Mapleshade's vengeance

Chapter 3

"Watch this, Larchkit!" Wrinkling her muzzle in concentration, Petalkit gripped the bundle of dry
moss in her jaws and shook it violently.
Her brother grabbed the moss from her and tossed it across the clearing. Both kits scrambled after it, Petalkit winning by a nose. She flopped down on top of the moss. "Mine!" she declared.
"Don't you want to join in?" Mapleshade asked Patchkit, who was lying in the curve of her belly.
His fur matched hers so perfectly that it was impossible to tell where one stopped and the other
began. "It looks like they're having fun."
Her son shook his head. "I'm fine here," he mewed. He snuggled in a little closer. "You need me
to keep you warm, don't you?" His green eyes blinked anxiously at her.
Mapleshade stifled a purr of laughter. She could barely feel his tiny body against hers. It was a
rare cloud-free day in the rainwashed leaf-fall, and the sunbeams were just strong enough to bring cats out of their dens to bask, though there was a chill in the ground that warned of leaf-bare just around the corner.
"You're doing a great job," she told Patchkit. "I might have to share you with the elders to stop
them getting cold."
Patchkit's green eyes opened wide in alarm. "No! I want to stay with you forever and ever! Even
when I'm an apprentice!"
Mapleshade nuzzled the top of his head. "That won't be for another four moons, little one. By then you'll be so big and strong, you'll be glad to leave the nursery and start your warrior training!"
"No I won't," muttered Patchkit, burying his face in her chest fur. "I never want to leave you."
Petalkit and Larchkit were standing side by side, looking at the moss.
"You've ripped it to pieces!" Larchkit protested. "It doesn't roll away now, look." He prodded
the pile of dusty brown shreds with his paw.
Petalkit shrugged. "It was trying to escape and I caught it!"
One of the elders, a gray tabby named Rabbitfur, padded stiffly over to the kits. "Looks like she's
killed it," he observed. "Want to play a different game?"
"Yes please!" mewed Larchkit.
Rabbitfur used his front paw to roll a small stone into the middle of the clearing. Then he nudged a twig with his nose until it lay a bit less than a fox-length from the stone. Mapleshade propped herself up to watch.
"I want you to stand by this stick," Rabbitfur meowed, pointing with his tail, "and pounce on that
stone without touching the ground in between."
Petalkit blinked. "But that's almost at the other side of the clearing!"
"I'd have to grow wings to jump that far!" mewed Larchkit.
"Don't be mouse-brained," snorted Rabbitfur. "Your father could leap twice that distance, and
land on the smallest leaf without disturbing a fly."
Mapleshade felt a stir of alarm in her belly. Beside her, Patchkit sat up and tipped his head to one
side. "Rabbitfur's really bossy!" he squeaked.
Petalkit was crouching down beside the twig, wiggling her rump as she braced herself for the jump. With a grunt, she heaved herself forward, but her hind paw caught on the stick. She lurched sideways, snapping the twig, and sprawled on the ground at Rabbitfur's paws.
"Humph!" he muttered. "Try again."
This time Petalkit managed to clear the stick but she barely made half of the distance to the stone.
Rabbitfur shook his head. "Your turn, Larchkit," he rumbled.
The little brown tom looked very determined as he hunkered down. He sprang into the air, almost
as high as Rabbitfur's ears, but came down almost vertically, like an acorn falling from a tree.
Rabbitfur had to dodge out of the way to avoid being squashed. "Watch out!" He gave his chest
fur a couple of licks. "Birchface managed to pounce without flattening any cats," he grunted.
Mapleshade couldn't listen to anymore. She jumped out, dislodging Patchkit, who rolled over
with a squawk, and trotted into the clearing. "Perhaps they take after me, Rabbitfur," she meowed. "I can't pounce, either."
The old tom narrowed his eyes. "You're not that bad," he rasped. "I can't believe any kit of
Birchface would be heavy-footed as a badger." He glanced at Petalkit, who was licking the paw that had caught on the stick.
The blood was roaring in Mapleshade's ears now. "I will not have my kits judged before they
 have even begun their warrior training!" she hissed. "Patchkit, come here! We're going for a walk inthe forest!"
