Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10 Leafpaw and Cinderpelt had found a rocky overhang at the back of the stone hollow. "This won't do permanently," Cinderpelt warned. "We need a proper cave with walls to store our supplies, like the one we had in the forest. But it'll be okay for tonight." Leafpaw crept in after her mentor and found a dry place at the back for the horsetail stems she had carried from the marsh. "Get a good night's rest," Cinderpelt advised her, settling down and tucking her nose under her tail. "There'll be plenty to do in the morning." Leafpaw knew she wouldn't be able to close her eyes until she had asked the question that ran icy claws along her spine. "Cinderpelt? D-do you think this is the right place for us?" she mewed bravely. "Is this really where StarClan meant us to be?" Cinderpelt yawned. "We'll know that when StarClan's ready to tell us. Now stop worrying and go to sleep." She pushed her nose further

第十章 叶爪和炭毛在石坑后方找到了一块突出的岩壁 “这儿没法长期住下去，”炭毛提醒道 “我们需要一间有石壁的像样洞穴存放物资，就像我们从前在森林里的那个一样 不过今晚先在这里将就吧。” 叶爪跟着导师爬进去，在靠里的位置找了块干地，放她从沼泽带来的木贼茎 “好好睡一觉吧，”炭毛劝她，自己蜷起身把鼻子埋进尾巴里 “明天可有一大堆活儿要干呢。” 叶爪知道，不问出那个让她后背发凉的问题，她根本合不上眼 “炭毛？你、你觉得这儿真的是我们该来的地方吗？” 她壮着胆子轻声叫到 “这里真的是星族想要我们来的地方吗？” 炭毛打了个哈欠 “等星族准备好告诉我们，我们自然就会知道 别担心了，快去睡觉吧。” 她把鼻子往尾巴里又埋深了些

into her tail, and her breathing became slow and even as she drifted off. Leafpaw did not find sleep so easy to come by. She sat beneath the overhang with her paws tucked under her, gazing into the shadow-filled hollow. StarClan, where are you? she begged silently. But only one or two lonely stars glimmered from the cloudy sky, and Leafpaw felt as if her warrior ancestors were too far away to watch over her Clan tonight. She must have dozed at last, because she opened her eyes to find she was dreaming. She was standing on a dark sweep of hillside, looking down at the glitter of Silverpelt reflected in the shiny black lake. The island should have been a thicker patch of shadow against the water, but instead it shone with moonlight, each tree picked out in a shaft of silver. Leafpaw felt as if the place were calling to her, as if there were more she needed to learn about it. But we can't go there, she reminded herself. Not every cat can swim like RiverClan. A breeze picked up, whispering over the star- filled lake and ruffling Leafpaw's fur. She felt a

呼吸渐渐放缓变匀，沉沉睡了过去 叶爪可没那么容易睡着 她坐在岩壁突出部下方，爪子收在身下，望着满是阴影的石坑 星族啊，你们在哪里？ 她在心里默默祈求 可布满云层的天空只透出一两颗孤星，叶爪觉得武士祖先今晚远得没法照看她的族群 她最后总算还是打起了瞌睡，睁开眼才发现自己正在做梦 她站在一片昏暗的山坡上，低头望着映在乌黑湖面的银河粼光 那座小岛本该是水面上一块更深的阴影，可它却被月光照亮，每一棵树都镶着一道银边 叶爪感觉这个地方在召唤她，还有更多关于这里的秘密等着她去发现 可我们去不了那里，她提醒自己 不是所有猫都像河族猫那样会游泳 一阵微风吹起，拂过缀满星光的湖面，吹乱了叶爪的皮毛 她感觉到一股

surge of hope run through her, even though the voices of her warrior ancestors remained silent. But Leafpaw was not afraid. They had been silent before on the long journey through the mountains, and she had learned that sometimes the only thing a cat could rely on was the strength that lay within. Everything would be all right if she and the others made it so. They would make their camp here; they would explore every part of the woods until they knew the good places for prey, for water and bedding, the spots where each healing herb grew, and the places where they could play and relax in the sun. It seemed strange and daunting now, but eventually it would be their home. Pawstep by pawstep, they would make it happen. As she stood gazing down at the lake, Leafpaw realized that the surface of the water was changing. The glitter of starlight faded and the water turned steadily redder, until waves of scarlet lapped against the shore. Leafpaw looked up in surprise, but the sky was as dark as before, so this couldn't be a reflection of sunrise. The water seemed thick and slow-moving, surging

希望涌过全身，哪怕她的武士祖先依旧没有出声 可叶爪并不害怕 在翻越群山的漫长旅途中，祖先们也曾经沉默，她早就明白，有时候猫咪唯一能依靠的就是自己内心的力量 只要她和同伴们一起努力，一切都会好起来的 他们会在这里安下营地； 他们会探索森林的每一个角落，找到猎物、水源、垫草的好去处，每种药草生长的位置，还有能晒着太阳玩耍放松的地方 现在这里看起来陌生又吓人，但终究会变成他们的家 一步一个脚印，他们总能做到 当她站在那儿望着湖面时，叶爪发现水面开始发生变化 星光的闪烁渐渐褪去，湖水慢慢越来越红，猩红的波浪拍打着湖岸 叶爪惊讶地抬起头，可天空还是和之前一样漆黑，所以这不可能是日出的倒影 湖水看起来浓稠又平缓，翻涌着

