say it again, my johnny .. batwing

[hazecloud]

The heaping rush of adrenaline had since faded after the bridge fiasco. Coaxing the other Clans to listen, to trust they wouldn't plummet below just because they could had been a hardy battle all on its own. With the addition of several rescue missions, Hazecloud was ready to proudly boast about their endeavors to Cicadastar already. That they had been the sole saviors to the journey's continuation, that they had showcased RiverClan's mercy when they could have continued without them.

As full as she was with pride, Hazecloud was careful to be quieter about it. She was not one to boast arrogantly, she knew her Clanmates efforts were undeniably critical to their cause. Still, it excited her all the more to get back home.

After continuing the day's travel it had come to an agreement to rest. Finally. Even if it was just a short one, her aching paws would rejoice in it. While the other's split into their own little groups, Hazecloud kept to herself in a sunny patch between the forest canopy. She brushed away the leaf litter to clear the spot and quickly tucked all four paws beneath her. Her gentle gaze swept over the clusters from all five Clans, deep in her own thoughts before she noticed someone approaching her. She looked up, a ThunderClanner she determined, and curled her tail closely to her side.

"Um, hi there." She greeted mildly, unsure of what his intentions.

-- @batwing ​

 

[batwing]

.i'll be your calm, —————————

————————— before the storm!.

▵ ———————— ◮ ———————— ▵

The bridge was.. well, definitely not a bright spot for him. After the fiasco, and making sure the cats that had swam weren't going to die of cold or something akin to that, they had continued to trek on for a bit. Riverclan didn't have to help them. They could have let those cats drown, but maybe Starclan would have been worse for it. His eyes lifted to the pattern of stars above their head, slowly peaking free from the light of day, thoughts churning.

And when his vision returned to the group as they settled, he watched Hazecloud found herself head towards a small patch of sunlight. His ears perked. Without too much thought, Batwing approached, his tail sweeping behind him briefly. She spoke first, causing Batwing pause- he blinked, tilted his head, then cleared his throat. She got the jump on you, Batwing. Take it easy. "Hi. You were... pretty admirable, out there today." Batwing stated.

He had taken her spot- and another Riverclanner's?- as they plunged into the water. Despite being focused on keeping the bridge up and steady for the rest of the clans alongside Riverclanners, he knew damn well what they were doing. He tilted his head, then offered a tiny smile. A genuine one. "Do you mind if I sit? A little chat, if that's okay. My name is Batwing." He introduced himself, gesturing to a small spot to her side.

"speech"​

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[hazecloud]

As Batwing came closer she began to recognize his features better. The scars the lined over crisp green eyes that mirrored her own and streaks of pale fur that cradled his cheeks. Recognition flashed images of the tom that had taken the twining threads of rope from her and Iciclefang to aid them, and she allowed some relief to the tension in her frame.

She must have forgotten to thank him, and that alone made her sheepishly turn her gaze down. His honeyed words continue to abash her, but she doesn't fault him. If anything, she's surprised at the compliment at all. Plenty had been prepared to be thrown in their distrust.

"That's kind of you to say, thank you." Hazecloud's response is more formal than she wanted but its a poor habit. She often only spoke with the neighboring Clans on patrols, brief interactions to pass politeness before returning home. Should she treat this no differently? Much like where they were now, its territory she hasn't come across before.

"Oh, yes of course! There's enough sun to go around. My name's Hazecloud, and thank you for helping us Batwing. Your help really counted when we had to save the others." There, she's thanked him, and she's sincere in every word. Without the extra help Dovethroat would have been holding down the rope all by himself.

"Have you been fairing well on our travels so far? I imagined it to be different, but I've been enjoying where we've crossed." She shuffled aside to make room for him beside her so they didn't have to sit so closely. Pelt-to-pelt with someone outside her Clan was not exactly within her comforts, but she would never back out from the joys of idle chatter. Its already felt like ages since Hazecloud last exchanged a good talk.​

 

[batwing]

.i'll be your calm, —————————

————————— before the storm!.

▵ ———————— ◮ ———————— ▵

She relaxed upon his approach. He was glad to see that, after all. He knew her vision rested over his cheeks- the very thing that had caused him heartache and distrust for moons. Thoughts danced of Leopardtongue in the back of his mind, but he swept over them quietly, and as he settled down near her- notably not touching for reasons similar to her own- a smile found his face as he peered upon Hazecloud. The embarrassment, the slight shyness in reaction to his statement, caused him a bit of a fuzzy feeling.

"No need to thank me, you know." He responded, light-hearted in tone. There wasn't any reason to thank him- after all, it was the truth about what he felt. At her compliment, he could have felt his skin flush if he wasn't focused on the conversation. His ears twitched, the smile widening onto a grin on his features. "You're welcome. It's going to take all of us to make it up there, won't it? It's best we work together." He responded warmly, green eyes meeting hers directly now.

There wasn't some trick to his words- he was earnest in every sense of the word. He really did truly believe it was going to take all of them to accomplish this mission. Each clan had it's tricks and strengths, and thrown in together, they were stronger for it. "Fairing well?" Batwing repeated, and he tilted his head, looking back towards home briefly. "If I'm honest, my sleep pattern is back to being as bad as it was a few moons ago." He said, chuckling to himself. Really, the admission wasn't funny, but he wasn't held down by the thought.

