Treacherous Skies

Chapter 8

Whispersong padded through the long grass, careful not to step on the new growth of cactus. They were now in the prairie that she, Echoheart, Eveningstar, and Copperleaf had passed through on the way to the Moonfall. The wind blew in the long blades off the dry grassland, while the stars shone weakly from above as the gray light of dawn lit up the sky. The three cats had left DayClan territory just past moonhigh, and now they were nearing Star Mountain, the sacred rocky mountain where the Moonfall cave lay.

Whispersong looked up at the lightening sky. Vultures soared on the wind, circling the prairie from above, looking for their next meal.

Every now and then, Bumblefrost would warn them about hawks and eagles coming, saying that DayClan had seen cats carried away by the vicious creatures, or torn apart by their sharp talons. Every time they heard the loud, ear-splitting cry of the large birds, they'd take shelter underneath a bush, hoping the eagles wouldn't spot them.

Whispersong walked just behind Echoheart. After leaving DayClan territory, Echoheart had insisted she take the lead, shoving Bumblefrost out of the way.

Whispersong's fur brushed Bumblefrost's as they headed over a hill, the grass swaying in the warm breeze, looking like waves on a large lake.

"I'm so hungry!" she heard Echoheart call from up ahead.

Whispersong nodded. Their traveling herbs had worn off, and Bumblefrost had had it worst since he hadn't had any herbs before leaving.

"Let's stop and hunt," Bumblefrost suggested, and Echoheart turned around and glared at him. Bumblefrost flattened his ears.

"Oh, come on, Echoheart! You were just about to suggest it yourself! Don't deny it; you just said you were hungry," Whispersong meowed impatiently.

Echoheart looked like she was about to protest, then sighed. "You're right," she meowed, the breeze ruffling her gray tabby fur, glowing in the strengthening sunlight. "Let's hunt."

Whispersong sighed in relief. She nudged Bumblefrost. "Want to hunt together?" Then she saw her sister, staring at her with annoyance in her eyes. Why does she have to make it so hard? I hunt with her all the time at home!  "You can hunt with us too," she meowed awkwardly.

Echoheart narrowed her eyes. "No, I'd rather hunt alone." Then she whipped around and disappeared behind a small ravine full of sage bushes.

Whispersong sighed, then turned around, hearing Bumblefrost behind her. She sniffed the air, and suddenly picked up the scent up rabbit. She spotted it hopping along a patch of daisies and sunflowers, nibbling on the plants. Whispersong bolted after it, claws tearing through the grass. She pounced, but it was too fast, and she missed it.

But before it could hide underneath a bush, Bumblefrost burst from the side, chasing it away from the hideout. He sprinted after it, and Whispersong's eyes widened. He leapt, and soon he was on top of it, killing it with a quick bite to the neck. He grabbed it in his mouth, his flanks heaving, and carried it over to Whispersong.

"Wow!" Whispersong exclaimed. "I forgot how fast DayClan cats are!"

"Yeah," he panted with a smile. He dropped the large, dusky brown rabbit at Whispersong's paws. "Let's share it," he suggested.

"Okay," Whispersong purred. Bumblefrost took the first bite, then he pushed it towards Whispersong with a large black paw. Whispersong bent down and took a large bite of the rabbit. It didn't have the woodland taste with it, like the rabbits in the forest back home, but the taste of the open air and endless fields of grass. "It's delicious," she purred.

Once they'd finished their meal, Whispersong washed her ears, and Bumblefrost was licking his paws.

"There you are!"