Sturdy Roots [closed for Owl Tree fam]

ooc; This topic is for the Owlshriek x Maplespring litter!

Greenleaf. The warmth of its rays shining onto her golden tabby pelt were something she certainly welcomed. Occasions where the molly found herself outside of the nursery were becoming fewer and fewer, and she'd relied heavily upon the other queens to ensure her kits were doing well in their training. Whenever they'd come to see her, naturally the former Windclanner would do her best to appear as if she was full of life and vibrant for them. After all, they all had such a vibrancy to them, even Sleepypaw. But now, as she found herself resting in the sun outside of the nursery, all she wanted to do was sleep.

Her curled-up frame was looking more and more hollow each day, namely due to the fact that much of her golden coat seemed to have thinned. What once was much thicker, though still sleek, to protect her from the mooren winds was now simply... there. Her gaze had dulled, and all around, she'd simply... slowed down. But Maplespring still did her best to take care of herself. She was still eating, still getting up and walking around. Just much... slower.

Stretching herself out to soak up much more of the sun, Maplespring found herself letting out a small purr. Should any of her kits or even Owlshriek come by, she'd gladly opt for conversation. But for the time being? Napping in the sun was certainly what she wanted to do.

Although Hickorypaw tended to keep his bright spirits up, the tom couldn't help but notice that his mother continued to sit in the nursery, sleeping, or slowly moving around. He felt sad seeing Maplespring, who he knew to be the cheerful, caring mother that he loved very much, slowly walking around camp as if she were useless. Seeing that his brother was over there already, Hickorypaw bounded over.

"Hey mum!" Hickorypaw purred before nodding to his brother and sitting down next to them. He looked down at his brown paws for a short moment before leaning forward, turning his head towards his mother. "Um... I don't think I'm the only one that's noticed this but... Are you okay, mum?" His eyes widened. "You look... sick, if that makes sense. Not greencough sick, just... Not healthy? You're always sleeping or something and your fur looks all weird now." Hickorypaw didn't know how to explain it, but he felt worried. That's the most he knew.

Sleepypaw trotted in from training, her ears flat to the side, and her tail low with exhaustion. Despite how tired she was, the apprentice noted her family gathered in the sun, resting. A tired smile crossed the young apprentice's face and with the last remaining strength, Sleepypaw trotted over.

Not saying much, Sleepypaw ducked her head and folded herself next to her mother, sharing in the heat of the sun, and the love all around. Her late arrival meant she had missed what they were talking about, but it didn't matter to Sleepypaw much at the moment. All she cared about were her siblings, her parents, and a nice warm nap.

Sootpaw followed shortly after Sleepypaw, having been out training along side his sibling. While he still had a decent amount of energy left a nap sounded nice before he would go out again. He wanted to be on as many patrols as possible and learn as much as he could.

The tom perked up as soon as he saw his family, everyone seemed to be gathering together. Sleepypaw was already ahead of him in settling by their mom's side. The dark tom approached his family amber eyes looking at each and everyone of them before settling down, wrapping his tail around his paws. "What are we talking about?"

Hawkpaw was such a vibrant tom, both in his coat and his personality. She couldn't help the smile that came upon her maw as he came by with a minnow for her. It was true her appetite hadn't exactly been the ravenous one she swore she once had, especially when carrying her kits in her belly, but the minnow still looked quite good. Surprisingly, it wasn't hard at all for the former Windclanner to get used to eating an entirely different diet. Fish didn't taste as bad to her as she thought they would have, even if she'd chosen more woodsy prey when she first arrived.

"Thank you, Hawkpaw. Yes - Greenleaf is certainly coming. So nice and warm out, isn't it?" She purred, snacking on the gift she'd been brought. Maplespring was right in the middle of licking her maw clean as it seemed just about the rest of her children all came over, and her tired eyes could only show joy. Part of her almost wanted to tear up, knowing that they still cared enough about her to come enjoy her company when they easily could be spending time with their mentors, learning the ways of being a warrior. She was so proud of all of them.

It was an unfortunate truth that she couldn't avoid Hickorypaw's worries. They'd notice at some point, no matter how much she'd tried to keep it from all of them that her health was declining. A good look at her, especially if she stood up at all, would show that she wasn't doing well. Something was wrong. Her gaze drifted downwards, snapping towards the fluffy warmth that seemed to snuggle up right next to her, and she instantly gave Sleepypaw a nuzzle on her head. That was the difference between Sleepypaw and Maplespring. Her daughter still was full of life, just simply enjoyed naps. Her pelt was still thick and fluffy, she still held life and light behind her gaze.

The smile that was on her maw slowly faded as Sootpaw also came. It seemed the only two missing from her little Riverclan family was Owlshriek and Rainpaw, but she was sure they were busy. After all, it was only by seeming chance they'd all gathered, and she appreciated it. But the realization that time was slipping away brought a bit of a saddened look to her face. "Yeah... You're right, Hickorypaw." She admitted. "I'm still me, though. I'm mostly okay. Just... my body seems to be lagging behind a bit." Maplespring didn't want to worry them. But... they deserved to know. Stars, they probably did know, just didn't know how to say anything. "I'm just a little sick. Hopefully I'll get over it soon... It's probably that I'm just not all that used to being around water all the time." She thought out loud. "After all, I did spend most of my life in Windclan. There's really no water out there, except when you come to the border between Windclan and Riverclan." The smile came back to her maw, somewhat forced by the molly. What she said was all honest truth, though. She didn't know what was wrong with her... just hope that she'd somehow fight it.

Until then, she'd enjoy every single moment she got with her family.