Chapter 9: Short Story

I woke up near the lake like I had been for the past couple or days, today this time I was in a completely different area. But I could still tell it was the lake because from far away I could see the spot that Squirrelflight was the other day. I was guessing that it meant that it meant that I was going to be with a different cat today.

I thought it was cool to meet all of those other cats, but I mean, they were really nothing to Squirrelflight in my eyes. And I had felt bad that I had really let her down the other day.

"Hello there Moon..." Said a white cat that looked like an older version of Mint from far away. Older and a tomcat of course. "I am Blackstar, today I will be teaching you how to hunt vole."

I nodded, he didn't seem as nice as Squirrelflight, although he did look way bigger and way stronger than her. I wasn't sure what a vole was, but I guess that was the reason that he was here today.

"Now I want you to begin sniffing and tell me what you smell." He told me. I began sniffing at the air, I smelt a few things I had never smelt before but I also smelt a few mice here and there. I didn't understand why we couldn't just catch the mice.

"I smell a few mice, I can't tell what the other ones are... I'm sorry." I said to him. He let out a bit of a snort and then began talking again. I just didn't want to upset him because he looked like a cat that could tear me apart within seconds.

"Do not apologize, the whole point of the clans is to teach other cats these things, soon you must teach the young ones to hunt like you are being taught right now. You are doing a great job on that young shecat right now, I like her, she looks like me." He said to me with a bit of a chuckle. I was about to say something about being young but I was barely even 12 moons old to be fair and I didn't know when exactly kits turned into the warriors as Squirrelflight liked to call them. I hadn't even fully grown myself so maybe it was a bit early for me to even learn.

"Alright where is the vole." I asked him. He nodded and then we continued to the next part of all of our training. I was not to sure what a vole was but it actually sounded a bit scary like it would attack me. Owl had told me a story about how his friend got attacked by a rabbit and those didn't look like they would attack you at all.

"Go ahead and begin sniffing again and I will tell you the direction of your pray." He told me. I began sniffing and trying to block out all of the scents that I smelt of what were mice. "Alright, there are around 2 nearby, the closest one is in that direction, so keep sniffing and you will smell it."

I continued sniffing but besides the other animal that was nearby that all I could smell was the mouse. Which had to mean that the other animal was the vole. I looked at Blackstar and then asked him if that was the vole that I was smelling.

"Yes, now go after it, it is very much like the mouse so that is all I must really tell you." He told me. I nodded and we began heading in the direction of the vole. I then spotted a little creature that looked like a mouse just smaller and fatter.

"Is that a vole?" I asked him turning around to see if I was right. I didn't want to head any closer because if it was like a mouse then it might hear me.

"Indeed that is a vole. Very much like the mouse, the only difference in this area is that they are easier to catch with not as many sticks nearby." He said to me. I nodded and then began heading towards the vole that was nearby.

I looked around like I normally would when I went to catch a mouse, but those woods were different then these. These trees were skinnier and there weren't as many trees as the woods that I was in right now and the woods that I was in with the dreams with Squirrelflight and Firestar.

I lowered my body like I had done catching the 2 mice yesterday. I would soon be able to get Mint to catch a few of those. As soon as I got near it I pounced before it even had time to react and then finished it with a killing blow.

I then looked over to the big cat of Blackstar and he nodded looking a bit happy and then he ran over to me.

"Go ahead and eat, you won't be very hungry tomorrow but you can teach that other cat you are with how to catch those tomorrow, they are also in Thunderclan just not as many as there are here." He said to me. I had no idea what he was talking about when he said Thunderclan but I assumed those were the clans that Squirrelflight was telling me about.

"You would make a great Shadowclan warrior." He told me. There we go another clan that he was talking about. I nodded my head and then tried out the vole, once again it wasn't like eating the ones in real life but it was still way better than the ones that the food that my owners used to give me.

I hated the word owner because it made me seem weak and made me look like a slave to do all their biddings. That's what the cats that had always come to our place had told me and I couldn't help but agree with them. Owner meant that those things owned me.

