Chapter 23

CHAPTER 23 Hollypaw paused from washing herself. "Are you going to the Gathering?" Jaypaw heard her tongue scrape along her foreleg. "Yes." He rolled onto his side, feeling full. "Me too." Lionpaw kicked the remains of the squirrel away and stretched out. The fresh-kill pile had been restocked in the days following the battle, and they had eaten well. Now they lay beside the halfrock enjoying the last of the evening sun. Hollypaw yawned. "Do you think the other Clans will turn up?" No one had seen any sign of WindClan since the battle, but tension was still high, with continual patrols along the WindClan border. "They'll be scared of upsetting StarClan if they don't," Jaypaw mewed. Lionpaw's claws scratched the halfrock. "I hope WindClan is there." "Don't forget the truce," Hollypaw reminded him.

第23章 冬青爪停下了舔毛的动作。 "你要去参加森林大会吗？" 松鸦爪听见她舔舐前腿的声音。 "去啊。" 他侧过身躺好，吃得肚子饱饱的。 "我也去。" 狮爪把吃剩的松鼠推开，伸了个懒腰。 战斗结束后这几天，猎物堆已经补满新猎物了，他们都吃得很不错。 此刻他们正躺在半石旁，享受傍晚最后的余晖。 冬青爪打了个哈欠。 "你觉得其他族群会来吗？" 战斗结束后就没人见过风族的踪影，但营地气氛依旧紧张，沿风族边界一直有巡逻队不间断巡逻。 "如果他们不来，会怕冒犯星族的，"松鸦爪说道。 狮爪的爪子刮擦着半石。 "我希望风族能来。" "别忘了停战约定，"冬青爪提醒他。

"Like I would." Lionpaw snorted. "I just want WindClan to see that we're as strong as we ever were, and ready to fight them again if we have to." ThunderClan's warriors and apprentices were steadily recovering from their battle wounds. Even Spiderleg was taking walks around the clearing. Squirrelflight was still in her nest in the medicine cats" den, though increasingly impatient at being confined there. But Leafpool wouldn't let her move, fearful the wound would reopen before it had a chance to heal properly. Jaypaw suspected that his mother's injury was the reason Leafpool wasn't coming with him to the Gathering. She didn't trust any other cat to keep Squirrelflight in her nest. She hadn't even been to the Moonpool to share with StarClan yet. "If StarClan has something to share with me, they'll share it," she had told Firestar. Jaypaw lifted his head as Graystripe padded out of the nursery. The gray warrior's pelt was prickling with worry. "Leafpool!" Graystripe called through the brambles at the entrance to the medicine cats" den. "She's coughing again."

"我哪会忘啊。" 狮爪哼了一声。 "我就是要让风族看看，雷族还是一如既往地强大，真要开战我们也随时奉陪。" 雷族的武士和学徒们的战伤都在慢慢愈合。 就连蜘蛛腿都能在营地空地里散步了。 松鼠飞仍待在巫医巢穴的窝中，被困在这里的她越来越不耐烦。 但叶池不准她乱动，生怕伤口在完全愈合前裂开。 松鸦爪猜，叶池不跟他去森林大会，就是因为要照顾母亲松鼠飞的伤。 她信不过别的猫，只有自己能看着松鼠飞乖乖待在窝里。 她甚至都还没去月亮池和星族交流呢。 "要是星族有话要告诉我，他们自然会传给我的，"她对火星这么说。 灰条从育婴室走出来时，松鸦爪抬起了头。 这只灰色武士的浑身都透着担忧。 "叶池！" 灰条隔着巫医巢穴入口的荆棘喊道。 "她又咳嗽了。"

"I'm coming." Leafpool hurried out, smelling of tansy. Millie had whitecough. Daisy had moved herself and her kits into the apprentices" den to avoid catching the sickness, and Rosekit and Toadkit had been strutting around the camp as if they were already apprentices. Millie was eating well, but her endless coughing was keeping the kits awake and making it hard for them to feed. Hopefully the tansy would help. Jaypaw laid his head back down and closed his eyes. He must have dozed, because a moment later Hollypaw was shaking him awake. "The moon's up," she mewed. "Everyone's getting ready to leave." "Not everyone!" Foxpaw's cross mew sounded behind him. "How come you three get to go while me and Icepaw and Cinderpaw get left behind?" Jaypaw scrambled to his paws. "You'll go next time, I'm sure." "Maybe." Foxpaw's feet scuffed the ground as he padded away. While the warriors gathered at the entrance,

"我来了。" 叶池匆匆跑出来，身上带着艾菊的味道。 米莉得了白咳症。 黛西为了避免被传染，带着自己的幼崽搬到了学徒巢穴，玫瑰崽和蟾蜍崽还大摇大摆地在营地里走，好像他们已经是学徒了一样。 米莉胃口还算不错，但她不停咳嗽，闹得幼崽们睡不着，也没法好好吃奶。 希望艾菊能起作用。 松鸦爪重新低下头，闭上了眼睛。 他肯定是打了盹，因为没过一会儿冬青爪就晃醒了他。 "月亮升起来了，"她说道。 "大家都准备出发了。" "才不是所有人！" 狐爪愤愤的叫声从他身后传来。 "凭什么你们三个能去，我、冰爪和炭爪就得留在这儿？" 松鸦爪连忙站起身。 "我保证，下次就轮到你们去了。" "说不定吧。" 狐爪蹭着地面，垫着步子走开了。 武士们在营地入口集合的时候，

