Journey to find Sparrow

"I didn't know what to do. I'm no warrior. I had no training. Your father knew that. He gave his life so I could escape. That's why he died. He held back the earth long enough for me to run. He died a hero, Talltail."

— Sparrow when confronted by Talltail in Tallstar's Revenge, page 409

Journey to find Sparrow
General information
Book	Tallstar's Revenge
Locations	The forest territories to beyond Twolegplace
Duration	Unknown
Participants	Talltail, Jake
Outcome	After setting out to get vengeance on Sparrow, Talltail realizes that he was wrong about him being the cause of Sandgorse's death and ends up saving him after he falls off the cliff onto the Thunderpath
Chronology
Preceded by:	The Great Hunger
Concurrent:	ShadowClan-WindClan conflict
Followed by:	Raid on WindClan

The journey to find Sparrow takes place in Tallstar's Revenge, when the young warrior Talltail leaves his home in WindClan to seek out and kill Sparrow to avenge his father's death.

Summary

Premise

After Heatherstar's leadership ceremony, Moth Flight speaks to her, telling her that the loyalty of one of her warriors will waver, and to not try to stop him, for it is the only way he will find where he belongs. Moons later, the tunnelers are making a tunnel that leads down to the Gorge. Tallpaw is helping Sandgorse and the other tunnelers when it floods. After Dawnstripe finds out, she tells Heatherstar, who bans them from continuing work on it. Meanwhile, a group of rogues who visit and stay with WindClan every greenleaf arrives, Sparrow being among them. He shows interest in the abandoned gorge tunnel, asking Sandgorse questions about it, until he eventually asks if he can show him. Sandgorse, believing it to be safe, eagerly agrees and takes Sparrow to explore it. The tour goes terribly wrong, when the whole tunnel system floods and collapses. Sandgorse dies, while Sparrow makes it out, unscathed. Despite his sour relationship with his father, Tallpaw is furious, believing Sparrow left Sandgorse to die so he could save himself.

After the visitors leave, Tallpaw feels trapped by the Clans borders, and grows distant from his Clanmates. His desire for revenge and curiosity for what lies beyond the border builds, and after he receives his warrior name, Talltail begins to wonder if his destiny is to leave WindClan and avenge Sandgorse's death, and a sign from Barkface brings him to the decision to follow it. He tells Heatherstar that he is leaving, who allows him to go without much attempt to stop him, as she now knows he is the cat Mothflight spoke of moons before. Talltail says farewell to his Clan and begins his quest for vengeance.

Overview

Talltail ventures out of Clan territory because he feels like he doesn't belong and that he needs to avenge Sandgorse's death. He travels to a Twolegplace where he meets a tom named Jake. Afterward, he finds a small Twoleg den where he discovers a rat. When he eats it, the meat tastes sour and there is a pain in his stomach. He wakes to horrible pain and is found by Jake. Talltail is saved by Jake's housefolk and he later wakes up in his den. As soon as he is better, he continues his journey, with the company of Jake.

After many days of traveling, they finally find the rogues. Talltail pretends to be nice to them, claiming that he wishes to travel with them. Talltail plans to lure Sparrow out near a cliff that overhangs a Thunderpath once Sparrow thinks he can trust him. But when he tries go through with his plan, he fails, realizing it wasn't Sparrow's fault. Jake and Talltail decide to leave after that.

They reach WindClan territory in a few days, and Talltail wants Jake to become a WindClan warrior. Jake refuses this, saying he can't leave his housefolk. The two go their separate ways, never seeing each other again until they happily reunite in StarClan.

Description

The Journey begins

Talltail begins his journey, heading over the WindClan border toward the Thunderpath. He wonders which way the rogues have gone, and travels along a hedge beside the Thunderpath, being caught off-guard by a monster, but successfully escapes. He finds a huge Twoleg den he had seen previously on the Outlook Rock and smells prey coming from it. He investigates, but is found by two dogs that chase him. Talltail discovers a gap in the big Twoleg den and squeezes inside, climbing onto the safety on a pile of hay, and the dogs eventually leave. He spends the night in the den, then departs the next morning. He considers if the rogues may have gone toward Highstones, but disregards the thought, believing the land is too barren for them, and thinks they will have chosen to follow the softest of paths.

Talltail finds a smooth patch of grass, thinking this is the route they would follow. He travels along into the woods and is spooked by the trees and noise of the branches. Talltail reaches a lighter area in the forest and picks up the scent of another cat; a tom. He wonders if this could be Sparrow and follows the scent, the the closer he gets, the more sure he is that it is Sparrow. He spots fur and springs, snarling at the tom, however he stops, surprised to find this cat isn't Sparrow. Talltail explains the situation to the rogue, and the tom tells him he saw a group of rogues last moon in the direction of the rising sun, near a large gray den with a spike. Talltail takes the information and continues on his journey. He travels beside ShadowClan territory in the rain, however, the weather becomes too difficult to stay in and he shelters in a hollow tree. Talltail sleeps in the tree and wakes to find a ShadowClan patrol outside, but escapes without being caught.

