Tigerheart blinked at the kits. “Dovewing’s back. Be good for her. I’m going out with Fierce.”
“When can we go outside?” Pouncekit’s mew echoed after him as he hurried across the floor. He passed Dovewing and paused, his head drooping. “I wish I could bring home real prey,” he told her.
She nosed him playfully. “I don’t care what you bring home, so long as it fills the kits’ bellies.” She hurried quickly away as Pouncekit, Lightkit, and Shadowkit raced to meet her.
Blaze charged from between the nests where Spire was tending to the sick cats. “Can I come?” he asked.
“There will be a lot of Twolegs there,” Tigerheart warned. The young tom had grown in the past two moons, but he was still a kit. Tigerheart didn’t want to lose him in the crowd.
“Please?” Blaze trotted beside Tigerheart. “Spire’s busy with the new cats. It’s boring here. I want to see the outdoor gathering.”
Fierce looked up as they reached her. “Are you coming?” she asked Tigerheart.
“Yes, please.”
“I want to come too,” Blaze mewed.
Fierce glanced at the young tom. She narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. “You’d make a good lookout,” she meowed. “You could help Dotty guard the stash.” She glanced at the pale white-and-ginger she-cat.
Dotty nodded. “Don’t wander off,” she warned Blaze. “It gets crowded. You have to stay near me, okay?”
“Okay.” Blaze nodded eagerly.
Fierce headed for the den entrance and leaped onto the wooden ledge. Tigerheart waited for the rest of the patrol to follow and fell in at the rear. He jumped up onto the ledge and squeezed out of the entrance after Rascal and Mittens.
Fierce followed a new route away from the gathering place. Tigerheart had never been this way before. It led through quieter streets, where few monsters and even fewer Twolegs patrolled outdoors. Then she cut through a narrow alley, which opened onto a wide, open stretch of stone. The clearing was lined with ledges, just as Fierce had promised. The Twolegs had decorated them in bright colors; some had roofs. Tigerheart could see food piled high wherever he looked. The smell of smoke tinged the air. Fire? He scanned the clearing warily and saw plumes rising here and there among the ledges. But there was no sign of fire raging out of control. And the smoke carried mouthwatering scents. Countless Twolegs filed slowly between the ledges, picking at the food, lifting it to smell it, passing it to other Twolegs to wrap. Delicious scents filled Tigerheart’s nose. His belly growled with longing. He hadn’t smelled such tempting prey since he’d left the forest. No wonder the guardian cats came every moon and were willing to brave the crowds of Twolegs to scavenge here.
Fierce led the patrol quickly beneath a line of ledges. Twoleg paws padded around the edges, but in the shadows beneath, Tigerheart felt safe. A Twoleg would have to crawl on all fours to see them.
“We could keep the stash here.” Dotty stopped beside two low stones jutting up from the ground. Dotty reached into the gap between. “This will be easy to guard.”
“From what?” Tigerheart wondered out loud.
Rascal glanced around. “Some of the Twolegs bring dogs. They keep them tied to vines. But the dogs can still reach under the ledges.”
“Don’t worry.” Dotty unsheathed her claws. “A few quick swipes will scare then away.”
“Not too vicious, though,” Fierce warned. “Remember. We mustn’t attract the Twolegs’ attention.”
Mittens lifted his nose, his eyes sparkling. “I’m heading for the ledge where they pile the fish.”
Cobweb purred. “I’ll come with you.”
Tigerheart blinked at the two cats. “You like fish?”
“All cats like fish,” Ant meowed.
Tigerheart wrinkled his nose. “Where I come from, we only eat prey with legs. Except RiverClan.”
The other cats stared at him as though he were crazy. His pelt prickled self-consciously.
Fierce whisked her tail. “I’ll take Tigerheart and Cobweb to see what food the Twolegs have brought this moon.” She nodded at Mittens, Rascal, and Ant. “You hunt for fish while Blaze and Dotty wait here.”
The patrol split, and Tigerheart followed Fierce and Cobweb as they slid from the ledges and dodged between the Twolegs streaming past. With relief, Tigerheart saw another row of ledges and ducked under it with the others.
