Warriors: Dawn of the Clans #1: The Sun Trail (20 page)

Letting out a yowl, he hurtled toward the rabbit. With a squeal of terror the rabbit raced off, heading straight for Turtle Tail. But Turtle Tail leaped out of hiding just a heartbeat too soon, and the rabbit veered off. Though Turtle Tail dashed after it, and Gray Wing forced an extra burst of speed, the rabbit dived down a nearby hole before either of them could catch it.

“Haredung!” Gray Wing spat as he halted, panting. “You weren’t concentrating.”

Turtle Tail’s eyes widened with shock and hurt. “Have you never missed a catch?” she challenged him.

“Not an easy one like that.”

“Well, good for you!” Turtle Tail snapped. “I’m going off to find some cat who doesn’t expect me to fly like a bird and run like a rabbit.”

I suppose she means Bumble
, Gray Wing thought, watching as she stalked off across the moor.

Clouds gradually covered the sky, and by nightfall heavy rain had set in. Turtle Tail still hadn’t returned. Gray Wing settled into his nest under a gorse bush, but sleep was hard to come by.
Was I too hard on her?
he asked himself.

At last he fell into a troubled sleep, and awoke as the sky was growing pale with dawn. Rising, Gray Wing padded across the hollow and checked Turtle Tail’s nest. It was cold and empty, and her scent was stale.

Anxiety gripped Gray Wing like a fox’s fangs.
Where is she? Why hasn’t she come home?

The roar of monsters deafened Gray
Wing. He could taste their reek as he crept along the hard stone paths of the Twolegplace. Rain was beating down, plastering his pelt to his sides. He felt as if Twoleg filth was soaking into him.

I’ve got to find Turtle Tail!

But Gray Wing had no idea where to find Bumble’s Twoleg nest among all the others that looked and smelled exactly alike. He had picked up Turtle Tail’s scent as he had approached the Twolegplace, but had quickly lost it among all the competing scents of dogs and Twolegs and monsters.

He was padding alongside a Thunderpath when a monster came roaring around a corner and flashed past him. A wave of filthy water surged from its paws, soaking Gray Wing before he could jump out of range.

Haredung!

Even wetter than before, Gray Wing shook his pelt and looked around. The Thunderpath stretched ahead of him, lined by dens of red stone on either side. He had no idea where to start looking for Turtle Tail; he wasn’t even sure how to get back to the forest.

I’m lost!

“You again!” The voice spoke from behind Gray Wing. “What are you doing here?”

Gray Wing spun around. Facing him was the silver tabby she-cat he had met in the forest. Hot embarrassment scorched through him. She was the last cat he would have wanted to see him bedraggled and reeking and lost.

“Hello, um . . . you never told me your name,” he mewed, knowing that he sounded completely flea-brained.

The she-cat rolled her eyes. “Like you need to know it.”

“I told you mine,” Gray Wing retorted, injured.

“So you did . . . Gray Whatsit.” The silver tabby heaved an exaggerated sigh. “Okay, it’s Storm. Happy now? And you still haven’t told me what you’re doing here. Are you lost?”

“Well . . . sort of,” Gray Wing confessed.

Storm let out a snort. “Honestly, you’re worse than a kit! You couldn’t find your own tail if you used all four paws. Where do you want to go?”

“I think my friend is here,” Gray Wing explained. “She’s probably with a cat called Bumble. Bumble’s a tortoiseshell . . . quite plump, with a white chest and white paws.”

“Oh, I know her,” Storm replied. “I’ll show you her housefolk’s den if you like.”

“That would be great.” Gray Wing was relieved that he didn’t have to wander around on his own in this dreadful place anymore, but he wished it hadn’t been Storm who had helped him.
She’ll think I’m a complete mouse-brain
.

Storm waved her tail for him to follow her, rounding the next corner and slipping down a narrow path between two Twoleg dens.

“I didn’t expect to see you here,” Gray Wing meowed, trying to sound friendly. “You don’t look like a kittypet.”

Storm halted and glared at him. “I am
not
a kittypet!” she snarled.

Gray Wing kept quiet after that.
If I open my mouth again I’ll only say the wrong thing!

At last Storm halted beside a section of Twoleg fence. “Through there,” she told Gray Wing, gesturing with her tail. Then she tapped him on the nose with one paw, fortunately with her claws sheathed. “Sure you’ll be okay now?”

