Find your way back to me (B-Claw)

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Barley saw a flicker of something in Okkurein's eyes, but the she-cat just bowed her head slightly.

"I once knew Chaos... and your father, a little. But she was... less than happy to have a kit like me." Okkurein murmured, a sad look on her face. Then she shook herself and smiled.

"But the past will be the past. I'm surprised you remember so much, Barley."

"I don't know why but I always remember things easily." He yawned.

"Oh." Okkurein murmured thoughtfully.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Ivy nodded.
"Chaos was your mother, hmmm? How did you know our father?" She wondered if maybe they shared a father. That would've been strange, but maybe somewhat cool. Ivy was already beginning to like the she-cat more and more, and this strange Okurrein knew things they didn't. Things about themselves, even.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Okkurein closed her eyes and sighed.

"Your father was my mother's brother. He was very close to her, though I'm not at all surprised she would treat his kits as she treated you. Even being one of her kits didn't stop her from throwing me aside." She meowed bitterly. Then she flicked her tail, seemingly forgetting for the moment the tragedies of her past.

"Anyway, how much have your parents told you of the Salinka? The Chosen?" She asked curiously. Barley stared at her blankly then looked at Ivy and shrugged, bewildered.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Ivy shrugged and looked at her cousin, her blind stare never faltering.
"I haven't the faintest idea of what you just said, Okurrein." She said with a soft, friendly smile. What did she mean by these 'Salinka'?

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

"Ah." Okkurein sighed. Barley noticed she seemed somewhat thoughtful. I wonder what these Chosen are, anyway? Maybe that's why we're different. He thought, the fur along his arm where the scratch had healed tingling a little.

"Salinka means Chosen in some translations... it's in an ancient tongue of our kind, DesertClanners and others that lived there. Less DesertClanners, because they were more like parasites to the land really, according to my... mother." Okkurein meowed softly, frowning a little at the end.

"We are all Chosen because of our marks. There are others. Four others. We all have marks like the one on my shoulder, on your flank, and on Ivy's forehead. And abilites that set us apart. Our destinies are intertwined... we are to rid these forests of the terrors of DesertClan, once and for all. They have come far, but so have we." She meowed firmly. Barley watched her with wide eyes, wondering what exactly she was talking about. What did they have to do with old cats from other places? He had no idea.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Ivy nodded and sighed. That was impressive lot.
"So we are special then?" She had always known, but didn't know how. Apparently she was related to an ancient Clan of murderers. Great.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Okkurein nodded.

"Oh, yes, very special. We all have different abilities than no other cat does." She lifted her paw and suddenly it seemed to melt away, revealing everything but where her paw had gone. Then it reappeared and she nodded solemnly.

"So why are we supposed to take care of this Clan or whatever?" Barley asked.

"To right past wrongs." Okkurein replied softly.

"What wrongs?" Barley persisted. Okkurein sighed.

"It's a long and somewhat tragic tale..." She said.

"We want to hear it, right Ivy?" He insisted.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Ivy sighed, nodding. The story might help her fully understand all this. But how could a blind she-cat who was unnaturally small as it was, save the forest? She could scarcely walk out of the woods without being tripped up over strange things. It wasn't fair! But she wouldn't have it any other way, she knew.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Okkurein sighed and nodded.

