"I'm expecting kits?" My pelt went stiff and my heart was pounding. That can't possibly be right.
"Yes. You're out of the camp all the time so I didn't notice before." Dawnfur mewed.
"When are they due?" I asked.
"Anytime within a moon." Dawnfur replied.
"What?" I exclaimed. "How is that possible?"
"You've been expecting kits for a while now, I just didn't notice before because you are always out of the camp. You'll have to move to the nursery now." Dawnfur told me.
"I don't want to move into the nursery!" I hissed, lashing my tail in annoyance. "If I move into the nursery, everyone would know that I'm expecting kits. They wouldn't let me leave the camp to go hunting!"
"Leafstorm, the Clan will manage if you aren't out there catching prey. We have plenty of warriors." Dawnfur laughed.
"What's going on?" Shadeheart asked. He had brought back one of the rabbits I had caught earlier.
"Your sister is expecting kits." Dawnfur told him. Shadeheart's face lit up immediately.
"Really?" he asked.
"Yeah." I sighed, shaking my head.
"That's great!" He purred.
"I guess." I mumbled. I don't want kits!
"That fox won't be coming around here anytime soon." I heard my brother say from outside. Stormfoot padded into the den to join us.
"Did you get him?" I asked nervously.
"Yeah," Stormfoot nuzzled my cheek gently. "We got him. He isn't coming back here anytime soon. He messed with the wrong Clan!" Stormfoot purred, flexing his claws into the dirt.
"Good!" Shadeheart mewed.
"Last time I saw him, he was full of blood and limping away with his tail between his legs. He's lucky that we showed him mercy or we would have killed him." Stormfoot boasted.
"Isn't that great, Leafstorm? That fox won't be showing his face around here anytime soon." Shadeheart purred.
"Yeah." I muttered. "Great." I hope he's alright. It's my fault this happened, I don't know what I would do if Sawyer got killed because of me.
"They're beautiful, Leafstorm." Dawnfur purred. "They've grown bigger since last time I've come in here." she added.
"Well, they've opened their eyes now and naturally, they want to explore everything." I laughed, watching the little balls of fluff run around.
"Have you given them names?" Dawnfur asked curiously.
"No." I shook my head.
"Leafstorm, they are almost a moon old now. They should get names eventually." Dawnfur scoffed.
"I won't name them. Patchtail told me that this was the coldest leaf-bare that he's ever experienced, and he's the oldest cat in WindClan. What if they don't make it? Fallensnow lost two of her kits, Rainkit and Runningkit to the cold weather, what if I lose mine too? If they make it through leaf-bare, then I will give them names." I told her. I want their father to be there when I finally name them, I just can't tell her that.
"Has Whitecloud agreed to this?" Dawnfur asked. I closed my eyes, and remembered when my kits were born.
"Four toms and a she-cat. They all look exactly like you." Dawnfur purred. Whitecloud burst through the nursery entrance, beaming happily.
"They are beautiful, Leafstorm." Whitecloud purred.
"I'll come check up on you later. I'll leave the two of you alone." Dawnfur smiled, padding away. Whitecloud sat down next to me, and closed his eyes.
"I know I'm not the father." he sighed. "I've gotten a lot of congratulations from our Clan mates and no other tom has come forward, or objected. Am I right to assume that the father isn't from WindClan?" Whitecloud asked in a hushed voice.
"Yes." I whispered.
"Your secret is safe with me, Leafstorm." Whitecloud mewed. "Also, I could go along with it." he added.
"What do you mean?" I frowned.
"I could say that I am their father. And no one but you and me ever has to know otherwise."
"I couldn't ask that much of you." I shook my head. "It must hurt, to know that I chose someone else." I muttered.
"Leafstorm, it isn't asking much at all. I'm offering to do this, not as mates, but as friends." Whitecloud insisted.
"Thank you, Whitecloud." I said drowsily. "For everything."
"Of course." I mewed, but Dawnfur was already gone.
"I'm Clan leader!" I heard a squeal from outside. I glanced around the den, all of my kits were gone. I padded out of the nursery and sighed in relief. My five kits were wrestling with Shadeheart's and Stoneshade's apprentices, Icepaw and Sandpaw. The biggest of my kits, stood on a stump and puffed out his chest. His amber eyes sparkled and he had a look on his face that made my heart pound. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. I remembered back in leaf-fall, when I used to go hunting on my own. When I used to visit him. One time he had been waiting for me, on top of a rock. His chest had been puffed out, and his amber eyes had sparkled. I looked at my other kits, they were all the same. Each one of them had the same expression, the same eyes. They each reminded me of him.
