，让狮爪的肌肉异常疼痛。然而他却一刻也不想在窝里待着了。此前他一觉睡到了中午。蜡毛说，狮爪要是再不好好睡一觉，就拒绝带他去训练。可是他心里难受，他在铺着干燥苔藓的窝里翻来覆去睡不着。最后，他实在不想再在舒服的窝里待着了。他穿过荆棘屏障，走进了森林。
“你要去活动一下腿脚吗？”溪儿的声音把他吓了一跳。狮爪离开营地入口后就陷入了沉思。西斜的夕阳透过树丛，闪耀着灿烂的光辉。
“我一直在休息，有点儿无聊。”狮爪告诉她。
“你看起来气色好多了。”溪儿说道，“昨晚你看起来特别疲惫，就像是刚从遥远的山区回来。”
狮爪看看自己的爪子说道：“那些幼崽真是太难找了。”
“可你们还是找到她们了。”溪儿提醒道。
“是啊。”狮爪一边低声喃喃着，一边开始爬坡，朝森林走去。
“我会等你回来的！”溪儿的声音从他身后传来。
“我不会去太久的。”狮爪向她保证道。
狮爪慢慢穿过森林，向那条隧道的入口走去。当他看到守护着隧道入口的黑莓丛时，心里的痛苦又加剧了。他俯身钻过长满钩刺的枝条，爬上斜坡，在一个洞前停下了。这里就是石楠爪曾经跟他喊话的地方。他的脑海中又浮现出了她的样子，那双碧蓝的眼睛闪着兴奋的光芒。
狮爪再也无法见到她那副快乐的样子了，他俩也永远不再是拥有自己隐秘领地的暗族成员了。他舍弃了这些，选择做一位忠诚的雷族武士。
狮爪闭上眼睛，幻想着自己依旧能嗅到石楠爪的气息从隧道的入口飘来，可他知道，这已经不可能了。现在，泥石流已经把山洞的入口封死，也意味着他所拥有的一段最为宝贵的友谊就此画上了句号。
“再见了，石楠爪。”狮爪朝隧道深处悄悄说道，期待着风儿能够穿过层层黑暗，将他的话捎给另一边等待着的她……
在星族那里，我们之间不会有边界的阻隔。他想起当初被困在隧道里，他们自认为已经必死无疑的那一刻。那一刻的激动仍残留在爪间。他又怎能若无其事地转个身，就跟这段感情挥手告别呢？
可是他必须这样做。
石楠爪也一样。
一轮半月在夜空中升起。狮爪穿过黑影幢幢的森林，朝营地走去。风吹拂着树冠，香薇丛簌簌作响，慢慢展开它们亮绿色的新叶。
突然，一团皮毛拂过他的身体。
狮爪吓了一跳，尾巴也警觉地竖了起来。
“我们为你骄傲。”虎星的声音在夜空中飘荡着。狮爪转过头，看到了这位深色皮毛的武士的影子，还有那双闪着光芒的琥珀色眼睛。
这时又有一团皮毛从他身体的另一侧拂过。是鹰霜。
“你做出了正确的决定。”这位虎斑武士用肩膀推推狮爪，说道。鹰霜那如同幽灵一般的触碰，令狮爪感到毛骨悚然。
“我失去了最好的朋友，”狮爪低声说道，“我内心从未如此空虚失落过。”
“友情不值一文，”虎星咆哮道，“你已经学到了重要的一课，那是我永远无法教给你的一课。不过将来我还会教你更多东西。总有一天你会变得非常强大，强大到不需要任何朋友。当那一天来临时，我向你保证，你永远不会后悔选择成为武士。”
特别感谢凯特•卡里