Lostsong's Amnesia

Chapter 5

"We all died here, like you said," Saturnpaw replied, her voice ringing throughout the cave. I listened, not wanting to miss even a syllable. 

"This is Bumble." Saturnpaw flicked her tail towards a tortoiseshell tom, his eyes gold like the sun. He nodded, stepping forward.

"I came here first, long ago. I was a kittypet, but I am welcome here either way," the tom stopped, breathing in deeply. He had a mischievous glint in his eyes, but I disregarded that. "I came as a dare, when the cave barely had a waterfall running over it. I was playing around with some friends on the place where the waterfall fell. We went inside. The others left me as a joke, but a part of the cave came down and crushed me."

Bumble stepped back, and a black she-cat stepped forwards. "I am Thistlefur. I came here when I was hunting. I tracked a mouse into this place. The entrance was hard to find, and I eventually starved to death."

I looked at her with sympathy, hoping that I would be able to find my own way out. I looked behind me, seeing the entrance clearly. It must have been really dark for this cat to not have found her way out. Only then did I notice the milkiness in her eyes. As fast as I saw it, it disappeared. Had she been blind?

Another cat, this time silver and graceful, stepped forward. He flicked his ears, nicked with battle scars. "I'm Silverflame. I came here when I was exiled for killing a cat I didn't even know. False accusation, basically. I starved, like Thistlefur," the tom explained, dipping his head. I felt so terrible for all of these cats. Each one had a life before this. But, something told me that there was more to these cats.

This time, three small kits stepped up, each one a different shade of grey. The darkest spoke first. "Our mama didn't want us."

Then, the next kit spoke, "She let us die."

The last, the only she-kit, and the lightest kit. "We were so sad, so hopeful that she would love us," she said, shivering. Tears sprang to my eyes. This cave was the setting of so many horror stories. I watched the tiny kits recede into the crowd. Many more sat, eager to speak, but Saturnpaw spoke first.

"Please, block off the cave. We have information for you," Saturnpaw pleaded, staring into my very soul. I nodded, wanting to know what kind of secrets these cats held. My eyes were still lingering on the kits. They deserved better. They played now, but they would never grow, never become warriors.

I spoke before I could think, "Can I have the kits?"

Saturnpaw and the others whispered to one another, thinking about the offer. Saturnpaw smiled, almost a smirk. The kits looked excited, and thankful that they might have a chance after all. Saturnpaw lifted her head. "Perhaps. Their bodies must be found first. And, if you don't do this before sunfall, the deal is off."  Saturnpaw looked a bit suspicious, like she was hiding something. I brushed it off, not wanting to dwell on it.

I nodded frantically. Where would a mother discard of her kits? I shuddered at the question, scampering towards a corner of the cave. I dug there, finding nothing. Another corner. Nothing. The next, closest to the granite rock. Nothing.

I hissed, wishing that this could be easier. For the heck of it, I went to where the kits were playing, digging there. They watched intently as I unearthed three small skeletons. I began to cry again, but held myself together. Thankfully, it wasn't too hard to lay the tiny skeletons out on the cave floor. Saturnpaw nodded with approval.

"Now, the kits will come back for a short time. If you don't build the blockade in that time, they will die again." Saturnpaw slid off of the rock down to the skeletons. The kits each stood beside one, eyes eager. Saturnpaw touched each pile of bones gently, and as she did, each formed into a kit. It was disgusting, flesh growing back onto bone. How was she doing this anyway?

Right before my eyes, I witnessed the three kits come back. They inspected their bodies, mewing with joy. They thanked me so much asked to play, but I needed to build that barrier. I didn't ask myself how she did it, but I knew from the time I saw them that I needed these kits, no matter what.

I ushered the kits out of the cave, meeting up with Beetletail and Spiderthorn. They were arguing about if they should come in and get me or not. They both looked up, eyes wide, as if they were surprised to see me.

"We're so sorry!" Beetletail meowed, her eyes desperate. I nodded, but time was running out. I needed help, and these two were my friends. I explained the situation, telling them how there was a deal with StarClan about these kits. A flash of recognition appeared in Spiderthorn's eyes upon seeing the kits. Maybe he knew them.

"So can you guys help? I know it's a lot, and it seems insane, but the kits...," I said, trailing off. Spiderthorn nodded slightly, rolling over the lightest kit, the she-kit. There were tiny white dots on her stomach. Spiderthorn shook his head.

"We can't take these kits," he said, shaking his head more noticeably. Beetletail and I looked up, baffled looks on our faces. Beetletail furrowed her brow.

"Why not?" Beetletail asked, playing with one of the kit's tails. Spiderthorn whispered into Beetletail's ear first. As he finished, Beetletail's face grew more and more concerned. She looked up to me, pity shining in her eyes.

"These are your kits Lostsong," Beetletail explained. I stepped back, startled. The kits did look a bit like me, with the grey fur and all. What I couldn't understand was why they were buried in there.

"What StarClan cat showed you them?" Spiderthorn asked, his eyes serious. I sighed, realizing that those cats were probably not StarClan, but some lonely Dark Forest cats looking for a laugh. I could almost see them, giggling away. Were the kits even real?

"A cat called Saturnpaw... I saw her in a flashback that showed her dying in the cave," I replied, hoping that the memory was at least true. Beetletail shook her head.

"We found out after she died that she had killed her mother's past three litters out of jealousy. She was mentally unstable for reasons we don't even know. We didn't know that back then. I'm pretty sure she's in the Dark Forest. I'm sorry," Spiderthorn explained, batting at one of the kits. It hissed, turning and grabbing Spiderthorn's legs in his jaws. Spiderthorn shook the kit off, knocking it against the ground.

It vanished, along with the other three kittens. I watched, speechless. Spiderthorn nodded, rolling his eyes.

"Silly tricks. But I still think we should block off the cave," Spiderthorn said, turning to me, "I'll talk to you when we're finished." I nodded, hurrying off to find something to block off that horrible entrance with. I found a pile of rocks, not far from the waterfall.

I picked out a few of the ones I could carry, hurrying back to the cave. Spiderthorn was there, placing thick branches in a stack in front of the entrance. I placed the rocks in a wall-like structure behind the branches. It took a few trips to get the wall finished, but eventually I did. Spiderthorn sealed everything off with a bit of clay from the river. Beetletail placed a pawful of flowers at the bottom of the barrier.

She turned to me, tears in her eyes. "For the kittens. Your kits," she said, voice shaking. I had almost forgotten that my kits' bodies were trapped in there, all alone. Maybe they were already in StarClan. I longed to know them, to feel their fur against mine. But they were gone, and I didn't remember a thing about them. 

"Let's get back, Brightstar and the others will be worried," Spiderthorn said, exhausted. I nodded, heading back along the river beside my two friends. I really wished today had been less eventful. I was tired as ever. Maybe the gathering would be a bad idea after all.