"Are you okay, Leafstorm?" Icepaw asked me.
"Yes, I'm fine." I nodded. I noticed Fallensnow leading her only living kit, Cloudkit back into the nursery. I padded over to her.
"Hi Leafstorm." she smiled. I could see the sadness in her eyes. She was still mourning for Rainkit and Runningkit.
"Fallensnow, could I ask you a favor?" I asked.
"Sure." she mewed.
"Could you watch my kits for me? I have to go hunting. I haven't been out of the camp in a long time and it's killing me!" I exclaimed.
"Yeah, I'll watch them." she mewed. "Never could keep you in the camp for long." she laughed.
"Thank you." I purred, padding back over to where my kits were. Icepaw and Sandpaw had left with their mentors to go train. They were wrestling around on the ground.
"Hi!" The only she-cat purred.
"I want you to go to the nursery, where Fallensnow can keep an eye on you. You are going to listen to her, she'll tell me if you don't." I said sternly.
"You're leaving?" The smallest kit, a tom, gasped.
"It won't be for long," I promised. "I'm just going to go hunting for a little bit. The Clan needs it now more than ever." I told them. Three of the tom's shrugged and padded towards the nursery. Two kits stayed.
"I don't want you to go!" the same kit wailed, pressing close to me.
"The Clan has to have prey," the she-cat scoffed. She tugged on her brother until he let go of my fur.
"I'll look after him while your gone." she smiled. I watched her lead him the the nursery but he batted her away once they got there. He turned to face me, peeking his head out of the entrance. His eyes were full of sadness. I almost wanted to run to him, and stay with him but I took a deep breath and padded out of the camp. I shivered, feeling the cold leaf-bare weather but I kept going. A sad memory crept into my mind, a memory that I had tried to not think of.
" Stop! They'll know you are still here if I have your scent on me when I go back to the camp!" I gasped.
"I know." he said, he didn't stop.
"Why are you doing this? They'll find you."
"That's what I'm hoping for." he told me.
"Did you not hear the part where I don't want to lose you?"
"You won't." he said, looking into my eyes. "I promise."
"I don't understand your plan." I sighed.
"When you go back to your Clan, you tell them that I'm still here. Tell them that I attacked you." he told me.
"No." I shook my head. "I won't."
"Leafstorm, tell them your Clan mates that I attacked you. Say you were hunting, and I appeared out of nowhere. Say you just managed to get away from me." he insisted.
"No. They'll come after you." I whimpered.
"Then let them." he prompted.
I whimpered. That was the last time I had seen him, had heard his voice. He had been driven away by my Clan mates, for me. So I wouldn't get in trouble with my Clan mates for trespassing on ThunderClan's territory. I looked around, it was covered in snow but my paws had undoubtedly taken me to the hills. I felt a spark of hope rise in my chest. I found myself racing to where I used to meet him. I sniffed the ground around the hill, and my heart dropped. His scent was long since gone. He really is gone. And I never even got to say goodbye. I sighed out loud. I better get back to my kits, I can't be away from them for long. I took a deep breath before I started walking back to the camp. I heard footsteps crunching in the newly fallen snow.
"Hey Leafstorm." My brother, Stormfoot purred.
"Hey," I smiled.
"Fallensnow told me you were out hunting. Did you find anything?" he asked.
"No," I shook my head sadly. "I didn't find anything."
"Look, I have to go meet Sorrelpaw by the stream, and I don't have time to renew the scent markers by the hills. Could you go down that way and do it for me?" he pleaded.
"Sure." I shrugged.
"Wait, were you going back to your kits? If you were, I could always ask someone else." he trailed off.
"No, it's fine. It isn't that far." I shrugged.
"Thank you, Leafstorm." my brother purred before racing off to meet his apprentice. I turned and started walking back towards the hills. I saw my paw prints in the snow, and where I stopped. I placed my paw in my footprint, remembering when I had done the same when he had made a print in the mud. I shook him away from my thoughts and continued walking. I reached the border, and marked the scent. I shook my fur free of the snow and started walking back.
"Leafstorm? Is that you?" I heard a familiar voice call. I stopped, as if the cold, leaf-bare weather had frozen me. I took a deep breath and turned around to face whoever the voice belonged to. I felt him brush his fur against mine and I was speechless. I breathed in his familiar scent.
"Sawyer." I breathed.