Meeting Jake and getting poisoned

Talltail spends the night in a small clearing, and dreams of hearing Sandgorse's voice calling his name. He wakes and hopes his father will visit him in his dreams again. Talltail hunts, and after his meal, he is found by a dog. He races across the Thunderpath and into Twolegplace, where he finds a ginger tom being attacked by another dog. Talltail helps the tom fight off the dog, and the tom thanks him. Talltail begins to leave to find shelter from the coming rain, and the kittypet calls after him, introducing himself as Jake and wonders what his name is. Talltail tells him his name, and Jake is interested with the fact that he's a Clan cat. Talltail tells him to be more careful, then departs. He finds another kittypet and asks her if she has seen any rogues, but is met with no luck as she runs away. He discovers a small Twoleg den in the next yard and goes in to shelter. Inside, the pungent scents make him queasy, and he finds a dead rat on the ground. He assumes a dumb kittypet caught and left it there. He eats it, detecting an odd taste, but forces himself to finish it so he'll have strength to continue on his journey. He has a pain in is belly, but tries ignoring it while he sleeps.

He wakes to excruciating pain, and Jake finds him, informing him that the rat he ate was poisoned. Jake then fetches his housefolk, who takes Talltail to the vet and saves him. When Talltail wakes up, he is trapped in a Twoleg den, inside what Jake calls a vet basket. Jake asks Talltail questions about the Clans and wonders why he is away from them, and Talltail tells him that he's on a warrior mission, and later explains that a cat killed his father and now he must avenge him. Talltail is desperate to get back of Sparrow's tracks, and Jake decides to help him escape, on the condition he can accompany Talltail. The former WindClan warrior agrees he can come along as far as the edge of Twolegplace. Jake explains that all he needs to do to escape is to be friendly to the housefolk and show him he's feeling better, then he'll let him outside. Talltail reluctantly follows Jake's advice, which is successful, and the Twoleg opens the cat door for him.

The journey continues

Talltail and Jake race out of the den, and Jake leads him through Twolegplace to find Jay, who would know if some rogues had passed through. They are found by Pixie and Marmalade, who take them to Jay. The strays are aggressive, but Jay gives them the information they need after Jake helps the toothless cat with eating a pigeon. The elderly cat tells them that Red and Marmalade had seen the rogues not long before. They leave, and Jake leads them to the edge of Twolegplace, out to open fields. Jake tells Talltail that he'll return to his housefolk in the morning, and the two cats find some shelter. As he goes to sleep, Talltail excitedly thinks how he'll be tracking the rogues tomorrow. The next morning, they decide to start by climbing a rugged hill. Talltail mentions that Jake said he was going home, but Jake says he will eventually, but there isn't harm seeing what's on the other side of the hill. They travel into a valley and spot a fox. Jake panics, but they manage to avoid it.

After answering a few of Jake's questions, he wonders if Talltail is on this journey, risking his life, to save his Clan, and Talltail answers he's avenging his father, which brings more confusion for Jake, who wonders how this helps his Clan. Talltail tells himself he's doing it for Sandgorse, who wants him to avenge him. The pair then work together to catch a mouse and continue on until they reach the woods. Talltail is exhausted and rests, while Jake looks for sheepswool. As he rests, he has a dream of Sandgorse dying in the tunnel, but is then woken by Jake, who has found some faint scent of the rogues.

Finding the rogues

The next morning, they follow the scent trail, and Talltail realizes Jake was supposed to be heading home, and asks about it. Jake tells him that now that they're found the trail, he can't leave Talltail to face Sparrow alone. Talltail begins to argue, but stops, not wanting Jake to leave. They follow the scent trail through the woods, and Jake saves Talltail from a fox. The two cats fight it off together, and Talltail gratefully thanks him for saving him again. Talltail's paw is hurt, and Jake fetches some dock for him, then they continue. They hear an odd noise and smell something like the Thunderpath, and Jake believes it must be a grass-cutter. They exit the trees and find multiple two pawed monsters roaring over the ground and are nearly hit by them. After the monsters pass, they hear a voice calling them crow-brains, and Talltail gasps when he realizes it's Algernon and Reena. The two rogues recognize Talltail and bring him and Jake back to their camp.

