Dark River

Chapter 18

Lionpaw shivered. The rain had reached right to his skin. He dropped his vole on the fresh-kill pile and shook the water from his pelt.

“Good hunting,” Ashfur congratulated him. “You’ve improved a lot these past days. It seems like your mind is on your training again.”

Lionpaw blinked at his mentor. It had been a good hunting patrol. He, Ashfur, Stormfur, and Brook had caught nearly enough to feed the whole Clan and it was great to feel energetic again, a little faster, a little sharper than his Clanmates, as though StarClan guided his paws. But his heart still ached when he thought of Heatherpaw. He missed being a DarkClan warrior.

Stormfur tossed a wet blackbird onto the pile. “Something’s wrong.” The gray warrior glanced anxiously around the clearing. Beside him, Brook narrowed her eyes.

Cinderpaw was tugging twigs toward the thorn barrier where Cloudtail was stuffing them into gaps. Poppypaw and Mousepaw were hurriedly patching the nursery with fresh brambles. Their rain-soaked pelts were spiked, their tails bushed out. Thornclaw and Spiderleg were circling the edge of the camp, staring up through the rain at the walls.

Thornclaw flicked his tail toward a rift in the cliff face where the rocks jutted out. “We should reinforce the top there. It’s too easy for cats to climb down.”

Lionpaw’s belly tightened. He scanned the clearing. Had Jaypaw returned safely from his mission? He felt relief wash his pelt as he saw Jaypaw emerge from the dirtplace tunnel.

Leafpool was calling to him from the medicine den entrance. “We need more dock.”

“I’ll find some,” Jaypaw answered at once.

“Not by yourself,” Leafpool meowed.

Jaypaw nodded. “I’ll take Hollypaw with me.”

Lionpaw’s paws throbbed with unease. His brother normally bristled with rage at any suggestion that he couldn’t manage by himself. Now he accepted it without a murmur.

“Don’t go far from camp,” Leafpool warned.

“Lionpaw! Have you heard?” Honeypaw was charging toward him, her eyes stretched wide. “There’s going to be a battle!”

Lionpaw hurried to meet her. “When?”

“WindClan is going to attack RiverClan right now,” Honeypaw panted.

Lionpaw flattened his ears. “Has RiverClan invaded WindClan territory?”

Honeypaw shook her head. “RiverClan stole three WindClan kits,” she mewed. “WindClan are going to get them back. We have to be ready to fight!”

Lionpaw tensed. There weren’t many kits in WindClan right now. Could they be the same three who had followed Heatherpaw? “Are you sure RiverClan took them?”

“RiverClan was hunting in WindClan territory when the kits went missing,” Honeypaw told him.

“But it doesn’t make sense.” Lionpaw’s mind was whirling.

“Who cares if it makes sense?” Honeypaw trotted around him. “There’s going to be a huge battle anyway.

Leafpool said so.”

Sorreltail was heading toward them, eyes clouded with worry. “You’re jumping ahead of yourself, Honeypaw,” she meowed.

“We have to be ready,” Honeypaw argued. “Who knows what WindClan will do next?”

Lionpaw backed away from the two cats, his heart pounding. Had RiverClan really stolen the kits? There was another way off the moor, one their Clanmates didn’t know about.

What if the kits had found the tunnels?

He jumped as a voice sounded behind him. “You should eat,” Spiderleg was stretching, flexing his muscles. “You must be ready for battle at any moment.”

“But WindClan is fighting RiverClan, not us!”

“Anything could happen,” Spiderleg growled. “RiverClan might chase WindClan off the moor. They might decide to accuse us of taking the kits instead. Leafpool told Firestar that WindClan is desperate enough to do anything.”

Lionpaw froze. I must find the kits! I must stop this! But what about his Clan? He ought to be thinking about defending them. He should be helping fortify the camp like Cloudtail and Cinderpaw, or joining a patrol to check the border. He couldn’t go off and search for kits. What if WindClan attacked while he was gone?

This battle will be a chance to prove yourself a true warrior! Tigerstar’s voice murmured in his ear. The kits mean nothing! Think of your Clan.

But I am thinking of my Clan! Lionpaw shook his head, clearing Tigerstar’s voice from his mind. Cats would be injured.

Some might die! He shuddered as he thought of Heatherpaw caught in the midst of the fighting. If the kits were only lost in the tunnels, the battle would be over nothing.

“Lionpaw!” Brambleclaw was padding toward him. “Get something to eat and help with the preparations. Firestar’s organizing extra patrols and the barrier needs to be strengthened.”

Lionpaw blinked at the ThunderClan deputy. His belly was churning. “I’m not hungry.”

Brambleclaw shifted his paws. “Are you scared?”

Lionpaw opened his mouth, searching for the words to explain.

