The Odd One
Prologue
The half moon shone down through a darkening and cloudy sky and through tree tops to light up a scene that had just begun. The lighting illuminated a creature lying in the grass, her body nearly convulsing from labor. The animal whimpered as pains seared through her aching body, while all she could do was wait. The wind started to pick up, causing the grass around her to sway madly. The breeze gained speed and caused a horrid howling sound that echoed in the creature's ears. The storm is here.
The animal delayed her birthing long enough to find shelter in some near-by underbrush. It was a nice secluded area that had overhanging braches to protect her from the strengthening rains. Only a few long minutes later four creatures found their way into the world that seemed so daunting and dreadful at that moment. The mother eagerly began licking their damp furr with the last reserves of her energy. The four furry babies each opened their eyes but insisted on closing them again. Their mother nuzzled them towards her stomach and then sighed, her work done. She would have to remain where she was before rejoining her family; the storm, by the way of it, wasn't going to die down anytime soon. The babied began nursing, staying cuddled up to their mother's stomach for it's warmth and safety. In time all five of the creatures fell asleep with the wind still howling and rain pouring down.
0o0o0o0o0o0o
The morning rays of light streaked down into the mother's eyes to waken her. She blinked and glanced around. The shrubs and plant-life all glistened with rain droplets that had fallen and stayed there during the previous night's storm. She turned to look at her four miracles and joy flooded her heart. They were all nestled together around her belly so that they looked like little fur-balls that had gotten stuck together. She didn't want to wake them, but she needed to rejoin her family to be safe; they could help her hunt and take care of the babies better than she alone could. And besides that fact her mate was waiting patiently for her return. He would be so worried if she never showed up, as would she. The image of her mate flashed into her mind. He was black with piercing yellow eyes that most would feel intimidated by. But somehow she and him had seen past each other's roughness and saw something more.
She shook her head to clear her mind, knowing she would be home again soon, and started to stand up. The babies immediately began to whine as their warm bodies slipped away from her's and felt the cold ground. Their mother shook her fur to rid herself of wet droplets that had clung to her pelt, and then gave each of the babies a lick for encouragement. In the daylight it was her first chance to see their individual markings. One was black like his father, one was reddish-brown like her mother, one was black with red hairs swirled in every so often, and the other was oddly silver. The mother glanced awkwardly at the silver female. She was the unlucky baby with a recessive gene. Suddenly the black baby jumped and landed on the reddish-brown one. A brawl was soon started and the other two babies joyfully joined in and they all began to tumble around. The black and reddish baby kicked out its leg, knocking both the black and silver baby backwards. The black baby flipped over and landed flat on his stomach, then began to whimper. The reddish-brown baby and the black and reddish baby both stopped the romp and looked over curiously as their mother rushed over to the black baby and began licking him cautiously.
Meanwhile the silver baby had been kicked harder than her brother and tumbled backwards and out of the underbrush shelter. She tried to open her not-yet-ready eyes only to see a spinning world which made her very dizzy. She whimpered twice before drooping her head in weariness.
The mother picked up the black baby in her jaws and was just able to fit the other two babies in as well. She sniffed the air and found the best route home. She had had enough of the forest. She was ready to be home, so she trotted off through the underbrush and past by the silver speck, lying in the grass. The reddish brown baby looked back as her sister was left behind. Her sister would die without her mother. The baby whimpered, trying to get her mother's attention but to no avail. The mother only thought she was whimpering because of her grasp on her neck scruff. So the mother left with only three of her babies, not noticing that her eagerness caused her a loss.
A/N: The animals in this prologue are not cats! XD Reviews are appreciated!