Eclipse

Her mew was filled with outrage. “What did we ever do but help them? Why are they trying to drive us out of our home?”

Jaypaw couldn’t answer. He didn’t know why any of this was happening, and StarClan wasn’t giving any answers.

“Is Honeyfern all right?” he asked.

“Just a few scratches,” Sorreltail replied. “Once she’s seen those two off, she’ll rejoin the patrol.” She turned to go. “I should get back to them too.”

Jaypaw darted in front of her, ready to block her path, but it wasn’t necessary. She gasped in pain when she tried to put weight on her sprained paw.

“Let’s get that seen to,” he mewed. He pressed against her shoulder and began to guide her up the slope back toward camp. With a pang, he remembered helping Cinderpaw this way after her accident in her warrior assessment. That seemed moons ago now.

Panting, they neared camp, Jaypaw stumbling under her weight. He was relieved when he heard Graystripe pounding toward him.

“Here, let me take over.” The gray warrior nosed him out of the way and supported Sorreltail for the last few paw steps into camp.

Leafpool hurried across the clearing to meet them, comfrey leaves bundled between her jaws. “Lay her here,” she ordered, dropping the comfrey.

She’s in safe paws now. Jaypaw turned, preparing to go out again.

“Wait!” Graystripe blocked his path. “What’s it like out there?”

“RiverClan are fighting with WindClan,” Jaypaw told him.

“I’ll try to find out how far they’ve gotten into our territory.”

He padded past Graystripe, feeling the warrior’s tail touch his back.

“Try to reach Firestar,” Graystripe meowed. “Warn him about RiverClan, but don’t take any risks.”

Jaypaw pushed his way out through the thorn barrier once more and headed inland, toward the border, where he could hear Firestar’s patrol battling the WindClan ambush. Ashfur’s yowl rang through the trees, desperate but determined.

They hadn’t been beaten yet.

Jaypaw weaved through the trees, feeling his way with his whiskers, keeping low. His pelt bristled as he remained alert for any sound other than the distant cries of battle.

“Stupid brambles!”

A sudden unfamiliar mew sent Jaypaw scooting backward into a clump of ferns. They swallowed him and he froze, relieved to be hidden.

“Did you hear that?” The mew was only a few tail-lengths away.

Jaypaw tasted the air. RiverClan again!

“Hear what?”

“That rustling.”

“Everything rustles in this dumb place.”

Four RiverClan cats were making clumsy progress through the woods. One of them tripped, setting a whole bramble bush rattling.

“Could you make any more noise, Reedwhisker?”

“Shut up, Mosspelt! You’re the one that yelped like a kit when you fell down that rabbit hole!”

Jaypaw’s whiskers twitched. Like fish out of water. He waited for them to pass. They’re heading for the WindClan border.

Firestar’s patrol!

He had to get there first. He backed out from the ferns as quietly as he could and darted along a fox trail. He knew it led directly to the border stream. For once he was grateful for the stench of fox; it made it easy to follow the trail and would hide his own scent. The sound of battle grew louder. Jaypaw smelled blood and sensed fear and pain flooding the forest.

He slowed as he heard scuffling ahead and tasted the air.

Lionpaw.

The scent of his brother was strong.

He pricked his ears. Lionpaw was fighting two WindClan warriors single-pawed. Jaypaw unsheathed his claws, wishing he could help. But Lionpaw sounded as though he was doing okay by himself. One of the WindClan warriors was already hopping on three legs, and the other was scrabbling on the ground, backing away in a hurry.

“Run home, cowards!” Lionpaw sneered as the bushes beside Jaypaw exploded and the two WindClan warriors pelted past him.

“Lionpaw?” Jaypaw hissed.

“Jaypaw? Is that you?” Lionpaw darted toward him. “Are you okay?” He was breathing hard, and his pelt smelled of blood. Energy was pulsing from him as though a fire raged in his belly, and Jaypaw could sense that his mind was caught in a whirl of exhilaration.

“Four RiverClan cats are heading this way to help WindClan,” Jaypaw warned.

“RiverClan?” Lionpaw sounded shocked for a moment.

Then his mew hardened. “I’ll sort them out.” He hurried away, leaving Jaypaw blinking in surprise.

“You can’t tackle them on your own!” Jaypaw called after him.

But Lionpaw had vanished among the trees.

“Jaypaw?” Firestar’s mew sounded close to his ear. “What are you doing here?”

“RiverClan have joined WindClan in the battle.”

Firestar drew in a sharp breath. Fear flickered from his pelt for an instant. “Go tell Brambleclaw.” The ThunderClan leader’s mew was grim. “Can you find the way?”

Jaypaw nodded.

“We’re outnumbered here,” Firestar went on. “We may need to retreat to the hollow and defend ourselves there.”