Chapter 18

CHAPTER 18 "Not as long as Fireheart is alive," Cinderpelt argued. Fireheart felt warmed by her faith in him and was about to respond when Thornpaw complained, his words muffled, "It's still bleeding you know!" "Not for long," answered Yellowfang briskly. "Here, Cinderpelt. You make use of these cobwebs while I see to Fireheart's wounds." She nudged the cobwebs closer to Cinderpelt and led Fireheart away to her den. "Wait here," she ordered, and disappeared inside. She emerged with a mouthful of well-chewed herbs. "Now, where does it hurt?" "This one's the worst," answered Fireheart, twisting his head to point to a bite on his shoulder. "Right," meowed Yellowfang. She began to rub in some of the herb mixture with a gentle paw. "Bluestar's very shaken," she murmured, not looking up from what she was doing. "I know," Fireheart agreed. "I'm going to organize more patrols at once. That may calm

第十八章“只要火心还活着就不行。”灰姑娘争辩道。 火心因她对他的信任而感到温暖，正要回应时，桑爪低声抱怨道：“你知道，它还在流血！”“不会太久的。”黄牙轻快地回答。 “在这里,Cinderpelt。你用这些蜘蛛网，我来处理火心的伤口。” 她把蜘蛛网推到灰姑娘身边，把火心带到她的窝里。 “在这儿等着。”她命令道，然后消失在屋里。 她嘴里含着一口咀嚼得很好的草药。 “现在，你哪里疼？”“这个是最坏的。”火心回答，扭着头指着自己肩膀上的咬痕。 “对，”黄牙喵喵地说。 她开始用一只温柔的爪子揉搓一些草药混合物。 “蓝星吓坏了。”她低声说，头也不抬。 “我知道。”火心同意道。 “我要立刻组织更多的巡逻。 这可能会平息

her." "It may help calm the rest of the Clan too," Yellowfang remarked. "They're really worried." "They should be." Fireheart winced as Yellowfang pressed the herbs deep into his wound. "How are the new apprentices coming along?" she asked, her voice deceptively casual. Fireheart knew the old medicine cat was offering advice in her wise and indirect fashion. "I'll speed up their training, starting at dawn," he told her. Sorrow caught in his throat as he thought of Cloudpaw. The Clan needed him now more than ever; no matter what the white apprentice had thought of the warrior code, no cat could deny that he was a brave and skillful fighter. Yellowfang stopped massaging his shoulder. "Have you finished?" he meowed. "Nearly. I'll just put a little on those scratches; then you can go." The old cat blinked at him with wide yellow eyes. "Have courage, young Fireheart. These are dark times for ThunderClan, but no cat could do more than you have." As she spoke,

她。”黄方说：“这或许也能让氏族的其他人平静下来。” “他们真的很担心。”“应该是这样。” 黄牙把草药深深塞进火心的伤口时，他畏缩了一下。 “新来的徒弟怎么样了？”她问，声音显得很随意。 火心知道那只老药猫在用她那睿智而间接的方式给她出主意。 “我会加快他们的训练，从黎明开始，”他告诉她。 一想到云爪，他的喉咙就哽住了。 氏族现在比以往任何时候都更需要他；不管白衣学徒对武士的准则有什么看法，没有猫能否认他是一个勇敢而熟练的战士。 黄牙不再按摩他的肩膀。 “你吃完了吗？”他叫道。 “近。我会在这些划痕上涂一点；然后你就可以走了。” 那只老猫睁着大大的黄眼睛向他眨着眼睛。 “勇敢点，年轻的火心。 现在是雷霆家族的黑暗时期，但没有哪只猫能比你做得更好。” 她说话的时候，

there was a low rumble of thunder in the distance, a hint of menace that sent a chill through Fireheart's fur in spite of the medicine cat's encouragement. When he returned to the main clearing, his wounds numbed by Yellowfang's healing herbs, Fireheart was surprised to find many of the cats still awake. Bluestar, Whitestorm, and Mousefur crouched silently beside Runningwind's body, their grief made plain in their lowered heads and tense shoulders. The other cats lay in small groups, their eyes blinking in the shadows and their ears twitching nervously as they listened to the noises of the forest. Fireheart lay down at the edge of the clearing. The stifling air made his fur prickle. The whole forest seemed to be waiting for the storm to break. A shadow moved near the edge of the clearing. Fireheart swung his head around. It was Darkstripe. Fireheart beckoned the striped warrior closer with his tail. Darkstripe slowly padded toward him. "I want you to take out a second patrol as soon as the dawn patrol returns tomorrow,"

远处响起了低沉的雷声，这是一种威胁的暗示，尽管药猫在鼓励，火心还是感到一阵寒意。 当他回到空地上，伤口已经被黄牙的草药麻醉了，火心惊讶地发现许多猫还醒着。 蓝星、白风暴和鼠毛静静地蹲在奔风的尸体旁，他们低下头，紧绷的肩膀表明了他们的悲伤。 其他的猫三五成群地躺着，它们的眼睛在阴影里眨着，耳朵紧张地抽搐着，听着森林里的声音。 火心躺在空地的边上。 令人窒息的空气使他的毛刺痛。 整个森林似乎都在等待暴风雨的来临。 一个影子在空地的边缘移动。 火心转过头来。 是暗条纹。火心用尾巴示意条纹战士靠近一点。 黑条慢慢地向他走来。 “明天黎明巡逻队一回来，我要你立刻派出第二支巡逻队。”

