Dawn

“You persuaded him to let Cody help,” Cinderpelt reminded her.

“But she’s not a ThunderClan cat…” Leafpaw mewed.

Cinderpelt gazed at her through narrowed eyes. “Blackstar’s no fool. He knows his cats need our help.”

Leafpaw nodded. Summoning up her courage, she padded toward the ShadowClan cats and called to Littlecloud, “Can I help?”

The look in Littlecloud’s eyes gave away his relief and gratitude. But before he could reply, Blackstar rounded on Leafpaw, his eyes as hard as the Moonstone. “We can take care of our own cats, thank you.”

“But you’ve already allowed Cody to help, and I have herbs,” she offered, forcing herself to sound calm.

“Littlecloud will manage,” Blackstar insisted.

Leafpaw shuffled her paws, torn between her duties as a medicine cat and nervous respect for Blackstar’s wishes.

Then Littlecloud mewed loudly, “Blackstar, we need those herbs.”

Blackstar flattened his ears, but Littlecloud held his gaze.

“With Leafpaw I can help our Clanmates twice as fast.”

Blackstar twitched his ears. “Very well,” he growled.

“Can I help too?” Mothwing padded across the rock to join them. “Mistyfoot said it would be okay.”

“You may as well,” Blackstar grunted, turning away.

“Thanks, Mothwing,” Leafpaw whispered. She left the bundle of herbs at Mothwing’s paws and hurried back to the crevice to fetch more. Cinderpelt was still there and had begun mixing a salve on a dried oak leaf.

“This is ready to use,” she muttered through a mouthful of half-crushed berries. “Come back when you need more.”

Leafpaw went back and dropped the salve beside Littlecloud, who was examining Runningnose’s pelt. “Rub this in after you’ve pulled out the splinters,” she told him. “It’ll stop any infection.” She gazed around at the ShadowClan cats. “Where would you like me to start?”

“The elders heal slowly, so they should be treated as soon as possible,” Littlecloud advised without looking up.

Leafpaw went over to Boulder, who was lying beside Runningnose, his eyes glazed with shock. She nodded politely at him, and when he did not respond, she leaned down and began to lick his flank. The old cat sighed quietly as she pulled out a splinter with her teeth and rubbed in a tiny drop of salve.

Leafpaw worked on one cat after another till her paws ached with tiredness. As the moon began to brighten in the sky, she glanced up the slope toward her father. “Cody, can you take over here?” she asked. “There are only one or two apprentices left, and I want to see how Firestar is.”

“Of course. You go right ahead.”

Firestar was lying beside Sandstorm, washing dried blood from between his claws. “How are you?” Leafpaw whispered, touching her muzzle to his.

“I’m fine,” he purred, his eyes soft and clear.

“Are you sure?” She searched his face. For all her connection with StarClan, she would never know what it felt like to lose a life. “D-did StarClan tell you we should leave the forest now?”

“They told me only to go back and do what I must to protect my Clan,” Firestar told her. “And that’s what I’m going to do.”

Leafpaw heard the RiverClan cats gathering on the slope behind her. “We’re returning to our camp,” Mistyfoot announced to Firestar. “But we know that the time has come to make a decision about leaving the forest.”

Leafpaw held her breath. The fate of all four Clans hung like a cobweb, fragile to the gentlest breath of wind.

“I’m sure many of you have noticed that the river is drying up,” Mistyfoot went on.

Onewhisker padded forward. “The Twolegs have changed the course of the water,” he meowed. “Our warriors have seen them digging great holes around the gorge to channel the river away.”

Mistyfoot just blinked at him as if the reason for the disappearance of the river no longer mattered. “Leopardstar told me that if the ShadowClan camp was destroyed, then we must accept that the Twolegs are coming.” She held Firestar’s gaze steadily. “RiverClan will leave the forest with the other Clans.”

Leafpaw felt her shoulders sag with relief. At last Firestar would have his wish, and all four Clans would leave together.

Firestar hauled himself to his paws, his eyes brightening.

“Onewhisker, tell your Clanmates that ThunderClan and RiverClan will travel with them.” He turned his face toward Blackstar. “Will ShadowClan join us?”

Blackstar hesitated, but Firestar was in no mood to wait for an answer.

“You can’t still plan to live among the Twolegs after you have seen what they are capable of?” he hissed.

Blackstar nodded slowly. “ShadowClan will travel with you,” he meowed. “After all, we have no home and no territory now.”

Firestar lifted his head to address all the cats on the rock.

“We will leave at dawn!”

Mews of approval echoed through the air, and Leafpaw felt a tingle of excitement. Whatever the journey held—wherever they were going—nothing could be worse than to stay in this place with Twolegs and their monsters closing in on all sides.

She glanced at Cody, still busy among the ShadowClan cats.