Patchkit scampered over, but Petalkit was pouting. "I want to stay here and practice jumping," she mewed. "I want to be as good as Birchface."
Rabbitfur looked pleased. "You should be very proud of who your father was," he purred. "I
remember the time we were stalking a pheasant over by Twolegplace. I'd never seen a bird that big, but Birchface was fearless—and so quiet, I couldn't hear him over the breeze in the leaves!"
"I think the kits need to stretch their legs outside the camp," Mapleshade meowed, interrupting
Rabbitfur's memories. "Come on, you three! No arguments, Petalkit."
Patchkit's green eyes—so like Appledusk's, they made Mapleshade's heart flip over—were huge.
"Are we allowed outside? I thought we had to stay in the camp until we are old enough to be
apprentices."
"I'll be with you so you'll be perfectly safe," Mapleshade told him. Oakstar and Beetail were out
on patrol and Frecklewish had gone to check the barrier of stones at Snakerocks. Rabbitfur had
 wandered back to his sunny spot outside the elders' den. Apart from some dozing cats, the clearingwas empty. No one would take much notice if she took the kits out.
Suddenly Mapleshade couldn't bear to be in the ravine another moment. With a whisk of her tail,
she trotted toward the tunnel through the gorse. The kits bundled after her, chirping with excitement.
"I'm going to catch a badger!" Larchkit boasted.
"I'm going to watch that badger eat you first!" retorted Petalkit.
Patchkit was running at Mapleshade's heels. "Don't let a badger eat me!" he whimpered.
Mapleshade paused beside the tunnel entrance and turned to lick Patchkit's ears. "I'll never let
anything bad happen to you," she promised. With one more glance to check that they weren't being scrutinized, she ushered her kits into the branches.
"Ow, it's prickly!" squeaked Petalkit.
"Don't stop," Mapleshade urged. With a rapid beat of paws on hard  earth, the kits burst out of thetunnel and stopped dead, staring around."Wow, outside of the camp is really big!" breathed Larchkit.
"It's even bigger at the top of the ravine," Mapleshade meowed. She nudged her kits toward the
path that led up to the trees. Her fur prickled at the thought of being seen by a returning patrol.
The kits scrambled up the slope, Petalkit in the lead. They looked even tinier among the tree
trunks, the towering oaks and beeches that overhung the ravine. Mapleshade hurried them along a little-used path beneath dense ferns; the kits wanted to stop and sniff every leaf, every mark on the ground, but Mapleshade kept them moving, ducking beneath the sweet-smelling fronds and hoping the fern scent would cover their tracks.
The undergrowth began to thin out, and the sound of splashing water drifted through the trees.
Larchkit pricked his ears. "What's that?" he mewed. As he tried to peer through the stalks, he
stumbled over a fallen twig and landed on his nose. Mapleshade whisked him back to his paws
before he could let out a wail. I'm glad Rabbitfur didn't see that, she thought. She couldn't deny thatt hese kits were clumsier than their ThunderClan kin.
Patchkit had kept going while Mapleshade picked up his brother, and Mapleshade heard his
sudden squeak of surprise. "Water! Water everywhere, look!"
His littermates bundled forward to stand beside him at the edge of the bracken. Mapleshade
joined them, and looked out at the dazzling brightness of the river as it flowed past, swift and
sparkling.
"It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," Petalkit whispered.
"Where did it come from?" mewed Larchkit.
Mapleshade thought for a moment. "I don't really know," she admitted. "Farther upstream is a
deep gorge beside WindClan's territory —"
"Can we go there?" Petalkit demanded.
Mapleshade shook her head. "No, little one. It's too far for you to walk today. But one day you'll
see it, I promise."
Patchkit, usually so timid and happy to let his littermates try everything first, tottered over the
stones to the edge of the water.
"Be careful!" Mapleshade warned.
Her son turned to look at her, his eyes shining and droplets of water glinting on his whiskers. "It's okay," he mewed. "Watch!"
Before Mapleshade could stop him, he launched himself forward and slipped into the water. For
one heartstopping moment, he vanished, then his ginger-and-white face bobbed up on the surface.
