Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7 Firestar looked calmly down at the WindClan warrior. "Tallstar died just a few moments ago," he meowed. "There's been no chance to tell any cat." "Mudclaw, you're our leader now," meowed Webfoot. "We will all grieve for Tallstar, but we need you to help us settle in our new home." A murmur of agreement came from his Clanmates. Mudclaw dipped his head in acknowledgment, but when he turned back to Firestar his eyes still gleamed with fury. "You should have come to find me before calling this meeting. Why should a ThunderClan cat announce WindClan's news?" Firestar's tail-tip twitched. "Tallstar wanted it to be this way. Listen to what I'm trying to tell you, please." Addressing all the cats, not just Mudclaw, he went on: "Just before he died, Tallstar made Onewhisker his deputy." His gaze swept over Brambleclaw, but he didn't meet the warrior's eye. Brambleclaw's fur prickled; was

第七章 火星平静地低头望着风族武士。 “高星几分钟前刚刚去世。”他喵声道。 “还没来得及通知任何猫。” “泥爪，你现在就是我们的族长了。”网脚说道。 “我们都会悼念高星，但我们需要你帮我们在新家园安顿下来。” 他的族猫们发出一阵赞同的低语。 泥爪点头领受，可当他转回身面对火星时，眼中依旧闪着怒火。 “你本该在召集会议之前先来找我。 凭什么要雷族猫来宣布风族的消息？” 火星的尾尖抽动了一下。 “这是高星的意思。 请听我把话说完。” 他没有只对着泥爪，而是对着所有猫继续说：“就在去世前，高星指定一根须为副族长。” 他的目光扫过黑莓掌，可黑莓掌不敢和他对视。 黑莓掌的毛发都竖了起来；难道

Firestar really willing to ignore the fact that Tallstar hadn't used the right ceremony to appoint his new deputy? "What?" Mudclaw screeched in disbelief. "You mean Mudclaw isn't our leader?" Webfoot queried. He unsheathed his claws in confusion and sank them into the ground. "Mouse dung to that!" A black WindClan she- cat drew her lips back in a snarl. "There's no cat better able to lead the Clan." Brambleclaw listened uncomfortably. If it were up to him, he thought Onewhisker would make a better leader than Mudclaw, but he didn't have the right to judge. And he could imagine exactly how Mudclaw must be feeling, to have the leadership he had been waiting for snatched out of his paws in a heartbeat. Onewhisker looked down at Mudclaw. "This is as much of a shock to me as it is to you," he meowed. "And I would like you to carry on being WindClan's deputy. I'll need your support and experience every pawstep of the way." Mudclaw's neck fur bristled. "You don't think I believe this load of fox dung, do you?" he spat.

火星真的打算无视高星没有按正规仪式任命新副族长这件事吗？ “什么？” 泥爪不敢置信地尖叫起来。 “你是说泥爪不是我们的族长？” 网脚质疑道。 他困惑地亮出爪子，狠狠抓进泥土里。 “一派胡言！” 一只黑色风族母猫龇牙低吼起来。 “没有比泥爪更适合带领族群的猫了。” 黑莓掌局促不安地听着。 如果让他选择，他觉得一根须会比泥爪更适合当族长，但他没资格评判。 他也完全能体会泥爪的感受：盼了那么久的族长之位，一下子就从爪边被夺走了。 一根须低头看向泥爪。 “这件事对我来说也和你一样意外。”他喵声道。 “我希望你继续担任风族的副族长， 这一路上每一步我都需要你的支持和经验。” 泥爪后颈的毛炸了起来。 “你不会真以为我信这堆鬼话吧？” 他啐道。

"Every cat knows that Tallstar practically handed our Clan over to Firestar before he left the forest. He's always felt more loyalty to ThunderClan than they ever deserved. And now Firestar tells us that his friend Onewhisker is to be leader! Did any other cat witness this convenient change of mind?" His paws heavy as stone, Brambleclaw padded forward until he stood beside Mudclaw. "I did." The words stuck in his throat like a tough bit of fresh-kill. "I was there. I heard Tallstar make Onewhisker his deputy." He almost added, but he didn't use the right words, then stopped himself. Firestar had said nothing about that. The clearing and the tree stump faded away, and Brambleclaw was back in the ravine, an apprentice of less than seven moons, grudgingly searching the elders" pelts for ticks. All the apprentices hated this duty, but sometimes it was made bearable by the chance to listen to stories about the old days in ThunderClan, before the apprentices were even born. As Brambleclaw fixed his teeth gingerly around a tick at the base

“所有猫都清楚，高星离开森林前，几乎都要把风族拱手送给火星了， 他对雷族的忠心，早就远远超过了雷族配得上的程度。 现在火星居然告诉我们，他的朋友一根须要当族长！ 有别的猫亲眼见证这个凑巧的变故吗？” 黑莓掌爪子沉得像灌了石头，慢慢走到泥爪身边站定。 “我看见了。” 这句话卡在他喉咙里，就像一块难啃的生肉。 “我当时在场， 我亲耳听到高星指定一根须当副族长。” 他差点加上一句“可他没用正确的仪式用语”，随后又把话咽了回去。 火星对此半个字都没提。 空地和树桩渐渐在他眼前褪去，黑莓掌仿佛回到了峡谷，那时他还是个不满七个月的学徒，正不情不愿地给长老们抓蜱虫。 所有学徒都讨厌这份活，但有时候也没那么难熬，因为能听到雷族古老岁月的故事，那些故事发生在他们这些学徒出生之前。 黑莓掌小心地咬住一只蜱虫，它就在

of One-eye's tail, he could hear the old cat talking to Dappletail about when Bluestar appointed Firestar—then called Fireheart—to be her deputy. The former deputy, Tigerclaw, had been revealed as a traitor who was plotting to kill his Clan leader—and Brambleclaw's fur had crawled even then to hear his father spoken of in dark, grim tones. Tigerclaw had been chased out of the camp, and Bluestar had appointed Fireheart in his place. But she had been so distressed by Tigerclaw's treachery that she had delayed the ceremony until long after moonhigh, which was the time limit set down by the warrior code. Several cats in the Clan, even those who liked and respected the flame-colored warrior, had grave doubts about his right to be called deputy, and it had been many moons before Fireheart had proved himself worthy of taking Tigerclaw's place. Brambleclaw shook his head, jolting himself back to the copse on the lakeshore. His blood thickened icily in his veins. There had been something wrong with Firestar's deputy ceremony, just like Onewhisker's! No wonder the

