Camp ShadowClan you're no alone in this // Seal

[Marbleshine]

MARBLE OF SHADOWCLAN

Humming softly, Marbleshine trotted forward, the warmth in her eyes reflected in the soft blue of her gaze. She stepped carefully into the apprentice den, mindful of some the sleeping forms nestled in the dim space. " Sealpaw! " she called gently, her face lighting up at the sight of the young apprentice she had basically adopted as her own after the big fight. " I brought you some moss for your nest, to keep you nice and warm at night! "

She set the bundle down, her tail curling with satisfaction. " I even tucked in a few feathers to make it softer. " A soft purr underlined her words as she nudged the materials toward Sealpaw. Marbleshine tilted her head, amusement flickering in her expression. " Do you want me to help fix it up? These deft paws can fix up a nest or two! " she offered before leaning in to rasp her tongue over the apprentice's ear in a brief, affectionate gesture.

She pulled back slightly, eyes gleaming. " Gosh, look at you… You're starting to grow up, little one! Or, well… not so little anymore! " she giggled, flicking her tail playfully. Then, after a pause, she twitched an ear and added with a voice that was laced with excitement at the thought of leaving camp together with the young one.

" Do you want to come with me outside of camp today? "

GO ON AND TRY TO TEAR ME DOWN ——･ﾟ✦​

･ﾟ✦ —— I WILL BE RISING FROM THE GROUND

@Sealpaw

 

[Sealpaw]

You Say That You Are Close

Is Close The Closest Star?

x

Truth be told she was still struggling somewhat. With finding her footing after her falling out with Fleapaw. With trying to keep up with Smogmaw's teachings. ...With... With herself in general. It seemed that everyone else around her already knew exactly who they were and what they were meant to do. And here Sealpaw was bumbling along behind everyone and making a mess of things in her wake.

She wished that she could hurry up and figure out what she was meant to do. She WAS older, leafbare had long come and gone by now but most of the time she still felt like she was a kit barely old enough to leave camp. It was with these thoughts swirling in her head that she heard Marbleshine calling out to her from the den's opening. "Oh, Marble thank you-"

She could barely begin to thank Marbleshine for the moss before the other launched into an offer to help, and before the apprentice could respond the topic once again changed. Almost dizzyingly fast her foster mother had jumped from helping with her nest, to commenting on Sealpaw's height (she didn't feel very tall at all), to offering to leave camp just the two of them. It was overwhelming. Suffocating.

"NO-" The knee-jerk response is snapped out before she can stop herself and Sealpaw slams her mouth shut at the realization. Other apprentices stir awake from the sudden shout and the tips of her ears begin to burn with embarrassment. "I-I mean, I can fix my nest myself. I don't need help."

As if to prove her point a grey paw reached forward to snatch the bundle of moss and feathers and toss it onto her nest to set to work. It wasn't hard. She'd done it before a bunch of times- albeit without a sudden audience like this. It felt like every pair of eyes in the apprentice's den was on her as she worked, paws clumsily trying to weave the feathers in with the older moss and... This wasn't going well at all.

'Don't cry. Don't cry about it or you'll just prove yourself wrong...'

You Just Feel Twice As Far

SEALPAW

— Shadowclan Apprentice
— She/They
"SPEECH", 'THOUGHTS', ATTACK
— Grey Rosetted Tabby With Blue Eyes And A Bobbed Tail.
#4c66bf

 

[Marbleshine]

MARBLE OF SHADOWCLAN

Marbleshine froze for a brief moment at the sharpness of Sealpaw's voice, causing her eyes to widen just that tad bit. It wasn't the volume that caused a pang in her chest, it was the weight she found in the words Sealpaw tossed at her. The way she had snapped like a brittle twig under pressure... And though her smile faltered, just for a moment, just long enough for a flash of pain to flicker in her eyes, she managed to pull her smiling mask back into place.

A breath was taken, soft and steady. She would not press Sealpaw, not now. " Oh, yes of course. " she said gently, her voice low enough not to disturb the other apprentices further. She didn't mention the way Sealpaw's paws fumbled. Didn't speak of the feathers slipping out of place or how the moss lumped awkwardly to one side. She saw it... of course she did, but she saw more than that. The tightness in the young molly's shoulders. The glassy sheen just behind those stubborn eyes.

" You're right. You can fix it yourself. " she added, voice softer now, but touched with a warmth that didn't quite manage to hide the hurt. " I'll just leave this here, then. Just in case you want a little extra softness. " she opted with a faint smile, lowering the bundle of moss beside the nest and brushing a feather quickly back into place with the tip of her tail.

