Yellowfang’s Secret полностью

Yellowfang shook her head. “I don’t see how.”

“You can tell as soon as they are injured,” Sagewhisker replied. “Or where their pain is when they are sick.”

“So can you—because cats tell you!” Yellowfang pointed out. Struggling to stay calm, she added, “I don’t want to feel like this. It’s getting in the way of being a warrior.”

Sagewhisker said nothing for so long that Yellowfang grew worried. Finally she spoke. “Maybe being a warrior isn’t the best use of you in ShadowClan,” she mewed quietly. “Maybe you should be a medicine cat.”

Yellowfang sprang to her paws. “Don’t be ridiculous! I’m a warrior!” When Sagewhisker met her gaze with wide, serious eyes, she went on. “I can’t help that I feel when other cats are hurt. I don’t want to, and if I could get rid of it I would. You’re supposed to be helping me!”

Sagewhisker sighed. “Yellowfang, that’s all I ever want to do.”

Suddenly Yellowfang didn’t want to talk to Sagewhisker anymore. She doesn’t understand! Spinning around, she stormed into the clearing.

Outside, Brightflower was just emerging from the warriors’ den. Spotting Yellowfang, she bounded over to her. “Raggedpelt—” Brightflower began, and broke off. “Are you okay?” she asked anxiously.

“I’m fine,” Yellowfang snapped.

Brightflower blinked. “Raggedpelt is asking for you,” she meowed.

Yellowfang wasn’t sure she wanted to talk to any cat right now, but after a moment’s hesitation she turned her paw steps in the direction of the warriors’ den. Raggedpelt was curled up in his nest. It was lined with extra feathers; with a purr of amusement Yellowfang thought that the tabby warrior looked like a baby crow with a black frill around his head. As she picked her way among the other nests to his side, Raggedpelt raised his head.

“Yellowfang…” he murmured. “I wanted to thank you. You saved my life.”

Yellowfang’s pelt grew hot with embarrassment. “It was nothing,” she mumbled. “Any cat would have done the same.”

The secret that lay between her and Raggedpelt made her feel uncomfortable, as if ants were crawling through her fur. She took a pace back, but before she could leave, Raggedpelt reached out a paw to stop her.

“Promise me you’ll never do something so mouse-brained again,” he grunted. “You could have been killed.”

“Well, you were nearly killed yourself,” Yellowfang shot back at him. “So I’d be in good company!”

Raggedpelt didn’t reply, just let out another grunt of pain.

“Lie down,” Yellowfang meowed, helping him to settle in his nest. “I’ll bring you something to eat later.” Glancing back before she left the den, she saw that Raggedpelt’s eyes were closed. A spark of warmth woke inside her. Maybe we can go back to being friends.

Outside the den, Yellowfang arched her back in a long stretch. Her weariness was ebbing, and she longed to work off her energy in a run through the forest. As she relaxed from her stretch she became aware of some cat watching her, and she turned to see Foxpaw fixing her with a burning glare. What’s her problem? But Yellowfang couldn’t be bothered to confront the apprentice. She put Foxpaw out of her mind as she padded across the camp to where Stonetooth and a few of the other warriors were gathered around the fresh-kill pile. The Clan deputy was sitting with his paws tucked under him, dozing in the sunlight; he blinked awake as Yellowfang halted in front of him. As he struggled to his paws she thought he looked suddenly old, but a heartbeat later he was as crisp and efficient as ever.

“Yellowfang, I want you to lead a patrol back to where you saw the badger. We need to drive that creature out of the woods once and for all.”

“Of course,” Yellowfang replied, with a thrill of pride that she had been asked to take on such an important job.

“Good.” Stonetooth glanced around at the other warriors near the fresh-kill pile. “Archeye, Mousewing, you can go,” he mewed.

“Great!” Archeye swallowed the last of the vole he was sharing with Mousewing, and swiped his tongue around his jaws. “Now?”

Stonetooth nodded. “Right away. Scorchwind and Newtspeck, you can join them.”

“And us!” Wolfpaw panted, bounding up with Foxpaw at his shoulder.

The Clan deputy shook his head. “This patrol is just for warriors.”

Wolfpaw’s tail dropped in disappointment, while his sister glared at Yellowfang. Don’t look at me like that, Yellowfang thought, longing to give the annoying apprentice a cuff around the ear. It’s not my fault. And if you’d seen what that badger can do, maybe you wouldn’t be so keen to go.

“Hang on a moment,” Archeye meowed. “Maybe we should let the apprentices come with us. They need the experience.”

Oh, Archeye, why can’t you keep your jaws shut? Yellowfang would have liked to speak the words aloud, but she had to keep quiet and not show her annoyance while the deputy considered.