Your mother is...gone (Tagged)

[CaℳI]

Falcon

Aspenpool sighed as she licked Otterkit's head. She loved her four little kits so much already. Not to mention...her 5th kit. Or at least she had taken care of him for a few days now. She felt like he was her own. She cared about him more then he probably understood. She didn't know how he would react...but she had to tell him. It was now or never. "I'll be right back, kits." She softly said to her own kit. "Firekit, let's go for a walk in the clearing." She smiled at him, he was moons older then her actual kits, and most of Sunsetclan knew by now that she had taken in this kit. She sighed as she walked outside so her own kits wouldn't hear. She didn't want to scare them, or make them think that it was okay to treat Firekit any differently then they would treat each other. This would be hard, but she reminded herself of everything she had been through in her life. Her first mate leaving her and breaking her heart, her first litter of kits who barely liked her, being stolen from Sunsetclan by two-legs, watching her kits be stillborn, watching her daughter die in front of her just half a moon after that, the long and rough journey back to Sunsetclan, her paws bleeding in soreness- this would be just another thing she had to do. The sweetest cat in the world- yet her life had been so hard. Aspenpool had never viewed her frail little body as being strong, but she truly had a heart of gold and the willpower of warriors ten times her size.

[Falcon]

Firekit looked up from where he was stalking toward a moth and peaked up excitedly "okay!" he eagerly followed Aspenpool out of the den, he really liked it here he could play around all he wanted and he didn't have to listen to those twolegs and he didn't have to eat those tiny brown things that his Mommy ate all the time, he wondered if he'd be able to stay forever?

[CaℳI]

Aspenpool sighed as she looked at the little kit, no smile to be found on her face as she tried to figure out the words to use. "Firekit...I'm so sorry sweetie. There is no easy way to say this...I don't think your mother is coming back hun." She stopped for a moment, still frowning and looking at the little kit. She wondered what sort of questions he might ask. How would he take the horrible news? She never thought in a million moons that she would have to be the one to tell a little innocent kit that their mother had died....and most likely all of their siblings as well.

[Falcon]

Firekit sits there a long time deep in thought "does that mean I have to go away too?" he tilt his head to the side, his ears prickling as he waits for an answer "cause I'm pretty I'd get lost, all the trees look the same so it gets really confusing, where did my Mommy go? Why doesn't she want to stay here too?"

[CaℳI]

Aspenpool quickly shook her head, "Oh no, no sweetie! You don't have to leave. Actually, I was wondering if you wanted to stay here with me and my family and our clan family. You're more then welcomed to stay with me and Sandstripe. I'll take care of you. Some day when you're bigger, you'll get your apprentice name and be able to get a mentor and train with the other apprentices. And then after that, you'll get your warrior name and be called upon to be a honorable warrior. It's a very important job, meant for a kitty just like yourself, dear." She was really trying to make him happy and let him know how great Sunsetclan truly was. She would have to teach him a lot about the warrior code though, and about Sunsetclan. Firekit would have more work ahead of him then any of her own kits...but she didn't want to scare him away with how hard the adjustment might be for him at first.

"Oh sweetie." She said sadly, sitting down for a moment, "You're mommy...I don't think she's coming back. I could smell the badger that night that I took you back here to Sunsetclan with me...I think...I think the badger got your mommy. I'm so sorry Firekit. I understand that I'll never be able to replace your mother."

[Falcon]

Firekit looks a little confused "what's a badger, is that something to eat? it doesn't sound very tasty" ever the growing kit, his had quite an appetite "I don't think Sandstripe likes me much, he keeps looking at me like he wants to eat me" Firekit made a face "but I'm not a mouse"

[CaℳI]

Aspenpool shook her head for a moment. This kit wasn't understanding. "No sweetie. A badger is a very mean animal...that eats cats. Firekit...there is no easy way to say this. I could smell rotting cat...and I could smell the badger. I'm pretty sure the badger ate your mother... Her face was oh so serious as she tried to explain that his mother was dead.

