#bogkit

Daisyshadow's snide comment from earlier that day settled under his pelt, making it feel like he was burning. He cared for the kits! He cared for Currentpaw and Riverpaw as little kits, and they were turning out fine.

He opened his mouth, only for some new scent to hit it. 

He whirled towards the new scent, towards the break in the new wall they were building. There was a cat with a strange and unfamiliar scent, a mixture of different environments that Speckleback probably couldn't imagine. When the cat noticed that she was noticed, she shifted to the side and pushed two small forms forward-

They were almost apprentice aged. They shared her speckled coat, though they were different in color. The brown speckled kit huddled into the silver speckled kit's side, and the silver speckled kit stared up at their mother.

"I can't... I can't care for them." The rogue muttered. She pushed them forward again, and the brown speckled kit fell forward. The silver one pushed himself beneath the brown one and lifted him up. "Brown one is Gold, gray one is Bat. I heard about you all from a friend." She turned around. "Care for them, for me."

She started to leave.

There was a whirlwind of a form, and Hollyspike was out of his nest.

Speckleback hissed at Hollyspike, but one of the kits walked up to him and pressed against his side. Speckleback, distracted, glanced down to Gold.

Gold sighed, golden eyes staring at his mother as she turned back to talk to Hollyspike. "... Why do we have to leave her...?"

"She's stupid." Bat replied, walking up to Gold's side. "That's why."

Speckleback stared at the little forms, still ignoring whatever conversation Hollyspike and the rogue were having. He leaned down. "Hey. We care for others here, no matter what. I'll care for you, as it's my job as the healer."

"A healer?" Bat glanced up. "You can be that?"

"Or fight. Most of us fight here." Speckleback shrugged. "I used to fight, but I know my herbs better than anyone else."

Finally, the rogue left, and Hollyspike limped back towards the medicine den. Speckleback turned towards Hollyspike, hissing, "Stop moving, you'll aggravate your wound!"

"I do what I want," Hollyspike grumbled, pushing back into the medicine cat den. Speckleback heard the faint voice of Daisyshadow as she started to move out of the den, as well.

Speckleback sighed. "Just stick to me if you need anything, Goldkit and Batkit."

"Oooo, new names! Thank you!" Batkit meowed, hopping in place. "Now, can we go?"

"No, you have to go to the nursery." Speckleback meowed. "At least, until you're old enough to start training." Batkit started to complain, but Goldkit shook his head. 

Daisyshadow sat down in front of him. "... What is with you and kits?" Daisyshadow meowed, tilting her head. Goldkit hid behind Speckleback's leg. "They look older, though."

Bogkit bounded towards Speckleback, and Speckleback watched as Bogkit shimmied next to Goldkit beneath him. Goldkit stared at Bogkit, nodding along as she asked him some questions- about if he liked food or not.

Speckleback glanced back to Daisyshadow. "My kits now. They latched onto me."

"Probably because you were the first clan cat they saw." Daisyshadow rolled her eyes. "But... fine. Yours."

"You're free to patrol again, by the way."

"Oh." Daisyshadow's ears rose up on her head, and she looked down at Bogkit. Goldkit was smiling a little bit at her, and Bogkit giggled, holding up a small leaf that she had somehow obtained. Daisyshadow smiled. "... Okay. Thank you."

"You are very welcome." Speckleback sighed. "Took long enough."

"I say thank you enough!" Daisyshadow walked towards Batkit and Goldkit, and lowered her head to meet their eyes. "Hello there."

"You look identical." Batkit meowed, head looking to Bogkit then back to Daisyshadow. "Same stripe, same color..."

Bogkit nodded. "Yep! Me and my brothers all have a stripe!" She stretched out. "Mom likes that!"

Goldkit licked at his pelt. "... I wonder if mom liked us resembling her."

Daisyshadow's expression twisted. She inhaled, exhaled. "Probably. But you have to make choices, and she made hers to leave you behind. Who cares what she thinks?"

"Daisyshadow's correct. If she left you here, it isn't worth thinking about anymore."

Goldkit glanced to Bogkit, who glanced to him. Bogkit shuffled her tail between her paws. Goldkit glanced back up to Speckleback. "... If... if you're sure."

"Of course!" Batkit pushed Goldkit forward. "Now, where are your siblings?"

"This way!"

With that, Bogkit bounded towards the nursery. She turned back to face the slightly older kits. "We also have some cats like you, who had nobody before we got them! Now, come on!"

Daisyshadow chuckled, then got up to follow after Bogkit, Goldkit, and Batkit.

Speckleback was once again going to be the one to break the news to Finchstar, huh. Couldn't be Daisyshadow for once.

Riverpaw peeked open her blue eye, glancing up at Currentpaw hovering over her nest. With the place empty of Hollyspike now, it was just her and Currentpaw. 

It was nice.

... Not so nice when he woke her up when she wanted to nap.

"What?" Riverpaw asked, trying to keep the irritation out of her voice. She opened her other, green eye to see Currentpaw fully. She wasn't going to get back to sleep, judging by his face.

"Well..." Currentpaw grinned, backing away to let Riverpaw sit up properly. "We have free time..."

Riverpaw did not point out how she was spending her free time napping in the apprentices den. Instead she just stared at him.

"Let's play?" Currentpaw asked, hunching a little bit and blinking his eyes. "Please?"

"Did you see the kits playing and want in?" Riverpaw asked, and Currentpaw glanced away. He did not answer. Riverpaw sighed, getting to her paws. "Fine. I'll do it."