“It’s natural.” Brambleclaw’s mew softened. “I used to worry about seeing my Clanmates wounded. But defending the Clan is part of the warrior code; it’s what we’ve all trained for. I know it’s tough but we’re doing the right thing in the eyes of StarClan.” He ran his tail along Lionpaw’s flank. “You have the makings of a great warrior, Lionpaw, and I’m proud of you. Just remember what you’ve been taught and stay sharp.”

“Do we really need to fight?”

“If your leader tells you to, then yes,” Brambleclaw murmured. “Firestar won’t lead any cat into battle unless he believes it’s the right thing to do.”

But Firestar doesn’t know everything. Lionpaw suddenly felt weary. If only he didn’t know about the tunnels. Then he could just do as he was ordered without question. Miserably, he nodded at Brambleclaw. “Okay.” He padded to the fresh-kill pile, sick at the sight of the prey piled there as though it were any ordinary day.

“Why can’t we fight?” Icekit’s small mew wailed across the clearing.

“I don’t want to wait here until WindClan come and shred us!” Foxkit hissed.

“You’d only get in the way,” Ferncloud told them sternly.

She swept her tail over them, shooing them back toward the nursery. “The best way you can help is to hide inside your den till the danger is passed. Your time for fighting will come, but not this moon.”

Lionpaw watched Ferncloud nudge them through the nursery entrance. It wasn’t just Foxkit and Icekit who were in danger. He couldn’t possibly put his Clanmates at risk, not when there was something he could do about it. Narrowing his eyes against the rain, he veered away from the fresh-kill pile and headed past the medicine den. Slipping in among the dripping brambles he pushed his way through to the camp wall. He reached up to the first ledge and scrambled onto it.

Ledge by ledge, he clawed his way to the top of the hollow, panting with the effort as he hauled himself over the top.

Crouching in the rain-soaked grass, he caught his breath and peeped over at the busy camp below. No one had seen him leave. His Clanmates were still busy pressing twigs into the thorn barrier, gathering in groups to plan patrols, their wet pelts bristling with excitement. He crept into the trees and began to run down the slope, heading toward the tunnel entrance.

Suddenly, voices sounded from behind a clump of ferns.

Lionpaw squeezed between the dripping stems and peered out.

“Try to pick the juiciest leaves,” Jaypaw was advising.

Hollypaw sat beside him, stripping leaves from a small plant and piling them on the wet earth.

Jaypaw lifted his nose and sniffed. “Lionpaw?”

Lionpaw straightened and pushed his way out, shaking the drops from his pelt.

“What are you doing here?” Hollypaw’s green eyes flashed with surprise. “Do we have to go back to camp?”

Lionpaw shook his head. “I think I know where the kits are,” he blurted out.

Paw steps pounded on the forest floor nearby. Lionpaw ducked back into the ferns, crouching down among the stems. Hollypaw and Jaypaw stared after him in surprise, then glanced at each other as Thornclaw and Whitewing raced out of the trees.

“You two had better hurry,” Thornclaw meowed.

Lionpaw ducked down farther as Hollypaw glanced at the ferns where he was hiding, her eyes glittering with suspicion.

Would she give him away?

Whitewing flicked her tail. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes.” Jaypaw’s answer was firm. “We’ve just got a few more leaves to pick and then we’ll go back to camp.”

“Good.” Thornclaw nodded. “We’re heading up to the ridge to see if there’s any sign of WindClan. We may be able to see if they’ve begun their attack on RiverClan from up there.”

Suddenly, Whitewing sniffed the air. “It smells like Lionpaw’s been here.”

“Yes.” Jaypaw plucked another dock leaf from the soggy plant in front of him. “He came to tell us to hurry up.”

“Has he gone back to camp?” Thornclaw asked.

“I suppose so,” Jaypaw replied.

“Don’t be long.” Whitewing padded to the fern where Lionpaw was crouching. He held his breath, praying that his golden fur wouldn’t show through the green leaves.

“Come on!” Thornclaw bounded up the slope toward the ridge. Whitewing turned and pelted after him.

“Why in StarClan did you hide?” Hollypaw demanded as Lionpaw slid out of the ferns.

“They mustn’t know what I’m up to,” Lionpaw whispered.

Jaypaw’s tail was twitching. “What are you up to?”

“What’s this about the kits?” Hollypaw narrowed her eyes.

Lionpaw took a deep breath. “There are tunnels under our territory.”

“Tunnels?” Jaypaw’s fur stood on end.

“Yes. They lead onto the moor, to WindClan territory.

You can travel right through if you want. The kits followed Heatherpaw to the tunnel entrance once. I think that’s where they might be.”

Hollypaw was staring at him in horror. “You’ve been meeting Heatherpaw! You told me you’d stopped seeing her!”

