Winter Whiskers

The days leading up to Gouverneur's escaped had been a blurr of white outside, and Gouverneur was glued to the windows watching as the snow swirled around and the wind blew. Gouverneur was fascinated by the outside world and was always trying to slip out the door every time it opened, but the door hadn't opened in days. That glorious day, that he slipped outside was a warm day, the sky was clear and the sun was reflecting off all the snow making it glisten.

Gouverneur was watching some birds hopping around in the snow so he hadn't noticed the creaking of the door until it slammed shut making him jump up and hiss. The two-legs had been arguing back and forth but he had drowned that out. The lady two-leg went around to house opening the windows, which had a layer that Gouverneur couldn't seem to get through. He mew at her and swatted at her sweater when she opened his window. She ignored him and walked out the door.

He was home alone and bored. The toys the two-legs bought him were only fun when they decided to play with him and it wasn't like he could play on the ground for long because the dog would notice him. 'That Dumb 'Ol dog' Gouverneur thought to himself as he glared at the large dog sleeping on the couch. The dog had tried to attack him when the two-legs brought him home but now the dog shoves Gouverneur around and crushes him under the weight of it's massive paws, so Gouverneur was not a fan.

Looking back out the window, Gouverneur thought about trying to escape, but it was no use he had tried many times before. Then and idea came to him, what if the dog could through the barrier. He peered back at the sleeping dog, 'I'm sure I could make that dog mad and it would chase me. Then maybe I can get it to break the barrier'.

Gouverneur hopped off the counter and did a large stretch. The thud he made when he hit the ground made the dog's ears perk up. He made his way over to the couch and started scratching the furniture, the dog was fully awake and starring at Gouverneur. Once he was sure he had the dogs attention, he growled and hissed at the massive dog. He noticed the dogs eyes widen and he darted towards the window, the dog quickly closing the gap between them. As he approached the window he jumped onto the shelf scrambling to grab ahold of the slick surface. The dog's head crashed through the window barrier, making the dog sway a bit. Shaking its head, the dog turned its attention back to Gouverneur and jumped up placing its front feet on the shelf.

'What have I done?!' Gouverneur thought as he hissed at the dog, he wasn't sure if he could make it out the window without the dog grabbing him, but he had to try. Quickly he jumped towards the window, barely making it over the dog's head. He made it! He was standing on the windowsill flicking his tail in excitement, this was it, he was going outside.

---

It had been several days since Gouverneur had made his escape and he was feeling rather hungry. The times he had tried to catch a critter they had been too fast for him and either flew away or went into their burrow. He didn't think living outside would be so difficult. Not only was he hungry but he was cold. His long thick fur helped some but he was used to living in a warm house. The nights were scary outside and he had hardly slept at all, the noises were almost to much to bare. He had thought about going back to his two-legs home, but he was lost and did not know where to do. He was surrounded by mountains and tree and scary noises, finally he started to cry out, "I WANT TO GO HOME!!! Hello can anyone hear me, I need help. I'm lost!"

After a few moments of rare silence, Gouverneur crawled into a small burrow, the snow crunching under his weight. He turned around a few times then curled into a ball with is tail covering his face and cried himself to sleep.

For once since his escape, Gouverneur had peacefully fallen asleep, but it was short lived. His goldish green eyes shot open with fear when he heard a voice call out to him. He quickly jumped to his feet and lowered his head so he could see the entrance of the small burrow. Not knowing to be cautious of other cats he slid out of the burrow and stood beside the she-cat.
"Hi, I'm Gouverneur." He said flicking his tail excitingly, "I'm not hurt, but I am los... Er, hungry. Could I perhaps have a bite?" He looked beside the cat at the fresh rabbit she had killed. His stomach ached with hunger but he didn't want to seem rude. This cat could be his success to living in the wild, or she could help him go home.

Gouverneur's eye's dropped as he thought about going back home and staying cooped up. He didn't want to go home. Even though his time outside hadn't been the greatest, this could be the turning point. He looked back up at the she cat with a smile, "Also what is your name?"

