#r2-y3

badgerfang died y3-lf. it must've missed my eye when i was writing it up.

Ashfoot curls her tail around Downkit and Crowkit, as Deadstar finishes reciting a prayer for Hillkit. Their sister is the only one who looks anything like their mother: Downkit and Crowkit take after Deadstar.

Downkit settles onto their paws, trying not to think about how Hillkit’s chest should be moving. She’s been sick — Barkface said some kits are just born that way — but it’s not the same. Even in the past few days, when she was too tired to play most of the time, she still sat with Ashfoot, watching them, and liked to narrate their games, deciding who won battles or cheering for them to win races.

Now she’s not doing anything.

“You two don’t have to stay up,” Ashfoot whispers. “If you’re tired, you can sleep. Tawnyfur will let you sleep with her.”

Downkit yawns, but shakes their head.

“We’re going to stay up,” Crowkit says.

Ashfoot nuzzles them both, and Deadstar joins them, sitting on the outside of Downkit. His tail reaches over them to touch Ashfoot’s back, and like she was just waiting for him to come, she folds in on herself, hunching over against Hillkit.

“It’s not fair,” she whispers. “After everything.”

Willowstone comes behind them, gently pulling Downkit and Crowkit away, and Deadstar leans into Ashfoot. “Come sit with me,” she says. “Let’s give Ashfoot some space.”

“She doesn’t need space,” Crowkit says. “She needs us.”

“She will need you,” Willowstone says. “But right now, she needs space. It’s…” She sighs, licking both of their heads, and settling over them. Even though it’s greenleaf, and plenty warm, being surrounded by her soft fur is comforting. “One of my littermates died when we were kits,” she says. “It’s very hard, and Ashfoot is going to be very sad for a while.”

Downkit licks Willowstone’s fur. “I miss Hillkit.”

larksplash dies.

crowpaw is apprenticed to rabbitsight.

halofur has six kits, ashkit (pale cream tom), baykit (pale cream she-cat with white patches and a twisted left front leg), duskkit (ginger tom with faint stripes and amber eyes), needlekit (pale red tom with white patches and golden eyes), sapkit (pale cream and white tom), and sunkit (orange tom with amber eyes).

elderbreeze dies.

cypresspetal, oakstone, shadefoot, sprucestorm, and virgashimmer become warriors. whitepaw is apprenticed to longtail.

tigerclaw retires. he gives up. he just gives up. he's done. that's it. no more.

rough season.

cherrytail and sparrowpelt become warriors.

rockkit dies, and bouncepaw and tinypaw are apprenticed to patchfoot and sparrowtail.

urgh another "how do you have so many fucking kids"

fucking cats.

swampbird dies.

so does sprucepaw, and wildkit.

now.

THREE LITTERS are born.

to lizardstripe, echokit (small, blue-grey tom with white patches and hazel eyes) and smokekit.

to dawncloud, kinkkit. (and cypresspaw is given to brackenfoot.)

finally, to bristlefur and ratscar:

balsamkit (deaf, pale, mottled brown she-cat with white paws and amber eyes)

creamkit (tom with hazel eyes)

galekit (she-cat with amber eyes)

indigokit (deaf, mottled tom with hazel eyes)

oakkit (brown she-cat with dark gold eyes)

redkit (red tom)

sapkit (golden she-cat)

seichekit (tom with amber eyes)

talonkit

lotta death this season. petaldust, emberdawn, and yellowstream all die.

heavystep retires due to kidney disease.

voletooth becomes a warrior.

lightningkit dies.

bristlepaw, pumicepaw, and slugpaw are apprenticed to sapleap, mooseflame, and sedgecreek.

both baykits, palekit, and sprucekit die.

barkface dies, so dandelionpool becomes a seer two seasons early.

springpaw and yarrowpaw die.

brightpaw, cariboupaw, juniperpaw, nightpaw, and watchpaw are apprenticed to onewhisker, cloudrunner, whitetail, hickorynose, and aspenfall.