Path of Stars by Erin Hunter Page A

seen kits so small. Make sure they stay warm, and don’t let them have too many visitors.”
    Pebble Heart flicked his tail anxiously. “Don’t let any sick cats near them for at least a moon!”
    â€œOf course not!” Clear Sky looked alarmed.
    â€œYou’ll be able to take them home soon,” Wind Runner promised Clear Sky. “Kits grow fast.”
    Clear Sky looked at the two she-cats, his gaze brimming with gratitude. “Thank you for getting her safely through this.” He glanced at his kits, his mew growing husky. “And them.”
    Gray Wing followed his brother’s gaze, marveling at Star Flower’s strength and courage. Only a short while earlier, she had been fighting rogues! Now she was curled around her first litter.
    â€œGray Wing?”
    He realized that his brother was talking to him. “What?” He met Clear Sky’s gaze, surprised by its warmth.
    â€œThank you for rescuing Star Flower.”
    â€œIt was the right thing to do.”
    Clear Sky tipped his head to one side. “Why did you keep your plan secret from me?”
    Gray Wing blinked. “If you’d known where she was,nothing would have kept you from her. But we needed to wait until Slash was distracted.”
    â€œAnd I was the distraction.” Clear Sky grunted.
    â€œYou had to be convincing.” Gray Wing dipped his head apologetically. “It seemed the best way to get her back safely.”
    â€œI will always be grateful.”
    â€œIt’s nothing.” Gray Wing shrugged. “You’d have done the same for me.”
    Doubt flickered in Clear Sky’s moonlit gaze, then dissolved. He padded closer and rubbed his muzzle against Gray Wing’s. His fur was warm against his cheek, his scent so familiar that, for a moment, Gray Wing’s thoughts flashed back to his kithood, when they’d snuggled side by side at Quiet Rain’s belly.
    He suddenly realized that Clear Sky was purring. “Congratulations,” he breathed.
    â€œThank you, brother,” Clear Sky murmured, his mew cracking. “I will never forget this.”

C HAPTER 7

    Frost-whitened leaves crunched beneath Thunder’s paws. Sunshine dappled the forest floor. Although it was the coldest season, leaf-bare brought light to the forest; blue sky showed between the branches now that the lush green canopy had gone.
    Thunder felt a prickle of excitement. Pebble Heart had come to the camp earlier to visit with his littermate Owl Eyes. He’d brought news that Clear Sky and Star Flower had returned to their camp in the forest with the kits. In the days since her escape, Star Flower had recovered from the trauma, and the kits were growing strong.
    When Lightning Tail had returned from the rescue mission, Thunder had been shocked by his injuries. Wounds scarred his flank, and his ear tip had been torn. A scratch near one eye was still swollen. Thunder wasn’t convinced by Lightning Tail’s assurances that it had been an easy fight. The sight of his friend, so battered by his encounter with the rogues, unnerved Thunder. Had Slash’s boast been true? Were his rogues more numerous and more savage than the forest cats?
    He pushed the thought away now. Why spoil such a crisp leaf-bare morning with worry? He was on his way to meet hisnewest kin—Tiny Branch, Dew Petal, and Flower Foot.
    As the forest sloped down toward Clear Sky’s territory, Thunder kicked his white paws through the drifted leaves and hopped over fallen branches brought down by leaf-fall storms. When the brambles thinned and gave way to swaths of bracken, Thunder began to smell the scents of Clear Sky’s cats. Nettle and Birch had passed this way recently. Instinctively, Thunder opened his mouth and tasted for prey-scent. Were the woods here any richer than his own? He smelled only cat scent and the musky odor of fungus. The voles and mice, which had scuttled beneath every root and bush