Sunrise

Onestar’s nostrils flared and he narrowed his eyes. “Sol is too dangerous to keep anywhere near the lake. You should send him away now.”

“You should have left him where he was,” Leopardstar growled. “Any cat with a flea’s worth of sense would see that.”

“Then Ashfur’s murder would have gone unpunished,” Firestar argued.

“Vengeance isn’t everything,” Onestar spat. “You have put all our Clans in danger by bringing Sol back. Whatever happens next, you will not have our support.”

The other two leaders nodded in agreement, and a threatening murmur came from their three followers. A chill ran through Lionblaze, though hot blood was pounding in his veins; he wanted to slice his claws through the fur of these arrogant cats. They have no right to interfere in ThunderClan’s business like this!

Blackstar raised his chin. “Sol must be gone from Clan territory by the next Gathering,” he insisted. “Or we will unite our three Clans to get rid of him ourselves.”

CHAPTER 19

Jayfeather padded in Leafpool’s paw steps as she climbed to the ridge where the trees thinned out and pine needles prickled under paw. He felt the ground grow damp and his paws slipped as he scrambled down the other side into a tangle of undergrowth. As he regained his balance, he picked up the tang of yew bark and berries.

“Here we are,” Leafpool meowed. “I’m going to climb the tree and bend down a branch so you can reach it.” She nudged him forward a couple of paw steps. “Stand just there.”

Jayfeather listened to his mentor scramble up the tree, and a few heartbeats later felt the touch of the yew branch on the top of his head. His fur bristled at the overwhelming scent of deathberries.

“Reach up as high as you can.” Leafpool’s voice came from just above him. “There’s a stem with berries just there. Be very careful.”

Like you need to tell me! Jayfeather thought.

He stretched upward, his front paws lifting from the ground, until a feathery twig poked him in the face and he felt the heavy clump of deathberries touch his fur. He managed to fasten his teeth into the stem where it met the branch, and felt Leafpool’s muzzle press close to his as she helped him bite it through.

Waves of unhappiness were flooding from the medicine cat, shocking Jayfeather so much that he almost lost his balance. He had to shuffle his hind paws, wedging them more firmly among the damp pine needles, before he could go on nibbling at the twig with its deadly load. Leafpool was filled with gnawing anxiety about bringing more death into the hollow; she was saturated with sorrow, so full of grief that she could hardly move.

Yet her voice was steady as she mewed, “That’s it,” and Jayfeather felt the twig fall to the forest floor just beside his paws. He relaxed, rolling his shoulders to get rid of the strain of stretching, then picked up the clump of berries by the end of the twig, careful not to let any of the deathberries touch his mouth.

A light thump beside him told him that Leafpool had leaped down from the tree. “If you carry that,” she told him, “I’ll follow behind and make sure that none of the berries fall off. It doesn’t matter so much up here, but I don’t want to scatter any of them near the camp.”

When they emerged from the thorn tunnel, the clearing seemed full of cats, their voices buzzing like an angry swarm of bees. Jayfeather located Lionblaze and padded up to him, setting the deathberries down for a moment to ask, “What in StarClan’s name has happened now?”

“The other three Clan leaders were here.” Lionblaze’s voice was a low, furious growl. “They told Firestar he has to get rid of Sol by the next Gathering, or they’ll get rid of him themselves.”

“What?” Jayfeather lashed his tail. “What right do they have to tell ThunderClan what to do?”

He could feel sparks of anger coming from Lionblaze. “They don’t care that Ashfur was killed,” his brother snarled. “They’re like scared rabbits, convinced that Sol is going to leap out and tear them apart. Firestar can’t give in to them!”

Jayfeather murmured agreement, but his paws tingled with unease. He didn’t like that the other Clans knew all about Ashfur’s murder. The ripples of the gray warrior’s death were spreading farther and farther, and there was no sign that the effects would fade away.

He tried to shrug off the uneasy feeling as he heard Leafpool calling him. “Jayfeather, put the berries on this leaf. We have to make sure that all the kits know how dangerous they are.”

She set a flat leaf down in front of Jayfeather, who laid the clump of deathberries on top of it. Then he followed his mentor as she dragged the leaf across the camp to the nursery. “Fetch Foxpaw and Icepaw, too,” she added.

Jayfeather tasted the air and located the two apprentices near the cliff where Dustpelt was building the barrier. “Foxpaw! Icepaw!” he called, jerking his head. “Leafpool wants you.”

“Coming!” Icepaw called.