It only took us this long but here it is, chapter 1! We take our time with our writing and edit that's all! :D So enjoy chapter 1!
Chapter 1
I have to find inner peace. I just have to . . .
Slowly, I closed my eyes and began to focus my mind. As silence fell around me, I heard a soft wind rustle the nearby bushes and I—slightly hesitantly—tapped into that energy. I heard the wind stop, the air still.
A rush of energy suddenly flowed into my tail, surging towards my mind. Strands of bright, shining silver crossed the darkness of my closed eyes, but they didn't bother me. They flickered across my vision began to wind together like spider silk, the thick swirls woven together that slowly leaked towards my power reserve.
In the area where I stopped the wind I could hear it picking back up just as one luminous wisp of the silver rivers touched the reserve of energy and power. It lit up, gaining strength and width as the power poured through my body. I could hear the wind beginning to rise in volume. My tail slowed again but the breeze continued.
I opened my eyes.
There in the bushes where I left the wind was a petite twister picking up leaves. I dared to smile, and lifted my paw off the ground—and then at a snail's speed I dragged it through the air . . . and to my delight the twister followed. It moved side to side, according to which direction my foot moved.
Curious, I pulled the swirling twister over a pile of gold-flower leaves. Fiery colors were plucked from the earth and pushed into the vortex of air. I pushed word "focus"
to the front of my mind as I guided the dancing wind to the other side of the clearing.
But then it all became too much. The weight lifted off of me and I sighed, hanging my head: I felt drained. I trudged over to a corner of the clearing where Sunset stood, a mouse dangling from her jaws. She let it plummet to the ground, a bright smile plastered on her face.
"That was amazing, Raine!" she exclaimed, trotting towards me. I nodded wearily, knees buckling, and lunged forward for the mouse. I gulped down the small morsel and wished for more. As the prey settled down into my stomach, buds of energy set down roots in my system and wisps of spirit flowed through me.
"You okay, Rae?" Again I nodded meekly and laid down, trying to move as little as possible.
"I was wrong," I whispered, my voice voice hoarse. "That took more energy than I expected." Sunset purred, sunlight bouncing off of her golden pelt. I managed a smile.
"Good thing I brought this, then!" Sunset whipped out a fresh squirrel from nearby a rock she'd been sitting on when watching the twister and threw it at me.
"Squirrel!" I cried, getting up and leaping at the dead creature. I pounced on it, devouring the squirrel and a welcomingly fresh wave of energy hit me. I bashfully smiled, gazing downward. "Thank you, Sunset," I murmured. The white-eared cat laughed again.
"It's the least I can do . . . for my friend with the awesome freaky powers!" I rolled my eyes, blue turning upwards to the blue.
"I've already explained it: I don't know how or why or whatever. I was born like this!"
"I know, I know, I know. But it's so cool! You could become a legend! Like, I don't know, save the world or something with your awesome freaky powers. Your name could go down in history! I can see it now, 'Raine the cat with the wind kiss!'" Sunset giggled.
"Stop it!" I gently rammed into my best friend. "Stop it!" She continued to laugh and taunt me with "Wind Kiss!"
"Sunny! I said stop it!" She suddenly stood rigid and stared at me, her eyes narrowed, then screeched, "My name is not Sunny!"
I laughed and began to call the name as Sunset chased me around the clearing. The she-cat began to chant "Wind Kiss, Wind Kiss!" and I countered with "Sunny, Sunny!"
As the golden cat hurdled after me, I stopped short and then leaped high in the air so that Sunset charged harmlessly beneath my body. Sunset crashed straight into a bush, she pulled herself out laughing and trying to get my attention.
"All right, all right, I give in. But why don't you want other cats to know about your powers? I mean, you could do so much!"
I gave her the same speech I always gave her.
"Because I would have so many favors asked of me, and I would be expected to be a hero . . . and then somehow I would be expected to be perfect and the pressure, the pressure . . ."
Sunset rolled her eyes and finished the sentence in a bored voice:
"The pressure would crack down on you and you'd be a loony bird trying to fly off a cliff and that would be the end the Raine the cat with the Wind Kiss. I know."
"Thank you."
Sunset rolled her eyes one more time before walking away. Before she left, she turned back to me, dark shadows beneath her eyes.
"Not even your brother?" she asked.
I matched her even tone. "Not even my brother."
She nodded seriously, and then a lighter, happier mood spread over her face.
"I'm going to head back now. I need a nap!"
I nodded and stumbled along after her. . . . I needed a nap too.
Current home
Back at home, or at least what was currently "home," Sunset and I found Smokey (my brother) curled up in the shade of a tall beech tree. He lifted his gray-and-white head, sleep clouding his eyes.
"Sunaine! Raset!" he murmured, light yellow eyes barely open. I purred a bit before retreating to small holly bush with the inside of the plant dried away. I flinched at the sharp leaves before they gave away in an empty space, with a small moss nest in the center. I yawned and curled up in the nest—my nest. All I needed now was time to rest and get my strength back . . .
I dreamed I was awake in a field—more accurately described as a moor—of stars and winking starlight. Confused, I looked up and found more stars in the sky. It was silent, a sound I was slightly used to. But only slightly.
Even so, the silence was ruined as a voice spoke softly:
"Raine."
I flinched and scanned my surroundings as quick as I could. Nothing but . . . stars. Well, big surprise there. "Who said that?"
"Shhh. I'm not supposed to be here." A cat stepped forward, melting away from the background of stars. My breath caught in my throat when I saw that the tom, too, was almost . . . made . . . of stars and starlight. "Don't be afraid. My name is Swiftpaw. I'm here to help you."
Swiftpaw? What kind of name is that? I thought.
The black and white cat made a face, which was when I realized I'd said that aloud. "It's because I'm not a rogue, Raine. I'm a former apprentice of ThunderClan."
I blinked. "ThunderClan? You mean those feral cats who eat their enemies' bones and drink their blood?" She didn't seem aggressive.
Swiftpaw cracked a small smile and purred, star-filled eyes sparkling. "Oh no, those are just rumors. We get into fights, certainly, but we aren't cannibals. We just act like we are because it keeps the annoying kittypets away."
I purred, too. That was understandable; some kittypets were an absolute pain. "Right. So is this just one of my crazy nonsense dreams or is this real?"
Swiftpaw's pale eyes darkened. "Oh, this is real all right. I wish it wasn't, but it is." He glanced around us nervously again.
"Raine, you must find ThunderClan. Without you and your powers, they—and the rest of the Clans—will have no hope."
