Chapter 2: Scared

Swiftfoot scrambled to his paws.

"Sagekit! Sagekit! Where are you?"

"Hush Swiftfoot," a kind voice murmured from beyond his vision.

The black tom twisted around and stared into the soothing green expanse of Smallclaw's eyes. ShadowClan's medicine cat was standing above the warrior, gently dabbing a smelly poultice on Swiftfoot's side. A twinge of pain from the stinging leaves made Swiftfoot flinch.

"Where's my son?" he asked urgently, refusing to be deterred by the bite of the medicine entering his cuts.

Smallclaw looked uneasily at the other tom, refusing to look him directly in the eyes.

"Smallclaw! Tell me!"

Smallclaw sniffed unhappily and resignedly sat down next to his patient. "Swiftfoot," he said softly, "the fox got him."

A loud wail racked Swiftfoot's body. His shoulders heaved and shook as he buried his head into Smallclaw's black and white fur. He couldn't believe it. His kit, gone. As good as dead in the paws of a fox. His cries of distress grew longer and more pronounced.

"Please, Swiftfoot, there's nothing you or any other cat could have done," Smallclaw said anxiously, attempting to calm down the warrior. The medicine cat bent over Swiftfoot and began to lick his head comfortingly.

The bracken entrance of the medicine cat's den shook violently as a white she-cat pushed her way into the cramped space. She too, was shaking with fear and sorrow, her beautiful eyes full of loss.

"Swiftfoot!" she cried out, darting over to the black tom.

"He's gone," Swiftfoot moaned, "I couldn't protect him. It's all my fault, Whisperstep!"

"It's not your fault," Whisperstep protested, "if it wasn't for you, we never would have known wh-what happened to him..."

The white she-cat broke off, her voice choked with repressed tears. Whisperstep shoved her head against her mate's face, taking comfort from his warmth.

"Sprucestar wants to honor Sagekit's spirit. We'll sit vigil for him tonight," Smallclaw informed the grieving cats sadly.

The two cats didn't reply, they just pressed their bodies together and meowed in pain for the loss of their oldest kit.

xxx

The dark brown tabby jumped on top of Lowstone, his unsheathed claws scraping against the bare rock. He looked around at the assembly of cats gathered around him. Masks of despair were plastered on each cat's face. Whisperstep and Swiftfoot were sitting nearest to the flat boulder, their tails wrapped around each other's bodies. Whisperstep's white face was resting against her mate's sturdy shoulder.

"We join here under the half moon to honor the life of Sagekit, son of Swiftfoot and Whisperstep," the tabby tom said loudly, his voice echoing across the clearing of still cats.

"Sprucestar! What happened to him?" a cat called from the crowd, his gray pelt gleaming dully in the moonlight.

"Poor Sagekit was taken away by a fox when he ventured out of the nursery last night," Sprucestar replied, casting his eyes towards Sagekit's parents. "Swiftfoot tried his best to protect his son but a fox is no match for a single warrior at night."

The gray tom looked piteously at Swiftfoot. "I'm sorry for your loss," he said towards the other warrior.

"Thank you for your kind words, Smoothpebble," Whisperstep replied tonelessly.

Sprucestar looked pained. "Sagekit was on his way to becoming a great apprentice. ShadowClan will mourn his death for many moons. May StarClan guide him to his new home among the stars."

Swiftfoot gave a noticeable sob and hung his head.

"Tonight we will sit vigil for Sagekit," Sprucestar announced, "and even though we don't have his body, I know that his spirit will make its way to StarClan with blessings and love from his Clan." Sprucestar tilted his chin towards the sky, letting out an earnest meow of respect and sadness.

The rest of the Clan followed his lead and yowled to the sky in sorrow. Whisperstep and Swiftfoot silently moved to the center of the camp and sat around a pile of moss and delicate leaves that was supposed to symbolize Sagekit's body. They lay down on the hard earth and touched their noses to the empty nest. Sprucestar nodded to the Clan and the other cats also gathered around the bed.

Swiftfoot's other kits, Frostkit and Flowerkit were allowed to approach the nest, confusion and worry clouding in their eyes.

"Where's Sagekit?" Frostkit asked insistently, gazing at her mother.

Whisperstep looked away from her kit and didn't answer, her ears twitching uncomfortably.

Hayberry, a tan queen with a soft black-tipped tail, padded up to Whisperstep and murmured her apologies in her ear. The queen's own kits, Jumpingkit and Cloudkit trailed behind, both looked very concerned.

Whisperstep watched as the Clan settled in the center of the clearing. She sighed mournfully, glancing through the heavy branches up at the sky. A few stars twinkled down at her.

Is he up there now? she thought, If he is, I hope he's not afraid.

Whisperstep leaned against her mate and swept her two remaining kits towards her chest with her tail.

"I'm sorry," she breathed into the night, "I'll miss you, Sagekit."