Silverkit bounced excitedly as she heard Firestar calling out to the Clan. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!"
She ran out of the den, followed by Dawnkit. Their mother, Dovewing, followed them out of the den. "Not so fast, kits. You'll get your pelts all dirty! You're two moons old, not some ridiculous kit who just came out of the den for the first time!" Silverkit looked down at the white splash of fur on her chest. She licked it a few times in embarrassment. Pinekit purred in amusement. "Mousebrain!"
Her father, Bumblestripe, padded up. "Come on, let's go," he meowed.
"The time has come," Firestar called. "The Twolegs are less than three tail-lengths from our dens. No cat can survive much longer with them so close to our camp. When I went to the Moonpool, I met the other three leaders. It seems that we all want to move. Our territories are all being invaded."
Silverkit bounced nervously. Should she tell Firestar about the tunnels that she and Dawnkit had discovered only a few days before? She glanced at her white-furred sister. Dawnkit seemed to have had the same thought. She kept looking at Firestar, twitching a furry gray ear, and nuzzling Snowkit for reassurance.
"Jayfeather came with me to the Moonpool," continued Firestar. "He will tell you the sign that StarClan sent him."
Jayfeather looked awful. He lay at the edge of the clearing, having collapsed there last night after the long journey to the Moonpool. At Firestar's words, he jerked up and struggled to walk to the Highledge. When he was just below it, he looked up at Firestar beseechingly. With a sigh, Lionblaze walked up behind Jayfeather and shoved him up to a rock just below the ledge. Jayfeather grunted. "I'm not an elder! I don't need help!"
Poor Jayfeather, thought Silverkit. Dovewing and Ivypool's litters born at the same time must have exhausted him, especially right after that battle with RiverClan. I can't imagine helping two queens kit at once. No wonder he's so exhausted.
Jayfeather began speaking, his voice rasping a little more with every word. StarClan had told him that they must move, he said. They said that the journey would be hard, but made easier by a single kit.
Oh, no. Silverkit's heart sank. That's me they're talking about. I'll get in so much trouble if I tell Firestar.
Jayfeather finished speaking and lay down again. Murmurs spread through the Clan. "Shouldn't the journey be made harder with kits to care for?" yowled Brambleclaw from the elders' den.
"Kits are the future of ThunderClan," spat Dovewing.
"It is settled already," yowled Firestar. "We must move. Stock up on prey. Eat well. We must all be healthy for the trip."
The meeting broke apart. Cats drifted off in twos or threes, casting suspicious glances at the group of kits.
Ivypool gently pushed Snowkit away. "Go play with Dawnkit and Silverkit. Dovewing and I need to talk."
Snowkit scurried over to them. Silverkit stared blankly at the two other kits as they began to wrestle. She quickly slipped away.
"Firestar?" Her voice sounded like the squeak of a mouse in the huge den. She called out again.
"Were you calling for me, Silverkit?" said Firestar from the back. He padded closer. "What's wrong?"
"I- I did something bad," she confessed, shuffling her paws. Firestar cocked his head. "How?"
"I snuck out of camp with Dawnkit. We wanted to explore. We found tunnels!" She brightened. "We saw rabbits! And we smelled fresh air, but there was a boulder blocking the way. But there was grass in the tunnels, too. And a hole in the top of one." Silverkit jumped up and down as she remembered the sprawl of yellow grass, just recovering after the long snows of leaf-bare.
"Is that where you went when you disappeared for four days? You told us ShadowClan cats captured you!"
She hung her head. "They did at first. That yucky cat Nightkit tried to take me prisoner… but then we escaped and found the tunnels. They were so cool!"
"You shouldn't have lied, Silverkit."
Her heart sank. "You won't punish us, will you?"
"No! You actually found something useful. I'll inform the other leaders of your discovery. You made this journey much easier. I'm proud of you. Telling me was the right thing to do."
She looked up into the leader's eyes. They twinkled back at her. He was amused! Indignation and gratitude swelled in her belly. "Thank you, Firestar!"