The Blazing Star Read Online Free PDF

mewed, dipping his head to the moorland cats. His gaze traveled across the mingling groups, and he added, “Do you think the spirit-cats will be pleased with us?”
    â€œI hope so,” Gray Wing replied. “We’ve done nothing wrong. And yet . . . somehow, things don’t seem quite complete.” He couldn’t explain the emptiness he felt any more clearly. Surely there’s more to uniting than just not battling one another?
    Gradually the babble of talk died away and the cats gazed up expectantly at the dark sky. But all they could see were stars and the cold circle of the moon.
    What do we do if the spirit-cats don’t come? Gray Wing wondered.
    His belly cramped with tension as a confused murmur came from a little group of cats off to one side of the hollow. Please, not another attack!
    Then the group of cats parted and River Ripple brushed between them and padded up to Gray Wing. His perfectly groomed pelt shone silver in the moonlight.
    â€œGreetings,” Gray Wing purred, amusement bubbling upinside him. “I don’t have any prey to share, you know.”
    River Ripple dipped his head, his eyes glinting with humor. “I wouldn’t miss this meeting,” he mewed. “I remember how scared you all were, the last time the spirit-cats appeared.”
    â€œBut it doesn’t look like they’re going to show up tonight,” Wind Runner murmured sadly.
    â€œI think they will,” River Ripple responded confidently. “Just wait.”
    As if his words were a signal, a mist began to rise from the ground, chilly with the promise of leaf-fall. It swirled around the waiting cats, rose to cover the four great oak trees, and finally blotted out the moon and the stars.
    Gray Wing found himself standing in the midst of a silver-gray cloud, so thick he couldn’t even see the cats standing next to him. Nervous meows came from close by, and his own pelt was prickling as he tried to push down his fear.
    Gradually the cloud began to fade until Gray Wing could make out the shapes of his denmates, standing within a fuzzy ring of light that encircled the whole clearing. Then as the last of the mist cleared away, he saw that the light came from the spirit-cats, sitting all around as if they were still alive.
    Gray Wing had to blink as he looked at their brightness, but he recognized them instantly: the cats who had died since they left the mountains. Bright Stream, Shaded Moss, Moon Shadow . . . and Turtle Tail! He felt just as shaken as he had the first time they appeared.
    The shining form of Rainswept Flower rose to her paws and took a step forward. As she did so, Gray Wing noticedthat Clear Sky had turned his head aside in shame, as if he couldn’t bear to look at the cat whose life he had taken before the battle had even begun.
    â€œYou have done well to observe peace since the last full moon,” Rainswept Flower meowed. “And yet the claw still blights the forest.”
    Gray Wing and the other living cats exchanged confused glances.
    â€œHow can that be?” Tall Shadow asked. “We haven’t fought since . . .” Her voice trailed off, as if she could hardly bear to finish her own sentence. “Since the battle here.”
    â€œUnless cats have been fighting in secret?” Wind Runner snapped, gazing around with suspicion in her eyes.
    â€œNo, that’s ridiculous!” Gray Wing protested. “We would know!”
    Turtle Tail padded forward to stand beside Rainswept Flower. “You will realize what it means, in time,” she assured them.
    Gray Wing’s heart filled with sorrow as he gazed at his dead mate. Her pelt shone with starlight; she was even more beautiful than he remembered. It hurt him more than any claw to hold her gaze, and his voice shook as he asked, “Can’t you just explain? Won’t that save time and bloodshed?”
    Turtle Tail blinked sadly. “Cats can fight and