Squirrelflight's Hope/Chapter 4

"You've only just arrived, and already you're arguing about which Clan should take our home. Do you expect me to believe that you won't want to get your paws on it as soon as you can?"

— Moonlight to Squirrelflight and Leafstar in Squirrelflight's Hope, page 63

Squirrelflight's Hope
Chapter number:	4 (of 30)
Page numbers:	59-75
Point of View:	Squirrelflight
Chronology

Below contains in-depth information for chapter four of Squirrelflight's Hope. If you are looking for a shorter summary of the entire book, please check the main article.

Chapter Number: 4 (of 30)

Page Numbers: 59-75

Chapter description

Moonlight confronts Squirrelflight and Leafstar for trespassing in their camp, though both she-cats deny knowing there was any cat staying there. Leafstar swears she thought the camp was empty, and when called out about taking it for themselves, Leafstar angrily mews that they know the land is accounted for, so they will move on. Squirrelflight meows that they just want to go home, now that they've met the Sisters and can see they are using this camp. Moonlight wonders why they are outside of their borders, and both she-cats promise that they were only scouting the land for possible use. Leafstar growls that they do not need the land and the Sisters can keep it. When Moonlight reveals they will be leaving, Leafstar says that once Moonlight has given birth to her kits and they leave, SkyClan patrols will survey the area and discuss a possible future. While Squirrelflight wants to tell the other leaders the news, Leafstar retorts that she does not know for sure what she will do, and urges Squirrelflight to not say anything until she has made up her mind.

As the she-cats prepare to leave, Moonlight and the Sisters block their path. Although Moonlight trusts Squirrelflight and Leafstar to not take advantage of the Sisters, she is distrusting of the rest of the Clans. She decides that Leafstar and Squirrelflight will stay with the Sisters until they leave, which neither cat is too fond of. Both Clan cats say they will be missed and Leafstar assures Moonlight that SkyClan will come looking for her and Squirrelflight. Despite the two she-cats being held as captives, Moonlight is hospitable and allows them a den to sleep in and gives them prey to eat.

Tempest glances at Moonlight and worries that they should let the Clan cats go, not wanting to cause any trouble with the Clans. Moonlight is against letting them go, saying that keeping them captive will send a message to the Clans. A young tabby-and-white kit asks what kind of message, and Moonlight explains to the young cat that although the Sisters do not like to fight, they do not scare easily. She believes that the Clan cats will be less likely to start trouble if they see that Leafstar and Squirrelflight are in danger. Squirrelflight and Leafstar are introduced to the other members of the Sisters, such as Creek, Furze, Grass, Stone, and Sunrise. Squirrelflight and Leafstar wonder what happened to the young kits' fathers, and Squirrelflight jokes that Moonlight ate the toms. During their meal, Squirrelflight cannot help but notice that some of the Sisters are not comfortable with Moonlight's idea of keeping the Clan cats in their camp.

As night begins to fall, Tempest shows Leafstar and Squirrelflight to their den. Out of earshot of the other Sisters, Leafstar threatens to attack any cat that snarls at her again. Tempest apologizes for her campmate's action, explaining that the Sisters are protective of one another and do not usually trust strangers. Tempest says that there are nests inside, and that if they need anything, to talk to Snow. Squirrelflight asks Leafstar if she needs to make it difficult to get along with. She explains that the Sisters have been fairly hospitable, and given up their nests so they can sleep well. Leafstar snaps that they would not have to give up anything had they just let the she-cats go. Squirrelflight wants Leafstar to play along so they can try and slip away, but Leafstar is unhappy about that and grumbles that the Sisters are just a bunch of rogues.

Squirrelflight awakens to a screech, and fears a potential dangerous sitation when she notices that Leafstar is not next to her. Rushing out of the den, Squirrelflight notices that Snow has Leafstar pinned to the ground, saying that Leafstar tried to escape from the group. When Squirrelflight tries to defend Leafstar, the SkyClan leader says that she was trying to get out and that Snow was right. Moonlight sends Squirrelflight and Leafstar back to their den and says that she does not want any more problems for the night. She uses some of her knowledge to help clean and take care of Leafstar's wounds, and says that they will get herbs for it later.

Leafstar tells Squirrelflight that she was trying to find a way out of camp, and that she would have come back for her. The ThunderClan deputy wonders if the two cats will need to fight their way out of the camp, and thinks to herself that it would be dangerous. Squirrelflight tells Leafstar that she needs to tell her about any escape plans next time, but Leafstar says that they will likely just have to wait for their Clanmates to rescue them. Leafstar doubtfully says that these cats will not let them go easily, despite Squirrelflight thinking they will let their guard down. Squirrelflight wonders to herself that even if they get out, she does not know what kind of welcome she would receive when she returns to ThunderClan.

Characters

Major

• Moonlight
• Squirrelflight
• Leafstar

Minor

• Snow
• Grass
• Stone
• Creek
• Tempest
• Furze
• Hawk
• Sunrise
• Flurry
• Sparrow

Mentioned

• Bramblestar
• Tigerstar
• Harestar
• Mistystar
• Sparkpelt