Love knows no distance; it hath no continent; its eyes are for the stars.

- Gilbert Parker


"The river!" gasped Ashkit. "Yes, yes – I can hear it too!"

Both sisters took off, racing towards the site of the sound that was so dear to their hearts. To Lichenkit, it was as if its crashes and gurgles awakened the part of her heart that lay in slumber, the part of her heart reserved for the place she called "home". Lichenkit let all her thoughts drop away as her gray paws carried her to the source of all that noise, where they would blend in among the polished stones. Upon reaching the shore, Ashkit stopped, panting, to gaze in wonder at its surface. She squinted her eyes, not wanted to miss a detail. The river – home!

Lichenkit, on the other hand, didn't hesitate. She didn't even stop to catch her breath when she reached the shore. In the perfectly-arched leap RushingClan cats are known for (they do live in a ravine, you know), Lichenkit dove into the river, as if following some ancient instinct. A few moments later, she surfaced. The light gray tabby had suddenly become a darker black. Her amber-green eyes glistened as if they were a piece of the river themselves. She gasped for air, for her actions had surprised even herself. It was cold!

Back at camp, the riverguards had never let Lichenkit into the river. She was but a kit, too small and too weak. The last time Lichenkit had been in the river, she had been easily controlled by the currents. She shivered, remembering the whitewater that had held her tiny head under, and the stubborn way that the air had failed to present itself. She remembered her head scraping against a rock, and…. Well, to be honest, she didn't remember anything more, but what she did remember told her story fairly well.

Now, it was no such case. Lichenkit easily tread the water, and if she wished, she could swim along with the currents, but she was not prisoner to them. She was bigger and stronger now. She was six moons old, and while she was with the Twolegs, she didn't grow any weaker, nor did she grow lazier. The river was her friend, not her foe.

Ashkit didn't seem so eager to get her paws wet after her experiences last time.

"Woah, Lichenkit," mewed Gingersnap, her whiskers twitching in amusement. "Uh, how's the water?" She teased.

Lichenkit returned her joking words with a grin, before diving beneath the surface. Using her legs to propel her deeper, Lichenkit had to squint to see. There were fish… everywhere! If I'm the one fishing, I get to choose what's for dinner, then! Hah, taking that, Ashkit! The fish merely parted and swam around Lichenkit, before regrouping on the other side. She watched them, carefully picking out a trout with her eyes. She lunged forward, and snapped her jaws closed on its scaly body. She easily propelled herself to the surface, slapping the fish against a rock like she'd heard the warriors do. Lichenkit let another grin escape.

Ember studied it closely. "That's a fish?"

The soaking tabby dipped her head in a nod. Her eyes reflected her new sense of pride. "My first catch." StarClan is watching over me after all. They sent my first fish to my jaws and to my claws.

He turned to the other RushingClanner. "Ashkit, are you going to try?"

Lichenkit could see that her sister was taking the simpler approach. She stood over the river so that her shadow didn't fall over the fish below. At exactly the right moment, Ashkit's slender paw broke the surface, and returned with a snagged salmon. Mimicking Lichenkit, she, too, slammed her catch onto a jagged rock.

"Ashkit, is that your first catch, too?" Ashkit nodded.

"Are you going to eat a whole fish each?" Gingersnap inquired.

Lichenkit spoke up. "Probably. We've been traveling long and hard, and we'll continue to do so. Besides, these are rather small. "

Gingersnap nodded. "We'll only have one to share."

"Do you care what kind?"

"We don't know fish as well as you do. We'll trust your best judgment."

Lichenkit paused and nodded, considering this. She could go for a milder fish, besides, here were two cats who had never had any fish before, so they should start with something lighter, right? Well, but then they wouldn't really appreciate all of what fish is. Lichenkit decided she'd catch something with a bit more flavor, something they wouldn't forget quickly. Salmon would be good, and since there were quite a lot in this river, Lichenkit reasoned that salmon was probably the way to go.

Her mind made up, she leapt back into the frigid water. She kicked with her small gray legs, deeper and deeper. Before long, she was standing on the shore once more, presenting a large salmon to the two housecats. They stared at it wide-eyed, but in an instant, both bent down to taste it. To them, tasting fish was like tasting the way of life in RushingClan. It was the window to a world they would never live in.

"So, what do you think?"

"Delicious!" cried Ember.

The two sisters proceeded to enjoy their meals likewise. Ashkit couldn't seem to get enough of her salmon. Lichenkit, for one, was just glad to have fish once again.

Once they had finished, Lichenkit and Ashkit held a quiet argument over which way they should travel to reach their home. They soon reasoned that if they follow the river downstream and stick to the shore, they'll wind around SwiftClan territory and back into RushingClan territory.

The kittypets merely listened.

The kits made their den in a hollowed tree, and offered to let the housecats stay the night with them. They gathered moss enough for four nests, and were off to sleep.

In the morning, the Clan cats locked eyes with the kittypets that they had grown to consider friends. A beautiful she-cat and a handsome tom, they were perfect examples of perfect housecats. Although they were neither fat nor weak nor lazy, Lichenkit knew their home was in the city. Today they would part.

It was Ember who broke the silence. "Well, I guess you're almost home. And we'd better be getting back to our housefolk ourselves."

"Yes," Gingersnap agreed. "Although it's almost sad we can't come with you. RushingClan sounds like a wonderful place to live. I hope you find everything just as you left it."

Lichenkit knew that beneath the surface, Gingersnap was asking to come join Lichenkit's Clan. Despite her better judgment, she was more than ready to accept, but in the end, her better judgment got the best of her. "Yeah, I guess so," she mewed. "We'll miss you."

Her blue eyes just a tad bit sadder, Gingersnap nodded. "And if you ever need us, you've got a friend, okay?"

Their words truly warmed Lichenkit's heart. "Okay."

Even the quiet and solitary Ashkit had something to say. "Farewell, Ember, Gingersnap. I wish you good hunting."

Lichenkit blinked. Here, from Ashkit's mouth, was true wisdom. The first cats were wildcats. What could set any cat's heart at ease other than an ancient Clan blessing? "Yes," Lichenkit agreed. "May StarClan light your paths, wherever they may lead."

"Yes," Gingersnap said. "Good hunting for you, too. Teach those DarkClan crowfood a lesson!"

The housecats dipped their heads, and both duos turned to tread the path to their own homes. They knew that at last, the time had come for them to part.

Just as Lichenkit had accepted that she'd never see her friends again, she felt a tail on her shoulder. It was Ember. Before she could open her mouth to say something, he muttered the very words that she'd been waiting to hear.

"Be safe. Please, please, be safe."

She purred softly. "Of course. I'll do my best, Ember, for you."

He nodded, slightly reassured. Drawing his coarse tongue over her dark gray ear, he murmured his final goodbyes. "Farewell," he whispered, and as he blinked slowly, he mewed softly, "Lichenkit."

The sound of his voice seemed to linger in her heart and she continued on to join her sister.

She was going home.


I am so so so so so sooooooooooo sorry I haven't given you a chapter in so so so so so soooooooooooo long! I've been really sick recently. I got this really bad virus that's exactly like getting strep throat and a bad flu at the same exact time. But, it's a virus, and being a virus, the only cure is time.

And this cure took a long, long time.

Well, I'm back, guys! I haven't forgotten about you yet! One more time, if you want to submit a kit to star in my story, you have until next chapter to submit any. Please send me a PM or leave a review with any names/personalities/physical descriptions, and if you're lucky, I may write about your character.

But once again, you only have until the next chapter comes out!

Thank you :D