Fierce tasted the air. “This way.” The ledges formed a tunnel, edged with Twoleg paws, and she led the way along it before dashing across another stream of Twolegs, and then another, until they reached a ledge where the scent of food was so strong, Tigerheart’s mouth began to water. Fierce stopped beneath it and glanced up at a narrow gap. A grouse’s head hung over the edge. Fierce lifted her forepaws off the ground and peered through the slit. “No one’s watching,” she whispered. Reaching up a paw, she tugged at the grouse’s head. It shifted a little, then tumbled through the gap.
Tigerheart stared down at the fat piece of prey. He couldn’t believe his eyes. A grouse in the middle of the city. Delight surged beneath his pelt. The kits were going to taste real prey today.
“Take it to Dotty, then come back here,” Fierce told him.
Eagerly, Tigerheart lifted the grouse between his jaws. The weight of it reminded him of hunting trips with ShadowClan. None of the scraps they scavenged from scrapcans weighed so much or smelled so good. Musky prey-scent filled his nose as he carried the grouse along the ledge tunnel. Peering between the brightly pelted paws of the Twolegs, he scanned the far ledges, looking for Dotty. He spotted her, crouching with Blaze beside the jutting stones. Looking both ways, he waited patiently for a gap in the stream of Twolegs that filled the space between the ledges. As the crowd eased, he darted from one row to another until he reached the stash place.
“Wow.” Blaze stared wide-eyed at the grouse as he dropped it between the stones. “I’ve never seen fresh-kill that big.”
“Fierce and Cobweb are collecting more.” As Tigerheart spoke, Rascal and Mittens dashed toward him, Ant on their tail. Each cat held a glittering fish between his jaws.
They dropped the fish between the stones.
“They’re here,” Rascal huffed.
“Who?” Alarm sparked in Tigerheart’s chest.
“Fog and her gang,” Ant told him. “They’re scavenging.”
Tigerheart peered through the maze of ledges, his fur spiking as he spotted Tuna slinking through the shadows on the far side of the clearing. Fog was with him, and an orange she-cat. Fog stopped and signaled to another group of cats nearby with a flick of her tail. How many cats did Fog have following her? Unease rippled beneath Tigerheart’s pelt.
Dotty followed his gaze, her fur pricking nervously. “There’s enough food here for everyone to share, isn’t there?” She sounded uncertain.
“If Fog wants to share it,” Tigerheart meowed darkly. He didn’t trust the smoky she-cat. She’d chased away the guardian cats’ rats. What if she wasn’t simply a mouse-brained hunter? What if she’d been trying to wreck the guardian cats’ hunt? Perhaps depriving her rivals of prey was more important than hunting. Perhaps she was just here to cause trouble, like Darktail. He nodded to Ant, Rascal, and Mittens. “Keep collecting prey. I’ll warn Fierce.”
He headed back toward the meat ledge where he’d left Cobweb and Fierce. They greeted him, eyes shining. Fresh-kill was piled at their paws. “We’ll have to make several trips back to the gathering place with a haul as big as this,” Fierce meowed happily.
“Let’s get this back to Dotty quickly.” Tigerheart nodded anxiously at the prey.
Fierce narrowed her eyes. “Is something wrong?”
“Fog and her gang are here.”
Fierce shrugged. “I guess they’re looking for food. It’s not a problem. They need to eat just like we do.”
Tigerheart gazed at her. She’d clearly never had to deal with cats like Darktail. “Not all cats want to share.”
“What do you mean?” Cobweb glanced around nervo
usly.
“When Fog chased those rats into the trash field, did it look like she wanted to catch them?” Tigerheart stared at Fierce.
Fierce looked puzzled.
“Was she chasing them, or was she just trying to scatter them so we couldn’t catch them?” Tigerheart pressed.
Fierce frowned. “You think she wants to stop us scavenging. Why?”
“I’m not sure,” Tigerheart admitted. “But she’s camped outside your den, and we seem to trip over her wherever we go. I think she might be trying to take over your territory.”
Fierce looked unconvinced. “But we don’t have territory.”
“So you keep saying.” Exasperation tightened Tigerheart’s belly. “But you have places where you live and places where you scavenge. Imagine if you couldn’t live beneath the gathering place anymore. Imagine if you had to fight every time you wanted to rummage through your favorite scrapcans.” He remembered the rot pile cats. They’d stopped Dash’s scavenging. City cats weren’t as easygoing as they liked to make out. “Imagine Fog sleeping in your nest.”
“She couldn’t!” Fierce looked alarmed for the first time.
