Flintkit walked by the dry sand-colored rocks. The heat of the sun beat down on the land, and she had to explore quickly. The trickle of water got her attention and she put her ear to the ground. "Ow!" she immediately flinched back, holding a paw on her ear. "Why is it so hot?"
Angling her ears, she could make out the sound more clearer. Following it, the dark gray she-cat pelted across the hot surface of the earth, her pads burning. Digging her claws into the ground, she skid to a halt on a rock over a pool of water. "So this is where the Clan gets its water." Climbing down, Flintkit cautiously put a paw into the clear liquid.
The cool water was pleasure to her paws as she began to lap up the refreshing liquid. "Thank StarClan. At least they didn't leave our Clan without water." Pulling herself out of the pool, she shook herself and padded along the barren landscape. It wasn't long before her paws carried her to a stone pile. Sniffing around, her heart skipped a beat.
The whiff that hit her nose was strange. A screech sounded nearby, causing the dark gray she-cat to cover her ears with her front paws. The shadow of a bird slowly soar overhead, and Flintkit froze. Looking up, the bird had brown feathers, yellow talons, and a yellow beak. Hawk.
Flintkit dug her claws into the dirt and pushed off, sending her speeding across the hot wasteland. The hawk dove for her, extending it's sharp black talons. The cat jumped from side to side, but the hawk kept gaining. Flintkit's heart thudded like a woodpecker on a tree as she jumped over a rock.
She ran into some bushes and came out on the other side, but it wasn't until the last second did she notice that she wasn't standing on solid ground! Falling down into the hollow, Flintkit landed with a THUD...
Everything hurt. Her paws, her legs, her head. Her head spinning, Flintkit tried to open her eyes to get her bearings. The world was fuzzy at first, but blinking a couple times, her vision cleared. The tang of plants hit her nose almost immediately, and she looked around. She noticed a golden brown cat walking toward her and the answer hit her. She was in Bramblecloud's den.
"Lie still Flintkit," the tabby soothed, "I have to get you poppy seeds."
Watching the tom gather some black seeds in a leaf, Flintkit asked, "what happened?"
The medicine cat came back over and set the leaf down. "You fell into the hollow. You're lucky you didn't die."
Flintkit at the berries, then immediately gulped when she saw Sagestar standing in the entrance of the den. The dark ginger tabby lashed his tail.
"What were you doing out there Flintkit?" the leader demanded.
The she-cat shrank back, her belly flat against the ground.
"Well?" Sagestar snapped.
Looking behind Sagestar, Flintkit could see Slatecall and Weaselkit. Her brother had his ears down, while her mother had her ears pushed back.
The gray cat took a breath. "I just wanted to explore a little. I was going to be quick and come back-"
"What if you didn't come back?" the dark ginger tabby interrupted, "that hawk could have carried you off to only StarClan knows where!"
Flintkit looked at her paws. Sagestar never yelled at her before. Then again, he nor Talonspring never yelled at the kits. "I know. I'm sorry Sagestar."
The tom glared at her. "As punishment, I'm delaying your apprentice ceremony for a moon."
Flintkit shot up. Delay her apprentice ceremony? What in Silverpelt was he thinking?
"But Sagestar-" Flintkit began.
"No!" the leader snapped, "my decision is final. Slatecall, take Flintkit back to the nursery." With that, Sagestar turned around and walked out of the medicine cat den. Slatecall walked over a grabbed her by her scruff and carried her back to the nursery.
This was going to be a long moon...