Warriors, Dawn Of The Clans 1: The Sun Trail


 * Warriors, Dawn Of The Clans 1: The Sun Trail
 * Synopsis
 * For many moons, a tribe of cats have lived peacefully near the top of a mountain. But prey is scarce and season are harsh—and their leader fears they will not survive. When a mysterious vision reveals a land filled with food and water, a group of brave young cats set off in search of a better home.
 * For many moons, a tribe of cats have lived peacefully near the top of a mountain. But prey is scarce and season are harsh—and their leader fears they will not survive. When a mysterious vision reveals a land filled with food and water, a group of brave young cats set off in search of a better home.
 * For many moons, a tribe of cats have lived peacefully near the top of a mountain. But prey is scarce and season are harsh—and their leader fears they will not survive. When a mysterious vision reveals a land filled with food and water, a group of brave young cats set off in search of a better home.


 * But great danger awaits them. In this unfamiliar world, faced with loners and fierce rogues all vying for territory and power, the travelling cats must find a new way to live side by side—or risk tearing one another apart.
 * Plot
 * The book begins in the mountains, from the point of view of Half Moon. She is worried because the Tribe is overcrowded and starving. Lion's Roar says that maybe they need to find another place to live, but Half Moon points out the mountains are where Jay's Wing led them. However, she sees a vision of a golden sunrise, and believes that maybe some of the Tribe could leave to find a new home, while the rest stay behind.
 * The book begins in the mountains, from the point of view of Half Moon. She is worried because the Tribe is overcrowded and starving. Lion's Roar says that maybe they need to find another place to live, but Half Moon points out the mountains are where Jay's Wing led them. However, she sees a vision of a golden sunrise, and believes that maybe some of the Tribe could leave to find a new home, while the rest stay behind.
 * The book begins in the mountains, from the point of view of Half Moon. She is worried because the Tribe is overcrowded and starving. Lion's Roar says that maybe they need to find another place to live, but Half Moon points out the mountains are where Jay's Wing led them. However, she sees a vision of a golden sunrise, and believes that maybe some of the Tribe could leave to find a new home, while the rest stay behind.


 * Meanwhile, a cat named Gray Wing is out hunting with his brother, Clear Sky. Together they take down a hawk and bring it back to the Tribe. Clear Sky affectionately nuzzles his mate, Bright Stream, while a she-cat named Turtle Tail flirts with Gray Wing. Stoneteller comes out into the cave and says that she has had a vision of a new home that the new cats could be led to. Clear Sky wants to go immediately, as does Gray Wing's little brother Jagged Peak, but Gray Wing is unsure sure about leaving. Bright Stream is also worried about leaving, but Clear Sky threatens to leave her behind. Stoneteller appoints a cat called Shaded Moss to lead the followers of the sun trail. Bright Stream goes hunting with Gray Wing, and tells him that she will go with Clear Sky to follow the sun trail. Gray Wing, on the other paw, has decided to stay. Back at the cave, Gray Wing's younger sister, Fluttering Bird, dies of hunger. Quiet Rain, Gray Wing's mother, is grief-stricken, and tells Gray Wing that he must leave so that not all of her kits will die. The Tribe comes to blows over cats leaving, so Stoneteller has them all cast stones over leaving. Gray Wing votes for the cats to stay, but the side that wants to leave the mountains wins. Gray Wing later talks with Stoneteller and asks if she ever wanted kits. She replies that all of the Tribe are her kits, but she did know love once.


 * Soon, the followers of the sun trail set out. The group is composed of Shattered Ice, Clear Sky, Quick Water,Tall Shadow, Cloud Spots, Jackdaw's Cry, Shaded Moss, Bright Stream, Rainswept Flower, Dappled Pelt, Turtle Tail, Falling Feather, Hawk Swoop, and Moon Shadow. The rest of the Tribe stays behind and finds out there is now a lot more food to go around. Jagged Peak wants to go hunting, so Gray Wing teaches him. The next day, he finds out Jagged Peak has gone missing. Misty Water, the Tribe's best tracker, figures out that Jagged Peak left to find the followers of the sun trail. Quiet Rain finally manages to convince Gray Wing to leave by telling him it is his responsibility to make sure Jagged Peak makes it to the new territory safely. Gray Wing agrees to go after Jagged Peak.  A blizzard delays Gray Wing's departure, but he eventually manages to leave. Quiet Rain follows Gray Wing some of the way, until they reach a river. She tells him to cross quickly, due to the extremely thin ice that can only hold one cat. He says good-bye, but after he steps onto the ice, it starts to crack. He makes a run for safety, and is very lucky to not have been taken away in the current. A huge wall of mist rises, and he looks back, calling a last good-bye to Quiet Rain, but she is unable to hear him over the roaring of the river.


