Chapter 19

CHAPTER 19 Lionblaze woke to the sound of coughing. For a moment he burrowed deeper into the moss, trying to remember the last time he'd had a good night's sleep. His dreams were filled with Tigerstar, taunting him about his power, sneering at him for being revolted by the sight of Heatherpaw's blood-soaked body. And when he wasn't asleep, the warriors" den was filled with choking, spluttering cats battling greencough. Then he stiffened. The sick cats had all gone to the Twoleg nest with Firestar! There shouldn't be any coughing now. Raising his head, Lionblaze saw Spiderleg in his nest a couple of tail-lengths away, his body shaken by another fit of coughing. Oh, no! Firestar's idea hasn't worked. "Spiderleg," he meowed, "you'd better get along to Leafpool. She'll give you something for the cough, and then you can join the others in the Twoleg nest." "Don't tell me what to do," the older warrior snapped. "I've just got a bit of moss in my throat,

第十九章 狮焰被咳嗽声吵醒了。 有好一会儿，他往苔藓窝深处缩了缩，努力回想自己上次睡个好觉是什么时候。 他的梦里全是虎星，虎星拿他的能力嘲讽他，还笑话他见了希瑟爪沾满鲜血的尸体时满脸厌恶。 而哪怕他醒着，武士巢穴里也全是呛咳不止、喷嚏不断，正和绿咳症搏斗的猫。 接着，他浑身猛地一僵。 生病的猫全都跟着火星去两脚兽的巢穴了啊！ 现在本不该有咳嗽声的。 狮焰抬起头，看见几尾远的窝里躺着蜘蛛腿，他的身体又被一阵咳嗽抖得不停。 哦，糟了！ 火星的办法根本没用。 "蜘蛛腿，"他开口道，"你赶紧去找叶池吧。" 她会给你治咳嗽的东西，之后你就能去两脚兽巢穴找其他猫了。" "别对我指手画脚，"这名年长武士厉声喝道。 "我只是喉咙里卡了点苔藓，

that's all." Even in the dim light of the warriors" den, Lionblaze could see that Spiderleg's eyes were glazed with fever. "I don't think so." At the same moment Brambleclaw raised his head from his nest nearer the center of the den. "Spiderleg, you're ill. You know how fast the sickness spreads. Go and see Leafpool now. Lionblaze, go with him." "Sure." Lionblaze hauled himself out of his nest and gave his pelt a quick grooming. Spiderleg rose to his paws with an exaggerated sigh that ended in another bout of coughing. He pushed his way into the clearing, and Lionblaze followed, padding a few paw steps behind him as they headed for the medicine cats" den. The chill of dawn still lay over the camp, and shadows crowded thickly around the sides of the hollow. A moisture-laden breeze held the promise of rain later. Before they reached the den, Daisy came bounding over from the nursery. "Spiderleg, what's the matter?" she fretted. "Are you ill?" "I'm fine. I just wish—" More coughing

就这样而已。" 哪怕武士巢穴里光线昏暗，狮焰也能看出蜘蛛腿烧得眼睛发蒙。 "我可不这么觉得。" 就在这时，住在更靠近巢穴中心窝里的黑莓掌抬起了头。 "蜘蛛腿，你生病了。 你知道这病传染得有多快。 现在就去找叶池。 狮焰，你跟他一起去。" "好的。" 狮焰从窝里爬起身，飞快梳理了一下自己的皮毛。 蜘蛛腿站起身，夸张地叹了口气，结果又引发了一阵咳嗽。 他挤着身子走到营地空地，狮焰跟在后面，在他身后几步远，一同往巫医巢穴走去。 营地还笼罩着黎明的寒意，凹地边缘围着浓浓的阴影。 带着潮气的风吹着，预示着过会儿要下雨。 他们还没走到巢穴，黛西就从育婴室奔了过来。 "蜘蛛腿，你怎么了？" 她担忧地问道。 "你是不是生病了？" "我没事。 我只是想——"又是一阵咳嗽

