A not so perfect home

[Hoole]

Hoole flew by a hollow lit by burning... fire? He alighted down on a branch and peeked inside. Inside was an egg rocking back and forth, but its parents weren't anywhere. This reminded him of Striker's story 'bout how he grew up on his own.

Hoole hopped inside. The fire was lit in a small hole in the bark of the tree. The wood was covered in sap so it wouldn't burn, so Hoole knew this eggs parents hadn't left long ago. There was still enough left for the fire to keep burning, but maybe the parents put a lot there so the light wouldn't die down.

Hoole took off his battle claws and placed them to the side as he watched the egg crack. It reminded him when Myrrthe and Emerillia first hatched out of their eggs. Pure joy ran through his hollow bones even now. Something flopped down behind him and Hoole turned around. A bleeding Great Horned owl lied there dying. "Save the egg! Save the egg from them!" The owl blurted out with his last breath, then his eyes rolled back in his head and he died.

Hoole turned back around to watch the egg split and an owl came out. He put on his battle claws and flew out to see who was the reason the owl was bleeding and died. Then owls caught his eye, four to be exact, one was holding a large owl in its talons and it dropped it like a stick. That must have been the mom, Hoole thought. Then the owls flew toward him. Hoole extending his battle claws ready to fight. The owls noticed Hoole in front of the hollow and laughed to each other. They didn't have a clue who he was at all.

[Hoole]

Hoole let out a battle cry and went at the first owl. He sliced that owls wing and it fell to the ground. "This is what you get for killing owls!" Hoole dug into the breast of the next owl feeling the warm blood not on his talons, but on his legs. He let go of the owl and sent it to the ground. Two owls remained and they were the biggest. One flew up to face Hoole.
"You don't stand a chance against us two Spotted owl." The one hooted and it was a Great Horned owl.
Hoole got an idea that put a glint to his eye. As the owl talked on for a bit, he extended his battle claws and sliced down the breast of the owl. Hoole then got one of his wings and sliced down it. The owl screech and fell to the ground. The last owl had no guts and it flew off while Hoole was dealing with the first one.

Hoole alighted down in the hollow to see an egg rocking back and forth... Now, Hoole alighted down in the hollow to see a dead Great Horned owl and a baby owl. It was a Great Horned owl so Hoole knew the owl must have been the chicks father. It now had feathers and was looking around. Hoole hopped over to it. "Hello." The owl hiccuped and looked up at Hoole with pleading eyes. "I'm going to take you back to the Ga'Hoole tree with me where you won't have to worry about living on your own." The small owl nodded with worried eyes. It didn't seem to want to talk. Hoole put the sharp end of the battle claw back into the battle claw to keep the young owl from getting blood on its downy feathers. Hoole gently picked it up and flew out of the hollow into the breaking dawn.

[Millie]

Millie flew over the spot in which the four owls had dropped the owl. She hovered over the spot in which she saw an owl lying on the ground in a weird position. Millie alighted down on the ground and looked at the dead, torn bloody owl on the ground. It was the most disgusting thing to look at, but Millie had to see what might have killed this owl. She looked closely at the wounds on the owl and could tell this was done by bare talons, no battleclaws at all. She flew back into the sky and flew back toward the Great Ga'Hoole Tree.