CHAPTER 7

“The rain has driven the prey too far underground.” Grassheart lifted a clump of soggy leaves and peered underneath. “There’s a mouse hole here.” She reached in but dragged up nothing but mud.

Tigerheart’s belly rumbled. The rain still hadn’t ceased. The scratches Ivypool had given him still stung. They hurt worse in his sleep, when he dreamed of Dovewing wandering alone. Each morning he woke to a fresh ache in his heart. The fresh-kill pile had dwindled to nothing as the forest creatures hid from the endless torrent. As he stood with the patrol now, he grunted at Grassheart. “Prey must search for food eventually. It’ll starve quicker than us.” He tasted the air but smelled nothing but wet wood.

Juniperclaw paced behind him. Strikestone and Snakepaw huddled beneath the shelter of a bramble, their pelts slicked against their skinny frames.

“There might be frogs in the ditches,” Juniperclaw suggested. “We could catch those.”

“There’s probably fish there by now,” Grassheart snorted. “They’ve been flooded for days.”

“Tawnypelt led a hunting patrol to the ditches this morning while you were marking the borders,” Tigerheart told Juniperclaw. “They came back with a drowned vole and four slugs.”

Snakepaw shuddered, her nose wrinkling. “Perhaps we could look around the beech patch near the SkyClan border,” she suggested. “The beechnuts might attract something tastier than slugs.”

Tigerheart glanced at the honey-brown tabby. It was a good idea. He flicked his tail. “Nice plan, Snakepaw.”

She glanced shyly at her paws. Grassheart shook the rain from her pelt and headed toward the patch of forest where, moons ago, beeches had found a gap among the pines and had grown vigorously, as though celebrating their small victory over the evergreens.

Their leaves were browning in the leaf-fall chill. Some hung limply on bare branches. Most lay on the ground in sodden swathes around the roots. The small opening to the sky let more rain in and Tigerheart narrowed his eyes against it as he reached the beech patch. Beyond it, the ground sloped upward toward the SkyClan border nearby. Spiky beechnuts scattered the ground, their skin peeled open, the nuts gone.

Grassheart kicked miserably at an empty shell. “It looks like the prey has already been and gone.”

“They didn’t get everything.” Snakepaw tapped an unopened beechnut with her paw, her eyes bright.

Tigerheart flicked his tail toward his Clanmates. “Let’s surround the beech patch and wait. It might take a while, but something is bound to come looking for food eventually.” He threaded through the battered bracken stalks sprouting beside a beech and crouched just outside the cluster of trees. The rest of the patrol did the same, encircling the beeches. As Tigerheart flattened himself against the ground, hoping his pelt would blend against the moldering leaves, his Clanmates hunkered down until he could hardly see them.

Now we wait. He braced himself against the cold that began to seep through his pelt. As his belly rumbled with hunger, he thought of Dovewing. He had tried to keep himself busy since she’d left, but there were always moments of stillness when his thoughts would slide toward her. Where was she? Was it raining there too? Was she wet and hungry? Their unborn kits would need food, and so would she. Would he ever see her again? Would he ever meet his kits? Grief swelled in his chest. He tried to push it away. But the scent of her still lingered in his fur despite the rain. Perhaps he was imagining it. He no longer knew.

Paw steps thudded the ground nearby. He stiffened, his eyes widening. Prey? His heart leaped as a rabbit raced across SkyClan’s border toward the beech patch. He saw Juniperclaw’s eyes widen with excitement beyond the bracken. Not yet. He flicked his tail to order the warrior to wait. He wanted to make sure the rabbit was surrounded. It wasn’t going to escape.

Suddenly a SkyClan warrior crashed across the border and streaked after the rabbit. Plumwillow! The she-cat’s gaze was fixed on her quarry. Her fur was fluffed with excitement. She’d clearly been chasing it for a while. As the rabbit reached the edge of the beech patch, Plumwillow leaped. Fast as a bird, she swooped onto the terrified prey and, clamping her jaws around its neck, snapped its spine with a killing bite.

