Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5 Brambleclaw stalked stiff-legged across the clearing until he stood face to face with the apprentice. "Just what do you think you're doing here?" he hissed. "Hi, Brambleclaw." Squirrelpaw tried to sound calm, but her sparkling eyes betrayed her excitement. "I couldn't sleep, and I saw you leaving, so I've been following you." She gave a little purr of delight. "I was good, wasn't I? You never knew I was there, all the way through the forest." That was true, though Brambleclaw would have died rather than tell her he was impressed. Instead, he let out a low growl. For two mousetails he felt like springing at the ginger she- cat to claw the smug expression off her face. "Why can't you mind your own business?" The she-cat narrowed her eyes. "It's any cat's business when a Clan warrior sneaks out of camp at night." "I wasn't sneaking," Brambleclaw protested guiltily.

第五章 棘爪绷着四肢，一步步穿过空地，走到那名学徒面前，和她面对面站定。 “你倒说说，你跑到这儿来干什么？”他低吼道。 “嗨，棘爪。” 松鼠爪努力装得镇定，可她亮晶晶的眼睛藏不住心底的兴奋。 “我睡不着，看见你出门，就一路跟着你过来啦。” 她愉悦地轻轻发出一声呼噜。 “我表现得很棒对不对？ 穿过整片森林，你从头到尾都没发现我在呢。” 这话确实没错，可棘爪就算死也不会告诉她，自己其实挺佩服她的。 他反而发出了一声低沉的咆哮。 有好一会儿，他恨不得扑上去，一爪子把这只姜黄色母猫脸上得意的神情抓下来。 “你就不能管好自己的事吗？” 这只母猫眯起了眼睛。 “当族群武士半夜偷偷溜出营地，那可是所有猫都该管的事。” “我才没偷偷溜出来，”棘爪心虚地反驳道。

"Oh, no?" Squirrelpaw sounded scornful. "You leave camp, come straight up here to Fourtrees, and sit waiting for ages, looking like you expect every warrior in the forest to jump out at you. Don't tell me you're just enjoying the beautiful night." "I don't have to tell you anything." Brambleclaw heard his voice grow desperate; all he wanted was to get rid of this annoying apprentice before any cats from other Clans arrived. She hadn't mentioned the dream, which meant she couldn't have had it as well, so she had no right to be here and find out the next part of the prophecy—if that was what was really going to happen. "This has got nothing to do with you, Squirrelpaw. Why don't you just go home?" "No." Squirrelpaw sat down and curled her tail around her front paws, glaring at Brambleclaw with wide green eyes. "I'm not leaving until I find out what's going on." Brambleclaw let out a snarl of sheer frustration, only to jump when a voice growled behind him, "What's she doing here?" It was Tawnypelt, slipping out from behind

“哦？是吗？” 松鼠爪的语气满是不屑。 “你离开营地，径直跑到四棵树这儿，坐在这里等了半天，那模样就怕森林里每个武士都跳出来抓你， 别告诉我你只是过来欣赏漂亮夜景的。” “我没必要告诉你任何事。” 棘爪听见自己的声音都变得急切起来； 他满脑子只想在其他族群的猫赶来前，把这个烦人的学徒打发走。 她没提那个梦，说明她没做过同样的梦，那她根本没资格待在这里，发现预言的下一部分——如果那真的要发生的话。 “这事和你半点儿关系都没有，松鼠爪。 你为什么不直接回家呢？” “我不回。” 松鼠爪坐下来，尾巴绕着前爪盘好，睁着大大的绿眼睛瞪着棘爪。 “我不弄清楚发生了什么事，就绝对不走。” 棘爪满是挫败地吼了一声，结果身后突然传来一声咆哮，把他吓了一跳：“她在这里干什么？” 是褐皮，她从那后面溜了出来

the Great Rock. She padded across the clearing and narrowed her eyes at Squirrelpaw. "I thought we weren't going to tell any other cats?" Brambleclaw felt his fur prickle. "I didn't tell her. She saw me leaving and followed me." "And it's a good thing I did." Squirrelpaw stood up and met Tawnypelt's gaze, her ears flat against her head. "You creep out at night and come up here to meet a ShadowClan warrior! What's Firestar going to think about that when I tell him?" Brambleclaw's belly lurched uncomfortably. Perhaps he ought to have told Firestar about the dream right from the start, but it was too late now. "Listen," he meowed urgently. "Tawnypelt isn't just a ShadowClan warrior; she's my sister. You know that as well as any cat. We're not plotting anything." "Then why all the secrecy?" Squirrelpaw demanded. Brambleclaw was searching for a reply when Tawnypelt interrupted him, flicking her tail toward the slope. "Look."

大岩石的后面。 她缓步穿过空地，眯起眼睛看向松鼠爪。 “我们不是说好了，不能告诉其他猫吗？” 棘爪感觉背上的毛都炸起来了。 “我没告诉她。 她看见我出门，就跟过来了。” “我跟过来才好呢。” 松鼠爪站起身，迎上褐皮的目光，耳朵紧紧贴在脑门上。 “你们夜里偷偷溜出来，跑到这儿见一个影族武士！ 等我告诉火星，他会怎么想这件事？” 棘爪的肚子不舒服地抽了一下。 也许他从一开始就该把那个梦告诉火星，可现在已经太晚了。 “听着，”他急切地开口说。 “褐皮不只是影族武士，她还是我的妹妹。 这点你和所有猫一样都清楚。 我们没在策划任何坏事。” “那你干嘛还要偷偷摸摸的？” 松鼠爪追问道。 棘爪正琢磨着该怎么回答，褐皮打断了他，尾巴朝着斜坡一甩。 “看。”

Brambleclaw caught a glimpse of something gray moving among the bushes, and a heartbeat later Feathertail and Stormfur stepped into the clearing. They glanced around warily, but as soon as Feathertail spotted the other cats she raced across the clearing toward them. "I was right!" she exclaimed, skidding to a halt in front of Brambleclaw and the two she-cats. Her eyes widened, beginning to look puzzled and a little daunted. "Did you have the dream as well? Is it the four of us?" "Tawnypelt and I have had it," Brambleclaw replied, at the same moment Squirrelpaw asked, "What dream?" "The dream from StarClan, telling us that there's trouble ahead." Feathertail sounded more uncertain still, and her gaze flicked tensely from cat to cat. "Did you both have the dream?" Brambleclaw asked, glancing at Stormfur as the RiverClan warrior caught up with his sister. Stormfur shook his head. "No, only Feathertail." "It scared me so much," Feathertail confessed.

