Darkest Night

“Yes,” Finpaw agreed. “But you and Hawkwing are more like Clan cats than Violetpaw. Sometimes she seems uncomfortable in her own fur and unsure of herself. You have the same confidence as Hawkwing. And you’re brave and loyal like he is. And kind.”

“I am?” She looked at him.

“Sure.”

As Twigpaw’s fur tingled at the compliment, Leafpool nosed her way into the den. Wet leaves dripped from her jaws. She draped them over the edge of the nest, beside Finpaw’s tail. “I’ll get the dressing changed as quickly as I can.” She promised. “But I need to make sure the wound’s clean before I dress it again.”

“I’ll distract him,” Twigpaw leaned closer to Finpaw, trying not to look at his tail as Leafpool began to peel away the cobwebs.

Finpaw winced.

“What games do kits play in SkyClan?” Twigpaw asked quickly.

“Hide-and-seek, warrior and prey, hide the beechnut . . .”

“I played those too.” Twigpaw felt pleased that all Clan kits were the same, wherever they’d been born. “But in ThunderClan we played hide the pebble. And Violetpaw probably played hide the pinecone in ShadowClan.”

Leafpool moved to her herb store and pulled out a long strand of cobweb.

“Did you ever have a chance to play with Violetpaw?” Finpaw asked.

“We played lots before we were separated. But afterward, we couldn’t.” Twigpaw longed to tell him about sneaking out of camp with Alderheart to meet Needletail and Violetpaw, but she was aware of Leafpool, who was wrapping a fresh dressing around Finpaw’s tail. She didn’t want to get Alderheart in trouble.

Finpaw shifted in his nest. “When she gets back, we can play hide the pinecone with her and Dewpaw and Reedpaw,” Finpaw mewed.

“Aren’t we a bit old?”

“Of course not!”

As Finpaw purred, Leafpool sat back on her haunches. “I’ve finished,” she told him.

“Already?” He looked around at his tail, surprised. “That hardly hurt at all.”

“It’s healing well,” Leafpool told him.

“And I had good company.” Finpaw blinked warmly at Twigpaw.

She felt heat beneath her pelt, and blinked back self-consciously.

“You’re well enough to start getting some exercise.” Leafpool brushed the herb scraps away with her tail.

Twigpaw’s tail twitched excitedly. “I could show you the forest! The Sky Oak and the old Twoleg nest . . .” As she spoke, she realized that she wasn’t in ThunderClan anymore. She didn’t know SkyClan territory any better than Finpaw did. “Or we could explore together,” she corrected herself quickly.

Finpaw’s yellow eyes shone. “That would be great.”

Leafpool licked green herb pulp from her paw. “You shouldn’t leave camp for a few days,” she advised. “Not until your wound has healed properly.”

“That’s okay,” Twigpaw mewed brightly. “There’s plenty to do in camp. I think I saw a fish in the stream yesterday. It was just a small one, but it would be fun to catch.”

Leafpool wrinkled her nose. “You sound like a RiverClan cat.”

“We’re not going to eat it,” Twigpaw purred.

“We’ll throw it back,” Finpaw agreed.

Leafpool shook her head. “You’ll have to catch it first.”

Twigpaw glanced at Finpaw. Her heart seemed to skip as he held her gaze. She wondered if he could possibly be as excited as she was at the thought of spending time together.

CHAPTER 8

As Alderheart stomped out of camp and headed for the lake, Jayfeather hurried to catch up with him. “I know StarClan’s prophecies are frustrating,” the blind tom mewed. “I’ve had to deal with plenty. But this one will become clear eventually, just as the others have.”

“Doesn’t it worry you that Bramblestar won’t do anything?” Alderheart glanced at him. “The last prophecy told us to find SkyClan. We only sent out one patrol. We’d never have found them if Twigpaw hadn’t disobeyed Bramblestar and gone out alone. And now Bramblestar wants to ignore this prophecy.”

Actually, what Bramblestar had said was, “If there were something I could do, then I would. But it would be foolish to act before we fully understand StarClan’s message.” Alderheart’s pelt prickled with frustration, and he wasn’t sure who he was more upset with: Bramblestar or StarClan. Why did StarClan have to be so obscure?

“Our duty is to share messages from StarClan with our leader,” Jayfeather reminded him now. “And to advise him. But he is the leader and he must make the decisions.”

“Even if he’s wrong?” Alderheart’s paws itched with anger.

“He’s Clan leader,” Jayfeather meowed. “If he went into a panic every time some cat came to him with a worry, he’d spend more time running in circles than solving the problems he can solve.”

Alderheart didn’t respond. What was the point? Jayfeather was obviously going to defend Bramblestar whatever happened. Perhaps Kestrelflight and Puddleshine would have something more helpful to say. The day before, Alderheart and Jayfeather had sent messengers to each camp to arrange this meeting.

As he broke from the trees, he could see them waiting on the shore. They stood beside the new SkyClan border, within two tail-lengths of the water, looking toward the forest.