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Chapter 4 - The Great Spring Feast

In a world where animals speak and act like humans, a cat named Blaze is the heir to the leader of his home. However, a dark threat is lurking, and Blaze will have to master the ways of his father's mysterous sword if they are to survive.

Chapter 4 - The Great Spring Feast

Chapter 4 - The Great Spring Feast
CHAPTER 3[/b][/color]


"Blaze, wake up dear. The feast is starting” The pale apricot cat sat on the bed besides Blaze. She put one paw on Blaze’s shoulder and shook him gently. Blaze tiredly looked up from his pillow to see his mother standing over his bed.
"How long have I been sleeping?" Blaze groaned
"Long enough. Come now Blaze the feast is about to begin. Everyone has already taken their seat at the table." Rosie stood back up and left the room without another word. Blaze, now alone, sat on the end of his bed and stared at the door of which his mother had exited.
She must still be angry with me.
He didn’t like his mother angry like this. It was not like she was yelling or raising her voice, but the way she said so little bothered him. He tried to shrug this thought away, and only think of the feast, but it was proving difficult.
After talking with his father earlier on, Blaze had gone straight to his bedroom to avoid any more trouble. He found he was quite tired lying on his bed and he had fallen asleep almost instantly. Still exhausted, Blaze decided he better hurry up and get downstairs. Drowsily, he stood up and stumbled over to the door.

~
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Blaze was the last to make it to the feast. He scanned the hallway for a place to sit, but as far as he could see, all the seats were occupied.
"Blaze over here! I’ve saved you a seat!"
Blaze was surprised to hear the she-cat Snowpelt yelling over the loud noise of cats in conversation. He turned his head to where the voice had come from, and saw the pretty she-cat standing up and waving to him. Blaze made his way to her, trying not to be noticed by anyone. When he got there, he sat in the seat Snowpelt had saved in-between herself and Smokey.
"Hey Blaze." Smokey meowed. "Snowpelt’s had this seat saved before anyone had even been seated. You better thank her." He signalled with his paw towards Snowpelt. Blaze turned his head towards the she-cat.
"Hi Snowpelt! Is this true? You didn’t need to go through the trouble for me, but thankyou for doing so."
"Hello Blaze. It was no trouble. It was just that I hadn’t seen you all day. I was starting to worry." Snowpelt trailed of at the last words and looked down. Her cheeks had blushed to a pale red. Blaze felt a pang of guilt. What had he done now? He had noticed Snowpelt had been acting strangely around him lately, and he had no clue why.
If it were serious, she would tell me. He told himself. Besides, she couldn’t be angry, she had been saving this seat for at least an hour.
He took a quick glance towards Snowpelt, who was still looking down at the table. Everyone considered Snowpelt to be the most beautiful cat in the clan. She had silvery-white fur freckled with pale black spots, which seemed to shimmer in the sunlight. Her eyes were a clear ice blue – the complete opposite to his own eyes of fire.
The noise in the hall grew louder, taking Blaze out of his thoughts. Everyone looked up, including Snowpelt, towards the Kitchen. Out of its doors came Dinn, followed by many of his helpers. Dinn was carrying two huge cauldron–like bowls, while the rest were carrying an assortment of cutlery, flasks, and silver platters which were covered by lids. Lovely aromas started to fill the room as the dishes were placed on the table and uncovered. Everyone stared at the food eagerly, and some young kittens started to grab the food, only to be stoped by their mother.
"Oooo I wanna sum o’ dis!"
"No, not until grace has been said."
Blaze could not see his fish on the table, but he guessed it would be brought out afterwards as the main corse.
Cling, Cling, Cling
A spoon lightly tapping on a glass bowl brought all attention towards Russetfur. All the cats fell silent, waiting for their leader to speak. Once Russetfur was satisfied with the noise level, he placed his spoon back on the table.
"Good Evening to all. It is my great pleasure to allow the cats of my clan to join together and feast. As you are all aware, it is the first day of spring. We have always celebrated this season to be the season of life, warmth, and time of plenty. We are gathered here tonight to savour what this forest has to offer. We may not have another time like this one in the world we live in. Us cats have always had a custom to enjoy the life we live while it’s at its best. We have all lived in harmony for some time now, with no trouble whatsoever. I just want to remind you that evil may strike at any time, and we must not let ourselves forget our skills because of this peace." He stopped in his speech and stared at all of the cats. In all the clan, there were around two hundred members, each and every one trusting their leader.
"It is my wish that all cats start to train for battle, in case of trouble. It is unusual for us to gain years of peace, without having to pay the price. This harmony cannot last forever, and every beast knows it. There is one more thing concerning this matter. I know our duty is to protect the clan even at the cost of your lives, but there is a time when you must no when to back down. It’s better to run and remain alive than for all to die in battle. If I ever give the signal to run, no beast is to question my order. No beast is to stay and fight." He glared at Blaze on his last sentence. Their eyes met momentarily, and Blaze knew at once that he was directing his last statement at him.
Russetfur’s face changed from serious to happy as he looked away.
"This concludes my speech, and on a happier note, I shall now say grace."
All the cats, slightly shocked by the seriousness of their leaders speech, slowly dropped their heads and closed their eyes.