Lionpaw stepped backward. His sister was digging her claws into the earth as though she were trying to stop herself raking his pelt.

“You lied to me and you lied to your Clanmates!” she spat.

“I always thought that you were the most loyal of us. And now you’ve betrayed your Clan!”

“I haven’t betrayed them!” Lionpaw mewed. “I’ve stopped meeting Heatherpaw now. We were just playing, but then I realized that—”

“That an enemy Clan knows a secret way into our territory!” Hollypaw snapped. “Were you ever going to tell anyone, or were you just going to sit and watch while your little friend led her Clanmates to our camp?”

Lionpaw glared at his sister. “I would never let that happen!”

“Calm down.” Jaypaw weaved between them. “It’s done now.” He swung his head toward his sister. “Lionpaw’s not the only cat who’s made mistakes this moon. You’re still in trouble for trying to help Willowpaw.”

“That was different,” Hollypaw growled. But she shifted her paws as she spoke.

“There’s no time to argue,” Jaypaw mewed. “Are you sure that the kits are in these tunnels, Lionpaw?”

“Not definite, but it seems the most likely place they’d be.”

He glanced anxiously at Hollypaw. “Will you help me find them?”

Hollypaw’s tail quivered. “Okay,” she mewed. “I don’t want WindClan attacking RiverClan. Not when they’re so close to solving their problem.”

Lionpaw blinked. “What do you mean?”

The fur on Hollypaw’s spine rippled. “I promised not to tell.”

“Promised who?” Jaypaw demanded.

“Willowpaw and Leopardstar.”

“But we’re kin,” Jaypaw pressed. “We have to stop keeping secrets from one another. That’s not how it’s meant to be.”

Hollypaw’s eyes glittered with uncertainty. “Okay.” She took a deep breath. “RiverClan’s camp was being threatened by Twoleg kits. They’re making the stream around it deeper and wider to keep the Twolegs away. I saw it myself. They’re so close to making it work. They should be back in their old camp by the next Gathering.” Her paws were trembling. “I promised not to tell, but it doesn’t seem right. Everything’s gone wrong.”

“No, it hasn’t.” Lionpaw lifted his chin. “We’re going to stop the battle.”

“But how?” Hollypaw mewed.

“By finding the kits.”

Jaypaw padded to Lionpaw’s side. “Where are these tunnels? How do we get in?”

“Follow me.” Lionpaw headed into the trees. He broke into a run, checking over his shoulder that Hollypaw and Jaypaw were keeping up. They weaved after him, skidding to a halt on the slippery leaves beside him as he reached the bottom of the slope where the tunnel opened into the forest.

“Where is it?” Hollypaw squinted over the swath of brambles.

Lionpaw flicked his tail toward the rabbit hole Heatherpaw had first disappeared into. “There.”

“That?” Hollypaw mewed in surprise. “No wonder no one’s ever noticed it before.”

Jaypaw was sniffing the air as though searching for something. His tail was quivering.

Lionpaw frowned. “Have you been here before?”

“I don’t think so.” Jaypaw’s ears twitched.

Why did he seem so afraid? There was no time to worry.

Lionpaw squeezed under the brambles. “Follow me.” He pushed his way through; it was easier now after all his visits, although one or two fresh branches had grown since he was last here, and he ducked as they snatched at his ears. Jaypaw stayed close behind him, his nose brushing Lionpaw’s tail.

“The entrance is here.” Lionpaw scrambled out of the bushes and guided Jaypaw to the hole in the side of the hill.

He stopped beside it and sniffed the familiar scent of musty air flowing from the tunnel.

Hollypaw scrabbled out of the brambles after them and stared doubtfully at the hole. Rain dripped from her fur and each ear was tipped with a quivering drop of water. “We go in here?”

Lionpaw nodded.

“What about the rain?” Jaypaw sounded wary.

“It won’t be raining inside the tunnel.” Lionpaw was puzzled; surely he’d be glad to get out of the downpour?

Jaypaw flattened his ears and sniffed at the entrance.

“Have you been here before in the rain?” he asked suspiciously.

“No.” Lionpaw was getting impatient now. There wasn’t time for this. “We must find the kits before the battle starts.”

He squeezed into the entrance and started to pad quickly along the familiar tunnel.

“Wait!” Hollypaw called from behind. “It’s too dark to see where I’m going.”

Lionpaw waited while Jaypaw and Hollypaw caught up with him. They were both moving cautiously, their paw steps pattering unevenly on the rocky floor. Surely Jaypaw should be able to travel through the tunnels more easily than the rest of them? He was used to darkness. “There’s a cave ahead,” Lionpaw reassured them. “There’s a gap in the roof so it’ll be lighter there.” He moved on, slower this time. He could hear Jaypaw sniffing the air, and Hollypaw’s fur brushing the walls.

