Proilgue

The moon gleamed in the clear, still sky. The light from the moon reflected into a river nearby. Close by, 4 cats were talking in low voices.
"I don't see why we have to rely on kittypets to lead a clan." One of them spat angrily. "They just lounge around all day eating kittypet slop." Another small cat stared hard. "You may have hated kittypets, Darktail. But that doesn't mean you have to hate them now. Yes, I know that they killed your mother, but that's not a excuse." She meowed in her soft, quiet voice.
"Seaheart has a point. Why don't you acutally listen to her instead of complaining all the time?" The smallest cat meowed. "You're grumpier than an elder!" Darktail snorted and decided to try fishing in the river. Seaheart sighed and turned to the final cat, who hadn't spoken much at all. "Are you alright, Blackeyes? I know Fishpaw was a bit offensive to you, being an elder and all." The elder lifted his head and smiled. "Yes, I'm fine thank you. Fishpaw is only young, anyway. She will learn from us, not her clan." Seaheart looked at the little apprentice as she bounded into the bracken after a squirrel. "Yes, but she was too young to die. I just fear with this new clan that more young cats will die. We must send someone who will help the clan."
"What about some cats?" Blackeyes suggested. Darktail looked up from his fishing. "Or what about a whole clan?" He said grumpily. Seaheart cuffed him around the head and padded away. "I'll discuss the matter with the leaders." The she-cat padded through the forest, her starry pelt shining in the moonlight. She eventually found 4 cats resting under a willow tree, and went up to them. "There's a small matter I would like to discuss with you." She meowed. One of them, a tall black and white tom with green eyes, sat up and smiled. "Go on."
"The new clan... Blackeyes and I have suggested that we send some cats to help them learn how to be a clan." Seaheart said. The same tom rose to his paws and stared. "And this is because?" Seaheart was silent, but luckily for her, a small light brown she-cat challenged the other leader. "You be quiet, Tallstar. What young Seaheart is suggesting is a useful idea and would help this clan to thrive. Maybe we could consider it a go, but just a few. None of them will be leader. The cat whom we have selected is perfect. It is her destiny to lead this new clan." Tallstar was silent now, and Seaheart gave the other leader a thankful glance. "Thanks, Heartstar, for proving my point." Heartstar nodded, and turned to the other two leaders. "Lightstar and Smallstar would have agreed." They nodded their heads and Heartstar looked back at Seaheart. "We will accept your idea." The young warrior smiled. "Ok. I'll tell Blackeyes." She rushed back to the river. Darktail and Fishpaw were sharing a small squirrel, whilst Blackeyes sat by the river, staring in. Seaheart padded over to the elder. "The leaders, apart from Tallstar, has accepted." She annonced. Blackeyes gave a low growl. "Tallstar has never been kind to BrightClan cats, neither FoxClan cats like you. I take it Heartstar stuck up for you?" Seaheart nodded, but glanced at Darktail. "Maybe that's why Darktail has such a temper. Because he was a RainClan cat, led by Tallstar." She then stared at Fishpaw. "Atleast Smallstar was a decent leader to TwilightClan."
"I can't believe though our clans are no more." Blackeyes sighed sadly. "It was a terrible thing even StarClan couldn't predict."
"Yes, but this new clan is the future." Seaheart reminded him gently. "If this cat we have picked becomes a great leader, then our mission to create a new clan has worked."


These are the cats mentioned in the first chapter:

Heather(star)- A silvery grey cat with white patches and blue eyes, lives with Twolegs.

Sugar(paw)- A white she-cat with green eyes, lives in an abandoned barn.

Fluffy(paw)- A dark brown tabby tom with black stripes and amber eyes, lives in an abandoned barn.

Tom(foot)- A long-haired grey tom with yellow eyes, lives with the Twolegs.

Rose(heart)- A redish-brown she-cat with yellow eyes, loner.

Barley(paw)- A black and white tom with blue eyes, lives with the Twolegs.

Night(sparrow)- A pitch black she-cat with white tipped ears and green eyes, loner.

Ellie(paw)- A small ginger she-cat with white paws and hazel eyes, lives in an abandoned barn.

