Erin Hunter - A Dangerous Path

LEADER

BLUESTARblue-gray she-cat, tinged with silver around her muzzle

DEPUTY

FIREHEARThandsome ginger tom

APPRENTICE, CLOUDPAW

MEDICINE CAT

CINDERPELTdark gray she-cat

WARRIORS (toms, and she-cats without kits)

WHITESTORMbig white tom

APPRENTICE, BRIGHTPAW

DARKSTRIPEsleek black-and-gray tabby tom

APPRENTICE, FERNPAW

FROSTFURbeautiful white coat and blue eyes

BRINDLEFACEpretty tabby

LONGTAILpale tabby tom with dark black stripes

APPRENTICE, SWIFTPAW

MOUSEFURsmall dusky brown she-cat

APPRENTICE, THORNPAW

BRACKENFURgolden brown tabby tom

DUSTPELTdark brown tabby tom

APPRENTICE, ASHPAW

SANDSTORMpale ginger she-cat

APPRENTICES (more than six moons old, in training to become warriors)

SWIFTPAWblack-and-white tom

CLOUDPAWlong-haired white tom

BRIGHTPAWshe-cat, white with ginger splotches

THORNPAWgolden brown tabby tom

FERNPAWpale gray (with darker flecks) she-cat, pale green eyes

ASHPAWpale gray (with darker flecks) tom, dark blue eyes

QUEENS (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)

GOLDENFLOWERpale ginger coat

SPECKLETAILpale tabby, and the oldest nursery queen

WILLOWPELTvery pale gray she-cat with unusual blue eyes

ELDERS (former warriors and queens, now retired)

ONE-EYEpale gray she-cat, the oldest she-cat in ThunderClan; virtually blind and deaf

SMALLEARgray tom with very small ears; the oldest tom in ThunderClan

DAPPLETAILonce-pretty tortoiseshell she-cat with a lovely dappled coat

LEADER

TIGERSTARbig dark brown tabby tom with unusually long front claws, formerly of ThunderClan

DEPUTY

BLACKFOOTlarge white tom with huge jet-black paws, formerly a rogue cat

MEDICINE CAT

RUNNINGNOSEsmall gray-and-white tom

WARRIORS

OAKFURsmall brown tom

LITTLECLOUDvery small tabby tom

DARKFLOWERblack she-cat

BOULDERsilver tabby tom, formerly a rogue cat

RUSSETFURdark ginger she-cat, formerly a rogue cat

APPRENTICE, CEDARPAW

JAGGEDTOOTHhuge tabby tom, formerly a rogue cat

APPRENTICE, ROWANPAW

QUEENS

TALLPOPPYlong-legged light brown tabby she-cat

LEADER

TALLSTARblack-and-white tom with a very long tail

DEPUTY

DEADFOOTblack tom with a twisted paw

MEDICINE CAT

BARKFACEshort-tailed brown tom

WARRIORS

MUDCLAWmottled dark brown tom

WEBFOOTdark gray tabby tom

TORNEARtabby tom

TAWNYFURgolden brown she-cat

ONEWHISKERbrown tabby tom

APPRENTICE, GORSEPAW

RUNNINGBROOKlight gray she-cat

QUEENS

ASHFOOTgray queen

MORNINGFLOWERtortoiseshell queen

WHITETAILsmall white she-cat

LEADER

CROOKEDSTARhuge light-colored tabby with a twisted jaw

DEPUTY

LEOPARDFURunusually spotted golden tabby she-cat

MEDICINE CAT

MUDFURlong-haired light brown tom

WARRIORS

BLACKCLAWsmoky black tom

HEAVYSTEPthickset tabby tom

APPRENTICE, DAWNPAW

STONEFURgray tom with battle-scarred ears

MISTYFOOTgray she-cat with blue eyes

SHADEPELTvery dark gray she-cat

LOUDBELLYdark brown tom

GRAYSTRIPElong-haired gray tom, formerly of ThunderClan

QUEENS

MOSSPELTtortoiseshell she-cat

ELDERS

GRAYPOOLdark gray she-cat

BARLEYblack-and-white tom that lives on a farm close to the forest

RAVENPAWsleek black cat who lives on the farm with Barley

PRINCESSlight brown tabby with a distinctive white chest and paws; a kittypet

SMUDGEplump black-and-white kittypet who lives in a house at the edge of the forest

Inside the kennel-that-moves, everything was dark. The pack leader could hear the scrabbling of claws and feel the sleek pelt of the dog next to him, but he could see nothing. Dog scent filled his nostrils, and beyond that the smell of the burned forest.

The pack leader sat uncomfortably on the vibrating floor until the kennel-that-moves bounced to a halt. Outside, he could hear Man voices. He understood some of the words. Firekeep watchguard dogs.

The pack leader picked up the Mens fear-scent, along with the bittersweet smell of cut wood. He remembered coming here the night before, and the night before that, more than four paws worth of nights. He had prowled the compound with the rest of the pack, sifting through the scents for intruders, ready to drive them away.

The dog snarled softly, his lips drawn back from sharp teeth. The pack was strong. They could run, and kill. They craved warm blood, and the terror-scent of prey before it died. But instead they were penned up, they ate the food the Man threw to them, and they obeyed the Mans orders.

The dog rose to his powerful paws, rattling the doors as he butted them with his massive black-and-tan head. He lifted his voice in a bark that sounded all the louder in the confined space. Out! Pack out! Out now!

The rest of the pack added their voices. Pack out! Pack run!

As if in answer, the doors of the kennel-that-moves were flung open. In the twilight the pack leader could see the Man standing there, barking an order.

The leader jumped down first, close to a pile of logs stacked in the middle of the compound. His paws threw up little puffs of ash and soot. The rest of the pack followed in a stream of black-and-brown bodies. Pack follow! Pack follow! they barked. The leader padded restlessly along the fence that separated them from the forest. Beyond the fence, burned-out tree trunks leaned against each other or lay on the ground. Farther away a barrier of undamaged trees rustled in the breeze.

Scents flowed enticingly from the leaf-thick shadows. The dogs muscles tensed. Out there, in the prey-filled forest, the pack could run free. There would be no Man to chain or command them. They would feed as often as they wanted, because they would be the strongest and most savage of all.

Free! the lead dog barked. Pack free! Free soon!

He walked up to the fence and pressed his nose against the mesh links, drawing the smells of the forest deep into his lungs. Many of the scents he had never smelled before, but there was one he knew well, stronger than the rest, the scent of his enemy and his prey.

Cats!

Night had fallen; the leafless branches of the blackened trees were silhouetted against a full moon. In the darkness the dogs ranged to and fro, deep shadows in the night. Paws padded softly among soot and sawdust. Muscles rippled under shining coats. Their eyes gleamed. Their jaws were parted, revealing sharp teeth, and their tongues lolled.

The pack leader sniffed along the bottom of the fence, searching for a special place on the opposite side of the compound from where the Man stayed at night. Three nights ago the dog had discovered a narrow hole leading under the fence. He knew at once that this would be the route to freedom for the pack.

Hole. Where hole? he growled.

Then he spotted the place where the earth floor of the compound fell away into a hollow. One massive paw scraped at the ground. The dog raised his head to bark to his followers. Here. Hole, hole. Here.