LITTLE STAR ✦ GRAYPAW

[EVENINGPAW]

Night falls like it always does, and under its cover, Eveningpaw tries to be Graypaw's crutch again.

The past few days have been... a blur, to say the least. Tragedy has struck RiverClan, and the shock of it all has left them all scrambling for a sense of normalcy, much to Eveningpaw's dismay. Lichenstar had called for a Clan meeting, the one that was supposed to be such a good one. It still was — Graypaw finally received his apprentice name —, but the sadness has refused to lift from him since that day. (She dares not to call it anything more specific. It is like a wound, raw and bleeding and impossibly painful.)

Eveningpaw has plastered herself to his side since then. Just like she promised, Graypaw's new nest has been carefully placed beside her own, and just like he suggested, his little gift adorns her own bedding. There is a bond here, she thinks — their friendship had blossomed from the moment they looked at one another, and she does not intend to let it wilt underneath all this heavy grief.

She keeps him company to keep it at bay. Despite everything, Eveningpaw is not naive enough to think it is enough, but she believes there is something useful in their late-night endeavors. They talk about this and that, or nothing at all; Graypaw is the one who sets the pace, and Eveningpaw dutifully follows.

"I spy with my little eye..." she whispers, eyes rolling over his outline — that dark fur has a way of blending into the night. "A... uhm... that your time is nigh!" The rhyming word finally comes around, and with it, Eveningpaw moves; her rollover is all for show, dramatic and sluggish as she wraps all limbs around Graypaw in an attempt to cheer him up.

@Graypaw

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[Graypaw]

He tries to find reasons to be happy. His mother is his mentor, his aunt looks brighter and happier than he had ever seen her in the nursery, and Eveningpaw had saved him a spot next to her, just as he had promised. All of these things melt away at the grief, at the guilt, but only a little. It is not enough to make him forget, to absolve him of his crimes. When he drops his nest into that empty space there is a tiny voice in his head whispering do I deserve this?

It is easy around her though. Easy for the corners of his mouth to lift into a smile, easy for him to talk about nothing and everything, easy for him to crack jokes. In the days following his ceremony he has become addicted to the sound of laughter, to the brightness of others that he so desperately wants to find in himself again. And Eveningpaw is probably the brightest cat he knows.

When she wraps her paws around him he ragdolls, letting her roll on top of him in a tangle of limbs and laughter. "Oh really?" he says from his spot on the ground, on his back, "And where did you spy that huh?" he makes no move to push her off, to move, but he does reach up with a paw to bat at her head softly, playfully "And what if I told you your rhyme is a crime?"

( ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ ) I can feel you leaving

• 
  
  
• 
  GRAYKIT RIVERCLAN KITTEN ; HE / HIM
  LILYBLOOM X LAKEMOON BROTHER TO SNOWKIT
  

  A plush coated kitten with a pelt marbled in varying shades of gray and white. He has dull green eyes and a tall stature. Most of his personality can be described as carefree though some also say that unmotivated is a more than apt term. His trust and love is easily won through praise but he will do little work to receive it.

  ✶ easy in battle + no formal training
  

 

[EVENINGPAW]

"Where- umm..." Eveningpaw is clearly at a loss of words, staring up at Graypaw with wide eyes as she flounders for something to say. There is no good comeback though, not when she's backed herself into a corner with that rhyme, and he knows it. He does not move away even as their fur intertwines, and he saves her from having to come up with another witty response — maybe willingly or not, does not matter. "Then I'd say that's not very nice!"

The smile on her maw stays, ensuring for Graypaw that she is merely joking. He is a sensitive soul; an evident fact ever since the two of them met for the first time. He reminds her a little of Horizonpaw... but the two toms are different to Eveningpaw despite that, with one being a dearly beloved sibling and the other- something else. Best friend, maybe?

Eveningpaw shifts to lay on her side again. It is decisively not to get away from him — in fact, she stays just as close, whiskers brushing his side as she moves. It's just considerably easier to talk about more serious stuff when his face is not upside down from her point of view. "Feeling any better? If not, just think about how cool it will be to hunt and train together. Maybe you should try to finish your training early so we can become warriors together! Grayheart, for all this," she signs the encouragement, one paw poking the lightest part of his chest.
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[Graypaw]

A soft laugh escapes from his jaws, his eyes crinkling at the corners as a warm smile takes over his features. In her company, it is so easy to forget. She says his rhyme isn't very nice, but he knows it's all in good fun, her words meant to tease more than anything else. If Eveningpaw was ever just one thing, it was not mean-spirited. She moves away and as she does he rolls over so that his belly is no longer facing upwards, turning so that they are only a whisker length apart, so that he can look into those golden-sunset colored eyes and wonder if she was doing the same as him, looking at his features and trying to memorize every detail - just in case. A lesson he had learned so terribly early on in his life, how easily the ones you cared about could be ripped from your paws.

