Desperate Times
A BlogClan Gathering Contest Entry

Deep in the forest, the wind was howling, rain slicing through the gaps between trees and pounding against the forest floor. Two cats struggled through the rain-sleek undergrowth, the mud tugging at their paws and weighing down their soaked pelts. When they had left their camp behind that morning, the skies had been gray, promising rain, but neither cat had expected the vicious storm that had broken out.

"Jayfrost, we should head back to camp," the red-brown she-cat called over the howling wind. She had lifted her head, trying to see her Clanmate through the thick sheets of rain.

Jayfeather gazed at her Clanmate, feeling her pelt shiver all over as her sopping-wet fur clung to her frame. "But the Clan needs to eat!" she called back, flattening her ears as the wind shrieked. "We can't go back with nothing Cakestar!

Leaf-fall had fallen on the forest some days ago, and prey was even scarcer than usual for that time of year. The leader and deputy of BlogClan had decided to go hunting that day, determined to bring as much prey back to camp as possible to boost the morale of the other cats. Their Clanmates were already struggling with having been turned into cats, and most of them were young – they needed to know that they could still survive here.

"We won't be much good to them drowned," Cakestar pointed out. "And what kind of prey would be out of their nests in a storm like this?"

Jayfrost knew she was right, but desperation was taking over. She gave a lash of her tail, pleading, "Let's try one more place, closer to the river. Maybe something will have gotten stuck in the mud there, or fish will be out." A loud CRACK of thunder tore through the air, making both cats jump. Jayfrost was shivering again, and not just from the cold. She was as scared of being out in the storm as Cakestar, but she couldn't bear the thought of coming back to camp defeated. She was supposed to be the deputy of BlogClan. How could she ask any cat to follow her lead if she couldn't provide for them?

Cakestar watched Jayfrost a few moments longer, then sighed. "Very well," she mewed. "I want to bring prey back as much as you do. But let's make it quick – the Clan will need us back."

The deputy felt both relief and fear as she fell in beside her leader, letting Cakestar lead them towards the river. They followed a gentle downward slope, struggling to see through the thick rain. Jayfrost stuck close to Cakestar, shivering and praying that she hadn't just led them to their doom.

Finally, they came upon the river. Jayfrost could barely see it through the rain, but she could see how the ground was low and even with the river here, rising up to steeper walls above the river further down the bank. The dirt and grass next to the river had been reduced to thick mud.

Suddenly, she stiffened, her gaze falling on something moving in the mud. "There!" she hissed to Cakestar. A water vole, stuck in the mud.

Jayfrost fell into a hunting crouch, her belly fur against the cold, wet mud as she drew herself closer and closer to her prey. The vole was squeaking and squealing as it tried to free itself, so distracted that it didn't even notice Jayfrost closing in on it.

And Jayfrost was too distracted by the vole to see the other animal closing in on her from the water.

As Jayfrost pounced on the vole and caught it between her teeth, something hard slammed down on her back. She was sent rolling, scrambling to get back onto her paws with the vole still hanging from her jaws. As she tried to stand, something heavy landed on her, keeping her pinned. There was a dreadful snarling in her ears. When she finally brought her head around to look up at her attacker, she found herself face-to-face with a broad, flat face, a rounded muzzle with bared fangs, and beady eyes. She took in the rounded face and small ears with surprise. An otter!

The otter bit down on her neck, making Jayfrost want to shriek in pain. But something stubborn was in her; she refused to loosen her grip on the vole, instead scoring her claws across the otter's shoulder. Jayfrost heard a furious battle cry, and the shriek of the otter as Cakestar landed on its shoulders, sinking her fangs into the back of its next. The otter reared back, roaring furiously, giving Jayfrost enough time to wriggle free. The otter thrashed and fought, finally throwing Cakestar free. The leader landed with a hard thud, and didn't stir. With a triumphant roar, the otter turned on Jayfrost, taking off at a run towards her.

