Tallstar’s Revenge

Chapter 23

Dawnstripe glared at Tallpaw, her pelt spiked with rage. “No claws, remember?”

Tallpaw stared back, shock pulsing through him. “I’m sorry!”

Beside him, Hareflight checked Shrewpaw’s wounds. Shrewpaw squirmed away from his mentor. “I’m okay,” he insisted.

He doesn’t want to admit that I nearly shredded him. Tallpaw winced as he recalled the fury that had driven him on. How far would I have gone if Dawnstripe hadn’t stopped me?

Dawnstripe smoothed her chest fur with a couple of licks. “It’s been a stressful day,” she meowed. “You just got carried away.”

Hareflight eyed Tallpaw warily. “I guess.”

“Sure.” Shrewpaw nodded as he shook out his pelt, hiding his scratches.

“It won’t happen again,” Tallpaw promised, but inside he felt a stab of panic. Would he fail his assessment because of this? He could have killed Shrewpaw because he’d lost control of his rage. I don’t deserve to pass the assessment. His pelt pricked with shame. True warriors don’t hurt their Clanmates.

Dawnstripe headed into the heather. “Let’s get back to camp.”

Tallpaw trailed behind his Clanmates, dreading what Dawnstripe would have to tell Heatherstar. Doespring and Stagleap were just leaving the camp as they reached the clearing outside.

Stagleap lifted his tail excitedly. “How did the assessment go?”

Doespring’s eyes widened as she saw Shrewpaw’s bloody nose. “What happened to you?”

Hareflight padded forward. “Tallpaw forgot he was fighting a Clanmate.”

Stagleap stared at the clumps of fur hanging from Shrewpaw’s pelt. “Did you think you were fighting a ShadowClan patrol?”

Tallpaw looked at the ground, his pelt hot.

Shrewpaw shrugged. “He just got lucky with a few swipes.”

“Go to Hawkheart,” Hareflight told him. “Get those scratches seen to while Dawnstripe and I speak with Heatherstar.”

Stagleap shot Tallpaw a questioning look, but Tallpaw wasn’t about to tell him anything. “I’m going to get a drink,” he muttered, and followed the trail that skirted the camp wall to the spring. As he rounded the corner, he slowed. He could hear mews up ahead. Two cats were already beside the water.

“Are you sure?” Tallpaw recognized Woollytail’s rasping mew.

Palebird answered him. “Yes. In two moons’ time.”

Tallpaw pricked his ears.

“What about Tallpaw?” Palebird meowed. “We should tell him first.”

“Of course,” Woollytail answered. “He’ll be pleased. It’s been a hard greenleaf for all of us. This will cheer him up.”

Tallpaw’s pelt pricked uneasily. What will cheer me up?

Palebird lowered her voice. “I think I should tell him by myself.”

Tallpaw brushed past the heather and faced his mother. “Tell me what?”

“Tallpaw!” Palebird’s eyes brightened. “I have good news.” Why is Woollytail looking so worried, then? Palebird gazed fondly at Woollytail. “I’m expecting kits.”

Tallpaw glared at him. “Yours?”

The tunneler lifted his muzzle. “Yes.”

“You’re going to be a brother at last,” Palebird gushed.

“But what about Sandgorse?” Tallpaw blinked at Woollytail. “You were his friend. How can you—”

“Sandgorse would be pleased.” Woollytail cut him off. “He wouldn’t want to see Palebird grieving for the rest of her life. You should be pleased for your mother.” Palebird’s eyes shone. “She hasn’t been this happy for a long time,” he went on.

Tallpaw’s heart twisted. Sandgorse and I couldn’t make you happy. But Woollytail can.

“You’ll still be her first kit,” Woollytail told him gently. “Did you really think you’d be her last?”

Tallpaw looked at the two cats. Woollytail’s eyes begged him to understand, while Palebird seemed oblivious that she’d caused him any pain. “Whatever makes her happy,” he growled, turning away. Mouth still dry and tasting of Shrewpaw’s blood, he marched into camp.