"I could do without the water, but that's just me. I'm sure you're of opposite opinion, coming from Riverclan and all." Batwing said, vision turning to look towards her again. He was very lightly teasing, the smile on his face good-natured but a bit coy. "How about yourself? Doing alright with the chaos so far?" Chaos was a word for it. The two-leg camp, the Thunderpath. All events that had been a little crazy to think about in hindsight.

"speech"​

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[hazecloud]

His response his humble as her own and she found Batwings presence even more enjoyable than before. It's a pleasant change from her original image of most the ThunderClanner's present. There is no arrogance in his words, no overbearing confidence that demands her attention. What he says is simple, a promise he would have helped regardless of the cats at the end of the rope. She found this fact about Batwing rather charming.

"That's very true. I don't think we'll get far if we only act for our own out here." StarClan had demanded cats from all five Clans for a reason, right? They wouldn't survive without work from each of them, and they would simply have to place their hatred for one another aside. Hazecloud would admit it was certainly harder to set aside her distrust for specific cats than others. WindClan had no allies back home or out here, they attack the private dens of their neighbors, what would stop that habit from their warriors out here?

Batwing's chuckle is contagious, already charmed she joined with her own giggling. Hazecloud found no surprise though, it was hard to sleep in so many different places. Not much familiarity at every stop. Always the thread of predators lurking by.

"You'd be surprised, there's even cats in RiverClan that share the same as you. You could've been bringing home birds and mice, just with a few more odd stares." Drypaws they called them. Occasionally an overcompensating apprentice would forget their place and scorn their land-loving Clanmates, but just as quickly they learned why Drypaws had their place. "I think..." Actually, she hadn't thought about it until now. So busy conducting herself as capable in the eyes of her younger Clanmates and those of higher rank of the other Clans. Hazecloud had pushed away so much fear, so much doubt, so much discomfort- how was she feeling?

"Exhausted." Was it too early in their travels to admit? "I wasn't expecting to be the most senior of my Clan to come here and, well... it's intimidating. I'm not strong like Slate or Smogmaw. I don't have natural authority like Scorchstreak or Nightbird. I'm just..." Me. But she wasn't trying to minimize her place among them. "My strengths are easily overshadowed, I feel. I've been trying to catch up but it's harder than I thought." ​

 

[batwing]

.i'll be your calm, —————————

————————— before the storm!.

▵ ———————— ◮ ———————— ▵

Batwing's head nodded in return to her sentiment- well, one that they shared now that he thought upon it. Starclan intended for them all to go, so they all went. But a different noise distracted him from deep-plunged thoughts of clan politics- her giggle. His eyes shifted back towards her, a wide grin settling on his muzzle. That was a noise that could set a soul alight with joy, he reckoned. He pushed the sentiment down a moment later. She was from Riverclan. That couldn't be possible.

His ears perked at her statement. Curiosity and interest overtook him. "Really? Huh." Batwing's head tilted gently. "I've gotta update what I have in my head, then." He said warmly, that grin still a smile on his face now. Tail swayed evenly behind him, vision turning back towards the rest of the cats again. She grew quiet, and his head inclined. She was about to say something that he shouldn't force out of her, he reckoned.

Despite how thick between the ears he was sometimes, he had some brain for keeping other cats comfortable in conversation with him. His tail still as she admitted to being exhausted, and he looked back towards her now. "You've been doing wonderful- at least, from what I've seen." He said softly. "You don't need strength or authority for your clan to look up to you." Batwing said. That smile was still on his face, good-natured and earnest.

He looked back over the cats. "I'm afraid of losing somecat up on that mountain. Even if Nightbird has authority or Flamewhisker responsibility, they're both cats I trust to lead us through the Journey." Batwing paused for a heartbeat, trying to fix the right words onto his tongue. "I guess what I'm getting at is they have experience I don't. A... wise disposition, that being the most senior will get you." Another thought touched him.

Batwing looked towards Hazecloud. "You shouldn't feel alone in all of this, either. Just as your clan looks up to you, they can help support you, too." He murmured, his tone softening.

"speech"​

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[hazecloud]

Batwings reassurance shouldn't be responsible for so much weight lifting from her shoulders, but it was nice to hear. Especially from one who only saw RiverClan from the outside, not knowing anything about the cats that made up their group of volunteers. She is relieved somewhat and his tone, sounding so sincere, it rings like it's the truth.

I should believe it too. Pretending would do no help- if she really had been pretending all this time it might as well be real now, right? Her own labyrinth of encouragement amused her enough to keep her smile across her silvery maw. It only faltered as he moved on to voice his own fears on their trip, fears she shared just as well.

Promises to keep her Clanmates rang as she fell into her sleep and stirred her awake. Mosspaw, her former Lead Warrior's kit and the youngest of their ranks, yet brought a wonderful, youthful creative mind. Lakemoon who she shared history with in the Marsh Colony, though she had been much younger than, her knowledge beyond the river was just as crucial as her own. Iciclefang, proving so much potential, earning the reputation as one of RiverClan's youngest to graduate. A mutual level of respect held between the two mollies and, if Hazecloud was entirely honest, she relied on Iciclefang's confidence to supply her own.

"We do balance all our own strengths and weaknesses." Hazecloud hummed, thinking back to Fernpaw's idea for them to even pull the bridge over in the first place. "So were you born naturally knowing the right things to say? I'm jealous." She turned back to tease. "Think you could teach me? I don't think I'd mind keeping a ThunderClanner as company if its you."

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