Chapter 9

"Aaaaaah!" Dawnstream cried. " The kits! They're coming!"

"I'll go fetch Breezepool" Greyfeather woke up and thrushed out.

"Please do!" she whispered. The kits were finally coming, it was almost a moon since the last gathering. She only wished so much the pain would stop. She felt like she was carrying ten kits all at once. She could barely breathe right and this was scary for her.

"I'm here. Thyme and borage, and everything else….is here! Okay! Dawnstream, I'm going to ask you to breathe deeply. Think about whatever you like and push while you're thinking. It will be..well..less hurtful. Here's some poppy seeds to help ease the pain. Later you'll fall asleep. Just make sure you don't while you're giving birth!"

Dawnstream nodded quickly and decided to get over it quickly. She pushed as hard as she could and felt something get out of her.

"Lick it Dawnstream!" Breezepool nudged the kit toward her and started licking it the wrong way.

"I'll help you, just like you helped me." Greyfeather smiled. Dawnstream pushed three more times until two more scraps slid out.

"You have three healthy kits!" Breezepool yowled. Nightfall rushed in to find three kits—his kits. "Oh Dawnstream…they're beautiful. A tom and two she-cats. They'll be strong and very skillful."

Dawnstream nodded. "Of course, afterall they are our kits." She nosed the gray tom. "This will be Thrushkit." She licked the kit who looked just like her, cream colored. "Meadowkit" The last kit was unusual. She was dark grey and her underbelly was splotched with yellow.

Nightfall licked the last one. "Frostkit. Her name shall be Frostkit."

"Dawnstream! I want to go play outside!" Thrushkit wailed. Dawnstream shook her head. "No, it's cold and snowy outside. I don't want you to have any sickness. If you want to play, play here quietly."

Meadowkit got to her paws. "But it's small in here!"

Dawnstream licked her first daughter. "Be creative Meadowkit, talk to eachother or rest. You've been up since before dawn. I want to sleep, and you should too. Maybe if it gets warm at sunhigh, then you can go out and play."

Frostkit's belly grumbled. "Er..I uh..am hungry, mommy."

Dawnstream laid out her belly and closed her eyes. She felt the tiny mouths sucking for milk. Greyfeather grumbled. "My nest is old and crusty! I need a new one. Stripekit, go tell the apprentinces to bring me a new, bigger nest. You guys are growing and I don't know when you'll stop."

Dawnstream chuckled, eyes still closed. " The apprentices never come to check on us, just our mates come and bring food, that's all." The kits were finished and they cuddled together, Frostkit left out, as always. Frostkit was the smallest beside them and she wasn't the playing type of kit. She would be serious all the time, but cute. Frostkit was feeling left out, and Dawnstream had to do something. "Frostkit, why don't you sleep next to your brother and sister?"

Frostkit looked at her littermates, and they looked at her too. "Umm. I don't know. I just feel warmer with you." Dawnstream nodded, but she knew she was lying. She was their littermate afterall, and they would have to live with it.

"Okay, go to sleep, love."

They all soon fell asleep.

It was a bright sunny sunhigh and of course, Thrushkit would beg her to go out. She let them go, Frostkit went but soon came out later after a bunch of heartbeats. She loved them very much, but if they were going to do this to her, they needed to understand that they're hurting Frostkit. Stripekit, Sweetkit, Bluekit and Longkit joined. When Danwstream asked why she didn't play she ignored and got her supper. Nightfall padded in with a shrew in his jaws. "Hey!"

"Is that for me?" she asked. Nightfall nodded. He then leaned close to her ear whispering. "We need to confront Falconclaw, we need to know why he survived your death blow."

Dawnstream bristled, just thinking about what she had done to him. It was impossible to be alive after her slash, and apparently, it was possible. They had seen him at the gathering and questions came up to their head. How did he survive? Did he really forget it was Dawnstream who had almost killed him? If not, why did he lie? What was he hiding? How did his throat, that was slashed look totally normal? These were the questions that made their mind full. All she did was nod and eat her shrew. His name was called by Wildfur as he licked his family on the cheek as he padded away to his hunting patrol.

The day went by quickly. Sunset they all fell asleep.

"It's soon. Make a choice, soon." A voice told her. She didn't understand a thing, but something…something was going to happen to her. Soon."

Sorry, you guys. It was a short one, but don't worry! Tomorrow I think I might publish the tenth one. Sorry this chapter wasn't well. We just had a garage sale, and I woke up at 7 A.M., and I'm not used to that! I'm super tired, so all I can think of is sleeping. ENJOY the sleeping chapter. I'm going to name my chapters from now on!

mossdawn out!

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