//Un//marked

// chapter 3 //

    The camp seemed busier than usual. Dewkit sat in the nursery entrance, watching the day begin. As always, the providers were out of the camp first, well-rested and ready to hunt for the group.

    Mira and Indigo headed out together, white and black blurs as they rounded the corner to the Twolegplace. Dewkit remembered watching Indigo return to the camp with a rat the size of a pigeon, once, and his mouth watered at the thought. Leo followed, moving almost lazily. Bramblefire waited, then left in the opposite direction of the others.

    With the trainees excused from training, the mentors had the day to themselves as well. Quartz sat in a bright patch of sunlight, speaking quietly to Lily, a white she-cat with splashes of blue and cream. They both seemed content, even though the wind turned colder every day.

    Dewkit sighed, fluffing up his still kitten-soft fur. How long before he became one of the trainees? Before he became a mentor or provider? Before he could be free of the stuffy cardboard nursery?

    "Ready for that adventure?" The little grey kit nearly jumped out of his fur. Crowpaw purred in amusement, golden eyes glittering.

    "You bet!" Dewkit jumped to his feet, careful to keep his balance.

    "I've hidden four things around the camp," Crowpaw explained, glancing around the dead-end alley as he did so. "A little bit of a scavenger hunt. Each item connects directly to a location in the Twolegplace; once you find all of my clues, you'll know where we're going!"

    Dewkit cocked his head. "Why don't we just go there straight away?"

    The trainee snorted. "That would ruin all the fun, wouldn't it?" Then, in a half-whisper, "It'll keep Cinderblossom off your tail."

    The kit nodded, excitement fluffing his tail up to twice its size. "Where do I start?"

    "This is your scavenger hunt, not mine," the black tom replied. "But I'm sure there are others who will give you hints." Dewkit scampered off before Crowpaw could say another word.

    He knew there was nothing in the nursery, as he had been sitting at its entrance all morning, so he headed for the mentors' boxes first. They stood four storeys tall, one stacked atop the other, varying shades of brown and grey. Dewkit padded into the one closest to the ground and found it filled with soft grass and feathers.

    What could Crowpaw have possibly hidden in the camp? For all Dewkit knew, Crowpaw could have placed the feathers here. But nothing seemed out of the ordinary, so Dewkit moved on to the next den.

    His short sharp claws worked at the outside of the cardboard, hauling him up to the next box. He felt heavy and very clumsy, his two front paws holding most of his weight while his right back leg hung uselessly behind him. Heaving himself into the next den, he collapsed, breathing heavily.

    When he opened his eyes, there, right in front of him, lay a very strange feather. It was blue and white with small black specks and an almost silver sheen. Sniffing at it, Dewkit found he could not identify the scent.

    "Never seen a jay's feather?" The kit jumped back, not having realized there was anyone in the den. The grey tom before him uncurled himself, revealing long fangs as he yawned.

    Dewkit nearly groaned. Of course Crowpaw would hide a jay's feather in Jaystrike's den.

    "Must be nice to have a friend like Crowpaw," the warrior continued. "Otherwise, you'd be stuck in that cardboard nursery of yours." Dewkit cocked his head, unsure of what the warrior meant. His voice was cheerful enough, but there was a note of wistfulness in its background.