Ivypool's Lament

|Chapter XXI|

Leaves rustled below Ivypool, making her stop to investigate. She turned around on the branch, gazing down into the leaves. Big, blue eyes stared back at her, watching her movements. Her claws dug into the branch she was perched on, keeping her from fidgeting in front of that seemingly familiar gaze. She inhaled deeply before saying anything.

"Who are you?" Ivypool questioned bravely, tail swishing a few leaves behind her.

The stranger climbed a few branches up till he was nearly as high as she was, revealing a blue jacket over the cat's white fur. She only grew more curious now.

"Might you be Ivypool?" he asked, head tilting.

Ivypool hesitated. "Maybe. . who are you?" she asked again.

"You can call me Comic. I think I might know where your friend is."

"You know where MS is?" she asked hopefully, maybe even foolishly. She didn't know this cat at all. "Wait. . . Who exactly are you?"

"I'll go ahead and be straight with you, since I have no reason to hide anything. I'm MS' father."

His. . father? The gray and white she-cat eyed him cautiously, following his blue gaze down to her necklace. It sparkled slightly in the faint, dappled moonlight.

"That necklace, it was a gift from MS, wasn't it? He finally found someone to give it to. . ." Comic said, seemingly to himself. "Anyway, yes, I think I may know where my son is. I'll do what I can to bring him here, you can stay and wait for now-"

"No!" Ivypool interrupted, slightly embarrased at her own outburst. "I want to go with you to. . . wherever you're going."

The pure white tom stared into her blue eyes, making her shiver. It felt like he was staring right through her.

"Alright, Ivypool. It'll be dangerous though."

"I can handle it. Hey, how do you know my name, anyway?"

"Just a little feeling. I'll be back in seven sunrises. Be ready."

Before Ivypool could say anything else, Comic had disappeared, the branch he had been standing on swaying in the slight breeze. She sighed, going back to climbing. Does acting mysterious run in their family. . . ? Well, I guess his mom seemed normal. . . Emphasis on seemed.

She reached the den in the tree's leaves, curling up in her little leaf nest that she used to share with Rainkit. The wind picked up a little, whistling softly through the leaves as the moon hovered overhead.

~*~

Ivypool's eyes blinked open, recognizing the peaceful landscape of StarClan right away. She stood up, her blue gaze sweeping her surroundings for signs of a StarClan cat. The rustling of leaves caught her attention, and she whipped around to see Snowfur.

"Snowfur? Wheres Bluestar?" Ivypool wondered aloud, used to being greeted by Bluestar while she was here.

"Bluestar is still looking for MS," Snowfur responded, a kit tumbling by her paws. "That's actually why you're here. Do you have any idea of where he is underground?"

The gray and white she-cat shook her head. "No, but his. . his father actually came to see me earlier. He's gonna help me find MS and bring him back."

"Really? That's a relief. Maybe I can get Bluestar to come back now. . ." She said, relief in her mew. "You can wake up now."

Ivypool woke with a slight gasp, just a quick inhale of air. The sun had just started rising, the air chilly. Her head whipped to look in the direction of rustling leaves, legs moving to stand up quickly. She visibly relaxed when she saw her sister's familiar gray head, padding over to great her. Her whiskers twitched in wonder when she realized how twitchy Dovewing was.

"Dovewing. . . What are you doing here?" Ivypool asked, her deep eyes searching for an answer.

Dovewing took a moment to compose herself before answering. "Rainkit. . He's gone missing."

Ivypool's eyes widened, "He's. . . missing?"

"Yes, missing. I think he ran away. .  What if he's mad at me?" The light gray she-cat's eyes teared up.

"I'm sure he's not mad at you. . . I'll try to find him, okay?" She tried to reassure her sister despite her growing concern.

Dovewing nodded, trying to blink away her tears. "I. . . I should go back to camp. Featherkit will need me, and I can't just leave Bumblestripe at a time like this. . ."

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I'll do whatever I can to help Rainkit, okay?"

The yellow eyed she-cat nodded, making her way back down the large tree. Her tail hung limp, dragging along the branches. Ivypool let out a small breath of air, looking up at the sky. Dying sunlight filtered through the green leaves, casting a unique pattern on her already patterned fur.

"Mind Stunner," she meowed, mostly to no one, "please come back. . ."

|Wow. Okay. I feel so bad for discontinuing this book, but it's back now (hopefully)! If I lose inspiration again, I'll just put the book on hiatus rather than discontinuing it, no matter how long it takes for me to come back. This chapter was a little short compared to some of the others, but I'm gonna try to write more when I can. Anyways, read on!|