The Tom smiled. "No 'thank you for saving my life' or 'You're my hero!'?"
I shook my head, embarassed. "You're right - I'm sorry, that was rude. Thank you. My name is Frost."
The Tom waved away her apology. "I'm Droplet, pleased to meet you Frost."
I nodded, content. "Do you live here?" I asked, nodding to the cream Twoleg house. Droplet shook his head.
"I live in the forest, near Wishclan."
Confused, I asked. "Who's Wishclan?" He let out a
mrrow of laughter and I glared at him.
"Wishclan is a group of wild cats who live in the forest. They live off prey - not the weird pellets you eat - and help each other with tasks like hunting and training to fight."
I cocked my head. "They sound interesting. Are they kind?"
Droplet nodded vigorously. "Very kind. They give me some prey every now and then, but I prefer to live life by myself." His last statment had answered her next question.
"Well.... What do they do all day long? Wouldn't it get.... boring?" He laughed.
"No, it never gets boring! They spend their days hunting and marking their boarders - other clans live around them -, playing in the river, telling stories, you know."
No, actually. I didn't know - thats why I was asking him!
I huffed impatiently. "Well, how far away do they live?"
He cocked his head, glancing out at the forest behind them before turning his green gaze back on her.
"Not too far, only half-a-days walk. I'll take you to them if you would like."
My eyes widened in surprise - going to visit a clan full of strange cats with a strange cat?
Hmm... Maybe it would be interesting.
"Okay." I said, before I could change my mind. He smiled.
"Lets head off then!"
___________________________________________
We had been walking for so long I could no longer feel my feet. My paws ached and my muscles strained with every step, screaming a protest for me to stop.
"How much farther?" She couldn't believe that Droplet - on his teeny little legs - wasn't tired yet.
He waved his tail. "Not much."
He'd been saying that since the first time she'd asked - which was
ages ago.
They had been trekking over the ground from sunhigh, and the sun was almost getting ready for bed now.
I hope my Twolegs won't miss me....Droplet stopped abruptly and I almost bumped into his rump, stopping myself just in time.
"What is it?" I asked, but he waved away my question with his tail.
Sighing silently, I sat down and licked my sore paw pads, but rustling in the bushes made me straighten.
Two large Toms had appeard - both grey, although one with a tabby pelt and long fur while the other had short, grey-and-white fur.
"Bluestorm, Alfie, meet Frost."