Tigerheart’s Shadow

The thin stone slabs cast long shadows as the sun slid behind the huge dens. Tigerheart shook out his fur. The rumbling of monsters was quieter here. This patch of green seemed sheltered from the noise and movement of the heaving city by the trees growing among the slabs. Their branches crisscrossed the sky, rattling softly in a breeze that carried reminders of forest scents among the Twoleg stench. Tigerheart remembered with a pang the secluded glade where he and Dovewing had met in secret. Would she forgive him for not meeting her there before she left? He tasted the air anxiously, hoping to catch a scent that would lead him to her.

“Who are you?” A growl sounded on the evening air.

Tigerheart unsheathed his claws defensively and scanned the stones.

Green eyes glared through the fading light. A tortoiseshell she-cat faced him, her black muzzle thrust forward. Two toms flanked her, one small but well-muscled with a brown-and-black splotched pelt, the other smoky gray and long-furred.

The three cats padded slowly toward him, flattening their ears aggressively as they neared.

“I’m looking for someone,” Tigerheart told them quickly. His heart lurched as he wondered if Dovewing had met these cats. They didn’t seem welcoming. What if they’d chased her off? Or hurt her?

The toms halted as the tortoiseshell flicked her tail. She padded closer to Tigerheart, showing her teeth. “Who are you?” she repeated slowly.

“My name’s Tigerheart.” He glanced at the gathering place behind the tortoiseshell. The sun had dropped behind the skyline and swept it into shadow. Without its glittering walls and glinting roof, it looked gloomy and forbidding. “My friend traveled a long way to find this place. And I’ve traveled a long way to find her.”

Curiosity glittered in the tortoiseshell’s gaze. “You’re looking for a she-cat?”

“She’s my mate.” Tigerheart felt his throat tighten. Saying the words opened grief in his chest that he’d ignored for so long. He’d forgotten how much he missed Dovewing. “She’s carrying my kits.”

The tortoiseshell tipped her head. Her ears pricked. Her gaze lost its menace. “What’s her name?”

“Dovewing.” Tigerheart’s mew was thick with emotion. He felt suddenly weary.

She glanced over her shoulder at the brown-and-black tom. “Ant. Go and see if there’s a cat with that name here.”

As he hurried away, she snapped her gaze back to Tigerheart.

Tigerheart blinked at the tortoiseshell hopefully as Ant disappeared into the shadows around the gathering place.

“My name’s Fierce,” she told him. She nodded toward the gray tom. “That’s Cobweb.”

“Do you live here?”

Fierce eyed him distrustfully. “How long have you been traveling?”

“Days.”

“You must be tired.”

Tigerheart lifted his chin, ignoring the weariness dragging at his bones. “Not too tired to keep traveling if I have to. I need to find Dovewing.” Perhaps if he kept pressing, she’d tell him if Dovewing had been here.

Fierce didn’t reply, but stared at him in silence.

Tigerheart stared back, desperately trying to read her green gaze. Was she hiding something? He saw nothing but the reflection of harsh Twoleg lights, which were beginning to glimmer behind him.

Cobweb shifted restlessly as the twilight deepened. At last, Tigerheart saw movement in the shadows. Ant was hurrying between the stone slabs. He stopped beside Fierce and whispered in her ear.

Tigerheart held his breath. Was Dovewing here?

“She says she’ll see you,” Fierce meowed curtly. “Follow me.”

Joy burst in Tigerheart’s chest. “She’s here?” He could hardly believe it.

Fierce turned away and padded toward the gathering place. Tigerheart’s paws trembled with excitement as he followed. He’d found her! Dovewing was here! Ant and Cobweb fell in behind him as he wove between the slabs. Fierce led him to an opening in the ground where stone steps led down to a stretch of clear wall. The stones beside the clear wall had been dislodged so that a gap opened beside it. Fierce slid through it and Tigerheart followed. He emerged onto a ledge that looked down into a large square cave. He scanned it nervously. “Do Twolegs come here?”

“Not anymore.” Fierce paused on the ledge.

Smooth walls lined the cavern. Twolegs must have carved it out. It was lit by stretches of transparent stone set high in the walls, which let evening light filter through. Twoleg clutter sat in piles against the walls here and there. He couldn’t believe that Dovewing, a warrior, would ever have chosen to make a home here. How convinced was she that her dreams were a bad omen for our kits? he wondered.

He saw a cat move among the shadows. Another crossed the wide, shiny floor.

“Where’s Dovewing?” He pushed past Fierce.

“Wait.” She nudged him out of the way and hopped down onto a wooden ledge below and then onto the floor.

He stared at her as Cobweb and Ant brushed past him and followed her down.