Quote:
Originally Posted by Dipper
"Yes, good. I'm no frog," she emphasized with a haughty snort, chin tipped upward again, "I can't be seen wallowing around all day in the watery muck." The mud would take ages to clean from her fur.
Ahh yes, the kit, this was a conversation she'd been preparing to have. "It was terrible," Daintybird moaned, "the days.. the nights, searching for her, hoping my kit would be returned to me by whatever divine force decided to take this light away from my life." Translation, she'd woken up one morning and noticed Heatherkit wasn't there, and brushed it off under the assumption she'd come back. But the little squirt hadn't, and it was endangering her entire livelihood. "I feel so empty! My kit, gone! Nowhere to be found. My dreams of motherhood are beginning to fade into the distance already, I can feel it..."
|
Icestar felt the smallest pang of sympathy for the queen. She couldn't understand actually
wanting to care for a kit, but Daintybird had seemed very enthusiastic about it.
"I'm sorry for your loss," The leader dipped her head in condolences.
"I know it must be very difficult for you. I feel as if life as a queen suits you rather well." She knew the she-cat wasn't one for getting her paws dirty--and being in the nursery would keep her far safer than returning to warrior duties. She had seemed happier there.
"If you wish to stay a queen, I will not make you return to the warrior's den," The leader offered, trying to lift her spirits.
"I know nothing can replace what you've lost, but there are many kits in the nursery who are in need of supervision as well, if you wish to help with their care. ShadowClan has had a sudden influx of kits joining our clan without mothers."
As they padded along, it became clear that they had entered the area that had suffered the fire. The trees were still blackened and the ground was still not fully recovered, but there were buds glistening in the sunlight and many small trees that had sprouted since the burn. Birds could be heard singing in the less-barren branches, and prey scent was beginning to return. It gave Icestar a hopeful feeling.