Erin Hanter - Legends of the Clans

DEDICATION

Special thanks to Victoria Holmes

THUNDERCLAN LEADER SUNSTARbright ginger tom with yellow eyes DEPUTY TAWNYSPOTSlight gray tabby tom with amber eyes MEDICINE CATS GOOSEFEATHERspeckled gray tom with pale blue eyes FEATHERWHISKERpale silvery tom with bright amber eyes WARRIORS (toms and she-cats without kits) STORMTAILblue-gray tom with blue eyes ADDERFANGmottled brown tabby tom with yellow eyes HALFTAILbig dark brown tabby tom with yellow eyes and part of his tail missing SMALLEARgray tom with very small ears and amber eyes FUZZYPELTblack tom with yellow eyes WINDFLIGHTgray tabby tom with pale green eyes WHITE-EYEpale gray she-cat, blind in one eye POPPYDAWNlong-haired dark red she-cat with an extremely bushy tail and amber eyes SPECKLETAILpale tabby she-cat with amber eyes PATCHPELTsmall black-and-white tom with amber eyes APPRENTICE, WHITEPAW THRUSHPELTsandy-gray tom with white flash on his chest and bright green eyes DAPPLETAILtortoiseshell she-cat with a lovely dappled coat BLUEFURthick-furred blue-gray she-cat with blue eyes THISTLECLAWgray-and-white tom with amber eyes APPRENTICE, TIGERPAW ROSETAILgray tabby she-cat with a bushy reddish tail LIONHEARTgolden tabby tom, green eyes GOLDENFLOWERpale ginger tabby she-cat with amber eyes LEOPARDFOOTblack she-cat with green eyes QUEENS (she-cats expecting or nursing kits) ROBINWINGsmall brown she-cat with a ginger patch on her chest and amber eyes (mother to Brindlekit, a pale gray tabby she-kit, and Frostkit, a white she-kit with blue eyes) SWIFTBREEZEtabby-and-white she-cat with yellow eyes (mother to Spottedkit, a dark tortoiseshell she-kit; Willowkit, a pale gray she-kit with blue eyes; and Redkit, a small tortoiseshell tom with a ginger tail) APPRENTICES (more than six moons old, in training to become warriors) TIGERPAWbig dark brown tabby tom with unusually long front claws WHITEPAWpure white tom with yellow eyes ELDERS (former warriors and queens, now retired) WEEDWHISKERpale orange tom with yellow eyes MUMBLEFOOTbrown tom with amber eyes LARKSONGtortoiseshell she-cat with pale green eyes

At my signal, unleash the force of ThunderClan upon these rogues! Spottedkit sank her claws into the tree stump and looked down at her loyal warriors. They stared up at her, huge-eyed, bristle-furred, ready to strike. Beyond them crouched the rogues, their tails flicking hungrily.

ThunderClan forever! Spottedkit yowled.

Below her, a dark tortoiseshell tom whirled around and sprang at the closest rogue.

No, Redkit! That wasnt my signal! Spottedkit jumped down from the stump and marched over to her littermate, who was trying to sink his teeth into the scruff of a pale tabby she-kit. Leave Brindlekit alone!

The she-kit shrugged Redkit onto the ground. He landed with an oof!, then scrambled to his paws and glared at Spottedkit. It sounded like a signal!

You didnt tell us what the signal would be, pointed out a white she-kit with eyes the color of the sky.

Spottedkit lashed her tail. Youve spoiled the game, Redkit! You cant be my deputy anymore.

Can I be the deputy? mewed a pale gray kit who had been sitting in the shade of the tree stump.

No, Willowkit, youre my medicine cat, Spottedkit told her.

But I want to fight in the battle! Willowkit protested.

A thick-furred white tom stood up from where he had been sitting on the other side of Brindlekit. Ill be the medicine cat, if you like.

Its not up to you, Whitepaw, Spottedkit mewed. Im the leader, I decide who does what.

Whitepaw scowled. Well, I dont want to be a rogue. Im a ThunderClan cat! Youre so bossy, Spottedkit! He padded over to Frostkit. Im going to be a warrior.

But now we only have one rogue! Spottedkit wailed. Thats not a proper battle!

I dont want to be a rogue either, mewed Brindlekit.

Redkit scored the dust with one tiny claw. We dont want to play with you, Spottedkit. Youre always telling us what to do!

Spottedkit watched miserably as her denmates trotted across the clearing to a sun-warmed patch of sand, where they started batting around an old clump of moss.

Is everything all right?

Spottedkit turned to see her mothers tabby-and-white face. Redkit says Im too bossy.

Swiftbreeze bent her head and licked the fur on Spottedkits neck. Spottedkit snuggled a little closer, purring.

Maybe you should let one of the others be in charge, Swiftbreeze suggested.

But they said I could be Clan leader! Spottedkit mewed. That means I have to look after every cat, doesnt it?

Well, the medicine cat has some responsibility, too, Swiftbreeze purred. And no leader could do without their deputy. Think how Sunstar relies on Tawnyspots to organize the patrols.

When Im the leader of ThunderClan, Ill be in charge of all the patrols, Spottedkit announced. She curled up against her mothers belly and rested her chin on Swiftbreezes hind paw. Im going to make Whitepaw my deputy. Hes kind and smart, and he tells Tigerpaw to stop showing off whenever Thistleclaw teaches him a new way to fight.

Spottedkit felt her mother tense. Thistleclaw shouldnt be teaching Tigerpaw so many battle moves, not when hes only been an apprentice for two moons. Ill ask Leopardfoot to have a word with him. Shes Tigerpaws mother; she wont want him getting hurt before he has a chance to do his final assessment.

Leopardfoot doesnt mind, she said so. She says that Tigerpaw is Pinestars son, so he has to be the best warrior in all the Clan. Spottedkit sometimes wondered how Tigerpaw felt, knowing that his father had left ThunderClan to become a kittypet. Sunstar was leader now, and he never let any cat tease Tigerpaw about his father. But cats still talked when Sunstar was out of earshot, and Spottedkit saw the dark brown tabby apprentice glaring at his Clanmates sometimes as if he blamed them for Pinestar abandoning him.

Spottedkit started following the scent of milk through her mothers belly fur. Tigerpaw had better watch out. Im going to be the best warrior ever, so there!

Swiftbreeze shifted position so that she was lying more comfortably on the earth. I dont doubt that for a moment, little one, she purred. But before that happens, you must learn to play nicely with your denmates!

There was a rustle of branches as cats pushed through the gorse tunnel. Spottedkit looked up over her mothers back, a droplet of milk clinging to her whiskers. The hunting patrol is back!

She scrambled to her paws and ran over to the fresh-kill pile where the warriors had lined up to deposit their kill. Tawnyspots was at the front, shoulders tensed under the weight of a full-grown squirrel. The deputy looked thin and his flanks heaved, as if he had run twice as far as the other warriors.