The small kit was tired. He had been walking outside for what had seemed to be a long time. His flame colored pelt was covered in this white, cold substance that froze him to the bone. His owners seemed to think it was cute, but he hated it. The substance melted into water, and water felt horrible. It made his pelt heavy and soggy, weighing him down and making him shiver in this cold season. He had been here for a moon at most, and his owners had decided to call him Rusty. Rusty had never felt this substance before, but he already knew he didn't like it. "Why must this day be so cold?" he muttered to himself, tail lashing.

There was another kitten in a different garden right next to Rusty's, his name was Smudge, but they didn't see each other often. Rusty's owners kept him inside for the most part, but he sometimes got to go outside. This was when he met up with Smudge. Normally, they spoke about their owners, but Rusty was always bored with it quickly. He would try to get Smudge to play, but the other kit would always make up an excuse. Rusty found this extremely annoying and began to not speak when he met with Smudge.

During one visit, Smudge had spoken about wildcats that lived in the green area right outside their gardens, but Rusty hadn't paid much attention to it. As long as they kept their distance from him, he was fine.

His owners, right then, decided that he was cold enough and called him back inside. Rusty rushed towards them, escaping the biting cold. Rusty padded to his nest and circled around, trying to make a comfy spot until finally, he slept.

He was in the forest outside his home, padding around and sniffing the air. Rusty had never seen the forest or had even known what it was called, but he knew this was where he was at. He padded around, sniffing for prey and eventually found a squirrel. Rusty's body had some idea of what it was doing apparently and had dropped into a crouch, ready to pounce. He stalked the squirrel, waiting for the right time to pounce, but he had been too noisy. His tail had brushed the undergrowth, his paws had broken twigs, and his breathing had been too loud. The squirrel ran away quickly, running up a tree. Rusty sat down, cursing himself for missing the animal. Rusty had decided to go and find more squirrels, but a loud 'POP' interrupted.

WHA-?" he mewed, looking around wildly until he spotted something out of place. There were odd, white balls pounding against his owner's den, making the sound that was hurting his ears. "What is going on…" he mewed sleepily, just noticing his owners racing around on their furless legs, grabbing things. Rusty was confused, he had no clue what was going on and everything was chaotic. He decided to hide to escape it, and ended up beneath something with four legs and looked like it was made of wood.

Noise was all around him, pelting his ears. His owners were calling something; he guessed it was his name. Rusty didn't want to go to them, and raced out into the garden through a door that was left open in all the panic. He was hit by the freezing cold and stumbled, crashing into a bush with an, "oof".

Rusty was shaking, his paws were numb, and his fur was standing on end. He had no clue what was going on around him, there was powdered, cold stuff swirling around him, making his nose twitch. He knew he would freeze to death if he didn't get back to the den. He could barely move as it was, and he knew soon he wouldn't be able to move at all. "Have to get back…" he muttered, struggling to get up in the storm.

He finally got up after several failed attempts, and sniffed for some sign of the den. He could only smell water, which he assumed was the same stuff that was falling all around him. He managed to find a part of the den, but no entry-way. He padded along, struggling with every step to stay up. His heart was pounding in his chest; scaring him more, and making him walk faster. He nearly didn't notice the giant shape barreling towards him.

With a hiss, Rusty jumped away from shape, but he had done so too late. He was being carried upwards, warmth flooding through him. He saw a familiar face, one of his owners. He was so happy, he started to purr, relishing in the comforting warmth.

His owner carried him off into the den, setting him down in his nest. Rusty realized the storm had stopped, and it was calm now. He was still shivering and cold, but he was safe now, at least. Rusty padded around, looking at his owners movements. They were slower than before, much less panicked. He thought about going to see if Smudge was out, but decided against it. The other kitten would just be hiding somewhere in fear. Rusty didn't want to insult Smudge, but even though Rusty had been scared out of his fur, he hadn't just hidden and whimpered in fear.

Instead of staying in the den or going to Smudge, he went out into the garden and sat there, shivering, but curious. Rusty saw the forest across from the garden whenever he managed to jump onto the fence. Rusty wanted to know if the wildcats he had heard about from Smudge were truely real. Rusty was curious as to how they survived out there, freezing in the cold season and having a lack of water in the hot season.

Rusty had many questions that he wanted answers to, but he couldn't find them now. He would wait until he was older, ready to cross into the forest. He thought about his dream from that very day, and excitement rushed through his body at the thought of catching a real squirrel. He knew he would go into the forest eventually, he could feel it.

Rusty sat there for a while, thinking, until he was shivering so hard he had to go back inside the den. Rusty went to his nest, knowing that he would dream of the forest again.

Author's note- This is a Secret Santa one-shot for LawlClan. I kind of rushed when I made this is, so yeah... XD

Prompts are: First experiencing snow

Caught in a snowstorm

Comforting warmth

MERRY CHRISTMAS, RAINSTAR~~

Oh, and...Disclaimer: I own nothing but this particular idea. :P