Disclaimer: I do not own The Mr. Men Show or Warriors or any of their characters. But I own the idea for this story.
Panting, Mr. Nosy climbed over the last of the rocks and stood at the top of the ravine. He turned to look down at the camp. Most of it was hidden, but from up here, he could see his friends moving down below. He thought he could see the pelt of his best friend, but he couldn't be sure.
Turning to look behind him, he found himself on the edge of an oak forest, like ThunderClan's territory, and as he thought about it, he remembered that Firestar's Clan also made camp in a ravine.
Maybe we're near ThunderClan's territory, he thought, wondering if the Clans were somewhere in this new world.
He was knocked out of his imagination when he heard a gasp and he looked down the slope to see Little Miss Curious struggling to make the climb.
Careful, he went to go help her. She purred her thanks when he nudged her the last of the way up. They shared a look before they were joined by Little Miss Daredevil and Mr. Bounce.
"Now what?" Little Miss Daredevil panted, her eyes wide with excitement.
Mr. Nosy gazed into the forest. It was close to noon, but there were some parts of the forest floor that were covered in shadows. He guessed that's where they would find prey.
He found himself wondering what a mouse or a vole would taste like. He breathed in the scents of the forest and his mouth watered when he smelled a delicious odor. Was that prey? He licked his lips. He wanted to follow the trail.
"Follow me, and try not to make any sound," the black tom murmured to the others. He crouched low and slowly crept forward. His tail disturbed the leaves and he lifted it and positioned himself so his round belly didn't scrap the ground. His muscles hurt from having to keep himself from falling to one side. But he managed to take a few steps forward.
He stopped and looked over his shoulder when he heard a leaf crunch under someone's paw. Little Miss Curious was looking guilty at the ground. "Sorry," she whispered. She got low to the ground and tried to copy Mr. Nosy but her tail was flicking, shattering the leaves behind her.
Mr. Nosy inhaled and exhaled, trying not to lose patience because hunting was new for all of them. He glanced over at Little Miss Daredevil and Mr. Bounce who both were crouched and moving forward, but Mr. Bounce's belly brushed the ground and Little Miss Daredevil was moving forward so fast that she tripped over her front paws, crashing into the roots of a tree.
Don't get upset, Mr. Nosy told himself. He knew that they were trying their best. He straightened up and walked over to Little Miss Curious.
"Stick your tail straight out," he told her, remembering the lesson every apprentice learns. "And don't let it touch the ground."
The dark brown she-cat crouched down, lifting her tail. "Like this?" she asked.
Mr. Nosy purred with amusement. Her tail was straight up in the air. "Not so high. Just a little bit off the ground. About this much," he added, using his paw to lower her tail till it was just barely above the ground. "And don't flick it. Keep it still."
Little Miss Curious, eyes narrowed in concentration, nodded.
"Now move forward. Slowly and don't let your belly touch the ground." Mr. Nosy looked over at Little Miss Daredevil and Mr. Bounce. They were watching them. "You try, too," he encouraged.
They both got low, tails still and above the ground and belly tucked in. Mr. Nosy wondered what a warrior cat would think. Were they doing it right? Could they move silently over the forest floor? He was studying their positions when a flick of movement caught his eye and he slowly turned his head to see a tiny brown creature nibbling a seed at the foot of a tree; the mouse had its back to them.
He hissed softly to get the others' attention, and they all froze when they spotted the mouse. Little Miss Curious looked questioningly at Mr. Nosy, who nodded, allowing the brown she-cat to make the first catch.
She crouched down low, sticking her tail out straight, just high enough off the ground that it didn't brush the forest floor. She managed to take two or three steps forward, but one more step, a twig snap under one of her back paws. The mouse looked up, fully alerted. It turned terrified eyes on LIttle Miss Curious and then bolted away, disappearing under the roots of a tree.
Little Miss Curious sat up, looking very upset. Mr. Nosy padded over to her and rubbed his cheek against her head. "Bad luck," he murmured. "You'll get it soon." He glanced at the others. "All of us will."
He spoke those words to give his friends hope, but privately, he wondered if any of them would be able to learn how to hunt without any lessons from a true warrior cat. When he woke up this morning and discovered that they were all cats, for a short time, he was excited. Then he saw how hard everyone else was taking it and he forced himself to see this change through their eyes. He knew they were frightened and uncomfortable and were desperate to find a way to return to normal life.
Now he was worried that they wouldn't be able to feed themselves. A thought popped in his head and for a moment he considered it. Could my friends separate and go to live among twolegs?
Then he shook his head. No, he told himself. I doubt any of them would like being kittypets. Well most— Mr. Lazy might like it if it meant no work.
Suddenly he was aware of the stares from Little Miss Curious, Little Miss Daredevil, and Mr. Bounce. They were all looking at him anxiously, even Little Miss Daredevil, who was usually so carefree.
