Yellowfang’s Secret полностью

“Tell me about the other medicine cats!” Runningpaw begged, bouncing around the medicine cats’ den and getting under Yellowfang’s paws.

“What for? You’ll meet them soon,” Yellowfang responded.

Runningpaw had been her apprentice for a quarter moon, and tonight he would go with her to his first full-moon Gathering.

“But I’m nervous! I won’t know what to say. Please, Yellowfang!”

“Okay, but let me sort these herbs at the same time.” Yellowfang uncovered the first store and plunged her paw into the hole. “Let’s see… Goosefeather is the ThunderClan medicine cat. He’s a bit… strange. If he snaps at you, pay no attention; he doesn’t mean anything. ThunderClan has a second medicine cat, Featherwhisker. He tends to ask too many questions about ShadowClan.” Yellowfang turned to her apprentice and gave him a hard stare. “Whatever you do, don’t tell him anything.”

“I won’t, Yellowfang,” Runningpaw promised, eyes wide.

“Then there’s Hawkheart of WindClan,” Yellowfang went on. “He can sound gruff, but he’s a good cat. And Brambleberry of RiverClan—you’ll like her, she’s so kind and friendly.”

Yellowfang covered up the first hole, took more herbs out of another one, then laid everything out in front of Runningpaw. “These are for Lizardfang,” she announced. “He says he’s always thirsty, and he’s losing a lot of weight. Now, tell me what these herbs are and why I’m giving them to him.”

Runningpaw studied the herbs. “That’s sorrel,” he mewed, pointing with one paw. “That’s to build up Lizardfang’s appetite. That one is burnet, to make him feel generally better and stronger, and the juniper berry… oh, StarClan, I’ve forgotten!” He hesitated a moment, gave a sniff, then added, “Is the juniper to strengthen his stomach?”

“Very good,” Yellowfang purred.

“I’ll take them to Lizardfang, if you like,” Runningpaw offered. “And I’ll make sure he has wet moss.”

“Thanks, Runningpaw,” Yellowfang responded. “Be as quick as you can, and meet me in the clearing. It’s almost time to go.”

Her apprentice tucked the herbs into a neat leaf wrap and hurried off. Yellowfang made sure the den was tidy, then followed him out. The cats who were going to the Gathering had assembled around Cedarstar and Raggedpelt in the middle of the clearing. Darkness had fallen, though the moon still hadn’t risen above the trees. The sky was clear except for a few thin puffs of cloud.

Yellowfang strained to see Brokenpaw. It took her a few moments to spot him; he wasn’t with his mentor, like the other apprentices. She finally saw him standing beside Raggedpelt, who was letting him stay there instead of sending him back to his proper place. Nightpelt just looked resigned. A flash of indignation seared through Yellowfang. Why can’t Nightpelt keep his apprentice under better control?

Cedarstar waved his tail as the signal to move off. Yellowfang looked around for Runningpaw, who dashed to her side as she was waiting to go through the thorn tunnel.

“Lizardfang’s okay,” he panted. “He ate the herbs. Littlebird says she’ll fetch him more water if he needs it.”

“Great.” Yellowfang gave him a nod of approval.

The Clan trekked through the forest and along the tunnel that led to the patch of ShadowClan territory on the far side of the Thunderpath. As they headed toward Fourtrees, Brokenpaw suddenly shot away from the rest of his Clanmates, racing for the ThunderClan border.

Cedarstar halted, his tail lashing, and Raggedpelt yowled, “Brokenpaw! Get back here!”

Brokenpaw paused on the border for a couple of heartbeats before padding back to the group. “I was just making sure that the ThunderClan scent marks were on the right side of the border,” he explained. “This is a vulnerable piece of territory. We can’t neglect it, when getting to Fourtrees is so important.”

Raggedpelt nodded. “True. But next time ask before you go dashing off.”

Yellowfang noticed two or three of the older warriors echoing Raggedpelt’s approval, and her heart swelled with pride.

“Good call,” Blackfoot purred.

“Yes,” Russetfur added. “I can see you’re going to make your Clan strong, Brokenpaw.”

“You’ll be a great warrior,” Boulder agreed.

The ShadowClan cats were the first to arrive at Fourtrees. By now the moon was floating high above, shedding its silvery light over the meeting place. Runningpaw halted at the top of the hollow, his eyes wide with awe as he gazed down. “It’s huge!” he gasped. “Yellowfang, is that the Great Rock where the leaders stand?”

“That’s right,” Yellowfang told him. “They—”

She broke off at a triumphant yowl from Brokenpaw. He hurtled down the slope into the hollow, outstripping all the other cats, and dashed straight for the Great Rock. He was bunching his muscles to leap when Nightpelt called him back.

“You can’t go up there,” he scolded. “That’s only for the leaders.”

For a heartbeat Brokenpaw looked angry; then he flicked his tail. “One day,” he promised. He raced off to explore the rest of the hollow.