Chapter 9

I woke up, feeling that my joints were aching. I got up, stretching as I yawned. I didn't run that hard last night, right..? I felt a cold breeze slowly enter the den. It was cold. I took a deep breath, the smell of rain filling my nostrils. Rain? Again? It was sunny just yesterday... I heard the raindrops pattering hard on the ground, too. I turned around, looking to see if anyone was awake. They were all still asleep, Sally and Zach even now sleeping beside each other. 𝘈𝘸𝘸. 𝘈 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘡𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳...

I shook myself off as I saw Sally shiver. I might as well go hunt, since I'm awake. They're all trying to stay warm.. Poor Sally, she looks cold. And they must've both eaten the rest of yesterday's prey, I thought, looking at where Sally's catches were last. They were gone. 𝘈𝘭𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵; 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧. I sped out into the rain, my now wet paws splashing in the watery, muddy grass. As I was running, I took a deep breath, trying to smell anything.

Just the smell of rain permeated the air. I couldn't smell anything else, not even the smell of the grass or the mossy bark of the trees. 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘭𝘴𝘦?! I looked around, trying to keep my eyes open as blurry rain fell into my vision. I blinked it away, my head hanging down as I tried to look around with my limited sight. Time seemed to move in slow motion as my eyes adjusted back to normal. I could see a shape in the distance, and as I squinted, I could make out a figure standing in the rain, watching me.

I tried to make out who it was, but the rain was obstructing my vision. I took a few steps forward, but the figure disappeared. I looked around, but there was no sign of them anywhere. Was I seeing things? I looked closer, then spun, looking all around me, and nothing was there. I shook my head, confused. I took a deep breath and decided to continue on looking for prey. I'm sure I imagined it.

After a few moments, I spotted a bird nest in one of the trees. I hesitated. But as I looked around and saw nothing else, I realized it was my only option. I leaped, crawling up the tree, trying to do it the way Sphynxia did it yesterday. Anxiety filled me as my claws pulsed in pain from pulling me up. But I kept climbing, determined to get prey for my sister. Eventually, I finally made it to the nest. I looked into the nook, not making a sound.

There was a small but plump bluebird laying inside, completely unaware of anything. If it was a female mothering eggs, I wouldn't want to bother it. I swiftly grabbed the bird by its neck feathers, and it let out a loud chirp. I lifted it up quickly, relieved to see that there were no eggs in the nest.

I bit hard into the bird's neck, its body dropping as I felt its feathers. At least I could find this, it's better than nothing. I jumped down from the tree, my paws making a loud splash in the wet grass. I ran back to the den, my fur soaking. When I was back, I shook out my fur, shivering. I looked up, seeing worried faces. Sally was curled up, shivering, with her ears pinned to the back of her head, Windy was curled up next to her, looking concerned, and Zach was still asleep.

"Guys, I got us some food!" Windy nodded, turning back to my sister. Sally looked... off. "Oreo, Sally's forehead feels awfully hot. I think she might have a fever." "But I feel so cold..." she whined, shuddering as she sneezed. I dropped the bird on the ground and ran up to her, dread consuming me. I felt the extra fluff on the ground touching my paws as I looked at her for a second, and she really did look awful. I carefully put my paw on her forehead and felt the heat radiating from her fur.

Oh no.

Sally was sick.