Bumblestripe stared at his paws. “I was just trying to help.”
Brambleclaw flicked his tail. “It’s good of Bumblestripe to be so patient with you, Dovewing.”
“Patient?” Dovewing retorted. He’d criticized every move. “Can’t we just move on to drop attacks and go hunting?”
“Is she ready for drop attacks?” Brambleclaw asked Bumblestripe.
“I guess.” Bumblestripe’s ear twitched. “Having seen her tree skills, I think she’d better practice falling out of them.”
Dovewing glared at him. “Okay!” she snapped. “I’ll practice climbing some more!” Bristling, she bounded onto a higher branch and kept jumping till Brambleclaw and Bumblestripe were nothing more than patches of fur far away through the leaves. Relieved to be away from Bumblestripe’s fussing, she stared out across the forest. She hadn’t been this high since her night with Tigerheart. She could see the wooded hillside they’d chased along. It looked a long way off. She could hardly believe they’d traveled so far in a single night.
Her ears pricked up. ShadowClan voices sounded at the border. Dovewing stiffened, listening harder.
“What’s the point of visiting the ThunderClan camp?” She recognized Ratscar’s growl. “Firestar will just make lame excuses.”
Blackstar answered him. “He can make as many as he likes, as long as he gets the message.”
“He should be grateful we didn’t turn Lionblaze into crow-food,” Ratscar muttered.
“ShadowClan!” Dovewing hissed down to her Clanmates.
Brambleclaw’s gaze flashed up through the leaves. “Where?”
“Heading for our camp!” She scrambled down, slithering from branch to branch until she landed beside Brambleclaw and Bumblestripe.
Bumblestripe swiveled his ears. “I can’t hear them.”
“Too many leaves,” Dovewing mewed quickly. “It sounds clearer up there.”
Brambleclaw lashed his tail. “It must be an invasion!”
“No!” Dovewing thought fast. How could she explain that they were planning to talk to Firestar, not attack the camp, without giving away her secret power? “It’s a small patrol by the sound of it, and they’re not even trying to keep quiet.”
Dovewing could hear the ShadowClan patrol heading past the Ancient Oak. “If we hurry, we’ll get to camp before them.”
“We should find them first,” Toadstep growled. “And offer them an escort the rest of the way.”
Dovewing flicked her tail toward camp. “Shouldn’t we warn Firestar?”
Brambleclaw flexed his claws. “You’re right.” He glanced back into the forest. “Let them find their own way to the hollow.” He bounded away, taking a trail that cut through a clearing and skirted the training hollow.
Dovewing listened harder. The ShadowClan patrol had stopped speaking but she could hear their paws scuffing the earth as they headed toward camp. She quickened her pace, following Brambleclaw’s tail as it whipped between bushes ahead of her. Toadstep ran behind, his paws thrumming on the leaves.
Just as they made it into the hollow, Dovewing heard ferns swish behind them. She turned to see Ratscar and Tigerheart appear at the top of the slope. Stoatpaw stood at their side, his eyes glittering.
Blackstar padded from the rear and stared down at the ThunderClan warriors. “I’m here to speak with Firestar.”
Brambleclaw dipped his head and signaled with his tail.
Firestar was waiting beneath Highledge, his head high and his pelt smooth. Dovewing scurried around the edge of the clearing to join her Clan leader. “They’re coming to talk about the fight with Lionblaze,” she whispered.
“Thanks, Dovewing.” Firestar shifted his paws and lifted his chin higher as Blackstar halted in the center of the clearing. “Lionblaze!”
Lionblaze padded from the warriors’ den, eyes narrowed. The wounds from his fight were still visible through his pelt. His muzzle was striped with dried blood. His gaze swept past Blackstar and met Firestar’s. “What do they want?”
Blackstar growled. “You know what it’s about!”
Firestar stepped forward. “Lionblaze crossed your border and provoked a fight.”
Ratscar drew back his lip. “At least they admit it.”
“ThunderClan warriors don’t lie,” Firestar told him evenly. “Nor do they make excuses for their mistakes.” His green gaze flicked to Lionblaze.
Dovewing felt tension thicken the air. She fixed her gaze on Blackstar, trying not to look at Tigerheart, even though his dark, sleek pelt flashed temptingly at the edge of her vision.
Firestar’s tail twitched as he frowned at Lionblaze. “Well?”
Lionblaze flexed his claws, then sheathed them again. “I’m sorry,” he muttered.
Blackstar tipped his head to one side. “By the look of you, I’m not surprised you’re sorry.” He turned back to Firestar. “Ratscar is a fine warrior, but he expected Lionblaze to be harder to beat.”
“It was like fighting an apprentice,” Ratscar scorned.
Lionblaze flattened his ears. Dovewing could hear a soft growl rumbling in the golden warrior’s throat.
Blackstar circled his Clanmates. “Now is not a good time to be losing your edge,” he snarled menacingly to Firestar.
Firestar stepped forward, fur spiking. “And it’s not a good time to be making threats you can’t back up.” He met the ShadowClan leader’s stare without flinching. “I think you should leave.”
“Only when you’ve given your word that your warriors will stay off our land,” Blackstar countered.
“I crossed the border once,” Lionblaze hissed.
“There was another scent,” Stoatpaw blurted out.
Dovewing gulped. I must be more careful! She sneaked a sly look at Tigerheart. He was staring at his paws.
Firestar’s ear twitched. “Are you sure your Clanmates aren’t mistaking rabbits for warriors?”
Blackstar’s gaze flitted toward Lionblaze. “If we are, it’s an easy mistake to make.”
“Are you calling me a rabbit—”
Firestar cut Lionblaze off. “It’s time you left,” he ordered Blackstar. “Do you need an escort?”
“What about the trespassing?” Blackstar held his ground.
“No ThunderClan warrior will cross your border,” Firestar told him.
Blackstar flicked his tail. “Good.” He turned and headed for the barrier. “And don’t bother with the escort. We can find our own way home.”
Dovewing watched Tigerheart fall in behind the ShadowClan leader. As he passed her, his gaze caught hers. She looked away quickly, feeling hot.
Bumblestripe crossed the clearing as the ShadowClan patrol disappeared. “Do you still want to go hunting?”
Dovewing blinked at him. “What?”
“You said you wanted to go hunting after tree training.”
“Did I?” Dovewing stared at the entrance. The thorns still trembling where Tigerheart had slid through.
Bumblestripe’s pelt lifted along his spine. “And while we’re out, we can make sure those ShadowClan cats have left our territory.”
Dovewing dragged her gaze from the brambles. “Let’s take Foxleap.” She didn’t want to hunt alone with Bumblestripe. He’d only fuss over her stalking technique. “Hey, Foxleap!”
The russet warrior was pacing by the entrance to the hollow, his tail twitching. “What?”
“We’re going hunting,” Dovewing called. “Do you want to come?”
Foxleap narrowed his eyes. “I want to make sure Blackstar’s crossed the border.”
Bumblestripe stretched his claws. “We can do that as well.”
Blossomfall crossed the clearing. “I’m coming too,” she growled. “While I still have the taste of ShadowClan on my tongue.”