private War Veterans | sunflowerpaw

[TIGERFROST]

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He'd been sitting there for hours, resting, churning in his nest. He couldn't sleep, not even as dusk fell across the windswept land. It was almost as if the adrenaline still pulsed through his blood, but he knows it's not that. Knows that all of the recent events had simply taken their toll on his mind, and the pain of his injuries didn't help. It was natural, he realizes. Natural to wonder about it all. Natural to wonder if he had been in the right. But, each time he does, he comes to the same conclusion, again and again.

For Juniperfrost.

The rallying cry still echoed through his thoughts, and he can recall his determination, can feel his need for justice fueling his claws in that fight. And so... it didn't really matter what the consequences were, did it? Tigerfrost had to accept that it was done, and that it had been done for all the right reasons. Move on from the past, as he always did. The future was where the living should strive to exist. Only ghosts remained trapped in the past. Still, despite his confidence in his own honor, the energy of that raid still sparks within his mind. Dying embers. And until his wounds stopped bothering him so much, his thoughts would continue to drift back to that night. He'd heal, though. He always did. And so would the rest of WindClan. They were warriors, and heroes.

Paw-steps bring his attention out of his thoughts, and Tigerfrost peers at the warrior who approaches the medicine cat's den, jaws laden with freshly caught prey from the last hunting patrol of the day. Ah, yes. That familiar sensation of helplessness. His eyes narrow, jaws twisting with a frown. I should be out there hunting for myself, he thinks bitterly. But for now, he was no use to anyone, and he certainly wouldn't be if he broke his wounds open again and allowed infection to set him.

So, he glowers in silence as the warrior offers him a hare, tells him to share it with one or two of the other wounded, and then the molly heads deeper into the den to deliver the rest of the prey to others imprisoned there by their injuries. When she leaves the medicine den, her maw is empty. Tigerfrost scowls, but he flicks an ear with acknowledgement, searches the shadow around him. The closest cat was an apprentice, Sunflowerpaw. Well, it wasn't as if the chimera could eat an entire hare carcass by himself. He reaches out with a paw and prods at the other injured WindClanner.

"Hey. You hungry?" The Lead Warrior questions softly.

@sunflowerpaw ​

 

[SUNFLOWERMASK]

.°☀ AND IF IT EVER STARTS TO FEEL BAD, LITTLE FANG

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Sunflowerpaw watches mutely as the warrior enters the medicine den, provides a rabbit to a nearby cat -- Tigerfrost, they think -- before padding further into the den. They sigh, bury their face further into their nest. They should be out their learning to catch those. They never got the chance, never caught a single piece of prey before ending up stuck here. They listen as the warrior walks right past them, providing food to any one of the many other cats confined here from a battle that Sunflowerpaw longs to have been involved in. They're missing everything, trapped and injured as they are, pulled from the strange metallic jaws only to remain nearly as immobile.

A paw nudges into their side and Sunflowerpaw lifts their head slightly, peers up at the cat who's disturbed them. It's the same one from before. Tigerfrost, yes, they're certain now. He's a lead warrior, they really should remember these things. Names and faces still blur together in their head sometimes, no matter what they do. Well, they suppose now is a good time to learn all the names they never bothered to. Not like they have much else to do.

Tigerfrost is a bit of an intimidating cat, to Sunflowerpaw. Still though, speaks softly -- they like that, ever-preferring the quiet -- and asks if they're hungry. They nod, slightly, eye him curiously. He's offering to share the rabbit they think. Well, he is a lead warrior, they suppose it's kind of his job to look out for his Clanmates. They scoot a bit closer to the rabbit, keeping their eyes on Tigerfrost.

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IT'S EASY TO EXPLAIN 'CAUSE THIS WORLD'S NOT TAME .°☀

⟪ OOC ⟫ ⟪ INFO ⟫ ⟪ REF ⟫

• //​
• SUNFLOWERPAW named by their half-brother vulturemask after his friend and mentor.
  — they/them, 4 moons. semiverbal.
  — windclan apprentice, mentored by wolfsong.
  — reserved yet loyal, distrusts most.
  
  primary character, high activity. penned by saturnid.​
• 

​

 

[TIGERFROST]

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---

He peers at them curiously. They've never really spoken much, not to anyone, as far as Tigerfrost had seen. And now they were trapped in Vulturemask's den with that injured paw. He can't help but wonder what will happen to the apprentice, if they're unable to heal. What was a warrior that could not hunt or fight? Even the eldest cats of WindClan were expected to be able to hunt. Vulturemask was their healer for a reason though, right? He'd figure out some way to help the apprentice. Otherwise... Sunflowerpaw would just have to learn to adapt, somehow. Tigerfrost can't even imagine it, trying to chase down hares and rabbits would be a nightmare.

