--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I love the way this piece turned out, and the story behind it. You'll understand the art after you read the TW! BLOOD AND DEATH DESCRIBED! This is their story. Cress gazed lovingly at Aster as she groomed herself, swiping her paw over her head. Cress nuzzled Aster's cheek. Aster's belly was plump, and her fur was gleaming. The kits in her belly shifted as she moved. She licked Cress's ear. "Aren't you excited to meet the kits?" Aster meowed. "I sure am." "They're going to be lovely," Cress replied. "What should we name them?" They spoke about the kits soon to come in hushed voices until starlight spilled throughout the sky and the moon rested in a perfect crescent. "Moon," Aster meowed. "We should name one of the kits Moon." "It's perfect." Cress leaned his head onto Aster's shoulder, and they sat there with their tails entwined dreaming about playful, bouncy kits. =+= Cress brought a squirrel to his precious mate. Aster's gaze lit up at the sight of the tasty morsel. She gobbled it up quickly. "Thank you," she mumbled through a full mouth. "This one's delicious." "No proble-Aster?" Aster had yelped in pain but looked up at Cress with love in her eyes. "They're coming," she said. Cress bounced around the den they had built under a tree, full of happiness. "Could you-," the birthing queen doubled over in pain again. "get a stick?" Cress nodded, dashing into the woods to find a stick. He thought he saw a glimpse of ginger fur and amber eyes, but it could've been the light of the sunset. He searched the ground for a suitable stick. Finally, he found a stick that would fit in Aster's mouth, but wouldn't break easily. He trotted back to the den. Cress froze suddenly. He could smell something unusual. Blood. He dropped his stick and ran as fast as he could into the den. Was the birthing going wrong? When he looked into the den, he burst into sobs. There lay Aster's lifeless body, her throat slit hastily by a cat's claw. Who had done this? Who would kill a birthing queen? Cress buried his nose into the blood-soaked body of his special, beautiful, brave mate. Her white speckles had turned a bright red, and a smile still stood on her face. She still had two kits left in her, obviously dead. Cress bowed his head in sorrow. A small mewling awoke Cress from his grieving trance, and he popped his head up, sadness buried deep into his heart. A black she-kit wobbled over to Cress, looking for milk. She had white splotches on her fur, but one shaped like the crescent moon Cress and Aster had seen not very long ago, right over her heart. "Moon," Cress whispered. "Your name will be Moon, in honor of your mother and your fur." He curled himself up around the tiny kit, closing his emerald eyes. =+= Cress opened his eyes to a hazy purple world, where a black she-cat with white speckles sat, staring longingly at him. "Aster!" he said, bolting upright. "Hello, my love. I cannot stay long. I have come to tell you some things. Do not seek the ginger tom who slit my throat. He was in pain and killed the first cat he could find. Make sure you don't become him yourself. And take care of Moon, she needs you right now, do you understand?" Cress nodded carefully. "That is all," Aster meowed. She rested her head on top of Cress's. "Why-" Cress choked up. "Why can't you stay with me?" "I will always be with you and Moon. I cannot stand there and rest my tail on your shoulder, but I can influence you to make good choices, which I will always try to do." She looked down at her white paws, then looked back up at him. "Goodbye, dearest Cress." Her shimmering form turned and walked into the purple haze, fading from view, and Cress awoke. Bringing Moon with him, he dug a hole under the stars and placed Aster's now cold and scentless body into it. He covered it and drove the stick he had brought for her into the ground. Moon waddled closer, holding an aster in her tiny jaws. The kit didn't know what that meant to Cress. Cress gently took it from her and laid it over the grave. He grabbed Moon and curled around her once again, gazing at the stars, Aster's spirit watching from above. I apologize for the sad story, it just felt right in the moment. Credits: for CC and template (me) for art, characters, and story Panic! At the Disco for the song
