private Heaven’s Falling Down || Twitchbolt

[Chickbloom]

This was the longest he’d ever spent away from home. Heeding Orangestar’s advice, Eggshellbloom had stayed in Skyclan camp since the incident with his twolegs. Though he was away from them physically, mentally the meek boy was still right back in their den. An anxious mind couldn’t stop going over each action second by second, each mistake that led to the two who’d raised him clutching wounds he’d inflicted.

The coward was crying less when remembering it now, at least. Was that a good thing? Eggshell didn’t know. If it meant he was getting used to what happened, then the whelp didn’t think so. Yolk-stained paws fiddled with the ground at the edge of camp, trying to take his mind off things. Each passing day, Skyclan’s camp felt more comfortable. The nests weren’t as prickly, the food wasn’t as weird, was that good or bad? The last thing the daylight warrior wanted was to forget his twolegs. It felt like getting used to this life was disrespecting them, in a way. An errant paw tugged at his collar. It felt tight.

Before the boy knew it, occupied extremities had assembled a small set of flowers and weeds, and Eggshell set to work. It was a nice distraction, but wasn’t distracting himself also disrespectful, in a way? A self-annoyed huff left him as he tore up the crown he’d been creating, tossing it aside to start from scratch.

// @TWITCHBOLT​

 

[TWITCHBOLT]

Twitchbolt's wound was emerging out the other end of tenderness... beginning to bloom into new skin, scarred over in fang-marks that would forever brand him with a closeness to death. He found himself daring to step out of the medicine den every so often, just to... avoid going mad, cramped up, scraping at his own skin and tearing knots of fur out. In this wandering, wide eyes found their way over to Eggshellbloom- frazzled pupils wobbled upon the sun-splashed tom for a few moments.

It was good to have Eggshellbloom back... truly back, staying in their camp for the forseeable future. Knowing (though he didn't understand) the love daylight warriors often held for their Twolegs, this... extended stay likely wasn't easy on him. Even if his Twolegs had mistreated him, there was likely some... attachment there. Twitchbolt's mind briefly leapt to his parents. Yes, he knew that feeling quite well.

He cleared his throat upon jittering approach, trying not to startle Eggshellbloom. "What are you doing?" His voice crackled against the walls of his throat, soft, genuine, and exhausted.​

penned by pin ✧​

 

[Chickbloom]

Eggshellbloom had never been brushed by death, not really. The closest he’d ever come was probably his combat assessment against Silversmoke, and even then his life was by no means in danger. Unlike the tomcat’s twolegs, it was something the whelp didn’t want to think about. What would he do if faced with his own mortality? As a shaky cough sounded beside the coward and amber eyes unconsciously focused on a flowering scar, Eggshell ashamedly knew the answer. He would run away.

He was staring. Yes, absolutely, his gaze had been focused on Twitchbolt’s wound for far longer than was appropriate. “Um-“ Eggshell snapped his head down, trying to focus his gaze on tying. “N-Nothing. Er, well - it’s not nothing, but it’s - y’know - it’s n-not important.” The boy’s tongue mirrored the weeds between his claws, tangled in too many knots to be of any use. He threw it away, opting to start both it and the conversion over again.

“I’m m-making - or, well, t-trying to make - f-flower crowns” Eggshell explained, scrambled features gaining a slight tinge of ketchup as he suddenly felt self-conscious. “It, uh, It’s relaxing. I - I think.” Amber eyes focused again on Twitchbolt, now taking in the rest of his ragged features. Eggshellbloom was much to meek to say it aloud, but a softening gaze did the work for him. You look like you need to relax, too.

The Daylight Warrior didn’t want to compare his problems to Twitchbolt’s. He didn’t think it appropriate, let alone accurate. That said, the Skittish Scottish Fold was aware that they were alike in a lot of ways (more than he knew), so he felt compelled to try and assist a fellow worry-wart. “W-Would you, uh, y’know, do you w-want to j-join me?” A yolk-stained paw slid over a pile of ferns for the other to get started with, hoping he wasn’t making a mistake.​

 

[TWITCHBOLT]

The staring hardly bothered him, despite what his constant shivering and spasming might have suggested. Eggshellbloom's relative meekness, an insistence that what he was doing wasn't important, reminded Twitchbolt of a younger self- a self that'd been more willing to bow beneath suppressing paws. Twitching was embedded in his body and name, but he liked to think he was a more assertive cat now, someone unashamed to do what he loved. It was why he looked upon Eggshellbloom with a light of confusion flickering in his eye as he insisted what he was doing wasn't important.

