- Oct 17, 2022
- 454
- 78
- 28
MAYBE I'D BE A SAINT IF I WEREN'T ————————————
It’s Snakeblink’s duty, however self-appointed, to keep an eye on his clanmates. To make sure all their needs are met, all their grievances addressed — and to bring any strange behavior up to Cicadastar, if needs be. This close attention to routine makes any divergence easy enough to spot. They are creatures of habits: an obstacle will waylay them like water flowing around stones, but the river doesn’t change course out of the blue and, on average, neither do they.
So when Lightningstone changes course, he makes a note of it.
Perhaps it is grief, he thinks: Buckgait’s disappearance has left them all reeling and it would not be absurd for her mate to be shaken, forever changed, by her loss. But why would grief bring Lightningstone on so many patrols with Boneripple and Lichentail? What strange mechanism of mourning has the tom choosing to spend his time with she-cats he, until now, had little interest in? Snakeblink cannot imagine that he is looking to move on already, and the two mollies’ little lapse at Ashpaw’s return is still too fresh in his mind.
He doesn’t think it’s anything nefarious. It might be nothing at all. Lightningstone has a keen mind, a keen eye, a keen interest in keeping the peace in the clan that shelters his kits: this may only be his way of making sure the two cats stick to the party line and do not attract Cicadastar’s ire upon themselves once more.
Or it may be a tom grown close to the demoted deputy, reaching out to other potential dissenters. Either way, he wonders. And whatever plan the other warrior has brewing, he’d like to help if he can.
Padding up to the blue smoke while he’s alone, Snakeblink carefully sets himself down at a small distance from him — close enough to have a quiet conversation, but not so close as to risk touching. ”I have been remiss,” he starts, peering closely at the tom, ”In offering you my condolences. I am truly sorry for your loss: Buckgait was…” He struggles to find an apt descriptor and eventually settles for, ”Formidable.”
This much is sincere, and he tries to convey the full depth of the sentiment through his eyes before politely averting his eyes, seeking Boneripple and Lichentail in the camp. ”It is heartening to see you seeking out the company of others in these trying times. Although I feel like I must warn you that Lichentail, at least, seems quite preoccupied with Hazecloud already; your… efforts may be better spent elsewhere.”
So when Lightningstone changes course, he makes a note of it.
Perhaps it is grief, he thinks: Buckgait’s disappearance has left them all reeling and it would not be absurd for her mate to be shaken, forever changed, by her loss. But why would grief bring Lightningstone on so many patrols with Boneripple and Lichentail? What strange mechanism of mourning has the tom choosing to spend his time with she-cats he, until now, had little interest in? Snakeblink cannot imagine that he is looking to move on already, and the two mollies’ little lapse at Ashpaw’s return is still too fresh in his mind.
He doesn’t think it’s anything nefarious. It might be nothing at all. Lightningstone has a keen mind, a keen eye, a keen interest in keeping the peace in the clan that shelters his kits: this may only be his way of making sure the two cats stick to the party line and do not attract Cicadastar’s ire upon themselves once more.
Or it may be a tom grown close to the demoted deputy, reaching out to other potential dissenters. Either way, he wonders. And whatever plan the other warrior has brewing, he’d like to help if he can.
Padding up to the blue smoke while he’s alone, Snakeblink carefully sets himself down at a small distance from him — close enough to have a quiet conversation, but not so close as to risk touching. ”I have been remiss,” he starts, peering closely at the tom, ”In offering you my condolences. I am truly sorry for your loss: Buckgait was…” He struggles to find an apt descriptor and eventually settles for, ”Formidable.”
This much is sincere, and he tries to convey the full depth of the sentiment through his eyes before politely averting his eyes, seeking Boneripple and Lichentail in the camp. ”It is heartening to see you seeking out the company of others in these trying times. Although I feel like I must warn you that Lichentail, at least, seems quite preoccupied with Hazecloud already; your… efforts may be better spent elsewhere.”
——————————————————————————————————— so god damn lonely
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— Snakeblink • he / him. 42 ☾, riverclan warrior
— a sleek, skinny tabby with long ears and a scar over his right eye.
— gay, not actually evil, penned by @Kangoo