"We give thanks to all who lent a paw,
And contributed to this feast,
The cooks, the gatherers and many more,
There’s too many to name each beast.

I mustn’t forget the forest,
For without it we could not survive,
It provides us with shelter, vitals and safety,
With its help we have began to thrive.

Let good fortune find us,
In the upcoming season of spring,
Let the peaceful times continue,
Safety, we hope the forest shall bring.

Let us now all enjoy ourselves,
And put on big broad grin,
Savour what we have,
And let the feast begin!"

Everyone opened their eyes and immediately started to dig into the food. Blaze took a moment to stare at the food. Their was so much to choose from, and he didn’t know were to start. The two huge pots in the centre of the table were filled to the brim with delicious looking soup, which the chef was dishing out into bowls for everyone. Spread around the soup was a wide range of different foods; savoury and sweet. Big chunky pasties, salads with a mango dressing drizzled over, scones with golden honey as a topping, Blackberry cream tarts, and many more mouth-watering dishes that Blaze told himself he would try. Flasks of mint tea, dandelion and rose petal cordial, and wine were scattered amongst the table so everyone could reach.
Between every two cats a loaf of almond bread was placed on the table to share; still slightly warm from the oven. Blaze turned to look at Smokey who was already stuffing himself with bread and soup.
"What are you doing staring at the food like that Blaze? It’s not going to jump into your mouth while you sit there." Talking with a mouthful of food, Smokey passed the bread to Blaze. "And besides, if you don’t hurry up, I’ll eat it for you."
Blaze stared at the soup “What flavour soup is it?”
"It’s Dinn’s creamed vegetable soup! The best soup I ever did taste in my opinion."
Smokey leaned over the table and poured himself some mint tea from the flask.
"Smokey, you think all food is the best you’ve ever tasted. If you don’t stop eating so much that stomach of yours will burst!"
"Well it never has before, and I hope it doesn’t to soon, or at least while food’s a plenty."
Blaze shook his head and dipped some bread into his soup. It tasted wonderful. The mixture of the cream and vegetables was an odd flavour, but delicious all the same. Now he new why Smokey loved it so much. As his friend did earlier, he poured himself some mint tea and sipped it.
As the food at the table decreased, Blaze was starting to wonder when his fish would come out. He had been looking forward to the fish that had caused him so much trouble.
"An’ now fo’ wha’ ev’ryone ‘s been waitin’ fo’, the piéce de résistance!"
Blaze turned his head to see Dinn and Tulip, Dinn’s young assistant, standing out side the kitchen door. Between the two of them they carried a huge platter, in which was so big that they needed two to carry it.
Every cat cheered as the cooks placed it on the table and uncovered it. The smell was overwhelming, and even Blaze found himself on the edge of his seat. Amongst herbs, fruit, and dressing, the fish lay. It was a golden brown colour with some kind of delicious smelling sauce smothering it. Dinn cut of a small piece and sampled it.
"Mmm... ’tis good!... I think We ‘ave ou’don’ ourselves... ’aven’t we Tulip?!" He meowed in between chews. He cut of a further slice and handed it to Tulip. She quickly took it and tasted it.
"We certainly have!” she meowed and sat down. All the cooks had come out of the kitchen and taken their place at the table. They too had been looking forward to it.
Dinn sliced the fish up into even pieces, then served a piece into each dish. He placed the first into the cat that was closest.
" ‘ere, pass this roun’ de table"
The cat passed the dish over to the next, and kept doing so until each and every cat had a share. Every cat dug into the food at Dinn’s last words,
"Ea’ up ev’ryone! Wha’ ar’ you ull waitin’ fo’?!"
Blaze took a huge bite out of his fish, sauce trickling down his chin. It was the best he’d ever tasted; lightly spiced and very moist. As he looked around, he could see that the others were enjoying it also.
It was worth the trouble
"Blaze, I think your starting to turn into Smokey!"
Blaze turned to his left, to see Snowpelt talking to him. She gestured to her chin with her paw as she spoke.
It’s all right. She’s talking to me.
He got the idea immediately and reached for a nearby napkin. He wiped his chin with it as he replied,
