Thunder and Shadow

  “Should I take Yarrowpaw?” Spikefur asked.

  “Of course,” Rowanstar meowed. “It will be good training for her.”

  The trail headed away from the sun, drawing the two patrols deeper into the pinewoods. Alderpaw’s pelt twitched nervously as they made their way through ShadowClan territory. The needle-strewn ground turned muddy beneath his paws as the trees clustered tighter and the shadows became so dark that it felt like night.

  The dank smell of a stagnant stream rose ahead. Alderpaw strained to see through the darkness.

  Tigerheart was already pacing the bank of a narrow ditch.

  As Bramblestar caught up to him, Crowfrost sniffed the earth.

  “The trail ends here,” the ShadowClan deputy announced.

  “I smell rabbit blood.” Dovewing circled the patrols.

  Crowfrost sniffed. “They must have hunted here before they left the territory.” He nodded beyond the ditch. “This is the ShadowClan border. It is no-Clan’s-land beyond here. If the rogues went that way, as it appears, then they are gone.”

  “Shouldn’t we cross the ditch and check?” Bramblestar pressed.

  Dovewing leaped over the foul-smelling stream and began sniffing the earth ahead.

  Tigerheart jumped after her, nudging her aside to press his own nose to the ground. “Nothing here.”

  “Perhaps they waded along the stream to disguise their scent,” Dovewing suggested.

  Tigerheart snorted. “Rogues aren’t that clever. Besides . . .” He peered into the ditch. Stinking black water lay at the bottom. “What cat would get their paws wet in there?”

  Dovewing glared at him challengingly. “A cat that wants to hide its trail?”

  Tigerheart held her gaze for a moment, then growled. “You still have to be the smartest cat in the Clan.”

  Dovewing’s blue eyes flashed in the gloom. “And you still have to be the most arrogant.”

  “Come back, you two.” Bramblestar flicked his tail. “It looks like the rogues have left the territory. We might as well go home.”

  Alderpaw wondered if Bramblestar truly believed they were gone. He tried to catch Bramblestar’s eye for reassurance, but the ThunderClan leader was looking at Crowfrost.

  “Thank you for letting us help search your territory.” The ThunderClan leader meowed.

  Crowfrost dipped his head formally. “Let us escort you to your border.”

  Alderpaw stiffened. He’d promised Twigkit he’d check on Violetkit. “I need to go back to your camp!” he blurted to the ShadowClan deputy.

  Crowfrost blinked at him in surprise.

  Stammering, Alderpaw struggled to gain his composure. “Jayfeather wants me to speak with Leafpool. He needs to know when she’ll be returning to her own Clan.”

  Crowfrost rolled his eyes. “Very well,” he grunted crossly. “You can go back with Yarrowpaw. Tigerheart, Spikefur, and I will take your Clanmates to the border.”

  Bramblestar blinked reassuringly at Alderpaw. “We’ll wait for you there.”

  Alderpaw nodded. As the warrior patrol moved away, he followed Yarrowpaw back to ShadowClan’s camp.

  “Where’s Needlepaw today?” he asked, trying to sound casual.

  Yarrowpaw glanced suspiciously over her shoulder. “Why do you want to know?”

  “She wasn’t with Tawnypelt,” Alderpaw meowed. “Or in camp. I was just wondering where she was.”

  “It’s none of your business,” Yarrowpaw snapped. “Do I ask where your denmates are?”

  “I was just trying to make conversation,” Alderpaw meowed.

  Yarrowpaw flicked her tail. “Silence is fine with me.”

  They padded back to camp without another word. At the camp entrance, she led the way through the tunnel, stopping as he emerged, then nodded toward the medicine den. “She’ll be in there if she’s back from gathering herbs. If not, you’ll have to wait. I’m not escorting you all over the territory looking for her.”

  “Thanks.” Alderpaw made a face at the ShadowClan apprentice as she stalked away, then crossed the clearing to the medicine den.

  He could smell the warm, familiar scent of Leafpool as he approached. And the scent of freshly picked herbs. She must be back. “Leafpool?” He stuck his head inside the den and saw her crouched beside Puddlepaw.

  “This is tansy and this is horsetail,” she told the young apprentice. “Tansy is good for coughs. Horsetail is good for infected wounds.”

  Surprise flashed beneath Alderpaw’s pelt. Was she still teaching him simple facts like that?