“Why not?” Tigerheart pressed. “She has more cats with her every time we see her. Her gang is getting bigger, and she has no sick cats to care for, or kits. If she decides to drive you out of your home, she could probably do it.”
As he spoke, he saw alarm flash in Cobweb’s eyes. He followed the gray tom’s gaze and saw Fog, Tuna, and a stout black-and-white tom padding toward them. “Take this catch to Dotty,” Tigerheart ordered. “I’ll speak to Fog.”
Fierce and Cobweb snatched up what they could, leaving a rabbit beside Tigerheart as they hurried away.
Tigerheart turned to face Fog.
The gray she-cat padded toward him, her eyes glittering with satisfaction. “I’ve never seen this place before.” She stopped in front of him and looked down at the rabbit. “Perhaps it’s a good thing those foxes drove us out of our home. The scraps here are much better than anything we used to scavenge.” She glanced at the black-and-white tom. “I bet you’re glad you joined our little community, Growler.”
The tom purred and reached a paw toward the rabbit.
Tigerheart slapped it away, keeping his claws sheathed. He wasn’t going to fight unless he had to. “I thought you didn’t want to invade our territory.”
“I thought you didn’t have any territory,” Fog countered.
“Maybe the guardian cats don’t, but I do.” Tigerheart curled his lip.
Fog looked at Tuna and then Growler. “And you’re going to defend it single-pawed?”
“I’m going to stop you stealing my catch.” Tigerheart dragged the rabbit closer.
“I told you.” Fog’s eyes shimmered with menace. “In the city, it’s every cat for herself.” She darted forward and hooked the rabbit away.
Anger scorched through Tigerheart’s fur. With a hiss, he swiped his claws across her cheek. Paws slammed into his flank as the black-and-white tom flew at him. Tigerheart fell onto his side. Kicking out his hind legs, he knocked Tuna away before he could join the fight. Then he rolled nimbly back onto his paws and reared. Growler glared at him, hissing. Fog lunged, her claws stretched as she raked his muzzle. Tigerheart ducked his head and rammed it into her belly. He lifted her off her paws and tossed her to one side, then spun and faced the black-and-white tom. Thrusting his muzzle forward, he snapped at Growler’s leg. He sank his teeth in hard, tasting blood and feeling bone. The tom screeched and pulled away. Claws pierced Tigerheart’s tail. He spun and saw Tuna clinging on. With a snarl he aimed a flurry of swipes at Tuna’s muzzle. Yowling, Tuna ducked away. Gray fur flashed at the side of Tigerheart’s vision. He turned in time to see Fog attacking once more. He reared to meet her as she dived at him, and he wrapped his forelegs around her. Knocking her off her paws, he rolled her onto her back and began churning her belly with his hind claws. She screeched, struggling in his grasp. Clinging on, Tigerheart rolled from under the ledge. Alarm shrilled beneath his pelt as he knocked against a pair of Twoleg paws. The Twoleg screeched.
Around him, the clearing exploded into chaos as Twolegs yelped and howled and waved their front paws. They crowded around him and glared, their white, sunken eyes stretched in surprise. Tigerheart let go of Fog and ran. Dodging between shrieking Twolegs, he hared along the small alley between ledges before ducking into shadow. He glimpsed Dotty ahead. Fierce and Cobweb were with her. Blaze stared at him with wide eyes. Ant, Mittens, and Rascal streaked toward them, fish between their jaws. “Grab what you can and get out of here!” Tigerheart yowled. They snatched prey in their teeth and headed for the alley. Tigerheart grabbed the grouse as he passed the jutting stones and followed them.
Twoleg shrieks followed Tigerheart and the others as they skimmed the stone, veered away from the stone clearing, and ducked into the alley. They ran until the screaming faded. Then Fierce pulled up. Tigerheart slewed to a spot beside her. He dropped the grouse and gasped for breath as Ant, Cobweb, Dotty, and Blaze scrambled to a halt beside them. Rascal and Mittens turned and stared, still holding their fish.
“What happened?” Fierce demanded as she dropped the hunk of meat she’d been holding.
“Fog and her friends tried to steal the rabbit,” Tigerheart panted.
“Why did you fight her?” Fierce looked indignant. “Now we can’t go back! The Twolegs will be looking out for us.”
“Do you think I should have let her take the rabbit?” Tigerheart stared at her.
“There was plenty for everyone!”