 * To put an end to several hopeless days of searching, he finds Jagged Peak being attacked by an eagle, and he rescues him. Jagged Peak believes that Gray Wing is going to take him back to the Tribe, but Gray Wing explains that he will help him find the followers of the sun trail.  After several misadventures with Jagged Peak, Gray Wing has a dream about what the followers of the sun trail are doing. However, rather than being prophetic, this dream leads Gray Wing to realize that the followers of the sun trail are right above him, and he was hearing their voices as he slept. Gray Wing and Jagged Peak join the followers of the sun trail on their quest to find a new home.  Gray Wing finds out Bright Stream is pregnant, but does not want the other followers of the sun trail to know because she thinks they will think that she will hold them back. As the group moves, eagles attack. They get away, and Clear Sky comes up with a plan to catch an eagle. Gray Wing and Bright Stream go out together, but Gray Wing hurts his leg. Because of his injured leg, Gray Wing is unable to save Bright Stream from the eagle and she is carried off. Turtle Tail tries to tell Gray Wing that Bright Stream's death wasn't his fault, but Gray Wing believes that it was his fault.  The followers of the sun trail finally leave the mountains, and are shocked at how much food they find. However, not everything is easy. Gray Wing is stewing in guilt, and the crew has to fight kittypets, monsters,

dogs

, and sheep. Hawk Swoop dislocates her leg while running from some sheep, but Cloud Spots fixes it for her.


 * A rogue tells the followers of the sun trail about Highstones. Gray Wing and the others are sure that they will find their new home beyond the peaks of Highstones, and set out with high spirits. However, a dog attacks, and Shaded Moss is run over by a monster while trying to get away. The cats hold a funeral for him and continue on. The cats walk by Mothermouth, but ignore it. After some more traveling, they reach the moor. The cats set up camp there. A few days later, Gray Wing is hunting a rabbit when he crashes into Gorse.Wind is there as well, and a fight threatens to start. However, Tall Shadow shows up and prevents it. Later, Moon Shadow catches two squirrels in the woods. Tall Shadow tells him not to go in the woods, because there are hostile cats living there. When Moon Shadow asks who died and made her leader, Tall Shadow responds that Shaded Moss did. Tall Shadow isn't known to be a liar, so she takes over as the leader of the followers of the sun trail.


 * Gray Wing finds Clear Sky alone and apologizes for causing Bright Stream's death. However, Clear Sky blames himself because he wanted to fight the eagles. Gray Wing realizes that Bright Stream wouldn't want them to be so unhappy, and the brothers decide to move forward in life. The brothers explore the forest and find Sunningrocks. There they meet a black she-cat with a white paw and green eyes. She yells at them before swimming away. As the brothers head back to the moor, Gray Wing notices a kittypet following them. Gray Wing finds Moon Shadow fighting the swimming cat, a tom, and a yellow tabby she-cat. The cats get mad at Moon Shadow for picking random fights. Then Turtle Tail has an affectionate moment with Gray Wing at Fourtrees. It gets interrupted by the kittypet from before. She introduces herself as Bumble, and offers to show the two cats around her housefolk's nest. Gray Wing and Turtle Tail head back to the moor separately, and Gray Wing sees Wind and Gorse chasing a rabbit. Wind snags the rabbit from a tunnel. After Gray Wing assures the two that he doesn't want to pick a fight, Wind shows him the way through the tunnels. Dappled Pelt goes for a swim and Gray Wing finds Turtle Tail talking with Bumble again. That night, foxes attack. However, Clear Sky is able to come up with a plan and the cats manage to defeat them. Clear Sky eventually gets fed up with living in the moor and gets a vote to move to the trees. Only Clear Sky, Moon Shadow, Quick Water, Falling Feather, and Jagged Peak vote to go to the trees. But the five cats who wanted to move break off from the followers of the sun trail anyway.


 * The next day, Gray Wing goes to visit Clear Sky. He tries jumping through the trees with the group, but falls out of one and lands on a stump. A silver she-cat saves him from some wasps and leaves after making some sarcastic comments. Gray Wing goes hunting with Turtle Tail after that, but they each head back to the moor alone again. That night, Gray Wing finds Turtle Tail's nest empty. He figures that she's gone to the Twolegplace, so he heads there and meets the silver she-cat again. She introduces herself as Storm, and doesn't remember Gray Wing's full name. Storm shows Bumble's den to Gray Wing, and he finds Turtle Tail there. The two of them go back to the moor. Later, Gray Wing saves Storm from the yellow cat and a white tom, and Storm asks to see where the mountain cats are living. Gray Wing takes Storm to the top of the hollow and they arrange to meet again so Storm can show him the forest. As she leaves, Rainswept Flower notes that Gray Wing is falling for Storm.