  She looked up, purring as she saw him. “Alderpaw! I thought I’d missed you. Grassheart said a ThunderClan patrol stopped by while I was out.”

  “They’re waiting for me at the border,” Alderpaw explained. “I came back because Jayfeather wanted me to speak with you before we left.” He glanced at Puddlepaw. He wanted a few words alone with Leafpool without the apprentice overhearing.

  Leafpool seemed to guess. “Let’s go outside,” she told him, then turned to Puddlepaw. “I want you to split all the herbs we gathered today into separate piles.”

  Puddlepaw stared wide-eyed at the heap in front of him. Alderpaw felt a wave of sympathy, suddenly remembering his first days in the medicine den. He’d thought he’d never learn the name of every herb.

  Leafpool shooed Alderpaw backward and slid out of the den. She stood close to him in the easing rain. “I know it was foolish to gather herbs on a day like this.” She shook out her wet pelt. “They’ll take forever to dry. But I smell cold weather on the way. I want to get ShadowClan’s stores as full as possible before leaf-bare.” Worry darkened her gaze, “StarClan knows how they’ll make it through.”

  “Is Puddlepaw a quick learner?” Alderpaw asked hopefully.

  Leafpool sighed. “He tries his best, but half the time he still can’t tell an herb from a weed.”

  “But you’ve been training him for half a moon!” How much longer would she have to stay?

  “He’s young, and I’m not sure he was ever cut out to be a medicine cat. He has no dreams or visions. He says he wanted to be a warrior like his littermates until Rowanstar told him he would be a medicine cat.”

  Worry tightened Alderpaw’s belly. “Do you think ShadowClan has chosen the wrong cat to be their medicine cat?”

  “I don’t know if there’s a right cat in the whole of ShadowClan,” Leafpool fretted. “No wonder Littlecloud never chose an apprentice. The whole lot of them are only interested in hunting and fighting.” She shook her head wearily. “It seems so unfair. StarClan has given us three medicine cats, and ShadowClan only has Puddlepaw.”

  Alderpaw gazed at her anxiously. “Will you be coming home soon?”

  “Of course.” Leafpool glanced back toward the medicine den as though she was worrying how Puddlepaw was managing without her. “I don’t want to spend leaf-bare in this gloomy place.”

  “They’re treating you okay, though, aren’t they?”

  “They’re treating me fine.” Leafpool blinked at him reassuringly. “I always have first pick of the fresh-kill pile. Everyone is very polite. And I get along fine with Grassheart. Her kits are adorable.”

  “What about Violetkit?” Alderpaw knew she was safe from the rogues, but he remembered how upset she’d been when she’d had to leave her sister in the woods. Was she happier now? “Is she okay? Can I go and visit her before I leave? I promised Twigkit I’d check on her.”

  Leafpool glanced distractedly toward the medicine den. “I don’t see why not. But I can’t come with you. I have to help Puddlepaw. He’s probably put the nettles and watermint in the same pile again.”

  Pelt ruffling, she turned to go. As she headed toward the den, she turned. “Thanks for coming. Please tell Jayfeather I’m fine and I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  Alderpaw blinked at her fondly as she disappeared into the den. Then he padded toward the nursery. Beepaw and Strikepaw had finished practicing battle moves and were watching him through narrow
ed eyes. Would they question where he was going?

  “Alderpaw!” A familiar mew sounded from the camp entrance. Needlepaw’s scent reached his nose.

  “Hi.” He turned to meet her, purring.

  She was bounding across the clearing.

  “Where were you?” Alderpaw asked as she slid to a halt beside him.

  She stared at him. “What do you mean?”

  Does she realize she’s shifting back and forth on her paws, like she’s feeling restless . . . or guilty? “You weren’t with Tawnypelt, or in camp when we got here.” Alderpaw felt suddenly awkward, as though he was prying. “I just wondered where you were.”

  “I was in Twolegplace,” she told him quickly. “You know how I like a taste of kittypet food sometimes.”

  Alderpaw blinked at her. Yes. But you’re usually not so quick to admit it. Besides, she smelled of freshly killed prey. He narrowed his eyes. Why was she acting so strange?

  Needlepaw changed the subject. “Yarrowpaw says you came with your Clanmates to hunt for rogues. Did you find any?”

  “No.” Alderpaw looked at her. She didn’t seem to be herself. Something had ruffled her fur. He wondered with a purr which part of the warrior code she’d been breaking this time. He leaned closer and nudged her teasingly. “What have you been up to?”

