Kinkfur had protested. “She must be one of us. StarClan sent Needlepaw to find her.”
Violetkit had paused, pricking her ears, hoping Oakfur would agree with the old she-cat. But he had remained silent, and his silence had jabbed Violetkit’s heart like a thorn.
“Pinenose?” She pressed Pinenose’s belly with her paw. The queen’s older kits had moved into their own nests in the nursery, arguing that they were nearly apprentices and far too old to share their mother’s nest. Grassheart was asleep, her round belly moving in the dappled moonlight. From time to time she moaned, as though bad dreams kept waking her.
Pinenose was snoring softly. “Pinenose!” She poked the queen again.
“What is it?” Pinenose snorted as she woke. She looked blearily at Violetkit. “Are you ill?”
“No.” Violetkit blinked at the queen through the darkness, wondering suddenly if she’d ever seen her real mother’s face. She couldn’t remember it. “I need to ask you something.”
Pinenose yawned. “Can’t it wait until morning?”
No. “Do I really belong in ShadowClan?”
“Of course you do, dear.” Pinenose shifted, pushing Violetkit closer to the edge of the nest. “You wouldn’t rather be with ThunderClan, would you? They’re such a bunch of know-it-alls.”
“But I heard Ratscar say—”
Pinenose interrupted her. “Don’t listen to Clan gossip. Especially not gossip you hear in the elders’ den. Those cats have nothing to do but talk.”
Violetkit longed for Pinenose to pull her closer as Lilyheart used to do and lap her head until she felt calmer. But Pinenose rolled over with a grunt and, within moments, was snoring again.
Violetkit hung her chin over the edge of the nest, feeling Pinenose’s flank fall and rise against hers. Across the nursery, Grassheart was still fidgeting and moaning. Birchkit was curled into a tight bundle, his muzzle buried under his paw. His limbs were quivering, as though he was dreaming of hunting. Puddlekit’s head lolled; his mouth was open slightly. Slatekit stirred, but the gray tomkit didn’t wake. Violetkit wondered if they thought she didn’t belong, too. Perhaps every cat in ShadowClan thought she shouldn’t be here. Then why did Rowanstar take me?
She tried not to remember the night of the Gathering when, without warning, the ShadowClan leader had plucked her by her scruff and carried her away from Twigkit. It had felt like an awful dream, but it hadn’t been; the next morning she’d woken up here and not in Lilyheart’s nest.
Suddenly she remembered her feather. She dug into the moss and pulled it out from where she’d hidden it for safekeeping. She buried her nose in its soft fringes and shut her eyes. Was that Twigkit’s scent she could smell? She breathed in deeply, feeling herself relax. Tiredness began to seep into her pelt. Imagining Twigkit beside her, Violetkit let herself drift into sleep.
“Puddlekit!” Pinenose’s alarmed mew woke her. “Go and fetch Leafpool! Grassheart is kitting!”
Violetkit blinked open her eyes, her heart pounding. Pinenose was crouching beside Grassheart, who was writhing in her nest. The pale tabby’s breath was fast and hard, a growl deep in her throat.
Puddlekit darted from the den.
“We’ll go with him.” Birchkit leaped from his nest, Lionkit at his heels. They disappeared through the entrance.
Violetkit blinked at Pinenose and Grassheart. What should I do? Grassheart’s growl turned into a wail. Trembling, Violetkit squashed herself deeper into her nest, flattening her ears. A moment later, Leafpool burst into the den. In the moonlight filtering through the bramble walls, Violetkit watched her run a paw over Grassheart’s heaving belly.
“Everything’s just as it should be,” the ThunderClan medicine cat meowed calmly. “For now she only needs some wet moss to drink.”
“Violetkit can fetch some,” Pinenose meowed briskly.
“Violetkit?” Leafpool turned and blinked through the shadows. “Are you there?”
Violetkit peeked over the edge of the nest and nodded.
“Go to the apprentices’ den,” Leafpool told her. “You can sleep there tonight.”
“But what about the moss for Grassheart?” Violetkit stared at her, round-eyed.
“I’ve already sent Puddlekit to fetch some,” Leafpool told her. “He’s going to help me deliver these kits.”
Pinenose bristled. “He’s not an apprentice yet!”
“He will be soon, and the quicker he starts training, the better,” Leafpool meowed firmly. She flicked her tail toward Violetkit. “Go.”
