If even my littermate doesn’t belong with me, then why would Tree?

Violetshine left Tree to set a scent marker on a boulder while she sniffed around the entrance to a dark hole in a nearby bank, picking up only the stale scent of rabbit.

“Oh, for StarClan’s sake!”

Sandynose’s exclamation made Violetshine turn back, to see that instead of setting the marker, Tree had climbed on top of the boulder and was stretched out in a shaft of sunlight that broke through the clouds.

“Tree, get down off there!” Sandynose continued. “Honestly, the smallest kit in the Clan has more sense!”

Unoffended, Tree slid down from the boulder. “Keep your fur on,” he meowed. “What’s the rush? We’ve got all day.”

“There are other duties—” Violetshine began, only to be interrupted by a growl from Sandynose.

“I give up! Tree, you can come with us or not, but I’m not standing around waiting for you to rearrange your whiskers. Violetshine, set the marker, and then we’ll go and have a look at the old ShadowClan camp.”

He swung around, hardly giving Violetshine time to obey, then stalked off between the pine trees. Violetshine hastily set the marker and bounded after him; to her surprise, she heard Tree padding after them.

Just as she caught up to Sandynose, the brown tom halted suddenly and lifted his head, beginning to taste the air.

“What is it?” Violetshine asked, keeping her voice low in case Sandynose had detected an attack. “Is it rogues?”

Sandynose tasted the air again. “I’m not sure,” he replied. “But there are definitely cats up ahead. They’re inside the border here, and that means they’re trespassing.”

Violetshine drew in the air for herself. They were not far away from the ShadowClan camp, and a stiff breeze was blowing from that direction, carrying the scent toward them.

“Don’t you think those scents are familiar?” she asked Sandynose.

Sandynose shook his head. “Not to me. If they are, there’s probably nothing to worry about—but there has to be a reason why cats are crossing borders and snooping around the old ShadowClan camp.” He drew back his lips in the beginning of a snarl. “And that’s unlikely to be anything good, right?”

Violetshine pricked her ears like she was trying to pinpoint prey. Her muscles tensed as she braced herself for trouble. “We ought to go and check it out,” she whispered.

Sandynose gave a curt nod. “Follow me.”

As he set off, flattening himself to the ground and setting his paws down as lightly as if he was creeping up on a mouse, Violetshine turned to Tree.

“You’d better stay back,” she told him. “We don’t know what we’re getting into here.”

“Certainly not!” Tree hissed. “I’m not going to run and leave you to fight by yourselves.”