[Phoenix]

i'm an angel with a shotgun fighting 'til the war's won

Stars had been on his mind recently, ever since he had spent that night sitting at Silverglade’s side, and as he entered camp and directed his steps toward the nursery, he found his thoughts drifting toward what was quickly becoming familiar territory. That night had been enjoyable, surprisingly enjoyable, and never would he have expected such quiet companionship to fill him with this lingering peace. After all, they had exchanged very few words before lapsing into a comfortable silence, listening to each other’s steady breathing and soothing heartbeat. For the first time in a long time, the night had become something other than a shroud of darkness in which his demons roamed free. He wasn’t quite sure how he felt about that – but he thought maybe he liked it. He hoped she had too.

Sometime during that night, he had told her that Sandkit was still safe, sound asleep in the nursery despite her absence. Sometime during that night, she had told him that maybe he should meet her son.

Ospreywing had agreed, so here he was, lingering awkwardly outside the near-empty den and fighting back the onslaught of memories that wanted to rise to the forefront of his mind. It was in there that he had hidden, useless, when StormClan attacked, that he had seen a white devil with crimson eyes slaughter his parents, that he had thought he and his sister would die. But there was new life in there now; he could hear it. Though Sandkit and Silverglade called the nursery home now, before them it had housed everyone in the apprentice’s den. Where his memories were disrupted by sharp jolts of terror, they undoubtedly considered this den with an innocent fondness. The tuxedo tom didn’t know what ran through Sandkit’s mind when he looked around, but he hoped it was something closer to the latter.

He had never really interacted with cats who were so much younger than himself, for he never knew what to say or do. All around him, she-cats and toms alike seemed to light up in the presence of kits, and their demeanors changed as if being properly encouraging and warm and supportive were the most natural thing in the world. They left him standing there awkwardly to the side, and he had learned fast enough to not waste his time. Kits liked those who would play with them and regale them with stories of impressive victories; Ospreywing had stories, but he had no desire to share them. He made that perfectly clear. He didn’t know kits. He didn’t understand them. Dread coiled in his gut, and suddenly he realized that he had made a big mistake. There was no possible way this could end well at all. He didn’t know what he was doing. Sandkit deserved to meet happy cats, not cats like him, chained down by the weight of the past on his shoulders.

With the air of one preparing to step into battle, he stood there, tail tip flicking and throat dry. He took a deep breath. He could do this. He could go talk to a kit. It was just one kit, and it would only be for a little while. He had faced down StormClan. This was nothing. It’s for Silverglade, he kept telling himself. Pretending his resolve had strengthened as much as he would have liked it to, Ospreywing stepped forward ever so slightly and poked his head into the nursery. ”Silverglade?”

i don't care if heaven won't take me back

ospreywing | stoneclan | warrior | Silver

angel with a shotgun | background image

[Silver]

Silverglade

I stand alone between my heart and the coming danger that lies ahead

StoneClan || Queen || 22 Moons

Ears perked forwards at the sound of a familiar voice calling out to her. A small smile lit Silverglade's face as she moved forward on silent paws to greet the tom that had spent the night by her side. He may never know just how much his presence had meant to her that night, but the sense of contentment she'd felt at not being so very alone lingered with her and that meant the world to her. Part of her honestly hadn't expected him to accept her request that he come to meet her son, so that he had indeed come made her feel something like shy as well as excited. She wanted Sandkit to like this tom that had helped her so much. Knowing her kit as she did, she felt it was more likely that Ospreywing wouldn't like Sandkit than the reverse being true.

Her eyes were bright as she approached the large tom, tail held up curiously as she reached his side at last. "Ospreywing! Ah...erm...I mean welcome." She mentally cursed herself for sounding like an overeager kit, but she was happy to have made a friend that seemed to understand the things she was going through. Flicking her tail to hide her embarrassment, she turned back towards the interior of the Nursery and called out for the one she'd asked the tom to come and meet in the first place. "Sandkit, come here please!" It wasn't long before the small orange-gold kit came waddling up; his little tail sticking straight up to keep his balance as he tried to hurry as fast as he could without falling all over himself. Silverglade smiled fondly down at him as he reached her side and looked up at her, curiousity lighting golden eyes at the visitor next to his mother.

