Leaping down the steep mountainside, Spottedflight felt more free than she could ever remember feeling. Her paws easily descended the face of the rock, a wind of momentum sweeping through her tortishell fur. She heard the cheers of the cats around her as they realized the likelihood that the lake was where the other four Clans resided. The warrior let out a happy cry of her own, the despair of Gingerflight's death long forgotten in the excitement of the moment.
It's too bad the moment couldn't last.
Puddlefrost appeared beside Spottedflight, matching her sister's pace as the two galloped down the mountain. "You okay?" she asked, slightly breathless.
Spottedflight's heart immediately hardened as she quickened her pace and assumed her lonely air of independence. "Fine," she meowed coolly. Her sister didn't need to pity her. She could go live her happy life with Spiderpaw. Her pity couldn't help Spottedflight. It was a waste of time for the two of them.
"Are you sure?" Puddlefrost persisted, quickening her pace to match Spottedflight's once again. The scenery was racing past them, no more than a blur of gray rocks on all sides, dotted with streaks of fur and a few flashes of green. "You seemed angry yesterday."
Skidding to a halt, Spottedflight let out an irritated hiss. She watched as Puddlefrost slowed to a stop herself and turned to face Spottedflight with an innocent, "What?"
"What?" Spottedflight questioned loudly. "What?" she repeated, giving a rude chuckle. "What, she asks. She doesn't realize what she's done. That I don't want her pity. That she can go have happy-kitty-fun-time with Spiderpaw or whatever and not worry about me. I've already come to terms with the fact that I'll be alone until I die. I don't see why she can't."
Puddlefrost watched Spottedflight with big eyes as the tortishell warrior finished her soliloquy. "Are you sure you'll alright?" she asked with a timid voice. "You seem—"
"Mad?" Spottedflight interjected with a smirk. "Lovely," she mewed. Flashing Puddlefrost an out-of-character grin, she padded off, gradually picking up speed as she neared the bottom of the mountain.
I'm going to regret that, Spottedflight admitted to herself in the back of her mind.
Head down, Spottedflight padded across a sleepy meadow dotted with stout trees. The soft grass brushed against her, reaching up to her shoulders. The sun was past its peak in the sky though still far from its setting point. The meadow was bathed in afternoon light. It looked increasingly more like an attractive place for a nap. Spottedflight blinked her heavy eyelids, tired from the run down the mountain behind her and the stress that had accompanied it. Puddlefrost kept casting sidelong glances in her direction, which only further stewed Spottedflight.
Stay calm, stay calm, Spottedflight warned herself. She had already messed things up enough for one day. Now all she wanted to do was focus on getting her paws to move her towards the Clans. The meadow began to gradually slope uphill. The trees began to thicken slightly. The top of the hill looked much more like a forest than the gentle valley between the mountains and whatever lay beyond the hill SkyClan now faced.
Spottedflight watched as Lionpaw broke into a run. "We're nearly there, guys!" he cried in excitement. Mistsong followed after him, racing him up the hill. Most of the Clan joined in, tearing through the grass and weaving through the trees in a sudden burst of adrenaline and exhilaration. Spottedflight stayed deliberately behind, watching the happy cats with a sullen gaze.
"Don't be so down," she heard a voice chide her from behind. She whirled around, holding her tongue until she could figure out which cat had spoken.
Smudgenose.
Lacking the heartlessness to snap at the sweet old tom, Spottedflight gave him a rare smile. She truly felt bad for him. He who had lost his mate, his friend, the cat who balanced out his flaws with her own. The Clan was sad for the loss of Gingerflight, but no one was more devastated than Smudgenose. SkyClan had lost so many cats along the way that the pain was dull for many. But not for Smudgenose. His pain was fresh, pungent, and draining.
"I'll try," Spottedflight told the elder quietly. She didn't want to leave her problems behind her. They kept her feeling real. She felt that if she let them go she wouldn't be a real cat anymore. But her problems were completely petty compared to the loss Smudgenose was facing. So Spottedflight didn't have a mate. That wasn't as bad as falling in love, raising a family, being together for moons upon moons, only for the one you love to die.
"You've got plenty of time left in you," Smudgenose told her promisingly.
How can you say that when my brother died after hardly being made an apprentice? Spottedflight thought wildly. She didn't think about Beetlepaw very much anymore, and she hated herself for it. The tom was fading from her memory with all the other excitement that forced its way into her life. "I do hope so," she mewed to Smudgenose, trying to keep her tone light.
Smudgenose smiled. "That's good," he purred. "Now, we'd better get moving. Our Clan is barely in sight," he pointed out with a grin. That was more like Smudgenose. Spottedflight knew he was mourning Gingerflight inside, but she admired that he didn't show it to others. She had a thing or two to learn from the ditzy elder.
Picking up speed, Spottedflight loped up the hill alongside Smudgenose. She admired his dexterity despite his age. The two laced through the trees, following the scent of their Clanmates. Spottedflight hardly noticed as they padded out of the forest and out onto the summit of the hill. She was wrapped in her thoughts. She only left her head to stand in reality as she heard Ravenstar speaking.
"Creekstone says he can smell the Clans up ahead," Ravenstar announced proudly.
Spottedflight listened politely, more engrossed in the scenery than in Ravenstar's words. The hill sloped down again a few fox-lengths after the forest ended. It looked much like the valley after the mountains had, with long grasses, wildflowers, and grassland trees. Beyond it there was a twoleg fence and building. Tall creatures with four legs galloped along within the fences, muscles rippling beneath tough brown or white or black hides. Beyond the creatures there appeared to be a marsh laced with rivers. On one side it faded into dense and dark forestland while on the other it tapered out into a dry moor dotted with heather and rocks. Between the dark forest and the rolling moor there lay a sunny forest. And in the center was the sparkling lake. The blue water waved and rippled, reflecting the light and completing the beautiful scene. Close to the marsh there was a forested island, with what looked like a thin bridge connecting it to the land.
"We'll spend the rest of the day hunting and resting," Ravenstar finished. Spottedflight had missed most of his speech. "Tomorrow a patrol will be sent to speak with the other Clans."
Ignoring the grumbling in her stomach, Spottedflight lay in the grass with a content sigh. Maybe the other Clans wouldn't be so bad. Maybe the new home of SkyClan would actually be enjoyable.
Or maybe she was simply too tired to care where she slept.
A.N. I changed the path of the journey slightly and added a bit of territory beyond the Horseplace to give SkyClan some useful and nearby territory. My apologies for the slight un-canon-ness.