sensitive topics THAT'S WHAT YOU GET ⋆⁺₊ ☾ ⁺₊⋆ FOR LIVING IN YOUR HEAD

[Swansong]

Everything went perfectly. Ternstar spoke her name like a prayer, dripping with reverence. She is the spirits' voice, with her own seat upon their chosen leader's council. A guide and a careful watcher, ensuring their will is carried out properly. The satisfaction thrums through her like a purr in her throat. She feels as though she is floating. It is rare that anything goes the way she hopes - but she thinks she could get used to the feeling.

A friend had come to her, not long after. Asking after her, a conversation in private. It is an adjustment for all, she supposes. Still, she is confident that her words can be a balm, to soothe any worries. She is StarClan's chosen, after all... Even if her methods are not traditional.

An easy smile greets her companion, a tail tapped against his flank. "You... wished to speak with me...?" Soft, blue eyes glinting with an unasked question. Private, he had said. Her paws move, unthinkingly. "A walk... Yes, come... I know of a quiet spot... where we can hardly hear the rain..." It patters down around them, the drizzle of that night growing into steady showers. She hardly minds. No ShadowClanner is stranger to getting wet, and the mist should afford them all the more quietude.

⋆⁺₊ ☾ ⁺₊⋆

SWANSONGㅤ BIOGRAPHY ㅤ/ ㅤTOYHOU.SE
★ demigirl ( she / they ) ㅤ& lesbian, mate to poppyglow (npc'd)
★ㅤ 24 moons old & ages realistically, every 17th of the month
★ㅤ warrior of shadowclan for 12 moons
★ ㅤhalfshade x smogstar ㅤ& littermate to applejaw, ashenfall, garlicheart
★ㅤ ㅤmentored agaterain, swallowflutter & mentored by skunktail, sabletuft
★ㅤ penned by saturnid & ㅤmessage saturnids on discord for plots!

"SPEECH"

 

[Haretooth]

"INDELIBLE IS WHAT I NEED TO SPREAD THE WORD."​

Something didn't sit right, Haretooth was not one to subscribe into conspiracies around his clanmates. If anyone else had dared inform him of whatever it was that he had saw then he would scoff and roll his eyes. In truth Haretooth isn't entirely sure that he trusts his own vision, believing whatever he saw to be a half awake hallucination. Still, it could be easily disproven, while he is no blind fool he trusts Swansong's word. The pair were friends after all, the request for their conversation to be a private one was to spare his own ego. He had made a judgmental call prior and it seemed to have costed his friendship with Ternstar in his eyes, he would wish for a different outcome with her. "I did, if you're not busy" it seems that fortunately she isn't which he thought to be surprising since she was the name across everyone's maw currently.

A sneer plastered on his face as they travelled, not for the company he keeps but rather for the consistency of the ground. Exceptionally muddy, the downpour and rolling fog across already stygian land did nothing to make this conversation seem less foreboding. The pale tom is never one to back away from a confrontation though, so he tries to not dwell on the subject too much. "Thank you, I hate this rain. Awful stuff, it might bring those frogs back" he shudders at the thought, even if they need the non tainted prey it was far too much of a request for him to deal with that. Night terrors still cling to him, draining his life like a wraith whenever he is subjected to think about that cacophony of croaking. Sometimes he believes that he will wake up just to make eye contact with one of them again.

The walk is nice, despite how the mire clings to his white coat. It is nothing that a painstakingly long maintenance can't fix. When they reach whatever spot Swangsong feels comfortable in he takes a breathe to gain composure. "The night previous to this, you were not asleep?" He watches her face curiously, if the slightest twitch of displeasure is given then he is given the self satisfaction that this isn't a hallucination. That the marshland hadn't cursed him with madness. "You looked like you were carrying something" he elaborates further, keeping his tone level and neutral. Once again, he didn't want a repeat of what happened with his leader. Haretooth frets over being able to leave this conversation with a friendship still intact.

"Swansong, that feather seems convenient." Another pause, another breath. "Did you place it?" It would certainly explain why she was up so late. Why it looked like she was carrying something. Though he isn't passionate in this suspicion, heart not set on it he believes it can be quite easy to deny. Of which he would accept readily.
​

✯☽✯​

 

[Swansong]

They settle together, in the roots beneath an old tree. It is a spot that she and Ashenfall would once go to; the aching of loss is a familiar feeling, by now. Another gone, with no body to mourn. She breathes out slowly, and wrenches herself back into the present. If she is to guide them forwards, she cannot keep drifting off into the past - no matter how unmoored she may feel.

Haretooth's questions register distantly. He was there - a brush in the night, a wayward paw. His voice is level, and she keeps hers the same to match it. "Did I...?" An echo, a tilt of her head. Pale eyes glint in the dim of the overcast marsh. She meets the questioning with an airy tone, settled back upon her haunches. If her heart beats a little faster at the thought of being caught - well, she has gotten very good at ignoring her own feelings. "What if I did...? Does it matter...?" They are friends. He should understand.