Never one to wait for introductions, Sandkit wandered closer to Ospreywing and tilted his head to the side, regarding the large tom quietly for a long moment before making his opinions known. "You're really huge too, not like Hawkstar huge but really close. You look really uncomfortable though, are you constipated? Dawnblossom has herbs to help with that, do I need to go get her for you?" His ears twitched towards his mother as a small snort of amusement left her. He was being quite serious though. If it made this cat look so grouchy, shouldn't he get the problem fixed before it got any worse? That was what he thought, at least.

Silverglade snorted, tail coming forward to hide her amusement at her kit. He was a darling and did think he was being helpful, but poor Ospreywing. She didn't try to save him just yet though, wanting to see how the tom reacted to her inquisitive son as he attempted to be helpful. Sandkit didn't understand that just because a cat looked uncomfortable didn't mean there was anything physically wrong with them. He understood sadness but not something like shyness as he often didn't possess such a trait himself. My, but her day was about to be very amusing.

--

Words: 514
Tags: Phoenix  

My fate is unknown, but I will remain strong.

[Phoenix]

i'm an angel with a shotgun fighting 'til the war's won

He only had to wait a moment before the pale she-cat appeared at the entrance to the den, calling out to him in a voice that rang out loud and clear. She sounded genuinely excited that he had agreed to see her, and the eager smile on her face made him feel a little better about coming. Feeling the corners of his own lips twitching upwards ever so slightly, the warrior repeated his mantra one more time. He could do this. All he had to do was introduce himself to a kit and maybe talk with him a little after; he had performed harder tasks before. As if sensing his train of thought, Silverglade turned and summoned Sandkit.

While they waited for the younger cat to toddle over from somewhere in the depths of the nursery, he found himself watching the young mother. Much had changed since the quiet night they had shared together, but not too much. This was Silverglade during the daytime, when her walls were built up and fortified against the demons that crawled over them at night, but if he looked hard enough, Ospreywing thought he could see traces of the she-cat with whom he had sat beside the pool of water. There was a depth to her blue eyes, an understanding of the unfairness of life; they held that particular look that was only found in the eyes of those who had seen something they could never forget. Many eyes in StoneClan had that same haunting light in them, but hers were different. He didn’t quite know how, but they were. Maybe because they were the first he had really stopped to look at.

Then Sandkit arrived, and Ospreywing turned yellow eyes from the she-cat to her son. For a long moment, they stared at each other as the warrior tried to ignore the faint unease that made his pelt prickle uncomfortably. A part of him expected the young cat to realize that he wasn’t very interesting at all and walk away or to grow upset at the intensity of his gaze and hide behind his mother, and already he was hardening his heart, preparing for the rejection – and it might hurt, just a little bit, because he was Silverglade’s kit and something told the warrior that the she-cat wanted them to be able to get along, but in the end, it would be for the better, because Sandkit deserved to spend more time around cats like his apprentice, who had all the innocence that he had lost. Already, he was shifting his weight to turn away…

And then Sandkit spoke, and the words that tumbled out of the young cat’s mouth had the warrior freezing.

A moment passed before he glanced at Silverglade, wondering if he had heard what he thought he had heard, only to see her stifling a laugh with amusement dancing in her deep blue eyes. Stiffening slightly as his mind flailed around for an answer, he looked back at the kit, completely lost for words. What do I say? If any other cat had told him this, he might have glared and walked away, but he could hardly do that here, not when he had come to meet the very cat whose odd greeting had him freezing up. ”No thank you, Sandkit,” Ospreywing managed to get out, even as his mind stalled and could only seem to comprehend the fact that the den had gotten very uncomfortably hot all of a sudden. His tail flicked awkwardly behind him, and he wondered if he sounded more convincing to the younger tom than he did to himself. ”You don’t need to go get Dawnblossom. I’m—“ not constipated ”—I’m fine.” Again, his gaze left his would-be hero and sought out Silverglade’s, sending up a silent plea for help.

i don't care if heaven won't take me back

ospreywing | stoneclan | warrior | Silver

angel with a shotgun | background image

[Silver]

Silverglade

22 Moons. Loner-Queen of StoneClan.

Amused feminine laughter sounded out quietly in the awkward silence that prevailed in the wake of Sandkit's little query to the older tom before him. Poor Silverglade had tried so hard not to laugh where she would be heard - and her tail was still in front of her face to hide her expression - but that didn't stop the sheer amusement she felt at the words that had just come from her kit's mouth. Blue eyes danced with amusement and good humor; knowing that Sandkit meant well but he also seemed to be embarrassing poor Ospreywing if the tom's desperate expression was anything to go by. The tom was trying so hard to be kind to Sandkit but she knew her son's words had thrown him off.