"A couple generations ago there lived a cat named Hauntsoul. He was a Warrior of one of the four Clans that lived far from here, in a very different and strange land. The Clans were PrairieClan, HillClan, GrassClan, and BoulderClan. Hauntsoul was a PrairieClanner, the brother of a mighty cat named Talonstrike, who was destined, they said, to become leader of the Clan. He was a brave and skilled cat, and Hauntsoul was very jealous of him, no matter how much he loved his brother. Talonstrike was made deputy, and when their leader, Emeraldsun, died, he was prepared to go and recieve his new name. Before he left, he appointed his brother, Hauntsoul, as his deputy. But a strange darkness lurked in Hauntsoul's heart. He followed his brother and killed him before he could recieve his nine lines. The tom went to his Clan and said rouges attacked his brother, and so he became leader. SunClan, their ancestors, did not want to gant him his lives. But vicious, ambitious cats of old granted him power, and he became the tyrant leader of PrairieClan, Hauntsun. He began the Great War that ended in the collapse of all four Clans. But his brother's kits would not be silenced. They grew to know the dark heart of their uncle, and when his sister vanished, the Warrior son of Talonstrike, Tigerfang, called upon the Clan to rally together and fight Hauntsun. They managed to banish him along with his few followers and mate, the kind she-cat whose heart he had stolen, Gentlewind. They formed the dark Clan, DesertClan, in hopes of reigning over the already war-bound forest. BoulderClan and HillClan versus PrairieClan and GrassClan... the fights seemed never to end, even when the strong-willed Tigersun became leader. Hauntsun's mate soon had kits, though... and he was outraged when she told him that he was only one of the fathers. He was a black cat and she a ginger, so the two tabbies of the litter were given to another she-cat to raise, never looked on again by their mother or her mate. One of these was my mother, Chaos, and the other your father, Renegade." Okkurein meowed solemnly.

"Our father?" Barley asked, his eyes wide. Okkurein nodded.

"Yes. The only one in the litter still accepted was young Gaara, who shared a strange bloodline that had been somewhat of a myth in PrairieClan, but which Hauntsun insisted was real. He raised his son as a killer, and many other kits. DesertClan soon brought terror upon the forest, and wiped out what remained of the blood-drenched Clans. They scattered, leaving DesertClan victorious. But two of their own kits destroyed them all, starting with the father who rejected them. Chaos, Renegade, and Gaara are the only living direct descendants of DesertClan. But only one of these cats carries the hatred and lust of her true father, Hauntsun, in her heart..." Okkurein said sadly.

"So we must kill Chaos? But why us? Where did this prophecy come from?" Barley asked.

"SunClan was not happy at all about Hauntsun, of course. They sent all the Clans and DesertClan, as well, signs and finally a clear prophecy; 'seven will come, the Salinka who will be like no other cats, and they will put an end to the terror of Hauntsun.' Or something like that but much more confusing. Anyway, the Clan reacted very badly to this news, watching for the marks that the Healers had seen in their visions. But none came. Not until now." She mewed.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Ivy smiled and sighed.
"Sounds like a kitten-tale, but I know it to be true. We are unlike the others. And there is a she-cat named Millie, a kittypet, whom I met a few moons ago. She was very nice. She helped me on my way. She was the daughter of Birdie, Gaara's current mate." Ivy said with a sigh. It was all true. She was to save the Clans. Or, rather, destroy them. She was never one for violence, but her life was plotted out for it and she had no control. With a sigh, she turned her blind blue gaze to Okurrein.
"What do we do?"

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Okkurein closed her eyes and let out a soft sigh.

"Therein lies the problem. As I stated before, there are seven of us total, but only three of us here. We must find the other four. I know for a fact they're born already, but... I just don't know where they are. Chances are they must be somehow related to Hauntsun, so my guess is that we are looking for Renegade and Chaos's brother... Gaara." She meowed softly, a bit of fear tinging her eyes. She had heard the horrible, horrible tales of him. She had no idea what madness had driven this Birdie to become his mate, but she was sure of one thing; he would kill those kits as soon as look at them if he knew the truth. They had to find them.

"Do you have any idea where this Millie might be? Or better yet, Gaara and his mate?" Okkurein asked, fixing her sad blue eyes on the young she-cat, Ivy.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Ivy nodded.
"I can find Millie, or maybe one of her siblings." She said with a soft sigh, her blue eyes twinkling with determination. It'd be hard, that would be sure, and Ivy wasn't sure if she could really save the forest. But she had to try.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Okkurein nodded.