 * Gray Wing meets Wind and Gorse, who chase a plump hare into Gray Wing, that he kills. They are now friendly to him, and the cats go to the hollow and share the hare with the followers of the sun trail. Later, Gray Wing sees Storm again. He offers to introduce her to Clear Sky, but a cat tries to stop them. After Gray Wing introduces himself as Clear Sky's brother, the cat takes Gray Wing and Storm to see Clear Sky. The cat is named Fox, and he is the brother of Petal, the yellow she-cat from before. There is awkwardness between Storm and Clear Sky, and Storm runs off.  Gray Wing talks with Turtle Tail. Turtle Tail is obviously in love with him, but Gray Wing doesn't notice and instead tells her about his love of Storm. Turtle Tail pads off sadly. Due to her frustration and crush on Gray Wing, Turtle Tail goes to live with Bumble. A distraught Gray Wing finds Storm and starts to ask her to come live with him. However, Storm reveals that she is Clear Sky's mate, and she's going to have his kits. Gray Wing is hurt when she goes to live with Clear Sky, but he tries to accept it. Clear Sky was crushed when he lost Bright Stream, and deserves a second chance to be happy. Jackdaw's Cry tries to visit Falling Feather, his sister. However, Fox and another cat called Frost won't let him into Clear Sky's camp. Gray Wing confronts Clear Sky over this, and Clear Sky claims that he wants to make his community stronger. Falling Feather shows up, and explains Jagged Peak hurt his leg while jumping through the trees. Dappled Pelt comes, and after examining Jagged Peak explains that his leg is broken. She decides to stay with him for a little while. As Gray Wing leaves, he looks longingly at Storm.


 * Half a moon later, Jackdaw's Cry and Shattered Ice invent tunneling and explain its uses, including battle uses. Gray Wing is skeptical about the possibility of battle, but is inwardly worried about the chance. Afterwards, Fox shows up and wordlessly drops Jagged Peak on the ground. Because of Clear Sky's new views, he has exiled Jagged Peak because he thinks that he will be useless to the group. The followers of the sun trail take him in again and try to help him get better. Gray Wing is furious, and he heads back to confront Clear Sky again. However, Fox attacks him. Gray Wing accidentally kills Fox, throwing Clear Sky into a rage. He declares their brotherhood to be over. Storm calls him off on his abusive behavior, and runs away to Twolegplace. Clear Sky lets Storm leave, due to the fact that Clear Sky believes the community of cats comes first.


 * The season changes, and Hawk Swoop becomes pregnant with Jackdaw's Cry's kits. Gray Wing heads to Twolegplace to try and find Storm. He meets up with Turtle Tail and frustrates her further by telling her he's looking for Storm. However, Bumble takes him to an abandoned Twoleg den that smells strongly of monsters where Storm is staying. She's had three kits, but she refuses to let Gray Wing see them. Just as Gray Wing is leaving, he sees a monster coming to demolish Storm's Twoleg den. He runs back in, but it's too late and Storm dies trying to protect her kits. Gray Wing thinks that the kits are dead, but he realizes that one survived. He takes the kit back out to Turtle Tail and Bumble, and gives him the name Thunder. Gray Wing decides to give Thunder back to Clear Sky. However, Clear Sky refuses to take his son, claiming that Storm's death is a lot like Bright Stream's death. Gray Wing declares that he's wrong, because Storm's death had meaning. She may be gone, but she managed to save Thunder. Clear Sky still rejects Thunder, and Gray Wing realizes that they are now bitter enemies. Back at the hollow, Hawk Swoop agrees to give Thunder her milk. Gray Wing declares that Thunder will have cats to care for him, because from now on, he will be Thunder's father.
 * Bonus Scene
 * Part 1
 * The badger drew back, its jaws stained with blood, and let out a snarl at the two kits cowering in
 * Part 1
 * The badger drew back, its jaws stained with blood, and let out a snarl at the two kits cowering in
 * The badger drew back, its jaws stained with blood, and let out a snarl at the two kits cowering in

front of it. Scraps of fur were still snagged in its blunt claws. After a heartbeat that seemed to last for

seasons, it turned and lumbered into the undergrowth. With a final flash of black-and-white fur it

vanished, leaving only its overwhelming stench.

Petal threw back her head and lifted her voice in a wordless yowl. She tried to sound threatening,

but all she could feel was grief and anguish for the cat who lay sprawled at her paws, her tabby fur

torn away and her blood soaking the dead leaves underneath her mangled body.

“Stay away, filthy badger!” Petal’s brother, Fox, stood at her side, his brown fur bristling. “Don’t

come back!” Petal could hear the tremor in Fox’s voice and knew that his whole body was shaking as

violently as hers.

Like the badger will listen to a couple of kits, she thought. It could have snapped us up in a

mouthful.

A chilly breeze blew through the forest, rattling the branches and sending a few more dead leaves

to whirl through the air. Petal’s shivers increased as she felt claws of cold sinking through her pelt.

“What are we going to do now?” she asked.

Fox turned to her and touched her ear with his nose. “We’ll have to look after ourselves now,” he

replied. “We’ll be fine. We have to be.” He turned his face away from the sight of their mother

sprawled on the ground before them.

No, we won’t, Petal thought. She could tell that Fox was trying to sound braver than he felt. We

don’t really know how to hunt. Mother never had the chance to finish teaching us.

