Blood Red

Escape

Redford just couldn't take it anymore. It has been moons, and he had slowly come to realise that that he was not just being treated like an outcast by his siblings, but also by other cats of the clan. The looks that the other cats gave him, he thought were warm and friendly, now felt cold and penetrating. The only ones that looked at him normally were his mother and leader, but that was normal, as a leader has to be equal to all cats. He just felt like he did not belong here. So that night, he decided to run. Escape. Be free. Live alone, no one to tease him and discriminate him.

Luckily, the moon was covered with clouds. Redford crept out of the nursery, and looked at his clan one more time. The box-pile, the little area where him and his sibling used to play, the prey-pile, and everything else. Then, by squeezing through the dirtplace tunnel, he exited the camp. He did not look back.

It was the first time that he was out of the camp. He trotted through unfamiliar alleys with familiar scents of the cats he knew, including his mother, Blizzard. He took that thought out of his brain, and continued on. He walked for a few more hours, and at the break of dawn, he was exhausted, and decided to curl up in a crate and sleep.

Redford woke up. He crawled out of the crate and looked at the sun, it was midday. He blinked sleepily, and decided to walk on, trying to get as far as possible, but suddenly, stopped when he heard his belly grumble. Ugh, why did I even leave the camp? I could have tolerated the clan cats a little more before I left... I could've learnt how to hunt at least. He growled in frustration, but despite the hunger, he continued on.

After another day of traveling, Redford was just too exhausted and hungry to keep going. Right in the middle of taking another step, his legs gave way and he collapsed, not able to get up again. He willed his body to obey him and get up, but it just won't listen, and he had no choice but to fade into unconciousness.