camp Promise me you'll hold me // exploring

[Whitekit]

"MOMMA!" The scream broke past pale lips as the ivory coloured kit sat bolt upright in the warm nest in the nursery. His blue eyes were wide with panic as he failed to process where he was at first. No warm twoleg den, not anymore. Of course, he was in SkyClan now. The memories of all that had occurred gently flooded back into his mind; being dumped like rubbish, being found by the patrol, and being homed in the clan. Life had been quite the ride for Snowy for the past few days and adjustment had come slowly. Since his arrival he had primarily just slept, though given all that he had been through it was understandable that he would be so exhausted.

Tentatively, the kit strayed from the nest and he stumbled through the gloom towards the nursery's entranceway. Curiosity was finally beginning to take hold as he beheld the world outside. Surely Butterflytuft wouldn't be upset if he took a quick look around, right? He already knew not to stray outside the place that was called a 'camp', that warning had been drummed in already. Swallowing deeply, he mustered up the courage to step into the daylight. He reckoned that it was late morning by now judging from the intensity of the light.

After meandering past the other dens he soon reached the tree stump in the heart of the camp. Snowy's eyes widened with fascination as he rested his forepaws against the side of it, feeling the texture with his toes. With some effort and difficulty, he soon managed to climb up to the top and was rewarded with the feel of the sun warmed surface beneath him. "Oooh... that's nice." He cooed as he sprawled out on his side in order to soak up the heat.
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[TWITCHBOLT]

The shout, and subsequent flurry of footsteps, that burst from such a tiny body... well, Twitchbolt was certainly surprised. Olivine eyes flickered at the movement, and he nearly broke his neck swivelling to follow the kitten. Stars, if he had to catch a kit- and it'd be embarrassing if Snowy could end up outrunning him, but he was sure that wouldn't happen.

Thankfully though, he didn't go flying out of camp and straight into a fox's open mouth, as Twitchbolt had briefly and irrationally feared... no, he was merely beelining to the centre of camp, where the tree stump lay in wait. He allowed his bristled to settle into clumped quills instead, and began to meander over, slowing the pace of odd paws to a stroll. Seeing the kit settle, his crooked tail flicked with some flare of satisfaction. Stars knew where he'd come from, what memories settled in the back of his head, but it was encouraging he could find peace here.

"Y-You've got the climbing skills of a Skyclanner already, Snowy," Twitchbolt purred, his brittle tone blessed with a sort of brightness. A wobbly but sincere smile took its place on his maw. Anything ... anything to just be a good force in a kit's life. It was a grace he would always give to their young, for it had always been given to him.​

penned by pin ✧​

 

[Owlheart]

It's never great to hear a kit shout, even if it's from glee which she suspected might not be the case in this situation. Similar to Twitchbolt she was rendered speechless as she watched the kit practically fly across camp from how fast those paws carried him. There was no thought that he might keep on running until he left camp, the fact that she hadn't considered this might be something that Owlheart finds herself dwelling on later but for right now she just watched with interest. Thankfully Snowy just finds his way up the trunk in the middle of the camp clearing, seemingly with little effort, maybe that was part of the adrennaline from whatever had caused him to shout?

Either way it was impressive, she finds herself wandering towards the tree stump that she, much like the other Skyclanners had when they were kits, attempted to climb. There's nostalgia here to see a kit conquer such a feat, even if she doesn't know him nor does he look similar enough to her to even envision herself doing the same. It was just an impressive show of young untrained skill, as such she can only nod in agreement to Twitchbolt's assessment. "Are you alright?" She finds herself asking as she looks back over at the nursery, a concerned frown present before she begins to worry that the kit may think she's frowning at him.

"I could show you where other nice spots for the sun is around camp, if you would like" she actively tries to remember to smile, pushing aside the concerns over what had happened in the nursery. Surely one of the queens would have followed him out if there was something deeply troubling there, maybe she could ask Oddgleam later?

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[Whitekit]

The warmth he felt in that moment combined with the dulled muffled sounds of the camp put the youth entirely at ease in that moment, a stark contrast to how he had felt when he had woken that day. Snowy needed it, just a moment of calm to steady his nerves. But as he opened his eyes he was startled to his feet by the sight of the warriors who had wandered over to check on him. The small tom bristled as he whipped round to face Twitchtail and Owlheart with wide eyes that betrayed his sense of unease. If he hadn't been on an elevated surface he might have chose to run instead.

His right ear angled forward sharply as he tried to tune in on the words being said, and he honestly felt his face heat up under Twitchtail's compliment. Snowy didn't really think he was an impressive climber, and certainly nothing like the SkyClanners. He had grown up using cat trees in the twoleg home, and he had especially adored the one that had been next to the window since the higher ledges had given him a good view of the world outside. "I... um... thanks. Used to climb the soft trees." Snowy wasn't sure how best to describe the things beyond that. They had looked like trees but had been much softer.

