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

Chapter 13

Deserve awoke to a paw prodding his side. He stirred against his siblings in his nest and blinked open his eyes, looking up drowsily. Snakekit, Brownkit, and Blackkit were standing over them, their eyes gleaming in the shadows as they looked down at them. They had already woken Boost and Song. The sun hadn't risen yet. He grew hot with irritation. What do they want?

"Good morning, rogues," Snakekit purred.

He let out a sigh. "What do you want?" He growled. He tried to sound brave, but his stomach was twisting with anxiety.

"We want to play again." Blackkit's yellow eyes glittered. "I'm sure there's some game we can come up with."

"How about we play 'leave us alone and let us sleep'?" Boost muttered, resting his chin in the moss. 

Brownkit snorted and flicked him on the nose with his tail, and he jerked back. "Sleep is for the weak!" The kit sneered. "Come on."

Song flattened her ears nervously. "I want to stay here."

Snakekit narrowed his eyes and growled, unsheathing his claws. Deserve's fur bristled in alarm. Are they going to attack us? He felt his own claws slide out. If they lay a claw on Boost or Song... The kits stepped closer to them, growling as they lashed their tails. His heartbeat quickened in panic, and he thought quickly. They can't do anything when their mother is around! He backed up into the sleeping queen's belly and lightly kicked her with his hind paw. Please wake up!

"Hmm?" Sunflower stirred and raised her head, blinking open her eyes. Yes! Snakekit and his siblings looked startled and quickly stepped back, sitting down and looking up at her innocently. Boost let out a sigh of relief, and Song shifted closer to Deserve.

"Good morning," Blackkit let out a purr, his eyes bright.

Sunflower let out a yawn. "Good morning, kits." She stretched out and looked down at them. "Are you alright?"

"We're fine," Snakekit cast a glance at Deserve. "Aren't we?"

Deserve held back a growl. "We sure are."

"Good," The ginger she-cat purred. "Are you all hungry? Why don't we go to the fresh kill pile?" She stood up and turned toward the exit of the den.

Boost perked up. "Okay! I'm starving!" He and Song hurried after her, and Blackkit and Brownkit followed.

Thank goodness! That could have been bad. Deserve followed more slowly. They wanted to hurt us. They would have if I hadn't woken up Sunflower.

Snakekit padded beside him, and Deserve tensed nervously. He kept his eyes ahead of him as they walked, trying to avoid the kit's gaze. Just don't look at him or talk to him...

But the kit leaned close, his eyes narrowed. "You got lucky this time," He growled in his ear. "But next time, you won't be." He gave Deserve a shove, and he stumbled, quickly regaining his balance before he fell over.

He watched coldly as Snakekit rushed ahead of him to Sunflower and the other kits. Or maybe you're the one who won't be so lucky next time...

***

Later that day, Deserve and his siblings were playing in the nursery. The sun was high in the sky now, and it was very warm. Sunflower had given them a ball of moss to play with. It wasn't the same as playing in the barn, but it wasn't so bad. And it was the first time they'd felt carefree since Dice's death.

"I've got it!" Song purred and swat the ball of moss toward Boost. The tabby kit leaped up and batted it back to her, his eyes shining. 

Deserve watched from the side of the den, letting out a small purr. I'm glad they're having fun. They deserve to be happy. He had played with them for a little while, but anxiety about Snakekit had distracted him, making him too stressed to let go of his worries and play. The three kits were sitting on the opposite side of the den, their eyes coldly fixed on Boost and Song as they played. Sunflower watched them, purring.