WÊ slèèp fõЯËvËЯ

[(aurora) of the problematique]

<sub>Heavy breaths stirred the air of the nursery, making the dust motes drift around idly and the flecks of grass float side to side. One said fleck landed on a pointed pink nose, which twitched twice and then sneezed. Now awake, the muzzle on which said nose was attached to then yawned widely, the eyes poised upon it blinking brightly. Its ears swivelled side to front as its master frame came to its feet. Grasskit was now fully awake.

He shook himself and his mottled pelt of browns, grays, and whites shifted slightly, making himself seem a bit like a porcupine as the little tomkit exited the nursery, inhaling the sweet-scented air that came with the sunrise. He padded out on a springy step, heading out to the main clearing. The tomkit squatted down on the frosty grass and began rolling around in it playfully.</sub>

[SHADE. :D]

She couldn't sleep. She stirred restlessly, flanks rubbing her mother's stomach, though the beautiful silver bengal did not stir. Her eyes were wide, reflecting the blackness, the shadows and blurred shapes that she could not see. Tansykit pulled herself into a sitting position, tasting and feeling where her sisters lay so as not to tread upon them and waken them. The blind kitten shook out her short white fur, the ginger patches like a flurry of flame in the half light.

Tansykit felt her way from the nursery, her paws takung hesitant steps. Her sightless eyes were fixed on her paws; she knew some were unnerved by they're staring, though unseeing eyes. The kitten opened her mouth, the scents rolling over her tongue. She tasted the scent of warriors, and a kit. She padded closer, recognizing Grasskit's scent. Tansykit could hear faint rustlings, and pricked up her ears. As far as she could tell, by the flatter patches of grass, and the joyful mewls, Grasskit was rolling among the frosty stems. Tansykit sat down, chin rested on her paws. It had been too hot in the nursery; almost cloying. The chill grass felt good as it brushed her soft sides.

[(aurora) of the problematique]

_{"Herro, Tansykit!" Grasskit said cheerily, flipping onto his belly in the cold grass. He blinked his coffee-colored eyes and lifted his head, gazing at the she-kit. He did not know she was blind. In his opinion, she was just a kit, just like him. The coarse-furred tomkit padded through the grass over to her, looking down at her. He shook his pelt, carefully brushing off any pieces of grass that sprayed onto her. He reached out with his paws to touch hers and meowed rather loudly. His muzzle curved into a gentle smile and he waved his tail at the white and ginger she-kit. "Good morning. You seem sweepy." For the life of the tomkit, he couldn't pronounce the letter "l". He didn't consider it to be a bad thing and many of the other cats believed he would grow out of it. He lifted his head for a minute, wondering if Spottedkit was awake, but turned his attentions back to Tansykit.}

[SHADE. :D]

Tansykit pricked up her ears as Grasskit spoke. "Hello, Grasskit," she mewed quietly, though she did not look up. She didn't want her staring, unfocused eyes to scare the younger kit. The ginger and white kitten smiled slightly at Grasskit's next words. "I couldn't sleep," she told him, understanding him despite the mispronounced letter. Tansykit suddenly realised that she would never know what Grasskit looked like. Or her sisters. Or even herself. Ribbontail had often told her of her 'orange and white' pelt, but as she had never seen the colours she knew not what they looked like. The only colour she knew was black. Tansykit sighed, though she tried to seem happy on the outside. She did not want to dampen Grasskit's bright spirits.

[(aurora) of the problematique]

<sub>He wondered why she did not meet his gaze. Perhaps she was just being polite. He knew that some cats did not meet the eyes of someone they respected. He doubted this was the case though. He was, in his opinion, the same rank as Tansykit and, if anything, he shouldn't be meeting her eyes. Wasn't she older than him?

