Warriors: Deserve's Beginning (Short Story) (COMPLETE)

Chapter 7

"I can't wait!" 

"I'm going to be the best hunter ever!"

Deserve watched his littermates leap around the barn excitedly, amused and happy for them. "You'll be great!" He looked to the exit of the barn. Outside, the sun was setting, casting long dark shadows inside the barn. It was almost time for Dice to show his siblings how to hunt as he'd promised earlier.

Song bounced around in the hay, her white tail in the air. "I'm going to catch a hundred mice!" She declared.

"Oh, yeah?" Boost fluffed up his fur. "Well, I'll catch a thousand!"

"Then I'll catch a million!" She crouched and wiggled her haunches. "Starting with you!" She pounced on him, and he let out a startled meow.

Deserve let out a purr of amusement as he watched them play together. He looked behind him. Velvet was sitting near their nest, gazing at the kits. He was surprised to see sadness brimming in her eyes. She looked distant. "Are you okay?" He asked worriedly.

"Hmm?" Velvet blinked out of her thoughts and looked down at Deserve. "Oh, yes."

He tilted his head. "You look sad." Did we do something wrong?

Velvet let out a soft purr. "It's just hard seeing my kits growing up." She leaned down and rasped her pink tongue over his head. "I never imagined you'd be hunting like your father."

Deserve blinked. "Do you wish we didn't?" He remembered how Dice had told him that Velvet didn't like to kill anything. Does it upset her that we will kill prey?

"No, dear," She murmured, her blue eyes warm. "I know you all need to grow up eventually and learn to take care of yourselves."

He stared up at her. "I hope I make you proud of me."

His mother purred softly. "I already am."

"Dice!" His siblings suddenly yowled.

Deserve turned to see his siblings race over to the exit of the barn. Dice had just arrived, holding several mice by their tails. He let out a muffled purr as Boost and Song excitedly weaved around his legs. He gently shooed them away with one paw as he padded further into the barn.

"Can we go now?" Boost asked excitedly, bounding alongside his father. "Please!"

Song stared at him eagerly as Dice dropped his mice by a pile of hay. "Can we go for our hunting lesson?"

Dice sat down beside Velvet, looking down at them in amusement. "Well, I don't know... Have you been good?"

"Yes!" Song exclaimed, bouncing up and down. "All day! Even Boost!"

Boost nodded, staring up at his father with glowing yellow eyes. "Yeah!"

Dice let out a purr. "In that case, I think it's time for a hunting lesson."

"Yeah!" The kits jumped up and down, racing toward the exit of the barn. Dice padded after them, his black tail high in the air. Deserve eagerly ran after him. 

His father paused and looked over his shoulder at Velvet. "Are you coming?" He asked. Deserve paused and skidded to a halt, looking back at her.

Velvet looked hesitant. "I'm not sure I want to see that..."

"Come on, it's their first hunt!" Dice urged, looking excited. "You missed Deserve's, but you can still see Boost and Song have their moment."

"Well..." Velvet meowed uncertainly.

Deserve looked up at her hopefully. "Please! You can watch me hunt too!"

She gazed at him for a moment and let out a purr as she stood. "Alright, I suppose I can watch."