Post by osonhillrocket on Aug 7, 2009 21:50:30 GMT -5
Chapter 1:
Posie stuck her nose out of what her den folks called the cat flap. She raised her head as she pulled her tail through, and saw her den mate , Ringo. "Hey, Ringo," she mewed sleepily as she arched her back in a gigantic stretch. "How's the catnip growing?" Their den folks had recently planted some of the plant, and they had told the cats that they could eat it, when it had grown enough. "Oh, its growing well. Only a few more days, and we can eat as much as we want!" he answered, licking his lips. He got up and jumped onto the fence that faced the garden-cat Vinnie's garden. "Hey Vinnie!" he yowled when he noticed the tiny white cat, just out of kittenhood. "Vinnie!" Posie called, springing up to the fence. The half blind she-cat raised her head and blinked. "Oh, hi guys! How's the catnip growing?" So far, all the garden-cats within a few dens had heard of the catnip, and many of them wanted a bite. "Its growing fine, Vinnie," meowed Posie as she jumped into the white cat's garden. "Mind if we join you?" asked a deep voice behind Posie. She looked up and saw Quinn, with Ringo. "Hello, Quinn," Vinnie purred. Every cat knew she liked Quinn. "Hi, Vinnie! How's the pup?" Vinnie's den folk had gotten a little dog a few days ago. "Oh, you mean Harley? He's barely a nuisance! He sniffs around a bit too much, but he doesn't bother me." Quinn looked at her with soft, kind eyes. "Very good. I remember Twinkle and Jake had a dog in their den, but their den folk took him in a den folks' rumbler-" But he was interrupted."You mean a car? My den folk were talking about that today, with a strange den folk who said he would fix the rumbler. I figured a car was just another word for a rumbler," she mewed, looking directly at Quinn with a loving gaze. Ringo butted in. "That's very nice Vinnie, but we came to discuss something more serious. Have any of you seen forest cats?" Posie stared at him, "Not recently...Have you?" she questioned cautiously. "I've seen one," a new voice answered. "Sorry I'm late, but my den folk forgot to feed me, and I just got my supper." A brown tom with gray flecks gazed at the group with his deep, blue eyes. "Hello, Pebble. Where did you see the cat?" Quinn asked, his courage fading. "I saw two, actually," Pebble hissed, his neck fur rising. "I was in my garden, just minding my own business, when they climbed my fence and just leaped into my territory! I growled, 'What do you want? This is MY garden. GET OUT.' But no, they had to answer, 'Aww, a little garden-cat. Where's your milk, kitty?' That sarcasm almost made me slit their stomachs! But they left and I haven't seen them since," he breathed. "Well that's good." mewed Vinnie and Posie in unison. As they were discussing all the happenings of the past few days, Ringo said, "At least those forest cats haven't returned," he sighed. Much to their surprise, they heard muffled snickers behind them. The garden-cats looked back, and saw the intruders.
Chapter 2:
The garden-cats looked at the sleek, strong, well-muscled cats. "W-who are you?" meowed Vinnie in a feeble voice, shaking with fear. She cowered around Quinn, and Ringo came to her aid on the left. Pebble stared at the intruders, with calm, questioning eyes. To everyone's surprise, Posie, who was usually meek in front of strangers, came forward. "What do you want from us?" she challenged. "Nothing much, except for the fact we found your scent on our territory," the silver one hissed, pointing with her tail at Pebble. "What?!? Pebble would never trespass on another cat's territory!" Posie growled. "He is a kind, respectful cat and would never do such a thing!" Quinn added. Vinnie gazed at him like he was perfect. In her eyes he was. "Well, what ever you say, he was in our territory, and he even marked his territory!" the silver she-cat snarled. "I have been out of this Denfolkplace only twice. Once to go to the den folk healer, and once, to explore the area. I went to the den folk healer as a young cat, but I went exploring a day or two ago. I did not notice any scents other than mine and and small prey," he mewed calmly, with a poker face to the intruding cats. "Well, since we will be here awhile, we may as well get to know each