private EVERYONE DOESN'T CARE | SINGEGLARE

Feb 6, 2024
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"Singeglare."

A sideways glance is thrown the fiery warrior's way as the two brothers trek through the territory, side-by-side. As hard as he tries to be unreadable, a distaste lingers underneath the surface of Sneezeduck's gaze. Judgmental. Hurt. And certainly not unearned. Should his brother look his way, Sneezeduck might not help the way his gaze softens anyway; as much of a thorn the boy as grown to become, he's still kin, and.. all Sneezeduck did was for his kin.

He loved them, all of them. Singeglare, Swallowflutter, his siblings yet to be born - he'd always had their best interests in mind, even above his own. It hasn't changed, really.. it couldn't, or so he tries to tell himself. But if he loved his brother so much.. then what is this sudden switch of view towards him? Ever since Marbleleaf uncovered that omen, to which Singeglare spoke out so disrespectfully to, he just.. can't seem to look at Singeglare the same. Following that, the bold comments speaking out against StarClan - it irked him in a strength no other cat had been able to reach before.

At the mere memory of it, Sneezeduck plants his teeth firmly into his tongue, holding back a snarl. A surge of defensiveness courses through him. A desire to protect.

"This isn't just walk. We need to.. to talk." But where does he start? He'd never been the confrontational type, much less towards his own siblings. And if he challenged Singeglare, would the competitive warrior ever forgive him? Guilt gnaws at Sneezeduck's heart. Nobody else will say it. I have to. The boy lets out a heavy sigh then stops in his pawsteps, turning to face Singeglare with a weary gaze. "You seem unhappy with.. things.. lately. Angry."

  • ooc: @SINGEGLARE text
  • sneezepaw-transparent.png
    ✶ sneezeduck. warrior of shadowclan. ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ་༘࿐⋆。𖦹°⋆.ೃ࿔*:・
    ㅤamab cis male, he/him | undiscovered sexuality, single.
    ㅤ15 moons old | ages every 2nd. created 2/5/2024
    ㅤa young warrior, inexperienced in most things. | mentored by sharpshadow
    ㅤLH chocolate tabby (carrying cinnamon, dilute)
    ㅤunknown xx duckshimmer | brother to singeglare and swallowflutter
    ㅤclose with marblepaw
    ㅤwritten by ixora, ic opinions | tags
 
*+:。.。 Singeglare was, to no one's surprise, dense. Through the entirety of their walk together, Singeglare paid no heed to Sneezeduck's discomfort, instead choosing to sniff the air in hopes of returning with new prey. Perhaps one could excuse his lack of perception thanks to the rolling waves of white-hot frustration that had his claws itching for release...but with no one to drag them down, what was the point? That, of course, only left him even more frustrated! If Starclan was going to rot away their hard-earned catches then the least they could do was send a representative for Singeglare to murder a damned second time!

Don't ask him what he would do if it was Chilledstar they sent. He didn't even want to think about what they might be doing up there in the stars...letting all this happen.

Grumbling and hissing under his breath, the young man would finally look at his brother when he was prompted by his name. "What?" he responds, casual nature taking on a sharper edge, bordering on disrespectful. Perhaps it would've been more rude if it weren't expected of Singeglare. All bite, always all bite.

He quirks a brow when Sneezeduck reveals an anterior motive to this little adventure of theirs. Immediately, Singeglare feels discomfort beneath his fur. Talk? Gross. "This better not be about feelings" he chokes out the last word like it's bile. Unfortunately, it is very much a conversation about emotions...but anger is one Singeglare - obviously - can get behind.

"OF COURSE I'M ANGRY!" The man immediately explodes, releasing his claws and scoring them across the earth, happy to release the pent-up energy, "You're tellin' me YOU'RE NOT?" His tail practically sparks with the force of his lashing, and it's all he can think to do to stomp a few paces ahead so as not to slap his brother with the force of his rage, "Smogstar disappeared, Mirestar disappeared - did you hear how Marbleleaf swears they're dead? Fuck! Then cats start abandoning the clan left and right - then Starclan as the gall to incite most of this by breaking THEIR codes and putting Ternstar on the leader's seat when she was never deputy - " he sudden lets out a laugh, entirely infused with sour disgust, "and all that - fine all that I can somewhat forgive - but taking away our PREY!? After we just lost a fucking battle?"