Her voice softens, soothing. Haretooth has always had such a strong curiosity, and she is nothing if not equipped to answer. "The dead speak to me, Haretooth... In my dreams, I hear them... They beg me... to make our clan listen..." A smile, entreating. "I am... chosen, one way or another." That is what matters.

⋆⁺₊ ☾ ⁺₊⋆

SWANSONGㅤ BIOGRAPHY ㅤ/ ㅤTOYHOU.SE
★ demigirl ( she / they ) ㅤ& lesbian, mate to poppyglow (npc'd)
★ㅤ 24 moons old & ages realistically, every 17th of the month
★ㅤ warrior of shadowclan for 12 moons
★ ㅤhalfshade x smogstar ㅤ& littermate to applejaw, ashenfall, garlicheart
★ㅤ ㅤmentored agaterain, swallowflutter & mentored by skunktail, sabletuft
★ㅤ penned by saturnid & ㅤmessage saturnids on discord for plots!

"SPEECH"

 

[Haretooth]

"INDELIBLE IS WHAT I NEED TO SPREAD THE WORD."​

She doesn't deny the accusation, though it was delivered in a rather hypothetical manner. It does little to quell the malaise that rises above the waves of fog around them. He squints her, studying her for remorse within the dim light that the obscured moon can offer through the filter of thin clouds. It cascades shadows upon her, he might think she was frowning from remorse if it wasn't for the fact her resting expression is in actuality a smile. It clearly isn't the case, there is naught an ounce of displeasure from her, maybe from him questioning her. The shadows playing tricks, it seems as if the clan environment itself wants an ounce of shame. "It does matter Swansong" he implores her, firm in his tone though it carrying a softer approach. This is his friend, one who indulges him in bizarre games, one that he finds a lot of comfort in spending his time with.

Her voice is naturally disarming, a constant dream-like consistency. The intent is to soothe and he finds it somewhat works, the tension in his jaw relaxes but his ears remain perked. His stance stiff, an unmoving statue in posture. The dead speak to her, while he wishes to believe her there is a lingering concern that the marshland madness clings to her one way or another. "Was it the dead who told you fake a sign that night?" He squints, frustration settling in thinking about how one of his friends has tricked another. The reverence in Ternstar's tone, oh she would be crushed, or furious. Whichever would come first.

"Swansong, I implore you. It's not too late to tell Ternstar about this. You can still help." He doesn't like the precedent this sets. What would stop her from faking something else if her ideas are not received well by their leader. What else was she willing to sacrifice? He is one to bleed in loyalty for ShadowClan but not at the extent of deceiving for it. "I'm not denying the fact that you're chosen, who's to say they didn't choose you for a different path?" There's a beat before he presses forward. "I'll stand with you, please be upfront with Ternstar in return." It's the right thing to do after all.

​

✯☽✯​

 

[Swansong]

The easy smile upon Swansong's face begins to slip. There is something piercing in that pale gaze, something that feels as though it is looking right through her. Splaying out every failing, that ugly rot that bubbles up inside. She shifts, curls her tail around herself protectively.

"It is not... fake," The molly argues, though her tone wavers. He doubts her. He doesn't get it - aren't they supposed to be friends? She has finally done something right for once, rather than wasting away. She is deputy, as her father was before her. She is the vessel of the dead's will, someone with purpose. Not just drifting along, not wailing in the night at the injustice of being left behind while everyone leaves her. This is good, this is right. "This is... It's what they warned me of, don't you see...? ShadowClan will never listen, even when the dead speak clearly..." But he should, shouldn't he...? Even when they didn't quite see eye to eye, their paths have always been stepping in sync.

The rest of the question catches up to her, and she nods slowly. "Yes... Yes, they beckoned me forth..." And how is that any less real? Why should StarClan's communication be any less when it is through her? "It was the stars' choice, not mine. Don't... don't you see...? Can't you understand...?" She steps towards him, mist dripping from her shaky maw.

The little hollow begins to feel very small. "What... other path is there?" If she is to tell Ternstar, will she be branded a liar? Cast out like Caterpillarfuzz? Her eyes are glassy, staring through her companion. "I..." A sharp breath. "She... she won't understand... Not yet, not... not now..." Her head shakes, almost without any input at all. Another step towards him, pleading. "This is what they want. My destiny. I can't... let that slip away..." He should understand. Why can't he understand? She is finally content, like this.

⋆⁺₊ ☾ ⁺₊⋆

SWANSONG BIOGRAPHY ㅤ/ ㅤTOYHOU.SE
★ demigirl ( she / they ) ㅤ& lesbian, mate to poppyglow (npc'd)
★ㅤ 24 moons old & ages realistically, every 17th of the month
★ㅤ deputy of shadowclan
★ ㅤhalfshade x smogstar ㅤ& littermate to applejaw, ashenfall, garlicheart
★ㅤ ㅤmentored agaterain, swallowflutter & mentored by skunktail, sabletuft
★ㅤ penned by saturnid & ㅤmessage saturnids on discord for plots!

"SPEECH"