"Blackstar, stop trying to make him join your clan, Onestar was not like that, he must make that decision on his own." Squirrelflight said from close by us. I looked at her and then nodded to her as a greeting, she nodded back to me. Blackstar just lowered his body and looked a bit guilty.

"I mean, how's he going to learn all of this stuff on his own, someones got to tell him how to do all of this." Blackstar said back to her. I actually agreed on what he had just said, I had no idea what the clans were and it seemed like all the cats I had met were very hush hush about what they would tell me.

"Moon will find his own path, and he will choose the clan that he will lead someday, but he must figure out that decision on his own." She said back to him, she then nodded to him and they began walking off and then just disappeared even though I should have easily been able to see them. That was another reason I thought that these cats were dead. They just come from wherever they like and just disappear whenever they want.

I looked down at the rest of the vole, I wanted to eat the rest I knew it would feel me up tomorrow but I wanted to catch and eat a real one for myself. Then all of the sudden, the dream as per usual began disappearing and I knew that it was time for me to wake up.

"Hey Moon wake up, I smell mice nearby, and I am so hungry! Lets go catch a few!" She told me. Well i ate in my dream last night so when she said a few it would only be one because I wasn't all that hungry. I nodded and we hopped off of the branch.

We had been sleeping together last night and I had felt her pelt against mine as her body had warmed me up all night. She was so sweet and had such a good hurt, I felt a bit bad for denying her so many times but I was trying to do it for the best. I knew that Owl liked her too and I knew that he would be a bit disappointed to see her run off because he had wanted to stay back and spend a few days with her.

I almost wanted to wait for Owl to see if he would be coming with us now that Mint was with me. I then realized at the same time that he had told me over and over again how much he had loved the farm and he had to stay there.

"Alright were do you smell mice?" I asked her. I had smelt them a while ago, nearly the time that I had woken up but it would still be a good thing for Mint to try and find out for herself.

"Let me see I forgot." She said and then began sniffing the air. I wasn't sure if she was telling the truth or not about saying she smelt one because it was taking a while. Finally she then responded. "Oh there is one over there."

I smelt the air and then nodded, there were a few closer by but we began heading towards the one that she had smelt first. I stopped when we got near and pushed her back to do the same. She looked a bit confused at me and I just shook my head at her.

"We are very close, you need to lower your body, its right over there you almost let it hear you, watch to ground for any stick in the way." I told her. She nodded and then lowered her body like I had shown her yesterday, she was doing it perfectly, I was so proud of her for making it this far.

Suddenly she left her tail up a bit and the rest of her body as she got really close. I knew the mouse would here her and a groaned sadly as it lifted its head and looked right at her.

Mint then began to run after it and mouse then hid behind a bit of tree roots. Mint hissed and then ran back to me a bit disappointed.

"How did it hear me?" She asked me, I shook my head a little bit and she looked at me sadly. "What did I do wrong? I thought I did it all right."

"You lifted your body and your tail as you got close, you weren't thinking its okay." I told her. She looked down at the ground a bit disappointed and I went over to her and rubbed up against her. "Its okay, there's others all around this forest, you just half to sniff around."

She began sniffing but then lowered her head again a bit disappointed. She looked down at the ground again. I could smell plenty nearby could she not smell them too? I pushed against her to lifted her head.

"Its no use Moon, I will go back if you want me, I'd get there before night time, your right I will just die on this quest that we are on." Mint said and then began heading back towards her place until I stopped her. She looked at me a bit confused as to why I was stopping her.

"Mint, I want you with me, you are the sweetest and most real cat I have ever met, I just didn't want to risk your life." I told her. She looked down and continued walking back. I stopped her once again to try and give her a good reason not to go. "You are sweet and Mint I love you, please go with me."

She looked back at me a bit surprised, I wasn't sure she felt the same about me even though she had said that she had liked me from the beginning. It was the only way to get her to stop though.

"Do you mean it?" She asked me. I nodded and then she pushed up against me and i felt her warm pelt pushing against mine, I was so happy that she was coming with me.

"Don't let this be a short story."