Looking at Fox—he was strong and compact but still smaller than some of the prey they would

need to hunt—she saw how unprepared they both were. What chance do we have, alone in the

forest?

She began to claw at the dead leaves, showering them over her mother’s body. After a heartbeat

Fox joined her, and the two kits scratched at the debris on the forest floor until their mother was

completely covered.

Who will look after us now? Petal wondered as she sat with her brother. Then another thought tore

through her. Who will look after our mother? She raised her face to the sky and closed her eyes. It

was as though she were drowning; it was hard to breathe. Something that felt as heavy as a stone sat

in her chest, where her heart had once been. Will I ever know happiness again?

She opened her eyes, and looked again at the outline of her mother’s dead body beneath the leaves.

“Stay safe,” she murmured. “Wherever you are now.”

“Come on,” Fox meowed, cleaning his claws. “We’ll go and hunt.”

He wouldn’t look Petal in the face, and his voice sounded matter-of-fact, but she knew he was

only trying to help. We have to survive now, on our own, she thought. He’s doing his best.

Side by side, Petal and Fox padded through the forest. Petal started at every unexpected sound

from the undergrowth. She knew that Fox was just as scared, however much he tried to hide it. There

was no knowing if that badger would attack again—it knew they were without protection now.

Petal’s belly growled hungrily. She tried to taste the air for signs of prey as their mother had taught

them, but she couldn’t pick up any scents. Am I even tasting the air in the right way? she wondered,

trying to remember her mother’s lessons.

Fox sniffed around the roots of an oak tree, a spot where their mother had often snapped up a

mouse or two, but he found nothing.

“All the prey is snug down their holes,” he grumbled. “How are we expected to catch anything

when it’s as cold as this?”

As the sun moved down the sky, Petal began to be afraid that her brother was right. Now and again

she spotted a bird perched on a branch above their heads, and once a squirrel whisked up a tree trunk

in front of them and vanished into a hole. None of the creatures seemed to be scared of them.

And why should they be? she asked herself. We’re only kits.

A familiar scent drifted past her. She halted, her nose twitching and her whiskers quivering. “Do

you smell that?” she breathed out.

Fox sniffed the air. “Cats!” he exclaimed, his yellow eyes gleaming with excitement. “We’re

saved! They’ll share their prey with us!”

He took off, scampering through the undergrowth in the direction of the scent. Petal scurried along

behind him. A few heartbeats later they broke out into a clearing. Twilight was gathering, but they

could still make out three cats curled up together in the shelter of a mossy boulder.

“Hi!” Fox meowed, skidding to a stop in front of them.

Petal halted at Fox’s shoulder, her excitement fading as one of the three—a skinny gray-and-white

she-cat—sprang to her paws and faced them with fierce green eyes.

“What are you doing here?” she demanded, her lips drawn back in the beginnings of a snarl.

Petal took a deep breath. She had never seen such a hostile cat. The only cat they had really known

was their mother. And she was so kind and gentle, not like this cat at all! “We. . . we’re on our

own,” she stammered. “We were hoping for. . . looking for food.” She hoped they wouldn’t be forced

to retell the story of their mother’s death—not so soon after. . . She shook herself.

Glancing at Fox, she saw that his fur had started to stand on end, reacting to the other cat’s

hostility. Calm yourself! she willed him. They’d come here for help, not a fight.

The she-cat’s green gaze raked over them like a bunch of thorns. “Then you should look

elsewhere,” she hissed. She slid out her claws, leaving Petal in no doubt about what would happen to

the kits if they disobeyed.

The other two cats said nothing, but their eyes were hard and unsympathetic.

Petal and Fox backed away. “What’s the matter with her?” Fox muttered. “Why doesn’t she want

us to stay?”

Petal shook her head. “I don’t know.” The world had become a colder place, even in the few

moments since covering their mother’s body with dead leaves.

Petal and Fox turned away from the other cats. Petal tried not to hear the snarls behind them,

warning them never to bother these cats again. Her drooping tail brushed the ground as she and her

brother trudged on through the forest. The last of the light was fading fast; Petal shivered afresh at the

thought of spending the night without their mother’s warm body curled around them.

Then there was a rustling in the undergrowth. “Look!” Fox whispered, pointing with his tail.

Petal gazed in that direction and spotted a squirrel nibbling on a nut at the foot of a nearby beech

tree. At once both kits flattened themselves to the ground and began to creep up on it the way that their

mother had taught them. Petal’s jaws began to water at the thought of sinking her teeth into the prey.

“Just what do you think you’re doing?” a voice growled behind them.

A lightning bolt of shock passed through Petal, and she sat up to see the gray-and-white she-cat

standing over her. How did she get here so quickly and silently?

Fox crept on for another paw step, and let out a squeal as the gray-and-white cat cuffed him

around the ear.

At the same moment a big tabby tom flashed past them and flung himself on top of the squirrel as it

tried to leap to safety up the tree.

“Hey!” Fox protested. “That was our prey!” But all he got was another cuff to the ears.

