Trypophobia (Closed for Acrylic)

Blacktwig sat near the edge of camp, thinking only of his mate and kits. Mottledkit and Mothkit were safely tucked away in the nursery. Ants scuttled out of their holes, as Blacktwig's gaze trailed behind their dark red figures. His paws didn't move in an attempt to catch them, he just watched them like a lonely kit. Above his head the sun hung, its rays glazing Blacktwig's speckled ebony skull with their light. He glanced upwards, scenting a cat nearby. He immediately recognized the scent of Morningshine. His eyes desisted to look at her, as he believed that if he did, he would be troubled again by her sharp tongue after what happened. He would probably be lectured.

His eyes shone with longing sadness. As if he could ever get Morningshine to listen again, there had been so much she was going through. Blacktwig felt as if he was the cause. Stormstrike was gone, and he missed the greyish-blue tom dearly. He hoped Morningshine wouldn't be so quick to judge him.

C'mon, Dormouse. You can't possibly take a nap right after we've been made warriors!
Oh...Hi!
Aha! The dormouse finally awakens. It's about time she has, too.
I am not a dormouse!
That's exactly what a dormouse would say.
Ha! You are so stupid, Stormstrike...but I love you anyway.
I love you too.
Morningshine padded beside her brother, through the forest on a beautiful Greenleaf day. She felt protected and happy knowing that her brother was by her side, and always would be. And even though they exchanged frivolous banter with each other, they loved each other very much. How did Stormstrike feel when Morningshine had left, during the time when the Dark Forest controlled the Clans? He must've missed her terribly, every single day, Morningshine couldn't bare to lose him, ever. Now, her brother had kits, and the family line was being carried on more and more. She couldn't ask for better sisters, Mistywater and Coldbreeze were amazing, and she couldn't ask for a better brother. It was as if life was just...perfect, and nothing could change that. It would never end...never.

♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥

He said he'd always be there for me!
I'm so sorry, Dapplecloud...but Stormstrike always keeps his promises. He wouldn't leave on purpose.
Where could he have gone? He could be dead for all I know!
No, I refuse to believe that. Stormstrike is the best fighter I know, he can defend himself.
Twolegs could've captured him!
If that's true, then he could easily get out of their. The twolegs couldn't keep him inside all day. Please, don't give up faith so easily, Dapplecloud.
So...do you truly believe that he's okay?
Of course.
Overnight, as if almost magically, Stormstrike had vanished. One moment, he had been curled up beside Morningshine and Blacktwig in the warriors' den, the next morning he was gone. Just like how Morningshine had went missing when she was just a new apprentice. This was crazy...Morningshine had come missing and come back, Mistywater had gone missing and come back, and Stormstrike was the one missing now...how come all of her littermates were vanishing and coming back? Life had been so perfect! Now it wasn't! And now, Morningshine tried desperately to calm down the tortoiseshell warrior and former queen, Dapplecloud, Stormstrike's mate. Morningshine couldn't bare to see her friend in tears, but it had come down to that. Now all they could do was hope.

♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥

I have to go find my father!
He'll come back on his own!
But he hasn't yet! I miss him, I wanted to grow up with a father to support me and be there, and that's not happening...
I know what it's like to miss someone, Halfpaw, I even know what it's like to be missed, I-
No! I thought you cared about Stormstrike, but you're just like everyone else. He'all come back on his own, they say. He's still with you in your heart, they say. He misses you and he's coming back to us, they say. But it hasn't happened yet!
Patience, Halfpaw, patience!
I'm sick of being patient, and I thought you'd understand! You're his brother, you should miss him more than I do! I'm leaving to find him, and there's nothing you can do to stop me!
Halfpaw wait!
Morningshine chased after the calico she-cat, yelling her name repeatedly, but the apprentice was too quick for her. She was gone...what would Stormstrike think of her? What would he say if he knew that Morningshine had lost one of his daughters? And there was Dapplecloud too! Morningshine would have to tell her what happened...she blinked, sadly, looking down at the ground. So much had been happening already. Losing Stormstrike, losing Halfpaw, finding out about Blacktwig's secret relationship with Emberfall. It was too much for her! She still knew she had family and friends, there was Sheeppaw, Meadowlight, Blizzardshine, Swanpaw, Softpaw, Mistywater, Coldbreeze, and many others. What if another one left too? Discouraged, she Morningshine turned in the opposite direction to head back to camp.

♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥~♥

Now, in present day, Morningshine decided to go out for a solo hunt. The pile was low and she wanted to take it upon herself to help stock it up. She trudged through the territory, lifting her nose in attempts to scent out prey, but the only scent she could catch was...Blacktwig? She poked hr head through a bush, looking at the tom that she had a grudge with, before emerging fully from the bushes with a frown on her face. It wasn't fair to her that Blacktwig had been able to live a fantasy, with the she-cat that he loved, while Morningshine had to stay behind and fret over her missing brother and niece. Along with that, she had to keep a sharp eye on her other niece, Sheeppaw, to prevent her from doing anything foolish, and she had to mentor Burningpaw on top of all of that. She narrowed her bright blue eyes, "Oh...I didn't expect to see you here." She said, her voice tainted with all the sorrow and harshness that she had been storing up inside of her. When around others at camp, she held all of her feelings in, but when she was alone with Blacktwig, it all came pouring out like a waterfall.

