Flight of Fate.

[distressedmoon]

  The darkness enveloped the world around him. It was calming, so quiet and tranquil that it left the tom in a trance. All before feelings have been ebbed away by the darkness. The feeling to be afraid, to be sad, to be angry was gone; it was so relaxing. He wished to stay like this forever, but a dreaded thought came to the tom's mind. He'll awake soon..

  "Where is it?!"

  Crow's eyes shot open, snapping him awake from his dream. Another enraged yowl reached the young tom's ears, and he knew who it was. Blinking the sleep away as he lifted his head, Crow saw his father, Tooth digging briskly at the ground. Frustration rippled the father's black pelt and he hissed again.

  Crow mewled quietly. "W-what's gone?" It was enough to catch Tooth's attention, and his yellow eyes, ablaze with anger turned to burn into Crow. 

  "Our prey. I swore I buried it here, but now it's gone! That was our last few scraps saved for winter!" Tooth spat and began clawing into the ground again, searching desperately. Crow realized how hungry he was. The two traveling toms haven't found any good meals in moons, but Crow can't speak about that to his father, not now. 

  "I'm sorry.. We can go hunting, I saw some squirrels in the trees beyond the pines and-" Crow was silenced by Tooth's outburst. "You ate it, didn't you?!"

  Crow's tiny body grew even smaller as he quailed in fear. Tooth's growling scowl advanced towards Crow, still yowling so loud that it nearly deafen the kit. "We can't just keep moving around, Crow! If we don't start stocking prey then we'll starve when the first snow comes in!" The large, full grown tom toward over the slightly shivering kit. "And that means you have to stop stealing form me, you got that?!" 

  Crow could barely respond. "Y-yes, sir.." Tooth raised up again, clearly displeased by his answer. "Yes, sir!" Crow mewled loudly, trying his best not to choke. 

  A paw slammed onto Crow's head, forcing him to the ground. "Why do we do this, Crow? Why do we hunt and kill prey?!" Tooth asked of his son. Crow dug his claws in the ground and strained to push himself up again under Tooth's strength. He felt he could be crushed to death. "We have to fight! If w-we don't we'll die! Only the way to live is to fight! To win! To live!" Crow's lungs were on fire.

 When the black kit was released form his father's grasp, he nearly fell over. He was gasping for air, but straighten himself when his father looked back at him. "Crow, because of your stealing we'll have to leave to new hunting grounds right now." Tooth said already starting to pad away.

  Crow wanted to say that he didn't steal, he would never dream of betraying his father. It was clear that Crow shouldn't argue, he's accused and he should accept it. "Right.." He mewed and began to follow his father out of the bramble den. It was still dawn, grey blue masked the sky with early light. 

  Crow wanted to return to his dream, the darkness that calmed and would never harm him. Crow shook his head and followed Tooth closely. He can't delude himself with something like that. This is reality, this is how they'll survive. 



  Tooth stopped and Crow halted immediately in response. The tom looked ahead at the forest, a strange darkness loomed over it. Tooth, without a word leaped up onto the fence that bordered the pine trees form the forest. Crow tried to climb over the towering fence, but fell short on it's slippery side. He looked up at his father, but Tooth's glare made things clear; he wasn't going to help him.

  Crow spotted a pile of trash left by housefolk, and scurried over it's lumpy surface. He now could climb over the fence and join his father's side. Pride glowed in the kit's chest, but he saw Tooth wasn't interested and jumped down to the other side.

  When Crow landed onto the ground, Tooth spoke. "I'll check around this housefolk path, there has to be some rats around here." Crow's nose wrinkled at the thought of having to eat rats, but his clenching belly reminded him of what they'll have to do. "You'll go into the forest. You said there's squirrels in those trees, go find them." 

  Crow gasped in fear, and his fright grew even more as Tooth began to leave him. "B-But, I thought we were suppose to stay together!" Crow mewled. "You said, there's squirrels. Maybe you should be more careful next time decide where to hunt." Tooth said, then disappeared instantly into the  brush.

  Crow felt alone, terrified, and stranded as he stood in front of the unknown forest. He wanted to race out and find Tooth, he didn't want to be alone, he wanted.. Crow wanted to hunt. It was the only way they can get food and continue to live. Crow turned toward the forest and raced into it's borders. 

  
A small mouse crawled out of the shelter in a tree's roots, sniffing the ground for any sign of danger. It's small senses were alerted as a cat crashed into the forest ground, trying to ponce on it. The mouse dashed back into the roots, fleeing for it's life.

  Crow spat in anger as he clawed the tree, trying to scrape out the hidden mouse. He finally gripped it's tail in his teeth and dragged it out, throwing it into a clearing. Gripping the mouse in his claws, Crow kicked the small animal with his back legs and eventually broke it's neck.

  After the blinding feeling to kill had been satisfied, Crow started to wince in pain. The splintery wood of the roots had cut his foreleg multiple times, and it was bleeding. Frustration at such a foolish way to injure himself, Crow wanted to eat his caught mouse get the reward for his pain. No. Crow thought. This was for Tooth, for his father..

  Crow began to lick his leg and pad to sooth the stinging pain. Blood still continue to flow form the lashings. 

[Wolfie]

    The tortoiseshell small she-cat moved through the tall pines so fast that her tabby smudges were a mere blur. Yes she may be small, but she was slightly longer legs, making her able to run faster then others. Her pale-green eyes landed on moment up in the trees above her as she say a family of squirrels go into a nest. She halted to a stop. She looked at a near by tree. They were close to each other. She climbed up one of the trees that was four down from the squirrel nest. 