Violetkit scrambled from her nest and headed for the entrance, relieved to get away from Grassheart’s frightening moans. She nosed her way out and froze.
Rowanstar, Crowfrost, Tawnypelt, and Stonewing were still sitting vigil beside Littlecloud’s body. It lay like a stone in the center of the camp. Ratscar, Oakfur, and Kinkfur crouched nearby.
Her heart pounded and she swerved to avoid the vigil, but as she moved closer to the apprentices’ den, new worries invaded her mind. What would Sleekpaw and the other apprentices say when she told them that Leafpool had sent her to sleep with them? They weren’t exactly friendly.
A soft mew sounded behind her. “Violetkit. I was just coming to find you.” Needlepaw padded from the shadows at the edge of the camp.
“Find me?” Violetkit spun around, alarmed. Had she done something wrong? Needlepaw had spoken to her a few times since Alderpaw’s visit, but before that she’d hardly paid her any attention.
“We have to go somewhere.” Needlepaw halted, her green eyes shining in the moonlight.
“But Leafpool told me to go to the apprentices’ den,” Violetkit told her. “Grassheart is having her kits.”
“So?” Needlepaw shrugged. “You can do that later.”
Beside Littlecloud’s body, Tawnypelt turned. Her eyes flashed with worry as she caught sight of Violetkit and Needlepaw. The tortoiseshell hurried toward them. “Violetkit, why are you out of the nursery? It’s late.”
Needlepaw answered for her. “Grassheart is kitting.” She jerked her nose toward the nursery. “I’m supposed to take care of Violetkit.”
That’s a lie. Violetkit blinked at the apprentice, surprised.
“Make sure she gets a warm nest and some sleep.” Tawnypelt turned back toward the nursery.
Violetkit was impressed. Tawnypelt hadn’t doubted Needlepaw for a moment. I wish I were like Needlepaw. She’s so sure of herself.
Needlepaw glanced at her. “Are you ready?”
Ready for what? Violetkit stared at her. Tongue-tied, she could only nod.
“Then follow me and keep quiet.” Needlepaw headed for the camp wall, slipping into the shadows where the brambles swallowed the moonlight. “We mustn’t be seen.”
“Why not?” Violetkit whispered. Butterflies fluttered in her belly.
“We’re going on an adventure.”
“Where?”
“Outside the camp.”
Violetkit hesitated. “Outside?”
Needlepaw turned and thrust her muzzle close. “You’re not scared, are you?”
“No,” Violetkit lied. She didn’t want Needlepaw to think she was a scaredy-mouse. “But I might get into trouble if I leave the camp.”
“Not if you’re with me.” Needlepaw blinked at her.
Violetkit shifted her paws. Was that true? Was she allowed to leave the camp if she was with Needlepaw? Perhaps it was a special mission. Something to do with Littlecloud dying, or Grassheart having kits. Everything had been strange all day. Perhaps leaving camp was okay now.
Needlepaw ran her tail along Violetkit’s spine. “Just stay close to me and you will be safe.”
Needlepaw’s tail felt soothing. I will be safe. It sounded reassuring. Violetkit lifted her chin. “Okay. Let’s go.”
Needlepaw purred as she headed deeper into the shadows. As Violetkit trotted after her, she wondered where they were going. Then she smelled the familiar scent of the dirtplace and realized they were heading f
or the narrow tunnel that led out of the back of the camp.
She ducked through it after Needlepaw, blinking as darkness pressed in with the brambles. A moment later she was outside.
Needlepaw tasted the air. “Come on.” Her silver pelt shone as she padded through a strip of moonlight. “Follow me.”
Violetkit tried to stay close behind Needlepaw, peering up at the trees. Their great trunks disappeared into shadow overhead, and specks of starlight glinted through gaps in the thick canopy. She tripped over a root and landed on her chin. “Oof!”
“Be careful.” Needlepaw turned to look at her, her eyes shining in the dark.
“I wasn’t watching where I was going,” Violetkit confessed.
“You’d better start. The forest is a dangerous place at night. There could be foxes anywhere.”
Foxes? Fear sparked in Violetkit’s chest. She didn’t even know what a fox looked like, but from the nursery tales she’d heard, she knew they were fierce. She strained to see into the shadows. Sniffing for strange smells, she hurried to catch up to Needlepaw. She was used to the warm cat scents of the camp. Out here countless odors filled her nose, and everything was dank and strange. How would she know if a fox was nearby? She padded closer to Needlepaw, brushing her flank.
