Warriors:Into The Wild AU (2024 Rewrite)

Chapter Two

This is technically still Chapter One in the book, but I had to split it so that it wasn't quite so long. Anyways, enjoy!

Briar leapt down to join Rusty in the rough grass beyond their garden fences after making sure that Smudge had gotten home alright. The ginger tom beside her gave his shoulder a nervous lick, trying to appear confident.

Suddenly the movement of a tiny creature caught the pair's attention, and they watched it scuttle under some brambles. Rusty dropped into a low crouch, slowly drawing his body forward through the undergrowth.

Briar kept herself as silent as she could, trying to listen around for whatever had spooked Rusty the first time, while her friend was very focused on the creature that she now saw was a mouse, rocking his haunches from side-to-side, preparing to leap.

However, just as Rusty was preparing to leap, a sudden noise of cracking twigs and crunching leaves made the pair jump, the bell on Rusty's collar jangling treacherously, and the mouse darted away into the thickest tangle of the bramble bush. The two went very still, both pairs of eyes looking around.

The white tip of a red bushy tail caught their attention, slinking through a clump of tall ferns up ahead. The scent was strong and strange, definitely a meat-eater, but neither cat nor dog.

Briar soon recognized what it was from her mother's stories, and she tried to get Rusty's attention, but the tom was distracted by the red tail. He wanted a closer look.

While all of Rusty's senses were trained on the fox ahead of them, Briar heard a noise from behind them, the sound muted and distant, and her tufted, white-tipped ears swiveled backwards to hear it better.

Pawsteps? she wondered, noticing that Rusty had caught the sound as well, but he kept his gaze fixed on the red fox fur up ahead, continuing to creep onward. It was only when the faint rustling behind them became a loud and fast-approaching leaf-crackle that the pair realized they were in danger.

The creature hit like an explosion and Rusty was thrown sideways into a clump of nettles, Briar not far behind him. Twisting and yowling, Rusty tried to throw off the attacker that had fastened itself to his back. It was gripping him with incredibly sharp claws, similar to the ones Briar's mother would show off when she chased other cats out of her yard.

He writhed and squirmed from whisker to tail, but he couldn't free himself. For a second, he felt helpless, even though Briar was trying her best to get a grip on the creature; then he froze. Thinking fast, he flipped over onto his back. He knew instinctively how dangerous it was to expose his soft belly, but it was his only chance since Briar was now in front of him, unsure of what to do without hurting her friend.

He was lucky—the ploy seemed to work. He heard a "hhuffff" beneath him as the breath was knocked out of his attacker. Thrashing fiercely, Rusty managed to wriggle free. Without looking back the two friends sprinted toward their homes.

Behind them, a rush of pawsteps told both of them that Rusty's attacker was giving chase. Even though the pain of his scratches stung beneath his fur, Rusty decided that he would rather turn and fight than let himself be jumped on again. A glance at Briar saw fury and determination in her icy gaze, so the pair skidded to a stop, spun around, and faced their pursuer.

It was another kitten, with a thick coat of shaggy gray fur, strong legs, and a broad face. In a heartbeat, Briar smelled that it was a tom, and sensed the power in the sturdy shoulders underneath the soft coat, being swiftly reminded of her own mother. Then the kitten crashed into Rusty at full pelt.

Taken by surprise by the pair's turnabout, it fell back into a dazed heap. The impact knocked the breath out of Rusty, and he staggered. Briar placed herself in front of her friend as he got his footing back, both of them puffing out orange and black-and-white fur, ready to spring at the other kitten.