Gray Wing ducked and padded through.
Tall Shadow and Jagged Peak sat near the far end of the clearing, their heads bowed in quiet conversation. Holly was rearranging her nest’s moss lining while the kits tumbled in the pine needles behind her. Mud Paws and Mouse Ear were sharing tongues in the shadow of the camp wall.
“Hi, Gray Wing!” Mouse Ear looked up. “Did you catch anything?”
My catch! He’d left it behind. “A lizard,” he croaked.
Mouse Ear hopped up and padded closer, stopping beside Gray Wing. “Can cats eat lizards?”
“River Ripple does,” Gray Wing told him.
Mouse Ear wrinkled his nose. “I guess we can’t be choosy.” He tasted the air. “Where is it?”
“I left it outside camp.”
Dew Nose turned from her game. “Can we go and get it?” She glanced excitedly at Eagle Feather and Storm Pelt.
Holly straightened. “Only if Mouse Ear goes with you.” She looked across the clearing to the tabby tom. “Is that okay?”
Mouse Ear purred. “Of course.” He swished his tail happily as the kits charged toward him.
“Which one of you is going to carry it back?”
“Me!” Dew Nose pelted for the bramble tunnel.
Eagle Feather was on her tail. “Not if I find it first.”
Mouse Ear waited for Storm Pelt to catch up. “While those two are racing around,” he whispered to the solemn young kit, “we’ll find it, and you can carry it home.”
Storm Pelt’s whiskers twitched and he trotted toward the camp entrance.
“Don’t let them out of your sight!” Holly called.
Mouse Ear flicked his tail as he ducked into the tunnel. “I won’t.”
Pebble Heart was already at the far side of the clearing, squeezing beneath the brambles. He wriggled out a moment later, a soft green leaf hanging from his jaws.
He hurried back to Gray Wing and dropped it onto the damp ground. “How are you feeling?”
“I’ve felt better.” The pain was gone but Gray Wing’s chest was still tight. He was relieved to see the coltsfoot. Crouching, he began to chew on the leaf stalk, its familiar bitter tang bursting over his tongue.
“I’ll bring one to your nest every morning,” Pebble Heart promised.
“I’ll come and get it,” said Gray Wing, with a jerk of his nose. Irritation prickled in his belly. He knew Pebble Heart was only trying to help, but he hated being treated like an invalid. Was this how
Jagged Peak felt when the cats made allowances for his lameness?
Pebble Heart shrugged. “Okay.”
Gray Wing chewed another mouthful of coltsfoot and, feeling his chest loosen, sat up. He nodded toward the small hole under the bramble that Pebble Heart had gotten the leaf from. Beside it was Pebble Heart’s nest, hardly more than a heap of pine twigs lined with moss. “You must be cold sleeping there,” he observed. “We should build you a den.”
“I’m no colder than any other cat.” Pebble Heart pointed his muzzle toward the nests dotted around the edge of the clearing, twig piles like his own. Gray Wing’s lay beside Tall Shadow’s, a few tail-lengths from Mud Paws’s and Mouse Ear’s. Holly and Jagged Peak had made a large nest on the other side of the clearing where they could wrap themselves around their kits and keep them warm.
Gray Wing narrowed his eyes. “If we unravel the longest bramble stems and pull them away from the bush, we could use them to weave shelters around our nests.”
Holly pricked her ears and padded closer. “That’s a good idea,” she meowed. “I worry about the next snowfall. There’s no broom of gorse here to shelter under.”
Pebble Heart met her anxious gaze. “I was planning on digging out earth beneath the brambles. I thought I could hollow out a den that way.”
“Yes!” Gray Wing felt excitement rushing beneath his pelt as his breathing returned to normal.
“We could dig sleeping hollows and weave bramble stems over them. The sooner we make this camp into a real home, the better.”
“Great!” Holly nodded eagerly. “Which side of the clearing do you think would be the most sheltered for the kits?”
He didn’t need to taste the air to know where the coldest wind blew—he’d spent enough nights shivering in his nest. He nodded toward the far end of the camp. “The bramble wall over there will keep off the leaf-bare breezes.” He lifted his nose toward a hole high in the canopy. Weak sunlight filtered through. “And you’ll get sunshine, which will burn off early frosts.”
“Pebble Heart.” Mud Paws limped across the clearing toward the young tom. “I wrenched my shoulder chasing a squirrel yesterday. Do you have anything to ease the stiffness?”
Pride swelled in Gray Wing’s chest to see how the cats were beginning to rely on the young tom for help. He hoped Turtle Tail, up among the spirit cats, could see how important her kit had become to his campmates.
“A comfrey lining in your nest should help,” Pebble Heart told the brown tom. “But I’ll need to go out and search for some. I’ve only collected coltsfoot and nettle so far.”
Go out? For the last half-moon, Pebble Heart and the rest of the cats had stayed close to camp.
But now Gray Wing’s ear twitched with worry. Fern could be out there. Maybe Slash, too. Pebble Heart seemed to sense Gray Wing’s concern, and he glanced at Mud Paws, who instantly gave a nod.
“I’ll come with you,” the brown tom offered. “Four eyes are better than two.”
Relief washed Gray Wing’s pelt. “Stay together,” he warned.
Pebble Heart flashed him a questioning look. “Is something worrying you?”
“No.” Gray Wing meowed quickly. “But we don’t know our new territory yet. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
Pebble Heart narrowed his eyes, but Mud Paws was already heading for the entrance.
“We’ll be fine,” he called over his shoulder.
“Don’t worry so much, Gray Wing,” said Pebble Heart with a flick of his tail. “It’s not good for your breathing. We know how to look after ourselves.”
Gray Wing watched Pebble Heart trotting after Mud Paws and tried to ignore the anxiety worming in his belly. He nodded to Holly. “Let’s see if we can start weaving a shelter for your new nest.” He headed toward the far end of camp, Holly at his side.
As he passed Tall Shadow and Jagged Peak, they looked up from their conversation.
“What are you doing?” Jagged Peak eyed Holly.
“Gray Wing’s helping me build a den for the kits.”
Jagged Peak’s fur rippled along his spine as he padded forward. “They’re my kits,” he meowed sharply. “I’ll build their den.”
Holly moved aside as he pushed between her and Gray Wing. “Gray Wing says this end of the camp will be warmest,” she told him.
Jagged Peak didn’t answer, but began sniffing around the bramble wall.
Gray Wing backed away. If Jagged Peak wanted to take charge, why argue? Dew Nose, Storm
Pelt, and Eagle Feather were his kits.
“Let me know if you need some help,” said Gray Wing, giving Holly a polite nod. Turning, he noticed Tall Shadow gazing at him. She looked uneasy. Before he could ask if anything was wrong, the camp entrance rustled loudly. A familiar scent touched Gray Wing’s nose.
“Slate!”
The amber-eyed moor cat was padding into camp. She dipped her head low to Tall Shadow. “I hope you don’t mind my visiting.”
Tall Shadow padded from the edge of the clearing. “We’re always pleased to see you.”
Gray Wing hurried toward Slate. “How are Wind Runner and the kits?”
“They get bigger every day!” Slate purred. “They’re desperate to explore outside the camp, but Wind Runner won’t let them.” She lowered her voice. “I think Gorse Fur thinks a little fresh air will use up some of their energy, but Wind Runner just sticks out her tail and frowns. There’s no arguing with her.”