Chapter 2
A dark brown tabby tom stepped out of his den on the Highledge. He shook his pelt and sat on the edge, gazing into camp from his vintage point. A little white she-kit glanced up at him from where she was playing catch with a slightly bigger tortoiseshell she-cat. The amber gaze of the dark tabby met her sparkling blue eyes for a split second, just as the sunlight fell on her pelt, making her pale ginger stripes flash, then he leaped down and sat beside a gray and black tabby tom. The dark brown tom was her grandfather and leader, Hawkstar. The tabby warrior was his deputy Tanglefire.
The white she-kit turned and trotted after the tortoiseshell she-kit who was greeting two apprentices who'd just returned from dawn patrol. "Wait up Tawnykit!" she called as she stumbled slightly, then picked up her speed and nearly crashed into the dark gray apprentice. He glared at her. "It's a good thing you're so small," he growled. "Otherwise I'd shred your pelt." As he got a good look at her, he narrowed his eyes and chuckled darkly. "You're no bigger than a pebble, kit. How old are you, 2 moons?"
The other apprentice, a tortoiseshell she-cat with pale green eyes, scolded him. "You should be nicer to your future denmates," she reprimanded. "Shellkit here happens to be already becoming a good fighter; once she's an apprentice you'd better watch your back!" She glared at him as he retreated to the Apprentice's den, then turned to Shellkit. "Sorry about Rockpaw," she meowed. "He's a little grumpy 'cause he got in trouble for not paying attention during patrol this morning."
Shellkit shrugged, trying not to look too hurt. "That's fine, Dawnpaw," she mewed, trying to make her voice sound confident. "See ya' later, Tawnykit," she muttered to her sister, then bounded away into the shadows behind the Nursery. She sat there for a moment, trying to hold back her tears. Then she felt red-hot anger rising in her. How dare Rockpaw make fun of her size? She was big enough to do whatever she wanted to! She'd show him, she'd run into the forest and catch a mouse on her own. The white kit got to her paws and snuck around the edged of the camp, dashing out of the entrance while the brown and white she-cat who was guarding it had her back turned. She ran in no direction, just ahead. Before long, she was lost. She knew it, but she didn't want to admit it. She kept heading straight down hill until the trees began to thin out.
Ahead, where the light shown into the forest, she could the the faint blue outline of the lake. She made a dash for it and skidded to a stop on the shore, spraying pebbles up around her. She sat there, gazing miserably into the lake. She was small. She couldn't even remember the way back to camp! While she was feeling sorry for herself, a thump sounded behind her, and she turned just in time to see a tortoiseshell she-kit crashing into her. "Tawnykit!" she squealed, pushing her sister off her. "Why did you follow me?" she shook her head to clear it and looked past Tawnykit to see her brother, Thunderkit, had come to.
"I was worried about you, Shellkit," Tawnykit replied, her pale green eyes wide. "I told Thunderkit what Rockpaw had said and how you'd run off, and he suggested we follow you."
Shellkit looked at her brother. He was large, broad-shouldered and wide-pawed, about the size of an apprentice. His stormy blue eyes met hers and he shrugged. "I thought you'd left camp," he meowed. "And I was right. Let's head back."
Shellkit nodded and followed her brother into the forest. She could tell he was following their scent-trail back, and felt safe with him until they reached a huge Oak-tree that seemed to reach the sky. "That must be the Sky Oak," she muttered. Thunderkit nodded. She could remember rushing past a wide oak, but she hadn't stopped to look at it properly. She watched as Thunderkit sniffed around, looking for the scent again. "Have you lost it?" she whispered. His stormy eyes glanced up and met her frightened blue ones.
"We'll just have to wait here," he mewed. "Leopardears is sure to notice that we're missing soon." Shellkit nodded, but didn't say anything. Tawnykit leaned closer to Thunderkit, looking frightened.