"Look at me!" he squealed.
Larchkit and Petalkit raced down the shore and plunged in. For a few strides their little paws dug
into the pebbles while the water lapped their fluffy bellies, then they were swimming through the
rolling water.
Mapleshade felt a burst of love like the sun coming out. Oh Appledusk! Our kits are half
RiverClan, for sure!
Patchkit reached a branch sticking out of the water and hauled himself onto it. Water streamed
from his pelt, leaving it as glossy as a crow's feathers. He looked no bigger than a mouse with his fur
flattened to his sides, and his flanks heaved as he caught his breath. Mapleshade felt a jolt of concern.
"Are you okay?" she called.
Patchkit nodded, still panting too hard to speak. Mapleshade paced up and down on the shore. Shehated the idea of getting her paws wet, but she wasn't sure if Patchkit had enough strength to swim
back on his own. The other kits were playing hide-and-seek in a clump of reeds close by the shore.
"Larchkit, Petalkit, go help your brother!" she meowed.
Suddenly the rushes on the far shore rustled and a dark gray head appeared. Mapleshade froze. It
was Spiketail, the RiverClan deputy. In the middle of the river, Patchkit slumped on the branch, his
cheek resting on the slick bark.
"What is that kit doing?" growled Spiketail. He stepped onto the shore, the fur along his spine
bristling.
Mapleshade opened her mouth to speak but two more warriors were emerging from the rushes
beside Spiketail.
"Is ThunderClan sending their youngest cats to invade us?" asked Milkfur, her white pelt glowing
against the stones.
The third cat met Mapleshade's gaze across the river. From this distance, his green eyes were
unreadable. "I think one kit is hardly a threat to our territory," he meowed. "I'll return him to where
he belongs." He waded into the water, his pale brown fur turning black as he slid beneath the surface.
"Larchkit, Petalkit, come here!" Mapleshade hissed. The kits waded toward her, looking scared.
"Is that RiverClan warrior going to catch us?" Petalkit squeaked.
Mapleshade watched Appledusk's head bob steadily closer to the branch. "No," she mewed.
"You're safe, don't worry."
Appledusk mewed something to Patchkit, too quietly for Mapleshade to hear. Patchkit slithered
down the branch and into the water. The RiverClan warrior steadied him with one paw, then began to
propel him toward the ThunderClan shore. Mapleshade realized that the other kits were trembling
from cold and she bent her head to lick their fur.
"Are we in trouble?" Larchkit mewed.
"Hush, everything's fine," Mapleshade murmured between licks.
Appledusk waded out of the river with Patchkit dangling from his jaws. He set the kit down on the
stones and nudged him to his feet. "I think this one's worn out from all that swimming," he
commented. His eyes burned into Mapleshade's. "You took a risk, bringing them this close to our
boundary."
"I wanted to show them the river," Mapleshade meowed. She angled her body so that the kits
were bundled behind her, out of earshot. She could hear Larchkit asking Patchkit what it had been like
to swim so far out.
Appledusk leaned forward until his muzzle was almost touching Mapleshade's cheek. "They are
wonderful," he breathed. "Strong and brave, and as confident as any RiverClan cat in the water. I am
so proud of you." He straightened up and raised his voice. "I don't want to see you or these kits
anywhere near the river again," he meowed. The longing in his eyes told a different story.
Mapleshade bowed her head. "Of course, Appledusk. Thank you for bringing Patchkit back."
Appledusk glanced once more at the kits, then headed back into the water.
"Those kits are not old enough to be out of the nursery!" Milkfur called across the river. "What
were you thinking of, bringing them here? They could have drowned!"
"You may have won Sunningrocks, but the river still belongs to us," yowled Spiketail.
"Appledusk has been merciful this time, but from now on, stay away from our territory."
Mapleshade herded the kits into the bracken. They were bouncing on their paws—even Patchkit,whose fur was fluffing up like thistledown as it dried.
"That was the best thing ever!" squeaked Larchkit.
"When can we come here again?" Petalkit asked. "Swimming is way more fun than jumping!"
