the sunlight shines a little brighter | thriftfeather

[Asterkit]

It was not so long ago that Asterkit could fit between her father's legs, his paws providing ample entertainment for a kitten in their first moon of life. Asterkit is four moons old now and no longer can she comfortably fit between his paws, not that it stopped her from still doing it on occasion. In fact, she does so today, rolling playfully over his front paws whilst he valiantly tried to groom her pelt at the risk of getting a paw to the face. Thriftfeather was probably wishing he'd chosen a moment where she was less alert, fresh from sleep, or ready to have a lengthy nap. Instead, he had caught her when she was full of energy, unable to sit still.

Eventually, Asterkit did settle a little bit and sat calmly whilst her father rasped his tongue over her head. Whether it was because she had tired herself out, or felt bad for kicking him around as though he were a glorified, immobile, moss ball, not even Asterkit could say. She might not have been moving around as much but Asterkit was still chattering away, regaling Thriftfeather with a rumour she had supposedly heard from one of the other kittens, who heard it from another kitten, who heard it from one of the queens. "Rosekit said that before you become an apprentice, you have to do a special assignment and that if you fail you have to stay in the nursery for another moon until you pass! That's not true is it?" Asterkit asked, looking up at Thriftfeather. "I don't want to stay in nursery another moon..."

@Thriftfeather ​

 

[Thriftfeather]

It is in these quiet moments that Thriftfeather remembers that he wouldn't trade this for anything. Asterkit has grown so much in the short moons that make up her life, and yet she is still that squirming thing that Thriftfeather had previously known, still so small and still so helpless in his mind. Eventually, she settles as much as a kit can be expected to settle, and her young voice washes over Thriftfeather as noise rather than information.

It isn't that Thriftfeather means to tune her out — he doesn't realize that he has until she's looking at him, expectant, and he is forced to trace his mind over the moments that had just passed.

"There isn't any assessment for kits, no," Spoken after a pause — there hadn't been an assessment when Thriftfeather had gone from kit to apprentice, but what if that was yet another thing that had changed in his absence? "When you are old enough — when that happens, Scorchstar will call everyone to a meeting. She'll give you a new name, and she'll give you a mentor to teach you everything, and everyone in WindClan will cheer your new name."

It won't be long — does Asterkit realize just how quickly these moons will pass them by? There is a spike of trepidation in Thriftfeather's gut; he is going to lose the comfort of knowing just where she is, where all of the litter is. He's been finished grooming Asterkit for some time, but she can stay as she is here, for at least a little longer.

"All you need to do is behave yourself, and show up for that meeting."​

WINDCLAN QUEEN ✦ GOLDEN TABBY TOM ✦ ✦ TAGS​