☁ 𝒜𝓈 𝒞𝓁𝑜𝓊𝒹𝓈 𝒞𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒮𝓀𝓎 ☁

Chapter 27

𝒦𝑒𝑒𝓃𝓅𝒶𝓌

~ ✵ ☁ ✵ ~

Keenpaw found it impossible to ignore the guilt that churned in his stomach. Sure, he left StreamClan without even telling any cat, but he would return soon. I just have to get Tiny what she deserves. He thought, and if anything at all, he wouldn't have to do his apprentice duties for a bit. He let out a sigh, closing his eyes for just a moment.

Exactly. This is just a small break from his clan for a while, and all the while he and Tiny would find Bounce and get what they needed. He was multi-tasking. Shiningsoul should be proud of him.

As they got farther and farther away from the familiar landscape, he felt his weariness grow. And he couldn't even imagine how Tiny felt. After all, she was so much smaller than he was. They needed to find a place to rest, and soon.

But there wasn't much in the open fields. Maybe a tree here and there and some shrubs and bushes, but nothing that could shelter them from the elements. He glanced toward Tiny only to find empty air. His heart pounded in panic as he spun around to find that his sister was trailing behind. She couldn't keep up for much longer, Keenpaw knew that much.

He caught up to her, resting his tail along her back. There was a tree nearby. Perhaps that would due for that night as long as it didn't rain at all.

"Hey, how about we rest there for the night?" He asked, waving a paw toward the direction of the towering oak not too far in the distance.

Tiny nodded weakly without a word. Her breaths came in quick pants as she and Keenpaw headed in that direction.

In what seemed like a moon of walking, they finally made it, pulling themselves up into a canopy of leaf-covered branches and feeling soft bark beneath their claws.

It wasn't as comfortable as his nest back in StreamClan's camp, but it would do. It felt like he had fallen asleep as soon as he closed his eyes. For the first time in a while, he felt at peace, and he enjoyed it, even if it would only be brief.

He awoke in an unfamiliar forest. Trees towered above him so tall he thought they could touch the sky and the sights were so beautiful here. A calming stream that twisted and turned until it met up with a waterfall that crashed as the rushing water met it. Above him birds chirped, flying into an endlessly blue sky lit up by a bright and shining sun. There wasn't a cloud as far as he could see.

The loud cawing of a sparrow caught his attention and he followed it with his gaze. Something was falling ever so slowly as it beat its wings. He squinted to see exactly what they were. Feathers! He realized with a gasp.

And as quickly as it came, it ended, darkness pooling his vision once again. The last thing he heard as the cheerful birdsong died away was an almost familiar voice. But at that moment, he wasn't sure who it belonged to.

"What the sparrow leaves behind will show you the way."

The tom blinked open his eyes to find that the sun had already risen, making its journey across the sky as it did every day.

On another branch, Tiny was still asleep, and Keenpaw decided it would be best to let her rest after the long night they had before them. He climbed down the tree, deciding it would be best to do some hunting before they continued their long trek once again.

As he searched the land around him for any sign of prey, he couldn't help but think back to his odd dream.

What the sparrow leaves behind will show you the way.

Whatever it meant, he sure hoped it was obvious, because if he was honest, he had no idea where he was going.

In the light breeze that blew towards him, he could smell a rabbit. His jaws watered and he followed the smell, licking his lips hungrily. It was as if he could almost taste the warm prey as he tore into it with his teeth, licking blood from his muzzle.

He shook his head. If he wanted to actually satisfy him and his sister with a rabbit, he had to catch it first.

There, many pawsteps from where he was, a small rabbit loped, nibbling at the grass beneath it. Keenpaw lowered himself, crouching to match the position of a hunter, ready to pounce on its prey. He waited, with his tail just barely touching the ground, until the perfect moment.

Then he was off, paws flailing and claws unsheathed, ready to snag the animal's fur. He was successful, pinning it to the ground and snapping its neck within a moment. Grasping his new catch in his jaws he thought back to his first-ever catch, the squirrel that had ended up being eaten by a wolf.

If only that fox-heart could see what I've caught now! He thought triumphantly. Take that, wolf. As he carried it back to the tree where Tiny was, he couldn't help but wish Shiningsoul were there to see what he had caught. He would be so proud. At least Keenpaw hoped he would be, although it wasn't hard to please the large warrior.

"Oh, Keenpaw. There you are!" Tiny squealed and Keenpaw let out a small laugh. His sister hadn't changed at all since she was a kit. "Woah. Did you catch that all by yourself?" She questioned, her eyes round in amazement as she climbed down to meet him.

He lay the prey on the grass, silently thanking SpiritClan before he and his sister bit into the warm prey, scarfing it down with hungry bites.

Finally, after they had eaten, came the moment he dreaded most. More walking. But just before he and Tiny got to their paws to leave, they spotted something dark in the grassy field. As they approached it, Keenpaw realized it was a feather, black and long, shining as the sun hit it.

"What the sparrow leaves behind will show you the way..." He mumbled out loud.

"What was that?" Tiny asked him, tilting her head slightly in confusion.

"Oh, nothing." He shook himself with embarrassment as he realized he had said it out loud. Now he had an idea of what his dream meant after all.

And now, he knew for sure where he was headed.