JUST PEACHY // intro, exploring camp

[Peachpaw.]

A tiny blue and orange face peeked out of the nursery, watching the bigger cats mill about uncertainly. In the short time since she had been brought to camp, she had been poked, prodded, and herded back to her nest in the medicine den for almost all of it. Her eyes and ears had opened, and yet she had seen so little of her new home. The medicine cat had only recently stopped fussing over her, and she'd been moved to the nursery and nursed by an NPC queen.

The child looked back over her shoulder to her foster mother and nestmates. They didn't seem to like her very much. She spent most nights cuddled beside Dogteeth, but the curly furred warrior was missing. She frowned. She had spent much of her time so far crouched in the shadows and watching the world go by, much too frightened to go exploring amongst so many much bigger strangers. They might step on her. So she kept watching, with her big green eyes, until she slowly worked up the nerve to scoot into the sunlight.

Maybe it wasn't quite as bad as she'd expected. She stood on her toes and craned her neck, trying to catch a glimpse of blonde curls, but he was nowhere to be seen. The fluffy kit sat back down, considering her options for a moment before puffing out her fluffy chest and trotting out into the camp. Still no sign of Dogteeth. Glancing around, she walked up to the first big cat she saw and looked up at them with round green eyes. "'Scuse me," she said in a small voice, hardly more than a squeak. "But have you seen my dad? I can't find him anywhere." She hoped he wasn't lost. It was really big out here--at least to her. He could be anywhere.

(anyone can be the cat she's asking!)

 

[CLAYFUR]

The lanky tom was quite honestly lost in thought, torn between bear sting himself for his failure of a hunt, or being excited that at least he’d almost managed to catch a fish. He was paying little attention to his surroundings, so when a sudden, very quiet voice cut into his thoughts—well, he nearly jumped out of his skin. Eyes wide, mouth hanging open in shock, the tom tried to calm his racing heart as he turned to face the kit who’d scared the absolute daylights out of him.

Hazel eyes landed upon a tiny ball of fluff, one with an equally tiny voice, asking if he’d seen her dad. Oh no. Am I her dad? He tensed for a moment, before realizing that he was being stupid. No, he didn’t even have kits. He offered the kid a gentle smile and a flick of his tail, leaning down to match her height. "I don’t think I’ve seen any dads around here." If he had, he would know. Sixth sense and all that. "What does your dad look like? Maybe we can find him together." He glanced around the area, using his height to try and spot any father-looking figures.
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[ WHAT'S MY AGE AGAIN? ]​

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[Peachpaw.]

Peachkit looked up at the tom that had spoken to her. He said he hadn't seen any dads around, and she frowned. She stood up on her hind legs to get a better look. "He's really big," she began. This was not necessarily a true statement, but to Peachkit, just about everyone was big in comparison to her. "And he has curly blonde fur. His name is Dogteeth."

As far as Peachkit knew, Dogteeth was her dad. She knew that Nightshade wasn't her real mother, and that Frogkit and Minnowkit weren't really her siblings. Her real mother had died when she was still tiny. Tinier than she was now. She'd drowned in the river the day Dogteeth had brought her back to RiverClan. Peachkit wasn't sure where her mother had really come from. She didn't think she'd been a RiverClan cat.

The thought left her tiny head as quickly as it had come, and the kitten resumed bouncing around the camp in search of the wavy-furred tom cat, peeking into dens as she passed them. "Daaaaaad?" she called.

 

[iciclefang]

Iciclekit feels quite at home outside of the nursery now. She is still getting to know her older Clanmates, but none of them cause her any anxiety, and she'll approach even a stranger if she has something to say or a question to ask. Mottled ears prick and pale eyes narrow as a denmate wanders over to Clayfur.

She bounds close to her kin, expression stoic despite her ears flopping and her paws skittering. "Clayfur is good at finding," she says. She doesn't know if that's true, but it probably is. "Clayfur, I will help as well." She nods to her uncle and then to little Peachkit. After all, if Mudpelt or Icesparkle were lost, she'd want someone to help her find them.
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PENNED BY MARQUETTE​

 

[FERNGILL]

Bug-eyed blues track around for the sound, chittering conversation of tiny voices and one big one- could a voice be big? Maybe. It was familiar though, and louder, and lower... ah! The muddy tabby pelt of Uncle Clayfur finally registered as that of his kin in Fernkit's mind, and on oversized paws did the sparse-pelted scrap toddle over, stumbling up to his sister's side. The other kitten, calico like Iciclekit but paler, spoke of her father... described him.

"My dad's big, too!" Fernkit exclaimed, a goofy looking grin set upon his fish-eye features. For a moment his paws distracted him, placing one in front of the other as if he was walking on a wire, wobbling and snickering at the entertainment such a brief distraction brought him. But he wasn't going to help the other kitten find her dad at this rate. He missed the other part, but... "If he's big, he shouldn't be too hard to find," a blurt of fumbled words, said with a smile and woven with pure intentions tumbled from his tiny maw. ​

( penned by pin )​

 

[HOUNDSTRIDE.]

