The soft piteous sound of a mewling fox kitten floated along the breeze from somewhere in the distance. Willow felt himself floating over the ground, his feet never touching. The fact that he couldn't see his feet was of no consequence. The blinding shine of the sun against the snow should have made him squint, but it didn't. Below him, carved into the snow was a dark hole, rimmed with a faint glimmering line of red. As he watched, the red stain spread from the mouth of the hole, covering the snow, soaking it. There was somehing in the hole, which was the source of the heartbreaking cries. Despite himself and unable to control it, Willow floated closer to the hole until he could see what was inside. A mother fox, her white fur stained and matted with blood lay on her side. Three fox kittens lay beside her, all covered in a mixture of their mothers blood and thier own. At first glimpse they appeared to be dead as well, but then the smallest one opened up his mouth and let loose another bleak cry as he struggled weakly to crawl out from under the bodies of his siblings. He opened up his mouth again but instead of sound, a wave of blood came from his muzzle, his strangely pale eyes staring helplessly up at Willow, who reached down to help the pitiful creature. But when he reached for the kit, he found that it was dead and crawling with maggots, it's eyes glazed over and staring at him accusingly.

Willow sat bolt upright, his mouth open in a slient scream, his heart pounding fit to break his ribs. A cold sweat shimmered over his body as he wiped his hands on the sheets as if to rid them of the blood from his dream. A ragged sob escaped his throat and he grabbed a pillow, burying his face in it to muffle the sounds. Would the memory never fade? Would he never be allowed to shelve his wrongdoings and live normally? No...and he wouldn't want to. To forget would be blasphemous. And so he would live with the haunting dreams, borne of long-ago memories. His sobs slowed and his breathing slowly became normal. Willow got out of bed and threw on some pants. He wouldn't sleep again this night.

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