He kicks a rock, but it does nothing to alleviate his need to fight. "I just don't get it, man. What more do they want? Are we..." he man bristles, indignant of his own unspoken words, "screw that, I'm not turning my belly up to a bunch of dead guys!"

Rant somewhat over, Singeglare is left a little breathless. It's enough, though, to remind him that his brother is still present. Whirling to face Sneezeduck, Singeglare would quirk a brow, "So, what? You're not pissed by everything?"

  • "Speech"


  • GENERAL:
    Singeglare
    Cismale — He/him — Heterosexual
    13 moons
    NPC x Duckshimmer (brother to Swallowflutter, Sneezeduck)
    Shadowclan — warrior







    COMBAT:
    Physically medium | mentally somewhat easy
    Attack inbold #b8312f
    injuries: none



 
  • Nervous
Reactions: ixora
This feeling of something akin to disgust - it scares Sneezeduck, but it comes in full force when his brother snaps a blunt 'what?' his way. His eyes soften with disappointment at first, but then hardens with the same. He feels the urge to curl his lip, to look the other way, to.. stars, when did he get so angry? Singeglare's always been like this - why is it bothering him now?

"It is," Sneezeduck replies curtly. They've never really talked about feelings - any attempt was always shut down. He knows his brother - Singeglare wouldn't acknowledge feelings if they bit him in the nose. If it weren't so important, he'd have respected this - but he thinks of the fire in his brother's eyes, how they scorch his Clanmates.. and he decides he cannot back down.

For a cat who doesn't want to talk about feelings, Singeglare explodes into monologue, just as angrily as Sneezeduck expected. Despite intending to stand his ground, the tabby still flinches as spit flies from the point's mouth, accompanied by sharp words and curses. He demands if Sneezeduck is angry, and the boy's eyes narrow. "No, I -" he objects, quickly interjected by the rant. Clamping his mouth shut, he stands and listens instead.

It's understandable, every point he makes. Sneezeduck hears the frustration, and knows that Singeglare isn't the only one to share such thoughts these days. Still, his pelt prickles with unease, as if the stars may punish him by association to the cat who curses them. I hope they aren't listening, he can't help but think, as his eyes flick skyward once or twice during the rant.

And then, it's over, and Sneezeduck lets out a hefty breath. "I'm.." he begins slowly, taking a moment to think. He thinks of the numerous leadership changes, of the battles, the fear and hunger and.. "Of course I am," Sneezeduck replies sharply. His tail rustles the snow behind him, flicking irritably. "A lot of cats are. But -"

Just say it. Just say it.

"You're taking it out on your Clanmates." Sneezeduck meets Singeglare's gaze, unnerved by the hate he sees within. Had he never noticed it before? Or had he willingly ignored it? "StarClan is here to guide us. They give us hope. You're squandering it." They're more helpful than you realize, he thinks, biting the temptation to share with him just how much Siltcloud has helped him.

He sets his jaw, takes in a deep breath. It's his turn to rant now - and it pours out of him like a waterfall. "Do you even realize that you're doing it?" Sneezeduck questions, narrowing his gaze. "When you're yelling at cats. Like when you're cursing StarClan, scaring people - when you're demanding and challenging, like when you insulted Marbleleaf to their face," his pelt bristles, reminded of that surge of protection he felt, "do you even realize? Do you even care?"

  • ooc: text
  • sneezepaw-transparent.png
    ✶ sneezeduck. warrior of shadowclan. ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ་༘࿐⋆。𖦹°⋆.ೃ࿔*:・
    ㅤamab cis male, he/him | undiscovered sexuality, single.
    ㅤ15 moons old | ages every 2nd. created 2/5/2024
    ㅤa young warrior, inexperienced in most things. | mentored by sharpshadow
    ㅤLH chocolate tabby (carrying cinnamon, dilute)
    ㅤunknown xx duckshimmer | brother to singeglare and swallowflutter
    ㅤclose with marblepaw
    ㅤwritten by ixora, ic opinions | tags
 
*+:。.。 He never really saw himself as Sneezeduck's protector. If you'd asked him, then sure, he'd tell you without hesitation that if it came down to it, he'd do anything to keep his brother safe - Sneezeduck as well as Swallowflutter- but let's be honest here...Sneezeduck had always been the littlest. The weakest. He needed special care often enough that Singeglare would've said what he'd say. Though perhaps it hadn't ever truly been because Sneeze lacked a voice but rather because his siblings were always quicker to out-speak him. Maybe a part of Singeglare always knew that. A part that, looking at Sneezeduck now - agreeing with him only to completely change the subject, to paint Singeglare as the bad guy - he couldn't find it, truly, in him to be surprised. When did he stop being a pushover?