    A nice thing about being so small was it was easier to walk across the branches without them snapping on her. She quickly walked the branches from one tree to another. As she made it to the squirrel nest she slowly and quietly stalked up to the nest, but before reaching the nest she slipped and was about to fall to the ground, then she grabbed a hold of the branch. She let out a yowl as she hung from the branch. She quickly was able to pull herself up.


    Bad news was she lost her two squirrels as they ran off chirping, as if mocking her. Hollypaw lashed out her tail in annoyance. Then, her eyes spotted a black kit. Close to her size even though she was 8 moons. She crouched up her muscles as she slid down the tree to the other cat. She cocked her head at him. "What are you doing out here alone, kit? Shouldn't you be with your parents?" She mewed friendly as she smiled. He was no threat to Thunderclan. He was only a kit.

[distressedmoon]

  Crow was startled by shuffling undergrowth, and even more as a cat stepped out into view. He was frozen for many heartbeats. His wide eyes stared at the she-cat, glowing with fear in their bright yellow color. Crow suddenly saw the mouse at his paws and a surge of possessiveness shook the tiny kit's body. This stranger has come to steal his only way of survival for his family. He can't allow that, never again.

  Limping slightly form his wounded led, Crow walked over to his mouse and laid on top of it. The she-cat's gentle mew was drowned out has Crow flatten his ears, and he hissed as fiercely as he could. "Back off! This is mine!" 

  Crow continue to growl at the tortoiseshell cat, fearing that she'll take the mouse form underneath him. Crow could call out to Tooth, if he could just take a deep breath and yowl as loud as possible, his father will come to his rescue. Then this she-cat will surely be destroyed.

  While Crow thought of how to escape and return to the safety of his father, he felt realization strike him like a stone. Upon entering this forest, Crow had smelled the overwhelming scents of cats, many, maybe tens of cats. Blinded by the need to please his father and by hunger, Crow ignored any signs of other living cats in this territory, and by the strong boarder markings, they owed it. Crow felt that if he was to call out to his father, it would be a death sentence to both of them. How many cats would hear his yowl? They might be in ear distance, they might even be watching him right now, hidden in the shadows of the trees. 

  Paranoid, Crow began to swiftly turn his vision to all sides around him, scooting and rolling the mouse which was being crushed under his weight. Crow couldn't see or smell any other cats, but out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw the she-cat step closer. "Stay where you are! Don't come any closer o-or I'll rip your ears off!" He spat as he tried to summon courage form his quivering body. Crow unleashed his claws to dug at the ground, still growling and snarling at his enemy.

[Wolfie]

Hollypaw let out a grunt as the kit started hissing and growling. She glared at the black injured kit. “I don’t want your prey, even if you did steal it from Thunderclan. You are in our territory and if I wanted you out, I would have chased you off a long time ago. I am training to be a warrior, and my mentor already shown me some fighting skills,” She growled back at the kit. Then, watched him with a narrowed eyes. “Now are you going to let me look at your leg or stand there hissing and growling about a piece of prey?” She grunted.

She moved forward towards the black kit and became gently, “I am Hollypaw, who are you? You might want to be careful around here. The warriors and leader would not be thrilled about having a rogue wonder our territory. Heck even my brother wouldn’t like it. Now where are your parents, kid? You shouldn’t be out here alone.” She mewed gently as she smiled at the kit. "Not everything out here is friendly. Something wouldn't mind eating you up!"

[distressedmoon]

  Crow stared blankly ahead at the she-cat, the black tips of his ears pointed forward to listen. After Holly-what'shername finished speaking, Crow was still silent for many heartbeats.

 "You talk a lot.." He finally mewed. Crow stood up and quickly began to lick his wounds again, but still gritted his teeth at the little she-cat padding towards him. "I can take care of myself, I'm not a weakling!" This she-cat was strange. Not wanting to chase out a stranger in their territory? If they treat all invaders like this then it's surprising that they have any prey left at all.

  At lest Crow's suspicions were confirmed, he and his father were not alone in these woods, in fact this she-cat says there's many of them. Something about a leader being around made Crow to feel more nervous. Tooth had spoken about leaders of ruthless groups of cats, and how cats would blindly follow anyone with power. Crow hissed in frustration as his tongue rasped over a splinter, buried deep in his pad. He would never be able to escape with his mouse, the splinter would degrade his running into pain filled limps.

  Crow tried to rip the splinter out, but he couldn't reach it where it was. Even when he barely nipped it, the pain just became worse. After rolling around trying to even grip it in his teeth, he found that it was no use. If Tooth was here he could take it out and end the pain, but Crow was lost and stuck with this Hollypaw. Wait..

  "Uh.. Hollyp-paw. Can you help me?" Crow mewled has he display his pad in front of her. Even though he was asking for help, his yellow eyes still burned with mistrust and hatred. "Just do it quickly and then I can leave. You want me to go anyways." He grunted has he looked away, staring at the bushes behind him to decide where to flee.

[Wolfie]

        Hollypaw rolled her eyes as the kit told her she talked too much. He was almost her size, but she had a feeling he was younger then her. She gave the kit a short glare, "What do I look like, a Medicine Cat? You know you can't be rude to someone and expect a favor from them afterwards, especially when you are trespassing," She grunted as she stood up to leave the kit on his own. She turned around to leave, but he site of the kit holding out his paws she let out a sigh.

    She moved over to the kit and placed her paw under his and began to furiously lick his pad the opposite way the splinter when into his pad. She felt the splinter shift and loosen and she grabbed the piece of wood and pulled it out. She spat it out on the ground, then, slowly licked his pad til the bleeding stopped. "Lucky I knew how to do that. I don't like the idea of you being out here allow, what me to help you find your mother and father?" She asked gently. "Or you can come back to our camp and our Medicine Cat could help prevent an infection while the warriors track your parents down."