CHASE

Chapter 16

Chase could barely sleep that night. All she thought about again and again was her encounter with those two kittens, how she had valiantly saved them from the badgers and even managed to communicate with them. Yew would be excited when she told him how her endless days of practicing had paid off. She was planning to tell him as soon as the sun rose.

Chase's family was exhausted after the previous day. Even as the sun's morning rays began to reflect on the tri-colored leaves, they slept soundly. Chase, meanwhile, was wide awake. She crept over the sleeping foxes out of the den, feeling it was best to greet Yew early and apologize for neglecting training the day before.

The morning air was growing colder and colder. Chase wondered when she would get to see the tiny snowflakes of winter. Her mother had spoken so fondly about it while her father always complained about the bitter cold of that season. Either way, she was thankful for her thick auburn coat that kept her warm as she wandered through the woods in the morning.

A light fog hung over the meadow as Chase crept away. She moved deeper into the forest and took in a deep breath of air. She felt like today was going to be a good day. 

As she headed toward the stream that separated her home from Yew's, her gaze wandered toward the cats' territory. Chase knew it was unwise to linger there, but a part of her wished for, hoped, she would run into the same kittens from yesterday. If only Apple's call hadn't cut their conversation so short...

I'll just go for a quick peek, Chase told herself. Finding the coast clear, she slipped into their territory and wandered through it quietly. If I see one cat, I will immediately flee, she decided as she continued to wander through their territory.

Chase realized this was another part of the forest she had never seen before. She wondered how the cats took advantage of this territory, what food they ate, what dens they lived in, and how they kept their territory safe. She had to imagine there were dozens of them wandering around here, judging by the multiple scents that invaded her nose.

The sound of leaves crunching caught Chase's attention. She turned her head, noticing something gray moving in the distance up ahead. Could it be?

Chase crouched her body down and approached slowly, trying to be nimble on her feet as she moved over the forest floor. She grew closer, noticing a tiny kitten, the same one as yesterday, she presumed, walking calmly through the woods.

The kitten would stop every few seconds to crunch on a leaf or breathe in the sweet scent of the forest. Chase had to imagine the kitten did not come to the woods very often. She appeared quite young, though perhaps that was due to Chase towering over her now that Chase was almost fully grown in size.

Chase realized she could not stalk the kit forever. If she kept this act up too long, the kitten might be scared and run back to her clan to warn of a malicious fox on their territory.

Chase sucked in a deep breath and shouted, "Hi again!"

The kitten jumped and spun around. Her green eyes widened at the sight of Chase, but slowly, the kit's shoulders relaxed with what Chase could only assume was recognition. After all, they had just seen each other the other day.

"You--you were the one who saved me and Owlkit," the kit said, slowly approaching Chase. Chase glanced down at her pointed ears and emerald green eyes. The kitten's pelt was a sleek silver-blue that looked absolutely beautiful against the colored forest. Chase could not help but admire how unique every cat looked. She sometimes wished foxes could look as beautiful.

"My name is Chase," she introduced herself. "Unlike my family, I don't want to kill cats. My dad says cats get in the way of our prey and must be killed, but I really don't know what's so bad about them."

"I'm Moonkit--"

"Moonkit? What a strange name!" Chase exclaimed. She had never imagined the cats to go by such odd name combinations. Then again, she was thrilled to finally have a name for the she-cat.

Moonkit, Chase thought over and over, trying not to forget the name of her new companion.

"I live in FoxClan," Moonkit explained, "We all have names like that. My brother's name is Owlkit, and my mother's name is Silverwhisker."

Chase tilted her head, pausing for a moment to consider if it was the correct question to ask.

"What about your father?"

Moonkit tilted her head down, staring at her paws. "He left us."

"I'm sorry," Chase responded quietly. She was about to tell Moonkit that fathers were, at times, overrated, when the she-cat spoke up again, sounding confused.

"If you're a fox, how can you speak fluent cat?"

Chase chuckled. "I'm surprised you didn't ask earlier! I met an old fox who trained me in the cat language. He died, but I've been practicing. I've been trying to get cats and foxes to make amends so they no longer battle."

The she-cat's eyes lit up. "Wow. So you're like a leader. I want to be leader of my clan, but it's not like I'll ever get to try..."

Chase smiled warmly at the she-cat. What she had said was kind, but Chase never could see herself as a leader, not when all she did created such controversy in her family. But the little kit had potential, considering the fact she was wandering alone out here in the woods.

"Moonkit, you can always be leader," Chase said warmly.

The kit grinned, opening her mouth to speak, when a yowl cut her off.

"MOONKIT, DON'T MOVE!" came an unfamiliar voice.

Chase turned her head, noticing an anxious looking silver she-cat. One look at the cat's unsheathed claws, and Chase took off into the bushes, running back to her side of the territory. Thankfully, she was not pursued, only hearing arguments sounding back and forth between Moonkit, and who Chase could only assume was her mother, Silverwhisker.

Despite the fact Chase could have very well been attacked, she felt elated to have been able to have an actual conversation with a clan cat. Chase went through the conversation again and again in her mind.

Her name was Moonkit, she was a member of FoxClan, she had a brother named Owlkit and a mother named Silverwhisker, and she wanted to be leader of her clan one day. 

Chase giggled to herself and took off towards the stream, unable to contain her excitement as she rushed to tell Yew all about what she had encountered.