again in our training session.” She pressed her nuzzle against Lionpaw’s cheek, then trotted away toward her tunnel. “See you later.”
Lionpaw’s paws tingled. “Bye.” He headed in the opposite direction and raced for the open air.
The forest was damp, washed by a light rain. Lionpaw wriggled under the brambles and headed home through the half-light of early dawn. The trees and bushes cast eerie shadows across the pale forest floor. A light wind rustled the leaves.
“Traitor!”
Lionpaw halted and jerked around, fur spiking.
A familiar outline shimmered against the ferns.
“Tigerstar?”
“What do you think you’re doing?” It was Hawkfrost.
Lionpaw looked for Tigerstar but Hawkfrost was alone. His eyes blazed as he padded toward Lionpaw.
“What do you mean?” Lionpaw protested. Hawkfrost knew about his nightly visits to the tunnels. Why was he challenging him now?
Hawkfrost curled his lip. “You were teaching battle moves to the enemy!”
“Heatherpaw’s not an enemy!” Lionpaw retorted. “She’s my friend!”
“She belongs to another Clan!” Hawkfrost hissed. “That makes her an enemy! What if she uses the moves you just
taught her against you one day?”
“Heatherpaw would never do that!”
“Wouldn’t she?”
Lionpaw stiffened, trying to imagine facing Heatherpaw in battle. Surely she wouldn’t take advantage of him like that?
“I thought you and Tigerstar didn’t care about me seeing Heatherpaw.”
“We liked your independence,” Hawkfrost growled. “We assumed it was just a harmless kit-friendship.”
“It
“Then you’re a mouse-brain!” Hawkfrost snarled. “I thought you wanted to be a great warrior!”
Lionpaw lifted his chin. “Of course I do!”
“Then why can’t you see what those tunnels mean?”
Lionpaw blinked. The tunnels meant he could meet Heatherpaw without upsetting his Clan.
Hawkfrost snorted. “You don’t understand anything, do you?”
“I do!”
“Then why haven’t you figured out that those tunnels could be used for a surprise attack on WindClan?”
“Why would we want to attack WindClan?”
“The same reason WindClan might one day use the tunnels to attack ThunderClan!”
Lionpaw stared at Hawkfrost. He wasn’t making any sense to his tired ears.
Hawkfrost rolled his eyes. “What if you need more territory or extra prey?” he meowed slowly, as though explaining a battle move to a kit. “Would you wait at the border for a passing WindClan patrol and beg for it?”
“But we have enough territory and enough prey,” Lionpaw argued.
“Things change!” Hawkfrost snapped. “Clans change!
Look how different WindClan is now that they have Onestar as leader. ThunderClan is terrified of them!”
“No, we’re not!”
“Really?” Hawkfrost pricked his ears. “Then why is Firestar too scared to ask them what’s happened to Hollypaw?”
Lionpaw’s eyes grew round. “Do
“I know enough not to sit around the camp sending fruit-less search parties to the borders and no farther!”
“Tell me!”
But Hawkfrost had turned away.
Lionpaw padded after him. “Where is she?”
“Let the great Firestar find her!” Hawkfrost glanced over his shoulder. “Meanwhile you’d better think about whether you want to be a warrior or whether you plan to live your life as a loner. Because if your Clanmates find out that you’ve kept the tunnels a secret from them, that’s what you’ll become!”
“No!” Lionpaw felt sick. That couldn’t be true! He stared after Hawkfrost. “Come back!”
The tabby warrior’s outline shivered and disappeared.
Lionpaw was alone again.
His heart felt like a stone in his chest. He had taught Heatherpaw battle moves. She might not use them against him, but what about his Clanmates? Suddenly weary, he padded through the trees and headed down the curve of the hollow, toward the camp. Thanks to Tigerstar’s training, he had begun to think that he would achieve his ambition to become a great warrior after all. Now he felt like a fox-hearted traitor. What if WindClan did use the tunnels to attack and had the advantage because ThunderClan knew nothing about them? He would have betrayed his Clanmates just so he could see Heatherpaw. Was their friendship really worth that?
As he trailed miserably toward the thorn barrier, he saw it quiver. Paws were thundering through the tunnel. Lionpaw flattened his ears in surprise as Dustpelt exploded from the entrance, fur bristling. On his heels were Ashfur and Stormfur. Lionpaw leaped out of the way as they raced past him. Thornclaw, Hazelpaw, and Poppypaw pelted after them.
“Come on, Lionpaw!’ Hazelpaw called as she whisked past.
Alarm set the blood pounding in Lionpaw’s ears. He fought off his weariness and chased after his Clanmate, panting as he caught up with her.
“What’s going on?” He was fighting for breath, summon-ing up the dregs of his energy to keep up.
“Two WindClan apprentices chased a squirrel right over the border.” Hazelpaw swerved around a fern. “They caught it and killed it on ThunderClan territory. The dawn patrol saw them do it! They sent Mousepaw back to fetch us. The
WindClan cats are saying it was their prey, no matter where they caught it!”
Lionpaw’s spine bristled. How dare they? It was bad enough they were hunting squirrels at all! He pulled ahead of Hazelpaw and caught up with Ashfur. The gray warrior glanced at him. “Where were you? I looked in the apprentices’ den when the alarm was called, but you weren’t there.”
Lionpaw stared ahead. What could he say? “I—I went out early,” he mewed.
Ashfur narrowed his eyes.
“I couldn’t sleep,” Lionpaw offered.
Screeching split the air.
Through the trees, Lionpaw could see the pelts of his Clanmates. He recognized the angry yowling of Spiderleg and saw Brook’s pelt streak across the forest floor. Brightheart was wrestling with Whitetail. Tornear, Ashfoot, Owlwhisker, and Weaselfur screeched and hissed, their claws flashing in the dawn light. The ThunderClan cats were outnumbered by the WindClan patrol.
As Dustpelt hurtled from the undergrowth, Spiderleg spun around in surprise and relief. “Thank StarCl—”
His yowl was cut off as Tornear knocked him to the ground. Ashfoot reared up behind the ThunderClan warrior and sunk her claws into Spiderleg’s shoulder. Brook was grap-pling with Owlwhisker. The mountain cat screeched in pain as the pale tabby tom pinned her to the ground and let Weaselfur clamp his jaws around her tail.
Dustpelt pointed his nose to a gap in the trees where the
ground sloped down toward the stream that marked the border. “Spread out and drive them down there!” he ordered.
Thornclaw swerved toward Ashfoot. He butted the WindClan warrior with his head, knocking her away from Spiderleg. As Spiderleg scrambled to his paws, Thornclaw reared up and hurled himself at Ashfoot again. Sending leaves and earth spraying across the forest floor, Spiderleg spun and dived at Tornear.
Dustpelt darted in the other direction, skidding around Brook and flying at Weaselfur. The brown WindClan warrior let go of Brook’s tail and turned to face Dustpelt, darting beneath his forepaws. Dustpelt dug his claws into
