Post by icefang on Jun 19, 2006 8:07:17 GMT -5
OOC: This is my 2000th post, so I thought I’d make it special and post a short story I wrote about Spiritpaw’s past, more in-depth. I changed a bit from the bio to make it more interesting ^^
Spirit’s Song
Prologue
An icy wind swept through the valley that cruel winter night. The trees were weighed down with snow, and the valley was covered thickly in it. It had frozen over on top, so it was firm enough for a cat to walk on, as was the small creek winding its way through the bottom of the valley. The black night stared down mercilessly as another cold wind swept through. A she-cat lay underneath a bush, the only place where the snow had not penetrated. It was bitterly cold, and the howling wind sent a violent shiver through her entire body. She would be pretty; she had a thick black pelt and steel-colored eyes. But her pelt was ragged now, and thinner then it should be in the pitch of leaf-bare, hanging off her scrawny body. She looked strangely distorted because her belly was swollen with kits.
Next to her crouched a pale tom. He had a very light gray pelt and blue eyes, and he was as scrawny as his mate. His pelt was torn in some places, bearing the wounds from fights with foxes and badgers, and on occasion, Clan cats. His ear was ragged, and his eyes shone with anticipation. He ignored the branches of the bush scratching him. His name was Ghost, and his mate, Mirage, was about to give birth to their kits.
[Okay, this description of the kitting is slightly graphic, so skip the next… *counts*… 2 or so paragraphs if you really don’t want to read about it. It’s not that bad, though.]
Minutes passed in silence, feeling like days to the anxious couple, until at last, Mirage began to feel pains near her genital area. Then, the contractions came. Weak at first, but growing stronger and stronger until finally it sent a spasm wracking the entire of her body. She let out a yowl of pain. The contractions did not ease, and continued for at least ten minutes [this is normal for cat birthing] before the strongest contraction yet came, and a tiny, dark head poked out. After several stupendous pushes, the kit was out, and Ghost immediately took the kit and began rubbing her with his paws, it being too cold to bathe her with his tongue. Once she was clean and dry, her eyes were open and she was letting out tiny mews. He nosed under her belly and grunted, “She-kit,†before letting her gravitate toward her mother’s nipples for milk.
Another long wait during which more spasms sent ripples through Mirage’s spine, and another kit met the world. This one was a tiny black kit, and again, Ghost took her and rubbed her dry. He nosed under her belly again and again said “She-kit.†He then nosed her towards her sister. She was slightly larger then her sister, and much darker, but she immediately latched on to another nipple and began to suckle.
The same process repeated again, but this time after Ghost had dried the kit, he said, “Tom!†The tiny little tom went to suckle with his sisters, and Mirage appeared to be content now. The fur on her face was spiked up with perspiration, and her eyes were now closed, and her head was down. She was panting heavily, but was elated. Several minutes of silence passed as she caught her breath, and her three beautiful kits continued to suckle, kneading her belly to stimulate milk flow. At last, it seemed, she bent down to wash around the base of her tail.
“Our kits are beautiful,†murmured Ghost, coming to the conclusion that Mirage was ready to talk again. “But they will need names.â€
“We can worry about that in the morning,†said Mirage between licks. But she straightened out and looked up at Ghost from her lying-down position on the ground, her eyes serious. “What I’m worried about is how we will support them.â€
“We catch enough prey…†mumbled Ghost. But he knew this was not completely true. In the cold of leaf-bare, he could barely catch enough for the two of them, let alone him and Mirage who was now nursing three kits. The milk didn’t come out of nowhere.
“You know that’s not entirely true,†said Mirage seriously. Her tone was not scathing, just concerned. “You have caught enough to feed yourself and me during my pregnancy, and I applaud you for that, but there is simply not enough prey anymore to support our entire family.â€
“I know…†he said.
“Ghost,†she continued sternly. “You promised me when I told you I was pregnant that you would find a way to feed us.â€
“I have been thinking…†Ghost replied. He wasn’t all that fond of his idea. That life was over; could he have the patience to go back?
“What is your idea?†asked Mirage, now gazing at her kits. The tom-kit had curled up next to her, asleep. He was shivering, and Mirage’s eyes were dark with worry looking at him.
