Snowflakes dappled the grass as they fell in a heavy flurry of specks. The chill of leaf-bare was so severe that it had the power to penetrate even Russetstripe's thick pelt and sink into her bones. The dark ginger she-cat shuddered as she pawed the snow on the ground, digging a hole for the fresh-kill pile so the rabbits wouldn't freeze.
Once she had cleared away mounds of snow, she pulled back the dead rabbits – and some mice – that made the fresh-kill pile and dug them into the hole she had made. That should do, she thought as she shook out the snowflakes from her fur. The chatter never left her teeth, and she was looking forward to heading into a rabbit burrow to keep herself warm when a painful howl rung from the nursery. Russetstripe's fur stood up on the edge and she rushed towards the gorse bush, forcing herself underneath the entrance and into the bush.
Spottedwing was curled up on her den of wool and moss, letting out pained yowls. Her blue eyes were stretched wide, and her limbs were trembling violently. Russetstripe gasped as she bounded over to the queen, who started to rip apart her nest with sharp claws.
"Spottedwing!" Russetstripe exclaimed. "Are you all right?"
"Do I look all right?" Spottedwing snapped, clutching her stomach with her paws. "My kits are coming! It didn't hurt this much when I had Brambledusk!"
"I'll get Violetheart." Russetstripe turned on her heel, pelting through the clearing at maximum speed. She could hear her Clanmates watching her with narrowed eyes and whispering to each other, but Russetstripe really couldn't care. Spottedwing was in trouble. Russetstripe headed towards the rock where Violetheart slept. The she-cat forced her way through the crevice and spotted the gray medicine cat sorting through her herbs. At Russetstripe's frenzied arrival, Violetheart turned her head to stare at the ginger she-cat.
"Spottedwing's kits are coming!" Russetstripe exclaimed, nearly out of breath.
"It's about time," Violetheart remarked. "They've been due for the past days." The medicine cat bent down to grab a bundle of herbs.
"She says it hurts more than when she had Brambledusk," Russetstripe said, recalling the queen's words.
"It hurts more because she is still grieving Oakcloud," Violetheart remarked. "Come, Russetstripe. If Spottedwing is in so much pain, I may need your help. Grab that stick over there."
"But… I'm not a medicine cat!" Russetstripe exclaimed. "How can I possibly help?"
"Just be quiet and grab that stick," Violetheart growled. Russetstripe nodded, not willing to argue with the medicine cat any longer. She padded over to where the stick was propped up against the rock wall, and grasped it in her jaws. With the stick planted firmly in her teeth, Russetstripe followed Violetheart as the two she-cats exited the medicine den and bounded through the clearing towards the gorse bush. Violetheart went in first, and Russetstripe squeezed in after her.
Spottedwing's nest was torn into shreds by the time the two she-cats arrived. Violetheart dropped the herbs she was carrying onto the ground and padded over to Spottedwing, sniffing her with a dark look in her gaze. Violetheart sat on her haunches, placing two paws on Spottedwing's stomach, causing the she-cat to lie on her back. The WindClan medicine cat started to massage her stomach, and Russetstripe could see the ripples of pain spasming through Spottedwing's body.
That looks so painful, Russetstripe thought as Spottedwing moaned in agony. I hope Spottedwing will be okay. She looked down at the stick Violetheart had ordered her to bring. What's this for?
"Spottedwing, the kits are almost coming," Violetheart meowed as she continued to rub her paws on Spottedwing's belly. "Bite on that stick." The gray medicine cat nodded her head towards the stick near Russetstripe's paws. Russetstripe grabbed the stick in her jaws and walked over to Spottedwing, dropping it next to the queen.
Pain glazed in Spottedwing's eyes as she took the stick in her jaws with no objections to the medicine cat's orders. Violetheart dipped her head in approval, while Russetstripe felt her paws tremble. Just as another ripple passed through Spottedwing's stomach, the stick nearly shattered as the queen bit down on it, and a small bundle of wet fur slipped out from the queen and landed on what remained on her nest.
"A tom!" Violetheart exclaimed. "Russetstripe, get him warm!"
"Uh… all right." Russetstripe raced to her paws and bounded over to the tom. "…How?"