She caught his gave and smiled over at him, approaching the pair and flicking her tail playfully against the tom's side before leaning down and licking the top of Sandkit's head. She'd save him this time, but really was dealing with a kit so difficult for him? "Sandkit, dear, I've told you before that just because a cat looks uncomfortable doesn't mean they are constipated. And I do recall saying to you that saying so to them wasn't kind. I know you mean well, dear, but constipation isn't the answer to all that ails a cat." She watched a look of surprise light the golden eyes that looked up into her own blue ones as Sandkit considered her words carefully. Finally he frowned and looked over his mother once more, before turning those eyes back to the tom in question.

Sandkit looked over Ospreywing more seriously for a long moment before purring sweetly up at the large tom and trying another tactic as his young mind came up with another idea as to what might be wrong with him. "Sorry I said you were constipated. Um..." The poor kit looked properly put-upon for long moments as he considered what he wanted to do. Calling the tom out on the fact that if he wasn't constipated then he looked worried wasn't a nice thing to do either so maybe...

Well it worked when his mother was worried. He purred even louder and caught his mother's surprised gasp from behind him when he then firmly snuggled against Ospreywing's chest like he often did to his mother. It was an affectionate gesture and one he followed with bright, curious eyes looking up at him and a firm announcement of his thoughts. "I like you, you're warm and you make my Mama smile."

Silverglade had the grace to look mildly embarrassed at the information Sandkit had decided to share regardless of the fact that it was true. Her son was just full of surprises these days, as she certainly hadn't expected him to warm up to a strange tom so quickly. It did make her smile though.

I stand alone between my heart
and the coming danger that lies ahead.
My fate is unknown, but I will remain strong.

Words 479 || Tags Phoenix

[Phoenix]

i'm an angel with a shotgun fighting 'til the war's won

Silverglade came to his rescue, and not a moment too soon, for the tuxedo tom had half a mind to start backing away slowly. Blue eyes glittering with glee, she offered him a smile and a small nudge with her tail before turning her attention to her kit. As she patiently explained – again, he noted with faint amusement – to Sandkit that assuming that constipation was the reason for someone’s discomfort, the warrior focused on trying to relax. Though his rational was inaccurate, the younger tom had noticed Ospreywing’s admittedly rather obvious discomfort, and he knew that if he wanted to have any hope of managing a somewhat normal conversation with the pair of them, he’d better find some way to calm down. Reminding himself once again that he had faced worse, the warrior took another deep breath and exhaled right as Sandkit turned to apologize to him.

”Don’t worry about it,” He responded, tail flicking as if to brush away any of the young cat’s concerns. For a few long moments there was silence as the youngest member of their group looked thoughtful and the eldest struck out desperately for something to say. Carrying a conversation with warriors his own age never required as much work, for there was always something to discuss – LightningClan’s attack and the changing of the seasons among the more popular topics recently. But he could hardly ask a kit, let alone a loner-turned-clan kit for his opinions on these matters. Perhaps he could ask Sandkit how he liked StoneClan so far? The warrior considered it for a moment. Granted, the younger tom might not have seen much of their clan so far, but if he was talking about finding Dawnblossom, he mustn’t have spent this entire time stuck in the empty nursery. Yes, that seemed like a safe direction in which to take the conversation.

However, Ospreywing need not have bothered, for the instant he had decided to break the silence with his newfound discussion point, Sandkit acted on his own accord. Purring loudly, the young tom moved forward, and Silverglade’s gasp was the warrior’s only warning before he found himself sitting there with a kit firmly pressed up against his chest. In light of this entirely unexpected turn of events, he found himself freezing once more, even as he looked down at where bright orange fur mingled with black and white. Sandkit was a warm presence against him, and the tuxedo tom found himself trying to recall the last time someone had pressed up against him in such a way. It took a few moments before he finally acknowledged that he couldn’t remember, and his heart ached with a sudden emptiness he hadn’t known was there. Normally when cats came this close to him, they came with the intent to attack. To simply be in the presence of another, listening to their heartbeat and feeling them breathe – that was a forgotten experience that he had not remembered until the other night, and now, her son, with the innocence and honesty of kits, was reminding him of it again.

