camp the future's filled with tears 〰 return

[edenberry ?!]

The familiarity with which they carry themself across pebbled alleys, sun-warmed road and pine-needle litter should feel like freedom. Months had been spent trapped in a cage of their own creation, one wrought of iron and youthful folly... Despite the doubts that had gnawed at their belly and the exhausted nights spent wondering, they couldn't say they felt regret. It was for the best, they told themself, that it had been kept buried in secrecy and half-truths, that they should shoulder the burden of lies strung into knots all converging on one thoughtless choice. They know that confession will see them painted in shades of furious red, in greens of disgust... in the blue tears of betrayal they hadn't intended. No one was safe from those feelings... not even Spicepaw.

The pocket of comfortable dens and sap-fragranced pelts makes itself a shining beacon on the horizon far sooner than they expect it to... had their paws been so hungry to return? Trepidation slows their gait suddenly, anxiety clutching at their throat and threatening to squeeze all air from their lungs. A whirlwind of thoughts screams of rejection, of pointed glares and suspicion... What hope for a happy reunion that had spurred their decisions becoming rotted with fear in an instant.

Was it possible that someone had already plucked apart the vague excuse of their illness and surmised the truth, waiting until this exact moment to rear their head with malicious delight? There were plenty amongst SkyClan that did not favor kittypets... that might take pleasure in marking another one unfaithful... unreliable... They hesitate, withdrawing their paw and thinking to turn back, to rush after soot-dusted fur and appeal to another option... another path.

But countless days of sleeplessness spent fraught with apprehension return in ruthless memory. How many times had they begged for a moment of quiet... a day spent amongst the trees listening to birdsong? A sunrise spent without tiny claws pricking at the soft spots of their underbelly and warming them uncomfortably in their nest? They'd dreamed of it... Wondered after how the time spent with friends might've been instead. All the while pleading with some unseen force to make a good parent out of them over night... to steal away the deep well of tired that permeated all layers of their being... to give them identity again outside of 'mother' to two tiny mirrors.

They thought eventually it would all go back to normal.... and now it would. Now it would have to.

Edenberry couldn't avoid it any longer... in the moments of uneasiness, cats had already begun to filter in and out of camp for the morning. They've been seen, been recognized and though they know the warrior that left might've offered a cheerful, shining greeting, their confidence abandons them to a nervous smile and tired eyes.

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𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊 〰 i can still hear you sing

• we are so barack
  taking place just outside of camp just in case that's unclear!
• -- edenberry / skyclan daylight warrior / any pronouns / 16 moons
  -- mostly white with black pinstripe and green eyes / scarred face and back
  -- color #728c69​

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[Chickbloom]

Amber eyes open groggily that morning, expecting another round of bad news. Rogues at the border, Silversmoke’s disappearance, Orangestar up and vanishing into the night; all of it weighed heavily on the whelp’s shoulders. Sure, the cutthroats seemed to have backed off for now, and the latter two returned in (arguably) good health, but the pessimist couldn’t help but see it as a temporary uptick amongst an inevitable decline.

Chickbloom stands up, preparing to face the day all the same as he shook out his paws. At best, he was expecting for more monotony and routine. Boring was good, it kept cats alive. At worst? A yolk-stained pelt shivered from ear to tail-tip. He didn’t want to think about it. The coward padded outside, taking in the morning sunlight when a familiar scent hit his nose.

At first, the feline thought it a trick of tiredness. The same way splotches in vision or phantom sounds assailed the waking, so too a smell could invade the mind. Chickbloom tasted the air again, wrinkling an invisible brow. He cast his gaze about, each cat at its end having a similar reaction. “Is it -?” Chickbloom breathed, before tearing out of camp.

Edenberry had been one of the first to greet Chickbloom at the border, back when the former was Edenpaw and the latter was simply Eggshell; a kittypet still to hatch. He’d downplayed the cold pragmatism of Duskpool and pointed impatience of Slate, and was perhaps the first cat he looked forward to seeing on each daily trek from the twolegplace. As yolk-splashed paws kicked up dust in an attempt by the baby bird to gain traction, he felt it was only right to meet him in kind.

“Edenberry!” Chickbloom shouted, very nearly barreling into the other as he skidded to a halt beside him, amber eyes wide from joy and surprise instead of fear. “I’m so glad you’re better!”