He shook out his pelt as if he could dislodge his troubles like he would water after climbing out of a river. All of his friends depended on him and Mr. Small; if they saw him worrying, it would only make them freak out more. He needed to step up and take charge. At least until they returned to Dillydale or found the true leader, if StarClan destined them to become a Clan, which he didn't know would be good or bad.
"Come on; let's see if we can find anything else to bring back to our friends," he meowed, heading deeper into the forest. After a moment, the others ran to catch up.
They soon came to a dirt path cutting through the woods. Mr. Nosy sniffed it. Was that Twolegs? It had to be. He couldn't think of who else might use this trail. He was about to turn away from it when he heard a deafening roar. He pricked his ears and listened. A Thunderpath? he wondered.
"What is that?" Mr. Bounce gasped. He threw his head down and covered his ears with his front paws.
"It sounds like a Thunderpath," Mr. Nosy responded without thinking. He flattened his ears against his head in an attempt to muffle the loud noise.
"A what?" Little Miss Daredevil asked, cocking her head in confusion.
Mr. Nosy had completely forgotten that the others didn't know any Clan terms. Mousebrain! he scolded himself.
"A road," the black tom explained. "Clan cats call it a Thunderpath, since they've never heard the word road before. And," he added," that noise we are hearing are cars or monsters, in the Clans' language. Come on. Let's get closer, but be very careful. Monsters are dangerous to cats." He stepped out onto the Twoleg trail and pushed through the bushes on the other side.
A wide stretch of black stuff laid in front of them. The roaring was louder than ever as the colorful creatures swept past their noses only whiskers away in a whirling wind of stinky smoke. Startled, Mr. Nosy backed away. He knew they weren't alive like Clan cats believed they were, but it was still terrifying to think they could crush a cat underneath their wheels.
For several moments, nobody spoke, just watched the monsters in horror, unable to believe that they used to drive such things in their old lives. Then Little Miss Curious broke the silence.
"Hold on," the dark brown she-cat meowed; she sounded both scared and curious. "There's people in those cars! But everyone from Dillydale is back there—" She gestured back the way they came, toward camp—" and we're cats now. Are we…" She hesitated, shifting her paws nervously. "Are we even in Dillydale anymore?"
The others exchanged looks, and Mr. Nosy saw fear sparkling in Little Miss Daredevil's and Mr. Bounce's eyes.
Sensing his friends' rising panic like a wave crashing over his head, Mr. Nosy realized that he had to calm the situation before they did something foolish.
Flicking his tail, he murmured," Steady. Okay, so it looks like we're not in Dillydale anymore," he went on when he had everyone's attention. "We could have already guessed that, but one day we'll return to Dillydale as ourselves."
"How do you know that?" There was no accusation in Mr. Bounce's tone. He sounded a mix of worry and hopeful, like he wanted to believe Mr. Nosy, but he just didn't know if he did.
Mr. Nosy hesitated, before saying softly," I have faith in StarClan."
"StarClan?" Little Miss Curious meowed, tilting her head to the side.
"They are the Clan cats' ancestors, and I believe they are watching over us, too." That was true; he did believe that. They might not be a real Clan, but Mr. Nosy was convinced StarClan was part of this world, and they were keeping an eye on them.
It might not be Bluestar or Spottedleaf, but maybe a whole different starry Clan of ancestors living in the sky, he thought, looking up past the treetops at the clear blue expanse above them.
The others were eyeing him with a mix of emotions: Little Miss Daredevil didn't look like she believed StarClan was watching them; Mr. Bounce looked desperately hopeful like he wanted to believe in the powers of the ancestors; And Little Miss Curious just looked curious. She was the first one to speak.
"What does StarClan have to do with us returning home?" the dark brown she-cat asked.
"They want the best for us," Mr. Nosy explained. "If the best for us is returning back to Dillydale, then they will make it happen. If the best is staying here and forming our own Clan, then they will help us and guide us the whole way. You just have to believe in them."
Little Miss Daredevil stared at him, then she turned and said over her shoulder," I don't think this StarClan is watching over us– that's just creepy!– but I hope we get home soon." She walked back into the forest.
Mr. Bounce hesitated, glanced at Mr. Nosy, giving him a hopeful look, before following the silver she-cat. Little Miss Curious stayed with Mr. Nosy.
"I don't know about StarClan," she said," but I believe in you and if you say they will help us, then I believe you." She purred for a moment, intertwining her tail with his. He purred back and leaned into her, feeling happy that at least she trusted him.
Then she pulled away, and walked back into the forest. He stared after her, disappointed that they couldn't stay that way forever. Before following the others, he lifted his head to the sky again and sent a silent prayer to StarClan.
Watch over us, he thought. And keep us safe.
Then he pushed back into the woods, feeling confident that StarClan will do just that.
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