"Speak for yourself miss! You have cream all over your garment!” He pointed to a cream patch near the collar.
"Oops, I didn’t realise." Snowpelt reached out to take the napkin out of Blaze’s paw. For a moment, they stayed there; paw in paw, looking into the depths of each other’s eyes. Blaze felt warmth build up within him, but it drained out almost instantly as Snowpelt quickly looked away, avoiding Blaze’s glare. She wiped her pale blue garment down and looked out in to the distance, as if she was staring at something he couldn’t see.
"I-I-I’m sorry." Snowpelt meowed.
"Snowpelt, you didn’t do anything" Blaze started, but realized she didn’t hear him as she had already left the table. He saw the door she had gone through swing shut.
"What was that all about?" Smokey had finished eating, and turned to face Blaze.
"I’m not sure Smokey" Blaze didn’t turn to face Smokey; his gaze was on the door Snowpelt had left through.
"I think you’d better talk to her." Smokey meowed quietly. This time Blaze looked at Smokey.
"I’m not sure. She doesn’t seem too happy to be around me. Maybe I should leave her alone" Blaze saw a glint of amusement on Smokey’s face. How could he be smiling at this?
"Trust me Blaze, the last thing on her mind is anger. I think you should go; it might cheer her up. I’ll stay here, I’m going for seconds!" With those last words, he stood up and strode over to the leftover fish. He started to dish some fish out, but all he gained was a slap on the paw by Dinn, who must have been keeping a close eye on it.
"Geroff o’ de fish ye great glu’on! You mus’ ask me firs’!"
"Ouch! Well your gonna have to do it for me now that my paw has just about dropped off!"
I wish my life were as simple as his. Eat, Sleep, that’s all he ever does. I’ve got the weight of the whole clan on my shoulders. What about father’s premonition? Would it come true? I have to stop thinking about it. Right now all that matters is that I go and talk to Snowpelt.
With his mind still racing, he got up and slowly made his way through the door, up winding corridors and steps, and finally, stood outside the bedroom door. He was not sure why he had come here. He didn’t know where she had gone, but somehow, he was drawn here. He slowly opened the door and inched his way inside.
Alone in the room was Snowpelt, sitting on the end of her bed. She didn’t look up at him as he entered. He walked over to the bed and sat besides her.
"Snowpelt.” He said quietly, not wanting to disturb her too much. "What’s the matter Snowpelt? Please tell me. I’m sure I’ll understand"
Snowpelt looked up and stared at the wall, still avoiding his gaze. "I’m not sure that you will." Blaze felt shocked at her words. They had always been friends, and they had never kept secrets from each other.
"OK." Blaze didn’t want to pressure her. He didn’t know what else to say. "That’s fine Snowpelt. You don’t have to tell me."
"Why don’t we go for a walk? You know...to get some fresh air. It would be nice." Snowpelt seemed to be changing the subject, but at least she had lightened up.
"Sure." Blaze meowed. "Lets go now, while the sun is still up." He strode over to the door, and opened it for Snowpelt. He could see that she was still sitting down. "You coming?"
"You go ahead. I’ll meet you at the gates." Snowpelt looked up. She put on a smile. "Thank you Blaze."
Blaze felt happier now that she was feeling better. "All right. I’ll meet you there." He walked out of the room and shut the door softly.
Snowpelt was left alone in the room, her smile vanished. "If only you knew."

Comments

Comments (6)

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wagz20 on October 22, 2008, 4:35:59 AM

wagz20 on
wagz20damn, that feast sounded delishous! my mouth was watering, lmao. just another way of me saying great description. i felt like Smokey, he's like the loveable little gluton XD

ooo Blaze and admirer >_O. i do like romance, weather the story is all romance or just has a love story within it makes it more interesting. and of course, typical, the guy doesn't get it, lol. but Blaze is a good guy though and likeable :)

great work, really liked this chapter! good ending, makes me want to read more.

darkwolf333 on October 16, 2008, 5:49:44 PM

darkwolf333 on
darkwolf333I love ur story .

AtomicMoat on July 29, 2008, 11:00:16 PM

AtomicMoat on
AtomicMoatoo cool love how the story is going
^^ you are great at this

FizzyG on June 14, 2008, 3:54:41 AM

FizzyG on
FizzyGOMG! smokey is SO funny!
its sweet, blaze and snowpelt
i wonder whats her secret...