other," the kinder, leopard-spotted tom meowed, totally changing the subject. "My name is Sky of Leopard, and she is Fang of Silver. What are your names?" All of the garden-cats turned their heads to look at Posie. She looked back and nodded. "I am Posie," she whispered, gaining confidence. "This is Vinnie, Ringo, Quinn, and he is Pebble," she meowed with caution, pointing to each cat in their turn. "Hmm, I remember a kitten named Young Pebble. He was brown. His eyes were dark," mewed Fang of Silver. "I remember very distinctly, because he was my sister's kit. He had a brother, Young Tree, and a sister, Young River. I wonder what happened to him. He was there one day, gone the next," she sighed. "He would have been a Look-out." She raised her head and looked straight at Pebble. "You wouldn't happened to have heard of him, would you?" Quickly, she averted her eyes from him and dragged them across the row of garden-cats; she couldn't look suspicious, or these cats could chase her and Sky of Leopard all the way to Clawed Rock, or Star Meadow! "Ah, you couldn't know Young Pebble. And obviously, you aren't him,"she meowed. "What Fang of Silver means is that Pebble is a very common name, and you aren't the Pebble we lost, of course," he said, smoothly covering Fang of Silver's mistake. "He had no gray in his fur, and his eyes were brown. Much different than you," he chuckled. "I have a question, Sky of Leopard and Fang of Silver," Posie meowed. "Yes, what is it?" the tom answered for the two. "I just wanted to know if there are more of you, and also, where do you come from?" Posie asked. "Ah, one called Posie, there are more of us, and we come from Nightgang, out in the forest." "Nightgang! That's a funny name for a garden!" laughed a new voice. "Oh, shut up Jake," growled an older, grumpier voice. "Hey Twinkle, Jake. These are forest cats, Sky of Leopard, and Fang of Silver," Ringo mewed. "And Nightgang is not a garden, silly hairball!" Jake looked at him with rage, and unsheathed his claws. He obviously didn't get the joke. "He was just kidding, Jake," Twinkle purred. "There is no need to go harrumphing around and correcting cats, you old mangepelt," Jake hissed at Twinkle. He crouched and pounced on the old cat who was very feeble; the instant he landed on her, every cat could hear Twinkle's bones snap underneath her ragged pelt. "This is what you deserve, you piece of denfolk dung!" Even though Jake only had three legs, he was a powerful cat, and he had always been known as aggressive and someone who would fight to the death the cat who insulted him. "Jake, stop!" yowled Quinn. He thrust his huge body on top of Jake, but that was a weak attempt. Even though he was smaller than Quinn, he was stronger, smarter and faster. "Get off of her!" screeched Fang of Silver, as she and Sky of Leopard leaped off of the fence and attacked Jake with all of their might. Yet they were still not strong enough to pull this brute killer off of the weak Twinkle. Soon the other cats joined in. Vinnie realized she could not be a help here, so she meowed loudly,"I'm going to find Chubbs, Velvet and Esme. I'm sure they will figure how to save Twinkle and get Jake off of her!" She pelted through a small hole in the fence, heading towards Chubbs' den and the nest of Velvet and Esme. Meanwhile, Ringo, Pebble and Posie lightly pounced on the side of Jake, trying not to further hurt Twinkle. Even the old she-cat feebly knead her paws against Jake's flank. But Jake pressed on. Soon Vinnie appeared. Behind the small cat was a massive golden tom, who squeezed through the hole with some help from behind. "Ouch, you fat furball, you're treading on my tail!" squeaked an obnoxious voice. "And your tail is in my face," added a second, older, muffled voice. "Sorry girls," answered the deep voice of Chubbs. He finally pulled himself all the way through, and grunted as he pulled himself to his feet. Two lithe shapes followed; one was very tall, the other one was shorter and was stockier. Their pelts were ivory, but their faces, paws and tail-tips were as brown as cat dirt. "What is going on here?!?" growled Chubbs as he surveyed the scene. "Twinkle!" He ran over to the injured, broken body of his friend. But it was too late. Twinkle had died."
