Lost Stars

Out in the lake, a third cat was trapped in the freezing water. He was clawing frantically at the edge of the ice, but it kept breaking under the weight of his paws, and his struggles seemed to be driving him farther away from the shore. Each time his head dipped under the water, it took him longer to fight his way back to the surface. Soon, Bristlepaw realized, he would vanish beneath the ice for good.

Instinctively, Bristlepaw bounded forward, outpacing her Clanmates. Reaching the edge of the lake, she took a deep breath, bracing herself to stop her limbs from trembling. StarClan, help me! she prayed. Aloud she called, “Hang on! I’m coming!”

Rosepetal’s voice came from somewhere behind her. “No! Bristlepaw, come back!”

Bristlepaw ignored her. Venturing out onto the ice, she lay flat and splayed out her legs to spread her weight as much as possible, and she forced herself to ignore the shock of cold penetrating her fur. Pushing herself forward with tiny movements of her claws, she headed for the struggling cat. She could feel the ice straining under her weight, but it held until she could reach the edge and stretch out her neck to grab the SkyClan cat’s scruff as he sank under the surface.

Gradually Bristlepaw edged backward, dragging the other cat with her. The ice began to break up around them under their combined weight, but when it finally gave way, Bristlepaw realized that the water was shallow enough for her to stand. She let go of the other cat’s scruff and boosted him with her shoulder so that he could stagger to the bank. Bristlepaw let out a gusty sigh of relief as she followed him and collapsed in a heap beside him on the pebbles. She was shivering, and not only from cold.

I’m lucky that I didn’t drown, too!

“Bristlepaw, are you completely mouse-brained?” Rosepetal came to stand by her apprentice, her voice as freezing as the wind and her eyes like chips of amber ice. “I told you to come back. I should have you dealing with the elders’ ticks for six moons at least.” Her voice grew gentler, almost changing to a purr. “I’d do it, too, if you hadn’t been so brave.”

“I had to,” Bristlepaw explained, warmed by her mentor’s praise. “I’m the lightest of us. Besides, he would have died if I’d left him there.” As she turned to the cat she had rescued, her warmth gave way to sharp irritation. “You stupid furball!” she exclaimed. “What were you doing out there on the thin ice?”

The cat—he looked barely older than a kit—raised his head to gaze at her. His eyes were full of gratitude. “I’m sorry,” he gasped. “It was an accident. I’m lucky you came along.”

The two other SkyClan cats had approached and were looking down at their Clanmate. Bristlepaw recognized them as two apprentices she had seen at the last Gathering: Kitepaw and Turtlepaw.

“It was partly our fault,” Turtlepaw admitted.

“Yeah, we’re sorry,” Kitepaw added, ducking his head in shame.

“And so you should be,” Rosepetal snapped, turning her furious gaze on the two apprentices. “How much help do you think you were, running up and down and yowling like a pair of foxes in a fit?”

The youngest apprentice nodded, and Bristlepaw noticed that, even drenched and shaking, he had summoned a gleam of appreciation at Rosepetal’s scolding.

Rosepetal turned to gaze down at him and went on, “Who are you, anyway? I don’t think I’ve seen you at a Gathering.”

The apprentice tottered to his paws. “I’m Rootkit,” he said, shivering. “I mean—Rootpaw.”

Rosepetal tilted her head, studying him. “Are you Violetshine’s kit?” she asked. “Hawkwing’s kin? Look at you—you’re shivering so hard, and there’s ice in your fur. We’d better get you back to the ThunderClan camp so our medicine cats can take a look at you.”

“No!” Rootpaw protested. “We’re SkyClan cats.”

“But the ThunderClan camp is much closer,” Rosepetal insisted. “It makes much more sense to go there.”

“But—” Rootpaw began.

Losing patience, Bristlepaw bent over Rootpaw and pushed her face close to his. “Don’t be mouse-brained,” she hissed. “You would freeze to death before you got back to your own camp.”

Rootpaw hesitated a heartbeat longer, then nodded.

“I’ll come with you,” Kitepaw meowed. “Turtlepaw, you’d better go back to camp and let them know what happened.”

Turtlepaw gulped, as if she wasn’t looking forward to that. “Okay,” she agreed. “We’re sorry, Rootpaw.” Without waiting for a response, she bounded off through the trees.

Bristlepaw steadied Rootpaw on one side, with Kitepaw on the other, as Rosepetal led the way back across the SkyClan border and toward the ThunderClan camp. The young apprentice looked embarrassed that he couldn’t walk by himself. But there’s no shame in that, Bristlepaw thought. Not after you nearly drowned. Any cat would need help.