Warriors: Dawn of the Clans #2: Thunder Rising (19 page)

“It won’t happen again,” Gray Wing meowed, struggling against the fog of depression and inadequacy that surrounded him. “I needed some air, that’s all it was.”

“And next time?” Turtle Tail asked.

“There won’t be a next time,” Gray Wing assured her. He could tell that his breathing was getting better—he was sure of it.

He met Turtle Tail’s steady gaze. Thankfully, she didn’t pursue the argument.

Together, their pelts brushing, they turned back toward the camp.

Turtle Tail opened her jaws to say something, but there was a scuffling in the undergrowth. A hot, unwelcome scent hit Gray Wing in the throat.

“Dogs!” he exclaimed.

Two of the panting beasts leaped out of the bushes and stood growling on the path in front of them. Gray Wing thrust Turtle Tail toward a nearby stunted thorn tree and scrambled after her into the branches.

The dogs had seen them, and snuffled around their tree, leaping up to plant their huge paws on the trunk. Gray Wing looked down, not daring to move. The dogs were both huge, with sleek black pelts and flopping ears. Their jaws gaped and their tongues lolled as they panted in their eagerness to get at the cats.

“Now what do we do?” Turtle Tail asked, frozen with fear as she dug her claws into the branch.

Gray Wing didn’t reply. He remembered what Shaded Moss had once said about dogs:
It’s an animal you don’t want to meet
. And here were these two, not many tail-lengths from the camp!

His chest tightening, Gray Wing felt it was almost as if the dogs had turned up to prove Turtle Tail’s point. Everything began swirling in front of his eyes.
Don’t let me fall out of the tree!
he thought desperately.

Sensing his distress, Turtle Tail pressed her body against Gray Wing’s flank, gently pinning him between her and the tree trunk. “Thanks,” he whispered, realizing that he wouldn’t fall now that she was supporting him.

Loud paw steps sounded from beyond the gorse bushes, and a Twoleg voice was raised in a loud yowl. One of the dogs glanced around, but neither of them moved away from the tree.

Then two Twolegs appeared farther down the path and stomped up to the dogs on their heavy paws. They spoke harshly; Gray Wing didn’t understand the words, but he recognized the angry tone. The Twolegs pulled long tendrils from their pelts and fastened them to the dogs’ necks, dragging them away from the tree.

The dogs resisted, their paws skidding on the ground as they went on snarling and snapping at the two cats. Finally the Twolegs gave the tendrils a vicious jerk, and the dogs stopped pulling and walked quietly alongside them down the path.

Gray Wing puffed out his breath in relief. “Imagine being under orders like that!” he exclaimed with a disgusted snort. “Those dogs are pathetic. And the Twolegs must be flea-brained to want them around.”

Too late, he remembered that Turtle Tail had once lived in a Twolegplace, but she was already climbing down the tree trunk to the ground. Gray Wing hurried to follow her, his paws slipping on the rough bark. “I’m sorry,” he called out. “I didn’t mean anything by it!”

When Turtle Tail turned to face him, Gray Wing was thankful to see that her eyes were glimmering with laughter. “It’s okay. You don’t need to worry,” she told him. “You looked pretty scared, though, for a cat who thinks dogs are pathetic.”

Gray Wing breathed a sigh of relief. He never wanted to quarrel with Turtle Tail; her anger over the hunt and his treatment of the kits had struck him like a claw in his heart.

“Thank you for agreeing to keep my secret a bit longer,” he meowed as he and Turtle Tail padded back to the camp. Turtle Tail drew ahead a couple of paw steps, and glanced back over her shoulder.

“I never agreed to any such thing,” she pointed out. “Come on. Let’s get home.”

C
HAPTER
21

When he arrived back at the
camp, Gray Wing left Turtle Tail to check on her kits, while he padded over to the tall rock and leaped up onto it. “Let all cats gather around to listen!” he yowled.

Hawk Swoop emerged from her den with Acorn Fur and Lightning Tail just behind her, tails waving as they scurried up to sit below the rock. Jagged Peak dragged himself over and sat nearby. Cloud Spots and Dappled Pelt looked up from where they were sorting herbs. Rainswept Flower went to meet Turtle Tail, and both she-cats gathered the kits together and made them sit down quietly. Jackdaw’s Cry and Shattered Ice appeared at the top of the hollow; Shattered Ice was carrying a mouse. Only Tall Shadow paid no attention to Gray Wing’s summons, remaining crouched over Moon Shadow, who, as always, lay unmoving.

“Turtle Tail and I just met a couple of dogs,” Gray Wing announced when all his denmates had gathered. “Some Twolegs took them away, but we still need to be careful. For the rest of today we should all keep together, and stay close to the hollow until we’re sure that the dogs have gone home with their Twolegs. Understand?”

“Sure, Gray Wing,” Shattered Ice responded, while the rest of the cats murmured agreement.

“I’m a dog and I’m going to get you!” Sparrow Fur squealed, leaping on top of Owl Eyes.

