Darkest Night

CHAPTER 10

Movement flashed at the corner of Twigpaw’s eye. A mouse was threading its way between the shriveling fronds of a fern a few tail-lengths away.

“Are you listening?” Sandynose’s sharp mew jerked her attention back. He was staring up at a pine tree.

“I’m listening,” Twigpaw answered, one eye still on the mouse.

Mist hung between the trees, muffling the sounds of the forest. High above the forest, thick clouds covered the sky. Twigpaw fluffed out her fur against the damp.

Sandynose’s tail twitched irritably. “Can you see the bird?”

Twigpaw dragged her gaze from the mouse, which was nibbling a pinecone, and followed her mentor’s gaze. A sparrow was flitting from branch to branch, pecking at cones that clustered at the tips. “I can see it.”

“I want you to climb the tree and catch it,” Sandynose instructed.

“There’s a mouse over there.” Twigpaw nodded at it. “It’s meatier than a sparrow and much easier to catch.”

Ivypool would have approved of her practical thinking.

But Sandynose glared at her. “When I tell you to catch a bird, I mean catch a bird. If I want you to catch a mouse, I’ll say mouse. You’re a SkyClan cat now. Any cat can catch prey on the forest floor. Only SkyClan can hunt in the trees.”

Twigpaw thought of the bustling ThunderClan camp with a pang of longing. They seemed to be thriving on forest-floor prey. She blinked at Sandynose. Why couldn’t he be more like his son? Finpaw was fun.

And he likes me.

“Twigpaw!” Sandynose growled at her as her thoughts wandered again.

“Sorry.” Twigpaw gazed at him, pressing back irritation.

“Climb the tree!”

Claws itching with frustration, Twigpaw hooked them into the soft bark of the pine.

“Dig your claws in deep,” Sandynose meowed.

I know that, Twigpaw fumed.

“Make sure three paws always have a grip on the trunk.”

Why is he treating me like a kit? She understood Leafstar’s wish for her to gain a little experience as a SkyClan apprentice before she received her warrior name, but Sandynose knew that she’d passed her ThunderClan assessment. And yet he acted like she’d just left the nursery.

She hauled herself up. The lowest branches of a pine were so spindly. She’d have to climb farther to reach a branch she could stand on. She wondered if Finpaw liked climbing trees. He looked strong enough to climb to the top of the Sky Oak in ThunderClan territory. Her thoughts wandered. Even though he was still an apprentice, his shoulders were as broad as a warrior’s. He was going to be a handsome tom. He already was handsome. And so funny and kind.

“Twigpaw!” Sandynose yowled below her. “Are you going to hang there all day like a woodpecker?”

She realized that she’d stopped. Her claws burned from the strain. Pushing hard with her hind paws, she propelled herself upward and scrambled onto the first thick branch she reached.

The sparrow had fluttered higher. Twigpaw sighed. If she’d been allowed to catch the mouse, they could be heading back to camp now with prey for their Clanmates. Did Tinycloud really care whether she ate sparrow or mouse? She had three kits to nurse. Surely any prey was better than waiting?

Twigpaw scrambled onto the next branch, then the next, following them around as they spiraled higher up the tree. The sparrow hopped along a bough overhead. Twigpaw paused to trace out a route through the spiky twigs that would let her creep close to it without being seen.

“Have you caught it yet?” Sandynose’s mew rang from the ground.

Alarmed, the sparrow hopped higher.

Hush! Anger burned through her pelt. Gritting her teeth, she hauled herself onto the next branch, climbing until, at last, she was level with the sparrow.

It skipped around a cluster of pinecones at the tip of the branch, digging its beak deep into the gaps. Twigpaw ducked low and drew herself along the bark. She moved each paw slowly, keeping them tucked in tight. As long as the sparrow didn’t look up, she’d be close enough to leap in a few more breaths. Slowly. Her thoughts stilled as she focused on her prey. Energy bunched in her hind paws. She drew in a long, slow breath, and then she leaped. Reaching forward, she swiped for the sparrow. Her paws brushed its feathers. As she uncurled her claws to hook it, the branch cracked beneath her.

