The Light of Dusk

Chapter Two - Star Lands

Early in the morning, the sound of a lone bird singing woke the family. During the night, the neonates' ears had unflattened from their heads and allowed sounds to register in their minds. 

The rabbit and sleep had restored some strength to Fern's body, and she crawled out from the stump, ready to hunt. On a second thought, she showered brittle leaves over her neonates to mask their scent and keep them hidden. "I'll be right back, little ones. Stay here." She turned back, lifting her muzzle to smell the air.

A mother shouldn't have to do this, she thought bitterly. This is a tom's job.. If only.. Fern sighed, then tracked the only scent she could find. It was a mountain shrew. She detruded into a crouch and drew herself forward, approaching from downwind. Just a bit closer.. Fern sprang, leaping over the edge of a bush. However, she had let her hind legs dangle beneath her, and they caught on one of the farther reaching branches. The mother tripped, landing just short of where the prey had been. But by now, the shrew had scurried into hiding. 

"Dang it!" She spat, clawing the barren ground in irritation. When she looked up, her eyes caught movement on a squirrel in one of the few trees. It scampered from the branch it had been on to forage for food. Fern crouched, stalking it with careful practice and precision. The animal lowered its head, picking up a couple of things in its cheeks that appeared to be a nut or seed of some sort. The ashen squirrel began to head back toward the tree. A sudden burst of determination had Fern running after it. Not this time! The prey sped up in fear of being caught. The mother timed her jump, ascending at just the right moment so that when she landed on the base of the tree, she pinned the squirrel's tail beneath her paw against the bark. She hooked her claws into the fuzzy thing, dragging the struggling rodent to the ground so she could deliver the killing bite. Fern triumphantly picked the limp body up in her mouth and trotted back to the makeshift den. As she came in, Squirrel's eyes blinked upon to see her mother with her namesake. She mewed, wanting milk. "Not yet, Squirrel. You can wait like everyone else." 

Squirrel was named, well, Squirrel because she had the most ginger between Fern and Turtle, and it was the shade of a red squirrel's. 

Fern set down the squirrel, digging in with less haste than with the rabbit. Afterwards, Turtle's eyes opened as well. Both pairs of eyes were amber, like Fern's. She was named Turtle because when she was born, her legs, tail and head were tucked under her body, like a turtle in a shell. 

The calico mother smiled, laying down to let them feed. Again, Dusk took more than the average neonate. While drinking, Dawn's eyes opened to reveal green eyes. It was strange, because Birch's eyes were blue. Dawn looked at her mother with interest, batting at her paws. 

Dawn and Dusk were both dark gray with lighter gray undersides and black splotches. They were twins, even though they had different fathers. This was even stranger than Dawn having green eyes. What were the odds Dawn and Dusk would look the exact same? Even the patches were placed in the same spot. Whatever caused it was a very powerful force. Speaking of powerful forces, Fern was telling a story to her neonates after they were done eating. "I had heard strange stories, whispered from the passing rogues." Her voice was hushed with suspense as she recalled her memories. "Whenever the rogues rarely came from the eastern part of the valley, they seemed haunted. Their eyes were wider than normal, and they muttered things about cats made of stars. If they went from the western side of the valley, into the eastern side, they were never heard of again. It's why I never go there. 

"It looks like every other part of the mountains, except the stars shine brighter there. It looks like they tell stories with their flashing glimmers, sending signals to anyone below. But I ignore it. My parents told me a story, about my dad, Flame, when he was young. He was about eight moons old. He went into the Star Lands. He didn't tell anyone about it. My mom, Rivulet, told me he insisted 'some things best lay in the past.' Mom had never been there before. She told me she was too scared, after what happened to Flame. 

"Later, Mom and Dad got into a fight about me and my siblings. Dad went into the Star Lands again, to prove he was capable enough to take care of us. He never came back.. But, little ones, that is why you should never fight with people you love. They might do something like this, thinking you don't love them.." Fern sighed, drying a tear. 

During the story, Dusk's eyes had opened. They were the same shade of green as Dawn's. He stared around the world, obviously not knowing what to make of it. While Fern watched him, a thought popped into her mind. Why not? She nudged the lynx neonate. "You are Dusk." She meowed it slowly, enunciating each syllable and repeating the words. Eventually, Dusk began to meow 'Dusk.' She had Dawn, Squirrel and Turtle do the same. Next, the mother had them say each other's names. Soon enough, they were saying things like 'tree' and 'fur' and 'bird'. 

Afterwards, though, she decided to hunt, in case she couldn't find anything tomorrow. Fern found no prey, but she did collect some raspberry leaves for her and her neonates to chew on. "Leaf," the mother pronounced, nudging it. "Leaf. Leaf. Leaf." "Leaf," Squirrel repeated. "Leaf," Dawn, Dusk, and Turtle echoed. 

The next few days passed quickly. The neonates had learned more words, and were copying every word Fern said. The only prey she had found was another measly shrew. We need more to eat than leaves and bark, Fern thought glumly. Surely the lynx will provide, somehow, to Dusk? As though her thoughts had been answered, she found a half rotten snow hare while she was scavenging that stank of him. But it's better than nothing, Fern convinced herself, as she bitterly ate the prey. 

The neonates grew over the next course of days. At half a moon old, they were asking tons of unfinished questions, like 'what this?' and 'why so warm?' The matriarch was beginning to worry more than usual now. Would the lynx keep his word? Would he dare? Fern didn't want to find out, so whenever she ventured out of the den, she never strayed far, even if it cost her days of empty stomachs. Unfortunately, however, there came a day when she decided she had to go farther. "It's the only way," Fern muttered to herself, as she entered the Star Lands.