While Turtle Tail separated the scuffling kits, the meeting broke up and Gray Wing jumped down from the rock. He padded over to Tall Shadow and described to her what had happened, but he realized that even now she was only half listening. Her face was taut with worry as she looked down at her brother.

Moon Shadow’s breathing was fast and shallow. His eyes were closed and his fur dull. The wound on his side wasn’t healing, in spite of the herbs spread on it; blood was oozing out, darkening the covering of chewed-up leaves.

“Is there anything I can do?” Gray Wing asked. He could feel the distress coming off Tall Shadow in waves.

She shrugged. “Not unless you suddenly learned the art of healing,” she replied. She looked older than Gray Wing had ever seen her and he touched the tip of his tail to her shoulder.

“He’ll get better,” he mewed.

“Don’t say that,” Tall Shadow hissed. “You don’t know that and neither do I. Just leave us alone, please.”

She lay on the ground beside her brother, and kept her gaze focused on his breathing. Gray Wing might as well have not been there.

As he paced back to his old nest his chest began hurting again. That scramble up the tree hadn’t done him any good, but at least he wasn’t in as bad a state as Moon Shadow.
Why did that fire ever have to happen?
Cats were ill and injured and he’d lost Thunder to Clear Sky.
What are they doing now?

Pebble Heart scampered up to him as he reached his nest. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes, I’m fine,” Gray Wing responded.

“He’s been keeping an eye on you, you know,” Turtle Tail mewed as she came to join them.

“That’s good.” Gray Wing brushed his tail over the tabby kit’s head. “But I’ve had enough talk of sickness for one day!”

He lowered himself into his old sleeping place, burrowing deeply into the dried ferns.
The others can share the prey. I just want to sleep
.

When Gray Wing woke again, clouds had covered the sun, stretching gray and threatening above his head. The air felt damp, as if rain was on the way.

A small movement in the bedding beside him made Gray Wing turn his head. Pebble Heart was sleeping at his side, his body twitching and his paws working as if he was running in his sleep.

He’s having a vivid dream
, Gray Wing thought.

He didn’t want to wake the kit, because he knew it could be dangerous to jerk cats out of their dreams.
Besides, if I’m right, and Pebble Heart has special skills, this dream might mean something
.

Gray Wing waited patiently for Pebble Heart to wake. Suddenly the kit exploded into movement, leaping to his paws, his eyes wide and staring. He turned on Gray Wing with a hiss, but Gray Wing stretched out a paw to calm him.

“Take it easy,” he murmured. “It’s okay. You were having a dream, that’s all.”

Gradually Pebble Heart returned to the waking world, his gaze focusing on Gray Wing’s face.

Gray Wing could see bleak misery in his eyes. “You’ve had this dream before, haven’t you?” he asked.

For answer, Pebble Heart curled himself into a small ball, pressing himself against Gray Wing’s side. Gray Wing could feel his trembling. Gently he licked the kit’s pelt with strong, soothing strokes of his tongue. “It’s okay,” he whispered. “You can tell me.”

Gradually Pebble Heart’s trembling subsided. “I’ve had dreams for a while now,” he confessed. “Owl Eyes and Sparrow Fur sleep so soundly, I knew it was only me having them. And there’s something about them that makes them feel . . . well, more than dreams. Am I being mouse-brained?” he asked hesitantly.

Gray Wing shook his head. “Not at all. Tell me more about the dreams,” he mewed.

Pebble Heart’s eyes grew distant with memory. “There’s one particular dream I’ve had a few times,” he began. “I was walking down a long, dark tunnel, and there was a glittering light at the end, as if a star was shining underground.”

“And that scared you?” Gray Wing asked, stroking the kit’s back with his tail.

“Oh, no!” Pebble Heart’s eyes shone. “It was exciting! I really wanted to get to the end of the tunnel and find out what the light was. And it was weird . . . I couldn’t see any other cats, but I felt like there were cats there, trying to tell me something. Only I couldn’t hear what they were saying. I thought if I could get to the star thing, I would understand, but every time I have the dream, I wake up before I reach the end of the tunnel,” he finished, sounding disappointed.

Gray Wing couldn’t make sense of that at all. “You don’t have to worry,” he reassured Pebble Heart. “You’re not the only cat who has dreams. You remember Turtle Tail and I told you about Stoneteller and the other cats in the mountains, where we came from?” Pebble Heart nodded. “Well, Stoneteller had dreams like yours sometimes. Just the same as you.”

The little kit’s eyes were bright with interest. “Really?”

“Really. And she’s a very wise cat.” More hesitantly, he asked, “What was your dream about this time, Pebble Heart?”

“A fight—a big fight,” Pebble Heart replied, beginning to tremble again. “Cats were screeching and clawing each other. I think I saw Clear Sky there. I’ve dreamed that one before, too.”

Apprehension clawed at Gray Wing, though he took care not to let the kit see that he was worried.
Has he had some kind of warning?

“It’s all right,” he soothed Pebble Heart. “You don’t have to talk about it anymore.”

