The Light of Dusk

Chapter Six - Prey

The next morning, curse lynxs' good memory!, Dusk insisted Fern tell him more. She said quickly, "Leopards, lynxes, cheetahs, bears, tigers and lions are all dangerous. They could kill you in one bite or scratch. No cat could survive an encounter with one of them. If you smell, see or hear one you should run in the opposite direction as fast as you can. If you have even the slightest idea there might be one near you should run. They show no mercy and will not hesitate-"

She was interrupted by Turtle's questioning mew, "I thought leopards, lynxes, cheetahs, tigers and lions are related to us. They wouldn't hurt us.." Fern stared at her daughter, shocked by her innocence. She chose her next words carefully. "They are related to us, but very distantly. Hardly at all. The only ones of them who we can actually understand what they say and are able to.. have neonates with us are lynxes. But.. those 'big cats' are not related to us. They are only slightly more related to us than a canine. They don't care if we are slightly related to them. To them, we are no different from a mouse or a rabbit or a crow. They are the hunters and we are the prey."

* * * * *

It took a while for Fern to get used to the fact that Squirrel was dead. Just thinking about it brought tears to her eyes. Every time she came back from an unsuccessful hunt, she would expect to see a pair of ever-hopeful eyes, but when seeing she had nothing, would reassure her she would do better next time. It was the only thing that kept her going; to not give up. Fern knew it was wrong, but if she ever had to pick a favorite, it would be Squirrel. Now? She simply didn't care anymore.

She would have continued to just lay in her nest, doing nothing to settle her pangs of starvation or her neonates', if it wasn't for the clear message the Hwlyn sent her: A rabbit ran literally right into her paws. While she was laying down. It didn't even turn around, just kept running as if it was trying to run through her. It eerily reminded her of what happened to those who came back from the Star Lands; it scared her so much she killed it.

The neonates had grown teeth by now, and were constantly chewing on stray pieces of bark that were scraped off trees by the snowstorms. They were practically constant now that it was winter; oh, why did she have neonates in autumn? Rivulet had even told her a story about how her first litter of neonates died before they lived a day in the heat- cold- of autumn. But did she pay attention? Apparently not.

As every mother knows, with each tooth comes more playfighting. The neonates were now beginning to tackle each other and stalk each other. It was necessary for them to learn defense skills, which would have excused Fern not caring. But she didn't care simply because she did not believe they could hurt each other. By half-moon, their baby teeth were fully formed and they now ate meat full-time. Dusk was already almost half her size.
"I can hunt! Look!" Dawn announced one day, crouching down with her rump sticking up. Dusk choked back a laugh and replied, "If you're trying to look like a duck, sure." He had not actually seen a duck before, but Fern had told him about the feathery creatures. Dawn raised her paw and hit him across the face, claws accidentally unsheathing at the moment she made contact. Dusk's fur was too dense for him to notice, however. "Look who's laughing now!" Dawn chortled playfully. By this time, Turtle had hid in Fern's belly fur. She didn't like to see them fight, even if it was only play-fighting.
"I'll show you!" Dusk grinned, pouncing on her and pinning her beneath him. Dawn batted at his ear. "As if!" She sneered teasingly. "The only fight you could win is with a mouse!"
But this, evidently, was the wrong thing to say. It was as if a switch was flipped within him, triggering his next actions. His eyes narrowed into slits, burning with rage. His claws unsheathed, gripping her face. He began to tear down, through fur, through skin, trying to get to muscle, giving her permanent scars across her body. But he didn't stop.
By the first strike, Dawn had tried to say, "Okay, you got me." But his fur had choked her reply. By the second, she was confused and tried to tell him to stop. It came out as a stifled shriek. By the third, she had tried to fight back, lashing against his face. He apparently did not notice or did not care, continuing his merciless attacks. By the fifth, she had given up, deciding to let him finish. She believed he would stop.
He didn't.
It was countless how many strikes he gave her, ripping out scattered pieces of fur and flesh, before Turtle noticed. Fern had been in a deep stupor without a care in the world. But Turtle was awake. She had lifted her head by the sound of tearing, and spotted the scene at once. Dusk stood on top of a limp pile of bloody meat, mangled beyond recognition, seeming determined to tear the flesh off the bones. Next to him was Dawn's fur, all over the place. With a shattered heart, Turtle realized that the hunk of meat was Dawn.
"MOTHER! MOTHER! MOTHER!" Turtle screeched, tears streaming down her face, shoving against Fern's flank, trying to wake her up. Fern raised her head, blinking blearily. It took her a couple of seconds for her brain to process the image, because her heart could not take the truth. "NO!" That word of complete anguish was from Fern. She hurled herself toward them, slamming against Dusk. He stumbled a bit, looking confused. Then he noticed what was going on, saw what he had done. He leaped away, trying to put the fur back on, as if he could make it better. But Fern did not let him.
"YOU KILLED HER! YOU SORRY EXCUSE FOR A CAT, YOU KILLED HER!" Fern screamed, shoving him down. Dusk let out a wail of his own, trembling. "I didn't mean to.." He choked out, throat closing.
"IT DOESN'T MATTER! YOU KILLED HER! I HOPE I NEVER SEE YOU AGAIN! YOU DESERVE TO DIE A MISERABLE DEATH! I HATE YOU, I HATE YOU, I HATE YOU! GET OUT OF MY SIGHTS! YOU ARE NOT MY SON! YOU ARE A MONSTER!" She began to batter him with her paws. Beginning to cry, Dusk struggled out from under her paw and fled, running as fast as he could. Fern did not follow him, stumbling downwards with tears soaking her cheeks. Turtle curled up next to her, both of them yowling out their grief to the world.
Dusk, disowned, unloved, hated himself. How could he do this? He had killed his own sister! He trembled as he walked, not really noticing the figure following him. Mother was right, he realized with more tears. I am a hunter. I am a monster.