Thunder saw Gray Wing straighten.
“Sparrow Fur? Are you sure?” The gray tom stared at her.
She met his gaze and nodded. “I like it there.”
Gray Wing didn’t speak.
“I like the trees,” Sparrow Fur insisted. “And I’ve always wanted to taste squirrel and…” Her mew trailed away. There was no mistaking the fierce grief burning in Gray Wing’s eyes.
“You must follow your heart.” He dropped his gaze.
Owl Eyes scampered past his sister and grabbed a stone between his teeth. He tossed it into the circle beside Sparrow Fur’s and glanced at Pebble Heart. They were leaving their littermate. “Is that okay?”
“It’s fine,” Pebble Heart purred. “A Thunderpath may separate us, but we will always be littermates.”
As Pebble Heart stepped forward to nuzzle his brother’s cheek, Cloud Spots cast his stone into
Clear Sky’s circle.
Pebble Heart jerked around and stared at the long-furred black tom. His eyes glittered with alarm.
“What will I do without you to guide me? How will I know which herbs to use?”
“You know them,” Cloud Spots meowed simply. “I have nothing left to teach you. And it’s better that we spread our healing skills between two groups. The pine forest cats will have you to treat their wounds. Clear Sky will have me.” He glanced over his shoulder at Clear Sky. “He certainly needs someone to take care of his cats.”
Clear Sky didn’t seem to hear. He was staring at the four pebbles in his circle.
Thunder curled his claws into the ground nervously. While he’d been turning the question over and over in his mind, every cat had made their decision except him. “Well?” Clear Sky prompted.
“Where will you choose, Thunder?”
Thunder glanced around at the cats he’d grown up among. Should he follow Gray Wing and Tall Shadow to the pine forest? Or Dappled Pelt and Shattered Ice to the river?
No. He knew what he had to do. He’d seen Clear Sky almost die earlier. Worse than that, he’d seen Clear Sky look uncertain. He’d watched his father plead. Deep in his belly, Thunder sensed a weakness in him that he’d never seen before. He needs me. Reluctantly, he padded to the stones and picked one from the remains of the pile.
He dropped it into Clear Sky’s circle.
“Thank you, Thunder.” His father’s mew seemed to crack.
Thunder closed his eyes. I’ve made the right decision. Clear Sky was not the ruthless leader he’d once been. If his group was to spread and grow like the Blazing Star, Clear Sky would need help leading it. Thunder shook out his pelt, feeling relief wash through him like a fresh breeze.
The decision had been made.
And yet his heart pricked at the thought of the group splitting apart. Was this really the right thing to do? He imagined the hollow empty through the long leaf-bare, snow filling the deserted nests, the clearing growing wild with no paw steps to trample down the grass.
Mouse Ear wove around Tall Shadow. “I bet the pine forest has more prey than the moor.”
Mud Paws lifted a black forepaw and began to wash it. “I can’t wait to be out of this wind,” he mewed between licks.
“Do you think River Ripple will teach us how to fish?” Dappled Pelt’s eyes were shining as she padded back and forth restlessly in front of Shattered Ice.
Sparrow Fur shuddered. “You want to get your paws wet?” She stared at the she-cat in disbelief.
“I want to learn how to swim,” Dappled Pelt told her.
“It can’t be harder than tunneling,” Shattered Ice added.
Lightning Tail snorted. “I always suspected you were mouse-brained,” he purred teasingly.
The cats seemed happy, but Thunder hardly heard them. Irritation pricked beneath his pelt as he watched Jagged Peak press close to Holly, the kits winding around their paws. Did he have to look so pleased with himself? Thunder stalked toward him. “Are you happy now that you’ve split up the group?”
Jagged Peak met his gaze, unflinching. “It’s what the spirit cats wanted and you know it.”
Thunder blinked, surprised by Jagged Peak’s boldness.
“Things change, Thunder.” Jagged Peak glanced back at his crippled hind leg. “Some of us are used to adapting. Perhaps you should get used to it too.” He turned sharply, swishing his tail against
Thunder’s muzzle, and nosed Eagle Feather up onto his shoulders. “Do you want a badger ride to our new home?”
Thunder stared. Jagged Peak had changed. He’d become so certain of himself. Should I begrudge him that?
A pelt brushed his flank as Clear Sky stopped beside him. “Five cats will have to be enough.” His gaze was fixed on the departing cats. “For now.”
Thunder felt suddenly cold. There was icy determination in his father’s mew. Perhaps Clear Sky hadn’t grown weak after all. Had his anxious, pleading eyes just been a trick? “Do you still want them all?”
“Not me.” Clear Sky’s blue gaze was calm. “Fluttering Bird.”
Thunder shifted away. Perhaps it was best that the group was spreading itself across moor, river, and forest. No leader should command every cat. That was too much power to hold.
Clear Sky lifted his tail. “You’d better get ready to leave.” Sparrow Fur and Owl Eyes were already pacing near the entrance. Beside them, Lightning Tail gazed wistfully across the hollow.
Gray Wing sat alone. The tom’s golden eyes were dark with grief.
Thunder felt his throat tighten. “I have to say good-bye to Gray Wing,” he told Clear Sky. He crossed the grass and stopped in front of his old friend. “I’ll watch over them,” he promised, tipping his head toward Sparrow Fur and Owl Eyes.
“It’s like losing Turtle Tail all over again.” Gray Wing’s mew was thick. “I’m not ready to leave Tall Shadow, and Pebble Heart needs me. But how can I be separated from those kits?”
Thunder hated how hard this seemed to be for Gray Wing. “They’re not kits anymore,” he said softly. But he knew that although Owl Eyes, Sparrow Fur, and Pebble Heart were nearly grown, Gray Wing would always love them as a father.
“Anyway, you’ll know where they are,” Thunder soothed. “You’ll get to see them whenever you want.”
“It won’t be the same.”
Thunder’s heart twisted in his chest. No, it’ll never be the same again. Around him, cats padded restlessly, their ears pricked and tails twitching with excitement at establishing their new homes. I just hope we’re doing the right thing.
Chapter 4
As Thunder padded away, Gray Wing became slowly aware of the cold. The numbness that had gripped him since Sparrow Fur had dropped her stone in Clear Sky’s circle eased, and he shivered, lifting his gaze to the two young cats at the gorse entrance to the camp. Owl Eyes leaped up to catch a stray snowflake. His eyes shone with excitement.
Gray Wing swallowed back grief.
Soft fur brushed his flank. He turned his head.
Pebble Heart was gazing at him with round amber eyes. “I’ve said good-bye to them. It’s your turn now.”
Gray Wing’s paws felt like stone. How could he say good-bye? He’d never imagined they’d be separated like this. He glanced at the snow clouds glowering above the camp. Was Turtle Tail watching? Had she known this would happen when she’d urged them to spread and grow like the Blazing Star? Anger surged in his chest. “They’re all I have left of her,” he breathed.
“You still have me.” Pebble Heart nudged him forward. “They won’t leave until you say good-bye.”