take care of him, okay? ;; orangeblossom

[Fireflyglow]

Fireflypaw can feel the judgement in the air when Dawnglare is around, knows that he's more trusted because of his heritage and loyalty to his Clan- so why does he feel so unsure of himself? He'd just learned how to help with kitting, he faithfully listens to every hymn, every lesson that the High Priest availed to him. And yet, he still feels so incapable of this job. He did good, though he cried like a baby at Orangeblossom's kitting. It was just so beautiful, to see life being brought into the world.

The sound of kits mewling shortly away catches his attention, and Fireflypaw makes his way over to the nursery only to remember what had happened to it. Snowpath was dead, and now Greeneyes and his siblings would never see their brother's face again. His frown deepens as he approaches her, seating himself right beside the Deputy with a huff. The fallen tree is a rank reminder of how cruel the fates could be.

Nobody was safe in this world.

"How's being a mother?" He asks the deputy with a hum, sliding down to lay beside her. "Do.. Do you want to share tongues?"

@orangeblossom ​

SKYCLAN MEDICINE CAT APPRENTICE ✦ 10 MOONS ✦ CHUNKY, BIG-FOOTED SEAL POINT ✦ TAGS​

 

[Orangestar]

"'Course." Orangeblossom moves over so that Fireflypaw can settle at her side - StarClan above, he's getting big now. Looks like he'd be taking after Blazestar more than Little Wolf in the height category, that's for sure. She laps at a stray piece of fur between the young tom's ears, flattening it into Fireflypaw's proper silhouette, and then answers his first question.

"Motherhood is ... different. Hard, but rewarding. I get why some cats prefer to stay in the nursery, but at the same time I can't wait to get back to my duties ... but knowing the kits will be apprentices soon is hard, too. They're so young, and if we were in RiverClan they'd be apprentices this moon. Bad enough they'll be named 'paws in the next." She shudders, imagining little Eggkit tossed into battle training. Changing the subject, she meows, ""How's your training going?"

— info

•  
• 
  orangeblossom. tags.
  — she/her, skyclan deputy.
  — mentor to eveningpaw.
  — attack in #e08550. uses trees as an integral part of her fighting style.
  — mean enough to note that her thoughts don't reflect my opinions as a writer haha.
  — penned by mercibun; @ me in any official tabbytales discord for plots. :]
  — art by merc!<3
  

​

 

[Fireflyglow]

As he settles in beside Orangeblossom, he accepts the grooming of his messy fur with a soft purr- thankful that the molly wasn't against a little bit of affection here and there. He was almost an adult, after all- but it had been so long since he'd felt a mother's rasp over his head that he nearly falls asleep right then and there. His head bobs for a moment, before he raises his head once again to stay awake. His cheeks flush with embarrassment. Moments like these.. Make him miss Little Wolf all too much.

Orangeblossom answers his question with truth, stating that while rewarding, it was a lot of work being a mother. He can only imagine. Having so many kits around, and being Deputy? It's like the whole Clan are her kits at this point. She worries over their apprenticeship, and Fireflypaw smiles down at her. "They'll be wonderful apprentices, Ora. It might take some time for them to get used to the work, but it'll be rewarding for them in the end." He remembers his apprenticeship before he was chosen by Dawnglare. Huckleberry and Rowanbelly were both admirable mentors, but he wonders idly what he could have been if he hadn't been chosen by the high priest. Could he have been a great Warrior, just like Rain? Could he have become a Leader one day, taking after his father? Ghostly blue eyes shift into the distance, and though he cannot see anything, he wishes he could in these moments. He wishes he could see Mother's greens below him, her blues above. He shakes his head to rid himself of the thought.

He doesn't have to worry much longer, because Orangeblossom has changed the subject to himself. "How's your training going?" She asks, and Fireflypaw laughs softly in response. "I feel like I'm learning at a snail's pace, and when I am learning, I'm making so many mistakes.. Sometimes I wonder if Dawnglare regrets his decision." He chuckles sadly, blinking. "I try to take the initiative sometimes, with the things I do know. But..." He trails off nervously, eyes fluttering closed as his paws knead the ground almost childishly. "..It never feels like it's good enough."​

SKYCLAN MEDICINE CAT APPRENTICE ✦ 11 MOONS ✦ CHUNKY, BIG-FOOTED SEAL POINT ✦ TAGS​

 

[Orangestar]

"Hope so. I'm curious about who Blazestar'll pick to be their mentors, actually." Orangeblossom hums. She entertains herself occasionally with the idea of Slate being paired with the headstrong Cherrykit, but with Howlpaw entering her final moon of training she doesn't know if Blazestar will put another apprentice onto his roster. Maybe Johnnyflame would get Eggkit, someone who could be patient with him and open his eyes to a new world beyond camp; or, maybe, her kits would be the first apprentices of some of their new, promising warriors: Glimmerkit and Figfeather, for example, she thinks would make a good pair.

Lost in thought she rasps between Fireflypaw's ears, slowly working her way down the back of his head. The dark-muzzled kit - he's not a kit anymore, though she's known him for so long that he may as well always be one to her - laughs, rumbling and nervous, and Orangeblossom pauses to listen. She sets her jaw, and her tail flicks with some small agitation, as he describes learning under Dawnglare. Sounds about right. If the crazed tom were ever to take a new apprentice and chose one of her own, Orangeblossom knows she wouldn't be able to stop herself from intervening.

"I don't think you'd remember what Dawnglare was like when SkyClan was first formed, but he's never changed. Nothing is ever good enough unless he does it himself, and it's only ever a mistake if he's not at fault." She's resigned as she says it. He can't see her, not anymore, but she fixes him with a firm ochre gaze, she hopes he can feel the weight of it. "I think you're the best thing that's happened to this Clan, Fireflypaw. That's why I named Glimmerkit after you."

Vividly, she remembers little Fireflypaw with his broken heart, mourning their sister yet purring like a queen and running circles around her when she'd been promoted to deputy. He'd been so carefree back then, or at least far less burdened with the weight of their Clanmates' wellbeing. Six moons in the future Orangeblossom regards him now as a friend, finds herself very aware of his importance as SkyClan's future. But she'd never told them that about Glimmerkit. The reason behind her daughter's naming had been kept private all this time, likely attributed to some of the paler spots on her pelt and the way it seems to dance in the sunlight as she's grown, but Orangeblossom had always had a reason for it.

— info

•  
• 
  orangeblossom. tags.
  — she/her, skyclan deputy.
  — mentor to eveningpaw.
  — attack in #e08550. uses trees as an integral part of her fighting style.
  — mean enough to note that her thoughts don't reflect my opinions as a writer haha.
  — penned by mercibun; @ me in any official tabbytales discord for plots. :]
  — art by merc!<3
  

​