“I’ll be fine, thanks,” Gray Wing replied.

As the silver tabby turned away, she glanced back, her green eyes glittering with humor. “I’ll see you the next time you need rescuing.”

Gray Wing watched her until she was out of sight, then squeezed through a hole in the Twoleg fence. A narrow path led up to the den, with grass on either side, surrounded by bushy plants with brightly colored flowers. When he tasted the air, he could pick up Turtle Tail’s scent, and another that he recognized as Bumble’s.

“Turtle Tail!” he yowled.

No cat appeared. Gray Wing waited so long that he was afraid the two cats had left the den.
Maybe Turtle Tail is on her way home, and I’ve come all this way for nothing!

Then at last a small flap in the side of the den opened, and Turtle Tail and Bumble came bundling out. “Gray Wing!” Turtle Tail bounded up to him, excitement in her eyes. “You’ve come to visit at last. I’m so glad!”

“No, I’m here to take you home,” Gray Wing replied.

Turtle Tail’s excitement faded, to be replaced by fury. “I don’t need rescuing!” she snapped. “I only stayed overnight because it was raining! Bumble’s housefolk were really kind,” she added. “They even gave me food.”

“They’re
Twolegs
, not ‘housefolk,’” Gray Wing hissed, shocked. “Have you forgotten you’re a wild cat?”

“No,” Turtle Tail retorted. “Have you forgotten your manners?”

Gray Wing remembered that Bumble was standing a couple of tail-lengths away, looking embarrassed.

“Bumble, I’m sorry about Gray Wing,” Turtle Tail meowed. “He’s not usually such a pain in the tail.”

Gray Wing let out a hiss of anger.
She doesn’t need to apologize for me!

Bumble ducked her head. “It’s okay.”

“I’ll come back with you,” Turtle Tail told Gray Wing, her tail-tip twitching irritably. “But only to stop you from making a scene. Good-bye, Bumble. I’ll see you by the big oaks tomorrow.”

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?

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.”

To his surprise, Wind gave him a friendly blink. “We saw what happened,” she mewed. “And it’s a big hare, anyway. You’re welcome to share.”

“Sure,” Gorse agreed. “We all have to eat, and there’s plenty for every cat.”

Gray Wing dipped his head. “Thanks. It was good the other day, learning about how you hunt rabbits,” he added. “Maybe we could give you some tips about hunting too.”

Gorse and Wind glanced at each other; Gray Wing hoped he hadn’t offended them.

Eventually Wind purred. “That could be a good idea.”

“Sure, but can we just eat?” Gorse asked, swiping his tongue over his jaws as he gazed at their prey.

Wind sighed. “Yes, greedy-belly. And while we’re eating,” she suggested to Gray Wing, “you can tell us more about yourself, and your friends. I’ve heard you come from far away.”

Gray Wing looked at them, pleased that they weren’t hostile any longer. “All the way from the mountains,” he replied. Impulsively he added, “Why don’t you come and meet my friends?”

Gorse and Wind glanced at each other. “Okay,” Gorse mewed. “And we can all share the hare.”

Gray Wing began to have misgivings as he led the way, Gorse and Wind behind him, dragging the hare between them.
No cats have visited the hollow before. Even Storm didn’t go all the way in
.

As he padded down into the scoop, he saw the others emerge from their nests under the gorse bushes and stare curiously upward at the newcomers. Tall Shadow padded into the middle of the hollow and waited for Gray Wing to approach her.

“What’s all this?” she meowed.

“Er . . . this is Gorse, and this is Wind,” Gray Wing replied. “They live on the moor.”

Tall Shadow narrowed her eyes. “These are the cats we had trouble with,” she reminded Gray Wing. “They accused you of stealing prey.”

Gray Wing saw Jackdaw’s Cry slide out his claws.

“We’re sorry. We know we got that wrong,” Gorse mewed, dipping his head politely.

“We’ve brought this prey to share with you,” Wind added, flicking her ears at the body of the hare.

Tall Shadow hesitated, then gave a curt nod. “Welcome,” she mewed, though her voice was still cool.

Taking that as permission, Gray Wing’s friends gathered around the hare with Gorse and Wind. Between eating and answering the questions that Gorse and Wind kept asking about their journey and the mountains where they used to live, the cats soon grew more friendly. Even Tall Shadow relaxed enough to take a few mouthfuls.

