The Blazing Star (16 page)

Tall Shadow dipped her head toward Wind Runner, her eyes patient and sorrowful. “What would you like us to do?” she asked.

Wind Runner gazed for a moment at Gorse Fur, then at her dead kit. “I'd like us to send Morning Whisker to live with
the spirit-cats,” she whispered. “That's what she deserves.”

“Yes, I'd like that too,” Gorse Fur agreed.

“Then that's what we'll do,” Tall Shadow mewed. Turning to the other cats, she continued, “Go and fetch leaves—as many as you can find. Not dried up and crackly, but fresh ones that we can use to wrap Morning Whisker's body.”

Grateful for something to do, Thunder bounded out of the hollow with his denmates, heading for the forest. As he reached the outskirts he found plenty of leaves, and collected up a bundle to carry back to camp. The others returned too, piling their leaves in a heap beside the kit's body.

“Pebble Heart,” Tall Shadow meowed, “you and Cloud Spots are the only cats who have touched Morning Whisker directly. Will you wrap her in the leaves, please?”

“Of course, Tall Shadow.” Pebble Heart dipped his head respectfully.

Leaf by leaf, under the intent gaze of their denmates, Pebble Heart and Cloud Spots wrapped the kit in layer after layer of leaves until her whole body was covered. Then between them, Mouse Ear and Jagged Peak nudged her across the moor, all the weary way to the four trees, with the rest of the group surrounding them in silent escort.

As the sun slid down the sky, casting long shadows over their path, Thunder realized with a start that Morning Whisker would never see another morning in her short life. It wasn't fair—for one so young to be lost, or for Wind Runner to lose another of her kits. His heart started to pound and he didn't know how to go on bearing his sorrow.

At last the cats arrived beside the grave where the cats who had died in the battle were buried.

“Where would you like to put her?” Tall Shadow asked Wind Runner. “We shouldn't disturb the main grave.”

Wind Runner's gaze fell on a gorse bush at the foot of the slope that led down into the clearing. “Over there,” she meowed. “Morning Whisker always liked hiding in bushes.”

She began scraping at the ground underneath the bush. Thunder and the other cats joined in to help her and soon they had dug a hole big enough to bury the kit. Gorse Fur nudged the tiny, leaf-wrapped body into the grave, and helped Wind Runner to paw the soil back over it, patting it down gently. Wind Runner tore a sprig of gorse off the bush and laid it on the grave, her eyes wide with sorrow.

“Good-bye, my little one,” she whispered.

Thunder's heart ached as he glanced up at the sky, where clouds had covered the sun. He knew it was still too early for the spirit-cats to appear, but he sent a message up to them.

“Set Wind Runner's kit free of her pain,” he murmured. “And let her play among the stars.”

When he looked down again, Tall Shadow gave him an approving nod. “Well spoken,” she mewed. Glancing around at the other cats, she added, “We may as well stay here. It's not long to sunset, when we have to meet Clear Sky and his cats.”

Wind Runner turned away from her kit's grave. “I'm not staying,” she told the others with a challenging look. “I can't stand all of this anymore. I should have remained a rogue, alone on the moors. If I'd had my kits alone, maybe Morning
Whisker would still be alive now. Maybe none of this would have happened. I've helped . . .” Her voice shook and she made a massive effort to steady it. “I've helped you hunt and in battle, and all I've had in return is grief and heartbreak.”

Thunder's mouth turned dry and it was hard for him to speak. “But where will you go?”

Wind Runner gazed farther out toward the moors. “Back where I came from. I'll take my kits and disappear among the long grasses, and none of you will ever have to care about me again.”

“But we want to care about you!” Holly protested. “I was a rogue cat too, and I remember how hard it was, even if you don't. Wind Runner, don't cut yourself off, not when you're having such a tough time.”

“She won't be alone,” Gorse Fur meowed, stepping forward. “I'll go with her.”

They arrived together,
Thunder thought.
And now they're leaving together.
“Are you sure?” he asked.

But Wind Runner was already turning away, running through the trees with Moth Flight and Dust Muzzle following her.

Gorse Fur cast a regretful glance at the other cats. “Don't worry,” he mewed. “I'll look after them.” Breaking into a run, he followed his mate and their kits out of sight.

Will we ever see Wind Runner and Gorse Fur again?
Thunder wondered.

C
HAPTER
14

Scarlet light slanted through a gap
in the clouds as the sun went down. A chilly breeze sprang up, and a few dead leaves whirled down over the waiting cats.

Leaf-bare is almost here,
Thunder thought.

Then he noticed movement among the bushes that lined the sides of the hollow, and a heartbeat later Clear Sky padded into the open, the rest of his cats trailing behind him.

“Greetings,” he meowed, dipping his head to Tall Shadow and Thunder.

“Greetings,” Tall Shadow responded. “Let's all gather around the rock, and—”

She broke off at the sound of more rustling from the bushes. A clump of ferns parted and River Ripple emerged.

“River Ripple!” Thunder exclaimed, pleased to see the silver-gray tom. “How did you know there was going to be a meeting?”

River Ripple paused to give his silky chest fur a couple of licks. “I know everything,” he purred. “When are you going to learn that? And I brought a friend with me.”

To Thunder's amazement, Gray Wing slipped out of the
ferns behind River Ripple. His whole body was tight with tension, and he didn't meet any cat's gaze.

