Spirits on the Wind

Chapter 1

Minnowkit tumbled past the elders in pursuit of a mouse that scrambled into camp. He wasn't much larger than it at only 3 moons old but he gave his hardest effort.

Minnowkit sprang forward, his paws landing on its tail. It squealed and tried to escape. Minnowkit leapt onto it back and squished it. He latched his has into it's neck fur, killing it.

"Mom! Mom I did it!" Minnowkit boomed, dragging his kill to Wolfhaze.

"That's great dear. I've never seen a 3 moon old kit catch a mouse before! You'll be a great warrior." His mother purred and gave him a lick on the head. "Now, why don't you take that to your father. He's been working really hard lately."

Minnowkit nodded with excitement and dragged his kill to the leaders den where Rippletalon was finishing up a meeting with Blossomstar.

"Rippletalon, you are dismissed. I see you have a little visitor with a big catch." Blossomstar purred. "Hello Minnowkit." She scruffed his head with one of her paws.

"Hey there Minnowkit!" Rippletalon licked Minnowkit's head.

"Hi! Look what I caught for you. There was a stray mouse in camp and I... Well I caught it!" Minnowkit meweled excitedly.

"Is that right? Well now I guess you can eat some of it. It is your catch after all." Rippletalon purred.

"Really?! I wanted to give it to you."

"No, just try a bite." He insisted

"But I've never had fresh kill before." Minnowkit stared down at the dead mouse.

"Well son, then you better start now so that you can get big and strong like your mother." Rippletalon laughed heftily.

"Okay I'll give it a shot." Minnowkit mewed and bent his head to the carcass. He nibbled into the fur to peel it away. Then he took a bite of the real mouse.

"Wow! It's amazing!" Minnowkit meowed, his eyes wide with happiness.

"Then why don't we share it?" Rippletalon settled beside the kill and also took a bite. The two finished it off soon.

"Now is the not so fun part, Minnowkit. You have to go bury it in dirtplace." His father instructed.

"Yuck! But... I guess if I want to be the best warrior ever then I have to do this!" Minnowkit picked up the eaten carcass, that was much lighter and carried it to dirtplace. He dug a fairly good sized hole and stuffed the remains of the mouse into it. Then he piled dirt over it and trotted back to the nursery, waving his tail to Rippletalon as he passed.

"Minnowkit!" His sister, Graykit called. Pebblekit trotted after her.

"Where were you?" Pebblekit asked and leaned forward to sniff her brother.

"I was out hunting!" Minnowkit put his muzzle in the air, boastingly.

"You mean out of camp?!" Graykit exclaimed, her mouth gaped.

"No no no! A stray mouse got into camp and I killed it. I even got to eat some of it." Minnowkit nodded his tail held up high.

"Really! Mouse sounds awesome. But I could've caught a dozen more than you did." Pebblekit puffed. "Remember that you are the runt. You shouldn't be able to do more things than us, Tinykit." She teased.

"Come on Pebblekit, let's go play with the bigger kits." Graykit purred meanly. By 'bigger kits' they mean Songbird's kits, Fallowkit and Minkkit.

Once again, Minnowkit was alone. He sat by the stream that ran through camp. No cat really came up to him because they were all busy.

Suddenly a flash made his eyes hurt and it came from behind a bush on the other side of the stream. A small kit with stars in her pelt stepped out. She had a sleek silver pelt dappled with millions of tiny stars. Her eyes glittered blue and she smiled at Minnowkit.

"Hello there!" She called and stepped delicately on the water, not sinking in.

"You-you just walked on water!" Minnowkit meowed, surprised.

"Oh did I? I guess I did." She giggled. "I'm Silverkit." She meowed lightly, her voice like a feather.

"I-I'm Minnowkit."

"I know who you are. I was sent to be your spirit on the wind." Silverkit purred and smiled at him.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Minnowkit asked.

"Only you can see me, Minnowkit. I'll come, and I'll go at anytime. And I will grow up with you. So I'll be at your apprentice, and warrior ceremony." Silverkit blinked. "Now that you have met me, I must go. I'll see you again Minnowkit!" Immediately she started to fade away.

"Silverkit! Don't go! I don't have any cat to talk to." Minnowkit flopped onto the ground.

"Oooh! Tinykit is talking to himself now!" Fallowkit laughed from behind him. "Was a crazy kit! You're 3 moons old, stop talking to yourself."

"Yeah, come on, tom up!" Minkkit chimed in. The siblings walked away.

Minnowkit lowered his head, whimpering. He smelled Silverkit beside him and felt her presence but she wasn't there.

"Never feel alone, Minnowkit, I'm always here." Her soft voice rang out and then faded away as the wind did.

Silverkit was giving him strength! He trotted proudly, his chest puffed out. He went to the nursery and curled up, the taunts from the other kits, rolling off his pelt like water.