private Whispers In the Dark | Iciclefang

[Cindershade]

A young warrior she hadn't quite imagined herself to approach so suddenly, but with Ashpaw's return and the combustive arguing that had clashed over Iciclefang's choice of words; Cindershade was a bit—perplexed over the whole situation. Lichentail had outed her in front of them all, earning a verbal lashing from the mottled phantom that reigned these wetlands. One didn't have to be a mere bystander to know how the tortoiseshell woman felt despite her persistent stoicism. Sometimes those walls crack, they break and crumble when something strikes it just right and with enough force. Of all the cats in the clan, why was the lead warrior wanting to seek her out amongst them? They hadn't shared much of a relationship to this point, merely passing by one another and casual conversation.
It was because that unlike many others, Cindershade saw the warrior as a version of herself at that age. She can still remember herself those few seasons ago, an adolescent adult finding her way through the world within the marsh colony. Fierce, level-headed, a prodigy amongst her peers. A pulled taut string, never breaking despite the obstacles placed in front of her. The rosetted woman respected her, wanted to see her succeed and thrive. Would she still be able to persevere despite seeing a metaphorical ghost of someone she loved? That is one thing that Cindershade had never experienced, she had closed her heart off long ago when her parents had left her to fend against the unforgiving streets of the city she hailed from. She didn't know why she wanted to seek her out so fervently, but perhaps soon she would find out. What would she even say to her? Chin up, kid—there's plenty of fish in the river. How idiotic that would be. Sounds like Snakeblink, a humorous thought looms in her mind and she huffs out a short laugh. A constant thorn in my side I never seem to get rid of.

By the time she seeks out that familiar patterned silhouette, the sun had long fell behind the horizon and darkness had encroached upon the sky. The moon show half-heartedly, shrouded behind straggling dark clouds. Silver luminescent light bathed their figures, and silently she would approach the glacial-like woman. "Iciclefang." She says her name, accented tone biddable. A split second silence falls between them now, the lead warrior searching for the words to say. She doesn't often come up to someone else and expecting a conversation lest it was her own apprentice, and suddenly she feels a bit uncomfortable though it is hidden amongst her silhouetted festures. "Let's take a walk—perhaps some night fishing. I'd like to see your skills when the sun isn't there to light the way for you." A small smile pinches at her expression, her tail swaying behind her. If she knew Iciclefang correctly, the warrior would nome other than offer herself up for the challenge.

@ICICLEFANG

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[ SILENCE IS DEAFENING ]​

 

[iciclefang]

There’s a sliver of moon hanging between grayed wisps in the sky above her. Iciclefang is unable to sleep, mute beneath frosted stars. She has fled from dreams since Ashpaw’s disappearance, all of them ending in failure, bruised ribs, the ridiculing stares from her Clanmates who thought you should have fought harder. She agrees—she should have died to protect Ashpaw, and she would have, she would have.

But she hadn’t, and Ashpaw had returned, limping and bloodied. She sleeps fretfully, tucked away in Ravensong’s den, twitchy with nightmares gifted to her by a Twoleg’s cruel hands. The tortoiseshell’s pale gaze sweeps over the den where the girl she’d loved and lost slumbers, and she feels her chest begin to ache with feeling she cannot explain.

How can I look you in the eyes now? I’ve failed you. I’m not one tenth of the warrior I promised you I’d be. Perhaps about that, Boneripple and Lichentail are right—but they cannot know what fights now in her thorn-choked heart, her bramble-barriered mind.

“Iciclefang,” a low, velvety voice calls to her. A shadow come alive, green eyes alight with the moon, approaches on silent paws. Cindershade. Iciclefang gives her a respectful dip of the head, though she feels herself frowning as duty tugs her to her feet. “Of course, but I must ask…” Her light blue eyes cloud with doubt. “Am I being taken out by the lead warriors so often…” She looks away for a heartbeat, remembering Petalnose’s assertion that it had been to get to know her…

“…because of Ashpaw?” She meets the black leopard-pelted warrior’s gaze without fear of rebuke. “If so… I understand.” Night fishing won’t protect a Clanmate in danger, but perhaps her other skills are in question now. Resigned, she follows the other out of camp, her steps light.