“Then why did she want our rabbit?” Frustration flared in Tigerheart’s chest. When would Fierce understand that Fog wanted what the guardian cats owned and that she wouldn’t stop until she had driven them away? Just like Darktail.
The guardian cats looked at one another uncertainly.
“It is strange that she didn’t just find her own scraps,” Cobweb murmured.
“Why did she have to take Tigerheart’s catch?” Rascal agreed.
Fierce glared at the tabby tom. “Probably because Tigerheart’s been trying to start a fight with her since he met her,” she snapped. “Perhaps that’s what warrior cats do.”
Tigerheart met the tortoiseshell’s angry gaze unflinchingly. “Warriors believe that some things are worth fighting for.”
Fierce turned away angrily. Suddenly she stiffened, her ear pricking. Tigerheart jerked his muzzle around to follow her gaze. Fog and her friends were padding down the alley toward them.
Tigerheart glanced at Fierce, resentment seething beneath his pelt. He stepped aside as Fog reached them and let Fierce face the smoky she-cat. “Fine. Why don’t I let you handle this?”
CHAPTER 22
Fierce eyed Fog warily as the gray she-cat stopped a muzzle-length from her nose. Tuna and Growler flanked her. Streak watched from behind with six more strays.
“You realize we might never be able to go scavenging there again,” Fierce snapped. “The Twolegs will be looking out for us next time.”
“Of course we will,” Fog sniffed. “Twolegs have memories like birds. They won’t remember us now that we’ve left.”
“You didn’t have to try and steal Tigerheart’s rabbit,” Fierce told her. “If you’d scavenged for your own scraps, we’d all have scraps to take home.”
Fog glanced at the prey piled at the guardian cats’ paws. “We could still all have something to take home.” She licked her lips.
Fierce’s fur bristled. “We caught this prey, fair and square. It’s for the cats at our camp.”
Fog tipped her head as her gang fanned out around her. “But it looks so tasty.”
“We’d have more of it if you hadn’t started a fight.” Fierce unsheathed her claws.
Tigerheart’s chest swelled with hope. Was Fierce finally realizing that even city cats had to fight for what belonged to them? He looked from Fog’s ragged gang to the guardian cats. Fierce and her friends were outnumbered. Would they r
emember the battle moves he’d taught them? Doubt pricked in his pelt. If there was a fight, there would be wounds, and they might lose the food they’d stolen. Perhaps reason would sort this out. He padded between the two groups and looked from Fierce to Fog. “If Twolegs have such small memories,” he meowed to Fog, “why don’t you go back and get some scraps of your own? I’m sure you can find better prey than this. Besides”—he flicked his gaze to her companions—“this won’t be enough to feed all your bellies.”
Fog narrowed her eyes. “Why don’t you give us your scraps and you can go and find more?”
“No.” Fierce’s mew surprised Tigerheart. The tortoiseshell bushed out her fur. “Why are you bullying us? What did we ever do to you?”
Fog looked amused. “Why do you need to have done anything to us? We’re just a bunch of cold, hungry cats looking for food and somewhere warm to sleep.”
“We said you could sleep near the gathering place,” Fierce snapped. “Isn’t that enough? Why don’t you leave us in peace?”
Tigerheart pricked his ears. He wanted to hear Fog’s answer.
“I told you,” Fog meowed. “We were driven out of our home by foxes. It was a good home. A nice deserted stretch of scrub between some broken Twoleg dens. Lots of shelter, lots of prey. But now it belongs to foxes, and we need somewhere new to live.”
Unease wormed though Tigerheart’s fur. If this went on, would Fog want to take over the guardian cats’ home as well as steal their food? He stared at her, fluffing out his fur to look bigger. “I’m a warrior,” he growled, “so fighting us for this food won’t be as easy as you think. I’m sorry you’ve lost your home, but this is a big city. Maybe you should look elsewhere for somewhere to live.” He unsheathed his claws and stared at the scratches he’d left on her muzzle. “I fought three of you earlier and I don’t have a single wound. And I’ve taught these cats how to fight like warriors too.”
Fog exchanged a look with Tuna. Tigerheart was relieved to see worry pass between them. Pressing his advantage, he leaned closer. “If you want to start a fight, go ahead.” He lashed his tail. “But it won’t end here. Don’t forget, you decided to make your home next to ours. I can promise that if you try to take this food from us, you won’t ever sleep easily in your nests again.” He showed his teeth and let his breath bathe Fog’s muzzle.