The gray-and-white she-cat pushed her face close to Fox’s. “All prey around here is ours,” she

snarled. “Learn that now, before you get really hurt.”

Petal bristled in anger at the threat. It’s not fair, she thought, as the tabby tom padded past her, the

body of the squirrel dangling limply from his jaws. We saw it first! But she was too scared to make

her objection aloud.

The two cats melted back into the trees, happy to leave Fox and Petal with nothing to eat. They

don’t care that we’re just kits. They’re leaving us to die, Petal thought as she watched them go.

We’re truly on our own.

“Come on,” she mewed to Fox, feeling her spine stiffen. “Let’s find somewhere else to hunt. I’m

not going to let us starve to death!”

“Why were they so mean?” Fox pleaded, bringing up the rear. All his bravery had melted away.

“It doesn’t matter,” Petal snapped. “We learned a lesson today. From now on it’s just us. Just the

two of us. . .”

They walked farther into the forest, as if they could leave all their pain and grief behind them.

Petal didn’t care if she never saw another cat again.
 * Part 2
 * Petal and Fox slid through the undergrowth, their senses alert for the smell of prey. Even now, so
 * Petal and Fox slid through the undergrowth, their senses alert for the smell of prey. Even now, so
 * Petal and Fox slid through the undergrowth, their senses alert for the smell of prey. Even now, so

many moons after the death of their mother, they spent most of their days alone.

Petal stiffened at the scent of squirrel, but a heartbeat later she realized the scent was stale; the

squirrel must have passed that way the day before. Then a faint sound just ahead warned her of the

approach of prey. Two mice appeared, scuffling along the edge of a bramble thicket.

Petal glanced at Fox, who was padding along at her shoulder, and signaled with her tail for him to

stay where he was. With breathless caution, she started to work her way around the two mice, making

sure that every paw step was silent and that she didn’t let her shadow fall across the two tiny

creatures.

It’s been so long since we ate. . . . We need this prey!

They’d come a long way since their early days as orphaned kits, and had managed to survive

alone. Occasionally they joined in a hunt with other cats, but that was rare. Mostly they hunted alone.

Petal never let them forget that they had only themselves to rely on.

At last Petal dropped into a crouch beyond the mice and leaped toward them, letting out a snarl,

trying to sound as menacing as she could. That gray-and-white she-cat taught me something; I can

make myself really scary now!

The mice, panicking, scuttled straight at Fox. He slammed down a paw on one of them, and

grabbed the other by the neck with his teeth in one smooth movement.

“Great catch!” Petal exclaimed as she bounded back to his side.

“You sent them straight at me,” Fox meowed, dropping the mouse. “Besides, you could have

caught them yourself, you know.”

Petal preferred to hunt like this: setting up the catch but letting her brother make the final kill. Ever

since their mother died and the gray-and-white she-cat refused to help them, she had realized they

needed to work as a team. I’d be lost without Fox, she thought. Yes, she could have killed the mice

on her own—but she preferred working with her brother, and knew that was better for him, too. She

remembered how forlorn he’d looked when they’d padded away as hungry kits. It’s important that

we work side by side, she thought. It’s all we have.

Aloud she mewed, “We’ve got the mice, so who cares?”

Fox blinked at her affectionately and didn’t push the matter. They settled down and ate their prey

in quick, hungry bites.

Petal was swiping her tongue around her jaws, wishing for something a bit more substantial than a

mouse, when she heard a loud birdsong. Looking up, she spotted a robin singing on a branch a few

tail-lengths away. It puffed out its fat red belly and scanned the area with bright beady eyes.

Typical robin bully, she thought. Making that racket to claim his territory. ..

As she watched, a chaffinch landed on the same tree branch. At once the robin broke off his song

and flapped his wings fiercely until the chaffinch hopped backward and took off again.

Petal set her teeth and let out a hissing breath. I hate bullies! And I hate robins! It’s time to show

that bird who’s boss. . ..

“You stay here,” she muttered to Fox. “I’ll enjoy killing this one on my own.” Yes, they normally

hunted as a team, but this was about more than hunting.

Flattening herself to the ground, Petal sneaked forward until she reached the bottom of the tree.

The robin hadn’t noticed her. Petal slipped around to the other side of the trunk and clawed her way

upward paw step by paw step.

But as Petal slid onto the robin’s branch her tail brushed against a spray of leaves, making them

rustle. The robin let out a loud alarm call and darted away, vanishing among the trees.

“Mouse dung!” Petal exclaimed.

Scrambling down the tree, she headed into the forest after the robin.

“What are you doing?” Fox hissed after her. She shook her head at him quickly, telling him to be

quiet.

Soon she reached a hollow and slipped into hiding behind a bush, where she waited for her

breathing to calm. Her ears were pricked as she listened carefully.

Just as she had hoped, not many heartbeats passed before she heard the robin’s strident song again.

Stupid creature! Now I know exactly where you are! Petal crept toward it, clinging to the shadows to

hide her movements. It was perched on another tree branch; luckily, this bark was soft, making it

easier for Petal to sink her claws in silently and climb up until she was only a tail-length from the

robin.