With a yelp, she felt herself falling. The branch tumbled away, and air rushed around her. Heart lurching, she wailed. Hard wood hit her flank as she thudded against the branch below, and she twisted, trying to grip it with her claws, but she was already slithering down to the next one. It knocked the side of her head with such force that for a moment she saw stars. Pain scorched through her as she fell and landed with a thud on the ground.

“Twigpaw!” Sandynose’s alarmed cry sounded far away. “Are you okay?”

She struggled to free herself from the fog that was trying to drag her down like water. Her head throbbed. Her chest ached. She drew in a shuddering breath and blinked open her eyes.

Sandynose swam above her. The trees behind him seemed to sway.

“Are you hurt?” he asked, his eyes wide with panic.

She hauled herself to her paws, scanning her body, feeling for injuries. Her legs held her. Her body hurt, but she could breathe, and her mind was clearing. She shook out her fur. “I’m okay,” she gasped, still winded.

“Let’s get you back to camp,” Sandynose mewed. “Leafpool should check you over.”

The medicine den felt warm, screened from the mist and damp of the forest.

Twigpaw sat in its shade as Leafpool ran her paws over her spine and legs. “Nothing is broken.”

Sandynose shifted anxiously inside the entrance. “Will she be okay?”

“She was lucky.” Leafpool eyed the tom reproachfully. “There are easier ways to catch prey, you know.”

“I feel fine,” Twigpaw told her quickly. Sandynose was probably already mad at her for being so clumsy. The walk back to camp had revived her, and she felt clearheaded again. The only signs she’d had a fall were a few bruises beneath her pelt and stiffness, which was already easing.

“No dizziness?” Leafpool touched her nose to a spot behind Twigpaw’s ear.

“No.”

“There’s a little swelling here.”

“I guess I hit my head. But I hit so many other parts on the way down, I’m not sure.” She glanced guiltily at Sandynose. “I guess I’m not much of a SkyClan cat.”

“You’re not hurt,” he told her. “That’s all that matters.”

“You should rest here for a day or two,” Leafpool advised. “So I can keep an eye on you.”

The lichen behind Sandynose trembled as Finpaw stuck his head through. “What happened to Twigpaw? I saw Sandynose bring her here.”

“She fell out of a tree,” Leafpool told him.

His eyes widened and he blinked at Twigpaw in alarm. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Her heart lifted at the sight of him. How much warmer his yellow gaze was than his father’s.

“Will you sit with her while I collect herbs?” Leafpool asked the young tom. “I want to get some borage before this mist makes it too damp. I’ll be downstream, where it flows down to the lakeshore. Fetch me if Twigpaw seems unwell.”

Sandynose’s ears twitched. “I can sit with her,” he offered stiffly.

Leafpool swished her tail dismissively. “It’d be better for her to have someone her own age. She’s had a shock and needs distraction.”

Twigpaw’s heart swelled with gratitude to her old Clanmate. Had Leafpool guessed that spending the afternoon here with her mentor would be worse than falling out of the tree?

Leafpool nosed Sandynose out of the den, leaving Twigpaw alone with Finpaw.

“Why were you up a tree?” Finpaw sat beside her.

“Sandynose wants me to learn how to hunt like a SkyClan cat,” Twigpaw told him.

Finpaw rolled his eyes. “He’s obsessed with making every cat act like they are still in the gorge. He told me yesterday he was going to find a cliff so I could practice rock-climbing like a gorge cat. Doesn’t he realize we’re lake cats now? It would be better to learn how to swim.”

Twigpaw shuddered. “Let’s leave swimming to RiverClan.”