Perhaps, in a different kind of fight, he might've been proud.

Instead, Singeglare - true to his namesake - narrows his eyes into daggers.

"Starclan is doing a shit job" he spits, refusing to let go of his anger despite the notch Sneezeduck has taken from it. Contrary to his actions, it was never Singeglare's intention to hurt people. He was a man who loved to spar - fighting, in regards to his clanmates, was a way to bond in Singeglare's eyes - a way to relieve stress, to understand someone more intimately than any pathetic attempt at small talk. He would never purposefully draw blood.
But reflected in Sneezeduck's eyes, he recalls expressions tinged red from his lashing tongue.

Marbleleaf comes to the forefront - expression soured, stubborn, and childish...but not wounded. Surely not actually wounded? He tries to recall what he'd said to her specifically, but it's only the recollection of flames on his tongue and a sky frozen over with unblinking stars that comes to mind.

Does he realize? He cringes at the question.
Does he care? His teeth grit hard enough against each other sparks threaten to fly.

Treacherously, his tongue refuses to do its thing once Sneezeduck finishes his - what - intervention? Call to Starclan? Huffing and puffing, Singeglare lashes his tail, whirling away from his brother as if meaning to walk away from the conversation. What, exactly, did he want from his brother? An apology? A promise to keep his mouth shut? Though his flames have doused themselves to only stubbornly clinging cinders, he finds the hot coals he walks on more uncomfortable than the wildfire he'd bathed in moments before.

It takes only a beat before he'd back around, facing Sneezeduck - nose to nose - "Don't fucking talk to me like it's somehow my fault Shadowclan is in despair" Decision made, he sweeps Marbleleaf's memory away with a sweep of his tail, grabbing hold of the real issue at hand with claws outstretched. "Starclan gave us a leader that can't lead a single fucking battle, a medicine cat who apparently needs YOU to fight her battles, and signs that we either don't see or that take away dwindling prey items - where in any of that do you find hope!?"

He snorts a plume of air through his nose like a bull fighting - and failing - to restrain itself from charging, " I'll say whatever I damn well please to - about the signs, about Ternfrost, about Marbleleaf if I fucking want - until Starclan does something to make any of this better " Anger and fire, Singeglare understands. Fighting to bond, fighting to protect, that's what he was born to do. This feels like neither. It doesn't feel right to glower at his brother, to snap at his nose. He's not the person that deserves Singeglare's wrath - nor is Marbleleaf, or even Ternstar.

But how else is he meant to protect his clan when everything currently attacking them feels too big for his claws? Too unknown for him to track down? Who else but Starclan can keep them safe? Starclan, who's failing to do so.

Sneezeduck wants him to sheathe his claws and...and he hates to admit it - so he won't, not even to himself - but he understands. Though he has only ever aimed for the stars, it seems his claws have managed to score his own clanmates instead.

But he can't - he just can't sheathe them. Anger and fire, Singeglare understands - they're the very foundation of his soul...to withhold even a spark is to leave him defenseless against the crushing despair that lurks behind the darkness he's adamant to hold off.

"Whatever faith you're tryin' to push on me? You can just shove it up yours, Sneezeduck" he punctuates. It doesn't feel right to strike his own brother like this...but he wasn't the one who drew the line in the sand. Singeglare only wishes to claw at the stars - if Sneezeduck wants to stand in the way...then so be it.


