Golden Eagle Found the Den... Mother Pallas’s Cat Didn’t Back Down

The Altai in the heart of Central Asia. Marmots stand watch above their burrows and between the boulders, dark cracks in the rock. Cloud shadows cross the valley and one outcrop stands alone, a golden eagle on the ledge. Below, a palace's cat walks through the dry grass. She is heavy with kittens. She slows at the foot of the outcrop. Palace's cats live alone and mothers raise kittens alone. The last light leaves the mountains. Under the moon her labor begins. The first kitten is born blind and tiny. Outside, the step lies silver and still. She lifts her head. She listens. Fox comes trotting through the grass. At the crack, it lowers its nose. Then it lifts its head and walks away. The valley opens beneath the first light. On the crag, the golden eagle stretches its wing. It leaves the ledge and glides over the slope. The marmots look up as its shadow passes. From the pinnacle, it turns toward the far outcrop. The mother steps out into the morning. She springs. The peeker is quicker. Then a bird's shadow glides over the screen. Pallas's cats are poor runners. They stay low. The eagle lands on the rock above her. Its eye is fixed on the crack below. In the den, the light dims. She freezes. The kittens press close. A pale face edges to the crack. Ears flat. The eagle flinches back. The eagle takes off and flies away. Mothers often move their kittens between dens. By dawn, all three are in the new den. The eagle returns to the old outcrop. Three kittens still blind, stir against her belly. She springs. And this time, she does not miss. She lifts the peeker by the scruff. and turns for home. She eats behind a stone. Out of sight. Black cloud climbs over the snow peaks. Inside, she curls around all three. By morning, the storm has passed clouds break apart. At last, one kitten opens its eyes One tumbles onto its side. Across the valley, marmots forage. One stands guard while the pups play. She notices a vole beside its hole. It reaches its hole. She is too late. She sits at the crack mouth. For the first time, a kitten steps out into the grass. Then the second. Then the third. The third climbs onto its mother's back. The mother stalks a grasshopper. While they watch, one kitten springs after it and lands short. One kitten wanders far along the boulders. Mother stands on the slab and calls. Returns with a pika. Kittens sniff the pika. Eagle stoops. The marmots whistle and bolt for their holes. The eagle lands on the empty mound. It looks down the burrow hole. Eagle ruffles its feathers and looks down the valley. A flock of sheep spills over the ridge. The dog stops on a rise. Sees a dog on the far ridge. The dog trots down the slope and she holds the slab. She backs to the crack, growling. The dog stops, a body length from the crack. A whistle sounds, far away. By moonlight, she grooms her kittens. Then she stops. She listens, eyes up on their mounds, eyes on over bare ground. Ahead, the two outcrops grow larger. She looks up at the sky, run into the crack, one by one. She steps back to the crack. crosses the empty slab. Eagle lands heavily on the slab. It lowers its head toward the crack. Flies away. Another sunrise over the altar. At first light, a small face appears. The family walks along the ridge. Mother leads. the kittens follow in her steps. Evening settles over the altar. Alice's kitten not survive their first year. Silver mist settles over the valley. Cloud passes the moon and the grass moves.