Dead as in he would never see his mother again. He would never feel her soft fur against him while they cuddled at night. He would never get to be raised by her. He would never look into her eyes. Dead was forever, and Aspenpool was pretty sure that this little kit didn't understand that in the least.

"Sandstripe is rough at first. He's very protective over me, but I promise if you treat him nice like you have been, he'll like you in no time. Especially when he starts to understand how much I like you, Firekit."

[Falcon]

Firekit looks confused "but she said she was going to be right back through" he scrunches his nose in thought "how could a badger eat my Mommy she was really big, bigger then even me!" he puff out his fur to show how 'big' he really is, still a little confused

[CaℳI]

Aspenpool wasn't sure what else to do. "Sweetie...badgers have huge claws...almost as big as your entire body! They are mean and nasty creatures, with evil in their eyes and a hole where their heart should be. They can rip a cat to pieces in a mere second. Not even the largest warriors normally stand a chance." It was blunt...but she had to get through to this kit. He couldn't go on believing a lie. Her heart went out to him.

[Falcon]

he tilts his head "but if Mommy isn't coming here, where's she going, why didn't she tell me? Did she find Daddy? Is Daddy coming to get me?" he just seemed to be getting more and more confused as the conversation went on between the pair, his young mind not quite getting what she's trying to say

[CaℳI]

Aspenpool sighed heavily. She couldn't explain it any better. She was being as direct as she could. "No, sweetie. Your mother is dead. Do you know what dead means?" How could even a little kit not understand death? She didn't know what else to say. She looked at him with lowered eyes, still worried about if he would do well here in Sunsetclan. Maybe Firekit wasn't exactly the warrior type, but she would help him the best that she could.

[Falcon]

his ears flick upward "Daddy says that when a cat dies they go up and walk with those little shiny dots in the sky, seems like a really long walk to me" he looks up to the sky "so if my Mommy went up there, does that mean I have to go too?"

[CaℳI]

This poor kit obviously didn't understand. Either that or he didn't even care that he would never see his mother again. "Yes! Your mother is up in Starclan..." She knew that was probably a lie. Kittypets didn't believe in Starclan. More likely Kittypets didn't go anywhere when they died.

That wasn't any of Aspenpool's concern though. She decided to use this chance to educate Firekit about Starclan. She figured his daddy HAD to be a clancat at some point. Kittypets and rouges didn't really believe in Starclan...most Kittypets didn't even know what Starclan was. "When you die Firekit...as long as you were a good cat during your life and followed the warrior code...you go to Starclan. You live up in the sky and watch down on the clancats. Sometimes you even get to help a clan cat or two." Aspenpool had never talked to a Starclan cat, but she knew many who had. Even some who had Starclan mentors. Aspenpool was quite content in her life...well...mostly, so she figured that Starclan had no ned to talk to her.

As she made the long journey from the two-leg place back to Sunsetclan after being stolen away though, she could feel Starclan leading her. She believed deeply that they were looking after all the clans...even Talonclan.

"Nooo." She said still being patient as could be, "You're going to stay here...with me!" She said the ending with a bright smile, her tiny little teeth that were no bigger then a kit's shining out.

[Falcon]

He smiles "that's good, I like it here and I don't feel like walking all the way up there, I'd get really tired and then I'd get stuck and that wouldn't be fun" he makes a face "what's the warrior code?" he looks really excited to learn more about this weird world "where do you go if you don't listen to it, Daddy told me about this place with dead trees that bad cat go when they do naughty stuff"

[CaℳI]

Aspenpool silently sighed. Oh goodness. She would just explain the warrior code when she explained it to her other kits. "I'll explain the warrior code when I explain it to your sibling....I mean my kits." She looked down at her paws, still feeling uneasy. She wanted to pretend like Firekit was hers, but she didn't think he would ever accept her.

"Bad cats that don't follow the warrior code go to a place called the dark forest. It's scary there...that's where all cats who are evil go." At least that was the easiest way to explain it.