Эрин Хантер - The Silent Thaw

“I’m not.” Rootpaw blinked at his father.

Tree met Rootpaw’s gaze. “It’ll be okay.” He nosed Rootpaw away and whispered in his ear for a few moments. Rootpaw drew back and stared at his father in disbelief.

Shadowsight stiffened. What had Tree told him? He padded closer. “Is summoning the ghost dangerous?”

“Not at all.” Tree swished his tail. “It’s just hard, that’s all. Especially when you haven’t done it”—he hesitated, glancing at Rootpaw—“for a while.”

Rootpaw was still staring at his father as Tree closed his eyes. Shadowsight’s pelt prickled uneasily. Why did the SkyClan apprentice seem so scared? I guess he’s never seen a ghost before. As Rootpaw closed his eyes, Shadowsight wondered if he should do the same, but he was too curious to stop watching.

Tree’s ears flattened and his tail quivered. Shadowsight pressed his paws hard against the earth as Tree began to tremble. Suddenly, pale fur shimmered between the trees. Shadowsight’s breath caught in his throat as he recognized Bramblestar’s tabby pelt. It glistened like water a few tail-lengths away.

The ghost’s eyes widened in surprise as Shadowsight met its gaze. It lifted its tail. “You must help me.” Its yowl was faint, as though carried away by a breeze. Then it vanished.

Tree jerked and staggered, as though trying to find his footing. He opened his eyes. “Did you see it?” he asked Shadowsight shakily.

“Yes.” Shadowsight swallowed. There really was a ghost-Bramblestar, separate from the cat who was leading ThunderClan. “We have to fix this.”

“I know.” Tree took a shuddering breath. “We know Bramblestar is an impostor and some cat is sending you false visions. I think we can be pretty sure that the impostor is the one who’s been talking to you.”

“It makes sense.” Shadowsight nodded, his eye falling on Rootpaw. The SkyClan apprentice was trembling, his eyes glittering with shock. “Is he okay?” Shadowsight asked Tree. Seeing a ghost had clearly shocked the young cat.

“He’ll be fine in a moment.” Tree wove around his son, smoothing his ruffled pelt with his tail. “We need to find a way to get rid of the impostor,” he told Shadowsight.

“But how?” Shadowsight could picture the ghost’s eyes burning desperately between the trees. “If the Clans chase him away, how will Bramblestar get back into his body?”

Tree nodded. “And if we kill him, there’ll be no body for Bramblestar to go back to.”

Shadowsight hesitated. It seemed impossible. Without StarClan he felt powerless.

Rootpaw seemed to pull himself together. He lifted his chin. “We need to tell as many cats as we can.”

“You saw what it was like at the Gathering,” Shadowsight argued. “I tried to tell them about my visions, but no cat wanted to believe me. Bramblestar’s convinced them that StarClan is on his side.”

“Squirrelflight believes us, and Frecklewish,” Tree told him. “There are already a few cats in every Clan who know that Bramblestar’s not himself. But we need to convince the medicine cats. They can tell the leaders. Does Puddleshine know that your visions aren’t from StarClan?”

“Yes, but he doesn’t know that Bramblestar’s an impostor,” Shadowsight mewed.

Rootpaw thrust his muzzle closer. “You must tell him.”

Shadowsight hesitated. Would Puddleshine believe him? He couldn’t get rid of the feeling that his former mentor didn’t trust him anymore. You’ve always been special. Shadowsight pressed back a shudder as the words rang in his head. And even if Puddleshine did believe him, would he let him tell the rest of the Clan? He hadn’t wanted to alarm the Clan with the idea that Shadowsight’s visions weren’t from StarClan. Maybe he’d want to keep this secret too.

Shadowsight blinked at Tree. “No. You have to tell Tigerstar. He’s the only one who can stand up to Bramblestar.”

“We’ve already tried,” Tree reminded him. “You saw what happened. He sent us away.”

“Come back with me now,” Shadowsight pleaded.

Tree glanced at Rootpaw. “Do you want to go back?”

Rootpaw’s ears twitched uneasily. “Tigerstar seemed ready to claw our ears off last time.”

“We have to spread the word,” Tree pressed. “The Clans are in danger.”

Shadowsight swished his tail. “I’ll make sure he doesn’t hurt either of you.”

Rootpaw looked unconvinced. “But will he listen?”

“I’ll make him listen,” Shadowsight promised.

Rootpaw dipped his head. “Okay. We’ll come.”

Hope flashed in Shadowsight’s chest. At last, he could start to fix everything. He hurried toward camp and ducked through the tunnel, freezing as he reached the clearing. “Squirrelflight?” He stared in disbelief at the ThunderClan deputy.

She was standing in front of Tigerstar, her pelt ruffled and unkempt. She shifted her paws, her gaze darting nervously around the camp. “I’m sorry to come here,” she mewed. “But I had no choice. I’ve come to ask for sanctuary.”

Chapter 22

Rootpaw frowned. Why would Squirrelflight come to Tigerstar for sanctuary?

The ShadowClan cats looked puzzled too. Flowerstem and Whorlpelt got slowly to their paws. Scorchfur exchanged glances with Snaketooth as Puddleshine slid from his den, his tail twitching nervously.

Tigerstar was staring at Squirrelflight, as though lost for words. “Sanctuary?” he echoed.

As Dovewing hurried to his side, Tawnypelt padded into camp, a mouse dangling from her jaws. The tortoiseshell stopped as she saw Squirrelflight, her gaze widening. “What’s she doing here?”

Squirrelflight didn’t take her gaze from Tigerstar. “Bramblestar has sent me away. He accused me of being a traitor.”

“He’s got bees in his brain!” Outrage sparked in Tigerstar’s gaze. “You’re Firestar’s daughter. You’ve been loyal to ThunderClan your whole life. When I was young, I heard many tales of your courage during the Great Battle. What is Bramblestar thinking?”

“He’s right,” Squirrelflight mewed simply. “I told my Clan I was leaving to atone, but instead I went to SkyClan to tell them that he’s not the cat I’ve known all my life. The real Bramblestar would never act this way. This fox-heart is punishing his Clanmates as though they’re his enemies. They’re scared of him.” She shook her head. “No, this isn’t Bramblestar.”

Tigerstar’s ears flattened. “I don’t understand.”

She glanced meaningfully at Rootpaw as though they shared a secret. “The real Bramblestar has been driven out, and something else has taken over.” Her gaze darkened. “Something evil.”

Tree padded forward. “She’s right. That’s what we came to tell you.”

Tigerstar’s gaze swung toward the yellow tom. “I thought I told you to leave!”

Rootpaw moved closer to his father. “You have to listen to us.”

Shadowsight nodded. “Hear them out.”

Tigerstar lashed his tail. “Do you expect me to listen to them spouting Bramblestar’s nonsense about codebreakers when his deputy stands in front of me asking for sanctuary?”

“We haven’t come to spout Bramblestar’s nonsense,” Rootpaw mewed desperately.

As Tigerstar’s hackles lifted, Shadowsight stepped in front of Rootpaw. “They know why Bramblestar’s acting like this.” He glanced at Squirrelflight. “It’s exactly like Squirrelflight just said. You have to listen to them.”