单眼尾巴的根部，他听到这只老猫正对斑尾讲故事，讲当年蓝星任命火星——那时火星还叫火心——当副族长的往事。 前任副族长虎爪，已经被揭发是叛徒，他密谋杀害自己的族长——当年黑莓掌听到大家用冰冷阴沉的语气提起自己的父亲，浑身都发毛。 虎爪被赶出营地后，蓝星就任命火心接替了他的位置。 可虎爪的背叛让她悲痛欲绝，她把仪式推迟到满月高悬之后很久才举行，而这是武士法规明确规定的最后时限。 族里不少猫，哪怕是喜爱尊重这只姜黄色武士的猫，也深深质疑他担任副族长的合法性，过了很多个月，火心才证明自己配得上接过虎爪的位置。 黑莓掌摇了摇头，猛地把思绪拉回湖畔的小树林里。 他的血液在血管里冻得几乎凝固。 火星当初的副族长任命仪式也不合规矩，就像现在一根须这样！ 难怪

ThunderClan leader wanted to defend Onewhisker when doubts were cast on his right to lead the Clan. If Firestar had ever had any doubts about his own position as deputy, he had kept them to himself; he obviously believed Onewhisker should do the same. Mudclaw narrowed his eyes at Brambleclaw. "You were there too, were you? Another ThunderClan cat, what a surprise! What did Firestar offer you if you backed him up? Did he promise to make you deputy of ThunderClan?" Any temptation to blurt out the truth vanished in an instant, as Brambleclaw struggled with the urge to leap on the WindClan warrior's back and claw his fur off. Just managing to stay where he was, he glanced up at Firestar and saw cold fury in his leader's green eyes. "How dare you doubt my word, or my warrior's?" Firestar hissed at Mudclaw. "Tallstar's decision was made in the sight of StarClan." "How do you know?" Mudclaw challenged. "Are you a medicine cat all of a sudden?" "His decision was clear enough." Firestar spat back.

当有人质疑一根须领导风族的资格时，雷族族长想要为他撑腰 如果火星曾经对自己副族长的位置有过疑虑，他也从未告诉过别的猫； 他显然认为一根须也该这么做 泥爪眯起眼睛盯着棘爪 "你当时也在那儿，对不对？ 又一只雷族猫，可真够巧的！ 你帮他说话，火星给了你什么好处？ 他是不是承诺让你当雷族的副族长？" 棘爪差点脱口说出真相，话到嘴边又咽了回去，他满脑子都想扑到这只风族武士背上，扯掉他的毛 他好不容易按捺住不动，抬头看向火星，看见族长绿眼睛里翻涌着冰冷的怒火 "你竟敢质疑我的话，质疑我的武士？" 火星冲着泥爪嘶声怒吼 "高星的决定是在星族见证下做出的。" "你怎么知道？" 泥爪挑衅道 "你什么时候忽然变成巫医了？" "他的决定已经够清楚了。" 火星厉声反驳道

Mudclaw spun around to face his Clanmates. "Are you going to sit here and accept this?" he demanded. "Do we let ThunderClan choose our leader for us?" Whipping around to glare at Onewhisker again, he added, "How many of our warriors do you think will follow you, you sniveling, crow-food-eating traitor?" Before Onewhisker had time to reply, Crowfeather padded forward and stood at the edge of the tree stump. His fur was ruffled and his eyes stunned with grief, but when he spoke his voice was calm. "I will follow Onewhisker. I made the journey to the sun-drown-place with Brambleclaw, and I know he does not lie. If he says that Tallstar made Onewhisker deputy before he went to hunt with StarClan, then I believe him." Raising his head to meet Onewhisker's gaze, he meowed, "Onestar, I greet you as the leader of my Clan." More voices came from WindClan. "Yes! Onestar! Onestar!" But others sounded uncertain, or openly defiant, and Brambleclaw could see it wasn't going to be easy for Onewhisker to believe in his right to lead his Clan. He spotted Blackstar

泥爪猛地转身面向自己的族猫 "你们就打算坐在这里接受这事吗？"他质问道 "我们要让雷族替我们选族长吗？" 他又猛地转回身怒视一根须，补充道："你觉得咱们族有多少武士愿意追随你，你这个哭哭啼啼吃腐肉的叛徒？" 一根须还没来得及回答，鸦羽就走上前站在了树桩边缘 他的毛发炸蓬着，眼睛里满是震惊与悲痛，但开口时声音却十分平静 "我愿意追随一根须 我和棘爪一起去过太阳沉落的地方，我知道他不会说谎 如果他说高星去星族捕猎前指定一根须做副族长，那我就相信他。" 他抬起头迎上一根须的目光，轻声说道："一星，我认你做我们族群的族长。" 风族里响起了更多附和的声音 "没错！ 一星！ 一星！" 但还有些猫态度犹豫，或是公然违抗，棘爪看得出来，要让一根须确信自己有资格领导风族，绝不会容易 他看见了黑星