“Do these tunnels really lead all the way to WindClan territory?” Hollypaw’s mew echoed eerily in the darkness. “Have you been that far?”

“No, only as far as the cave,” Lionpaw answered. Then he froze. He could smell familiar scents up ahead. WindClan! Had Heatherpaw already led a patrol into the tunnels?

Jaypaw’s breath stirred his ear fur. “You know there are WindClan cats ahead.”

“Yes,” Lionpaw sighed.

“Perhaps we should go back,” Hollypaw whispered. “We don’t want WindClan to realize we know about this place. It would ruin our advantage.”

“They probably know already.” Lionpaw’s heart felt as heavy as stone. Heatherpaw had betrayed their secret—he wouldn’t be surprised if she’d betrayed him as well. They hadn’t exactly been friendly the last time they met. He padded toward the dim light and stepped into the cave.

In the gloom, he could just make out Heatherpaw on the other side of the river.

Breezepaw was pacing the edge of the cave behind her, sniffing at each tunnel in turn. “I’ve lost their scent.”

“Lionpaw!” Heatherpaw sounded surprised.

Breezepaw spun, hissing, to face Lionpaw.

Heatherpaw’s gaze darted anxiously toward her Clanmate as she went on, “H-how did you know about this place?”

Lionpaw understood at once. She was pretending she had never met him here before. It was a sensible plan, but it felt wrong to act like strangers after they’d shared so much time here. “I found it a few days ago by accident,” he lied.

Hollypaw and Jaypaw were creeping out of the tunnel behind him. “I was chasing a rabbit and it led me down a hole and I ended up here.” He flashed a warning glance at Hollypaw.

Breezepaw’s pelt bristled. “These tunnels lead into ThunderClan territory as well?”

“I didn’t realize,” Heatherpaw mewed, wide-eyed. “I’ve only been as far as this cave before.”

“What are you three doing here?” Breezepaw demanded.

Hollypaw padded in front of Lionpaw, lifting her chin.

“When we heard that the kits were missing, Lionpaw guessed they might be here.”

“How did you know there was another entrance in WindClan territory?” Breezepaw flexed his claws.

“It was just a guess.” Lionpaw shrugged. “There are so many tunnels. They might lead to ShadowClan territory as far as I know.”

Breezepaw stared at him. The damp, stuffy air was thick with mistrust. “Is there any scent of the kits in your tunnel?”

“No,” Hollypaw replied, her voice taut.

“We followed their trail here, but it’s disappeared,” Heatherpaw explained.

Jaypaw had cautiously crept forward and was sniffing at the river. Its usually sleek surface was rippling as though blown by the wind, and dark water lapped over the edges, forming pools in the dimpled rock on either side. “Is the water always this high?” he asked.

“Only after it’s been raining,” Heatherpaw answered.

“Does it get higher?”

Heatherpaw tipped her head on one side, puzzled. “I don’t think so.”

Lionpaw felt hot with embarrassment. Why did Jaypaw keep fussing about the rain? He wanted to find the kits and get out of here.

Breezepaw paced around his Clanmate. “These intruders might as well go home,” he mewed. “We’re looking for the kits.

There’s no need for them to help.” He glared at Lionpaw.

“Why are you bothered about WindClan kits anyway?”

Hollypaw flicked her tail. “There’s going to be a battle over them, or haven’t you heard?”

“Can we stop chatting and get on with the search?”

Heatherpaw snapped.

Breezepaw shot her an angry look. “What about them?”

“We may as well let them come with us,” Heatherpaw mewed. “How are we going to carry three kits by ourselves?”

Before he could answer, she headed for the tunnel nearest her. “We have to find those kits before any of our Clanmates gets hurt.”

“I agree!” Hollypaw leaped the wide river and glanced back at Jaypaw. “The water is about two foxtails wide,” she told him.

Jaypaw crouched, preparing to jump. Lionpaw could see his paws trembling. Let him make it! He tensed, ready to dive into the rushing river if he had to, but Jaypaw sprang high over the river, clearing it with a tail-length to spare.

As Lionpaw jumped after him, Heatherpaw ducked out of the tunnel she had been sniffing. “They haven’t been this way.”

Lionpaw crept into another dark opening, tasting the air.

No scent.

“This way!” Jaypaw was crouching in front of a narrow entrance, his whiskers twitching.

Hollypaw pushed past him and peered at the ground.

“He’s right! There’s a paw print.”

Lionpaw squeezed past her to look. Sure enough, there on the silty ground was a tiny fresh print. “They went this way.”

He glanced up and met Heatherpaw’s gaze. Fear glittered in her hazy blue eyes.

“Oh, Lionpaw,” she whispered. “What have we done?”