private TWO BIRDS ;; MORNINGPAW.

[Fireflyglow]

@MORNINGPAW

Fireflypaw feels his nose twitch from the cold as he presses his nose to crystalline, easily falling into a restful sleep. It takes a few moments, but when he awakes again, he's greeted by the smell of flowers and the feeling of grass sweeping against his paws. His eyelashes flutter for a moment, eyes squinting open- a familiar voice speaks faintly near him, warning him to be steady with opening his eyes. Still weary from sleep, the seal point blinks the rest away from his eyes as he opens them finally. "Bright.." He mutters softly to himself, his vision clearing- he could see? What type of thing was.. This?

Slowly, he rises to his paws, tail flicking behind him. He glances around, taking in the colors- distracted momentarily. "Pretty.." He whispers, taking in the sparkling stars surrounding him. He wondered if this is what Dawnglare got to see, or if this was just for him. His head turns, finally spotting the smaller figure of someone he knows. Someone he's thought about nightly, someone he.. Loved more than anything.

"...Sister?"​

SKYCLAN MEDICINE CAT APPRENTICE ✦ 11 MOONS ✦ CHUNKY, BIG-FOOTED SEAL POINT ✦ TAGS​

 

[MORNINGPAW ☆]

She ambles from her spot in the grass, her paws tracing starry paths as she approaches Fireflypaw. Tears spring to both corners of her cornflower-blue eyes. The cat he’d been when she’d left to hunt with StarClan is no more. In his place is this towering cat, looking so much like their father but for the herb debris caught in his thick pelt, and the shadowy points on his body. Her brother has grown up, and Morningpaw is tiny in his presence, still-kitten-sized. Forever kitten-sized.

“Fireflypaw,” she greets him, the tears beginning to leak. “I’ve been waiting so long for you…” She sniffles, rubbing a mottled paw across her eyes. A smile breaks across her muzzle, and she runs head-first toward her littermate. A pink nose reaches for his, though she has to stand on her tiptoes to reach it. “I’ve missed you so much… oh, Fireflypaw. It’s been so hard to watch you grow up without me, but…” She sniffles again, taking a few half-steps backward. “But look at you! Look at how much you look like Blazestar! You’re almost as big as he is, too!”

She purrs, drinking her brother’s scent in—so alive, the pine sap and spice of herbs, the sweetness of lavender—she’s missed it so much. “I can’t believe you’re almost a medicine cat. How have you been—how have you really been, Fireflypaw?”​

[ PENNED BY MARQUETTE ]​

 

[Fireflyglow]

"Mornin'-" He doesn't get to say her full name, doesn't dare hiccup out the rest as the two siblings collide with each other. She's so tiny, so small and it's almost instant that the tears begin to fall down his cheeks in fat droplets. She's just as pretty as he remembers, speckled face and loving eyes that he can finally see properly. Was this a gift, given to him by the stars? Was this proof that he was truly chosen, that he was worthy of his position as medicine cat? His paws cling to his baby sister's shoulders, a loud wail leaving his lips as his shoulders shake. "I missed you- Stars, I miss you every day.." He cries out, though his voice cracks from misuse. She's been waiting so long for him- she has? Has she been watching him, through all of his struggles and all of his pain? He sniffles as she pulls back, his massive form lowering to the ground to make himself small enough for her. She's so strong in the afterlife, no longer bleeding from her neck- the memory still haunts him. He takes a shaking breath in as her nose presses to his, the cold touch soothing the warmth he felt from crying so much.

She's reminded faintly of Blazestar when she looks at him, and Fireflypaw smiles his own satisfaction at that. He takes a moment to look down at his paws, lifting one up to examine just how big they were, how fluffy- he certainly had grown, compared to the puny size he used to be. "Sometimes I find myself still tripping over my own paws." Fireflypaw chuckles as he leans down to nudge his sister's cheek against his own, wishing so desperately he could stay in her presence forever. If he could stay here, he could talk for hours on end with her and never leave. He wouldn't have to wake up alone again. But he knows she's gone now; she'll see him in his dreams, when it was time. For now, he would embrace every little second he could spend with his precious baby sister.