They've yet to take a bite out of the prey, eyes lingering upon the Lead Warrior. Perhaps Sunflowerpaw was simply wary of him. He knew he could be pretty imposing, but it was intentional, of course. Tigerfrost would not risk looking weak to anyone, not even his clan-mates. For now, though, he leans down to take a bite out of the hare for himself, enjoying the taste of the meat against his tongue. It would never get old, he thinks with satisfaction. He's not entirely certain what to say to fill the silence of their meal. Tigerfrost certainly spoke more than Sunflowerpaw, but he still wasn't all that talkative. Small-talk had always been a struggle for him, asides from jabs toward his opponents in battle. Sunflowerpaw was a complete conundrum to the lead warrior, though. He knows very little about them, beyond their near total silence.

"Soo... Vulturemask going to fix that paw?" Tigerfrost finally questions, albeit a bit awkwardly.​

 

[SUNFLOWERMASK]

.°☀ AND IF IT EVER STARTS TO FEEL BAD, LITTLE FANG

---

Sunflowerpaw watches as Tigerfrost takes a bite from the hare, gaze unwavering. They follow suit after a moment, nibbling tentatively on the rabbit. They still feel guilty, feeding off other cats catches like a kit when they should be out there learning to hunt. Nonetheless, it'd be rude to turn down the lead warrior's offer, so they eat with him in silence.

It's broken quickly, though, Tigerfrost seeming determined to turn what Sunflowerpaw was content to leave as a silent, awkward shared meal into an actual conversation. His choice of topic, though, catches them off-guard. "Vulturemask going to fix that paw?" he questions, and they flinch minutely at his words. They long to draw the injured paw out of sight, tuck it away and beneath them, yet it remains unmoved -- on display. Will he fix it? They draw back, stare absently at it, twisted and bound with a stick and some cobwebs. They can't move it at all.

Vulturemask is trying, they know, but they can tell he's uncertain. If he can't fix it... Will they ever become a warrior. They feel a sickness in their stomach at the thought, robbed of a future before they could even take the chance to grasp it. They're supposed to be a moor runner, how can they run without their paw? After a silence far too long, Sunflowerpaw finally speaks. "Dunno." It's hollow and small, betraying the fear that does not show in their face.

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IT'S EASY TO EXPLAIN 'CAUSE THIS WORLD'S NOT TAME .°☀

⟪ OOC ⟫ ⟪ INFO ⟫ ⟪ REF ⟫

• //​
• SUNFLOWERPAW named by their half-brother vulturemask after his friend and mentor.
  — they/them, 4 moons. semiverbal.
  — windclan apprentice, mentored by wolfsong.
  — reserved yet loyal, distrusts most.
  
  primary character, high activity. penned by saturnid.​
• 

​

 

[TIGERFROST]

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---

They finally decide to join him in devouring the hare, bite by bite. But... he can see that his inquiry seems to bother them, or perhaps it simply caught the apprentice off guard. Perhaps Sunflowerpaw was similar to Tigerfrost in not wishing others to see or know their weakness. Maybe that was just a common WindClanner trait. Still, as the chimera peers upon the limb, he can't help but wonder if Vulturemask even knew what he was doing. A stick? Come to think of it... the medicine cat hadn't really known what to do when Tigerfrost had twisted his paw in a fall. Curse Dandelionwish for turning traitor and fleeing the clan before teaching their new medicine cat. The Lead Warrior hopes that fool is rotting with the worms somewhere.

He doesn't expect them to speak, though. It's only one word, but it's enough to get the point across. Tigerfrost frowns a bit.

"Well... mine healed alright." He had been sore for nearly a moon after Dandelionwish's escape, but his paw had healed without issue, it seemed. He's not sure if Sunflowerpaw's injury is worse than his is, though. "Maybe yours will too." The chimera offers what little encouragement he could, shrugs inwardly at the idea, entirely uncertain. He supposes there are probably a lot of uncertainties in the apprentice's life right now. Tigerfrost realizes it's probably frightening.​

 

[SUNFLOWERMASK]

.°☀ AND IF IT EVER STARTS TO FEEL BAD, LITTLE FANG

---

Tigerfrost's words are what finally tear the apprentice's eyes from their injury. They remember, although they had little reason to pay him much mind, when Tigerfrost had been in the medicine den before. After Dandelionwish's escape. They missed the excitement of it, still aren't sure how to feel. Vulturemask had looked up to the traitorous medicine cat, once upon a time. Their name was drawn from his, even. Vulturemask had told them that, once. But they'd seen the consequences of his escape, just as they had the raid. The injuries to some of WindClan's own...