lazily over the pebbles— and in that instant, Leafpaw knew that it wasn't water at all. The lake was filled with blood, fed by streams that ran like gaping wounds. Another gust of wind buffeted Leafpaw's fur, hot and dusty this time, bringing with it the stench of crow-food. Shaking with terror, she heard a voice speak clearly in her mind: Before there is peace, blood will spill blood, and the lake will run red. "Cinderpelt! Cinderpelt!" Leafpaw woke with a jump. It was still dark. Sorreltail was peering under the rocky overhang, anxiously calling Cinderpelt's name. Somewhere in the hollow, the eerie yowl of a cat in pain tore the quiet of the night. "What is it? What's happening?" Leafpaw asked, scrambling up and prodding Cinderpelt in the flank. "It's Mousefur," mewed Sorreltail. "She says she has a pain in her belly." "I'll come," Cinderpelt meowed, getting to her paws.

慵懒地漫过鹅卵石——就在这一刻，叶爪明白这根本不是水 整个湖里都灌满了血，流淌的血河如同张开的伤口 又一阵狂风拍打着叶爪的皮毛，这次又热又尘土飞扬，还带着腐肉的恶臭 她吓得浑身发抖，听见一个清晰的声音在脑海里响起：和平降临之前，血将染血，湖水会变成赤红 “炭毛！炭毛！” 叶爪猛地惊醒过来 天还是黑的 斑尾正探头往岩壁突出部下方看，焦急地喊着炭毛的名字 石坑深处的某个地方，一声痛苦凄厉的猫叫划破了夜晚的宁静 “怎么了？ 出什么事了？” 叶爪问道，连忙爬起来推了推炭毛的侧腹 “是鼠毛，”斑尾轻声说 “她说她肚子痛。” “我这就来，”炭毛说着站起身来

"If Mousefur has bellyache, we need watermint or juniper berries," Leafpaw told her. "There were masses of them at the other end of the lake. Do you want me to fetch some?" Her mentor looked serious. "It would be better to find a supply nearby, but if we need them before daylight, then you'll have to go back." They followed Sorreltail across the hollow to the clump of ferns where Mousefur had made her nest, stumbling over stones in the darkness. Leafpaw tasted the air in an attempt to discover if any of the herbs they needed were growing nearby, but it was impossible to make out the special scents among so many, and against the overwhelming scent of cats. When she and Cinderpelt reached Mousefur, the brown warrior was lying on her side, her body twisted with pain, her jaws gaping as she let out another anguished yowl. "Mousefur, listen to me." Cinderpelt crouched down beside her. "Do you know what caused this? Have you eaten any crow-food?" Mousefur blinked eyes glazed with pain.

“如果鼠毛肚子疼，我们需要水薄荷或是杜松莓，”叶爪对她说。 “湖的另一头长了好多呢。 你要我去采一些吗？” 她的导师神色严肃。 “最好能在附近找到可用的药材，但如果天亮前我们就急需，那就得你跑一趟了。” 她们跟着栗尾穿过凹地，摸黑磕磕绊绊走到鼠毛筑窝的蕨树丛边。 叶爪嗅了嗅空气，想碰碰运气看看能不能闻到需要的药草长在附近，可太多气味混在一起，还有猫群浓重的气味，根本分辨不出特殊的药香。 等她和炭毛走到鼠毛身边，这只棕色武士正侧躺着，身子疼得扭成一团，大张着嘴又发出一声痛苦的号叫。 “鼠毛，听我说。” 炭毛在她身边伏下身。 “你知道是什么引起的吗？ 你吃了腐肉吗？” 鼠毛眨了眨被疼得蒙眬的眼睛。

"Crow-food? No," she rasped. "Do you think I'm mouse-brained? My belly..." Her words trailed off into another yowl. A horrible suspicion forced itself into Leafpaw's mind. Beckoning Cinderpelt aside, she murmured, "Mousefur must have drunk some of the water Mothwing found. I think it might have been tainted. It smelled bad, and when she showed me the pool she got it from, there was a dead rabbit in there." Cinderpelt let out an exasperated sigh. "And she didn't think to... Well, no point in going into that." "What are we going to do?" Leafpaw asked anxiously. Cinderpelt turned to Sorreltail. "Do you know if any other cat drank the water?" Sorreltail shook her head. "Goldenflower and Longtail might have," Cinderpelt went on. "Check it out, would you, Sorreltail?" The tortoiseshell warrior nodded and vanished into the darkness. "Try to lie still, Mousefur," Cinderpelt urged.

“腐肉？ 没有，”她哑着嗓子说。 “你觉得我笨吗？ 我的肚子……” 她的话没说完，又变成一声哀嚎。 一个可怕的猜测浮现在叶爪心头。 她把炭毛叫到一旁，轻声说：“鼠毛肯定喝了蛾翅找到的那处水。 我觉得那水被污染了。 那水闻着就不对，她带我去看那池子的时候，里面还泡着一只死兔子。” 炭毛烦躁地叹了口气。 “亏她居然没想到…… 算了，现在说这个也没用。” “我们现在该怎么办？” 叶爪焦急地问道。 炭毛转向栗尾。 “你知道还有别的猫喝了那水吗？” 栗尾摇了摇头。 “金花和长尾可能喝过，”炭毛接着说。 “栗尾，你去查看一下好不好？” 这只玳瑁武士点点头，消失在黑暗里。 “鼠毛，尽量躺好别动，”炭毛劝道。