The Meeting Hollow was buzzing. Tallpaw’s Clanmates were streaming into it, their pelts ruffled with excitement. Cloudrunner looked over the rim. “Hurry up, Tallpaw, or you’ll miss your own naming ceremony!”

Aspenfall and Larksplash settled near the edge of the hollow. Mistmouse and Appledawn were discussing something animatedly while Plumclaw, Hickorynose, and Meadowslip sat close together. Tallpaw realized that for the first time, tunnelers and moor runners were sitting together.

Hopkit, Sorrelkit, and Pigeonkit leaned over the edge. “Why can’t we sit next to you?” Hopkit called to his mother.

Meadowslip shooed them away with a jerk of her muzzle. “Go and sit beside the nursery. You can see well enough from there. Heatherstar doesn’t need kits under her paws. This is an important ceremony.”

Tallpaw spotted the Clan leader standing in the middle of the hollow. Reedfeather stood a few paces behind while Hareflight and Dawnstripe flanked him. Shrewpaw was with his father. Redclaw puffed his chest out proudly and glanced up at the pale sky. Was he wondering if Brackenwing was watching?

Dawnstripe caught Tallpaw’s eyes, beckoning him with a flick of her tail. Did this mean he’d passed his assessment? Her eyes shone and she gave him a tiny nod. He’d passed! Tallpaw stared numbly back at her. Palebird had found a new family to replace her old one. What did it matter if he had a warrior name? She would have a litter of kits to look after soon. They’d make her happier than he ever had.

“Come on, Tallpaw.” Woollytail padded up behind him and nudged him forward.

Beside him, Palebird purred. “Your naming ceremony! So much good news in one day!”

Tallpaw narrowed his eyes. For you, maybe. He padded across the tussocks and slid down into the hollow.

Heatherstar dipped her head. “Leaf-bare is coming, but we will face it with two new warriors.” She looked at Shrewpaw. “Your warrior name will be Shrewclaw, in honor of your skill at hunting and fighting. You have trained well and are worthy of your warrior name.”

Shrewclaw fluffed out his tail and purred.

“Tallpaw.” Heatherstar’s eyes glowed as she gazed at him. Tallpaw shifted his paws. “Your father always meant to name you for your long tail, and so I give you your warrior name in honor of him. Talltail, one day you will be a greater warrior than even you can imagine. Sandgorse would be proud of you.”

Talltail stared at his leader. He should have felt happy, but the numbness wouldn’t shift. Instead it wrapped itself tighter around his heart. Heatherstar held his gaze, her eyes searching his as if she was trying to tell him something. Is she just being kind because she knows I don’t fit in? Around him, the air filled with the calls of his Clanmates.

“Talltail!”

“Shrewclaw!”

They lifted their voices to the afternoon sky, celebrating WindClan’s newest warriors.

Talltail glanced over his shoulder at Palebird. She was pressed against Woollytail, her eyes bright. Talltail swallowed back the sadness welling in his throat. Is she proud of me, or just happy about the kits? Surrounded by his Clanmates cheering his name, he had never felt more alone.

The stars shimmered in a peat-black sky. Perched on the edge of Outlook Rock, Talltail gazed beyond the mountain peaks that edged the horizon like jagged teeth. What lay beyond? Had any cat traveled that far? His breath billowed in front of him, the stone slab cold beneath his paws. The chilly leaf-fall night carried the distant scent of a leaf-bare frost.

He was sitting vigil with Shrewclaw, their first night as warriors. As a fox barked far below, an owl flapped up from a distant tree. Talltail pricked his ears to see if he could hear the beat of its wings on the crystal air. A light twinkled in Twolegplace, catching Talltail’s eye. Did a kittypet live trapped inside those walls? Snug and warm, blissfully unaware of the warriors on the moor? How many lives were being lived out there, beyond his view?

Talltail’s thoughts drifted to Sparrow and the other visitors. Had they passed that Twoleg nest? Perhaps that’s where they holed up for the winter. Maybe they were kittypets in leaf-bare, just playing at being rogues when the warm weather came. He shifted his paws, trying to ease the stiffness in his legs.