"Lick him, rabbit-brain!" Violetheart growled at her. "Opposite from the way you would do for yourself."
Russetstripe licked the tom roughly, with his damp dark black-and-white fur, the direction in which she was licking him causing his fur to fluff up. The pitiful tom let out a mewl, the sheerness of it making Russetstripe flinch back. No! I need to warm this little guy up. The dark ginger she-cat bent her head down, continuing to lick the tom roughly until he began to squirm underneath her.
"Another one!" Violetheart yowled triumphantly. Russetstripe looked up to see Violetheart pushing a ginger tabby kit towards her. "Lick this one, too!"
"Uh…" Russetstripe didn't argue, wrapping her bushy tail around the small black-and-white kit she had been licking to keep him warm and started to lick the ginger tabby kit. The tabby kit let out a cry, but this time, Russetstripe didn't flinch back. It's new life for the Clan, she thought to herself. And these kits must be protected by the warriors.
Another cry rung from besides Spottedwing, and Russetstripe craned her head to see Violetheart licking the last kit, who had dark gray fur. Violetheart's licks were thorough and perhaps even fierce, and Russetstripe wondered if she had been doing it correctly. But when she looked at the two kits, only the size of her paws, their fur was drying and they were letting out mewls.
"Russetstripe," Violetheart called. "Bring the kits to their mother's belly. And for the gods' sake, be gentle with them."
Gentle? Russetstripe picked the black-and-white kit up with her teeth, as delicately as possible. She padded over to Spottedwing, noticing that the dark gray kit was already suckling eagerly at his mother's belly. She gently placed the black-and-white kit on Spottedwing's belly, and Violetheart walked over to retrieve the ginger tabby kit, resting him on near his siblings. The three kits eagerly latched themselves on Spottedwing's belly and started to suckle. Spottedwing looked at her kits, love and affection glowing in her eyes.
"Congratulations, Spottedwing," Violetheart purred. "You have three healthy kits. What will you be naming them?"
"Oakcloud would be proud," Russetstripe added.
"Thanks, Russetstripe," Spottedwing rasped. "And you, Violetheart. As for the names…" The spotted she-cat's gaze rested on the black-and-white kit. "He has a single white stripe on him that looks like a lightning bolt. I think I'll call him Lightningkit. Violetheart, why don't you name the ginger one?"
"Me?" Violetheart's blue eyes widened. "Um…"
"I told Oakcloud he was going to name our second kit," Spottedwing rasped, "but since he's not here, I don't feel right doing it. You name him." Her voice was forceful now.
"All right." Violetheart studied the ginger tabby kit. "My brother was known as Buzzardpaw before he died. Maybe we can name him Buzzardkit in honor of him."
"I love that," Spottedwing whispered. "Russetstripe, name the last one."
"What?" Russetstripe's green eyes widened. "But wouldn't it—"
"Please, Russetstripe." Spottedwing focused her blue gaze on Russetstripe. "You helped me, too. If it hadn't been for you, I don't think Violetheart would've come in time. You were the only one who heard, when there was a group of cats outside."
Russetstripe cleared her throat. "Please, I'm no hero. But, if you want me to, then sure." Her gaze traveled over the dark gray tomkit as she thought for a good name for him. It's got to be something that'll fit him… "His pelt looks like cinders. We should call him Cinderkit."
"What a lovely name," Violetheart agreed. "Do you agree, Spottedwing?"
Spottedwing nodded weakly. "Yes, I do. Welcome to the world, Lightningkit, Buzzardkit, and Cinderkit." She craned her head to nuzzle each kit separately, and the purr emitting from the queen was so loud that Russetstripe was sure the gods could hear it as well.
Violetheart pushed a couple of leaves towards Spottedwing. "Eat those. It will calm you down and will give you strength."
Spottedwing bent down and chewed the leaves in seconds, and although she winced as she swallowed, she did not comment on the taste. Violetheart got to her paws and gave Russetstripe a crisp nod. "We should go. Let's give Spottedwing some time with her kits."