“But still,” Finpaw went on. “Pine trees are useless for climbing. They’re so tall and spindly, and there’s so much prey down here on the forest floor.”

Twigpaw wanted to agree, but she felt a tug of loyalty to her mentor. And she knew that, even though Finpaw might criticize his father, he loved and respected Sandynose. “I guess change is hard for older cats,” she mewed. “In ThunderClan, the elders were always complaining about young cats and their silly ideas. I tried to show Graystripe a new hunting move once and he just sniffed and said, ‘A mouse is a mouse. You don’t need new ways to catch them.’”

Finpaw purred with amusement. “I’m glad we don’t have elders. I mean, Fallowfern is officially an elder, but she’s not old; she’s just deaf. But it’s hard enough listening to the warriors reminiscing about how good it used to be before the rogues came. If elders joined in, they’d never talk about anything else.”

“I don’t know why they can’t just look forward instead of backward,” Twigpaw agreed. “It’s so great that SkyClan is beside the lake now. You’re going to love it here.” She felt a twinge of homesickness. “I wish I could show you around ThunderClan territory. It’s so pretty and there are so many places to play.” She paused, remembering suddenly the small clearing where Alderheart and Needletail had brought her and Violetpaw to play together when they were kits. “I know a place here, on SkyClan territory,” she mewed excitedly. “At least, I think it’s on SkyClan territory now. I used to play with Violetpaw there.”

“I thought you said you couldn’t play with her after she left.”

Twigpaw winked at him. “It’s a secret. I didn’t want Leafpool to know.”

“Can we go and find it?” Finpaw’s pelt ruffled eagerly.

“Now?” Twigpaw’s paws itched at the thought. “You’re confined to camp until your tail is fully healed and I’m meant to be resting.”

Finpaw flicked his half tail toward her. The wound was almost healed. “I’m only waiting for the fur to grow back,” he mewed. “And you said you feel fine.”

“I do.” Twigpaw’s head ached a little, but she was sure fresh air would be better for it than sitting in a stuffy den.

“Let’s go, then.” Finpaw got to his paws. “We know where Leafpool is, so we can avoid her, and we’ll be back before she’s finished collecting herbs.”

“What about Sandynose?”

Finpaw stuck his head out of the den quickly, then turned back to Twigpaw. “There’s no sign of him. The only cat in camp is Fallowfern, and she’s sleeping.”

“She probably doesn’t even know that we’re meant to stay in camp.” Twigpaw stood and stretched. Her aches were gone and she could hardly feel her bruises. She felt sure that her headache would be gone, too, by the time they found the clearing.

Finpaw slid out of the den first and glanced around the camp as Twigpaw followed. Fallowfern dozed beside the bramble nursery, sheltered from the damp air by the overhanging fronds of the bracken behind her. She snored as Finpaw and Twigpaw crept to the camp entrance.

“It’s all clear,” Finpaw breathed, peeping out.

Quickly they darted from the camp and raced along the rise to the cover of a patch of ferns. They ducked down behind them while Twigpaw scanned the forest. She tried to remember where the clearing had been. She knew it must be between the ThunderClan camp and the ShadowClan camp, so she began to lead the way toward the ditches. That would take them in the right direction.

“Why didn’t you want Leafpool to know you used to play with Violetpaw?” Finpaw asked as he followed her.

Twigpaw glanced back at him. “Alderheart and Needletail used to take us there in secret. It was the only way we could see each other after ShadowClan and ThunderClan separated us.”

“You must have missed her.”

“She was the only kin I knew.” Twigpaw realized, with a flash of guilt, that she had enjoyed being the only kin Violetpaw could rely on. Now Violetpaw had Hawkwing and a whole Clan to belong to. She doesn’t need me anymore. She paused. But I need them, surely?

“Are you missing her now?” Finpaw asked.

“Sure.” But it’s nice having you all to myself. She avoided his gaze, relieved when she recognized the curving slope ahead. Brambles edged the base and she climbed it, quickening her step as she remembered where it led. “This way.”

