Hollypaw was still shocked that Stormfur and Brook were staying behind. Last night, at the farewell feast in the cave behind the waterfall, Stormfur had announced that he and Brook would accompany the Clan cats to the foothills, but no farther. Jaypaw, of course, had just shrugged and nodded, as though he’d known all along the two cats would not be returning to ThunderClan. But Hollypaw could only guess at why any cat would want to stay in the mountains when they could live by the lake. Brook must feel the same way about the mountains as I do about my home. And Stormfur loves her enough to stay with her, wherever she is.
Suddenly, a flash of brown feather caught her eye. An eagle was skimming over the rough slope below her. Ahead of it a hare pelted in terror, throwing up dirt and grass from its long back feet. Folding its wings deftly against its sides, the eagle attacked, tumbling the hare head over heels before pinning it to the ground with thorn-sharp talons.
Hollypaw envied the eagle’s speed. To be able to fly like that! She closed her eyes and imagined skimming over the grass, paws hardly touching the ground, light as air, faster than the fastest prey…
“I wish we could get moving again.” Lionpaw’s impatient mew broke into her thoughts. He padded onto the boulder and stood beside her, following her gaze toward the eagle feasting on its catch. “I wish I had something in my belly,” he mewed.
“Do you suppose we’ll ever be able to fly?” Hollypaw murmured.
Lionpaw turned and looked at her as though she’d gone crazy.
“I mean,” she tried to explain hurriedly, “Jaypaw said we have the power of the stars in our paws.” It still felt strange to say it out loud. “We don’t really know what that means. I was just wondering if—”
“Flying cats!” Lionpaw scoffed. “What’d be the point of that?”
Hollypaw’s ears were hot with embarrassment. “You’ve got no imagination,” she snapped. “Here we are with more power than any other cat ever, and you act like it’s nothing at all! Why shouldn’t we be able to f ly, or do anything we want to? And stop laughing at me!”
“I’m not laughing at you.” Lionpaw flicked Hollypaw’s flank with his tail. “I just think we’d look stupid with wings.”
Frustration surged in Hollypaw’s chest. She rounded on her brother, glaring. “You’re not taking this seriously enough! We’ve got to figure out exactly what this prophecy means!”
Lionpaw blinked and took a step backward. “Keep your fur on. You know Jaypaw and his visions. They sound great, but we have to live in the real world.”
“What does the real world mean, now that we have the power of the stars in our paws? We’ll be able to do anything!
Imagine how much we’ll be able to help our Clan!”
Lionpaw frowned. “The prophecy didn’t say anything about helping our Clan; it just mentioned the three of us.”
Hollypaw stared at him. “But the warrior code says we must protect our Clan before anything else!”
Lionpaw’s gaze drifted to the distant hills. “Are we bound by the warrior code if we’re more powerful than StarClan?” he wondered out loud.
“How could you say such a thing?” Hollypaw scolded, but a shiver of foreboding ran along her spine. If the prophecy meant that they had to live outside the warrior code, how would she know what was right? How would she know what she was supposed to do if it came to a choice between her own safety and her Clan’s?
Jaypaw’s pelt brushed hers as he jumped up beside them.
“Could you two speak a bit louder?” he hissed. “I think some of the others didn’t hear you.” His blue eyes were flashing with anger. Blindness had not robbed them of showing feeling.
Hollypaw spun around to see if any of the other cats had been listening, but the warriors were still deep in their own conversation. “No one’s taking any notice of us,” she reassured him.
“Not every cat has got such good hearing as you,” Lionpaw added.
“I’m just warning you to be careful, okay?” Jaypaw mewed.
“We have to keep this a secret.”
“We know,” Lionpaw assured him.
“Actually, I don’t think you do,” Jaypaw argued. “How do you think the other cats would react if they found out we’ve been born with more power than StarClan?”
Lionpaw glanced at Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw. “They’d never believe it.”
“I hardly believe it myself,” Hollypaw admitted.
“They’d believe it, all right.” Jaypaw’s voice was icy. “But I don’t think they’d like it.”
“Why not?” Hollypaw felt a jolt of alarm. She hadn’t thought about how her Clanmates would take the news. Surely they’d be glad? They must know she would only use her power to help them!
Lionpaw seemed to agree with her. “Won’t they want us to be the best warriors we can be?”
“This prophecy isn’t about being a good warrior!” Jaypaw warned. His claws scraped against the surface of the boulder in frustration. “It’s about having more power than StarClan.
Don’t you think ordinary cats might find that a bit scary?”
“But we’re not going to do anything bad,” Hollypaw insisted. “This is a gift to our whole Clan, not just us.” What did Jaypaw think they were going to do with their powers?
“Shh!” Jaypaw’s hiss cut her off as Squirrelflight bounded toward them.
She halted at the edge of the boulder. “What are you bickering about?”
“Hollypaw and Lionpaw are just arguing about who’s the best hunter,” Jaypaw mewed smoothly.
Hollypaw opened her mouth to object, then stopped herself. She hated lying, but she couldn’t give their secret away, not here.
“You shouldn’t be standing around chatting,” Squirrelflight told them. “Not when Brambleclaw has just told you to find fresh-kill. He wants to make sure Stormfur and Brook have something to take back to the Tribe.”
They had been so busy arguing, they hadn’t heard the order.
“You shouldn’t have to be asked twice,” Squirrelflight scolded.
Hollypaw hung her head. “Sorry.”
Squirrelflight flicked her tail toward a cluster of trees at the side of the slope. “Try there, and hurry up!” The copse cast a long shadow that stretched up the hillside. The sun would be setting soon.
Lionpaw licked his lips. “There should be plenty of prey in there.”
“Enough for everyone,” Squirrelflight agreed. She turned to Jaypaw. “Will you come check Tawnypelt’s pads? One of them is bruised where she trod on a sharp stone.”
There had been enough sharp stones to bruise everyone’s pads on the trek down from the mountain; Hollypaw guessed that Squirrelflight was finding Jaypaw something useful to do, since he couldn’t hunt. She tensed, knowing how oversensitive Jaypaw could be. But her littermate just nodded and followed Squirrelflight back toward the warriors. He didn’t even bristle when his mother bent down to lick a grubby patch of fur behind his ear.
The gesture pricked at Hollypaw’s heart. Squirrelflight still saw them as kits. It would be easier if they still were; kits didn’t have to worry about having more power than their warrior ancestors. But things change, she told herself. She turned away, suddenly anxious. Would there come a time when Squirrelflight would be afraid of her own kits?
“What’s ruffling your pelt?” Lionpaw asked.
Hollypaw licked the fur prickling on her shoulder. “It doesn’t matter.” She nodded toward the copse. “Let’s hunt.”
She padded to the front of the boulder and let her paws slide over the edge. It was a short, steep drop, but the grass below looked like it would make a soft landing. She leaped. As she landed, a flurry of fur and paws knocked the breath from her body and sent her flying. Who’s attacking me? Gasping, she scrambled to her paws and prepared to defend herself.