The Rise of Scourge/Part 1

"I hurt everywhere. I've got to get home. But when I get there, I remember. I don't have a home. Socks and Ruby are gone now... And if I go back, they'll throw me in the river. Good-bye, mama."

— Tiny realizing he can't go home in The Rise of Scourge, page 35

The Rise of Scourge
Chapter number:	1 (of 3)
Page numbers:	3-35
Point of View:	Tiny
Chronology

Below contains in-depth information for chapter one of The Rise of Scourge. If you are looking for a shorter summary of the entire book, please check the main article.

Chapter Number: 1 (of 3)

Page Numbers: 3-35

Chapter description

Tiny introduces himself, his siblings, Socks and Ruby, and his mother, Quince. His littermates play with one another as he gets knocked away, earning his siblings a scolding from their mother. Quince tells the two to play nicely with Tiny, earning a chorus of protests from Socks and Ruby. Tiny thinks to himself that he wishes he could grow so that he isn't so small.

The family later head outside of the Twoleg nest, into the garden. The kits are given collars by Quince's Twoleg, Tiny noting that he likes the noise it makes. He begins exploring the area, finding a gap in the fence that he believes leads to the forest. He gets called back away from his discovery to see Socks and Ruby playing with the Twoleg kits and a toy. He asks Ruby if he can play with them, to which she hesitantly agrees to. Tiny, however, misunderstands the game and grabs the toy, running off with it. Socks and Ruby scold him and Socks snatches it back, while Ruby states he is no fun to play with.

That night, Tiny asks his mother about the forest. Quince tells her son that she knows a little about it, but his father had explored it more than she had. She tells him its a dark and dangerous place full of ferocious, forest cats that fight every day to survive. Tiny asks, full of sincerity, if they would ever go to the forest, but Quince soothes his worries that they wouldn't. As her kits settle in for sleep, Quince bounds over to a photo of Jake, reminiscing about the tom and their kits' inheriting his spirit.

Later on, Tiny watches as Socks and Ruby play fight from under a bush. As he watches them, he thinks that his mother loves them more than him. He approaches them, asking if he could join in but is rejected. Quince tells the pair off once again, but as Socks and Ruby insult Tiny, he realizes that all that they care about is being big and strong. In an effort to prove them wrong, he escapes through the hole in the fence, out into the neighbouring forest. Amazed by the size of the world beyond him, Tiny explores a little deeper into the forest where he is swooped by a crow upon a stump. Despite being scared, Tiny feels proud of himself for not running away or crying because of the bird. He hears his mother calling him as he returns home. Upon returning home, Quince asks him where he had been and as he tells his family, Tiny realizes that none of them believes a word he is saying. Quince takes her kits back inside and explains to them that they would soon be moving to their own Twoleg nests, much to Socks and Ruby's protests. Tiny, however, zones out as he believes he will one day prove his family wrong and that he is truly strong and brave.

A couple of days following, a pair of Twolegs and their kits arrive to meet the kits. Tiny sulks underneath a chair, scoffing at his siblings pretend behavior. As he does, Ruby sneaks over to him and tells him unwanted kits get thrown in the river, a shock to Tiny. Out of fear, he attempts to win over the Twolegs when they visit again, however, they ignore him. Panicked, Tiny leaves home, returning to the edge of the forest. Two kittypets, a tabby cat and a dark colored cat spot him and warn him about the forest, while making a comment about his size. The comment strikes a nerve with Tiny and in a huff, he heads deeper into the woods to explore.

The scents of the forest take him deeper until he happens upon a group of cats. One of them questions what he is doing on ThunderClan territory, but is chastised by one of his companions. Tiny, frozen in fear, watches in fear as the gray cat orders a tabby to attack him. The tabby takes the moment and fights ferociously as Tiny squeals in pain. The attack is soon called off by the she-cat, and the tabby, named Tigerpaw, tells Tiny that he'll never forget him. The three cats leave him to walk back towards the Twolegplace. Tiny curls in on himself, sore from the attack, but realizes that he no longer has a home to return to. He gets back to his paws and heads deeper into Twolegplace as he thinks his farewells to his mother.

Characters

Major

• Tiny
• Socks
• Ruby

Minor

• Quince
• Female Twoleg
• Female Twoleg kit
• Male Twoleg kit
• Twoleg family
• Light-colored tabby kittypet
• Dark-colored kittypet
• Tigerpaw
• Thistleclaw
• Bluefur

Mentioned

• Jake (Unnamed)

Trivia

• This chapter aligns with chapter thirty-two of Bluestar's Prophecy.

Notes and references

The Rise of Scourge chapters
Part1 • Part2 • Part3