Jayfrost's pelt bristled with fear. Without a second thought, she turned and ran, the otter chasing her away from Cakestar. The vole still hung in her jaws, but she was too panicked to think about dropping it. She pelted away, her paws throwing up mud and water as the fled further upstream. The walls of the riverbank were rising here above the river, and she was close to the edge.

Something sharp clamped down on her tail, making her yowl. Jayfrost whirled to face the otter, striking out hard with claws at its face. It released its grip on her tail, but quickly tackled her, sending both cats tumbling. Suddenly, the ground seemed to drop from under them. Both otter and cat were sent tumbling down the edge of the riverbank, shrieking as they landed into the raging river.

Jayfrost was slammed by a wall of water, sent tumbling end over end as the current dragged her down. Desperation and fear nearly consumed her. No! I can't die like this! Struggling to control her fear, the she-cat kicked out strongly with her paws, finally managing to break through the surface of the water. She gagged and coughed out water, gasping in lungfuls of the air. The current nearly dragged her down again, and Jayfrost had to fight to keep afloat; it was clear that if she didn't find land soon, she was going to drown.

Suddenly, she saw the otter again. It was wailing in fear, the current too strong even for it, but it was swimming more strongly than Jayfrost. After a moment, she realized that it was heading straight for a narrow stripe of land beside the steep walls of the riverbank.

Without a second thought, Jayfrost began swimming towards the otter. She was nearly dragged under again as a wave crashed over her, her limbs quickly growing weak from the effort, but she forced herself to keep going. When she was close enough to the otter, she clamped her jaws down on its thick tail. The otter growled, but didn't try to fight her off. Jayfrost let the otter drag her to the narrow shore, only releasing her grip when her paws touched dry land.

Once they had reached the narrow strip of land, the otter whirled on her, seeming ready to start the fight again, but even that much movement nearly made it trip and fall back into the water. It regained its posture, then simply stood glaring at the cat. The strip was barely wide enough for one cat to stand on comfortably, though luckily it was long enough for both. The wall of the riverbank was too steep and sleek with rain for them to climb, and the river's current was too strong for them to swim to safety; their only hope was to stay on the strip. Stuck at a stalemate, the two enemies stood glaring at each other for several moments.

Jayfrost let her hackles lie flat as she really began to think. She had no idea how long the storm was going to last, but it was clear that escape would be impossible during the storm. Cakestar was gone, and would probably be unable to find her deputy during the storm. The only thing she could do was wait here until the storm was over, and pray that the otter wouldn't try to push her into the raging river.

She finally released the grip on the vole in her jaws, letting it fall into the mud in front of her paws. "Mousebrain!" she hissed, lashing her tail. The otter gave a snarl at her tone, but didn't react otherwise. "Cakestar was right. This stupid vole isn't worth drowning."

After a moment, she glanced up at the otter, thinking. It had attacked her and tried to steal her prey, but she supposed she did owe it for dragging her to safety. And she knew from being a human that not all animals that were enemies with wild cats were inherently vicious. Maybe her best course of action was a peace offering.

She grabbed the vole between her teeth again, then tossed it lightly, so it landed in front of the otter. It blinked its beady eyes, clearly confused, glancing between the vole and the cat. "Go on, take it," Jayfrost mewed aloud. She knew the otter couldn't understand her words, but she hoped it would understand her tone was friendly. "I guess I owe you."

The otter hesitated a moment longer, then lowered itself onto its belly, grabbing the vole between its paws. As it began to eat, Jayfrost started to groom, trying to get some of the mud out of her fur. She finished some time after the otter finished eating. When she looked up again, it was gazing at her, not with the hostility from earlier, but a cautious curiosity.

Jayfrost noticed a small cut on the otter's leg – probably from the fight. "Here," she mewed, rising slowly to her paws. The otter drew back its lips to show its teeth, but didn't move to attack as Jayfrost slowly approached it. "Let me." She shivered as she got closer to the powerful animal, but forced herself to sink onto her belly right in front of it, lowering her muzzle and beginning to lick the wound. The otter paused, seeming confused, as Jayfrost began to groom its wounds.

