pafp The consequence of imagination's fear | following ashpaw

[Snakeblink]

At this point, following Ashpaw around has stopped being something Snakeblink does with a goal in mind. It’s… a comforting habit, of sorts, something indulged in at the end of the day. A check-in: is the clan alright? Is the tiny traumatized apprentice doing well?

He knows what it would look like if anyone noticed, but no one has yet. Part of that is certainly Willowroot moving into the nursery recently: the replacement mentors have not had the time to find their bearings with the apprentices yet, and any suspicions Willowroot might have had were not passed along. Still… It feels symptomatic, that he could go through the highly strange process of all but stalking an apprentice and have no one confront him about it. Even the most honorable of cats would have answers to give on that behavior, and Snakeblink… for all he tries, is not the most honorable of cats — and definitely doesn’t have the reputation of one.

He thinks of bringing it up to… Buckgait, maybe? No, the deputy has too much going on already. All the way to Cicadastar? Mudpelt, for his fatherly instincts? Stars, who could he talk to about keeping a closer eye on the apprentices? It would be giving away the game, anyway, and he’s not fully convinced Ashpaw doesn’t need watching over yet. Definitely something to keep in mind though.

Being kind of in-between tasks, right now — he’d rather dry entirely before going back out to fish some more, lest he freezes on his paws — he takes a minute to find the apprentice in camp. He doesn’t see her. She must be out with her mentor, then.

Except isn’t that the mentor in question over there, coming back from a hunting patrol with a skinny mouse and no Ashpaw? Snakeblink squashes the instinctual rise of anxiety. It’s fine. A cursory glance doesn’t mean Ashpaw is nowhere to be found, let alone in trouble. It’s fine.

Still, he gets to his paws, ignoring how wet and cold his fur feels. He’s just going to take a look around real quick. Just in case…

@tinyleafs
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ooc. information.

• ooc: local man completely normal about this whole situation, for sure
  
• — Snakeblink • he / him. 35 ☾, riverclan warrior
  — a sleek, skinny tabby with long ears and a scar over his right eye.
  — gay, not actually evil, penned by @Kangoo
  
  
  

​

 

[Harry Styles]

A S H P A W.

She's alone again.

Well—not alone. Just without a mentor. (She doesn't know where Pebbleskip is.) Ashpaw's mostly hanging out near the nursery, and she's been the "victim" of Willowroot's nesting instincts this morning, getting more than a few compulsory groomings and checkings-over — all while giggling and insisting "I'm fine!"

She's so excited for the babies to come.

She thinks she was supposed to go on a hunting patrol today, but she woke up and Pebbleskip was gone. Willowroot usually waited for Ashpaw, let her sleep in past dawn and then come on patrols. Because if someone shook her awake Ashpaw might have a... an episode, and if she left camp in the dark she might also have an episode, because she's a dumb little baby sometimes and still gets scared of Spiderfall. Even though he's dead.

Anyway, Pebbleskip didn't wait for her, so she's spent the morning wandering camp or lying around near the nursery. She's got herself wedged into some reeds now, crouching among pebbles and sand, watching a tiny bug crawl up one of the stems.

Maybe she could do some den weaving...!

She sets about gathering the supplies—reeds for weaving and moss for padding and mud for caking and patching up gaps. She's going to do a really good job, like Finchpaw or Minnowpaw. And Willowroot will be happy because her teeny tiny babies won't be cold.

Then she runs right into Snakeblink.

Ashpaw stumbles back, dropping the reeds in her mouth, and falls on her bottom. "O-oh—!"

She blinks startled green eyes up at him. He's... he's here again.

The fur on her neck prickles a little. Part of her has started to feel like he spends a lot of time near her—watching her. But she knows it's probably... just her imagination, or something. Like her episodes.

"Um. Hi Snakeblink," she says, glass-green gaze darting from her paws to his face to her intended destination, the nursery. "Good... good morning."

She tries not to seem too nervous. Spiderfall didn't like it when—

He's not here, she reminds herself fiercely. Snakeblink isn't Spiderfall. He just... uhh... likes watching people! Yeah. That must be it.

She turns her anxious gaze toward the nursery. Maybe Willowroot will come out of it now. Or somebody will run into them. "Um... I'm just getting den weaving stuff. Because the babies will be born soon and it can't be cold in there. Do you... um, do you want to help?"

Maybe he'll say no. Or maybe he'll say yes and actually be super nice about it and she's worried about nothing.
​

—— " i found gold in the wreckage "

✦ ooc ✦ character information ✦ recent events

• ashpaw, completely correct for once: H-HE JUST LIKES WATCHING ME THATS ALL THERES NOTHING WRONG
• - 6 month old orange tabby with green eyes
  - apprenticed to lead warrior willowroot
  - happy-go-lucky, mischievous, hardworking
  - very friendly, but defensive of riverclan!
  - "speech"
• - disclosed being physically and emotionally abused by Spiderfall, who was exiled & who then killed her best friend
  - spent a couple months depressed
  - returned to ic/ooc activify

​

 

[Snakeblink]

Snakeblink is starting to wonder how soon is too soon to start being frantic in his search when Ashpaw all but bounces straight off of him. He stops in his tracks, passing off his relief as surprise — anyone would be taken aback by the sudden apparition of a small orange apprentice between their paws, even someone who was not engrossed in looking for that exact cat. He releases a breath he hadn’t noticed himself holding and feels the tension sluice off him like he’s been fishing for hours and only just came up for air.

Apprentice successfully found, he feels quite foolish about his earlier anxiety. Guess he can go back to his duties now. He thinks he’s overstayed his welcome, anyway: Ashpaw glances at him, a little shifty-eyed, like she’s worried about him being here. He thinks he’d recognize an apprentice’s just-did-something-stupid nervousness, and this isn’t it.

It’s a look he’s used to from clanmates, so he doesn’t let it affect him (much). But just as he’s about to take his leave, Ashpaw surprises him once more by asking him if he’d like to help her. The gesture, although delivered with what seems like no small amount of nervousness, is very sweet. He didn’t know the nursery needed reinforcement, but he’ll be glad to help Willowroot any way he can.

”That’s very kind of you, Ashpaw. Willowroot is lucky to have such a good apprentice to help her.” He smiles, narrowing his eyes to make it seem more sincere. ”I would love to help. Are you doing this on your own? Does your mentor know where to find you?”

Maybe he’s being overprotective, but he doesn’t like to see any apprentice unsupervised anymore.


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ooc. information.

• ooc: does any adult know where you are, asks local trustworthy man
  
  
• — Snakeblink • he / him. 35 ☾, riverclan warrior
  — a sleek, skinny tabby with long ears and a scar over his right eye.
  — gay, not actually evil, penned by @Kangoo
  
  
  

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