Meant for the Sky [Wrenspring]

Birdpaw had finished tending to the elders, and with nothing else to do for the evening, she'd found a sparrow on the fresh-kill pile and settled outside of the apprentice den to eat. Movement at the camp entrance caught her eye, and Birdpaw lifted her head, hoping that it was mom coming back from a patrol.

There was a brief moment of disappointment, however. It was just the clan's medicine cat, with a bundle of something in her jaws. Birdpaw would never say it to the medicine cat's face, but she found the huge, scarred tabby far more intimidating than the Asylum. And how could she not? She didn't act like what a medicine cat should be according to nursery tales. She was aggressive, had even trained as a warrior first, something that Birdpaw thought was obvious to anyone that looked at her. She had a short temper and no patience for anyone, except for maybe grandma. Her long fur was often fluffed in obvious anger, which did little to hide the scars that covered the she-cat from head to tail.

Mom had gotten an odd look in her eye when the medicine cat approached sometimes, and Birdpaw got the distinct impression that the two didn't get along. But then, it seemed like the medicine cat didn't get along with many of their clanmates, and definitely didn't get along with Asylum. She cared for Skyclan's sick and injured, Birdpaw knew, but the brawny she-cat didn't seem like the caring sort.

As if provoked by the mere thought, Beechface's eyes locked on Birdpaw for a moment. There was something in her intense yellow-green eyes that Birdpaw couldn't place, but otherwise her expression was unreadable. Something about it made the apprentice think that the medicine cat was eyeing a piece of prey, and she dropped her eyes back to the bird at her paws. Her stare made Birdpaw feel trapped, like a mouse caught beneath a warrior's paw.

The medicine cat's dark gaze shifted away, and Birdpaw relaxed. She watched as the medicine cat turned to say something to the cat at her shoulder- dad, Birdpaw realized- before turning towards the medicine den, long tail twitching.

The apprentice turned back to her meal, managing a few bites before the sound of approaching pawsteps made her look up. Dad, she realized, gaze lighting up happily, infinitely less intimidating than the medicine cat.

"Hey, dad." She mewed between bites of food. She hoped that he wasn't coming over here because of something Beechface had said... Surely the medicine cat noticing her at all wasn't a good thing. But then, if the medicine cat had a problem, she seemed like the sort to address it directly, not have someone else talk to the one she had an issue with. So dad couldn't be here for anything bad, which was reassuring.

Hey, dad.

It was curious how such a simple and unassuming sentiment could provoke such churning within his chest. Wrenspring couldn't believe his kits - their kits - were already training as apprentices. The short span of time he'd had to prepare for the kits did little to soothe the convoluted internal struggle. Even with the glare of sunlight ahead, the warrior knew that Starclan peered down from above, likely judgement and disappointment wrought in their gaze. Such thought drew a shiver down his spine, one that could have likely been attributed to a stray breeze fluffing his coat. There came a soft smile as he regarded Birdpaw. She was sweet and wonderful kit, one that reminded him of Grayburd when she was younger. Admittedly, there was a guilty part of him that greatly enjoyed being able to raise kits of his own once more.

"Birdpaw." He meowed softly, setting down into the earth. The tom tucked his paws casually underneath him. Beechface wasn't far off and the urge to invite her over was overwhelming. She deserved as much of a part in their lives as he did. A flicker of disappointment crossed his maw but it was the briefest flash. Instead, Wrenspring opted to attempt to bring about conversation with his daughter, "Has training been treating you well? I taught Ravenclaw everything she knows, you know." There was a purr as he remembered the times he had shared with the she-cat exploring the territory. How strange was it that Skyclan now saw them as mates, and Birdpaw her mother. Wrenspring often wished something could be that simplistic. Life would have been easier if he'd taken on the dark-pelted warrior as a mate but he could never see her as more than that young and bright apprentice he trained, and he didn't want to see her as anything else.

The desire to share the truth with his kit was overwhelming and yet he couldn't bring himself to do more than run his tongue roughly against the roof of his mouth. This was the best for all of them, right?

"Training's fun." Birdpaw mewed between bites of food, "Mom's a great mentor! She's been teaching me how to hunt and climb trees." Her tone betrayed her enthusiasm as she spoke. She hardly even noticed the shadowy forms that followed them as they trained but of course, she was far more interested in paying attention to everything Ravenclaw told her.

"Mom mentioned that you saved her from falling out a tree, once" Ravenclaw had always spoken highly of Wrenspring as a warrior, and Birdpaw wanted to live to be spoken of the same way.

A broad smile crossed his maw at the enthusiasm portrayed by one of his younger kits. Nostalgia continued to wash over him at the memory of a young Graybird; to experience this once more was both a blessing and a curse in many faucets. For now, he had to continue to shove away the overwhelming guilt and surge of conflicting thought. Just support your daughter, mousebrain. Wrenspring blinked as the apprentice continued on with her recounts of training. It had been a long time since he had experienced the life an apprentice himself but training Ravenclaw was still fresh in his mind. He wondered briefly if the she-cat was passing along all of the skills that had been taught to her during their sessions.

At the mention of the branch rescue during tree training, Wrenspring's whiskers twitched ever so slightly in amusement. When it had happened, panic had surely ceased his chest but now it was a memory of training aside the younger warrior, "Almost more than once if I remember right. Not every Skyclanner is a natural tree climber. It can take practice to hone your skill but you could hardly tell with Ravenclaw now. She was one of my best apprentices! Hopefully you don't give her too much trouble." The warrior joked lightly, flickering his tail to brush her pelt.