  Needlepaw bristled. “Nothing!” she snapped. “What’s with all the questions?”

  “I’m s-sorry.” Her sudden temper startled Alderpaw. Shame surged though him. Had he tried to be too familiar? But they were friends, weren’t they? Had she forgotten their journey together, or finding the kits? Perhaps she didn’t see him as anything more than a cat from another Clan. And yet she had raced over to meet him. Confused, he glanced toward the nursery. “Can I speak to Violetkit?”

  “If you want to.” Needlepaw shrugged and headed toward the prickly entrance.

  Alderpaw followed, still not sure what to make of Needlepaw’s mood.

  “Violetkit!” Needlepaw called through the opening. “Someone wants to see you.”

  The brambles rustled and Violetkit scrambled out. Her eyes lit up as she saw Alderpaw, then scanned around him. “Is Twigkit with you?” she asked excitedly.

  “She’s not allowed out of camp yet,” Alderpaw reminded her gently.

  “But she came—”

  Needlepaw nudged the kit playfully. “That’s our secret, remember?”

  Violetkit blinked at her guiltily. “Oh, yes! I’m sorry.” She clamped her jaws shut.

  Needlepaw nudged her again with her nose. “You’re such a toad-brain.”

  Violetkit nudged her back. “You’re such a toad-brain. You remember when we played hide the pinecone and you took a whole day to find it?”

  “How could I? You hid it under Kinkfur’s nest!” Needlepaw purred. “That old fleabag was sitting on it like forever!”

  Alderpaw swallowed back a purr. He was happy to see the closeness between the two cats. Violetkit wasn’t alone in ShadowClan after all. And it was good to see Needlepaw behaving more like the friendly cat who’d traveled with him on his quest.

  Violetkit turned to him, her eyes round. “How’s Twigkit?”

  “She’s fine,” he told her. “She sends her love and wanted me to check that you’re okay.”

  “I’m great.” Violetkit looked fondly at Needlepaw. “I really like ShadowClan now. Needlepaw’s teaching me how to hunt. I caught a moth yesterday.”

  Needlepaw purred.

  “I still miss Twigkit, though,” Violetkit added.

  “She misses you too,” Alderpaw told her.

  “Violetkit!” Pinenose’s stern mew sounded from inside the nursery. “Come in out of the rain. I don’t want you catching cold. You might spread it to Grassheart’s kits.”

  Violetkit’s shoulders drooped. “I have to go.” She turned toward the entrance. “Tell Twigkit I’ve kept her feather safe. I sleep with it every night.”

  Alderpaw purred and touched his muzzle to her head before she climbed into the nursery.

  As she disappeared, Alderpaw blinked at Needlepaw. “Perhaps we can get them together again soon. Twigkit keeps asking.” Another nighttime meeting would do both kits good. And it would be nice to see Needlepaw without the gaze of the other ShadowClan apprentices scorching his pelt.

  “I guess.” Needlepaw sounded distracted. Her thoughts were clearly elsewhere.

  “I’m sure Violetkit would appreciate it,” Alderpaw pressed.

  “Yeah.” Needlepaw’s gaze met his. And yet he felt she wasn’t really seeing him. “Let’s do that.” She nodded and turned to leave.

  “Soon?” Alderpaw called after her.

  “Soon,” she answered without turning back.

  Alderpaw frowned and headed for the camp entrance. Bramblestar and the others would be waiting for him. It would be good to get back to camp and into a dry den. But he couldn’t shake his unease. Soon. Why hadn’t Needlepaw said when? Didn’t she care if the kits met? She must! Needlepaw seemed genuinely fond of Violetkit. Perhaps she doesn’t want to see me anymore. Disappointment weighted his paws like stone as he trudged through the pine forest toward his Clanmates. Perhaps the friendship they’d forged on their journey was over now that they were back with their Clans.

  CHAPTER 5

  Violetkit gazed across the den. Moonlight showed through the gaps in the brambles and dappled the fluffy pelts of Grassheart’s kits. Snakekit, Flowerkit, and Whorlkit—still too tiny to play with—were snuggled together, a tangle of paws and tails, beside Grassheart’s belly. Violetkit sighed, her heart aching. She and Twigkit used to sleep like that. Now she was alone beside Pinenose, who was snoring. Am I the only one awake? She’d heard the night patrol come in not long ago and whisper a report to Crowfrost before retiring to their dens.

