Enjoying the sun [Birdsong]

Cherrykit was still in trouble for belly-flopping on a queen's face while she slept. His whiskers twitched with the gentle breeze, his dark ginger fur blowing with it. He sat by the interior edge, surrounded by sleeping cats.

I'm NOT sleepy. Why is everyone so tired all the time?! Why does no one want to play?

He knew he was in big trouble. But what could he do about it?

An idea lit up the kitten's eyes.

When other cats are in trouble, they go to the elder's den to do stuff over there.

Cherrykit could barely contain himself enough to slip out undetected.

He popped his head out into the clearing.

Uh... where is the elder's den?

Cherrykit frowned. What was he going to do?

A warrior was walking close by. He waltzed up to them, bounding like a rabbit, and asked, "Hey! HI! I'm Cherrykit. I got in trouble. Where's the elder's den?"

Dropping a quail onto the fresh-kill pile, Birdsong was glad to be done with her duties for the day. Hopefully she could find a few moments to spend time with her sister or parents, though at the moment none of them seemed to be in camp. Turning, she padded towards the warriors' den, paying little attention to what was around her.

A sudden voice made her pause, and Birdsong glanced down to find a red-furred kit. Her lips curved into a small smile at his words.

"Cherrykit, I'm Birdsong." She mewed, "What did you get in trouble for? The elder's den is over there-" She pointed towards it with her tail, "-but I think they're all sleeping now."

"Good to meet you, Birdsong," Cherrykit chirped back.

"Ugh! Why do grown ups sleep so much?" He swished his tail, which made the tomkit look even smaller.

"I was playing with moss in the nursery and it was in the air and it was gonna hit a queen while she was sleeping and I grabbed it and landed on her face and she was SO MAD!"

His copper eyes met Birdsong's. "Where are you going? Can I come?"

"The elders have earned their rest, let them have it." Birdsong mewed gently, whiskers twitching. Kits seemed to have boundless energy, and she wished she had that energy. Then again, the poor kit was probably sick of being in the nursery, too.

"I bet she was, most cats don't like having their sleep interrupted." She laughed quietly, "I was looking for my sister actually, but she doesn't seem to be in camp. I just got back from hunting, myself."

"Sorry," Cherrykit meowed, his tail dragging on the ground.

"Did you catch anything? What's your favorite kind of prey? Do you like climbing trees?"

The tom was just happy to have company.

"Who's your sister?"

Birdsong almost felt bad for the kit's dejection over her gentle scolding, but he was a kit and seemed to recover quickly, asking several rapid-fire questions that she was glad to answer.

"I caught a quail, and yes, I love being in the trees. Most of us do." Birdsong couldn't help the note of pride in her voice as she spoke. Ravenclaw had taught her how to hunt in the trees, and her mother had been a great mentor to her.

"Shadepaw is my sister. I was recently made a warrior and I miss spending more time with her."

His eyes got as big as saucers. "A quail? Those are big! You got a quail?!"

He turned his head above, scanning the treeline. "Trees are so tall! I wanna climb a tree someday! Maybe I'll catch a bird too."

Cherrykit added, "I don't have a brother or a sister. Everyone here is family!"

He wiggled around the warrior, even more excited. "So, what're you gonna do now?"