Work Text:
Cora woke slowly, to the sound of birdsong. She could hear them in the trees surrounding the gorge, twittering and chirping back and forth to one another, filling the camp with their sweet notes. Lifting her head a bit, she could feel the cool morning air on her face, smooth as stone.
Stone, not concrete or asphalt. Birds, not dogs or cars. It was better than any life she'd ever imagined for herself. After a brief yawn, she cuddled up against her mate's back, resting her head on her warm flank, and drifted in and out of sleep for a while longer.
Only when her mate stirred did Cora lift her head again, blinking a few times to adjust to the sunlight now properly streaming into the den. She kept her voice sweet, but low, not wanting to disturb the kittens sleeping at their mother's belly. "Good morning, darling."
Leafstar purred, giving one of Cora's ears a lick. "Good morning. Sleep well?"
"Quite." Cora shifted, burying her face in her mate's fur for a moment, enjoying her sweet scent and warmth. "I don't suppose I could convince you to stay in bed?"
Leafstar nudged her with one paw. "And leave Sharpclaw in charge?"
"He's a capable deputy. I'm sure you could let him play leader for one day," Cora teased.
Leafstar just purred again, nudged Cora once more, and the black molly reluctantly let her go. Standing carefully, so as not to disturb the kits, Leafstar picked a bit of moss off of her shoulder and let it fall back into the nest. "I'll be outside," she murmured, rubbing her muzzle against Cora's chin. "Just call if you need me."
"We'll be fine," she promised, giving Leafstar a quick lick on the forehead. "Good luck with Sharpclaw."
"Good luck with the little monsters," Leafstar answered, whiskers twitching with amusement before she finally left the den.
Once she was gone, Cora moved forward until the kits were at her own belly, wanting to keep them warm until the chill of the morning had fully worn off. They were all still asleep, though Firekit's tail was twitching; she must have been dreaming. Cora hoped it was a good dream.
Resting her head on her paws, she shut her eyes and let herself wander the border between sleep and alert, aware of her surroundings but completely content. She wasn't sure how long she dozed off for, but eventually she was disturbed by a paw prodding her flank.
"Mom, are you awake?" That was Stormkit.
"Of course she is, dummy! You just poked her," Firekit scolded.
"What's going on?" yawned Rainkit. "Is it time for breakfast?"
Cora opened her eyes and yawned in return. "Not yet, dear. Soon."
"Can we have a sparrow today?" Stormkit asked, kneading her tiny claws on Cora's belly. "Mama said we could."
"Did she now?" Cora winced a little at the claws, but didn't push her away, only licking a bit of fur on Firekit's ear that had flattened the wrong way. Her small, fluffy ginger tail was standing straight up in the air.
"We've tried squirrel," Rainkit told her. "And rabbit, and mouse, and pidgeon. Do sparrows taste anything like those?"
"A bit like pidgeon. Woodier, maybe."
"We don't have to eat the feathers, do we?" Firekit asked, wrinkling her nose as Cora continued to groom her ginger coat. "They're yucky."
"You might be thankful for them during a rough winter," Cora told her. "But no, you don't have to eat them today. We can put them in Clovertail's nest instead. If there's extra, she'll probably let you play with them."
"Yes!" Stormkit wriggled with excitement. "Can we go now?"
"Not yet. I have to give you your baths first."
"I can clean myself!" Firekit protested, and Cora let her go, turning to groom Rainkit instead. The kits were old enough to keep their pelts clean, but Cora liked sharing tongues with them; it reminded her of her kithood, when her own mother had done the same thing.
As they were quickly approaching two months of age, they were becoming more and more independent. Firekit in particular insisted on grooming herself most of the time, while Stormkit and Rainkit still allowed Cora to take care of them.
Leafstar's oldest daughter was certainly living up to her name; Cora wouldn't be surprised if she grew up to be a particularly fierce warrior. Stormkit was shyer than her sister, but very sweet, and she liked helping Clovertail with the nursery upkeep. Rainkit was very laid-back and probably the easiest of the three to take care of. He liked it when Billystorm gave him badger rides, and he slept on Cora's back at night.
They were so young, yet so full of life, each with their own personalities and interests, likes and dislikes. Leafstar was a brilliant leader and mother, but when her responsibility to the clan got in the way of caring for her kits, Cora was more than willing to step in and help out.
After the kits were clean, Cora gave herself a quick grooming before poking her head out of Leafstar's den to make sure there weren't any obvious disturbances in camp. "Alright, be careful going down the cliffs. Let's get you some breakfast."
The kits bundled along after her as she led the way down the winding path. Briefly, she thanked the stars that the leader's den wasn't too high up on the cliff; the nursery was much lower to the floor of the gorge, but Leafstar had chosen to stay in her own den, and her kits had been born and raised there.