Her eyes shone as she straightened and rested her paw on the rabbit’s fat flank.

“What are you doing?” Juniperclaw’s angry yowl made her stiffen. She turned, eyes wide, toward the ShadowClan warrior as he strode from his hiding place among the bracken.

Grassheart marched between the beeches, fur bristling with indignation. “That’s our rabbit!”

Plumwillow blinked at them in surprise. “But I caught it.”

“On our territory!” Juniperclaw glared at her.

“I started chasing it on SkyClan land,” Plumwillow argued. “That makes it SkyClan prey.”

As Snakepaw followed Strikestone to join their Clanmates, Tigerheart padded from the bracken. Rain pounded the forest floor around the cats as they eyed one another angrily. “Perhaps SkyClan doesn’t understand our ways yet,” he meowed sympathetically. He dipped his head to Plumwillow. “Prey belongs to the Clan where it’s caught.”

Plumwillow tipped her head. “Really?” She sounded unconvinced. “What about the rabbit Sandynose and Rabbitleap caught for you? That was caught on SkyClan land, wasn’t it? And yet you took it because it ran from ShadowClan territory.” She blinked rain from her eyes.

Juniperclaw snorted. “If Sandynose and Rabbitleap want to give away prey, that’s up to them. We have a hungry Clan to feed.”

“So do I.” Plumwillow pulled the rabbit closer. “Is ShadowClan’s hunger more important than SkyClan’s hunger?”

“No Clan’s hunger is more important.” Tigerheart saw Strikestone flexing his claws. Juniperclaw’s hackles were twitching. His Clanmates were ready to fight for this prey. “That’s why we have the warrior code. To help settle disputes like this.”

Plumwillow eyed the ShadowClan cats warily, then lifted her chin. “If you want my prey, you’ll have to take it from me. I chased it and I caught it. It belongs to SkyClan.”

Juniperclaw’s whiskers twitched menacingly. “Is this how SkyClan shows respect for us? When we gave you some of our territory, we were doing you a favor. Now you steal our prey.”

“I’m not stealing.” Plumwillow’s eyes flared with anger. “And when we moved into our new home, we did you a favor. You admitted that you weren’t strong enough to patrol a large territory. With us patrolling, you know your border is safe from rogues.” She emphasized the last word with satisfaction.

Grassheart stared in disbelief. “Does SkyClan think it’s protecting us?”

Plumwillow flicked her tail. “There are barely enough of you to make a Clan. Of course we’re protecting you. So is ThunderClan. We are keeping your borders safe while you recover.”

Tigerheart quickly padded between his Clanmates and Plumwillow. The SkyClan warrior wasn’t making this easy. But she did have a point: Having friendly allies on their borders was useful. Would ShadowClan be wise to antagonize SkyClan by stealing Plumwillow’s catch? Was she really prepared to fight for it? The ShadowClan cats might be weak, but four warriors and an apprentice could easily hurt a lone warrior. He checked the slope to see if Plumwillow was part of a patrol, but it was deserted. She’s brave. He admired her courage. It reminded him, with a twinge, of Dovewing.

“Tigerheart?” Juniperclaw was glaring at him. “Let’s take this rabbit and go.”

“No.” Tigerheart faced his Clanmate. Plumwillow was right. She had chased this prey down and killed it. “ShadowClan owes SkyClan for the rabbit Sandynose and Rabbitleap caught for us.”

“What about the warrior code?” Grassheart looked outraged.

“Prey belongs to the Clan where it’s caught,” Snakepaw reminded him.

“I know what it says.” Tigerheart shifted his paws. First his mother, now an apprentice. Did everyone think they knew the warrior code better than he did? Irritation pricked beneath his pelt. He could be with Dovewing now, not settling stupid squabbles over prey. He lashed his tail. “The rabbit came from SkyClan land, and Plumwillow was barely over the border when she caught it .”