Chapter 3: Reunions and Last Goodbyes
"HOW COULD YOU??!?!?" screeched Chubbs as he bounded for the grinning Jake. Jake was smart and stepped to the side, but he was too slow, and the massive body of Chubbs crushed Jake's lean one. Jake let out an ear-splitting yowl as the bigger tom growled in his face and clawed his shoulders. "Get off of me you fleapelt! I'm sorry," he hissed, muffled by Chubbs' thick fur. "I said I was sorry!" Chubbs got off of him, and looked him straight in the eyes. "She was my best friend since I was a kit! For a long time she was my ONLY friend. And she hated you! Do you know how many times she told me of her plots to kill you?" he growled, then calmed down and sighed. "Jake, you are my son," he whispered. Every cat gasped. "Twinkle bore you. You were the strongest of the five. One other lived, but the other three died." Jake looked at his father with questioning and surprise. "W-who is my sibling??" he asked, almost whispering as he trembled. "She does not live here. She ran away to the forest as a young cat....." he trailed off and looked to the sunset. "What did you call her, Father?" Jake questioned as he went and leaned into his father's huge side. "Your mother loved the name Feather," he purred. "And your sister loved to play with feathers, too," he took a deep breath and licked Jake's ear. "I orginally wanted you to be called Flame, but your den folk named you Jake," Chubbs turned his head and set his eyes on Jake, but Fang of siver spoke first. "We must sit vigil for the one called Twinkle," she meowed. "Sit vigil? What's that?" squeaked Velvet, who was now grooming her fur. "Does it involve-" Her high pitched, annoying voice was interrupted by Sky of Leopard. "Sitting vigil for a dead friend is tradition. You stay up the whole night on the day that they died, to honor them, and say your last goodbyes," he mewed quietly, trying to comfort Chubbs and Jake in a time of turmoil. Suddenly a yowl pierced the air. "Sorry, I have to go back to my den folk," Pebble mewed. He went over to Twinkle's cold body and stuck his nose in her fur. "Sorry I can't stay, Twinkle. You will never be forgotten," he whispered as he pulled his face away. "Goodbye everyone," he meowed as he looked over the group of cats. His gaze rested on Twinkle. Pebble sighed and leaped over the fence and headed towards his den. Sky of Leopard spoke first. "Chubbs, you and Jake may lie down first, since you were closest to Twinkle," he whispered, almost undetectable. The two toms laid down next to the she-cat and pressed their noses to her cold fur. Soon, Posie and Ringo padded over to Chubbs and sat vigil beside him. Vinnie the looked at Quinn, and they went to Jake, and laid beside him, Quinn sheltering the fragile she-cat, in case the flame colored tom decided to hurt anyone else. Sky of Leopard whispered to Fang of Silver, and they padded over from the corner and laid on the other side of Twinkle, putting their nosed lightly into her pelt. In unison, they all lifted their heads and looked up. A very faint shape of a cat was rising slowly, waving its paw in farewell.
Posie stuck her nose out of what her den folks called the cat flap. She raised her head as she pulled her tail through, and saw her den mate , Ringo. "Hey, Ringo," she mewed sleepily as she arched her back in a gigantic stretch. "How's the catnip growing?" Their den folks had recently planted some of the plant, and they had told the cats that they could eat it, when it had grown enough. "Oh, its growing well. Only a few more days, and we can eat as much as we want!" he answered, licking his lips. He got up and jumped onto the fence that faced the garden-cat Vinnie's garden. "Hey Vinnie!" he yowled when he noticed the tiny white cat, just out of kittenhood. "Vinnie!" Posie called, springing up to the fence. The half blind she-cat raised her head and blinked. "Oh, hi guys! How's the catnip growing?" So far, all the garden-cats within a few dens had heard of the catnip, and many of them wanted a bite. "Its growing fine, Vinnie," meowed Posie as she jumped into the white cat's garden. "Mind if we join you?" asked a deep voice behind Posie. She looked up and saw Quinn, with Ringo. "Hello, Quinn," Vinnie purred. Every cat knew she liked Quinn. "Hi, Vinnie! How's the pup?" Vinnie's den folk had gotten a little dog a few days ago. "Oh, you mean Harley? He's barely a nuisance! He sniffs around a bit too much, but he doesn't bother me." Quinn looked at her with soft, kind eyes. "Very good. I remember Twinkle and Jake had a dog in their den, but their den folk took him in a den folks' rumbler-" But he was interrupted."You mean a car? My den folk were talking about that today, with a strange den folk who said he would fix the rumbler. I figured a car was just another word for a rumbler," she mewed, looking directly at Quinn with a loving gaze. Ringo butted in. "That's very nice Vinnie, but we came to discuss something more serious. Have any of you seen forest cats?" Posie stared at him, "Not recently...Have you?" she questioned cautiously. "I've seen one," a new voice answered. "Sorry I'm late, but my den folk forgot to feed me, and I just got my supper." A brown tom with gray flecks gazed at the group with his deep, blue eyes. "Hello, Pebble. Where did you see the cat?" Quinn asked, his courage fading. "I saw two, actually," Pebble hissed, his neck fur rising. "I was in my garden, just minding my own business, when they climbed my fence and just leaped into my territory! I growled, 'What do you want? This is MY garden. GET OUT.' But no, they had to answer, 'Aww, a little garden-cat. Where's your milk, kitty?' That sarcasm almost made me slit their stomachs! But they left and I haven't seen them since," he breathed. "Well that's good." mewed Vinnie and Posie in unison. As they were discussing all the happenings of the past few days, Ringo said, "At least those forest cats haven't returned," he sighed. Much to their surprise, they heard muffled snickers behind them. The garden-cats looked back, and saw the intruders.
