Care [closed]

A wide yawn separating his jaws, Smallbean entered camp, just returning from an early-morning border patrol. Luckily nothing had interrupted the patrol, it had actually gone quite smoothly. On their way back to camp, though, he'd begun to realize how hungry he was. It was his own fault for not eating before he left, he'd need to remember next time.

Eyes sliding over to the fresh-kill pile, he noticed a particularly large looking rabbit. Far to large for him to eat alone. Usually he'd just pick something smaller, but sharing something would actually be nice. He didn't find himself spending quality time that often.... with anyone. Taking the chance, he picked up the rabbit and looked around, trying to find a warrior he didn't know that well. A lot of warriors were out right now, but luckily there were still some around camp. Walking up to one, he made an offer. "Hey, Owlshade.. Wanna help me with this? We could take it somewhere and share it." He asked, although his voice was muffled. "If you're too busy that's alright... or if you're just not that hungry. I just thought I'd ask."

Owlshade had been sitting on his own, not really doing anything when Smallbean approached. At first, he straightened up, ready to take whatever order the deputy had for him, but that didn't seem to be the case... no, Smallbean offered to share a rabbit with him, instead. Owlshade blinked, very slight confusion in his gaze, but the smell of the prey and his stomach's grumble in response made him realize that he, too, hadn't eaten today.

So he nodded gratefully and followed the older tom to wherever it was that he planned to settle down and eat. "Thank you," he told Smallbean as they walked. "I only just realized I haven't eaten today... took the dawn patrol and I guess I forgot about it when I get back." He smiled sheepishly.

Taking the rabbit to a quiet corner of camp, the deputy settled down, leaving space next to him for Owlshade to sit. Placing the rabbit between them, he began to dig in, quickly growing uncomfortable with the silence. "I don't think I've ever really had like... an actual conversation with you." He observed, staring off across camp before taking another bite of the rabbit. That was such a strange way to start a conversation. He frowned.

He fell thoughtfully silent before speaking up. "So... How are you? You said you forgot to eat... Has something been distracting you?" Smallbean asked this specific question on purpose. Although he could only speak from his own experiences, when something was troubling him, he was often inattentive, even to his own well-being. With his mouth full, he lifted his gaze to the sky, ears pointed in Owlshade's direction.

Owlshade considered the deputy's questions as he, too, dug in to the rabbit. After he'd swallowed his first bite, he lowered his head abashedly. "No, I don't think we have... though I'm certain it's mere happenstance. I tend to keep to myself, really... I hear the orders, I follow the orders... usually not too much of a reason to sit around and converse." He took another bite, chewing thoughtfully, and then started again. "And, no... nothing too distracting, I just guess today was a busy morning."

That wasn't exactly the truth, but he supposed it wasn't really lying, either... how could he be expected to relay something even he didn't quite understand? Owlshade flicked his long tail, pale eyes sweeping across the camp. "I do have a question, though... why haven't I been allowed an apprentice, yet? Is my performance as a warrior lackluster? Is there something I could be improving on?"

Smallbean nodded slowly in response before leaning down to take another bite from the rabbit. Owlshade was kinda like him in a way, he supposed that's why they hadn't really talked before-- they both kept to themselves. Recently, though, he was trying to branch out, this conversation being a result of that.

When Owlshade brought up mentorship, Smallbean stopped mid-bite. "Oh- No, it's not that at all!" He rushed. He wasn't even aware of the fact that something like that would bother a warrior. It'd never bothered him before, maybe it's why he'd never thought about it. "You're not a bad warrior at all, your performance is just fine, don't worry. It's just that there hasn't been many new apprentices lately, y'know? You aren't being singled out, there's just... so many warriors." He hoped his explanation was comprehensible for how little time he gave himself to process his words. "I promise you, it's just coincidence. I'm sorry if you felt like it was your fault or something like that. You're doing everything just fine... If there's by chance something I notice you need to work on, I'll be sure to let you know, though."