A Day of Shadows and a Night of Blood

by kyoukanxiety

Moonpaw is ugly, pathetic, and a cry-baby. Sunpaw is beautiful and glows just like the sun. Sunpaw thinks that she is clearly better than her sister, who always wallows in her self-pity. Moonpaw can't understand why every cat hates her. As they grow older, Moonpaw and Sunpaw become more and more bitter to each other. Can they survive their rivalry? More importantly, can their clan?

2. Prologue

Prologue:

"Ashbrook, you can come on in now."

Ashbrook brushed past the medicine cat, Pondwater, and darted into the nursery.

His mate, Cloudheart, blinked tiredly at him. Four kits suckled at her stomach.

Ashbrook released a throbbing purr as they admired their kits. One was a pastel-ginger tabby like him, one was an ash-gray, another was a blinding white, and the final a dark brown tabby.

"Two she-cats and two toms," Cloudheart purred drowsily.

"Let's name them," Ashbrook said. "Can we name the white one Hailkit?"

Cloudheart nodded. "Yes, and can we name this dark brown kit Sorrelkit?"

"Of course."

They looked at the final ginger and gray she-kits.

Cloudheart purred. "Why, they're as different-looking as the sun and moon!"

"Sunkit and Moonkit!" Ashbrook exclaimed. "The ginger can be Sunkit-"

"-and the gray kit can be Moonkit!" Cloudheart finished.

It was true. Sunkit and Moonkit were as different as day and night, black and white, fire and ice.

Sunkit's fur was thick and glossy, and she had a thin frame with a pretty, defined triangular face and small, petite paws.

Moonkit, however, had soft fur, but it was delicate and thin. She had a starved appearance and was very small. Her eyes and ears were large.

Cloudheart's and Askbrook's attention was drawn back to the other kits only when Hailkit started twitching and convulsing.

"What's wrong with Hailkit?!" Cloudheart cried as her son started to cry out.

Ashbrook leapt to his paws and streaked into the medicine cat den.

"Reedtail, Pondwater, come quick! Something is wrong with my kit!"

Reedtail dashed out of the den and the two toms ran towards the nursery. But as they reached the entrance, Cloudheart let out an agonized wail.

"Nooo! Hailkit!"

Ashbrook thrust his way into the den and fell besides his unmoving son.

"Hailkit," he moaned.

Reedtail entered the den and nosed the still white kit.

"I'm sorry." he mewed. "He's dead."

"We know that!" Cloudheart snarled, trembling violently.

Reedtail didn't flinch.

"Would you please let me check the other kits? I want to make sure they're okay."

Cloudheart curled protectively around her remaining kittens, her eyes slitted.

Ashbrook looked up from his dead son and mewed, "Let him, Cloudheart. We need to make sure our living kits are okay."

Cloudheart, reluctantly, let Reedtail approach and sniff her three newborns.

He gave the all-clear immediately with Sunkit and Moonkit, but he took a little longer with Sorrelkit.

"You've been on him for a while now." Cloudheart mewed reproachfully.

Reedtail paused.

"I'm going to get Pondwater," he mewed after a second.

Reedtail padded briskly out of the den, and Cloudwater sniffed Sorrelkit.

"He seems fine to me…" she mewed uncertainly.

After a few heartbeats, Reedtail re-entered the den, followed by Pondwater. Cloudheart flicked her tail warily but remained silent.

Pondwater meandered over to Sorrelkit and sniffed his pelt. She tutted.

"No, no, no." Pondwater said. "This kit isn't going to make it."

Cloudwater and Ashbrook gasped.

"I-isn't going to m-make it?" Ashbrook stammered. "What do you mean?"

"He looks perfectly fine to me!" Cloudheart chimed in, desperately trying to convince herself that her last son wasn't about to die.

Pondwater and Reedtail exchanged looks.

"See here," Pondwater said gently, "Listen to his breathing."

Cloudheart dipped head and pressed her ear against her son's flank.

"His breathing… it's all… funny."

Pondwater nodded. "I'm sorry, but Sorrelkit was born with only one lung."

"But he can survive with one lung!" Cloudheart exclaimed. "My friend Vineflower from ShadowClan said her sister's kit, Pinepaw, was born with one lung! And she's having her warrior ceremony next moon!"

Reedtail scraped the floor with his paw.

"That's not all…" he mewed. "Sorrelkit's lung is filled with some fluid…"

Cloudheart became very still.

"Do you know what the fluid is?" Ashbrook mewed.

"Well…" Reedtail mewed. "See for yourself… smell Sorrelkit's muzzle."

Ashbrook dipped his head and sniffed at his son's muzzle. His eyes widened.

"Blood!" he choked out.

Reedtail nodded miserably. "Blood is filling up his lung quickly. He must have some sort of internal bleeding."

"Fix it!" Cloudheart cried.

"I-I can't."

Cloudheart let out a whimper and buried her head in her paws. Ashbrook sank down next to Sorrelkit and licked his son's ears tenderly.

Reedtail and Pondwater exchanged glances.

"We'll leave you now." Pondwater said.

They exited the den.

Ashbrook lapped at his son's pelt until finally, the little kit's breathing halted, and Cloudheart started to wail.