Currentpaw gasped, then he jumped. "Sweet! Come on!" He ran out of the den. Riverpaw yelped, jumping out after him. Most of the warriors were out doing something separately, and Whiskershadow had allowed them some breaktime.

Nearby, the kits were all gathered in a group. Bogkit and Graykit were talking to each other, Larkkit was impatient, Rindlekit fidgeted with a mossball beneath her claws, Tricklekit had her tail tapping against the ground impatiently... Boughkit's eyes traced the mossball, and Buzzardkit was sitting nearby, not involved.

"Come on, stop watching them!" Currentpaw complained, and Riverpaw quirked her ears up and turned to Currentpaw. "Let's do something!"

"Like what?" Riverpaw asked, still standing.

Currentpaw leaped at her, and Riverpaw was bowled over. 

She let out a yelp, but she decided to roll with it. She let the two of them roll for a bit, and then collapse. She laughed, trying to shove him off with her back paws. "Hey, get off!"

Currentpaw lifted his head up, but he didn't move. He smirked. "Mmm... nah. Don't feel like it."

"Get off!" Riverpaw meowed, louder this time, though she was still laughing. She shoved her head into his neck, and Currentpaw let out a gasp that loosened his grip. Riverpaw slid out from under him, and then leaped away.

Currentpaw jumped back. "That's unfair!"

"All's fair in a fight, Currentpaw." Riverpaw meowed, and then turned away. "Try to catch me!"

The kits were watching them. Riverpaw instantly swerved away from the kits and started running. She faintly heard Buzzardkit speak up, but not what he said. 

Currentpaw ran after her. She made sure to slow down ever so slightly to give him a chance, but then sped up right when he wanted to lunge. Currentpaw growled, but he laughed afterwards. 

"Stop doing that!"

"I'm not doing anything!"

"Liar!"

"Excuse me." A voice, quiet, said eventually. Currentpaw jumped in order to go face his mentor. Lichentooth, who had a few rocks at her feet.

With them no longer playing, Riverpaw could hear the kits jumping around and chasing each other too. Buzzardkit was one of the ones being pursued, and he ran straight into Whiskershadow, who just entered camp from that side.

Buzzardkit scrambled away without another word. 

Whiskershadow chuckled, shaking his head. "I see we came back at the same time, Lichentooth."

Lichentooth nodded, now loaded up with her pebbles. Currentpaw moved to the side, and Lichentooth moved towards the kits. Riverpaw closed the gap, watching as Lichentooth approached the kits. 

She came up on Boughkit's right side, and the kit jumped when Lichentooth got close. Lichentooth leaned down and put the rocks down, and Boughkit gasped. The kit batted one rock towards the entrance of the den, and then followed with the other pebbles. The other kits dodged around her.

"I noticed she liked a pretty feather once. So..." Lichentooth nodded towards Boughkit, who was batting the pebbles inside, and Daisyshadow laughed from the inside. "Yeah. So, what were you two doing with your free time...?"

Currentpaw opened his mouth.

"Training!" Riverpaw interrupted, ears up. "It's nice to train with someone else, no mentor."

"Maybe you'll be able to do that soon, then." Whiskershadow purred, walking forward. "But for now... Currentpaw, Riverpaw, we're going hunting."

"My kits aren't old enough to talk yet, so you will have to do." Daisyshadow laughed.

Hollypaw groaned. His amber eyes fell to meet with the four tiny pelts of Daisyshadow's kits. Three of them had the exact same back stripe that Daisyshadow did, yet only one of them shared her fur color. What were their names again? Not like he was going to ask that, that wasn't cool.

The one with a similar creamy coat let out a little mew, and Daisyshadow pushed her closer. 

Speckleback entered the nursery, and Daisyshadow stiffed up, though her kits were still suckling at her belly. "What? Still concerned about me?"

"No. Your kits." Speckleback leaned down closer to the kits. Daisyshadow sighed, but she moved her tail again anyway. Orange with a stripe, gray with a stripe, cream with a stripe, and a strange pale-gray orange spot mixture. "You basically had them in the middle of the night. It's dangerous to give birth, and I see you haven't fully recovered-"

Daisyshadow rolled her eyes. "You and what herbs?"

"I could've helped."

Hollypaw squirmed away from Daisyshadow, and suddenly he WAS interested in their names. "You named them, right? Apparently the other clans named their kits close to their birth, so you gotta, right?"

Daisyshadow still glared at Speckleback, but it softened when her gaze went to her kits. "... Larkkit," Her tail traced the back of the only kit without a stripe, "Graykit," The gray single striped kit, "Bogkit," The cream single striped kit, "And Buzzardkit." The orange single striped kit. "Their colors reminded me of those things. Yeah."

Speckleback nodded. He bent a little closer. "Two boys, two girls."

Daisyshadow's fur lifted from her back a little, but she didn't bite at him. "Yes. Now, please get out of the den. I will be fine."

Speckleback rolled his eyes, then turned to leave before he remembered something. "Ah, yes, Hollypaw. You're doing fine, so you're free to go."

Hollypaw jumped to his feet. He glanced to Daisyshadow, who flicked her ears towards the entrance of the den.

"Go be a warrior."

Hollypaw nodded, then stomped outside of the den. Speckleback, sighing, followed.

Events Referenced: Hollypaw recovers from Heat Exhaustion Daisyshadow 'secretly' had four kits: Larkkit, Graykit, Bogkit, and Buzzardkit. Speckleback STILL can't find SHIT. Daisyshadow picks the burrs out of Hollypaw's fur.

note: i took a picture of the kits at one moon. Looking back now, I should've taken a picture of their potato forms. My mistake. This... will be the case for any future kits, for a while. Remember, i took notes hella in advance.