Born Wild

Chapter 10

Snowflake padded out of the den, enjoying the morning breeze as it brushed past her, circling the moor. She drew in a deep breath, allowing herself to forget her stressful role as a spy for a couple of heartbeats. It had been almost a moon by now and there were still no clear details of when Briar, Holly and Skye might launch the attack - or whatever they were planning on doing.

As if on cue, her joy was almost immediately interrupted by no one other than Holly, coming towards her at an alarming pace. She seemed eager about something, but there was nothing about her that gave away whatever that 'something' was.

She brushed past Snowflake, whispering something in her ear as she went by. "Meet us by the fallen tree at sunhigh." she mewed, before going inside the den and leaving Snowflake alone. The white cat froze. Sunhigh... She looked at the sky. The sun was halfway there. She ran. I have to tell them!

Drizzle sighed, already tired of the argument she was currently having. "No, Leaf, I already told you. It won't work. You can't fool them that easily. They're not stupid, you know."

Her fellow leader seemed just as annoyed as she felt. "Then what do you rather we did?" he challenged. "Do you think we're more likely to succeed by not doing anything?"

"There's nothing we can do just yet!" she hissed. "Not until Snowflake has enough information. We'll take them down, but we can't just make useless preparations until she finally figures out when they'll attack."

"And what if she doesn't? What if she isn't able to figure it out in time? Do you really think we'd be having such a hard time dealing with Briar if she were so easy to fool?"

"Says the one who suggested doing just that a few moments ago," she retorted with a snort.

He ignored her, looking at the den's roof as if it held all the answers. "Fox dung," he cursed under his breath, somehow loudly enough for Drizzle to hear. "We've played our best option at the wrong time and wasted it. We wagered on the losing side. We're done for." He cursed again. "I knew we shouldn't have put all of our chances into Snowflake. I can't believe we're doing this!"

"Snowflake's trying, Leaf!" Drizzle snapped furiously. "She's doing her best, risking her pelt out there while we hide in here like fearful little mice! What are you doing? You never do anything but complain! Do you rather you went spying instead? "I'm sure you'd trick them all into giving you all the details of their evil plans!"

"Trying won't save our tails!" Lead roared, dangerously loud. "It's either succeed or fail. And if she's not capable of succeeding, we're all doomed!"

"Umm... Drizzle?" came a mew from the entrance as white pelt brushed past, coming inside.

"Snowflake!" she exclaimed, taken aback. Mouse dung, she swore. Why did she have to come in just now? What's with this timing? "Come in!"

If the new-comer had overheard Leaf complain about her, she showed no sign of it. "There's something really important I have to tell you both!"

"Do you have an update on the Briar-Holly-Skye thing?" she asked, shooting Leaf a meaningful look of great smugness. The tom scoffed, looking away wordlessly.

"Yeah," Snowflake answered. "Holly asked me to meet them today. She said I have to come to the fallen tree at sunhigh so that they can tell me something."

Drizzle froze. "The fallen tree?"

"Yeah," the spy responded. "The one just a short way from here, near that abandoned upwalker place you said you came from. Why?"

"Nothing," she mewed, though it obviously wasn't nothing. The she-cat began shaking as images flashed through her head. A gathering of cats, all having ruffled pelts and reeking of fear. A young reddish-brown tom, bravely speaking to the group despite the uncertainty shining in his own amber eyes. A falling tree. Chaos. A dead body beneath the swirl of branches. She could barely hear the awkward shuffling of paws just beside her anymore, the blood roaring in her ears like a lion gone mad deafening her. She stood there like that for a few moments, until someone broke the silence.