✧ INFO.

•  
• 
  — iciclekit . iciclepaw . iciclefang
  — she/her ; warrior of riverclan
  — lesbian ; single
  — short-haired tortoiseshell with white markings and ice-blue eyes
  — “speech”, thoughts, attack
  — penned by Marquette
  — chibi by Pin

​

 

[Cindershade]

A swish of a shaded tail from behind her as the tortoiseshell warrior locks eyes with her, glacial eyes as keen as her own—though a glimpse of something mysterious makes the woman hum to herself in thought. When Iciclefang answers her question and her smirk fades into a void of darkness. I must ask...am I being taken out by the lead warriors so often...because of ashpaw? Inked brows raise quizzically, the blatant question clearly taking her by surprise. Other lead warriors? Who else has stolen a moment of the young warrior? For a few suspenseful heartbeats, she says nothing. Iciclefang had been through a lot these few moons, but she has never given any inclination of being a disloyal warrior. She was strong, sturdy and relentless like the mountain peaks over the horizon. She could endure so much—and no matter how harsh a mighty gale may bellow to her, she doesn't yield to it. A trait that was imperative to survival.
The rosetted warrior beckons her with her tail finally to follow, verdant eyes darting over her until she finally speaks. "No one faults you for Ashpaw's kidnapping, Iciclefang, I can assure you of that right now. I would not lie to you, for I have no reason to." Her voice is firm, a declaration of her feelings and not something that is given often. Empathy. "You are a strong warrior; Smokethroat taught you well. But you've always been strong-willed since kithood. No cat could stand against a Two-Leg and win—and yet, you still tried anyways." As they exit the confines of their secluded island, brisk water rises to her abdomen and she sighs at the comfort in it. Iciclefang was turbulent, a mixture of raw emotion that not many knew how to digest and work through. It's not everyday that your beloved comes back from a fate that ensured death or imprisonment to so many others. It's a wonder how Ashpaw did it. "You did everything possible. Some things are just—out of our control. Two-Legs are powerful beasts as you now know, and they can be a deadly threat to us." They're travel along the well-beaten path till the sound of distant falls roar in the distance, nearly drowning the sound of the cicada's song around them.
​

[ SILENCE IS DEAFENING ]​

 

[iciclefang]

To her relief, Cindershade almost seems surprised by Iciclefang’s question. So this isn’t a tactic from Cicadastar or Smokethroat to humiliate me, she thinks wearily. She supposes she hadn’t really thought such a thing—no cat can doubt her unwavering loyalty to RiverClan or her skill in battle. There is no cat who can fight a Twoleg alone—and she knows this. “Petalnose,” she explains briefly as she and the spotted lead warrior sink into the river water. “She told me she wasn’t assessing me… but after you asked me too, and after Lichentail’s comments at the border that day…” She shrugs. “If my higher ups wanted to test me in some way, I would not begrudge you.”

She churns her paws beneath the dark water, listening to her superior with a flicking ear. “It was foolish of me to fight the Twoleg. It did nothing. At worst, it could’ve made it angry, and it could’ve hurt Ashpaw worse.” Her tone is veiled, as ever, and her expression is neutral despite the words she speaks. She is not self-deprecating; Iciclefang has had moments where she’s been sucked into self-pity for herself and her situation, but it had not been for long. Even horrific moments like these are teaching moments, aren’t they?

Iciclefang listens to the sounds of the night, the forest coming alive, and says, “How would you have reacted in my place?” Cindershade—has she ever loved, even childishly? Had a girl she’d thought she’d lost for good disappeared—would she have acted like Mosspaw, running to her friend on clumsy paws and heaving herself at them with innocent affection and relief? Would she be more like Iciclefang, reserved, cautious, and—

--afraid, though she will never speak this aloud.

✧ INFO.

•  
• 
  — iciclekit . iciclepaw . iciclefang
  — she/her ; warrior of riverclan
  — lesbian ; single
  — short-haired tortoiseshell with white markings and ice-blue eyes
  — “speech”, thoughts, attack
  — penned by Marquette
  — chibi by Pin

​