“Give me some space!” Needlepaw nudged her aside. “I don’t want to be tripping over you all the way there.”
“All the way where?” Violetkit glanced at her anxiously.
“It’s a surprise.” Needlepaw ducked beneath a low-hanging branch and jumped across a ditch.
Violetkit halted at the edge, wondering if she could clear the deep rut in the forest floor. She could see water glimmering at the bottom. It smelled rank. She didn’t want to fall in. Bunching up her muscles, she crouched and wiggled her haunches. Fixing her gaze on the far side, she leaped.
Her front paws reached the far side, but her back paws fell short. She hooked her claws into the needle-strewn earth and scrabbled desperately with her hind legs. Alarm flashing through her, she struggled to haul herself up.
Teeth clamped down on her scruff, and she felt herself being swung through the air. Needlepaw dropped her onto the ground. “This journey will take forever if you can’t jump a simple ditch.”
An owl screeched. Violetkit ducked, her heart pounding. “What was that?”
Needlepaw snorted with amusement. “An owl, toad-brain! Haven’t you heard one before?”
“Yes, but I didn’t know they could fly!” She’d heard Lionkit and Birchkit talking about owls that stole kits in the night. She’d thought they were like foxes. She fought the urge to duck under Needlepaw’s belly. What if it came back? It could scoop her up and take her to its nest like fresh-kill.
“Don’t worry,” Needlepaw told her, as though reading her thoughts. “I can fight off an owl. Here.” She crouched beside Violetkit. “Climb onto my back or we’ll never get there in time.”
“In time for what?” What was this mysterious adventure about?
“Stop asking questions.”
Burning with curiosity, Violetkit forgot the owl and scrambled onto Needlepaw’s back. Clinging to the slender apprentice’s shoulders, she flattened herself against her spine. Needlepaw broke into a trot. “Is Pinenose feeding you enough?” Needlepaw teased. “A mouse would be heavier.”
“She feeds me plenty,” Violetkit told her, but she was worrying that she was too small. What if she never grew as big as the Clan cats? Then they’d always think she didn’t belong.
Needlepaw was moving quickly now. Violetkit had to grip on hard as the apprentice leaped a fallen tree, picked up speed as she ran down a slope, then cleared three ditches in a row. Watching the forest flash past, lit by strips of moonlight, made Violetkit dizzy. She closed her eyes and clung on like a tick. Where were they going?
Needlepaw was heading farther and farther from camp. What if someone noticed they were gone? What if they got lost? As Violetkit’s thoughts whirled, the scents around her started to change. She opened her eyes and saw that the pines had been replaced by gnarled oaks and slender birch trees. The forest floor was littered with leaves, and their musty scent filled Violetkit’s nose. “Where are we?” she breathed.
“Can’t you tell by the stink?” Needlepaw slowed to a halt and sat down.
Violetkit slid from her shoulders, the leaves crunching beneath her paws as she landed. She took a deep breath. There was cat scent here, but it didn’t smell like ShadowClan scent. It was still familiar, though. She blinked, remembering. ThunderClan scent! “Are we on ThunderClan land?” She glanced around nervously. “What if a patrol finds us? What if a ShadowClan cat sees us here? What if—”
Needlepaw cuffed her gently around the ear. “You and your what-ifs! No one’s going to see us. ThunderClan will be asleep, and our Clanmates are too busy mourning Littlecloud and worrying about Grassheart to patrol.”
“Why are we here?” Violetkit gazed at Needlepaw, her ears twitching nervously.
Needlepaw was staring at a clump of ferns. Moonlight pooled around them. Leaves fluttered down as a breeze stirred the sleeping forest.
“Why—” Violetkit began to ask again but Needlepaw cut her off.
“Hush! They’re coming.”
“Who?”
“Quick! Hide!”
Violetkit felt like her heart was going to burst as Needlepaw darted behind the arching roots of an oak. She scampered quickly after her, panting as she ducked down beside the apprentice. She could hear paw steps. You said they’d all be sleeping. Violetkit didn’t dare speak out loud. Blood roared in her ears. She wanted desperately to peer over the root, but she knew she mustn’t be seen.