This time, little bird. ..

Petal was stretching out her claws when a cat’s yowl sounded from somewhere in the forest. The

robin launched itself into the air and vanished into a thick stretch of shrubs.

Letting out a snarl of annoyance, Petal let herself drop to the ground. Fox came running up to her as

she landed. “Did you hear that?” he asked.

More cat yowls and meows reached their ears as he spoke. Petal signaled with her tail for Fox to

follow her as she crept toward the noises. “I don’t recognize those voices. . . .” she murmured. Even

though she and Fox kept themselves separate from the rest of the cats in the forest, they knew most of

the others by sight and sound.

Using every scrap of undergrowth for cover, Petal and Fox slipped forward until they reached the

edge of a wide, shallow dip in the forest floor, and crouched together in the shelter of a holly bush.

Gazing into the hollow, they saw several cats, some sitting, others pacing around and examining their

surroundings.

“Hey, we do know them!” Fox meowed. “They’re the cats who’ve settled in the clearing with the

pool. Don’t you remember?”

A hazy memory took form in Petal’s mind. “That’s right,” she murmured. “They chased us off

when we tried to find out what they were doing there.”

Petal’s paws tingled with apprehension. She realized she had seen a few of the cats even before

that. “I met some of them another time, too, when I was hunting with Nightheart and Leaf,” she

meowed. “That black tom was stalking a squirrel in the forest. I would have left him alone, but

Nightheart and Leaf jumped on him. Then his friends came to help him, so I had to get involved, too.

That gray tom was there, and the white she-cat.”

“We’d better stay away from them,” Fox grunted. “They’re trouble, sure enough. I hope they’re not

thinking of moving in here for good.”

As he was speaking, the gray tom suddenly froze, then swiveled around, staring straight at the

holly bush where Fox and Petal were hiding.

“He’s seen us!” Petal meowed. “Run!”
 * Part 3
 * “We have to get away!” Petal panted as she raced along beside her brother. “I’ve been in one fight
 * “We have to get away!” Petal panted as she raced along beside her brother. “I’ve been in one fight
 * “We have to get away!” Petal panted as she raced along beside her brother. “I’ve been in one fight

with those cats. I don’t want another!”

She and Fox pelted as fast as they could through clumps of fern and around bramble thickets. Low

branches swiped across their faces.

Petal couldn’t hear any sound of pursuit from the strangers. Maybe they’re not following us. ..

but I’m not sticking around to find out!

The two cats were running so hard that neither of them took much notice of where they were going.

Then without warning the undergrowth thinned, and they burst out of the trees to find themselves on

the bank of the river.

“Mouse dung!” Fox gasped, scrambling to a halt at the very edge of the water. “Another paw step

and I’d have fallen in!” Petal knew how much her brother hated water, so she was surprised when he

added, “We’ll have to cross. That’ll stop those other cats from chasing us.”

This must be bad, Petal thought, if Fox is willing to cross the water!

Even so, Petal was warmed by her brother’s courage. We can do this together ! Glancing around,

she spotted a series of stepping-stones leading across to the other bank. Water was washing their

surface, but even if they were slippery, they were a better option than swimming.

“Over here!” she mewed, darting toward them.

Fox followed her, with a glance toward the edge of the trees. None of the strange cats had

appeared yet, but Petal could hear yowls of pursuit and knew they had only heartbeats to make their

escape.

She leaped onto the first stone, flinching at the chill of river water on her paws. I might not be the

best hunter, but I can do this. . ..

Petal could hear splashing that told her Fox was following her. She leaped from rock to rock until

she reached the middle of the river, the strong current surging all around her. We’re going to make it ,

she thought, pushing off in a powerful leap to the next stone.

But as Petal’s paws landed, the rock lurched under her and she felt herself sliding into the river.

Water slopped onto her belly fur. With a screech of alarm she clawed frantically at the slippery

surface, and managed to stop herself a mouse-length before the river engulfed her.

She could hear Fox yowling in distress behind her.

“I’m okay!” she gasped out. I didn’t survive that badger to drown now!

Another cat voice rose over Fox’s, calling out a greeting. Petal let out a hiss of fear and anger as

she turned awkwardly on the sloping surface of the rock so that she could look back at the bank.

The gray tom and the white she-cat stood watching at the water’s edge. “Come back!” the gray tom

called. “We won’t harm you.”

Like I believe that! Petal thought. But she knew that she and Fox had no real choice. Trying to

cross the river was becoming too dangerous.

“It’s no good!” she yowled to Fox. “We’ll have to go back.”

Carefully they began to make their way to the bank. Petal found that her legs were shaking with

tension; with every jump her mind revisited the dreadful moment when the rock had tipped under her

paws.

Fox had reached the bank and was standing quietly beside the two newcomers. They haven’t

attacked him. . . yet.

