Tigerheart’s Shadow

“I smell SkyClan.” Snowbird curled her lip at Tigerheart. “Is that what distracted you? Were there SkyClan cats here?”

“I was talking to Sandynose and Rabbitleap,” Tigerheart confessed. He wished that was all that had been distracting him.

Grassheart frowned as she stared at the churned pine needles where the rabbit had scrambled to the top of the slope. “And you let our prey run right into their paws,” she growled.

Irritation rippled beneath Tigerheart’s pelt. He’d had enough of trying to persuade his Clanmates that having SkyClan as neighbors would make them safer, not weaker. He was tired of making excuses for Rowanstar. He was tired of chasing prey that preferred other Clans’ land. Maybe I should leave with Dovewing! Dovewing made him happy. She needed him, and so did their kits. And he loved her.

Pine needles swished at the top of the rise. Sandynose and Rabbitleap appeared at the border. The fat rabbit Tigerheart had missed was dangling from Sandynose’s jaws.

Snowbird hissed, her eyes glittering with fury. “Have you come to gloat with our prey?”

Sandynose tossed the dead rabbit down the slope. “We came to return it.” He glared haughtily at the white she-cat.

Snowbird bristled. “We don’t need you to hunt for us!”

Tigerheart caught her eye, warning her to be quiet. When a Clan was hungry, pride was sometimes worth swallowing.

Grassheart padded toward the rabbit and glanced back at Snowbird. “Ratscar will be grateful for the meal.”

Snowbird narrowed her eyes. Tigerheart looked at her expectantly. Surely she could smell the warmth of its blood? Wasn’t she hungry enough to accept SkyClan’s kindness? Tigerheart’s belly ached with hunger. He hadn’t eaten since sunhigh yesterday.

Grassheart turned her gaze to him. “We should take it.”

Tigerheart nodded. “It would have been our catch if I’d been quicker.”

As Snowbird growled under her breath, Grassheart dipped her head to Sandynose and Rabbitleap. “It was kind of you to return the prey.”

Sandynose bowed stiffly and turned away. Wordlessly, the SkyClan warriors padded from the border.

Snowbird sniffed. “They’re almost as smug as ThunderClan.”

“They were being generous,” Grassheart pointed out.

Tigerheart’s pelt prickled hotly. Another Clan had killed prey that he should have caught. He tried to ignore his shame. At least this was a chance to persuade Snowbird that giving SkyClan their land had been a good idea. “We’re lucky to have such honorable warriors close by.”

Snowbird headed back toward the ferns, her tail twitching. “Only you could see luck in losing half our territory,” she grumbled.

Grassheart rolled her eyes at him. “She’ll be fine once she sees Ratscar eating this.” She scooped up the rabbit and headed toward home.

Tigerheart scanned the clearing as he led Grassheart and Snowbird into camp. “Where’s Ratscar?” he called to Whorlpaw, who was sharing tongues with Flowerpaw at the edge. There was no sign of the skinny elder.

Whorlpaw looked up. “He’s doing border patrol with Juniperclaw.”

Tigerheart blinked. Elders weren’t supposed to go on border patrol.

Scorchfur was at the fresh-kill pile. “I offered to take his place, but he said there were so few cats in ShadowClan now, he should help.” His gaze flicked to the rabbit Grassheart was carrying. “Nice catch.” He looked hopefully at Snowbird. “Any more where that came from?”

“We’ll go out again soon,” Tigerheart promised. He glanced at Rowanstar and Tawnypelt at the head of the clearing. They were talking, their pelts prickling anxiously. Shouldn’t they be leading a hunting patrol? Talking wasn’t going to save the Clan.

The bramble entrance rustled. Tigerheart turned, surprised to see Juniperclaw leading Willowshine and Alderheart into the camp. He pricked his ears. It was strange to have the ThunderClan medicine cat here, even stranger to see RiverClan’s. Mistystar had been determined to restore her Clan’s strength and had decided, after the last Gathering, that she should close its borders. So why was Willowshine roaming outside her territory?

Ratscar followed them in, his mangy old pelt rippling with unease.

Tigerheart sat down in the shadow of the rock and watched the two medicine cats approach Rowanstar. They looked worried. Did they bring news from StarClan? Perhaps they’d had a vision as ominous as Dovewing’s dreams. Perhaps Alderheart had noticed that she was expecting kits. He searched the ThunderClan tom’s gaze, looking for a sign that Alderheart knew more than he should, but Alderheart was staring at Rowanstar as Willowshine spoke.

“I’ve had a vision. We need to find a cat with an extra claw,” she told the ShadowClan leader. “It’s the only way to fend off the coming storm.”

“Do you know any cats with six toes?” Alderheart leaned forward, his gaze fixing more intently on Rowanstar.