Yarrowbreeze's sleep was tumultuous. The sound of water pouring outside the den coupled with the tossing and turning of Willowkit and Sunkit made staying asleep a difficult task. The tabby she-cat padded wearily out of the den and into the rain. She looked up into the night sky, a horde of sinister looking clouds stood between her and the stars she so longed to see. Can the Great Pool still see us? The she-cat wondered, and it sent a shiver down her spine. Yarrowbreeze shook her head, scolding herself for having such a silly thought.
"What are you doing up so late?" Leapfoot asked from her post near the camp entrance. The sudden voice scared Yarrowbreeze half to death. "Just couldn't stay asleep." she replied, unnerved.
Leapfoot dipped her head and beckoned Yarrowbreeze with her slender tail, which looked even thinner in the pouring rain. "You and Bearstrike have quite the responsibility now, don't you?" Leapfoot observed.
"I honestly don't understand why." Yarrowbreeze admitted. "We are the youngest warriors in the cynn."
"But you know what it's like to depend on others when your parents are gone." The ginger she-cat replied coolly. "And you aren't alone. The cynn will always be here to help, but it would be wrong to give Mossjaw two more kits who are much older than her own, especially in the middle of a flood. It's just not possible for one queen to care for all those kits."
Yarrowbreeze dipped her head in acknowledgement, not wanting to burden the senior warrior with her worries. But she took comfort in knowing that her cynn was there to support her and her brother. "Leapfoot, would you mind if I slipped out of camp for a quick hunt? It's been so long since I've been out of camp." Yarrowbreeze asked.
Leapfoot shook her head. "No cats are allowed out of camp alone, remember? Fernstar's orders."
Yarrowbreeze's tail drooped. She had completely forgotten this new rule, but she wanted nothing more than to be alone in the forest with her thoughts. "Please, Leapfoot. I just want some time to myself." She pleaded. The older warrior looked away from Yarrowbreeze, then sighed. "I suppose if you're quick. But make sure you bring back something for the fresh-kill pile. Go, quickly." the she-cat ushered.
Yarrowbreeze shot Leapfoot a grateful glance as she hurried out of the camp and into the forest she loved. But tonight, the woods felt eerie. The rain pounded on, making it impossible to listen for anything, prey or otherwise. The she-cat padded consciously towards the Great Oak, careful to watch her footing. She paused, but found that scenting the air would also be impossible. Yarrowbreeze strained her ears in hopes of finding even a trace of a scuffle in the earth. She was so focused on listening for prey that the silhouette that appeared before her didn't seem extraordinary until it spoke.
"I know what you're looking for." said a disembodied voice. It felt as though it came from all around her, as if the forest itself was speaking to Yarrowbreeze. Yarrowbreeze jumped in shock and unsheathed her claws. "Who are you? Show yourself." She hissed.
The voice came again, this time more focused to the silhouette before her. "In due time."
The silhouette was dark and cat-like, but it's outline seemed to glow with low, incandescent light. The figure moved from its position in front of Yarrowbreeze, and walked deeper into the forest. Yarrowbreeze felt unsure of what to do, but something inside her urged her forward. She stalked slowly behind the dark figure. What did it mean when it said it knew what I was looking for? The she-cats mind raced as fast as the adrenaline that rushed through her body. The figure continued forward briskly, and Yarrowbreeze began to doubt herself. This must be a dream...
"Where are we going?" Yarrowbreeze panted. "Who are you?" She raced forward to try to halt the mysterious intruder, but found that no matter how hard she pushed, the figure remained ahead.
Suddenly the figure stopped close to the edge of the territory. The torrenting river rushed on, and Yarrowbreeze felt her veins turn to ice as she realized how flooded the area had become. What was once a small, shallow gulch had been completely covered by the perilous flood. A massive rocky outcropping was nearly covered save a few tall boulders, and fallen trees criss-crossed over the damaged territory. The flood exploded forward, and she realized that the valley past the cynn territories had become a wetland. "Why did you take me here?" Yarrowbreeze begged, her voice shaking with fear and anger.
"We're not there yet." The voice responded. The figure turned to walk down a muddy trail, and Yarrowbreeze did her best to not make a sound as the watery muck squished between her paw pads. Anxiety deepened in Yarrowbreeze's chest as she crossed out of Whispering Brook's territory, and into the open world.
