Starlightlynxes: Stars in the Sky #1: Twilight

~Chapter 6~

"What do you mean?" Hawk queered.

"I mean exactly what I said." Starlight stated.

Hawk rolled his eyes. "I know that! But I mean, what do you mean? Who do you think it is?"

"I don't know who it is, Hawk." She affirmed. "Stop asking dumb questions."

"Okay, okay, okay."

"That makes a lot of sense." Storm announced.

"Because...?"

"How else would the wolves know exactly when two young lynxes were out on their own?" She asked.

"True." He acknowledged. "But that leaves us with the problem of asking."

"Let's go to the clearing tonight." Star suggested. "All of us. We can talk more there."

Hawk sniffed. "Okay. We seem to be going there a lot though."

"Yeah." Star purred. "But we've still got a few days until full moon. So just be patient. We'll be done sooner than you think."

What sort of 'done'?

. . .

Storm was being followed. She could feel it. She caught the scent, but didn't recognize it. "Please stop following me." There was no answer. Only the slight rustle in the bushes told Storm that there was something there. "Hello?" She called.

She heard a faint whisper.

"Hello."

The voice sent shivers through her body. "Come out." She meowed

"I can't-"

Another voice. "Come with-"

"Follow-"

"This is dark-"

"Must come-"

The voices were getting Storm overwhelmed. She started running.

"Death-"

"Love-"

"Fate has brought-"

"Tomorrow will-"

She ran blindly, then the forest changed. Mist swirled all around her, and she could feel the tension in the air. She saw a figure of a lynx. A big lynx. Bigger than most she'd ever seen.

Sharp pointed gray ears poked up from behind a bush, and when she turned to look, they were gone.

Everything got darker, and the bushes shook like mad.

She started to shiver, mostly from the cold, but she felt fear as well.The snow wasn't that deep, and her big paws were made for standing on deep snow, but before she could stop running, she started to sink.

The snow engulfed her and everything went white because all she could see was snow. Then more. She saw mountains forming in front of her, she saw a deep, long, wide river, she saw the night sky, she saw birds flying overhead, and an owl perched in a tree, eyes glowing.

Then it all disappeared. And she could feel the ground beneath her again. It was too bright for Storm to open her eyes, but yowls and shrieks of pain cut through the silence, making her ears ring. Then it fell silent for a few heartbeats except for a few voices.

She recognized her own voice. "Yes?" 'Yes' what?

Then River's. "We will find a way." River? You are alive! I will help you, and, yes, we will find a way.

Then Moonsight's. "You have fought well." Who is he talking to?

Then Starlight's. "This is not over." What isn't over?

Another voice that she didn't know answered her thought. "Sometimes you just have to wait. You'll know when something isn't over. You'll know. Trust me."

But how can I trust a voice in my head?

"You know me."

Do I though?

"Yes. Your answers will come with time. I promise."

. . .

"Hi, Star." Hawk greeted the trainee. "Where's Storm?"

"No clue." Star mumbled around the mouth full of herbs. "Now can you please move?"

"Why?"

"Clover is having her kits, and I need to get there now."

"Oh, sorry." Hawk apologized. "Can I help?"

"You can help by moving out of the way."

"Sorry." He mewed again.

"Stop apologizing!"

"Sorry!" He teased.

She mock growled and headed to the kit's den.

"I have two announcements." Moonsight yowled from the big rock. "First on is this, Clover has had three healthy kits, she and Ash have named the boy Mossy, and the two girls are Sorrel and Needle." he waited for the lynxes to finish congratulating Clover and Ash before he continued. "Me and the Elders have spoken and decided this: the second announcement is that Midnight has moved up one rank. She is now a Trainer."

Hawk looked at Midnight. She looked happy enough to start training the trainees right away.

"Congratulations, Midnight." Snow purred.

"Yes, Congrats." Pine meowed in admiration.

It seems that there will be plenty of new kits in the summer. Hawk mused. Owl has been hanging out with Frost a lot more now. He could see her talking with him right at that moment. It seems she has left her crush on Pine behind her.

"Hi Hawk." Bramble's voice sounded next to him. "Eagle wants us to go hunt in the field."

"Okay." Hawk replied. "I'll meet you there."

. . .

River sniffed at the wound on Dawn's cheek. It wasn't healing. "I think it's infected." River meowed. And that's not good. Great timing.

"I know." was all Dawn said.

River could tell that she was in pain. "I wish we had herbs."

She caught a whiff of something. She sniffed Dawn's cheek again. "Dawn!" She cried in horror. "You have a fever!"

Dawn blinked and River could see the haziness in her eyes.

"I cant have one now!" She cried. "And we don't even have any herbs! And if we did, I don't think you know which one's which!"

"No," River admitted. "I don't. But I know you will pull through. I know you will." You will. I know you will. You've got to.