Greenkit was confused. And by the shocked look on her companion's faces, they were bewildered as well.
Midnightfoot was the first to regain composure. "Has StarClan spoken to you?" he asked simply. Greenkit stifled a groan. This StarClan character kept popping up, and she didn't enjoy being out of the loop.
Pearl let out a purr, very raspy, like her voice. "Not StarClan, no. You'll have heard of the Tribe of Endless Hunting?"
Greenkit let out an audible groan now. She couldn't keep up with all these strange terms. But she then realized; the four cats she brought to Pearl must be as confused as she was, being in a new place, with new cats. She caught her mind wandering while the cats conversed, now wondering more about where they came from, who named them, why they all smelled so specifically different.
Because even though they were clearly cats of a different place, they were also clearly siblings – but each cat had a specific kind of foreign scent. Scents of the path they had taken masked most of the odor, but not all of it. Had they been apart for a long while? Had this journey brought them back together? She caught a question in her mind, snatching it out of water like a fish, and opened her mouth to ask.
Greenkit snapped her mouth shut as quickly as she had opened it. She kept quiet, realizing she had missed a good chunk of information while the cats spoke. She silently cursed herself, wondering if she had missed answers to the many questions tumbling around her mind again, like loose bracken on the beach.
"And you shall take us?" Twilightfur asked the old cat. She phrased it as a question, but the tense stance of Duskpelt made Greenkit think it was more of a statement.
Pearl let out a mrrow of musky laughter. "Not me, no. I shall not leave the hollow. My daughter, Water; she will take you."
"She didn't have a name last time I saw her," Greenkit blurted, frustration taking hold as she realized the adventure was slowly crawling away from her. She didn't want to go back to her nest yet. She had too many questions, too many things she wanted to show them. Plus, her bush was prickly after a hot day, drying in the sun.
"Things change, young kit." Pearl answered gently in her raspy tone. "As we shall soon see."
She called back into the den for Water over her shoulder, and a gray she-cat with intricate looping silver markings bounced to her place beside her mam. She was much older than Greenkit, about as big as the strangers, but was still very young. She had been around, checking on cats and collecting herbs, since before Greenkit was born. Greenkit liked her okay, but she was a bit perky, in her opinion.
"Water," Pearl mewed clearly to her daughter. "Will you please show these cats around the Clifflands? Be sure to find some more sea lavender before you bring them back. We're running low."
"Yes, mam." Water dipped her head respectfully, mewing softly in a high-pitched voice. Greenkit couldn't help but to look away uncomfortably. Water was well past the age of a cat leaving the nest. Cats, as a general rule, did not associate with others very much after leaving the nest, family or otherwise. Seeing two cats so fearlessly showing affection and respect to one another was awkward for Greenkit to witness.
"Now, you best be going before the sun sets. You won't very much appreciate finding yourself in the Clifflands after dark. You may return here to nest for the night after viewing the land." Pearl granted the four strangers a small nod before turning back to her den, her long tail trailing the top edge of the den gently.
The six cats had obviously been dismissed. "Right." Water mewed, immediately darting over to the squeeze space entrance in between the Dunes and the cliff. She turned to face them, ready to dart through. "You heard mam! We need to make time!"
Watching the four cats follow her, Greenkit did a quick assessment of the invitation in her head. Was she welcome, or was she being dismissed as well?
She had her answer at Twilightfur's yowl. "Greenkit! Let's go!"
She wriggled her backside excitedly before charging through the groove, following them. As she wiggled her way through, she heard Duskpelt's distinct growl. "Would it not be better to travel in a smaller group in a land of potentially hostile cats?"
"Perhaps," Greenkit was surprised to hear Midnightfoot answer. "But she is much too small to be a threat."
Dawntail added with a mew, "Maybe having such a kit travelling with us will work to our advantage. Make us appear the less hostile ones."
Dawntail didn't speak very often, but Greenkit quickly made up her mind to like the cat. Even Midnightfoot, while quiet in a more intimidating way, she could like. And Twilightfur had been accepting of her since the very beginning. Duskpelt, she did not like. At all.
She shook her head, clearing her thoughts of the bad-tempered tom, and trotted quickly to meet the fast pace of her companions. The sun was still shining golden on the land, but now had some traces of sunset, colors of orange and red joining the yellow streams of sun, painting the ocean a beautiful color.
They crested the Cliffpath quickly, following the crescent of land that led up to the path above the beach, dunes and scrub with a few leaps and bounds. The terrain was no longer sandy, but the dry, cracked ground of the prairie. At the top, the cats slowed, observing the vastness of the Clifflands.
"Most of the land is dry here, except during the wet season." Water explained. "But most of the ground still remains dry. Only the areas near the Bigstream and the Brokencreeks flood."
She flicked her tail toward the distant stream, coming from the Bigfalls. It meandered through the land slowly, until it reached the Littlefalls and led over the small cliff before pouring into the Saltmarshes and Snakeroot-trees, and finally, the ocean. The freshwater and saltwater met in a quiet pond-like area, turning quickly into the Saltmarsh. Greenkit knew this, of course, but Water had to explain it.
While she did, Greenkit couldn't resist but piping in. "The Saltmarsh has plenty of prey! Rabbits, mice, sparrows and wrens, and all the fish you could ask for. Rather salty, though." She wrinkled her nose. She did like the fish, really; but she did like to balance it out with the rodents that nosed through the dryer parts.