Fireheart meowed. "From now on there will be three extra patrols every day, and all patrols will have three warriors." Darkstripe looked coolly at Fireheart. "But I'm taking Fernpaw out training tomorrow morning." Fireheart's fur prickled with irritation. "Then take her with you," he snapped. "It'll be good experience. We need to speed up apprentice training anyway." Darkstripe's ears flicked, but his gaze remained steady. "Yes, deputy," he murmured, his eyes glittering. Fireheart wearily pushed his way into Bluestar's den. Even though it was not yet sunhigh, he'd been out on patrol twice already that day. And he would be taking Whitestorm's apprentice, Brightpaw, out hunting this afternoon. The days since Runningwind's death had been busy. All the warriors and apprentices were exhausted trying to keep up with the new patrols. With Willowpelt and Goldenflower in the nursery, Whitestorm reluctant to leave his leader's side, Cloudpaw gone, and Runningwind dead,

Fireheart呜呜呜。“从现在开始，每天会有三个额外的巡逻，每个巡逻都有三个战士。” 暗条冷冷地看着火心。 “但是明天早上我要带芬爪出去训练。” 火心的毛因恼怒而刺痛。 “那就把她带走。”他厉声说。 “这将是一次很好的经历。 无论如何，我们需要加快学徒培训。” “暗条”的耳朵轻轻一摇，但他的目光依然坚定。 “是的，警官，”他喃喃地说，眼睛闪闪发光。 火心疲倦地挤进蓝星的巢穴。 尽管太阳还没出来，他那天已经巡逻两次了。 今天下午他会带着白风暴的徒弟亮爪出去打猎。 奔风死后的日子很忙。 为了跟上新来的巡逻队，所有的武士和学徒都筋疲力尽。 柳树和金花都在育婴室，白风暴不愿离开他的领袖身边，云爪走了，跑风也死了，

Fireheart barely had time to eat and sleep. Bluestar crouched in her nest, her eyes half- closed, and for a moment Fireheart wondered if she had caught the ShadowClan sickness. Her fur was even more matted, and she sat with the stillness of a cat who could no longer care for itself, but waited silently for death. "Bluestar," Fireheart quietly called her name. The old she-cat turned her head slowly toward him. "We've been patrolling the forest constantly," he reported. "There's been no sign of Tigerclaw and his rogues." Bluestar looked away without answering. Fireheart paused, wondering whether to say more, but Bluestar had drawn her paws farther under her chest and closed her eyes. Disheartened, Fireheart dipped his head and backed out of the cave. The sunlit clearing looked so peaceful that it was hard to believe the Clan faced any dangers. Brackenfur was playing with Willowpelt's kits outside the nursery, flicking his tail for them to chase, while Whitestorm rested in the shade

火心几乎没有时间吃饭和睡觉。 蓝星蹲在她的窝里，半闭着眼睛，一时间火心怀疑她是否感染了暗影家族的疾病。 她的毛更皱了，她一动不动地坐着，就像一只再也不能照顾自己的猫，只是静静地等待死亡。 “蓝星，”火心悄悄地叫着她的名字。 老母猫慢慢地把头转向他。 “我们一直在森林里巡逻，”他报告说。 “没有虎爪和他的流氓们的踪迹。” 蓝星望向别处，没有回答。 火心停了一下，不知该不该再说下去，但蓝星已经把爪子伸到胸口下，闭上了眼睛。 火心沮丧地低下头，退出了山洞。 阳光照耀下的空地看起来如此平静，以至于很难相信氏族面临任何危险。 Brackenfur在育儿室外面和Willowpelt的孩子们玩耍，摇着尾巴让他们追逐，而Whitestorm则在阴凉处休息

beneath the Highrock. Only the fact that the white warrior's ears were pricked toward Bluestar's den betrayed the strain the Clan was under. Fireheart stared unenthusiastically toward the growing pile of fresh-kill. His belly felt tight and hollow, but he couldn't imagine being able to swallow anything. He spotted Sandstorm eating a piece of fresh-kill. The sight of her sleek orange pelt was an unexpected pleasure, and Fireheart suddenly couldn't help thinking how much he'd enjoy her company while he was out hunting with Brightpaw. The thought restored Fireheart's appetite, and his belly growled with anticipation of the chase. He would leave the fresh-kill for the others to share. At that moment Brightpaw trotted into the camp behind Mousefur, Frostfur, and Halftail. They were bringing water-soaked moss for the queens and elders. Brightpaw carried her dripping bundle toward Bluestar's den under Whitestorm's appreciative gaze. Fireheart called across to Sandstorm. "You promised you'd catch us a rabbit whenever I

在海岩下。只有白种战士的耳朵朝向蓝星的巢穴，这一事实暴露了氏族所承受的压力。 火心冷淡地盯着那堆越来越多的新鲜猎物。 他觉得肚子又紧又空，但他无法想象自己能吞下任何东西。 他发现沙暴正在吃一块刚宰杀的猎物。 看到她光滑的橙色皮毛是一种意想不到的快乐，火心突然忍不住想，当他和亮爪出去打猎时，他会多么喜欢她的陪伴。 想到这里，火心恢复了食欲，他的肚子也因为期待着被追击而咕咕叫着。 他会把新鲜的猎物留给其他人分享。 就在这时，亮爪子跟在鼠毛、霜毛和半尾巴后面小跑着进了营地。 他们给女王和长老们带来了浸水的苔藓。 在白风暴感激的注视下，亮爪拿着她那滴水的包裹朝蓝星的巢穴走去。 火心朝沙暴喊道。 “你答应过我，只要我