Thank you, Reviewers!
Moonofbetrayal - I'm glad you like it!
XEagleheartX - I hadn't actually thought of that... that sounds brilliant!
Opaltongue (guest) - Yes, that was a bit of a mistake. I was debating between Seedfur and Seedfall, apparently I couldn't choose, could I?
ilovetheclique2 - I'm glad you enjoyed it.
"It's getting late." At the sound of the cat's words, the starling let out an alarm and flapped its wings in an attempt to get away.
The hunter, a small tortoiseshell, yowled in frustration. Using her powerful hind-legs she struck out with claws unsheathed in a feeble attempt to catch the bird. A claw found purchase, ripping out a clump of flesh from the bird's wing. But the prey had been too far away from her claws, so the starling was able to flutter up to the tree. Half of it's wing hung from the hunter's claws.
"I would have caught it if you hadn't shown up! It was perfectly good prey!" The tortoiseshell's words were lost on the interrupter as she stared up at the bird in the tree.
"Look at that. It'll die in a day without it's wing, and then it'll rot. Pity." The wildly-patterned she-cat spoke evenly, watching the blue speckled bird continue to squawk in alarm. "Come now, Hawk. It's getting late, time to go home."
"Splash!" Hawk whined, kneading her blue-cream paws into the peat floor of the forest. "I had that starling, I did!"
"Maybe, your crouch was a bit low, and regardless, we didn't need that prey. Come now, your sisters are waiting."
With a sigh, Hawk padded after her mother. Their late afternoon shadows blended together as they walked, and Hawk was reminded how alike she and her mother were. They both had the same powerful compact shoulders and short tails encased by thick mottled fur. Their eyes were the only difference: Splash had orbs of crystalline blue, while Hawk retained her father's sharp yellow eyes.
As she bounded along the forest, Hawk glanced at all of the sights around her. Through a thin band of trees she caught glimpses of the thick navy river that wound around her family's home. Underneath her paws, leaves crunched, sending prey that she itched to catch skyward. Together the two she-cats leaped two streams easily, following the last upstream to a small thicket of ferns.
Hawk pushed through the leaves, following Splash's tail. After a few fox-lengths, the passageway opened up into a clearing about half a tree length wide. This was home. This was camp. Five cats sat waiting for Hawk and Splash.
"No prey?" The largest brown and cream tabby asked. His voice wasn't disappointed: his yellow eyes showed only simple curiosity.
"More of a practice run, Hershey." Hawk's mother answered her mate, licking his ear briefly. Hawk turned away from the couple and stepped over to her sisters.
"Catch anything?" Swan, Hawk's amber-eyed black-dappled white sister mewed, looking up from washing her chest.
"I would guess no, seeing she's not carrying anything."
"Aw, shut up Rabbit." Hawk snapped. "I was stalking a starling for a while."
"Starlings are hard." Duck, another sister offered whilst picking a small piece of bracken from between her toes. "I managed to get a rabbit, but I was lucky. And a couple mice, but those are easy." The white long-furred she-cat frowned as she spotted a clump of matted fur on the back of her forepaw. Duck was the vainest of them all, without question. Personally, Hawk thought their parents' house-cat roots showed the most in Duck's long soft white fur and clear, innocent bright blue eyes.
Hawk flicked her ear in annoyance. She wasn't stellar at hunting, and she certainly was not the first to admit it.
"Dad showed me a new trick for fishing!" Rabbit mewed excitedly. "I caught an enormous fish on my second try!"
"I just want to know when training will be over." Deer, Hawk's fourth and gentlest sister spoke, yawning. Her creamy brown tabby fur was ruffled and speckled with leaf bits, evidence of a fighting lesson. "We're well over twelve moons now. I know we've all got things to work on, but I want to be able to do my own thing."
"It'll be over soon enough." Hawk murmured. Their family was different than other rogues- they had stuck together thus far, and their parents had put them through rigorous training. Splash had been born as a house-cat, but she had been raised from moon one as a rogue. She grew up with the tricks that were essential for living as a rogue. Hershey had been a kitty-pet when Splash met him, but he had been a fast learner in the ways of a rogue.
It was a known fact that sooner or later, their parents would be finished with training. It could be any day now, truthfully. Splash and Hershey had never spoken of forcing their daughters to leave the family when they came of age, but Hawk knew she wanted more than this boring life by the river. What, exactly she wanted, she wasn't sure of.
She knew that she wanted to interact with more cats than just her kin: the last cat she had met had been a ragged tom just passing through. During their brief conversation, the tom had spoken briefly of a group of cats that lived by a lake. Even though he had spoken in a scoffing, silly tone- Hawk had been intrigued. Maybe one day she would go to find these cats.
Privately, she thought that Rabbit was the most likely to stay with their parents: the black-and-white she-cat was skilled, but skittish and a prime example of a home-body. Duck would probably do the same, or return to her house-cat ancestry. Swan, Hawk thought she might just be able to convince to come with her to find the clans.
Deer was a bit of a challenge to predict; the tabby was incalculable. On some subjects she was easily persuadable, but on others she had a firm opinion that she hardly would change for the world.
Only one thing was certain. Hawk wanted to see more of the world.
And she wanted to do it as quickly as she could.
We'll head back to ThunderClan next chapter, do you like these new characters? I loved the name Hershey, I thought it was perfect for a brown tabby kitty-pet-turned-rogue.
Q for reviewers: Which sister do you like the best so far? Rabbit, Hawk, Swan, Duck or Deer?
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