Gray Wing blinked at the tom. “Thanks for agreeing to meet with Slash tonight,” he meowed. “It gave us the time we needed to rescue Star Flower.”
“It was a good plan, Gray Wing,” Thunder answered. “I’m glad I got the chance to help.”
River Ripple dipped his head. “Let’s hope the stars are on our side,” he meowed solemnly.
“Early kits rarely survive.”
Gray Wing’s belly tightened. He glanced meaningfully toward Thunder. “Clear Sky’s kits are strong,” he murmured. “This litter will be fine.”
He headed after his brother, quickening his pace as he neared the camp. Nosing through the bramble entrance, he scanned the clearing. Mouse Ear and Mud Paws paced the far end nervously.
Jagged Peak sat and watched, his pelt prickling along his spine.
Shapes were huddled at the edge of the camp, beneath a dome of woven brambles. He hurried toward them, tensing as he scented blood.
Blinking through the darkness, he saw Pebble Heart hanging back beside Reed and Tall Shadow.
Lightning Tail shifted from one paw to another, watching as Wind Runner and Holly moved around
Star Flower. He could hear the desperate panting of the queen.
Clear Sky crouched by her head. “It’s okay, my love,” he murmured. “Everything will be okay.”
Gray Wing slowed to a stop beside Pebble Heart. “Isn’t there anything you can do?” Pebble Heart had always had a natural skill for healing.
The young tom shook his head. “They know far more than me about kitting. But I’ll learn all I can.” He didn’t take his eyes from the she-cats as Wind Runner ran her paw over Star Flower’s belly, while Holly lapped at the queen’s cheek.
“Just one more push,” Wind Runner murmured.
“You’re doing really well,” Holly crooned.
Star Flower’s body convulsed as though a fox had grabbed her. She yowled a long, deep yowl, her eyes rolling with pain.
Clear Sky winced and pressed his muzzle to her head.
“It’s a she-kit!” Wind Runner’s mew of triumph rang through the air.
Gray Wing leaned forward and saw a glistening scrap of fur, slick and wet and half covered in a pale membrane. The kit squirmed on the ground, tiny paws churning.
Tall Shadow purred. “Is…” She hesitated. “Is she okay?”
“She looks like any newborn kit,” Wind Runner proclaimed happily. “Only smaller.” Quickly she scooped up the kit and placed her beside Star Flower’s muzzle. “Give her a wash and keep her warm,” she ordered.
But Star Flower had already stretched out her nose and was lapping her newborn kit, her eyes shining with joy. Then she stiffened as another convulsion gripped her. As she writhed, growling with pain, Holly snatched the she-kit from beside her muzzle and tucked her safely beneath her own belly.
“Push!” Wind Runner ordered.
Star Flower shuddered and moaned. Wind Runner leaned back, her eyes lighting up. “Another she-kit!”
Star Flower convulsed again.
“And a tom!” Wind Runner purred loudly as she picked up both kits between her jaws and placed them beside Star Flower. She ran her paw over Star Flower’s belly. “That was the last, I think. And the bleeding’s stopped.”
Pebble Heart darted forward. “May I feel?”
Star Flower lifted her head groggily and stared at the young tom.
“I want to learn how to help if any of my campmates have kits,” Pebble Heart told her.
Star Flower gave a deep purr, amusement lighting her weary gaze. “Go ahead.” Her mew was slurred with relief.
Pebble Heart tentatively ran his paw over her belly, tipping his head to one side, his eyes glazing as he disappeared into his own thoughts.
Gray Wing knew that look well. Pebble Heart had always been wise beyond his years, staring into the distance as though lost in another world when his littermates had wanted to play. Gray Wing’s thoughts flitted to Moth Flight. Perhaps some cats are born to see beyond hunting and fighting.
“What do you think?” Star Flower’s mew cut into his thoughts. She was staring at Clear Sky, her three kits squirming at her belly.
“They’re beautiful.” Clear Sky buried his muzzle in his mate’s neck fur.
Pebble Heart stepped away. Holly and Wind Runner withdrew to Tall Shadow’s side.
Gray Wing stared at his brother.
Clear Sky had lifted his head and was staring at the tiny, slick-furred kits with a look of wonder that Gray Wing had never seen in his eyes. Pure love melted his ice-blue gaze. He leaned gently forward and lapped at one of the she-kits, who was nuzzling deeper into Star Flower’s belly.
Gray Wing felt his chest soften and his breathing ease. A deep longing tugged in his chest. How he wished to feel the love that was clearly sweeping Clear Sky now. He had felt like a father to Turtle
Tail’s kits, and he loved them all. But the pure joy glowing in his brother’s eyes took him by surprise, and he wished that he could one day feel the same.
Wind Runner shifted her paws. “They all look perfectly healthy, but they’re very small.”
Pebble Heart glanced at his leader. “Can they stay here for a while, Tall Shadow? Just until they’re a little stronger.”
Tall Shadow nodded. “Of course.”
Pebble Heart blinked at Clear Sky. “Will you let them stay? A trip through the forest might expose them to unnecessary risks.”
Clear Sky glanced at Wind Runner. “What do you think?”
“For a few days,” Wind Runner advised.
Holly’s ears twitched. “I’ve never seen kits so small. Make sure they stay warm, and don’t let them have too many visitors.”
Pebble Heart flicked his tail anxiously. “Don’t let any sick cats near them for at least a moon!”
“Of course not!” Clear Sky looked alarmed.
“You’ll be able to take them home soon,” Wind Runner promised Clear Sky. “Kits grow fast.”
Clear Sky looked at the two she-cats, his gaze brimming with gratitude. “Thank you for getting her safely through this.” He glanced at his kits, his mew growing husky. “And them.”
Gray Wing followed his brother’s gaze, marveling at Star Flower’s strength and courage. Only a short while earlier, she had been fighting rogues! Now she was curled around her first litter.
“Gray Wing?”
He realized that his brother was talking to him. “What?” He met Clear Sky’s gaze, surprised by its warmth.
“Thank you for rescuing Star Flower.”
“It was the right thing to do.”
Clear Sky tipped his head to one side. “Why did you keep your plan secret from me?”
Gray Wing blinked. “If you’d known where she was, nothing would have kept you from her. But we needed to wait until Slash was distracted.”
“And I was the distraction.” Clear Sky grunted.
“You had to be convincing.” Gray Wing dipped his head apologetically. “It seemed the best way to get her back safely.”
“I will always be grateful.”
“It’s nothing.” Gray Wing shrugged. “You’d have done the same for me.”
Doubt flickered in Clear Sky’s moonlit gaze, then dissolved. He padded closer and rubbed his muzzle against Gray Wing’s. His fur was warm against his cheek, his scent so familiar that, for a moment, Gray Wing’s thoughts flashed back to his kithood, when they’d snuggled side by side at Quiet Rain’s belly.
He suddenly realized that Clear Sky was purring. “Congratulations,” he breathed.
“Thank you, brother,” Clear Sky murmured, his mew cracking. “I will never forget this.”
Chapter 7
Frost-whitened leaves crunched beneath Thunder’s paws. Sunshine dappled the forest floor.