Meanwhile, back at camp, Thunderkit was right. Leopardears had just woken up and noticed that only Flowerkit was still in camp. "Thunderkit?" she called, bursting out of the Nursery. "Tawnykit? Shellkit!" Her mews awakened Dawnpaw and Sandpaw, and Thornfur soon came rushing out of his den at his mate's cries.
"What's wrong, Leopardears?" asked a silvery-gray tabby queen.
"My kits!" Leopardears cried in panick, while Thornfur pressed his side against her flank, trying to comfort her. "I'd closed my eyes for less than a heartbeat, and when I woke up, they were gone!" Her panicked eyes met the tabby's green ones. "Help me find them, Mossfoot!" she begged.
Mossfoot murmured soothingly to the distraught queen. "I'll look for them, don't worry," she meowed.
"Come on, Leopardears," meowed Thornfur. "Let's look in camp."
Mossfoot turned to Sandpaw and Dawnpaw. "Get the other apprentices and search the dens," she ordered. "I'll get tell Hawkstar and Tanglefire." The ginger and tortoiseshell apprentices nodded and bounded into their den. The silvery tabby warrior trotted to the Highledge and scrambled up. "Hawkstar?" she called tentatively into the den.
"Come in, Mossfoot," came the reply. She entered the leader's den. The big brown tom was sitting beside Raineyes and Tanglefire. She dipped her head to the senior warrior, deputy and leader. "Leopardears' kits are missing," she reported. "I had Dawnpaw and the other apprentices search camp, but I still think we should send a search party out to look for them."
Hawkstar nodded, getting to his paws. "Tanglefire," he meowed, turning to his deputy. "Take Mudmask and Bramblestorm and search as far as the WindClan border. Mossfoot, you can go with Raineyes and Runningheart as far as the Lake, and have Fuzzytail, Scarpelt and Icepaw go search towards the ShadowClan border."
The three warriors nodded and turned out of the den. Tanglefire called out to the cats in his patrol, then summoned Fuzzytail and told his what to do, while Raineyes signaled to Runningheart and led him and Mossfoot into the forest, filling in the tabby warrior on the way. Mossfoot took in a deep breath and, finding the kit-scent, took the lead, heading towards the thinner forest by the lake. The ancient oak, Sky Oak, loamed ahead of them and they came to a halt as they saw the three kits racing eachother around the wide trunk. Mossfoot breathed out in relief and glanced up at the sky. It was nearing sunset, and the kits had gone missing just after sunhigh!
The three warriors called to the kits. The smallest, a white she-cat with blue eyes, turned and flattened her ears in guilt, padding over to the warriors. The other two saw and followed. "Where have you been!" Mossfoot scolded. "Leopardears has been worried sick!"
The white she-cat shivered and Mossfoot blinked as a patch of sunlight shone on her pelt, making pale ginger stripes flash. "It was my fault," she admitted. Raineyes exchanged a glance with Mossfoot. "Rockpaw insulted me," she explained. "And I ran away. Tawnykit and Thunderkit followed me." Mossfoot glanced at the other two kits, a broad-shouldered brown tom and a tortoiseshell she-kit.
"You shouldn't have run away, Shellkit," Mossfoot meowed, her voice softening.
Raineyes bent his head to look at the kits sternly. "You must never leave camp like that again," he ordered firmly. The kits dipped their heads, and Raineyes' gaze softened. "How about we get you back?" They nodded and followed the warriors back to camp.
They arrived just before Sunset. Leopardears raced past the warriors and began licking her kits furiously. "Thank you, Mossfoot," she meowed, glancing at the warriors. "And you, Raineyes. Runningheart."
"Don't worry about it," Raineyes replied. Runningheart nodded. "I'm just glad we found them safely."
Shellkit kept her head bent as Leopardears herded them back to the Nursery and ordered them to go to sleep. She collapsed gratefully into her nest and didn't see as Thunderkit, Tawnykit and Flowerkit gathered around her, but fell into a deep sleep.