Snowy found himself crouching low again and he kept eye contact to a minimum, primarily focusing on watching the other cat's mouths. "I'm okay, I just... you know, memories." Snowy didn't really want to delve too deeply into it. He didn't want to admit that he missed his home and his family as badly as he did. Thankfully a lifeline was laid out as the offer to see the other sunspots was extended to him. The white kit nodded his head as he eased his way closer to the edge of the stump, but he didn't leap down. Getting up had been the easier part, but getting down was a different matter. There was no soft carpet or lower platforms to climb down to here. Shuffling himself round, he then scooted down the side of the stump with an awkward backward shuffle until he managed to reach the ground.
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[TWITCHBOLT]

"Soft trees?" Twitchbolt repeated, a tilt of his head. Stars, it must be a Twoleg thing ... what, they kept mutated trees inside their dens? There'd been nothing like that in the Shelter. Cold steel, aritificial moss, slop for food... yeah, he'd had enough of that for a lifetime. When Snowy murmured memories, but did not elaborate[/i], Twitchbolt found himself inwardly agreeing. There wouldn't be use wallowing ... especially not for a kit, who would end up wallowing about his whole, short life.

Owlheart extended a kind offer, and Twitchbolt looked to her with a quivering but enuine smile, green eyes kind. Attention flicked between the two, but stayed steadfast upon Snowy when the little tom began to shuffle toward the edge of the stump, uncertainty flickering in his eyes.

The part of Twitchbolt that loved to climb wished to instruct him, but he held himself back- allowed the young tom's instincts to take over. And they were good instincts, truly! "Wow, you even knew t-to go down backward!" Twitchbolt congratulated, genuinely impressed- it was clear in his voice. "Y'know, I've- I've had apprentices who haven't known that." ​

penned by pin ✧​

 

[Oleanderkit]

Mama! Oleanderkit blinks awake, heart hammering with alarm. Not really the way she likes to start her days, but... her pallid gaze finds Snowy, who is alight with panic, and she flops back onto her side. Not her problem, really. She's done all the adjusting of being a new arrival — there isn't a way to make it easier, she doesn't think. To be ripped from one life and placed in a new one. To have a new name, and new friends, and new territory; to be expected to learn new skills, and uphold new values, and act right without knowing all the rules. It had made her scream like that, too, at first. Best to let it work itself out.

But then he scoots out of his nest, departing for who-knows-where, doing who-knows-what. Oleander lifts her head again to follow him with her eyes, and then with her body. She lingers at the mouth of the nursery. She isn't keen on joining in until she watches Snowy scale the sunning stump like it's easy. Oh, it boils her blood; she doesn't know why, but it does. Budkit had struggled with that stump for so long, and Oleander herself has only scaled it once successfully. Maybe she'll be better at it now, at four moons old, but Snowy shouldn't get the hang of it so easily. He should be struggling. He's not from here. He needs to... to work harder, she thinks.

She bounces towards them finally, blue eyes flashing hungrily. She slots herself in at Twitchbolt's side, but her focus is with Snowy. He speaks of soft trees, of memories, and Oleander's tail lashes behind her. Maybe they would all mistake it for playfulness; after all, she is quite happy to have another peer in her midst. Still, something in her wants to tear it down. She cannot understand why, not yet, and so tries to chart her course in a new direction.

"Memories? I wanna hear," the kitten chimes, smile like feather down. Her own memories of her life before SkyClan are sparse, and not entirely unpleasant, though they fade and warp all the time. She flicks an ear, instinctually dismissing Twitchbolt's praise of the new kit from her mind. Her head tilts like a marionette. "'Cause, like, you're so good at climbing, it'd be fun to know why. Did someone teach you?"

𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋, 𝐒𝐊𝐈𝐍, 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇, 𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐀𝐓 𓆱 . ݁˖ . ݁𓆸

• ooc.
  
• OLEANDERKIT —— kit of skyclan . lovage x laurel . littermate to birchkit and mercurykit ✦ penned by meghan
  
  ✦ a willowy silver blue ticked torbie with low white and seafoam eyes. lonerborn, oleander struggles to learn the ropes of clan life while coping with anxiety and past trauma. may seem strange, and has unconventional hobbies.
  ✦ girl / she her pronouns / undiscovered sexuality / 04 moons & ages every 20th
  ✦ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / underline & tag account when attacking
  —— will not start fights / will flee / will show mercy. a mere kitten, she cannot defend herself in battle.
  
  ✦ "speech", thoughts, all opinions are in character
  ✦ full biography — msg on discord for plots — toyhouse
  

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[Whitekit]

Snowy looked bewildered under the praise that came from Twitchbolt. In all honesty he wasn’t used to it, but he genuinely liked it. A small smile wormed its way across his features as he looked to the deputy. ”Thanks. Maybe I can be a SkyClanner after all.” It was a pleasant thought and it gave him a slither of hope.

Though his moment of warmth was cut short with Oleanderkit’s arrival. The smile sank away as he looked at her with sudden unease as his brief moment of pride was unravelled so easily by her probing inquiry. Did someone teach you? The words cut like a knife as the memories were dredged up to the surface. Sweet days of chasing his mother up the cat tree played out in his head. Her beautiful fur glowing so tantalisingly in the light that streamed in through the window, and his name flowed from her lips like a song as she tried to coax him into trying to climb.

Snowy hadn’t realised that he had been giving everyone the thousand-yard stare whilst he had been lost in his own head. The kit had been breathing hard and erratically the whole time, to the point where his sides were beginning to ache and his throat felt uncomfortably tight. He didn’t like this feeling, he wanted it to stop! A whimper finally broke from him as he shrank down low. ”Momma…”
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