She scrambled down the other side and hopped the fallen tree she had hidden behind the first time they’d come. The forest opened around her, and she gazed up at the sky. The clouds were darkening. Rain was on the way.

“We mustn’t stay long.” A tom’s mew sounded behind the clump of ferns ahead of her. Twigpaw stiffened. Someone was already here. “I’m supposed to be checking on Scorchfur’s patrol.”

A she-cat answered. “I promised Squirrelflight I’d bring back prey. I need to hunt before I go home.”

“Quick! Hide!” Pushing Finpaw back, Twigpaw ducked behind the fallen tree.

“What—”

Twigpaw cut him off. “Hush. Someone’s here. We can’t be seen out of camp.”

“Who is it?” Finpaw peeked over the bark.

“Don’t let them see you!” Twigpaw tugged his fur with her paw.

“They’re behind the ferns,” Finpaw whispered. “They won’t see us, and we’re downwind.”

Twigpaw tasted the air. She could smell the other cats. ShadowClan scent mingled with ThunderClan. She popped her head up beside Finpaw’s and strained to make out the pelts through the shriveling ferns.

Dovewing! She recognized the pale gray ThunderClan warrior at once. Her paws felt suddenly cold. Ivypool’s words rang in her mind. I didn’t think it was a good idea for them to travel together. With a sinking feeling she saw the dark tabby fur of ShadowClan’s deputy showing between the browning leaves. Dovewing and Tigerheart were meeting, and she guessed by their hushed, anxious voices that they were meeting in secret.

She pricked her ears.

Tigerheart sounded worried. “It’s bad timing, Dovewing. Our warriors are losing respect for Rowanstar. And they keep looking at me, like I’m supposed to take his place.”

“Is that what you want?” Dovewing’s eyes shone with fear.

The ferns rustled as Tigerheart shifted his paws. “ShadowClan is weaker than it’s ever been. They need a leader they can believe in.”

“And that leader has to be you?”

“I don’t know.” Tigerheart avoided her gaze. “I’m trying to support Rowanstar, but that might not be enough.”

“What about me?” Dovewing’s mew caught in her throat. “What about us?”

Tigerheart looked at her, desperation glittering in his gaze. “I love you, Dovewing. I will always love you. We can sort this out, I promise.”

Twigpaw ducked down, her pelt bristling anxiously. “We can’t stay here.”

Finpaw stared at her puzzled. “Why?”

Twigpaw turned away. She’d already heard too much. “This isn’t our problem.”

Finpaw hurried after her. “That was Tigerheart, wasn’t it? Why was he with Dovewing?”

Isn’t it obvious? Twigpaw flashed him a look. “Just don’t say anything, okay?”

He blinked at her. “I never saw a thing.”

“Thanks.” She wished she’d never seen them. Should she tell Ivypool? Perhaps it was nothing. Perhaps they were just friends. Why upset Ivypool over this? She wasn’t even a Clanmate anymore. But she was your mentor. She’d want to know. Twigpaw blocked the thought. It’s none of my business. I’m SkyClan now. Her loyalty was to her new Clanmates, not her old ones.

“Hurry up.” She trotted into the lead. “We’re meant to be having fun! Let’s find a live frog to hide in Dewpaw’s nest before he gets home from training.” She broke into a run.

Finpaw followed, wobbling as his short tail unbalanced him. “You can carry it home!” he called. “I don’t want to get the taste of frog on my tongue.”

“Don’t you like frog?” Twigpaw looked over her shoulder. “Perhaps I should hide it in your nest.”

“I dare you!” Finpaw broke into a purr as he ran after her.

“Never dare a SkyClan cat!” Suddenly Twigpaw didn’t care about Dovewing or Ivypool or Tigerheart. She was a SkyClan cat. And having a friend in her new Clan seemed more important than anything.