Petal braced herself for the leap onto the last rock. But she was so tense and tired that she

misjudged the distance. Her forepaws hit the stone but her back legs landed in the river, and before

she could scramble to safety the river swirled her away.

“Help me!” she shrieked, flailing her legs helplessly in the cold, angry water. “Fox! Help me!”

There was nothing for her claws to grip, no way of keeping herself afloat as her pelt grew sodden and

heavy.

Fox leaned dangerously far from the bank and stretched out a paw. His claws brushed through

Petal’s pelt before the strong, rapid current snatched her out of reach. Petal’s screech of terror was

cut off with a gurgle as her head went under. Water filled her mouth and nostrils. I’m going to drown!

She resurfaced to find herself a tail-length from the bank. Desperately she tried to push through the

water but couldn’t make any headway. River water choked her; she couldn’t cry out anymore.

There was a yowl of despair from Fox. Then Petal caught a glimpse of the gray tom racing along

the riverbank, outstripping her until she lost sight of him.

A moment later, still struggling to stay afloat, Petal spotted him again. He had halted beside a

large rock on the riverbank, and as Petal was carried down toward it she heard his yowl of effort

over the roar of the water as he pushed the rock into the river.

The surge from the splash swamped Petal. Her head went under again, but a heartbeat later the

current threw her up against something hard. Scrabbling frantically, she realized it was the rock. She

could get her head out again and she clambered painfully upward, away from the smothering water.

Fox leaped from the bank to the top of the rock and helped her by leaning over and fastening his claws

into her scruff.

Coughing and choking, Petal managed to scramble to the safety of the bank. Both the gray tom and

the white she-cat were standing there, looking at her with concern in their eyes.

“Are you okay?” the white she-cat asked.

“Fine,” Petal gasped, and added to the gray tom, “You saved my life!”

The gray tom shrugged. “It was nothing. I’m Clear Sky, by the way, and this is Falling Feather.”

Petal sank shivering to the ground.

“I’m Fox,” her brother mewed, his voice shaky with relief. “And my sister is Petal.”

“Hey!” Falling Feather meowed, with a sudden startled look. “We know you, don’t we? You were

in that fight when that idiot Moon Shadow was hunting a squirrel. And later on we chased you out of

our clearing.”

“That’s right.” Clear Sky nodded. “And Falling Feather, you thought they might be cats we could

invite to live with us one day.” He blinked thoughtfully. “Interesting. . .”

Petal was feeling too cold and exhausted to pay much attention. Feebly she started to groom

herself, thinking she would never get the taste of river water out of her fur.

“Lie on either side of her,” Clear Sky instructed the other two cats. “That way she’ll get warm

quickly.”

Fox and Falling Feather instantly settled themselves beside Petal, who let out a grateful sigh as the

warmth of their bodies began to drive away the chill of the river. She was surprised at how easily

Fox had obeyed Clear Sky’s command, but she wasn’t blind to the gray tom’s authority. He’s clever,

too. He knew what to do to save me.

Clear Sky’s blue gaze ranged over her body, and Petal became painfully aware of how skinny she

must look with her fur plastered to her ribs.

“When did you last eat?” he asked.

“We had a mouse apiece earlier on,” Fox replied, not pointing out that the mice had been the only

prey they had managed to catch for days.

Suddenly Petal’s stomach gave a massive rumble. Clear Sky and Falling Feather both let out

snorts of amusement.

“Okay,” Clear Sky meowed. “You need food. I’ll go and hunt.”

“If you go straight into the trees,” Fox told the gray tom as he turned away, “you’ll come to a heap

of boulders with a spring trickling out. That’s a really good place for shrews.”

Clear Sky flicked his tail in acknowledgment, looking impressed. “You know the forest very

well,” he commented.

“Not bad,” Fox responded, sounding encouraged. “And Petal is really good at climbing trees and

coaxing out prey.”

“No, I—” Petal began to protest, embarrassment almost making her forget her shock and

exhaustion.

“It’s true!” Fox interrupted. “You have more skills than you give yourself credit for. You just don’t

use them as much as you could, because you’re so keen that we hunt together.”

Petal was aware of Clear Sky examining her with interest before heading off into the trees. Her

pelt prickled uncomfortably, and she wished she knew what he was thinking.

When he had gone, the cats fell silent. Petal relaxed as Fox and Falling Feather leaned in to her.

“Lick her fur the wrong way,” Falling Feather instructed. “That’s the best way to get her warm

quickly.”

Petal remembered being licked like that by her mother, when she was a tiny kit. Soon she began to

feel warm and rested again. I was afraid of these cats, but they’re really kind. . ..

“Have you lived in the forest long?” Falling Feather asked eventually.

“We were born here,” Fox replied. “But our mother was killed by a badger when we were kits.”

“That’s terrible!” Falling Feather exclaimed. “What did you do?”

“It was tough,” Petal began. “We couldn’t hunt properly, and we thought we would starve. Then

we smelled some other cats. . . .” The terrible memory of that rejection surged over her, as powerful

as the river water, and she couldn’t go on.

