Эрин Хантер - Thunder Аnd Shadow

Alderpaw nodded, ignoring the guilt worm ing through his belly. Surely Violetkit’s happiness was more im portant than Clan rules? Besides, Alderpaw couldn’t help feeling that the Clans should never have separated the kits. He pushed away the thought that this would also be a chance to see Needlepaw again. This wasn’t for him. It was for the kits.

Needlepaw was pacing. “There’s a great spot near the border. I can show you while we’re collecting bracken. It’ll be perfect. No one would ever know but us.” She flicked an ear toward her unseeing Clanmates, pleasure warm ing her gaze. Then she turned back to Alderpaw. “Don’t you just love secrets?”

Violetkit shifted and snuggled closer to Pinenose, but she couldn’t get com fortable. Ratscar’s words ran around in her head.

But she’s not really one of us, is she?

It was late and the Clan was sleeping now, except for the cats sitting vigil beside Littlecloud’s body. He had died as the sun had set, two day s after Leafpool had arrived. The ThunderClan medicine cat had been at his side, and the Clan had crouched at the edges of the clearing, avoiding one another’s eyes as they listened to the weakening m oans of their medicine cat.

I should be sad that Littlecloud is dead. She knew that she was supposed to be sad, but she’d hardly m et Littlecloud. He’d checked her over when she’d first arrived in the Clan, but he’d already been sickly -looking then, and she had shuddered at his sour breath.

Besides, Ratscar’s words were still gnawing at Violetkit too sharply to allow her to concentrate on Littlecloud. She’s not really one of us, is she? She’d heard the skinny, dark brown elder’s meow as she passed the elders’ den that m orning. He was talking about me.

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 rem ained silent, and his silence had j abbed Violetkit’s heart like a thorn.

“Pinenose?” She pressed Pinenose’s belly with her paw. The queen’s older kits had m oved 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 m oving in the dappled moonlight.

From time to time she m oaned, as though bad dream s 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 som ething.”

Pinenose y awned. “Can’t it wait until m orning?”

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 Lily heart used to do and lap her head until she felt calm er. But Pinenose rolled over with a grunt and, within m om ents, 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 m oaning. Birchkit was curled into a tight bundle, his m uzzle buried under his paw. His lim bs were quivering, as though he was dream ing of hunting. Puddlekit’s head lolled; his m outh was open slightly. Slatekit stirred, but the gray tom kit 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 m orning she’d woken up here and not in Lily heart’s nest.

Suddenly she remembered her feather. She dug into the m oss 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 sm ell? She breathed in deeply, feeling herself relax. Tiredness began to seep into her pelt. Im agining Twigkit beside her, Violetkit let herself drift into sleep.

“Puddlekit!” Pinenose’s alarm ed 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 m om ent 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.

“Every thing’s just as it should be,” the ThunderClan medicine cat meowed calm ly. “For now she only needs som e wet m oss to drink.”

“Violetkit can fetch som e,” 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 m oss for Grassheart?” Violetkit stared at her, round-ey ed.

“I’ve already sent Puddlekit to fetch som e,” Leafpool told her. “He’s going to help m e deliver these kits.”

Pinenose bristled. “He’s not an apprentice y et!”

“He will be soon, and the quicker he starts training, the better,” Leafpool meowed firm ly. She flicked her tail toward Violetkit. “Go.”

Violetkit scram bled from her nest and headed for the entrance, relieved to get away from Grassheart’s frightening m oans. She nosed her way out and froze.

Rowanstar, Crowfrost, Tawny pelt, 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 m oved closer to the apprentices’ den, new worries invaded her m ind. 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 m e?” Violetkit spun around, alarm ed. Had she done som ething wrong? Needlepaw had spoken to her a few tim es since Alderpaw’s visit, but before that she’d hardly paid her any attention.

“We have to go som ewhere.” Needlepaw halted, her green eyes shining in the moonlight.

“But Leafpool told m e to go to the apprentices’ den,” Violetkit told her. “Grassheart is having her kits.”