Эрин Хантер - Thunder Rising

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Hi, Shattered Ice!” Turtle Tail greeted him. “It’s good to see you again.”

At first Shattered Ice didn’t respond. Instead he glanced at Turtle Tail coldly, then meowed, “You turned your back on us when the weather got cold. What makes a kittypet like you think that you’ll be welcome here now?”

Turtle Tail fluffed out her fur indignantly, almost hiding her pregnant belly. “You don’t have the right to tell any cat they can’t come onto the moor,” she retorted. “Who do you think you are, Clear Sky?”

“Look… ,” Gray Wing began, wincing at the mention of his brother.

Both cats ignored his attempt to intervene.

“Clear Sky has some good ideas,” Shattered Ice muttered. “I’m taking you straight down to Tall Shadow,” he went on. “She’ll decide what to do with you.”

“Turtle Tail doesn’t have to—” Gray Wing began again.

“Don’t bother trying to defend me,” Turtle Tail interrupted, her ears flattening angrily. “I’d love to see Tall Shadow again. I’ve missed her, and I don’t think she’ll need any help putting Shattered Ice in his place.”

Shattered Ice and Turtle Tail set off, joined by Jackdaw’s Cry, who had emerged from the tunnel with a startled look at Turtle Tail. Gray Wing turned to find the kits, and spotted them scrambling up onto a lichen-covered boulder, then hurling themselves off it with squeaks of excitement.

“Come on!” he called. “It’s time to go home.”

When Gray Wing and Turtle Tail reached the bottom of the hollow, they found Hawk Swoop, Dappled Pelt, Cloud Spots, and Rainswept Flower all standing in front of Tall Shadow.

“You need to get more power into your back legs,” the black she-cat instructed them. “That way you can deal with any cat who creeps up behind you. Rainswept Flower, try it again.”

Gray Wing saw that Tall Shadow had propped a big piece of bark against one of the rocks. Rainswept Flower got into position, then kicked out strongly at the bark, dislodging it and sending scraps flying into the air.

“Much better,” Tall Shadow mewed. “Cloud Spots, you’re next.”

Gray Wing noticed that Jagged Peak was crouching a few tail-lengths away, looking on unhappily. A shiver of compassion ran through him. Life had been a struggle for Jagged Peak ever since he had fallen out of a tree and broken his leg. Clear Sky had driven him from the forest, saying he was unable to support a cat who couldn’t hunt. The moorland cats had taken him in, but Gray Wing knew how guilty his young brother felt that he couldn’t contribute much.

His ear twitched as Turtle Tail leaned over to whisper to him, distracting him from Jagged Peak’s troubles.

“I’m surprised to see Tall Shadow training the cats in fighting techniques,” she murmured. “Things must have changed around here.”

Gray Wing opened his mouth to respond, but before he could speak, Shattered Ice dashed across to Tall Shadow. “We discovered a cat in our territory!” he yowled, pointing his tail in Turtle Tail’s direction.

“Turtle Tail!” Rainswept Flower exclaimed, dashing over to touch her nose to Turtle Tail’s ear. “Shattered Ice, she’s not just a cat ,” she added, annoyance in her voice as she gazed at the white tom. “She’s our friend .”

Hawk Swoop followed her denmate, and brushed her pelt against Turtle Tail’s. “It’s good to see you,” she meowed warmly.

The other cats held back, exchanging an uncertain glance, while hostility still radiated from Shattered Ice.

Suppressing a sigh of annoyance, Gray Wing waited anxiously for Tall Shadow’s response. He knew very well how cautious the black she-cat was around strangers. Of course, Turtle Tail isn’t a stranger. But it’s still not the best way to announce that she’s back .

“Since when do we talk about territories?” Turtle Tail muttered into his ear again. “Things have really changed.”

Reluctantly Gray Wing admitted to himself that she was right. He and his denmates had become like Clear Sky and his group—much more defensive of their hunting area—since Turtle Tail was last on the moor.

When the group had first split up, and Clear Sky had taken his cats to live in the forest, every cat had thought that they would come and go freely, visiting one another as often as they wanted. But it hadn’t turned out like that, and the division between the two groups had become as hard to cross as a mountain chasm.

Tall Shadow padded over to Turtle Tail, her tail held high, while the rest of the cats gathered around curiously. Gray Wing was impressed by how noble and dignified she looked, confident in herself as their leader. Surely she couldn’t possibly be unwelcoming toward Turtle Tail? All the same, he braced himself for an awkward conversation.

Tall Shadow dipped her head politely. “Greetings, Turtle Tail,” she mewed. Flicking her tail toward the tortoiseshell’s swollen belly, she added, “And congratulations. Who is the father?”

Turtle Tail scuffled her paws uneasily. “There’s no father,” she replied, “or none that I want involved in the kits’ lives.”

Tall Shadow exchanged a glance with Gray Wing, who could hear murmurs arising from the other cats. He could see that the black she-cat understood. Turtle Tail went to live with Twolegs, and now she has kits fathered by a kittypet. The less said about that the better .

Taking a deep breath, Tall Shadow turned to the other cats. “Good news! Turtle Tail has returned to the place where she belongs, and soon she’ll give birth to kits. More cats to strengthen our group!”

“Or more mouths to feed,” Shattered Ice protested. “I can’t believe you’re letting her walk back in here after the way she betrayed us!”

Tall Shadow whipped around, her neck fur bristling. “If you’re so worried about food,” she rasped, “you can go hunting.”

Shattered Ice opened his jaws to protest, then caught Tall Shadow’s warning glance. Muttering something inaudible, he turned and padded away, up the slope and out of the hollow.

Gray Wing watched him go. He could tell that Shattered Ice hated being humiliated in public like that. He had been one of the key cats who had led them down from the mountains. But Tall Shadow has been leading us since Shaded Moss left her in charge, and she gets the final word here .

Turning back to the others, Gray Wing saw that Thunder was intently watching Shattered Ice as he left the camp.

“I want to hunt too,” the kit mewed.

“Not right now,” Gray Wing told him. “Better leave Shattered Ice alone until he gets over his bad mood.” He always was a bit touchy. And it must be difficult for him; he’s worked so hard on this new camp, and now Turtle Tail, who was gone all through the cold season, returns to enjoy it.

“Come over here.” Tall Shadow beckoned Turtle Tail toward a patch of moss. Gray Wing joined her, and the three cats sat together, watching Acorn Fur and Lightning Tail chasing butterflies. Jagged Peak limped up and settled down a couple of tail-lengths away, his eyes uncertain, as if he wasn’t sure of his welcome.

“Jagged Peak, what happened to you?” Turtle Tail exclaimed, her eyes widening with shock as she saw the young cat’s injury. “I thought you were living in the forest with Clear Sky.”

“I was,” Jagged Peak replied, scuffling his paws unhappily. “But I fell out of a tree and hurt my leg, and Clear Sky…” His voice trailed off.