flightless bird [C]

Adderdawn

 
An unfamiliar listlessness sank into Adderdawn since WindClan's arrival in Fourtrees. It was not the same cold numbness of grief, nor the overwhelming heat of fury. It was just... vacancy. He spent much of his time blinking winkly at the sky and occupying his time in whatever useful ways he could. He had not been speaking much either... but he remembered how his apprenticeship had been. Dark and lonely, with only the lights of his brother and Whisperear. He would not resign himself to that sort of isolation again. Slowly, he rose to his paws, and went lumbering forth into the swall of cats. Some particular boldness drove him out of WindClan's reaches, and instead to their now-allies... supposedly, at least. It was easy enough to spot a large and familiar face among their crowd. Hesitantly, he padded over to the golden tom, settling down neatly a fox-length away from him. "Honeylight, was it?"

Honeylight had been… unnervingly isolationist the past few days. He’d spent quite a lot of time hunting solo, or finding quiet corners of Fourtrees to sit and think. Despite the fact that, for the most part, the majority of Shadowclan had made it out of their once again devastated camp in one piece, Honeylight could not chase away the feelings of dread and pure, harsh bitterness that haunted him like a dark shadow. He spent long periods of time during the day when he normally slept staring up at the cold unfeeling sky instead of resting. Startled by the force of his own emotions, and unused to being unable to put such feelings aside, Honeylight had been reluctant to seek out company.

Besides, he still felt a lingering sense of guilt for not finding Batpaw, and he was having trouble staying around his normal sources of comfort in Forestbreeze and Iceheart. He didn’t know what to do with all the feelings that were plaguing him. He was always an optimist, always able to look on the brighter sides of things. Sure, he had his moments of anger, especially towards Starclan, feelings that he often shared with Leopardsun, but… he could set it aside. Maybe he was just tired. Maybe he just needed more rest.

Honeylight shut his eyes, swaying on his paws for a long moment as he sat in the sun, before a voice and the sound of his name opened his eyes once more. It was then that he registered the scent of Windclan, and he turned his head to face the cat approaching him. It took him half a second, but he quickly recognized Adderdawn. He may have only spoken to Adderdawn once, but he felt a deep kinship in his brother Flutterpetal, and already considered the two of them his friends. He had been hoping to get a chance to speak to Adderdawn again. This wasn't exactly how he imagined it. Still, the smile that appeared was genuine, even if it was not quite as bright as usual. “Adderdawn!” He greeted with a purr. “It’s good to see that you made it to Fourtrees safely. How are you doing? Flutterpetal too.” Honeylight settled down more comfortably, swishing the ground next to him with his tail in invitation to sit closer.

Adderdawn

Though he seemed distracted– dazed, even? –Honeylight turned with a soft smile and a purr in greeting. It would be a lie to say the kindness was not welcomed in these hard times. Honeylight was not someone Adderdawn would exactly call a friend– at some point he'd started only keeping a few of those, and now did not seem like a good time to stop –but he was a friend of Flutter's. Honeylight reminded him of Flutter, too. The larger tom shared the same unabashed kindness that his brother held. Though there was a self-imposed distance between them, Adderdawn knew Honeylight to be a friendly face, if nothing else, and he could value the presence the other tom provided.

"I'm glad you and the rest of ShadowClan made it safely, too," Adderdawn mewed softly, bowing his head in respect. He angled his ears towards the larger warrior's thumping tail beckoning him nearer. Hesitantly, Adderdawn shuffled a little ways closer to Honeylight, though he remained decidedly out of touching distance. "I think... Well, no one is doing too well right now." A crisp sound that was meant to be a laugh passed his teeth. It was hard to say that he was well, and Adderdawn had never been a liar, but Honeylight did not need to be burden with the endless whorl of troubles he carried. He did not think he would divulge such thoughts to the tom, anyway; not for any slight against him, but such conversations were reserved for his brother and Whisperear.

And speaking of his brother... well, Flutter's business was not his to speak on either. They were all shaken by all that had happened. Adderdawn's paws gently, slightly started to work against the earth, a nervous habit he had picked up long ago. "Flutterpetal is the same, I suppose. He'll be better– we'll all be better –when this is over. I'm sure we all just want to go home." A little sigh left him then, a weary little sound. "Are you used to it, at all? ShadowClan was displaced a few moons back, correct? It's not something you get used to, I don't think, but," for a moment Adderdawn paused, studying his words, and a tight yet not unkind feature pulled at his lips, "I know what fear feels like, but this is... different, noticeably. I don't envy you for having to do it twice." Though the subject was unkind, there was something warm to his words. A sort of kinship, a genuine companionship through shared fears.