Once Jayfrost had cleared the blood and mud from all of its wounds, she pulled back. "I wish I had some herbs," she mewed aloud, "but I'm no medicine cat. None of them look very deep, though."

The otter stared at her blankly for a few moments. Then, when Jayfrost lifted her head, it jerked its flat muzzle quickly towards her throat. Jayfrost stiffened, almost expecting to feel teeth sinking into her throat again, only to relax as she felt a tongue rasping over the wound on her neck. The otter was grooming her now, cleaning the blood and mud from the wounds that Jayfrost had been unable to reach herself. When it was done, it pulled its muzzle back, blinking at her.

Jayfrost gave a small purr. Though the storm still raged on, and the raging river threatened to sweep them away at any moment, she was beginning to feel less afraid. "Maybe we can make it through this together after all," she meowed.

SCENEBREAK

Jayfrost blinked groggily, flinching as bright sunlight hit her eyes. Her belly felt wet and cold; she wondered if rain had leaked into the warrior's den again.

Her eyes flew open in shock as the memories of last night hit her. Hunting with Cakestar, being chased by the otter, escaping the river, and finally falling asleep on the strip of land. She was close to the otter now, the other animal already awake. She could feel the otter's gaze on her, curious, but not hostile.

As Jayfrost glanced around, she quickly realized the storm was over. The sun was shining from a cloudless sky. The ground was still sleek and wet from the rain, but the river was calm again.

Jayfrost felt a fierce rush of joy. "The river's calm!" she mewed aloud, making the otter perk its small ears at her joyful tone. "We can swim out of here!"

It took a few moments, but the otter seemed to understand. They wasted no time. Together, they stepped out into the water, swimming downstream, back to where the ground was level with the river. The otter reached the bank first, turning and watching Jayfrost as she scrambled back out of the water and onto land. She gave a quick shake of her pelt, sending water droplets flying. "Thank StarClan," she breathed. "We're out."

Now that they had escaped, Jayfrost suddenly began to wonder whether the otter would consider their truce over, and would attack. But the animal was watching her calmly, seeming to wait for her to do something.

Suddenly, a memory flashed in Jayfrost's mind of Cakestar being thrown off of the otter during the fight, and not stirring again. "Cakestar!" she gasped. "I have to find her. If she's hurt, she may not have made it back to camp."

A crazy thought began to come to the she-cat. She wasn't sure if Cakestar was in the same place where she'd landed, or if she'd crawled off somewhere else to be safe. But if she wanted to find her leader, she would need all the help she could get. Quickly, Jayfrost sat, unsheathing her claws and beginning to quickly sketch something in the dirt. The otter watched curiously as Jayfrost made a not-perfect-but-close-enough sketch of Cakestar. Recognition flared in the otter's eyes, giving Jayfrost a brush of hope. Next, she mimed sniffing, with her muzzle along the ground, as though following a scent. Then, she looked at the sketch of Cakestar, then back at the otter. "Will you help me find her?" she asked aloud. She could only hope that she had made the otter understand, and that the otter would be willing to help.

The otter blinked at her for a few moments, its expression impossible to read. Then, with a lash of its thick tail and a chattering sound that Jayfrost couldn't understand, it began to lumber off, heading along the edge of the river. Jayfrost followed, hardly daring to hope.

The cat and otter worked together, sniffing along the grass and mud for any sign of Cakestar. As Jayfrost sniffed a nearby clump of ferns, the otter suddenly gave a bright chirping sound, making Jayfrost look up. It was standing near a patch of mud, which was scuffled and disturbed. Jayfrost gasped as she saw a few strands of red-brown fur in the mud. "She was here!" she meowed.

Jayfrost could barely make out a scent from the mud, but the otter seemed to know where to go, leading Jayfrost up the slope, back into the treeline. It stopped near a clump of brambles. As Jayfrost approached, she quickly realized that the brambles masked the entrance to a den, while smelled faintly of badger. Her breath caught. Hardly daring to hope, she called out, "Cakestar?"