“Needlepaw.” A soft mew sounded a few tail-lengths ahead. “Are you here?”
Violetkit frowned. She’d heard that mew before. She opened her mouth and let scent wash over her tongue. It was a tom—a tom she’d met only a few days ago. “It’s Alderpaw!” she hissed at Needlepaw, less alarmed now. “What’s he doing here?”
“He’s brought someone to see you.” Needlepaw leaped onto the root and swished her tail. “Hi, Alderpaw.” Her eyes shone with amusement as Alderpaw backed away, alarm spiking his pelt.
“You made me jump!” he mewed reproachfully.
“Did I?” Needlepaw tipped her head innocently to one side. “Did you bring her?”
“Bring who?” Pelt prickling with anxiety, Violetkit scrambled up beside Needlepaw and stared at Alderpaw.
A small shape moved behind him. Two ears poked out beside him, then a muzzle.
“Violetkit?” A tiny mew sounded through the darkness.
Violetkit froze, her thoughts racing. Could it be? She jumped down from the root and sniffed the air. A strange scent touched her nose, familiar and not familiar. “Twigkit?”
Green eyes blinked beside Alderpaw. Then a gray kit darted forward and slammed into Violetkit. Unbalanced, Violetkit tumbled backward.
“It’s you! It’s really you!” Twigkit thrust her nose against Violetkit’s cheek, purring loudly.
Surprised, Violetkit shook her off and leaped to her paws. She stared at Twigkit.
Twigkit stared back. “You remember me, right?”
“Of course I do!” Violetkit blinked at her, too overwhelmed to move.
Worry sparked in Twigkit’s gaze. “You are pleased to see me, aren’t you?”
Violetkit hesitated, emotions swirling through her like storm clouds. She was more pleased than she could say. But what did Twigpaw expect? How should she act? “Of c-course!” she stammered.
“You look different and not different all at the same time,” Twigkit blurted. She leaned forward and sniffed Violetkit. “And you smell weird.”
“So do you.” Violetkit was surprised that the smell of ThunderClan seemed so strange to her now. “You smell like cobwebs.”
“You smell like pine needles.” Twigkit padded around her, purring loudly and rubbing against her. “It’s so good to see you again. I’ve been learning how to be a
medicine cat. I want to be a medicine apprentice when I’m old enough. Just like Alderpaw. Alderpaw’s my friend.” She glanced at Needlepaw. “Is she your friend?”
Violetkit followed her sister’s gaze nervously. Would Needlepaw mind if she said yes? She didn’t want Twigkit to think she hadn’t made friends in ShadowClan. Twigkit was clearly close to Alderpaw. She probably had lot of friends in ThunderClan. “I guess,” Violetkit mewed softly.
“What’s her name?” Twigkit blinked at Needlepaw.
“I’m Needlepaw.” The sleek, silver she-cat jumped down from the root and padded around Alderpaw. “Did you manage to sneak out of camp without being seen?” Violetkit saw a glint in Needlepaw’s eyes. She sounded like she was teasing Alderpaw. She frowned. Were they friends?
“Let’s play!” Twigkit’s mew took Violetkit by surprise. A paw thumped her flank. “Got you! You’re the warrior now and I’m the mouse.” Twigkit raced toward the root and scrambled over it.
Violetkit watched her go, wondering what to do.
“It’s a game, toad-brain,” Needlepaw told her. “Go and chase her. Alderpaw and I can talk. Don’t go far though. There are owls here too.”
Owls? Violetkit’s heart lurched.
The tips of two small ears showed behind the root. “Come on, Violetkit! Chase me!” Twigkit called. Her ear tips twitched enticingly.
Excitement tugged at Violetkit’s paws. In a moment she forgot owls and, with a squeak of delight, leaped over the root and bowled into Twigkit, rolling them both through the leaf litter.
Twigkit struggled away. “Now you’re the mouse!” She raced for a patch of blackberry bushes.
Violetkit darted away, leaves brushing her face as she pushed through the blackberries. Ferns rustled behind her as Twigkit dived into a clump.
“I’m going to catch you!” Twigkit called happily. Violetkit plunged through the ferns, squirming between the fronds until she felt soft paws touch the tip of her tail. Twigkit tugged. “I’m the mouse now!” she cried. Turning, she squeezed her way out and hared across a stretch of open ground.