She stalked off, squeezing through the Twoleg fence. Gray Wing gave Bumble an awkward nod and followed her.
“I’m sorry I annoyed you,” Gray Wing meowed after they had been walking for a while. “I was worried.”
Turtle Tail glanced at him, her face softening. “Well, I’m sorry for staying out so long. But I didn’t want to walk all the way back when the rain was so heavy. And it was great staying in Bumble’s den! Her food looks a bit like rabbit droppings, but it tastes good. And I slept on one of the soft rocks I told you about.”
Her voice trailed off and there was a shadow of disappointment in her eyes. Gray Wing felt a bit guilty that he couldn’t be more interested in Bumble’s den. But we don’t belong with Twolegs, and that’s all there is to it.
Gray Wing padded through the trees, alert for prey, wondering whether to pay a visit to Clear Sky and Jagged Peak. Two sunrises had passed since the heavy rain, and the sun was shining, though the ground was still wet underpaw.
Sounds from deeper in the forest made Gray Wing’s ears prick, but he realized at once that they weren’t made by prey. Instead he heard a vicious snarling, and a voice that exclaimed, “Filthy prey-stealer!”
Terrified that one of his Tribemates was being attacked, Gray Wing raced through the trees toward the sound. Bursting out of an elder thicket, he spotted two of the forest cats: a white tom and the small yellow she-cat he had seen before. They had trapped a third cat among the gnarled roots of an oak tree. Gray Wing’s heart beat faster as he realized the third cat was Storm.
“Strangers aren’t welcome here,” the white tom growled. “So clear off!”
“But I’m not a stranger!” Storm protested. “I’ve lived here all my life.”
Instead of arguing further, the small she-cat slashed her claws at Storm, who pressed herself back against the roots.
“Leave her alone!” Gray Wing yowled, leaping forward and throwing himself on top of the white tom.
The tom turned on him with a snarl, his claws flashing. Gray Wing battered him with his hind paws, and they rolled over and over among the debris on the forest floor. He was dimly aware that Storm and the yellow she-cat were grappling together with furious hisses.
Gray Wing winced as the white tom caught him with a stinging blow on the shoulder. He lunged forward, trying to fasten his teeth in the cat’s white furry throat, but the tom jerked his head away. Gray Wing’s teeth met in his ear instead.
The white tom let out a screech and tore himself away. Blood trickled from his ear as he scrambled to his paws and fled. The yellow she-cat followed him, pausing to look back and snarl, “This isn’t over!”
Panting, Gray Wing and Storm stood side by side, watching as the two rogues vanished into the undergrowth.
“You didn’t have to interfere,” Storm snapped with a single lash of her tail. “It was nothing I couldn’t handle.”
“I guess it was my turn to rescue you,” Gray Wing retorted. Inwardly he admired the silver tabby’s courage and her refusal to admit that she needed any cat. But it would be nice to be thanked.
“Now that you’re here,” Storm began, “why don’t you show me where you and your friends have been living? I’ve heard all about you, you know.”
Warm pleasure flooded over Gray Wing. “Follow me,” he purred.
He led the way through the trees and climbed up until they were close to the hollow where the cats were living.
“It’s not very sheltered,” Storm mewed doubtfully.
“Oh, it’s dry and warm under the gorse bushes,” Gray Wing assured her. “And we like the open spaces. They remind us of where we used to live.”
“Where was that?” Storm asked.
“You see those peaks over there?” Gray Wing pointed toward Highstones with his tail. “Well, the place we came from is a bit like that, though the mountains are even higher. And they’re so far away that you can’t even see them from here.”
Storm’s green eyes widened; Gray Wing was pleased that for once he’d been able to impress her. “Wow!” she exclaimed. “I’m surprised you have any paws left, walking all that way!”
As Gray Wing was about to reply, he spotted Turtle Tail emerging from the gorse bushes that surrounded the hollow. She headed in their direction.
“Turtle Tail!” Gray Wing called. “Come and meet Storm.”
Turtle Tail padded up and dipped her head to the silver tabby she-cat. “I’m Turtle Tail,” she meowed politely. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Where are you off to?” Gray Wing asked her.
Immediately Turtle Tail’s neck fur began to fluff up. “Not the Twolegplace, if that’s what you think!” she snapped.
Storm’s ears flicked up and she flashed a surprised glance at Gray Wing.
Gray Wing sighed. “It’s too complicated to explain,” he told her.
Leaving Turtle Tail to go her own way, Gray Wing and Storm headed back toward the trees.
“Can we meet again tomorrow?” Gray Wing asked her when they reached the edge of the forest. “You could show me around the woods.”
Storm’s green eyes glittered. “From what I’ve heard, you and your friends have already been over every mouse-length!” Before Gray Wing had time to feel disappointed, her gaze softened. “Okay. I’ll meet you by the four big oaks at sunhigh.”
Brushing her tail against Gray Wing’s cheek, she turned and trotted away. Gray Wing watched until she disappeared into a clump of fern.
As Gray Wing turned and began climbing the moorland slope again, he spotted Rainswept Flower sitting on a rock just above him.
“I saw you there,” she mewed, a spark of mischief in her blue eyes. “Who would have thought it—Gray Wing falling for a rogue!”
“It’s nothing like that,” Gray Wing mumbled, tearing at the rough turf with his claws. But he couldn’t stop a thought from creeping into his mind: I wonder if Storm would ever consider moving to the moor?
Chapter 20
Back in the hollow, Gray Wing noticed that Jackdaw’s Cry and Hawk Swoop had their heads together, laughter in their eyes as they mewed something in low voices. He realized that Jackdaw’s Cry was a full-grown cat now, taller than Hawk Swoop, and the way they were standing so close together made him think they were more than just friends.
“It will be good for all of us to have some kits around.”
Gray Wing jumped. He hadn’t realized that Dappled Pelt had padded up behind him, and was also watching the two younger cats.
“More mouths to feed,” Shattered Ice grunted, though there was a gleam of approval in his eyes.
Gray Wing felt his pelt prickle. I wonder what Storm is doing now…
Thinking about the silver she-cat made Gray Wing feel that every muscle and sinew in his body was bursting with energy. Scrambling out of the hollow again, he raced across the moor, pumping his legs to go faster and faster for the sheer joy of speed. The cool touch of the wind blowing through his pelt made him feel that he could run forever.
But as he reached the top of a rise, Gray Wing was almost carried off his paws by a hare that crashed into him with a squeal of alarm. Instinctively he lashed out, tearing its throat with his claws; it dropped twitching at his paws and was still.
For a heartbeat Gray Wing was pleased at the easy catch. Then he looked up to see Gorse and Wind heading toward him at a run.
“Uh-oh,” he muttered, instantly taking a pace back. “Sorry,” he added as the two rogues came up to him. “It landed right on top of me. I didn’t mean to steal your prey.”