Outcast

“Purdy, it’s been great traveling with you again,” Brambleclaw was meowing. “And we’re especially grateful to you for rescuing those mouse-brained apprentices. But we can’t ask you to go any farther from your home.”

Calling out last good-byes to Purdy, the cats set off through the trees. Lionpaw and Hollypaw came to pad along beside Jaypaw, their pelts brushing his on either side.

In contrast to the days before, they padded on in tense silence as the sun climbed above the trees.

Suddenly Hollypaw’s tail on his shoulder brought Jaypaw to a halt. He could feel the sun warmer on his pelt and a whisper of breeze stirring his whiskers. They must have reached the other side of the forest.

“It’s amazing!” Hollypaw whispered.

“What?” Irritation pricked at Jaypaw’s pelt, annoyance that he couldn’t see whatever it was Hollypaw was mewing about.

“The mountains.” It was Lionpaw who replied, his voice awestruck. “They’re vast!”

“It’s this huge wall of stone,” Hollypaw explained. “All gray and steep and bare, apart from a few cracks with grass growing in them. Jaypaw, I wish you could see. It goes up forever!”

“I can’t even see the top,” Lionpaw added. “It’s hidden in the clouds.”

“Home.” Brook’s whisper came from just in front of Jaypaw. He sensed her mingled longing and fear; the same tension came from the other Tribe cats. They must be scared of what lay ahead, facing intruders in the place they had always thought of as theirs and theirs alone.

“Tribe of Endless Hunting.” The low murmur came from Night. “Watch over us and guide our paw steps.”

Jaypaw shivered. Can StarClan still see us here? Even though he knew that one day he would have more power than StarClan, he felt exposed and vulnerable under an indifferent sky.

“We’ve made good time,” Talon meowed. “We can climb up to our cave before dark.”

“Are you sure?” Squirrelflight’s voice was doubtful.

“Remember the apprentices aren’t experienced climbers. We don’t want to be stuck out on the mountain overnight.”

“Are we going to be held up by the apprentices again?”

Talon retorted.

Jaypaw bristled at the anger in his tone, especially as he knew it was justified. What had Lionpaw and Hollypaw been thinking of, going into the barn like that and risking everything?

“The apprentices will be fine,” Stormfur stated calmly.

“We can help them. What do you think, Brambleclaw?”

There was a pause before Brambleclaw replied. “Okay, let’s go.”

Jaypaw bounded beside his littermates as they crossed an open space. Gradually the ground began to slope upward; the grass beneath his paws grew thinner, and there were patches of loose soil mixed with grit that caught between his claws.

Soon the slope was so steep that his paws started to slip.

“Mouse dung!” he muttered, clawing for a grip.

“Here.” Squirrelflight’s scent wreathed around him and he felt her tail guiding him to one side. His paws met solid rock.

“There’s a path we can follow,” his mother mewed.

“There’s a drop on this side, so make sure your pelt keeps brushing the rock on the other.”

Jaypaw padded behind Tawnypelt with Squirrelflight just behind him. He could scent his littermates a short way ahead.

He began to feel more confident; this was a bit like climbing to the Highledge or making the journey to the Moonpool.

I can do those without any trouble. I’ll be fine here.

But as the path twisted higher into the mountains his confidence began to ebb. He kept picturing the long drop his mother had warned him about, and knew that a single misstep would send him plummeting into the depths. Cold wind buffeted him, threatening to carry him off his paws. The rock was hard, and he couldn’t see to avoid the sharp stones that cut his pads.

A harsh screech sounded from somewhere above. Startled, Jaypaw stumbled and only Squirrelflight’s shoulder, pushing up against his side, kept him on his paws.

“What was that?” he gasped.

“An eagle,” his mother replied. “They can be dangerous, but that one is far away. It won’t bother us.”

“I wish it would,” Stormfur called from behind. “We’d all have a good meal then.”

Squirrelflight gently nudged Jaypaw forward again, but before he’d gone more than a few paw steps, he heard Night’s voice from somewhere above his head. “Wait! Stop, all of you!”

Jaypaw halted, his nose bumping Tawnypelt’s tail. “What’s going on?” he asked.

“There’s a gap here,” Brambleclaw called, his voice echoing from the rocks. “We’ll have to jump.”

Jaypaw’s paws tingled with fear but he held his head high, refusing to show the Tribe cats he was scared. Squirrelflight pressed against his flank, and he was glad of her silent support.

“Come on, Lionpaw.” Brambleclaw’s voice came again, warm and encouraging. “You’ve leaped the stream on the WindClan border, and this is no farther.” There was a brief silence, then he meowed, “Well done! Breezepaw next.”