Wow! Thanks for the feedback, Moonfire and Shellheart (again ;) )!
And, I indeed agree that you should figure out what idea this is… though I'm quite sure you'll find out in this next chapter. I guess you'll just have to read on to find out!
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Mourning Interrupted
For a long time Burningkit lurked in the forest. He stalked near the ground, his head hung low and his tail dragged along behind him. Every pawstep felt like another moon slipping out of Burningkit's feet and into the ground, never to return to his ebbing life. The indentations he left in the marshy earth quickly filled with water.
For the first time in Burningkit's life, it had begun to rain. If he were in a better mood, he would have been thankful that the endless leaf-bare was finally drawing away and that, for the first time in his life, he could see trees of green instead of white.
But Burningkit felt like he couldn't care anymore.
He breathed softly, watching as the clouds of his breath were quickly slain and dispersed by the many falling raindrops. Though only water, the rain felt like a shower of stones and sticks atop his head, trying to tear away more of Burningkit's shedding leaf-bare fur. The tom barely noticed, however. He was too depressed inside to feel the pain of the world around him.
After wandering for a long time uninterrupted, Burningkit found himself wading through thorny tendrils of wet bracken. With a soft grunt, the seething kitten forced his way through the bush. The prickles tore at his right ear, making the kit wail in agony. For a moment, a stunned Burningkit wondered why one of his ears hurt so much after just going through a small prickle-bush. The tom sighed as he pulled his tail through, grimacing as more of the burning pain stung at his ear.
"Finally," he sighed. Burningkit's dark eyes scanned over a barren clearing before him. Though only half the size of the hollow where FrostClan resided, this small place contained the body and spirits of every deceased member of the FrostClan of the past.
There, near the center of the small hollow, was a cat-sized area covered with a new layer of mud and peat.
Burningkit walked to the burial mound where he was sure his father now lay. He sat down, his eyes closed; closed to everything around him, allowing not even the blistering pain of his ear to disturb the silence of his quiet angst. For a long time Burningkit stood there… his eyes never opened, not once, during his lengthy vigil.
At last, a sound pierced the impenetrable, noiseless atmosphere. "Little man? Are you okay?"
Burningkit's eyes flashed open. Slowly, ominously, the kitten turned around. His ears were swiveled low, and he could feel the tips of his front canines sticking out of his upper lip. He stared viciously at the cat behind him. Breathing slow as not to provoke a reaction, Burningkit mustered up all his self-control and growled, "What?"
There, in the rain, stood Crystalshard; a cat of white amongst the brown, dead landscape. With a gentle nudge, the tom meowed, "You've been here since dawn. Are you okay?"
"Am I okay?" Burningkit roared. Forgetting his restraint, he stood up, letting the wet hair on his back curl into dark rows of spikes. Spitting the words out like venom, he cried, "How can I be okay when my father is DEAD?!"
Crystalshard only took a pace forward, his blue eyes wetter than the rain with his sympathy for the kit. "Take it easy, little man," he murmured. Despite Burningkit's internal frustration, his friend walked over to him and started to lick his head comfortingly.
A short sigh of relief escaped Burningkit's lips. As Crystalshard backed away, the kit asked, "How did he die?"
"Pardon?"
"How did he die? My dad, I mean…"
Crystalshard paused awkwardly. The rain continued to pound against the ground, washing away the last bits of slush that remained from the dying leaf-bare. Empty trees moaned as the wind chilled over their exposed appendages, their branches rattling like pebbles in a swift current.
After a long silence, he meowed, "Well, if you really wanna know, I suppose I can tell you. You see, we were fighting the badger with all our strength. Littlepaw showed bravery I had never seen in her before, and I fought as though my very life was at stake. But apparently, it wasn't my life that was on the line…"
The white warrior quieted for a moment. "The badger was too strong… too angry. Badgerclaw fought hard, but the beast fought harder. After your father wore out, the creature slammed its heavy claws against his head and literally knocked him dead." Crystalshard bowed his head. "He was a great warrior. I'm sorry, Burningkit."
The small, brown tom just stared at Crystalshard. Suddenly, the white warrior meowed in surprise, "Your lip is bleeding."
Burningkit sat down. He opened his mouth and licked his lower lip. Crystalshard was right. The tangy flavor of blood stung the kit's taste buds like liquid fire. For a moment he wondered how it could've happened, when he finally mused, "I guess I cut it when I walked through the prickle bush." He turned to his friend and asked, "But why does my ear hurt so much? It's been driving me madder than a disturbed bee's nest!"
"I think the badger struck you in the head or something. It's torn." Crystalshard flicked his tail. "I was told by Rosepetal that the pain will go away eventually, but your ear will never heal completely."
"Brilliant," Burningkit grumbled. He looked to the ground darkly. Now he could never shake it off. His father's death would linger forever as a split in his ear… a sign of how he had also received a tear to his heart, with the loss of his parent.
Crystalshard changed the subject, "Actually, Burningkit, I was sort of wondering if you could come with me to the FrostClan camp. Dreamstar would like to see you."
"Dreamstar?" Burningkit lifted his head, his dark eyes meeting Crystalshard's softening stare. "What does the clan leader want with me?"
A huge grin spread on the warrior's face. "She wants to make you an apprentice."
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No song lyrics! (Dang, I need to listen to more songs…)
I am SO sorry for the wait! My Spyro: Truth or Dare has been occupying a lot of my spare time lately because of the amount of attention it requires. I'll be able to update this more, though, with Winter Break coming up.
And now another cliffhanger! What is this madness?! I can update again probably within the week, or maybe next week, but I promise you that I'll update sooner than last time!