Thankfully, the golden-splashed tom elaborated... flower crowns. Twitchbolt's jittering paws were hardly talented enough for nest making, let alone gentle flower weaving- so at Eggshellbloom's invitation, the confusion aglimmer in his eyes multiplied. But if it was... if it was mindfulness, he supposed it wouldn't hurt. A frown darkened Twitchbolt's mahogany features, and he stole a look at Eggshellbloom's work, attempting for a few moments to study what he was doing.

"Sure," he murmured, trying to purge the emptiness from his voice, a croak crackling across the single word he sputtered. Cocking his head, he tried to steady himself just, just, just enough to thread the needle. It was harder than it looked. "Where... where'd you learn to do this?" It wasn't an uncommon thing, but... it was enough of a talent that Twitchbolt was curious to here the story. ​

penned by pin ✧​

 

[Chickbloom]

though amber eyes were focused on the task at hand, occasionally the coward shifted his gaze to Twitchbolt while talking. It was strange, holding the reactions of another to his hobby higher than the hobby itself. Alas, that was just who Eggshell was. A weight lifted off of yolk-splattered shoulders as the other cat sat down, apparent acceptance overriding the brief confusion on Twitchbolt’s face.

Though just as anxious features softened, a buttery face scrunched up as folded ears heard the unnatural, guttural groan emanating from the other’s throat. Eggshell felt conflicted, wanting to urge Twitchbolt to rest but also understanding the feeling of going stir-crazy from being stuck in the medicine den. “You - um - you d-don’t have to talk if it h-hurts…” The milksop eventually mumbled, a noncommittal answer tailored to not cause any offense.

Cowardly claws were still fidgeting with the same set of fibers as Twitchbolt asked how his silly little hobby started. Once again, amber eyes were torn away from his own work and towards the other, a look of confusion plastered across his face. “Um, I guess…” Truthfully, Eggshell had never really considered the question. “I g-guess I - um - taught myself?” Did that sound egotistical? The last thing the ball of nerves wanted was to come off as overconfident.

“That’s p-probably why I’m n-no good at it” A forced and unnatural chuckle came out of the coward, an overcorrection to try and seem more aware of his shortcomings, even if they didn’t exist. “B-But yeah…w-when my hosuefolk stopped - y’know - stopped spending t-time with me, they g-got me some toys to - I g-guess to try and m-make up for them not b-being around. K-Keep me occupied, y’know? My f-favorite was this ball of string. It was soft and warm and…a-anyway, I started m-messing with it whenever I got sad or s-scared, and that t-turned into t-tying it together. I spent…I s-spent a lot of time tying it. The plants around here aren’t the s-same, but it’s close enough…”

Eggshellbloom finally looked back to his work, finding that he’d made a complete mess of it while rambling. Yolk-stained paws chucked it away, not too upset at his lack of progress. “I m-miss it, sometimes…”​

 

[TWITCHBOLT]

The concern Eggshellbloom exhibited was warming enough that a small smile flickered across Twitchbolt's face. With a twitching nod of gratitude, the brown-and-white tom murmured, "It's alright... always sounds a bit frail." It was probably all the yelling. Soft-spoken in conversation, and a screecher in moments of panic... that concoction would sizzle a voice into crackling without fail. Idly, his tail flicked as he listened to the sun-splashed tom's story.

"D-don't put yourself down," Twitchbolt told him in a terrific act of hypocrisy; but it was truthful nonetheless. "It's- it's impressive to have taught yourself. With- without a mentor... it's a lot of extra work. Even if it was just idle." He looked down at the intricate little creations, knowing his own tremor-prone paws wouldn't be able to be so deft. Not everything was teachable... or would be, if one grew up in a Clan.

I miss it, sometimes. Twitchbolt nodded, slowly. He respected the connection housecats felt to their twolegs, and their twoleg nests, even if he didn't understand it himself. Even... even if the Twolegs weren't the kindest of their breed, like Eggshellbloom's seemed not to be. "You're allowed to- to miss it," he murmured. "B-but on the bright side... that experience has given you pretty delicate p-paws. I hope you'll- you'll eventually come to like weaving the plants just as much." ​

penned by pin ✧​