Tallstar's Revenge (32 page)

Talltail looked up at the vet-basket on the ledge. He didn't want to sleep in the tiny tunnel, but he didn't want to sleep beside a kittypet either. He'd never get the flowery stench out of his pelt. “I'm not tired,” he lied.

“You must be,” Jake told him. “I'm always tired after I've been to the vet.” He curled down into his nest. Talltail tried to catch a glimpse of Silverpelt in the night sky. Could StarClan see him here? But the clear square gaps just reflected the bright walls of the room. Anger surged through Talltail. He couldn't even
see
outside now. “I have to get out of here!”

“You will,” Jake promised. “When you're better.”

I didn't leave the Clan just to get trapped somewhere else!
Talltail scowled at Jake. “Your Twoleg is cruel.”

“No, he's not.” Jake stared at him, and the tip of his tail flicked. “He's been nothing but kind to you.”

“How can you stand being a kittypet?” Talltail wasn't listening. “Eating weird food. Purring at a Twoleg like you're kin.” He snorted with disgust.

“He
is
like kin,” Jake snapped back. “I've known him my whole life. He makes sure I'm warm and fed. And I sit with him and keep him company when he's alone. We talk to each other.”

“Talk?”
Jake was clearly a rabbit-brain.

Jake shrugged. “I don't understand exactly what he's saying, but I know what he means. I just say yes to everything. He seems to like that. And I've taught him the word for food. He tries to repeat it sometimes, but his accent is terrible.”

Talltail could hardly believe what he was hearing. “You sound like you enjoy being a kittypet!”

“Of course.” Jake went back to kneading his bed.

“Then why do you spend so much time staring into the woods thinking about Clan cats?” Talltail shifted his paws. They were growing numb with cold on the shiny floor.

Jake paused. “I guess I'm interested in how you live without housefolk, that's all.” He tipped his head. “You said there was more than one Clan. How many?”

“Three more.”

“What's yours called?”

Talltail hardly heard him. His gaze had slid toward Jake's nest. It looked soft. Far softer than the freezing stone. Warm, too. Shivering, he padded toward it. Jake shifted to give him room. “What's your Clan called?” he repeated.

Talltail stepped into the nest. “WindClan.” It felt fluffier beneath his paws than sheepswool. He sat down, secretly relishing the comfort.

“Where do you live?”

“On the moor.” Talltail crouched down and tucked his paws under him. “Below the moor is RiverClan. They live by a river and catch fish.”

“How?”

Talltail glanced at him. Jake was really dumb. “They swim.”

“What's the fourth Clan?” Jake started licking a paw and washing his face.

“ShadowClan. They live in the pine trees beside ThunderClan. No one likes ShadowClan except ShadowClan.”

Jake ran a paw over his ear. “So the rest of you like one another.”

“No!” Talltail's tail twitched. “If any other Clan crosses our border, we shred them.” Jake's eyes widened. Talltail thought of Nightsky and Piketooth. “Okay, we don't
always
shred them,” he relented. “But we're supposed to stay on our own territory all the time.” He decided not to mention the Gatherings in case Jake got even more confused.

“Why are you here, then?” Jake dropped his paw and stared at Talltail. His green eyes glowed in the moonlight streaming through the clear patches of wall.

Talltail looked down at the nest. “There's something I have to do.” He didn't say that he'd felt trapped living on the moor with his Clan, that he'd been burning with curiosity to find out what lay beyond the borders. From Jake's point of view, his curiosity had led him to nothing but trouble.

“Is it a warrior mission?” Jake dropped his mew to a whisper.

Talltail pricked his ears.
A mission.
He liked that idea. “Yes.” It was a warrior mission, wasn't it? Or was it just
his
mission, and nothing to do with being a warrior at all? The thought unsettled him and he pushed it away quickly. He tucked his paws in tighter and closed his eyes.

“I can't believe I'm sleeping next to a warrior.” Jake's soft mew was filled with awe.

“I can't believe I'm sleeping next to a kittypet,” Talltail grunted. What kind of warrior settled down to sleep in a kittypet nest? In a Twoleg den!
A tired warrior.
His head began to droop.

“Talltail.” He seemed to hear Sandgorse's mew far away. “You
are
a warrior. You always will be.”

Am I?
Talltail drifted into dreams.

C
HAPTER
31

Pale dawn light filtered through the
clear squares high up in the wall. Talltail lifted his head, blinking at the shiny, white room. He stretched, carefully testing his belly. It felt much better today, less crushed and tender. Talltail climbed quietly out of the nest, leaving Jake snoring in a huddle. There were fresh food pebbles in Jake's stone. Talltail's belly growled, but he wanted to see outside before he ate. He jumped onto the ledge, then hopped onto an even higher ledge beside a clear piece of wall. Talltail touched his nose to it. It was cold.
It must be ice.
Talltail wondered why it didn't melt when he breathed on it. He pushed at it with his forepaws, hoping it would crack, but it was too hard. Outside he could see frosty grass and whitened shrubs. They ran down to a smooth, wooden fence; trees crowded on the far side, sunlight flashing between their branches.