I can’t believe you’re almost a medicine cat. How have you been—how have you really been, Fireflypaw? Something in his chest aches at the question, and he finds his eyes wandering off to the side in hesitant thought. His paw reaches up to his chest, clenching the thick mane of fur there momentarily as his lower lip trembles. "I.." He begins, shaken by the suddenness of the question. He couldn't lie to her, but if he was honest to her.. Would that make him a terrible son, a terrible student? "I've been struggling, Morningpaw." He exhales a shaky breath finally, meeting her eyes once more. So pretty, so pure- stained only by the stars that sparkle behind them. His jaw twitches. "I don't want to.. Make this visit just about my problems. But I'm.. Struggling. You've probably heard about Dawnglare's decisions- his mistake. Dad gave up everything for us to follow these new Codes. And he- he just.. trampled all over it. All over your memory. All for- for what he believes is love." His eyes shut as he speaks, body trembling with emotion. His jaw is tight, drawn tense as he's reminded of the defensive posture Dawnglare took over Mallowlark. He'd stood up against his father for that star-forsaken WindClanner, after all. Ruined years of friendship for him. From where he sees it, love brings nothing but more heartbreak and misery. He takes a steadying breath in, doing his best to calm himself- he needed to be calm, or else he would lose himself. "He's going to bring pain into his heart, being mates with Mallowlark. I see nothing of benefit to such a relationship." He's reminded vaguely of Greeneyes, of the way their pelts brush against each other for comfort at times. His best friend, and yet he's kept such a distance between the two of them after the discovery. He had a job to do; getting emotionally involved with other cats would just lead to issues, wouldn't it? His paws knead the ground for comfort. His eyes open once more, meeting his sister's gaze again. Searching for any sort of emotion, any sort of disagreement- would she scold him, for speaking out against the high priest? He wonders.. "Sometimes it feels like he's more focused on his mate than his job. He's supposed to be teaching me. I'm his student!" ​

SKYCLAN MEDICINE CAT APPRENTICE ✦ 11 MOONS ✦ CHUNKY, BIG-FOOTED SEAL POINT ✦ TAGS​

 

[MORNINGPAW ☆]

Fireflypaw’s response to her greeting causes the tears to flow faster, unbidden now. He has always been so sensitive, he thinks, and her long, plush cream-colored fur soaks up all of his tears without protest. The enormous black paws he places on her shoulders is another reminder—he has grown up, he has become everything she used to wish she could be. When he finally pulls back, Morningpaw can see the tremble in his jaw and whiskers. “I’ve been struggling, Morningpaw.”

She sits, her spotted tail curling about her paws. “I came to listen to your problems, Fireflypaw.” Her blue eyes glow with sorrow. “I’m sorry you’re having them…” He tells her about Dawnglare, the medicine cat who is her namesake, who had watched her die bleeding at his paws. Morningpaw flicks both velvety ears at the mention of Mallowlark.

“Maybe you don’t remember,” she murmurs softly, “how in love Blazestar and Little Wolf used to be. Perhaps you’re afraid of that kind of love. I wish you wouldn’t be.” She smiles at him, but it’s full of pain. “Dawnglare knows his responsibilities, and StarClan will continue to remind him, Fireflypaw. But do not begrudge him his love.”

A speckled forepaw reaches up, up, up, to brush her brother’s tears away. “You are so gifted. Continue to insist he teach you. If you feel neglected, tell him, for we can only do so much.” She busses his fluffy cheek with her tongue. “And for StarClan’s sake—” Here she giggles, high-pitched and girlish like her laughter had been in life, “—Can you open your ears and your senses to the cat who might be looking at you like Dawnglare looks at Mallowlark?”
​