I Love You

*"Howl..." she repeated again. "I love you."* A vacancy filled the air - a sickening silence falling upon the clan. The pure act of brutality could not be understood. What would have the power to be so ruthless, and to even do that to a cat? It was no surprise that Grape’Vine wasn’t the biggest and strongest of warriors but even then, the small molly had been brutalised beyond what anyone could imagine. The cats of River Clan were already scared of the mangled foxes’ bodies found around the territory- so having one of their own warriors torn to shreds must have been quite a shock. Let alone the shock for the 3 newly-made apprentices. Seeing their mother being carried on the back of Howl’Dusk, blood pouring all over the floor, as a mutilated husk of their mother, must have been traumatising. Seeing the life flee from her eyes - or what remained of her face. Buried by her favourite sunbathing spot, she couldn’t even fine peace in death. Hunted once more, her bones were now strawn across the territory, but Grape’Vine wasn’t too bothered. Her living life was one filled with vanity, hedonism, beauty, but she’d realise there was more to life than that, as it was stripped away early from her. Though her bones haven’t been found yet, she hopes that those she loved won’t find them. She hopes that some warrior will simply collect them, and return them to their place of rest without upsetting her family even more. It was strange: her body was destroyed in the attack, but yet she did not arrive in Star Clan with her old pelt that had perfectly groomed fur- no leaves, knots, or anything interrupting its flawless pattern. Her coat was that of which she raised her kits with- the coat she truly never had time to properly wash and manage. Yet, it was the fur she was happiest in. Some might be angry at Star Clan’s divine inability to save the young mother, but Grape’Vine wasn’t pressed. The first day she spent sunbathing in the most luxurious spot in the stars, the second day she reconnect with old family, and the third day she couldn’t help but start watching. Watching the little lives unfold on the ground below. She wished she could comfort them and be with them, but there was little she could do now. Grape’Vine felt so many emotions, yet she couldn’t put it into words. Death had definitely interrupted her life, but Grape’Vine wouldn’t let it stop her. She spends her day staring into the starry pond, watching Howl’Dusk and the kits as they recover, and create a new family without her.