interrupted Spider-leg. "I just wish every cat would stop fussing," he finished when he could speak again. Daisy's eyes grew wide with dismay. "You are ill!" "Don't worry, Daisy." Lionblaze brushed his muzzle against the cream-colored she-cat's shoulder. "I'm taking him to Leafpool now." He and Spiderleg headed off again, leaving Daisy to watch them after them, her eyes filled with anxiety. Inside the den, Leafpool and Jaypaw were already awake. "This is the last of the tansy," Leafpool was mewing. "You'd better see if you can find more, and take it straight to the Twoleg nest. Remember to put it on the flat stone outside the entrance." "Okay." Jaypaw turned to go, then halted as he realized that Spiderleg and Lionblaze were there. "What now?" he asked. Spiderleg answered with another fit of coughing. "No!" For a heartbeat Lionblaze saw fear flicker in Leafpool's eyes. Then she was the

打断了蜘蛛腿的话。 "我就是希望所有猫都别瞎操心，"他能说话之后接着说道。 黛西惊愕地瞪大了眼睛。 "你真的生病了！" "别担心，黛西。" 狮焰用鼻子蹭了蹭这只乳色母猫的肩膀。 "我这就带他去找叶池。" 他和蜘蛛腿继续往前走，留下黛西站在原地望着他们，眼中满是焦虑。 巢穴里，叶池和松鸦爪早就醒了。 "这是剩下的全部艾菊了，"叶池说道。 "你最好再去找一些，找到之后直接送到两脚兽巢穴去。" "记得放在入口外面的平石头上。" "好的。" 松鸦爪转身要走，发现蜘蛛腿和狮焰来了，便停下了脚步。 "又出什么事了？"他问道。 蜘蛛腿没回答，只是又一阵咳嗽发作。 "不好！" 有一瞬间，狮焰看见叶池眼中闪过一丝恐惧。 紧接着她又变回了

quietly efficient medicine cat again. "Spiderleg, eat this tansy. It'll soothe your throat. Jaypaw, bring some more back here as well." Jaypaw gave her a brief nod, whisked past the bramble screen, and vanished. While Spiderleg was chewing up the tansy, grumbling under his breath, Daisy poked her head into the den. "Can I come in?" she asked Leafpool, her words muffled by the plump vole she was carrying. Leafpool looked uncertain; the fewer cats around Spiderleg the better. Then she nodded. "Of course, Daisy. What is it?" Daisy dropped the vole at Spiderleg's paws. "I brought you this. I thought you could do with a good meal before you go to the Twoleg nest." "Well, you needn't have bothered," Spiderleg meowed ungraciously. "I'm not hungry." Daisy took a step back, her neck fur bristling. "I chose it specially!" Spiderleg didn't reply, just swiped his tongue round his jaws for the last of the tansy juices. "Our kits are worried about you, too," Daisy went on. Her voice grew sharper. "It's a wonder

那个沉静能干的巫医了。 "蜘蛛腿，把这片艾菊吃下去。 它能舒缓你的喉咙。 松鸦爪，你出去也再找些艾菊回来。" 松鸦爪轻轻点了点头，快步穿过荆条屏障，消失不见了。 蜘蛛腿嚼着艾菊，小声咕哝抱怨的时候，黛西把头探进了巢穴。 "我能进来吗？" 她问叶池，声音因为叼着肥田鼠有些含混不清。 叶池有些犹豫，毕竟越少猫接触蜘蛛腿越好。 接着她点了点头。 "当然可以，黛西。 你有什么事吗？" 黛西把田鼠放到蜘蛛腿的爪子边。 "我给你带了这个。 我想你去两脚兽巢穴之前，正好可以吃顿饱饭。" "唔，其实你不用这么麻烦的，"蜘蛛腿没好气地说道。 "我不饿。" 黛西往后退了一步，颈后的毛都竖了起来。 "这是我特意挑的！" 蜘蛛腿没有回应，只是舔了舔嘴巴，咽下最后一点艾菊汁。 "我们的幼崽也很担心你，"黛西继续说道。 她的声音变得更加尖锐。 "真奇怪

