Morning Clouds

Chapter 8

The vigil was long.

Hail Breeze was cold and tired. He thought a vigil would be sadly peaceful, but instead there were quiet whispers, wriggles, and snores of cats who fell asleep.

Hail Breeze was proud that he didn't, but he came pretty close to. The only thing that kept him awake was the shock of the cold air. Swift Minnow's fur wasn't thick, and neither was Shining Moon's, so he let her have their mother's warmth.

Stagnant Pool wasn't with them. His other sister sat with Reed Tail at Eagle Feather's head, taking the place of the medicine cat while Moth Flight tended to Fern Leaf.

The only WindClan cats who weren't at the vigil were Moth Flight, Fern Leaf and her newborn kits, and Rocky, who's old lungs couldn't take the cold night.

All the kits had been offered by Windstar to stay in their nests. "It's leaf-bare," the Clan leader had meowed. "You're too young. You can stay inside if you want."

But none of them had accepted, part of out of respect for Eagle Feather, part of wanting to look like full members, and part of not wanting to let Golden Streaks and Feather Plume suffer alone. Despite Windstar's offer, Holly had insisted that all of her able kin in WindClan be at her son's vigil. Her younger litter was four moons old, she argued, and perfectly able to stand a night in the cold. In the end, only the newborns stayed inside.

Hail Breeze flattened his ears for the millionth time as he gazed at Eagle Feather's body. At first, it had been hard to look. But Moth Flight, Clover Petal, Dew Nose, and Bright Storm had cleaned his wounds and pelt and smoothed a sweet-smelling herb over him to cover the stench of death. Stagnant Pool and Willow Mist hated it, but it suited Hail Breeze just fine.

Holly had her nose buried in her son's pelt, Feather Plume and Golden Streaks crouched between her and Jagged Peak, who was lying on the ground with his lame leg off to the side and his forepaws in Eagle Feather's long brown fur. His head was on his forepaws and he gazed off into the distance, eyes weary and old. Along with the grief he now carried, Jagged Peak seemed to have aged seasons in the time since he had first heard that his son was dead.

Dew Nose crouched on the other side of her father, eyes full of grief. Out of all of Eagle Feather's kin, she seemed to be taking his death the best, grooming his long brown fur, getting her parents and younger sisters ready for the vigil, and just being the most productive.

Storm Pelt, Eagle Feather's only brother, lay between Dew Nose and Black Ear. The quiet tom had grown even quieter, not uttering a word since he had received the news, just grieving quietly alongside his family. The gray tom stared at the entrance with eyes full of grief and longing.

Black Ear, Eagle Feather's apprentice, was beside Storm Pelt and Slate. His mother, littermates White Tail and Silver Stripe, and denmate Bright Storm had been all over him with sympathy and their own grief, and he had been the most open, sobbing for most of the time since the news was received and wailing about how he no longer had a mentor, though Windstar had promised to give him a new one after the vigil if he was comfortable enough to move on so quickly. Black Ear had promised that, though Eagle Feather had been a great mentor and he would miss him, he wanted to continue with his training.

Hail Breeze gazed at the sky as the first hints of dawn began to spread across it. He shook out a cold, numb forepaw, flooding with relief and impatience. Thank StarClan. It's almost over.

Then guilt flooded him as he realized that this was the last time he would see Eagle Feather until he died, unless his former Clanmate visited him in his dreams, which he highly doubted would happen.

But either way, it was over.

//-//

WindClan seemed subdued.

For once, none of the kits wanted to play.

Black Ear, the now-mentorless apprentice, lay outside the apprentices' den, head on his paws. Bright Storm, Dew Nose's apprentice, lay beside him, having been given the day off so her mentor could grieve. Silver Stripe and White Tail were out training, and some warriors had volunteered to hunt and check the borders while Eagle Feather's family, apprentice, and close friends took the day off to grieve, but the patrols were made up of quiet, grieving cats who had fallen asleep during the vigil and were never the closest to Eagle Feather, and cats who were rage-driven to find the cat who had murdered their Clanmate.

Holly was one of them.

The black-furred she-cat paced camp, prickly tail lashing. She was angry that Windstar wouldn't let her go on the search patrols, but the leader had convinced her to stay and take care of the kits and Jagged Peak. The older gray tom seemed to have aged seasons in a day.

Hail Breeze sighed and leaned against Swift Minnow, watching the camp while he compensated the day's events. Dark Stream and Willow Mist had tried to play, but their games seemed out of place in the cold, dreary camp.

Hail Breeze's ears flicked up as Fern Leaf exited her den and padded up to Windstar. The Clan stared as the two she-cats whispered and withdrew to the den Windstar shared with Gorse Fur, who was out on a patrol.

I hope she doesn't have more bad news...

//-//

"Hi, Snowy Skies! Want to play?" Maple Pool purred.

Snowy Skies had shyly approached the group of bouncy she-cats that included her two sisters, Maple Pool and Rainbow Rain, along with Bright Feather and Glistening Dew. The final kit, Bracken Leaf, Bright Feather's brother and the only tom-kit in ThunderClan, hung back, talking to Cloud Spots and Hazel Burrow by the medicine den. Even though she liked "She-kitClan," as they called it, Bracken Leaf was quieter, like her, and wasn't overly bouncy and bright.

Snowy Skies smiled at the other kits, tearing her gaze away from Bracken Leaf. "What do you want to play?"

Rainbow Rain grinned. "Let's play hide and seek!"

Maple Pool shoved her sister playfully. "We played that yesterday!"

"I don't care! It's fun!" Rainbow Rain squeaked.

"Now it's boring!" Maple Pool protested playfully.

Rainbow Rain pounced on her sister. "Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!" Bright Feather joined the playful scuffle.

Snowy Skies shifted her paws, listening to the other kits argue and play-fight. I don't like play-fighting. It feels too real.

But I guess I have to.

Snowy Skies sighed and halfheartedly joined in.

Is this really how it has to be?