Rain and Stone

Chapter I: Halle

"Watch out, Halle!"

The silver she-cat barely had time to stop in her tracks before two kits sped past, chasing a petal that floated idly by. Otto leapt to grab it but fell short; in the end it was Chess that emerged triumphant, puncturing the pink petal with her small sharp teeth.

"Aww, no fair!" The tom lamented. "You have longer legs than I do!" He tackled Chess, but she rolled and batted him away.

"No, it's mine!" With that she took off, a streak of black against the stony side of the Twoleg den. The smaller tabby soon followed, laughing and trying to nip her tail whenever he drew close enough.

"Otto! Chess! It's late!" A sharp voice rang out, and the two kits skid to a stop. Reluctantly, the duo returned to the pure white she-cat that called them; Chess clamped her teeth down on the petal tightly. Five younger kits were already nesting nearby and they joined them, curling around their tiny bodies to keep each other warm.

"Cute, aren't they?" Halle turned her head away from the scene to see a stocky grey tom padding up to her. He paused alongside her, his pelt rubbing her own slightly. She could feel the deep rumble of his purr. On any other day, his companionship would have been welcome, the warmth of his fur against hers a source of comfort. But dark thoughts had been clouding her mind.

Halle turned her back to him, tail drooping. "Yeah, cute."

She started to pad away, but only managed to make it a few foxlengths before the tom stopped her, bounding across her path. Halle trained her gaze on her paws. "I'm not in the mood right now, Zero. Leave me alone."

"No." No? The she-cat's head rose and she met Zero's steady stare with a hardened gaze of her own. But his soon melted from bluntness to concern, and he spoke softly. "C'mon, Halle. You've been acting like this for a quarter moon. Tell me what's up."

"You don't see it, do you?" She was unable to keep the faint hiss from creeping into her voice. She flexed her toes. "There's seven kits over there out of twenty of us, and we can barely feed ourself in this rat-nest, not to mention that Twolegs keep showing up and..." She had to force herself to close her eyes and take a deep breath in an effort to calm her shaking voice. "What I'm saying is, we need to move, or we're not going to make it here much longer."

When she found the courage to look at Zero again, his face was grim. "I know what's going on, Halle. But this is the best place we've found so far. We can search again tomorrow after sunhigh-"

Halle shook her head. "No, we need to go further, not just to another Twolegplace or-"

"Well, you let me know when you figure out where that place is," he sighed. "As it stands, no one wants to move right now. We're surviving, that's what matters."

"Barely," she sniffed. "And not for long, with leaf-fall on the way."

He turned away from her, signifying the end of the conversation. "Get some sleep, Halle."

With a silent huff, the silver cat padded towards the scraps of cloth that she made her own nest out of. Picking around the clear sharp rocks that littered the ground- kittypets called it glass, she recalled- Halle curled into a tight ball, head resting on her forepaws. Her green eyes glanced up, searching the sky through the branches of the tree that hung overhead. A few pinpricks of light twinkled in the quickly darkening sky. "Only four tonight," she whispered to herself, before turning her gaze back towards the group of loners.

There was Snowy, her long matted tail wrapped protectively around the kits. Zero, Cloud and Tango were sprawled out in one group, Jekyll and Dylan in another. Karma and Viola kept watch by the metal twoleg fence, scanning for any twolegs that might try to scoop up and make off with any of their companions. Halle noticed that a few others were gone, either to go visit friends or to try and find a scrap of a meal to eat.

She rolled onto her back, trying her best to get comfortable despite the grit that clung to her pelt. A lone cloud overhead hid the four stars that shone moments ago. 'Zero's right,' she thought to herself. 'I should get a good night's rest... Or try to. Then we can go searching for a better place tomorrow.'

When Halle opened her eyes moments later to an unusual scene, she knew that she was dreaming. Gone was the stone twoleg den, gone were her companions. But the stars were there- more than she had ever seen in her life, more than she ever imagined possible- and she couldn't help but stare, wide-eyed and slack jawed.

"We call it Silverpelt."

The she-cat jumped at the voice. She spun around, nearly coming nose-to-nose with a fluffy pale tabby. Halle had to remind herself that it was just a dream and that there was no reason for her heart to feel like it was about to leap out of her chest. Even so, her toes gripped at the soft ground under her paws.

The other cat's eyes flicked down, and she tilted her head at Halle's feet. "No claws?"

Face burning at the statement, she forced her paws to relax. "No front claws," Halle admitted, curling her tail to cover her toes. She sought to change the subject quickly. "This can't be real. I've never seen so many stars."

"That's because you're living in your own dirt in the middle of a twoleg place." Halle's fur bristled at the other cat's remark, but she couldn't protest. They were doing the best they could, after all- but hearing the stranger say it so coarsely struck a chord. "That's why I'm here. My name is Smallstorm."

"Smallstorm." The name was strange on Halle's tongue. "That's... different. I've never met a cat with a name like that."

"That's because you've never met a Clan cat."

Halle took the opportunity to get a better look at the she-cat before her. She was small, that much was true. Her tabby stripes were faded on her back and shoulders, blending in with the even cream hue. And- Halle wasn't sure if it was just a trick of the light- her fur glinted when she shifted.

"A Clan cat..." She echoed. It sounded interesting enough. "And what exactly does that mean?"

"It means that we live in a better state than you lot are." Halle's tail uncurled and lashed behind her. Smallstorm frowned at her. "Oh, don't get your tail in a knot. I told you I'm here to help. If you quit getting all offended and pay attention, I can lead you to the Clans. That's what you're looking for, right? A better life."

Halle shook her head. "No. No, you can't. This is just a dream. None of this is real; it's not going to happen."

It was Smallstorm's turn to bristle. "Fine. You need convincing. I should have figured." Halle waited as the Clan cat drew a deep breath and her fur settled slightly. "There's a grey she-kit, young, maybe three moons old."

"Her name's Fable," Halle said. "She's small, but strong-hearted."

Smallstorm shot her a strange look. "And you thought my name was weird. But that's beside the point. She's sick, and the symptoms will start to show soon. We call what she has 'whitecough'. Harmless, if you catch it early. But if you do nothing, it will get worse, and spread to the others."

Halle's whiskers twitched as she considered Smallstorm's words. There was a shadow of doubt, but if it was somehow true, she didn't want Fable to suffer. Worry started to gnaw at her, and she shifted uncomfortably where she sat. It was a dream, but more real than any she ever had- should she trust it? It couldn't hurt to ask, could it?

"And how do I help her?"

The other cat gave a small nod of approval. "There's an herb we medicine cats use to treat it, called catmint. You've probably stumbled across it before; twolegs grow it in their gardens. Give the leaves to the kit to eat." Smallstorm shoved a small bundle of plants forward that Halle hadn't noticed before. The loner bent, rolling it over with her nose. It was sweet smelling, with soft leaves. "Learn it, and learn it well. It will save lives."

"Thank-" She looked up to see the Clan cat quickly growing transparent before her eyes, along with the rest of her surroundings. Even the stars were starting to dim and fade.

"I have to go now. Remember the catmint. And Halle," the silver cat blinked at her name, realizing she had never mentioned it to her. "It's more than just a dream."