Capture >> Choose Your Story

Chapter 7

Last time, you chose option Two >> Decide to check for birds to possibly prove her usefulness to the Tribe and also get to know Sunlight more, in a more quiet area.

"I think I'd like to go hunting by the cliff," Flower decided, shaking off some water droplets still clinging to her pelt.

"Excellent!" Sunlight purred, flicking her tail. She turned to lead Flower to the back of the cave and outside. Flower kept checking to her sides to see if any other cats were studying her movements, but to her surprise (and relief) she attracted little attention from surrounding cats.

Sunlight led the way through the tight tunnel and out onto the cliff, where she plopped down on the grass.

"Aren't we hunting?" Flower inquired, confused as to why Sunlight was relaxing.

"Yep. There aren't any birds here now, but they're never that high up in the sky. So I sometimes pretend to be dead prey for them to take and then pounce after I've fooled them," Sunlight explained.

Flower nodded and laid down besides her and sprawled out on her side. For a moment, she allowed herself to enjoy being surrounded by the soft grass. It reminded her of home. She also allowed her memories to enfold her completely...

Fawnpaw swished her tail in anticipation, her paws tucked beneath her chest. From the undergrowth she studied the newly named Driftbreeze. They weren't denmates anymore, but they could still have fun, right?

Fawnpaw leaped and pounced, landing on her friend and knocking him to the ground triumphantly. She laughed. "I got you!"

Driftbreeze laughed and wriggled to escape. He rolled over and Fawnpaw fell off. She rolled in the soft, sweet grass of greenleaf, happy to have such fun with Driftbreeze.

"Flower!" A shriek pierced the air around Flower. Her eyes snapped open to see Sunlight wrestling the largest hawk she had ever seen to the ground. With a swift bite to the neck, the hawk went limp.

Flower scrambled to her paws, panting. "What happened?"

Sunlight turned to her. "You didn't hear the hawk as it was flying down. I barely caught it in time before it shredded you," she explained. Her tone was surprisingly gentle.

Flower's fur was suddenly hot with embarrassment. "I'm so sorry," she stammered. "I was just daydreaming about SmokeClan—"

I should not have said that.

Flower just mentioned her old Clan. She was not allowed to say 'SmokeClan.'

She flattened her ears. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Sunlight tilted her head. "Why do you seem so scared?"

"I said Smoke—Er—my old Clan..."

"SmokeClan?" Sunlight walked over to Flower from the hawk. "What's wrong with that?"

"Flame told me I couldn't talk about my old Clan," Flower explained, talking slightly louder now. Was Sunlight not upset with her?

"What a stupid thing to expect of you. SmokeClan is your home, after all," Sunlight replied. "What's it like there, by the way?"

She wants me to talk about SmokeClan? Flower couldn't believe it. I guess I will.

"It's really nice," Flower began. "Everyone works together, sort of like here. We hear stories from the elders about how SmokeClan once lived far from here, until they got kicked out of their old territory by the other Clans."

"Other Clans?" Sunlight seemed very interested in this.

"Yeah. There are others. ReedClan, SnowClan and AmberClan, I think," Flower went on.

Sunlight glanced to her sides, then leaned in a little closer. "What was—is—your real name?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Fawncloud," Flower told Sunlight with no hesitation. It was great to say her own name again.

"Fawncloud... that's such a nice name. Being a Clan cat sounds fun," Sunlight mewed, staring into the horizon beyond the cliff and trees.

"It is."

"What do you think my name would be?" Sunlight wondered. "If I was in SmokeClan?"

"Hm... maybe Dapplesplash or Sunsplash," Flower pondered.

Sunlight nodded. "I like those names." She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again. "We should go back inside the cave with the hawk."

Sunlight padded over to the hawk and nudged it towards Flower. "Here," she said," I want you to present it to the Tribe."

Flower was surprised at this. Sunlight had rightfully killed the hawk, and she was letting Flower claim it as her catch? It would greatly improve her reputation in the Tribe.

"Thank you." Flower dipped her head. "That's very kind of you." She grabbed the hawk and began to drag it, Sunlight assisting.

Together, the two carried the hawk through the tunnel. When they emerged, they were met by gasps and stares of awe.

"Look at what Flower caught!" Sunlight called out for every cat in the cave to hear. Those not looking in their direction now were and everyone was gathering in a crowd around the two.

Mistteller made her way to the front of the crowd to face Flower and Sunlight with a disbelieving look. "Is it true that you caught this, Flower?"

Flower nodded nervously, attempting to seem confident. Hopefully it was working.

Mistteller just slightly smiled. "Well done, then." She turned to face all of the cats. "Tonight the Tribe celebrates the accomplishments of our newest member, Lone Flower in Field!"

The cats cheered, but Flower was suddenly reminded by the fact that her name was a jab at how she had nobody here.

Except for Flame, and now Sunlight too.

At this rate, Flower would build up trust with the Tribe and be trusted to venture further in no time.

But she realized she would have to make everybody believe she enjoyed the Tribe very much and despised Clan life before she was truly accepted and trusted.

Sunlight snapped Flower back to her thoughts. "You're very tired, Flower. We don't mind if you sleep rather than stay for our feast of the hawk."

The moon was high in the sky at this point and Flower realized just how tired she was. Maybe she should sleep, but on the other hand, the feast was the perfect opportunity for her to get to know some other Tribe cats further and build up some trust.

"Do you want to sleep? Or do you want to eat with the Tribe?"

What should Flower do?

One >> Stay awake and enjoy the feast, getting to know some more Tribe cats and building up trust.

Two >> Get some well-deserved rest in the quiet of her own den.

Answer in the comments!