Chapter Two

By the time they reached Bluefur's home, which will hopefully be theirs as well, it was past moonhigh. The run through the forest had made them all breathless, but Ginger and Tiny were more than willing to prove themselves. They weren't going to be slowed down by their injuries that Thistleclaw had inflicted, they both promised themselves that they weren't going to give the spiky furred tom the satisfaction that he had caused them physical pain.

On the journey, Bluefur had told them some things about her Clan or ThunderClan as the gray she-cat had called it. She explained how there were three other Clans, beside hers, that lived in the forest, and they were called RiverClan, WindClan and ShadowClan. Bluefur then went on to explain the different roles in a Clan, such as the leader, deputy, medicine cat, warriors, apprentices, queens, and elders.

A leader obviously was in charge of the Clan and were also the ones who were given nine lives from 'StarClan', their warrior ancestors. It was the leader's job to appoint a deputy at moonhigh, no matter what, since the deputy served as second in command of a Clan and kept the Clan organized by organizing patrols for food and border patrols to defend their territory against rival Clans.

Then there were the medicine cats. They too served an important role in a Clan since they healed their injuries and illnesses, and also help the queens with having kits. A medicine cat served as a connection to StarClan as well by decoding prophecies and omens, plus every half moon all medicine cats went to a place called Highstones and speak with StarClan through dreams.

Last of all, were the elders. They were all former warriors and queens who had long since retired after giving a long service to their Clan, and had earned a chance to have peace from their duties. Bluefur had also told Ginger and Tiny that it was a great honor for any Clan cat to reach that far, and not many did since they would more likely die before they reached the age of an elder.

"We are very close to my Clan's camp now," the large gray she-cat meowed, having halted on a rock that rested on the edge of a small ravine with both Ginger and Tiny panting as they stood beside her.

Ginger peered curiously over the edge of the ravine, straining to see any signs of life in the darkness - moving leaves, a glimpse of fur moving among the bushes below, but saw nothing except for the same thick undergrowth that covered the forest floor.

"Can you smell my Clan?" Bluefur pressed, tip of tail twitching impatiently.

Ginger closed her eyes and sniffed with Tiny mimicking her actions from where he stood at her side. The smell of many cats filled her nose, each scent smelling like the last. All of the combined cat scents were much different from the ones she was used to. The air smelled stronger, speaking of many, many different cats.

She nodded thoughtfully and announced, "I can smell cats."

Bluefur purred in amusement before sobering. "Follow me," she told them. "And stay close. Anyone who is still awake will smell your kittypet scent the moment we walk in, so be quiet." The gray she-cat now leaped over the edge and led the way nimbly down the boulders to the bottom of the ravine, and pushed her way through a thick patch of gorse. Ginger stopped before it, allowing Tiny to go first before taking up the rear. As her sides scraped against the prickly gorse, Ginger looked down and saw that the grass underneath her paws was flattened into a broad, strong-smelling track. This must be the main entrance into the camp, she thought.

Beyond the gorse, a clearing opened up. The ground at the center was bare, hard earth, shaped by many generations of pawsteps. It was obvious to Ginger that this camp had been here for a long time. The clearing was dappled by moonlight, and the air was cool and still.

Ginger looked around, her eyes wide. All around she could sense sleeping cats, though she could also see a few flashing eyes peering out from the shadows. The clearing was edged with thick grass, dotted with tree stumps and a fallen tree. A thick curtain of ferns and gorse shielded the camp from the rest of the woods.

"This way," meowed Bluefur, twitching her tail for her and Tiny to follow. The blue-gray she-cat padded over to the side of a large boulder where lichen was draped over a gap cracked in the rock. Before entering, Bluefur called out, "Sunstar? Are you awake, I need to speak with you."

From behind the lichen curtain, Ginger could here movement. "Of course, Bluefur. Come in," a deep voice replied, and they slipped through the curtain. Sitting in a thick, cozy-looking nest was a large bright ginger tom, his pale creamy-yellow stripes barely noticeable, even with the faint moonlight seeping through the lichen that covered the small cave's entrance.

The bright ginger tom's yellow eyes narrowed. "Why is there two kittypets here?"

"We were patrolling near Twolegplace when we came across this kit," Bluefur began, flicking her tail in Tiny's direction, "and Thistleclaw demanded why he was on our territory. The kit didn't even have the time to answer before Thistleclaw had attacked him, brutally clawing at him with no remorse. There's no doubt in my mind that he was going to kill the kit."

Sunstar frowned. "Why didn't you stop him?"

"I tried calling him off first, but he wouldn't listen. I was just about to intervene when she," Bluefur now nodded to Ginger, "came out of no where and attacked Thistleclaw."

The ThunderClan leader now turned his gaze on her. "Why would you, another kit, attack a seasoned warrior?" he meowed, his eyes gleaming with interest.

Ginger straightened up, lifting her chin. "I wasn't about to stand by and let some arrogant flea-bag try and kill my brother," she retorted heatedly, eyes flashing with protectiveness for her smaller littermate.