Juniperclaw stared at Tigerheart, wide-eyed. “Are you serious?” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “You know how much we need this prey.”

“But we are warriors,” Tigerheart hissed back. He raised his muzzle. “The warrior code says that warriors are honorable and fair. Taking Plumwillow’s prey now wouldn’t be fair. But in the future, let’s all remember that prey belongs to the Clan who owns the land on which it’s caught.” He eyed Plumwillow sternly. “Right?” She nodded curtly.

Snakepaw glanced at Strikestone, doubt shimmering in her eyes.

Strikestone shrugged at her. “He’s the deputy.”

“That’s right,” Tigerheart growled. “You will do as I say. Which is to let Plumwillow take her prey and go back to her territory.” He urged Plumwillow to hurry with a warning look.

The SkyClan cat picked up the rabbit, nodded quickly at him, and headed for the border.

Juniperclaw lashed his tail as she disappeared over the rise. “Are you crazy?”

Tigerheart ignored him. “Let’s get back to hunting.” He returned to his position among the bracken and crouched down to watch the beech patch once more.

Juniperclaw exchanged an angry look with Grassheart while Strikestone nudged Snakepaw toward the undergrowth. Gradually they returned to their positions and dropped into hunting crouches.

Tigerheart’s pelt prickled uneasily. Had he made the right decision? Of course I did. Rules were rules, but warriors needed to have common sense too. Surely, at the moment, a good relationship with SkyClan was more important than a single rabbit? But ShadowClan is hungry. He felt rainwater reaching through his pelt. He couldn’t push away a thought nagging at the back of his mind. He shivered as he pictured Dovewing far away, her green eyes hollow with hunger as a bigger, stronger cat stole the prey she’d just caught. Had his worry about Dovewing made him kinder to Plumwillow than he should have been?

“Is that it?” Rowanstar stared at the vole and the bedraggled squirrel Tigerheart’s patrol dropped onto the meager fresh-kill pile.

“We were lucky to find that,” Tigerheart told him. “We’d have nothing if Snakepaw hadn’t thought of stalking the beech patch.” He glanced appreciatively at the honey-brown apprentice. Her gaze warmed with pride.

“Nothing?” Juniperclaw pushed past him and glared at Rowanstar. “Why don’t you tell our leader about the rabbit you gave away?”

Rowanstar’s gaze flashed toward Tigerheart. “What happened?”

Tigerheart saw anger in his father’s gaze. “It was the right thing to do,” he meowed. “Plumwillow had chased it and caught it.”

“On our territory,” Grassheart put in.

“She had only just crossed the border,” Tigerheart reminded her, irritably. He’d abandoned Dovewing for his Clanmates, and now they betrayed him. He shot her a reproachful look.

Rowanstar growled. “If it had crossed the border, it was our prey. That’s what the warrior code says.”

“But what about the rabbit Sandynose gave us a quarter moon ago?” Tigerheart argued. Wasn’t anyone going to support him? “If you believed so strongly in upholding that rule, you’d have insisted on returning it.”

“If SkyClan wants to behave like soft-bellies, then let them. We don’t have to starve just so we can be like them. We’re ShadowClan.” Rowanstar lifted his muzzle. “And that means something.”

Tigerheart’s pelt crawled with resentment. Now Rowanstar was behaving like a leader—over a piece of prey!

“I did the right thing,” Tigerheart felt certain now. His worry over Dovewing hadn’t influenced him. His instinct had been true: Warriors should be fair, and keeping peace with their neighbors was more important than one catch. “It was clearly Plumwillow’s rabbit. And if there’s one rabbit in the forest, there must be more. Let’s catch our own prey, not steal from other Clans.”

Rowanstar narrowed his eyes. “It was our rabbit,” he growled softly. “We have to make SkyClan pay for stealing it.”

“I gave it to them!” Frustration rippled beneath Tigerheart’s pelt.

