Camp I tried to smile, I was suffocating though || Talon and Yew

[Yewkit]

YEWKIT

But here with you, I can finally breathe

.

Yewkit felt her belly grumble softly in hunger, but she hesitated, not wanting to wake mother nor her siblings. She wasn't used to eating by herself, the solitude unnatural and unfamiliar to her. But the fear of disturbing her family was too strong, especially mother, who wouldn't appreciate being woken up, she wondered if she should wait. Her belly growled back at her, protesting, and she begrudgingly got up.

Outside the nursery, near the fresh-kill pile, stood Talon - older than her by several moons, but still young. Yewkit didn't know him much, Yewkit didn't know anyone much, but she remembered mother going out with this young tom the other day. If mother went out to hunt with him, surely he was a friend? Talon picked out a frail-looking swallow and Yewkit watched him move somewhere quiet to eat.

She did not know how to eat by herself. Would Talon mind if she were to join him? She did not feel comfortable approaching her other clanmates, those louder or more energetic cats. Talon was quiet, though company still. She walked to the fresh-kill pile, took out a small mouse and quietly approached the tom. She dipped her head at him, keeping her gaze down and sat down with her mouse, making sure not to crowd him, hoping he wouldn't mind her company.

Instead of talking, Yewkit nibbled on her piece of prey, letting Talon know she wasn't there to disturb him - she was only there for company and comfort.

The quiet wasn't awkward or tense - it was steady, it was safe. For once, silence didn't feel like rejection nor punishment, it simply... was.

 

[Talonpaw Talonpaw]

Talonpaw had indeed met with this kids mother, walked outside with more knowledge than others knew of. She demanded he keep what he knew under wraps, but he didn't understand. Why say you're a plague- why let a man who treated you horrid to change you into accepting a new name? He didn't even understand his own name. Talonpaw... He hated it, so still- he introduced himself as Talon in the misunderstanding of what things meant. He was still adjusting after all, and learning about the clan could even be overwhelming.

He was studying again when one of Plagues kits approached him, remembering carefully anything Meadowpaw told him about the herbs, and what Merrystalk was slowly teaching him. They had crossed where he was found, he recognized the divot he had laid down in, had almost died in- and without a word, he had froze, and turned. That cost them time on training, and Merrystalk probably wasn't happy with him, but... Talon felt the anger and frustration boiling in his paws. They slid out of his sheathes on the walk back, and his jaws tighter than ever in a tense silence of unexplanation except, 'Lead us back.'

It's not safe.

Talonpaw chewed into his food a bit rougher, a subtle change as he pulled away sinewy meat, eye narrowing- before blinking. And then he was relaxed, as if nothing overcame him seconds before. Something so subtle and quick, he hoped the child was too distracted with her food to notice the subtle emotion. "i heard..." He suddenly said, breaking the fragile silence with his monotonous voice, blue eye looking over the kit. This kit didn't play like her siblings. She sat quietly observing, observing like he does. Was she imitating him? Is that why she decided to sit close today? "Y' guys recently got names. What is yours?"

​

Talon he/him, windclan 8 moons old.
black tabby with dark greyish brown undercoat and white underbelly. white crest on chest, and scars lining left side of face, blinding his right eye. icey blue eyes and white that is slowly starting to streak his features. Back scars non-existent for now.
mentored by Merrystalk // mentoring none
littermate to none
NPC x NPC / father/mother to none / mated to none
"speech" // "thoughts"
penned by Deidre ↛ deidre on discord, feel free to dm for plots. Art by PurpleCandyCorn.

 

[Yewkit]

YEWKIT

.

Yewkit blinked, surprised, when the silence broke. She didn't think Talon would speak to her and for a moment she just stared at him, ears alert. "Yewkit" she finally replied.

She thought back onto her naming ceremony with mother, not that long ago. Like the great tree, you will learn to be unwavering and graceful.. but lethal. Yewkit was not sure why she needed to be lethal, or, frankly, how a tree proved dangerous, but she still took pride in her name - mother chose it for her carefully, to reflect who Yewkit was and who she was going to be. She had never actually seen a yew tree, the WindClan territory all hills and empty plains, but she was hopeful one day she would get to see one.

She was worried at first that her new name would be foreign to her, unnatural, but she got used to it quickly, she liked having a name - she liked having this name.

Yewkit wondered if WindClan assigned meanings to names, if yes, what did Talon's represent? She wanted to ask, but hesitated, unsure if Talon would appreciate her asking questions back. She decided not to prod, to question, instead she turned back to her mouse. Still, she couldn't help but sneak a glance from the corner of her eye - Talon's tone might have been flat, indicating no emotion, but Yewkit noticed the small shifts - a twitch of his ear, muscles tensing and relaxing - there were still other ways to understand the tom.

He didn't seem tense nor annoyed at her talking, after all, it was he who invited her to speak. She dared to ask one thing at least "Do you know what decides your warrior name?" her voice barely more than a whisper. "Is it based on who you grow to be, or... just random?" This was't the first time she wondered, it had been on her mind for a while. She hoped there was meaning, a reason behind it.

