"No, Wiretail. You are the cat at fault here. Pirekit and Snowkit wouldn't be dead if you weren't spending all your time stressing over Hazelkit. Just make sure one of them stays alive."
"Please, Flamebranch. Please come back."
"Why should I? You prioritized one kit over the other two and now both of my daughters are dead."
"We can have more daughters. For all I care, you can have as many kits as you desire."
"You're suggesting that I replace my precious daughters with kits that I don't even want to have?"
"Sweet Hazelkit, don't worry. You're coming with Flamebranch. I'll find a way to feed you. Now rest, and dream of your sisters."
Hazelkit wanted to sleep, but his parents arguing was keeping him awake. He didn't understand what they were talking about, but he still listened to try to catch a clue. He had his eyes closed, and his father's tail kept him warm. He sniffed for Pirekit and Snowkit, but he couldn't find them. Flamebranch said that they were 'dead', but Hazelkit didn't understand that word. He had heard Fishstar being
called dead, and Hazelstar, his mother's father. Neither of them were the leader anymore, and Wiretail says that they're both gone. Hazelkit asked how cats just disappear, but his mother just said that he would understand one day.
Yesterday, he was hopping around with Pirekit when Wiretail dragged him over to her to let him drink milk. Snowkit had stopped playing a while ago, and Flamebranch hadn't left her side. He looked very sad, and Hazelkit asked why he wanted her to stop napping. Wiretail said that she was probably already gone, taken from her and Flamebranch by greencough. Pirekit made a noise, which woke up Flamebranch instantly, and he scruffed her to his side like he had done with Snowkit. Within two minutes of that, she was napping too. Flamebranch was crying. Wiretail was making a sad face. And when Hazelkit woke up to his parents yelling at each other, he was sure that a day had passed. He was at Flamebranch's side, and Wiretail had Pirekit and Snowkit.
"When can I play with Snowkit again? Or Pirekit?"
"Hazelkit... just rest, sweetie..."
"But I wanna play hop-on-the-stone with Pirekit! And I wanna play catch the fly with Snowkit!"
Wiretail had left with his sisters.
"Hazelkit, you see, Snowkit and Pirekit are taking a very long nap. Longer than any you have taken before."
"When can I play with them?"
"Why not? Do they not wanna play?"
"Where did they go? When are they gonna come back?"
"They... won't come back."
"Hazelkit, your sisters are dead. That means they can't play, can't eat, can't nap, they aren't alive. You are alive. Pirekit and Snowkit aren't. Their spirits are in StarClan."
Flamebranch was crying. He used his paw to push Hazelkit away, then he curled up. It took a minute for Hazelkit to understand what Flamebranch meant, and when he finally did, he curled up and cried too. How can they be gone? They were okay just yesterday. Snowkit made a funny noise and fell over, then Pirekit did it too. How do you go to StarClan that easily? Hazelkit was afraid now. He didn't want to die. If his sisters died that easily and quickly, then he would too, right? And now he knows where Fishstar and Hazelstar went. Maybe they are taking care of his siblings in StarClan right now. Maybe they were playing with each other, or maybe they were standing right next to him, trying to urge him to be happy? He had heard that StarClan cats could come to the living world and talk to the living cats, so maybe Pirekit and Snowkit were doing that. He yowled as loud as he could. He wanted his siblings to hear him and come say hello. He wanted to say goodbye. He never got to.
