第十二章

With the gazes of all four deputies on them, the patrol turned to leave and started to pad up the dry streambed. It wasn’t wide enough for them to all walk next to one another; before they had gone more than a few paw steps, Toadfoot pushed his way to the front.

“This is our territory, you know,” he growled.

It’s just as much our territory! Lionblaze thought indignantly. This stream is the border, mouse-brain! He was aware of Dovepaw beside him, bristling as if she expected him to protest, but he kept silent, giving her just a tiny shake of his head.

“Sorry.” The embarrassed mew came from Dovepaw’s other side as Tigerheart squeezed past her to join his Clanmate at the head of the patrol.

Lionblaze couldn’t help feeling sorry for him. It wasn’t Tigerheart’s fault that his Clanmate was being such a pain.

Following the ShadowClan cats’ lead, the other cats fell into Clan pairs too, with Dovepaw bringing up the rear beside Lionblaze. Her head and tail were dropping in disappointment, as if she hadn’t thought the journey would be so tense; Lionblaze guessed she’d looked forward to making friends with the cats from the other Clans.

“Don’t worry.” He bent his head to murmur into her ear. “It won’t always be like this. It’ll take a while to get to know the other cats.”

Dovepaw blinked at him. “We don’t have time to argue,” she whispered back. “Whatever is blocking the stream, the brown animals are adding to it, making it stronger. The water might be trapped forever!”

Lionblaze touched her flank with the tip of his tail. “Not if we can do anything about it,” he promised.

The streambed gradually became deeper, sheltered by crumbling banks of sand. Flat stretches of grass opened up on either side, and Lionblaze heard the strange thumping sounds and weird yowls of Twolegs up ahead.

“We’re getting to the Twoleg greenleafplace,” he mewed to Dovepaw. “Remember you heard the same sounds when I took you on your first tour of the territory?”

Dovepaw nodded. Her whiskers quivering with curiosity, she scrambled up the side of the stream before Lionblaze could stop her and peered over the top of the bank. Lionblaze sprang up beside her, his claws extended to drag her down again.

“They’re huge!” Dovepaw couldn’t hide a squeak of astonishment as she stared at the tall pink creatures that had no fur except for a tiny scrap on top of their heads. Three or four Twoleg kits were leaping about the clearing, throwing something brightly colored at one another, while the fully grown Twolegs sat outside the pelt-dens. They’re like moving trees, Lionblaze thought, his own curiosity making him forget the danger for a couple of heartbeats.

“Get down!” Toadfoot hissed furiously from behind them.

But it was too late. One of the Twoleg kits had spotted Dovepaw; she froze in horror as it ran toward her with its pink paws outstretched. Yowls came from the other Twolegs. The fully grown ones sprang to their hind paws and pounded across the clearing, where their kits were already gathering around.

“This way!” Toadfoot snapped.

As Lionblaze shoved Dovepaw down the bank, the ShadowClan warrior turned to lead the way upstream, but a huge Twoleg leaped into the streambed, blocking their path. Big, meaty paws groped down from the sky, reaching for the cats.

“No!” Petalfur screeched.

In a panic, Sedgewhisker tried to climb the steepest part of the bank and fell back in a whirl of flailing legs and tail. Rippletail whipped around and fled back downstream, but Twolegs were blocking that way, too. Pushing Dovepaw behind him, Lionblaze advanced on the first Twoleg, his fur fluffed up and his claws out.

“Over here!” Toadfoot’s yowl rose above the noise. “Follow me!”

He had scrambled up at a place where the bank had slipped down into the stream and it was easier to climb out. Clambering after him, Lionblaze launched himself into the open with the rest of the patrol close behind.

Toadfoot led them straight across the clearing toward the scatter of flimsy green pelt-dens. “No! This way!” he yowled when Whitetail and Sedgewhisker veered off toward the lake. “Stay together!”

The WindClan cats swerved back and the whole patrol streamed across the scorched grass, pursued by yowling Twolegs. Lionblaze raced along, his feet thudding on the hard ground. Fear fluffed out every hair on his pelt, but at the same time his paws tingled with excitement. You can’t catch us, stupid Twolegs!

Toadfoot looped around one den and started to lead the cats back toward the stream. Lionblaze caught a glimpse of Petalfur and Rippletail; the RiverClan cats were dropping back, and Petalfur was limping.

“Lionblaze, look!” Dovepaw gasped; she had seen them, too.

Before Lionblaze could make a move, a young male Twoleg, bigger than the other kits, swooped down and grabbed Petalfur. As the Twoleg swung her up into the air, the RiverClan cat let out a terrified squeal and struggled to get free.

“Help!” Rippletail yowled. “Don’t leave her!”

At the head of the patrol, Toadfoot turned and raced back toward the young Twoleg. “Make a circle!” he snapped. “If we want him to drop Petalfur, we’ll have to show him we’re not afraid to fight.”

Whitetail, Sedgewhisker, and Rippletail exchanged horrified glances, but they ran into place, trembling, until they surrounded the Twoleg. Lionblaze slipped in between Dovepaw and Tigerheart. Taking their lead from Toadfoot, the patrol began to close in on the young Twoleg, stalking through the grass and hissing.

