Aurorastar starred at Lilackit in alarm. Both queens kitting at the same time? She knew that Honeysplash and Wolfsong had moved into the nursery around the same time, but she never expected them to both start kitting on the same day, let alone the same time.
Tigerfang and Moonshine rushed towards the nursery, only to be stopped by Starwhisper's voice.
"No! They'll be fine. With both queens kitting, I will need everyone out of the nursery!"
Lilackit nodded and rushed inside, obviously exchanging the news. Petalblossom came out of the nursery moments later, herding Lilackit and Goldkit and carrying a squirming Swankit. Crystalclaw and her three kits were already gathered in the clearing along with Flowerheart and her litter. A wide eyed Redkit sat next to his foster brother, Dustykit. Other than Wolfsong and Honeysplash, the nursery was empty.
Aurorastar winced as a screech of pain sounded from the nursery. Starwhisper and Birchpaw dashed inside.
Aurorastar kneaded at the ground impatiently. She wanted to help. It would be a difficult task to care for two kitting queens. Letting out a sigh, Aurorastar rushed over.
She stuck her head into the nursery. "Starwhisper? Would you like any help?"
"Aurorastar!" came Starwhisper's exasperated reply. "Yes, come in!"
Aurorastar shot in. The scent of fear was sharp in the air, and she flinched when Wolfsong let out a screech.
"Aurorastar, take care of Honeysplash," Starwhisper ordered. The golden brown queen seemed to be currently kitting better than Wolfsong.
Aurorastar sat by her side. Honeysplash was in a squatting position, and every now and then her muscles would ripple underneath her ruffled fur.
Honeysplash gritted her teeth, but she couldn't contain her screech of pain.
"Birchpaw, go get two sturdy sticks!" Starwhisper ordered, and the apprentice raced out of the den.
Honeysplash let out a hiss, and a kit slithered out onto the moss underneath her. Aurorastar nipped the sack open, licking the kit's fur the wrong way. It let out a squeal, and the leader placed it at Honeysplash's belly.
Wolfsong let out a bloodcurdling screech. Aurorastar whipped her head around, her eyes wide.
Wolfsong stood in a similar position to Honeysplash, though her legs were shaking and her ice blue eyes were glazed. She was panting heavily.
"Aurorastar!" Starwhisper exclaimed. "Can you go get some rasberry leaves?"
The SunClan leader darted to the entrance, only to skid to a halt and turn around. "What do they look like?"
Starwhisper let out a hiss of frustration, though Aurorastar knew it was from her worry over Wolfsong. "Small, dark green leaves with pointy edges!"
Aurorastar gave a quick nod and ran out of the nursery. Many cats were still gathered in the clearing, obviously worried about their kitting Clanmates.
"Are they okay?" A voice asked Aurorastar, and she recognized the voice of Cheetahheart.
"They are doing fine!" Aurorastar replied, not looking back. It was half true. Honeysplash seemed to be doing well, but, though Aurorastar was no medicine cat, she knew Wolfsong's kitting wasn't going well.
She darted into Starwhisper's den, following the sharp scent of herbs until she reached the storage. Dark leaves, pointed edges, she told herself. She searched around frantically, until her eyes rested on a tiny pile of small, dark green leaves. She picked a few up, examining them.
They have more of a ruffled edge, she thought. Well, I don't have time to complete a thorough examination of each herb. She picked up a mouthful and ran back into the nursery.
"Are these it?" she asked, dropping the herbs at Starwhisper's paws.
The medicine cat averted her eyes from Wolfsong, giving the leaves a quick glance. "Yes, thank you." She picked up the leaves in her mouth, and Aurorastar bounded back to Honeysplash's side. The golden brown she cat was squinting with pain, her teeth grinding together with an awful sounding crunching noise.
Birchpaw came back in, two sticks in her jaws. She gave one to Wolfsong, then one to Aurorastar. "Pry it into Honeysplash's jaws if you have to," Birchpaw told her.
Aurorastar gave the stick to Honeysplash, thankful when the queen took it willingly. She could here the stick splintering in Honeysplash's mouth when the second kit came out. It was a golden tabby and white tom, and Aurorastar gave it a few licks before placing it next to the first kit, a small black she cat with white paws.
Honeysplash growled, spitting out the remains of her stick. "I didn't realize kitting would be so difficult." She let out a hiss, though not as loud as before, and the third kit slid out. It was a white tom, and this time Honeysplash licked its wet fur clean.
Birchpaw came over, holding her paw on Honeysplash's belly. "That's it!" she exclaimed after a few moments. "Congratulations, you have two toms and a she cat."
"How is Wolfsong?" Aurorastar asked.
"She'll live," Birchpaw answered, though she didn't sound completely hopeful with the queen's condition. "She has one tom and one she cat. Want to see them?"
"Yes, please," Aurorastar meowed. Birchpaw lead her over to a nest near the entrance of the den. Wolfsong was curled within it, a dark brown tabby she cat and a black tom at her belly, kneading hungrily. Wolfsong let out a soft, rasping purr with the strength she had left, and licking the tom's pelt.
"Tigerfang, Moonshine, you can come in now!" Starwhisper called.
Moonshine ran in, his silver and white fur beginning to raise. He was obviously worried about his mate's kitting.
Tigerfang came right after him. His eyes were wide with worry, but when they landed on Wolfsong, it was replaced with love and pride.
"So, what do you think?" Starwhisper padded up to Aurorastar. "It's not very often that the leader helps deliver a queen's kits."
Aurorastar gazed from Honeysplash and Wolfsong and then back to Starwhisper. "It was amazing. Scary, but amazing."
The medicine cat let out a mrrow of laughter. "Yes, that was Birchpaw's reaction." Her gaze grew sincere. "You will make a good mother to Nightsun's kits someday." With a wave of her tail, she and Birchpaw left the nursery, leaving Aurorastar standing alone, pondering Starwhisper's last comment.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :) Sorry it was so short, I didn't exactly want to put a ton of detail into a birthing scene :/ I also just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read my story! It already has over 300 views! I know that probably isn't much compared to most stories, but I really means a lot to me. Thank you! ^.^
~Lunar