“And you could have been faster chasing it,” Spiderleg told her. “You might have caught it if you’d put on a bit more speed.”

Dovepaw nodded glumly. We haven’t all got legs as long as yours! “Does this mean I’ve failed my assessment?”

Spiderleg flicked his ears but didn’t answer. “I’m going to see how Millie is getting on with Ivypaw,” he announced, darting off toward the abandoned nest.

Dovepaw gazed at her mentor. “Sorry,” she meowed.

“I guess you must be nervous,” Lionblaze responded. “You’re much better than that on an ordinary hunting patrol.”

Now that she was facing failure, Dovepaw realized just how much she wanted to pass her assessment. Being a warrior is way better than being part of the prophecy with my so-called special powers. She tensed as another thought struck her. What if Ivypaw is made a warrior and I’m not?

Her sister deserved it, Dovepaw knew. She didn’t have any special powers of her own, but every night she put herself in danger to spy for Lionblaze and Jayfeather in the Dark Forest.

Ivypaw’s better than me. I can’t even catch a stupid squirrel!

“Cheer up,” Lionblaze meowed. “Your assessment isn’t over yet. But for StarClan’s sake, concentrate!”

“I’ll do my best,” Dovepaw promised. “What’s next?”

In answer, Lionblaze angled his ears in the direction they had come from. Dovepaw turned to see Icecloud picking her way across the frosty grass.

“Hi,” the white she-cat mewed. “Brambleclaw sent me to help you.”

“You’re just in time.” Lionblaze dipped his head. “The next part of the assessment is hunting with a partner,” he explained to Dovepaw.

Dovepaw brightened up; she enjoyed hunting as part of a team, and Icecloud would be easy to work with. But she was disconcerted when Icecloud looked at her with her head cocked to one side and asked, “What do you want me to do?”

“I…er…” Dovepaw wasn’t used to giving orders to a warrior. Come on, mouse-brain! Shape up!

“Let’s try for a blackbird,” she suggested. “Icecloud, your white pelt is going to be a problem, though.”

“Tell me about it,” the white she-cat mewed ruefully.

“So we’ll have to find somewhere you can stay in cover until the last moment. When we find a bird, I’ll stalk it and try to drive it toward you.”

“You’ll need to make sure it doesn’t fly off, or—”

Lionblaze interrupted Icecloud’s warning with a meaningful cough.

“Oops, sorry,” Icecloud mewed. “I forgot. Go on, Dovepaw.”

“Blackbirds often nest just beyond the old Twoleg den,” Dovepaw went on after a moment’s thought. “I know it’s too early for them to be nesting, but it might be worth scouting there for good places.”

Lionblaze nodded encouragingly. “Then what?”

“Well…the ground slopes away there. Icecloud could take cover down the slope.”

“Okay, let’s see you do it,” Lionblaze meowed.

Dovepaw had taken only a few paw steps when Spiderleg reappeared, shouldering his way through the bracken. He said nothing; Dovepaw’s paws itched with curiosity to find out how her sister was getting on, but there was no time to ask. It felt weird to be padding a pace or two ahead of Icecloud, as if she was leading a patrol, and weirder still to be the one who was making the decisions. Panic pricked at Dovepaw, like ants crawling through her pelt. Her head felt as empty as an echoing cave, as if everything she had ever learned had flown away like birds from a branch.