棘爪瞥见灌木丛里有个灰色身影在晃动，一转眼，羽尾和暴毛就走进了空地。 他们警惕地环顾四周，可羽尾一看到这群猫，就立刻穿过空地朝他们跑过来。 “我说的没错吧！” 她喊道，猛地在棘爪和两只母猫跟前刹住脚。 她瞪大了眼睛，渐渐露出困惑的神情，还有点发慌。 “你们也做了那个梦对不对？ 要到这里来的就是我们四个吗？” “我和褐皮都做了，”棘爪回答，与此同时松鼠爪开口问道：“什么梦？” “星族赐的梦，告诉我们前方有大麻烦。” 羽尾的声音听起来更犹豫了，她紧张地把目光从一只猫扫到另一只猫身上。 “你们两个都做了这个梦吗？” 棘爪问道，目光扫向走到妹妹身边的这位河族武士暴毛。 暴毛摇了摇头。 “没有，只有羽尾做了。” “这个梦可把我吓坏了，”羽尾坦白道。

"I couldn't eat or sleep for thinking about it. Stormfur knew something was wrong, and he pestered me so much that I told him what I'd dreamed. We decided that I should come to Fourtrees tonight, at the new moon, and Stormfur wouldn't let me come by myself." She gave her brother's ear a friendly lick. "He... he didn't want me to be in danger. But I'm not, am I? I mean, we all know each other." "Don't be so quick to trust every cat," Stormfur growled. "I don't like meeting cats from other Clans in secret like this. It's not what the warrior code tells us." "But we have each had a message from StarClan, telling us to come," Tawnypelt pointed out. "Bluestar visited Brambleclaw, and Nightstar came to me." "And I saw Oakheart," Feathertail meowed. "He said great trouble was coming to the forest, and I would have to meet with three other cats at the new moon to hear what midnight tells us." "I was told that, too," Tawnypelt confirmed. With a twitch of her ears at Stormfur she added, "I don't much like it either, but we should wait

“我满脑子都是这件事，吃不下也睡不着。 石毛看出不对劲，一直缠着我，我就把做的梦告诉他了。 我们说好新月之夜我今晚来四树，石毛说什么也不让我独自来。” 她友好地舔了舔哥哥的耳朵。 “他……他不想我身陷危险。 可我没有遇到危险，对不对？ 再说了，我们大家都认识呀。” “别这么快就对所有猫放下戒心，”石毛低吼道。 “我不喜欢像这样偷偷和其他族群的猫见面。 这不符合武士守则的要求。” “但我们每个人都收到了星族的传讯，叫我们来这里，”褐皮指出。 “蓝星去找了棘爪，夜星来找了我。” “我也见到了橡心，”羽尾轻声说。 “他说大灾难就要降临森林，我得在新月之夜和另外三只猫碰面，听午夜告诉我们消息。” “我也收到了同样的传讯，”褐皮确认道。 她对着石毛动了动耳朵，补充道：“我也不太喜欢这样，但我们得等

and see what StarClan wants." "At midnight, I suppose," Stormfur meowed, glancing up at the stars. "It must be nearly that now." Brambleclaw's heart sank as he noticed Squirrelpaw's eyes getting wider and wider. "You mean that StarClan told all of you to meet here?" the young she-cat burst out. "And they say there's trouble coming? What kind of trouble?" "We don't know," Feathertail replied. "At least, Oakheart didn't tell me..." She trailed off, looking flustered, but Brambleclaw and Tawnypelt shook their heads to show that their dream-cats hadn't shared this with them either. Stormfur's eyes narrowed. "Your Clanmate hasn't had the dream," he mewed to Brambleclaw. "What's she doing here?" "You didn't have it either." Squirrelpaw wasn't afraid to stand up to the RiverClan warrior. "I've as much right to be here as you." "Except I didn't invite you," Brambleclaw growled. "Chase her off, then," Tawnypelt suggested. "I'll help."

看看星族到底想干什么。” “我猜就是午夜吧，”石毛抬眼望着星星说道。 现在差不多快到午夜了。” 棘爪注意到松鼠爪的眼睛越睁越大，心一下子沉了下去。 “你是说星族叫你们所有人都来这里聚会？” 这只年轻母猫脱口问道。 “他们说有麻烦要来了？ 是什么样的麻烦？” “我们也不知道，”羽尾回答。 “至少，橡心没告诉我……” 她慌慌张张地住了口，棘爪和褐皮也都摇了摇头，表示出现在他们梦里的猫也没说这件事。 石毛眯起了眼睛。 “你的族伴没做这个梦，”他对棘爪说。 “她来这里干什么？” “你也没做这个梦。” 松鼠爪一点也不怕顶撞这位河族武士。 “我和你一样有资格待在这里。” “问题是我没邀请你，”棘爪低吼道。 “那把她赶走就好了，”褐皮提议。 “我来帮忙。”