"Maybe you had a bad dream," he suggested, tilting his head. "I had a dream that I was running to a rarge rake. The water was nice and cool. I think it was Springtime. I know it wasn't this Reaf-bare time. The sky was a bright brue and there were no crouds. And then I woke up and I went 'swimming' in the main crearing grass." He chuckled at himself, knowing how ridiculous that was. He looked at Tansykit. "I wirr probabry dream of you next time. I usuary dream of the new friends I have." He nodded, as if promising himself that he would have a dream. "Wer, anyway, do you want to pway out here since you're up and all? We can pway reap frog or go swimming in the grass, making frost angers." He sat on his haunches and moved his paws up and down in a wing-like fashion to demonstrate what frost angels were if she had never seen one before. He and Spottedkit loved making those.</sub>

[SHADE. :D]

Tansykit listened silently to Grasskit's burbled words. She flinched as he described the blue of the sky, swallowing painfully. It's not his fault, he doesn't know... The ginger and white she-cat forced herself to nod, though it was a mechanical sort of movenent. As Grasskit began to speak of frost-angels, Tansykit hung her head even lower. Frostkit and Dapplekit adored making these in the frosty grass, but Tansykit just didn't know how. She felt a slight breeze stirring her whiskers as Grasskit demonstrated. Tansykit lip wobbled and she clenched her teeth to stop herself crying. It wasn't Grasskit's fault. He didn't understand, nobody had thought to tell him. Tansykit gave a feeble nod, hoping that the little tom would change the subject.

[(aurora) of the problematique]

_{He tilted his head and he stopped showing her how to make a frost angel. Grasskit swallowed timidly and reached out his paw to touch hers. "Was it something I said?" he asked. "I'm sorry. We don't have to do that if you don't want to... Werr, what things do you rike to do?" He noticed that she was on the verge of crying, and he trembled, feeling really bad for making her feel inferior, if that was what the problem was. His ears bent back and his tail flickered side to side.}

[SHADE. :D]

Tansykit continued to stare at her paws, eyes wide and unblinking. Though the blind green pools showed no emotion, shame and anguish was written all over her facial features and body. The ginger and white kitten gave a small sniff, and shook her head slowly. "Its not you," she mewed quietly, ears drooping. "It's me. I'm the one who can't play properly. I'm the one who's a stupid bore. I'm the one that had to be blind." Tansykit knew Grasskit probably would not know what the word meant, but she did not care to elaborate. The she-cat gave a long sigh, whiskers and tail drooping.

[(aurora) of the problematique]

_{Grasskit blinked. Blind? He tilted his head. He thought he knew what that word meant. It meant that she couldn't see. Oh StarClan, and he had been describing his play moments to her! No wonder she felt inferior! He had been a mouse-brain not realizing what she was. Grasskit mentally hit himself with his own paw. Idiot! Look what you did! he berated himself. The tomkit sighed and looked at Tansykit, nudging up her head. "Rook at me. I think I am the dumb one here. I couldn't even terr you were brind and I'm sitting here making you sad. Come here. I've got something I think you would rike," he said. He nudged Tansykit to her paws and stayed by her shoulder so she could follow him. He led her to a pine tree and leapt up, clinging to the bark as he tried to swat at a pinecone. Finally, he grasped the cone but fell off the tree, landing in a snowy bush with an "ooof!" He rolled to his paws and nosed the pine cone over to Tansykit. "If you want, we can just bat the pinecone back and forth. That way, you can keep track of it too if you rost it or something."}

[SHADE. :D]

Tansykit could feel Grasskit tense beside her, though she could not see him. She knew he was shocked at her confession, and immediatly felt guilty that she had burdened him with the knowledge. The ginger and white kitten got to her paws, ready to slink back to the nursery before she did any more harm, but then Grasskit spoke. Tansykit poked at the frosty ground with a paw, looking sightlessly at the earth. "It's not your fault," she mewed sadly. "You couldn't have known." Tansykit perked up a little as Grasskit suggested playing, and picked her way after him using touch and scent. The she-cat nodded at the game. A pine cone... She'd never heard of one of those before. She felt around for it until one white paw touched the surface. She recoiled; it was bumpy and rough as tree bark. Tansykit began to bat it between her outstretched paws, though she missed it many times. Eventually she paused for a long moment, judging were Grasskit was, then gave it a tap towards where she thought he was.

[(aurora) of the problematique]

_{"Oh, don't aporogize. Now that I know, I won't make that mistake again," he promised. "You can be my sister too, arong with Spottedkit. I wirr protect you too. I'm a tom and that's what toms do. They protect the she-cats." Grasskit giggled and padded after the pinecone spinning around. He playfully growled and tackled it, bringing it back over to where he and Tansykit were going to play. He scooted so he was near her and nosed the conifer seed back over to the gentle she-kit so that her nose and paws could touch it too. "See. It's sticky but it smerrs rearry good," he said, inhaling it deeply. He inhaled the scent of the pinecone and smiled, batting playfully at it as he pushed it in her direction.}