“Well…†he said. “We could go to kittypetplace. Just until the kits are strong enough to fend for themselves a bit. We could wait until newleaf, that’s only 3 or 4 moons from now. We could get the Twolegs to feed us for a while, and then we could leave.â€
“It’s a wonderful idea… but…†Mirage bit her lip in anxiety. “Well, we left that life because we felt too confined. What if our kits don’t want to leave? How will we be able to stay with them?â€
“I don’t know,†sighed Ghost. “But I don’t see any other options. We couldn’t stay with the Clan cats, I’ve made many an enemy there. And they don’t accept cats from other Clans or outside of Clans into their Clan unless they are worthy and planning to stay for good. And the Clan cats are even having trouble… There aren’t many loners about, and the ones who do live here are hostile… and we are not joining the rogues. That would be the worst thing for our kits. We have two options: We can stay here and watch our kits die, or we can find an owner to feed us until newleaf.â€
Mirage hesitated, a battle between what she wanted for her kits and what she wanted for her family raging inside her head. Ghost sensed her indecision. “Mirage,†he said bracingly. “If our kits are to survive, going to the Twolegs is the only way.â€
Mirage sighed, knowing she had no choice. “Alright,†she said. “We’ll go in the morning, after we name them.†Ghost nodded sadly. He did not want to go any more than Mirage did, but it was the only way. He curled up next to her. All three kits were asleep now, and the middle one was yowling due to lack of milk.
“Hush,†he heard Mirage murmur. “It’ll be alright in the morning.†The little kit continued to yowl for a while until she got tired and, shivering, went to sleep.
The next morning, the sun was shining bleakly through the cover of clouds. It was slightly warmer than the night, but the bitter wind had not yet let up. The kits and Mirage were still asleep, Ghost decided not to wake them. He crawled out from under the bush they had taken refuge under, and sat on the frozen layer of snow. He sniffed hopefully, wishing for just one more mouse or vole before he left the life of a loner. But there was nothing to be scented. A few minutes later, he heard Mirage’s gentle call from under the bush. He scrambled back under to find her looking down at their now suckling kits.
“They need names,†she said, her eyes glowing. “And then we can find an owner.†She looked down at the oldest kit. She was pale gray, not as pale as her father, and had blue eyes like him. “Aura,†she said. The next kit in line happened to be the tom. He had his father’s pale gray pelt, lighter than his sister’s, but his mother’s steel-gray eyes. “Whisper,†she decided. She left the third for Ghost to name. He surveyed her carefully, thinking of a good name for his kit. She was black like her mother, with her father’s blue eyes. She had the same slender bone structure as her mother, and he was sure she would be beautiful when she grew older. “Spirit,†he decided. He had no way yet of knowing how fitting the name would prove in later moons…
Spirit’s Song
Prologue
An icy wind swept through the valley that cruel winter night. The trees were weighed down with snow, and the valley was covered thickly in it. It had frozen over on top, so it was firm enough for a cat to walk on, as was the small creek winding its way through the bottom of the valley. The black night stared down mercilessly as another cold wind swept through. A she-cat lay underneath a bush, the only place where the snow had not penetrated. It was bitterly cold, and the howling wind sent a violent shiver through her entire body. She would be pretty; she had a thick black pelt and steel-colored eyes. But her pelt was ragged now, and thinner then it should be in the pitch of leaf-bare, hanging off her scrawny body. She looked strangely distorted because her belly was swollen with kits.
Next to her crouched a pale tom. He had a very light gray pelt and blue eyes, and he was as scrawny as his mate. His pelt was torn in some places, bearing the wounds from fights with foxes and badgers, and on occasion, Clan cats. His ear was ragged, and his eyes shone with anticipation. He ignored the branches of the bush scratching him. His name was Ghost, and his mate, Mirage, was about to give birth to their kits.
[Okay, this description of the kitting is slightly graphic, so skip the next… *counts*… 2 or so paragraphs if you really don’t want to read about it. It’s not that bad, though.]
Minutes passed in silence, feeling like days to the anxious couple, until at last, Mirage began to feel pains near her genital area. Then, the contractions came. Weak at first, but growing stronger and stronger until finally it sent a spasm wracking the entire of her body. She let out a yowl of pain. The contractions did not ease, and continued for at least ten minutes [this is normal for cat birthing] before the strongest contraction yet came, and a tiny, dark head poked out. After several stupendous pushes, the kit was out, and Ghost immediately took the kit and began rubbing her with his paws, it being too cold to bathe her with his tongue. Once she was clean and dry, her eyes were open and she was letting out tiny mews. He nosed under her belly and grunted, “She-kit,†before letting her gravitate toward her mother’s nipples for milk.
Another long wait during which more spasms sent ripples through Mirage’s spine, and another kit met the world. This one was a tiny black kit, and again, Ghost took her and rubbed her dry. He nosed under her belly again and again said “She-kit.†He then nosed her towards her sister. She was slightly larger then her sister, and much darker, but she immediately latched on to another nipple and began to suckle.