Talltail's heart ached. He should be out there, not trapped in this Twoleg den. He dropped back onto all fours and leaned his forehead on the transparent square.

“The window doesn't open,” Jake mewed from below. He was sitting up in the nest, his pelt still ruffled from sleep.

Window.
Talltail looked back at the sheet of ice. Kittypets had funny names for things.

Jake leaped up beside him. He nodded toward the fence at the end. “That's where I keep watch for Clan cats.”

Talltail pressed his muzzle against the glass. The forest seemed so close. “Is that ThunderClan territory?” he mewed.

“Yes.” Jake blinked at him. “Didn't you know?”

Talltail shook out his pelt. “How would I?” he muttered. “I can't smell any scents while I'm stuck in here.”

“My housefolk will let you out soon.”

Talltail growled. “How soon?”

“Who knows?” Jake shrugged. “When he thinks you're well enough, I suppose.”

As he spoke the big flap in the wall opened and the Twoleg came in. It started rumbling at them, its eyes shining. It was holding something flat and floppy, like a blue pelt. Its gaze was fixed on Talltail.

“What does it want now?” Talltail whispered to Jake. The Twoleg was heading toward him. Alarmed, he hopped off the window ledge and backed into a corner. He ducked as the Twoleg flapped the blue pelt toward him. He tried to escape but strong paws gripped him through the pelt and wrapped him up like a spider wrapping a fly.

“Help!” Talltail thrashed, fear flaring though him. Still smothered in the blue pelt, he was bundled into the vet-basket. The mesh slammed shut behind him and the Twoleg peered through, rumbling.

“I hate you!” Talltail hissed through the mesh.

The Twoleg leaned down toward Jake's flap. He flicked a little stick at one side and turned to Jake, making mewling noises. Jake seemed to understand, and jumped down from the window ledge and hopped through the flap. Talltail flung himself against the mesh, yowling. Rage surged beneath his pelt as he scrabbled at the hard, silver vines, trying to bend them far enough to slide his paw out. The Twoleg turned and mewled at him.

Talltail hissed back. “I'll shred you!”

The Twoleg purred gently, then disappeared through its own flap. Breath coming in gasps, Talltail worked at the mesh. Surely it would give way eventually? His paws began to ache and his pelt grew hot. The silver vines didn't even bend. At last, when his claws were bleeding and his pads felt as if they were on fire, Talltail flopped down onto the blue pelt and shoved his nose against the mesh. He stared at the flap in the wall until Jake returned.

“Talltail?” Jake sprang up onto the ledge, smelling of wind and earth.

Talltail didn't move.

“Are you okay?” Jake's gaze clouded with worry. “Are you feeling ill again?” He pressed anxiously against the mesh. “Should I fetch my housefolk?”

“No!” Talltail sat up and glared at him. “Just tell me how to get out of here!”

“Why do you want to leave so much?” Jake looked around the room. “It's not bad here. There's plenty of food, and it's warm.”

“I'm not a kittypet,” Talltail growled.

“I didn't say you were. But you might as well get better properly. You nearly died.”

Talltail flexed his claws. “I don't have time to stay here any longer.”

“What's the rush?”

“I'm on a mission, remember?”

Jake's eyes widened. “Of course! What's the mission?”

“I'm looking for someone.”

“Who?”

Talltail looked into Jake's eager green eyes. How could he explain everything that had led him here?

“Is it really that important?” Jake prompted.

Talltail dug his claws into the blue pelt. “More important than you could imagine. I have to find a rogue,” he meowed. “He killed my father.”

Jake bristled. “
Killed
him?”

“My father, Sandgorse, was the best tunneler in WindClan. But Sparrow made Sandgorse take him into a tunnel that wasn't safe and when it collapsed, he ran away.” Talltail's breath quickened as the familiar dark fury rose in his belly. “He just left my father to die.”

“So you want revenge.”

Talltail blinked. Jake
understood
! “I have to catch up with Sparrow before he travels too far for me to find. I'm already at least two moons behind him.”

“Which means you really need to get out of here.”

“Yes!” Talltail pushed helplessly at the silver mesh.

Jake thought for a moment. “I can tell you how to escape, but on one condition.”

Talltail narrowed his eyes. “What?”

“You let me come with you.”

“I thought you liked being a kittypet!” Talltail glanced down at the soft, red nest. “There's none of those out
there.
” He flicked his tail toward the window.

“I know that,” Jake told him. “I don't want to join your Clan. But if you're on a mission, I want to help.”

Talltail tipped his head on one side. “Why?”

“You need me.”

“No, I don't!” Talltail bristled.

Jake leaned forward. “Who ate a poisoned rat and nearly died?” His eyes flashed. “It seems to me like you could do with some help.”

“But it'll be dangerous,” Talltail meowed. “Why would you risk your life to help me?”

Jake puffed out his chest. “Just because I'm a kittypet doesn't mean I don't have dreams of something else.” His eyes gleamed. “I don't want to spend my whole life in the wild, but I'd like to explore beyond the fences, see how other cats live. I know every paw step of the housefolk-place and I'd like to go farther.”