Chapter1

The beams of the blazing sun shone through the Twolegplace. Heather loved sunny days like this, she could sunbathe or talk to the other cats in the other gardens, catching up on the latest gossip. But what Heather dreamed of was a life away from her housefolk. She wanted to be a forest cat, living out in the wild.
Her thoughts were disturbed when one of her housefolk, a Twoleg kit, came and stroked Heather's back. "Hello kitty." Heather purred and rubbed her head against her arm. The kit giggled and picked her up, taking her outside. She then put Heather down on the ground and shut the door. Heather sighed and padded up to the fence, where her friend Barley lived.
Suddenly, Heather heard a loud yapping sound, coming from the den in front of her's. Quietly, she tip-toed towards the fence and scanned it for a hole she could look into. She eventually found a small one, cutting into the ground. Heather crawled into the hole and gave a little gasp.
There was a huge dog, chasing after a small white she-cat. She didn't have a collar, so Heather guessed she was a forest cat. She hadn't seen her before. The white she-cat darted up a tree and sat on a high branch, panting. The dog was still yapping excitedly below, but thankfully one of the Twolegs started yelling, and the dog trotted back into his den. Heather took this moment to venture into there and meet the brave young she-cat. She padded up to the tree and looked up. "Who are you, stranger?"
"Sugar." The cat replied grumpily, sticking her nose in the air. Heather sighed. Her name was sweet, but she had a sour tone to her voice. Despite this, Heather continued trying to make conversation. "I'm Heather. Have you moved in with your housefolk close by?" She asked kindly. Sugar gave a loud snort of annoyence. "I haven't got a proper home. I live with my brother and my friend away from the Twolegs."
"Where abouts do you live?" Heather questioned. "Do you live in the forest?" Sugar's ears pricked up. "No. I live in an abandoned barn, not too far away. I wish to live in the forest though, one day." Heather smiled. "I have the same dreams as you, but I live with my housefolk over there." She flicked her tail in direction of her den. Sugar twitched her whiskers, but then looked at the kittypet. "Would you like to come back with my to our barn? Nice and cozy up there, we've got plenty of food to share." Heather stared at her, and then gave a wide grin. "Of course! I'd love to!" Sugar smiled and climbed down the tree, flicking her tail in direction of a small gap in the fence. "We'll go this way, it's the safest if you want to avoid dogs and Twolegs."
"I'm bigger than you though, are you sure I'll fit through that tiny gap?" Heather asked anxiously, worried she might not get to explore Sugar's barn. The little she-cat stared at the gap, and then started running towards it. She bashed her head into a small area above the hole and a chunk of the fence came out. Heather gave a small gasp again, but Sugar poked her head through. "Is that big enough for your liking?" Heather nodded, ran up to the hole and crawled through. Sugar nodded, and pointed her muzzle forwards. "Let's go."