For a few moments, there was nothing. Then, a red-brown face appeared from the den's entrance, amber eyes wide with shock. "Jayfrost?" Cakestar rasped.

"Cakestar!" Jayfrost purred with joy, bumping her muzzle against Cakestar's in joyful greeting. "Are you okay?"

"I'm alright, just bruised," the leader grunted. She got to her paws, pushing her way out of the den. "I was limping, and I didn't think I could make it back to camp, so I found this old badger den and I hid... wait." The leader had finally caught sight of the otter, standing placidly behind Jayfrost. Cakestar's hackles began to raise, her eyes narrowing. "That thing is following you!"

Before Cakestar could attack, Jayfrost stepped between her and the otter. "I know, Cakestar," she said in a careful tone. "It's not going to hurt us – it helped me find you."

Cakestar's eyes flew open wide. "What?"

Briefly, Jayfrost explained how they had survived the storm together, and how the otter had helped her track down her leader. Cakestar seemed flabbergasted at first, but as she listened, she began nodding slowly, her hackles lowering. "When I saw it chasing you again, and I couldn't find you again, I thought it had killed you, or that it had drowned," she admitted. "But I see now that I was wrong." She stepped past Jayfrost, coming to stand before the otter. The animal seemed wary, gaze flicking uncertainly to Jayfrost, before Cakestar dipped her head to it. "Thank you for keeping my deputy safe," she meowed clearly, "and for helping her find me."

The otter seemed to understand. It dipped its head to Cakestar as well, glancing over at Jayfrost again. The warrior lowered her head as well, saying, "Thank you."

The otter gave a final chirp, then turned and lumbered again, tail waving behind it as it disappeared into the ferns. Jayfrost watched it go, feeling oddly sad at the loss of her friend, and relieved that they had both survived.

After a few moments, Cakestar finally mewed, "Let's go home."

This is actually an older fanfic, I wrote this September 9th during a Gathering on BlogClan. For those who don't know, BlogClan is the personal blog of Kate Cary, one of the authors of Warriors. Gatherings on BlogClan are usually run by Kate's son Josh (also known as Hazelburrow), and they involve several games and competitions between four groups that compete for points.

One of the games is always a fanfic/fanart contest, where you are given a prompt, and one hour to complete a fanfic or piece of fanart that follows the prompt. Whoever wins the contest wins a certain number of points for their team. There are four teams that compete; the Time-Traveling Otters (my team); the Freewheeling Ferrets; the Relatively Excitable Stoats; and the Neon Weasels.

The prompt we were given this time involved writing about ourselves and the other users of BlogClan as though we, the human users, had been turned into cats and had to work together to live as a Clan, which is a common theme in fanfics written about BlogClan. Anyway, our prompt was that our leader, Cakestar (Kate's warrior name), had gone missing, and we had to work together with the mascot of our team (in my case, an otter) to find her. We had one hour to write, and this was what I came up with. With this entry, I tied for first place. ^^

So if there are typos, it's because I only had a short time to write this. :P This was fun to write, I had fun coming up with a reason why I (Jayfrost is my fursona, so that's me as the main character in this) would be able to convince an otter to work together with me, and building that brief friendship.

Also, a bit random, but for those who don't know, Alibaba Pictures (the company making the new Warriors movie :D) is asking for fans to send in 30-second videos where they say why they love Warriors and why they're excited about the new movie. :D There's also a survey on the official Warriors site where you can say what you'd like to see in the future of Warriors, as well as what kind of other media stuff you'd like to see for Warriors. :D

These both seem like great chances to get the people who are working on Warriors to hear our voices and what we want from the series, and the 30-second videos could end up in a larger announcement video they'll be making, so that's exciting. :D I just finished making and sending in my own video, and I would totally recommend it. If we want this movie made in a way fans will like, we should let them know as much as we can what is important to us about the series. :D And I am so excited for this movie coming out. :D