Warriors: Deserve's Beginning (Short Story) (COMPLETE)

Chapter 1

It was a cold winter night. Snowflakes drifted down onto the earth in thick flurries, layering onto the blanket of snow that stretched across the field. It glistened and shone under the moonlight. Further into the field, an old barn stood, heaps of snow piling up around it.

A black and white tom padded alongside the barn, the snow crunching softly under his paws. He stopped and looked around. So quiet... Nothing but him and the peaceful silence of the night. He closed his eyes and raised his head to the stars, happiness running through him. Flurries fell onto him and clung to his pelt, making his black fur look almost identical to the stars in the night sky. Any housecat would have found this moment a nightmare, being outside, wet and cold. But he had been a farmcat all his life. He enjoyed being outside, and the coolness felt good on his pelt. And whenever it became too much, he could go back to the barn and curl up in the hay with Velvet.

Since he was a kit, he'd lived in the abandoned barn with his brother, Boost. When his companion died of sickness, he had spent many seasons alone. Once in a while, a cat would come by for food or shelter, and he was always willing to help. Very rarely, an aggressive cat would come along and try to take the barn from him, engaging in a fight. It had only happened twice. He had always managed to fight them off. This was the place where he grew up with his brother, the place he called home. He would never give it up. But it got lonely, hunting mice by himself, falling asleep alone in the barn. It wasn't the same with Boost gone.

However, this all changed last winter, when a cold, hungry housecat named Velvet came across the barn in a snowstorm. She had been abandoned by the side of the road by her housefolk a day earlier, and would have frozen or starved to death if she hadn't found the barn. Her coat was so white, he didn't see her right away against the snowstorm. He had let her stay in the barn and hunted for her until she was better. Enjoying his company and having nowhere else to go, Velvet had decided to stay with him. He couldn't have been more glad. And after a few moons, they fell in love.

She was most of the reason why he was so happy tonight. Velvet was expecting his kits, and they would be born any day now. He couldn't wait to be a father and show his kits all the wonderful things about life around the barn. He hoped they would love it as much as he had when he was a kit, and still did.

Something moved out of the corner of his eye against the snow, and he snapped his attention to it. A small mouse was scurrying alongside the barn, looking for a way to get inside where it was warm. He immediately dropped into a hunting crouch. I'll catch it for Velvet. He thought, fixing his eyes on the tiny creature. He started forward.

"Dice!"

His heart skipped a beat when he heard Velvet call for him. She sounded panicked. The mouse scurried away, but he hardly noticed. It must be time! "I'm coming!" He abandoned his hunt and bounded through the snow around to the front of the barn, slipping through a space between two broken wood planks. Inside, Velvet lay on her side in her nest of hay, flanks heaving. Her blue eyes flashed to him anxiously and she opened her jaws to say something, only to wail instead.

"I'm here." Dice crouched over her and licked her head. "It's going to be okay."

Velvet panted. "I don't know if I'm ready for this!"

"Of course you are." Dice licked her soft white ear. "You can do it!" He tried to sound calm for her sake, but his heart was pounding hard with both excitement and fear. I don't know if I'm ready for this!

"I-" She broke off and wailed as she pushed. A moment later, a tiny brown bundle of fur tumbled into the hay.

A kit! The first kit! Dice quickly pulled it close and began lapping at it's fur, bringing it to life. The kit stretched out and let out a tiny meow. "It's a tom," He announced to his mate happily.