( ᴛᴀɢs. )  ❝  Well now. This task should be plenty difficult– first and foremost 'cause, in truth, Dog was far from the big cat Peach thought him to be. Perhaps not the smallest of sorts in this clan, but enough to have him pausing. His brow draws downwards, an odd mix of many things flitting 'cross his face. Worry, perhaps, and confusion, and a deep bite of somethin' else entirely. Did the child have another father? Someone else running around that she looked up to the way she did Dogteeth? He finds himself glancing at Clayfur as if he could be a contender, but quickly declines such a thought. He doesn't claim her, for one, or point her towards Dog for another. Also Clay as a child is a fairly ridiculous image. Then again– well, maybe they'd need more'f that heart further down in time.

"Dog? He'll be 'round here somewhere. It's a worrisome day when he wanders off on his own." All too late, Hound realizes that the flat sarcasm tinge to his mirth would likely be lost on a youth, and winces. The last thing he'd intended was to frighten her further. "We'll find 'im. Don't suppose you've any idea what he'd be up to this time in the morning."

†  ooc notes information †

• 
  ooc: went w the assumption that he knows she sees dog as her dad! lmk if he wouldn't know that yet
• ──── hound. trans male, he/him pronouns only.
  ──── approximately 30 moons old, or 2.5 years.
  ──── bisexual with firm male preference; single.
  
  ──── a chocolate tabby with ( stylized ) low white and intense lime eyes. lean and lanky,  with whiplike musculature and a long, quick stride. hound's notable features include his impressive height, the long scar across the left side of his face from nose to jaw, his very deep, dense fur, and the confident manner with which he conducts himself.
• "speech"

​

 

[Peachpaw.]

Two of her denmates appeared to help with the search, and Peachkit trotted ahead of them to scout out her surroundings. Where would he have gone? She wasn't quite sure--not that knowing would've done her very much good, as she didn't know her way around the camp. It seemed massive to her, and the idea that an entire forest lay beyond it was nearly incomprehensible to her.

She turned to face Hound as he spoke, and her already large green eyes grew even wider as his sarcasm was completely lost on her. She hardly heard the tail ending of what he'd said. Dogteeth might really be lost! More frantic now, the little molly darted from den to den, looking inside all of them to no avail. She continued across the camp, quickly halting as she reached the river's edge and gave a squeak of alarm.

She let out a small whimper of disappointment at the realization she wouldn’t be able to go any further. How would she ever find Dogteeth now? She eyed the stepping stones for a moment, but didn’t dare try them. The idea of teetering above the water terrified her.

 

[DogTeeth]

Peachkit had become a new routine in his life- had become a new devotion, a new reason. Every trip from his fishing spots or patrols, he was racing home to see her. Dogteeth couldn’t let himself mourn the stranger that was the mother of Peachkit- for she had asked of him the one thing he could absolutely do. Take care of this child. The blonde had always yearned for a family- despite having grown up in a broken one.

While Nightshade as a queen wasn’t his preference for his daughter, he really couldn’t choose while he was begging. Though cold toward her- Dogteeth’s warmth made up for it. Squeezing in a temporary nest into the nursery- he spent most of his time watching over the little tortie, humming her lullabies, and cuddling her like an overbearing hen. Every moment away from those little ears- was a moment spent in agony. It was as if he was her father truly-, but painfully this wasn’t true. That didn’t mean he had to explain, he’d let her- decide.

Jaws wrapped around a white shell, He trotted back to camp with a slight trip every so often- clumsy as he was his webbed toes weren’t meant for running. Camp was bustling and lively as he slipped through the reeds, sweat clinging to his brow. He makes his way to the nursery with ease, but stands rigid as he can’t spot the grey and orange bundle. " where is my girl?-… is she playing with the bigger kits?- she’s too small still " his tone though gentle is clipped and sassy toward Nightshade.

Turning on heel, he spots a few tiny tails making their way toward the river. Two dark-furred warriors in tow. Dogteeth pads to the scene with a blooming smile of pride- she was venturing around on her own?

" Peachy-keen!, what are you doing out here hunnie? " his voice soft a lilted with surprise and warmth. Next to the tall scruffy Clayfur and the towering muscled Hound, Dogteeth was significantly if not comically smaller- " you guys are so sweet for watching her- thank you so much! " he aims to touch his nose to Clayfur’s shoulder then Hound’s. A low purr rumbling from his chest. " you make some cool new friends?…" he whispers as he presses his belly to the ground to be eye-level with her big baby pale-greens. Eyes shifting to Fernkit and Iciclekit in her company. aiming to press a paw to Peachkit’s ear and cheek affectionately.

——༒—— ​

​

 

[CLAYFUR]

Iciclekit never fails to make Clay laugh, with her contrasting excited movements and serious face. And he lets out a small chuckle when she bounds over to them, resisting the urge to bump his forehead to hers. He preens just a bit at the praise from his niece, although she surely has no idea that he really is good at finding things—not necessarily good at finding cats, though. Fernkit also makes his way over, big eyes staring. It’s a slightly creepy stare, but he loves his nephew despite it.

