Leafpool's Choice

Bonus 4

Heather was buried the next morning.

A mopey, sleep-deprived Pebble stumbled away from the area. He felt like he couldn't stomach another death. He knew he couldn't bear to see another limp and broken body, eyes clouded, forever frozen in place.

Oak was so distraught that he couldn't seem to bear the thought of parting with Heather's limp, dead body. He just wanted one more night of joy and love between them, just one more run through the fields, just one more day with her. He would give anything to see her perfect blue eyes alight with joy, her fur shining in the starlight, and to hear her beautiful, elegant voice. But he was left with only memories.

Violet stood in front of Oak, meowing words of encouragement in hushed tones, although it did little good.

All of the other cats were having a hard time coping as well. Marigold, the golden-furred she-cat, worked tirelessly to bury her mother, trying to take her mind off of the loss that she had suffered. Dirt flew into her fur and eyes, getting stuck under her claws, but Marigold forced herself to continue, despite fatigue.

Cloud, the long-furred white tom, had disappeared into the grass to hunt and still hadn't returned.

Oak glanced over at Marigold, studying her as she worked. Everything about her reminded him of Heather, the way she moved, the way she talked, and the way she focused with such determination on the task she was given. It all seemed so familiar, yet so wrong.

"She always talked about you, you know," Marigold meowed. "She sometimes would wander off in the night, trying to find you. We would wake up, and she would be gone. She never got very far though. I don't think she was in her right mind. She was sick at the time."

"It's called love." Cloud had appeared, back from hunting, a rabbit at his paws. "She loved you." The soft-spoken tom, with only six words, had brought Oak back to reality.

"And I-" Oak stuttered a bit, afraid to admit something that he had never even admitted to himself, "I loved her too."

***

Mint bounded into a hollow, a willow tree on one side. A scent that was so astonishingly familiar touched her nose, mingling with scents that were unique and different. 

Berry?

 But the scent was stale, and Mint's sister was nowhere to be found. 

It was then that Mint heard voices. There were cats chattering, not too far away, and they were headed towards Mint!

Mint glanced around, spotting the willow tree, and she climbed it, sinking her claws into the soft bark and hauling herself up onto the lowest branch. 

A black tom entered first, a big bird clamped firmly in his jaws. The tip of its wing dragged in the dust, leaving a little trail.

Next came a pale brown tabby she-cat, carrying a rabbit in her jaws. She set her rabbit down near the tom's bird. 

And lastly was... Berry! Her white fur with its tan and red patches was so familiar, and her green eyes gleamed. 

She doesn't know what happened to our mother! I have to be the one to tell her....

Carefully, slowly, Mint climbed down from the tree.

"Mint! It's so good to see you again!" Berry exclaimed. 

Mint jolted in surprise, falling off of the tree trunk. Luckily, she landed below in a soft bed of moss. She scrambled to her paws, trying not to destroy some cat's nest. "Hello," she meowed.