He blinks as a question directed towards him is spoken. Feeling any better? his immediate thought is No. The pain had not stopped for him, even now. He had taken that stupid rock and in a fit of anger he had cast it into the river, and then when that had not been enough he had scoured the camp for any and every loose rock he could find and he had cast those into the river as well. It would never be enough when his paws were still stained with blood whenever he closed his eyes. But here, in the safety of the apprentices den with his best friends fur brushing against his, it almost feels like it could be "If not, just think about how cool it will be to hunt and train together. Maybe you should try to finish your training early so we can become warriors together! Grayheart, for all this,". He wishes he could tell her how much those words meant to him in that moment, that she still saw the good in him was impossible in his mind and yet.. "Grayheart..." he echoes, voice nearly cracking over the words. Somehow, he doesn't think Eveningpaw's mother would agree but he does not say so, instead he opts to direct the conversation away from himself "And what about you?" he asks, the corners of his mouth once again lifting up into a smile " What do you think your warrior name will be?" Eveningheart for her would be good too, she certainly had one big enough for the both of them. But somehow, he thinks, there was something else... "What about Eveningwish?" he proposes, green eyes shining in the dim light of the apprentices den. Wish was a word that was fitting, he thinks. Whimsical, bright, hopeful. She deserved to be named something good.

( ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ ) modern dream let down ✶⋆.˚

• 
  
  
• 
  GRAYPAW RIVERCLAN APPRENTICE ; HE / HIM
  LILYBLOOM X LAKEMOON BROTHER TO EAGLEPAW ; MENTORED BY LAKEMOON
  

  A plush coated apprentice with a pelt marbled in varying shades of gray and white. He has dull green eyes and a tall stature. Most of his personality can be described as carefree though some also say that unmotivated is a more than apt term. His trust and love is easily won through praise but he will do little work to receive it.

  ✶ easy in battle + no formal training
  

 

[EVENINGPAW]

Eveningpaw intently watches Graypaw turn that possible new name over in his head. It is quite fitting... perhaps heart is a common one, but why fix something that's not broken, right? She awaits the day she receives her own, the excitement of reaching warriorhood only sharpened by the knowledge that it will be her own mother who will pick it for her. If all goes well, she would take that into the grave with her one day.

She nods to herself with certainty; Graypaw seems satisfied. This naming thing might not be so hard... it must be the most fun part of being a leader.

Graypaw does not hesitate to turn the question onto her, then. It catches her a little off-guard — apprenticeship had felt like a lifetime away, let alone the next big step. The idea might be exciting, but it is far enough for her to not think about it. Yet. "There are so many possibilities..." And then- "Eveningwish?"

It is not one that follows after Lichentail or Hazecloud. It is not something Eveningpaw would have thought of herself, probably... but she finds it to be near perfect. "That sounds so pretty," she admits, eyes glimmering with all the stars that her namesake usually does.

"I wish for..." Eveningpaw starts, inspired by her possible warrior name, but trails off just as quick. I wish I could turn back time. Graypaw is smiling now. She is making him happy, but it is terrible to think he would turn sour again tomorrow, when he sees the nursery and the startling lack of Streamkit there. No, it would be foolish to remind him of that now. Eveningpaw opts for something better; a predictable one, too, but Graypaw hungers as much for reasurrance as Eveningpaw thirsts for the act of giving. "...our friendship to stay forever."
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[Graypaw]

Truly, he is glad she likes it. She repeats it back, the name sounding even more right when it falls from her tongue. It's pretty she says and he only nods in agreement while at the same time he thinks it would be difficult, impossible even, to give his friend a name that made her ugly. She could be named Fishguts or something equivocally disgusting and it would still sound like poetry to his ears as long as it was her who was associated with it. He doubts her own mother would ever be so cruel. Perhaps she would be Eveningshine, Eveningsun, anything to highlight that bright personality. "I think whatever your name is, and whatever my name is, we'll still be friends" he says, amusement making his whiskers twitch ever so slightly. He does not reveal what other name he had been thinking.

"How about we make a promise" he says, suddenly overwhelmed by the rush of pain in his chest at the thought that they would ever find themselves drifting apart "A promise to each other" he clarifies "to always be friends no matter what" A promise he would keep for his entire life, he's certain, and one Eveningpaw would keep too. "I promise you Eveningpaw to always be there for you no matter what, to not let any silly adult stuff get between us, and no matter what happens you will always have a friend in me" he vows, face serious as he looks into those golden sun-hued eyes.

( ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ ) modern dream let down ✶⋆.˚

• 
  
  
• 
  GRAYPAW RIVERCLAN APPRENTICE ; HE / HIM
  LILYBLOOM X LAKEMOON BROTHER TO EAGLEPAW ; MENTORED BY LAKEMOON
  

  A plush coated apprentice with a pelt marbled in varying shades of gray and white. He has dull green eyes and a tall stature. Most of his personality can be described as carefree though some also say that unmotivated is a more than apt term. His trust and love is easily won through praise but he will do little work to receive it.

  ✶ easy in battle + no formal training
  

 

[EVENINGPAW]

"A promise?" Just like that, Graypaw grabs her attention — he already had it, to be fair, but Eveningpaw sits up a little straighter now. She has a feeling his next words will be important enough to warrant even more focus.

Then, she scoffs; it is a light-hearted sound, amused rather than mean-spirited. "Well, that's gonna be easy! But making that into a promise sounds fair." Perhaps this is how StarClan feels when they bless the decisions of mortals... when they grant leaders their nine lives, or when they send signs to approve of future medicine cats. Eveningpaw deems this to be something just as official, a moment shared just between them... except the entire world will know, for their pawsteps are always destined to line up.

"I promise you, Graypaw, to be your bestest friend and to never leave you for a thing!" Unlike Graypaw, Eveningpaw finds it difficult to keep a straight face. She takes this vow just as seriously, but the joy threatens to overwhelm her, forcing a tooth to peek out from her smile as a result. "And you will always have a friend in me, too."
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