The kits were good climbers by now, but Cora couldn't quite relax until everyone was safely down on solid ground. While the kits eagerly raced towards the fresh-kill pile, she glanced around camp, observing her clanmates.
The daylight warriors hadn't arrived yet, but they surely would soon. Echosong was stretching outside of her den, while Tangle and Lichenfur sat on some of the large, warm stones on the edge of camp, sunning themselves in the faint morning light. Leafstar and Sharpclaw were sat outside the warriors den, probably discussing patrols. Echosong was disappearing into her den with a bundle of moss in her mouth, her silvery tail high in the air.
"Mom, can we have this one?"
Cora turned her attention back to the kits. Firekit was pawing at a sparrow on the edge of the fresh-kill pile, eager for her breakfast, while Stormkit and Rainkit were sniffing at a stray bit of fluff that had likely come off one of the squirrels in the pile. Cora held back a laugh as the fluff stuck to Stormkit's nose; she sneezed, and it was gone.
Giving the sparrow a sniff, she nodded. "Can you carry it, or would you like me to?"
"I can do it!" Firekit grabbed the sparrow by one wing, attempting to drag it. Rainkit grabbed the other wing, and together they were able to carry it to a shady spot near the dens. After a brief pause, Cora grabbed another sparrow for herself, then led Stormkit over to where her siblings were eagerly waiting.
The kits were old enough to get most of the feathers off by themselves, so Cora let them. Trying was the best way for them to learn, at least when it came to harmless activities such as this, and they were getting better every day.
After all the feathers were set aside, the cats ate their breakfast. Cora had been living in the gorge full-time for a while now, but she never got tired of the savory flavors of fresh-kill. She had been born and raised on the streets, where crow-food and twoleg scraps were much more common. In SkyClan, there was usually enough fresh prey for everyone to have a piece.
Stick, Shorty, and Coal had been her family for a long time, but SkyClan had become her home. After the battle that resulted in the death of Stick's only daughter, Cora knew she couldn't live that sort of life anymore. She'd had a taste of the freedom beyond the streets, deep in the forest, where blood never ruled and where loyalty ran in the veins of every cat, no matter their heritage.
Besides, by that point, she had already begun to fall in love with Leafstar. When SkyClan left twoleg-place that night, Cora went with them, and she didn't look back.
A yowl rose up from the top of the gorge; not a warning, but a greeting. Cora swiped her tongue over her jaws as she sat up, savoring the last bits of her sparrow as the daylight warriors appeared. Ebonyclaw was in the lead, with Frecklepaw close behind. Harveymoon and Macgyver were next, chatting and twining their tails together. Last but not least, Billystorm's broad ginger head appeared at the edge of the gorge. He looked like a brand of fire in the early light, tail high as he trotted down into camp.
"Papa's home!" Rainkit chirped excitedly. Cora kept an eye on the kits, but didn't stop them as they raced over to say hello to their father. Billystorm bent his head down so Stormkit could bunt her head against him, while Firekit chattered excitedly about something Cora didn't quite catch.
After a heartbeat, Billystorm led the way back to Cora, the kits in tow. She could hear him purring as he approached, careful not to trod on the kits, who were prancing around him happily. "Good morning, Cora."
"Good morning," she returned, heart warmed by the kits' excitement. "I suppose they've told you all about their first sparrow."
"Mom said we can bring the feathers to Clovertail!" Firekit meowed.
"Did she?" Billystorm glanced at Cora, amusement glinting in his eyes. "Well, if you're finished eating, I suppose we should do that. Sharpclaw will probably have a patrol for me after, but we can practice the hunter's crouch this afternoon."
Settling comfortably on the cool earth, Cora watched fondly as the kits scratched up all the feathers from their sparrow, carrying them off towards the nursery with their father's supervision. While she'd been envious of Billystorm in the past, that was over now. He was a great father to the kittens, and he loved Leafstar just as strongly as Cora did.
While she had considered taking Billystorm as a mate in addition to Leafstar, Cora had ultimately decided that they were better off as friends. She'd never really felt that way about toms, and besides, they were both happy as platonic partners. Their dynamic was strange, at first, if only because they weren't used to it, but they quickly adapted, and now Cora was quite content with her relationships. She had a loving mate, who had another loving mate of her own, and she was one of three parents to a litter of wonderful kittens.
If you had told her she would be here a few seasons ago, she would have laughed at the absurdity of it all. Her life now was so different from twoleg-place that it was hard for newcomers to believe she'd spent most of her life there. While she did miss her old friends at times, Cora had never regretted her choice to stay.
"Sharpclaw wants to know if you're up for a hunting patrol."
Cora lifted her head. Leafstar was approaching, a purr rumbling in her throat. Her pelt was beautiful, dappled like the dried leaves she was named for, and once again, Cora reflected on how lucky she was as she rose to meet her. Touching her nose to Leafstar's, Cora said, "Always am."