Frustration surged through Jayfeather. “You don’t have to help me!”
He flinched as Spottedleaf thrust her muzzle close. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t help you!” she hissed. “I’m just warning you it won’t be easy. Yellowfang’s been feeding StarClan’s fears like a mother feeding her kits! The stupid old fleabag!”
Jayfeather backed away, startled by her anger. “Then you’ll take me to Flametail?”
“Of course!” She began to head up the trail. “ShadowClan’s territory is this way.”
Jayfeather scurried after her.
“Did you actually think I’d abandon ThunderClan?” Spottedleaf muttered.
“This isn’t just about ThunderClan,” Jayfeather corrected her. “It’s about all the Clans now.”
They broke from the trees and crossed a meadow. The long grass was crushed, battered flat by wind. Jayfeather narrowed his eyes against the stinging rain, his paws squelching over rotting flowers. He heard the river ahead. As they reached the bank, his heart twisted. The water was brown and foaming, running in full flood, crashing over rocks and swirling between the muddy banks.
“Where is everyone?”
Spottedleaf flicked her tail toward a huddle of cats crouching upstream, beneath a rocky overhang. Whitestorm? Jayfeather hardly recognized the white warrior. His pelt clung to him, showing jutting ribs beneath the soaked fur.
“Prey’s scarce now,” Spottedleaf explained.
Longtail was sitting beside Whitestorm, staring out from the cramped cleft. His eyes were clear and bright, his eyesight restored, but his gaze was tinged with sadness.
Jayfeather broke away from Spottedleaf and headed toward his Clanmates. “Longtail!” He greeted the old tom with a purr.
Longtail dipped his head. “It’s good to see you,” he murmured.
A pelt flashed at the corner of Jayfeather’s vision. Brindleface was picking her way down the steep bank edging the rocks. “Jayfeather? Is that you?” She broke into a trot as she drew near. “Something terrible has happened to StarClan! We can’t see the Clans anymore.”
“I know,” Jayfeather mewed. “It’s because of the Dark Forest.”
“How is Firestar?” Whitestorm asked, standing up and circling Jayfeather.
“He’s fine.”
“What about Mousefur?” Longtail blinked anxiously at him.
“Grumpy.” Jayfeather forced out a purr. He wanted to reassure them that nothing had changed in ThunderClan territory. “And Ferncloud rules the nursery as ferociously as any warrior.”
“What about Briarlight?” Longtail asked. “Has she recovered?”
“She’s doing well,” Jayfeather promised. “And Brightheart’s expecting kits.”
Whitestorm’s eyes gleamed. “That’s great news!”
“Jayfeather!” Spottedleaf’s mew called from behind. “We should get moving.”
“Where are you going?” Longtail leaned forward.
“To find Flametail.” Jayfeather’s ear twitched.
Whitestorm’s gaze darkened. “Don’t cross the border,” he warned.
“StarClan shouldn’t have borders,” Jayfeather growled.
Longtail lowered his head. “StarClan shouldn’t have leaf-fall, either.”
“I have to find Flametail.” Jayfeather turned away.
Whitestorm whipped around him, blocking his path. “You can’t go there!”
Spottedleaf ran her tail down the old warrior’s spine. “We must,” she mewed gently.
Whitestorm blinked at her, worry sparking in his gaze. “They’ll force you back.”
“They won’t stop me.” Jayfeather flattened his ears. “This is too important.”
Whitestorm backed away, letting Jayfeather pass.
“Be careful!” Brindleface called as he followed Spottedleaf away from the rocks.
She led him downstream, following the river across the meadow till it turned and headed away toward a distant wood, finally stopping beside a tree stump. “We’ve reached the border.”
Jayfeather could smell the washed-out scent of ShadowClan clinging to the dripping brambles that lined the path. He glanced nervously around. This is StarClan! he reminded himself. All cats are safe here.
“Get down!” Spottedleaf suddenly crouched, signaling to Jayfeather with a flick of her tail. Pawsteps sounded ahead. Spottedleaf’s gaze darted from side to side. “We should hide,” she warned.
“No! This is ridiculous.” Lifting his chin, Jayfeather marched past her and stood in the center of the path. He lifted his tail as Russetfur rounded the corner and halted.
The ShadowClan deputy curled her lip to show sharp yellow teeth. “What are you doing here?”
Raggedpelt and Hollyflower appeared behind her. Raggedpelt hissed as he caught sight of Spottedleaf. “I thought we told you not to cross the border.”
“This is StarClan!” Jayfeather hissed. “There should be no boundaries.”
Spottedleaf weaved around him. “I know you think you’re doing the right thing,” she meowed. “But we have only come to speak with Flametail. Once we’ve done that, we’ll leave.”
Raggedpelt unsheathed his claws. “What do you want with Flametail?”
Jayfeather let his fur smooth and met the ShadowClan deputy’s gaze. “I had a sign,” he explained. “It told me I should talk with Flametail.”
Hollyflower bristled. “StarClan sent no sign.”
Jayfeather dipped his head. “With respect, given all these boundaries, how would you know?” he pointed out. “A cat from any Clan could have sent it. But it was a sign.”
The brambles behind Russetfur shivered and Cedarheart stepped onto the trail. “Let them pass.”
Russetfur bristled. “Why?”
Cedarheart tipped his head on one side. “What harm can it do to let them speak to Flametail?”
Hollyflower growled, “They crossed our border.”
“And they’ll cross it again to return to their own territory before long,” Cedarheart told her.
Russetfur padded closer to Jayfeather. “What’s the point of boundaries if we let any cat cross?”
Cedarheart didn’t move. “Jayfeather isn’t just any cat. You know that.”
There was a pause. Then Russetfur lowered her head and took a step backward. “I guess we can make an exception,” she muttered.
Jayfeather nodded. “Thank you.” He padded past the ShadowClan patrol, feeling their gaze burn his fur. He glanced back for Spottedleaf. The ThunderClan medicine cat was following, eyeing the ShadowClan cats warily as she passed. Once they rounded the corner, Jayfeather picked up the pace. “Come on,” he urged over his shoulder.
“Do you know where to look for him?”
“The vision was a burning reed,” Jayfeather told her. “He must be near reeds.”
Spottedleaf looked doubtfully at the pine trees that loomed ahead. “Reeds? In ShadowClan territory? That sounds more like RiverClan.”
It was a fair point. Jayfeather scanned the brambles, wondering if there was any water close by.
“Wait.” Spottedleaf halted, her tail lifted. “The river runs through this part of the hunting grounds.” She veered off the path and slid between the rambling bushes. Jayfeather followed, his fur snagging on thorns. Spottedleaf twisted between the stalks, seeking out gaps they could squeeze through. The ground sloped down beneath their paws and before long, Jayfeather heard the whispering of the river once more.
“There.” Spottedleaf nodded to the muddy river swirling ahead. The slope flattened into reed beds at the river’s edge. “ShadowClan claimed this land just to spite the RiverClan cats.”
Jayfeather scanned the swath of pale stalks, hoping for a flash of orange. “Can you see him?” he asked Spottedleaf, but she was already bounding down the bank. As she slid between the reeds, Jayfeather raced after her. “Flametail?” He nosed his way into the thicket, shivering as cold water swallowed his paws.