"I swam the farthest, didn't I?" mewed Patchkit proudly.
Suddenly a dark shape blocked the path. Mapleshade looked up and met Ravenwing's searching
blue gaze. The medicine cat glanced down at the kits. "What were they doing in the river?" he asked.
Mapleshade's paws started to tingle. "Did . . . did you see them?" she whispered.
Ravenwing nodded. "I saw everything. What's going on, Mapleshade?"
Before Mapleshade could reply, the kits tumbled over themselves to tell him about their
adventure.
"A RiverClan warrior had to save Patchkit—" mewed Larchkit.
"He did not! I was just resting!" Patchkit interrupted crossly.
"It's fine, no one was in any danger," Mapleshade meowed as Ravenwing narrowed his eyes.
"The RiverClan cat was really nice!" squeaked Patchkit. "He said I was very brave, and a really
good swimmer!"
"Did he?" mewed Ravenwing. "What else did he say?" He took a step closer.
Mapleshade curled her tail around the kits. "Come on, little ones, time to go home."
Ravenwing didn't move out of the way. "I've seen an omen, Mapleshade," he murmured. "I
wonder if you know anything about it?"
There was something in his voice that made Mapleshade's fur prick. "Why would I know anything
about an omen? I'm not a medicine cat."
Ravenwing stared at her without blinking. "A tiny stream appeared in my den, in a place where no
stream has run before. It carried with it three pieces of water reed." He swept his paw over the
ground as if he was tracing the path of the rivulet. "Water reed doesn't grow in ThunderClan
territory," he went on. "It doesn't belong inside our boundaries. Do you understand?"
Mapleshade shrugged. "There's been so much rain this leaf-fall, bits and pieces must be washing
all over the place." She tried to keep her voice light but there was a cold, heavy feeling in her belly,
as if she had swallowed a stone from the river.
Ravenwing watched the kits play with an acorn, shuffling it from one to the other with their paws.
"I think this omen means that the river has washed three strange cats into ThunderClan—three cats
who don't belong there."
Mapleshade's heart was pounding so hard, she could hardly breathe. "What are you trying to
say?" she whispered.
Ravenwing gazed at her, and suddenly he didn't seem like a young, inexperienced cat anymore.
Knowledge glittered in his eyes like frosty stars. "Birchface is not the father of these kits, is he?
Rabbitfur told me what happened today, how they showed no signs of being able to stalk or pounce
like him. And don't tell me that they take after you instead," he added, cutting Mapleshade off as she
opened her mouth. "You tread as lightly as any ThunderClan warrior." He looked past her, at the
river splashing beyond the shade of the trees. "I watched your kits swim in that river as if they were
fish. I think these kits were fathered by a RiverClan cat. Appledusk, I'd guess, judging by the color of
their fur and by the way he spoke to you when he brought Patchkit back."
Mapleshade felt the ground sway beneath her paws. "ThunderClan is blessed to have three
beautiful, strong kits," she hissed. "The truth will be revealed at the right time. It's not my fault thateveryone assumed Birchface was their father."
"I cannot let you lie to our Clanmates!" Ravenwing spat. "And now that I know the truth, I cannot
lie, either."
"I have told you nothing," Mapleshade mewed through clenched jaws.
"You have told me plenty," Ravenwing responded, and there was sadness in his sky-colored eyes.
"The truth must come out."
"Please don't say anything!" Mapleshade begged. "These are ThunderClan's kits!"
"They are half RiverClan," Ravenwing corrected, his voice as hard as ice. "Our Clanmates
deserve to know. I'm sorry, Mapleshade. Sorry for you, but even sorrier for these kits. They will end
up suffering for the lies that you have told." He whirled around and vanished into the bracken.
Mapleshade stared after him. StarClan, help me! For a moment she considered taking her kits and
running deeper into the forest, hiding her kits away from any cat who might harm them. But then she
looked at Petalkit balancing the acorn on her head while her brothers tried to knock her off her paws
and dislodge it. ThunderClan loves these kits and won't do anything to hurt them. I always planned
to tell them the truth. It's just happening sooner than I thought.