  She wondered if they’d found any sign of the rogues. In the days since Bramblestar’s visit, rumors had spread through the Clan. Dawnpelt had declared that they were just a pack of kittypets looking for trouble. “They’ll get bored and go back to their cozy Twoleg dens before long,” she’d predicted. Violetkit hoped she was right. The thought of strange cats roaming the forest made her nervous.

  No cat had stirred since the patrol had gone to bed. A fox had screeched in the distance and Whorlkit had lifted his head sleepily, but he’d only yawned and tucked himself deeper among his littermates before falling asleep again.

  Violetkit longed to cross the den and curl up beside them, but she didn’t want to upset Pinenose. She knew that the queen did her best and was as patient and caring as she could be. But she suspected that Pinenose’s paws itched to be out in the forest again, hunting with the other warriors, now that her own kits had moved to the apprentices’ den.

  Why can’t I move to the apprentices’ den? She guessed the other cats wouldn’t approve. She was barely three moons old. But Needlepaw, her only real friend, was in the apprentices’ den. She imagined with a purr how much fun it would be to curl up in the nest beside Needlepaw. They could talk all night if they wanted or play moss-ball or share a mouse while everyone else slept. It would be great.

  A pair of eyes shone through the nursery entrance. Violetkit lifted her head sharply, her hackles lifting. Then she smelled the familiar scent of Needlepaw. Had her friend been thinking about her too? Excitement tingled in her paws, and she wriggled forward and slithered, quiet as a snake, out of the nest.

  “Needlepaw?” she hissed.

  “Quick! Come outside,” Needlepaw whispered back.

  Violetkit pricked her ears happily. Were they going to go on another nighttime adventure? Her breath caught in her throat. Were they going to meet Twigkit?

  She nosed her way through the entrance, the well-trodden brambles smooth beneath her paws, and dropped onto the ground outside. Stars sparkled in the wide black sky like dew on a soft pelt. The moon shone, blanching the clearing with crisp light. A chill cut through Violetkit’s fur, but she hardly felt it.

  “Are we going out of the camp?” she whispere
d to Needlepaw.

  Needlepaw swished her tail along Violetkit’s spine. “Yes.”

  Violetkit watched Needlepaw’s green gaze flick past her. She followed it, stiffening as she saw another she-cat standing in the shadows. Her yellow fur shimmered, ghostlike, in the gloom.

  “I still don’t see why we have to take her.”

  Sleekpaw! Violetkit shivered as she recognized the apprentice’s mew. There was scorn in it.

  Sleekpaw had never even looked at Violetkit before, stalking past her as though walking past stale fresh-kill when she passed her in camp. She stared at her now, and Violetkit fought the urge to back away. Spite glittered in the older cat’s gaze. Confused, Violetkit looked back at Needlepaw. “I don’t understand. Is Sleekpaw coming to meet Twigkit too?”

  Sleekpaw tipped her head sideways. “Is that what you usually do?” She stared questioningly at Needlepaw.

  Needlepaw flicked her tail. “Maybe.”

  “Really?”

  Violetkit felt a shiver of unease as Sleekpaw spoke. The yellow apprentice made the word sound like a threat.

  Needlepaw lashed her tail. “Don’t be such a fox-heart, Sleekpaw. I asked you to come with me tonight because I trusted you.”

  Sleekpaw’s expression changed, like dawn breaking through darkness. “Of course you can trust me. I love sharing secrets.” She glanced at Violetkit. “But can you trust her?”

  Violetkit lifted her tail indignantly. “Of course she can! I’m her friend.”

  Sleekpaw’s whiskers twitched with amusement. She thrust her muzzle close to Violetkit’s. “Then you’d better keep your mew quiet. Unless you’re trying to wake the whole camp.”

  “Come on!” Needlepaw padded toward the narrow tunnel that led to the dirtplace.

  Violetkit scampered after her. She wanted to ask again why Sleekpaw was coming with them, but Sleekpaw was close behind her. Needlepaw knows best, she reasoned. Perhaps it’s in case we run into the rogues. Suddenly she felt reassured. Of course! Sleekpaw was coming to protect them.

  She ducked through the tunnel after Needlepaw, her nose wrinkling as she smelled the dirtplace. Outside, they veered away from it, following the track they’d used last time.