Chin Up, Sunshine [Sunfire]

Wolfblossom led the way out of camp, ears twitching with the calls of birdsong around them. She had pulled Sunfire onto her patrol today, and while the intent was to hunt, that was secondary to Wolfblossom's current goal. There were other hunting patrols already out, after all. Two cats alone were not much of a patrol.

The creek was running high between snowmelt and recent rains, but today was dry, the sky above cloudless. She glanced toward her son, and as he hadn't already darted off in search of prey, she spoke. "How are you holding up, Sunfire?"

When Sunfire had first been apprenticed, and moved out of the nursery, it had been a rude awakening. Up until that point, the tom had lived with his mother, and, well, Wolfblossom was a great mother, close with all her kits and always there to lend a shoulder or an ear. Now that he was a warrior, it seemed funny to Sunfire that the support had been so attainable, back when he didn't need it. Sunkit knew what he wanted, and rarely relied on the sort of coddling that Sunpaw had desperately needed. But Bloodstrike had been a thorough mentor, and rarely allowed him to be on still paws. When he wasn't training, he was sleeping off the exhaustion from training. That was a quick and brutal introduction to the real world, and had rapidly stripped him of any opportunity or, really, desire to approach Wolfblossom for help.

Still, though... as they walked side by side, neither of them breaking off to hunt just yet, Sunfire found himself relaxing for the first time in what seemed like days. Though he didn't immediately show it on his face, he was happy to be here... and happy to get some quality time with his mother. Even if it meant she was going to ask prying questions.

The dappled tom let the question hang in the air for a long while before he finally opened his mouth to respond. But... nothing came out. He didn't know what to say. How was he holding up? Sunfire met his mother's gaze, and for once his eyes weren't smoldering and hard, but... soft, and conflicted. "I dunno," was all he said for a long while. Then he sighed, looking away. "Things seem really complicated lately. It's been a lot to take in."

He knew she was familiar with most of his strife... there were fewer cats more observant and intelligent than his mother. But before he felt the need to explain further, he saw movement up ahead, and immediately loped towards it. It was a bird - a fledgling, just out of the nest and unable to fly more than a few fox-lengths at a time. Sunfire angled towards it, and had it pinned and then killed in just a moment. Letting it lie there at his paws, he snapped his head up and looked around. Usually, where there was one fledgling, there would be more. But for the time being, he didn't see anything, so he snatched the little bird back up and trotted back to his mother's side.

The member 'JJ' has done the following action : Dice roll

---

'Hunting Dice' : 5

The golden dappled tom let the question hang as they walked, and Wolfblossom wasn't sure he was going to answer at all until he finally did. His confusion and conflict was evident, and not at all unexpected. Wolfblossom understood the sentiment because she shared it, but before Wolfblossom could form a reply her son was off, snagging a bird. A purr rumbled in her throat at the quick catch, "Good catch." she acknowledged with a purr. He had learned well. She glanced around, hoping to spot more of the fledglings, but it seemed that Sunfire had found the only one in the area. Which was fine by her, allowing Wolfblossom the chance to answer him.

"Complicated, yeah... That feels like an understatement, doesn't it?" Wolfblossom sighed. "We'll figure things out." Somehow, they had to. Wolfblossom didn't know how, but they would. The only question was when. Not if, because if brought with it possibility of failure that Wolfblossom did not want to accept.