Russetstripe gave Spottedwing a fleeting glance before following Violetheart out of the gorse bush. Violetheart padded towards her den, while Russetstripe reflected back on the events that had just happened. She had just helped Violetheart deliver kits. Those kits had been so vulnerable – they never would've survived without Violetheart's help. Surely, no matter how much these kits had in the world, if they were ever to be left alone, their lives would be lost before anything came of them at all. I was once a kit like that. There were cats that protected Russetstripe when she would have never lived otherwise – when she was once the same as these kits.
Heavy pawsteps that stalked across the clearing made Russetstripe lift her head to see her father, Swiftstar, march over to her. Russetstripe gritted her teeth, wondering what her father wanted to reprimand her for this time. Swiftstar sat down in front of her, wrapping his tail around his paws, and Russetstripe lowered her head respectfully in greeting.
"What were you doing in there?" Swiftstar asked. "You're not a queen."
"Spottedwing just gave birth," Russetstripe replied, "so I was helping Violetheart."
"Ah." Swiftstar nodded, but didn't say anything else in regards to the kits. That's it? He doesn't want to know how many, or what their names are? "Come to my den. I have something to talk to you about."
"Well, I have to—" Russetstripe's excuses were cut off by her father's hard voice, sending thorns into her body and prickling her skin.
"Russetstripe." Swiftstar's amber eyes burned into her fur. "You will do as I say." His words left no space for arguments, and he turned his back on her, walking towards the lightning struck tree that made his den. Russetstripe watched him go, unsheathing and sheathing her claws. Why is he like that? And what does he even want? Clenching her jaw, Russetstripe followed him and entered his den.
Brambledusk was sitting right in the center, and Swiftstar was facing him, his eyes made of yellow stone. Brambledusk glanced over his shoulder to nod at Russetstripe, and Russetstripe gave him a brisk greeting before sitting next to him and facing her father. She wanted to say, "So? What is it? What do you want?", but speaking to her father in a tone such as that would surely ensure a heated argument, and she didn't want that. She was too tired to deal with it.
The frozen grass underneath Russetstripe's paws sent a chill through her body, and as she looked around her father's den, she remembered the first time she had been here. She had been just a kit, and during that time, Swiftstar had praised her for alerting WindClan of RiverClan's arrival. He had given her an apprentice ceremony here, without calling the Clan – as Russetstripe had demanded. That was four seasons ago?
"Brambledusk, Russetstripe," Swiftstar meowed, "I've gathered you both here today because there's something I need to tell you."
Brambledusk's yellow eyes were shadowed, and from the darkness his eyes had, Russetstripe assumed that Brambledusk knew what that "something" already was. But what could it be that it would receive that reaction from Brambledusk? Brambledusk was a calm, albeit sometimes anxious cat, who never seemed angered by anything.
"What is it?" Russetstripe asked, tired of Swiftstar's waiting game.
"As soon as Lionstar and I crush ThunderClan, you two will become mates," Swiftstar announced. Russetstripe stared at her father, her jaw gaping, her green eyes wide as his words sank into her mind. Wha… what? You want Brambledusk and I to be mates?
"You've got to be joking," Russetstripe exclaimed, knocking herself out of her daze. This had to be some sick joke. "Tell me that you are. You can't be serious."
"I'm dead serious," Swiftstar growled at Russetstripe. "You have no choice. Brambledusk will be your mate. This has been arranged since the moment you opened your eyes. Arranged mates have been common for the kits of WindClan's leaders for years. You're not unique."
"I can't believe you!" Russetstripe leaped to her paws, her tail lashing. "I won't let myself be a pawn in your game! I won't let you choose my own future for me! You won't tell me who to love!"
"You don't need to love Brambledusk," Swiftstar snarled, his hackles rising as he glared at Russetstripe. "All you need to do is produce decent kits with him."
"What?" Russetstripe's roar, akin to Swiftstar's himself, resonated through the walls of his den. "Absolutely not! I don't want kits! I won't let you force me to do what I don't want to do!"
"You have no choice," Swiftstar snarled at her.
"I bet you didn't do this with Scorchclaw or Adderstripe!" Russetstripe yowled at him.
"Scorchclaw's mate, Hollyfrost, is dead. I have organized a new one for him. Adderstripe is the eldest of you both, he can choose whatever mate he wants. But for the younger kits of Clan leaders, they have no choice." Swiftstar's claws unsheathed.
