"Alright you two, remember to stay where I can see you, and come back when I call for you. You'll freeze your little noses off if you stay out there for too long," A gentle voice purred as a queen stepped out of the nursery, two young kittens in tow. "And watch out for ice, I don't want you to hurt yourselves." The two kittens mewled their understanding, and the spotted she-cat bent down to gently touch noses with both of them. "Okay girls, you may go play," she cooed, watching as Airkit and Wolfkit bounded away, giggling and squealing gleefully as they tumbled into the snow.
Sighing softly, Peppernose picked a spot by the den, swept up some of the snow, and made herself comfortable. Well, as comfortable as she could be, the frozen ground was still cold, but it was better than laying in the freezing snow. Seeing that Airkit and Wolfkit had preoccupied themselves with making a snowcat, Peppernose decided to scan the camp to see who else was about, but she quickly wished she hadn't, as the first cat she saw made her heart sink. Redthroat. She didn't usually show any signs of negativity when the kits were around, but she couldn't help the way her ears flattened and her pelt bristled at the sight of that lousy tom.
Word traveled fast in WindClan, almost as fast as the wind itself, so everyone in the clan knew what Redthroat had done to her before nightfall on the very day she found out herself. They had been mates once, but all that they had was buried in the dirtplace when she caught him with that kittypet. She couldn't believe he was able to even show his face in camp after that fiasco, had he no shame? Apparently not, since he still arrogantly paraded around like he owned the place. Peppernose sighed and began rolling a small ice chunk around with her paw. She tried so hard not to think about all she had endured the past couple moons, but sometimes it still ate at her mind. Airkit and Wolfkit weren't Redthroat's kits... they weren't her kits either. Her own kits never got a chance to experience life, not even a single breath of air, so she left the nursery the day after they were born. She probably would've never set paw in the nursery again, if it hadn't been for the sudden passing of Tinyflame just a few days after Peppernose returned to warrior duties. Hailgaze's kits needed milk, and she could provide. Only a foxheart would refuse to feed hungry kittens. She loved her foster kits very much, and they brought so much light back into her life, but she knew that Hailgaze and his sons were suffering from the loss of Tinyflame. Sometimes she felt so selfish for finding any joy in caring for these kits that weren't hers, but they were all she had.
Peppernose was so lost in her own head that she didn't even realize she was crying.
- ℍ𝕒𝕚𝕝𝕘𝕒𝕫𝕖 -
𝔻𝕖𝕡𝕦𝕥𝕪 𝕠𝕗 𝕎𝕚𝕟𝕕ℂ𝕝𝕒𝕟
After delivering his lengthy report to Desertstar, he was itching to be released from her grip, his scorching amber eyes unfocused. Performing his daily duties as deputy was getting harder and harder, the death of Tinyflame still fresh in the back of his mind. Pressing his lips together, he nodded when his leader dismissed him, her soft encouragement was heard and appreciated with only a slow lash of his tail. Walking down the slight slope of the ground, his eyes flickering towards two small kittens as the girls raced from the nursery, eyes bright and pelts fluffed up against the snow. Pausing, his amber eyes watched his small daughters as they giggled and talked quietly to one another. Nostrils flared slightly, he was gazing upon the last reminders of Tinyflame in this world, and it stung. Even just looking at Daypaw was proving to be heart wrenching, the toms ginger pelt resembling his mothers. Airkit and Wolfkit clung to each other, being incredibly close, his lips began to rise slightly as his daughters began to move the snow around, finding a use for it.
Licking his dry lips, he turned his chin in the direction of Peppernose, noticing that while she was laying on the ground, she appeared very uncomfortable. Her expression was troubled and her spotted pelt was standing up with unease. Finally convincing himself to take that leap, he began to cautiously walking towards the female. Chin tilting, he padded closer and closer to Peppernose, dark grey and white streaked pelt fluffed up against the cold. He blinked in surprise when he realized that big tears were falling down her cheeks, causing him to frown as he lowered his head to lightly touch his nose against her shoulder. “Are you alright?” Hailgaze meowed, brows furrowing as he moved to sit down in front of her, gazing down at her with concerned ambers.
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