Sign Of The Moon

“I guess you must be nervous,” Lionblaze responded. “You’re much better than that on an ordinary hunting patrol.”

Now that she was facing failure, Dovepaw realized just how much she wanted to pass her assessment. Being a warrior is way better than being part of the prophecy with my so-called special powers. She tensed as another thought struck her. What if Ivypaw is made a warrior and I’m not?

Her sister deserved it, Dovepaw knew. She didn’t have any special powers of her own, but every night she put herself in danger to spy for Lionblaze and Jayfeather in the Dark Forest.

Ivypaw’s better than me. I can’t even catch a stupid squirrel!

“Cheer up,” Lionblaze meowed. “Your assessment isn’t over yet. But for StarClan’s sake, concentrate!”

“I’ll do my best,” Dovepaw promised. “What’s next?”

In answer, Lionblaze angled his ears in the direction they had come from. Dovepaw turned to see Icecloud picking her way across the frosty grass.

“Hi,” the white she-cat mewed. “Brambleclaw sent me to help you.”

“You’re just in time.” Lionblaze dipped his head. “The next part of the assessment is hunting with a partner,” he explained to Dovepaw.

Dovepaw brightened up; she enjoyed hunting as part of a team, and Icecloud would be easy to work with. But she was disconcerted when Icecloud looked at her with her head cocked to one side and asked, “What do you want me to do?”

“I…er…” Dovepaw wasn’t used to giving orders to a warrior. Come on, mouse-brain! Shape up!

“Let’s try for a blackbird,” she suggested. “Icecloud, your white pelt is going to be a problem, though.”

“Tell me about it,” the white she-cat mewed ruefully.

“So we’ll have to find somewhere you can stay in cover until the last moment. When we find a bird, I’ll stalk it and try to drive it toward you.”

“You’ll need to make sure it doesn’t fly off, or—”

Lionblaze interrupted Icecloud’s warning with a meaningful cough.

“Oops, sorry,” Icecloud mewed. “I forgot. Go on, Dovepaw.”

“Blackbirds often nest just beyond the old Twoleg den,” Dovepaw went on after a moment’s thought. “I know it’s too early for them to be nesting, but it might be worth scouting there for good places.”

Lionblaze nodded encouragingly. “Then what?”

“Well…the ground slopes away there. Icecloud could take cover down the slope.”

“Okay, let’s see you do it,” Lionblaze meowed.

Dovepaw had taken only a few paw steps when Spiderleg reappeared, shouldering his way through the bracken. He said nothing; Dovepaw’s paws itched with curiosity to find out how her sister was getting on, but there was no time to ask. It felt weird to be padding a pace or two ahead of Icecloud, as if she was leading a patrol, and weirder still to be the one who was making the decisions. Panic pricked at Dovepaw, like ants crawling through her pelt. Her head felt as empty as an echoing cave, as if everything she had ever learned had flown away like birds from a branch.

I’ve spent more time eavesdropping on other Clans than training to be a warrior!

Dovepaw wanted to finish her assessment without using her special powers. Ivypaw doesn’t have them, so it’s only fair. But it was hard to switch her senses off when she was constantly wondering what her sister was up to. Besides, when she tried to focus on the sounds that were closest to her, she felt trapped and smothered by the trees.

How do the other cats cope? she wondered. I can hardly catch my breath!

Dovepaw led the way up the old Thunderpath, then struck off into the trees where the blackbirds nested. Icecloud followed her closely, while Lionblaze and Spiderleg hung back, observing. Sliding into a hazel thicket, Dovepaw raised her tail to warn Icecloud to keep back, where her white pelt wouldn’t alert any possible prey. Her paws tingled with satisfaction when she spotted a blackbird, pecking at the ground underneath a hazel bush.

Dovepaw drew back. “Go that way, down the slope,” she whispered to Icecloud, signaling with her tail. “I’ll scare the bird and send it in your direction.”

Icecloud nodded and crept away, silent as a wisp of white mist. Dovepaw watched her until she was out of sight; without meaning to, she extended her senses to track the white she-cat even after she disappeared. Puzzled, she realized that Icecloud’s paws sounded different on the ground.

Something isn’t right.

Instead of stalking the blackbird, Dovepaw pushed her way through the thick hazel stems, heading after her Clanmate. Spiderleg let out a disapproving snort. Dovepaw barely noticed; Icecloud’s paws were thundering inside her head, blotting out everything else.

I shouldn’t be able to hear them like that. It’s as if they’re echoing a long way underground. Suddenly Dovepaw understood. Oh, no! The ground must be hollow!

She quickened her pace, thrusting her way out of the thicket and racing down the slope. The blackbird fluttered up into the branches.

“What in the name of StarClan—?” Spiderleg gasped.