"Good. Then let us be off, there's... no time to waste." She meowed, sending one glance over her shoulder and then turning and nodding once more. Barley thought she looked preoccupied somehow, but her presence was already so soffucating he was glad that she wasn't all there. She was a daunting cat, with bold stripes and a pair of eyes that, though somewhat pleading, had a sort of fierce expression in them that demanded - at least for him - respect. He knew somehow, by some unknown instinct, that she was to be the leader of the Seven, at least for now.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Ivy nodded and turned, padding quickly for her lack of vision. Eventually she reached the land of the unfamiliar Twolegs, slowing down and scenting the air carefully. Suddenly, she picked up some sort of rogue or ex-kittypet's scent and frowned. Maybe the kittypet could be of help. Ivy smiled and spoke out, trying to pinpoint where the cat was.
"Excuse me, could you help us?" Ivy asked with a smile. The cat stood and shook herself, looking at the group. She stood and stretched, a few kits whining as she moved out of her little shelter and smiled at the cats.
"Names Hattie. How can I help?"

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Barley bounced along excitedly and looked at the kittypet with curious green eyes.

"You can tell us where to find either Millie or a cat named Birdie, please!" He squeeked, smiling widely. Okkurein eyed him but said nothing.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Hattie hissed darkly.
"Yes, I know where Millie is. But why you would want to find such a dark villain as Birdie I wouldn't know." She said with a bit of spite in her words.

-

Across the twoleg territory a happy mother named Birdie was slowly stretching and arising to get to work. Her kits were now six moons old and she was eager to start teaching them how to hunt and survive on their own.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

"It's really quite urgent that we find... a close friend of Birdie's. But if her whereabouts are unknown to you, Millie will do just fine, if you please." Okkurein said politely. Barley was always somewhat put off by her fine ways of saying things. She seemed intelligent. He liked that, but it made him feel he had to work harder to curb his own kittish energy and think more, like his admirable cousin.

______________________________________________________________________

Essence sat with her feathery tail curled over her forepaws, her strange speckled blue eyes staring off into space. Her body seemed to sag for a moment, and then her tail tip twitched and her ear moved slightly. Presence returned to her gaze and she turned to her mother.

"Will father be home soon? Or shall we begin without him?" She inquired. Out of all her siblings, her speech was naturally the most fluent. She had had plenty of time to learn in her months of searching her parent's memories, craddling those stones of the past to her and learning their secrets. What dark secrets they were, too. Essence had little knowledge outside the small world she'd been born into, and the smaller still worlds her parents had been forced into. She could sense many different things to see, many different paths that had been taken. She had met few cats in her short six moons of life. She hoped to meet many more, and share their memories, their thoughts, their feelings.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

Hattie shook her head and looked sadly up at the strange she-cat.
"I pride myself on not knowing Birdie's whereabouts." A soft mewling came from inside her small den, which was strange indeed. Inside a large green twoleg bin, known to said twolegs as a recycling bin, she made her home. It had once been a great source of recycling old newspapers, but had since been forgotten in the corner of an alley. Inside it was lined in the soft white newspapers, and Hattie lived there with her litter of kittens. She sighed and shook her head.
"Millie went out hunting. She'll be back soon. Why not come in for a minute?"

---

Birdie smiled sadly, her gaze focussed lamely out into the distance as it was lost in thought. She had never liked Essence, and had strived to find herself as far away from her daughter as possible. She felt invaded by her daughter's presence, and didn't like it one bit. She turned to look at her favorite child, Fell, and felt a little better. His darker heart reminded her of her old love and she was certain he was special.
"We could start now if you like." She said absently.

[.:-Aikoa-:.]

Okkurein nodded. Barley turned to the bin where kits were mewling. Her kits if my suspicions are correct. He thought. He sat down and licked his paw, beginning to groom his fur while waiting. Okkurein turned slightly, and the sunlight caught on her golden fur. She had grown while in RiverClan - probably on her diet of fresh fish - and her legs were longer, her body lean still but thick and more broad-shouldered, as her father. She still was undersized, but that was one trait she had aquired from her mother.

_________________________________________________

Essence was well aware of her mother's thoughts. She knew she was unliked, and she was quite sure of why. The young she-cat stood, her restless energy boiling up inside of her. She'd only been taught a few things by her father, but little did he know the many lessons that thrived in his head when he thought of them, thought of all the things he would teach them... He's already taught me all I need to know. She thought, sliding forward in a crouch and prowling forward so smoothly, one would think she'd been practicing for her whole lifetime, instead of just taking what she had seen from her father's memories.

[Spottedleaf ~Dapps]

[[Ummm, she's got six kits.]]