Murky Dreams and Ravens Wings [Murkystrike]

Ravenpaw woke as the sun rose, and walked out of the apprentices den. She yawned and walked slowly over to the fresh-kill pile. She pulled a mouse out of the middle, leaving the fresher prey for some of her clan mates, and plopped down a short distance away. She had been having these half nightmares plague her recently. She wasn't sure if they were from the pressure of training and hunting, or if they were something else. She ate slowly, thinking about what she should do. She wasn't training today, and wasn't needed on a patrol, so she had nothing to do. She could ask one of the other cats to hunt with her, but she had been doing that a lot recently.

Ravenpaw had been debating on talking to Murkystrike, and had been pushing it off. She didn't want to bother her, but maybe she wasn't as busy today. After she finished the mouse, she groomed herself a bit and watched clan cats move about the camp. Everything had become routine, but having a day of rest was odd to her. When the she-cat had procrastinated enough, she stood and looked to see if Murkystrike was anywhere in the camp. She would check the warrior's den next if she didn't find her.

Murkystrike had returned from a border patrol, the last of the night, and dismissed the other warriors that had accompanied her. As they left her side and went to curl in their nests, the deputy yawned and shook her head before looking around the camp. Spotting a small group nearby of the cats she had asked the night before to stand watch through the day, she wandered over and spoke with them briefly, reporting the lack of twoleg stench at the border but reminding them to keep an eye out for anything suspicious. With the weather warming, twolegs would start walking their dogs again... And she wanted to avoid another death like Brighteye's.

After walking away from the group, she decided that she would groom her pelt. Recent rain made the marsh even more muddy than usual, so she took her time working out the splattered dirt from her fur. Movement near the fresh-kill pile caught her eye, and she looked up to see Ravenpaw eating a mouse slowly. She purred to herself, smiling as she watched her adopted kit fondly. She had settled into clan life so well, and from what she had been told by Moonshine, her training was going magnificently. As she finished eating, Murkystrike watched as she seemed to be looking for someone. Perhaps she could help, she did assign the patrols after all - she could point her daughter in the right direction. Getting to her paws, the she-cat waved her tail to get Ravenpaw's attention. "Ravenpaw, over here!" Padding to meet her, Murkystrike greeted her with a smile, nuzzling the top of her head gently. "It seemed like you were looking for someone. Can I help?"

Ravenpaw's ears perked up as she heard her adoptive mother's voice. Just the cat I was looking for. the she-cat thought to herself as she turned towards Murkystrike. "I was actually looking for you." She became nervous, wondering if she should actually talk to Murkystrike like she was planning, or if she should just wait. Her tail twitched a bit as she started to worry, but she watched Murkystrike instead.

"Oh! Alright, well, here I am! What did you need, my dear?" She purred, a little surprised that Ravenpaw had been looking for her specifically. Her daughter's tail seemed to twitch with worry, an emotion that spread to her face as well. Concern grew in her gaze as she looked at Ravenpaw. "What's troubling you?"

Ravenpaw relaxed a bit at Murkystrike's tone. She appreciated how kind the she-cat was to her, and she decided it was better to talk now, than to put it off. "I'm not sure where to start, there are a few things." She decided to start with the easiest, and more exciting of the things on her mind. "So, I'm not sure if you heard, but on my first day of training, Moonshine literally ran into an owl."

Murkystrike settled in next to Ravenpaw as she relaxed, letting their pelts brush against each other as she started to talk. She mentioned that their were a few things, and her concern grew again. Had something happened she wasn't aware of? Thankfully, the first thing she mentioned was the fight with an owl. She had heard about that when Moonshine reported it, and she smiled a little. "I did hear about that. Moonshine reported it once you both returned from camp. I heard that you did a good job of fighting against it, especially for it being your first day of training! I believe Moonshine also ran into one when she was still Moonpaw, very early into her own apprenticeship."

Ravenpaw enjoyed the bit of praise Murkystrike gave her and she looked to the warrior. "Did she really? Owl's are bigger than I thought they would be. It gave me a good scratch too." She bumped lightly against her mother playfully, enjoying the sounds of the cats around camp. "Another thing I wanted to talk to you about was Mistyfalcon."

"She did!" Murkystrike purred, nodding in agreement. "Yes, they are. I always thought that they were smaller than they are, that is until I fought one myself a few moons ago. I'm glad that your wound healed well! I'm sure that Rookfire took good care of it." She purred, nuzzling Ravenpaw's head as she bumped against her lightly. The conversation shifted, and Murkystrike's ears turned a bit as she mentioned Mistyfalcon. He had been willing to support her in adopting Ravenpaw, but... She wasn't sure if the two had ever talked. Had something happened? Her heart skipped a beat as she silently prayed that this would be a good conversation, and not a bad one. "Oh? What would you like to talk about with him? Is everything alright?" She asked, looking at Ravenpaw intently.

