Bright Forest

Chapter 2

Rusty woke up, his fur bristling with excitement: he wanted to ask Cloudberry more about the wild cats.

He sprang up on his paws and ran to the old cat's bed.

-Psst! Cloudberry!- he hissed.

-What are you doing here, young'un?- an elderly voice came behind him; he turned: it was Violet, a calico she-cat who was bathing in sunlight the day before.

-I was just...

-No messin' around, kid- she said. -I heard what you did...

Rusty lowered his ears.

-And I'm here to tell y'all 'about those wild cats! Cloudberry only met one, not learning anything. Well I... I know my ol' pal Oscar! Now come along in the garden without disturbing anyone.

Rusty silently followed the she-cat out of the cat door and into the shining grassy yard. They sat in the center.

-Now, Oscar was my closest friend when we were young...- she started. -And we got into all sorts of troubles: put a thorn into Cloudberry's fur, challenged Holly and Butty to who would knock most things out of the table...

-You mean,- he stammered. -"Butterscotch", right?

Violet was a bit deaf, and continued:-Heh heh... Holly always won... Butty was very obedient. Too bad he couldn't enjoy the fun! One day, Oscar left. I didn't know why, all I did was look at him climbing the fence and disappearing.

-Did you know he was going to leave?- asked Rusty.

-No, but he occasionally came back from the forest.

-Were you happy?- he asked again.

Violet stood still and sighed:-Happy for him, but I truly missed him...

Rusty lowered his head:-I'm so sorry...

-Don't worry! In fact, Oscar returned, telling me all about the cat clans! There are OakClan, DoveClan, StormClan and DawnClan.

"StormClan! The one those wild cats told me to stay away from..." he thought.

-He was in DoveClan and he was mates with Halfback, having a bunch of kits too... He was saying that the clans are progressing well, and I can also join them.

-Well why didn't you say yes?- he asked.

-I was getting old and weak, and I couldn't walk that long to the other side of this forest... We are at a border with StormClan territory, or at least, that's what he told me. They hate us, chasing us away, and if they see a DoveClan cat with a kittypet we would have made them mad with grief...

-But I met them!- he hissed. -They treated me with respect! And even let me go! Well, of course they attacked me at first but they're good! I can prove it!

She blinked twice at the dark ginger apprentice.

"Does she NOT understand what I am saying?" he thought angirly, digging the earth beneath him with his claws.

-That's a rare case...- she thought. -They must think you're important...

-Important? What do you mean?

"Is she making excuses?" he thought while his fur lay down on his back.

-Oscar told me...- she explained. -They believe in "StarClan", an ancient group of cats, where they go when they die... they also give prophecies and signs, indicating stuff that will happen in the future, like battles, saviors, traitors...

-So what does that have to do with me?- he asked.

-You might be one of what those ghost cats might indicate to them!- she explained. -That's why they treated you gracefully.