Will Thunder be okay? He’s still so young! And what about Clear Sky? There was something in his eyes—and his tone was so cold when he insulted Jagged Peak, and told Thunder why he should come along with him.
A storm of regret and worry churned through Gray Wing and fought off any tiredness that tried to creep up on him.
Then Gray Wing froze. Tiny sounds warned him that something else was creeping up on him. He opened his jaws to taste the air. It smells like another cat.…
“Surprise!” Turtle Tail purred, leaping down into the dip to join him.
Gray Wing gazed at her with delight, though he could see the concern in her eyes as she settled beside him.
“Tell me more about what happened in the forest,” she meowed.
As briefly as he could, Gray Wing described their struggles during the fire. The pain in his paws, and his anxiety over Thunder’s leaving made it hard for him to talk.
“You’re scorched and aching, aren’t you?” she murmured. “Let me help you lick your pads.”
Gray Wing relaxed as he felt Turtle Tail’s tongue rasping gently over his burnt paws. That feels so good…
“Where are the kits?” he asked after a few moments. Turtle Tail would never leave them alone.
“Don’t worry; they’re fine.” Turtle Tail paused in her licking. “They’re asleep in my den, and Rainswept Flower and Jagged Peak are keeping an eye on them.”
“Are you okay with that?” Gray Wing asked. “I mean, that Jagged Peak is showing so much interest in your kits?” He’d noticed that his younger brother spent a lot of time involved in the kits’ care. Was Jagged Peak in danger of treading on Turtle Tail’s claws? He knew it was important for Jagged Peak to find a role, but not if it meant unsettling other cats.
“Yes, it’s fine,” Turtle Tail replied, looking faintly surprised. “I’m glad of any help. Being a mother is hard work. Besides, I… I wanted some time alone with you.” She sat up, her green eyes soft and warm as she met Gray Wing’s gaze. “I’m so grateful to you, for everything.”
Now that Thunder had left, Gray Wing felt even closer to Turtle Tail and her kits. “I’m glad to help you,” he told her, touching her shoulder with his tail.
Turtle Tail let out a contented sigh. Curling up against Gray Wing, she closed her eyes and soon drifted into sleep.
The she-cat’s drowsy purring was soothing and comforting to Gray Wing. I don’t want to be on my own anymore, he realized as he listened to her. He tried to tell himself that it was because he was missing Thunder, but this was something different. Being with another cat like this felt right. And Turtle Tail is so kind and good-hearted, so smart and resourceful…
Gradually the night air grew colder. Gray Wing still couldn’t sleep, but he felt relaxed. His weariness had melted away like frost in sunlight. He couldn’t stop looking at Turtle Tail.
At last she stirred and opened her eyes. “You’re thinking about Thunder, aren’t you?” she murmured. “Go to sleep. It’s not your fault, you know: You couldn’t stand in the way of Thunder wanting to be with his father.”
Sorrow and relief surged through Gray Wing all at once. He still felt sad that Thunder wasn’t with him anymore, but hearing Turtle Tail tell him it wasn’t his fault lifted an enormous burden from his back. She’s right. There wasn’t anything I could have done.
A pleasant tiredness crept over him. As his eyes closed and he sank into sleep, he could still hear Turtle Tail’s purring.
Low, murmuring voices roused Gray Wing from a dream of brushing through long grass under a bright sun. Struggling awake, he realized that the voices were familiar, not threatening. He opened his eyes, blinking, to see Rainswept Flower with Owl Eyes, Sparrow Fur, and Pebble Heart standing around the edge of the dip in a half circle, gazing down at him, their fur buffeted by a brisk wind.
Rainswept Flower’s eyes were alight with mischief. “So there you are!” she exclaimed. “I’m glad you’ve finally figured out what was obvious to the rest of us.”
Gray Wing’s gaze slid to one side and he saw Turtle Tail, remembering instantly how they had bedded down together the night before. Embarrassed, he dipped his head.
“You look so cozy, all curled up there,” Rainswept Flower mewed teasingly.
“Are you coming to live in our den now?” Sparrow Fur asked.
Turtle Tail was awake, gazing at Gray Wing, happiness sparkling in her green eyes. The three kits let out excited squeaks and launched themselves into the dip, scrambling over Gray Wing and Turtle Tail and burrowing into their fur.
“You’ve got your paws full there,” Rainswept Flower commented, padding off with a whisk of her tail.
A sudden, unexpected warmth flooded over Gray Wing. Maybe Turtle Tail and I do belong together, he thought.
Chapter 17
Thunder struggled to wake up, like a fish rising from the dark depths of a pool. Even before he opened his eyes he could feel tension and a subtle hostility from the cats around him. For a couple of heartbeats, that confused him, until he remembered… I’m in my father’s camp.
Ever since Thunder had returned to the forest with Clear Sky and his cats the day before, he had been aware of suspicious glances from some of the others. He guessed that they had picked up on Clear Sky’s concerns about the future. They seem relieved to be back home, but I couldn’t call them happy. Thunder had tried to ignore the atmosphere, but it was hard when many of the other cats would only speak to him in a few curt words.
Thunder scrambled out of his nest and arched his back in a good long stretch. Bright sunlight shone through the leaves above him, casting patterns on the forest floor as the branches swayed in the breeze, and dazzling on the pool at the center of the camp. Clear Sky’s cats were already on the move, though none of them paid Thunder any attention.
Thunder shrugged, trying not to mind their unfriendliness, and settled down to groom himself. He was tugging at an obstinate tangle in his pelt when Clear Sky padded up to him, followed by the black-and-white tom named Leaf.
“You’re coming with me and Leaf on the morning patrol,” Clear Sky announced.
Thunder tried hard not to show his dismay. The night before, Leaf had been particularly harsh to him, sliding out his claws and snarling when Thunder had accidentally brushed against his tail.
As they set out from the camp, Thunder deliberately stayed at the back of the group, not wanting Leaf to feel that he was trying to threaten him or take his place.
Then Clear Sky glanced over his shoulder. “Well done, Thunder,” he meowed. “It’s a brave cat who takes the rear position. A cat who is confident that he can fight off any sneak attacks. Isn’t that right, Leaf?”
Leaf muttered reluctant agreement, his amber eyes burning with quiet fury. Thunder gulped. That’s not what I intended at all.
Clear Sky led the way around bramble thickets and through tight clusters of ferns. Thunder couldn’t spot any damage from burning here; the camp had been untouched, too. “How come you were all trapped by the fire?” he asked his father. “You would have been safe if you’d stayed in camp.”
Leaf glared at him. “Are you calling us stupid?” he growled. “Or cowards?”
“No!” Perhaps Thunder’s question hadn’t been the most tactful.
Clear Sky flicked his tail at Leaf. “That’s enough. Thunder, you’re quite right. We would have been safe if we’d stayed in camp. But it didn’t look like that at the time. The wind was blowing the fire toward our camp; the only thing we could do was get out, fast. But then the wind changed, and we were cut off.”