Path Of A Warrior

He followed the other young warriors into the clearing, his paws heavy and slow. As the three she-cats joined the other cats already gathered there, Redtail hesitated. Maybe I still have time to talk to Sunstar. If I tell him Tigerclaw and I lied …

What then? That would be a far worse betrayal than anything he could do to Stagleap. Redtail had a duty to Tigerclaw. Tigerclaw had saved his life when he was just an apprentice, and Tigerclaw had the right to expect loyalty from Redtail in return. And Redtail owed his loyalty to ThunderClan, not to any WindClan cat.

Tigerclaw was near the Highrock, sharing a piece of prey with Thistleclaw. At the sight of Redtail, he stood up, stretched, and sauntered over. “We’re leaving as soon as every cat is ready,” he instructed. “Get yourself a mouse or something. You’ll need your strength.”

“Okay,” Redtail mewed, moving obediently toward the fresh-kill pile. Tigerclaw followed.

“Sunstar wants us to concentrate on making a mess of their camp,” he added as Redtail crouched to pick up a sparrow. “But if you see that apprentice Sorrelpaw again, or her so-called mentor, don’t hesitate to claw their fur off. We need to show all the Clans what happens to cats who cross ThunderClan’s borders.”

Redtail dropped the sparrow. “Sorrelpaw didn’t cross our border on purpose,” he burst out. “Please, Tigerclaw, let’s talk to Sunstar. If we tell him what really happened, maybe he’ll change his mind about this.”

Tigerclaw’s eyes narrowed. “What really happened?” He came closer; Redtail could smell the mouse on his breath. “We told Sunstar what really happened.”

“No, we didn’t,” Redtail retorted. “You told Sunstar that we waited for Stagleap to show up after we caught Sorrelpaw on our territory. And that they insulted ThunderClan and attacked us before we drove them off. That’s not what happened at all.”

“Maybe we saw what happened differently, Redtail,” Tigerclaw growled with a dismissive flick of his tail. “And I know you’re young and you’ve just become a warrior. You don’t really understand yet.”

“That’s not the point,” Redtail insisted. “I know what the truth is.” But uncertainty squirmed uncomfortably in his belly. Maybe Tigerclaw was right. Everyone knew he was one of the best warriors in ThunderClan. Maybe Redtail just didn’t understand.

Tigerclaw looked amused. “What you have to remember is that WindClan is our enemy,” he said. “Anything that makes them weaker makes us stronger.”

Is that true? Redtail wondered. He’d always thought of the other Clans in the forest as ThunderClan’s allies.

“Remember,” Tigerclaw mewed softly, nodding at the sparrow at Redtail’s feet. “There is only so much prey in the forest. If WindClan hunts on our territory, ThunderClan cats will go hungry.”

Redtail stared down at the sparrow unhappily. “I guess you’re right,” he murmured. A new thought struck him, and he looked up again eagerly. “But is this going to make ThunderClan stronger? There are a lot of cats in WindClan, and we’re going straight into their camp with just a patrol.”

Tigerclaw gave a pleased mrrow. “There might be a lot of cats in WindClan, but most of them will be out of their camp on a fine day like today, hunting and patrolling. Other than a guard or two, we’ll be facing elders, queens, and kits. They won’t fight us, and we won’t even have to hurt them. We’ll just damage their camp and teach them a lesson.” With another flick of his tail, he added, “Not that I’d mind facing Stagleap again. But Sunstar wants us to do this quickly and cleanly, without much of a fight.”

“Oh,” Redtail murmured. “I see now.” That wasn’t so bad, he supposed. After all, WindClan was their enemy, sort of. And if no cat was really going to be hurt, perhaps it didn’t matter that Sunstar didn’t know the whole story.

“We won’t bother trying to sneak up on them,” Bluefur declared as they left ThunderClan’s camp and headed through the forest toward Fourtrees. “The whole point of this is to show the other Clans that ThunderClan isn’t afraid to defend what’s ours.”

The six cats crossed through their own territory and between the tall oaks of Fourtrees without pausing, Bluefur taking the lead. Tigerclaw and Thistleclaw followed close behind her, shoulder to shoulder. It was a clear day and the early morning sun warmed Redtail’s pelt. It was a good day for hunting, or just for basking in the newleaf warmth, and Redtail could almost pretend their plans were that innocent.

Redtail dropped back to walk with Thrushpelt and Patchpelt. “Have you ever been to WindClan’s camp?” he asked them.