- May 20, 2023
- 106
- 27
- 18
♱—— the wounds on her throat freshly closed, cygnetstare has left the medicine den with a new duty to guide her paws; an apprentice. they're pleased, unsure of how they'll perform as a mentor, but happy with sootstar's decision nonetheless. that she's been chosen to mentor one of scorchstreak's kits is encouraging—they carry a lot of respect for the calico, both as a lead warrior and as a fellow tunneler. it's interesting, she muses to herself as she guides the freshly named luckypaw along the well-worn routes of their territory, to think she will be responsible for this young cat for nearly nine moons. sootstar has trusted her to guide the tom through the sometimes dangerous process of a tunneler's apprenticeship—the stars know she has her own scars to prove that.
"ayuh, here we are. have a seat, there's a few things i wanna tell ya before we go in." cygnetstare seats themself outside the yawning mouth of a tunnel entrance; today she's decided to introduce luckypaw to the tunnels where he will presumably work for the rest of his life. they're not exactly eager to sit out here under the staring sun, but they're going to lay these ground rules now—though inevitably a good scare or two will hammer the lessons home more than her words in the end. viscera eyes glance over the new apprentice, making sure he's paying attention; these rules are what will help him survive the first few moons of adjusting to the tunnels.
"alright," they begin, the short dark fur along their spine bristling; she can recall learning these rules herself, moons ago, fresh and unsure. "first of all, you never go into the tunnels alone. always bring a friend, preferably two, even once you're a warrior in ya own right. second, you always leave a scent trail, same as markin' a border, so you can get back out. i'll be leavin' my own, but i expect you to try it today." her gaze flicks to luckypaw's face again, hoping the apprentice is internalizing these vital rules, and she continues, "now, i don't expect you to know everything already, but if you're rememberin' one thing today, make it this: if ya hear dripping water, you get right on outta there, ayuh?"
there will be time, moons of time, for luckypaw to learn the nuances of scent and sound and feel. she doesn't expect him to be able to move from the deepest tunnels to the surface by the way the breeze ruffles his fur as she's learned to do, but they expect him to remember these rules. they get to their paws, eager to leave the sun and enter the blessed familiarity of the earth, "and make sure to stay close—i think that's all. you ready to head on in, kid?"
┏━⋆⁺。˚⋆˙‧₊ OOC
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ooc: please wait for @LUCKYKIT to post!
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♱ cygnetstare — for their downy kitten-fur and perceptiveness (or uncanny gaze)
she/they ; afab gender apathetic — windclan — tunneler — 16 ☾s
—— cygnetstare is a corpselike chimera, split between long albino fur and a short black smoke pelt; their eyes are an unsettling pink. her creepy demeanour distracts from a strange fascination with death and an obsessive loyalty to windclan.
—— smells like grave-dirt and blood ; sounds like vc tbd ; speech in #BF959C, thoughts in #000000
—— peaceful / healing powerplay permitted ; attacks/contact in underline ; will start fights ; won't flee unless ordered ; won't show mercy ; will kill or maim
—— pansexual panromantic monogamist, single, not looking ; open to friendships, enemies, casual interactions, long-term romance, plotting ; not open to unplanned battles, flings
penned by dejavu— desklamp9 on discord for plots - battle stuff goes here for fights