Later, when Gorse and Wind had left, Rainswept Flower padded over to Gray Wing. “Maybe not all the other cats around here are our enemies,” she commented. “Wind and Gorse seem pretty decent.”

Gray Wing nodded, though he heard a sniff from Tall Shadow. He realized it would take a lot to make her accept any other cats.

A couple of heartbeats later, Turtle Tail appeared at the top of the hollow with a bunch of leaves in her jaws. Gray Wing narrowed his eyes in suspicion, tasting the air to check if she was carrying the scent of the Twolegplace. “Where have you been?” he asked.

Before Turtle Tail could reply, Cloud Spots appeared behind her, also carrying a mouthful of herbs.“Thanks,” he mewed. “There’s so much stuff growing by the river, it was a real help to have you there.”

Guilt prickled Gray Wing like a claw in his skin.
I shouldn’t be so suspicious
.

He followed Turtle Tail as she set down the herbs she was carrying beside Cloud Spots’s nest. “I’m sorry, Turtle Tail,” he told her. “It’s not up to me to say where you can go.”

Turtle Tail blinked at him, seeming happy that he’d apologized. “It’s okay,” she purred.

The following morning Gray Wing felt as though ants were crawling through his pelt. He had meant to get more bedding for his nest, but the task seemed utterly boring and pointless. He thought about visiting Clear Sky, but his paws didn’t want to carry him in that direction. The sun had never crept so slowly up the sky.

“Hey!” Turtle Tail bounced up to him and butted his shoulder with her head. “Do you want to come hunting with me?”

Gray Wing stared at her, for a moment hardly registering what she had said. “Oh . . . no, thanks,” he meowed at last. “I’m meeting a cat.”

She gave him a curious look. “Who?”

“Storm. The one you met yesterday.”

Turtle Tail drew back her head suddenly, as if some cat had swiped at her. To Gray Wing’s surprise there was a hurt look in her eyes. “Okay. You do that,” she muttered, and stalked off.

Gray Wing forgot about her odd behavior almost at once.
I have to go meet Storm!
He raced across the moor; sunhigh was still some way off by the time he stood at the top of the hollow where the four oaks grew.

Cool fronds of fern brushed his pelt as he made his way down the slope toward the trees. He pounced on a flickering spot of golden sunlight, then twitched his whiskers in embarrassment at the thought that he had been behaving like a kit.

I’d like to climb one of the oak trees
, he thought.
Then I could leap down on Storm and surprise her!

Gray Wing bounded lightly across the hollow and hurled himself up the trunk of the nearest tree, trying to remember how Clear Sky and Jagged Peak did it.
They make it look so easy!
He clambered up several tail-lengths by digging his claws into the bark, but as he reached the lowest branches he got his head stuck in a clump of twigs and leaves, and couldn’t see where he was going anymore. A piece of bark peeled away from the tree and he found himself dangling by one forepaw.

“Having fun?”

His belly freezing at the sound of the amused voice below, Gray Wing grabbed for support on the tree again and managed to look down. Storm was standing on one of the tree roots, looking up at him, her eyes gleaming with laughter.

Haredung!

As quickly as he could, Gray Wing scrambled down again, jumping the last couple of tail-lengths. “Hello,” he mewed, trying to sound nonchalant. “I just wanted to find out how much you can see from up there.”

“And hedgehogs fly,” Storm responded, flicking her tail-tip over his ear. “Well, are we going, or not?”

Without waiting for a reply she led the way out of the hollow and plunged into the forest. Before long they came to a stream that chattered over stones, its surface glittering in the sunlight. Storm padded alongside it until she reached a dead branch that spanned it side to side; she ran lightly across and waited for Gray Wing to follow.

“Is this the stream that joins the river near those big rocks?” he asked as he jumped off the end of the branch to join her.

“That’s right,” Storm replied. “You’ve been there, then.”

Gray Wing nodded. “I explored them with my brother. Do you live around there?” he added as they bounded on through the trees.

“Oh, here and there,” she replied airily with a wave of her tail. “There are good places all over the forest. But don’t go in that direction,” she continued, angling her ears toward a tumble of rocks half hidden in the trees. “There are snakes, and their bite could make you sick or even kill you.”

