“They won’t attack,” Hollypaw whispered. She nudged Lionpaw and tipped her nose toward the sun.

He seemed to understand. “Come on.” He beckoned Sol and his littermates with a flick of his tail. “Let’s go home.”

“Wait!” Russetfur ordered.

Hollypaw froze. They weren’t going to get away so easily after all.

“You’re coming to explain to Blackstar what you’re doing on our borders.”

Jaypaw spat, “We haven’t even crossed the scent line!”

“You’re close enough.” Russetfur flicked her tail, and her patrol dashed over the border and surrounded the ThunderClan cats.

Lionpaw arched his back, hissing. Hollypaw unsheathed her claws, but Sol just stared at the ShadowClan cats. His calm gaze seemed to unnerve them, and they backed away.

“What kind of loner are you?” Russetfur looked him over, her pelt ruffled. “Don’t you know we’re warriors?”

“Yes, I know.” Sol kept staring at her. “Blackstar is your leader, right?”

Russetfur flattened her ears. “Yes,” she answered warily.

“I’d be interested in meeting him.”

Hollypaw’s heart sank. There wasn’t time to go to the ShadowClan camp! Firestar was sure to notice they were missing any moment now.

Jaypaw began to pad toward the ShadowClan border. “We might as well go,” he mewed. “Think how much Sol can learn from another Clan.”

He can teach us ShadowClan’s secrets! Perhaps this wasn’t such a bad idea after all. And compared with what they could learn about another Clan, Firestar’s anger didn’t seem so important. Hollypaw followed Jaypaw, enjoying the puzzlement clouding the eyes of their ShadowClan captors. She guided her brother through the unfamiliar woods, pressing against his shoulder to keep him on the faint path. Lionpaw walked a few paces ahead, calling out every time there was a twig to trip on or a prey-hole to stumble into. Sol padded alongside them, gazing around the forest with fascination.

Russetfur didn’t take her eyes off the stranger. Was she regretting bringing him into the heart of her territory?

After a while, Hollypaw began to recognize the landscape. A slope led up to a small ridge. She had followed this path when she had come to beg Blackstar for help. A few more paw steps through the trees, and she spotted the great bramble wall of the ShadowClan camp.

Rowanclaw was guarding the entrance this time, his dark ginger pelt the only color in the darkening forest. He stared in surprise at the approaching patrol, but Russetfur simply swept past him with her prisoners.

Ivytail and Toadfoot leaped to their paws as the ThunderClan cats entered the camp. A half-eaten mouse lay between them. Snaketail and Scorchpaw stood in the middle of the clearing, staring in unconcealed shock at Sol.

“Who is he?” Scorchpaw whispered.

Snaketail tasted the air. “Not a Clan cat, that’s for sure.”

“Where is everyone?” Lionpaw hissed in Hollypaw’s ear.