"Spencer, hey Spencer?" Chio prodded his side, nudging him until he woke.
"Neh, what is it Chio? Its hard enough to sleep on this smelly stuff without you waking me up in the middle of the night." Spencer shifted around, lifting his muzzle of the reeking moss. He looked directly at his sister with an irate expression on his face, it made her wince. He immediately felt bad for that, muttering a quick apology.
"Doesn't… doesn't this place seem familiar?" Chio asked, looking quite uncertain of herself. "I mean, this log they're keeping us in, the little hole the rest of them sleep in outside, the hole in the tree trunk across the clearing where their leader is sleeping. Everything seems so familiar. But… not. You know?"
"Nope." Spencer answered flatly. "Don't remember anything before our two-legs picked us up, you don't either."
"Hey! Quiet in there!" Scarletsong shouted from her station at the entrance of the log. Both cats cringed. "Sheesh, you're lucky that Icestar was asleep when he got here."
"Scarletsong, Scarletsong!" A loud meow was screeching. The calico jumped to her feet to find the fluffy gray cat running over towards them, heavy with the scent of milk.
"Crystalsky, what is it?" Scarletsong asked, looking utterly serious, as in contrast with her angry face earlier.
"The kits, the kits!" Crystalsky was panting, she looked exhausted.
"What about the kits, are they okay?"
"Let me see them!"
"Oh for Starclan's sake, Crystalsky no!" Scarletsong groaned, closing her eyes. "Not this again, please! You torture yourself too much! Its been moons, they aren't coming back!"
"Please, please Scarletsong!" The queen begged, "Its two of them in there right? Please! Even Cherrypetal's had a dream about it! 'A return of once believed lost'!"
"That's those danged foxes and you know it." The tabby growled. She shouldered the queen, pushing her back towards the nursery. "Go back to Lilykit, she's probably- Hey!"
Crystalsky had sidestepped Scarletsong and in the next heartbeat was standing in front of Chio and Spencer.
"What… what are your names little ones?" She asked in a gentile voice.
The two siblings looked at her in astonishment for a few moments before realizing she was asking them.
"Uh, I'm Spencer, ma'am. This is my sister Chio." He answered, laying his ears back with nervousness.
"Chio, Spencer, how very nice to meet you." The queen smiled warmly. "No need to fear me, I'm merely curious. Do either of you remember this place?" Spencer immediately looked at Chio, who was shrinking back slightly. "Let me try this one, do you guys remember the names 'Smokekit' and 'Windkit'?"
"Smokekit, Smokekit wait! You're going way too far!" He panted, his little body trying so hard to keep up with his sister. "Momma's going to be furious when she finds that we've gone so far out of the territory!"
"But Windkit, what if we come back with something awesome! They'll have to make us apprentices right then and there!" Smokekit meowed with a giggle.
"But what about Lilykit? We left her behind, she won't be an apprentice with her!"
"Lilykit is sick, she couldn't be an apprentice right now if she wanted to." Smoke kit replied softly. She then suddenly skidded to a halt, the forest came to a sudden stop and there was nothing but open grass in front of the little kit now.
"Hey, those are two legs!" She said, looking at them. They seemed to be playing some weird game, she couldn't quite understand it. "Windkit, look at them! They're so strange! Lets get closer!"
"Smokekit, no!" The tom hissed, but she had already gone towards them. The tallest had already crouched down and was coaxing his sister over, wiggling her fingers. Actually, that looked like fun.
He shot out behind her, and had grabbed the fingers with both paws, though his soft claws didn't do anything harmful.
"Windkit, run!" Smokekit suddenly screeched. One of the smaller kits had picked her up, and was going inside their large box thing. If only he had listened, as the larger one picked him up too, going towards that box as well, meowing soft words in his ear.
"Calm, calm, calm."