"Over here, Wolfkit! Throw it here!" Nightkit shouted to her brother. She scrambled back and forth in excitement, her puffed up fur making her look twice her real size.
"No, I want it!" Frostkit shouted, much louder than Nightkit was. She ran past Badgerkit to stand in front of Nightkit, taking advantage of her bigger size. Nightkit couldn't make herself look big enough, and she huffed if frustration.
Wolfkit threw the ball of moss high above their heads to Badgerkit. Badgerkit jumped up and barely caught it between his teeth, quickly parading it around. Nightkit and Frostkit bristled, hissing beneath their breath.
"No fair. Why did you throw it to him," complained Frostkit. Her eyes squinted in betrayal, and she let yet another hiss through her teeth. She was the biggest of her siblings, and she blamed herself for being unable to catch the moss ball. She had to be the one to show her siblings up, and she felt raw disappointment at not having done that.
"Because I wanted to," Wolfkit snapped back. Wolfkit had a quick temper, and his siblings usually avoided it, unlike now.
While the four siblings argued, Stonekit and Snakekit, Ferncloud's litter, walked out into the clearing. "Can we play too," asked Snakekit, his eyes pleading. Stonekit and Snakekit were younger, but not by much. However, they were substantially smaller, just like their mother.
At this request, they stopped fighting. "Sure," Nightkit replied. She ran over to the two younger kits and started to explain how to play, though the rules really weren't all that complicated, and Wolfkit and Badgerkit weren't really following them anyway.
"Play nicely," said Squirrelflight, the four kits' mother. Nightkit looked over her shoulder back at her mother, smiling with her eyes. Nightkit, unlike her siblings, always tried to be nice and fair.
The six kits threw the moss ball back and forth, play fighting each other for it. Nightkit jumped and tried to catch the ball of moss even though it flew at least a tail length over her head. She jumped higher than any of the other kits could, and she almost had it when she impacted a soft furred object and fell to the ground in a heap.
Jayfeather let out a hiss. "Can't you look where you're going?" The irritation was clear in his voice, and immediately all the kits stopped playing to watch. No one messed with Jayfeather, they knew that.
"Sorry, Jayfeather," Nightkit hiccupped, cowering in fear. Her fur was still puffed up, and the black and white areas of fur started to blend.
Daisy poked her head out of the nursery. "Everyone back inside the nursery. Now!" she growled angrily. Daisy looked at Jayfeather accusingly, even though he could not see her. However, he seemed to get the point, almost as if he could feel her glare. She then looked at Nightkit. "Come here, Nightkit. It's okay." Daisy stumbled back into the nursery ungracefully, her belly round. Daisy was expecting kits soon and their father was Blackfur. Blackfur would be furious if he had witnessed the small spat between Daisy and Jayfeather. They both knew that though, and the cats quickly dispersed to their assigned areas.
The kits played in the den until nightfall, occasionally getting caught in the brambles. Daisy, though overwhelmed, was fond of all six kittens. Squirrelflight and Ferncloud seemed to think the same thing. No one told them to stop, but everyone watched to make sure things went fairly. Eventually, the kittens grew tired, and Nightkit curled up beside her siblings and her mother. When the orange sky eventually turned dark. Nightkit fell asleep peacefully.
"Leafpool! Hurry! Daisy's having her kits!" Nightkit woke up to find that there was commotion in the nursery. Cats were scurrying around and she was getting pushed into a corner. Nightkit hissed in protest and tried to squeeze passed the other kits.
Leafpool rushed in. "Out! All of you!" Nightkit and the other kits were herded out of the nursery. Blackfur and Jayfeather pushed past them, anxiety practically rolling off Blackfur's pelt. The kits waited excitingly and impatiently to go back into the nursery. Nightkit and her siblings could barely control themselves. They played a bit, but the play was tense. It was clear they were tense as their play was rigid and unfocused. Ater what felt like forever to Nightkit, Leafpool and Jayfeather walked out of the nursery and stood in front of the kits.
Leafpool seemed exhausted. "You can go back in now," she breathed, barely audible.
The kits walked back into the nursery, pushing past each other, all trying to see the kits first. It was like a stampede, and Blackfur hissed and blocked their path. After the kits calmed themselves a bit, Blackfur let them past. There, in Daisy's nest, curled up in the curve of her belly were two tiny kits. One cream like Daisy and one black like Blackfur. Their colors greatly contrasted against each other and it was hard to see much of a resemblance.
"The cream one's name is Birdkit, and the black one's name is Shadowkit," Daisy said, pointing to the kits. Nightkit could tell which was cream and which was black without Daisy pointing them out, so she felt slightly annoyed. Daisy was clearly exhausted, breathing deeply and heavily. "You can see them more tomorrow. It's getting late. Let's take a rest."
Nightkit fell asleep easily, and she woke up early. She was full of energy, and everyone else in the nursery was sleeping. Nightkit climbed out of her nest and tiptoed up to the front door of the nursery. She looked both ways, and with no one watching, she sneaked out of the nursery and into the clearing. She did so carefully, trying not to get caught, as she knew her mother would not approve. Leafpool and Blackfur were sitting together, talking. She couldn't quite hear them. Nightkit thought they were talking about Daisy's kits and crept closer, wanting to hear what they had to say about them. There was a bush to the right of them, and Nightkit carefully crawled through the foliage to hide in the bush.
"I wonder where Firestar's been. He said he was visiting some old friends of his," said Leafpool. She flicked her tail. It was obvious that she was concerned.
"Yes, I hope he's back soon," replied Blackfur. "If he doesn't get back soon, Brambleclaw will have to declare Squirrelflight's kits apprentices." Blackfur lifted his paw and licked it, rubbing it over his face.
This came as a surprise to Nightkit. She didn't expect to hear that they were talking about her and her siblings. Now that Nightkit thought about it, it was true that Firestar had been gone quite a long time. She had just never noticed before. That was her own mistake. With new information on her mind, Nightkit walked quietly back to her nest. She laid down when she got there, and she fell back asleep next to her siblings.
Suddenly, Nightkit was startled from her nest as a scream echoed past. "StarClan help me!" The scream sounded loudly and was heard all the way across the hollow. The kits and mothers stood at attention, listening and ready to make a move.
"Leafpool!" Jayfeather shrieked. From there, everything happened quickly.