Warriors: Silent

37

      "Where have you been?" Buckheart demanded upon Frostcloud and Smudge entering the barn. Outside, the world was sharp with dark cold. The sun had set a short time ago, bringing all of its warmth with it. Finishing the walk back, Frostcloud could already feel the frost stiffening the grass and see her breath fog.

  Frostcloud blinked in surprise at his hostile tone. Buckheart stared at the she-cat hard, "We thought you'd been killed by a coyote- or- or some other dangerous thing." His eyes darted to Smudge, who seemed irritated by Buckheart's small lecture.

  "We're fine." He said simply, padding past Buckheart and deeper into the barn, "Hello, Kenny. How's your old paw doing?"

  "We were just out." Frostcloud said to Buckheart, her voice feigning a calm expression. Though her green eyes refused to meet his orange scowl, "You shouldn't get so worried. We're not kits, you know, we can take care of ourselves- we know how to fight."

  Frostcloud started to walk past Buckheart, but he stopped her with his tail, "I know you can," He said more softly, "but a bad decision can ruin a cat."

  Frostcloud pushed past the tom, fighting back the roll in her eyes. He makes it sound like I'm mouse-brained enough to chase a lizard into a fox's den!

  Strolling deeper into the barn and Frostcloud could already feel the warmth sink into her pelt. Duskpaw, she noticed, already slept in a ball near the stacks of hay. She watched him for a moment, feeling some form of pride well inside her. The apprentice must be exhausted from all the travel, and all the training he had today.

  "Frostcloud!" Smudge called from where he sat next to Kenny. She pricked her ears and all but bounded to the lean black-and-white tom.

  "Where's Bailey, Bella, and Tarmac?" Frostcloud asked when she spotted Tequila stalking towards the cats with a mouse in her jaws.

  "They're trying to teach Bailey how to hunt." Kenny explained, "They're behind the barn with a few injured mice."

  Frostcloud almost flinched. Was that okay? Prey should only be hunted to be eaten... injuring a mouse to teach a cat to hunt seemed cruel.

  But it must have been hard for these plump barncats to see their friend in such a scrawny shape, she realized. If Bailey was hungry, she should know how to hunt. It had to be difficult to teach a disabled cat such a tricky task. "It must be hard without claws." She said.

  Kenny nodded, "Let's hope she doesn't get lost again. Not all cats would be so kind to her." He said, turning his soft gaze to the Pinecats and dipping his head.

  "How did she get lost?" Buckheart asked as he approached the cluster of felines.

  Tequila looked up from her mouse with a sad shake in her head. "She lives in the house- with the humans. They protect her, but she enjoys being outdoors. So, one night she stayed out with us, which she does on occasion, and was out wandering."

  She glanced at Kenny, who nodded his heavy head and continued the story, "We were attacked by a pack of coyotes after the humans brought the dogs inside. They got a few hens that slept outside their coup, and a few of the mangy things came for us. Bailey got scared and ran away down the road- we couldn't go after her or we'd be killed."

  "One of the humans heard the coyotes and came out with their gun. It shot one of the two going after her- and the other ran off- but she kept going. She must have gotten lost by the time she realized they were gone."

  "The human shot it with a gun?" Buckheart asked, the words rolling off his tongue awkwardly.

  The barncats looked at each other, "Those loud sticks." Smudge explained.