Chapter 2:
The garden-cats looked at the sleek, strong, well-muscled cats. "W-who are you?" meowed Vinnie in a feeble voice, shaking with fear. She cowered around Quinn, and Ringo came to her aid on the left. Pebble stared at the intruders, with calm, questioning eyes. To everyone's surprise, Posie, who was usually meek in front of strangers, came forward. "What do you want from us?" she challenged. "Nothing much, except for the fact we found your scent on our territory," the silver one hissed, pointing with her tail at Pebble. "What?!? Pebble would never trespass on another cat's territory!" Posie growled. "He is a kind, respectful cat and would never do such a thing!" Quinn added. Vinnie gazed at him like he was perfect. In her eyes he was. "Well, what ever you say, he was in our territory, and he even marked his territory!" the silver she-cat snarled. "I have been out of this Denfolkplace only twice. Once to go to the den folk healer, and once, to explore the area. I went to the den folk healer as a young cat, but I went exploring a day or two ago. I did not notice any scents other than mine and and small prey," he mewed calmly, with a poker face to the intruding cats. "Well, since we will be here awhile, we may as well get to know each other," the kinder, leopard-spotted tom meowed, totally changing the subject. "My name is Sky of Leopard, and she is Fang of Silver. What are your names?" All of the garden-cats turned their heads to look at Posie. She looked back and nodded. "I am Posie," she whispered, gaining confidence. "This is Vinnie, Ringo, Quinn, and he is Pebble," she meowed with caution, pointing to each cat in their turn. "Hmm, I remember a kitten named Young Pebble. He was brown. His eyes were dark," mewed Fang of Silver. "I remember very distinctly, because he was my sister's kit. He had a brother, Young Tree, and a sister, Young River. I wonder what happened to him. He was there one day, gone the next," she sighed. "He would have been a Look-out." She raised her head and looked straight at Pebble. "You wouldn't happened to have heard of him, would you?" Quickly, she averted her eyes from him and dragged them across the row of garden-cats; she couldn't look suspicious, or these cats could chase her and Sky of Leopard all the way to Clawed Rock, or Star Meadow! "Ah, you couldn't know Young Pebble. And obviously, you aren't him,"she meowed. "What Fang of Silver means is that Pebble is a very common name, and you aren't the Pebble we lost, of course," he said, smoothly covering Fang of Silver's mistake. "He had no gray in his fur, and his eyes were brown. Much different than you," he chuckled. "I have a question, Sky of Leopard and Fang of Silver," Posie meowed. "Yes, what is it?" the tom answered for the two. "I just wanted to know if there are more of you, and also, where do you come from?" Posie asked. "Ah, one called Posie, there are more of us, and we come from Nightgang, out in the forest." "Nightgang! That's a funny name for a garden!" laughed a new voice. "Oh, shut up Jake," growled an older, grumpier voice. "Hey Twinkle, Jake. These are forest cats, Sky of Leopard, and Fang of Silver," Ringo mewed. "And Nightgang is not a garden, silly hairball!" Jake looked at him with rage, and unsheathed his claws. He obviously didn't get the joke. "He was just kidding, Jake," Twinkle purred. "There is no need to go harrumphing around and correcting cats, you old mangepelt," Jake hissed at Twinkle. He crouched and pounced on the old cat who was very feeble; the instant he landed on her, every cat could hear Twinkle's bones snap underneath her ragged pelt. "This is what you deserve, you piece of denfolk dung!" Even though Jake only had three legs, he was a powerful cat, and he had always been known as aggressive and someone who would fight to the death the cat who insulted him. "Jake, stop!" yowled Quinn. He thrust his huge body on top of Jake, but that was a weak attempt. Even though he was smaller than Quinn, he was stronger, smarter and faster. "Get off of her!" screeched Fang of Silver, as she and Sky of Leopard leaped off of the fence and attacked Jake with all of their might. Yet they were still not strong enough to pull this brute killer off of the weak Twinkle. Soon the other cats joined in. Vinnie realized she could not be a help