Thunder felt his whole body sag with relief.
Gray Wing is okay!
He bounded over to the gray tom. “Gray Wing, where have you been?” he demanded, relief and anger mingled in his voice. “How could you go off like that and leave us all to worry about you?”

Gray Wing still didn't look at him. “Sparrow Fur didn't want to come home with me,” he explained, “and I couldn't face returning to the hollow alone. I—I just needed to be on my own.”

“Yes,” River Ripple meowed. “I found him shivering beside the grave. I took him back to my river island with me.”

“And that's where I'm staying for now,” Gray Wing added with a grateful glance at the silver tom. “I need some time to think.”

“To think about what?” Thunder asked. “Where has all this come from? Gray Wing, we need you!”

Gray Wing met his gaze for the first time. “Do you? Or am I just getting in the way? I'm not feeling angry, or anything like that,” he went on, overriding Thunder's attempt to protest. “But I do feel like I'm getting in the way. You're a great leader, and so is Tall Shadow. Aren't three cats making decisions too many?”

“No,” Thunder responded, hardly able to believe that Gray Wing was thinking this way. “We were all working together! I thought it was going well.”

Gray Wing shook his head. “You've grown into your huge
paws, Thunder, and I don't want to keep you from becoming the cat you should be. So I need to think about the next step for me—and I need space to do that.”

At last Thunder was shocked into silence. He saw how relieved Gray Wing looked to not have to face any more objections. But before either cat could say more, Tall Shadow stepped forward.

“I see your point, Gray Wing,” she rasped. “But did you have to disappear like that? We were all really worried about you—especially Owl Eyes and Pebble Heart.”

Gray Wing dipped his head. “I'm sorry,” he murmured. “It was shortsighted of me. I'll never do that again.”

While they talked the breeze had strengthened, driving the last of the clouds away, and moonlight flooded the clearing, picking out every remaining leaf on the four oak trees.

Clear Sky bounded across to the Great Rock and leaped to the top. “Gather around, all of you!” he called. “Let's begin the meeting.”

As the cats found places to sit near the foot of the rock, Thunder noticed another cat slip quietly out of the undergrowth and settle down a few tail-lengths from the others in the shadow of a clump of ferns. With a gasp of amazement he recognized the golden tabby she-cat who had spoken to him after the second meeting with the spirit-cats. Now she turned her intense green eyes toward him and for a moment their gazes locked. Then she glanced away again, looking up at the rock as she waited for Clear Sky to speak.

A shiver ran through Thunder from ears to tail-tip.
Who is
she? And what is she doing here?
The thought was quickly followed by another.
If one strange cat can join us, others might do the same.
Suddenly feeling vulnerable and exposed, he took a careful look around the clearing, breathing a sigh of relief when he saw no trace of One Eye.

Tall Shadow leaped up onto the rock and sat beside Clear Sky. “We have had sickness in our camp,” she began. “Wind Runner's kit Morning Whisker died earlier today. Her belly was swollen and there were cracks in her skin oozing blood. Has any cat seen this illness anywhere else?”

“We found a mouse that had died the same way,” Thunder added.

“And there was that bird,” Clear Sky meowed. “The one you argued over with One Eye.”

“There was a dead fox near the Thunderpath.” Snake sprang to his paws to make his contribution. “It had a swollen belly and froth all over its jaws.”

Quick Water nodded. “I saw it too. And a squirrel with half its fur gone, and sores all over its body.”

“And I found a dead vole by the river,” River Ripple contributed.

“Cloud Spots, you know herbs,” Shattered Ice began. “So do you, Dappled Pelt. Have you seen anything like this before?”

“Yes, are there herbs that could help?” Jagged Peak asked.

Cloud Spots rose reluctantly; Thunder saw that he looked bewildered, and knew before he spoke that he wouldn't have any useful answers.

“I advised Pebble Heart to treat Morning Whisker with
tansy,” he meowed. “It might have slowed down the progress of her illness, but it didn't cure her. I'm sorry.”

“River Ripple, what about you?” Tall Shadow looked down at the silver tom from her place on top of the rock. “Have you come across this before?”

River Ripple dipped his head to her. “I haven't seen this exact sickness before, but I have seen severe illness. There was one greenleaf when many of the rogue cats died. It seemed like it had something to do with the heat.”

It's been hot this past greenleaf, too,
Thunder thought.
Maybe the same thing is happening again.
“How did you get rid of the illness last time?” he asked.

“Most of the cats split up,” River Ripple replied. “I didn't see some of the rogues for a long time. Then after greenleaf we started to mix again, and the sickness seemed to have worked its way out.”

“One Eye sounded as if he knew something about it,” Clear Sky put in. “He mocked me but wouldn't give me specifics on what he knew, just that some of the cats in my group were as good as dead.”

“And now Morning Whisker has died, but no other cats are sick,” Acorn Fur added.

“And One Eye isn't here to tell us any more,” Clear Sky said, looking down at his paws, embarrassed.

“What happened with that cat isn't your fault,” Thunder reassured him.

“I know, but if One Eye were still here, he might be able to advise us,” Clear Sky mewed desperately. “He—”

“Yes, but at what cost?” Lightning Tail interrupted angrily. “He's killed one cat and nearly killed another. How many more would have to die, just so that we could listen to his words of wisdom—if he has any wisdom to offer?”