Yes, the cat’s brand of cowardice always came with a side of naïveté. So ignorant of the world, seeing threats around every corner, it was easy to fall for a lie presented as simple bad news. Chickbloom wholeheartedly believed Edenberry had been taken ill, shuffled off to the twoleg medicine den to endure shining lights and silver needles. Did that taint the embrace the boy threw around the other? Maybe; but given Chickbloom’s own experiences it was questionable if he would even be angry at the truth.

All he cared about was that his friend was home.​

 

[ThistleBack]

Kittypets lay the foundation for Skyclan, a necessary root system below the great tree of power that looms from their side of the border. Thistleback thought the misleading feeling of superiority those felt over kittypets would always be their undoing, to underestimate was to be narrow in your wits. Though his past had been a rogue, his greatest friend lives on in memory with a collar strapped on his neck. The daylight warriors

Chickbloom’s voice raises excitedly, making his chin snap away from his verbal instructions to his apprentice Teeveepaw amid the camp bustle. Following the splotched yellow pelt as it nearly collides with the familiar striped-back warrior. Someone he hadn’t recalled seeing in quite a while, but he had always been quite busy.

Edenberry, always seen pelt to pelt with Cherryblossom, surely this would be the happiest of reunions. Thistleback would admittedly only see a set of claws back in the ranks, but he did see an anxious young warrior hesitant and cautious as they face the clan with many more faces unfamiliar.

Though not a pleasant face himself, he pads toward them to offer at least a familiar alongside Chickbloom. It was strange how much could change in a short blip of time " Edenberry, welcome home love " he greets warmly, " in good health it seems " he tacks on to the other’s words.

⛤ OOC INFORMATION REFERENCE ⛤

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  forty-eight mns. EVENT TRACKER | IMPORTANT INFO
  — Former Lead warrior of Skyclan 12.22.22 - 06.2023
  — Father of Coyotecrest, Eveningsun and Scorpionpaw
  — mentoring Teeveepaw formerly Snowpath & Quillstrike
  — very muscular piebald black and white tom with spiky fur and cold grey eyes.
  — voice & accent
  — biography･ﾟ✧​
  OPEN for Dice battles | stine#3004
  
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​

 

[Florabreeze]

Edenberry’s absence had been noticeable, the walk to and from Twolegplace just felt a little quieter without them there. The world still spun, the sun still rose and fell but it just felt a little wrong to not see them amongst their ranks while experiencing the world. This day was like any other, the sun had risen and the morning began. Rejoining camp to join a morning patrol, walking beyond the hollow as she glanced up at the sunlight trickling through the foliage of the trees. Casting strange and abstract shadows onto the ground below, ears flick at the chatter of the forest. Among the call of the wildlife jumped in Chickbloom’s own call, shouting the name of the daylight warrior that had been on her mind this morning.

The maine coon stands further back with Thistleback and Teeveepaw, grinning in delight at the sight of them. She waits a moment before approaching the pair of them, tail raised high in the sky and practically wagging like a dog. The sight of them fades that positive nostalgia of her friend, the Edenberry right now doesn’t seem to reflect them moons prior. They seem tired, though being sick would do that and she knew how groggy one could be after visiting the twoleg medicine den. “Edenberry! I missed you” her call is one of unabashed joy in a boisterous fashion.

“I hope that you're feeling better” she assumed that they wouldn’t be here if they weren’t, the daylight warrior didn’t seem that kind of reckless. She glances at Chickbloom, who seemed equally excited about them being home. “Has Spicepaw been updating you on what's been happening here”? no doubt others would if not, Florabreeze herself would happily. She can worry about trying to relay gossip and updates later, her friend probably didn’t want to be overwhelmed with chatter right now.

‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎┌── Somethings coming ﻬ𖧧ﻬ So out of breath ──┐‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎

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• 

• FLORABREEZE 𖧧 She/her, Daylight Warrior of SkyClan, 35 moons (ages on the 12th)
  ❥ A large black tabby maine coon with low white and bright green eyes, always wearing her mushroom print collar if she can.
  ❥ Mentored by Sorrelsong ／Mentoring Jellypaw
  ❥ “Speech”, thoughts, attacking
  ❥ Penned by Juice ⏐ouijeejuice on discord {open to being dmed for plots}
  

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[edenberry ?!]