Swallowing against the knot that had suddenly formed in his throat – there had been a lot of those recently, a part of him idly pointed out – the warrior bent his head and lightly touched the top of Sandkit’s head with his nose. ”That’s good,” He responded quietly, carefully picking his words. ”I like you, too.” Well, that wasn’t entirely truthful, for he was not a kit who could decide on a whim whether or not he liked someone; however, Sandkit didn’t need to know that, and if he was honest with himself, Ospreywing already found himself viewing the little ball of fur with the very beginnings of fondness. ”And I - I like making your Mama smile too.” The admission slipped out of his mouth before he could stop them, and suddenly his fur caught on fire all over again.

Very slowly, yellow eyes glanced over to find blue before flicking away a moment later as the warrior cleared his throat awkwardly. Willing his face to stop flaming, he swallowed again, eyes on some distant corner of the den. ”Ahh,” Ospreywing started, turning his attention back down to the kit at his feet as he cast about for some way to dispel the way his words echoed in the silence. Hadn’t he come up with something to say earlier? What was it? A moment later, he remembered: ”Sandkit, how do you like StoneClan so far?”

i don't care if heaven won't take me back

ospreywing | stoneclan | warrior | Silver

angel with a shotgun | background image

[Silver]

22 Moons. Loner-Queen of StoneClan.

Sandkit purred happily at finally doing right by this cat that made his Mama smile. He snuggled up closer to the larger tom, happy and content to know that he was liked as well. He wanted his Mama to be happy, she deserved to be. She'd been so sad since the red stuff...err the fire had come and eaten his Papa and siblings. He still missed them terribly and he knew his Mama did too, but for her it was worse somehow. He didn't understand it completely, but he knew that losing everyone in their little group had hurt his Mama in a way he wasn't sure even Dawnblossom could fix.

He picked up on the undercurrents in the air but didn't quite know what to make of them. He knew it had something to do with Ospreywing's comment about making his Mama smile but why would that....? He took a step back and looked up at the tom with wide, curious eyes. Was he...embarrassed? But why? What could possibly be so bad about enjoying making another cat smile? Adults were odd creatures and made things so much more complicated than they really needed to be. That's what he thought, at least. And what was even stranger was the way his Mama was hiding her face behind her fluffy tail; an indication he recognized as a sign she was embarrassed too. She used to do it a lot around his Papa. Hmm...

Oh, he was being asked what he thought of things in the clan now, wasn't he? Best to answer. "Well...It's a really big place and Mama has only let me go so far and only with her. I like the Medicine Cat's Den though and Dawnblossom is really nice. She let's me lay with her when I'm tired and teaches me things about plants and the seasons. She tells me all sorts of stories and always answers my questions. She says I need to learn to calm down and I'm trying to be more patient, but it's really hard. But she does give nice cuddles; not as good as my Mama's, of course, but still pretty close. And sometimes Eagletalon visits and he's really fun too, and Hawkstar is really super huge and I still don't know what it is he told my Mama that made her so happy, but I really like him for it." 

"Oh, and Duskflower is nice too and she visits me when I'm with Dawnblossom sometimes and usually Eagletalon comes with her. Come to think of it, those two are almost always together. I wonder if that means they'll be a Mama and a Papa together soon too. Mama says not to ask cats questions like that, since it makes them uncomfortable, but I don't understand why. Truth is truth, after all. That's what I think, at least."

Silverglade stared at her son in quiet amazement for everything he had picked up on since coming into the clan with her. So perceptive, was Sandkit, even if it was about the strangest things. Still, he had also managed to embarrass two adult cats and that was a task in and of itself. Or well...more like he'd helped them to embarrass themselves. Blue eyes flicked upwards to touch golden before dropping away again, her tail firmly hiding her embarrassment as she tried to calm herself enough to ease the burning going through her face. Her ears perked forwards as she listened to her kit speaking and she tried to focus on that instead of her embarrassment. She leaned forward and licked the top of Sandkit's head again, accidently bumping her head against Ospreywing's chest as she did so and the moment she did her blue eyes went wide and she took a step backwards as her entire body burst into flames. This was just so awkward!

I stand alone between my heart
and the coming danger that lies ahead.
My fate is unknown, but I will remain strong.

Words 647 || Tags Phoenix