“Really?” Talltail's ear twitched. Perhaps this kittypet could be useful. “Do you know how to get to the other side of the Twoleg dens?”

Jake eyed him suspiciously. “Can I go with you?”

“As far as the end of Twolegplace.”

“Okay.” Jake sat back. “It's a deal.”

Talltail looked at him. “Now, how do I get out of here?”

“It's obvious, isn't it?” Jake stood up, arching his back.

“It is?” Talltail growled.

Jake rolled his eyes. “Just be nice to my housefolk,” he mewed. “Act like you're completely better, and well enough to be let out. Most of all, be friendly. You can get anything out of most housefolk by being friendly.”

“Friendly?” Talltail narrowed his eyes. “How? You mean all that purring and winding around its legs?”

“Exactly.”

Talltail shuddered. “What if it tries to stroke me?” He imagined the Twoleg's pink paw sliding along his pelt and shuddered.

“Just purr. You might even enjoy it.”

Talltail stiffened. If this was the only chance of getting out of here, he'd have to try. He watched the Twoleg flap, ears twitching uneasily. When it finally opened, his heart lurched. The Twoleg clattered in and shut the flap, then headed for the vet-basket. Talltail forced himself not to cower at the back when the Twoleg swung back the mesh. Instead he stepped out, purring.

The Twoleg's eyes lit up with surprise. It rumbled something, moving back as Talltail jumped to the floor. It stared down in amazement as Talltail weaved around its legs.

Talltail tried to pretend that the Twoleg was a tree.
I'm just leaving my scent.
“That's right,” Jake urged. “Don't forget to keep purring.”

Talltail realized he'd been concentrating so hard on winding around the Twoleg, he'd forgotten to purr. Did kittypets actually enjoy this or was it the only way to get what they wanted? He forced himself to purr loudly, his throat catching with the effort. The Twoleg rumbled and stepped carefully over Talltail before pouring food into Jake's hollow stone.

“Eat it,” Jake ordered. “He'll know you're feeling better if you eat.”

Talltail hurried to the stone and started gulping down food. He ate till his belly was bursting, then forced himself to look up at the Twoleg. He used kit eyes, pretending he was Wrenkit begging for a badger ride. “Please can I go outside?” he mewed in his most plaintive voice.

The Twoleg's face softened and it reached down with a paw. Talltail froze, forcing his claws to stay sheathed as the Twoleg ran its paw along his back.
First kittypet smell, now Twoleg stench.
Talltail gave his loudest purr, then padded toward Jake's flap and gazed longingly up at the Twoleg. “Please?”

The Twoleg mewed back.

Jake snorted. “I told you it tries to speak our language.”

“Actually, I think it just called me a furball.” A real purr rumbled in Talltail's throat.

The Twoleg bent down and touched the flap.

“Yes, please!” Talltail felt excitement welling as the Twoleg pulled at the side of the flap.

Jake padded closer. “Get ready.”

Talltail saw the flap spring free, and in a flash he burst through and hared across the grass. He heard the Twoleg hooting behind, and the flap rattle. He glanced over his shoulder. Jake was racing after him. Talltail leaped onto the fence at the end of the grass.

Jake clattered onto the top beside him. “Follow me!” He plunged down into the long grass beyond.

Talltail dropped down after him, his pelt bushing up as ThunderClan scent filled his nose. “We can't go this way!”

Jake turned. “Why not?”

“If a ThunderClan patrol finds us, they'll shred us.” Talltail nudged Jake's soft pelt. “They don't like kittypets, and they definitely don't like WindClan. Let's go back over the fence. We'll be safer in kittypet territory.”

Jake looked disappointed. “But I thought we could escape into the woods.”

Talltail shook his head. “You said you'd show me to the other side of Twolegplace, remember? This just takes me back to the Clans.” He trotted along the edge of the trees for a few tail-lengths until he was sure he was clear of Jake's nest, then sprang up onto the fence. Jake followed.

“Hello.” A soft mew made Talltail stiffen. A young, gray she-cat was staring up from the grassy square below.

“We're not here to cause trouble,” he told her quickly.

Jake jumped up beside him. “Hello, Quince.” There was a purr in his mew.

“Hello, Jake.” Quince returned the purr. “Who's this?” She turned her round, amber eyes on Talltail.

Jake hesitated. “This is Talltail,” he meowed.

“Talltail?” Quince leaped onto the fence beside them and sniffed Talltail's pelt. “That sounds like a wildcat name.” She wrinkled her nose. “Ew! He smells of the cutter.”

“He accidently ate a pois—”

Talltail interrupted. He didn't want every kittypet knowing he was a rabbit-brain. “I'm a WindClan warrior, actually.” He puffed out his chest.

“Really?” Quince eyed him suspiciously. “Why are you hanging around Jake's home and visiting the cutter? I thought warriors were—”

“He's on a mission.” It was Jake's turn to butt in. “I'm helping him. We're going to find the cat who killed his father.”