private Mamma's broken heart ⚜ Marbleleaf

[Duckshimmer]

*+:｡.｡ "M-Marbleleaf" a weak voice breaks through the peaceful quiet of an undisturbed night. It feels almost treasonous, shattering the voiceless tune of midnight's motherly lullaby. Unfortunately, Marbleleaf would need to be Shadowclan's martyr if she didn't prefer to let Duckshimmer wake the entire camp with...well..."I'm pregnant" she cuts straight to the chase, too exhausted to play coy as she slips trembling paws into the nearest nest and promptly collapses. It's not the comfiest bed - she much prefers the one she'd hurriedly abandoned in the warrior's den. Half a mind encourages her to complain to Marbleleaf - how a medicine cat could proudly display such an unflattering lump of grass for her injured patients was beyond her!
Or perhaps, even a bed made of swan feathers and sheep's wool would've still felt like thorns upon a feverish head and aching stomach. My, how her stomach ached. "I suppose I should've realized it when every pathetic little thing had me falling apart like some mewling kit" she weeps, cringing into her nest as another wave of nausea threatens to ruin her already sullied reputation further. Mewling kits...damn it all. "Suppose I am one - idiotic enough to be a damn newborn - Stars, what was I thinking?" Perhaps it was foolish of her to vent to a woman barely old enough to have left the nursery herself...but if you can't be honest with your medic, who can you be? She snickers at the thought, wishing her upturned cheeks were currently moistened by one too many warm droplets.
"Oh well, I suppose it's better late than never for you to have some experience delivering life on your own, yes?" she looks up from swallowing back another wave of rolling sick, before trailing her gaze to a familiar spot in the medicine den. This time, she doesn't bother stopping the quiet tears that flow. Oh Starlingheart, I wonder if it would've been less daunting if you were here, a selfish thought when she knew poor Marbleleaf was probably longing for the same.
As if on cure, her stomach kicks with a life too cruel and strong to be the worms themselves - "Darling, please point out a good spot to -" she swallows thickly, closing her eyes for a beat before spitting out, "-Lose last night's dinner, unless you're alright with it dampening your tacky little patient's nest" pressing a paw to her mouth, she chokes a final line, "although I'm sure it would be an improvement" Was she being harsh? Duckshimmer didn't think so. Who in their right mind would be so attached to their nest-making skills they'd be offended by a pathetic woman's whining?

Oh, well, now she's crying again at the thought.

*+:｡.｡ Updated 6/5/24

• 
  GENERAL:
  ⚜ Duckshimmer
  ⚜ DFAB— She/Her — Bisexual
  ⚜ 33 moons — Ages 1 moon every month real-time
  ⚜ Mother to Singepaw, Swallowpaw and Sneezepaw
  ⚜ Shadowclan — Warrior
  
  
  
  
  
  COMBAT:
  ⚜Physically medium | mentally hard
  ⚜ Attack in bold #ffa98f
  injuries: None currently

 

[MARBLELEAF]

Marbleleaf is not asleep, though the camp is quiet and still, but for Duckshimmer's trembling approach. She had been in her nest feigning slumber for only an hour or so before the warrior's entrance, and so when she rises amidst the moss and bracken, it is with clear, round eyes and an alert expression. It's just on the tip of her tongue to ask Duckshimmer what's ailing her when the older she-cat beats her to the punch: "I'm pregnant." The medicine cat's fur prickles at the despairing expression, the defeated tone, the way Duckshimmer all but collapses into one of the empty sickbeds.

Duckshimmer is an experienced queen; her first litter is older than Marbleleaf herself. She thinks of Singeglare, Swallowflutter, and Sneezeduck, wondering what their thoughts are on the matter. It's different, she argues with herself, than Lilacfur choosing to adopt kits and sequestering herself in the nursery with them. Duckshimmer acts as though she's had no choice in this matter, acts as though the world is stretching thin before her ice-chip eyes. At twelve moons, Marbleleaf feels woefully inept in the tortoiseshell queen's presence.

This is a burden I will never bear. Marbleleaf kneads the earth with her forepaws until they are dust-colored. But Starlingheart had that experience. She could have related to Duckshimmer. Could have comforted her. When the medicine cat parts their jaws to offer something helpful, only this comes out: "How long have you known?" She hadn't noticed, but then... the earliest signs of pregnancy elude her still. Starlingheart could have sensed the gentle changes in a cat's figure, in their scent, temperament, but Marbleleaf... well... she had relied so heavily on her mentor to detect those things, hadn't she?

The pale tawny healer pads closer, though she stops short of Duckshimmer's nest. It's hardly appropriate, she feels, to offer the mourning queen any physical comfort. "I suppose it's better late than never for you to have some experience delivering life on your own, yes?" Despite her emotional turmoil, Duckshimmer's voice is serrated. Marbleleaf blinks, her gaze drifting to her paws. "I watched Starlingheart do it many times." And that's true. Ternstar, Ashenfall, Lilacfur's surrogate... Marbleleaf straightens, willing some strength into her spine. "You had a healthy litter before. We'll make sure this one is, too."

It isn't long before Duckshimmer is wracked with sickness; with forced humor, she begs for a spot to empty the contents of her stomach. Marbleleaf nods toward the corner of the den. "I'll clean it up when you're done. You get out what you need to and then rest. I'll get you some ragweed." It would do nothing to ease her anxious stomach, but it would help her regain her strength, and she sounds like she would need it for the tumultuous moons to come.

She turns and rummages through her stores, procuring one of precious few ragweed leaves. It's scent is soft and pleasant; she pushes the tendril toward Duckshimmer after she finishes being sick, murmuring, "It doesn't taste bad, and it'll help you keep your strength up."

… ❞​

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