Within a few minutes, Sugar and Heather arrived at the barn. Heather was trembling with excitement, as she had never been away from her housefolk before. The futhest she had been was to Barley's garden and back.
"Wait here a moment, I'm just checking no one's invaded." Sugar meowed before padding through a small gap in the doors. Heather waited paitently, her heart pounding with fear and happiness. Sugar then reappeared. "You can come in." Heather followed Sugar through the gap and into the barn.
The barn was huge and airy, with hay scattered all over the place. There was a small loft, and above it there was a glass thing which let in the sunlight. Heather looked at it. "What's that shiny thing?"
"A window." Sugar replied simply. "It was here when we came here." Heather tilted her head to the side. "Who's 'we'?" Sugar laughed. "Oh! I forgot to introduce a couple of friends. Wait here, I'll fetch them." Heather watched the little she-cat as she disappeared again, into the shadows. She could hear a couple of muffled voices, followed by a growl. Sugar eventually appeared, followed by 2 other cats. "Introduce yourselves, guys." A small dark brown tabby tom with black stripes padded forward. "I'm Fluffy." He said gruffly. "Welcome to the barn." Sugar cuffed him around the head, and then looked back at Heather. "Excuse Fluffy here, he didn't get much sleep last night."
"Hrmf!" Fluffy growled. Sugar then flicked her tail in the other cat's direction, a small ginger she-cat with white paws. "And this is Ellie. She's lovely once you gain her trust." Ellie dipped her head in respect to Heather. "Greetings. It's nice to meet someone outside the barn."
"Hi. I'm Heather. Nice to meet you both." Heather replied. Ellie smiled. "Do you want a mouse? We've got plenty up here." Heather nodded and the ginger she-cat rushed up the ladder towards the loft. She came back down later with a plump mouse in her jaws. "Eat and enjoy." Heather looked at the mouse. She had never eaten anything out of the forest before, so she was a bit nervous to look like a fool. Slowly, she took a small bite out of the mouse.
"What do you think? Nice?" Sugar asked. Heather lifted her head up. "It's delicious!" She explained. "I've never tasted anything so tasty in my whole life." Ellie smiled. "You need to get used to it if you're going to stay." Sugar shook her head. "Oh no. Heather's a kittpet, living with the Twolegs. I met her whilst I was escaping an dog."
"What's a kittypet?" Heather asked, puzzled. Fluffy just glared at her. "Kittypets are wimpy cats that live with Twolegs that lounge around all day eating kittypet slop." He growled. Heather hissed angrily. "Say that to my face, you piece of dirt!" Fluffy was about to repeat it when Sugar bit hard into his scuff. "Stop that!" Fluffy just snarled and turned away, back to where he was before Sugar had told him about her new friend. Sugar turned back to Heather. "I'm so sorry about my brother, he's always had this dreadful temper. I think it would be best if you left now." Heather nodded, said her goodbyes and started to make her way back to her den.
Suddenly, she could hear a loud growling noise behind her. Heather stared behind her. Nothing. Curiously, she padded on. She then turned around and saw a large black cat, glaring. "What do you think you're doing here?"
"I-I am ju-just going ba-back to my de-den." Heather stammered. The other cat glared, her blue eyes curious. "Who are you? Where do you come from? Are you a loner?" She asked.
"I feel really useless asking this... but what's a loner?" Heather questioned. The black cat laughed. "You must be stupid if you don't know what a loner is! Loners are cats that don't live with Twolegs, or in an clan. We travel around sometimes, but we normally settle into new territorites, like me." She drew her paw across the ground, making a small line in the dirt. "This is the boarder of my territory, and you have tresspassed. So please state your name and where you come from." Heather jumped back and gulped. "Oh. I'm Heather, and I live in my den, other there." She flicked her tail in direction of the Twoleg nests, and the she-cat snorted. "Kittypet. Should have known, you've got a collar and you reek of kittypet and mouse. I'm Night, by the way, if you didn't already know." She meowed. Heather nodded. "I'd better go now, or my housefolk will worry about me. Goodbye, Night. It was nice meeting you." Night nodded, but stared at the line. "Never cross into my territory again Heather, or you'll get your whiskers ripped off." Heather ran away swiftly, slightly frightened by Night's words.
As she got back to her den, she saw her housefolk calling her name, tapping a spoon on her food dish. Heather decided this was her que to go back and mew loudly. So she did, and one of the Twoleg kits rushed up, laughing. He picked Heather and ran back to his family. They crowded around, stroking Heather and feeding her treats. Heather enjoyed all of this attention, but she had to tell Barley and Tom what had happened. They would be jealous of her.

