Dreamcloud opened her eyes and stretched as the first rays of sunlight shined through a hole in the roof of the barn, panic surging through Dreamcloud when she realized she wasn't in her cozy moss nest in the warriors' den.
Dreamcloud spotted Apple slipping down from a big pile of straw gracefully.
"Of course I'm not in the warriors den," Dreamcloud mewed, "I'm in Apple's weird twoleg cages."
Apple padded over to a pile of prey.
"I guess that is the fresh-kill pile," Dreamcloud mewed, peering at the pile of mice, voles, and rats.
"Hi! You're up!" Apple mewed nastily, nodding to an orange she-cat and a white tom, "Coral, Drift, go guard the cats in the cages while I give them fresh-kill."
The cage door opened, and Dreamcloud felt a desperate urge to overpower the rogue cats, and then drag all of her clanmates out and run back to the camp, but Dreamcloud knew that was impossible. Sighing, Dreamcloud sat down as Apple tossed a scrawny mouse in the cage, and Coral and Drift leaned against the cage.
"So, these are the cats whose responsibilities are guarding me and my clanmates," Dreamcloud thought indignantly.
Dreamcloud lay down and found that Whitepaw was waking up. Whitepaw jumped up excitedly, straw flying everywhere, and faced Dreamcloud excitedly.
"What are we doing today, Dreamcloud?" Whitepaw asked.
"Oh yeah," Whitepaw mewed gloomily, "We are in those twoleg shiny things called gaces, right?"
"Cages," Dreamcloud corrected.
"Oh yeah, nages," Whitepaw mewed.
Dreamcloud didn't bother to correct Whitepaw this time.
"Whitepaw, you're so noisy with all of your chattering," Snowfall grumbled, "I suppose no cat can sleep with you around."
Bristlefrost yawned and sat up.
Acornfall was still snoring gently. Dreamcloud licked him gently. Acornfall stirred, and sat up.
"I'm hungry," Whitepaw complained.
"We have this mouse," Dreamcloud mewed, nodding at the tiny, brown, furry body.
"How are all five of of us going to eat that?" Whitepaw mewed, his eyes wide.
"You guys can have it," Dreamcloud mewed, ignoring the hunger that tugged at her stomach.
"Are you sure?" Acornfall asked, his eyes wide and anxious, "You look half-starved!"
"Yeah, your belly is rumbling so loud I would think a badger broke in," Whitepaw teased.
"Yes," Snowfall observed, "You look like you haven't eaten in one hundred moons."
"I'll be fine," Dreamcloud insisted, though her belly seemed to be protesting what she was mewing.
"Do you think we would let you skip eating fresh-kill that we are eating and you're not?" Bristlefrost mewed.
Dreamcloud sighed and took a small bite of the scrawny mouse. She chewed the flesh and swallowed.
Although it was only one bite of the mouse, the bloody, delicious flavor seemed to comfort her stomach like a queen comforting her or a sad kit.
Dreamcloud pushed the mouse aside.
"You can have the rest," Dreamcloud mewed.
"But it was only one bite," Whitepaw protested.
