Hours had passed. How many exactly, Snowfrost was not sure. However long it might have been was enough to make Misty worry.
"Snowflake? Hey Snowflake, where are you?" She called. Snowfrost lifted her head to respond but hesitated a heartbeat. Was Misty talking to her? Or was there another cat in the house? Regardless, Snowfrost decided to answer the other cat's calls and come out of the closet.
"Are you addressing me?" She asked as she came to stand before her housemate.
Misty instantly brightened at the sight of Snowfrost. Her tail raised high and quivered in greetings.
"Of course! Who else would I be talking to?" She giggled.
"You are aware that my name is Snowfrost and not Snowflake, correct?" Inquired the pregnant molly, flicking her ear.
"Well, Snowflake is the name our housefolk is calling you by. So I thought I should call you that too."
So she had been given a kittypet name? Snowfrost resisted the urge to grimace in response. First she received a collar of ownership, and now a name change. Pretty soon, she wouldn't even be a clan cat anymore. Though she'd known it was inevitable for her name to change, she still wasn't happy. No, Snowfrost growled internally. Starclan chose my name. Even though they no longer speak to me, I can't disrespect them by changing it. I am Snowfrost. I always will be. Snowfrost took an extra heartbeat to gain her composure before speaking again.
"I appreciate you trying to help me adapt to this new life. But if it's all the same to you, I will remain as I am. Please don't refer to me as 'Snowflake'," she requested.
"Are you sure? Snowflake sounds just as pretty as Snowfrost," Misty tried to persuade, as naive as a kit to the ways of clan culture.
"I'm quite sure. My name holds special meaning. Changing it would be blasphemy. And a scratch in the face of my mentor who gave it to me."
Misty gave Snowfrost a strange look before licking down her chest fur. "Well alright. But I doubt the other housecats will be as easily convinced."
"And why would they need convincing?"
"Well, some of the housecats can read Twoleg language. They'll see that your collar says 'Snowflake', and won't call you anything else." Ah. So kittypets were as stubborn as Snowfrost had heard. They must be the sort to hear an idea and latch to it like a kitten to its mother's teet. Still, if those pampered Twolegs' toys could be adamant, then so could she.
"Then I will just have to persuade them, won't I?"
Misty shook her head doubtfully before flicking her tail. She beckoned Snowfrost to follow her across the house to what the kittypet referred to as "the back door". There, Misty let out a loud chorus of meows, attracting the attention of their housefolk. The giant creature stomped its way over, bending down to pet each cat. Then it stood upright and pryed open the door. Misty trilled out a thank you, scampering out the open entryway with eagerness. Snowfrost followed behind at a more leisurely pace. She wasn't too keen on meeting the new neighbors. But she was thrilled to be outside again. How long had it been since she'd felt fresh air on her whiskers? At least two or three days. Maybe an eon. Being pregnant made time feel so chaotic. But the sight of the bright sun and cloudless sky helped Snowfrost gain back some sense of it. Though she wouldn't know for sure until she saw the moon. I must keep track of time. I have to monitor how far along I am becoming.
Snowfrost was pulled from her thoughts as Misty yelled out to her from across the yard. Snowfrost quickened her pace a little to a trot. She settled in front of her companion who stood beside a bush.
"Hey you're a wild cat, do you know anything about these berries?"
Snowfrost took another pawstep forward to take a sniff of them.
"It's juniper," she answered surely, "they're for soothing bellyache."
"Really?" Misty seemed amazed by Snowfrost's very simple knowledge. "How do you know that?"
Snowfrost raised her chin a little pridefully. "I'm a medicine cat. It's my job to know. I studied herbs like this for ten moons as a young cat. And I have been my clan's sole healer for the past two years. Up until now, I suppose."
Misty stared at her companion, eyes sparkling with intrigue. A wide smile spread across her muzzle. "Wow that's pretty neat! Maybe you could teach me about plants and stuff sometime? And if you do, then I can help take care of you when it's time for your kits to come."
That actually didn't sound like too bad of an idea. Though in some way it made Snowfrost feel unsure. She'd failed to complete her first apprentice's training by abandoning her still as a 'paw. And Misty wasn't even a clan cat, muchless a medicine cat apprentice. Still, it could be beneficial for both of them if the other cat learned about herbs. It wasn't wrong to teach a cat how to heal.
