Owner: Zentropy
Partner's Form: EchoVoydCat Name: Shadow
Prompt: Name: Shadow (she/they), sibling to Woodpecker
xxxxxA pair of green eyes flash with anger when Ash mentions the name Woodpecker. But it disappears as fast as a blink, and he thinks he may have imagined it. He's the youngest cat out of the nursery, and he can't help but let curiosity get the better of him when he heard the newest member had a hidden past.
xxxxx"It's been moons since I last heard that name, and I intend to keep it that way."
xxxxx"But Woodpecker is your brother! Surely it must be hard on you to not see him ever."
xxxxx"Let me tell you a story, young one. But this is not a pretty story, so don't go crying to your mother after I'm done alright?...When I was younger, I was the leader of my own clowder. A magnificent clowder in a lush river valley that we held for generations of cats. None could defeat us, and it was all due to my strategic genius, and…well, my brother's intuitive prowess. Plenty of food in the river and the forest, plenty of strong, healthy kits being born, it was a paradise-"
xxxxx"What made you leave?" Ash interjects excitedly.
xxxxx"Hush you, didn't your mother teach you not to interrupt your elders?" Shadow snaps. Ash stiffens and nods sheepishly. The black cat flicks her tail in impatience, "Ahem, as I was saying. The land treated us well, and in return we respected the cycle of life, until something went foul up the river and the current slowed down drastically. After some time, it was impossible not to notice that it hadn't rained in moons, the plants were drying up and it was becoming scarcer to find enough food for the clowder.
xxxxxMy brother counselled that we move, but our youngest queens were still pregnant and would never survive the journey. I promised that we would move after four moon cycles, to allow for all the kits to be born at least be strong enough to move. He relented, but I could tell that he started
xxxxxThe longer the drought went on, the higher tensions grew in the clowder. The river was down to a trickled of mud and the only edible food was the occasional scrawny mouse. I made the decision to begin rationing food, prioritizing the stronger/younger cats on the basis that if we did make it out on the other side of this, we would have enough to rebuild. This decision that will haunt me for the rest of my life, but it was necessary for the survival and protection of our, of my clowder.”
xxxxxShadow pauses to smooth some fur on her shoulder, and Ash can’t help but shudder at the thought of a famine so bad it destroyed an entire clowder.
xxxxx“Four moon cycles went by, and the new kits were all born, but due to the mother’s lack of nutrition, many of them did not survive their first few moons. That hit the clowder’s moral very hard, and soon I had many angry cats yowling for my ear, but my brother’s voice was the loudest. He hated me for my apparent indecision, and it was here where we parted ways, Woodpecker, with more than half the clowder, left towards the mountains, and I was left with a few loyal members. He was convinced I tore the clowder apart, and maybe in some ways I did, but I could not risk my clowder on some far-fetched dream of travelling through wild land where we could be ambushed by dogs or other clowders. No, it was safer to stay still and trust the land will right itself.”
xxxxxAsh sat very still, slightly trembling from the story he just heard. “Did the rain ever come back? Did Woodpecker?”
xxxxxShadow gave a long sigh, “Yes, the rain did come back after about two moon cycles, but I had already lost even more of my clowder, and those remaining abandoned me in the end…But no, Woodpecker never came back, and I think I won’t be seeing him again until we are all in the eternal sleep.”