But his father wasn’t listening. The ShadowClan leader nodded to Juniperclaw. “Come with me.” Glancing around the clearing, he called to the cats watching around the camp. “Snowbird, Whorlpaw, Scorchfur, Flowerpaw, Grassheart, Stonewing! Follow me.”

He marched out of camp. His Clanmates followed, exchanging approving glances, their pelts rippling with excitement. Tigerheart dug his claws into the ground. He’d stayed to save his Clan, and they weren’t even listening to him. Was Rowanstar really going to start a war over a rabbit?

He felt fur brush his flank. Tawnypelt’s mew sounded in his ear. “It looks like old times,” she murmured wistfully as the warriors disappeared from camp.

Tigerheart didn’t look at her. “He’s wrong.”

“He’s fighting for his Clan.” There was relief in her mew. She was clearly pleased to see Rowanstar being so strong. “Why don’t you go with him? He wants to teach you how to lead. It’ll be your turn one day.”

Dread dropped like a stone in Tigerheart’s belly. My turn. He was going to be tied to ShadowClan forever. What about Dovewing?

Tawnypelt nudged him forward. “Go on.”

Reluctantly, Tigerheart followed his father and Clanmates out of camp. Perhaps it wasn’t too late to stop the war Rowanstar seemed so intent on starting. As he hurried through the woods, tracking the path of scuffed pine needles, he couldn’t help thinking Plumwillow had been right. We are keeping your borders safe while you recover. ShadowClan was weak. It needed allies on its borders while it recovered, not enemies.

He remembered his dream and saw the strong sunshine glinting on his pelt as the shadows deepened around him. He saw the long, dark shadow he cast. I must be the sun from Puddleshine’s vision. Rowanstar is only leading them into trouble.

He caught up with the ShadowClan patrol as they neared the SkyClan camp. Surely SkyClan would hear them coming? They weren’t trying to hide their paw steps, and he could hear their voices before he saw them.

“We’ll show them!” Juniperclaw muttered angrily.

“No one steals our prey,” growled Snowbird.

“Tigerheart.” Rowanstar turned to look at him as he slid past Stonewing and Scorchfur. “You’ve come to see how a Clan fights for its honor.” Pride burned so fiercely in his father’s eyes that Tigerheart felt a twinge of pity. You are wrong. But Juniperclaw and Snowbird were plucking excitedly at the ground while Grassheart and Scorchfur’s pelts rippled. They were clearly relishing the prospect of a battle.

The wide stretch of bracken that hid the entrance to SkyClan’s camp shivered. Leafstar pushed her way through. Plumwillow, Sandynose, and Sparrowpelt followed at her heels. The warriors stopped and stared quizzically at the ShadowClan patrol.

“Is something wrong?” Leafstar asked.

“You stole a rabbit of ours.” Rowanstar cut straight to the point.

Juniperclaw snorted, and Stonewing raised his hackles aggressively.

Leafstar looked puzzled.

“I chased a rabbit over the scent line and killed it on ShadowClan land,” Plumwillow explained.

Leafstar’s gaze remained fixed on Rowanstar as Plumwillow went on.

“But Tigerheart said I could keep it, so I brought it back to camp.”

“Tigerheart was wrong.” Rowanstar glared at Leafstar. “SkyClan should know better than to take prey killed on another Clan’s land. Or perhaps you forgot the warrior code while you were in the gorge.”

Leafstar’s fur twitched irritably along her spine, but her eyes remained calm. “We know the warrior code. And so, I assume, does Tigerheart. He let Plumwillow take the rabbit. I guess he had his reasons.”

Tigerheart shifted uneasily. He still believed he’d made the right decision. SkyClan was worth keeping as an ally. But his Clanmates clearly disagreed. Scorchfur shot him a look of reproach. Tigerheart ignored it. This was Rowanstar’s moment. Perhaps this challenge to SkyClan would regain him the respect and loyalty of his Clan.

