Midnight

Chapter 22

Squirrelpaw waited with her friends in the bushes, watching the full moon suspended in the dark blue sky. Back at Fourtrees, the Clans would be meeting for their Gathering. The thought of the clearing thronged with cats, of gossip and stories told, made Squirrelpaw feel sick with loneliness.

For yet another endless day they had struggled through Twolegplace, along Thunderpaths, through fences, over walls. Squirrelpaw was at least thankful they had left the worst of the hard ground behind them; now the Thunderpaths were edged with grass, and gardens surrounded the Twoleg nests. They had been traveling for two days since the heavy rain stranded them in the run-down nest, and they'd been able to find good shelter in that time, even managing to find decent sized prey. Yet the loneliness and anxiety kept Squirrelpaw from sleeping, even when Crowpaw or Feathertail joined her and Swiftpaw in a little pile of warmth.

She still didn't think they were going the right way. Purdy led them on confidently, but the twisting route he took among the Twoleg nests took no account of the sun, and Squirrelpaw felt that the sun-drown place was growing further and further away with each day.

"I think we're farther away than ever." Crowpaw had scornfully echoed her thoughts before he settled down to sleep.

Worst of all were her worries about Tawnypelt. The ShadowClan warrior was a bit more conscious than she had been in the nest, but they could all see how hard it was getting for her to walk. Though she was far too proud to admit it hurt, her shoulder was swollen and the skin around the bite was a furious red and puffy with infection. The chervil unfortunately hadn't done much since they had no sun to dry the leaves and had to get them on quickly. Squirrelpaw and Feathertail frequently take turns licking Tawnypelt's shoulder whether they were walking or settling for sleep, but every cat knew they needed burdock root more than anything now.

Squirrelpaw was jerked awake by a paw prodding her side. She jumped up at the sound of a dog barking, but relaxed when she realized it was too distant to be a threat. Above her, Crowpaw was standing with his ears flicked back, tail twitching, though she wasn't sure if it was annoyance or anxiety that had him on edge.

"Come here," he murmured, padding away to wake Feathertail as well. Everyone else was still sleeping soundly, without a care in the world. Well, except for Tawnypelt, that is.

"What's happening?" Feathertail jumped up, her fur bristled and clumped with leaf mold.

"We need to talk to you. Privately," Crowpaw told her.

The WindClan apprentice led them away from the shrubs, toward the safety of a tree a few fox-lengths away, where no cat would see them. Squirrelpaw shared a concerned glance with Feathertail, neither of them knowing that he wanted to say that needed both of them.

"Listen, Squirrelpaw, Feathertail," he started, sounding far more subdued than usual. "We've got to get out of here today. Things would be better if we could find a forest, or even farmland. We might need to stop for a bit to let Tawnypelt rest, and we can't do that in the middle of all these Twolegs."

"I agree," Squirrelpaw nodded. "But Brambletuft would never agree to leaving Purdy behind, and Stormfur seems to believe Purdy is leading us the right way. Swiftpaw will side with us, especially since I'm choosing to leave, but convincing the other two is near impossible."

Feathertail flicked her ears back, sighing heavily. "I don't like disrespecting cats older than me, but even I agree that Purdy is becoming too much. And you're right, Squirrelpaw, Brambletuft and Stormfur would never agree to leave Purdy here and go on without him."

"It's a pity we ever let him come with us," Crowpaw growled. His tail lashed behind him and dug his claws into the ground. "If it weren't for him, we wouldn't be lost and Tawnypelt wouldn't be hurt!"