Gray Wing suppressed a shudder. “Thanks for telling me.”

They followed another trickle of water down through a ravine hedged with gorse, and across a sandy hollow, where Storm paused to lap from the stream.

“Prey’s good around here,” she told Gray Wing. “There are plenty of mice and voles.”

“And squirrels,” Gray Wing added, remembering his hunt with Clear Sky and Jagged Peak. “There are lots of them in the beech trees farther on.”

Storm looked up, glittering drops of water spinning from her whiskers. “You do know your way around,” she meowed in a surprised voice.

“Actually, my littermate lives down here,” Gray Wing explained. “Why don’t you come meet him?”

This time Gray Wing took the lead as he followed the path that led to Clear Sky’s new home. Four days had passed since he had hunted the squirrel with Clear Sky and Jagged Peak, and he was looking forward to seeing his brothers again.

Gray Wing soon picked up Clear Sky’s scent, and Jagged Peak’s too, mingled with another, stronger scent of a cat he didn’t recognize. Rounding a bramble thicket, he found himself facing a large brown tom with yellow eyes.

“Who are you?” Gray Wing asked, halting abruptly and bracing himself for an attack.

“Who are
you
?” the tom growled. “This is Clear Sky’s place.”

Gray Wing gaped with astonishment. He had assumed this was a rogue who lived in the forest. Hearing the tom mention Clear Sky had left him completely confused.

“Clear Sky is my brother,” he responded. “We’re on our way to visit him. Is that a problem?”

“Only if you make it one.” The rogue’s sharp yellow eyes narrowed. “Clear Sky doesn’t like strange cats wandering around here, close to his camp.”

His
what? Gray Wing thought.
Is that what rogues call the place where they live?

“I’m not a
strange
cat!” he snapped, growing exasperated. “I’m his
brother
!”

The brown tom narrowed his eyes. “Okay. But just in case you’re not telling the truth, I’ll take you to Clear Sky myself. Don’t even
think
about trying anything.”

Beckoning with his tail, he led the way down a narrow track between ferns. Gray Wing exchanged a glance with Storm.

“What’s all that about?” she asked.

“I have no idea,” Gray Wing replied.

He followed the brown tom, Storm hard on his paws, until they emerged from the ferns into the sheltered hollow where his littermate had made his home. Clear Sky was stretched out in the shade of some brambles, grooming himself, while Falling Feather sat beside the pool with Quick Water and the small yellow tabby she-cat Gray Wing had seen before. Remembering how aggressive the tabby had been, it was a shock to see her sitting peacefully beside his friends.

The brown tom stalked across the clearing and stood in front of Clear Sky. “I found these two on their way here,” he announced, flicking his tail at Gray Wing and Storm. “The tom
says
he’s your brother.”

Clear Sky leaped to his paws. “He is. Hello, Gray Wing.”

The brown tom looked disconcerted as Gray Wing and Storm padded over to Clear Sky.

“This is Fox,” Clear Sky announced as Gray Wing touched noses with him. “He decided to join us.”

“And this is Fox’s sister, Petal,” Falling Feather called from where she sat by the pool. “She’s come to stay with us as well.” Her eyes shone as she gazed at Fox. “Isn’t it great?”

Shock struck Gray Wing like a flash of lightning. “Really?” he demanded, facing Clear Sky in bewilderment. “Rogues living among you?”

Clear Sky let out a
mrrow
of amusement. “We’re rogues too, don’t forget,” he meowed. “So why have you come to see me?”

“I brought Storm to meet you,” Gray Wing responded, gesturing the silver she-cat forward with his tail. “She lives around here.”

“Welcome . . .” Clear Sky’s voice began by being cheerful, then trailed off as he fixed his gaze on Storm.

Storm seemed lost for words. Gray Wing hoped she hadn’t been intimidated by Fox’s hostility.

“So . . . where do you live?” Clear Sky asked, obviously forcing the words out.

“Nowhere special . . .” Storm blinked rapidly. “I . . . er . . .”

“She goes to the Twolegplace sometimes,” Gray Wing put in, since Storm seemed to be having trouble explaining herself. “But she’s not a kittypet.”

Neither Storm nor Clear Sky seemed to hear him. Clear Sky’s blue gaze met Storm’s green; Gray Wing had never seen such intensity.