The Roaring Winds

Chapter Eighteen: Always Be Grateful

Chapter Eighteen: Always Be Grateful

Rosepaw smiled endearingly at her sacred friend, Larkpaw. She honestly didn't know how or why she tried so desperately to avoid a cat who meant so much to her heart. Her mind couldn't even generate the reason why she had done so anymore. And, did the reason truly matter? She was here with Larkpaw now, and that was all that mattered.

Larkpaw yawned, her jay-blue eyes starting to droop with tiredness. The gray tabby she-cat was snuggled up next to Rosepaw, her head resting on Rosepaw's shoulder. Rosepaw frowned to herself, noticing that Larkpaw's whiskers were frazzled, something that only happened when she was particularly exhausted.

Larkpaw's jay-blue eyes met Rosepaw's emerald-green. Larkpaw smiled to herself softly as her eyes trailed upward to the stars above. "You know, it's a really beautiful night."

Rosepaw nodded to herself, not having seen the sky herself. She tilted her head to view the sky above her. She was perplexed by the sudden wonder in Larkpaw's gaze. The sky had nothing special to offer, it was shielded by the pine trees, and also clouded. It would rain soon if it hadn't already started. "I don't understand what you mean by that. There are all these clouds, you can barely see the stars."

"But, that's the wonder of it all," Larkpaw grinned, her eyes sparkling. "You don't see the stars. You don't see your ancestors looking down on you. You have your own path to follow, without any judgment following in your wake."

"Our ancestors look down on us? I thought they were meant to look after us," Rosepaw questioned, feeling more and more strange with Larkpaw's words. She squinted, trying to make out any stars in the clouded sky. She couldn't see any in the denseness of the trees.

"I don't know how to feel about StarClan, to be honest," Larkpaw murmured, her fur smoothing itself out. Her eyes were still fixated on the sky above. "Are they really looking out for us? I feel like they spend more of their time looking down on us and judging us, rather than helping us out with life's difficulties."

"Well..." Rosepaw paused, her ears flattening. Larkpaw did have a fair point. Rosepaw herself had never received a sign from StarClan, and she blamed it on her lack of training. But even, besides that, she had never gotten any guidance. However, maybe, that StarClan cat she saw was an exception.

Rosepaw blinked, recalling the starry cat. She could only remember the StarClan she-cat vaguely. Every time she saw her, the memory had just become a muffled blur in her mind. She couldn't even recall the she-cat's pelt color or eye color. All she remembered was the distinct fresh scent that radiated from the she-cat. It was a fresh scent that had the scent of sand, rocks, grass, and rain. Her scent hadn't revealed her to be part of any particular Clan, more so a casual starry spirit. But, deep down, Rosepaw knew that the she-cat was a StarClan cat, not just an average spirit.

"What are you thinking about?" Larkpaw twitched an ear. "You have your thinking face on. You're frowning, your eyes are downcast, and you twitch occasionally during your thought process."

"Oh, it's..." Rosepaw's words trailed off. "It's nothing. Nothing special."

Larkpaw shot her a puzzled expression. "I thought we were done with all the secrecy. We just sorta came back together. Why are you hiding from me again? You can always reach out and talk to me. I'll always be there for you," Larkpaw placed her forepaw on top of Rosepaw's.

"I know," Rosepaw let out a heavy sigh, her tail curling around her paws. "But, sometimes, I need to have my secrets. This one doesn't directly involve you, and I don't believe it will harm me. Just let me have this secret... I think it's too precious for me to share with anyone."