CHASE

Chapter 34

Dare Chase say it, but she was feeling content living in new home among the foxes. Every fox was so friendly and treated her with more respect than she felt her family ever had. 

When Chase had first left home, she had wondered if it had been wise to do so. She had felt so lonely before she had met Rock and the others. But now, she was beginning to feel at peace again. She could see herself living here for a while. Those early thoughts of returning home when she had first arrived were long gone.

Chase awoke early one morning, watching the sun begin to shine over the snowy hills. The days were getting a little warmer, but she knew that spring was still a little farther off. She couldn't wait for the day when the snow melted, however. She was getting tired of her cold paws.

"Morning, Chase," Rock greeted her. He was exiting his den at the same time. His was across from hers, so they had a direct view into each other's dens.

"Good morning," she said, smiling at him. She was still getting to know some of the other foxes, but most of her time she spent with Rock. He was the most knowledgeable about the forest anyway and happy to show her around. Plus, he was a better hunter than she expected. He somehow always managed to find at least one piece of prey during the cold, winter day.

"Hungry?" Rock asked.

Chase nodded.

"Why don't we go hunting together?" he asked.

"Sure," she replied before following him deeper into the woods. Her eyes lingered to where the SnowClan border lay in the distance. Her visits had been getting briefer and briefer.

At first, she had strayed from watching the cats because of the possible embarrassment she might face if Rock or one of the other foxes caught her, but then, she realized that she sometimes felt more content staying away. Every time Chase did see a cat, she was reminded of its beauty, sure, but she was also reminded of Moonstar's bloodstained paws, that kit her father had made them kill, the scream of her sister Rush, dying from a cat attack, and so forth. 

"Everything okay?" Rock asked, noticing Chase deep in thought.

"Oh, yes. I'm fine," Chase promised him, continuing her walk in the woods. Her eyes suddenly locked on a rabbit with sleek white fur nibbling on some leaves. Chase crouched down behind some foliage and slowly approached. She hated how her pelt made her stick out in the winter, but thankfully, the brown bushes were keeping her cover for now. Still, she had to be careful of how she walked since the snow made more sound than the normal forest soil.

Chase sprang right as the rabbit turned its head. Chase's jaws wrapped around its neck in an instant, and the piece of prey suddenly hung limp. She dropped it at Rock's feet and smiled.

"Your hunting is getting better," he noticed as they began to share the prey.

"It was always good!" she yelled at him. 

Rock chuckled. "I mean in this forest, anyway. And in the winter. This is your first winter, isn't it?"

Chase nodded. She had always imagined her first winter to be watching the snowflakes with Yew and staying warm in his burrow, but looking at Rock, she realized times had changed.

"Besides the hunting, are you liking your new home as well?" Rock asked.

Chase nodded.

"That's good. I was a little worried at first, you know?"

Chase tilted her head. "Why?"

Rock chuckled. "Well, you didn't seem good with other foxes, to be honest. You were always on your own, living outside the forest, and then you told me you talked to cats. I thought maybe you had been living with cats when you said that, but it seemed a bit ridiculous."

"Don't be silly. That wouldn't be possible," Chase murmured. Perhaps when she was younger she might have thought so, but the goal had never been for the cats and foxes to share the same den space. It had just been for them to hunt together in harmony.

"Imagine if a cat lived with us. I think that'd be crazy," Rock thought, laughing to himself.

"You mean you wouldn't kill it?" Chase asked.

"Oh, I was just speaking hypothetically. If a cat were to enter our territory, we would need to drive it off back into its own. I can't imagine any circumstance a cat might live with us," Rock explained.

"Oh, of course," Chase murmured. "I do like it a lot here though," she said. "I'm not just some loner fox, you know."

"You left your family though, didn't you?" Rock asked. "Why?"

Chase glanced down at her paws. The only reason she had left had been because of Yew's death, but she didn't feel comfortable sharing that with Rock. In fact, she had not mentioned the fact she used to have a mate to any fox around here. It would seem strange anyway, her being so young.

"My family and I didn't get along," Chase explained. "It was difficult living with them, so when I got old enough, I left."

"I mean, my parents and siblings used to fight with me too, but I never left over it," Rock admitted.

"This was different. Some of them were really monsters," Chase thought, thinking of her father specifically. 

Rock cleared his throat. "Sorry to bring the mood down. I won't ask again."

"No, it's okay. Frankly, you're the only fox who seems to care I was out here alone. I don't know what I'd do if you hadn't found me," Chase said, smiling at him. "It was getting lonely living on my own."

"I'm glad," Rock said. "I was kind of hoping you'd join once I introduced you to everyone. I'd been tracking your scent for a while, which sounds kind of strange, sorry, but I've never met any fox outside my own home, so it was nice to meet one from far away."

Chase blinked in disbelief. Rock had turned his face away in embarrassment after admitting such a thing.

"Should we head back then?" Rock asked.

Chase nodded.

They walked along the thin line separating their border from SnowClan's. Chase peeked for a moment, wanting to see if any cats were nearby, but she saw nothing. She briefly considered coming back and visiting later, but she quickly tossed that thought away. For some reason, she didn't desire to come back and watch the border anytime soon.

Will Yew be upset with me for thinking this? Chase thought as she turned back toward her home with Rock.

Times were changing. Chase was beginning to understand the delicate balance of predator and prey in the forest these days. She still admired cats. She still thought there was a lot to learn about them, but she no longer felt an allegiance to the plan she had with Yew.

Right now, she thought that, maybe, she could give being a normal fox a chance for once.