Chapter Eight
A weak ray of sunlight penetrated Snow's closed eyes, and she blinked awake. Stiffening, she pricked her ears.
The sound of tiny mewling was close by.
"Light? Thunder?" the white queen called as she stood up.
"Over here, Snow." Snow sighed in relief upon hearing her to-be's voice. Closing her eyes, Snow stretched her front paws out in front of her, tail sticking straight out behind.
Inhaling deeply, Snow straightened up and began to pad towards the scent of her young to-be.
As the shape of the young gray cat entered her sight, Snow heard, once again, a tiny mewling. Only this time, it was much closer.
When she rounded the corner, the gray she-cat looked up, a bright smile shining in her eyes.
"Come and meet your kits!" Snow stopped dead.
My kits? She thought. I don't have kits!
"What's the matter, Snow? Don't you want to meet them?" Disappointment rang clearly in her voice.
"Of course I do!" Snow forced her voice to be cheerful, and began to pad forward once more.
Crouching side by side, the two she-cats watched silently as the four kits wriggled and squirmed.
"You have to name them," Light said as Snow circled around her kits and drew them in to suckle.
Closing her eyes, Snow sighed.
"The fluffy gray one will be Stream That Flows Through Mountain Silver."
Light nodded her agreement.
"And the brown tabby will be Hawk That Soars Through Sky." The young tabby squeaked, paws kneading his mother's belly as he fed.
"The black one will be Storm That Rides The Wind." The little kits wriggled closer to their mother's warm belly.
"What about the dark gray one?" the kit was not pressed up against his mother's belly, but was snuggled up close to Light's paws.
"Jay Who Brings Morning Light." as she whispered the words, the fluffy gray kit looked up at Light and blinked open a pair of blue-fire eyes.
Light recoiled and the kit crumpled into a small heap. Leaping to her paws, Snow cried, "What's wrong with you? You could have hurt him!"
"His eyes... Snow, I think he might be blind!" Light's green eyes softened.
"I know he's blind. He'll live, though. He's strong." Snow stretched out a paw and drew the kit back to her side.
"I had better go check on Thunder. Perhaps he can tell us what attacked him today." Light straightened her tail and Snow nodded, her eyes still watching the kits.
As soon as the to-be was out of earshot, Snow licked each kit between the ears and promised:
"You will all live. I will make sure of it."