[Deathclaw & Foxkit] Between life and death.

[Chisato Mikami]

Deathclaw could feel another soul getting ready to leave. It was his purpose since he came to Starcan. When a cat died, or was close to dying, he would be there to guide them. Sometimes he would guide even the Forestclan believers. He was being drawn to a kit. A very sick kit. He didn’t say much as he leaned to the kit’s body, nudging the small body gently. Whether the kit felt it or not was up to her. Deathclaw’s ashy body swirled around him.

“Little kit, can you hear me?”  

[belloblossom]

Foxkit's chest rose and fell, but only just. Her breathing was shallow and she desperately wished her mother was here, instead of all these strangers.

She'd been ushered into a den that smelled strangely. She couldn't smell her mother's comforting musk at all once she had been ushered inside and after a while, she started smelling more like herbs herself. She had weird green bits pushed into her mouth, which she had originally spat out, but now she didn't have any energy to keep anything down anymore.

She could barely process what was going on around her, but the nudge and the voice of another suddenly became very clear. She blinked open her eyes and stared at the other.
"Mm-hmm. Who're-" She started, before she was wracked with a coughing fit. She heard a distant exclamation as vaguely familiar white and grey tomcat started moving around in the background. She'd become more accustomed to seeing him lately, as he was one of her constant companions. As her coughing subsided, she lay limply in the moss nest, staring blankly up at the unusual dark tomcat. The grey and white cat seemed to walk right through him without acknowledging him. Who was this cat?

Chisato Mikami

 

[Chisato Mikami]

Deathclaw looked down at the weak kit. He remembered seeing the same kit not too long ago when he took its mother to the next life. He sat, ignoring the medicine cat. There was a strong possibility that he could sense him there, watching the little kit. It was good that she had found a clan to take her in, but she was very sad and alone. What purpose did the fox have with this poor kit? He moved around to the kit’s side.

“I am Deathclaw,” he said quietly, but only the kit would hear him… “Do you have a name, little one?”  

[belloblossom]

Deathclaw? Foxkit trembled. That sounded scary... She wanted her mother! She thought of the bright fur of the her fox mother and whimpered for her. Her paws twitched, but she couldn't find the energy to scamper off. She was so tired all the time... she blamed the coughing fits and the new place.

"My mama called me 'Lil' Cub', but these cats are calling me Foxkit..." Foxkit replied hoarsely. "I... don't really know what my name is now." She admitted. "Whaddya want?"

Chisato Mikami

 

[Chisato Mikami]

“I see,” Deathclaw said quietly. This kit had gone through a lot in her short lifetime. With no living mother or siblings, she was completely alone. That was probably why her fox mother had taken her in. It was odd of the Fox to do that. Normally, Foxes were the enemies of cats. He had fought against Foxes in life, but they were trying to get to their kits to use as meals… not to raise.

“Would you like me to all you ‘Lil Cub’ then?” he asked, looking around the den. He wondered if Stonebelly could sense his presence there. He had only ever met one cat that could sense him, but they had passed on long before now. “Do you want to leave here, Lil Cub?”  

[belloblossom]

Foxkit hadn't been called Lil' Cub by anyone else, but it warmed her to be called such. When he asked if she wanted to leave, she sighed.

"I want my mother..." She mewed. "But she's attached to another cat now." Unable to process the image of her mother's pelt being worn by Bumblebreeze, one of the Medicine Cat Apprentices of the Clan, Foxkit's mind had come to terms with it as her mother had found a new cat to love. "She comes by with him sometimes. I don't think I can leave here, knowing that she's still nearby." Her mew was barely more than a faded breath. "So I'll stay here, with her." Oh, how her thoughts would shift when the truth was revealed to her... if she ever lived to discover it.

Chisato Mikami

 

[Chisato Mikami]

Deathclaw felt an icy chill go through him. What kind of cat would wear the pelt of a fox that this kit thought was her mother? His anger made the ashes dance around him. This poor kit didn’t know the truth. He wondered if she could even handle the truth in her condition. Such a cruel and heartless thing to do. He closed his eye and tool a deep breath. The ash calmed down too. He would have to visit this cat that wore the fox pelt.

“Lil’ Cub, your mother loves you very much,” Deathclaw said as calmly as he could. “I’m sure she knows how much you miss her… She wouldn’t want you to suffer though… I can take you to a place where you won’t be sick. All you have to do is ask.” She would learn the truth. He knew she would. How do you tell a kit that their mother is no longer alive? There was no real answer. ‘I’m sorry you’ll have to live with this…’  

[belloblossom]

Foxkit gazed at the tomcat, watching his ashes dance around him and then settle like falling leaves. She wanted to play in them. Would they make crackling sounds just like crunchy leaves did? She wanted to know.

She sniffled, but whether it was on account of her greencough or being emotional was hard to say. She listened closely to when he told her she could be taken to a place where she wouldn't be sick.

"I... I think I want to stay here a little more." She whispered. Foxkit didn't know why she wanted to stay, but something was telling her that if she held out a little longer, than she would get better. And then she could ask her mother why she wasn't speaking to her anymore. "Just a little more..." She said and her eyes fell closed. Her flank still rose and fell and the frail body of the kit shook whenever she coughed. Yet she was alive, for now.

Chisato Mikami

Do you want to wrap up the RP with your next post?

 

[Chisato Mikami]

Deathclaw sighed as the kit went back to sleep. He hoped she wouldn’t be too heart broken when she realized that her mother was no longer with her. Someone here would take care of her. He knew that. The clans would never turn their backs on a helpless kit.

“As you wish,” he said gently. He didn’t leave right away. He watched as her little body rise and fall as she breathed. “If you need me, I’ll be there.” He said quietly as he left.