here, so she meowed loudly,"I'm going to find Chubbs, Velvet and Esme. I'm sure they will figure how to save Twinkle and get Jake off of her!" She pelted through a small hole in the fence, heading towards Chubbs' den and the nest of Velvet and Esme. Meanwhile, Ringo, Pebble and Posie lightly pounced on the side of Jake, trying not to further hurt Twinkle. Even the old she-cat feebly knead her paws against Jake's flank. But Jake pressed on. Soon Vinnie appeared. Behind the small cat was a massive golden tom, who squeezed through the hole with some help from behind. "Ouch, you fat furball, you're treading on my tail!" squeaked an obnoxious voice. "And your tail is in my face," added a second, older, muffled voice. "Sorry girls," answered the deep voice of Chubbs. He finally pulled himself all the way through, and grunted as he pulled himself to his feet. Two lithe shapes followed; one was very tall, the other one was shorter and was stockier. Their pelts were ivory, but their faces, paws and tail-tips were as brown as cat dirt. "What is going on here?!?" growled Chubbs as he surveyed the scene. "Twinkle!" He ran over to the injured, broken body of his friend. But it was too late. Twinkle had died."
Chapter 3: Reunions and Last Goodbyes
"HOW COULD YOU??!?!?" screeched Chubbs as he bounded for the grinning Jake. Jake was smart and stepped to the side, but he was too slow, and the massive body of Chubbs crushed Jake's lean one. Jake let out an ear-splitting yowl as the bigger tom growled in his face and clawed his shoulders. "Get off of me you fleapelt! I'm sorry," he hissed, muffled by Chubbs' thick fur. "I said I was sorry!" Chubbs got off of him, and looked him straight in the eyes. "She was my best friend since I was a kit! For a long time she was my ONLY friend. And she hated you! Do you know how many times she told me of her plots to kill you?" he growled, then calmed down and sighed. "Jake, you are my son," he whispered. Every cat gasped. "Twinkle bore you. You were the strongest of the five. One other lived, but the other three died." Jake looked at his father with questioning and surprise. "W-who is my sibling??" he asked, almost whispering as he trembled. "She does not live here. She ran away to the forest as a young cat....." he trailed off and looked to the sunset. "What did you call her, Father?" Jake questioned as he went and leaned into his father's huge side. "Your mother loved the name Feather," he purred. "And your sister loved to play with feathers, too," he took a deep breath and licked Jake's ear. "I orginally wanted you to be called Flame, but your den folk named you Jake," Chubbs turned his head and set his eyes on Jake, but Fang of siver spoke first. "We must sit vigil for the one called Twinkle," she meowed. "Sit vigil? What's that?" squeaked Velvet, who was now grooming her fur. "Does it involve-" Her high pitched, annoying voice was interrupted by Sky of Leopard. "Sitting vigil for a dead friend is tradition. You stay up the whole night on the day that they died, to honor them, and say your last goodbyes," he mewed quietly, trying to comfort Chubbs and Jake in a time of turmoil. Suddenly a yowl pierced the air. "Sorry, I have to go back to my den folk," Pebble mewed. He went over to Twinkle's cold body and stuck his nose in her fur. "Sorry I can't stay, Twinkle. You will never be forgotten," he whispered as he pulled his face away. "Goodbye everyone," he meowed as he looked over the group of cats. His gaze rested on Twinkle. Pebble sighed and leaped over the fence and headed towards his den. Sky of Leopard spoke first. "Chubbs, you and Jake may lie down first, since you were closest to Twinkle," he whispered, almost undetectable. The two toms laid down next to the she-cat and pressed their noses to her cold fur. Soon, Posie and Ringo padded over to Chubbs and sat vigil beside him. Vinnie the looked at Quinn, and they went to Jake, and laid beside him, Quinn sheltering the fragile she-cat, in case the flame colored tom decided to hurt anyone else. Sky of Leopard whispered to Fang of Silver, and they padded over from the corner and laid on the other side of Twinkle, putting their nosed lightly into her pelt. In unison, they all lifted their heads and looked up. A very faint shape of a cat was rising slowly, waving its paw in farewell.