And yet, another thought crawled into her mind - unwelcome and prickly. If names reflected who you were, like mother said, why was her name Plague? Something that took lives with no reason nor mercy. This was not a question for Talon however, and she tucked it to the back of her mind, determined to ask mother about it when she had the chance.

For now, she was here with Talon. She ate in silence, mirroring him without meaning to - two cats sharing this moment together, undisturbed - curious what the tom was going to reply.

 

[Talonpaw Talonpaw]

The child looked surprised, bicoloured eyes widening ears flicking- talon was unsure why the kit hesitated, but he couldn't be too surprised. Yewkit. He didn't know what Yew was, but it wasn't his problem. It was hers.

Talon only knew his name was because of his claws. He needed to use them as his namesake intended. The talons on his paws, he needed them to survive. He needed them to tear the flesh from bone as he was doing now with the carcass he was carefully eating off the bone. He needed them when he defending himself- but that time had not come except for the raccoon. And to say he failed miserably, already. But he wouldn't recite that aloud. He couldn't.

"No." He said bluntly, looking up with a single blue eye towards the child. "Their names are weird. Dimmingsun. Merrystalk. Owlbear. Dustystar. They don't mean anything t' me." He said with a shrug. He was still learning windclans customs. He still had yet to figure out their names representation. "But, someone else may have the answer. I'm Talonpaw, and sure. I have Talons on my paws, but it doesn't make sense t' me. It may never. Meadowpaw doesn't have meadows on her paws, so I don't get it."

​

Talon he/him, windclan 8 moons old.
black tabby with dark greyish brown undercoat and white underbelly. white crest on chest, and scars lining left side of face, blinding his right eye. icey blue eyes and white that is slowly starting to streak his features. Back scars non-existent for now.
mentored by Merrystalk // mentoring none
littermate to none
NPC x NPC / father/mother to none / mated to none
"speech" // "thoughts"
penned by Deidre ↛ deidre on discord, feel free to dm for plots. Art by PurpleCandyCorn.

 

[Yewkit]

YEWKIT

.

Talon did not know, but Yewkit didn't fault him - she didn't know either. They were both young, thrust into the life in the clans, unaware of all its rules and traditions. Unlike Talon, Yewkit was born in the clans, but mother wasn't, so she couldn't teach them what it meant to be a clan cat.

She nodded at Talon's answer, staring at her prey. What else was there to say? Maybe she could ask some of the other caretakers who usually had answers for her, but for now, she would be left only wondering.

Yewkit at least had half of her answer - her name, the first part of it at least, held meaning. One picked by mother carefully. The other half? "Well.. I suppose I am a kit." she thought out loud. "So at least that makes sense to me." Honeyflower mentioned that once she becomes an apprentice, she will be named Yewpaw - "I guess it's just one of those traditions I don't understand yet... apprentices being named paws for they still need to find their footing in the clan."

How did it feel, to one day have a name and the next have it changed to something else? Yewkit wasn't sure what to think of all this, but at least she was young enough to not have to worry about such things yet. Though she feared the day her name would be changed, no longer a kit under mother's protection, but a paw, given off to someone else. She shuddered at the thought, suddenly no longer feeling like finishing her food.

 

[Talonpaw Talonpaw]

talon watched the child carefully as she thought aloud. He supposed it was fair that the children be kits, and then the explanation of the paw finally added up and something clicked. "I guess that would make sense... But it is still repetitive." Talonpaw would respond, a shrug of his shoulders as he bit into his piece of food, slowly chewing.

The child seemed to suddenly turn from her food, and for a moment- talon thought it was his lack of ability to communicate. He wasn't good at this... Small talk. He definitely wasn't good at trying to make others feel good, and as far as he was concerned, Yewkit had questions that talon couldn't answer and was upset by it. What could he do?

" 'm not good at talkin' kid. It's not just you, so y' don't have to fret," talon stated after swallowing down his food.

​

Talon he/him, windclan 8 moons old.
black tabby with dark greyish brown undercoat and white underbelly. white crest on chest, and scars lining left side of face, blinding his right eye. icey blue eyes and white that is slowly starting to streak his features. Back scars non-existent for now.
mentored by Merrystalk // mentoring none
littermate to none
NPC x NPC / father/mother to none / mated to none
"speech" // "thoughts"
penned by Deidre ↛ deidre on discord, feel free to dm for plots. Art by PurpleCandyCorn.

 

[Yewkit]

YEWKIT

.

Yewkit wasn't sure where Talon was coming from, she had been enjoying his company. "I don't mind." she responded, letting her worries scatter away with the wind. "I'm not good with words either."

Her mouse was all but finished, with only a little bit of food left. She gulped it all down and relaxed, letting the warm breeze ruffle her fur, brushing against Talon's occasionally. She might not have understood what it meant to have a friend, but she enjoyed Talon's company and wouldn't mind sharing her time with him again in the future, would even consider seeking it out. If he wished for the same, of course. And a part of Yewkit hoped he would.

Her stomach full, Yewkit remembered why she had sought out Talon in the first place - because mother and her siblings were still asleep. They might have awoken by now, wondering where she went, and Yewkit's didn't want to worry them. Standing up on her little paws, she murmured a simple "Thank you" and turned around, ready to walk back to the nursery, to Plague and her siblings.