Bracken watched, horrified, as Splash's body became motionless. His eldest, and now only, kit let out a pitiful mew. She scurried to her father and rubbed her silver pelt against his fiery-orange fur. He tried to soothe her with gentle licks until her cries died away.
"River, we have to go now."
The kit squealed furiously as flames lapped at her fur, singing them. She flicked her tail pointedly at her dead mother, then sat beside Splash with her nose pressed against her's. She shuddered.
Bracken scrambled towards her and lifted her carefully onto his back. River dug her glinting claws into his shoulders so she had a grip. He then grabbed Splash by the scruff of her neck and soon they were padding across the burning trail; trying to find a new home.
At sunrise, they settled in the dead grass on the outskirts of the forest. Bracken closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep...
"Bracken!" yelped Splash.
Bracken turned around. A badger charged out the undergrowth. Sunk its teeth into Splash's neck. Rusty, his youngest kit, squealed as the badger dragged him away; back into the heather. He remained unmoving until Rusty's frightened mews faded away. He then glanced at Splash. Her breathing was ragged, uneven.
"I love you," she whispered.
The light faded from her eyes...
Bracken awoke with a start. River stirred slightly beside him. She blinked rapidly, and gazed at her father. Congealed blood was matted into her silver fur, and her blue eyes seemed distant. She glared back at the forest, that was engulfed in flames.
"Can we go home now?" she asked, nibbling on a berry she had found on the floor.
It was bright red, the colour of blood. Bracken yelped when he recognized what it was...
A death berry!
"No!"
Bracken batted the berry away with his paws.
River looked at her father, confusion dancing in her eyes. Then she fell to the ground. Her mind raced, and she uttered a single word with her dying breath:
"Sorry."
Bracken watched desperately as River struggled on the ground, wriggling and writhing. She eventually gave up: The berries had won.
Now he was alone...