Their eyes drift to Tigerfrost's paw. He sounds uncertain, clumsy in his reassurances, but they appreciate them nonetheless. But... if he's been through something similar, maybe he knows a bit more than they do. Hesitantly, they reach out their good paw, brush it against the fur of the lead warrior's once-injured leg. They look up to him, tilt their head in questioning. No words this time, but they hope he will still understand. What was it like, they wonder, when his paw was healing? Was it scary to him too? Surely not, he seems like he wouldn't be scared of anything.

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IT'S EASY TO EXPLAIN 'CAUSE THIS WORLD'S NOT TAME .°☀

⟪ OOC ⟫ ⟪ INFO ⟫ ⟪ REF ⟫

• //​
• SUNFLOWERPAW named by their half-brother vulturemask after his friend and mentor.
  — they/them, 4 moons. semiverbal.
  — windclan apprentice, mentored by wolfsong.
  — reserved yet loyal, distrusts most.
  
  primary character, high activity. penned by saturnid.​
• 

​

 

[TIGERFROST]

Tags and Information

---

He's initially confused when the apprentice reaches out to touch his now healed paw. Were they curious about it? How it had healed, perhaps? Or maybe what it felt like? He imagines it felt much the same as Sunflowerpaw's did now. The tilted head, the inquisitive eyes, Tigerfrost realizes that it's an questioning expression, but he's not exactly the best at reading into another's silence.

"I'm not sure... how it healed so well. But it certainly hurt, just as I imagine yours does now." He explains, not entirely certain what Sunflowerpaw was expecting out of him. "I suppose it worried me, probably the same ways your paw worries you. Wondering how I would adapt if it didn't heal, how I'd have to re-learn how to walk and run in a different way than what I'm used to." He goes on with a bit of a shrug, before leaning down to take another bite from the hare carcass between them. "It hurt for close to an entire moon, but I kept off of it when I could. I think it's as strong as it used to be before the injury now." Tigerfrost concludes after swallowing his mouth-ful of food, swiping a barbed tongue across bloodied jaws.​

 

[SUNFLOWERMASK]

.°☀ AND IF IT EVER STARTS TO FEEL BAD, LITTLE FANG

---

It takes Tigerfrost a moment to respond, but that's alright. They're patient, and they don't quite have the words to ask what they want to. So they wait for his uncertain reply, hanging on each word. They are still, head remaining tilted, ears perked as they listen. Their wide eyes remain locked on his face. It hurt, he says, he was worried. Worried about if he could adapt, if he'd ever be able to walk and run the way he used to. An echo of their own thoughts, spoken aloud, as though the lead warrior is pulling their fears from the place they'd been left to fester in their chest, wrenching them out into the light.

But it's not just their own fears, Tigerfrost felt them too. There's comfort, in that.

And after a moon, he recovered. They can wait, for a moon. It's not forever.

The let out a breath, unsure when they'd started holding it. A small nod, ever-lashing tail stilling. They've found what they were looking for, in his words. Eyes flick back down to the rabbit. Content, they return to their shared meal.

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IT'S EASY TO EXPLAIN 'CAUSE THIS WORLD'S NOT TAME .°☀

⟪ OOC ⟫ ⟪ INFO ⟫ ⟪ REF ⟫

• //​
• SUNFLOWERPAW named by their half-brother vulturemask after his friend and mentor.
  — they/them, 4 moons. semiverbal.
  — windclan apprentice, mentored by wolfsong.
  — reserved yet loyal, distrusts most.
  
  primary character, high activity. penned by saturnid.​
• 

​

 

[TIGERFROST]

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---

They seem satisfied with Tigerfrost's response, or so he seems to think. The apprentice says nothing more, indicates no other questions, so perhaps they had gotten the answers they were seeking. The nod they offer confirms it, as Sunflowerpaw returns their attention to the hare carcass. Tigerfrost isn't entirely sure what else to say, so he does the same, fixing his teeth into the flesh of their food and pulling another bite free. It seemed they were likely to share the rest of this meal in silence, but the Lead Warrior doesn't mind it too much.​