Two Warriors

(Time for a long and juicy post... :D)


Pearl woke up, the sun shining in her eyes. She blinked and yawned, then looked beside her. There lay her ornate china bowl with the usual cat food: tasteless, brown pellets. She was starting to get bored of it. She chewed on some and then drank from the bowl of milk beside the cat food. Then she bounded out of the house into the backyard.

The warm rays to sunlight felt good against her fur. She purred and lay down in the grass. The fresh smell of wild grass soothed her. She look beyond the fence, into the forest. She had never been there before. But she had an urge to go now. 

She looked back at her house. The quaint, small house had been her home since she was a kitten. Her owner adored her, and she wondered how she would cope without her favorite cat. Maybe she could go into the forest for a walk and come back for lunch, she thought. Yes, it was a great idea.

She bunched up her leg muscles and jumped, releasing all the energy. She landed squarely on the top of the fence. It felt good. She hopped off the fence into the forest. The soft earth felt good under her feet, and the breeze felt nice. She could hear warblers singing and nightingales floating through the trees. Then she got carried away.

She suddenly realized she was lost. Her heart sunk. Now what could she do? The sun was starting to set. Had she been walking for so long? She panicked.

"Ok. Pearl, THINK."

She concentrated on her situation. She was out in the forest, she had no idea where she was, the sun was starting to set, and her owner would be looking for her. She felt lost. NO ideas came up in her mind. She tried retracing her footsteps, but it proved unuseful.

It was nighttime. She was still lost. She lay down and sobbed.

"Grr........."

Pearl instantly jumped up. She looked around frantically.

"W-who's there?" Pearl shouted, trying to sound confident.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a creature pounced out of the bush towards her.

"Who are you?" growled a demanding voice.

"L-let me go! I didn't do anything!"

The creature let her go. Pearl took a closer look. A cat!

"Where am I?"

"You're in the forest. What are you doing out here anyways?"

"Well, I just wanted to see the forest, but I kinda got carried away..."

"It's not safe out here. Come with me."

Pearl followed the mysterious she-cat, till they arrived at a hollowed out tree trunk.

"It's the closest to a home I have. You'll have to cope. Here, have a mouse."

Pearl stared at the mouse. She had never tasted freshkill before. She took a bite.

"It's delicious! I've never tried it before!"

"Yes, I haven't either until a few days ago. I got lost in the forest like you did. Didn't take me a long time to figure out that it isn't safe out here fore a housecat. You'll have to be strong and aggressive, to scare off predators, you know."

"Oh..."

"PEARL! WAKE UP!"

Pearl snapped out of her sleep immediately.

"A fox just found us. RUN!"

Without a word, Pearl and the she-cat dashed out of the log and ran away. The fox pursued, seeming to never lose strength. It got closer and closer, then grabbed hold of the she cat. Pearl screamed.

"Get up that tree!" the she cat yelled.

Pearl did as she was told and bounded up the tree. She was amazed at how she actually knew how to climb a tree. She never had before, unless a Christmas tree counts. The she-cat tried her best at fighting off the fox, but it was no help. The fox cornered her against the tree. All hope seemed lost when a cat burst out of the bushes. He quickly battered away the fox, and it fled, never to be seen again.

Pearl stared at the tomcat.

"Thanks!"

"You're welcome. It's my job."

"What job?"

"I'm a warrior. My name's Bluemoon."

"Oh... I'm Pearl."

"And I'm Diamond." The other she cat said. "We're both lost."
Bluemoon promptly replied. "Maybe you could join our clan! Its wonderful. Come take a look!"

The three of them bounded off to camp.

Moonstar stood atop the Great Boulder once more, pelt shining in the lazy afternoon sun, watching her clanmates frolic happily. "Cats of HawkClan!" she called, gray eyes shining with great pride of her clan. "I have another good announcement to make. Today, we welcome two new warriors, found by Bluemoon in the forest." Of course, the leader of the clan wouldn't point out the fact that the two cats were lost. Being former kittypets was already embarrassing enough.

"Diamond and Pearl, please step forward to receive your warrior names and become full members of HawkClan." When the two she-cats silently padded forward, the black and white leader continued. "Pearl and Diamond, do you promise to serve the clan as best as you can, and to be loyal until the last moment of your life?"

"Yes," replied the two cats, eyes determined and solemn at the same time.

"Then by the powers of both StarClan and DreamClan, I give you your warrior names. Pearl, from this moment on you will be known as Pearlheart, because though you used to be a kittypet, your heart has proven to be loyal to HawkClan. And Diamond, you will be known as Diamondsky, because even though you were with twolegs for some time, your loyalty to HawkClan is as clear as the blue sky." Moonstar acknoleged the sky above the clan as she spoke. "That is all! Let us all praise these two new warriors, and hope that they will remain loyal for may more seasons to come!"

The clan, especially Bluemoon, raised their voices, yowling to the sky. "Pearlheart! Diamondsky! Pearlheart! Diamondsky!"