As the patrol emerged from the treeline onto the riverbank, Thunderstar took a deep, happy breath, letting water-scented air bathe his tongue. Sunlight sparkled off the river, and Thunderstar could scent the rich smells of prey and new growing plants. It had been a mild leaf-bare and his Clan had managed to hunt enough that no cat went hungry. Now that they were well into new-leaf, there was plenty of fat prey running through the forest.
“There’s Moss Tail!” Apple Blossom exclaimed excitedly. “Moss Tail! Hello!”
On the other side of the river, the dark brown RiverClan tom flicked his tail in greeting and continued making his way through the reeds at the edge of RiverClan’s territory.
“Is it true that RiverClan cats swim?” Snail Shell asked curiously, and Owl Eyes purred in amusement.
“Watch and see,” he said. The brown tom waded into the river, looked carefully around, and dived. Snail Shell and Apple Blossom gasped as he disappeared beneath the water, then resurfaced, a silver fish in his mouth.
“I heard that they eat fish,” Apple Blossom said. “Weird.”
“Fish isn’t bad,” Lightning Tail told her. “Riverstar’s given me some before. Maybe sometime I’ll take you to RiverClan’s camp and you can taste it yourself.”
Apple Blossom’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “No, thanks,” she said. “I prefer squirrel.”
They watched Moss Tail pick his way back to the riverbank and, after nodding his head in farewell, carry the fish toward RiverClan’s camp.
As he watched the RiverClan tom, warm contentment spread through Thunderstar’s chest. Not long ago, any RiverClan cat would have challenged a ThunderClan cat so close to their border, and certainly Lightning Tail would never have suggested taking a younger cat to visit RiverClan’s camp. But the cats of the forest had been at peace for many moons now.
WindClan and SkyClan had briefly fought over their border last new-leaf, but that skirmish had ended quickly. Otherwise, all five Clans had been at peace since they had banded together to drive out the vicious rogue Slash. Cats had died in the forest then—including Gray Wing, Thunderstar’s kin, who had raised him like a son—but now, rogues knew to steer clear of their territories. Now young cats like Snail Shell and Apple Blossom could explore the forest without fear.
“So, what prey should we be looking for this close to the water?” Owl Eyes asked the younger cats, but Snail Shell interrupted.
“We’ve been hunting all morning,” he complained. “I’m tired. Can’t we stop and take a break? Just for a little while?” Thunderstar nodded and, with a dramatic huff of breath, Snail Shell sank down to the ground as if he were exhausted. Tucking her tail neatly around her paws, Apple Blossom sat down beside him.
Lightning Tail and Thunderstar exchanged a wry look.
“Tired,” Lightning Tail said dryly. “When Thunderstar and I were your age, we walked all the way to the Twolegplace to rescue Owl Eyes, Pebble Heart, and Sparrow Fur. We didn’t have time to sit around complaining about being tired from a little hunting.”
“Really?” Apple Blossom asked, her eyes wide. “You rescued them from Twolegs? Owl Eyes, is that true?”
“It certainly is.” The dark gray tom settled down on his haunches beside them. “It was scary. One of the Twolegs picked up Lightning Tail like it was going to take him away, but Thunderstar got it to drop him.”
“Before we even made it to the Twolegplace, I fell in the river,” Lightning Tail went on. “And that’s how we met Riverstar for the first time. If he hadn’t pulled me out, I wouldn’t be here now.”
Owl Eyes purred. “Tell them about the battle with One Eye. Sparrow Fur and I were old enough to fight in that one.”
Snail Shell leaned forward, his tail lashing, tiredness forgotten. “Is that when Skystar got kicked out of SkyClan by rogues?”
Thunderstar listened as Lightning Tail began the story. His friend was so good with the apprentices, patient with their training and always knowing just what to say to engage a young cat’s interest. Fascinated by his tales of the battle with One Eye, Apple Blossom and Snail Shell looked ready to jump up and begin practicing their fighting skills. There would be no more complaining about being tired today.
Thunderstar sighed in satisfaction. He was sure he had chosen the right deputy. If anything ever happened to Thunderstar, Lightning Tail would protect ThunderClan.
Thunderstar’s cheerful mood lasted until they headed back to the ThunderClan camp in the late afternoon, heavily laden with prey. The high-pitched yowls of squabbling cats rose out of the ravine as they approached it, and Thunderstar’s heart sank.
There was always some cat arguing. And they always wanted Thunderstar to settle their arguments for them. It was as if the peace between the Clans had freed the cats to concentrate on all their small disagreements with each other.
As the hunting party scrambled down the side of the sandy ravine toward their camp, the angry voices got clearer.
“You were the one who said these were right!” That was Clover.
“I only did what Cloud Spots wanted!” And that was her brother Thistle.
Followed by the rest of the hunting party, Thunderstar shouldered his way through the gorse tunnel into ThunderClan’s camp.
“These don’t look anything like dock leaves! I don’t understand how you two even made this mistake! I’m supposed to be practicing how to chew it up and put it on wounds. If some cat gets hurt and we don’t have any dock leaves, it’ll be your fault!” Shivering Rose, the black-and-white medicine cat apprentice, was hissing with rage, her fur puffed up along her back.
Thistle rolled his eyes. “No cat’s hurt. There’s no emergency. What, do you think there’s going to be some big fight? With who?”
“Foxes, maybe? Badgers?” Blue Whisker tossed in from where she was watching the argument with interest, her tail folded neatly around her. Thunderstar flicked his ears reprovingly as he passed her. Moth Flight, the WindClan medicine cat, had given each Clan one of her own kits to link the Clans together and guarantee peace between them. His foster daughter—Moth Flight’s smallest kit—had grown up to be a fine young ThunderClan warrior, but sometimes she made trouble for trouble’s sake.
“Yes! Foxes and badgers!” Shivering Rose agreed, her yowl getting shriller. “Rogues! Or a cat could step on a sharp rock, or be scratched by thorns. ThunderClan doesn’t have to be fighting another Clan for cats to get hurt!”
Hoping to avoid their argument, Thunderstar dropped the thrush he was carrying onto the prey pile and turned toward his den. Maybe his mate, Violet Dawn, would be there. His spirits lifted, as they always did, at the thought of the beautiful, loving she-cat. If only he could get to their den before—“Thunderstar!” Clover yowled plaintively. “Tell them it wasn’t my fault!”
With a sigh, Thunderstar turned back toward the squabbling young cats and tried to look interested. “What’s the matter?” Lightning Tail brushed past him with a soft purr of amusement and leaped into the branches of a nearby ash tree. He wasn’t leader; he could ignore this kind of thing. For a moment, Thunderstar itched with jealousy.
“Cloud Spots sent them out to gather dock leaves so I could practice how to help my Clanmates who get hurt,” Shivering Rose told him. “Instead, they brought back beech leaves, so the whole day’s wasted.”
“They look almost the same,” Thistle said defensively, poking the broad, shiny leaves on the ground in front of him with one paw.