Stream was in a lush forest, surrounded by ferns. It was a full moon, making her silver-and-gray tabby coat shine with a pure silver glow. She could smell mouse. She knew it was there, hidden somewhere in the ferns ahead of her. She tensed, hearing it scuttle under the leaves, looking for food. She crept closer. Tensing her muscles, she jumped, claws out. Her claws struck their mark, and she felt the mouse struggle beneath them. She sat down beside it and batted it in the air, not letting it escape. Suddenly she heard a loud rattling, and was abruptly snapped out of her dream. She yawned, and looked around at her cozy house. One of her house folk was pouring food into her bowl. She got up and bounded over, aware of her empty stomach. She crouched down and stared at the round pellets. She grabbed a mouthful and chewed them, but they were completely tasteless, as always. She wished she could ve caught the mouse in her dream. She was suddenly struck by an idea. She would catch a mouse!
She bounded over to the door. When she got there she found out that the small door she usually went through to get out was locked. So she started meowing, trying to alert her house folk that she wanted out. MEOW, MEOW, MEOW, she said. One of them came over and opened the big door. She ran outside.
Once she was outside she ran to the opposite side of her yard and jumped on her fence. Then she jumped down on the other side, eyes widening to take in the lush, beautiful forest. She smelled the rich forest smells: prey, rain, green things and other animals, all mingled together. She sniffed the air, picking out the scent of mouse. Then she spotted the little creature picking it s way through the undergrowth. She crouched down, angling her ears towards the mouse. As it drew closer, unaware of the watching eyes, Stream tensed. As it came within reach, she jumped. She struck her target, and killed the mouse with a swift bite to the neck. As she felt the mouse go limp in her jaws she felt like a true hunter of the forest.
The next morning when Stream awoke, she did not just roll-over and go back to sleep, like she usually did. Instead, she sprang up and went to her cat-door. Finding it unlocked now, she went outside. Once more, she ran across the yard and jumped up on the fence post. As she was preparing to jump down, though, she heard a voice behind her, Just where do you think your going? Stream turned around to see her best friend, Petal, staring at her from the top of her own fence.
Petal was a pretty cat. With her pretty calico coat and her gleaming blue eyes, she was a cat worth looking at. Her brilliant white coat was interspersed with brown and black patches, mostly on her head and tail. When you looked into her eyes there was the sensation that you were drowning in the bluest ocean.
But right now, Petal was the last cat Stream wanted to see. She knew that if she told Petal she was going into the forest, that Petal would stop her in any way she could. As pretty as Petal was, she was just a soft house cat, and she would never understand Stream s longing for the forest. Stream sat back down. She sighed, What do you want, Petal? Petal was still staring at her like she was crazy. Well? Finally, Petal seemed to seemed to snap out of her trance. What I want is to know what your doing, she jumped down into Stream s garden, gesturing for Stream to follow her. Stream sighed, You can be so annoying sometimes, Petal. Petal grinned, That s what I m here for. They walked to the shelter of a holly bush that grew in Stream s garden. When they were situated, Petal asked, What were you doing up there? Stream hesitated, trying to figure out how much to tell her best friend. Finally, she said, I was going to go into the forest. Petal gaped at her, Why? Why would you want to go out there? I just wanted to take a look, Stream said. But it s dangerous! No, it s not, Stream argued. If it is then I bet you wouldn t be brave enough to go out there. At least I m brave! Careless is more like it, said Petal. No, it isn t, Stream knew it was useless fighting with Petal, but she hadn t grasped that at first. Fine, okay, I wont go, she said, just as Petal was getting ready for a stinging retort. Then she turned around and stalked off, leaving Petal staring after her.
That night, sleep refused to come to Stream. She kept tossing and turning in her basket. When she finally did get to sleep, though, her sleep was broken with dreams and shallow.
She found her self in the middle of a forest. It wasn t a lush green forest like the one outside of Stream s yard. No, this was white forest, bare of anything green and living. It was all white and gray, and Stream didn t like it. Also, there was the weirdest sensation of being small and lost, and being carried. She felt her bottom scraping across sharp rocks and cold snow, while she sensed her scruff gripped by something sharp. Suddenly she was put down. She was in the cold snow shivering, when she heard an unfamiliar, and yet reassuring, voice. It s okay, little one. Your going to be alright now. Stream felt oddly reassured. Suddenly she felt a tongue licking her fur dry. She suddenly knew who this cat was. It was her mother. I have a mother! Stream was astonished. Suddenly the licking stopped. Stream was warm. There you go. All nice and warm, came the voice of her mother. Then she was carried some more. The next time she was set down, she recognized where she was. She was on the doorstep of her house. I will leave you here, my little one. You will lead a good life now. I just hope I will find you again one day, my little Streamkit. Then she was alone. Her mother had left, and she could see the door opening, herself being lifted by something big and warm, the air being warmer . . . . . . .
Stream snapped awake. What was that? She had certainly never had any dreams like that before. She had so many questions. Where was her mother now? Why did she leave? Was Stream actually born in a snow-covered forest?
Stream rolled over, but sleep refused to come again, so she decided to see what Petal was up to. She bounded out her cat door. She jumped up on her fence post and looked over at Petal s yard. She saw Petal scratching a tree that grew in her yard. Stream jumped down in Petal s yard, quickly hiding behind a bush.
She had been planning to scare Petal, so she was surprised to see Petal jump on and over her fence and into the forest.
Stream ran out from behind her bush and jumped up on the fence. She had just enough time to see the tip of Petal s tail vanish into the forest.
She jumped down from the fence to follow Petal. As she followed Petal s trail, though, she had and uneasy feeling about what she would find.
As she came to the end of the trail, she looked around for Petal. Seeing no trace of her, she sat down.
Stream looked around. She tried to pick up the trail again, and succeeded. She followed the trail for a while, this time. She finally picked up a very fresh scent, and knew that Petal was just up ahead. She brushed through the ferns concealing her, and stopped dead.