Destiny of the Alley Cats || A Destiny Series || Book 1

- CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Truth Hurts -

An abrupt hush. No movement. Not even Ticker or her so called mother moved.

"What?" Heartily chuckled. "No. Great trick."

"What?!" Blossom whispered to herself excitedly and got a fierce glare from Lily in return. But she was still murmuring excitement before glancing up.

"Wait- are you my mother, though?"

Lily nodded.

"You- you-" Heartily started gasping for air. "Wait, no, what?" She paused, her voice breaking, and threw a fierce yell at her father. "Are you even my father? Or is my whole life a lie?" She unsheathed her claws, digging them into the dirt.

"Yes, Heartily, I really am your father, but-" Heartily caterwauled, and tore up the grass.

"Blossom, go, now!" Lily hissed at her real daughter, standing up.

"I want to hear! You lied to me, too, you know." 

Lily couldn't argue with that. She sighed and sat down.

Heartily's fur was bushed up to full extent. 

"Heartily, please-" Heartily yowled again, the agony of heartbreak and misery crashing down on her.

"Tell me the truth! All of it! Or your fur will be lining my nest! Both of your furs!" She glared at both of them, her voice and body shaking.

"Yes, yes. Your real mother, Hearts, given the light grey hearts on her white pelt," he added sorrowfully, "died giving birth to you and your two brothers-"

"I had brothers, I-I-, I had brothers?" Heartily screeched at the top of her lungs, and that caught Perry's attention, who came speeding up the hill faster than lightning.

"Heartily, are you okay-"

"Get out of here!" Lily growled, pushing him away.

"Yes, white, but someone stole them-"

"Did you go looking for them? Or as useless as you are, didn't try to find them?"

"Heartily, I did, I tried for weeks! I promise you, I had the whole alley looki-"

"I bet they're dead! Because of you and your selfishness!"

Ticker seemed so heartbroken, but choked out the words.

"I knew if I told you, and you grew up knowing you had a false mother, you'd be absolutely more heartbroken than you are now, so Lily decided to keep you a secret and pretend you were Blossom and Skyler's sister, not that they'd now since they were as well newborn."

"Woah, wait a moment, then who is my father?" Blossom asked, with eyes as wide at the sun in the sky.

"Your father was a tom named Pedro. He was believed to be killed, not that we know or anything. He snuck out and we tried to catch him, but we were to late. He and his sister got caught from the pound people, and-" Now Lily started cracking up and she looked away. Heartily hissed at her father, her fur so bushed up she looked even bigger than her father.

"What made you think I wouldn't be heartbroken the day you finally told me?"

"I thought, that once you grew more mature, you'd accept the truth within a calm state."

"Well, you thought wrong!" She spat.

"Heartily, calm down!" Her father said. 

She looked up, eyes feeling sore, to see Perry standing beside her.

"It's okay, Heartily." He said softly. 

This calmed her down more than anything. Scout soon appeared too, and Echo, and maybe Spotty and Kayla too. But she was to dizzy to figure it out.

"Chief Ticker, with all due respect, mind telling me what the mouse baskets is going on?" Perry said worryingly, and hugging her closer, he narrowed his eyes at the Chief and Lily.

When she awoke....

Heartily awoke, still in the curve of Perry's belly. 

As her father began to tell him next, she'd fallen asleep out of exhaustion. 

It was dark out, and Perry, who had obviously been sleeping as well, awoke and started washing her ears.

"I'm sorry to hear what happened. Life isn't fair sometimes." He said awkwardly, as if he had no idea what to say. Probably the case, knowing him.

"I-I....thanks." She slowly looked away.

"You have to accept that your father was dealing with the grief of your birth mother, while trying to find your brothers, and also while trying to hold a clowder together. Of course he'd do all he could to make you feel happy and not make you have to experience the way he was feeling. I say it's hard work being a chief, and one day, you're going to be the next and see what it's like." Perry meowed, curling his tail over her back. 

Heartily didn't want to admit it, but he was right about everything. Absolutely everything.

"Thank you, Perry. Where is my father and mothe- Lily?" She asked quietly.

"Lily is out in the forest with Meadow, and your father is by the stream"

"I need to go say sorry."

"I think so too."

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

As Heartily made her way, when a sudden thought hit her.

Two brothers. White. Stolen.  Brothers....kin, so same breed? Maine Coons. Large. Long furred. Mother was white. She had blue eyes? 

Could it possibly be? It didn't line up any better, unless it was some coincidence. 

Spirit and Soul from the Outcasts?