Эрин Хантер - Legends of the Clans

Thunderstar watched approvingly as Snail Shell scrambled through the bracken at the edge of the forest, moving fast. Tensing his hind legs, the young dappled gray tom gave a flying leap and disappeared from sight. After a few heartbeats, he emerged from the undergrowth with his tail held high, a fat vole dangling from his mouth.

“Nicely done.” Thunderstar blinked approvingly at Owl Eyes beside him. “You’ve trained him well.”

Owl Eyes purred. “He was eager to learn.”

Snail Shell dropped the vole at Thunderstar’s feet. “Did you see how I pounced?” he asked excitedly. “When Owl Eyes started training me, I always landed a little short of the prey, but he told me to try to jump just in front of prey, and I’d get my paws right on it.”

His sister, Apple Blossom, flicked her tail dismissively. “Lightning Tail didn’t have to show me that,” she bragged. “My pounces were always good.”

Lightning Tail’s whiskers twitched with amusement. “But it took a while for you to learn to pick out the scent of your prey. Let’s show Thunderstar what you’ve learned.”

The orange-and-white she-cat scented the air. “I can smell… mice,” she mewed. “And there’s a rabbit! In the ferns by that oak tree.”

“Very good,” Thunderstar told her. “So which should you hunt?”

Apple Blossom gave a thoughtful flick of her tail. “The mice would be easier to catch,” she mewed slowly, “but a fat rabbit would feed more of the Clan. The rabbit?”

Thunderstar nodded. “Rabbits can be hard to catch,” he told her. “The cats in WindClan eat a lot of rabbit, and they hunt them in pairs to make it easier. Why don’t you and Snail Shell hunt this rabbit together?” Apple Blossom hesitated, and Thunderstar twitched his ears at her encouragingly. “You’re in charge.” If the young cats had trouble catching the rabbit, there would still be plenty of the day left to hunt easier prey.

“Okay.” Apple Blossom’s eyes lit with excitement, and she turned to her brother. “Snail Shell, go around on the far side of the ferns, and keep upwind. I’ll chase it out toward you.”

The young she-cat, her tail held low, slunk carefully toward the tall patch of ferns, each paw step silent.

Thunderstar nudged Lightning Tail. “Good stalking form,” he whispered, and the black tom nodded, his eyes fixed on his apprentice.

Leaves rustled as the rabbit hopped hesitantly out of the ferns, its ears twitching. It sniffed the air, its bright eyes darting alertly in every direction. Apple Blossom froze for a second and then charged.

With a flip of its white tail, the rabbit bolted away from her, straight through the ferns. Apple Blossom followed. There were the sounds of a struggle and the rabbit’s short shriek, then Snail Shell and Apple Blossom pushed their way back through the ferns, Apple Blossom proudly carrying the plump rabbit in her mouth.

“ Very good,” Thunderstar praised them, impressed. “That will fill a lot of hungry bellies.”

The cats buried the rabbit and the vole to collect on their way back to camp, and Thunderstar led the hunting patrol toward the river that marked ThunderClan’s border with RiverClan.

As the patrol emerged from the treeline onto the riverbank, Thunderstar took a deep, happy breath, letting water-scented air bathe his tongue. Sunlight sparkled off the river, and Thunderstar could scent the rich smells of prey and new growing plants. It had been a mild leaf-bare and his Clan had managed to hunt enough that no cat went hungry. Now that they were well into new-leaf, there was plenty of fat prey running through the forest.

“There’s Moss Tail!” Apple Blossom exclaimed excitedly. “Moss Tail! Hello!”

On the other side of the river, the dark brown RiverClan tom flicked his tail in greeting and continued making his way through the reeds at the edge of RiverClan’s territory.

“Is it true that RiverClan cats swim ?” Snail Shell asked curiously, and Owl Eyes purred in amusement.

“Watch and see,” he said. The brown tom waded into the river, looked carefully around, and dived. Snail Shell and Apple Blossom gasped as he disappeared beneath the water, then resurfaced, a silver fish in his mouth.

“I heard that they eat fish,” Apple Blossom said. “ Weird. ”

“Fish isn’t bad,” Lightning Tail told her. “Riverstar’s given me some before. Maybe sometime I’ll take you to RiverClan’s camp and you can taste it yourself.”

Apple Blossom’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “No, thanks,” she said. “I prefer squirrel.”

They watched Moss Tail pick his way back to the riverbank and, after nodding his head in farewell, carry the fish toward RiverClan’s camp.

As he watched the RiverClan tom, warm contentment spread through Thunderstar’s chest. Not long ago, any RiverClan cat would have challenged a ThunderClan cat so close to their border, and certainly Lightning Tail would never have suggested taking a younger cat to visit RiverClan’s camp. But the cats of the forest had been at peace for many moons now.

WindClan and SkyClan had briefly fought over their border last new-leaf, but that skirmish had ended quickly. Otherwise, all five Clans had been at peace since they had banded together to drive out the vicious rogue Slash. Cats had died in the forest then—including Gray Wing, Thunderstar’s kin, who had raised him like a son—but now, rogues knew to steer clear of their territories. Now young cats like Snail Shell and Apple Blossom could explore the forest without fear.

“So, what prey should we be looking for this close to the water?” Owl Eyes asked the younger cats, but Snail Shell interrupted.

“We’ve been hunting all morning,” he complained. “I’m tired. Can’t we stop and take a break? Just for a little while?” Thunderstar nodded and, with a dramatic huff of breath, Snail Shell sank down to the ground as if he were exhausted. Tucking her tail neatly around her paws, Apple Blossom sat down beside him.

Lightning Tail and Thunderstar exchanged a wry look.

“Tired,” Lightning Tail said dryly. “When Thunderstar and I were your age, we walked all the way to the Twolegplace to rescue Owl Eyes, Pebble Heart, and Sparrow Fur. We didn’t have time to sit around complaining about being tired from a little hunting.”

“Really?” Apple Blossom asked, her eyes wide. “You rescued them from Twolegs ? Owl Eyes, is that true?”

“It certainly is.” The dark gray tom settled down on his haunches beside them. “It was scary. One of the Twolegs picked up Lightning Tail like it was going to take him away, but Thunderstar got it to drop him.”

“Before we even made it to the Twolegplace, I fell in the river,” Lightning Tail went on. “And that’s how we met Riverstar for the first time. If he hadn’t pulled me out, I wouldn’t be here now.”

Owl Eyes purred. “Tell them about the battle with One Eye. Sparrow Fur and I were old enough to fight in that one.”

Snail Shell leaned forward, his tail lashing, tiredness forgotten. “Is that when Skystar got kicked out of SkyClan by rogues ?”

Thunderstar listened as Lightning Tail began the story. His friend was so good with the apprentices, patient with their training and always knowing just what to say to engage a young cat’s interest. Fascinated by his tales of the battle with One Eye, Apple Blossom and Snail Shell looked ready to jump up and begin practicing their fighting skills. There would be no more complaining about being tired today.