Grieving Claws Series/Grieving Claws

'The silence was too much for me. I broke down, falling to her, letting out my desperate cry: "Come back!"'

When Oaktail discovers his mate, Robinsong, is sick, he does everything in his power to help her.

But there always comes a time when everything hurts everyone.


 * My eyes were centered on her, only her, waiting for her reaction.


 * She stood stone-still, as if listening to an echo. Her ears were pricked, her eyes were wide with fear. She was staring directly at me.


 * "What's wrong, Robinsong?" I asked quietly. "Don't you want to have kits?"


 * "Believe me, I want to," she whispered, taking a step forward to touch my nose. "I want nothing more."


 * I felt my heart soar.


 * She wasn't finished. "You need to talk to Shinefoot," she mumbled. "You need permission."


 * I felt my heart soar. It pounded in my chest, threatening to break free.


 * Licking my chest fur, I replied, "Yeah, I will. To tell her."


 * Her gaze pierced me, cutting my chest with the claws of grief.


 * "She can't have kits," Shinefoot told me straightforwardly.


 * My chest deflated. "W-why not?" I heard myself stammer pathetically.


 * Shinefoot's searching stare seemed to tear at me at the seams. "Because, Oaktail," she mewed, "Robinsong is sick."