Chapter 3

The three kits were low to the ground, stocking a vole. Dustkit dashed out and went for it. Smokekit watched carefully, Fernkit was nervous. They could here rustling, then all of it stopped. Dustkit returned with a vole in his mouth.

He dropped it onto ground. "I caught it!" he mewed excitedly.

This was their third day on their own. They were a little ways away from the ravine, near Snakerocks. The three kits began to nibble on the vole. Fernkit heard something loud in the distance.

"Dog?" she cocked her head. She twitched her tail nervously. Suddenly she heard it again. "Let's run away!" she urged her siblings.

Dustkit raised his head. Another loud noise sounded, that got Smokekit's attention.

"It doesn't sound like a dog." She mewed. She approached her nervous sister and licked her shoulder, trying to make her more comfortable.

"I don't think that's a dog either. We heard a real dog on the…" Dustkit paused. "On the night momma went off to go fight. Then she never woke up." That painful memory filled their heads, they were saddened.

Smokekit tried not to think of it. "Let's go check out that loud noise." She mewed, trying to keep her mind off of her mother.

Dustkit nodded and led the way. Fernkit shivered, she didn't move for a very long time. Finally she took a few steps forward. Smokekit encouraged her to come along. She did, but she was a few fox-lengths away from her siblings.

Dustkit came to a halt as he near the dark path. Suddenly a large creature roared by. Dustkit fell backwards and Smokekit curled up into a little ball. Fernkit bravely ran over to Dustkit.

"A-are you alright r-right?" Fernkit stuttered. She kept glancing at the dark path, very nervous and scared. Her heard was pounding rapidly. She took a gulp and looked at her brother.

"I'm fine." He meowed. "What was that?"

"It's a monster!" Fernkit yelled. "It tried to eat you. Let's get away from here." Smokekit uncurled herself and made her way towards her siblings.

"I wanna see that again!" she mewed excitedly.

"You looked scared, you curled up into a ball." Dustkit scowled.

"I know, but I wanna see it again! They don't come off the dark path, right?"

"I don't think so." The pale brown kit mumbled.

"Then they won't attack us." Smokekit waited by the side of the dark path, waiting for another loud creature to roar by. One was coming, Smokekit's eyes widened. Dustkit slowly backed away from the dark path. Fernkit sheltered herself behind some trees.

"Here it comes." Smokekit meowed. The loud monster was very close, a few tail-lengths away from Smokekit. Its speed made a large gust of wind, making the dark gray kit lose her balance. She fell over giggling.

"Smokekit!" Dustkit yelled. He ran over to her.

"That was so cool!" she squeaked with excitement, then she got up onto her paws and jumped on top of the dark path.

"Get away!" Fernkit yelled from the trees. "The monsters will eat you!" she cried.

"No! Smokekit!" Dustkit jumped onto the dark path with her and shoved her off, back onto the grass.

Suddenly a monster was approaching. Dustkit was still on the road. He froze. Smokekit jumped back onto their and pushed Dustkit away from the dark path. She, too, jumped off just at the right time.

Fernkit came rushing over. "What were you two thinking?" she rasped.

"I don't like this dark path anymore, let's go." Dustkit meowed.

Smokekit wanted to stay and watch the monsters roar by but she knew that the three of them had to stick together in order for them to survive.

"Besides, we have to go find our clan. I don't think they're here." Dustkit added.

The three kits trotted off into the forest. It was getting dark and they need to find shelter fast before a predator got them.

"Find a tree-hole or a big crack in a rock. We can hide in there." Fernkit suggested.

The three brave kits wandered around searching for shelter. Dustkit's ears twitched, he raised his head and saw a large creature sitting on a branch.

"Hoot...hoot." the creature hooted. "Food…hoot…flesh and blood…hoot."

"Did it say blood?" Fernkit gulped, she was now very familiar with that word. "I couldn't really understand." She whispered into Smokekit's ear.

"Flesh and blood…hoot…prey….hoot-hoot." It said. It had a thick accent that was hard for the kits to understand.

"What's flesh?" Smokekit asked.

"I don't know but we better run! I think it thinks that we're food!" Dustkit mewled.

The three kits dashed off. The hooting creature spread its wings and flew after the three kits.

"It's a bird!" Smokekit meowed to her siblings. "Momma said that there were birds at night that ate kits who wandered away from their nursery! She was talking about this one!" the dark gray she cat explained. "I forgot what momma called it, but she told me they hoot a lot."

"Get that hoot-hoot away from me! I don't want it to eat me." Dustkit yelled, his blue eyes fixed on the hoot-hoot's talons.

The hoot-hoot swooped down, it's talons ready to wrap around its victim and carry it away. Fernkit was starting to lose her breath. She fell behind. The hoot-hoot was right behind her.

"Help!" she squealed. "The hoot-hoot is going to eat me! Help!"

She could feel the talons closing in on her. The sharp nails rubbing against her skin, splitting into small scratches.

"Help!" she cried.

If you didn't figure out what a hoot-hoot is, it's an owl. The kits are still learning, they don't know what everything is yet, so they call owls, hoot-hoots. They'll be saying more kittish terms as the story goes on, but I'll explain it.What will happen to poor Fernkit? Find out in the next chapter! Please, tell me what you think. Thank you for reading.