Talltail tells them that he left WindClan to travel with them, having gotten tired of all the duties and rules, and he now wanted to live freely. Talltail and Jake leave to go collect moss to make nests, and Talltail tells him he needs to go home, but Jake is reluctant, saying that Sparrow looks dangerous and he doesn't want to leave Talltail with him. Talltail argues that it's his mission, but Jake says it's now their mission, which gives Talltail a sense of relief, since he had become used to having his friend around. After they return, they share prey and Talltail can feel Sparrow's eyes on him, and thinks he knows why he's here. Bess asks about Palebird, and Talltail informs her that his mother has had Woollytail's kits. When he thinks of them, he is surprised to feel a pang in his heart.

Planning revenge

Throughout the night, Talltail tries to think of ways how to go about killing Sparrow, but nothing seems right. He hunts with Reena and Jake on a field. He chases a rabbit, with Reena calling after him, her voice filled with terror and panic. He kills the rabbit and returns to the two cats, and Reena tells him he nearly went over the edge of a cliff leading down to a Thunderpath. Talltail thinks how he nearly died, when an idea comes to mind; he'd lure Sparrow to the cliff and push him off so he would get hit by a monster. The next morning, he wakes to find Sparrow leaving camp. Thinking this is his chance, Talltail tries to join him, but Reena tells him Sparrow likes to be alone when he goes out early and offers to hunt with him instead. Talltail declines and goes back to his nest. When Sparrow returns with a pigeon, he says that the Twolegs leave food for them in the field near the Thunderpath, which gains Talltail's interest and he asks if Sparrow could show him.

Talltail leaves camp with Jake, saying they would practice his stalking. He tells Jake that Sparrow is going to take him hunting by the cliff and tells him his plan. Jake is horrified and tells him not to do it, urging him to just make Sparrow understand how he feels he is responsible for Sandgorse's death. When Talltail tells him he already tried that, Jake says he knows Talltail, and he's not a killer. They continue to argue, until Talltail rages away, feeling betrayed by his friend.

Attempting to kill Sparrow

He attempts to get Sparrow to hunt, but the tom decides to wait until tomorrow. The next morning, Sparrow finally agrees to go and they head out. As they reach the field, Talltail urges that they should check the Thunderpath first because crows would pick fresh-kill from it back home. Sparrow doesn't think they need the crow-food, but joins Talltail at the Thunderpath anyway. As Sparrow leans forward, Talltail lifts his paws, ready to push him, and he wonders if Sandgorse is watching. Sparrow turns back and asks him what's the matter, Talltail reveals he has brought him here to kill him. Sparrow is confused and Talltail explains he killed his father, leaving him to die in the tunnel. Sparrow tells him that's not how it happened, and that Sandgorse had held back the earth long enough for him to escape, and he died a hero. Talltail believes he's lying, and Sparrow asks if a life for a life is part is part of the warrior code. Talltail replies that he knows nothing of the code, but Sparrow says he knows courage, and Sandgorse had shown that when he died. He goes on to say that this isn't courage, and killing him won't bring his father back. Talltail realizes Sparrow is telling the truth.

As he backs away, the ground gives way beneath Sparrow and he plunges onto the Thunderpath. Talltail leaps down to save him, leading the way to a ditch where they hide in as a huge monster passes. They find a tunnel, and Sparrow is terrified to go in, after his last experience with a tunnel. Talltail encourages him and they travel through it. Sparrow apologizes to him about Sandgorse, saying it was an accident and he had saved his life and would never forget him. Talltail wonders why he never told him, and Sparrow confesses he didn't think he would believe him, since he was so angry and determined to blame someone. They make it out of the tunnel and head back to camp. Talltail meets Jake and tells him what happened, and Talltail wonders what he should do now, since his thirst for revenge was all he had thought about for so long. Jake says they should leave since Sparrow knows, and Talltail goes to say good-bye first. Reena is very upset that he is leaving, and Talltail wonders if she had been hoping to be his mate one day. Sparrow tells the group that they will not be visiting WindClan again next greenleaf, and adds to Talltail to give Heatherstar and Hawkheart their regards.

Returning home and saying goodbye

Talltail and Jake leave and rest in the woods they had passed through previously. Jake asks if he will go home now, and Talltail answers that he doesn't know if he has a home. Jake tells him he has WindClan and they'd welcome him back. Talltail replies that he was thinking of traveling for a while, and asks if Jake would like that. Jake tells him he thinks he should go home, and Talltail meows he doesn't have a home and has no idea who he is anymore. Jake mews that he is his best friend and always would be. Later, Talltail dreams of being in StarClan and seeing Brackenwing. He sees her watching over WindClan and attempts to speak with them, feeling a longing to be with them. When Talltail wakes, he explains what he's feeling and Jake tells him that his home is calling him. He asks if Jake has the same feeling of longing to go back to his Twoleg, and Jake says that's where he belongs and he can't stay away forever. Talltail meows that he won't stop him, and wonders if he could really let his friend go.