“Too cold for you up here?” Shrewclaw whispered. “You could go hide in a tunnel. I won’t tell.”

“Sure you wouldn’t.” Talltail twitched the tip of his tail with irritation. Was Shrewclaw going to keep on taunting him now they were warriors? He slid a look at his denmate. “Don’t you get bored of throwing the same old insults?”

“Not at you.”

“We’re not supposed to be talking.” Talltail watched a wisp of cloud drift over the moon. “StarClan won’t approve.”

“They probably don’t approve anyway,” Shrewpaw hissed. “You don’t deserve your warrior name after fighting like that in the assessment.”

“You were the first to unsheathe your claws.”

“That was just to give it a bit of edge,” Shrewclaw snapped. “I wasn’t trying to rip your pelt off.” A growl rumbled in his throat. “You caught me by surprise. Next time, I’ll shred you.”

“There won’t be a next time.”

Heatherstar’s mew made Talltail jump. He turned and saw her purple gaze blinking from the shadowy grass. She padded onto the rock. “You do know that you shouldn’t be speaking at all, let alone threatening each other?” Her gaze flicked from Talltail to Shrewclaw.

Talltail squirmed, feeling like a scolded kit. “Sorry, Heatherstar.”

“Talltail started it,” Shrewclaw muttered.

Heatherstar silenced him with a look. “I just wanted to check on my newest warriors.” Her glaze slid past Talltail to the starlit view beyond. “How’s the valley tonight?”

“Chilly,” Shrewclaw told her.

Talltail looked out beyond Highstones. “Endless,” he whispered, letting a note of longing creep into his voice.

Heatherstar’s eyes glittered for a moment; then she turned away. “Stay silent,” she reminded them as she padded onto the grass. “StarClan is watching.”

Talltail stifled a yawn. The sky beyond ThunderClan territory was beginning to lighten at last. Shrewclaw’s head was drooping beside him. Talltail flicked him with his tail.

Shrewclaw jerked up his head. “What?”

“It’s nearly dawn,” Talltail hissed.

“I knew that,” Shrewclaw grunted.

Talltail stared out from the rock, watching the valley wake. Monsters began to roar along the Thunderpath. In the Twoleg den far below, a dog barked insistently until a Twoleg barked back, and the dog fell silent. The meadows and copses stirred into life as dawn turned the moon-drenched leaves from silver to green, and finally the sun lifted its head over the forest and set Highstones alight.

Talltail heard paw steps brushing the grass behind. He tasted the air before he turned. Reedfeather.

“You’re still awake.” Reedfeather sounded pleased.

Talltail stretched, arching his spine until his tail quivered. He straightened and shook the damp morning chill from his fur. Beside him, Shrewclaw yawned. “I’m glad I got my warrior name before leaf-bare,” he meowed. “I’d have frozen to death sitting out here all night.”

“Would a little hunting warm you up?” Reedfeather offered.

Shrewclaw blinked. “Now?”

“Sounds like a good idea to me.” Talltail padded off the rock. He needed to stretch his legs and he was as hungry as a fox.

The heather rustled as Doespring and Aspenfall appeared.

“They’re awake!” Aspenfall called.

“Of course!” Shrewclaw bounded off the stone slab beside Talltail.

“You must be frozen,” meowed Doespring. She sniffed Shrewclaw’s dew-specked pelt. “And tired.”

“Not too tired to hunt,” Reedfeather meowed. “They’re joining our patrol. They can rest afterward.”

Talltail tasted the air. “Where are we hunting?”

Reedfeather nodded toward a patch of heather that caught the first rays of sunlight on the hillside below. “Prey will be waking early there.” He trotted down toward it, Aspenfall at his side. Shrewclaw ran to catch up while Doespring fell in beside Talltail.

“Isn’t it great about Palebird’s kits!” she purred.

“Any excuse to stay in the nursery,” Talltail grunted.

Doespring stared at him. “Aren’t you pleased?” she meowed. “They’ll be your kin.”