Glancing toward the mouth of the den, Gray Wing noticed that Jagged Peak was crouched nearby, watching them intently.
I think he’s too far away to have heard what we said, but even so
 . . .

Protectively Gray Wing curled his body around Pebble Heart, bending over so that both their faces were hidden. This was something that he didn’t want Jagged Peak or any other cat to see.

If Pebble Heart is special, then he needs to be kept safe
, he thought.

“For now, don’t tell any other cat,” he mewed. “But let me know if you have any more—”

He broke off as a grief-stricken yowl rose up from the other side of the camp. Springing to his paws, Gray Wing saw Tall Shadow standing over the body of her brother. Other cats were already rushing toward her.

Gray Wing joined her with Pebble Heart scampering hard on his paws. Moon Shadow lay still, his legs splayed out as if in a last spasm of pain. A drying, sticky pool of blood stained the ground near his mouth.

Oh no! He must have died while the kits and I were sleeping
, Gray Wing thought.

He pushed his way through the gathering crowd of cats until he reached Tall Shadow’s side. The black she-cat was rocking back and forth, her claws tearing up the ground in her anger and grief.

“It wasn’t his time to go!” she wailed.

The other cats had encircled them and stood watching, wide-eyed and silent, stunned by Moon Shadow’s death. Gray Wing realized there was only one thing left to do. He reached out a paw to touch Moon Shadow’s body; it was already cooling. A shudder of grief passed through Gray Wing. No cat’s death was ever easy to witness.

We have to bury him
. Gray Wing remembered how they had laid Fluttering Bird to rest under a pile of stones, and his heart twisted. The sooner they got through this, the better. “Are you ready?” he mewed gently to Tall Shadow.

The black she-cat didn’t need to ask what he meant. She had seen too many cats die in her time.

Glancing around, Gray Wing spotted Jagged Peak, and beckoned to him with his tail. “We’re going to bury Moon Shadow,” he told his brother when Jagged Peak had limped up to him. “I want you to stay here and look after the kits. They’re too young to witness this.”

Jagged Peak stood taller, looking confident. “You can trust me, Gray Wing.”

Owl Eyes and Sparrow Fur scampered up to join Pebble Heart, who was gazing sadly at the body of Moon Shadow. Gray Wing could see that Pebble Heart knew there was nothing more he could do to help this cat.

“Jagged Peak is going to look after you while we’re out of camp,” Gray Wing meowed, gathering the kits together with his tail.

“Great! He knows really cool games,” Sparrow Fur agreed enthusiastically.

“But why can’t we come with you?” Owl Eyes argued.

“Because there are some things young kits don’t need to see,” Gray Wing told him.

“Quite right.” Turtle Tail padded up to join the group. “You kits stay here with Jagged Peak.” She hesitated and looked at Gray Wing’s younger brother. “Thank you,” she said. “We couldn’t do this now, without you.”

He dipped his head in acknowledgment, then shook himself. “Come on, kits,” he called, as he started limping away.

Once the kits had withdrawn, bouncing around Jagged Peak as he led them across the camp, Gray Wing and Tall Shadow picked up the body of Moon Shadow. It was lighter than Gray Wing had expected—clearly the injured cat hadn’t been eating well. Moving slowly and respectfully, they carried the body up the slope and out of the hollow. The other cats followed them, the soft fall of their paw steps the only sound.

As they emerged onto the moor, Gray Wing spotted Gorse Fur and Wind Runner approaching from a few tail-lengths away.

“We’ll help,” Gorse Fur offered immediately as he joined them.

“Thank you,” Gray Wing meowed gratefully.

“Okay, every cat get into a line.” Wind Runner took over immediately. “Don’t crowd Moon Shadow. Show him a bit of respect.”

There were a few startled glances at Wind Runner as she spoke, but the cats were too grief-stricken to protest. Gray Wing was thankful for her calm efficiency.
She can see what’s needed because her feelings aren’t as deeply involved
.

With the rest of the cats following, Gray Wing and Tall Shadow carried Moon Shadow to a quiet spot in the shelter of a rock and stood back while Wind Runner and Gorse Fur scratched away the earth and stones.

At last there was a hole deep enough for Moon Shadow’s body. Gray Wing and Tall Shadow rolled him into it; Gray Wing winced as he spotted streaks of blood in the dirt.
No cat deserves to die in this way
.

Moon Shadow’s belly was exposed so that every cat could see the burns on his pelt. Tall Shadow let out a wail of distress. Scrambling into the hole after her brother, she tried to turn him over so that the terrible wounds weren’t exposed. But the hole wasn’t big enough, and his body was already stiffening.

Turtle Tail padded to the edge of the hole. “Come on out, Tall Shadow,” she mewed gently. “Leave him be.”

Tall Shadow looked up with a brief flash of anger that gradually faded to quiet misery. Reluctantly she heaved herself out of the hole and watched with dull eyes as Jackdaw’s Cry and Shattered Ice piled stones and rocks until Moon Shadow had disappeared forever.

Gray Wing felt that they hadn’t done enough.
This is the first burial since we came to the moor. It’s important for me to say something
.