"Plenty of healing herbs come from the Saltmarsh as well," Water nodded, validating Greenkit's mews. "But herbs can be found most everywhere in the Clifflands, even in the dry land. As long as you know where to look, of course. Same with prey."
Next, she tipped her tail to the far corner to the right of the Clifflands. "There is an Oakscrub forest that resides yonder," she explained, then tipped her tail to the opposite. "And over there, a Pinescrub. Both are bodacious with prey."
Greenkit couldn't resist butting in again. "Cats in the Pinescrub are not welcoming, though." She warned, nodding her small gray head. "Plus, there are huge snakes!"
Again, Water nodded. Greenkit felt a little trickle of pride, being included in such an important mission. "There are snakes over most of the land, but they do really seem to like the Pinescrub, and the Saltmarsh. You should also be warned of the predator birds – some get so large, they can scoop an old kit clear from the ground. There are minks that primarily trail the coastline, but are known to walk the dry lands during the wet season. They are dangerous to any cat; I expect that perhaps in a ground they could be driver off, but not many cats are open to help in these places."
Water looked troubled for a moment, her ears flattening to her head as she gazed to the distance. Greenkit took the uncomfortable lapse of conversation to ask something that had been on her mind since she had met the strange cats. "But you're here to help, right?"
Midnightfoot had the same thoughtful look he always tended to have, and Twilightfur's ears twitched. It was Dawntail who answered her, to Greenkit's surprise. "Well, we are certainly going to try."
This seemed to calm Water, and she visibly relaxed. "Would you like to see the Steppingstone-place?"
The pretty she-cat waited for an affirmation before following the edge of the cliff, darting around scrub brushes and scattered boulders. Greenkit walked on the very edge of the cliff, balancing precariously with her tail straight in the air. It was a game she played with herself, sometimes; she was training herself to be a fierce cat, one that others would never dare chase away from their nests if she wandered to close, or to be forced out of the Pinescrubs. She wanted to follow where her paws naturally tended to bring her: to the Bigfalls.
Thinking of this, she was very surprised when teeth in the scruff of her neck broke her concentration. She hissed instinctively, squirming as she was literally dragged away from the cliffside. She twisted furiously until the responsible cat released her, jumping up from the ground and hissing once more.
"Mouse-brain!" Twilightfur hissed herself. "What in your pebble-sized brain would drive you to do…that?"
Greenkit lifted herself up from her natural defensive crouch, licking her chest furiously for a few moments. She refused to let herself feel embarrassment. "I'm brave." She decided to mew in her defense.
"Brave," Duskpelt spat. Even Water looked alarmed. "Were we not just lectured on predators? What if one of those minks came at you from the side? It's jump or be eaten!"
Greenkit's shoulders fell a bit. Technically, she supposed, they were right. Minks were terrifying. She had never faced one before, but if all it took was a pawswipe to stop her from reaching Duskpelt when she tried to attack him, she was sure the mink would make a meal out of her. "Sorry," she muttered, bowing her head. "I won't do it again."
Duskpelt was marching ahead, muttering to himself, his fur bristling. He didn't even like her, Greenkit scoffed. Why should he care? The other cats looked satisfied with her apology, and they moved on to catch up with Duskpelt.
They approached the end of the stream as the colors of the sky darkened. They paused at the edge – though not as close as Greenkit's initial reaction would be. She wasn't afraid of the water.
The meandering river poured down the edge of the cliff, resulting in the Littlefalls. Greenkit knew if you stood close enough, the spray of the fresh water would wet your fur with cool droplets. It felt especially nice around this time of day, or night, whichever you preferred; just before all of the heat of the hot sun escaped. But Greenkit didn't dare step forward to stick her face in the cool spray. She didn't want Duskpelt chewing her out…again.
"We'll follow the stream now," Water announced, beckoning with her tail toward the later twists and turns of the river. "It would have been a quicker route to the Steppingstone-place had we cut across the prairie, but not all cats are friendly. It will take some time and explanation until the cats of the Clifflands come around."
Midnightfoot nodded to her, his eyes as silently thoughtful as ever, and Water licked her paw bashfully, wiping down the fur atop of her head. "That's what my mam says, at least."
"And they won't bother us if we follow the stream?" Duskpelt asked, looking doubtfully out to the prairie.
"Tromping across the land uninvited would bring unwelcome guests," Water explained, sitting down to face the cats. "We're less likely to bother them walking along the stream. Of course, most won't be hostile once they realize you're with me."
Water glanced at Midnightfoot, who was listening attentively, and Water ducked her head once more, seeming embarrassed. "My mam heals a lot of the cats around here, and I help. The cats she helps – most cats, I expect – know me, and would listen to what you have to say."
It was silent for a moment as the four strangers processed her words, examining the land around them with curious eyes. They seemed to be analyzing it, processing the prairie as much as her words. Finally, Midnightfoot bowed his head to Water. "Lead the way."
I've only just noticed that somehow, I replaced the prologue with Chapter 1. It's been fixed. Author's apologies!
I'm still trying to figure out how to add pictures to the chapters so that you will have a general idea of how the land is laid out. In the mean time, if you have any questions about the landscape, feel free to PM me, and I'll get back to you ASAP, or you can ask it in the reviews anonymously, and I'll respond at the bottom of the next chapter.
Best wishes, may StarClan light your path!