Blacktwig twisted around, fur bristling. She obviously still had a grudge with him, and his 'dream' wasn't such a dream. He had to keep one eye on Mottledkit and Mothkit, his two new daughters, and the other he kept on his clan and loyalties and duties. "Hello," he meowed begrudgingly. getting up with his fur slightly ragged. He blinked his dull blue gaze. "Have you seen Pebbleheart?" He would have to try and make ends meet with the she-cat, as much as she hated him. And worry was welling up within him too. He hated the Twolegs. They took away Pebbleheart, Stormstrike, even Mistywater for a brief moment. Now, he wondered where Halfpaw was. His ears pricked with concern. "And Halfpaw?" He added, blue gaze wild as he looked around for his calico apprentice. His ears drooped with sorrow. He disliked fretting in front of other cats, it made him seem like a nervous queen.

Morningshine just nonchalantly flicked her left ear, "Why do you care? Aren't you too busy wondering about where your mate is?" She asked, not bothering to hold back her harsh tone. It was as if she and Sheeppaw had switched personalities over night. Morningshine gaining the sarcasm and coldness, while Sheeppaw gaining the cheerfulness and optimism. She knew where Halfpaw was, she had went to find her father, Stormstrike, but Morningshine had no clue if she had been captured by Twolegs or even...
No, no, no...
She wasn't dead, she couldn't of been dead. Morningshine couldn't live with herself with Halfpaw was dead.
"No, I haven't seen Pebbleheart or Halfpaw. At least I know that they're not with Emberfall." The fluffy she-cat said, sarcastically.

(Casually changes Morningshine's font color.)

Blacktwig narrowed his eyes. "No, they aren't. I'm worried about them. My cousin, my apprentice." He insisted coldly, shooting Morningshine a glare. He couldn't take Morningshine's sarcastic nattering. Her insults didn't work, and luckily, he had experience with Sheeppaw. He leaned back.

"Worried? How should I know that you aren't also worried about Emberfall. Or the kits in WindClan. No, I have no grudge against the kits, because it wasn't their fault that they were born to cats of two Clans, but my grudge is with you and Emberfall." Morningshine stated, sitting down. She could tell that this quarrel wasn't going to end quicker than it started to so she might as well get comfortable, "Why did you have to do this, Blacktwig? There were plenty of she-cats to choose from in ThunderClan. Why a WindClan cat? You know that every cat in ThunderClan has their own stories. My brother and niece are missing, Sheeppaw and Pinewhisker are mates, Swanpaw has been having seizures! Meanwhile, you get to escape the drama and the troubles that your family is facing, and enter a fantasy land of love with a mate that your not supposed to have," Morningshine paused to sigh, her expression changing from anger to calm sadness, "You don't abandon family for someone else, Blacktwig. Family sticks together, and they help each other through the good times and the bad. Loyal warriors follow the code, which says that becoming mates with a cat from the rival Clan is shameful. This isn't fair to me, or anybody else."

Blacktwig stood up, tail sweeping across the ground angrily. "Why do you think I don't care?" He hissed questioningly. "For all I know, I will never see her again, and you're acting like my family means nothing to me?" His tone cracked with sadness. "Just understand that I care... I ask because I'm worried, Morningshine, and perhaps you don't know, but I know who I care for, and I care for my family here." He retorted, although his gaze was softer and his tone was more sorrowful than made. It seemed to break his heart that Morningshine thought this way of him, for choosing one thing despite all of his loyalties to her and his clan.

Morningshine blinked, then narrowed her eyes once again. Even though Blacktwig stood, she just sat where she was, unmoving.
"What would you say to Stormstrike if he were here?" She asked, all of the sudden, "How do you think he'd respond if he knew that you had kits with a WindClanner? Would he be proud? No. Would Mistywater be proud to know what her son has done? I doubt it!" The fluffy she-cat retorted, tail lashing.

Blacktwig slanted his bushy eyebrows above his deep blue orbs. "You think it defines my loyalty, my love. I still care about my family," he persuaded calmly, his eyes not desperate, yet persistent. His tail grew still, and he stood for a moment, breathing frighteningly slow. He sunk hooked claws into the earthy soil, still meeting Morningshine's gaze boldly with his own.

"But you still didn't answer my question, Blacktwig," She stated, simply, "I don't have the time for redundancy, you telling me over and over again that you care while I ask you more, yet you don't respond. Are you not trying to answer?" She asked, tilting her head to the right and not flinching at Blacktwig's gaze.

Blacktwig then settled down. Now, it didn't even seem like he was trying to be mad. "Well, I'll answer now," he said, sitting down. Of course he was getting scolded like a kit. "No," he huffed, "No, they wouldn't." Blacktwig wasn't going to try and act defiant because this was what he deserved, no matter how much he hated it.

The fluffy she-cat narrowed her eyes, "I just don't understand..." She murmured, lowering her head, then meeting Blacktwig's blue gaze again. She had been wanting to ask this question for a long time now, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to do so.
"Why? Just...why?"

Blacktwig's gaze softened. "Because... I didn't know the consequences, I didn't know it would harm you... I didn't know that it would tear us apart. I just want to be with you again, I want to be with my family," he cried, his claws sheathing again. His desperate pleas would prove futile, he knew it, and he would be attacked with a flurry of insults again. He braced himself, resisting a cringe.

Morningshine stared down at her paws with her blue eyes that were once bright.
"You didn't think about it. You were probably young and foolish when you first met her. I don't know if you hurt anyone else but it certainly does hurt me," She said, still looking at her paws, but then she looked back up at Blacktwig, "You can be with your family...you can be with me...but your priority should be with ThunderClan now, not with Emberfall."

Blacktwig nodded firmly, and took a solemn vow. Even if he could, he probably wouldn't meet Emberfall again, unless it was at Gatherings. However, his eyes twinkled with a glimmer of piteous hope. "Can I still take care of my kits?" He asked.