Berrynose's Prophecy

Chapter 1

"Shouldn't she have opened her eyes by now?"

"Hush, Swiftbreeze. She's only a day old. She'll open them when she's ready."

Berrykit felt the rasp of her mother's tongue on her flank and nestled closer to Moonflower's milk-warm belly.

"Snowkit opened hers this morning," Swiftbreeze reminded her. "And my two had theirs open from almost the moment they were born." The she-cat's tail stirred her bedding. "Leopardkit and Patchkit are natural warriors."
A soft purr sounded from the third queen. "Oh, Swiftbreeze, we all know that no kit can compare with your two." Poppydawn gently teased.

A small paw poked Berrykit's side.

Snowkit!

Berrykit mewled with annoyance and snuggled closer to Moonflower.

"Come on, Berrykit!" Snowkit whispered in her ear. "There's so much to look at and I want to go outside, but Moonflower won't let me until you're ready."

"She'll open her eyes in her own time," Moonflower chided.

Yes. In my own time, Berrykit agreed.

Waking, Berrykit could feel the weight of her sister lying on top of her. Moonflower's belly rose and fell rhythmically beside them. Swiftbreeze was snoring, and Poppydawn wheezed a little as she breathed.

Berrykit heard Leopardkit and Patchkit chattering outside.

"You be the mouse and I'll be the warrior!" Patchkit was ordering.

"I was the mouse last time!" Leopardkit retorted.

"Were not!"

"Was!"

A scuffle broke out, punctuated by squeaks of defiance.

"Watch where you're rolling!" came the cross meow of a tom, silencing them for a moment.

"Okay, you be the warrior," Patchkit agreed. "But I bet you can't catch me."

Warrior!

Berrykit wriggled out from under her sister. A newleaf breeze stirred the bramble walls and drifted through the gaps- the same fresh forest smell her father had carried in on his pelt when he'd visited. It chased away the stuffy smell of moss and milk and warm, sleeping fur.

Excitement made Berrykit's claws twitch. I'm going to be a warrior!
For the first time, she stretched open her eyes, blinking against the shaft of light that pierced the bramble roof. The nursery was huge! In the darkness, the den had felt small and cozy, but now she could see the brambles arching high overhead, with tiny patches of blue beyond.

Poppydawn lay on her side near one wall, a dark red tabby with a long bushy tail. Berrykit recognized her because she smelled different from Swiftbreeze and Moonflower. There was no milk scent on her; she didn't have any kits yet. Swiftbreeze, in a nest beside her, was hardly visible- curled in a tight ball with her nose tucked under her tail, her tabby-and-white pelt blotchy against the bracken underneath.

The most familiar scent of all came from behind her. Wriggling around, Berrykit gazed at her mother. Sunshine dappled Moonflower's silver-gray pelt, rippling over the dark strikes that ran along her flank. Her striped face was narrow and her ears tapered to gentle points. Do I look like her? Berrykit looked over her shoulder at her own pelt. It was fluffy, not sleek like Moonflower's, and was tan all over, with no stripes. Not yet.

Snowkit, lying stretched on her back, was all white except for her gray ear tips.

"Snowkit!" Berrykit breathed.