Chapter Twenty-three: New Life

The snowy white tom stalked into the camp, and every single cat stared. He was haggard and tired looking. Giving a friendly nod to the two dog-like creatures nearby, he simply said:

"Well. Stop staring."

Tawnypelt excitedly raced up. "What happened?" She asked. "Are you all right?"

"You're back!" Applebird squealed, rubbing herself up against him. But she froze as she smelled a sweet, sultry scent that seemed to be clinging to him more often.

Dreamcloud's scent.

But what was worse was a soft, milky scent mixed with that scent. The scent of kits.

"Littlecloud," She finally mewed. "You'd better look him over."

"I'm fine," Windstar held back a yawn. "I'm just... tired." He blinked. "I see you've met Swift and Blizzard."

"Wonderful family you have here," Swift noted, sarcasm dripping from every word. "Tried to kill us."

Tawnypelt looked defensive. "Oh, you're fine!"

Littlecloud carefully checked the annoyed leader over, and then, Windstar gave the yowl for the meeting.

"I was captured by Twolegs," He explained. "Swift was in the same nest as me, trapped as well, and she and Blizzard helped me escape. To repay them, I am letting both stay on our territory and hunt as they please."

"Are they mates?" An apprentice called out. "Is that why they're staying together?"

Swift gave an embarrassed sigh, and muttering something to SkyPack, laid down, one paw on her muzzle.

"I also discovered what happened to Nectarfoot..." Nightwing looked excited as he said this. Windstar's sympathetic gaze looked into her. "I'm... sorry. She was killed."

A low wailing raised from the crowd of cats, and Windstar lept down to stand next to a sad Applebird. He was unable to keep the excitement out of his voice, try as he might, as he spoke quietly to her.

"Dreamcloud has had my kits!"

"Congratulations," She answered dully. Her friend pressed his muzzle into her fur.

"Applebird," He sighed. "You don't love me. That much is obvious. Try again with Birchpelt."

"No," She shook her head. "It's wrong."

But Windstar's pale green eyes caught hers.

"Sometimes, you have to do the wrong things for the right reason."

xxx

"Birchpelt!"

The tabby tom turned his head to see that all-too-familiar she-cat watching him with hazel eyes.

"Applebird?" He asked sharply. "What are you doing on ThunderClan territory. Is something wrong with our kits?" 'Our kits' was stated in an ashamed tone, and he looked at his paws.

Applebird simply padded up to him, standing near him. "Birchpelt," She confessed. "I love you. I never stopped. Maybe you did, but I didn't. I tried, and I got very close to loving Windstar, but... he loves Dreamcloud-"

Birchpelt's eyes widened. "What?"


Applebird winced. She hadn't meant to say that. "Please don't tell Firestar," She murmured. "You know how it was with us.."
Slowly, Birchpelt, being Birchpelt, nodded his head. "Go on." His voice was a bit shaky.

"Seeing them together," Applebird continued. "I was a bit jealous, but it reminded me of us. We used to be so close, we used to love each other."

"And..." Birchpelt seemed unable to form a sentence.

"And?" Applebird asked, surprised.

"And I guess, maybe we still can," He finally sighed, pressing his face close to hers. "I'm sorry, Applebird," Birchpelt whispered. "It was wrong... so wrong, for me to stop things when we still loved each other."

The she-cat happily twined her tail with his. "Things are right now, aren't they?"

xxx

Dreamcloud looked fondly down at her kits.

"Your life will never be the same, you know," Whiteleaf sighed, looking down at her own sleeping pair. "Worrying when the get coughs, watching them become warriors, trying to protect them in battle..."

Dreamcloud nodded, but at the same time, flexed the long claws that had made her feared in other Clans; claws that had helped to kill Blackstar.

Claws that would always be a reminder of the darker side of her heritage.

"I know I'll love being a queen," She said. "But I'm missing my life as a warrior."

"I don't know," Whiteleaf purred. "This life is pretty comfortable; including the time you carry the kits, eight moons of relaxation, apprentices hunting for you... all you have to do is care for your kits."

"I know," Dreamcloud sighed. "But I miss the nice time spent hunting, and the satisfaction of winning a battle."

"I would expect so," Whiteleaf admitted. "You know, with that prophecy you were in moons ago." She blinked thankfully. "If it wasn't for you and Windstar, I don't know where we'd be."

The thought of going through another prophecy scared Dreamcloud. And yet, StarClan said it was her destiny...

What are your destinies? she thought, gazing at her kits one more time before falling asleep.

xxx

"Windstar."


The tom opened his eyes to find Spottedleaf, a familiar face, watching him. Her amber eyes glowed with affection, but worry as well.

"The kits shall be blessed and cursed."

xxx

Dreamcloud looked down at her nest, but saw nothing... nothing but blood. She heard faint mewling, and raced out of the den.

"My kits!" She shrieked. "Where are my kits?"


The mewling grew louder and louder, filling her ears... Amber eyes flashed in front of her.

"I wanted to be with you," An aching voice said in her ears.


That's when she saw them. Three tiny, innocent little kits. Birdkit. Rockkit. Scarlettkit.

All dead.

Their throats were slashed open, and claws marks riddled their soft kit fur. The mewling stopped as their mother's eyes were set on them.

"Maybe this was their destiny," Silverstream whispered sadly in her ear.

"This can't be their destiny!" Dreamcloud desperately nudged the kits, but to no avail. "Come on! Birdkit, Rockkit, Scarlettkit! You can't be dead, you're all right! You're alive!"


To her horror, Scarlettkit's eyes flashed open, not normal, a piercing emerald green.

"If I had been born to a different mother," She whispered. "Maybe I could have lived."

And her eyes closed, and she was still.

"No! Please no!" An edge of insanity was on Dreamcloud's voice. She whirled around to Silverstream.

"Please help me!" She wailed. But the queen faded away.

"Windstar?" Dreamcloud called, looking around the still, quiet camp. "Windstar, where are you?"

A voice echoed in her head like a drum, chanting just this:

"Blessed and cursed, blessed and cursed, blessed and cursed..."

"Dreamcloud?"


Her mate's voice was like a savior, and she turned to see him running towards her.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Oh, Windstar," Dreamcloud cried. "The kits! They're-"


But her words were changed into an endless wail as a cat lept at Windstar, driving his body into the earth.

xxx

"Are you all right!"

"No!" Dreamcloud yowled, her eyes flying open. Whiteleaf stood over her, a worried look on her face.

"My kits!" Dreamcloud whispered, checking next to her. Sure enough, there were all three, fine and sleeping.

"Thank StarClan," She sighed. relief in her voice. It was just a dream.

No.

Just a nightmare.

"Whatever you dreamt about must've been pretty bad," Whiteleaf mewed sympathetically. "You kept muttering about your kits."

"It was awful," Dreamcloud admitted, standing. "Can you watch them?" She asked hesitantly. "I'd like to go get a drink."

The pale queen nodded, then sat down next to the nest.

Dreamcloud sleepily wandered out into darkness. She blinked. That was kind of a surprise, it being the middle of the night.

Slowly, she padded to a nearby stream, and saw something which didn't surprise her.

Two cats, sleeping side by side, hidden by bushes. They probably were going to wake up before everyone else.

Calicofur and Spiderleg.

xxx

R and R! I hope you're liking the saga as much as I like writing it... it's my favorite to write at the moment, I love the characters so much...