'Leader? Clan? What does that mean?' Gouverneur tilted his large fuzzy head puzzled at Sleepyhollow's words. He gave a little chuckle as she tried to pronounce his name, "You may call me 'Vern if that is easier for you. That is what my two-legs called me sometimes." Another sharp pain rippled through his stomach. He couldn't let up an opportunity to get food, even if none of what the she-cat was saying made sense. He followed her gaze up towards the sky, then looked back at her. "I would love to join you and your clan on your journey." Gouverneur said as he stretched out his long fluffy body. He was a big cat for his age, and that burrow was a bit too small for him.

Gouverneur gladly padded along beside Sleepyhollow, back to where her clan was staying. His eyes widened when he saw the fresh kill pile and he fought the urge to dive in. Sleepyhollow had denied his first request, until her leader allowed him into the clan. So he wait, staring at the pile practically drooling. He was snapped out of his focus when his side was flicked with a tail. Gouverneur looked at the she-cat and then stepped forward. "Uh erm, Hi I'm Gouverneur, but you can call me Vern." He mewed and looked back at Sleepyhollow, as if asking for approval. This was strange to him, and he had never seen so many cats. His heart seemed to swell in his chest, anxiety prickling at his paw, 'What is this place and what have I gotten myself into?

Tigerstar blinked as soon as Sleepyhollow brought word of a potential traveling companion. Green eyes turned to their guest, flicking up and down the tom's form, sizing him up, assessing him. He needed to make sure the tom wasn't a threat, he couldn't have someone dangerous among his clan especially in circumstances like this. It seemed Sleepyhollow was alright so he wasn't an attack first kind of cat.

"Greetings Vern." Tigerstar said, choosing to go with the shorter version of the tom's name. "I am Tigerstar leader of Windclan. So you wish to journey with us? Do you know how to hunt or fight?" The striped tom asked.

Gouverneur looked at the striped tom that addressed him, his green eyes seemed to burn into Gouverneur's. "Uh, I tried hunting but I was unable to catch anything. I've never had to fight anyone, but I did smack the dog who lived with me and the twolegs when it got too close." He tried to hide the nervousness in his voice.

Tigerstar couldn't help but let out a small sigh.. This cat was about as useful as a kit. He would have to be trained if he really wished to stay among his clan. "Well Vern do you have any interest in joining my clan? Becoming a part of it? Or are you just here for the trip back to the forest?" The leader asked, wanting to know the tom's true intentions. The striped tom didn't want to invest training into the tom only for him to bail the second they got back to the forest. It was a waste of resources.

"I would love to join your uh... clan." Gouverneur said with a smile. His first few days out in the wild were hard but he was sure with the help of a clan that he could really enjoy life as an outside cat.

After all the unsureness from the earlier words, he was a little surprised that Vern wanted to join still. The leader was doubtful that Vern would stick around after a few days of hardship but he couldn't exactly turn away extra help, even if they did need to be taught. "Fine." Tigerstar said finally. "You are officially apart of Windclan, but on a trial base period. You will be assigned a mentor, and train alongside our apprentices. If you make it to the point you can become a warrior, we will revisit what you have learned together." He wanted to be sure that Vern was confident in his skills to fully make him a clan cat, at least a warrior.

"From this moment on, you will be known as Sycamorepaw. Your clan name. No longer will you be known as Vern." Tigerstar stated, then turned his head to the warrior that had brought him here. "Sleepyhollow, you will mentor this tom in our ways. Teach him well."

'Sycamorepaw? Clan name?' Once more Gouverneur was confused, but he was willing to change in order to stay. He was a bit nervous, but the smile Sleepyhollow gave him, made him feel a little more confident. "Uh, thank you for taking me in Tigerstar, you won't regret it." Sycamorepaw mewed wagging his tail. He really did hope that he could make a good clan cat, whatever that may be.