Sunny Skies, Swift Wind [Sunnyskip]

"Hey, Sunnyskip!" Swiftpaw's was cheerful, if a bit muffled by the rabbit she carried as she approached the entrance of the nursery. It was a bit past sunhigh, and the apprentice was glad to be done with Tawnyflare's snide remarks for the day. Having hunted, she figured she would bring something to the nursery for the queens.

"How are things?" She asked, setting the rabbit down in front of the tabby warrior before sitting, tail curling over white paws. She hadn't interacted with Sunnyskip much outside of a few brief interactions, but she seemed like a cat that fit her name.

Sunnyskip's head rose as she heard her name. Her kits were taking a nap in their nest, but now that they were getting bigger, Sunnyskip would sneak away to get some fresh air and feel the wind in her fur. She blinked away her drowsiness as Swiftpaw approached, and she smiled as she recognized the apprentice. "Swiftpaw! Hi, how are you doing today? Hopefully Tawnyflare hasn't been working you too hard?" She mewed, looking down at the rabbit briefly before looking gratefully to the other she-cat. "Things have been alright, I suppose. The kits are getting big so quickly! Ryekit is certainly a pawful..." She trailed off, looking exasperated for a moment. "Duskkit and Ashkit are much easier to manage, but I wouldn't change it for anything. Thank you so very much for the rabbit! Would you like to share? You need to eat too!" She offered with a warm smile.

"I'm alright. Tawnyflare is Tawnyflare. It's not too bad." Swiftpaw shrugged. Her mentor was rude and a hypocrite, but she was efficient. That mostly stemmed from not wanting to train Swiftpaw at all, but Swiftpaw couldn't complain toomuch. Her refusal to waste any time (time she made up for with complaints) meant that Swiftpaw spent less time with her mentor than some other apprentices.

The mention of the kits brought the quick flash of a smile to Swiftpaw's face. "They're getting big, soon enough they'll be apprentices!" She mewed, "I don't know how you do it, honestly." It was admirable, really. Swiftpaw's mother had done what she could, but with so many siblings she hadn't really spent much time with Swiftpaw for the sake of spending time with her. There had always been a lesson to learn, or her attention would be called elsewhere.

"Are you sure? I'd never say no to fresh-kill but I brought it for you, not me. Have the kits eaten?"

"That's good! I'm glad to hear you're doing alright!" Sunnyskip grinned in genuine happiness at the news. The animosity between mentor and apprentice hadn't gone unnoticed, but it was good to hear that Swiftpaw was doing okay regardless.

A smile flashed across Swiftpaw's face as she mentioned her kits, and Sunnyskip nodded along with her statement. "They will! I have no idea how it could be happening already, it's gone so quickly. They're so big now!" She chuckled before continuing, a bit more serious. "I'm not sure either, honestly. I couldn't have done it without Nightwind. He's been such a help, and.... It's unlike any father I've known. Fawnstep was never there, never recognized Muddypaw and me, or any of our half siblings. It's really nice that he is a father to our kits that I never had." She admitted, paws kneading the ground.

"Of course! Yes, they ate just before their nap, but if there's any left I'll save it for when they wake up. I swear they eat their bodyweight in a day!" She purred as she continued. "Besides, I couldn't eat the whole thing anyway, so I'm happy to share with a friend!"

Nightwind, Swiftpaw wondered if Sunnyskip knew he was hiding things about himself. She had to if they were mates, surely. Either way it wasn't her business, though she remained somewhat wary of him. He hadn't pried into any of Swiftpaw's past, and so she wouldn't pry into his. That he was a fellow outsider made her like him a bit more, honestly.

"He's a strong warrior. It's good that Nightwind cares for the kits." Swiftpaw nodded as Sunnyskip continued, talking about her own father... Fawnstep, he was Sedgekit's father too, wasn't he? "Poor Sedgekit wanted his attention too. I couldn't imagine..." Swiftpaw shook her head. Mother had so often been busy and her own father... Well, it wasn't important now. They were dead and gone, and there was little use in dwelling on it.

"Alright, thank you." She added, gaze dropping to the rabbit. She leaned forward to take a bite, another smile crossing her face. She had meant what she said earlier about not turning down fresh-kill, though she'd make sure to leave the majority of it to Sunnyskip.

Sunnyskip readily agreed, her head nodding along. "He is! Once when we were hunting, he leaped up to catch a bird. I've never seen a cat jump so high! It was amazing, but he said he wouldn't be able to teach me..." She trailed off, recalling the tom's reaction. "It's alright though, he's a great father, and a wonderful mate. I love him dearly." She purred, tail curling in delight.

The conversation about Fawnstep was slightly bitter, and Sunnyskip lowered her head at the mention of Sedgekit. "It was almost easier, as weird as it is to say, before I saw how Nightwind was with our kits. Before then, that's all I ever knew about fathers. Fawnstep was the only one I knew, and he was like that with so many other litters... I always thought all father's were like that. Now I know that isn't the case, and... I'm still not sure how I feel about it. Part of me is sad, another part is angry, but I don't want to be sad or angry." She admitted, her ears tilting back a bit.

As Swiftpaw thanked her, she shook her head a bit and brightened. "Of course!" She waited while Swiftpaw ate before taking a couple bites herself, then sitting back up and using a paw to clean her face for a moment. "I've always loved the taste of rabbits, thank you so very much Swiftpaw!"

He'd caught a bird out of the sky but wouldn't teach his own mate how to do it? Windclan cats weren't known for their jumping abilities, it was true, but Swiftpaw thought it would have been a nice moment for the two to bond, at least. It was an interesting bit of information, something that could have been a clue... But it wasn't her place to pry.

"I wish I was as skilled a hunter as he is." She mewed.

"Not every cat wants to be a parent despite having kits, unfortunately. Your kits are lucky to have Nightwind." Her own mother had so often been busy with other things... Swiftpaw gave her head a shake to clear it. Her mother was dead, there was no good to be had by dwelling on it. As far as anyone else was concerned, Swiftpaw was happy to let the past stay in the past, and most were smart enough to not pry.

"I've grown fond of them, I'll admit. They were never something I thought I would catch on a regular basis before I joined Windclan." Their training had allowed her to develop the speed to do so, after all.

"I do too.. He's not only fast, but he can leap and jump and twist in a way I've never seen a WindClan cat do. His family must have taught him well. It's a real shame about his father.... I know he was gone quite a long time after his death." Sunnyskip admitted softly. She nodded in agreement to Swiftpaw's words. "They certainly are, and so am I. He seems to be able to find the words when I can't, and I'm so grateful to him. I don't think I could do it alone the way my mother did." She laughed a little, taking another bite of the rabbit. Smiling as Swiftpaw said she had grown fond of the rabbits, and her tail curled. "You've taken to it very well! Your name certainly fits. I doubt it will be long before you're a warrior! Once the kits are grown, we should hunt together." She offered, taking another bite of the rabbit before stepping away, choosing to leave the rest for her kits.