“Yeah.” Talltail kept his eyes on the patrol ahead.

“When did you turn so selfish, Talltail?” Doespring protested. “Palebird’s lost so much. You should be pleased for her.”

“Should I?” Talltail stopped dead and curled his claws into the grass. “I’m a warrior now; I can have my own opinion. Palebird should have stayed faithful to Sandgorse. It’s only been a few moons since the accident. Anyone would think she’s glad he’s gone so she can have Woollytail as her mate!”

Doespring’s tail twitched. “You think too much about yourself, and not enough about your Clan, Talltail.” She narrowed her eyes. “You say you’re old enough to have your own opinion. But you’re also old enough to understand that loyalty to your Clan is more important than anything. Palebird is happy. So’s Woollytail. It’s great news that there’ll be more kits in WindClan. You’re the only one who’s not pleased.”

Before he could argue, she broke into a run. “I’ll race you to the warren,” she called to the cats ahead as she hared past them. They charged after her.

Shrewclaw veered toward the heather, nose twitching. “Rabbit scent!”

Doespring swung around and gave chase with Aspenfall and Reedfeather on her tail. Talltail watched them plunge into the bushes. He didn’t want to follow. He’d rather hunt alone, with no one telling him how he should feel. He tasted the air as he headed for the moor-top. A rabbit had definitely passed this way not long ago.

Talltail padded forward, stepping lightly over the grass. Low, grassy lumps covered the ridge ahead of him. Burrows. He dropped into a crouch and began to stalk, belly to the ground. Something twitched at the edge of his vision. He turned slowly and saw a pair of long, brown ears sticking above the grass. Rabbit.

Talltail held his breath. The rabbit bent its head to graze. Talltail crept closer, low as a snake through the grass. He could hear the rabbit munching. In the distance the heather rustled as his Clanmates crashed through it. Can’t they hunt quietly? Eyes fixed on his quarry, Talltail leaped.

The rabbit raced away, its fear-scent filling the air. Talltail hurtled after it. Now the creature was less than a tail-length away. Timing his strides to match the rabbit’s, Talltail pounced. “Got you!”

His heart sank as his paws hit bare grass. “Where are you?” He whirled around, spotting a burrow that reeked of fear-scent. You can’t hide in there! Talltail plunged into the darkness. Tiny paws scrabbled a fox-length ahead of him. Reaching forward, he grabbed the rabbit’s fluffy haunches before it could disappear into the maze of tunnels. It squealed as Talltail hauled it out and nipped it quickly with a killing bite. As he sat up, the scent of blood and fresh earth filled his nose, blotting out all the other scents of the moor.

“What in the name of StarClan are you doing?” came a disbelieving voice. Aspenfall was standing at the edge of the heather.

Talltail nudged the rabbit with a paw. “Hunting.” He spat out a tuft of fur.

“We don’t hunt underground anymore, remember?” Aspenfall looked round-eyed with concern. “Heatherstar said it wasn’t safe.”

“I was chasing it from the ridge over there,” Talltail explained, pointing with his tail. He felt hot underneath his pelt. Why was Aspenfall questioning his catch? Had he forgotten that Talltail was a warrior now, just like him?

“Well, the tunnels are forbidden now,” Aspenfall meowed.

Shrewclaw slid out of the heather behind the gray-and-white warrior. “Has Wormcat been digging tunnels?”

Anger surged through Talltail. He kicked the rabbit toward his Clanmate. “No, I’ve been catching prey.”

Aspenfall took a step forward. “Calm down, Talltail. It’s going to be hard for all of us to remember that we don’t have the tunnels to hunt in. Come on, let’s get that rabbit back to camp.”

Talltail picked up the fresh-kill and clamped it hard between his jaws to stop himself from responding to any more of Shrewclaw’s barbed comments. I’m a warrior now, he told himself. Things have changed from when we were apprentices. The rabbit bounced heavily against his front legs, making him stumble. So many things had changed, in fact, from Palebird expecting Woollytail’s kits to the tunnels being shut down forever, that Talltail hardly recognized WindClan at all.