“Shame on you, Rowanclaw!” he meowed. “Every cat knows that those cats were tricked. They thought they were becoming stronger warriors to protect their Clans. They’ve taken an oath of loyalty, and have proved themselves since then. Breezepelt saved my life when the stoats swarmed over me. If I can forgive Breezepelt for his part in the Great Battle, then you, Rowanclaw, have no excuse.” The golden tabby tom turned his head until his cool amber gaze rested on Breezepelt. “I, for one, think the past should be left in the past,” he finished.
Rowanclaw subsided onto his root with a glowering look, but he said no more. While Bramblestar briefly thanked Onestar and brought the meeting to an end, Crowfeather kept his gaze fixed on Lionblaze.
What a straightforward, generous, candid cat Lionblaze is, he thought. He’s a strong warrior, and any cat should be proud to call him kin. A little wryly he admitted to himself that being raised by Bramblestar probably had a good deal to do with his having turned out to be that kind of cat. Maybe one day I’ll thank Bramblestar for that.
Crowfeather padded between Onestar and Harespring as they crossed the moor on their way back to the WindClan camp. Thin clouds scudded across the sky, driven by a stiff breeze, but the moon floated serenely above them all, and the warriors of StarClan glittered from horizon to horizon.
“That was a great Gathering,” Harespring remarked, blinking in satisfaction. “It’s good that there’s peace among all the Clans.”
“Yes,” Crowfeather agreed. “Now there’s time for the Clans to grow strong, unthreatened by one another.”
For several heartbeats Onestar was silent; his eyes were dark and inward-looking. “Are you okay?” Harespring asked him.
Onestar glanced at Harespring, then at Crowfeather, and then at his own paws, padding steadily uphill. “I don’t know how long there will be peace in the Clans,” he mewed softly. “I can’t shake off the feeling that something bad is coming.”
“Do you know what?” Harespring asked his Clan leader.
Onestar shook his head. “No,” he responded, shivering. “But sometimes I have bad dreams.”
Crowfeather remembered Kestrelflight’s vision of water gushing from the tunnels, strong enough to overwhelm and drown all the Clans. I’ve thought all along that the stoats weren’t enough to explain such a terrible sign, he thought with a sudden quaking in his belly. What if I’m right? What if there is a second wave that will engulf us all?
They returned to the camp, and Crowfeather curled up in his nest. In spite of Onestar’s misgivings, he felt at peace. WindClan had learned a lesson: We must trust the other Clans.
Sinking into sleep, Crowfeather dreamed that he was lying in a sunny hollow on the moor, with the scents of fresh growth filling the air. Healthy, boisterous kits were swarming all over him, batting at him with their soft paws and letting out excited squeaks as they tumbled about. One of them, he noticed, had Heathertail’s wide blue eyes, while two of the others were as black as Breezepelt.
“Oof! Get off!” Crowfeather exclaimed, batting gently at them with claws sheathed.
“You’re a badger!” one of the kits squealed. “And we’re warriors coming to get you!”
“Yeah, get off our territory, stinky badger!” Another of them dug his paws deep into Crowfeather’s fur.
One of the kits, more adventurous than the rest, was heading off across the moor. Nightcloud intercepted her and guided her back toward her littermates. Breezepelt and Heathertail, their tails twined together, looked on with laughter in their eyes.
Crowfeather had never known such feelings of deep happiness and peace. Looking up, he saw a cloud above him suddenly shift into a familiar shape. Ashfoot’s face was looking down at him, and Crowfeather basked in the pride and love in her expression.
Thank you, Ashfoot, he thought. You taught me what I needed to learn. Everything I endured brought me to this, to give me something to fight for in WindClan.
And if trouble does come, he added to himself, then WindClan will deal with it. After the Great Battle, and the fight against the stoats, there’s surely no threat that our Clan can’t face.
READ ON FOR AN EXCLUSIVE MANGA ADVENTURE…
CREATED BY
ERIN HUNTER
WRITTEN BY
DAN JOLLEY
ART BY
JAMES L. BARRY
