Two Birds/Prologue

Talonkit's POV

The night was quiet and dark, the only sound was a soft wind blowing through the treetops. Huddled beneath a thicket of bracken were two tiny kits, who could hardly even walk.

They stared with wide eyes as small snowflakes began to fall gently to the ground. The tiny black tom shivered, teeth chattering. In response, the gray speckled she-kit climbed on top of him, flattening him to the ground, trying to cover him as much as she could.

His coat was short; hers was fluffy, she knew she would be okay in the cold wind, but her brother may be another story.

"Where's Mama?" asked the tom, voice quiet, more a whisper then a real voice. The she-kit kept her pale eyes on the snow as it fell, the flakes becoming fatter with each passing minute.

"She's dead, Creekkit," she said simply. The scene from the night before flashed back to her.

Talonkit and Creekkit were hiding, their mother had put them under a tree root as she heard someone coming. It had been so dark... Talonkit couldn't make out who or what it was.

All she remembered were the fangs flashing in the little moonlight there was, and then the sound of a hoarse cry of pain, then a strange sharp metallic scent hit the air.

"Run!" Talonkit had said, sesning danger, shoving Creekkit, who stumbled at the force. It hurt Talonkit so much to leave her mother... but she knew she and her brother couldn't stay.

Their mothers cries had stopped, her hoarse breathing stopping as Talonkit and her brother ran as fast as their wobbly little legs could carry them.

Whatever the thing was that killed their mother, it hadn't followed. They had walked as far as they could, until their legs were too cold and tired to feel anymore.

They found the thick clump of bracken, which they were in at the moment. It looked safe and welcoming compared to the bare cold forest.

Creekkit couldn't seem to accept the fact their mother was gone. He repeatedly asked Talonkit where she was, and she always gave him the same answer.

Creekkit breathed heavily for a few moments then drifted into sleep. Perhaps he lost memory of what happened while he was asleep. Talonkit had stayed awake, and alert ever since they had ran away from the scene.

Would Creekkit be next? He was very tiny and frail compared to her, and she couldn't sit on him forever. He would probably freeze to death, or starve.

Talonkit wiggled around, a determined look plastered on her face. Not on my watch. I'll keep him alive. I couldn't live with myself if I didn't.

But as the hours went by, Talonkit began to feel weak and tired, she couldn't keep her eyes open any longer. She dozed off. Her dreams filled with the unholy memories of her mothers shrieks and gasps for air.

Had she drowned in her own blood? Who had killed her? And why? A crunching noise made Talonkit's ears twitch, it was annoying to listen to.

She assumed it was just her dreams, so she kept her eyes lightly shut, but she was soon proved wrong by Creekkit nudging her with a tiny black paw.

"There's something outside!" he said, blue eyes wide with fear. Talonkit's heart thudded. She heard the deep breathing and stomping of something much bigger then her outside, and it was coming closer.

Talonkit thought she could hear voices, but she couldn't make them out. "Stay behind me. I'll protect you," Talonkit said, standing in front of her brother who peered over her shoulder.

The voices became clearer, and she could see the figures of creatures through the haze of snow. More then one. "... I swear I smell kits..." said one, high-pitched, it sounded like a she-cat.

Talonkit hated the way it reminded her of her mothers voice.

The steps grew ever so louder and a figure suddenly loomed in front of the bracken, it's head lowering and green eyes meeting her own.

"Here! You're right, there are kits!" called the cat who stood in front of her, a young tabby tom.

Three sets of extra footsteps came crunching over and before she even knew it, a slender head had poked into the den and grabbed her scruff, hauling her away from Creekkit. "No!" Talonkit yowled, flailing her paws.

"Ooh! We got a fiesty one!" said the muffled voice of her attacker, sounding far too loud next to her little ears. And was she laughing? What was funny about savagely yanking her away from her brother?

Talonkit's flailing started to slow as her legs began to ache. She looked around. Four attackers! Could she take them on?

"Easy now," said a deeper voice, and she turned her gaze to a lilac tabby. As the she-cat carried her longer, Talonkit began to go limp, the fight melting from her and turning to exhaustion.

Before Talonkit knew it, they were carrying her through the thick blizzard. She was too tired to fight...

She slipped from a doze every now and then. She looked over to another cat. In her jaws was the black figure of Creekkit.

Would these cats take them to safety? Or would they die?