After about an hour, Heather was back outside in the garden. Her housefolk hadn't allowed her out after she had been out for so long, but they found kindness in their hearts to let their cat play outside, as long as she went as far as Barley's garden, otherwise she would never be allowed out again.
Tom and Barley had heard about Heather's disapperence, so they were bursting with questions to ask her. When she had got into the garden, they were gossiping on the fence. Heather greeted them both. "You won't believe where I've been!"
"Yes." Tom interupted. "You ran away from your nest and your housefolk found you later, stinking of a farm. Where did you go, for goodness sake?" Heather jumped up and faced her friends. "You know the dog oppersite my den? Well, it was chasing another cat without a collar. A wild cat. Once the dog had gone, the cat, she was called Sugar, showed me her barn and introduced me to her brother Fluffy and her friend Ellie. I then met a loner called Night... it was amazing. I've never had so much freedom in my life." Barley tilted his head to the side. "What on earth is a loner?"
"Loners are cats that don't live with Twolegs. They live it rough in the forest." Heather explained. "I accidently crossed into Night's territory." Tom just shook his head. "Your housefolk were worried sick. You should have seen their faces when mine and Barley's housefolk told them that they hadn't seen you. The only thing your housefolk saw was that huge hole in your fence, and they thought the dog had gotten in and killed you. What you did was really stupid."
"B-But don't you dream of a life outside of your den? Out in the wild, you'd be out hunting and defending your territory from invaders. Here, all you do is lounge around eating slop. You're completely shut out from the outside world." Heather said pleadingly.
"Is that what you think of us? Do you seriously think that we are lazy fat cats that just sunbathe and eat slop all day long?" Barley hissed angrily. "I'm suprised at you, Heather. According to your housefolk, you won't hurt a fly. But you certainly know how to crush your friend's feelings!" Heather was rather taken back by her friend's comment, but she sat up and spoke. "So now you are trying to stop me from living my dream? I thought friends believed in eachother, and tried to help them achive their ambitions."
"And I thought friends didn't think of friends as fat, lazy cats!" Tom growled. "Come on Barley, let's leave the wild cat in peace. She has new friends now." Barley started to follow Tom, but looked back at Heather. "I shouldn't have trusted you, Heather."
Heather felt slightly hurt by her friend's comments, so she padded off towards the flower patch and sat there, looking at her paws. She then looked up and growled when something rustled the bush close by. Heather stumbled back, hissing, as the thing came closer. It then tumbled out of the bush, and glared at Heather. "Who are you?" She demanded. Heather crouched down and growled. "No, who are you? This is my territory!" The cat gave a loud hiss of annoyence and sighed. "My name is Rose. I am a loner from the forest. My family left me behind when I was a kit, so I have had to fend for myself. I'm sorry to cross into your territory, but prey is scarce now, so I did so hunting here." She explained. "Now, who are you?"
"My name is Heather. I'm a kittypet, living with the Twolegs here. I want to live in the forest though. Hey, we both have flowery names!" Heather said, smiling. Rose nodded. "I saw several birds and other prey visit your territory. Is it alright if I hunt here?" Heather looked at her. She was thin, and had many scars. Her rib bones were sticking out, so Heather thought of an idea. "Or, how about you stay here, but live in the garden? I come out everyday, but you'll have to stay away from the Twolegs. They won't approve of a loner living here." She offered. Rose gave a greatful look, and nodded. "Thank you so much. This means a lot to me." Heather nodded, and flicked her tail towards the bush that she had first appeared from. "You can sleep there, if it's comfy."
"Thank you Heather, I will never forget this." Rose meowed, dipping her head respectfully before padding away to the bush. Heather was excited, to have a loner staying in her garden. Tiredly, the kittypet padded back into her Twoleg nest, sat up on the windowsill, and fell asleep.

These are the new cats mentioned in the second chapter:

Ebony(claw)- A tall black she-cat with dark grey patches and blue eyes, loner.

Sasha(paw)- A siamease cat with green eyes, lives with the Twolegs.

Harry(tail)- A long-haired black tom with yellow eyes, lives with the Twolegs.

Moon(ear)- A pretty white she-cat with silver around her muzzle and hazel eyes, rogue.

Blood(paw)- A small black and white tom with half his tail missing and red eyes, rogue.

Splash(paw)- A small blue she-cat with green eyes, rogue.

Thistle(fang)- A tall brown tom with leaf-green eyes, lives in a abandoned Twoleg nest.

Ivy(pool)- A white and grey tabby she-cat with blue eyes, lives in a abandoned Twoleg nest.

Tiny(kit)- A small black and white tom with blue eyes, lives in a abandoned Twoleg nest.

Twist(kit)- A golden tabby she-cat with yellow eyes, lives in a abandoned Twoleg nest.

Poppy(kit)- A redish-brown she-cat with amber eyes, lives in a abandoned Twoleg nest.

Fish(foot)- A white and brown she-cat with hazel eyes, loner.

Rabbit(leap)- A brown tabby tom with darker brown stripes and hazel eyes, loner.

Billy(paw)- A long-haired black and grey tom with one white paw and blue eyes, lives with the Twolegs.

Emerald(eyes)- A small grey and white she-cat with green eyes, rogue.

Hazel(storm)- A tall, old dark brown tom with hazel eyes, loner.

