The snow had stopped completely and the sky was blue again when Raven woke up the next day. Seeing the nice weather made her optimistic and she set out in search for prey. Raven wasn't surprised to find that there was still no overwhelming scent of prey but she sniffed around a little more until she found the stale scent of a rabbit. Her eyes flared with hope and she tracked the trail as best she could. Finally she rounded a bend and saw the thin creature nibbling on some twigs. Raven unsheathed her claws and stalked it carefully, coming from behind so her black fur wouldn't stand out to the rabbit's eyes.
Suddenly the rabbit stood up an pricked it's ears, before taking off. Raven yowled in surprise as it kicked snow into her face, but gave chase. The snow was thicker and more crisp here, preventing Raven from sinking down. The rabbit was still lighter though, and scurried towards a tumble of rocks. Only two fox-lengths away from shelter Raven made a tremendous leap and swiped at the rabbit's haunches. It stumbled and fell, rolling over in the snow.
Raven was upon it in a heartbeat; quickly killing it and dragging it to shelter. She glanced up at the sky, half-afraid another eagle would come down a grab her. But the sky remained clear and blue, the sun shining on the snow and making it glitter. Raven settled down on the cool surface of a flat rock and looked down at her prey. But it looked even more meager now that it was limp and life-less, not very appetizing.
I need the food. She reminded herself. Her belly rumbled in agreement, and Raven took a bite. Soon she was wolfing it down and licking the bones clean for any scraps of meat. Briefly she wondered whether to crack the bone and get to the bone marrow for extra energy, but had she really sunk that low?
No! I'm not that desperate yet. She decided, and scuffed some snow over the remains. After eating, Raven immediately felt more awake and put on a brisker pace. She was reaching higher up, and could see the peak now. There was still a good two or three days walking left, but she was getting there.
Suddenly the question that had been nagging her since the beginning erupted into her mind.
What do I expect to find there?
Raven honestly had no idea. All she knew was that for some reason she had to get to the top and face whatever enemy was waiting for her. She stopped and looked up again, studying it for any signs of life.
Nothing, as far as Raven could tell.
With a small sigh she continued to trek through the cold snow and took only small rests until evening came and her belly clenched with hunger yet again.
"It was nice when it lasted." Raven meowed to herself and shook off some snow. The sky was still clear, so Raven leaped onto a flat rock to try and sleep there. The point was to be able to watch the stars while she fell asleep, but the wind still blew harshly and pierced her fur. With an exhausted grunt she hauled herself to her paws and went to sleep closer to the mountain wall. She squeezed in between the very side of the mountain and another rock.
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Raven leaped high into the air and clasped her paws on the reddish-brown leaf. Landing neatly on her paws she pinned down the leaf and tore it apart with her claws. Behind her Amber walked to her side with an amused purr.
"Hunting leaves again I see?" he teases her. Raven flicks his muzzle with her tail tip.
"Better than anything you've got so far!" she purrs back. Amber snorts and starts to walk again.
"You'd be the one to know." he retorts. Raven tilts her head a little and watches him. His long, plumed tail brushes the leaf-littered ground slightly and the fur on the tips of his ears were spiking to every possible angle. Raven purred at the sigh of what had now become her most trusted friend, and raced to catch up. They walked side-by-side through the forest whilst colorful, leaf-fall leaves drifted down like soft rain.
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Raven blinked her eyes open, the echoes of her dream still ringing in her head. She remembered that day, one of those where she felt like the journey would last forever and Amber would always be with her. But why had her dream brought back this memory right now?
The lithe she-cat suddenly felt something warm brush against her chest, and she glanced down to see her raven-claw necklace glowing and vibrating slightly.
Of course! The claw must have picked up the moment and saved it as a memory, and now for some reason unleashed it.
Raven shook her head in wonder and confusion, then decided she might as well get moving. She squeezed back out from her make-shift den and looked around. Thankfully, the sky was still clear and showed no promise of more snow. Relieved she trotted away along the mountain wall until she found a spot where she could climb up to the next plateau. Her shoulders ached much less now, and she could climb the tumble of ice, rock and snow more or less pain-free.
Dragging herself over the top Raven looked around. Up here there seemed to be a little less snow, probably because it was up above the clouds. There were even bushes with some bright berries coloring them. Raven approached them curiously and gave them a sniff. As expected, they didn't smell much. Very carefully she picked on with her claws and crushed it on a rock. When she scented them this time they smelled sweet and juicy, like blueberries, but she wal still reluctant to eat them without knowing whether they were poisonous or not.
"They aren't deadly or anything, I've tried." a mew sounded behind her. Raven spun around and hissed in annoyance.
"Amber! What are you doing here?" she growled, lashing her tail once. The large tom padded closer until he was up close.
"I couldn't just leave you to fend for yourself, especially not with injuries." he meowed and glanced at her shoulders. She straightened up and looked him in the eye.
"Well as you see, I am managing fine." she snapped. "So thank you for caring, but I don't need your help." Spinning around she stalked up to one bush and bit off some berries, chewing them experimentally.
They taste pretty good... She admitted to herself and fetched some more. Amber remained where he was buy looked at her.
"Now? What did you think?" he asked almost eagerly, like a kit showing off something he had just made. For some reason this irritated Raven even more.
"Nothing." she replied. "I don't really care right now, as long as they keep me alive."
Amber sighed and shuffled his paws. After a long silence he looked up at her again. Raven looked away hurriedly and blushed a little, since she had been looking at him this whole time.
"What do I need to do to have you take me back?" he asked quietly.
The question caught Raven completely unaware, and she jerked her head up in surprise.
"What?" she stuttered.
"You heard me." he meowed. "What do I have to do for you to accept my apology?"
Raven closed her open jaws and thought for a while before answering.
"I don't know..." she murmured. "I honestly don't know."
It was a honest answer but not exactly very revealing. Amber walked hesitantly over to her but when the black she-cat didn't object he sat down next to her. Raven looked up at the sky as if the answer was written there. Amber said nothing more, just sat there and waited. After a very long silence Raven took a deep breath and shook her head slightly. Amber understood and even though sadness glistened his eyes he stood up and walked away in complete silence.
"I'll always be watching your back." he stopped and meowed. "Perhaps when this is all over we could try again."
With that he turned and scrambled over some boulders and disappeared around the bend. Raven stood up and shook her fur. Some sort of inner peace spread through her, and she knew she had made the right decision. She had let him go, could not completely forgive, could not exactly forget. Raven raised her head to the sky and focused on the mountain top. Then she marched on towards her goal, towards the end.
