Chapter 10

Mossheart twitched her whiskers with amusement as she watched Dovewing's kits playing with a moss ball.

"Pass it to me Brindlekit!" shouted Silverkit.

"No! Pass it to me!" Tigerkit squeaked. Brindlekit looked from her brother to her sister and catapulted it above them both. The two kits reached it at the same time and started rolling around on the ground fighting over it.

"It's mine!" Squeaked Silverkit.

"No, it's mine!" hissed Tigerkit.

"Mine!"

"Mine!" Back and forth went the moss ball. Until, it just rolled away. Brindlekit shook her head, and padded over to the moss ball and picked it up between her teeth ever so gently. Then she padded over and sat beside Mossheart and Dovewing.

Then she sighed. "Kits." She mewed quietly.

Dovewing and Mossheart both held back mrrows' of laughter. Seeing that the cat who just mewed that was still a kitten herself.

"Yes dear, they're not as mature as you are they?" Dovewing meowed to her young daughter. Brindlekit sat up a little straighter.

"Do you really think so mamma?" She gazed up at her mother with big blue eyes.

"Yes honey. But let's not mention this to them okay? That wouldn't be very grown-up now would it?" Dovewing purred as she licked her ear.

"No, I guess not. But I would really like too." Brindlekit sighed and padded back to the nursery. Her two littermate's were still rolling around together.

"Okay you two! That's enough." Dovewing yowled to her two rambunctious kits. Both kits dropped to the ground panting heavily. Tigerkit looked around.

"Where's the ball?" he asked Silverkit quizzically. She looked around.

"I don't know." She replied. Dovewing and Mossheart both let out mrrows of laughter. They just now noticed that it was gone. Silverkit and Tigerkit looked confused. "What's up with them?" Tigerkit asked, still confused.

"I don't know. Grown ups are weird. C'mon Tigerkit! Let's go see Graystripe and Millie! They always have the best stories." Silverkit padded towards the elder's den and Tigerkit followed.

Once Dovewing and Mossheart recovered, Dovewing gazed at Mossheart sadly.

"They're so adorable, and I love them to death, but it's so hard to raise them on my own." She sighed then padded to the nursery before Mossheart could ask what she had meant.

What did she mean by that? She wondered to herself. She does have a mate, doesn't she? That was the first time she had even hinted about their father.

Mossheart followed Dovewing to the nursery. She found her giving Brindlekit a bath. Brindlekit was squirming.

"Mamma! I told you I could do it myself." She protested.

Dovewing continued washing her kit. "You missed a few spots dear." She meowed between licks. Brindlekit squeezed away and hid behind Mossheart.

"I don't need a bath, do I Mossheart?" the small tortoiseshell kitten looked at Mossheart with big pleading eyes.

"Of course not dear!" Mossheart told the small kit. Dovewing glared at her.

"If you want to look like a hedgehog at Myrtlepaw and Whitepaws's ceremony later." Mossheart finished.

Brindlekit squeaked and let her mother finish washing her.

"Thanks," Dovewing sighed as she sent her kit to go visit Myrtlepaw and Whitepaw before their ceremony.

"No problem," Mossheart replied. "Anything for my newest friend." After all, Mossheart had spent a lot of time with her recently. Dovewing looked confused.

"Do you mean me?" she questioned her.

"Of course I meant you! You're one of my best friends now." Mossheart replied feeling a bit uncomfortable. She had kind of noticed that Dovewing didn't really have friends. Even her own sister, Ivypool, seemed to ignore her.

I know how that feels, Mossheart thought to herself sadly. Flowerpetal never talks to me now. Dovewing looked around.

"Come with me," she told Mossheart quietly. She padded through camp until she found Daisy. She whispered something to her, and Daisy nodded and walked away.

Dovewing and Mossheart padded through the forest.

"So, where are we going?" Mossheart asked after a while. Dovewing didn't look back at her. She just meowed. "I asked Daisy to watch the kits so we could take a walk." After that Mossheart was quiet.

Both cats continued on until they came to the lake overlooking the ShadowClan border. There, Dovewing sat down. Mossheart sat as well.

"It sure is beautiful out here," Mossheart mewed nervously. After all, they were just a few tail lengths away from where Mossheart had crashed through the ice all those moons ago. Thankfully, the lake was no longer frozen, for leaf-bare was coming to an end, and new-leaf was on its way. Some trees even had some leaves.

Then Dovewing shifted uncomfortably. "Umm, Mossheart, do you really consider me a friend? Like a good friend who could keep a secret?"

"Of course I do mouse-brain! Why wouldn't I?"Mossheart replied. Dovewing let out a sigh. "Not many cats do." She mewed sadly.

"Why?" Mossheart asked without thinking.

"Well, when I started expecting kits, everyone wanted to know whose kits they were. I wouldn't tell anyone. So cats started gossiping. Some got mad because they got blamed, others were mad because I wouldn't tell them. My own sister was mad even though I did tell her…" Dovewing was very upset now.

Mossheart moved closer to her friend. "You don't have to tell me this if it makes you upset." She comforted her.

"No," Dovewing stared into Mosshearts' eyes.

"I have to tell someone."

Is she going to tell me who her kits father is? Mossheart thought excitedly.

Dovewing took a deep breath.

"Ivypool has judged me for who I picked. But I just feel like I have to tell someone who the father of my kits is, and for some reason, I feel like you're the right cat." Dovewing continued. She looked deep into Mossheart's eyes before revealing her secret.

"It's Tigerheart."