In the quiet of the nursery, while her fellow queens and clanmates slept, Sorreldust brought into the world 3 new and innocent lives. It was while she gazed at her children, small, delicate, absolutely precious, that the weight of everything crashed into her.
She bit the inside of her mouth in an attempt to quiet her sobs. She didn't even know if Russetpaw was still alive and yet here she was, with a new litter of kittens. Did that make her a terrible parent? Did it make it seem like she was trying to replace her daughter?
It wasn't as if she'd planned it all. Sorreldust never even meant for the visit where she'd broken off her relationship with the mate she had kept hidden her whole life to end up this way, with another set of his progeny snuggled up to her, depending on her to protect them.
She never could have willingly let anything happen to Russetpaw, never in a million seasons.
And yet the guilt ate at her, the more she thought of it, that she didn't even know if she was dead, or scared, or being hurt, or desperately calling for her to save her, and wondering why her mother hadn't come to find her.
She wheezed at the thought, her lonesome ray of radiance. It wasn't until one of her new kittens mewled at her loudly, demanding she pay attention to them that she was able to pull herself from her thoughts.
That's right. She had to protect them, provide for them. She couldn't do any of that while she was wallowing in her self pity and guilt.
She hadn't even named them yet....
And so, in the quiet of night, to nothing and no one, she named them Floodkit, and Singekit, and Duskkit. All strong names that she hoped would lead them all to great lives.

[ @Starfall ; @R0ttenC4ndy
@lio (to keep you in the loop) ]
//didn't realize the plot would take this long, so I'm jumping ahead to them living\\