Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9 Stormfur stared in amazement. The cave was at least as broad as the waterfall that screened it from the outside world, and stretched far back into the mountainside, until the farthest recesses were lost in shadow. He could just make out a narrow passage leading off on either side of the wall opposite the sheet of water. The roof, far above his head, was shadowed too; here and there, stones like fangs emerged to point straight down at the cave floor. The only light came through the rushing water, pale and wavering, so that it was like standing in the depths of a pool. As the cats ushered them farther into the cave, Stormfur heard more running water beneath the roar of the falls, and saw a stream trickling over a mossy rock to fall into a shallow pool on the floor of the cave. Two or three cats—a skinny elder and a couple who looked young enough to be apprentices—were crouched beside it to drink. All of them looked up warily at the arrival of the newcomers, as if they were expecting danger.

第九章 暴毛惊愕地注视着眼前。 这个山洞至少和挡住它、将它与外界隔开的瀑布一样宽，一直往山腹深处延伸，最远的角落隐没在阴影中。 他勉强能看清，水帘对面的墙壁两侧各有一条狭窄的通道。 远在他头顶上方的洞顶，也笼罩在阴影里； 各处伸出尖牙般的石块，笔直对准洞底。 唯一的光线透过奔涌的水流照进来，苍白又摇曳，就像站在深潭底部一样。 当那些猫领着他们往山洞深处走，暴毛在瀑布的轰鸣声下，还听到了别的流水声，他看到一条小溪从覆满苔藓的岩石上淌下，落进洞底的浅洼里。 两三只猫正蹲在洼边喝水——一只瘦骨嶙峋的长老，还有两只看着年轻，像是学徒。 他们全都警惕地抬眼看向新来的访客，好像随时在提防危险。

Just beyond the pool was a pile of fresh-kill and, as Stormfur watched, a couple more of the mountain cats came in and deposited prey. It was the first thing he had seen that looked at all familiar, and his belly growled with hunger at the sight of the rabbits. "Do you think they'll let us eat?" Squirrelpaw muttered close to his ear. "I'm starving!" "For all you know, they think we're fresh-kill," Crowpaw hissed from Squirrelpaw's other side. "They haven't done anything to harm us yet," Brambleclaw pointed out. Stormfur tried to share his optimism, but Crag and Brook had vanished, and for a few moments none of the other cats came up to speak to them. Instead, the cats who had been drinking sidled over to their guards, and the elder whispered something, all the while darting glances at him. The two apprentices murmured excitedly to each other. The roar of the waterfall drowned their voices, though Stormfur noticed that the mountain cats seemed to have no trouble hearing one another. Trying to ignore the muttering—most of

水洼后面就是一堆新鲜猎物，暴毛正看着，又有两只山地猫走进来放下了猎物。 这是他见到的第一件眼熟的东西，看到兔子时，他的肚子饿得咕咕叫了起来。 “你觉得他们会让我们吃东西吗？” 松鼠爪凑在他耳边小声说。 “我快饿死了！” “谁知道呢，说不定他们把我们当猎物呢，”鸦爪在松鼠爪另一侧低声嘶道。 “他们至今还没伤害我们呀，”黑莓掌指出。 暴毛也想跟他一样乐观，可石痕和溪儿已经不见了，好一会儿都没有别的猫过来搭话。 相反，刚才喝水的猫悄悄溜到守卫那边，长老对着他们小声说话，眼睛还不停瞟向暴毛。 那两个学徒兴奋地窃窃私语。 瀑布的轰鸣盖过了他们的声音，可暴毛发现这些山地猫互相听对方说话完全没问题。 他努力不去听这些议论——大部分

which seemed to be directed at him, though he told himself to stop being so paranoid—Stormfur identified what looked like sleeping places beside the cave walls: shallow scoops in the earth floor, lined with moss and feathers. One cluster of sleeping places lay close to the entrance and the other two were farther back, at opposite sides of the cave. He wondered if one set was for warriors, one for apprentices, and one for elders. Spotting a couple of kits scuffling outside the entrance to one of the passages, he guessed that led to the nursery. Suddenly he saw the dark, noisy, frightening cave in a different way: This was a camp! The Tribe shared some of the ways of the Clans in the forest; Stormfur began to feel much more hopeful of getting food and rest, and help for Tawnypelt, who had sunk shivering to the floor. Then he spotted Crag again, emerging from the far passage and padding across the cave floor toward the tight group of forest cats. He was followed by another cat, long-bodied and skinny as a WindClan warrior. So much mud plastered his fur that Stormfur couldn't make out what

好像都是冲着他来的，可他告诉自己别这么多疑——暴毛认出洞壁旁那些是睡觉的地方：泥地上挖了浅浅的坑，铺着苔藓和羽毛。 一群窝铺靠近洞口，另外两群在山洞深处，分别位于山洞的两侧。 他猜想是不是一组给武士住，一组给学徒，一组给长老。 他看到几只幼崽在其中一条通道入口打闹，便猜那条通道通向育婴室。 突然间，他换了个角度看这个又黑又吵又吓人的山洞：这原来是个营地呀！ 急水部落的不少生活方式和森林里的族群很像； 暴毛这下更有希望能吃到东西、好好休息，也能帮到褐皮了——褐皮已经冻得发抖，瘫在了地上。 接着他又看到了石痕，他从远处的通道走出来，穿过洞底，朝挤成一团的森林猫走来。 他身后跟着另一只猫，身形修长，和风族武士一样精瘦。 他的皮毛上糊满了泥，暴毛根本看不出毛底下是什么

color it was underneath, but his eyes were a deep and glowing green, and a few white hairs around his muzzle betrayed the fact that he was older than the cats they had seen so far. "Greetings," he meowed in a deep voice that seemed to echo around the cave. He made the odd gesture with one paw extended that Crag and Brook had used outside. "My name is Teller of the Pointed Stones, though you will find it easier to call me Stoneteller. I am the Healer of the Tribe of Rushing Water." "Healer?" Brambleclaw glanced uncertainly at his friends. "Do you mean the medicine cat? Where is the leader of your Clan—I mean, Tribe?" Stoneteller hesitated for a moment. "I am not sure what you mean by a medicine cat, and there is no other leader of this Tribe. I interpret the signs of rock and leaf and water, and that shows me what the Tribe should do—with the help of the Tribe of Endless Hunting." Stormfur picked out the bit of Stoneteller's speech that he understood. "Then he's medicine cat and leader," he muttered to Brambleclaw.