"You're unbelievable." Russetstripe's claws unsheathed, and it took every muscle in her body not to lash her claws out at her own father. "I won't let you do this to me."
"Perhaps you missed the part where I told you that you had no choice." A threat lingered in Swiftstar's eyes.
"Or what are you going to do me?" Russetstripe snapped. "Exile me?"
"If you refuse to obey me, the consequences will be more severe than that." Swiftstar's amber eyes burned into Russetstripe's gaze.
"So you'll kill me. How fun." Russetstripe backed up, feeling the walls of the den beginning to close in on her. She glanced over at Brambledusk, who sat, still as a rock, watching the proceedings go on. He hadn't said a word, but Russetstripe could tell that he wasn't pleased either. "I don't care what you say, Father. I'm not going to let you plan my future out for me, and if you still insist on this arranged mate thing, then I'll do what I did when I was a kit and succeed this time. I'll leave the Clan, and you'll never hear from me again." Without waiting for Swiftstar to say anything, she turned on her heel and bolted out of his den.
"Russetstripe!" Swiftstar yowled. "Get back here!"
But Russetstripe ignored her father's call. Even though the curious gazes of her Clanmates burned in her pelt, Russetstripe streaked across the camp and bounded out of the entrance, finding herself in the massive expanse of the moor. Fury was making her blood boil, and she had no idea where she was going as she cut through the moorland, running faster than she ever had in her life.
How dare her father try to control her life? How dare he try to tell her who she should take as a mate, and that she should become a mother at such a young age? I'll never let you boss me around, Swiftstar! If you want me to do something, I'll just do the opposite! I won't let you control me! I am not a puppet for you to control! Her claws tore up grass as she imagined that the clumps were Swiftstar's face. She pushed her muscles, faster and faster. She wanted to be nowhere near her father, or WindClan.
When the breath slowly started to leave her, Russetstripe skidded to a halt and looked around. She was aware that the WindClan scents had started to become faint, but she had no idea where she was. Maybe I should leave this time. I'd be better off, with no one telling me how to live my life. Russetstripe was contemplating what to do when she suddenly recognized the patches of marsh and winterberries. The memory came back, when she had watched a tortoiseshell she-cat lament over her father's dead body. I'm in RiverClan territory. The scent of fish made Russetstripe wrinkle her nostrils, and she knew she had to get out of here. But what path did she take?
Just as Russetstripe was trying to figure out a way out of the marshland, she caught a glimpse of ginger-and-white fur from her peripheral version, and she swung her head around to see a massive tom lunging for her. Russetstripe turned, ready to leap out of the way, but the marsh was wet beneath her and was making it hard to move. The ginger-and-white cat leaped on Russetstripe, sending her bowling on the ground. The marsh soaked Russetstripe's fur as she was pinned down, and when she looked up, she came face-to-face with a tom who held a feral, wild expression in his eyes and a rugged face.
"You have five seconds to get off me unless you want your eyes clawed out," Russetstripe growled, the scent of fish making her nearly gag as she studied the tom. RiverClan warrior. Not a rogue. But I know him. She had gotten into a small altercation with this cat at a previous Gathering, and she remembered him as Runningpaw. But he was massive now, compared to his size at the Gathering so many moons ago. Surely he had his warrior name now?
"I'm frightened." Runningpaw's claws pricked into Russetstripe's skin, and the WindClan warrior curled her lip and snarled at him. "You're trespassing on our territory, so shouldn't I be the one clawing your eyes out?"
Russetstripe had had enough. If this tom wanted to be so cocky, then she'd give him a taste of his own medicine. Russetstripe lashed out her back claws and scored them across Runningpaw's stomach. The RiverClan tom grunted, and using his moment of weakness, Russetstripe kicked him off her and sent him to the ground. She got to her paws, unsheathing her claws, ready to strike at him.
Runningpaw scrambled to his paws and shook out his fur, but didn't seem too keen on attacking. Instead he sat down, licking his paw and drawing it over his head. Russetstripe could see his stomach, and she realized that her claws had only given him small scratches, nothing to make the skin break or bleed. Damn. "Hey, I recognize you. You're Russetpaw, right?"