Chapter 2

Some time later, Heather woke up. Her housefolk had turned on the TV, and a huge bang came from it. Curiously, she jumped off the windowsill and padded into the living room. The two parents watched their four kits play and watch TV. Heather jumped onto the male adult's lap and purred, waiting for him to stroke her. He just picked her up and placed her down on a blanket. Heather sighed sadly. This was typical. She tried again with the smallest kit, but he screamed and wailed. The adult female was furious, so she grabbed Heather, opened the back door, and threw her outside.
It was late evening, so Heather could just see the sun dipping behind the trees. A cold breeze ran through the air, freezing Heather's bones and making her shiver. She could see Rose stalking a small pigeon, but Heather accidently stood on a dry twig and the pigeon flew away. Rose snorted in annoyence and padded towards her friend. "Nearly caught him. Why are you doing out, anyway? It's pretty cold out here." She asked.
"Got in trouble." Heather sighed. "I tried to play with one of the Twoleg kits, but he wailed like mad and I got chucked out." Rose twitched her whiskers. "Oh. Sorry to hear that, Heather. Hey, do you want some rabbit? I caught it trying to eat the flowers earlier." The kittypet gave her a greatful look. "Thanks, it might cheer me up a bit." She mewed. Rose nodded and darted into the bush. She then returned with a plump rabbit dangling from her jaws. "Here you go."
"Thanks." Heather replied. "You can have some too, you know. You look horribly skinny and thin." Rose laughed and purred. "That's what happens when you live in the wild with no family or friends."
Within a few minutes, Heather had finshed the rabbit. It was very tasty, she savoured every bite and let the flavour flow into her mouth. She looked at Rose. "I'm going exploring. Coming?" Rose smiled warmly. "Of course. I might get a chance to do some hunting out here." Heather led Rose towards the door, where a catflap was. "You'll have to be quiet, or they'll catch you. Follow my moves, and this should be a breeze." She explained. "Now, lets go." Heather crawled through the catflap, and Rose did the same.
The den was silent, but Rose wasn't used to this. She was frightened, but even more terrified of being caught. Heather noticed she was trembling with fear, so she comforted her. "Just stay with me and they won't get you." Rose nodded, but she wasn't certain that Heather was telling the truth. Quietly, they padded through the nest, keeping an eye out for Twolegs.
They eventually got to the front door, which also had a catflap. Rose went out first, then Heather. Rose was still a bit frightened. "I-I want to go back." She mewed quietly. Heather sighed and flicked her tail in direction of Barley's garden. "There's a gate into my friend's garden there. Just go in there, and dig a hole into my garden via the fence." Rose nodded and rushed towards the nest. Heather was slightly annoyed by her friends cowardness, but that didn't matter. Silent as a mouse, she padded through the street of Twoleg nests. There were many kittypets around, along with rogues and loners. Heather turned her head and saw 3 kittypets.
They were so weird. One was a she-cat, a siamese with green eyes. Heather knew she was called Sasha, because her housefolk knew Heather's housefolk. The other two were toms, a long-haired black and a long-haired black and grey with a white front paw. Heather guessed they hadn't been here long, but the tallest one was staring at her, his yellow eyes sparkling. He approached her slowly, with Sasha and the other tom watching him. Heather growled a warning, but the cat just circled her, flicking his tail in her face. He then put his muzzle beside her ear, his breath hot on her ear. "I'm Harry. What about you?" He muttered.
"Heather. Now get lost." Heather hissed. Harry stared at her, and then pressed his black fur against her pretty white and silvery-grey pelt. Sasha hissed at him. "Leave her be, rat-face!" Harry said nothing, and licked Heather's neck. He then padded back, and Sasha rushed towards her. "Hi Heather! Remember me?"
"Of course I do, you silly mouse-brain." Heather purred in amuesment. Sasha laughed, but then gave a hard glare at Harry. "I'm really sorry about Harry, he always does that." She explained. She then flicked her tail at the other black and grey tom. "That's Billy, my nextdoor neighbour. He and his housefolk just moved in." Heather flicked her tail in greeting at Billy, and he nodded. Sasha sighed. "He doesn't talk much."
"I see that." Heather replied. Her friend nodded, and stared. "So, what brings you up and around here?"
"Exploring. I still want to be a forest cat." Heather mewed. "You've not seen any... diffrent cats, have you? Like the loners and the rogues." Sasha shook her head. "Sorry, but there was some cats up by the abandoned Twoleg nest... I think they're family, because there's two adults and three kits. And there were a couple of strange, fierce looking cats, close to the forest."
"Thanks Sasha. I'm going to find them, but I'll come back and visit again in the day. Ok?" Heather asked. Sasha nodded. "You're welcome here anytime. Good luck with the dream!"
