an innocent question

Thalia tried to steady her paws as she sought out one of her clanmates - one of the precious few she had known before she'd come to ShadowClan, and one of those she trusted the most. Which was why she was willing to trust him with the question that was on her mind. There was nothing to worry about, she tried to remind herself. If what she wanted was possible, then Emberleap was the best cat she knew to help her, and if it wasn't he would probably be able to tell her. Even if it wasn't, maybe he could offer some advice. She doubted he would be upset with her for asking, at least. "Hey, Emberleap - can I ask you something?"

Emberleap had been hard at work reinforcing the brambles making up the warriors’ den. Not that they needed it—they looked good as new already—but he had to keep his mind off the walking corpses around camp somehow. In any case, he perked up the moment a voice reached his ears. “Oh—Thalia—of course!” As he turned to face her (so quickly he nearly got tangled up in his own legs), most of his mottled tail swished high in a greeting; the end dangled, as always. Of the few friends he’d managed to make and keep, Thalia ranked among the highest. By now, they all knew at least a little about where he’d come from—they had to, really, to be considered friends in the first place. A bond founded on lies was no bond at all. But Thalia knew, the way an ever-dwindling number of cats did. He could well and truly relax around her.

Much like she understood him, he understood her, and the longer he looked, the clearer he saw something strange in her posture. Something serious—nervous, even. Which made sense considering how much ShadowClan had to worry about these days, but still. The light in Emberleap’s eyes faltered first; the rest of his expression followed suit, settling into a concerned frown. “…Did something happen?”

Thalia blinked, unaware of just how obvious her nervousness was. "Um- maybe? Wait, no- at least, I don't think so?"

Emberleap was a dear friend, someone who had seen her even at her worst, and she was grateful that of all the places she might have wound up it had been here in ShadowClan, with him still close by. Still, she could feel the old anxiety that had shadowed her in her youth flaring up again, making her trip over her words more than usual. She was usually fairly calm and capable these days, but sometimes it felt like she was still a young cat hiding behind a face that wasn't her own in unfamiliar territory - especially now, when complicated nostalgia for those same days was what had led her here and when every nightmare had returned to haunt her in her sleep. She forced herself to take a deep breath and stand tall. "No, no. Nothing's- nothing's wrong. Well... No more than usual, anyway? Probably. I just wanted to ask a question!"

She had, if nothing else, trained herself out of apologizing too much. She lowered her voice, less out of fear that they'd be overheard than her own comfort. Not that she particularly wanted the dead that walked among them to hear her next words, but she was under no illusions of true privacy. "You still know... How to deal with pelts, right? I... Do you know how to restore them?" Thalia sighed. Maybe it was a stupid question, but she pressed on anyway. "Or- replace them, maybe. I can't keep wearing it. I mean, I could- but I'm so afraid it will get damaged, somehow, and it's..."

She closed her eyes, allowing herself to return to a simpler time for just a moment. Green eyes flashing in the shadows, a hint of sand-colored fur showing from under something else. Her best friend, her partner, who had once upon a time promised to return to her. "It's the only thing I have left of Katana, and I can't bear to lose that. But... Sometimes I still feel like I need something to hide behind- especially now. I don't know what to do. I just thought, if anyone did... It might be you."

Nervously, she awaited his response - reminding herself, again, that the worst thing he could possibly say was that he couldn't help her. Even with the Dark Forest about, in this moment she had nothing to be afraid of. She had to remember that.