unusual introductions to kin [closed]

"Where's your mother, kit?" The warrior admittedly hadn't paid much attention to where he was walking. A frog was cluched between his teeth and he'd nearly stumbled over the little black and white frame. Fangsnap wasn't in the mood to deal with kits. A frail patience was one of his trademarks. With the death of his last apprentice and the disappearance of Smokepelt, the russet tom further longed to stay away from young cats. Fangpaw had only been the beginning.

He'd made up his mind to pad away before blinking and noticing this kit looked quite a bit like Soottail. It was either a shocking coincidence or this happened to be her offspring. Exhaling slowing from the sides of his maw, Fangsnap dropped the frog and narrowed his eyes. The she-cat and him had previously been rather close but they hadn't spoken in a while. At the very least, he owed it to her to be decent towards her kit, "What's your name?"

Marshkit hadn't exactly been paying the most attention to her surroundings. She was watching kits play outside of the nursery but Marshkit didn't want to join in. The kits had gone back inside the den now and Marshkit was bored, she wasn't tired, that's why she wasn't in the nursery, so she was just wandering around camp by herself. At least, she was, until a big orange paw was suddenly in her path. Marshkit almost tripped over, she stumbled backwards, looking up at the warrior with big multicoloured eyes. "My mother? Soottail is in the Nursery." She responded, flicking her tail back towards it.

The warrior seemed like he wanted to walk away for a moment and she let her head tilt to the side as he didn't move. When asked her name, Marshkit shrugged. "I'm Marshkit, super creative, I know." She muttered, letting a sarcastic tone through. "I mean, sure, nothing out in the wild is really black and white, so I guess mother just chose what came to the top of her head." She giggled. "Well, what's your name? Bigorangepawsthattripoverpoorkits?" She was quite proud of that joke. "I'm- I'm joking!" She quickly added.

Fangsnap glanced towards the nursery as the kit spoke. He caught sight of the she-cat and was briefly overwhelmed with the desire to say something to the queen. But some things were better left unsaid. A couple moons back he had decided that and stuck to it. Returning his green gaze back to the kit, he already felt his paws shifting uneasy. The longing to flee and head back to his nest was overwhelming. But if he was to be a good Shadowclan warrior, abandoning a stray kit in the middle of camp likely wasn't the way to go. Frustration build up underneath his pelt.

"I'm Fangsnap." His tail lashed back and forth and he shifted his weight on his pads. Realizing her joke, there came a gruff bought of laughter. It quickly stopped as he glanced down at his pads, "Huh. Well, I guess you're right mouser, I do have big pads. You should try to keep yourself out from under them or you will get squished like marsh grass."

Marshkit's ears flicked as the bigger tom spoke, happy that he seemed to enjoy it. She giggled a little, stepping away from his paws. "Maybe that's why I was named Marshkit! Doomed to be stepped on like marsh grass!" She wiggled her tail happily. "Anyway, nice to meet you Fangsnap! You're my new best friend because I said so!" She rolled onto her back stretching out with a smile. "How is it being a big, strong warrior? Would I be a big and strong warrior when I'm older?"

"I'd prefer it if you didn't get crushed." He muttered, finding a spark of amusement budding from her over cheery nature. Fangsnap's paws still shifted uncomfortably and there was a part of him that longed to pass her along to some unsuspecting cat. Inherently, the tom was no opposed to being around younger cats and had grown a natural drive to protect them with his life. But watching every cat fall around him... it made the warrior wonder how long Marshkit would last before she became an apprentice and would fall to some danger of the world.

Fangsnap winced ever so slightly at being called her best friend. What a straightforward and trusting creature. She was ignorant to the blood on his paws. At times, he felt bad for blending in so easily besides them, wearing this disguise that kept Shadowclan from knowing the real him. Most cats thought he was merely a poor little lost apprentice, scarred by the pain of being ripped away from his clan and fighting twolegs. Clenching his teeth, he sought to sink fangs into the soft flesh of his lower jaw and banish such thoughts.

"It's fine. Hunting and fighting for survival isn't a glorious thing but it's a far softer life than being out on your own without a clan. You'll do fine, kit, I'm sure." But he really wasn't.

Marshkit tilted her head, the older tom seemed to hesitate for a moment before speaking again. "Oh, well have you been out in the wild on your own before? Is that how you know clan life is softer?" Marshkit suddenly felt like she was being a bit too curious, but if Fangsnap was her best friend, he should appreciate her chattiness. "I bet I'm gonna be a strong warrior, and you can show me how to fight and- yeah!" She rolled back onto her paws. "Well now I'm really curious, so have you been out on your own without a clan before?"

"I spent a lot of time outside the clan. In filthy, terrible places a kit like you couldn't even picture in nightmares." Fangsnap grunted, briefly flickering his eyes shut as the memories overwhelmed him. A numbness swept through his chest and he swallowed. It seemed that every time he shut out the world, he was condemned to watching the death of Fangpaw before him. The consuming blood, the horrible sounds, the gasping breath...

"There are other cats far better suited to train you than me." He looked back down at Marshkit, fighting to push away the thoughts that wanted to send him running like a scared kit. In this moment, the little black and white she-cat likely had more resolved than him. Fangsnap paused, regarding her with a curious look, one that was mostly glossed over with a far away stare, "Yes, I was without a clan for sometime. Hope you never end up that way, mouser."

Marshkit tilted her head as she listened to Fangsnap's reply. He sounded so serious, what a strong warrior! She watched Fangsnap with wide eyes as he talked. After he finished Marshkit stretched out. "Aww... But you could be the best mentor in Shadowclan! You don't know! I-If you've already mentored a cat- well- then you could try again!" Marshkit really believed in Fangsnap, even if she shouldn't of. "You'd be so tough and stuff because you weren't in Shadowclan for a long time- you could look in the face of danger and fight it!" She playfully swiped at the warrior's face, not hitting him.