There was a painful pause, a hesitation before she finally looked at Sealpaw and spoke quietly. " You don't have to do it all on your own, Sealpaw. Not with me...." Her blue eyes searched the apprentice's face for a moment longer, then dropped, respectful, like stepping back from the edge of something fragile.

She began to turn, preparing to leave, but cast one final glance over her shoulder, her voice barely a whisper. " ...I'm proud of you. Even on the days when you don't know who you are yet. Especially then." And though her heart ached of wanting to pull her foster daughter close and not let go, she kept her distance for now.

GO ON AND TRY TO TEAR ME DOWN ——･ﾟ✦​

･ﾟ✦ —— I WILL BE RISING FROM THE GROUND

 

[Sealpaw]

You Say That You Are Close

Is Close The Closest Star?

x

Her sight was becoming misty from unshed tears but still Sealpaw stared down at her nest, blinking rapidly in an attempt to clear the bothersome water away but that did little to soothe the crux of it. Why did she have to cry over every little thing? Had she cried nearly as much as this when Leopard was still alive? Or was it just in response to how rapidly everything had changed? She felt that the answer didn't quite matter at all but rather she needed some sort of outlet to put the lingering hurt into. Unfortunately Marble just happened to be there when the dam threatened to break.

"Then leave me alone-!" The faintest hint of teeth are bared, though still the apprentice doesn't turn to face her foster mother. The faintest of trembles in her shoulders are all that give her away. "I can't focus when you're hovering over me."

Tufted ears angled back slightly at the sound of the warrior turning away, she didn't dare move until she was sure Marble had gone on her way.

You don't have to do it all on your own.

Once more Sealpaw finds herself stiffening, head hung low and if she had a longer tail she was sure she'd wind up accidentally smacking someone with it from the lashing back and forth she was sure it'd be doing. "Smogmaw doesn't ask for help." The tabby bites out, bitter. "Or Wolfpack. I don't need help. I'm not some newborn kit for you to coo over."

She doesn't respond when Marbleshine's gentle words reach her ears. What was there to be proud of? She certainly didn't feel like she had done anything worthy of pride. Trembling paws slowly move to fix the nest, just like the molly had taught her.

She wished she could take back all she'd just said but something inside her chest holds the words I'm sorry tightly and instead Sealpaw frowns deeply as she listens, waiting for Marbleshine to truly leave the den before she can fall apart in front of her foster mother.

You Just Feel Twice As Far

SEALPAW

— Shadowclan Apprentice
— She/They
"SPEECH", 'THOUGHTS', ATTACK
— Grey Rosetted Tabby With Blue Eyes And A Bobbed Tail.
#4c66bf

 

[Marbleshine]

MARBLE OF SHADOWCLAN

Marbleshine stood there for a moment longer, the sharpness of Sealpaw's words echoing in her ears louder than she let show. Leave me alone. The words hadn't meant to cut, she knew that... At least, not truly... But they still slid beneath her fur and settled somewhere heavy in her chest. Her paws shifted slightly, claws flexing against the den floor before she pulled them back in. Her eyes, so often alight with warmth and sunshine, dulled just a little as she lowered her gaze. She didn't move right away. She wanted to say something. She always wanted to say something. To soothe, to fix, to be enough, but maybe she wasn't. Maybe she was too soft. Too hopeful. Too much and not enough, all at once.

Her voice, when it came, was quieter than usual. " I understand. " And she meant it, even if it broke her a little to say. She turned, slowly, quietly, not wanting to disturb Sealpaw's space any more than she already had. She could feel the tension in the air, the hurt under Sealpaw's words, the walls she was building. Maybe Marbleshine wasn't strong enough to tear them down. Maybe she wasn't mother-material after all.

She paused just before stepping fully out of the den, casting a glance over her shoulder. Her eyes shimmered, not from tears, but from emotion held too tightly behind them. Her voice was gentle, like wind through long grass. " I'll give you space, little one… But if you ever need anything… even if it's just silence shared with someone… I'm here. " She didn't wait for a reply, honestly she didn't expect one. She padded out, her steps soft as snowfall.

Outside, she sat just beyond the entrance, tail curled tightly around her paws, chin tucked down. The self-doubt crept in like cold: Maybe she needed someone tougher. Maybe she'd be better off without me hovering. Maybe I'm not doing any of this right… Maybe I'm just too soft.

Still, she waited there, out of sight, but not far. Just in case Sealpaw needed her. Just in case she changed her mind.

GO ON AND TRY TO TEAR ME DOWN ——･ﾟ✦​

･ﾟ✦ —— I WILL BE RISING FROM THE GROUND