The wind howled through the thin cover of the trees in the night sky. Leaves trembled, and the rain fell down in a torrent. The flooded river roared in the distance, and the brown tabby she-cat crouched down.

Her three kits let out a terrified whimper. The tabby bent down and licked each of their faces, murmuring comfort. The sky was lit up with a huge lightning, and thunder clapped the forest.

The cat didn't want to leave her kits alone in the storm, but the small family hadn't eaten in nearly two days. She knew that her kits wouldn't survive much longer, and although the prey would most likely be underground, but she had to.

"Stay here, my loves." She bent down and nuzzled each of them. "Don't move. I will be right back." As she said her goodbye, a terrible pain wrenched her heart. iWhy is this happening?/i she thought worridly. It was as if she knew something terrible would happen. "I'll-I'll be right back. With food to help me feed you."

Backing away from her kits slowly, the tabby lost sight of her 3 precious kits in the rain. iPlease, don't let the river get any higher,/i she prayed. iPlease let them be safe…/i

The biggest kit, a brown tabby tom, stood up on his shaky legs. He and his sisters were only a moon old, but they had been through a lot already. Their father being taken away by the strange, hairless creatures. Their mother being viciously attacked. Becoming hungry. A pain pierced his stomach. Their hunger was slowly taking over them.

"Come-come on," he mewed through shaky teeth. "Let's go…go find mum."

"B-but-" his sister squeaked, "she told us to stay here."

A gust of wind sent the kits' shelter flying. Suddenly tossed into the air, the tom squealed as his sister crashed into him. Terror overtook him, and he took off flying through the trees. "Wait for us!" his smallest sister screeched.

The kit had been through the thin forest plenty of times. It was his home, and their was nothing loners knew better than their homes. But the kit didn't expect the water to be so close to the Big Rock.

He splashed through the river. The current was strong, and suddenly his world was turned upside down. "Help!" he cried as his head bobbed above the surface for a heartbeat. He swallowed a mouthful of water, and he fought every instinct to breathe in.

There was nothing as strange to the kit as being underwater. Sounds muffled, yet loud. Being tossed around, and the worst part, not knowing where his mother or sisters were.

As his head broke the surface yet again, he screeched. He could tell they had traveled a long way. None of the land looked familiar to him. iA branch!/i he thought suddenly. His mother had always taught him to grab onto branches when stranded in the water.

Using the last scrap of energy the young kit had, he clambered onto the small, but lifesaving branch. His fur was heavy, and he was more tired than he had ever been, but he was saved. Saved!

By now the rain had stopped, now only a soft drizzle. The wind still howled, and the river roared around him.

"Help! Sisters!" he cried out, swallowing some more water.

"What the…?"

The unfamiliar voices rang through the kit's head.

"There's ikits/i in the river!" a she-cat gasped.

"Petalfur, come on, we need to help them!" the first voice cried. The kit heard a cat splash into the river, and teeth dug into his scruff. He let himself become limp in the cat's jaws.

Looking over, the kit saw that the cat named Petalfur was swimming to another branch with two tiny kits on it. iThere they are,/i he thought in relief.

"Are you okay?" the life-saving cat asked gently.

"Wh-where am-am I?" he asked, voice shaking.

"You're at the RiverClan camp."

The kit was too tired to ask what a RiverClan was, or what a camp was. He closed his eyes, and sleep took over him.

The tabby she-cat darted to where she'd left her kits. The shelter was gone, and there was no sign of the kits. iNo!/i The tabby bent down, to find a scent, but the rain washed everything away. iNo…no…no…this cant be happening!/i

"No!" she wailed into the cloudy sky, becoming lighter as dawn approached. "Why?"

With a sense of dread, the she-cat realized that she may never find her kits again.