Although it was the coldest season, leaf-bare brought light to the forest; blue sky showed between the branches now that the lush green canopy had gone.
Thunder felt a prickle of excitement. Pebble Heart had come to the camp earlier to visit with his littermate Owl Eyes. He’d brought news that Clear Sky and Star Flower had returned to their camp in the forest with the kits. In the days since her escape, Star Flower had recovered from the trauma, and the kits were growing strong.
When Lightning Tail had returned from the rescue mission, Thunder had been shocked by his injuries. Wounds scarred his flank, and his ear tip had been torn. A scratch near one eye was still swollen. Thunder wasn’t convinced by Lightning Tail’s assurances that it had been an easy fight. The sight of his friend, so battered by his encounter with the rogues, unnerved Thunder. Had Slash’s boast been true? Were his rogues more numerous and more savage than the forest cats?
He pushed the thought away now. Why spoil such a crisp leaf-bare morning with worry? He was on his way to meet his newest kin—Tiny Branch, Dew Petal, and Flower Foot.
As the forest sloped down toward Clear Sky’s territory, Thunder kicked his white paws through the drifted leaves and hopped over fallen branches brought down by leaf-fall storms. When the brambles thinned and gave way to swaths of bracken, Thunder began to smell the scents of Clear Sky’s cats. Nettle and Birch had passed this way recently. Instinctively, Thunder opened his mouth and tasted for prey-scent. Were the woods here any richer than his own? He smelled only cat scent and the musky odor of fungus. The voles and mice, which had scuttled beneath every root and bush during greenleaf, were clearly as scarce here as near the ravine. And with the squirrels taking to their dens until newleaf, there had been little to hunt besides a few careless birds.
As he neared Clear Sky’s camp, he recognized fresh scents. Blossom and Birch must be nearby.
He slowed, scanning the bracken crowding the bramble entrance.
“Hello?” he called out tentatively. He hadn’t warned Clear Sky he was visiting.
“Thunder?” Blossom slid out from the bracken and lifted her tail amiably.
Birch hopped from the steep bank that edged the track. “Is anything wrong?” Worry darkened the ginger tom’s eyes.
“No.” Thunder pricked his ears. Should there be?
“Clear Sky put us on guard,” Blossom told him. “He’s sending out patrols day and night.”
Thunder’s fur rippled uneasily. “Is he worried Slash will retaliate?”
Birch scanned the forest quickly. “He took Star Flower once. Why wouldn’t he do it again?”
Blossom snorted. “He’d better not try,” she growled. “We’re ready for him this time.”
Birch thrust his muzzle toward Thunder. “Have you seen any of his rogues?”
Thunder shrugged. “Our part of the forest has been quiet.”
“Good.” Blossom padded a few tail-lengths farther into the forest and looked around. She glanced back at Thunder. “Are you here to visit the kits?”
Thunder whisked his tail. “Yes, if that’s okay.”
Blossom exchanged looks with Birch. “No one’s allowed near them yet,” she warned Thunder.
“But I’m sure Clear Sky will be pleased to see you. He’s so grateful for everything the others did to rescue Star Flower.”
Her gaze wavered for a moment, and Thunder wondered whether she was pleased that Star
Flower was back. He knew that many cats still did not trust One Eye’s daughter. Hopefully, now that she was mother of Clear Sky’s kits, there would be no doubts about her loyalty.
Birch nodded toward the entrance. “Clear Sky’s in his den,” he told Thunder. “He hardly comes out now. You may as well go and find him.”
Thunder dipped his head. “Thank you.” He slid through the prickly tunnel. The branches rattled around him.
Quick Water looked up from beneath an oak as he padded into the clearing. “Hi!” The gray-and-white she-cat looked pleased to see him.
“Hi,” he answered. “I’ve come to visit my kin.” He noticed that her fur clung to her frame, and realized suddenly that Birch and Blossom had looked leaner than usual too. He wondered if he seemed skinny to them. He had gone to his nest hungry more than once over the past quarter moon.
Acorn Fur and Thorn were sharing tongues beside a yew. Acorn Fur looked up. “Hi, Thunder.
Did you see any prey on the way?”
“I wish I had,” Thunder told her.
Thorn straightened, his ears still wet, and sighed. “It looks like more freezing weather’s on the way. That won’t help the prey return.”
“At least it’s not raining,” Thunder answered, determined to be optimistic. He refused to believe that prey would stay hidden all leaf-bare. A few more days and the forest would be teeming with mice and voles scavenging for food. Surely they must be hungry too?
He crossed the clearing and leaped the bank, pushing through the bracken that shielded Clear Sky’s den from the rest of the camp. The small clearing beyond was empty, but he heard mewling from the shadowy opening in the brambles.
The kits! His heart quickened. They sounded so tiny, their shrill squeaks more like mouse cries.
“Clear Sky?” he called across the stretch of leaf-strewn earth.
His father’s face appeared in the den entrance. Clear Sky’s eyes lit up as he saw Thunder, and he squeezed out of the den. “It’s good to see you!”
“Hi.” Thunder blinked. Warmth shone in his father’s gaze. His cheery welcome took him by surprise. He’d expected to find Clear Sky anxious and still angry about Star Flower’s ordeal. Instead, he seemed at ease with the world, for the first time ever. “How’s Star Flower?”
Clear Sky glanced fondly back toward the den. “She’s had a hard time, but now that she’s home and safe, she’ll be fine.”
“And the kits?” Thunder peered around him toward the den. “May I see them?”
“They’re too small, I’m afraid,” Clear Sky told him apologetically. “They’re to see no one until they’re stronger.”
Stronger? Anxiety pricked in Thunder’s belly. “They are okay, aren’t they?”
“They’re fine,” Clear Sky told him. “But they’re small. They’re staying near Star Flower’s belly until they’re older. Pebble Heart said we have to keep them away from other cats for a moon. It’s hard to believe they’re so helpless.” His gaze glistened with warmth as he went on. “I’m never going to let anything bad happen to them.”
A pang of grief took Thunder by surprise. Why hadn’t Clear Sky been this concerned when he was born? His father had left his own mother to kit alone, beside a Twoleg camp. She’d died when the nest she’d made for them had been crushed. He’d only been saved because Gray Wing had come searching for them. Thunder couldn’t help feeling that his life might have been very different if Clear Sky had rescued Storm before she’d kitted, just as he’d rescued Star Flower.
He shook out his fur. What was the point in wondering? He wasn’t going to feel sorry for himself.
Everything that had happened to him had made him the cat he was now. His cats were loyal, and he had friends in every group. He was as much a leader as Clear Sky.
He changed the subject. “Blossom said you were sending out patrols day and night. Are you worried about Slash?”
Clear Sky’s tail twitched. “I won’t make the same mistake twice,” he grunted. “Slash and his rogues aren’t going to get anywhere near my kits.”
“Good.” Thunder wondered if patrols were enough to keep Slash from stirring up trouble. But at least Clear Sky wasn’t talking about revenge. He felt sure that, in past moons, his father would already have been planning an attack. But then he stiffened. Perhaps Clear Sky was thinking about going after Slash…