"Have a good day!" Heather called over her shoulder, rushing away. She knew where the abandoned Twoleg nest was, luckily, so she made a few quick turned and ended up looking at a small, almost ancient nest. The windows were smashed, the doors had big holes in them and it looked like it was going to fall apart any minute. Shivering, Heather jumped through one of the holes in the door and explored.
Suprisingly, inside the den was neat and impeccable. There was clean carpets, several blankets and pillows sprawled over the place and a small pile of flowers on the ground. Heather sniffed them. They were fresh and very pretty. She decided to pick one up and slip it behind her ear.
Suddenly, there was a large bang coming from upstairs. Being curious, Heather padded quietly up the stairs. She poked her head around the corner and saw two little kits, batting a large berry around.
*They look so thin.* Heather thought to herself. *Where are their parents?* One of the kits then whacked the berry and it hit the other one in the face. "Haha! Got you, Tiny!" The little kit, who Heather guessed was Tiny, had red juice all over his face. He looked at his sibling. "That wasn't niceeee!" He wailed. "Mamaaaa!" The other kit rolled her eyes and sighed. Heather decided to use her time now to hide in a room quickly without the kits seeing her, so she ran across and into a small blue room. It was completely empty, apart from a large wooden wardrobe in the corner. Heather knew this would be a great hiding spot, so she gently propped the door open and crawled in, waiting.
Just as Heather got into her hiding spot, a white and grey she-cat appeared. She didn't look happy. "Goodness me Tiny, what on earth have you done to your face?" She asked the little black and white kit.
"Twist splatted a berry on meee!!" Tiny wailed. "On purposeee!" The she-cat glared at the she-kit, who had been silent. "Is this true, Twist?" She asked. Twist looked up at her mother. "It wasn't my fault! Tiny's such a lousy catcher!" She protested.
"So that is your excuse for splatting berries in your brother's face?" The she-cat growled, narrowing her eyes. "It's a poor excuse for hurting him, Tiny is only little. You are ment to be setting a good example." Twist stuck her nose in the air. "Tiny is only a ickle crybaby who hasn't got a brain and can't catch a dead mouse if he tried." She said in a babyish voice. "But never mind poor Twist and Poppy, they can look after themselves despite they are the same age as stupid Tiny." The she-cat cuffed the little golden tabby kit around the head and stalked off into the same room that Heather was hiding in. Loudly, the she-cat yowled something, but Heather didn't catch it because her voice was muffled.
A large tom then appeared at the door, his eyes gleaming in the dim light of the room. He then slowly approached the she-cat quietly, and sat down beside her. The she-cat purred in delight and rubbed her head against the tom's shoulder. "Hi, Thistle."
"Hi Ivy." The tom purred. "How are our kits?" Heather pricked her ears up in intrest. *So these are the parents of those kits!* She thought to herself. *I've seen Ivy and Thistle, the parents. And Tiny and Twist. But what about the third kit Sasha mentioned?*
Just as she thought about the final kit, Heather heard a small snuffle behind her. She looked down and then saw a little tuff of redish-brown fur. Heather sniffed it, but then jumped back when a pair of amber eyes flashed open. It yawned, but then it's eyes looked at Heather in horror. "Mama!"
A few seconds later, Ivy and Thistle opened the wardobe door. Whilist Ivy scooped up the little tuff of fur, her mate stood at the entrance, hissing. "What are you doing here? This is our territory!"
"I-I got lost." Heather lied, her voice trembling. Thistle had stopped growling, but he still looked suspicious. "Where are you from? Who are you? Why are you here?"
"Well, I'm Heather. I'm a kittypet from a Twoleg nest and I live with my housefolk. I'm here because I got lost." Heather replied cooly. Ivy had let the kit go, but it's siblings came in. "Cool!" They said in chorus. Thistle nudged them over to Ivy, who wrapped her tail around them protectivly. She then turned to Heather. "I'm Ivy. The tom is my mate, Thistle, and these are our three kits. They are called Tiny, Twist and Poppy." She explained. Heather nodded, and dipped her head in respect. "I am sorry to invade. I will return to my housefolk, if you want."
"No, no, no! We didn't mean to chase you away!" Ivy gasped, her eyes clouded with shock. "Please, you are welcome to stay with us for a bit. Maybe we could swap stories whilist eating prey. I don't suppose you're any good at hunting, are you?" Heather shook her head sadly. "Afraid not." Thistle licked his paws, and then looked at Ivy. "I'll catch us something, you stay here with the kits." He said, licking her gently on the head before padding away.