Graystripe paced around the nursery. Jaypaw could sense that his emotions were torn like fresh-kill. The gray warrior longed to join his Clanmates at the Gathering, but the thought of leaving Millie while she was sick pierced his heart. Jaypaw blinked. An old grief was fanning the flames of Graystripe's unease, lit by the memory of the silver cat on the huge gray rock. "Graystripe!" Firestar was heading toward his old friend. "Stay here and guard the camp for me. We've a good show of warriors. WindClan won't think they've weakened us." "Thanks." Graystripe sounded relieved. Firestar headed for the barrier, where Poppyfrost and Honeyfern could hardly keep their paws still. "Looking forward to it?" Dustpelt asked them. "Oh, yes," Poppyfrost meowed. This would be their first Gathering as warriors. Sandstorm paced restlessly around Brackenfur. "I wonder what WindClan will have to say for themselves?" "They'll come up with some excuse," Brackenfur muttered.

灰条在育婴室旁来回踱步。 松鸦爪能感觉到，他的心情像被撕碎的猎物一样纠结。 这位灰色武士很想和族伴一起去森林大会，但一想到要把生病的米莉留下，他就心头难安。 松鸦爪眨了眨眼。 一股旧日的悲伤放大了灰条的不安，让他想起了那块灰色巨岩上的银毛母猫。 "灰条！" 火星朝老朋友走了过来。 "你留在这里看守营地吧， 我们已经有足够多的武士参会了。 风族不会觉得我们被削弱了的。" "谢了。" 灰条的语气带着释然。 火星朝营地出口走去，那里的罂粟霜和蜜蕨都已经坐不住了。 "很期待对不对？" 尘毛问她们。 "当然啦，"罂粟霜说道。 这可是她们成为武士后的第一次森林大会。 沙风不安地在蕨毛身边踱着步。 "不知道风族会怎么为自己辩解？" "他们肯定能想出一堆借口的，"蕨毛低声咕哝道。

"Hurry up." Hollypaw nudged Jaypaw. Lionpaw was already waiting beside Ashfur. Firestar stood at the camp entrance. "We must show WindClan and RiverClan that we are as strong as ever," he reminded his Clanmates. "The moon is bright tonight, and that means StarClan is no longer angry." "I bet they're still angry with WindClan," Spiderleg called from outside the medicine cats" den. "We were only defending our borders. StarClan would not punish us for that," Firestar answered. "I should hope not." Sorreltail was sitting outside the warriors" den, her tail swishing over the ground. "The vanishing sun frightened us all," Firestar went on. "But we must take it as a sign that the battle was wrong. The sun came back when the battle ended. We should have learned by now that the Clans need one another to survive." Jaypaw tipped his head. The ThunderClan leader's confident words hadn't come from anything Leafpool had said to him. The medicine

“快点。” 冬青爪推了推松鸦爪。 狮爪已经在阿什弗旁边等着了。 火星站在营地入口。 “我们必须让风族和河族看看，我们依旧强大，”他提醒族猫们。 “今晚月光明亮，说明星族已经不再生气了。” “我打赌它们还在生风族的气，”蜘蛛腿在巫医巢穴外喊道。 我们只是在保卫自己的边界。 星族不会为此惩罚我们的，”火星回答道。 “希望如此。” 蕨尾坐在武士巢穴外，尾巴唰唰扫着地面。 “太阳消失把我们都吓坏了，”火星继续说道。 “但我们要明白，这件事说明那场战争本就不对。 战争结束后，太阳就回来了。 到现在我们该明白，族群只有互相依存才能活下去。” 松鸦爪歪了歪头。 这位雷族族长自信的话，并不是叶池告诉他的。 巫医

cat was still baffled and frightened by the vanishing sun, and the silence from StarClan had made her more nervous. But she kept her worries to herself, carrying on as usual, and only Jaypaw could detect the anxiety fluttering beneath her pelt. "Let's go!" Firestar led his Clanmates out of the hollow. Leaves crunched beneath their paws. Jaypaw shivered, feeling the first chill of leaf-fall. He pressed closer to Hollypaw as they headed for WindClan territory, following the familiar route down to the lake. They had to cross WindClan's part of the shore to reach the island. If they kept within two tail-lengths of the water, WindClan had no right to challenge them. Yet the warriors fell silent as they crossed the border and hurried over the shingle. "Any sign of WindClan?" Jaypaw whispered. "Not yet." Hollypaw's pelt felt spiky against his. Water suddenly lapped Jaypaw's legs. He stumbled in surprise. They didn't usually skirt the lake this closely.

这只猫依旧对太阳消失感到困惑又害怕，星族的沉默让她更加紧张。 但她把担忧藏在心里，一如往常行事，只有松鸦爪能察觉她毛发下涌动的焦虑。 “我们出发！” 火星带领族猫走出了山谷。 树叶在他们爪下被踩得嘎吱响。 松鸦爪打了个哆嗦，感觉到叶落季的第一丝寒意。 前往风族领地时，松鸦爪紧紧贴住冬青爪，沿着熟悉的路线走向湖边。 他们得穿过风族的岸区才能到达小岛。 如果他们离水岸不超过两个尾巴长度，风族就没资格指责他们越界。 但穿过边境踏上碎石滩时，武士们都陷入沉默，匆匆赶路。 “看到风族的身影了吗？” 松鸦爪小声问道。 “还没看到。” 靠过去时，松鸦爪能感觉到冬青刺蓬蓬的毛发。 湖水突然漫过了松鸦爪的腿。 他吃了一惊，绊了一下。 他们平时不会沿湖走得这么近。