Sunstar's eyes widened. "He's your brother." His mew was shocked.

Ginger nodded, not saying anything, and Bluefur took over again. "Anyway," she continued, "her attack gave us all a shock, so by the time a snapped out of it, she had already gave Thistleclaw some pretty serious wounds and he will more than likely have scars to remember her by. It was then I stepped in and it was not that long after that Thistleclaw left with Tigerpaw."

The bright ginger tom shook his head. "I never knew Thistleclaw too be so blood thirsty that he would be willing to kill an innocent kit," he sighed before looking at her and her brother. "What are you called?"

"I'm Ginger," she mewed bowing her head to the ThunderClan leader, showing him the respect that any leader deserved. "This is my brother, Tiny."

The small black single white-pawed tom bowed his head in greeting, but remained silent.

Sunstar looked both of them up and down. "Hmm. You two should have Goosefeather and Featherwhisker see to you for those scratches and bites," he meowed, his eyes kind and sympathetic. "Tomorrow I'll announce your arrival to the Clan and decide what to do with you then."

Bluefur bowed her head and nudged Ginger and Tiny out of the den. The gray she-cat now herded them over to a fern-enclosed corner. Once inside, the fern tunnel they had been herded into opened up into a small grassy clearing. A tall rock stood at one side, split down the middle by a crack wide enough for a cat to make its den inside. Lying fast asleep in a moss-laden nest outside this opening was a pale silvery tom with long whiskers and a sweeping plumy tail. At the sound of their approach, sleep-filled bright amber eyes blinked open at them.

"Bluefur?" the tom asked sleepily before parting his jaws in a yawn and sitting up, his eyes blinking in alarm when he saw Ginger's and Tiny's appearance. "What happened?"

"Thistleclaw hurt this kittypet kit," Bluefur explained, tail pointing at Tiny before turning to Ginger, "and this one got injured when she attacked Thistleclaw to stop him."

"I always knew Thistleclaw had a thirst for blood," a voice mewed from within the dark, pitch-black gloom of the den. A moment later an old speckled gray tom padded out with a bundle of leaves between his jaws, he was also limping on three paws as his left forepaw was wrapped with what looked like cobwebs.

Stopping in front of them, he gingerly set his leaves down. "Featherwhisker, I want you to take care of him," the old grizzled tom, who Ginger guessed was Goosefeather, meowed to the other younger tom. "I'll take care of her."

Goosefeather leaned closer, sniffing at Ginger, who shrank back slightly. "Oh for StarClan's sake!" he snapped. "I'm not going to hurt you!"

Deciding it would be best if she didn't irritate the elderly tom, Ginger sat still, allowing him to search out her injuries before placing cobwebs on some and leaving others. "What are the cobwebs for?" she asked hesitantly, not wanting to set him off again.

Goosefeather blinked his pale blue eyes in surprise before they began to shine with amusement. "The cobwebs help stop the bleeding," he meowed.

Ginger was surprised at the curiosity that suddenly burned deep within her. She was completely intrigued as she watched the speckled tom now placing a paste on top of all of her wounds, including the ones he had covered with cobwebs. "What is that?" she meowed, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

The elderly tom's whiskers twitched, eyes twinkling. "That, little one, is marigold chewed to a paste," he explained. "It'll keep your injuries from getting infected."

"Oh." Ginger blinked as Goosefeather rubbed the last of the marigold paste onto her wounds. None of them were deep enough to scar at least, except the scratch she had gotten above her eye. That one would most definitely leave a scar.

Glancing to the side with her peripherals, Ginger saw Featherwhisker had just finished with Tiny and had scrapped together two nests - one for her and one for him. The grizzled speckled gray tom finally finished tending her wounds.

"There," Goosefeather announced. "That should do it."

Ginger dipped her head thankfully. "Thank you, Goosefeather," she mewed, meaning every word.

"Yes, thank you." Tiny nodded at the two older cats, before turning to Bluefur who had been next to the fern tunnel in silence. "And especially you, Bluefur. There's no telling where my sister and I would be if you didn't decide to take us with you so, thank you."

The gray she-cat purred and blinked warmly at the siblings. "You're welcome," she meowed before getting to her paws. "I better leave you all to get some sleep. Tomorrow is bound to be an interesting one." That said, the she-cat disappeared through the fern tunnel.

"Bluefur is right," Featherwhisker agreed. "We better get some sleep."

They all mewed in agreement and settled down for the night. As Ginger laid down in her temporary nest, she began to reflect on everything that had happened to her and Tiny thus far. She never would've guessed that when her littermate woke her up to go exploring in the forest that they would end up getting into a fight or running into some wild cats, ThunderClan cats Ginger reminded herself. Ginger hoped Sunstar would let them stay, they really didn't have anywhere to go.

It was with these thoughts in mind, and the body heat that Tiny gave off, that finally allowed Ginger to fall into a blissful sleep.