“They didn’t want anything to do with us,” Fox finished for her. “Since that happened, we mostly

just stay with each other.”

“I’m so sorry,” Falling Feather murmured. Petal felt the white she-cat’s tongue rasping around her

ears. “I know what it’s like to lose a cat you care for.” She hesitated and then went on, “We traveled

here from the mountains, a long way away. The cold season is harsh up there, and there wasn’t enough

prey for all of us.” Her voice quivered as she added, “Clear Sky’s sister, Fluttering Bird, died

because she didn’t have enough to eat. She was only a kit.”

Petal pressed her muzzle against Falling Feather’s shoulder, pain clawing at her for the kit she had

never met. “That’s hard,” she whispered.

“Her death gave us the determination to come here and find a better life,” Falling Feather

continued. “We didn’t want any cat to suffer like that again.”

Warmth crept through Petal from ears to tail-tip as she listened to Falling Feather. That’s exactly

how I feel!

“Some of our friends have stayed on the moor,” the white she-cat meowed. “But we like it best

here in the forest, so we’re settling in that clearing with the pool. The one we chased you away from.”

She gave Fox a long, sparkling look from blue eyes. “I’ve always thought that was a mistake. It would

be good if both of you could join us.”

Fox was gazing at Falling Feather with the same intensity, as if he couldn’t tear his glance away.

Before Fox or Petal could reply to Falling Feather’s offer, the ferns at the edge of the forest parted

and Clear Sky reappeared. Two shrews and a vole dangled from his jaws. “You were right about the

shrews,” he commented, dropping his prey in front of the others.

Clear Sky and Falling Feather each took a bite from a shrew and then exchanged the rest before

finally digging in.

“Why do you do that?” Petal asked, her pads pricking with curiosity.

“This is how we eat in the mountains,” Falling Feather explained between mouthfuls. “It reminds

us that we always need to share.”

“We don’t exchange like that,” Fox responded, as he and Petal tackled the plump vole. “But we do

share. Petal and I share everything.”

Petal felt her strength returning as she gulped down the succulent prey. Living with these cats

could be good, she thought. I’m not scared of them anymore.

“Clear Sky, I asked Petal and Fox if they want to join us,” Falling Feather meowed when she had

finished eating. “You know what we were saying, about being stronger if our group was bigger.”

“I don’t know. . .” Fox began.

Petal wasn’t sure why he sounded reluctant. He seemed smitten with Falling Feather. Maybe he’s

worried that we won’t be able to contribute, she told herself. But he’s a good hunter, and so am I.

. ..

“You already said how tough you’ve found it, living alone,” Falling Feather reminded Fox.

“And now that more cats are moving into the forest, you’ll need the protection of a group,” Clear

Sky agreed. “You’ll be able to protect the other cats in your turn.”

Fox nodded slowly. “That seems good. . . . What do you think, Petal?”

“I think it sounds great,” Petal replied, warmed by the strange cats’ kindness. “Can we come and

meet the others?”

Falling Feather let out a yowl of pleasure, while Clear Sky gave Fox and Petal an approving

glance. “Right away,” he agreed. “Are you feeling strong enough to walk back into the forest?” he

asked Petal.

Petal sprang to her paws, shaking the last drops of water from her glistening pelt. “I feel strong

enough for anything!”

As the other cats rose and headed back into the shadows of the trees, Petal heard the robin singing

once again. Somehow the thought of the little bully bird didn’t bother her anymore. She was sure that

everything in the forest was about to change.

I’ll work hard and improve my hunting skills. And I’m pretty sure that in the future no cat will

be able to push me around. . ..
 * Cast
 * '''Helena Bonham Carter as Stoneteller
 * '''Helena Bonham Carter as Stoneteller
 * '''Helena Bonham Carter as Stoneteller

Angelina Jolie as Quiet Rain Wil Wheaton as Gray Wing Tom Hardy as Clear Sky Natalie Portman as Bright Stream (Dead) Liam Neeson as Shaded Moss (Dead) Kate Bosworth as Tall Shadow Audrey Wasilewski as Dappled Pelt Miranda Richardson as Rainswept Flower Kristen Wigg as Turtle Tail Tom Hanks as Moon Shadow Joan Cusack as Dewy Leaf Benedict Cumberbatch as Twisted Branch Willem Defoe as Shattered Ice Rob Brydon as Cloud Spots/Ginger Kit Tom Hiddleston as Stone Song Eva Green as Hollow Tree Jane Seymour as Quick Water Geena Davis as Hawk Swoop Tara Strong as Falling Feather/Fluttering Bird (Dead)/Small Kitten Freddie Highmore as Jackdaw’s Cry John Leguizamo as Sharp Hail Whoopi Goldberg as Misty Water Al Pacino as Lions Roar Angela Lansbury as Silver Frost Julie Andrews as Snow Hare Hayden Christensen as Jagged Peak Bonnie Hunt as Wind Alan Rickman as Gorse'''