Эрин Хантер - Goosefeather’s Curse

Larksong looked up from the pigeon she was sharing with Mumblefoot. “No, they’re still out.”

Pineheart narrowed his eyes. “But they went out before your patrol. What’s taking them so long?”

Goosepaw froze. He pictured the warrior who had fallen at his feet in the thick of the battle. The image wasn’t as clear as it had been before, but he remembered brown tabby fur, terrified amber eyes, long pale whiskers… Was it Squirrelwhisker’s patrol being attacked by kittypets? Goosepaw was about to say something when he caught Moonpaw’s eye. She wants me to be normal, right? He couldn’t be certain it was his Clanmates in the fight. Goosepaw shut his mouth and turned back to the fresh-kill pile.

His first mouthful of vole felt as if it was choking him. The yowls of frightened cats kept echoing in his ears, and all he could smell was fear and blood and the sickly scent of Twolegplace.

“Are you okay?” Moonpaw asked him quietly.

Goosepaw shook his head. Abandoning the vole, he padded to the leader’s den beneath the Highrock. Cloudberry was inside, talking to Pineheart and Doestar. Goosepaw stopped at the entrance and coughed.

“Goosepaw?” Doestar called. “Come in.”

It was dark inside the den, and Goosepaw could hardly make out the shapes of the three cats. He stood in the doorway, blinking. “Cloudberry, I need to speak to you,” he mewed.

One of the shapes moved toward him. “What is it?” She sounded cross, and Goosepaw’s heart sank. Was his mentor in the mood for hearing about this?

“I saw something on the way back from Sunningrocks,” he whispered, hoping Doestar and Pineheart weren’t listening. “I… I was by Twolegplace, watching a battle between ThunderClan cats and kittypets. I think Squirrelwhisker was one of the cats.”

Cloudberry leaned closer to him, her breath hot on his muzzle. “Do you think it was a vision of the future?”

Goosepaw swallowed. “I don’t know,” he confessed. “My other visions have felt different, more

… distant. This one felt as if I was right in the middle of it.”

The old she-cat narrowed her eyes. “You mean it could be happening right now?”

Goosepaw shrugged. “Like I said, I don’t know. But I thought I should tell you.”

Cloudberry straightened up. “You did the right thing.” She turned to the other cats inside the den.

“We should send a patrol to find Squirrelwhisker and the others. They could be in danger.”

Doestar stood up, her pale fur glowing in the shadows. “What do you mean? Has StarClan sent you a sign?”

Cloudberry glanced at Goosepaw. “Not to me,” she meowed. “But I think we should treat it seriously.”

Goosepaw ducked his head as he felt Doestar’s eyes rest on him. There was a pause; then the leader mewed, “Pineheart, take a patrol of warriors and follow Squirrelwhisker’s tracks.

Cloudberry, do we know where we might find them?”

The medicine cat touched Goosepaw’s flank with her tail. Without looking up, he muttered, “By

Twolegplace.”

“Right,” meowed Doestar. “Go quickly, Pineheart.”

The deputy hesitated, shifting from paw to paw. “Really? Because an apprentice says so?”

Goosepaw stared at a crack in the ground, wishing he could disappear into it.

Beside him, Cloudberry lifted her head. “And because I say so. Goosepaw and I are your medicine cats, remember.”

Goosepaw risked a glance at Pineheart. The fox-colored tom was glaring at Cloudberry. Suddenly the scent of kittypets grew stronger, filling Goosepaw’s nose and mouth until he thought he was going to choke. He whirled around, frightened that the kittypets had stormed the camp and were about to invade Doestar’s den. But everything was quiet, and none of the cats beside him had moved.

“Just go, Pineheart,” Doestar ordered. “Say nothing to the others about the possibility of trouble, but there’s nothing to be lost by making sure Squirrelwhisker’s patrol is safe.”

The deputy dipped his head and slipped past Goosepaw out of the den. Doestar looked at Goosepaw for a few moments, then turned to Cloudberry. “I hope I was right to trust you,” she murmured.

I’m not making this up! Goosepaw thought fiercely.

Cloudberry brushed her tail against him. “Come on,” she mewed. “We need to sort out our stocks if there are going to be wounds to treat.” Nodding to Doestar, she led him out of the den.

The apprentices were watching the gorse tunnel, which still quivered from the rapid exit of Pineheart’s patrol. “What’s happening?” asked Rabbitpaw.

“Pineheart has gone to check that Squirrelwhisker’s patrol is okay,” Cloudberry replied lightly.

“Nothing to worry about.” She padded into the ferns, then looked back at Goosepaw, who had stopped. “What’s wrong?”

Goosepaw stared at the gorse, picturing Pineheart and the warriors racing through the forest to the border with Twolegplace. Would they be in time to help Squirrelwhisker? “I wish I could have gone with them,” he mewed.

“You’re not trained to fight,” Cloudberry reminded him. “That’s not what a medicine cat does.

Now, are you going to help me with these herbs? Seeing as you left a good portion of them somewhere in the forest today…”

Goosepaw was trying to brush a wad of cobweb off his paws when he heard the thunder of cats entering the camp. He rushed out of the den with sticky white web trailing behind him. “Wait for me!”

Cloudberry called behind him, but Goosepaw ignored her and plunged through the ferns.

The clearing was thronging with cats, swirling like fish in a tiny pool. Goosepaw stood on tiptoe and spotted Pineheart, Stormtail, Larksong… all cats who had gone to look for the missing patrol.

The crowd shifted, and suddenly Goosepaw saw a dark brown shape huddled on the ground, oozing scarlet trails. Squirrelwhisker! He started forward, but Cloudberry was already running past him.

“Let me through!” she yowled, and the cats stepped aside to let her crouch beside the injured warrior. Goosepaw saw the rest of Squirrelwhisker’s patrol now: Stagleap, Rockfall, Flashnose, all battered and bleeding and looking shocked but on their feet.

“They were being attacked by kittypets,” Pineheart reported to Doestar. “They were outnumbered, and the kittypets took them by surprise. We sent them packing with a few scratched ears, I promise.”

“Thank StarClan you found them!” gasped Fallowsong. She had been on a hunting patrol, which had just returned.

“They were lucky that Pineheart went looking for them,” Rainfur agreed.

“It was nothing to do with luck,” Doestar meowed.

Goosepaw felt his fur grow hot. Cloudberry glanced over her shoulder at him and gave a faint shake of her head, as if warning him that his secret would be safe with her. But Doestar was already bounding onto the top of Highrock and calling the Clan together.

“Let all those cats old enough to catch their own prey gather below!” she yowled. “We need to thank StarClan for the victory over the battle with kittypets today—and not only StarClan.” She looked down at Goosepaw, who felt the cats around him take a step away, leaving him in a bare patch of sand. “Squirrelwhisker and her patrol owe their rescue to one of their Clanmates. An apprentice, no less! It was Goosepaw’s vision that led Pineheart straight to the attack. Cats of ThunderClan, we have a powerful medicine cat among us! And Cloudberry, if you agree, I would like Goosepaw to receive his full name as a sign of our gratitude and pride.”

Goosepaw blinked. Behind him, he heard the apprentices muttering in disgust.

“He’s only been training for three moons!” Poppypaw complained.