The muddy path curved slightly away from the flood, down to its own small rushing stream. Yarrowbreeze's newly healed shoulder had begun to ache, and she yearned for her nest. But still, the curiosity and urge that willed her forward had to be satisfied. A small pond had begun to form at the end of the stream, salmonberry bushes and alders surrounded the area. The rain continued on, but felt as if it fell softer here. Despite the rain, a sickening and familiar scent flooded Yarrowbreeze's sense, and she gagged.
"That's not very nice." The figure said dryly. The silhouette padded forward a bit more until it took a seat at the highest point of a tall, flat rock. Yarrowbreeze wearily crept forward, and each step brought the stench closer. She set a single paw on the stone and felt a chill erupt through her entire body. The urge to turn tail and run back to camp was strong, and Yarrowbreeze felt frozen in place.
"You wanted to know who I am. Now, you will know." the voice echoed all around. Yarrowbreeze trembled in fear as she willed herself forward. She stared down at her paws for each step, terrified of what she may see if she looked up. The smell was overwhelming, and Yarrowbreeze felt as if she may vomit.
"Look." the voice directed softly. Yarrowbreeze glanced at the mysterious cat. Despite its unnerving appearance, the voice was like that of a mother soothing her kits. Yarrowbreeze turned her head slowly to look at the base of the rock, and couldn't bring herself to fully digest the scene before her for a moment. Below the rock were two smaller rock formations, a tree had been caught between them. The gnarled branches of the tree were menacing and looked as if they were reaching for Yarrowbreeze. On a low branch that hung close to the water's surface Yarrowbreeze could make out the pelt of a white cat, its waterlogged fur waved hauntingly in the bobbing current of the pond.
"I still don't know who you are." Wailed Yarrowbreeze. The shadow padded forward and pressed itself against her pelt, a strange electricity made her pelt feel as if it were buzzing. "You don't know me, but you know my kits." The voice soothed. The realization of who this cat was hit Yarrowbreeze like the crashing flood, and she looked at the figure with understanding and sadness. "I... I am so sorry." She fumbled over her words, unsure of what to say, much less how to comprehend speaking to the spirit of a cat not from the Great Pool.
Suddenly the silhouette padded towards her body and floated above the water, not even a ripple moved across the surface. She dipped her head and pressed her nose against the body, and suddenly the silhouette was no longer a silhouette, but a beautiful, ghostly white she-cat who glowed with the same disembodied light.
"Follow me." the she-cat said with a flick of her tail. Yarrowbreeze followed the she-cat back into Whispering Brook's territory, back to the Great Oak. The two cats crouched and crept into the log and out of the rain that pelted on. Yarrowbreeze shivered and lapped at her pelt, trying to warm herself. The mother of Willowkit and Sunkit tucked her paws beneath her.
"Thank you for caring for my kits." the spirit cat began. "My name is Bug. We were trying to cross the river further upstream when a two-leg pushed me and my kits over the edge of a two-leg bridge."
"How could they do such a thing?!" remarked Yarrowbreeze, horrified.
"Who knows why two-legs do anything." Bug growled. "I grabbed for my kits, who you now call 'Willowkit' and 'Sunkit'. But the current was too strong." She choked out, her voice overwhelmed with emotion. "I tried."
Yarrowbreeze shifted guiltily. "What are their real names?"
The white she-cat shook her head slowly. "They will never be those kits again. Their names died with me, and you have given them new life. I could never ask for anything more."
Grief welled up inside Yarrowbreeze. For Bug's loss, for her kit's loss, for the loss of a mother who so desperately fought to stay with her family.
"You are young, but like your name, no yarrow ever bends to the will of a mere breeze. You are stronger than you know." Bug assured Yarrowbreeze.
The she-cat took comfort in Bug's words, but the reality of what had occurred still stung deeply within Yarrowbreeze's chest. "I am sorry your kits and your life were taken from you." she murmured.
Bug sighed. "No cat can control life or death. If this were true, we would all be immortal." the she-cat replied simply. "But I thank you for finding me. Now, hopefully my kits will have peace, and will be loved by more cats than I could ever hope for."
The she-cat stood up and looked down at Yarrowbreeze. Fierce love and pain reflected in Bug's icy blue eyes, and the she-cat touched her nose to Yarrowbreeze's. When Yarrowbreeze opened her eyes again, Bug was gone. All that remained was the sound of rain falling on the roof of the Fallen Oak, and the cold that crept under Yarrowbreeze's fur. Too exhausted to walk back to camp, she curled up further into the oak where sleep met her with open arms.