“Let her go!” Lionblaze snarled.

From behind him, a full-grown Twoleg let out a bellow. The young Twoleg dropped Petalfur; the RiverClan cat plunged to the ground and stood shakily on her paws.

“Quick!” Toadfoot gathered the patrol with a whisk of his tail and led them at full pelt past the young Twoleg. Rippletail ran beside Petalfur, guiding her by pressing up against her shoulder. More Twolegs were pounding toward them; the patrol split into two at a nod from Toadfoot, and

veered into a pair of pelt-dens.

Lionblaze hurtled into the weird blue-green light with Dovepaw and Tigerheart behind him. Glancing back, he saw Dovepaw crash into a pile

of hard Twoleg stuff that clattered and rolled all around her, almost carrying her off her paws. Recovering, she raced across a soft pelt laid on the ground and ducked under another pelt that was hanging from the roof of the den; it fell with a soft flop, burying her under stifling folds.

Dovepaw let out a terrified screech, clawing wildly to free herself.

“Help her!” Lionblaze snapped at Tigerheart, while he scrabbled at the bottom of the outer pelt, trying to find a way out.

Tigerheart tugged at the pelt until Dovepaw managed to thrust her head out; she gulped in air and dragged herself the rest of the way,

shaking the pelt off her hindquarters as she regained her paws.

Lionblaze found a loose fold in the outer pelt and held it up in his teeth to make a gap. It tasted foul, like licking the trail left by a monster on

the Thunderpath. Tigerheart wriggled through and Dovepaw followed, popping out into the harsh sunlight of the clearing. As Lionblaze wriggled out behind them, something heavy whizzed past his head and landed with a thump in a bramble thicket that bordered the clearing.

Dovepaw jumped in alarm, then plunged off again when she spotted Toadfoot just ahead. Lionblaze followed, making sure Tigerheart was still with them. Toadfoot led the patrol past the outlying pelt-dens and into the bracken at the edge of the clearing. As he thrust his way through it, Lionblaze picked up the ThunderClan scent marks and realized that he had crossed into his own territory.

The rest of the patrol bundled into the ferns beside him, where they crouched, panting, while the Twolegs in the clearing went on baying. Toadfoot was the last to arrive; he stood glaring at the rest of the cats with his tail lashing furiously.

“This is hopeless!” he hissed. “We can’t even get out of our own territory without running into trouble. Thanks to that apprentice!” he added, turning his glare on Dovepaw.

Lionblaze saw Dovepaw stiffen, the fur on her neck and shoulders beginning to rise. Toadfoot, you mouse-brain, it was you who led us straight into the Twolegs! he thought. He stretched out his tail to give Dovepaw a calming touch on her shoulder. “Young cats are curious,” he replied, his voice level. “If the Twolegs weren’t crazy, this would never have happened.”

Toadfoot let out an angry snort. “This quest is over before it’s begun,” he growled. “We don’t even know what we’re going to find at the end of the stream. What makes us think we can refill the lake when we panic over a few Twolegs?”

“I think you’re wrong,” Whitetail stated; she was still trembling, but she stood squarely in front of the young ShadowClan warrior. “Okay, we had a narrow escape, but that doesn’t mean we have to give up. We’re not helping our Clans by staying in our own territories and watching the lake shrink even further.”

Rippletail, who was crouched beside the shivering Petalfur, trying to comfort her, looked up at that, his neck fur bristling. “Are you trying to blame RiverClan? None of you realizes how hard this is for us. We need the lake for food!”

“No, I’m not blaming you!” Whitetail replied indignantly. “What did I say that would make you think that?”

Lionblaze rose to his paws and stepped between Whitetail and the enraged RiverClan warrior. “We’re wasting time,” he meowed. “We need to keep going. Next time we’ll avoid the Twolegs.”

“If there is a next time, you—” Toadfoot began.

“Hey, we survived, didn’t we?” Tigerheart interrupted his Clanmate. Of all the cats, Lionblaze thought Tigerheart was the least affected by their danger; his eyes were gleaming, as if he had enjoyed the excitement. “We showed those dumb Twolegs! They were terrified! Who cares if we meet them again?” Turning to Dovepaw, he added, “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.”

Lionblaze felt faintly amused as he saw Dovepaw’s jaws drop open in outrage. “I can protect myself!”

“We can all look after ourselves.” Sedgewhisker unexpectedly backed Dovepaw up. “After all, that’s why we were chosen, right? Because our Clans thought we had the best chance of solving the problem with the stream?”

“That’s true,” Lionblaze meowed.

Petalfur raised her head; she was still shaking so much she could hardly speak, but she gazed bravely at the other cats. “I think we should go on,” she mewed. “I’ve watched my Clanmates starving around me, and I can’t do that anymore! Thinking of that gives me courage.”

“Well said, Petalfur,” Whitetail mewed quietly.

“Then we keep going.” Lionblaze spoke before Toadfoot had a chance to argue. With a glance at the ShadowClan warrior, he added, “And since we’re in ThunderClan territory now, I’ll take the lead.”