  • "Speech"


  • GENERAL:
    Singeglare
    Cismale — He/him — Heterosexual
    13 moons
    NPC x Duckshimmer (brother to Swallowflutter, Sneezeduck)
    Shadowclan — warrior







    COMBAT:
    Physically medium | mentally somewhat easy
    Attack inbold #b8312f
    injuries: none



 
  • Nervous
Reactions: Marquette and ixora
How quickly this conversation turns sour - but what could he expect? Sneezeduck's stubbornness shines through narrowed eyes and a lashing tail, as Singeglare's fury burns through his own. StarClan is doing a shit job, Singeglare spits, and the boy cannot stop the bristling of his pelt. "How could you know?" he retorts, almost automatically. "They could be doing more than you'll ever know. I trust the cats who have actually seen them. Why can't you?" Desperately, buried beneath the layers of dismay, he thinks - why can't you trust me?

He hopes, although futile, that maybe Singeglare will see reason and actually talk - because it's him. Because they were close enough once, because Sneezeduck had confided in him before. But his flame-pointed brother turns on him with as little remorse as he's ever turned on anybody. "It's not your fault," Sneezeduck objects, "but you're not making it any better." Anxiety bites at his stomach like a ravenous snake. How long can ShadowClan go on with such pessimism? How long can everyone bark until they finally bite?

Ternstar is a non issue in his brain - she's no Chilledstar, but at least she's still standing. He wasn't at the battle; he doesn't know exactly what went down. But, how many battles has she led? "Cats aren't born experienced," Sneezeduck counters meekly, unsure if he fully believes himself. Did she learn from it? Was there anything to be learned? Whatever uncertainty he held for the moment is washed away again by defiance at yet another jab at Marbleleaf - this time, a subtle jab at him as well. "I'm not fighting her battles for her," Sneezeduck snaps back, startled by the raise in his voice. Though that nagging feeling of protection courses through him, and he's briefly reminded of his own keen eyes observing her, his ears listening intently to her worries, and the anger he felt on her behalf. Am I..?

Sneezeduck clenches his jaw at the recognition that there's no possible way to get through to Singeglare. Of all the cats in this Clan, he assumed himself to be the most likely to reach beneath those flames - but if there is anything underneath his anger, perhaps it is so deeply guarded that not even a trusted littermate can uncover it. Utterly hopeless, he thinks dejectedly of his brother. Disappointment clouds his gaze, followed by a fearful realization. You won't ever stop then, will you?

A deep breath in - a moment to mentally collect himself - Sneezeduck speaks again, bluntly, though it pains him to feel this way towards his sibling. "I'm not trying to push faith. I'm trying to tell you that you're being destructive. I'm telling you to knock it off," Singeglare spreads negativity like a plague. How long until it turns into fear of him? How long until Ternstar and Marbleleaf crumble under the expectations of not only Singeglare, but those that share his sentiment? At the forefront, he now thinks of Duckshimmer's next litter; vulnerable minds, so easily molded and shaped by those around them. Sneezeduck pictures himself with them, sharing tales and telling stories of their ancestors, giving them joy and hope - and then he pictures Singeglare, tainting them with hatred and bloodlust. If Singeglare won't back down now, then...

"You're a bad influence," Sneezeduck blurts out, clear and loud. There's a decision to be made, loathed as he is to make it - if not just for the safety of his littlest siblings, hopefully it's his last chance to change his brother's behavior. "Duckshimmer's kits are due soon. I don't know what involvement you want with them, but I can't trust you to be a good role model."

He lashes his tail and sets his jaw, feeling his heart plummet. Just in case, he lets his claws out, prepared for an onslaught from such an unpredictable cat. "If you refuse to shape up, then you shouldn't be around them. I don't want to see you step foot into that nursery." Sneezeduck had already been watching that den like a hawk - he'd find no issue in assuring that Singeglare's rot doesn't spread to their new kin.

  • ooc: text
  • Untitled718-20250201121357.png
    ✶ sneezeduck. warrior of shadowclan. ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ་༘࿐⋆。𖦹°⋆.ೃ࿔*:・
    ㅤamab cis male, he/him | undiscovered sexuality, single.
    ㅤ16 moons old | ages every 2nd. created 2/5/2024
    ㅤa young warrior, inexperienced in most things. | mentored by sharpshadow
    ㅤLH chocolate tabby (carrying cinnamon, dilute)
    ㅤunknown xx duckshimmer | brother to singeglare and swallowflutter
    ㅤclose with marblepaw
    ㅤwritten by ixora, ic opinions | tags