Soon enough they’ve got a little group of cats all looking out for the guy called Dogteeth. Peachkit’s stress is beginning to rub off on Clayfur, and he turns a quick circle to look around before following after her. He’s decided he’s not leaving her side until her missing dad shows himself. "He’s definitely around here somewhere. With all of us looking, we’ll find him in no time!" He almost casts a look to Hound, for his concerning comment, but the other tom corrects himself quickly.

Peachkit leads them from den to den, seeming to get more panicked until they reach the edge of the river. She makes a pitiful little noise that tugs at his chest, makes the tom frown. She has only mentioned a dad, no mom or any other sort of parental figure. Is her Dogteeth the only family she has? He hopes the tom returns soon, because he’s about to start panicking, too.

Clay is still looking around aimlessly, hoping to spot a large cat with an unmistakably fatherly air about him, but he never does. Instead, he’s met with a smaller blonde cat who speaks in what Clayfur can only call a butterfly voice. He looks to Peachkit for a moment, hoping to catch recognition in the kit’s face—a confirmation that this might be her dad. But Dogteeth noses gratefully at he and Hound, then crouches to greet the child, so Clayfur relaxes. "Oh, I didn’t do much," he says slowly, a broad smile on his face. He looks over father and daughter with a warm gaze—he doesn’t see the resemblance, but they make a cute family.

"I think we found her dad," he comments plainly to Fernkit and Iciclekit, turning his grin upon them. "Or he found us, I guess. Thank you two for helping, though. That was very kind of you." He leans down to say it close to their ears, trying to be subtle about his praise.
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[ WHAT'S MY AGE AGAIN? ]​

​

 

[Peachpaw.]

Peachkit turned at the sound of her father's voice, her worry-creased brow softening as Dogteeth's blonde pelt came into view. "Dad!" she chirped, bounding forward to nuzzle against the tom's chest. "Where did you go? I was scared maybe you got lost!" She gave an enthusiastic nod to his observation of her newfound friendships. Turning back to look at them, she quickly realized that maybe her father wasn't quite as big as she had initially thought. Hound and Clayfur were even bigger.

"Thanks for helping me look for my dad!" she chirped to the small group surrounding her. Her worries now quelled, she took her first real, non-panicked look about the camp. After a brief moment of quiet consideration, she said, "It's a lot bigger out here than I thought it'd be. And lots more cats than I thought there were..." Spending most of her time in the nursery and the medicine den had shielded her from the sheer amount of clanmates she had.

"I hope I can remember where stuff is," she said in a smaller voice. "And who everybody is." She looked back out across the river, standing up on her hind legs to see further out.

"That's really far..." she observed. "Wonder how far it goes..."

 

[HOUNDSTRIDE.]

( ᴛᴀɢs. )  ❝  Hound couldn't quite imagine the pull of fatherhood– not the way Dog seemed so keen to feel it, that is. There're those he'd want nothing more than to take care of, but does he see them as children? Foxpaw, Lakepaw– since that moment at the bank, he'd even say there's a pull towards Peachkit. A quiet sort of protectiveness, overbearing as the silence may be. But that wasn't all it took to take care of someone like that, was it? There was far more to a father's love than what Hound could offer any'f them. The thought's as uncomfortable as it is bitter. A strange longing springs up in his chest. No matter how he tries to swallow it down, it's like bile held in the back of his mouth. He clears his throat as if it'd actually clear out of there, and crouches down to be closer to her eye level as she explores. Even then, the tom towers over her. A damn boulder in face of a pebble.

"It's a fair big place, sure, but you'll get bigger too. Maybe we can show you around?" Verdant eyes flicker to Dog for permission, and then Clay and the kitten menagerie to see if they would join in on showing her around. Peach could do with some friends in this grand old world, and Hound finds that he is desperate to soothe that misplaced care. Maybe letting her see this place would settle it, and he'd butt on out like he'd been meant to.

†  ooc notes information †

• 
  ooc: —
• ──── hound. trans male, he/him pronouns only.
  ──── approximately 30 moons old, or 2.5 years.
  ──── bisexual with firm male preference; single.
  
  ──── a chocolate tabby with ( stylized ) low white and intense lime eyes. lean and lanky,  with whiplike musculature and a long, quick stride. hound's notable features include his impressive height, the long scar across the left side of his face from nose to jaw, his very deep, dense fur, and the confident manner with which he conducts himself.
• "speech"

​

 

[Peachpaw.]

Still up on her hind legs craning her neck to see out past the river, Peachkit's ears angled back towards Hound as the chocolate tabby spoke. Lowering herself back down onto all four paws, the fluffy she-kit turned around and beamed up at the bigger cat as he suggested showing her around. "Yes please!" she chirped. It would be much easier figuring out what and where things were with one of the bigger cats there to show her around...and to keep her from getting stepped on.