“So? ThunderClan never did me any harm,” rasped the elder. “I’m not moving a pawstep from here, young fellow, until I’ve had something to eat.”
Crowfeather rolled his eyes. “Great StarClan!”
“Can I help?” Leafpaw offered, wondering if Rushtail was being stubborn, or if he really felt too weak to move. She might be able to find some herbs that would help restore his strength, like the traveling herbs they used to eat before journeying to the Moonstone.
But when Crowfeather turned around to face her, his eyes were cold. “I don’t need help from ThunderClan, thanks,” he mewed curtly.
“I’m sorry.” Leafpaw took a step back, struggling not to show how cross she was that he was refusing her help for no good reason. “I only thought—”
“Take it easy, Crowfeather.” Leafpaw felt a light touch on her shoulder and glanced around to see Squirrelflight.
“There’s no need to be so prickly,” her sister added to the WindClan warrior.
Crowfeather dug his claws agitatedly into the ground.
“Our journey’s over, Squirrelflight,” he meowed. “We have to remember we belong to different Clans now.”
Squirrelflight snorted. “You always were a difficult furball, Crowfeather. But I won’t stop you if you’re determined to make everything harder than it needs to be. Just watch it when you talk to my sister, that’s all.”
Crowfeather looked back at Leafpaw and muttered something that might have been an apology. “But I can manage Rushtail on my own, thanks,” he added.
Just before she left, Leafpaw saw him bend over the elder again. “Rushtail, if I fetch you some fresh-kill, will you move then?”
“I might.” The old tom settled himself more comfortably and closed his eyes. “As long as it’s good and plump.”
“Leafpaw, are you coming?” Squirrelflight called.
Leafpaw turned to see Sorreltail bounding over to her.
“Was that Crowfeather?” she asked. “His tongue’s as sharp as a fox’s teeth. Is he giving you trouble? I’ll sort him out for you.” Her amber eyes gleamed with anticipation.
“No, he’s fine.” Leafpaw touched her friend’s shoulder with the tip of her tail.
Glancing back to where Crowfeather had disappeared in search of fresh-kill, she knew that was not entirely true. But she could not think of any herb that would heal his broken heart.
Chapter 6
Brambleclaw shifted uneasily among the dead leaves. A branch was digging into his flank, but that wasn’t what had woken him. He couldn’t get used to sleeping alone, without the warmth of Squirrelflight’s body beside him. He thought she had gone to sleep next to Ashfur, but he wasn’t sure. She certainly wasn’t anywhere near him.
There was another prod in his side. Brambleclaw looked up blearily to see that it wasn’t a branch after all, but a paw.
Barkface was standing over him.
“Where’s Firestar?” the WindClan medicine cat demanded.
Brambleclaw scrambled up, yawning. Above his head the sky was just beginning to grow light. “Most of ThunderClan are over there, under the trees.”
“Find him for me, will you?” Barkface’s voice sounded close to breaking. “Tallstar is asking for him.”
Brambleclaw knew the WindClan leader must be close to losing his last life. “I’ll fetch him,” he promised.
“Thanks. We’re under that gorse bush over there.”
Barkface pointed with his tail. “I’ve got to find Onewhisker.”
He dashed off.
Brambleclaw bounded toward the nearest ThunderClan warriors. Tallstar was the eldest of the leaders, and his death would be a great loss to all four Clans, not just WindClan.
For a few heartbeats he despaired of finding Firestar in the dim predawn light, but then he spotted him sharing tongues with Sandstorm near the tree stump.
“Firestar, Barkface says Tallstar wants to see you,” Brambleclaw meowed as he raced up to them.
Firestar stiffened, and exchanged a glance with Sandstorm. “I’ll come at once,” he replied.
“Does Barkface need any help?” Sandstorm asked.
“Cinderpelt was here a moment ago. Tell Barkface to send a cat with a message if he wants her.”
Brambleclaw nodded, and followed Firestar across the open ground to the gorse bush where Tallstar lay dying. Its outer branches swept the ground, and there was no sign of any cats at first, but as Brambleclaw approached he heard the sound of harsh, uneven breathing. Ducking down, he peered through a gap to see Tallstar stretched out on his side in a nest of dead leaves.
“Firestar’s here,” he meowed, stepping back to let his leader enter the makeshift den. “I’ll wait outside,” he added to Firestar.
“Is that Brambleclaw?” Tallstar’s voice came weakly from beneath the bush. “Don’t go. You should hear what I have to say, too.”
Brambleclaw glanced hesitantly at Firestar, and when his leader nodded he flattened himself against the ground to creep under the low branches beside him.
Tallstar was alone; Barkface hadn’t come back yet with Onewhisker. The WindClan leader’s chest heaved as he fought for breath, and Brambleclaw winced at the effort it cost him to raise his head.
But in the faint moonlight that filtered through the branches, Tallstar’s eyes shone with the light of StarClan.
“Firestar, I must thank you,” he rasped. “You have saved my Clan.”
Firestar gave a murmur of protest.
“And Brambleclaw…” Tallstar went on. “You journeyed a long way to find this place for us, facing dangers no cat has seen before. Even Graystripe, may he walk with StarClan, would agree you will make a worthy deputy for ThunderClan.”
Brambleclaw gasped. He didn’t dare look at his leader, who stiffened beside him. He knew that Firestar had never stopped grieving for Graystripe, and clung to the belief that his friend was still alive. He had refused to name another deputy so far, even though it seemed extremely unlikely that Graystripe would escape from the Twolegs who had taken him away from the forest.
Ambition gripped Brambleclaw like an eagle’s talons.
Hard as it was to admit it, he knew that he wanted to be deputy, and then leader, of his Clan. Was this what Tigerstar had felt? he wondered. His father’s hunger for power had been so strong that he was prepared to lie and murder and betray to achieve it. I could never do that, Brambleclaw thought.
If he became deputy it would be through loyalty to his Clan, hard work, and respect for the warrior code.
But Tigerstar’s dark heritage would always be with him, overshadowing all he tried to do. They look at me and see Tigerstar.
He recovered himself in time to dip his head to Tallstar and murmur, “It wasn’t just me. It was all of us together.”
“You’re tiring yourself, Tallstar.” Firestar’s voice was gentle. “You need to rest.”
“Rest will do me no good now,” the WindClan leader meowed.
Firestar did not try to pretend that there was any hope he would get better. “You will be a noble addition to the ranks of StarClan,” he told him. He crouched down so he could press his muzzle to Tallstar’s.
“Before then… before then I must say…” Tallstar started to choke, and his paws scrabbled in the dried leaves.
“Brambleclaw, find Barkface,” Firestar ordered.
“No.” Tallstar managed to catch his breath again, and signaled with his tail for Brambleclaw to stay. “Nothing… any medicine cat can do for me now.” His eyes half closed and he took several gasping breaths before continuing. “There’s something important I have to say. Where’s Onewhisker?”