Chapter Twelve
Shard was crouched under a thick, greening bush. He leaned slightly, favoring his wounded leg. His mind was focused on one thing, and one thing only. Prey.
The moist dirt softened his slow approach, cushioning his raw pads. The magpie his eyes were locked on chirped sweetly, oblivious to the fact that its death was upon it. Shard waggled his haunches, his large muscles bunching as he pounced, landing mostly on top of the bird, but stumbling pathetically over the feathers, but managed to maintain control. The bird let out one last feeble squawk as Shard gave the killing bite, silencing the unfortunate creature forever.
He picked up his prey, it was still warm, the heart had only just beat for the last time. He made slow, but steady progress through the thick foliage, turned awkwardly because of the burden he was dragging. His heart leapt with anticipation as he pushed through the last few leaves, stumbling into the clearing where Snowwhisker sat, her tail flicking impatiently.
"I told you I should have come with you! I could have helped you drag that thing back to camp." She meowed wistfully, a hint of play in her tone. Shard shrugged his shoulders. Snowwhisker rolled her eyes in mock exasperation. Shard padded over to her, dropping his load at her feet and then laying down a few paw-lengths away,
"Dig in." He meowed. Snowwhisker shook her head,
"You eat it." Shard pushed it farther towards her," I dragged it all the way back here for you. I'm not hungry, you can have it." She glanced at him warily, with a hint of gratefulness in her expression. She may have been considerate, but despite her selfless personality, she was famished.
When she was about half way finished, she nudged it over to him,
"You eat the rest. I don't need it." He looked at her, unsure whether to accept it or not. She smiled halfheartedly, her blue eyes sparkling dazzlingly in the morning rays of sun,
"Eat it, I've had my fill." She moved forward slightly, then licked him gently on the cheek. He looked up at her, surprised, and yet, a warm, happy feeling boiled inside him.
They sat together, watching the sun dwindle slowly in its decent, the colorful rays dancing across the sky in a beautiful ballad. Their tails were twined, their bodies brushing one another. The sun was beginning to disappear behind the distant, jagged peaks, staining the sky with a mysterious red and dappling the trees with distorted shadows that intertwined with darkening bark of the trees, creating an eerie, majestic setting.
Shard noticed how mysterious Snowwhisker's eyes were, as she sat, gazing bravely at the dying rays of the sun. They were deep, majestic, and unknown as if, somehow a cat could dive into them and see that there was something there. Something beautiful.
She is so brave. He thought sadly, She's being brave for me, to comfort me. He admired this about her.
He then felt a feeling that he had never truly felt before. It tickled his insides and made him want to get closer to her, as if nothing in the world mattered. Nothing but her.
It was a beautiful feeling. It was love. Love.
It curled inside of him, warming him more than the brightest rays of sunlight, and sinking deeper into him than the longest roots. He loved her. And he would not let go.
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