they remember you, because you never come to visit them." Spiderleg shrugged. "It's not that I'm not interested.... I just know that you'll do a great job of raising them without me." "Why?" Daisy challenged him. "Because I've raised kits on my own before? But that wasn't my choice, Spiderleg, as you know very well." Lionblaze exchanged an embarrassed glance with Leafpool; he wished he could leave the den, but the two quarreling cats were blocking the entrance. Leafpool was listening with a strange look in her eyes that Lionblaze couldn't interpret. "Every kit is different," Daisy went on. "And every kit deserves to know its father. You're missing out, Spiderleg, and if you're not careful it will be too late, and your own kits won't know who you are!" Not waiting for a reply, she spun around and stalked out of the den. "She-cats!" Spiderleg exclaimed. He turned to leave, but Leafpool slipped past him and blocked his way out. "Kits are a precious gift, Spiderleg," she mewed quietly. "You should

它们还记得你，可你从来都没来看过它们。” 蜘蛛腿耸耸肩。 “我不是不关心…… 我就是知道，没有我你也能把它们养得很好。” “为什么？” 黛西质问他。 “就因为我之前独自养过幼崽吗？ 可那不是我自己选的，蜘蛛腿，你明明很清楚这一点。” 狮焰和叶池尴尬地对视了一眼； 他很想离开巢穴，可那两只吵架的猫正好挡在入口。 叶池听着，眼神里带着一种狮焰读不懂的奇怪情绪。 “每只幼崽都不一样，”黛西继续说。 “每只幼崽都该认识自己的父亲啊， 你会错过这些的，蜘蛛腿，要是你再不行动就来不及了，你的亲生孩子都不会认得你是谁！” 她没等蜘蛛腿回话，转身就快步走出了巢穴。 “母猫啊！” 蜘蛛腿嚷嚷道。 他转身要走，可叶池从他身边绕过去，挡住了出口。 “幼崽是最珍贵的礼物，蜘蛛腿，”她轻声说。 “你应当

take every chance you can to be a good father. It's even better than being a mentor." "How would you know?" Spiderleg demanded. Leafpool just gazed at him, her amber eyes clear and calm. "Sorry," Spiderleg muttered after a heartbeat. "It's just... I never planned to have kits with Daisy. I feel useless and clumsy around them. And I feel every cat is judging me because I'm not closer to Daisy. It didn't work out, that's all." "That's not the point," Leafpool replied. "Your kits still have a mother and a father, even if you and Daisy aren't mates anymore. You're punishing the kits by not being a better father. They won't judge you because they don't know any different. But in the end, they're the only things that matter." "I don't know what to do!" Spiderleg protested. "I can't—" Another outbreak of coughing cut off what he was about to say. "Then learn!" Leafpool's amber eyes blazed. "You've seen Brambleclaw and Graystripe and Dustpelt around their kits. I can't believe you

抓住每一个机会，做个好爸爸。 这甚至比当导师还有意思呢。” “你怎么会懂？” 蜘蛛腿质问道。 叶池只是静静地看着他，琥珀色的眼睛澄澈又平静。 “对不起，”过了一会儿蜘蛛腿小声嘟囔。 “我只是…… 我从来没计划过要和黛西生幼崽。 在它们身边我觉得自己既没用又笨手笨脚的。 我还觉得所有猫都在指责我，因为我和黛西不亲近。 我们就是合不来，仅此而已。” “这不是重点，”叶池回答。 “就算你和黛西不再是伴侣，你的幼崽还是既有妈妈也有爸爸啊。 你不尽父亲的责任，其实是在惩罚这些幼崽。 它们不会指责你，因为它们本来就什么都不懂。 可说到底，只有它们才是最重要的啊。” “我不知道该怎么做啊！” 蜘蛛腿反驳道。 “我不能——”一阵剧烈的咳嗽打断了他要说的话。 “那就去学啊！” 叶池的琥珀色眼睛亮了起来。 “你也见过黑莓掌、灰条和尘毛陪着自己幼崽的样子啊， 我真不敢相信你