It might also make enemies when ShadowClan needed enemies least.

“Tigerheart was wrong,” Rowanstar growled again.

Leafstar whisked her tail lightly. “Even if he was, we can’t give back what we’ve already eaten.”

“Already?” Juniperclaw glared distrustfully at Leafstar.

“Do you think I’m lying?” Leafstar returned the warrior’s gaze unwaveringly.

“I think SkyClan should be taught some respect,” the black tom hissed. He glanced at Rowanstar, as though asking permission to attack.

Rowanstar glanced around his warriors, then flicked his tail. “Battle stances!” he ordered.

No! Tigerheart’s pelt bushed with alarm. As Juniperclaw, Scorchfur, Grassheart, and the others crouched, ready to leap, he shot between the two groups of warriors. “We can’t fight over a rabbit!” he yowled. He glared at his Clanmates, facing them with bared teeth.

They blinked at him, shock freezing them where they stood.

“We need SkyClan’s friendship more than we needed that rabbit!” Tigerheart stared imploringly at his father, willing him to understand that good neighbors meant strong borders.

Rowanstar’s fur pricked. His brow furrowed as he returned Tigerheart’s gaze. Before he could speak, Leafstar cut in.

“If it’s a rabbit you want, we will give ShadowClan the next rabbit we catch.”

Relief washed Tigerheart’s pelt. At least one leader was ready to be sensible. He looked hopefully at Rowanstar. “That sounds fair,” he meowed.

Rowanstar was still staring at him. Tigerheart saw anger in his father’s eyes. His Clanmates began to shift nervously, as though uncertain what to do. They glanced at Rowanstar, but the ShadowClan leader’s attention was fixed on Tigerheart.

“I guess having their next rabbit sounds reasonable,” Snowbird mewed grudgingly.

“I suppose it shows respect,” Stonewing conceded.

Tigerheart saw his Clanmates’ fur flatten as they eased out of their battle stances. He tore his gaze from Rowanstar and nodded at Leafstar. “That sounds like a fair settlement.” He hoped she could read the gratitude in his gaze.

“We’ll leave one at the border as soon as we catch it.” She paused, her gaze flicking meaningfully around the ShadowClan cats. “As a gesture of goodwill.” With a flick of her tail, Leafstar turned toward SkyClan’s camp and led her warriors through the bracken.

As they disappeared, Tigerheart looked nervously at his Clanmates.

“I suppose we do get a rabbit.” Strikestone began to head toward the border. “And no blood shed.”

“I still wish we could have left them with a scratch or two,” Juniperclaw grunted as he followed. Snowbird and Grassheart glanced accusingly at Rowanstar, and then headed away. Flowerpaw and Snakepaw hurried after them.

Tigerheart gazed at his father, his heart pounding in his ears. Rowanstar still hadn’t moved. “I solved the problem,” he offered, hoping his father would see that Leafstar had conceded defeat in offering to replace the rabbit, even though it hadn’t been taken without permission. That was surely a victory?

“How dare you undermine me?” Rowanstar’s mew was ice-cold.

Tigerheart’s paws felt suddenly heavy. Of course Rowanstar would misunderstand his intentions. He’d been trying to keep the peace because ShadowClan’s security was more important than its leader’s pride. “It would have been wrong to make enemies of SkyClan now.” Was he wasting his breath? “We’re not strong enough to protect our own borders. We need them to remain allies.”

Rowanstar shot him a look of disgust, then barged past him.

Tigerheart followed, feeling sick. He’d done what was right for his Clan, but he knew he’d crossed a line his father would not easily forgive. It hurt to disappoint him. Worse, it worried him to know that Rowanstar could be so shortsighted. How could Tigerheart ever hope to protect ShadowClan if his father wasn’t smart enough to see beyond a piece of prey? Hopelessness flooded him. He could keep the love of his father or he could save his Clan. What choice was that? Was this what he’d abandoned Dovewing and his kits for?