"I'll think about it," Snowfrost decided. Misty seemed satisfied by that response, and dropped the subject for now.
The grey tabby kittypet beckoned with her tail once more, leading the way to the fence which marked the end of their territory. Misty, showing herself to be clever, walked through a large gap between the white posts. Snowfrost followed cautiously behind, afraid to get her belly caught or scraped against the unnaturally colored wood. Safely through, the two she-cats made their way to some of the neatby houses. In some of the yards, kittypets lounged in the sun, and played with things in their gardens. Most cats seemed excited when Misty came into their yards. Misty acted just the same, enthusiastically introducing her friends to her new housemate. Snowfrost felt a little overwhelmed by all the new smells and sights and cats she was exposed to. So many strange names to memorize. Sparkles, Oreo, Prince, Felix, Bella, Pickles, Luna, Rocky, Angel. Misty was certainly popular. And her friends certainly were annoying. Half of them seemed dumber than a mouse. While others were far too nosy, reading the name from Snowfrost's collar. And some cats were downright rude. One cat called her fat, while another kept getting too close. The nerve of some kittypets. I don't know how much more of this I can take.
"C'mon, Snowfrost! There's just one more cat I'd like you to meet!" Misty mewed.
Snowfrost resisted the urge to groan. Please let this one be tolerable. The two she-cat jogged back down the gravel path, in the direction of their den. They passed it, stopping in front of the third house down the row. This was the first house I saw when I'd arrived at Twolegplace, Snowfrost realized. She hadn't recognized it from the back. Misty called to her, leading her beneath the fence and to the back door of the house.
Unlike the other yards they'd visited, there was no kittypet waiting outside. Nor was there any openings for a cat to crawl through like in some of the houses. There was, however, a large space open within the house. But when Snowfrost moved to try and walk inside, she was blocked by an invisible barrier. It felt like the same thing used on windows.
"It's a sliding glass door. We won't be able to get inside unless the housefolk opens it up. But they won't."
They won't? Snowfrost's mind parroted. Then, how were they going to meet the cat who supposedly lived inside this place? Misty answered that question with a chorus of yowls. Her noise brought forth the attention of a cat within the den. The kittypet trotted up to the glass, carefully seating herself in front of it. This cat was a bit strange looking. She had a pointed head with a muzzel shorter than a Grassclan cat's. Large ears, and smooth white and black patched fur. She appeared to have a black rabbit's tail instead of a cat's. And her eyes were a lovely shade of blue. The cat's most noticeable feature was her plump belly. Though it didn't appear squishy or flabby. Snowfrost knew by sight alone this cat was pregnant. Perhaps as far along as she was.
"Usagi, hello!" Misty meowed loudly. "It's good to see you. Meet my new housemate, Snowfrost."
"It is good to see you too, Misty. Hello, Snowfrost. It is lovely to meet you." The cat, Usagi, dipped her head in greetings. Her voice was very soothing, although muffled by the glass in their way. "Where do you come from? You look quite exotic. Perchance, are you a purebred like I am? It would be wonderful to know more show cats outside of the show ring."
"I come from the meadow," Snowfrost answer simply. "I'm not sure what a 'purebred' is, I'm afraid. Or a 'show ring.' "
Usagi shuffled her paws a bit; she seemed to be getting nervous. "You are...a stray? A wild cat?"
Snowfrost twitched her whiskers. "I am. Or, rather, I was. I live here now. I came here to give my kits a good life. I see you are expecting, too. Has your pregnancy been going well?"
At the mention of kits, Usagi seemed to brighten. "My pregnancy is well monitored. My housefolk take excellent care of us. He says that I should expect four kittens. I am sure my mate will be pleased. Speaking of him, I must return to my nest. Misty knows how mad Hiro becomes when I talk to cats outside of the house." Usagi rose to her paws, giving herself a good stretch. "Until next time, Misty, Snowfrost." The molly dipped her head once more before turning and walking out of sight, deeper into her den.
"Isn't she nice?" Misty asked. "I'm sure you two will become fast friends over time. Anyways, we'd better get home. I bet it's almost lunchtime!"
Snowfrost's belly began to growl at the mention of a meal. Her kits seemed to squirm in response as well. With an agreeing nod, the two mollies left the show cat's house behind, padding down the line back to their own den.