Honeyed smiles and tender welcomes find them in the barren wasteland of their anxieties, sprawling out a beautiful oasis to take shelter in. Chickbloom practically trips into them just to get to their side quickly, followed by the spry-furred figure of Thistleback... then the familiar forest tones of Florabreeze. "Edenberry!" Always said with adoration... not the same quiet 'Eden' that had echoed through their home, an identity yearned for and joyously received now. "Eggshell," they chirp, reaching forward to touch their nose to their friend's cheek, pulling back to offer a smile that becomes more and more genuine with each passing second, "Thank you Thistleback!"

The mention of their health three times over reminds them of their facade, one they mustn't forget, "Yeah... I'm feeling better now," they meow with a twitch of their whiskers, "Spicepaw's been doing her best but I'm sure there's stuff she might've forgotten to mention." A bobbed-tail shimmies at the thought of how much catching up they might have to do and their face lifts in silent question to Florabreeze- Chat with me about it soon?

Emerald focus shifts towards the camp entrance with a flutter of impatient uncertainty, before fluttering back to their clan-mates again with a sheepishness, "Think I should head inside?" Mostly rhetorical but with a hint of true nervousness, the pin-stripe cat brushes past the small group to unveil the clearing littered with dens they'd filtered in and out of most of their life. It's breath-takingly the same... the usual hustle and bustle of a morning preparing patrols.

The clusters of friends sharing meals, families sharing tongues.... It's home. Just how they left it.

"Uhm.... hey," they meow awkwardly to the first pairs of eyes that snap to look at them, "I'm back."

---

𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊 〰 i want no more than this

• -- edenberry / skyclan daylight warrior / any pronouns / 16 moons
  -- mostly white with black pinstripe and green eyes / scarred face and back
  -- color #728c69​

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[butterflytuft]

Butterflytuft's heart leaps with joy as she spots Edenberry in the camp. The familiar face and kind smile bring a flood of memories, warming her with a comforting sense of nostalgia. When she sees Edenberry, she thinks of her first litter still in the nursery, being visited almost daily by the young Edenpaw. The tortoiseshell approaches with a soft, welcoming smile.

"Edenberry!" She calls out softly, her voice filled with genuine delight. She moves forward to touch her nose to theirs in a tender greeting. "It's so wonderful to see you again. I've missed you and your visits! How are you feeling?" Her eyes, though warm, betray her concern. She had been sick, hadn’t she? Seeing her nervousness, however, she thinks this all may be a bit overwhelming. Butterflytuft gently nudges him. "Why don't we find a quiet spot to talk later? I'd love to hear all about what you've been up to and catch up properly." She offers a reassuring glance, hoping to ease their unease. "Let me know if you need anything." Her gaze remains kind and encouraging as she watches Edenberry reconnect with their surroundings and the clan. She’s finally home now, and the queen silently promises to do everything she can to make sure they settle in properly.
​

 

[Orangestar]

Orangestar is drawn to the scene by jubilant greetings. They aren't directed to her, of course, but to a cat SkyClan hasn't seen the muzzle of in moons. Edenberry has returned. There's no sign of illness clinging to the black-striped warrior, but in its place there is a fatigue that strikes Orangestar as strangely familiar ... She dismisses the twinge of recognition with a twitch of her tail, putting it down to the twoleg medicine cats who had treated her.

"Welcome back." She meows, ears twitching forward as she hobbles over to join her Clanmates in greeting the daylight warrior. Another glance is passed over them, seeking answers as if they would be visually apparent. Finding nothing, brown eyes return to a scarred and youthful face. Spicepaw had been worried enough to tell them that Edenberry would be gone for a while, but despite their illness the young warrior still carries no sign of gauntness across their form. Such is the magic of twoleg medicine, she supposes ... "Are you well?"

ooc ✧ 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘨𝘳𝘶𝘥𝘨𝘦

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  [ art by pin ]
• ORANGESTAR ✧ she/her, leader of skyclan | seven lives
  
  
  — "a scarred white-and-ginger she-cat with brown eyes."
  — (undisclosed) mate to slate ; ashpaw
  — speech is in #D2977D
  — tags | penned by mercibun, contact on discord for plots.
  
  
  
  

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