Meeting a Smokey Feather [Closed]

Dandelionpaw padded through the camp's entrance and set down the moss she was carrying. Ravenclaw had told her to clean out the elder's den and it had taken her longer than she expected to find enough moss. She brought the pile of moss closer to the den and stepped into the shady interior. Dandelionpaw was grateful for the cooler air of the den as she gathered the dirty moss. She was suddenly aware of a cat watching her and turned to find who it was. An elder laying on the other side of the den greeted her gaze. "Hello! Who are you? I'm Dandelionpaw!" she meowed to the cat, who, she was pretty sure, she had never met.

The days were still unreasonably warm, yet with leaf-fall approaching Smokefeather's pelt was slowly starting to fill out again. As the weeks wore on she looked less ragged and weary, though the lingering heat made her much less grateful for that change than she might've been. It was nearing sunhigh, and so theelder had retreated into the shade of the den, stretched out with her half-lidded gaze turned slightly towards the entrance.

It wasn't long before an apprentice stepped into the den carrying moss, dutifully setting about changing the nests, though only one nest was actually in use these days, and that was her own. Foxfire was in the medicine den still, and Wrenspring...

It was all her fault. None of this would have happened if not for her. The now-empty nests were simply another reminder of that.

Smokefeather shook her head, trying to ignore that train of thought. Thinking about it did nobody any good and wouldn't change things, she knew that. Didn't make it easier, though.

The apprentice turned towards her, introducing herself cheerfully, and Smokefeather offered her a tired smile. Most apprentices only came in to bring prey or change the nests, neither of which she was particularly thrilled at; her legs still worked (mostly) and she was capable of still doing that much on her own. Seldom did most of them care to talk, however, and Smokefeather found herself grateful for the few that did.

"Dandelionpaw? Dawnfeather's mentioned you." She mewed, happy to see that her great-granddaughter had been making friends, "I'm Smokefeather." She added.

Dandelionpaw listened to the elder as she introduced herself as Smokefeather. She continued to work on collecting the moss and was intrigued when she said that Dawnfeather had mentioned her. Though it seemed to be something a kit would ask, Dandelionpaw meowed, "Do you have any stories you could tell me?" She missed being a kit a little, though she still preferred being an apprentice. She finished picking up the dirty bedding and placed it outside before grabbing the clean bedding. Dandelionpaw padded back into the den and continued to work on making a new nest while Smokefeather spoke.

((OOC: I'm sorry that this is lackluster, and late))

"Hmm," Did she have stories? Stars... Smokefeather, for all that she'd been named an elder, really wasn't. Storytelling had never been her forte, and the few she thought of were... less than pleasant. Not storytelling material. Especially not for a young apprentice.

"For all that I'm in the elder's den, I'm actually younger than Bloodstrike, you know." She mewed, "I'd rather hear stories myself rather than tell them." Smokefeather's whiskers twitched, "You've been an apprentice for some time, right? How are you finding training? Your mentor is Ravenclaw, right?" It would be better to hear about what the apprentices were up to these days, surely that would be more entertaining... For Smokefeather, at least.

"Hmm, that's really interesting," she meowed back. She finished making the new nest and sat down in the den. She was enjoying her conversation with the elder so far! "I think that I've been an apprentice for a few moons. Training has been going good for me! I've learned so much! Ravenclaw is my mentor! She's really good at mentoring!" Dandelionpaw excitedly mewed to Smokefeather. "What's being an elder like?" She wanted to learn more about the elder. She seemed to be a really nice cat!

"That's good, I'm glad she's teaching you well." Smokefeather wouldn't have expected any less from her daughter. She'd always been loyal and true. An example of what more Skyclanners should strive for, even if she had a quick temper. Most cats did, especially with the events that seemed to constantly befall Skyclan. Dandelionpaw spoke up again, curiosity evident. It was... A fair question, Smokefeather supposed.

"It's... Rather boring, honestly." Smokefeather laughed, though it wasn't a happy laugh. "I miss being in the trees, and I miss being able to hunt." She'd tried to strength her leg for moons, but no matter what it would no longer hold weight. "Getting to spend time around younger cats is nice, but I have nothing else to do, and most of you are all busy with your training and other duties."

She guessed it could get a bit boring at times, not being able to hunt out in the forest. She enjoyed being able to go out on patrol and explore. She tried to think of what being an elder would be like for her. It would probably be very frustrating. She couldn't run around or hunt. Dandelionpaw mentally noted that she should stop by the elder's den every once in a while, so Smokefeather wouldn't get super lonely. "Can I get you something to eat?" She wanted to see if she could help out any more.

"Oh, don't. I'm not hungry." Smokefeather replied. And that was the other thing she hated about being an elder. She didn't need apprentices waiting on her every need. She was perfectly capable of hobbling to the fresh-kill pile to get her own prey, thank you very much. Still, that wasn't Dandelionpaw's fault, and Smokefeather wouldn't snap at her for it. The apprentice seemed like she wanted to help, and while Smokefeather wasn't thrilled about having things done for her, she could appreciate the sentiment at the very least.

"Have you eaten today? You could get something for yourself if you want, you know." She was sure Dandelionpaw could use the prey more than she could, after all, she was an apprentice with some growing left to do. And Smokefeather would rather see her clanmates eat than have them tripping over themselves to get her something.

Hearing Smokefeather's words reminded Dandelionpaw that she had barely eat today. Her stomach was starting to growl with hunger and she meowed in response, "Not really. I shared a bird with another apprentice this morning, but I haven't eaten anything other than that" She had spent most of the day gathering moss to change the bedding... Oh! She had forgotten about what she had been sent here to do. "I have to get going. I'll make sure to grab something to eat. Nice to meet you, Smokefeather!" Dandelionpaw meowed as she exited the den. She grabbed the pile of dirty bedding as ran to the dirtplace to dispose of it. Once she got back, she picked a vole out of the fresh-kill pile. Settling down next to the apprentices den, she started to eat the vole. She had to go on patrol soon, so she had to be quick.