The same process repeated again, but this time after Ghost had dried the kit, he said, “Tom!†The tiny little tom went to suckle with his sisters, and Mirage appeared to be content now. The fur on her face was spiked up with perspiration, and her eyes were now closed, and her head was down. She was panting heavily, but was elated. Several minutes of silence passed as she caught her breath, and her three beautiful kits continued to suckle, kneading her belly to stimulate milk flow. At last, it seemed, she bent down to wash around the base of her tail.
“Our kits are beautiful,†murmured Ghost, coming to the conclusion that Mirage was ready to talk again. “But they will need names.â€
“We can worry about that in the morning,†said Mirage between licks. But she straightened out and looked up at Ghost from her lying-down position on the ground, her eyes serious. “What I’m worried about is how we will support them.â€
“We catch enough prey…†mumbled Ghost. But he knew this was not completely true. In the cold of leaf-bare, he could barely catch enough for the two of them, let alone him and Mirage who was now nursing three kits. The milk didn’t come out of nowhere.
“You know that’s not entirely true,†said Mirage seriously. Her tone was not scathing, just concerned. “You have caught enough to feed yourself and me during my pregnancy, and I applaud you for that, but there is simply not enough prey anymore to support our entire family.â€
“I know…†he said.
“Ghost,†she continued sternly. “You promised me when I told you I was pregnant that you would find a way to feed us.â€
“I have been thinking…†Ghost replied. He wasn’t all that fond of his idea. That life was over; could he have the patience to go back?
“What is your idea?†asked Mirage, now gazing at her kits. The tom-kit had curled up next to her, asleep. He was shivering, and Mirage’s eyes were dark with worry looking at him.
“Well…†he said. “We could go to kittypetplace. Just until the kits are strong enough to fend for themselves a bit. We could wait until newleaf, that’s only 3 or 4 moons from now. We could get the Twolegs to feed us for a while, and then we could leave.â€
“It’s a wonderful idea… but…†Mirage bit her lip in anxiety. “Well, we left that life because we felt too confined. What if our kits don’t want to leave? How will we be able to stay with them?â€
“I don’t know,†sighed Ghost. “But I don’t see any other options. We couldn’t stay with the Clan cats, I’ve made many an enemy there. And they don’t accept cats from other Clans or outside of Clans into their Clan unless they are worthy and planning to stay for good. And the Clan cats are even having trouble… There aren’t many loners about, and the ones who do live here are hostile… and we are not joining the rogues. That would be the worst thing for our kits. We have two options: We can stay here and watch our kits die, or we can find an owner to feed us until newleaf.â€
Mirage hesitated, a battle between what she wanted for her kits and what she wanted for her family raging inside her head. Ghost sensed her indecision. “Mirage,†he said bracingly. “If our kits are to survive, going to the Twolegs is the only way.â€
Mirage sighed, knowing she had no choice. “Alright,†she said. “We’ll go in the morning, after we name them.†Ghost nodded sadly. He did not want to go any more than Mirage did, but it was the only way. He curled up next to her. All three kits were asleep now, and the middle one was yowling due to lack of milk.
“Hush,†he heard Mirage murmur. “It’ll be alright in the morning.†The little kit continued to yowl for a while until she got tired and, shivering, went to sleep.
The next morning, the sun was shining bleakly through the cover of clouds. It was slightly warmer than the night, but the bitter wind had not yet let up. The kits and Mirage were still asleep, Ghost decided not to wake them. He crawled out from under the bush they had taken refuge under, and sat on the frozen layer of snow. He sniffed hopefully, wishing for just one more mouse or vole before he left the life of a loner. But there was nothing to be scented. A few minutes later, he heard Mirage’s gentle call from under the bush. He scrambled back under to find her looking down at their now suckling kits.
“They need names,†she said, her eyes glowing. “And then we can find an owner.†She looked down at the oldest kit. She was pale gray, not as pale as her father, and had blue eyes like him. “Aura,†she said. The next kit in line happened to be the tom. He had his father’s pale gray pelt, lighter than his sister’s, but his mother’s steel-gray eyes. “Whisper,†she decided. She left the third for Ghost to name. He surveyed her carefully, thinking of a good name for his kit. She was black like her mother, with her father’s blue eyes. She had the same slender bone structure as her mother, and he was sure she would be beautiful when she grew older. “Spirit,†he decided. He had no way yet of knowing how fitting the name would prove in later moons…