They reach Clan territory and Talltail takes Jake to Fourtrees and shows him the view of WindClan's territory. When the scents reach him, he feels a stronger sense of belonging than he had ever felt before. Talltail panics, thinking they won't let him back, but Jake reassures that this is where he belongs. He tells Talltail that he'll miss him, and Talltail urges him to come and meet the Clan, join and become a warrior. Jake tells him he couldn't live as a warrior, and Talltail then says that he'll come live in Twolegplalce with him, but Jake says he would be unhappy there. He rests his muzzle to Talltail's head, saying that he'll always be his friend and that he would always be a warrior. After Jake leaves, Talltail makes his way back to WindClan and rejoins the Clan.

Characters

Talltail

Talltail was a WindClan warrior who left his Clan to seek revenge for his father's death

As an apprentice, Tallpaw had a damaged relationship with his father, Sandgorse, when he decided to follow the path of a moor runner, rather than a tunneler like Sandgorse had planned. He blames Tallpaw for closure of the gorge tunnel, a project the tunnelers had been working on for moons, after it flooded while he was helping to dig it out. When the greenleaf visitors arrive, Sparrow shows interest in seeing the abandoned tunnel and Sandgorse takes him to look around, however, it collapses while they are inside, resulting in Sandgorse's death. His mind clouded with anger and grief, Tallpaw blames Sparrow for his father's death.

The visitors leave, and Tallpaw becomes a warrior shortly after. He feels a sense of detachment from his Clanmates and longs to see beyond the borders of Clan life, along with the desire to avenge Sandgorse. He later departs with the Clan, and often dreams of Sandgorse's death and thinks of getting revenge by killing Sparrow. Talltail meets Jake, who accompanies him on his journey. He grows to enjoy the kittypet's company, and becomes one of his best friends. When they finally find the rogues and Talltail has his chance to kill Sparrow, he realizes that he was wrong, and ends up saving the tom after he falls onto a Thunderpath. He is unsure where he belongs after this, but once he returns to Clan territory, he paws guide him back to WindClan.

Sparrow

Sparrow was part of a group of rogues who traveled to stay in WindClan during greenleaf. He is shown to be impassive and hard to read, and gives Tallpaw some advice when he tells him of his problems with Sandgorse. Sparrow takes in interest to the abandoned tunnel at the gorge, continuing to ask Sandgorse questions about it, and the tunneler agrees to show him around it. The tunnel collapses while they're inside, and Sandgorse holds back the earth long enough for the tom to escape, but the warrior dies in the process. Tallpaw blames Sparrow for his death and refuses to think otherwise, vowing to avenge his father.

Later on, when Talltail is about to kill him by pushing him off the cliff leading down to a Thunderpath, Sparrow explains that Sandgorse had died to save him and was a hero. Talltail realizes he had been wrong backs down, but Sparrow falls anyway. Talltail saves him and they return unharmed to the rogues camp. Sparrow announces to the group that they will not be returning to WindClan again.

Jake

Jake was a kittypet who journeyed with Talltail

Jake was a kittypet living in Twolegplace being attacked by a dog, when he meets Talltail, who helps him fight it off. Jake later finds the warrior poisoned by a rat and saves him, and accompanies Talltail on his journey, and is shown to be adventurous, wishing to explore beyond Twolegplace and live in the wild for a bit. He shows a deep interest in the Clans and often asks Talltail questions about them. Jake helps get Jay to tell them if she'd seen the rogues passing through Twolegplace by helping the toothless cat with her prey when she had trouble eating it, and helps Talltail on multiple occasions.

He tries talking Talltail out of killing Sparrow, believing that Talltail is not a killer, and is relieved when he doesn't go through with it. He becomes close with Talltail, and tells him he was and always would be his best friend. Talltail wishes for him to join WindClan, but Jake refuses, knowing he wouldn't be happy there and he belonged in Twolegplace as a kittypet. The two depart, with Jake returning to his housefolk and Talltail to WindClan.

Quotes

Jake: "I don't want to join your Clan. But if you're on a mission, I want to help."

Talltail: "Why?"

^{Tallstar's Revenge, page 345}

Jake: "If you're staying, so am I. You're going to need help."

Talltail: "This is my mission, remember?"

^{Tallstar's Revenge, page 385}

Talltail: "Did you hear?"

Jake: "Hear what?"

^{Tallstar's Revenge, pages 403-404}

Sparrow: "So you're going to kill me? A life for a life? Is that part of the warrior code?"

Talltail: "You know nothing of the warrior code."

^{Tallstar's Revenge, page 410}

Talltail: "Home? I have no home. I don't even know who I am anymore."

Jake: "I know who you are. You're my best friend, and you always will be."

^{Tallstar's Revenge, page 422}

See also

• Tallstar's Revenge
• Tallstar's Revenge Cliffnotes
• Tallstar
• Sparrow