Warriors
A Dangerous Path
Erin Hunter
To the real Bramblepaw
Special thanks to Cherith Baldry
Allegiances
THUNDERCLAN
BLUESTAR—blue-gray she-cat, tinged with silver around her muzzle
FIREHEART—handsome ginger tom
APPRENTICE, CLOUDPAW
CINDERPELT—dark gray she-cat
WHITESTORM—big white tom
APPRENTICE, BRIGHTPAW
DARKSTRIPE—sleek black-and-gray tabby tom
APPRENTICE, FERNPAW
FROSTFUR—beautiful white coat and blue eyes
BRINDLEFACE—pretty tabby
LONGTAIL—pale tabby tom with dark black stripes
APPRENTICE, SWIFTPAW
MOUSEFUR—small dusky brown she-cat
APPRENTICE, THORNPAW
BRACKENFUR—golden brown tabby tom
DUSTPELT—dark brown tabby tom
APPRENTICE, ASHPAW
SANDSTORM—pale ginger she-cat
SWIFTPAW—black-and-white tom
CLOUDPAW—long-haired white tom
BRIGHTPAW—she-cat, white with ginger splotches
THORNPAW—golden brown tabby tom
FERNPAW—pale gray (with darker flecks) she-cat, pale green eyes
ASHPAW—pale gray (with darker flecks) tom, dark blue eyes
GOLDENFLOWER—pale ginger coat
SPECKLETAIL—pale tabby, and the oldest nursery queen
WILLOWPELT—very pale gray she-cat with unusual blue eyes
ONE-EYE—pale gray she-cat, the oldest she-cat in ThunderClan; virtually blind and deaf
SMALLEAR—gray tom with very small ears; the oldest tom in ThunderClan
DAPPLETAIL—once-pretty tortoiseshell she-cat with a lovely dappled coat
SHADOWCLAN
TIGERSTAR—big dark brown tabby tom with unusually long front claws, formerly of ThunderClan
BLACKFOOT—large white tom with huge jet-black paws, formerly a rogue cat
RUNNINGNOSE—small gray-and-white tom
OAKFUR—small brown tom
LITTLECLOUD—very small tabby tom
DARKFLOWER—black she-cat
BOULDER—silver tabby tom, formerly a rogue cat
RUSSETFUR—dark ginger she-cat, formerly a rogue cat
APPRENTICE, CEDARPAW
JAGGEDTOOTH—huge tabby tom, formerly a rogue cat
APPRENTICE, ROWANPAW
TALLPOPPY—long-legged light brown tabby she-cat
WINDCLAN
TALLSTAR—black-and-white tom with a very long tail
DEADFOOT—black tom with a twisted paw
BARKFACE—short-tailed brown tom
MUDCLAW—mottled dark brown tom
WEBFOOT—dark gray tabby tom
TORNEAR—tabby tom
TAWNYFUR—golden brown she-cat
ONEWHISKER—brown tabby tom
APPRENTICE, GORSEPAW
RUNNINGBROOK—light gray she-cat
ASHFOOT—gray queen
MORNINGFLOWER—tortoiseshell queen
WHITETAIL—small white she-cat
RIVERCLAN
CROOKEDSTAR—huge light-colored tabby with a twisted jaw
LEOPARDFUR—unusually spotted golden tabby she-cat
MUDFUR—long-haired light brown tom
BLACKCLAW—smoky black tom
HEAVYSTEP—thickset tabby tom
APPRENTICE, DAWNPAW
STONEFUR—gray tom with battle-scarred ears
MISTYFOOT—gray she-cat with blue eyes
SHADEPELT—very dark gray she-cat
LOUDBELLY—dark brown tom
GRAYSTRIPE—long-haired gray tom, formerly of ThunderClan
MOSSPELT—tortoiseshell she-cat
GRAYPOOL—dark gray she-cat
CATS OUTSIDE CLANS
BARLEY—black-and-white tom that lives on a farm close to the forest
RAVENPAW—sleek black cat who lives on the farm with Barley
PRINCESS—light brown tabby with a distinctive white chest and paws; a kittypet
SMUDGE—plump black-and-white kittypet who lives in a house at the edge of the forest
Maps
Prologue
Inside the kennel-that-moves, everything was dark. The pack leader could hear the scrabbling of claws and feel the sleek pelt of the dog next to him, but he could see nothing. Dog scent filled his nostrils, and beyond that the smell of the burned forest.
The pack leader sat uncomfortably on the vibrating floor until the kennel-that-moves bounced to a halt. Outside, he could hear Man voices. He understood some of the words. “Fire…keep watch…guard dogs.”
The pack leader picked up the Men’s fear-scent, along with the bittersweet smell of cut wood. He remembered coming here the night before, and the night before that, more than four paws’ worth of nights. He had prowled the compound with the rest of the pack, sifting through the scents for intruders, ready to drive them away.
The dog snarled softly, his lips drawn back from sharp teeth. The pack was strong. They could run, and kill. They craved warm blood, and the terror-scent of prey before it died. But instead they were penned up, they ate the food the Man threw to them, and they obeyed the Man’s orders.
The dog rose to his powerful paws, rattling the doors as he butted them with his massive black-and-tan head. He lifted his voice in a bark that sounded all the louder in the confined space. “Out! Pack out! Out now!”
The rest of the pack added their voices. “Pack out! Pack run!”
As if in answer, the doors of the kennel-that-moves were flung open. In the twilight the pack leader could see the Man standing there, barking an order.
The leader jumped down first, close to a pile of logs stacked in the middle of the compound. His paws threw up little puffs of ash and soot. The rest of the pack followed in a stream of black-and-brown bodies. “Pack follow! Pack follow!” they barked. The leader padded restlessly along the fence that separated them from the forest. Beyond the fence, burned-out tree trunks leaned against each other or lay on the ground. Farther away a barrier of undamaged trees rustled in the breeze.
Scents flowed enticingly from the leaf-thick shadows. The dog’s muscles tensed. Out there, in the prey-filled forest, the pack could run free. There would be no Man to chain or command them. They would feed as often as they wanted, because they would be the strongest and most savage of all.
“Free!” the lead dog barked. “Pack free! Free soon!”
He walked up to the fence and pressed his nose against the mesh links, drawing the smells of the forest deep into his lungs. Many of the scents he had never smelled before, but there was one he knew well, stronger than the rest, the scent of his enemy and his prey.