AURIEL'S ASCENSION | starlingheart

[FERNDANCE]

Patrolling with ShadowClan was not the fun adventure that the warrior remembered. The smiles of clanmates had turned into angry lines as if they anticipated an attack at any moment, some were so vigilant that she hadn't been able to do her own thing within the territory as she'd once been able to do - that meant no stopping for random flowers and no experimenting with random thoughts to see if there was a hint of truth to them. The day's patrol had been similar, but against her better judgment, Ferndance had managed to rip some foliage from a stagnant marsh to take home with her (much to the chagrin of her patrol buddy, who wanted nothing more than to be back at camp as soon as possible). Though her whiskers and paws were sodden with unpleasant smelling water, the she-cat had collected a few limp strands of water crowfoot and, as she trotted back into camp, she quickly decided where her prize would be delivered to. What she'd collected looked like what Fern thought herbs looked like, if not a little wetter than most. Maybe there was a secret technique to drying them out, maybe she would ask Starlingheart about it.

Ferndance shimmied into the medicine cat's den, where a few slept of her clanmates on the nests. With no battles and the territory absent from many of the predators that had harmed them last twelve-moon (she didn't include the murders in her thought process), there was a peace to the cave that she imagined Starlingheart hadn't felt in some time. It was time to ruin that. Boredom let idle minds wander, she could only imagine what things were running about in that cat's head after losing a child. A shape is spotted in the corner of the den and a smile crept past the sodden stem that dangled from her maw. "Hello." With no request to leave, the cinnamon tabby moved closer, dropping the crowfoot as close to Starlingheart as she could. She reclined back on her haunches like a cat proud to show of its kill. "I saw this and thought of you. It's very good for..." She paused to look down at the white flower and butterfly-shaped leaves, blinking slowly as if trying to process what she was staring at. Identifying animals was more of Ferndance's forte. "It's very pretty, I'm sure you'll find a use for it."

[ @STARLINGHEART ]

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[Starlingheart]

There are many things Starlingheart wishes she could undo. A harsh word unspoken, a glare taken back. Words that should have never been uttered. There is no changing the past though, no undoing the damage that had been wrought. All you could do was forge ahead and attempt to make a better future for yourself and for your clan. Ferndance was a prime example of this, in her mind. She was not exactly Starlingheart's favorite clanmate (she had cemented that fact when she had suggested killing her son when he lay sick and dying in the medicine cats den, joking or not it had been cruel) but she had to say she admired her tenacity, the way she kept her chin up even in the face of adversity. It was something they had in common, she thinks. The ability to just keep going, no matter what.

Still, it is a surprise when the molly seeks her out for something other than treatment. But that is not a new feeling for her. She is often surprised by this fact, by the idea anyone could ever like her past the few things she is capable of providing for the clan, save for her own flesh and blood but that is different, in her mind at least. When Ferndance's voice calls from the opening in the rock face she turns to look at her, tail waving in a friendly greeting and lone eye already lazily drifting over the warrior, scanning for injuries. When she finds none, she tastes the air for sickness, once again coming up with nothing. What she does notice, however, is the clump of wet plants in the she-cats jaws.

Curiosity piqued, she does not complain when Ferndance makes her way into her den, nor does she shoo her away. Her reward? The plants are deposited at her feet. Surprise heats her cheeks and the tips of her ears. 'I saw this and thought of you' she looks to the plants to Ferndances face, touched. "Oh- F-ferndance that's very kind of you" she says with a slight purr rumbling in her chest "Thank you" she didn't really think she could use them for anything but at the very least a cat could lap the water from the plants if they needed to.

( ‧₊˚❀༉‧₊˚. ) fly me up on a silver wing

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  STARLINGHEART SHADOWCLAN MEDICINE CAT; SHE / HER ; SISTER TO PITCHSTAR, CHITTERTONGUE, NIGHTSWARM, SKUNKTAIL, AND LILACFUR. MOTHER TO NETTLEPAW, FLINTPAW AND GHOSTPAW.
  

  A skinny she cat with short black and white fur littered with scars and one singular green eye.

  ✦ Easy in battle + has little to no formal battle training
  

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[FERNDANCE]

Seeing the black-and-white cat struck by the gesture, Ferndance realised how weird the gesture was. She was not a cat that liked to share, it would've been easy, likely even, that the wetland plant was weaved into her nest and swiftly abandoned along with the rest of the trinkets she hoarded. She didn't think it was sympathy that changed her tune (it was easy to look at the medicine cat and feel a pang of one's heart for all that had happened), but boredom didn't seem like an appropriate reason either. Staring a while with vacant eyes, the cinnamon tabby eventually realised that it may have had something to do with their shared appreciation for their kittens - even if it wasn't the answer, it was good enough for her to stop thinking about it. After being silent for a few too many seconds, Ferndance tilted her head from one side to the other. "That's ok... I was going to eat them but that seemed like a waste," she admitted with a smile absent of her usual mischief. It wouldn't have been the first time she'd eaten a random plant, luck alone was what had stopped her from ending up as a patient rather than a confidant.

No... confidant didn't seem like the right word, Ferndance was under no illusion that herself and Starlingheart were friends. There was a wary distance she kept from Chilledstar's council, theirs had been the only words she'd ever known to wound her - it was far easier to close one's heart to the idea of reconciliation than actively seek it. "I'm free for a little bit if you want some help in here." She watched the herbs as if anticipating they'd flee at any moment, a hunter's glint to her pupils despite her words being as soft as cotton. Starlingheart wouldn't miss a leaf or two... would she? The idea made her paws itch, the she-cat having to knead them into the soft earth below to keep them occupied in the face of adversity. 'No... no... these are the few things I can't run away with...' she told herself, chirping quietly as she repeated the thought. "I'd love to hear some stories about your herbs... they do have stories, don't they?" Ripping her attention away from the aforementioned herbs was like ripping cobwebs from a wound, but Ferndance managed, blinking fervently at Starlingheart expectantly.

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