"Seems you have a nice mate." Heather said to Ivy. "How did you meet?" Ivy blushed slightly. "Thanks. Our meeting is a long story, so I will shorten it down slightly." She gave a little cough and continued speaking. "I used to live in the forest, with a small group of loners. We lived in a nice place, close to the river. Prey was plentiful, and we didn't have many fights over territory. But then our peace was shattered when a band of rough rogues came to our forest. They stole our prey and drove us out of our territory and into a small patch of land. I led a small patrol to try and settle our diffrences, but the rogues refused. There was one tom there who was very harsh, but very handsome. I never found out his name until a large battle several moons later. Some mouse-brained she-cat badly wounded my shoulder, and the same tom had seen this. He dragged me off, saying he would finsh me off, as I was weak."
At this point, the kits started wailing. They were obviously scared, as their eyes flashed a look of pure fear. Ivy hushed them, and turned her head back to Heather. "The tom led me by the river, but instead of killing me, he was looking for prey. He then explained his name was Thistle, and he wasn't going to hurt me. I didn't believe him at first, because he had that fierce, ambitous look that his rogue friends had. But I told him my name, and then he started to go all soft. I could tell he was in love with me, but his rogue friends saw us, wow wasn't he in trouble! They slit his ear, and left a bad scar on his flank. Thistle would not stand for this, so one night he found me alone, and told me that he was going to run away. But there was a small catch. He wanted me to go with him. I accepted however, and we ran away."
"And then..." Heather interupted.
"We found this place, and made it our home. Thistle was still ambitous at the time, but he changed his attitude and we became mates. Then a couple of moons later, we end up with a family. And that is how we met." Ivy took a deep breath and licked her kits. "Come on you lot, I think it's time you got some sleep."
"Awww man, can we stay for a bit longer?" Tiny begged.
"We've been good! Well, most of the time." Twist protested.
"Can't we go for a nap later?" Poppy suggested. Heather laughed at the little kits thought of reasons why they didn't deserve to go for an nap. They didn't win though. Heather turned back to Ivy. "I've always wanted to live as a wild cat." She said. "I guess your old life was fun."
"Not all the time." Ivy mummered. "But that doesn't matter. As Thistle says, we must put the past behind us." Heather nodded, but then heard a loud bang coming from outside. The two she-cats crept down the stairs and crouched down, growling. "Come out, cowards!"
Just as they were about to pounce, a small band of cats crawled through the gap in the door. They had blood around their muzzles and they looked very thin, but strong. One of them stepped forward, a small white she-cat with silver around her muzzle and hazel eyes. "Who are you?" She demanded.
"I'm Heather and this is Ivy. What are you doing on Ivy's territory?" Heather replied back coldly. "You've tresspassed." The rogue snorted. "Do you really think I'm some kit with no brain? I'm Moon, and the cats with me are called Blood, Splash and Emerald. We were chased out of our own territory many moons ago, and we're looking to join a clan or something." Heather's ears pricked up in intrest. "I'm a kittypet, but I'm desperate to be a clan cat. I think I know someone who you could stay with." She meowed. "Follow me." She led the rogues out of the hole and tried to remember the way she had to go.
"Where are you taking us?" One of the younger rogues piped up. Heather looked at her. "To a friend of mine. She can offer you shelter and prey." She replied. The kittypet then remembered the way and rushed down the streets of Twoleg nests until she came to a familar patch of territory she had visited today. She lifted her muzzle up and cried "Night? Can I talk to you?"
A tall black she-cat then appeared from a clump of ferns, a small rabbit hanging in her jaws. She dropped it and dipped her head in respect. "Greetings, Heather. It's nice to see you again." Night then caught the eye of Moon. "Who are these cats?"
"These are rogues, Night. They were driven out of their territory a long time ago, and they need a home." Heather replied. "Can I rely on you to look after them until they find a place to live? They're pretty strong if you need help chasing out invaders." The loner gazed at the rogues, and then back to Heather. "I'm pretty sure I can offer them shelter. Don't you worry about them, I'll make sure they stay out of trouble." She promised.
"Thank you so much." Heather purred. "I'll pay another visit tomorrow, I think I better get back now or Rose and my housefolk will worry." Night tilted her head to one side. "Who's Rose?" Heather laughed. "Oh, I didn't tell you that I offered shelter to a loner! She's called Rose and she's really nice." Night nodded, flicked her tail and left with the rogues. Heather padded away, taking in the scents around her. The cool air of night floated through, like a bird. There was also scents of dog, cats, Twolegs and the thunderpath close by.

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Tag der Veröffentlichung: 13.02.2012

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