颜色，可他的眼睛是深邃发亮的深绿色，嘴周的几根白毛说明，他比他们目前见过的所有猫都年长。 “欢迎你们，”他开口说道，声音低沉，在山洞里不停回响。 他伸出一只爪子，做了刚才石痕和溪儿在洞外做的那个奇怪礼节。 “我名叫尖石报讯者，不过你们叫我尖石巫师会更顺口。 我是急水部落的疗愈者。” “疗愈者？” 黑莓掌犹豫地扫了一眼身边的朋友们。 “你说的是巫医对吗？ 你们族群——哦不对，部落的首领在哪里？” 尖石巫师犹豫了片刻。 “我不懂你说的巫医是什么，而且我们部落没有别的首领。 我解读岩石、树叶和水流的预兆，它们会告诉我部落该做什么——这也离不开无尽猎场部落的帮助。” 暴毛听懂了尖石巫师这番话里的意思。 “那他就是巫医兼首领，”他低声对黑莓掌说。

"That's pretty powerful!" In reply, Brambleclaw dipped his head politely. "We come from a forest a long way from here," he began, repeating his own name and the names of his friends. "We have a difficult journey ahead of us, and we need food and shelter before we can go on." More of the Tribe cats crowded around as he spoke, openly curious. Stormfur picked out kits and apprentices by their sizes, and noticed that the warriors seemed to divide into two groups, one with massive shoulders and powerful muscles, the other more slender, with wiry strength and long limbs for speed. He noticed too how anxious they all looked; they seemed to be on edge, as if they were poised to flee. A brown tabby she-cat, her eyes fixed on Stormfur, murmured, "Yes! This is the one—it must be!" Stormfur started. Brook had said something similar, when they first met beside the pool. He opened his mouth to ask what she meant, but the Tribe's Healer had turned to the young brown tabby. "Be silent!" he hissed. More smoothly he

“哇，这可太厉害了！” 听完这话，棘爪礼貌地低下了头。 “我们来自很远很远的一片森林，”他开口说道，报出了自己和朋友们的名字。 “我们前路艰险，需要先补充食物、找地方落脚才能继续赶路。” 他说话的时候，越来越多部落猫围拢过来，明目张胆地好奇打量。 暴风掌按体型分辨出了幼猫和学徒，还发现武士分成了两拨：一拨肩宽肌肉壮，另一拨身形纤细精悍，四肢修长跑得快。 他还发现每只猫都神色慌张； 他们一直紧绷着神经，好像随时准备逃跑。 一只褐纹母猫眼睛直盯着暴风掌，轻声说：“对！ 就是他——肯定是他！” 暴风掌吃了一惊。 他们第一次在水池边相遇时，溪儿也说过类似的话。 他刚张嘴想问这话是什么意思，部落的疗心者已经转向这只年轻褐纹猫。 “住嘴！” 他嘶声呵斥道。 接着他语气缓和下来

went on to the Clan cats, "You are welcome to our cave. Here is caught-prey in plenty." He flicked his tail toward the fresh-kill pile. "Eat your fill, and rest. We have much to say to one another." Brambleclaw looked at the other Clan cats. "We might as well eat," he meowed quietly. "I don't think they're going to hurt us now." As Stormfur followed him toward the pile, he felt once more dozens of eyes burning into his fur. It wasn't his imagination—they were definitely watching him more closely than the others. His fur prickled from nose to tail-tip as he settled down to eat. As he bit into the rabbit he had chosen, he heard a gasp from somewhere behind him and a shocked voice whispering, "They don't share!" Glancing up, he saw a young gray cat giving him a hostile stare, while an older tabby bent her head to him and murmured, "Shh. It's not their fault if they haven't been properly taught." Stormfur didn't know what they meant. Then he spotted two of the Tribe cats who were eating side by side; each of them took a bite from the

对族群猫继续说道：“欢迎你们来到我们的洞穴。 我们这儿猎物多得很。” 他甩甩尾巴指向新鲜猎物堆。 “尽情吃，好好休息。 我们还有好多话要跟对方说。” 棘爪望向其他族群猫。 “我们先吃东西吧，”他轻声喵道。 “我觉得他们现在不会伤害我们。” 暴风掌跟着他走向猎物堆时，再次感觉到几十道目光落在自己身上。 这不是他的错觉——他们确实比其他人更关注他。 他坐下准备吃东西时，从鼻尖到尾尖的毛发都绷了起来。 他刚咬下一口选好的兔子，就听到身后传来倒抽气声，一个震惊的声音小声说：“他们不分享！” 他抬头一看，只见一只年轻灰猫正充满敌意地盯着他，旁边一只年长虎斑猫低头对他轻声说：“嘘。 要是没学好规矩，也不能全怪他们呀。” 暴风掌没听懂他们是什么意思。 接着他看见两只部落猫并排吃东西； 每只猫咬一口自己拿到的猎物，然后