Ravenpaw nodded, "Nothing bad!" Ravenpaw spoke quickly, not wanting Murkystrike to worry. "I actually talked to Mistyfalcon not too long ago. I enjoyed our talk, and I had asked him if he wanted to hunt with me." She looked to the ground, unsure. "I'm just... not sure if he likes me? I know he's your mate, and my clanmate, but I don't know if he sees me as anything other than another cat in ShadowClan, if that makes sense." She flicked her tail in frustration. Ravenpaw was having trouble saying things the way she meant them, and she hoped Murkystrike understood.

Her gaze softened as Ravenpaw quickly reassured her that nothing bad had happened, and she purred as the young cat revealed that they had spoken and had enjoyed their discussion. Warmth filled her chest as she pictured the two talking, and she smiled to herself at the thought. However, Ravenpaw looked down to the ground, her voice taking on an edge of uncertainty. Murkystrike crouched down to look at her, concern in her eyes. Mistyfalcon's reaction when she had approached him shortly after adopting Ravenpaw came to her mind, and she blinked slowly. "Ravenpaw... If you two talked, then he likes you. Misty doesn't really just talk, there's always a reason for it. He prefers to keep his conversations short, and let his actions speak for him. I understand your concern though. He said that he would support me in adopting you, and we had a discussion once you were settled in... But while I was ready, he wasn't. That's... Probably not the answer you really want to hear, but I can reassure you that he likes you and will always support you and have your back. No matter what. Maybe on your hunt you can talk to him more about it... Maybe time has helped him be ready, and if something like that is what you want, I know that he'll at least be willing to hear you out. If you want me there, I will gladly tag along." She purred, nuzzling her daughter's head gently.

Ravenpaw leaned her head into the nuzzle from Murkystrike and purred lightly. "Thank you." She understood that Mistyfalcon may have not been ready for her mother to adopt a kit, but it didn't bother the she-cat as much as she thought it would. "I think I will be alright with Mistyfalcon. I would like to think I've gotten pretty good at hunting!" She looked out over the camp, thinking back to her first catch, and all the ones she had probably gotten after that.

"Of course, Ravenpaw." Murkystrike purred as her daughter leaned into the contact. The young she-cat seemed to understand, and Murkystrike was grateful that she was so calm and understanding. A smile lit up her face as Ravenpaw continued, and she nodded, gazing at Ravenpaw with pride and love. "I'm so very happy to hear it. Perhaps soon you'll become a warrior! I doubt it will be much longer, you've learned so quickly. I'm so very proud of you, Ravenpaw." Murkystrike mewed softly. "Perhaps when you both return from the hunt the three of us can eat together, and you can tell me all about it!"

The praise from Murkystrike made Ravenpaw purr. She was glad that her the warrior was proud of her, and would be glad to share all about the hunt when it happened. She let her herself enjoy the moment for a little while before she spoke again. "There is one more thing." This time, Ravenpaw only hesitated for a moment before she continued speaking. "When Mistyfalcon and I talked, he told me you had been taken by Asylum..." At this she trailed off, choosing her next words more carefully. "I wanted to make sure you were okay. He didn't tell me the full story, but I know it had to have been extremely difficult." Towards the end of that sentence, the apprentice's words became harsher, more angrier, but only towards what the warrior had gone through. She took a deep breath to calm herself before she finished. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, I just wanted to know if you were okay."

"Oh?" Murkystrike couldn't help the surprise in her voice when Ravenpaw said there was one more thing. When her daughter hesitated, Murkystrike's tail tip flicked nervously. She blinked as she started to speak again, realization crossing her features. Ah, so she had been told... However, her reason for bringing it up wasn't quite what she had expected. She had anticipated questions about Asylum... Not of her own well-being. A gentle smile spread across and face, and she pulled Ravenpaw in close. "Yes, my dear, I'm alright. It was a... Difficult time, and I almost gave up... But I didn't. I'm here now, and surrounded by a beautiful family that I've made and found along the way. You and Mistyfalcon both are a part of that. Had things not gone the way they did... Perhaps we wouldn't be where we are now. So I wouldn't change it for anything under the stars. There are still nights that are worse than others, but they're fewer and farther between now. It's something that will always haunt me, but I am the only one that can decide if I will let it debilitate me or empower me. And with all of your support... It's an easy choice to make, really." She purred, licking Ravenpaw's head. "Thank you for checking in on me, I appreciate it."

Ravenpaw purred as Murkystrike responded, happy to be a part of the family the warrior had referred to. "I'm glad that you found me. So much could have been different if you hadn't." She leaned against the warrior, still purring as she spoke again. "Of course I would check in on you, and I'm glad you're doing better. If you ever need to talk, I'm here for you." She looked out over the camp, relieved. Everything would be fine, there was no reason to worry.