Starlight

Chapter 22

Brambletuft hurled himself down the hill in pursuit of Russetfur and Hawkfrost. Rain filled the air, as if the whole lake had been flung into the sky. It washed away the scent of the fleeing cats, and in the darkness Brambletuft wasn't even sure he was going the right way. But fury lent speed to his paws and sent energy surging through him from ears to tail-tip until he was hardly aware of being cold and soaked to the skin.

A flash of lightning lit up the hillside, and Brambletuft spotted his enemies streaking ahead of him: Russetfur had almost reached the lakeshore, and Hawkfrost was a couple of tail-lengths behind. Two or three other dark shapes ran alongside them. In the chaos of the storm Brambletuft couldn't be sure if any of his Clanmates had followed him, but he kept going, forcing his paws into an extra burst of speed.

The next flash of lightning showed him he had halved the distance between himself and his quarry. He pelted past the horseplace, glimpsing a yellow gleam of light in the Twoleg nest on the far side of the field. He was briefly aware that there were no kittypet nearby as he hurtled along the shore close to the Gathering place.

He was forced to slow down when he came to the marsh, and his paws kept slipping from the rain-soaked tussocks of grass into pools of peaty water. Mud plastered his legs and belly fur. Snarling in frustration, he imagined Russetfur and Hawkfrost escaping him.

His sense of kinship with Hawkfrost had vanished, and he felt hollow with the sense of betrayal. If his half brother thought he would escape a fight because they were kin, he was wrong!

He heard the sound of another cat splashing ahead of him, and made out a dark shape floundering in mud. Letting out a yowl of triumph, Brambletuft leaped, but as he took off his hindpaws slipped on the soft ground and his straining forepaws barely grazed the other cat's fur. He landed awkwardly on one side; before he could recover a heavy weight landed on him, driving him into the mud, and he felt claws gouge deeply into his shoulder. Russetfur's eyes, glaring with hatred, were a mouse-length from his own, and the ShadowClan cat's scent flooded over him.

"Traitor!" Brambletuft gasped.

He tried to heave upward and throw his enemy off, but the sodden ground yielded under him, and he felt the icy touch of liquid mud soaking into his pelt. He battered helplessly against Russetfur's belly with his hindpaws.

Russetfur let out a snarl, baring her teeth. Brambletuft braced himself as he waited for the shining fangs to meet in his throat. Then a darker shadow reared up beyond Russetfur, and a massive tabby paw swatted the ShadowClan deputy on the side of the head. Russetfur jerked back, off balance, and Brambletuft managed to slide out from under her to see her grappling with Hawkfrost in a clump of reeds.

Utterly confused, Brambletuft staggered to his paws, feeling the drag of wet mud plastered over his pelt. The next flash of lightning showed Hawkfrost standing over Russetfur with one paw on her belly and the other pinning her by the throat. His pelt was soaked in mud, and his ice-blue eyes blazed.

He and Brambletuft gazed at each other.

"You saved my life," Brambletuft's voice shook. "Why, Hawkfrost? Why did you help me and not her?"

Russetfur writhed under Hawkfrost's paws and spat out an insult, but Hawkfrost's gaze never left Brambletuft. Even in the darkness the young ThunderClan warrior could not break away from the compelling ice-blue eyes. For a few moments the two of them seemed alone in the world, enclosed by the turmoil of the storm.

"You helped Russetfur," Brambletuft stammered. "You attacked WindClan, but now. . ."

Hawkfrost bowed his head. "True," he meowed. "RiverClan joined with ShadowClan after WindClan declared war on us, and it seems as if ThunderClan formed their own alliance as well. But you're my brother, Brambletuft. How could I let her kill you?"