"Who cares?" Russetstripe growled, not in the mood for any small talk. "I'm Russetstripe now. And aren't you Runningpaw?"
"Runningflame." The ginger-and-white tom lifted his head. "What's the matter with you?"
"Nothing. But I want nothing to do with the Clans anymore. I'm out of here." Russetstripe turned on her heel, tasting the air, and started to run.
"You know, lass, if you go in that direction, you're just going to go deeper into RiverClan territory, and you'll encounter the sunhigh patrol." Runningflame's voice echoed from behind her. "I think Rippleheart wouldn't mind ripping a pretty little WindClan she-cat into two."
Russetstripe swung her head and glared at Runningflame. She was already furious enough, and Runningflame was just aggravating her mood further. "Pretty?"
Runningflame rolled his green eyes. "What's got your tail in a bunch? If I were you, and I wanted to leave, I'd taste the air and go where the scent is faintest. But you seem too angry to think clearly. You can't travel when you're distracted. You'll just get yourself hurt."
Runningflame's words were sinking into Russetstripe's mind, and she found herself sitting down, despite the sickly feeling of the wet marsh against her fur. Her breath was coming in short gasps, and she shut her eyes. Runningflame was right – she would have to think clearly before she wanted to make the dangerous journey outside of Clan territory.
"So?" Runningflame pressed. "Wanna talk?"
"It doesn't concern you," Russetstripe growled at the ginger-and-white tabby. The last time she had made a friend outside of Clan territory, he had turned on her at the Gathering, and she had been forced to fight him during a battle on his camp. She wouldn't make that mistake again.
"Doesn't it." Runningflame tossed his head as if to shake away flies. "When it leads a little lass on my territory, then it kind of does. I can give you directions to get out of the territory, but before you make that permanent decision, you might want to think about your friends and family."
"Well, what does it matter if Swiftstar wants to control my life?" Russetstripe snapped.
"The Viper of WindClan?" Runningflame echoed. "Controlling your life?"
"I'm his daughter." Russetstripe's fur bristled. "He thinks that it's his right to tell me how to live my life. Who my mate should be. Who I should associate with. What my future entails."
"Damn," Runningflame murmured. "Sorry to hear that, lass. I'd hate it too if my father tried to pull that on me. But aren't there other things in your Clan that you want to stay with? Friends? Other family?"
Russetstripe thought about Runningflame's words. Other cats… The faces of the cats she loved flashed in her mind. Her brother's lithe face with piercing amber eyes, Blackdove's black-furred figure, Gorseflight's kind smile, and Sunleaf's loving gaze. "I mean… there's my brother, Scorchclaw, and my best friend, Blackdove. Gorseflight, too. And my mother."
"So why would you want to leave them?" Runningflame asked. "They wouldn't know where you'd gone. They'd send search patrols out for you. And they'd never have a clear answer, if you never go back. They'd live the rest of their lives wondering what they did wrong. They'd never be able to rest in peace."
"I guess you're right," Russetstripe said, thinking deeply about what Runningflame had just said. If she disappeared on the cats she loved, he was right that they would have no idea where she went, and that they'd live the rest of their lives, not knowing what happened to her. They might blame themselves. Russetstripe had no quarrel with those cats – she loved them. Russetstripe finally took a deep breath. "I'm going back."
"That's a good lass," Runningflame purred.
"Don't call me that!" Russetstripe snapped at him. "I am not your 'lass'!"
"All right, all right." Runningflame stepped back. "Come on, now. Go back home. And let me know if you need any help shredding your father's pelt. I'd be glad to help."
"Oh, no you won't," Russetstripe grumbled at the ginger-and-white tom. But then she lowered her head. "…Thank you."
"I was beginning to think you'd never say that," Runningflame chuckled. "You're welcome. See you." With that, the ginger-and-white tom disappeared into the marshland, presumably back to RiverClan territory. Russetstripe watched him go and braced her muscles. Maybe I shouldn't have been so harsh on him. I'll have to thank him properly the next time I see him.
But her head was clear, the anger wasn't so prominent anymore, and now she could think clearly. Runningflame had brought up multiple good points. She didn't want to leave the cats she loved without an answer. She'd go back, and she'd try again. Maybe there's a way I can stop this. I am the one thing in life I can control!